The Nation Newspaper

Tag: U.S

  • Obama defends Iran nuclear deal

    Obama defends Iran nuclear deal

    U.S. President, Barack Obama, has no second thoughts about the deal he helped strike with Iran to lift international sanctions in return for curbs on Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

    “We are not measuring this deal by whether it is changing the regime inside of Iran or by whether we are solving every problem that can be traced back to Iran.

    “We are not measuring the deal with whether we are eliminating all their nefarious activities around the globe.

    “We are measuring this deal by Iran’s capability to get a nuclear weapon,” Obama told local media.

    According to him, the deal had cut off `every pathway for Iran to develop a nuclear weapon,’

    The president argued that his approach grew out of the same strategic logic that Presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan used to approach the Soviet Union and China.

    “I have a lot of differences with Ronald Reagan.

    “But, where I completely admire him was his recognition that if you were able to verify an agreement that (was negotiated) with the evil empire.

    “The empire that was hell-bent on our destruction and was a far greater existential threat to us than Iran will ever be,” then it would be worth doing, Obama said.

    “And about Nixon: “I had a lot of disagreements with him but he understood there was the prospect, the possibility, that China could take a different path,” he said.

    Obama confirmed that President Vladimir Putin of Russia was a help in closing the deal, adding that Putin had surprised him with his contributions in striking the deal.

    “The agreement is a political victory for Iran: No one can say that we gave in”, Iranian president Hassan Rohani said after the deal was struck.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “Iran is no longer considered a global threat.”

     

  • U.S. renews commitment to defeat Boko Haram

    U.S. renews commitment to defeat Boko Haram

    THROUGH its embassy in Nigeria, the United States (U.S.) yesterday renewed its support to the battle against Boko Haram insurgents in the Lake Chad Basin.

    It promised to continue its support to the governments and people of Nigeria and neighbouring Chad, Niger and Cameroon in their ongoing struggle to degrade and defeat Boko Haram.

    Department of State’s spokesperson John Kirby said in a statement that the U.S. condemned the recent attacks by the insurgents on countries in the Lake Chad Basin.

    The statement said the recent killings in which the insurgents slashed the throats of their victims have shown that the sect’s brutality and barbarism know no bounds.

    Expressing the U.S. position, Kirby said the U.S.’ condemned the “horrific and indiscriminate” suicide attacks on the Grand Marche in the Chadian capital of N’Djamena on Saturday, as well as attacks in Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria “over the past two days.”

    The statement reads: “Boko Haram’s targeting of men, women, and children highlights that the group’s brutality and barbarism know no bounds, and we remain committed to working closely with the region to root out the threat posed by the group.

    “We extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the soldiers, government officials, and civilians killed; we hope those who were injured will recover quickly.”

    The U.S., however, commended the efforts of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) on its timely responses to “these callous and cowardly attacks on innocent civilians.”

    Kirby added in the statement: “The United States continues to support the governments and people of the Lake Chad Basin region in their ongoing struggle to degrade and defeat Boko Haram.

    “We support these efforts through a number of security and counter-terrorism assistance programmes, including intelligence, advices, training and equipment.”

     

  • Hate killings in the U.S.

    Hate killings in the U.S.

    •Another reminder that America must check access to assault weapons

    Intriguingly, while science professes insignificant differences in the make-up of races, man rather prefers to promote huge differences between races. The result sometimes is insipient hatred; the type that apparently led Dylann Roof, a 21-year old white American man, to shoot to death, nine black-Americans who were holding a prayer meeting at Emmanuel African-American Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina, United States of America. The murderer who walked into the church and stayed for about an hour at the back seat, spewed words of hate, before using his semi-automatic gun to kill his victims at close range.

    Our heart goes out to the families of the victims, and to the American people, as they grieve over these senseless killings. We identify with the mournful admonition of President Barak Obama when he said: “There is something particularly heartbreaking about death in a place in which we seek solace and we seek peace, in a place of worship”. That Mr Roof could carry his hate against fellow human beings, just because of the colour of their skin, into the house of their common creator, without appreciating the irony, shows the level of his depravity.

    But there is the need for the United States to do a soul searching, as to why its society provides opportunity for such mass murders. On this score, the observation of President Obama is important when he said, “Once again innocent people were killed because someone who wanted to inflict harm had no trouble getting their hand on gun”. A similar killing of nine persons at a place of worship, also took place at the Wat Promkumaram temple near Phoenix in 1991. There are several other mass killings by individuals who can be better described as mentally deranged. But whether for any reason or none, what is shocking is the easy access to assault weapons, by American citizens.

    That is the point President Obama was making in his speech after the tragic shooting. For us and we guess many others, it is unacceptable that the American society, despite its boast about sophistication, has been unable to bring the debate on gun control to a positive closure. Over the years, despite the significant abuses to which guns have been put by private citizens, American lawmakers have continually shied away from reining in one of the gravest consequences of the American version of liberty. The reason for such incapacity is bribery and corruption, which they euphemistically call gun-lobby.

    Mr Roof who has been charged to court for the Charleston shooting, is a high school dropout from Eastover South Carolina, and the church established in 1816 is the oldest African Methodist Episcopal Church, which is why it is called Mother Emmanuel. The shooter, according to his social media account, wore a dress bearing patches of the flag of the defunct apartheid regime in South Africa, and according to reports, was hoping to ignite a race war by his nefarious conduct. Significantly, the relations of the victims, at the first court hearing against Roof, offered words of love and forgiveness, in exchange for the miserable taunts of the racist.

    Of note, the culprit was apprehended less than 15 hours after the shooting, in North Carolina. He has also been taken to court and charged for his offences, without the kind of delay and laxity that we witness in our clime. Significantly, the American justice system is swiftly moving to rein in the dastardly conduct of the killer. Nevertheless, we join others to admonish the United States, that acts like that of Mr Roof should have no place in a civilised society.

    ‘Of note, the culprit was apprehended less than 15 hours after the shooting, in North Carolina. He has also been taken to court and charged for his offences, without the kind of delay and laxity that we witness in our clime. Significantly, the American justice system is swiftly moving to rein in the dastardly conduct of the killer’ 

  • U.S.: Colt files for bankruptcy

    Connecticut-based gun maker Colt Defence has filed for bankruptcy protection, as it grapples with a heavy debt load.

    The company says it plans to continue its normal business operations during its restructuring.

    The company is struggling with more than $350m (£225million) in debt, as well as waning sales.

    Colt’s fortunes were hurt by a loss of a contact in 2013 to supply the US army with its M4 assault rifle.

    Keith Maib, the company’s chief restructuring officer, said in a statement: “Colt remains open for business and our team will continue to be sharply focused on delivering for our customers and being a good commercial partner to our vendors and suppliers”.Colt has been plagued by financial problems in recent months.

    Last November, Colt took out a $70million loan from Morgan Stanley to help make an interest payment.

    But last month it missed a $10m interest payment.

    Last year sales of its sports rifles and handguns fell 30 per cent.

    The company has a long US history, known for making American firearms for more than 150 years.

    The company previously filed for bankruptcy protection in 1992, emerging again two years later.

  • U.S. team for Nigeria to join Boko Haram fight

    U.S. team for Nigeria to join Boko Haram fight

    The United States (U.S.) is set to join forces with the Muhammadu Buhari administration in the battle against Boko Haram.

    The Obama administration will send a team to Nigeria in the next few weeks to discuss with the government ways to renew cooperation in the fight against the sect, a senior U.S. diplomat said yesterday.

    In N’Djamena, the capital of Chad yesterday, President Buhari and his host President Idris Derby pledged to pursue the sect members “everywhere”.

    They spoke after a bilateral meeting on the activities of the sect, which has been operating across the borders.

    U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was at Buhari’s inauguration last week. This underscores U.S. interest in working with his government.

     Tensions emerged between the former government of President Goodluck Jonathan and the Obama administration last year over corruption and human rights abuses by the military in its campaign to crush Boko Haram.

     In his inauguration speech, Buhari vowed to defeat Boko Haram and called the group, which pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq in March, “mindless” and “godless”.

     ”With the new government, we are optimistic we can reset the relationship,” U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Linda Thomas-Greenfield told a congressional hearing. “We want to work with him and have expressed that to him.”

     She said Buhari had committed both publicly and privately to “do everything possible to address the situation in terms of resources and staff” to tackle Boko Haram, which launched its insurgency in 2009.

     U.S. officials have said the United States could send more advisers to Nigeria to train its military and help boost the economy, the largest in Africa, through more investment in its oil and gas sector.

     Thomas-Greenfield said the United States was encouraged that Buhari’s first trips were to neighbors Niger and Chad, which are part of a multi-national force being set up to fight Boko Haram’s insurgency in the Lake Chad region.

     Nigeria’s Major-General Tukur Buratai has been appointed to head the new force, which will be funded partly by the international community.

     ”He is someone we have worked with and someone we feel will be a positive force on the multinational task force,” she said, adding that Buhari was still studying options to fund a stepped- up effort to tackle Boko Haram.

    A communiqué issued at the end of President Buhari’s one-day visit to Chad said both leaders agreed on the need to quickly make the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) fully operational to effectively combat terrorism in Northeast Nigeria and “everywhere” that Boko Haram operates.

    The two Presidents called on the international community to support the Lake Chad Basin Commission and neigbouring countries to combat terrorism and insurgency.

    “Both Heads of State agreed that the war on Boko Haram should be supported by emergency development initiatives in areas affected by this insurgency group.

    “This will help to overcome the harmful effects faced by local populations,” the communiqué said.

    President Buhari paid tribute to the gallantry of Chadian soldiers who have engaged in operations against Boko Haram and condoled the families of their comrades who were killed in action.

    While in the Chadian capital, President Buhari also met with Gen. Buratai, who has just been appointed Force Commander of the MNJTF whose headquarters will be in N’Djamena.

    Yesterday’s visit was the second of the two-leg trip by Buhari to neigbouring countries to galvanise them for the final onslaught against Boko Haram. Buhari was in Niger Republic on Wednesday.

    Buhari noted that the security of Nigeria and her neighbours were intrinsically linked, adding that it is very essential that they cooperate on security issues in a robust and sustained manner.

    The President said when it becomes fully deployed and functional, the MNJTF, which comprises Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon, will secure and stabilise all the areas affected by the Boko Haram insurgency.

    He reaffirmed his conviction that with greater cooperation among Nigeria and neighbouring countries, the Boko Haram insurgency will be brought to an end very soon.

    Buhari thanked Chad for her invaluable support in the fight against insurgency and terrorism.

    He said: “Your troops have stood shoulder to shoulder and fought gallantly with ours in the fight against the forces of evil.

    “This is a remarkable show of good neighbourliness, which we must reinforce in the years ahead.”

    The President said the harrowing images of displaced citizens of both countries, in search of safety and succour must spur their governments and others in the sub-region to do more “to restore their dignity and give them the relief they need”.

    On the bilateral relations between Nigeria and Chad, Buhari noted that both countries were bound by “nature’’, adding that they must therefore work together to find lasting solutions to border management, migration and movement of goods and services.

    The President also thanked President Deby for attending his inauguration ceremony on May 29 in Abuja, adding that he would return to Nigeria with the assurance that Nigeria and Chad are poised to intensify their cooperation.

    President Deby praised Buhari for his “wise decision’’ to relocate the Nigerian Military Command centre from Abuja to Maiduguri.

    The Chadian President said that the decision, which was announced in President Buhari’s  inaugural address, was a right step towards restoring peace and security to states affected by terrorism, and the sub-region.

    He assured President Buhari that Chad will continue to work with Nigeria to achieve lasting peace and security in the sub-region, given their historic, cultural and economic ties.

  • Factory activities growth slows in U.S.

    Containers await departure as crews load and unload consumer products at the Port of New Orleans along the Mississippi River in New Orleans, Louisiana June 23, 2010.

    Growth in the U.S. manufacturing sector slowed very slightly in May, as a deceleration in new orders offset an improvement in employment, according to an industry report released on Monday.

    Financial data firm Markit said its final U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index was 54.0 in May, up slightly from the preliminary reading of 53.8 and essentially flat with the April reading of 54.1.

    A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.

    The index’s new order component fell to 54.3 from April’s 55.3 to its lowest since January 2014, though it was up a hair from the preliminary reading of 54.2. The employment index rose to its highest level since November and improved on the preliminary reading.

    “With manufacturers reporting the smallest rise in new orders since the start of last year, the survey provides further evidence that the strong dollar is hurting the economy,” said Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit. “While the economy still looks set to rebound from the decline seen in the first quarter, the extent of the second quarter recovery therefore remains highly uncertain and could well disappoint.

  • U.S removes Cuba from sponsors of terror list

    U.S removes Cuba from sponsors of terror list

    The United States has formally removed Cuba from its state sponsors of terrorism list.

    U.S Secretary of State, John Kerry, signed the order on Friday, effectively dropping the old Cold War foe from the terror blacklist, Sky News reports.

    The move comes as both countries continue to work toward closer relations.

    Cuba’s removal from the terror list had been a key demand, and President Barack Obama notified Congress in April that he intended to do so.

    U.S politicians had 45 days to block the move but did not.

    But some Republicans were critical of the move.

    House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement on Friday that the Obama administration had “handed the Castro regime a significant political win in return for nothing.”

    “The communist dictatorship has offered no assurances it will address its long record of repression and human rights at home,” he added.

    Former Florida Governor, Jeb Bush, considered the front-runner among potential Republican candidates for the White House, called it “a mistake” and “further evidence that President Obama seems more interested in capitulating to our adversaries than in confronting them.”

  • U.S. to deepen security, economic ties with Nigeria

    U.S. to deepen security, economic ties with Nigeria

    The United States sees the inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari as a potential springboard to improving security and economic ties long hindered by military abuses and endemic corruption.

    Reflecting increased ambitions for relations with Africa’s biggest economy, President Barack Obama sent Secretary of State John Kerry to Friday’s ceremony for Buhari, marking the first lawful transition of power since British colonial rule ended in 1960.

    The peaceful election defeat of President Goodluck Jonathan in March has been greeted by the U.S. and other nations as a success for democracy despite Buhari’s earlier stint as the country’s military dictator.

    Preliminary talks with Buhari’s team suggest he wants to open a new chapter in relations with the U.S., according to a State Department official who briefed reporters under rules requiring anonymity.

    With Nigeria fighting Boko Haram terrorists in its northeast, Kerry plans to discuss new security cooperation measures, the official said. That could include advisers to help with intelligence, military training, logistics and military justice, he said. The U.S. is restricted by law in providing lethal arms because of the military’s human rights record.

    The U.S. also is looking for ways to expand trade and investment, particularly after Nigeria’s economy and its foreign exchange earnings have been hit by the drop in oil prices. Investment in oil and natural gas will remain important, but Nigeria’s large and growing population offers opportunities for services, manufacturing and consumer goods, the official said,

    ‘Anemic’ Trade

    “Except for gas and oil, which is huge, the economic relationship with Nigeria is pretty anemic,” John Campbell, a former U.S. ambassador to Nigeria, said in an interview.

    Expansion of trade and investment hinges on whether Buhari is able, as he promised during the campaign, to reduce the systemic corruption and improve the rule of law, including respect for contracts, the State Department official said.

    Growth slowed to four per cent in the first quarter from 5.9 per cent in same period a year earlier. Africa’s biggest crude producer, which derives 90 per cent of export earnings from oil, has been hit by a decline in oil prices of about 45 per cent since June.

    The naira has depreciated 10 per cent against the dollar over the past six months, while foreign exchange has dropped by 21 per cent from a year earlier.

    Nigeria has to import the bulk of its gasoline, diesel and kerosene for domestic use. A severe shortage of fuel this week saw planes grounded, offices shut, and queues for fuel reaching up to 18 hours.

    The “pat answer” is to tackle corruption, including at the national petroleum company and in the military, said Campbell, who is now a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

    “The trouble with cleaning up corruption is that it takes time, and particularly when the corruption is structural, as it is in Nigeria, there are consequences,” Campbell said. “So it’s not easy.”

    The allegations against the military are particularly touchy for relations because a U.S. law known as the Leahy Amendment bars arms sales to systematic human rights abusers.

    “There are tons of credible accusations of human rights abuses, and in fact the population in northeastern Nigeria has tended to be as frightened of the military as they are of Boko Haram,” Campbell said.

    In response to allegations of human rights abuses, the military has repeatedly denied or said it’s investigating them.

    The U.S. angered Jonathan last year when it blocked the sale of American-made Cobra helicopters to Nigeria from Israel, which considered them surplus. In response, Nigeria halted a U.S. counterterrorism training program for a vetted Army battalion.

    Kerry flew to Nigeria in January to press both Jonathan and Buhari to support fair elections and help prevent violence in the aftermath. Kerry said at that time that the U.S. would be prepared to do more to help Nigeria fight Boko Haram depending on the “credibility, accountability, transparency and peacefulness of this election.”

    Buhari won 52.4 per cent of the ballots cast in the March 28-29 voting.

  • U.S jobless claims rise by 1,000

    The number of Americans seeking first-time unemployment benefits rose slightly last week, but remains consistent with an economy that’s adding jobs.

    Initial jobless claims increased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 291,000 in the week ended March 14, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected 292,000 new claims.

    The Labor Department said there were no special factors impacting this week’s data.

    The prior week’s level was revised up to 290,000 claims, from an initially reported 289,000. The four-week moving average for claims, which evens out weekly volatility, rose by 2,250 to 304,750 last week.

    Claims, a proxy for layoffs, had trended down through most of last year and were just above a post-recession low in late January. Claims climbed in February to the highest level since May 2014, before steadying in recent weeks.

    Other measures show a strong labor market. Employers added a seasonally adjusted 295,000 jobs in February, the Labor Department said earlier this month. That marked the 12th straight month U.S. payrolls grew by more than 200,000 jobs, the best streak since 1995. The unemployment rate was 5.5% last month, the lowest reading since May 2008.

  • U.S. predicts challenge in protecting Nigerian citizens

    U.S. predicts challenge in protecting Nigerian citizens

    The U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, has predicted that the new government in Nigeria might face the challenge of protecting its citizens against terrorism threats.

    Kerry made the assertion in a statement by the African Regional Media Hub of the United States Department of State on Tuesday in Lagos.

    The statement quoted Kerry as making the prediction after signing a Memorandum of Cooperation to support disease control and prevention in Africa with the African Union (AU) in Washington D.C.

    “One of the principal challenges facing the new government in Abuja will be that of protecting Nigerian citizens from the terrorism threat.

    “The U.S. endorses the effort by the AU and its partners to establish a multinational taskforce to halt Boko Haram’s campaign within and beyond Nigeria’s borders.

    “We will also continue generally to help African governments to improve their counter-terrorism and border security capabilities,’’ it stated.

    The statement expressed the U.S. government’s commitment to promoting cordial relationships with African countries.

    It added that the government had learnt that diplomatic and peacekeeping initiatives in Africa work best when they were African-led.

    “And there are opportunities and challenges at the same time.

    “In recent years, we have learned that diplomatic and peacemaking initiatives in Africa work best when they are African-led.

    “But the U.S. and the broader international community can still help and we are prepared to do so,’’ the statement added.