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Month: August 2024
China calls US sanctions over Ukraine war ‘illegal and unilateral’
BEIJING — China called U.S. sanctions on its entities over the Ukraine war “illegal and unilateral” and “not based on facts,” in comments on Tuesday ahead of White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan’s arrival in Beijing for days of high-level talks.
Last week the United States imposed sanctions on more than 400 entities and individuals for supporting Russia’s war effort in Ukraine, including Chinese companies that U.S. officials say help Moscow skirt Western sanctions and build up its military.
Washington has repeatedly warned Beijing over its support for Russia’s defense industrial base and has already issued hundreds of sanctions aimed at curbing Moscow’s ability to exploit certain technologies for military purposes.
China’s special envoy for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, who has done four rounds of shuttle diplomacy, opposed the sanctions at a briefing for diplomats in Beijing after the latest round of meetings with officials from Brazil, Indonesia and South Africa.
“A particular country uses the crisis … to shift blame in an attempt to fabricate the so-called China responsibility theory and threatens countries that have normal economic and trade ties with Russia with illegal and unilateral sanctions,” said Li.
Li did not name the United States, but China’s commerce ministry said on Sunday it strongly opposed the sanctions and the foreign ministry has expressed similar opposition to previous rounds of curbs.
Last week’s sanctions include measures against companies in China involved in shipping machine tools and microelectronics to Russia.
“These words and deeds are totally for their selfish interests and are not based on facts, the international community will never accept them,” added Li.
China has been striving to present itself as a party that is actively looking for a solution to the conflict, despite skipping a Swiss peace conference in June.
After past rounds of talks led by Li, Beijing put forward proposals on supporting the exchange of prisoners of war, opposing the use of nuclear and biological weapons and opposing armed attacks on civilian nuclear facilities.
In a 12-point paper more than a year ago China set out general principles for ending the war, but did not get into specifics.
China and Brazil jointly called this year for Russia-Ukraine peace talks. On Tuesday, Li expressed the hope that more countries would endorse China’s peace efforts.
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French president rules out left-wing government amid bitter deadlock
Paris — French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday ruled out naming a left-wing government to end the country’s political deadlock, saying it would be a threat to “institutional stability.”
While Macron said he would start new talks Tuesday to find a prime minister, left-wing parties reacted with fury to his announcement, calling for street protests and the impeachment of the president.
Macron has held protracted talks on a new government since elections in July gave a left-wing alliance the most seats in parliament but not enough to govern.
The president rejected left-wing claims to govern after negotiations Monday with far-right figurehead Marine Le Pen and other political leaders.
While some reports said Macron had wanted to name a prime minister on Tuesday, the president instead said he would embark on a new round of negotiations.
“My responsibility is that the country is not blocked nor weakened,” Macron said in a statement, calling on “all political leaders to rise to the occasion by demonstrating a spirit of responsibility.”
The July election left the 577-seat National Assembly divided between the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance with over 190 seats, followed by Macron’s centrist alliance at around 160 and Le Pen’s National Rally at 140.
‘Stability’ threatened
The NFP, particularly the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI), has demanded the right and opportunity to form a government but centrist and right-wing parties have vowed to vote it down in any confidence vote.
A purely left-wing government “would be immediately censored by all the other groups represented in the National Assembly” and “the institutional stability of our country therefore requires us not to choose this option,” Macron said.
Macron said he would talk with party leaders and “personalities distinguished by experience in the service of the state and the Republic.”
Without naming the LFI, the president called on socialists, ecologists and communists in the leftist alliance to “cooperate with other political forces.”
A source close to Macron later confirmed that he would not hold further talks with the LFI or the National Rally, nor with Eric Ciotti, leader of the right-wing Republicans (LR), who had allied himself with Le Pen’s far-right party for the snap vote.
The LFI reacted with fury, with its national coordinator Manuel Bompard called Macron’s comments an “unacceptable anti-democratic coup.”
LFI leader Jean-Luc Melenchon called for a “firm and strong response” by the public and politicians including a “motion of impeachment” against the president.
Communist party leader Fabien Roussel called for a “grand popular mobilization” and rejected new talks. Green party leader Marine Tondelier said “the people must get rid of Macron for the good of democracy. He is chaos and instability.”
Macron has left Gabriel Attal as caretaker government leader for a post-war record time since the July election as he seeks a figure with enough broad support to survive a confidence vote.
The pressure is on however as the deadline to present a draft 2025 budget for the heavily indebted government is just over a month away.
Leftist parties had pushed for Macron to name 37-year-old economist and civil servant Lucie Castets as prime minister.
Melenchon even said there could be a left-wing government without ministers from his party, but this has still been opposed by Macron and center-right parties.
The president has repeatedly called LFI an “extreme” movement, branding the party as equally zealot as Le Pen’s.
Since Melenchon’s offer, center-right parties have focused attention on the NFP’s big-spending manifesto at a time when France is battling a record budget deficit and a debt mountain.
Attal reaffirmed the opposition to the LFI in a letter to deputies that called Melenchon’s offer an “attempted coup,” saying it would be “inevitable” that an NFP government would lose a vote of confidence.
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Biden, Modi discuss Ukraine war after PM’s visit, situation in Bangladesh
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday discussed the Russia-Ukraine war following Modi’s visit to Ukraine, along with the situation in Bangladesh where protests led to the ousting of former leader Sheik Hasina earlier this month.
Modi posted online that he discussed the situation in Ukraine with Biden over the phone and “reiterated India’s full support for early return of peace and stability.” He also said the two leaders stressed “the need for early restoration of normalcy, and ensuring the safety and security of minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh.”
The White House issued a separate statement, saying Biden commended Modi’s recent visit to Poland and Ukraine, and that both leaders expressed “support for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in accordance with international law, on the basis of the UN Charter.”
Last week, Modi visited Ukraine in the first visit by an Indian prime minister in modern Ukrainian history. It came at a volatile juncture in the war launched by Russia in February 2022. Moscow is making slow gains in eastern Ukraine as Kyiv presses a cross-border incursion.
Modi urged President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to sit down for talks with Russia to end the war and offered to help bring peace.
Modi’s Ukraine visit followed a visit he made to Russia in July where he embraced President Vladimir Putin on the same day that a deadly Russian missile strike hit a children’s hospital. That visit angered Ukraine, and the U.S. State Department said it raised concerns with India about ties with Russia.
Moscow has been a large weapons supplier to India since the Soviet Union days. Washington in recent years has looked to woo New Delhi to counter China’s influence.
Modi said the two leaders also discussed the situation in Bangladesh where about 300 people, many of them university and college students, were killed during protests that began in July with students agitating against quotas in government jobs before the events spiraled into demonstrations to oust long-serving former Prime Minister Hasina.
An interim government headed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus was sworn in after Hasina fled to India. Attacks were reported against Muslim-majority Bangladesh’s minorities, especially Hindus, amid the protests.
Hindu nationalist Modi’s own government in Hindu-majority India has faced criticism over the years over attacks on minorities, especially Muslims.
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US-Africa military conference to discuss legal advisers’ role in troop deployment
Gaborone, Botswana — More than 30 African countries will be represented at a military law conference set to begin Tuesday in Lusaka, Zambia. Participants will discuss the role of legal advisers in the deployment of troops as conflicts threaten stability across Africa.
The four-day African Military Law Forum will be co-hosted by the Zambian Defense Force, the U.S.-Africa Command (AFRICOM), U.S. Army Europe and Africa, and the North Carolina National Guard.
Participants, who will include military leaders and magistrates, will focus on legal advisers and their role in the deployment of troops to missions.
AFRICOM’s deputy legal counsel, retired Colonel Max Maxwell, says it is critical to ensure the rule of law is followed when troops are deployed.
“Militaries deploy outside their borders to sometimes very remote places,” Maxwell said. “We want them to follow and adhere to the rule of law. What I mean is, soldiers are held accountable, commanders have legal advisers and soldiers are inculcated in professionalism. In the end, we want armies that people run to and not run from.”
Maxwell said promoting professional conduct is crucial for the successful execution of the troops’ mission.
“When an army is held accountable and they are professional and the commanders have legal advisers, then the result is that the army is more likely to execute the mission successfully and it helps mitigate negative results,” he said. “This standard of conduct promotes partnership and helps focus militaries on the rule of law, specifically professionalism. It is especially true in the face of increased challenges and more complex conflicts.”
Brigadier General Dan Kuwali from Malawi said Zambia meeting participants would also discuss ways to help soldiers avoid human rights violations during deployments.
Malawi has deployed hundreds of soldiers in the conflict-torn eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of the Southern African Development Community mission.
“We are here to build capacity as legal advisers in order to help our troops to avoid violations, but also to be able to ensure accountability for violations,” Kuwali said. “We also want to promote professionalism, because if we comply with the law, we are regarded as a professional force.”
The seventh African Military Law Forum is being held at a time when the United States is bolstering military and security ties with African partners.
Eswatini’s legal counsel, Captain Portia Magongo, said it is imperative to involve legal advisers during deployments.
Legal advisers “are more in a strategic position when it comes to decision-makers, when it comes to commanders,” Magongosaid. “Be it political, be it military policies that they have to decide on, legal advisers are always there on an advisory level. When it comes to deployment, those deployment decisions come after being advised.”
Africa is battling increased instability, particularly in the Sahel region where a jihadi insurgency has ramped up attacks.
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International force making ‘significant progress’ in Haiti, Kenyan police say
Nairobi, Kenya — The Kenyan-led international security force deployed to Haiti has made “significant progress” in tackling gang violence, Kenyan police said, two months after they first arrived.
It also said the force had helped Haitian police take back control of “critical infrastructure, including the airport, from gang control” and “opened critical roads that have enabled the return of thousands of Haitians earlier displaced.”
Haiti has long been plagued by violent gangs that now control swathes of the capital Port-au-Prince and the country’s main roads.
The Multinational Security Support Mission, which Kenya stepped up to lead last year, was deployed to help Haiti tackle the soaring insecurity.
Its promised 1,000-member Kenyan contingent is made up of officers from several elite units, of which at least 400 have already been deployed.
Set for an initial duration of one year, the mission will involve a total of 2,500 personnel from countries including Bangladesh, Benin, Chad, the Bahamas and Barbados.
The United States has ruled out putting boots on the ground but is contributing funding and logistical support to the mission.
In an article published Monday in the Kenyan newspaper Daily Nation, several relatives of police officers deployed to Haiti reported delays in their salary payments.
Gang attacks escalated at the start of the year, pushing embattled Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign.
Since then, the violence in Port-au-Prince has led to a serious humanitarian crisis.
The United Nations estimates that nearly 600,000 people have been displaced in Haiti, with the armed gangs accused of abuses including murder, rape, looting and kidnappings.
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Taliban condemn UN criticism of morality law as insult to Sharia
islamabad — Taliban leaders in Afghanistan expressed outrage Monday at the U.N.-led objections to their new vice and virtue laws that silence women in public and require them to cover their faces.
“Non-Muslims expressing concerns over these laws or rejecting them should first educate themselves about Islamic laws and respect Islamic values,” said Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Taliban government, which is not recognized by any country.
“We find it insulting to our Islamic Sharia [law] when they object due to a lack of knowledge and understanding,” Mujahid stated on social media platform X.
His response came a day after the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) decried the enactment of the morality law as a “distressing vision” for the impoverished country’s future.
“It extends the already intolerable restrictions on the rights of Afghan women and girls, with even the sound of a female voice outside the home apparently deemed a moral violation,” UNAMA chief Roza Otunbayeva said Sunday.
The Taliban announced last Wednesday the ratification of their law on “the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice,” forbidding women from singing, reciting poetry or speaking aloud in public, and requiring them to keep their faces and entire bodies always covered when outdoors.
The 35-article law imposes severe restrictions on the personal freedom of Afghan men and women and empowers the Taliban Ministry of Vice and Virtue to enforce it. The ministry’s controversial policing of public morality is already under criticism from the U.N. and global human rights groups.
The legal document prohibits the broadcasting and publication of images of living beings, as well as content believed to violate Sharia or insult Muslims in accordance with the Taliban’s interpretation of Islam.
“After decades of war and in the midst of a terrible humanitarian crisis, the Afghan people deserve much better than being threatened or jailed if they happen to be late for prayers, glance at a member of the opposite sex who is not a family member, or possess a photo of a loved one,” Otunbayeva stated.
Mujahid, while responding to the UNAMA chief’s statement and objections from other foreign critics, said Monday that “such uncalled-for concerns” would not deter them from “upholding and enforcing Islamic Sharia law” in Afghanistan.
The Taliban introduced the morality law against the backdrop of their wide-ranging restrictions on female members of Afghan society. Since returning to power three years ago, the de facto rulers have banned Afghan girls from attending school beyond the sixth grade and women from working in most fields, as well as taking part in public activities at large.
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What is Telegram, why was its CEO arrested in Paris?
China objects to new sanctions on firms aiding Russia
Pakistani judge releases man accused of sharing false post that sparked riots
France’s Macron: Arrest of head of Telegram messaging app wasn’t political
Paris — French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that the arrest in France of the CEO of the popular messaging app Telegram, Pavel Durov, wasn’t a political move but part of an independent investigation.
French media reported that Durov was detained at a Paris airport on Saturday on an arrest warrant alleging his platform has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking and other offenses. Durov is a citizen of Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates, and the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis.
In France’s first public comment on the arrest, Macron posted on the social media platform X that his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression but “freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights.”
Denouncing what he called false information circulating about the arrest, he said it “is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to rule on the matter.”
Russian government officials have expressed outrage at Durov’s arrest, with some calling it politically driven and saying it showed the West’s double standard on freedom of speech.
Telegram, which says it has nearly a billion users worldwide, was founded by Durov and his brother in the wake of the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012.
The demonstrations prompted Russian authorities to clamp down on the digital space, and Telegram and its pro-privacy rhetoric offered a convenient way for Russians to communicate and share news.
Telegram also continues to be a popular source of news in Ukraine, where both media outlets and officials use it to share information on the war, and deliver missile and air raid alerts.
In a statement posted on its platform after his arrest, Telegram said it abides by EU laws, and its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.”
“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said. “Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”
A French investigative judge extended Durov’s detention order on Sunday night, French media reported on Monday. Under French law, Durov can remain in custody for questioning for up to four days. After that, judges must decide to either charge him or release him.
The Russian Embassy in Paris said consular officials were denied access to Durov because French authorities view his French citizenship as his primary one. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday, “We still don’t know what exactly Durov is being accused of. … Let’s wait until the charges are announced – if they are announced.”
Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X who has in the past called himself a ” free speech absolutist,” posted “#freePavel” in support of Durov following the arrest.
Western governments have often criticized Telegram for a lack of content moderation, which experts say opens up the messaging platform for potential use in money laundering, drug trafficking and the sharing of material linked to the sexual exploitation of minors.
In 2022, Germany issued fines of $5 million against Telegram’s operators for failing to establish a lawful way to reporting illegal content or to name an entity in Germany to receive official communication. Both are required under German laws that regulate large online platforms.
Last year, Brazil temporarily suspended Telegram over its failure to surrender data on neo-Nazi activity related to a police inquiry into school shootings in November.
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Campaigns underway in Mozambique to choose next president
Maputo, Mozambique — Mozambique has begun a 45-day election campaign to choose the next president, with four hopefuls looking to succeed President Filipe Nyusi. He will step down in January at the end of his second five-year term.
More than 17 million registered voters will choose the country’s new head of state and 250 members of parliament in the October 9 election.
The ruling Frelimo’s party’s presidential candidate, Daniel Chapo, is expected to face a stiff challenge from Venancio Mondlane, who is running as an independent.
The other two candidates are Ossufo Momade of the former rebel Renamo party and Lutero Simango of the Mozambique Democratic Movement.
The eventual winner will have to deal with the long-running insurgency in the oil- and gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado as well as widespread corruption.
Speaking Saturday in the central port city of Beira, Frelimo’s Daniel Chapo emphasized that he was born into a poor family that lived for two years in captivity during Mozambique’s civil war and overcame adversities to become a public servant. Chapo said he is the right man to reverse the country’s economic fortunes.
“We want to combat bureaucracy, combat corruption and create laws that facilitate a good business environment,” he said, “so that investors, whether national or foreign, can come and invest in Mozambique.”
With this investment, he said, there will be more jobs, more salaries and companies will pay more taxes.
Running under the slogan “Save Mozambique!, this country is ours!” Venâncio Mondlane started his campaign in a Maputo suburb, where he promised to create an honest and transparent government and remove Mozambique from the list of the poorest countries in the world.
“We want to put an end to a partisan state once and for all,” he said. “We want a clean state, a state that works for the people and by the people. We want the resources exploited in the provinces to be used in projects in the provinces to develop those regions.”
These will be Mozambique’s seventh general elections since the advent of multiparty democracy in 1994, two years after the government signed a peace deal with Renamo to end a 16-year civil war that killed an estimated 1 million people.
Renamo has not won a national election since then. Frelimo has ruled Mozambique since 1975 when the country won independence from Portugal.
On Friday, the head of the National Electoral Commission, Carlos Matsinhe, called for peaceful elections and asked that everyone abide by election rules to avoid possible post-electoral conflicts.
“Let us not use the electoral campaign to promote disorder, incitement to hatred, moral violence that has led to insults and defamation,” he said. “We must also avoid physical violence and/or other forms of injustice, as all competitors are compatriots and only occasional adversaries.”
In an interview with VOA, scholar and Reverend Marcos Macamo appealed to the candidates to not dwell on the past to settle old scores.
“The issue must not be power, power. It must be the nation to move forward,” Macamo said. “If we come to an agreement, whoever wins, the nation will move forward. With you, I or both of us, let it happen.”
The issue isn’t so much why the country is not moving forward or who is to blame, he said, “but what will you or I do to overcome the situation? Because these wounds of the past are complicating the situation.”
The European Union ambassador to Mozambique said Saturday it will send a mission of 130 observers to monitor the elections.
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At least 100 people killed in central Burkina Faso in latest jihadi attack
Police in Iceland call off search at ice cave collapse that killed 1 person
London — Police in Iceland called off a search Monday for two tourists initially believed missing after the collapse of an ice cave that killed one person and seriously injured another, saying they now believe no one is missing.
Icelandic authorities said they called off the search after examining the tour operator’s records and determining that only 23 people were on the trip, not 25 as was first believed.
One person died and one person was seriously injured Sunday when the cave collapsed shortly before 3 p.m. local time. Both victims are American citizens, police said.
“A moment ago, the police field manager located at the scene announced that all the ice that was thought to have fallen on the people had been moved,‘’ police said. “It has come to light that no one (was) hidden under the ice.’’
Rescuers had worked by hand to cut through the remnants of the collapsed ice cave as they searched for those they had believed to be missing.
The search, which was suspended overnight when conditions made it too dangerous, had resumed at about 7 a.m., Icelandic broadcaster RUV reported. Video showed rescuers working inside two large craters surrounded by the sand-blackened ice of the Breidamerkurjokull glacier.
But by the end of the day, they were satisfied that a mistake had been made in record keeping and that no one else was missing.
Police said there had been “misleading information” about the number of people on the trip. Based on what initially was available, it was deemed necessary to continue the search until rescuers could be assured no one was under the ice, police said.
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Russia skips UN meeting pledging respect for humanitarian law
Geneva — Switzerland hosted United Nations Security Council members at a meeting in Geneva on Monday to recommit to international humanitarian law, describing an “alarming” global context characterized by over 120 armed conflicts, with Russia the only member absent.
Switzerland, which is one of the 15 members, organized the informal meeting to commemorate the Geneva Conventions, signed 75 years ago after World War II in the Swiss city to limit the barbarity of war.
“I call for us to raise respect of the Geneva Conventions to the level of a top political priority,” Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis told the meeting attended by envoys from a range of countries, including 14 of the 15 U.N. Security Council members.
Asked about Russia’s absence, he said that all members were invited to think about international humanitarian law collectively but said attendance was not compulsory.
A Russian envoy in New York described the meeting as a “waste of time.”
“We believe that the Security Council should be focusing on more important matters than traveling around Europe,” said Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative in New York Dmitry Polyanski in a message sent by the diplomatic mission in Geneva.
Russia is a ‘P5’ member which holds a permanent seat within the broader Security Council alongside the United States, France, Britain and China.
At the same meeting the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross Mirjana Spoljaric described the Geneva Conventions as “under strain,” referring to the Gaza conflict as well as Ukraine. Russia launched more than 100 missiles and around 100 attack drones at Ukraine on Monday, killing at least five people and striking energy facilities.
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California memorial run honors US service members killed in 2021 Kabul bombing
A memorial run has been held in Simi Valley, California to honor 13 U.S. service members killed three years ago during a suicide bombing as U.S. troops were withdrawing from Afghanistan. VOA’s Genia Dulot attended this year’s run and spoke to two Gold Star families as well as the event organizer, whose son survived the attack at the Kabul airport.
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