Week 179(8-14/11/2022)
France has suspended a deal with Italy to take 3,500 migrants currently in Italy. Pictures: Reuters
AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST
From the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, the United States became the first team that landed in Doha (10/11). The US team arrived just 10 days before the tournament will be opened. They will stay at the Marsa Melaz Kempinski at The Pearl, Doha.
Then in Saudi Arabia, the kingdom authority just sent 4,000 metric tonnes of diesel oil to Yemen (10/11). The oil is for generating more than 70 power plants across Yemen. The aid is part of the commitment of the kingdom to help the people of Yemen.
In Mauritius, the United Kingdom government agreed to discuss the fate of Chagos Island (8/11). The island is currently a naval base for the United States under contract with the United Kingdom. However, native people of Chagos Island and Mauritius have demanded the return of their control of the island as they believed the island is their native home.
Kenya will spend millions of dollars to send forces to Congo (10/11). The forces comprises of more than 1000 troops on a mission that will help the Congolese military to battle armed groups. The sending of the troops is part of the African community regional forces initiative.
ASIA
The Group of 20 summit will be held in Bali next week without the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Russian embassy in Indonesia said to CNN on Thursday (12/11). Sergey Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, will represent Putin, according to Yulia Tomskaya, the embassy's chief of protocol. Putin is still determining if he will participate electronically in one of the meetings, according to Tomskaya. Putin also declined to attend, according to Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment. Pandjaitan, who is assisting in summit coordination, stated that "high officials" would represent the Russian President.
The extradition of a woman charged with murder in New Zealand after the discovery of two deceased children's remains in abandoned bags has been allowed by a South Korean court (12/11). The woman could be extradited, according to the Seoul High Court, but no date had been established and the Justice Ministry now held the last say. Weeks after the children's remains were found in bags purchased from a storage facility in New Zealand, the lady, 42, who authorities believe to be the mother of the two children, was detained in Ulsan, South Korea, in September.
A woman who flew a British colonial-era flag to celebrate Hong Kong's Olympic gold medal has become the city's first person to be imprisoned on a charge of insulting the Chinese national anthem (13/11). Online journalist Paula Leung, 42, pleaded guilty to the accusation and was sentenced to three months in jail on Thursday, according to Hong Kong's public broadcaster RTHK. Leung waved the flag in a mall where a big screen was broadcasting the gold ceremony following Edgar Cheung's triumph in the foil at the Tokyo Olympics in July 2021. Leung explained in litigation (court proceedings) that she has autism and learning issues.
According to Indonesian authorities, malfunctioning of the throttle mechanism and a tardy pilot response caused the Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737-500 plane crash last year, which claimed 62 lives (13/11). All those on board were killed when Flight SJ-182 crashed into the Java Sea on January 9, 2021, just minutes after taking off from Jakarta. Investigators cited several things, including a throttle system that had previously failed, in their final report. In the last six years, Indonesia has experienced three significant plane accidents. The 26-year-old aircraft, according to investigators, had an automated throttle system that failed shortly after take-off. The National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) reported that this had led the jet to tilt severely off-course before it nosedived 3,000 meters (10,000 feet) into the water.
AUSTRALIA AND PACIFIC
The Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, and the President of the United States, Joe Biden, spoke on the margins of the first of a series of summits in Asia. On the penultimate day of the East Asia Summit in Cambodia, when more than a dozen world leaders were present, the two reportedly chatted for almost 40 minutes. Mr. Albanese and Mr. Biden discussed a range of current global challenges, including the crisis in Ukraine, security, and climate change.
Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern says she remains "optimistic" following a "sobering" summit of world leaders centered on increasing prices, war, and intensifying power battles on a global scale (14/11). Ardern attended the East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, a gathering of major powers including the United States, China, and India, organized by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
Concerning a probable COVID-19 outbreak in Honiara's capital, Solomon Island the Ministry of Health and Medical Services are tight-lipped. The Ministry issued a statement earlier this week (11/11) advising the public to observe COVID-19 safety precautions such as social distance and the usage of face masks. At the time, there were nineteen confirmed cases, and several of them who tested positive had no recent travel history into or out of Honiara. Since then, the Ministry has not provided any further updates, and no one is ready to speak publicly.
As the nine registered political parties increase the tempo of their preparations for the eagerly awaited 2022 General Election, a national civil society organization is monitoring how ideas and initiatives promising to benefit people are suggested in party manifestos and election campaigns. Regarding poverty in particular, the Fiji Council of Social Services feels this problem must be at the center of all electoral campaigns leading up to the national election on December 14.
EUROPE
Russia has announced the withdrawal of their armed forces from the city of Kherson on Friday (11/11). Kherson was the only regional capital to fall during the opening phase of Russia-Ukraine war. They have retreated behind Dnipro River to regroup. The moves highlight the setback for Russian after previously held referendum on four Ukraine region.
Slovenia held its Presidential election on Sunday (13/11). Liberal candidate Natasa Pirc Musar appear to win the Presidential election runoff and become the country’s first female head of state. With none of the seven candidates able to secure more than 50% of the vote, the vote will go through a run-off between former foreign minister Anze Logar and Pirc Musar.
The European Union has stated that the Eurozone is expected to fall into recession at the end of 2022 according to the European Commission’s autumn economic forecasts. "The economic situation has deteriorated markedly and we are heading into two quarters of contraction” according to EU economy commissioner Paolo Gentiloni at a press conference. The EU has been hit the hardest from the fallout of the Russian-Ukraine war with inflation and energy prices soaring, hitting consumer across the EU.
France has suspended a deal with Italy to take 3,500 migrant currently in Italy on Thursday (10/11). This comes after Paris criticised the new Prime Minister Georgia Meloni government for not accepting passengers from Ocean Viking migrant rescue ship. France Interior Minister, Gerald Darmanin has said that France also would pull out from the European Union agreement, where some asylum seekers will be relocated to other EU countries, and urge other EU member such as Germany to do the same.
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
Fritz Dorilas, who worked with Radio Tele Megastar, was shot dead near his home in Tabarre, northeast of the capital Port-au-Prince, on November 5 (9/11). He is the eighth journalist killed in Haiti so far this year, Inter American Press Association says. The killing comes less than a week after a journalist died during a protest in the capital. Violence continues to surge across the capital, where increasingly powerful criminal gangs are battling for control in the political vacuum created by last year’s assassination of President Jovenel Moise.
Argentina's government announced a deal with supermarkets and suppliers of mass consumer goods to freeze or tightly regulate prices of some 1,500 products (11/11). The center-left Peronist government is battling a plunge in popularity and street protests as spiraling prices sap people's purchasing power. Anger has started to swell with poverty levels near 40% ahead of elections next year. Thousands protested on Thursday against the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has lent billions of dollars to the country. Some items will have a 4% rise before entering the price freeze scheme for four months.
Cuba is suffering from longer droughts, warmer waters, more intense storms, and higher sea levels because of climate change (12/11). The rainy season, already an obstacle, has gotten longer and wetter. Cuba is already in its worst crises in decades, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. The socialist government has had a relatively liberal hand with food producers, allowing them to pursue their economic interests more openly than others in Cuba. Climate change cost Cuba $65.85 billion in GDP between 1990 and 2014 alone, 9% of its total GDP.
Brazil’s real currency and Bovespa stock index both lost approximately 4 percent on Thursday (11/11). Investors have soured over his commitment to prioritising social spending over fiscal integrity and delays in naming his economic team. Central bank chief Roberto Campos Neto likened the selloff to a “Liz Truss moment for Brazil” The Brazilian real clawed back losses on Friday, with the dollar closing the session down 1.24 after a volatile day of trading. Lula has said he will only name his cabinet once he returns from COP27 climate summit.
THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA
The United States midterm election results has ended with the Democratic Party projected to retain their senate majority with the Republican Party poised to take the House of Representative. The results were much better for the Democratic Party than what pundits expected. While Biden legislative agenda will be hard to pass in a Republican controlled House, the control of the Senate will enable President Biden to continue appointing judges and officials for his Cabinet.
The United States President Joe Biden has reaffirmed U.S. Foreign Policy in South East Asia. Speaking at the 10th Annual U.S.-ASEAN Summit in Cambodia, President Joe Biden said that both ASEAN and the US will elevate their relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP), the same as China-ASEAN relations. President Biden has said the new strategic partnership will enable to tackle the biggest issue of our time.
Mexico will start to check travellers’ document before they enter the United States. This move highlights Mexico increase role in helping the United States control immigration flow from Central and South America. Consul General of Mexico in San Diego Carlos González Gutiérrez has called the cooperation as a “binational collaboration exercise” while Human Rights group are concerned about the effect of the cooperation towards asylum seekers.
The United States President Joe Biden has said on Sunday (13/11) that he seeks to establish a red line with China President Xi Jinping on U.S.-China relations. White House officials has said that Biden will push China to use its influence to curb North Korea missile program. White House officials has stated that President Biden plan to meet with President Xi Jinping on Monday in Bali during the G-20 meeting.