Source: China State Council Information Office 3
JERUSALEM, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) — The Israel Defense Forces announced on Saturday the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, following Israel’s airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut. Enditem
Source: China State Council Information Office
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a Shiite militia group, on Saturday claimed responsibility for two drone attacks on Israeli targets.
The group said in separate statements that its fighters launched two drone attacks on vital sites in Israel’s Tel Aviv and Eilat, without specifying the affected sites or reporting any casualties.
Earlier in the day, the group claimed four drone attacks on Israeli targets — three at dawn on sites in northern Israel, including one in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and a fourth attack on a site in southern Israel.
The attacks come following the latest devastating Israeli airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Lebanon’s capital Beirut, during which Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah was killed.
Since the onset of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has conducted multiple attacks on Israeli and U.S. targets in the region to show its support for the Palestinians in Gaza.
The group has recently escalated its attacks on Israel amid ongoing intensive Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon.
Source: China State Council Information Office
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, delivers a speech at the general debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 28, 2024. [Photo/Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs]
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, delivered a speech at the general debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Saturday.
Wang warned against any expansion of the Ukraine crisis. “The top priority is to commit to no expansion of the crisis, no escalation of the tension and no provocation by any party,” he said, urging efforts to push for the de-escalation of the situation at an early date.
He said China is committed to playing a constructive role, as well as engaging in shuttle mediation and promoting peace talks regarding the crisis.
On the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Wang said there must not be any delay in reaching a comprehensive ceasefire in the Middle East, and the fundamental way out lies in the two-state solution.
China always supports the just cause of the Palestinian people in restoring their legitimate national rights and supports Palestine’s full UN membership, he said.
Source: China State Council Information Office
This photo taken on Sept. 28, 2024 shows displaced people from the southern suburbs of Beirut due to Israeli airstrikes in Tripoli, Lebanon. [Photo/Xinhua]
Countries and anti-Israel factions in the Middle East on Saturday strongly condemned a previous Israeli attack that killed Hezbollah Leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon.
On Friday evening, Israeli warplanes launched airstrikes on Hezbollah’s main headquarters in Dahieh, which Israeli military said killed Nasrallah along with some other group commanders. Hezbollah on Saturday confirmed Nasrallah’s death.
In a statement, the group mourned Nasrallah, describing him as “a great martyr” and “a heroic, bold, brave, wise, insightful, and faithful leader” for nearly 30 years, who lately led in “the battle for Palestine, Gaza, and the oppressed Palestinian people.”
According to Lebanon’s MTV TV channel, Friday’s raids on Beirut killed at least six people, injured 91 others, flattened several residential buildings, and caused huge damage to infrastructure in the neighborhood.
Shortly after Hezbollah confirmed Nasrallah’s death, Hamas issued a statement condemning the Israeli airstrikes on Dahieh as “a cowardly terrorist act, a massacre, and a heinous crime” that proved once again Israel’s “bloodiness and brutality.”
Hamas held Israel fully responsible for “this heinous crime and its serious repercussions on the security and stability of the region,” and condemned the U.S. administration’s “continued support” for Israel.
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned on social media platform X Israel’s “brutal” and “inhumane” attacks that killed many Lebanese, including children, and called on the international community to “act swiftly” to ensure global peace, stability and security.
While also slamming Israel’s “utter disregard for innocent human life,” Iranian Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif vowed on X that “The Resistance will continue as long as the cause — aggression and occupation — persists.”
In the meantime, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei declared five days of national mourning over the “martyrdom” of Nasrallah.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi also mourned the death of Nasrallah.
In a phone call with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib, Araghchi described Nasrallah’s death as a great loss for Lebanon, West Asia, and the Muslim world.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani called Nasrallah’s killing “a new sinful attack and a crime that confirms Israel’s crossing of all red lines,” saying it expresses Israel’s “reckless desire to expand the conflict at the expense of all the peoples of the region.” The prime minister announced Saturday a three-day national mourning in honor of the “martyrdom” of Nasrallah.
Also on Saturday, the Tunisian Foreign Ministry condemned the “brutal aggression” against Lebanon, and called on the UN Security Council to adopt a “decisive and firm position to stop the bombings against the Lebanese people and put an end to the violation of their sovereignty and the threat to their security.”
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthi group described Nasrallah’s passing as a “huge loss” and “a curse that haunts Israel until it is uprooted.” The group declared three days of mourning and ordered flags to be flown at half-mast.
In a statement by the Syrian Foreign Ministry, the Syrian government strongly condemned the “criminal Israeli aggression,” which it described as another example of Israel’s “treachery, cowardice, and terrorism.” The ministry accused Israel of disregarding international law and held it fully responsible for the consequences of the attack.
In a post on X, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi expressed his country’s “solidarity with Lebanon and its people,” reaffirming “support for Lebanon’s sovereignty, security, stability, cohesion, and peace.”
In a phone call with Mikati, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi vowed to stand by Lebanon, especially during these critical circumstances. Sisi also stressed “the need for an immediate, comprehensive, and permanent ceasefire in both Lebanon and Gaza.”
Israel has intensified its airstrikes across Lebanon since Monday, marking the most extensive Israeli military action in the country since 2006.
Israel’s latest escalation further fuels its ongoing clashes with Hezbollah that began on Oct. 8, 2023, when Hezbollah started launching rockets at Israel in solidarity with Hamas, prompting Israel’s retaliatory artillery fire and airstrikes in southeastern Lebanon.
According to the Lebanese Health Ministry on Saturday, 1,640 people in Lebanon, including 104 children and 194 women, have been killed and 8,408 more injured in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since Oct. 8 last year.
Source: China State Council Information Office
Yemen’s Houthi group claimed on Saturday that it had launched a missile attack on Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv in Israel.
In a statement aired by the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV, the group’s military spokesman Yahya Sarea said a “ballistic missile” was fired at Ben Gurion Airport “upon the arrival” of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who returned to the country on Saturday after addressing the United Nations General Assembly on Friday.
Sarea vowed that the group “will continue to respond to Israel’s crimes and will not hesitate to raise the level of escalation in support of the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.”
Earlier in the day, the Israel Defense Forces said it successfully intercepted a surface-to-surface missile launched from Yemen, which triggered air raid sirens across central Israel, including in Tel Aviv.
This is the second missile attack claimed by the Houthis against Israel within two days after the group claimed a ballistic missile attack on a military target in the Jaffa area of Tel Aviv on Friday.
Meanwhile, the Houthis declared via al-Masirah TV a three-day mourning over the death of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in Israeli airstrikes on Friday evening.
The Houthi group, which controls large swathes of northern Yemen, has been attacking “Israeli-linked” shipping near the country’s coastline since November 2023, allegedly to support Palestinians in their conflict with Israelis.
The group is aligned with the anti-Israel “axis of resistance,” which also includes Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, and militant groups in Iraq and Syria, among others.
Source: China State Council Information Office 3
The acting UN relief chief on Friday allocated 10 million U.S. dollars in emergency funding for the humanitarian situation in Lebanon, which the local UN coordinator described as catastrophic.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Israeli air strikes continued to affect civilians and civilian infrastructure on the fifth consecutive day of the large-scale military escalation.
The world body’s humanitarian coordinator in Lebanon, Imran Riza, called the destruction nothing short of catastrophic, with the surge in violence extending to previously unaffected areas, causing widespread destruction.
“We are witnessing the deadliest period in Lebanon in a generation, and many express their fear that this is just the beginning,” Riza said.
He said that in less than a week, at least 700 lives have been lost, thousands have been injured, and nearly 120,000 people have been displaced, with the numbers continuing to rise. Since the beginning of the conflict on Oct. 7, 2023, more than 1,500 civilians have been killed, and over 200,000 people have been forced to flee their homes.
“The United Nations and partners are closely coordinating with the Lebanese Government to support the response efforts,” OCHA said. “We are delivering food, mattresses, hygiene kits, and emergency medical supplies.”
Riza said that critical funding gaps persist in the areas of shelter repair, food, fuel and coordination, among others. Humanitarian organizations are assessing the amount of funding required to address the increasing number of displaced people and the rising humanitarian needs.
UN Acting Emergency Relief Coordinator Joyce Msuya allocated the 10 million U.S. dollars from the world body’s Central Emergency Response Fund.
The office said the funds are in addition to the 10 million dollars released from the Lebanon Humanitarian fund earlier in the week.
In Gaza, OCHA warned that displaced people live in abysmal conditions, which could further deteriorate in the upcoming cold and rainy winter weather.
The United Nations and humanitarian partners recently conducted assessments — Sept. 19 and 22 — in two collective shelters in Deir al Balah and Khan Younis.
“At both sites, displaced communities live in overcrowded shelters and lack cleaning supplies, hygiene kits, sanitary pads and diapers, as well as clothes and infant formula for babies,” OCHA said.
The office said the first site was a school turned into a shelter by the UN relief agency known as UNRWA in the Al Bureij refugee camp in Deir al Balah. It was hosting more than 3,500 Gazans.
“Our teams found people were crammed into classrooms and worn-out tents, with an average of 80 to 100 people per classroom and 40 people per tent,” OCHA said. “Access to clean water and health care is extremely limited. Most residents are eating only one meal per day, with some people going the entire day without eating.”
The office said the second site was a makeshift camp in Abasan in eastern Khan Younis, hosting 2,500 people, including nearly 1,000 school-aged children.
“The site is in a flood-prone area, adjacent to a site where garbage is being dumped,” OCHA said. “There are no medical facilities and there is no food support at this site, except for occasional hot meals provided by a charity organization.”
The office said humanitarian aid movements in Gaza face significant access constraints.
“Nearly 90 percent of coordinated humanitarian movements between northern and southern Gaza so far in September have been either denied or impeded,” OCHA said.
In the West Bank, the office said the number of internal movement obstacles deployed by Israeli forces increased by more than 20 percent since June 2023.
Since the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, OCHA said Israeli authorities in the West Bank also imposed movement restrictions, marked by the deployment or maintenance of hundreds of movement obstacles and a general closure that affects Palestinian permit-holders and bars them from accessing East Jerusalem and Israel.
“The cumulative impact of movement obstacles has been devastating, further entrenching the fragmentation of the West Bank, disrupting access to livelihoods and services for thousands of Palestinians and aggravating the already difficult living conditions there,” the office said.
OCHA said that health facilities in the West Bank also suffered in the conflict.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that from the Oct. 7 to July 30, there were 527 attacks on health care in the region, including obstruction of access, use of force, detention and militarized searches.
WHO said the attacks affected 54 health facilities, including 20 mobile clinics and 365 ambulances.
“These incidents not only hinder access to health care, but also jeopardize the safety of medical personnel and patients,” OCHA said.
Source: Australian Government – Minister of Foreign Affairs
Andrew Clennell, Host: Foreign Minister Penny Wong has been at the UN General Assembly this week calling for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon and a deadline for the UN to declare Palestinian statehood.
Yesterday I spoke to the Foreign Minister after her big address to the UN in New York.
Penny Wong, thank you for your time. You’ve given a speech there in New York where you say Lebanon cannot become the next Gaza, but Benjamin Netanyahu’s arrived in New York and said there’s no ceasefire coming. He says we won’t rest until our citizens return safely to our homes in northern Israel. He says we’ll continue degrading Hizballah until all our objectives are attained. Are you shouting into the void here?
Penny Wong, Foreign Minister: We’ve joined with the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and many other countries to call for a ceasefire in Lebanon, and I would say to Israel, you know, we want you to listen to the international community.
It is true that Hizballah is a terrorist organisation, it is true that they have not been complying with UN Security Council Resolutions, but we see the horrific loss of life in Gaza, we see 11,000 children killed, you know, the world does not want to see more civilian deaths; we have to find a different way to deal with the legitimate issues of concern in relation to the border.
Clennell: He’s not listening though, is he, no matter how many times you and even the US says it?
Foreign Minister: I can’t speak for the government of Israel. What I can say to you is when you have a coalition of countries, which includes many historic friends and allies of Israel, making the same point, then that is a very clear demonstration of the will of the international community.
Clennell: Did you expect Israel to attack Hizballah in the manner it has? What is the end game to this conflict, including in Gaza, to the Israeli Government, do you think?
Foreign Minister: Well, this is a – that’s a very good question, and what is the end game, and one of the points that we have made, and many others have made, that ultimately the end game should be peace and security in the region, peace and security for Israelis, peace and security for the people of Israel, and that will require a two‑state solution, that is the only pathway to long‑term peace and security for both Israelis and for Palestinians.
Clennell: Many, many leaders before you have attempted this, as you well know. It just doesn’t look possible; I hate to say and ask you. So is there a way out of this without a two‑state solution because perhaps there has to be?
Foreign Minister: If there is, I don’t think the international community is seeing it. We have 11,000 children who’ve been killed in Gaza, we have hostages who were taken by Hamas in the terrorist attack on Israel who are still being held, so you know, we have to work together as an international community, and that is what, you know, we have been trying to do this week saying that, you know, we have to come together, because ultimately the international community has to find a way to get on that pathway to peace, and it really comes down to the very simple proposition, Andrew, where is the long‑term security and peace for Israelis without a two‑state solution?
Clennell: What did you make of the coordinated pager attack that took place? Do you support Israel doing that to target the Hizballah leadership, or do you condemn it?
Foreign Minister: Well, I was asked about this, and obviously Hizballah is a terrorist organisation, and we understand the security position Israel is in.
Having said that, we’ve seen so much violence in the Middle East, and I talked tonight about that cycle of violence, the continued escalation, the continued retribution, that continued cycle of violence, and ultimately that will not bring peace and it will not bring security, which is why Australia and others, including the United States and the United Kingdom have called for a ceasefire in Lebanon and diplomacy to try and resolve this, because we have seen so many people, so many people die.
Clennell: You say retribution, Israel would say they’re acting in self-defence. Would you accept that they’re acting in self-defence at all?
Foreign Minister: One of the points I made in the speech tonight is that the international community has agreed rules, even in war there are rules, even when attacking terrorists there are rules, even when defending your borders there are rules, and we agreed them as an international community 75 years ago in the Geneva Conventions because we understood what it means when humanity goes into conflict with no rules. So Australia –
Clennell: So what rules do you think are implicit in that?
Foreign Minister: Well –
Clennell: Is it that you think Israel are breaking rules, isn’t it; isn’t that implicit in that statement? So what rules are being broken?
Foreign Minister: Ultimately the decision about whether international law is breached or not is a decision for international courts. But what I am saying and what the international community is saying is that civilians must be protected, aid workers must be protected, and you know, we are months, eleven months into this conflict. We’ve seen so many people killed, we’ve seen so many civilians have been lost, we’ve seen so many children who have been killed, and this is really a cycle of violence that we have to find a way out of.
Clennell: The government’s spoken a lot about fears of a broader regional conflict, you’ve spoken of that. Is the big fear of a war between Iran and Israel?
Foreign Minister: I think there’s a lot of points of regional escalation people have been worried about, obviously Lebanon is one, as you said, you know, Hizballah, which is a terrorist organisation and is an Iranian proxy, you know, there is always the risk of even further escalation.
We’ve been concerned about that for a long time, as have others in the international community, and we’ve been engaging with all the parties we can to urge de-escalation and restraint, and I know that sometimes it isn’t popular in Australia, certainly with some of the Coalition to talk about restraint, but sometimes that is the only pathway to ensure you don’t see more lives lost.
Clennell: Have you had an opportunity there to speak to Israeli and Lebanese, or indeed Iranian representatives, and if so what have been the nature of those conversations?
Foreign Minister: Yes, well, I haven’t seen – I’ve engaged with the Foreign Minister of Israel, but he, I don’t think he’s been here. I have had a conversation with the Foreign Minister of Lebanon today. Obviously with the attacks on Beirut, they’re very concerned, very worried, hoping that there can be – that conflict can be averted, very concerned about the situation, and you know, I expressed to him, you know, our desire to – for all parties to de-escalate, you know, we obviously know that it’s important that the Lebanese Government urge Hizballah to de-escalate, to not engage in further violence and aggression.
I also expressed to him that, you know, we understood the humanitarian situation, and I have just authorised another couple of – $2 million in humanitarian relief to Lebanon.
Clennell: Do you think there’s any aspect of the approach of Benjamin Netanyahu which is affected by the fact the US are about to go to an election and he thinks he may have a different administration to deal with?
Foreign Minister: You’ll have to ask Prime Minister Netanyahu that.
Clennell: What’s your belief?
Foreign Minister: Well, that’s not a – that’s an opinion that I think I’ll leave to you and other commentators. I’m the Foreign Minister of Australia, and my job is to articulate our foreign policy and our position. That’s what I’ve done tonight, and that’s what I’ve done to Israel. I’ve said very clearly, no, we understand the circumstances of October 7, it was horrific, but from day one, we have said international humanitarian law matters, civilian lives matter, all lives have value.
Clennell: You’ve made comments once again supporting a Palestinian state just now. What’s the government’s position on the requirements for that? Would you have a requirement after the October 7 attacks that there would have to be a ban of Hamas membership of any government before that could occur, or do you think some remnants of that leadership could remain?
Foreign Minister: I’ve said that – well, I’ve said there is no place for terrorists in the future Palestinian government, and Hamas is a terrorist organisation. I’ve said that there has to be reform of the Palestinian Authority, but fundamentally, you’d have to ensure that any Palestinian state did not threaten the security and viability of Israel. The whole logic of two states, of a Palestinian state and an Israeli state is that there are sufficient security guarantees that both states can live, can exist side by side securely. That is the whole logic of two states.
Clennell: What’s the status of a potential evacuation of Australians from Lebanon?
Foreign Minister: I’m very worried about Lebanon, as you know, Andrew. As you probably know I’ve been calling, advising Australians to leave I think since October. I have said very clearly this is – sorry, for some months, I should say. I’ve said very clearly, you know, we are worried about regional escalation, we have had do not travel for some time, for months now we have been saying please come home, we’ve done that over and over again, and the reason is we have so many Australians in Lebanon, and we are concerned about regional escalation, so I would again say to any Australian in Lebanon, please leave, please leave by whatever means are available whilst Beirut airport is still open.
Clennell: Peter Dutton has essentially said there’s only one good side on this war and that’s Israel, and we should be giving Israel all our support as a country. When he went to Israel he was left with the impression the administration was bemused Australia had not provided more support to it. What do you make of that view of Mr Dutton, because it creates a clear partisan difference on Foreign Affairs, doesn’t it?
Foreign Minister: Well, I think our support for the existence of the state of Israel, which is bipartisan, does not mean we walk away from supporting international humanitarian law. It does not mean we don’t say each civilian should be protected. I mean Mr Dutton should remember Australia is, you know, we’re a country that prides ourself on our respect for the rule of law, and that has to apply internationally as well, and that is why it is appropriate for Australia to talk about the need to protect civilians.
Clennell: The US this week said they were banning certain Chinese electric vehicles from their country because they could be remotely operated in a war situation. Chris Bowen said at the moment we’re not going to do the same. Have you had any advice in relation to this, what’s behind our stance on this?
Foreign Minister: Well, look, we will continue to discuss this with the United States, we will continue to take advice from our security agencies about this and about all other matters.
Clennell: You called Vladimir Putin a coward in your speech for using the veto of the Security Council to protect his illegal actions in Ukraine. You want reform of the UN Security Council, is that maybe too ambitious?
Foreign Minister: Well, I do think it’s an act of a coward to use a veto to avoid, you know, your responsibility, and you know, the extraordinary thing, the really immoral thing about what Russia is doing, apart from their illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine, is the use of a veto that the international community gave them in order to protect the UN Charter, in order to protect international law and the sovereignty of all nations is being used by this man to protect himself as he breaches that law, right, and I think that is cowardly.
You know, we continue to stand with Ukraine in the defence of their sovereignty.
Clennell: So Donald Trump just met President Zelenskyy and said that if he’s elected there will be a peace deal soon, and he has good relations with both Putin and Zelenskyy. What do you make of that?
Foreign Minister: Well, you know, we all would hope for peace on terms that are satisfactory to Ukraine.
Clennell: Just finally, you’re on the Expenditure Review Committee of Cabinet, one of the key leaders of the government. Has there been in recent months any discussions that the government could take a policy to alter negative gearing to an election; is this something the Treasurer and or Housing Minister are interested in?
Foreign Minister: That’s a good try, Andrew, but you know, you know, we don’t discuss what happens in Cabinet, and what I would say is what I’ve said publicly, we don’t have any plans in relation to negative gearing. What we do want to do though is increase the supply of housing, and that’s what we’re trying to do.
Clennell: Foreign Minister Penny Wong in New York. Thanks so much for your time.
Foreign Minister: Good to speak with you, Andrew.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Parmeter, Research Scholar, Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, Australian National University
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed a major victory following the assassination of longtime Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, saying it would change “the balance of power in the region for years to come”.
This may be going further than the circumstances warrant, however. Certainly, the killing of Nasrallah is a remarkable personal victory for Netanyahu, who ordered the strike so he could claim direct responsibility for the action. And it goes a long way towards restoring the Israeli public’s faith in Netanyahu as a security guarantor for Israel.
But there are many questions that now follow this action. Will Israel, for example, launch a ground invasion against Hezbollah in Lebanon?
If it does, it would certainly find Hezbollah at its weakest point because of the destruction of its communications network in the Israeli attack on its pagers and walkie-talkies earlier this month.
Israel has also killed eight of Hezbollah’s nine most senior military commanders and about half of its leadership council.
To ensure this is a lasting victory, Israel really needs to follow up somehow. It needs to take the opportunity of Hezbollah’s disarray to destroy as much of the organisation and its arsenal of 150,000 missiles, rockets and drones as it can.
By the same token, Hezbollah would certainly be able to inflict serious losses on Israeli ground forces if they go into southern Lebanon, not least because Hezbollah is reported to have an extensive tunnel network in the border area.
And Hezbollah is a large organisation that claims to have as many as 100,000 fighters, though US intelligence believes it’s probably somewhere closer to 40,000–50,000. Even so, that is a formidable number of militants.
Hezbollah, however, does not want to get involved in further fighting with Israel at this stage, if it can avoid it. It’s significant that, even after Israel’s most recent attacks, Hezbollah has not been firing thousands of missiles, rockets and drones daily into Israel, which it is believed to be capable of doing.
There is no doubt this is an unprecedented blow to Hezbollah’s leadership and to the organisation itself.
The first thing the group needs to do is re-establish its leadership. There are two names that have already been suggested: Hashem Safieddine, Nasrallah’s cousin, and Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s deputy secretary-general.
Then, the new leadership needs to investigate how deeply Hezbollah has been penetrated by Israeli intelligence. The killing of Nasrallah and the explosion of the pagers and walkie-talkies illustrate that Israel has extraordinarily good intelligence on the internal workings of Hezbollah.
Lastly, Hezbollah has lost a lot of face in the eyes of the Lebanese public. Those in Lebanon who are against Hezbollah’s standing as a state within a state will oppose it even more now because they’ll say it’s simply not doing what it claims to do, which is protecting Lebanon from Israel.
Hezbollah has never faced a critical situation like this before. That’s why whoever takes over is going to have a massive job to re-establish its credibility as a fighting force.
But that said, it does have the capacity to re-establish itself because Hezbollah is a major organisation and very much a part of the Lebanese political scene. The Hezbollah-led coalition has a bloc of more than 60 seats in the Lebanese parliament – not a majority but significant nonetheless. It also provides social services for poor Shi’a residents in southern Beirut and southern Lebanon.
The other major question is whether Iran, Hezbollah’s military backer, will react to the killing of Nasrallah.
When Israel assassinated Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in July, Iran promised retaliation, but has not taken it yet.
After the US assassination of Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Quds Force in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, in Baghdad in 2020, Iran fired more than a dozen missiles at two bases in Iraq housing US troops, and that was it.
In April, its reaction to the Israeli killing of some Islamic Revolutionary Guard personnel in the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, was more intense. Tehran launched about 300 missiles, drones and rockets at Israel. But it also telegraphed its retaliation well in advance, and Israel’s Iron Dome, with the help of US defensive support, was able to prevent any significant damage.
These recent reactions show it is clearly not in Iran’s interest to have a wider war take place at this time.
Read more:
Is Iran’s anti-Israel and American rhetoric all bark and no bite?
Hezbollah doesn’t have many friends in the Middle East, mainly because it is a militant group from the minority Shi’a sect of Islam, which has been seen as opposed to the interests of more moderate Sunni Arab states, including Egypt, Jordan and the Gulf states.
Essentially, there will be some quiet satisfaction among Sunni Arab leaders that Nasrallah has gone because he was seen as someone who could cause a great deal of trouble for the region.
Briefly, following the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, Nasrallah was the most popular leader in the Arab world, according to opinion polls. That didn’t last very long, but he remained influential across the region.
The other aspect that would make Sunni Arab states and leaders quietly comfortable with the removal of Nasrallah and the disarray (if only temporary) of Hezbollah is that all the fighting in the Middle East – the war in Gaza and now the conflict in Lebanon – is causing anger at street level in countries such as Egypt, Jordan and others in the region. This makes the region more unstable – and Sunni leaders nervous.
At this stage, the elements that would be prepared to support Hezbollah are limited to the Houthi rebels in Yemen and Shi’a militia groups based in Iraq. But they’re both some distance away and aren’t able to materially affect the conflict in the region.
With Iran not wanting an all-out war in the region, it’s not likely its leaders will be encouraging these proxy groups to get involved in a situation that could get further out of hand.
So there are a lot of players who want to restore some sort of normality to the region. That includes the Biden administration, which fears the ongoing conflicts will divide the Democratic vote in the November US presidential election.
This plays into Netanyahyu’s hands, as he is able to act independently of US attempts to rein him in. Whatever he does, he will continue to receive US military support.
Ian Parmeter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. Benjamin Netanyahu is triumphant after Hassan Nasrallah’s assassination. But will it change anything? – https://theconversation.com/benjamin-netanyahu-is-triumphant-after-hassan-nasrallahs-assassination-but-will-it-change-anything-240090
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Asia+ Festival’s “The Woven Sounds” fuses Persian music with carpet-making to feature Iran’s cultural traditions (with photos)
Asia+ Festival’s “The Woven Sounds” fuses Persian music with carpet-making to feature Iran’s cultural traditions (with photos)
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The Asia+ Festival, presented by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, is introducing the “Middle Eastern Series” this year with “The Woven Sounds” concert on October 19 as its first offering. Persian carpet-making is a world-famous craft. Iranian ethnomusicologist and musician Mehdi Aminian will lead his ensemble to perform traditional Persian instruments rarely seen in Hong Kong and revive a folk custom of carpet weavers. Fusing Persian music with carpet-making, the programme features the folklore and cultural traditions of Iran. In the long history of Persian culture, carpets are a unique symbol and their making has been recognised by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage item. The weavers would turn the patterns of the rugs into lyrics, sing them aloud to let other weavers know the patterns while slipping in casual conversations. This long tradition of pattern singing, called “naqshe-khani”, has been passed down through generations. Aminian, after years of research, has recreated this fading custom on stage. His ensemble will perform traditional Persian instruments rarely featured in Hong Kong, including the ney (flute), setar (stringed instrument) and kamancheh (bowed string instrument). Along with ensemble performances, each instrument will be showcased separately in an improvisation session. The concert’s repertoire also has a distinct flavour. For instance, the piece “Silence” is depicted with audible music which exudes an ethereal quality. As a female weaver sings soulfully while working on stage, video footage of other carpet weavers filmed in Iran will also be shown, offering audiences a glimpse into the social landscape of the country. “The Woven Sounds” concert will be held at 8pm on October 19 at the Sheung Wan Civic Centre Theatre. Tickets priced at $240, $300 and $380 are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288, or use the mobile ticketing app “URBTIX”. The programme is performed in Persian and Qashqai. A free meet-the-artist session will be held after the performance on October 19. In addition, a weaving workshop and a documentary screening and sharing session will be held on October 17 and 18 respectively at The Mills, formerly known as Nan Fung Cotton Mills. For details, please refer to asiaplus.gov.hk/2024/en/the-woven-sounds. The second Asia+ Festival is running from September to November, highlighting the arts and culture of nearly 30 countries from Asia, the Middle East and Belt and Road regions. Apart from stage programmes, there are also thematic exhibitions, an outdoor carnival, film screenings, outreach activities and more, numbering over 100 in total. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2370 1044 or visit asiaplus.gov.hk/2024/en/.
Ends/Friday, September 27, 2024Issued at HKT 15:00
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Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
U.S. political manipulation of human rights issues unpopular worldwide: Chinese FM
NEW YORK, Sept. 25 — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Wednesday the political manipulation of human rights issues by a few countries, such as the United States, is becoming increasingly unpopular across the world.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks when meeting with United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk and multiple countries’ foreign ministers on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Over 100 countries have voiced their support for China’s position and opposed the politicization of human rights at the 57th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) held in Geneva on Tuesday, said Wang.
During the session, nearly 80 countries, including many Muslim nations, delivered a joint statement supporting China, and more than 20 other countries expressed their support in various ways, backing China’s just position when a few countries, including the United States, used Xinjiang-related issues to attack and smear China’s human rights situation.
The vast majority of Muslim countries have long seen through the tricks of the United States and understand that it is merely using human rights as a pretext to interfere in the internal affairs of China and other developing countries, he added.
Wang said that the clear support from over 100 developing countries at the UNHRC is not only to defend China’s legitimate rights but also to uphold international fairness and justice, safeguard the common interests of developing countries, and protect the fundamental principle of non-interference in internal affairs in international relations, said Wang.
Wang pointed out that such action of the United States and its followers once again exposed their double standards on human rights issues to the world. People cannot help but ask: if the United States is so concerned about the human rights of Muslims, why does it continuously provoke or support wars in regions like the Middle East, causing numerous innocent Muslim casualties? Why does it turn a blind eye to the historical injustices faced by the Arab people and not support Palestine in becoming a full member of the United Nations? Why does it fail to play its due role in achieving a permanent ceasefire and full military withdrawal from Gaza?
The top Chinese diplomat emphasized that this year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and China’s achievements in protecting and promoting human rights are widely recognized, and the development and progress in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region are evident to all.
Wang said China is willing to engage in dialogue with all countries on human rights issues on the basis of equality. China’s doors are open to the world, and it welcomes friends from all nations to visit China and see for themselves, he added.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
The Prime Minister met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati at UNGA.
The Prime Minister met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati at UNGA.
The Prime Minister opened by giving his sincere condolences to Prime Minister Mikati for the loss of civilian life in recent weeks.
They discussed the escalating conflict in Lebanon, and agreed on the importance of an immediate ceasefire and a negotiated solution.
Source: United Kingdom – Prime Minister’s Office 10 Downing Street
The Prime Minister met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati at UNGA.
The Prime Minister met Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati at UNGA.
The Prime Minister opened by giving his sincere condolences to Prime Minister Mikati for the loss of civilian life in recent weeks.
They discussed the escalating conflict in Lebanon, and agreed on the importance of an immediate ceasefire and a negotiated solution.
Source: China State Council Information Office
Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib condemned on Thursday Israel’s recent military actions along the Lebanese-Israeli border and called for urgent international intervention to prevent the situation from escalating.
“We are facing a crisis that threatens Lebanon’s very existence. The future of our people and our prosperity is imperiled,” said Bou Habib when addressing the 79th United Nations General Assembly.
“This is a situation that requires international intervention on an urgent basis before the situation spirals out of control… which will transform into a black hole that will engulf regional, international peace and security,” he said.
Bou Habib condemned Israel’s recent military actions, accusing it of escalating the conflict. “One of the gravest challenges Lebanon currently faces is this increase in aggression. The war has expanded and spilled over into Lebanese regions. We reiterate our warning against this aggression, which will continuously intensify.”
The foreign minister identified the unresolved issue of occupation, particularly regarding border disputes with Israel, as the root cause of Lebanon’s ongoing instability.
“So long as the occupation persists, there will be instability and there will be war… we have striven to resolve border disputes with Israel. However, Israel has continuously eluded the issue or disregarded the matter,” he said.
While underscoring Lebanon’s right to defend itself under international law, Bou Habib stressed that the solution to the crisis lies in diplomacy, not war.
Bou Habib welcomed a recent declaration of the United States and France which offers a potential path to restoring calm and ensuring stability along Lebanon’s borders. He urged all parties involved to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for an end to hostilities between Israel and Lebanon.
Source: China State Council Information Office 3
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas delivers a speech during the General Debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at the UN headquarters in New York, on Sept. 26, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas received a long round of applause as he addressed the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Thursday, insisting that “we will not leave, Palestine is our homeland,” and “if anyone were to leave it would be the occupier.”
He proceeded to accuse Israel of perpetrating a “full-scale war of genocide,” dismissing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that Israel didn’t kill civilians in Gaza. “I ask you, who is it then that killed more than 15,000 children?” he said.
“Stop this crime. Stop it now. Stop killing children and women. Stop the genocide. Stop sending weapons to Israel. This madness cannot continue. The entire world is responsible for what is happening to our people,” Abbas said.
Sanction and exclusion
During his speech, Abbas called on the international community to impose sanctions on Israel and also its exclusion from the United Nations following the “genocide in Gaza.”
“We call for sanctions against Israel. Israel does not deserve to be part of this organization. I don’t know how the United States can insist on depriving us of our rights,” Abbas said, adding that Israel must be stripped of United Nations membership for failing to accept a two-state resolution to the conflict and allowing the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes. “We are going to submit an application to the UNGA on this matter,” he said.
“We regret that the U.S. administration — the largest democracy in the world — on three occasions obstructed draft resolutions at the Security Council demanding Israel to observe a ceasefire,” Abbas said, accusing the United States of encouraging Israel’s military actions by repeatedly using its veto power and supplying Israel with weapons used in the conflict.
“This is the United States — the same country that was the only member in the Security Council that voted against granting the state of Palestine full membership in the UN,” Abbas said, expressing disbelief over what he sees as the U.S. consistent opposition to Palestinian statehood and rights.
He also touched upon the situation with settlers in the West Bank, specifying that 600,000 settlers currently live there. “We want ICJ (the International Court of Justice) ruling on Israel to be implemented,” he noted.
Crime and genocide
Highlighting that Palestinians have endured nearly a year of what he described as one of the most heinous crimes of the time, the leader said that “it is the crime of a full-scale war of genocide that Israel is perpetrating. A crime that has killed more than 40,000 martyrs in Gaza alone, and thousands remain under the rubble. A crime that has injured more than 100,000 to this day.”
He pointed out that whole Palestinian families have been annihilated, their family names completely erased, stressing that amid the onslaught, diseases are spreading, clean water and vital medicines are in scarce supply, and over two million Palestinians have been displaced, many forced to flee multiple times in search of safety. The deaths and injuries continue unabated, not only in Gaza but in the West Bank and in Jerusalem.
Abbas underscored that he was not speaking today “to respond to the lies” of the Israeli prime minister, who claimed before the U.S. Congress in July that Israeli forces did not kill innocent civilians in Gaza.
“I ask you, who is it then that killed more than 15,000 children of the 40,000 and an equal number of women and elderly persons. And who is it then that is continuing to kill them, I ask you?” he said.
“Palestine will be free, despite anyone who objects. Our people will live in the land of their fathers and grandfathers … The occupation will end,” concluded Abbas.
Strike and ceasefire
Right after Abbas, Gambian President Adama Barrow addressed the UNGA that “the Israeli occupation, expansion of settlements, blockade of Gaza, and restrictions in the West Bank, together with the threat of intensifying the war to a regional conflict, continue to worsen the ongoing tensions in the Middle East.”
“Accordingly, I call on the United Nations, the international community, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Member States to join forces and urgently bring about permanent peace in Palestine,” he said, adding that “we call on the international community to prioritize support for the post-conflict reconstruction of Gaza and the improvement of economic conditions in the West Bank. Even though the situation in that region is extremely serious, the intense destruction of lives and property continues.”
In the meantime, Netanyahu instructed his military to keep fighting “with full force” on Thursday, as high-stakes international diplomatic efforts were underway to pause the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel.
Netanyahu is heading to New York for the UNGA, as members of his government dismissed a ceasefire proposal that the United States, European allies and several Arab nations put forward. Israel’s military carried out new strikes in Lebanon, including one in Beirut, the capital, that targeted the commander of Hezbollah’s drone unit.
The UNGA adopted a resolution on May 10 supporting the Palestinian bid to become a full UN member and recommending that the Security Council “reconsider the matter favorably.” The resolution was adopted with 143 votes in favor and nine against, including the United States and Israel, while 25 countries abstained. China voted for the resolution.
The resolution states, “The State of Palestine … should therefore be admitted to membership” and “recommends that the Security Council reconsider the matter favorably.”
Source: European Parliament
Priority question for written answer P-001794/2024
to the Commission
Rule 144
Fidias Panayiotou (NI)
In its capacity as guardian of the EU Treaties, we inform the Commission about the particular case of former Auditor General of Cyprus, Odysseas Michaelides, who was removed from his position by the Supreme Constitutional Court.
Considering that the Audit Office is a key institution in matters related to the use of public funds and that it conducts independent external audits of the executive authority, there are serious concerns that Odysseas Michaelides was removed because of his well-known anti-corruption activities.
In this context:
Will the Commission launch an official investigation into possible breaches of the rule of law in Cyprus with regard to the situation of former Auditor General, Odysseas Michaelides, and if justified, will the Commission propose an infringement procedure?
Submitted: 24.9.2024
Source: Government of India (2)
Posted On: 27 SEP 2024 9:56AM by PIB Delhi
The second edition of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) seminar on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing was conducted at Naval War College, Goa on 25 Sep 24. The seminar reviewed the IUU fishing activities in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), its implications in the economic, environmental and security domain, and the legal voids in tackling these activities that could be pursued by the IORA member states.
Delegates from 17 IORA countries including Australia, Bangladesh, France, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Oman, Somalia, South Africa, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Tanzania participated in the issue based discussions to counter the ever growing menace of IUU Fishing in IOR.
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VM/SPS
(Release ID: 2059304) Visitor Counter : 65
Source: Government of Western Samoa
(September 12, 2024)
Faafetai Chaplain Lt Col (Todd) Brown for the thoughtful word of encouragement.
Your Highnesses, Head of State and Masiofo
Your Excellency, Council of Deputies and your good lady
Honorable Deputy Prime Minister and Honorable Cabinet Members
Honorable Chief Justice and the Judiciary
Honorable Speaker of Parliament
Honorable Members of Parliament
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Members of the Media,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Talofa lava and good evening,
It is truly a pleasure to stand before you this evening in the stunning backdrop of Samoa. The natural beauty of these islands, with their crystal-clear waters and lush landscapes, is a constant reminder of the vibrant culture and spirit that fills this land. I am honored to be here among you and to feel the warmth of your hospitality.
Each day since my arrival I am continuously encouraged by the joy, hope, and talent in Samoa.
If I’m being completely honest, I wish could sing, dance, and play sports half as well as everyone here! That said, these are very important skills I hope to improve upon during my time in Samoa. In terms of my background, I originally hail from a small town outside of Buffalo, New York and have served three overseas assignments, as well as three assignments in Washington, where I most recently served in the Secretary of State’s Operations Center. This is my first assignment in the Pacific and I am deeply grateful for this opportunity.
Tonight, I would like to take a moment to introduce you to our newly expanded leadership team. First, join me in a round of applause to welcome our most recently arrived officer, our emcee Laila Gillam. Laila joined us last week as our first-ever Public Affairs Officer. Laila has more than 19 years’ experience as a diplomat and most recently served as Public Affairs Officer in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. She is originally from Colorado.
Many of you already know him, but for those who do not, I’d also like to introduce you to our Political/Economic Affairs Chief Donald Alderman. Donald arrived in Samoa three months ago.
He is also a highly experienced diplomat working on Asia and Pacific issues and has served in Germany, China, Nigeria and South Africa. Donald is originally from Alaska.
As our office continues to expand, so too will our programs and collaborations here in Samoa.
Together, we can explore new opportunities and creative solutions that directly benefit the community, ensuring that our engagement is meaningful and impactful.
Building on the incredible work of my predecessors, my primary aim is to further enhance the relationships we have cultivated, create new relations and to continue expanding upon the core principles that have guided us over the years.
The last several years the U.S. administration has worked to broaden and deepen its engagement with Pacific Island countries as a priority of U.S. foreign policy. As a Pacific nation, the United States has a clear and abiding interest in partnering with Samoa to advance a shared agenda: addressing the climate crisis, maintaining peaceful waterways and upholding freedom of navigation, promoting development and economic growth, and deepening people-to-people ties.
Regionally, in the past three and a half years, the United States has hosted two historic Pacific Islands Forum Summits at the White House; opened three new embassies in Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu; released the first ever U.S.-Pacific Partnership Strategy; and announced plans, working with Congress, to provide over $8 billion in new funding for the Pacific Islands.
The United States recognized Cook Islands and Niue as sovereign and independent states and established diplomatic relationships with them; expanded USAID offices in Papua New Guinea and Fiji; returned the Peace Corps to Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, and Vanuatu; and increased the availability of U.S. consular services to enable easier travel. We have surged Coast Guard resources to help safeguard maritime territories against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing; launched National Guard State Partnership Programs with Samoa and Papua New Guinea; and tended to tens of thousands of medical patients during missions by the hospital ship USNS Mercy.
We are committed to increasing our assistance in key areas such as health through initiatives like Soifua Manuia returning next month, and I am particularly excited about enhancing our exchange programs like our International Visitor Leadership Program. We hope to increase collaborations through our State Partnership Program, as evident in the Prisons and Corrections subject matter exchange that was held this week by the amazing team from the Nevada National Guard. Can my colleagues from the National Guard raise your hands – welcome and thank you!
One newest initiative just announced at the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga is a funding opportunity called the Pacific Ambassadors’ Self-Help Small Grants fund, which will provide grants to local organizations to fund programs that address the impacts of climate change on the environment.
These are a few of the initiatives that not only strengthen our ties but also enrich the lives of those we serve.
Your commitment and dedication will undoubtedly pave the way for further successes as we all work together towards our shared goals. This new chapter comes with exciting opportunities, and I look forward to collaborating with each of you.
Thank you all for being here tonight. I look forward to working closely with each of you as we embark on this journey together. Let us celebrate the beauty of Samoa and the potential of our partnership as we move forward.
Fa’afetai lava! Thank you.
Now join me in raising your glasses to toast the continued friendship and partnership between the United States and Samoa.
END.
SOURCE – US US Embassy Apia, Samoa
Source: United Nations (Video News)
Abdallah Bouhabib, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Emigrants of Lebanon, addresses the General Debate of the 79th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations (New York, 24 – 30 September 2024).
World leaders gather to engage in the annual high-level General Debate under the theme, “Unity and diversity for advancing peace, sustainable development, and human dignity, everywhere and for all.” Heads of State and Government and ministers will explore solutions to intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development.
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the Organization. Comprising all Member States, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. Each of the 193 Member States of the United Nations has an equal vote.
General debate website: https://gadebate.un.org/
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مشاهدة هذا الفيديو باللغة العربية على موقع البث الشبكي للأمم المتحدة
请在联合国网络电视（UN Web TV）观看中文版视频
Regardez cette vidéo en français sur UN Web TV
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https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1v/k1vh9isohn
Screenshot credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe
#UNGA #UnitedNations
Source: United Nations (Video News)
Mohammed Shia’ Al Sudani, Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq, addresses the General Debate of the 79th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations (New York, 24 – 30 September 2024).
World leaders gather to engage in the annual high-level General Debate under the theme, “Unity and diversity for advancing peace, sustainable development, and human dignity, everywhere and for all.” Heads of State and Government and ministers will explore solutions to intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development.
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the Organization. Comprising all Member States, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. Each of the 193 Member States of the United Nations has an equal vote.
General debate website: https://gadebate.un.org/
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مشاهدة هذا الفيديو باللغة العربية على موقع البث الشبكي للأمم المتحدة
请在联合国网络电视（UN Web TV）观看中文版视频
Regardez cette vidéo en français sur UN Web TV
Vean este video en español en UN Web TV
Смотрите это видео на русском на UN Web TV
https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1c/k1c6qjmwvz
Screenshot credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe
#UNGA #UnitedNations
Source: United Nations (Video News)
Secretary-General António Guterres today (26 Sep) said people in Gaza are “existing, not living,” and if “there is any outpost of hope in this hellscape,” it is the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Addressing a Ministerial level meeting to discuss the situation of the agency, Guterres said, “attempts to evict UNRWA from its headquarters in East Jerusalem continue,” while on the political level, there are “systematic disinformation campaigns to discredit the agency’s life-long work.”
He noted that “draft legislation in the Israeli parliament seeks to label the agency a terrorist organisation and to make any activity by UNRWA on Israel territory Illegal.”
UNRWA’s Commissioner General Philippe Lazzarini told the meeting that “Palestinians are no stranger to loss, but to be dispossessed from education, which has always been a source of tremendous pride, is new.”
He said, “we cannot afford to lose an entire generation and sow the seeds for future hatred and extremism.”
Disturbingly, Lazzarini continued, “senior Israeli officials have described destroying UNRWA as a war goal.”
He described efforts to evict the agency from East Jerusalem, and to revoke its privileges and immunities, and designate it as a terrorist organisation, which he said is “an unconscionable action by a member state against a UN entity mandated by the General Assembly.”
Jordan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ayman Aṣ-ṣafadī, Co-Chair of today’s meeting, said, “the indispensability of UNRWA cannot be questioned, nor can the fact that UNRWA cannot be replaced, for doing that is questioning the right of Palestinian children to food, to shelter, to education and to hope.”
Aṣ-ṣafadī said, “UNRWA schools, most of them were decimated. Those that still stand are sheltering Palestinians, children, women who are killed by Israeli bombs and starved by Israeli siege, denying them water, food, medicine.”
He said, “we need UNRWA because nobody can help the Palestinians in Gaza more than UNRWA now.”
The other Co-Chair, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Maria Malmer Stenergard, said, “the underfunding of UNRWA remains deeply concerning” and while she welcomed “generous contributions” from new and recurring donors “more steps must be taken towards a sufficient, predictable and sustainable funding for the agency, including by broadening the donor base.”
Today’s meeting emphasized UNRWA’s indispensable and irreplaceable role in the lives of Palestinian refugees, particularly in Gaza, and seeked to explore ways to bolster political and financial support for the agency.
Source: USAID
Today, the United States announced nearly $535 million in additional humanitarian assistance to support people in Syria, and refugee and host populations throughout the region who continue to be affected by the ongoing crisis. This funding, which includes nearly $300 million through USAID and more than $235 million through the U.S. Department of State was announced by Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly.
More than 13 years of conflict have left 16.7 million people inside Syria currently in need of humanitarian assistance and more than seven million people displaced. This additional funding from USAID and the Department of State will support humanitarian partners to continue providing support to people inside Syria, refugees in the region, and the communities hosting them, including through vital emergency food assistance, emergency healthcare, access to education, emergency shelter, access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene support, livelihood assistance, and protection for the most vulnerable.
The United States remains the single largest humanitarian donor to the Syria response and has provided nearly $1.2 billion in humanitarian assistance throughout Syria and the region since the beginning of fiscal year 2024 and more than $18 billion since the start of the crisis. While only a negotiated political solution can fully end the suffering of the Syrian people, humanitarian assistance is vital to keeping civilians alive. We urge other donors to join us in stepping up to fill the significant funding gaps and ensure partners can continue to meet the needs of the most vulnerable.
MIL ASI Translation. Region: Polish/Europe –
Fuente: Gobierno de Polonia en poleco.
On 23-27 September this year, the head of Polish diplomacy Radosław Sikorski was in New York in connection with the general debate of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (AGNU). On the sidelines of the debate, the Minister held numerous bilateral meetings, including with his counterparts from Armenia, Azerbaijan, China, Chad, Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Morocco, Mauritania, Rwanda and the United Arab Emirates. The talks were an opportunity to discuss bilateral relations and the most important international challenges. Minister Sikorski also participated in a number of multilateral meetings, including the meeting of the heads of EU diplomacy (FAC), the meeting of the foreign ministers of the G20 countries with other UN members and the meeting of the foreign ministers of the transatlantic countries. The latter was held at the invitation of the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. During the meetings, the head of Polish diplomacy emphasized the need for further support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion. He emphasized that the Ukrainian Peace Plan is the only realistic proposal for concluding peace, and that freezing the war is not a solution. He appealed to enable Ukraine to defend itself effectively, including granting it consent to attacks on military targets on Russian territory. El minister Sikorski emphasized the colonial nature of the Russian invasion, assessing that in a world in which we accept the primacy of force in international relations, no one will be able to feel safe. He also presented the goals and challenges facing Poland in connection with our country’s presidency of the Council of the European Union, which falls in the first half of next year. In the face of the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the head of the Polish MFA emphasized the need to comply with humanitarian law and Poland’s commitment to a two-state solution. One of the most important events with the participation of Minister Sikorski was the meeting of the UN Security Council on September 24 this year, devoted to the situation in Ukraine. The head of Polish diplomacy focused on pointing out the Kremlin’s false propaganda regarding Ucraniano. He pointed to the Russian procedure of kidnapping children from Ucrania, comparing it to German actions during World War II against Polish children and children from the USSR. He also recalled the fact of Soviet cooperation with Nazi Germany in 1939. In addition, the program of Minister Sikorski’s stay in New York included a meeting with representatives of the American Jewish Committee, a discussion with members of the Council on Foreign Relations, as well as a meeting with the UN Deputy Secretary General and Executive Director of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), Jorge Moreira da Silva – in connection with the planned opening of this UN agency’s representative office in Warsaw and its involvement in supporting the process of rebuilding Ukraine.
Photo: Barbara Milkowska/Ministry of Foreign Affairs
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.
MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Russia is expanding international cooperation in the areas of real estate and land use. Since 2020, Rosreestr has concluded 22 memorandums and agreements on cooperation with relevant agencies of other countries, Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said.
“Including three memorandums concluded since the beginning of this year with Kyrgyzstan, India and Serbia. Studying foreign practices is necessary to improve the quality of services in the field of land and real estate and to build the National Spatial Data System (NSDS). In addition, possessing advanced competencies in the industry, the department assists other countries in developing the sphere of registration of rights and cadastral registration, creating modern geoinformation resources. One of such large international projects is the creation of a geoportal of the spatial data infrastructure of the CIS member states, which is being implemented on the basis of the unified digital platform “NSDS” developed by Rosreestr,” said Marat Khusnullin.
The geoportal of spatial data infrastructure of the CIS member states is one of the four major international projects of the department, which is being implemented at the site of the Interstate Council on Geodesy, Cartography, Cadastre and Remote Sensing of the Earth. The corresponding list of instructions was signed by the President of Russia in November 2022.
“The geoportal is being created using the experience of development and technological solutions of the Russian state information system “Unified Digital Platform “NSPD”. It will provide quick and convenient access for citizens, businesses, and professional market participants to open geospatial data of the CIS member states and electronic services created on their basis. Currently, within the framework of the schedule, the issue of providing the infrastructure of the state unified cloud platform for hosting and operating the portal has been worked out. All participants of the CIS Interstate Council have formed a technical assignment for the implementation of the first stage of work, and basic data sets for the operation of services have been agreed upon. The geoportal is planned to be put into operation in 2025,” said Oleg Skufinsky, head of Rosreestr.
Rosreestr is implementing three more joint international projects with Uzbekistan, Abkhazia and Kyrgyzstan. They are related to the creation of national systems of state cadastral valuation. In particular, Abkhazia was provided with assistance in developing an automated information system of the real estate cadastre and a software module “Assessment of the cadastral value of real estate objects”. The project in Uzbekistan is planned to be completed by the end of 2024.
The agency also signed six “road maps” for exchanging experience in the field of registration of rights, cadastral registration and creation of spatial data infrastructure. Such contacts have been established with Turkey, Armenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and South Ossetia.
In addition, Rosreestr is developing cooperation with the countries of the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, Latin America and China, and has joined the activities of the BRICS Working Group on Geospatial Technologies and their Application.
One of the key areas of the agency’s activities remains cooperation with relevant international organizations, including the UN system, where the agency represents Russia’s interests. This allows not only to study advanced foreign experience in the field of geodesy, cartography and spatial data infrastructure, but also to promote Russian achievements and technologies in the industry in the international arena.
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
http://government.ru/nevs/52817/
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and or sentence structure not be perfect.
Source: Switzerland – Federal Council in English
Bern, 27.09.2024 – At its meeting on 27 September 2024, the Federal Council took a decision concerning the final instalment of the credit for humanitarian operations in the Middle East. A total of CHF 13 million will be used to support national and international organisations working in the region. The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) has been instructed to consult the foreign affairs committees. In this context, the FDFA informed the Federal Council about how it intends to implement Parliament’s decision to reduce the humanitarian credit for 2024. The Federal Council reiterates its call for a diplomatic solution that upholds international humanitarian law and leads to de-escalation and peace in the Middle East.
As decided by Parliament in December 2023, disbursements for the Middle East under the ‘Humanitarian operations’ credit for 2024 will be made in instalments and only after consultation with the chambers’ foreign affairs committees. For the third and final instalment in 2024, the Federal Council has decided to allocate around CHF 13 million to organisations from Switzerland, the International Committee of the Red Cross, United Nations organisations and international NGOs. The humanitarian aid payments are intended to alleviate hardship, particularly in the areas of water, food, health, education, income and social cohesion in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the occupied Palestinian territory and Syria. The decision regarding this final instalment will be submitted to the foreign affairs committees for consultation.
The total budget for humanitarian operations in the Middle East this year amounts to around CHF 79 million. On 24 April 2024, the Federal Council approved around CHF 56 million for the first instalment. On 8 May, the Federal Council decided to disburse CHF 10 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). This funding was restricted to an appeal for humanitarian aid from UNRWA and to the most pressing basic needs of the people in Gaza. The foreign affairs committees were consulted and approved these funds. As a result of Parliament’s decision to cut the 2024 humanitarian credit by CHF 10 million, in view of the humanitarian situation worldwide (including possible natural disasters) and the related need to maintain a certain degree of financial flexibility until the end of the year, as well as the ongoing parliamentary deliberations on UNRWA, the CHF 10 million contribution to UNRWA approved by the Federal Council in May will not be increased within the 2024 budget.
The Federal Council emphasises that only dialogue, de-escalation and adherence to international humanitarian law can bring about peace in the Middle East. Regarding Gaza, it reiterates its call for a ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages and unimpeded humanitarian access. The Federal Council also reaffirms that the two-state solution is the only basis for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. In light of the ongoing violence in the Lebanese-Israeli border area and the resulting, a diplomatic solution is essential to enable the Lebanese and Israeli populations to live in peace and security.
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For further information:
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Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
The UK is providing £5 million to UNICEF in Lebanon to support humanitarian response efforts and enable UNICEF to distribute supplies to those in need.
The essential humanitarian support comes after further civilian casualties following this week’s air strikes. Thousands more have been displaced or forced to flee their homes.
The package includes essential medical supplies, hygiene kits and fuel for water stations, to help thousands of displaced civilians across Lebanon meet their basic needs.
It will also help emergency teams respond to urgent health and nutrition needs and provide a series of training sessions for key delivery partners and frontline workers to ensure an effective emergency response.
Minister for the Middle East and North Africa Hamish Falconer said:
Today we are providing £5 million to UNICEF in Lebanon to support the urgent humanitarian response in Lebanon. The number of civilian casualties is unacceptable, and the UK is deeply concerned by the surge in numbers of displaced people.
An immediate ceasefire is essential.
Development Director and Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy Beirut Victoria Dunne said:
We are profoundly saddened by the civilian deaths in Lebanon. The number of casualties and the scale of displacement is deeply distressing.
Alongside our tireless diplomatic efforts, the UK is providing £5m to UNICEF Lebanon, to deliver vital supplies to support thousands of displaced civilians facing a humanitarian emergency in Lebanon. The UK has been and will remain a strong supporter of Lebanon.
MIL OSI Translation. Government of the Republic of France statements from French to English –
Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in French
Federal Council
Bern, 27.09.2024 – At its meeting on 27 September 2024, the Federal Council decided to allocate CHF 13 million for the final tranche of the “Humanitarian Action” credit for the Middle East to national and international organisations active in the region. The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) was tasked with consulting the foreign policy committees on this matter. It also informed the Federal Council of the implementation of the reduction in the “Humanitarian Action” credit decided by Parliament for 2024. The Federal Council continues to call for a diplomatic solution based on international humanitarian law and leading to de-escalation and peace in the Middle East.
As decided by Parliament in December 2023, the contributions for the Middle East from the “Humanitarian Actions” credit will be paid in instalments in 2024 and after consultation with the foreign policy committees of the Federal Chambers. For the third and final instalment in 2024, the Federal Council has decided to allocate around 13 million francs to organisations established in Switzerland, the International Committee of the Red Cross, United Nations organisations and international non-governmental organisations. The aim of these contributions is to provide relief to populations in need in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Syria, particularly in the areas of water, food, health, education, income and social cohesion. This final instalment is submitted to the foreign policy committees for consultation.
In total, contributions to humanitarian actions in the Middle East amount to around CHF 79 million in 2024. On 24 April 2024, the Federal Council set the amount allocated in the first tranche at around CHF 56 million. On 8 May 2024, it decided to grant CHF 10 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in response to the agency’s appeal for humanitarian aid. This contribution, intended solely to cover urgent vital needs in Gaza, was approved by the foreign policy committees. It will not be increased in the 2024 budget. On the one hand, this allows for a certain financial flexibility to be maintained until the end of the year, given the global humanitarian situation, which is also dependent on possible natural disasters. On the other hand, this decision takes into account the reduction of 10 million francs in the “Humanitarian Actions” credit decided by the Federal Chambers for 2024 and the ongoing parliamentary debates relating to UNRWA.
The Federal Council stresses that only dialogue, de-escalation and respect for international humanitarian law can lead to peace in the Middle East. For Gaza, it continues to call for a ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages and unhindered humanitarian access. It reiterates that the two-state solution is the only one likely to lead to peace between Israelis and Palestinians. In view of the persistent violence in the border region between Israel and Lebanon and the resulting escalation, a diplomatic solution is essential so that the Lebanese and Israeli populations can live in peace and security.
Address for sending questions
For further information: DFAETel. Press Service 41 58 460 55 55kommunikation@eda.admin.ch
Author
Federal Councilhttps://www.admin.ch/gov/fr/accueil.html
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Government reappoints Professor Sir Steve Smith as its International Education Champion, supporting the promotion of UK education excellence around the world.
Sir Steve Smith has been reappointed as the UK Government’s International Education Champion.
Reappointed by Minister for Exports, Gareth Thomas, and the Skills Minister, The Rt Hon Baroness Smith, Sir Steve’s tenure as International Education Champion (IEC) has been extended for one year from 1 October..
Under a commitment made in the UK Government’s International Education Strategy, published in 2019, Sir Steve was originally appointed as IEC in June 2020 for a four-year term.
In his role as IEC, Sir Steve will continue to support the government’s international education work, including engaging with governments around the world and promoting UK excellence and partnerships in all education sub-sectors.
More widely, with the change in government, officials will conduct a review of the International Education Strategy, which will ensure that it continues to be an effective tool in increasing the value of education exports, promote policy dialogue and reflect the priorities of education stakeholders, businesses and Ministers.
Sir Steve was previously Vice-Chancellor of University of Exeter for 18 years and brings vast experience to the IEC role, where he has played a pivotal role in developing deep relationships, including at Ministerial level internationally.
In his role as IEC, he has already supported significant progress across priority countries including:
On his re-appointment, Prof. Sir Steve Smith said:
“I am absolutely delighted to be continuing in my role as the UK’s International Education Champion, working with the government, both at home and overseas, to ensure that the UK makes the very most of international opportunities, across the breadth of the UK’s world-leading education sector.
“It’s a critical time for the education sector and I look forward to building on the trusting relationships we have with our partners around the world.”
Exports Minister Gareth Thomas said:
“The UK is an international powerhouse when it comes to our education services, and I’m very pleased that Sir Steve will be continuing in his role to champion the country around the world.
“I want to see more UK educators exporting their brilliant services around the world, and promoting our high standards, that’s why Sir Steve’s work is so important.”
Baroness Smith, Minister for Skills, said:
“Sir Steve has a wealth of experience in showcasing our brilliant education sector, and I am thrilled that he will continue in this role for a further year.
“The UK is rightly regarded as an education powerhouse and Sir Steve’s vital work will continue to strengthen that reputation around the world, driving economic growth and boosting our global prestige.”
Source: The Conversation – USA – By Giang Nguyen-Dien, Postdoctoral Fellow in American Culture Studies, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis
After Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, much of the media coverage zeroed in on Walz’s Midwestern roots, with some pundits using the phrase “Minnesota nice” to describe his appeal.
In the popular imagination, Minnesota nice describes a culture of neighborliness and amicability that’s commonly seen as characteristic of the state. In policy terms, that might mean bigger investments in education, better public health, access to affordable housing and stronger worker rights – an extension of Walz’s achievements as Minnesota governor. Many Americans would probably like to see these values have primacy in the rest of the nation.
I think Minnesota nice, whether represented in policies or in being kind to neighbors, is a worthy ideal. But as someone who has studied the experiences of Vietnamese refugees in Minnesota, I’ve written about how the trope of Minnesota nice has a more complex history – especially when it comes to nonwhite people.
In her book “Creating Minnesota: A History from the Inside Out,” historian Annette Atkins suggests that the trope of Minnesota nice may have its roots in the state’s Scandinavian immigrants and the influence of the Lutheran church.
According to Atkins, Minnesota nice denotes “a polite friendliness, an aversion to confrontation, a tendency toward understatement … and emotional restraints.” These traits can be found in Scandinavian literature, film and art, as well as in 19th- and early 20th-century Lutheran values.
By the turn of the 20th century, 72% of Norwegian immigrants to Minnesota and 62% of Swedish immigrants to the state resided in rural areas. And one core element of Minnesota nice is the notion that residents are welcoming to strangers from other lands.
After the Vietnam War ended in April 1975, more than 120,000 Vietnamese refugees came to the U.S. Another wave followed in 1978. Their arrival was not universally welcomed by the American public.
To ease those concerns, government officials instituted a dispersal policy to spread out Southeast Asian refugees to ensure they wouldn’t be concentrated in any one region, town or city. They implemented this policy to reduce social and economic impacts on local communities – and also compel Southeast Asian refugees to assimilate into American culture.
In Minnesota, while many newcomers were given a helping hand, many of them also experienced isolation and rejection.
From 1979 to 1999, about 15,000 Vietnamese refugees arrived in Minnesota. My research shows that media outlets often ran articles highlighting the goodwill and generosity of locals, whether they were helping these refugees learn English, acquire job training, find work or secure housing.
The Minneapolis Tribune reported in 1975 that the state was able to avoid any major public reactions against refugees because they posed “no major job threat,” since they were spread out across the state.
Even as locals seemed largely supportive, the dispersal policy wasn’t ideal for many refugees. Many of them ended up in remote areas of Minnesota, far from a familiar ethnic community that could provide much-needed psychological and emotional support. Those in isolated areas often lacked access to social services and English language programs.
For refugees, a more complicated view of Minnesota nice emerges, one that I think depends on being not too visible and not too much of a threat to the existing order. Many refugees were certainly grateful for the state and local support they received. But gratitude also became an “unspoken condition” for acceptance, as Iranian refugee Dina Nayeri reports in her book “The Ungrateful Refugee: What Immigrants Never Tell You.”
In Minnesota, locals could seem largely unsympathetic to the complicated struggles of refugees trying to settle in a strange, new land. Rather than complain, they ought to be happy for the “small blessings” they received, as one local St. Cloud resident wrote to the Minneapolis Tribune in 1975.
When there was a sudden influx of refugees into one area, some residents could become even less welcoming.
That’s what happened with the state’s Hmong refugees.
An ethnic group originally from China, the Hmong arrived in Southeast Asia during the mid-19th century. During the Vietnam War, the U.S. government recruited the Hmong to fight in the Secret War in Laos, where the U.S. had been covertly providing aid and military assistance to anti-communist forces. After the war, some Hmong fled, fearing persecution. Many of them ended up in Minnesota. In 1980, there were about 2,000 Hmong people in Minnesota. By the end of 1981, their numbers had grown to 8,000, raising some alarm.
“Some cynics say our problem is that we are too nice and have provided too many services,” a local resettlement official was quoted saying in a 1980 State Department report. In that same report, an official with a local charity suggested that Minnesota would soon be known as “Hmong-nesota.”
In 1985, the Minnesota Star Tribune published a special report, “Hmong in Minnesota: Lost in the Promised Land,” that explored how many Hmong refugees had become “targets of racial epithets, harassment and violence” in the Twin Cities. The article noted that the Hmong came to realize that most Americans had never heard of them or their roles in the secret war in Laos. Instead, they often found themselves “resented, misunderstood and victimized by their neighbors.”
To me, the anxiety over “Hmong-nesota” recalled the history of “yellow peril” – the imagined threat of Asian invasion and cultural disruptions that first emerged in the 19th century and shaped many U.S. immigration policies.
My own research explores how feel-good tropes that are prominent in the U.S., such as Minnesota nice, usually mask a more complicated story.
The U.S. government has often used the language of goodwill as a cover for violence – a phenomenon I call “bene/violence.”
For example, the U.S. occupation of the Philippines, which began in 1899, was sugarcoated in the rhetoric of benevolence. William McKinley, who was U.S. president at the time, insisted that “the strong arm of authority” would promote “the blessings of good and stable government upon the people of the Philippine Islands under the free flag of the United States.” The story of conquest became the story of “uplifting” those deemed less civilized and incapable of self-governance.
The same sort of talk was also used to justify U.S. military intervention in Vietnam. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s State of the Union address on Jan. 4, 1965, implored Americans to secure the “peace of Asia” and “the progress of humanity.” The government promoted the war in Vietnam as a just war, in part by claiming Americans were granting the Vietnamese the “gift of freedom,” as Asian American studies scholar Mimi Nguyen has written.
Of course, this version of events ignores the carpet bombing that killed as many as 1 million civilians. It overlooks the fact that 30% of Laos is still blanketed with 80 million unexploded bombs and other ordnance. And it forgets to mention how the extensive use of the toxic herbicide Agent Orange continues to scar the Vietnamese landscape and the country’s people.
In the end, Minnesota nice signals that there’s something special about the state, just as “spreading democracy” and “protecting freedom” signal American exceptionalism on the international stage.
But the 2020 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis illuminated what economist Samuel L. Myers calls the “Minnesota Paradox” – a history of inequality that is totally divorced from the way niceness operates in the cultural imagination of the state’s residents.
“African Americans are worse off in Minnesota than they are in virtually every other state in the nation,” Myers writes.
In a 2021 essay, sociologist Amy August also highlighted the state’s persistent racial disparities in housing, health care, income and education to argue that whatever progressive promises the state makes, Minnesota is not apart from America but rather a part of America.
Ultimately, I think the concept of Minnesota nice can create the illusion of a utopian society largely devoid of the ills of racism and inequality. It reinforces American kindness as a core aspect of national identity and, in doing so, I believe glosses over parts of the country’s history – while hampering its ability to address the very real problems that plague the nation today.
I don’t reject what Minnesota nice purports to offer. But it is not a simple and straightforward cultural value adopted by – and equally applied to – everyone.
Giang Nguyen-Dien does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. The contradictions of ‘Minnesota nice’ – https://theconversation.com/the-contradictions-of-minnesota-nice-236751
MILES AXLE Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: State University of Management – Official website of the State –
Last week, a representative delegation of the rector’s office of the State University of Management made a working trip to the southern regions of Russia, visiting Rostov-on-Don and the Donetsk People’s Republic. Meanwhile, our experts turned their attention to the increase in pensions, fines for dangerous driving and car prices after October 1. Also, the curious reader is invited to read about emotional intelligence, cash flow gap, principles of the Scrum management methodology, methods of counteracting high inflation and find out in which countries of the world it is the lowest.
— Director of the Institute of Economics and Finance of the State University of Management Galina Sorokina recalled the increase in pensions for Russians over 80 years old from October 1. “This form of social support for long-livers is important, since with age, more funds are needed for medicines and help with the household, especially since people over 80 in Russia make up about 3.6% of the total population,” the expert noted. — Also, from October 1, military pensions will be indexed, which Galina Sorokina also reminds about. She listed the categories of citizens who are considered military pensioners: former military personnel, persons who served in the Internal Affairs Directorate, the State Fire Service, the National Guard and other categories, including family members of deceased military personnel. — Galina Sorokina also told what the minimum wage will be in 2025. “The amount of the subsistence minimum depends on the region and the population group – the working-age population, children and pensioners. Regions can also set their own minimum wage, which, however, should not be lower than the Russian average,” explains the economist.
— Associate Professor of the Department of Economic Policy and Economic Measurements of the Institute of Economics and Finance of the State University of Management Maxim Chirkov appreciated the initiative to pay Russian pensioners the 13th pension. “From my point of view, such an initiative is quite realistic. Although inflation remains quite high, it has begun to decline. Therefore, increasing the incomes of pensioners becomes a top priority, since they are often the most vulnerable part of Russian society,” the economist said.
— Maxim Chirkov also explained why in Russia they want to limit online installment payments. “If these restrictions are not in place, it turns out that the established institutions that are supposed to limit citizens’ risks, including credit risks, may turn out to be useless and the risks will increase,” the expert explained.
— Maxim Chirkov also outlined the relationship between inflation and public sector salaries. “The Russian economy is growing sharply in the areas of IT, finance, manufacturing, including manufacturing, and others. Under these conditions, civil servants may leave their jobs to take high-paying jobs. Therefore, it is necessary to raise salaries for public sector employees and compare them not with inflation, but with the growth of the average salary in the country,” explained Maxim Chirkov.
— In addition, Maxim Chirkov commented on Putin’s statement about working on the creation of a BRICS payment circuit. “The creation of such a system is a logical continuation of the move away from the dollar, financial systems and organizations that have centers in Western countries. Of course, an analogue of SWIFT will be created, that is, a system of interbank transfers, payment systems for individuals using plastic cards,” Chirkov said.
— Head of the Department of World Economy and International Economic Relations at the State University of Management Evgeny Smirnov made assumptions about the purposes of the proposed visit of IMF representatives to Russia. “Considering that the IMF is considered a “pro-Western” organization, the visit may also be connected with an attempt to obtain data on the net income Russia receives from participation in international trade by publishing statistics on the external sector,” the expert suspects.
— Director of the Russian Center for Socio-Economic and Political Research of China at the State University of Management Fanis Sharipov commented on the Moscow BRICS Forum and Symposium on Public Administration. The expert noted that the BRICS association is committed to supporting sustainable development and mutually beneficial cooperation. “The West does not agree to give up its positions. But the world is entering a new era of global economic relations, where the role of the East and the South is growing,” said Fanis Sharipov.
— Associate Professor of the Department of Institutional Economics of the State University of Management Svetlana Sazanova named the countries with the lowest inflation over the past year. These are China (-0.1%), Switzerland (1.6%), Saudi Arabia (2%), Spain (2.6%), and the Netherlands (3%). “Creeping inflation, within 10%, even has a stimulating effect on the economy, because producers, as a rule, perceive such price increases as increased demand for their products and, in response, increase their production,” the economist notes. — Svetlana Sazanova also explained the reasons for the growth of the Russian economy. In general, economic growth in Russia in 2024 cannot be considered to be caused only by defense orders and an increase in the money supply in the hands of the population. It is also caused by its structural restructuring: an increase in the share of the manufacturing industry and related industries,” the expert is convinced. — Svetlana Sazanova and Associate Professor of the Department of Institutional Economics of the State University of Management Konstantin Andrianov discussed what awaits the United States as a result of the growth of the national debt. “The issue of solving the national debt problem will be postponed until the next president. At the moment, the US debt is about 120% of GDP, which significantly limits the possibilities for stimulating the economy with the help of budget and tax policy,” noted Svetlana Sazanova. “Countries have begun to withdraw their foreign exchange reserves and gold from American depositories, which could lead to a collapse of the dollar exchange rate. The scale of this fall is difficult to predict, but it could be multiple,” said Konstantin Andrianov.
— Associate Professor of the Department of Institutional Economics of the State University of Management and expert of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation Konstantin Andrianov discussed possible changes in exchange rates after the lifting of sanctions. “At the moment, it is impossible to predict the exact value of the dollar after the sanctions are lifted. We don’t even know when these sanctions will be lifted. Sanctions are in the hands of countries guided by anti-Russian policies, and their political elites are gripped by Russophobia,” the expert said.
— Konstantin Andrianov also named the reasons and methods of countering high inflation in Russia. “Since mid-summer, the exchange rate of our national currency has fallen by 7% against the dollar and euro, and by 8% against the yuan, although nothing negative has happened in the economy. This significantly affects the level of inflation; for stable prices we need a stable ruble,” the economist said.
— In addition, Konstantin Andrianov assessed the extension of sanctions against the Moscow Exchange. “If the ruble has successfully withstood the sanctions against the Moscow Exchange adopted in June of this year, then it is unlikely that anything else from the outside can become more or less a serious threat for it,” the expert is sure.
— Konstantin Andrianov and Deputy Director of the IFE GUM Valeria Ivanova also predicted changes in the euro exchange rate in the event of some countries leaving the EU. “A sharp collapse in the exchange rate is possible due to the loss of investor confidence in the euro as a stable currency. Also, a sharp collapse is possible, especially if the exit of these countries becomes a signal for others, which will lead to a chain reaction,” noted Valeria Ivanova. Konstantin Andrianov notes that the situation in the eurozone remains extremely unstable. Against the background of the refusal of Germany and other EU countries from Russian energy resources, macroeconomic problems began to intensify in many European countries, including France and Italy.
— Associate Professor of the Department of Transport Complex Management at the State University of Management Artem Merenkov warned about the increase in prices for cars from October 1. “There is a stock of cars at old prices. That is, this will definitely not be a momentary adjustment. Nevertheless, we can say that a price increase of 5-10% is possible before the end of the year,” the expert believes. — Artem Merenkov also assessed the State Duma’s decision to increase the fine for dangerous driving to 5,000 rubles from October 1. “Whether it will help or not is a matter of time and a combination of actions. Such measures work in a complex. If we look at the data from the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, we will see that the number of accidents on the roads is decreasing, that is, systematic work definitely yields results,” the specialist said.
— Professor of the Department of Accounting, Auditing and Taxation of the State University of Management Olga Ageeva told how to determine the profit and loss of a business. “The amount of net profit for the period indicates the same growth in the company’s net assets. In turn, net loss is associated with their decrease by the same amount. And as is known, net assets are what will remain to the owners in the event of liquidation of the enterprise,” the expert noted.
— Associate Professor of the Department of Economic Policy and Economic Measurements of the State University of Management Natalia Kazantseva reported on the crisis in the area of family mortgages. “The funds allocated from the state budget to support family mortgages have almost been exhausted. Many banks have already stopped accepting orders for their registration, the remaining limits are not enough for its rapid development. This means that the real estate market will have to survive in the current market conditions, where the price of housing is determined by its laws,” the expert noted. — Natalia Kazantseva also spoke about what a cash gap is and how to avoid it. “Daily monitoring of cash balances at the beginning of the day, receipts and expenses will help to avoid a cash gap, this advice is especially relevant for small and medium-sized enterprises. It is important to use electronic document management and negotiate with suppliers, apply installment and deferment tools,” the economist advises.
— Candidate of Psychological Sciences, Associate Professor of the State University of Management Svetlana Grishaeva commented on the State Duma initiative to ban childfree propaganda. “Childfree propaganda forms attitudes towards childlessness, the less such propaganda and such movements there are, the more likely it is that attitudes towards childlessness will decrease. Children and teenagers are easily influenced by something new, so movements like childfree have imitators and followers,” the psychologist said. — Svetlana Grishaeva also explained in detail what emotional intelligence is. “It is the ability to understand the emotions of other people and the ability to control your feelings. But to control is not the same as not to experience, so you should not think that a low-emotional person has a high level of EI, because emotions are our helpers in many situations,” the expert noted.
— Senior lecturer of the HR department of the State University of Management Ekaterina Illarionova spoke about the principles of the Scrum management methodology. “The peculiarity of Scrum is that the team works on only one product. This is more expensive than the typical assignment of one specialist to several projects, but this is a story from the series about the stingy who pays twice,” the expert says.
— Vladimir Popov, Associate Professor of the Department of Private Law at the State University of Management, commented on the new fine from the Ministry of Transport for carrying foreign objects while driving. The Associate Professor believes that this could create problems for drivers. “After all, if a driver eats or drinks while driving, he is also distracted, which increases the likelihood of an accident, but I do not propose banning such behavior yet,” the expert noted.
— Doctor of Political Sciences, Professor of the State University of Management Viktor Titov discusses the possibilities of reconciliation between Iran and Israel. “Firstly, a very strong argument “for” a partial easing of the Iranian-Israeli confrontation is the fatigue of Israeli society: both from the war that began in October 2023 and from the long-term, virtually permanent confrontation with the Islamic world,” the expert believes.
These are the topics covered by the experts of the State University of Management this week. Conclusions later, and now let’s run to the anniversary final of the State University of Management KVN League!
Subscribe to the TG channel “Our GUU” Date of publication: 09/27/2024
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Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Please note; This information is raw content directly from the information source. It is accurate to what the source is stating and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and or sentence structure not be perfect.
Source: Amnesty International –
Hussein Baoumi is Foreign Policy advocacy officer at Amnesty International’s European Institutions Office.
This opinion piece was originally published here by EUobserver.
When I started as a researcher with Amnesty International in 2017, I had just moved to Tunisia, a country that had inspired and given hope to millions of people across the Middle East and North Africa for its transformation after the Arab Spring protests.
Tunisia’s story contrasted sharply to Egypt, where I witnessed firsthand how rule of law backsliding under a repressive government devastates almost every aspect of life.
The authorities have been supported in their campaign of repression by billions of euros in aid and loans from the EU, funds that have been handed over without any insistence that Egypt abide by the EU’s standards on human rights.
Unless it changes course, the EU is about to make the same mistakes in Tunisia that it made in Egypt.
In July 2021, Tunisian president Kaies Saied suspended parliament, dismissed the entire government, including the prime minister, and took executive control of the country.
Since then, he has dismantled most independent institutions, adopted repressive decrees, severely undermined judicial independence and the rule of law, arbitrarily arrested opponents and critics, rewritten the constitution, and restricted media freedom and the work of civil society organisations.
Unless it changes course, the EU is about to make the same mistakes in Tunisia that it made in Egypt
Hussein Baoumi, EU Foreign Policy Advocacy Officer
He has labelled opponents as traitors and foreign-funded agents and launched a wave of racist violent attacks against black migrants and refugees in the country.
These campaigns have left hundreds of victims behind bars and left others, as in the case of some refugees, to die at the borders in Libya.