Week 153 (09-14/05/2022)

AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST

Palestine’s renown journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was shot to death whilst reporting the latest Israel’s operation in the occupied West Bank (12/05). Akleh wore a blue vest clearly marked “Press” as she reported the provocation, said Al-Jazeera, the news channel she worked at. Qatar, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and Al-Jazeera blamed Israel forces for the killing. Other Arab countries and international communities also condemned the killing and demanded a thorough investigation. Meanwhile, Israel denied responsibility for the killing, saying it was a Palestinian gunman who shot Akleh.

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani paid a visit to Tehran to meet Iranian President EbrahimRaisi (12/05). His visit was an attempt to help end a dispute between Iran and the United States (US) regarding the 2015 nuclear deal. On the same day, Enrique Mora, the European Union (EU)’s coordinator for the nuclear talks, was on his second day of meeting Ali Bagheri, Iranian chief negotiator.

The Federal Supreme Council has elected Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan—widely known as MBZ—as the new president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (14/05). The election came after the country’s previous president and MBZ’s half-brother Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan died at the age 73. MBZ is one of the Arab world’s most powerful leader and commands one of the best-equipped armies in the region.

Morocco and Spain have agreed to reopen the land borders between the two countries next week (12/05). The borders, located between Morocco and Spain’s North African enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, have been closed for more than two years due to COVID-19. The reopening will be gradual, with residents of Europe’s passport-free Schengen area and their family members becoming the first to be allowed to cross from May 17, followed by cross-border workers by the end of May.

ASIA

Taiwan reported (09/05) a spike in activities by China’s armed forces that are mostly concentrated in the southern and southwestern part of the island’s air defense identification zone. Earlier on Friday, the island nation’s air force scrambled planes to warn away 18 Chinese aircraft that entered the zone. It reported further incursions on Saturday and Sunday, though with fewer aircraft. China said in a statement that their naval and air force assets carried out the drills from Friday to Sunday to “further test and improve the joint combat capability of multiple services and arms”. It did not elaborate.

A bomb blast in the southern city of Karachi, Pakistan has killed one and injured at least 13 people. The blast came from an improvised explosive device planted on a motorcycle that went off just before midnight. The bombing was apparently targeting a van carrying Pakistani maritime security forces, but the victims were mostly passersby. An investigation into the attack was underway—there were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attack.

After previously insisted it had not recorded a single COVID-19 case, North Korea recently admitted (15/05) that it was in the grip of a coronavirus outbreak. The announcement came after the nation reported another 21 deaths. As of now, the death toll stands at 27, with 524,440 illnesses attributed to a rapid spread of fever consistent with COVID-19 since late April—the country did not specify how many of the cases and deaths had been confirmed as COVID-19 infections. Meanwhile, Kee Park of Harvard Medical School said the regime is testing only 1,400 people a week.

India has won (15/05) the first gold medal from the prestigious badminton Thomas cup after defeating Indonesia 3-0 in Bangkok, Thailand. India’s previous best performance at the event was bronze medals in 1979, 1955, and 1952. The South Asian giant had to beat Malaysia and Denmark to reach the final.

AUSTRALIA AND OCEANIA

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that New Zealand’s borders would be fully reopened two months earlier than scheduled (11/05). The country has closed its borders since March 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19. However, some non-New Zealand citizens and residents from Australia and 60 visa-waiver countries have been allowed to enter the country over the past few months. Meanwhile, other travelers from the rest of the world will be allowed to enter from 11.59pm on July 31.

Australia said that it has tracked a Chinese spy ship off the country’s western coast (13/05). The vehicle, called the Haiwangxing, is a Dongdiao Class Auxiliary Intelligence ship. Australian Minister of Defense Peter Dutton called Chinese move an “aggressive act”. He added that the ministry would continue to monitor the ship.

The parliament of Tonga could be dissolved after a fourth member of parliament (MP) lost his seat over bribery charges (13/05). Kalafi Moala, an RNZ Pacific’s correspondent, said that a temporary parliament could be put in place should the current one be dissolved. Another possibility to occur is by-elections.

A new study showed that more than 80% of female journalists in Fiji experienced sexual harassment (14/05). Nalini Singh, the country’s Women’s Right Movement director, said that most of the perpetrators were people in power. She also called for the adoption of zero-tolerance policy against sexual harassment in the workplace.

EUROPE

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was ready to talk to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin under one condition: no ultimatum (12/05). Zelenskyy added that he would never recognize Crimea as part of Russia. Moreover, Zelenskyy refused to listen to the advice of France’s President Emmanuel Macron to not humiliate Putin.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the president of Turkey, opposed Finland and Sweden’s plan to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) (13/05). He accused the two Nordic countries of supporting Kurdish militants and others considered by Ankara as terrorists. Erdoğan’s objection could hinder Finland and Sweden to join the world’s biggest security organization as NATO makes all its decisions by consensus.

After Bulgaria and Romania expulsed Russians diplomats on 5 April, Russia retaliated by taking similar moves (13/05). The Romanian foreign ministry announced that as of Friday, “the Russian Federation declared 10 employees of the Romanian embassy in Moscow persona non grata”. A Bulgarian embassy staff was also expelled from Moscow.

Reported in The Guardian (13/05), South Ossetia, Georgia’s breakaway region, will hold a referendum to join Russia on July 17 (13/05). The territory was recognized by Kremlin as an independent state following the Russian-Georgian war in 2008. South Ossetia’s leader Anatoly Bibilov said, “We are coming home. The time has come to unite once and for all. South Ossetia and Russia will be together. This is the start of a big new story.”

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

President of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, threatened to boycott the Summit of Americas. On Tuesday (10/05), the President said he will not participate unless the US invited Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to the Summit. He said that even with all the differences, the US should not exclude some of the South American countries.

More than 100,000 people participated in a march for employment and fair wages in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Thursday (12/05). The workers were affected by the increasing inflation and food prices caused by the pandemic and the Russian invasion. In April, Argentina’s monthly inflation rate reached 6.7% and food rises have increased by more than 6%.

President Kovind of India made a state visit to Jamaica and St Vincent and the Grenadines starting on Sunday (15/05). The visit reflects India’s commitment to helping the developing states across the region. The visit coincides with the 60th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Jamaica and India.

The effect of the abortion law debate in the US Supreme Court has reached Mexico. Veronica Sanchez, the founder of Las Libres, claimed (15/04) that there has been a spike in the number of women trying to get abortion pills in Mexico. However, she also said that Mexico will need larger infrastructure and logistics to help more women crossing from the north.

THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

A mass shooting occurred in a local supermarket in Buffalo, New York, on Saturday (14/05). The US authorities declared that the shooting was racially motivated, with the shooter targeting eleven African-Americans. In total, thirteen people were shot and ten have died from their injuries.

The ASEAN-US Special Summit was held in Washington D.C. on Friday (13/05). US President Joe Biden agreed on a comprehensive strategic partnership with the regional bloc. The US also hopes that the effort shows that the US remains present in the Indo-Pacific to challenge China as a hegemon.

The US planned to remove five extremist groups from its list of foreign terrorist organizations. The State Department notified Congress on Friday (13/05), which sparked a divisive debate in Washington. It is expected that the five groups will be formally removed next week.

National gas prices across Canada continue to rise. As of Saturday (14/05), the national average price of regular gas reached $1.95 per liter, with the price continuing to range between that number in various cities. Analyst Dan McTeague said that the increase in energy prices is not sustainable for most Canadians, especially in fixed income and middle class.