Category: Foreign

CATHOLIC Bishops, under the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), have sought help from powerful foreign countries against the upsurge of insecurity in the Africa.

The religious body bemoaned the rising spate of kidnapping, banditry, herders-farmers’ clashes, terrorism and other manifestation of unrests in the continent, saying partnering foreign forces would be of immense benefit in halting the orgy of killings of innocent souls.

These were part of the resolutions reached after its 19th Assembly  Plenary of the  body held in Accra, Ghana, with the theme: “Ownership of SECAM: Security and Migration in Africa”.

The resolution made available to reporters yesterday in Ado-Ekiti by the Catholic Bishop of Ekiti, Most Rev Felix Ajakaye, lamented that several regions of Africa were experiencing unwarranted killings due to poverty and economic deprivation.

The bishops stated that poor handling of the economy and weaponisation of religion for political gains were also responsible for the violence rocking the African continent.

The clerics said: “Several regions of our continent are experiencing insecurity due to socio-political instability, violence, poverty, weak health structures, insurgency, terrorism, exploitation of religion for political purposes and lack of respect for environment and good governance.

“These situations are causes of anxiety for our people. This is why we are sending a message to all people of goodwill to help put an end to them.

“The social and political stakeholders as well as decision-makers have a heavy responsibility in the management of our countries. We urge them to continue to do their utmost to fight insecurity for our people and Africa.

“We also urge foreign forces to get involved in fighting this insecurity and in building lasting peace and security on the African continent.”

The clergymen persuaded African citizens, including church leaders, to coalesce efforts with governments of their countries in building peace, warning that perceiving issue of security as government’s sole responsibility would further spell doom for the populace.

The bishops appealed to leaders to fashion out policies that would discourage irregular immigration by African citizens.

The clerics added: “We urge leaders and decision-makers to put in place structures and conditions that will discourage irregular migration, especially promoting good governance, social justice, social inclusion employment opportunities and fighting insecurity.

“To all intending migrants, especially young people who seek to exercise their rights to migrate, we urge you to do so in manner that is administratively acceptable. We urge you not to lose hope for a better future.

“We wish to express our pains in seeing our youth leaving our countries, knowing that they are going to suffer and possibly lose their lives and we lament our inability to stop them from leaving.”

Former United States (U.S.) national security adviser John Bolton has slammed the Biden administration for negotiating with Iran on a new nuclear deal after it was revealed he was targetted in an Iranian assassination attempt.

He said attempts to “appease” Tehran are encouraging threats against U.S. officials.

Bolton told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on the “Situation Room” that because the nature of the Iranian regime “drives it to this kind of action,” President Biden should not be trying to revive a 2015 deal that limited Iran’s nuclear abilities in exchange for easing U.S. sanctions against the Middle Eastern nation.

“It’s a big mistake for the administration to continue to show weakness to Iran by begging to get back in the 2015 nuclear deal,” said Bolton, who has long been hawkish on Iran. “It encourages Tehran to engage in just these kinds of terrorist activities.”

The Justice Department on Wednesday charged an Iranian nationalist and member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) with planning to hire someone to kill Bolton.

The Justice Department said Shahram Poursafi began plotting the attack in October, likely to retaliate against Bolton for a January 2020 U.S. drone strike that killed Qassem Soleimani, the leader of the IRGC’s elite Quds Force.

Poursafi was planning to pay up to $300,000 for someone to kill Bolton in Maryland or Washington, D.C., according to the Justice Department, and was in contact with a U.S. resident whom he asked to kill Bolton. The resident is listed as a confidential source in department documents.

Poursafi was also offering a $1 million bounty to kill another unknown person, which Axios reported was former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who also served under Trump.

Earlier this month, police thwarted what they said was an attempted assassination of a prominent Iranian journalist in New York City, which she blamed on Tehran.

The Biden administration has engaged in indirect negotiations with Tehran for months in an effort to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which former President Trump scrapped in 2018.

Negotiations increasingly seem to be stalled. Biden said last month that the U.S. will not “wait forever” to revive a new nuclear deal

Bolton resigned from the Trump administration in 2019 and was not involved with the drone strike on Soleimani, but he has long encouraged a more aggressive posture against Iran. He also served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under former President George W. Bush.

THE Republic of Cameroon has sought the support of Accident Investigative Bureau, Nigeria (AIB-N) to investigate an accident involving Havilland DHC 400 Twinotter aircraft.

The accident, which occurred on May 11, in Cameroon, led to the death of 11 people on board.

Director of Civil Aviation of the Ministry of Transportation, Cameroon, Mrs. Essimi Dine, who led the team to AIB-N headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, said the support of the bureau was necessary due to its developed infrastructure.

She said AIB-N is expected to help download and analyse information from the recorder of the aircraft.

According to her, would also work together with AIB-N on capacity-building in accident investigation.

She said: “We have come to see how AIB is doing things. What they can do in terms of equipment and the kind of infrastructure they have.

“We are sure that the cause of the accident will be resolved after our work here. We will further request for other areas of collaboration. We appreciate the support of AIB.”

Commissioner of AIB-N Mr. Akin Olateru said the bureau would be part of the investigation of the accident as Nigerians were on board.

Two Nigerian pilots and a Cameroonian operator were among those on board the ill-fated aircraft.

Olateru said Cameroon is seeking the assistance of the bureau in terms of the investigation to help with the download of the Flight Data Recorder (FDR), Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and analysis of information and animation of how it happened.

He said: “We have one of the best accident investigative laboratories in the world. We have capability of getting information from the damaged recorder, which the aircraft came with.

“The aircraft came with a highly burned recorder but we will be able to retrieve information from it.”

Olateru said the AIB-N had previously helped some African countries, including Niger Republic, Gambia and Sierra Leone.

He also revealed that AIB-N has gotten approval from the Ministry of Justice to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sierra Leone to help them set up an Independent Accident Investigation Centre.

Russia told the United States yesterday that it would not allow its weapons to be inspected under the START nuclear arms control treaty for the time being because of travel restrictions imposed by Washington and its allies.

Inspection conditions proposed by Washington created “unilateral advantages for the United States and effectively deprive the Russian Federation of the right to conduct inspections on American territory,” the Moscow foreign ministry said in a statement.

Russia remained fully committed to complying with all the provisions of the treaty, it added.

The United States and its allies, including Britain and the European Union, closed their airspace to Russian planes as part of a barrage of sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s decision to send its armed forces into Ukraine in February.

The New START Treaty, which came into force in 2011, caps the number of strategic nuclear warheads that the United States and Russia can deploy, and the deployment of land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.

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U.S. President Joe Biden said last Monday that his administration was ready to “expeditiously” negotiate a framework to replace New START, which is due to expire in 2026, if Moscow demonstrated its willingness to resume work on nuclear arms control.

But Russia’s mission to the United Nations said Washington had withdrawn from separate talks with Moscow on strategic stability over the Ukraine conflict, and needed to decide what it wanted.

The following day, the Kremlin said time was running out to negotiate a replacement for New START, putting global security at risk.

The conflict in Ukraine has raised political tensions to levels not seen since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, with politicians in both Russia and the United States speaking publicly of the risk of World War Three.

Moscow said it was forced to intervene in Ukraine to defend Russian-speakers from persecution and avert a Western threat to use Ukraine to threaten Russia’s security. Kyiv and its Western allies say these are baseless pretexts for an imperial-style land grab.

Mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, United States, Lisa Jacobson has reiterated the city’s continuous collaborations with different cultural groups and associations to make Brooklyn Park a home for all, irrespective of colour.

Jacobson, who spoke via zoom with The Nation, said Brooklyn Park is ready to assist in the successful hosting of this year’s Igbo Festival being organized by Umunne Cultural Association, Minnesota.

The two-day festival which opens on Friday August 12 is making a big return after two years of hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“My hope is that within West Africans, there are more comings together. Though there are some divides between them back home, we are poised to build a true community that will achieve greater things together,” she said.

Read Also: Igbo leaders seek united front ahead 2023

The mayor noted that Brooklyn Park is home to more West Africans than anywhere outside West Africa adding that it is important ‘we are aware of the different cultures, learn from our neighbours, which is one fine example for community to celebrate.’

She said over the years, Brooklyn Park has worked hard and built relationship with different associations for the success of the entire community while learning from each other.

“When you see yourself reflected in a community, you definitely will feel welcome and at home and part of such community,” she said of the cosmopolitan nature of Brooklyn Park.

She expressed her love for the dance, music and dress that characterized the annual Igbo festival, saying she has a collection of Nigerian dresses.

Three leading Nigerian musical talents E Major, AJ Ajuzieogu Warrior and Obi Original & The Black Atlantics will mount the stage at the Banquets of Minnesota, USA, on August 12, when the two-day 27th Igbo Fest 2022 holds its gala night. It will be complemented by Ada Igbo beauty pageant.

Organised by the Umunne Cultural Association Minnesota, USA, the festival is to celebrate the rich Igbo heritage, help educate others about our culture, preserve and promote Igbo culture in the minds of younger generations in particular. With the theme: Creating cultural awareness for the next generation, the festival according to the Chairman Festival Organising Committee, Mr. Elvis Abanonu is held every year to give the next generation the chance to get involve while promoting unity.

Activities for Saturday, August 13, include cultural exhibition, cuisine and cultural performances at the North Hennepin Community College, Minnesota.

Brooklyn Park is a suburban city on the west bank of the Mississippi River, upstream from downtown Minneapolis in northern Hennepin County. It is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota.

THE United States sees Africa’s 54 nations as “equal partners” in tackling global problems, American Secretary of State Antony Blinken said yesterday in South Africa.

“Our strategy is rooted in the recognition that Sub-Saharan Africa is a major geopolitical force — one that has shaped our past, is shaping our present, and will shape our future,” Blinken said at the University of Pretoria in a speech detailing the Biden administration’s policies for Africa.

“It’s a strategy that reflects the region’s complexity, its diversity, its agency; and one that focuses on what we will do with African nations and peoples, not for African nations and peoples.”

He said the U.S. and African nations “can’t achieve any of our shared priorities — whether that’s recovering from the pandemic; creating broad-based economic opportunities; addressing the climate crisis; expanding energy access; revitalising democracies; or strengthening the free and open international order — if we don’t work together, as equal partners”.

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The American Secretary of State is in South Africa as part of a three-nation tour of Africa, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, in what is seen as a contest between Western nations and Russia to win support from African countries over the war in Ukraine.

Blinken’s tour follows recent trips to African countries by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and French President Emmanuel Macron.

South Africa is among many African countries that have taken a neutral stance on the Ukraine war.

Before his speech, Blinken met Minister of International Relations Naledi Pandor in Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative capital. Ms Pandor appears to have maintained her country’s refusal to criticise Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.

Instead, in a press briefing following the meeting, Ms Pandor criticised the U.S. and other Western powers for focusing on the Ukraine conflict to the detriment of other international issues.

“We should be equally concerned at what is happening to the people of Palestine, as we are with what is happening to the people of Ukraine,” she said.

Before the closed-door meeting with Ms Pandor, Blinken had said that the U.S.’s good relations with South Africa would allow them to be frank in discussing their differences.

Many African countries have declined to follow the U.S. lead in condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Some were among more than a dozen African governments that have signed security deals with the Wagner Group, a shadowy Russian mercenary group that the U.S. and other countries say is backed by the Kremlin.

Sub-Saharan nations also have been major recipients of Chinese investment through its “Belt and Road Initiative,” which supports infrastructure developments.

CHINA deployed scores of planes and fired live missiles near Taiwan yesterday in its biggest drills in the Taiwan Strait, a day after U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a solidarity trip to the self-ruled island.

China’s military confirmed multiple firings of conventional missiles in waters off Taiwan as part of planned exercises in six zones set to run until noon on Sunday. It activated more than 100 planes, including fighter jets and bombers, and over 10 warships, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Taiwan’s defence ministry said it scrambled jets to warn away 22 Chinese fighter aircraft that crossed the Taiwan Strait median line into its air defence zone, and said troops fired flares late yesterday to drive away four drones that flew above the area of its Kinmen islands, off the southeastern coast of China, Reuters reported.

It said missiles fired by China flew high into the atmosphere and constituted no threat to it, responding to public concern about whether they passed over the main island of Taiwan.

“The U.S.-Taiwan collusion and provocation will only push Taiwan towards the abyss of disaster, bringing catastrophe to Taiwan compatriots,” said a Chinese defence ministry spokesperson.

Responding to the Chinese drills, President Tsai Ing-wen said Taiwan would not provoke conflicts but would firmly defend its sovereignty and national security.

“Taiwan will never be knocked down by challenges,” Tsai said in a recorded video message to the people of Taiwan.

“We are calm and not impetuous, we are rational and not provocative, but we will also be firm and not shirk.”

Taiwan officials said the drills violated United Nations rules, invaded its space and threatened free air and sea navigation.

It has been self-ruled since 1949, when Mao Zedong’s communists took power in Beijing after defeating Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang (KMT) nationalists in a civil war, prompting the KMT-led government to retreat to the island.

The military activity followed Pelosi’s unannounced visit of support to Taiwan in defiance of warnings from China.

To avoid escalating tensions with Beijing any further, the United States postponed a routine test launch of an Air Force Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing U.S. officials. One official said the delay might last 10 days, the report said.

Before the drills officially began, Chinese navy ships and military aircraft briefly crossed the Taiwan Strait median line several times, a Taiwanese source briefed on the matter told Reuters. read more

By midday, warships from both sides remained in close proximity as Taiwan also scrambled jets and deployed missile systems to track Chinese aircraft crossing the line.

Twenty-seven Chinese warplanes flew into Taiwan’s air defence zone yesterday, Taipei said, after United States House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the self-governed island that Beijing considers its own territory.

The defence ministry said in a tweet: “27 PLA aircraft… entered the surrounding area of (Republic of China) on August 3, 2022.”

In response to the incursion, the self-ruled island dispatched fighter jets and deployed missile systems to fend off Beijing’s actions.

China reportedly sent 16 Chinese Su-30 fighters and 11 other jets into the zone—with 22 of the aircraft crossing the median line separating China and Taiwan—the island’s defence ministry told Reuters  yesterday.

The latest mission from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was among a series of moves China has made after Pelosi touched down in Taiwan amid warnings from Beijing. Her visit, which received bipartisan support on Capitol Hill, was the first from a high-level U.S. official in 25 years.

China also summoned U.S. Ambassador Nicholas Burns to Beijing and halted some food trade with Taiwan in retaliation for Pelosi’s stop on the island.

China had already cautioned Pelosi with war planes before she arrived in Taipei on Tuesday.

On Monday night, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Qin Gang shared a video showcasing the PLA on Twitter, writing, “This is the People’s Liberation Army, the guardian of the Chinese people for 95 years, who will not sit idly by when it comes to safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

Chinese military exercises are expected to take place within Taiwan’s defense territory this week, an unprecedented move that a senior Taiwanese official told Reuters would amount to “a sea and air blockade of Taiwan.”

According to the PLA, the drills include “long-range live ammunition shooting” in the Taiwan Strait, and some would be as close as 12 nautical miles to the island’s shore.

Pelosi, a staunch defender of Taiwan, defended her trip on Tuesday, saying she traveled to the island “to make unequivocally clear that we will not abandon our commitment to Taiwan.”

Taiwan’s independence has long been controversial. While Taiwan is self-governed, China has held that the province will eventually join the nation under its One China Policy.

NEGOTIATORS from the United States, European Union and Iran are dispatching envoys to Vienna for a surprise summit aimed at reviving the defunct 2015 nuclear accord, with U.S. special envoy for Iran Rob Malley saying he was hoping for a “good faith attempt” to find a deal.

Russia’s chief negotiator said his country’s representatives also “stand ready for constructive talks”.

Iran, the United States and the European Union said yesterday they would send representatives to Vienna amid what appears to be a last-ditch effort at reviving talks over Tehran’s tattered 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

It wasn’t immediately clear if other parties to the landmark accord would attend the surprise summit, nor if there had been any progress after a months-long stalemate and recent fruitless round of indirect talks between Iran and the U.S. in Doha.

The European Union official who chairs the talks, Enrique Mora, said the negotiations would focus on the most recent draft to restore the agreement, while Tehran said it was dispatching nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani to the Austrian capital.

U.S. Special Representative for Iran Rob Malley wrote on Twitter that he was preparing to travel to Vienna for talks. He cautioned that American “expectations are in check” ahead of the negotiations.