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Marzo 2018 - page 11

Peru and other 10 countries to sign revamped TPP trade deal in Chile

in AMERICAS/ECONOMY/PRESS RELEASE by

Peru’s Foreign Trade and Tourism Minister Eduardo Ferreyros will head to Chile, where he will sign the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) on Thursday, March 8. Countries under CPTPP —a revised version of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement— include Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Mexico, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Viet Nam. In addition to the signing ceremony, Ferreyros will attend a series of high-level bilateral meetings in the Chilean capital of Santiago. An agreement among Peru and the 10 countries making up the CPTPP will grant the Andean nation access to a market whose GDP accounts for 13% of the world’s total GDP.

China unhappy with US aircraft carrier’s visit to Vietnam, state media says

in ASIA/DEFENCE/FAR EAST/PRESS RELEASE by
The Global Times said Beijing is “unhappy” with the visit of a US aircraft carrier to a Vietnamese port and is monitoring developments. But the USS Carl Vinson’s visit is unlikely to alter the balance of power in the South China Sea, which China claims in its entirety and has been fortifying with military structures on man-made islands; the visit “will not generate any special tools to pressure China”, while the US sending warships to the South China Sea will “only waste money”, Global Times  said.
 Vice-Admiral Phillip Sawyer, commander of the US 7th Fleet, said the port call was a sign of the United States’ commitment to the region and US-Vietnam ties. The visit by the USS Carl Vinson with more than 5,000 crew marks the largest US military presence in Vietnam since the Southeast Asian nation was unified under Communist leadership after the war ended in 1975.

Opposition politicians and human rights activists against MBS’s visit

in EUROPE/MIDLE EAST by

The ongoing visit of Mohammad bin Salman in the UK is generating opposite reactions: the ruling Conservative Party and royal family are rolling out the red carpet for Saudi Arabia’s crown prince while opposition politicians and rights groups call on British Prime Minister Theresa May to use the trip to challenge the kingdom’s record on human rights. Boris Jhonson, british foreign secretary has underlined the importance of the social reforms put forward by MBS in Saudi Arabia (such as allowing women to drive and lifting a 35-year ban on cinemas). Furthermore, the minister praised the Saudi Vision 2030, in the light of possible economic investments in the project. However, human rights activists gathered outside Downing Street, calling to an end of arms selling to Saudis, responsible of huge bloodshed in Yemen. In addition, activists said the despite the economic and social reforms, Saudi Arabia still has a poor human rights records. On Tuesday, Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the main opposition Labour Party, joined a chorus of activists, saying that May should tell the crown prince that Britain would no longer supply arms to Riyadh “while the devastating Saudi-led bombing of Yemen continues”. May should also “make clear Britain’s strong opposition to widespread human and civil rights abuses in Saudi Arabia”, he said. Caroline Lucas, former leader of the Green Party, tweeted on Tuesday: “Isn’t it time we stop giving the red carpet treatment to despots and dictators?” indeed, British arms companies are, mainly with the United States, the biggest suppliers of weapons to Saudi Arabia and the British government has approved billions of pounds in export licences over the past three years. Thus, by keeping the situation like this, the UK has been totally complicit in the abuse perpetrated in Yemen. Professor Paul Rogers from Bedford University’s Peace Department, told Al Jazeera: “The UK government recognises Saudi Arabia is very profitable for British arms exports and so the issue of human rights in the kingdom is not to the fore in current government thinking, in the sense of money talk.” It appears indeed easy to understand that UK government is willing to go along with the Saudis because there are good markets, thus, it turns a blind eye the human rights abuses and Yemen’s war.

Alice Wells: US has not seen a sustaines change in the behaviour of Pakistan

in ASIA by

The US has not seen a “decisive and sustained” change in the behaviour of Pakistan, even after the Trump Administration announced a $2 billion security assistance freeze to Islamabad nearly two months ago, a senior American official said on Tuesday. “We’ve not seen decisive and sustained changes yet in Pakistan’s behaviour, but certainly we are continuing to engage with Pakistan over areas where we think they can play a helpful role in changing the calculus of the Taliban,” said Alice Wells, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Alice South and Central Asia. Briefing reporters on the just concluded Kabul conference in Afghanistan, Wells said Pakistan has a very important role to play in the Afghan peace process. “We believe that Pakistan can certainly help to facilitate talks and to take actions that will put pressure on and encourage the Taliban to move forward towards a politically negotiated settlement,” Wells said in response to a question. “And our engagement with Pakistan is on how we can work together, on how we can address Pakistan’s legitimate concerns and Afghanistan’s stability through a negotiated process as well,” she said.

24 killed, 20 others feared missing in fresh Benue attacks

in AFRICA/PRESS RELEASE by

OKPOKWU – Twenty-four residents were killed and 20 others feared missing after suspected herdsmen struck again in Benue State Monday afternoon. Residents of Omusu and two nearby communities in Okpokwu Local Government Area told tuesday night that the attackers entered their villages around 4:00 p.m. Monday and carried out a two-hour deadly assault. Emergency officials described the attacks as “very brutal” and said three villages were affected, with more than 2,000 displaced persons now desperate for relief materials.

“They killed people to their satisfaction before they left,” said Attah Alexander, a resident of Omosu community. “It was deliberate and there were no policemen around to stop them.” The attackers struck despite the presence of Nigerian troops in the ongoing peace-keeping exercise named ‘Ayem Akpatuma’ or ‘Cat Race’.

Pushback on Trump tariffs gathers steam, Mexico rejects bid to split NAFTA

in AMERICAS/ECONOMY by

WASHINGTON/MEXICO CITY – Republican lawmakers stepped up calls for President Donald Trump to pull back from proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports as key trading partner Mexico rejected a bid by Washington to drive a wedge between it and Canada in talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. On Tuesday, Representative Mark Meadows, the head of the Freedom Caucus, raised concerns about the impact of the tariffs on American manufacturing and agriculture. Agriculture is a potential target for retaliatory tariffs from China if Trump pushes ahead. Moreover Mexico’s Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo raised the prospect of reprisals if Washington pushed ahead with tariffs and insisted NAFTA remain “a trilateral accord” in response to a U.S. proposal to hold talks with Canada and Mexico separately.

All-women convoy starts its journey in Istanbul

in MIDLE EAST by

On Tuesday, an all-woman international convoy started its three-day journey in Istanbul to raise awareness of the suffering of women and young girls imprisoned by the Syrian regime. At the convoy, women from over 50 countries have participated to the International Conscience Convoy, calling itself the “voice of oppressed women in Syria”. During the press conference, human rights lawyer and convoy organizer Gulden Sonmez said the journey is meant to save imprisoned Syrian women and spark hope for a better future. Currently, over 6,700 women, over 400 of them young girls, are still living in these brutal prisons. Yvonne Ridley, a British journalist and women’s rights campaigner, said that they are setting off on this journey to be the conscience of those who are in Syrian prisons.

Dia Hassoun, spokesperson for the convoy, said that it aims to reach the world to break the silence and show the suffering of Syrian women. The convoy hope that the international community will take effective measures to protect women in Syria and all around the world. Zaleha Kamarudin, the rector of Malaysia’s International Islamic University, said that she is taking part in the convoy as it is her responsibility to protect women and children from being victims of war. The convoy will arrive in Hatay on March 8, and during the journey, the convoy will make stops in the Turkish cities of Izmit, Sakarya, Ankara, and Adana before reaching the southern Hatay province at the Turkish-Syrian border.

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