The Nation Newspaper

Category: Foreign

  • Iran nuclear deal must be respected- French FM

    All parties must respect the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and resort to diplomacy and negotiations when resolving the latest Middle East tensions, the French foreign minister said on Friday.

    “The best way to defuse tensions is diplomacy, negotiations and respect of the agreement,” said Jean-Yves Le Drian, French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs.

    The agreement, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA), was reached in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 (permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, the U.S., UK, Russia, France, and China, plus Germany) and the European Union.

    Tehran agreed to roll back parts of its nuclear weapons programme in exchange for decreased economic sanctions.

    One year after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the U.S.’ withdrawal from the agreement, Iran said in May 2019 that it would scale back its nuclear commitments in response.

    Read Also: Israel bombs Iran-linked fighters

    Tensions between the two nations flared after the U.S. killed one of Iran’s key military commanders, Qassem Soleimani, in an air strike in Iraq early this month.

    In retaliation for his death, Tehran threatened that it would not respect any limits put down in the 2015 nuclear deal, which includes a restriction in nuclear research and development activities and limits on its number of uranium enrichment centrifuges.

    Le Drian reiterated France’s commitment to the JCPoA, which he called “an accord of security for everyone” even if “it’s not sufficient.”

    EU foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting later in the day in Brussels to discuss how to avoid confrontations between Washington and Tehran and a nuclear proliferation crisis. (Xinhua/NAN)

  • Israel bombs Iran-linked fighters

    An Israeli airstrike on eastern Syria has killed eight fighters of Iraq’s Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces

    A US drone strike also killed Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the PMF head, last week.

    Israel launched the attack on areas considered Iranian interests Friday morning.

    “Unidentified aircraft targeted vehicles and arms depots in the Albu Kamal area, causing a large explosion.

    “At least eight Iraqi Hashed fighters were killed,” said Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

    Read Also; India to strengthen security at U.S., Israeli embassies amid Iran’s retaliation threat – Source

    He said several others were wounded.

    The Britain-based organization said three villages in the Albu Kamal area known for housing forces loyal to Tehran have been targeted by drone strikes since Wednesday.

    DeirEzzor24 reported that weapons shipment to Lebanese terror group Hezbollah was targeted in the attack.

    The weapons reportedly included ballistic missiles belonging to the Imam Ali Brigade, a Shiite militia under the PMF

  • Trump sends birthday greeting to N. Korea’s Kim – S. Korean offical

    U.S. President Donald Trump sent best wishes to North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un on his birthday, a top South Korean official said on Friday.

    South Korea’s national security adviser, Chung Eui Yong, said that Trump asked him to pass along the birthday greeting to Kim when Chung was holding talks in Washington this week.

    Chung did not offer details about what else was in the message, what form the message took or how it was delivered to Kim.

    Kim’s birthday is thought to fall on January 8, with his age now believed to be 36.

    North Korea has never confirmed his birth date.

    READ ALSO: Trump’s tangle with Iran

    Chung met U.S. and Japanese counterparts Robert O’Brien and Shigeru Kitamura in Washington.

    The talks were about building lasting peace on the Korean peninsula, Chung said.

    He did not give details.

    Trump famously said in 2018 that he and Kim “fell in love” and that the North Korean letter wrote him “beautiful letters.”

    But after two high-profile one-on-one summits and a brief meeting last year on the Demilitarised Zone the warm relations have soured with the nuclear talks stalled and Pyongyang once again referring to Trump as a “dotard.”

    (dpa/NAN)

  • Iraq’s top cleric slams U.S., Iran attacks, warns of internal stand-off

    A month-long political stand-off in Iraq has created the conditions that allowed recent U.S. and Iranian attacks in the country, argued Iraq’s most influential Shiite cleric, Ali al-Sistani, on Friday.
    Last week, the U.S. killed a top Iranian commander in an airstrike in Baghdad.

    Iran retaliated by launching missile attacks against Iraqi military bases hosting American troops.

    “The recent dangerous aggressions and repeated violations of Iraqi sovereignty, as well as authorities’ obvious weakness in protecting the country and its people from such aggression and violations, are part of the current crisis,” al-Sistani said in a sermon in the southern city of Karbala.

    Iraq has been roiled by street protests since early October, with demonstrators calling for the resignation of the government, the dissolution of parliament, and an overhaul of the country’s political system, which has been in place since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

    In response to pressure from al-Sistani, Adel Abdel-Mahdi resigned as Iraq’s prime minister.

    Read Also; Iraq’s top cleric slams U.S., Iran attacks, warns of internal stand-off

    However, Abdel-Mahdi remains in office in a caretaker status.

    Efforts to pick a replacement are still stymied due to bickering among Iraqi political rivals.

    Al-Sistani warned on Friday that the continuation of the political crisis could worsen the situation in Iraq and allow “others” to further meddle in the country’s affairs.

    “Everyone should show a sense of patriotic responsibility and translate it into influential stances to provide a solution to the current crisis, responding to demands of reform,” he added.

    Al-Sistani’s views are closely followed in Iraq and have influence on the country’s politicians. (dpa/NAN)

  • British royals disappointed as Harry, Meghan quit roles

    BRITAIN’S royal family is hurt and disappointed by Prince Harry and his wife Meghan’s surprise announcement that they will step back from their senior roles and spend more time in North America, a royal source said.

    Harry and Meghan’s decision to step away from royal duties sent shock waves through the royal family as neither Queen Elizabeth nor Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, had been consulted on the announcement, made on Instagram.

    Elizabeth, who has devoted her life to the public duty of monarchy since she became queen in 1952, and other senior members of the family felt hurt and disappointed by the move, a royal source said.

    The Queen has asked staff to work with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to find a workable solution after the couple announced they will step back as senior royals.

    The BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell said Her Majesty had been in touch with the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge.

    They directed senior staff to work with the Sussex household and government.

    Harry and Meghan made their announcement late on Wednesday, taking Queen Elizabeth, Harry’s grandmother, and Prince Charles, Harry’s father, by surprise.

    “We have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution,” Harry and Meghan said in their statement.

    “We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family, and work to become financially independent.”

    Read Also: Prince Harry, Meghan visit oldest mosque in South Africa

    They said the decision was taken after months of reflection and discussion, and that they would split their time between the United Kingdom and North America to allow their family the space it needs.

    Cast by the couple as an exciting next step, it was not immediately clear how the couple will become what royal biographers said was akin to being a “half royal” – and who will pay for their transatlantic lifestyles.

    No senior royal has yet commented on the decision. British tabloids said the announcement had left senior royals such as Prince Charles and Harry’s brother, Prince William, incandescent with rage.

    Buckingham Palace said discussions with Harry and Meghan were at an early stage and that such complicated issues took time to work out.

  • ‘Iran mistakenly shot down Ukraine jet’

    American media reports on Thursday claimed that Iran mistakenly shot down the Ukrainian plane that crashed on Wednesday near Tehran with 176 people on board.

    United States (U.S.) officials said they believe the Ukrainian International Airlines Boeing 737-800 was hit by a missile, CBS quoted them as saying.

    Ukraine earlier said it was examining whether a missile strike brought down the aircraft – but Iran ruled this out.

    The crash came just hours after Iran carried out missile strikes on two airbases housing US forces in Iraq.

    CBS News quoted U.S. intelligence sources as saying a satellite detected infrared “blips” of two missile launches, followed by another blip of an explosion.

    Meanwhile, Newsweek quoted a Pentagon and senior U.S. intelligence officials, as well as an Iraqi intelligence official, as saying they believed the Ukrainian plane was hit by a Russian-made Tor missile.

    U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that “I have my suspicions” over the plane. “Somebody could have made a mistake,” he said.

    Amid tensions heightened by the US killing of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani on 3 January, Iran has said it will not hand over the recovered black box flight recorders to Boeing, the plane’s manufacturer, or to the US.

    Under global aviation rules Iran has the right to lead the investigation, but manufacturers are typically involved.

    In separate reports, CBS News and Newsweek said U.S. and Iraqi intelligence officials were confident the Ukrainian plane was brought down by a missile fired by Iran.

    Read Also: How U.S. Air Force 7,000 miles away nailed Iran’s Soleimani

    CBS published a brief report on Twitter, saying the officials were confident the plane was shot down.

    It said this information was based on US intelligence, which sources said picked up signals of a radar being turned on. US satellites also reportedly detected two missile launches shortly before the Ukrainian plane exploded.

    Meanwhile, Newsweek quoted US and Iraqi officials as saying they believed the aircraft was hit by a Russia-built Tor M-1 surface-to-air missile system, known as Gauntlet by Nato.

    Two Pentagon officials assessed that the incident was accidental, Newsweek added.

    It quoted sources as saying that Iran’s anti-aircraft systems were probably active following its attacks on the U.S. airbases.

    Meanwhile, asked what he thought happened to the plane, President Trump said: “I have my suspicions. It’s a tragic thing when I see that, it’s a tragic thing. But somebody could have made a mistake on the other side.

    “Some people say it was mechanical. I personally, I don’t think that’s even a question, personally. So we’ll see what happens.

    “Something very terrible happened. Very devastating,” Trump said.

    Earlier yesterday, Oleksiy Danylov, the secretary of Ukraine’s security and defence council, said in a Facebook post (in Ukrainian) that three four main possible crash causes were being considered:

    Danylov said Ukrainian investigators, who are already in Iran, wanted to search for possible debris from a missile at the site of the crash. Iran is known to have Russian missile defence systems.

    The investigation would include experts who worked on the investigation into the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine, Danylov added.

  • Pelosi to ‘send impeachment articles when ready’

    UNITED States (U.S.) House Speaker Nancy Pelosi yesterday said she would transmit the articles of impeachment on President Donald Trump when she is ready, adding that House Democrats still need to see the Senate’s planned rules for the impeachment trial.

    “I’m not holding them indefinitely,” Pelosi told reporters at a news conference on Thursday. “I’ll send them over when I’m ready. And that will probably be soon.”

    The Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives last month charged Trump with abusing his power for personal gain by pressuring Ukraine to announce a corruption investigation of former Vice President Joe Biden, a leading Democrat seeking to challenge Trump in November’s presidential election.

    Read Also: Trump pulls back from more military action in Iran crisis, promises new sanctions

    It also charged the Republican president with obstructing Congress by directing administration officials and agencies not to cooperate with lawmakers’ impeachment inquiry.

    Pelosi, however, did not immediately send the articles over to the Senate, where Trump’s fellow Republicans control the chamber and would lead the trial.

    Democrats have been pressing for guarantees that the Senate proceedings will allow witness testimony, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he plans to defer any decision on witnesses until after the trial starts.

  • UK lawmakers back EU Brexit deal

    BRITISH lawmakers have approved legislation, which will allow Britain to leave the European Union on January 31 with an exit deal, ending more than three years of tumult over the terms of the unprecedented divorce.

    They voted 330 to 231 in favour of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill, which implements an exit deal agreed with the EU last year.

    That allows Prime Minister Boris Johnson to turn the page on one of Britain’s deepest political crises in decades, putting an end to the fears of an immediate disorderly exit which had cast a shadow over the economy and fuelled divisions over the 2016 referendum decision to leave the EU.

    “It is time to get Brexit done. This bill does so,” Brexit minister Stephen Barclay told lawmakers, summing up hours of debate in parliament.

    Read Also: Brexit: ‘EU will always welcome back UK’

    The legislation now heads to parliament’s upper chamber and is expected to become law in the coming weeks, leaving enough time to allow Britain to leave at the end of the month with a deal to minimise economic disruption.

    In recent years, financial markets have been mesmerised by the twists and turns of Britain’s Brexit drama, with its acrimonious negotiations in Brussels, knife-edge votes in parliament and heavy defeats for unstable governments.

     

  • Iran’s Commander: more air strikes were planned against U.S.

    STRIKES against American forces in Iraq could have been just the beginning of a major operation across the region if the U.S. had responded, a senior Iranian commander was reported as saying yesterday.

    Quoted by state TV, Amir Ali Hajizadeh said the only fitting revenge for Gen. Qasem Soleimani’s killing by the U.S. was to drive American forces from the region.

    His remarks came a day after Iran fired missiles at bases housing U.S. forces.

    This was a response to Soleimani’s death in a Baghdad drone strike.

    U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced further sanctions against Iran but said Tehran was “standing down” after the missile strikes. He made no mention of further military action.

    But yesterday, Vice-President Mike Pence told Fox News that “on the president’s direction, we’re going to remain vigilant”.

    In another interview for CBS, Pence said the U.S. was receiving “encouraging intelligence” that Iran was sending messages to its allied militias not to attack U.S. targets.

    READ ALSO: Iran warns Trump of ‘dangerous response’ to further action by US

    Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, said in a statement: “Members of Congress have serious, urgent concerns about the administration’s decision to engage in hostilities against Iran and about its lack of strategy moving forward,” In a news conference covered by Iranian state media, Revolutionary Guards aerospace commander Brig-Gen Hajizadeh said Iran had been prepared to fire hundreds or even thousands of missiles. In the event fewer than 20 were fired.

    The intention had not been to kill any US troops, he said, but the operation could have been planned in such a way that as many as 500 died in the first stage.

    “We had thought that the clash would continue for three days to one week. We had prepared a few thousand missiles for such circumstances,” he said in remarks carried by the Fars news agency.

  • 20 wounded in Mali rocket attack on UN base

    Agency Reporter

    Twenty people were wounded on Thursday in northern Mali’s restive Kidal region, including 18 UN peacekeepers, in a rocket attack on a military base for UN, French and Malian forces, a UN spokesman said.

    Six of the peacekeepers from the MINUSMA mission were seriously wounded by the attack on the base in the town of Tessalit, spokesman, Olivier Salgado, said.

    He said it was unclear who was responsible.

    Kidal has been under the control of Tuareg rebels since an uprising in 2012, and tensions regularly flare between armed groups and the government.

    READ ALSO: How prepared is Nigeria for cyber attacks?

    The MINUSMA mission has more than 13,000 troops in Mali to contain violence caused by various armed groups in the north and centre of the country, including militants linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State.

    The French army operates a separate anti-insurgent mission across West Africa’s arid Sahel region, where militants and ethnic violence is worsening.

    (Reuters/NAN)