Category: Foreign

The Nigeria High Commission in the United Kingdom has condemned recent circulation of videos, photos and stories in the media from an event that transpired before December 2019, describing it as propaganda targeted at the image of the Embassy and Nigeria as a country.

This was contained in a statement released by the Mission, urging the public to disregard such video, photographs and stories of the past. 

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“The Nigeria High Commission, London, currently enjoys peace, tranquility, and harmony. We also enjoy unprecedented cooperation of the Nigerian Diasporan Community in the United Kingdom, particularly on consular services and bilateral relations. 

“We are also committed to our responsibility of delivering efficient service to both Nigerian residents in the UK, and Nigerian visitors to the United Kingdom, diligently and relentlessly,” the statement reads.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has decried the increase in the number of displaced persons in the region.

According to the commission, 6,741,974 people have so far been displaced this year.

It said the increase in the number of displaced persons poses danger to food security.

The Director of Humanitarian and Social Affairs of ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Sintiki Ugbe, gave the figure during the commemoration of World Refugee Day with the theme; “Hope away from home”.

Ugbe said: “About 6,741,974 are forcibly displaced in 2023, of which 6,182,117 are internally displaced and 564,663 refugees.”

On the impact of displacement on food security, he said: “New displacements are a source of concern for humanitarian actors as the figures continue to rise and contribute to the deepening food insecurity across borders in the West Africa region, which is facing its worst food crisis in a decade.”

Quoting UNHCR Global Appeal for 2023, Ugbe said: “UNHCR will need over $10 billion to support an expected 117. 2 million displaced and stateless persons in 134 countries and territories of which 29 million are refugees.

“With these figures, the number of displaced populations all over the world continues to increase yearly.”

On the essence of the day and the plight of displaced persons, he said: “The World Refugee Day is an International day designated by the United Nations to honour refugees around the world and celebrate the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their home country to escape conflict or persecution and a moment to build empathy and understanding for their plight and to recognise their resilience in rebuilding their lives.

“The ECOWAS region continues to encounter diverse security and humanitarian challenges. Though armed conflict appears to have slowed down in some areas, pockets of armed attacks continue to destabilise the frontline states of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria with serious impact in the contiguous coastal states.

“The needs of millions of displaced populations are on the rise compelling them to depend on daily rations for their survival. This has been made worse by violence, abject poverty, chronic food insecurity and malnutrition, and climate related factors.

“Conflict and violence are still the main causes of displacement in the frontline states of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria in 2023. People continue to flee to Northern Togo, Ghana, and Cote d’Ivoire due to the insecurity in Burkina Faso and Central Sahel.

“Attacks against civilians by insurgents and crossfire between armed groups and security forces also combined to trigger hundreds of thousands of displacements in these countries.”

Representative of Taipei Trade Office in Nigeria, Ambassador Andy Yih-Ping Liu, has indicated his country’s readiness to partner the President Bola Tinubu’s administration in the areas of education, training, agriculture and technological development.

Liu, who spoke in an interview with The Nation, said his country is confident that Tinubu’s administration will take Nigeria’s economy and social development to new and enviable heights.

On prospects for area of collaboration he expected between Taiwan and the new government, the envoy said: “From a long term observance of Nigerian politics, economic, social and all kinds of development, our office has been quite happy to see and to hear that during the presidential campaign, the President mentioned in the South-South and South-East that he would like to promote the South-East of the country to become what Taiwan is to Asia.

“We are happy to hear that Mr. Tinubu has shared openly, publicly that he wants to make certain parts of Nigeria, which have great potential, to become a Taiwan-like economy in the future. Taiwan is not like Nigeria. You have almost all the natural resources and energy, especially oil. We in Taiwan feel that we are unlucky; we have nothing like natural resources but technology. That’s why we envy Nigeria very much.

“With Mr. Tinubu’s announcement that he would like to make the South-South or South-East to become like Taiwan, that means he knows us as a reference module for Nigeria in the area of technology, and we are ready to assist in this area. We are ready and we are waiting patiently for the new government to talk to us about how to fulfill his proclamation of making certain parts of Nigeria to be the future environment of Taiwan as a nation or in Africa.”

He urged the administration to sign agreement of mutual investment, “so that our people will know the sincerity and seriousness of the Nigerian government. Also our investors should be encouraged to come in to do the investment review or to do the investigation under the goodwill of your government”.

He also pledged his country’s readiness to share its advanced and core technology of semiconductor and microchip with Nigeria.

According to the envoy, Taiwan and Nigeria have shared values, adding that the two countries “cherish democracy and freedom so much that we regularly have our democratic elections”.

“No matter what kind of difficulty or challenge that we might face, we do admire the way that Nigerians have carried out their constitutional rights to vote and to have it all counted and come out with a legitimate result of having a new President. We congratulate Nigeria’s democracy, including the emergence of a new National Assembly and governors.

“For Taiwan people, we watched closely on what Nigeria has done this year because we are having our own democratic election for a new president and our new parliament at the end of this year and early next year. Taiwan and Nigeria share things in common, not just values but a system of democracy. Our new President is going to get inaugurated in May next year and you just had yours.

“We are expecting your new government to carry out the few things that would promote a deeper relationship between Taiwan and Nigeria. First of all, the mutual investment agreement Taiwan and Nigeria, which was signed in 1994, had been renewed into a new draft, especially from your Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

“The content has already been negotiated through a very capable international training and investment negotiation between Nigeria and Taiwan. Now, we are waiting to see that it is signed very soon. So, I think probably, that is one of the news assignments that both Nigeria and Taiwan should work out soon.”

He affirmed that there are so many financial and banking activities between Nigeria and Taiwan, stressing that both countries have shown great interest in building closer contacts. Not just the technological support between Nigeria and Taiwan, not just the cooperation between Nigeria and Taiwan, we are also working with your Chartered Institute of Bankers in Nigeria.

“We know there are also greater things we are going to do in building a concrete foundation for promoting good investment and promoting good enhancement of financial institutions.

“Taiwan and Nigeria’s mutual trade value had reached almost $1billion in 2021. That was a historical milestone because the trade value between Taiwan and Nigeria in 2021 jumped 210 per cent jump from the year 2020, and even during the COVID period.

“Although in 2022, we saw little percentage drop but the overall trading has shown visible, great interest of Taiwan importers to import more good quality Nigerian raw material, especially in the area of agriculture.”

US President Joe Biden‘s son, Hunter Biden, is expected to plead guilty to two misdemeanour tax crimes and admit to illegally possessing a gun while a drug user, after a five-year investigation.

The US Attorney in Delaware has filed papers indicating a plea agreement has been reached.

He is expected to agree to drug treatment and monitoring.

The terms of the agreement are likely to keep him out of jail.

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In theory, he still faces a maximum penalty of a year in prison on each of the tax charges and 10 years in prison on the gun charge, the justice department said in a statement. The proposed deal would need to be approved by the judge in the case, who will also determine the sentence.

It is unclear when Hunter Biden will appear in court to enter his guilty plea on the tax charges.

He will admit to felony gun possession as part of a “pre-trial diversion agreement” that is separate from the plea deal, his lawyer Chris Clark said in a statement.

“I know Hunter believes it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life,” Mr Clark added. “He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward.”

Controversial influencer Andrew Tate has been charged in Romania with rape, human trafficking and forming an organised crime group to sexually exploit women.

His brother Tristan and two associates also face charges. All have denied the allegations.

The Tate brothers were first arrested at their Bucharest home in December.

In March, they were moved from custody to house arrest following a ruling by a Romanian judge.

The indictment deposited with the Bucharest court says that the four defendants formed an organised criminal group in 2021 to commit human trafficking in Romania, but also in other countries including the US and the UK.

It names seven alleged victims who it says were recruited by the Tate brothers through false promises of love and marriage.

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The alleged victims were later taken to buildings in Ilfov county in Romania where they were intimidated, placed under constant surveillance and control and forced into debt, according to a statement from Romanian prosecutors.

The defendants allegedly then forced the women to take part in pornography which was later shared on social media.

One defendant is accused of raping a woman twice in March 2022, the statement adds.

The trial will not start immediately and is expected to take several years.

A Romanian judge now has 60 days to inspect the case files before it can be sent to trial.

The media team for the Tate brothers said: “While this news is undoubtedly predictable, we embrace the opportunity it presents to demonstrate their innocence and vindicate their reputation.”

It added that the indictment “allows us to present a comprehensive body of evidence, diligently collected and prepared over time, which will undoubtedly substantiate the brothers’ claims of innocence”.

There are also separate charges still under investigation which could lead to a separate indictment, including money laundering and trafficking of minors.

In 2016, Andrew Tate, a British-American former kickboxer, was removed from British TV show Big Brother over a video which appeared to show him attacking a woman.

He went on to gain notoriety online, with Twitter banning him for saying women should “bear some responsibility” for being sexually assaulted. He has since been reinstated.

Despite social media bans, he gained popularity, particularly among young men, by promoting what he presented as a hyper-masculine, ultra-luxurious lifestyle.

BBC

Russia has early on Tuesday launched a wave of drone attacks on Ukraine, most of them aimed at Kiev.

The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces said air defence destroyed 28 of the 30 Iranian-made Shahed drones launched by Russia.

Serhiy Popko, the head of the military administration in Kiev, reported that some 20 drones had been shot down around the capital city alone, according to preliminary information.

“Another massive air attack on the capital.

“This is only the second attack by Iranian drones on Kiev since the beginning of the month and the first in the last 18 days,’’ Popko wrote on Telegram.

There was no information about damage or casualties.

Read Also: Africa cannot end Russia-Ukraine War

The eastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhya was attacked with seven S-300 missiles, the general staff said.

A damage assessment from the bombardment was still being conducted.

Zaporizhzhya lies less than 50 kilometres from the front line.

The western Ukrainian city of Lviv, which had so far been largely unscathed by the nearly 16-month war, was also the target of rare airstrikes.

There were several explosions overnight, Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said on Telegram.

The head of the military administration for Lviv, Maksym Kozytskyi, gave the all-clear around 5 am (0200 GMT).

He said that a critical infrastructure site had been hit but that nobody was injured. (dpa/NAN) 

China and the United States agree on the need to stabilise their troubled relations, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the end of talks in Beijing on Monday.

Blinken stressed that “direct engagement and sustained communication at senior levels is the best way to responsibly manage our differences and ensure that competition does not veer into conflict.

Read Also: Blinken to meet Xi in Beijing

“But China had continued to refuse to set up channels for crisis communication and military contacts, something we urged several times during talks.

“And at this moment, China has not agreed to move forward with that,” Blinken said.

During his two-day visit, Blinken met with President Xi Jinping and had talks with top foreign policy official Wang Yi as well as Foreign Minister Qin Gang. (dpa/NAN)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken would meet Chinese President Xi Jinping before he departs Beijing on Monday after a two-day visit, Chinese state media reports.

This is the first trip by a U.S. secretary of state to China since 2018.

Read Also: Top foreign policy official accuses U.S of ‘wrong’ China policy

Blinken had met earlier in the day with China’s top foreign policy official, Wang Yi.

The last-minute announcement that Xi would talk to Blinken was seen as a special gesture, and a sign that Beijing aimed to cool the soaring tensions between the rival powers.

(dpa/NAN) 

China’s top foreign policy official Wang Yi has accused the United States (U.S.) of having a wrong perception about China that led to a wrong policy towards the country.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is on the first visit by a top U.S. diplomat to China since 2018.

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Wang said Blinken’s trip to Beijing came at a critical juncture in Sino-U.S. relations and it was necessary to make a choice between dialogue or confrontation, cooperation or conflict.

Wang said the U.S. must stop hyping the theory of a threat from China and must also lift illegal unilateral sanctions against China.

He also called for end to the “suppression of technological development’’ of its country. (dpa/NAN) 

Malians voted yesterday in a referendum on changing the constitution that the ruling military junta and regional powers have said will pave the way to elections and a return to civilian rule.

The junta, which seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, promised to hold the plebiscite as part of a transition to democracy, under pressure from West African regional bloc, the ECOWAS.

Around 8.4 million voters were expected at the polls. Kollet Sangare, a 35 year-old medical assistant was one of the first to cast a ballot at a polling station in the capital where few had lined up early yesterday day.

“I hope the side I voted for will win,” he said.

Some of the changes in the committee-drafted constitution are contentious, with proponents saying they would strengthen fragile political institutions and opponents saying they would give too much power to the president.

Read Also: ECOWAS @48, still battling peace and security challenges

But regional bodies and the United Nations see the referendum itself as an important test of the junta’s willingness to stick to the transition and hold a nationwide democratic process, particularly at a time when Islamist militants are stepping up attacks.

“With this project, we are betting on the future of our state, the restoration of its authority, and the regained trust between institutions and citizens,” interim president Assimi Goita said in televised speech on Friday.

The draft includes updates that have been proposed in past failed efforts to revise the constitution that supporters hope will reinforce democracy and address divisions, including the creation of a second parliamentary chamber to boost representation from across Mali.

The proposed establishment of a separate court of auditors for state spending will bring Mali in line with a directive from the West African Economic and Monetary Union from 2000.

But some opposition parties, pro-democracy groups and campaigners for the ‘No’ vote say the non-democratically elected authorities such as the junta have no right to oversee such a substantial constitutional overhaul.

They also say the proposed constitution hands excessive authority to the president, including over the legislative process.

“I am for a revision of the constitution but not this referendum.

“The legitimacy of the actors, the process …I think we could have done better,” lawyer Fousseini Ag Yehia said in the capital Bamako on Saturday.

Northern Mali armed groups that signed a 2015 Algiers peace deal, which has been shaky since the junta took power, have also called for the boycott of the referendum, saying the process was “not sufficiently inclusive”.

Ahmoudane Ag Ikmasse a former member of parliament for the northern town of Kidal, said no voting was taking place yesterday.

“I’ve just driven across the city, no vote, nothing at all and that’s how it is in the localities around Kidal,” he told Reuters by telephone.

Provisional results are expected within 72 hours of the vote. Presidential elections are scheduled for February 2024.