China and India compete for influence, nation by nation, throughout the Indian Ocean region.

By Harsh V Pant*

As Sino-Indian competition for influence in the Indian Ocean region heats up, India suffered a setback in the Seychelles, due mostly to local politics rather than Chinese resistance. Still, India will seek other avenues in the region to bolster its position.

In January, India signed a 20-year pact with the nation to build an airstrip and a jetty for its navy on Assumption Island, due north of Madagascar – pursuant to deal made by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a 2015 visit to the Seychelles. New Delhi agreed to invest $550 million in building the base to secure its vessels and others in the southern Indian Ocean. The government of the Seychelles, an archipelago nation of 115 islands, had justified this pact by underlining that the base would help the country’s coastguard patrol its exclusive economic zone off the African coast for illegal fishing, drug trafficking and piracy.

The agreement proved easier signed than implemented. Local politics in the Seychelles, which depends on agriculture and tourism, played spoilsport. Critics of the Indian presence in the island nation galvanized with the political opposition to derail the project. President Danny Faure of the Seychelles informed parliament in March that he would not take up the Assumption Island project with India for ratification after an opposition leader rejected the deal.

India’s attempt to gain a foothold in the western Indian Ocean may have suffered a temporary setback, but it won’t be the last of such attempts. In the Seychelles back- channel negotiations are happening that could still deliver the project to India. New Delhi’s resolve to expand influence in the region has only strengthened since summer of 2017 when China inaugurated its first overseas military base in Djibouti, increasing India’s anxiety about China’s growing profile in western Indian Ocean. Competition for regional influence is heating up with China and India both mapping out respective strategies by building facilities across the Indian Ocean littoral.

While China has been building ports, roads, bridges and power stations across Asia, countries express growing concern about the terms for such infrastructure investment. China’s acquisition of Hambantota Port in Sri Lanka in a debt-to-equity swap deal underlined problems with what has been called China’s “debt trap diplomacy.”  Opaque terms and predatory loan practices without social or environmental assessments have entangled some nations in Chinese strategic objectives. India has tried to differentiate its approach with outreach that is more partnership in approach.

The Indian Ocean littoral has the potential to become the leading source of new global growth over the next 20 years. Indian Ocean channels carry two-thirds of the world’s oil shipments, a third of the bulk cargo and half of all container traffic. China’s rise adds another dimension with traditional power equations in flux. India sits astride the Indian Ocean as the preeminent power, and China’s encroachment is motivating India’s evolution of thinking about the region. India’s centrality influenced how commercial and cultural ties evolved throughout the region and along the ocean’s periphery. As historian K.M. Panikkar has written in his seminal work, India and the Indian Ocean: An Essay on the Influence of Sea Power on Indian History, “Millenniums before Columbus sailed the Atlantic and Magellan crossed the Pacific, the Indian Ocean had become an active thoroughfare of commercial and cultural traffic.” Today India wants to restore its status in the region but faces strong headwinds.

The Modi government has made the Indian Ocean a priority, and former Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar has argued in favor of “reviving the Indian Ocean as a geopolitical concept.” Modi has also highlighted the value of the “Indian Ocean region,” visiting not only Seychelles, Mauritius and Sri Lanka but also several East African nations along the Indian Ocean littoral. Inviting Seychelles and Mauritius to join the existing maritime security cooperation arrangement among India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka in 2015, Modi had underlined that New Delhi seeks “a future for Indian Ocean that lives up to the name of SAGAR — Security and Growth for All in the Region.” He outlined a set of goals that included seeking “a climate of trust and transparency; respect for international maritime rules and norms by all countries; sensitivity to each other’s interests; peaceful resolution of maritime security issues; and increase in maritime cooperation.”

In November 2017, India signed a deal with Singapore to expand existing Indian access to Changi naval base. India contributes to the development of Agaléga in Mauritius with dual-use logistical facilities. India and France, eying the Indian Ocean, have signed the “reciprocal logistics support” agreement as part of which warships of both the nations would have access to each other’s naval bases. India and the United States signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement in 2016, giving both countries access to designated military facilities for refueling and supplies.

Modi visited Oman in February and secured access for India to the Port of Duqm for military use and logistical support. The port in southeast Oman is about 400 kilometers to Iran’s Chabahar Port, directly across the Gulf of Oman, and offers the potential to enhance India’s regional footprint. The Chabahar port being developed by India – 72 kilometers from the Chinese-backed Pakistani port of Gwadar – is viewed as a strategic play to limit China’s influence in that area through its Belt and Road Initiative.

India’s Indian Ocean outreach coincides with its efforts to make a case about its role in the wider Indo-Pacific. India is relaying the message that it is not merely an Indian Ocean and South Asian power, but one with capacity and intent to shape the wider Indo-Pacific, stretching from its established presence in the Indian Ocean to interests in the South China Sea, the Middle East and Africa and into the Pacific. And this understanding of Indian strategic reach is widely accepted. The United States has welcomed this growing footprint and other major powers have also responded positively. The re-emergence of the Quad, involving the United States, Japan, Australia and India on developing regional security strategies, reflect this growing consensus.

China challenges India’s status in the Indian Ocean in unprecedented ways as demonstrated by the crisis in the Maldives. A power struggle is underway with the current president embracing China’s Belt and Road infrastructure, land grabs and increasing debt while a former president reached out to India for support. A state of emergency was declared in February and India’s advice was pointedly shunned by the President Abdulla Yameen. China’s growing profile in the Maldives has been dramatic from 2011, when it did not even have an embassy in the island nation, to today where it has become central to domestic developments. Even in the Seychelles which has a strong longstanding defense relationship with India, Chinese military is making its presence felt and the two nations are exploring options to expand their military engagement. Such a rapidly shifting strategic landscape puts India’s credibility as a regional power on the line as the country can no longer engage in diffident posturing, but must live up to the expectations it has generated. As of now it is not readily evident if New Delhi can effectively navigate these tricky waters in the Indian Ocean.

*Harsh V Pant is a distinguished fellow at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, and professor of international relations, King’s College London.

By Ravi Joshi

‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’ This is common sense in America, but President Donald Trump governs the country not so much by common sense but by gut instinct and prejudices. And so when he declared that he will trash the nuclear deal with Iran (the JCPOA – Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) signed by the P5+1 (US, UK, France, Russia, China and Germany), it is not Iran that got so much into a tizzy but all the European partners of the US. For the last few weeks, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson have all visited the White House, pleading with Trump not to wreck the deal.

Obviously, the Europeans have good reasons to do so. First, Iran has not violated any of the provisions of the deal. Second, the only agency mandated by the UNSC to endorse the deal, the IAEA, has consistently given a clean chit to Iran, till as recently as March 2018. While IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano certified that Iran is fully implementing all its obligations under the JCPOA of 2015, he called upon North Korea to abide by the UN Security Council Resolutions and open up its facilities for verification. While President Trump is eagerly seeking out a meeting with a ‘rogue nuclear weapon state’ such as North Korea, his stubborn refusal to abide by an agreement signed by his predecessor with a ‘non-nuclear weapon state’ that has agreed to withhold its nuclear programme, smacks of utterly arbitrary and petulant behavior. As Nicholas Kristof says “this is not an act of foreign policy. This is an act of vandalism”.

Third, this is the best deal that the P5+1 could get out of Iran to keep it reined in from its suspected nuclear ambitions. Fourth, tearing up the deal now would untether Iran to pursue its nuclear weapon’s programme and finally, this would tie down Iran to American sanctions forever, which were not lifted even after it signed the deal and enrage it to unpredictable acts of recklessness in an already turbulent region. To put it simply, this is an act of ‘bad faith’ and no other country would trust American word on any deal, any more. Would North Korean President Kim Jong-un accept President Trump’s word for any deal?

Is there a problem with Trump or is it that he wants to undo all the work done by his predecessor – Barack Obama? His decision to break away from the TPP, NAFTA, the Paris Climate accord and now the Iran deal shows that he has a pathological problem with his predecessor. But then, what about all the countries involved? What about global trade, and the common concerns on climate warming? Does he care? Probably not.

Trump’s motives behind the move

Is there something more than irrationality here, a plausible motivation to achieve an unstated goal. Is that related to the destruction or degradation of Iranian power – an objective that is sought by both Israel and Saudi Arabia, great allies of President Trump. Does it have something to do with Jared Kushner’s business interests? Do they coincide with the ambitions of Mohamed bin Salman (MBS) – the young and reckless Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia?  The recent visits of both MBS and Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington have obviously worked on Trump in convincing him of the need to dump the deal and isolate Iran.

Having suffered low oil price in the range of $43 to $54 per barrel from 2015 to 2017, specifically during the 3-year-long period of a disastrous and unwinnable war against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, for which he had to buy hundreds of billions of dollars worth of arms from the US, Saudi Arabia now wants the oil prices to go back up to a reasonable $85 per barrel at least, to fill up the budgetary gap and a further rise of up to $100 per barrel to put the country well on the road to prosperity. Ratcheting up tension in the Persian Gulf is a sure of way of doing that. The oil prices had already climbed up to $70 per barrel merely on the expectation that Trump would break off from the deal. And the day after Trump’s announcement, it rose up to $77 per barrel.

A sustained upswing in oil prices will crucially depend on whether Trump takes action to prevent Iran from shipping out its oil. This calls for re-imposing all the old sanctions prior to the deal and adding a few more. And that’s exactly what Trump’s announcement indicated.

Successive American presidents have removed Saudi rivals in the region — from Saddam Hussain in Iraq to Mummar al-Gaddafi in Libya. The one remaining ‘snake whose head they need to cut off’ is Iran as the then Saudi King Abdullah had told the US Defence Secretary Robert Gates in April 2008. He had specifically asked the US to bomb Iranian nuclear installations. What better way for Trump than to start by unraveling the nuclear deal with Iran, as a first step.

Implications for Iran and the region

The initial reaction from Tehran is on expected lines, with President Rouhani stating that Iran would abide by the agreement and wait for the response of the other five signatories – UK, France, Germany, Russia and China and then decide on its future course of action. He is also reported to have told his nuclear scientists to ‘commence enrichment of uranium without limit.’ Recent reports indicate that the leaders of EU-3 have decided to meet with Iranian leaders on  coming Monday, 14 May.

Domestically within Iran, President Rouhani faced stiff resistance from the hardliners in the Parliament as well as the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) that benefitted immensely from a flourishing black market economy during the sanctions period. Both had a vested interest in breaking the accord. For them, Trump has done a favour.

If the other five signatories hold on to the accord and work out modes of payments in currencies other than US Dollar, such as Euros and the Chinese Yuan, the situation within Iran may still be salvaged without much disruption.

The West Asian region would return to greater instability, with Saudi Arabia and Israel becoming openly hostile to Iran. With the US now positioning itself decisively in the Saudi camp against Iran, the region could soon witness much saber rattling that could easily slide into war.

Implications for India

New Delhi, true to its style, has refused to comment on the situation, though Iran is the third largest supplier of oil to India. Since we continued to import Iranian oil even during the height of sanctions by making payments in non-dollar currencies and with a barter system of 20% in Indian rupees and 30% for third country trade of Iran through an Indian bank, India should not have difficulty in adjusting to the new reality.

However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s relations with both Trump and Netanyahu may complicate his stance. Both of them would certainly expect him to fall in line with their reasoning. How we are going to position ourselves will reveal a lot about our foreign policy.

Princess Lalla Hasnaa, President of the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environment protection, took part, on Thursday in Toronto, in the Women’s Forum Canada 2018, slated May 10-11 under the theme “Bridging the gap: A call to the G7 for inclusive progress.” A two-day conference that will focus on the opportunities of women empowerment worldwide. Female leaders from the worlds of politics and business will congregate to tackle the world’s biggest problems and seek to bring added value, not just on gender issues, but human issues in general. Distinguished participants will present their ideas and visions that will be tested and workshopped in various panels and speeches at the conference where more than 600 global leaders are expected to attend.

The forum “aims to drive progress in women’s advancement and develop the future of diversity by engaging corporate leadership at the highest levels, and to influence the G7 Summit through a set of recommendations on gender policies.” In particular, the conference will be addressed by the General Director of the world Bank Kristalina Georgieva and Sophie Gregoire Trudeau.

We want to bring added value, not just on gender issues, but human issues,” said Women’s Forum managing director Chiara Corazza. “What’s happening in Japan is very different than what’s happening in Germany … but we want to listen, we want to highlight the good ideas.”

The event is expected to attract more than 600 global leaders. Among the speakers will include the Director of the world Bank Kristalina Georgieva, General Director of Me to We Rockin Joyal and editor in chief of Vogue Mexico Karla Martinez.

Princess Lalla Hasnaa took part in the plenary session themed “working together on climate change, oceans and energy”, during which Her Royal Highness gave a speech.

In front of nearly 600 leaders, Her Royal Highness discussed two aspects of her action: leadership for the environment and commitment of a mother. Lalla Hasnaa explained that actions conducted by her foundation to raise awareness about the environment involve people of all ages and the whole society to change behaviours for the benefit of the environment.

Princess Lalla Hasnaa is also very active for the inclusion of all social segments in the continent’s economic development.

To achieve this educational and behavioural mutation, she always advocates for empowering women who have a huge impact on children’s education and society in general.

Princess Lalla Hasnaa has been an environment activist since 1999, and is also a mother committed to protect the future of her children and next generations.

Afterwards, Princess Lalla Hasnaa attended a panel on “Inclusive Climate Actions” focusing on the importance of fighting climate change and pooling efforts to reach tangible results for the well-being of the planet and humanity.

Princess Lalla Hasnaa has always recalled the paramount importance of education for sustainable development, today essential lever to deeply change the behavior of citizens and face the challenges of global warming. This level embodied in article 6 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and article 12 of the Paris Agreement underscores the importance of education, training, public awareness, public access to information and international cooperation to effectively combat climate change.

Efforts made in the field of education for sustainable development have become the mandatory matrix of any action in favor of the environment. The difficulties faced by governments in changing current behavior lead to the view that education will rapidly induce the necessary inflection.

“People in the G7 needs to hear different voices, said Corazza. – Including the voices of women. The empowerment of women is not about empowering women just because they are women; it is about providing women who deserve it, opportunities where they deserve.”

According to Corazza, Canada was chosen as the venue because of the administration of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and how much attention he pays to women. Trudeau’s wife, Sophie grégoire Trudeau, who has long advocated for gender equality, will also speak at the forum.

The forum is expected proposals on the economic empowerment of women and increasing the rate of female participation in the male-dominated fields of science, technology, engineering and math.

The Women’s Forum for the Economy and Society is an international platform looking at major social and economic issues from women’s perspectives. Founded in 2005, the Forum seeks to give voice to leading women and men in politics, business, civil society and universities through various international meetings.

This year the event will be held a month before the G7 Summit in 2018 in La Malbaie, so it is expected that the discussions on the Women’s Forum will influence the decisions taken at the G7.

By Steve York*

Open borders without restrictive controls have been a catalyst and created a rise in Right Wing nationalism with the rebirth of a nation-state mentality where xenophobia is institutionalized. Uncontrolled migrant gateways especially in Italy and Greece have created tension among European Union (EU) member states. In response, EU states have placed restrictions on border crossings testing the limits of the Schengen Agreement for open and free borders flows. These new restrictions on the open borders are biased and are based on a political discourse of hate.

The historic rise of the Right is founded upon a minority ideological political movement blaming the weakness of liberal democratic governance and the resulting economic uncertainty on ethnic minorities. The Right uses patriotic themed imagery to stereotype national identity as an ‘us’ against ‘them’ conflict portraying a migrant ethnic personality against a neo-national citizen. The Right uses this new identity to express dissatisfaction against globalism and international institutions. The Right’s manifestation of fear of ethnic change creates an antagonistic environment where protectionism is the policy, the minorities are the scapegoats, and violence is the consequence.

Anti-Migrant policy and politics create exclusions on the freedom of movement and directly affect the survival of Schengen where restrictions cause institutional racism. New nationalist policies of border management are based upon xenophobia and a national self-interest that uses hate or racism which is a mismanagement of the terms under Schengen agreements. Reckless state behavior fails to uphold the terms of Schengen while increased costs associated with time and productivity losses are passed on to consumers.  Moreover, independently applied border controls are a leading cause of a decline in economic productivity in the EU. Discriminatory types of laws do nothing to encourage a diverse and globalized EU.  These types of laws create a homogenous identity and create a myopic view of sovereignty.  The whole idea of the EU was to create a shared and common border to become competitive against large economic forces like the United States.  This creation of the EU was an In group and all nations had to meet certain standards to become a part this new institution.

The rise of Right Wing nationalism can be identified in some groups found in Austria (Austrian Freedom Party), France (National Front), Netherlands (Party for Freedom), Greece (Golden Dawn), or in Germany (Alternative for Deutschland Party) to name a few. Groups blame the economic problems on a crisis of a liberal democracy viewing the broken system as the institutions associated with linked economies, growing national debts, and unsustainable welfare systems. Groups use the immigrant as a cultural and economic threat to the nation.  Groups also use multiculturalism and European integration as reason for protectionism. Groups use the negative imagery of race and religion creating a fear of ethnic minorities.  The crisis of liberalism is seen as a rise in Right Wing nationalism and is based upon a loss of trust in the intuitions that govern a global civil society.

The Right creates the identity in the group as a social base to form a commonality for members. This affiliation is used as a social construct for nation building. This forms a self-deterministic ethnocentric personality of the minority Group. The rule of the minority over the governance of the majority.  The trend moves away from globalism and the collective good of the EU. The failure of government and its role to provide stability and sovereignty allows the voice of hatred and emotions of fear to blossom. The rise in nationalism in the EU is really the use of fear, emotions, and images for a racist minority influence over the liberal-minded majority. The idea of the Right is to use a loss of identity to create a need for a growth in the Right Wing.  As the world globalizes, the changing dynamics of the labor markets and the rising unemployment rates across Europe are the catalyst for this movement. The Right uses the perception of inequalities to create a new world order using the emotions of anger and fear to promote global threats. This is classic out group hostility as defined in Social identity Theory. Feeling and emotions are used by the Right to create isolationism and withdrawal in the name of nationalism. The Right challenges the global community and becomes a threat to international institutions. NATO and the UN will lose power as will the illusion of freedoms with a new nationalism. The Right-Wing movement seems to be driven by fear of globalization.

In addition, the huge growth in migrant populations after the Color Revolutions and Arab Spring can be used by hate politicians as a way of weakening the strong political bonds of current political leaders.  Political leaders can use immigrants for both positive and negative political purposes. Immigrants are potential voters and can be added to a political base once they achieve citizenship.  On the negative side, politicians can demonize migrants as criminals distracting people from other more serious problems like unemployment or rising inflation.

While the Schengen Agreement provided a common legal and financial system for shared security, an unequal minority/majority relationship among member states encourages institutionalized xenophobia. For instance, new laws are ethnocentric and discriminatory. Racist laws force oppressive assimilation, using an adopt-and-embrace culture technique. The French passed a law in 2010 prohibiting the burqa in public. The Swiss, who guarantee freedom of religion, have banned the construction of minarets used by Muslims in their call to prayer.  Denmark and Sweden do border spot-checks profiling migrants. While in Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his ruling Fidesz Party recently closed borders to asylum seekers as a political statement designed to help win a recent election in April (BBC 2018). The ethnocentric actions are in violation of the UNHRC, an institution responsible for the promotion and protection of all human rights around the globe.

Psychology alone cannot adequately explain the behaviors of Right Wing nationalism without including the economic reality of globalization. Theory alone can only explain the symptoms of the changing economic landscape of the EU.  Psychology in a way explains the negative side of the rise in nationalism.  Some European nations have strong economies and low unemployment yet fear the huge growth of migrants from the Syrian conflict.  This is a fear the Right uses to create a new reality.

The Right blames the growing migrant population for the financial crisis.  When members join the EU they become economically dependent on each other. When strong and weak economies combine, the result was the European financial crisis arising from unsustainable debt levels and default fears from the nations of Ireland, Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Spain, and Portugal.  European financial institutions held this debt, so any default would threaten the stability of the European financial industry and the common currency of the Euro. The financial fix in 2009 also included Anti-Migration Policies that reinforced institutionalized bias, including the use of proxy governance – limiting visas for migrants using the European Financial Stability Fund and other Stability Mechanisms based upon racial quotas. Limiting visas was an illusionary fix and the cause of significant institutional xenophobia and scapegoating.

The primary goal of future work is to identity ways to manage the use of fear as a political instrument.  Members of the EU could create globalized legislation like a Common Asylum System where members are able to reinstate an open and free border program.  The goal would be to foster cooperation among national police and customs authorities. States could manage the borders jointly and have a shared administrative and fiscal system of controls.  This system can manage the flow of asylum seekers concentrating on areas where existing controls have failed. Moreover, a common system can focus resources on First-Entry Border Control Points and a Willing-Member States Program (WMSP). A further responsibility of the WMSP is a jobs training program that could help migrants adjust to new condition. In the end, what is needed most is a subtle, agile, and empathetic system of governance that knows how to fuse psychological fears and financial instability into a system of common prosperity and societal understanding. If leadership across the EU cannot do this or is unwilling to engage it, then the hate-mongers will only increase.

About the author:
*Steve York has a long and distinguished career serving his country and managing global security problems. He is currently pursuing his doctorate in Global Security in the School of Security and Global Studies at the American Military University.

Source:
This article was published by Modern Diplomacy

The “revolution” – our own Malaysian styled-revolution – that ought to now be studied alongside the nature and structure of revolutions worldwide is not without its causes. A peaceful revolution. Thank you Malaysians, for such an elegant transfer of power. Goodbye Mr. Najib Razak.

At the great gathering of thousands, the new leaders emerging from the elections of 2018 speak.

Praise be to God, Lord of the Universe, Just God of Humanity, Universal God of Humankind that knows even what is whispered in our hearts. Praise be to Lord of the Day of Judgment; one that made possible the change and transformation we are seeing now and we will continue to see in future.

Allow me to talk about our victory, our vision of a “Constitutional State” and our vehicle of social, cultural, and economic progress beyond the NEP: of a new economic agenda.

I stand here by His Grace, with humility, thanking you Malaysians who have come to celebrate and to give us the strength, the resolve, and the will to continue to march towards victory.

This victory is already ours. We cannot underestimate our struggle – the struggle of Malaysians of regardless of race, class, gender, creed, religious background, and national origin. This victory will be a gift for our children. This will be the best gift we can leave the next generation with in a country in which “justice” is put in its proper place. This is the concept of Adil and is what we base out struggle on. This is the concept of bersih, cekap, amanah in the truest sense of the word. We are winning.

We live in an imperfect world. We live in maya, in the shadow of Plato’s cave. We constantly need to make changes to our institutions, so that democracy will have its breathing space, will evolve, and will flourish in accordance to the laws of Nature. As the French philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau once said “Everything in good in the hands of the Author of things, everything degenerates in the Hands of Man…”

We have allowed totalitarianism, corruption, repression, and hedonism to take root in our democratic institutions.

In an imperfect world such as Malaysia, in which imperfection has gotten worse and making us slaves to the policies created out of our prejudices and arrogance, out of our greed and lust for power, and out of our ill-conceived idea of human liberation and economic development – this imperfect world needed more than just incremental changes and compromise.

It needed radical changes and no-compromises. We have shown that we through Fate conspiring, through the Will of God, we made that change, sudden yet peaceful and civil, on May 9th. It is our Velvet revolution, inspired by our own sense of non-violence, aided by technologies of cybernetics.

The “revolution” – our own Malaysian styled-revolution – that ought to now be studied alongside the nature and structure of revolutions worldwide is not without its causes.

Voices of change

Those hard long years of battling injustices, the sacrifices of those imprisoned without trial, of those humiliated beyond recognition stripped off their dignity, those brutally beaten beyond mercy, those hunted down on the streets of our major cities, those silenced and stupefied in our universities, those sprayed with chemicals, and the voice of the little girl – a child of the Hindraf revolution who brought roses to ask for pity for his father’s release – all these violent images of oppression we do not deserve have taught us to be stronger.

We shall overcome
We shall overcome.
We shall overcome the tyranny of an arrogant, ineffective, incompetent, corrupt and lazy government that
does not have any more respect for the rule of law
does not have any shame in showing its greed and lust
does not have any mercy in using brutal force to silent the voices of change
does not have much respect for the principles of human rights
does not have much intelligence when it comes to parliamentary debates
does not have a clue of what good governance means
does not have any regard for the plight of the poor and their livelihood
does not have any respect for the intelligence of the faculty and students in our universities
does not have any shame in overstaying their welcome
does not have any interest in controlling crime
does not have any will to fight corruption
and does not have leaders that are wide awake,
and does not have any idea that spoiled brats and greedy ones are running the country and finally destroying not only the party but also the nation.

That’s the price of arrogance. That’s the price of corruption. That’ s the price of losing touch with reality and a government losing its mind as well. That is what it is paying for – big time!

It has been our remarkable years of living dangerously, swept by the tsunami of a yellow wave, under the moonlight of a blood red sky. It has been remarkable for us and the world to witness battles being fought by the rakyat against the machinery of oppression— a corrupted machine run by corrupted minds of lesser morals.

By God’s grace we shall win this war against the unjust. We shall win, by the will of the people.

We shall put justice in its proper place.
Hold on fast to your dreams

A few days before the Malaysian tsunami that swept away the powerful machinery of the ruling regime, sweeping it to the backyard of our national history, we were battling with this feeling that the regime would still be holding power and will continue to use it to oppress, intimidate, and to rob the rakyat – for another fifty years.

The African-American poet of hope, Langston Hughes once said:”Hold on fast to your dreams. For when dreams die, life is but a broken-wing”.

W.S. Rendra the great poet of the Nusantara once said the “world within.. the world outside must unite” in order for meaningful change to happen; in order for leaders to be true to his or her conscience and to answer to God.

We are at an exciting historical juncture. No longer are we being objects of history, but we have become makers of history. Time awaits no man or woman. History marches on; history crafted by those oppressed by their own people intoxicated with power.

No colours or barriers

Who would believe that we could have achieve such victory in a time when skepticism still reigns. Who would believe that we would, in our rage against the machine, overturned it and send those who owned it scrambling in all directions bruised and still unwilling to accept the defeat orchestrated by the rakyat. Yes, the power of the rakyat, or suara keramat rakyat, the sacred voice of the people, that made victory possible. From the silent and scared voices of the rakyat we now have a sacred voice that has spoken loud and clear and will continue to speak louder.

Onwards to the march of the power of the people that have begun to know no colors and barriers of religion, class, creed, and national origin. You are the reason why I am still standing here and not looking outward from some prison cell in Perak or Selangor – two states tsunamied by the yellow wave.

What next after the revolution? The celebrations are over. We need a GPS – a geo-positioning system – to help us create a better society.

We are all economic beings who need to see a better plan that will promise us a better life after what we have accomplished in this General Election. We do not have faith anymore in the New Economic Policy that has reared its ugly head in its 50 years of implementation.

We cannot have faith in the NEP that is creating robber barons out of the hard work of the poor. We can no longer be fooled by the argument that the NEP protects the rights of the Bumiputeras when only a few “sons and daughters of the soil” are plundering the wealth of this land and gradually but surely selling off our country to other robber barons from outside of this country. Is this the kind of Bumiputera hiding behind the mask of the NEP we want to have running this country?

These are the Bumiputeras who make different races mistrust each other, masking the real issue of oppression and distributive injustices that know no race, ethnicity, color, creed. These are the culprits that were created out of our own lack of understanding of what a “good society” is and what “radical multiculturalism” means and how these can offer us a sound philosophy of human development that prioritizes needs versus wants, virtue over greed, and peaceful solution versus structural violence. It is a matter of time we depose these “traitors” who call themselves defenders of this or that race, hiding behind the crumbling walls of the NEP.

Who is still speaking for the New Economic Policy – one that is used for fifty years first as a programme to help the poor but no has matured as a tool of the powerful to plunder the nation and to rape the environment?. Who would have thought that the NEP once designed as a strategy to alleviate poverty and restructure society has now become an instrument to make the poor poorer and the rich filthier.

A new dawn

You have entrusted us to fight for a better future. You have given us the trust to chart a new Malaysia. We owe you a dawn of a new Malaysia.

Our central economic principle is that “the right opportunities must be made available to every single Malaysian—opportunities to learn, opportunities to make an honest living, and opportunities to achieve our dreams”. We will defend the rights of all Malaysians as guaranteed under our constitution.

Let us go forth in the direction of change, with our brand new economic agenda. Let us leave the abused and outdated New Economic Policy behind. How do we do this? You and I must take charge.

Courageous Malaysian who have known truth and justice, to fight for these, and to see how these are becoming a reality,
You continue to be the reason why this revolution is happening. I stand before you, with humility asking you to continue to support our struggles to be free;
You have answered the call to freedom.
You have risked your lives on the streets in order to demand for freedom.
You have not given up.
You will be free from the shackles of domination
Free from being harassed by the government the moment you want to speak up
Free from having to bear the burden of this regime’s incompetence and corrupt practices,
Free from the being treated like second and third class citizens even though grandfather and great grandfather arrived here earlier that the fathers and mother of many of the Cabinet Ministers
Free at last we shall be
Free at last by God’s Grace

Thank you. Thank you.

We shall work together to make our society better.

Thank God Almighty. We shall march on. We shall be free

“I’m not going to sit here with the benefit of hindsight and judge the very good people who made hard decisions who were running the agency in very extraordinary circumstances.” — Gina Haspel, May 9, 2018.

It was always going to be the most complicated of hurdles. Having moved Mike Pompeo on to the role of Secretary of State, President Donald Trump had to find a replacement at the Central Intelligence Agency. Punting for Gina Haspel was an invitation to go into battle, given the Acting Director’s associations with the era of agency waterboarding.

Of specific interest to members of the Senate Intelligence Committee was Haspel’s role in running a covert detention site in Thailand during the blooming violence of the “war on terror” inspired by President George W. Bush’s crusade against jihadis real and fictional. Details of the site are still sketchy, though the jottings on her conduct are sufficient to cause concern. Hypothetical scenarios were considered; questions on what Haspel as director would do if that man in the White House would insist on torture were submitted.

Given that Trump has shown his enthusiasm in torturing the enemy in purely transactional terms, Haspel was asked what would happen in the event the president gave the order. “Senator, I would advise,” came her response to Republican Senator Susan Collins. “I do not believe the president would ask me to do that.” Hardly cause for comfort.

In a performance that seemed disoriented and inconsistent, Haspel fudged the issue of whether torture was immoral while suggesting that the CIA was simply not up to snuff in interrogations. This was tantamount to claiming that these good defenders of Freedom land were executioners with blunt axes. In fact, in the Haspel remit of CIA operations, interrogations of whatever form had never been conducted by the agency, a point distinctly at odds with patches of that body’s history.

As it stood now, such tasks of probing suspects were being conducted by “other US government entities… I would advise anyone that asked me that the CIA is not the place to conduct interrogations. We do not have interrogators and we not have interrogation expertise.”

She spoke of having been given a “strong moral compass” by her parents, and keeping the ship steady. “Having served in that tumultuous time, I can offer you my personal commitment, clearly and without reservation, that under my leadership the CIA will not restart such a detention and interrogation programme.”

The utilitarian aspect of the argument was pressed by Senator Kamala Harris, Democrat from California. Trump had advanced that old canard that torture actually worked; did the nominee agree? “It’s a yes or no answer,” came an unsatisfied senator. “I’m not asking do you believe they were legal. I’m asking do you believe they were immoral.”

Haspel’s response was to transform herself into a utility enthusiast. “Senator, I believe that the CIA did extraordinary work to prevent another attack on the country, given the legal tools that we were authorized to use.”

This was the desk job rationale, the bureaucrat’s classic number. Not a word about the substantive nature of morality mattered here. References to holding “ourselves to the moral standard outlined in the Army Field Manual” or such vague formulations as “the higher moral standard we have decided to hold ourselves to” proliferated as scripted answers.

What mattered most was the result, which was not that people were tortured, but that the United States had been served well, a defence that might have found some sympathy with other famous bureaucrats of the violent and murderous persuasion. “I believe, as many directors who have sat in this chair before me, that valuable information was obtained from senior al Qaida operatives that allowed us to defend this country and prevent another attack.” Ergo, those soiled hands got results in the name of protecting the Republic.

Haspel did make inroads among some members of the intelligence committee. “After meeting with Gina Haspel,” came the confident words of Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia, “discussing her extensive experience as a CIA agent, and considering her time as acting director, I will vote to confirm her to be our next CIA director.” She was evidently a character of “great character”.

An illustrative if sharp point in Wednesday’s proceedings came when former CIA operative Ray McGovern made an intervention at Haspel’s refusal to consider the moral dimension of enhanced interrogation techniques. What of instances, suggested Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, when a CIA officer might be tortured? Would such conduct be immoral?

McGovern duly stood up in the audience and uttered, somewhat inscrutably, that “Senator Wyden, you deserve a direct answer.” (Wyden was not questioning Haspel at the time) The outcome was swift and violent: committee head Senator Richard Burr ordering the Capitol Police to frogmarch the one time chair of the National Intelligence Estimates out of the chamber.

Prior to the hearings, McGovern had penned a powerful note on the lamentable nature of Trump’s appointee. We already knew that Haspel had sought to destroy “dozens of videotapes of torture sessions, including some before her arrival.” Haspel was also part of that industry of deception on “the supposed effectiveness of torture”, something she repeatedly fed “to CIA superiors, Congress, and two presidents.”

With protestors crying foul, and the senators probing the prospects of what a Haspel-led CIA might look like, torture is again making an appearance as prospect and reality. McGovern’s ejection simply served to sully things further.

Much of what happens to Haspel will come down to the swaying views of such committee members as the ailing Senator John McCain, who has already made his position on Haspel clear: “Her refusal to acknowledge torture’s immorality is disqualifying.”

Introduction

Kyrgyzstan’s foreign policy is characterized to be multi-dimensional or multi vector concentrated on the consolidation of flexible and many-sided external relations with its neighboring states and regional players. In the historical perspective, international relations experts and scholars argue that “Kyrgyzstan’s first president Askar Akaev is considered to be the founder of the multi-vector foreign policy in the Kyrgyz Republic”(Dimensions, p.62). As a result, the new-born country started to participate in international foreign policy agendas through signing bilateral agreements with its allies and attracting intergovernmental and non- governmental organizations from various corners of the world.

It is argued that there are several factors which cause multi-vector policy. If some political experts highlight that it is connected due to size and dependency of Kyrgyzstan from other countries, others also refer to poor economic situation and security concerns. In this regard Yasar Sari stated, “Geopolitical and geo-economic situation of Kyrgyzstan complicated the development of an independent foreign policy. Therefore, Kyrgyzstan introduced a multi-vector foreign policy”(2017, p.137).

One could agree with the fact that Kyrgyzstan, like Tajikistan, is economically poor and has relatively less natural resources than other Central Asian countries. Indisputably, it was one of the main factors to strengthen cooperation and partnership in regional scope and beyond the region.

This paper aims to investigate the new tendencies from the major three dimensions of external foreign policy which are regional, continental and global areas. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic, “The regional approach is implemented to strengthen good and friendly relations with neighboring states, continental approach is aimed at developing diplomatic relations with major powers like Russia, the USA the European Union, China, Turkey and etc.”

Current policy trends confirm that the state is gradually making shifts towards new objectives and priorities. Therefore, this paper will strongly attempt to introduce with the main transformations under the governance of the president Soorobai Jeenbekov and will tackle recent political events in the formation of foreign policy objectives of the state nowadays. The paper focuses on question: What foreign policy actions and resolutions have been produced since the presidency of Sooronbai Jeenbekov in Kyrgyzstan?

Regional approach

The state visit of the president of Uzbekistan to the Kyrgyz Republic serves as the historically important event in the development of trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian affairs between two states. As a result, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan notes that, “On September 5th in 2017, the presidents signed an agreement concerning Uzbek and Kyrgyz state border issues” (New, 2017).

As a result, 70% of border disputed areas are solved and intergovernmental agreements on demarcation and delimitation is signed. The mutual agreement resulted in the operation of Tashkent-Balykchy railway system in the summer seasons. Affairs of Uzbekistan believe that (New, 2018). “Since 2018, the routine functions all year round carrying 300 passengers per course”.

In assessment of this project, we can highlight that the state border resolution positively resulted in the growth of agricultural sector. Farmers and businessmen are enabled to export fruits and vegetables to Uzbekistan in a profitable and freeway (New, 2018). Concentration on the regional sector in order to improve agriculture and livestock is also manifested in the negotiations about the activation of “Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan-China” new automobile corridor. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan highlights that it will positively contribute to the development of domestic trade market and tourism sector of both states (New, 2017).

The point is that entrepreneurs and businessmen can carry out active business plans and contracts without barriers and constraints. At the same time, the project contributes to the attraction of tourists and investors from various states to Kyrgyzstan. Hence, Kyrgyzstan’s cooperation with Uzbekistan has opened new horizons in settling the enduring border issues and further development of cross-border communication, and increase of economic turnover. For instance, with the new administration there have been noticed changes in Kyrgyz-Kazakh relations as well.

Regarding the cooperation between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, it has been highlighted that the states dealt with tense border relations in the last months of 2017. The Diplomat correspondent Catherine Putz argues that “Kazakhstan’s increased border controls led to a slowdown in trade about $14.3 million in damage to the Kyrgyz economy. The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Minsk between N.Nazarbayev and S.Jeenbekov featured the necessary positive diplomatic language” (2017, p.4). Through the cited source, it is understandable that the bilateral agreement between presidents in Minsk helped to resolve border relations and the two month trade war has been successfully ceased.

Furthermore, Kabar news agency reports Sooronbai Jeenbekov’s comments by stating that “Kyrgyz-Kazakh relations will only deepen in the future, because there are no closer people than Kyrgyz and Kazakhs. At these meetings, problematic issues on borders and economic cooperation were resolved, and there was a significant increase in the GDP of the Kyrgyz Republic”(Jeenbekov, 2018).

Having observed the strained trade and border relations between states, citizens hardly ever believed that the trade control would be eventually eliminated. But the new presidency of Sooronbai Jeenbekov helped to come up with effective resolutions on settling the border disputes impose hope for the citizens of Kyrgyzstan. Non-acceptance of the Kazakh government of Kyrgyz food production and industry creates many burdens for factory workers and exporters of the state. So, the proper concentration and technical modernization on the weaknesses in terms of veterinary and sanitary compatibility of Kyrgyzstan would be positively resulted in the increase of the national budget.

Continental approach

It is worth mentioning the blossoming relations with the European Union and the Kyrgyz Republic that led to positive outcomes in the eradicating processes of gender and political inequality, trade barriers, legal offences and unemployment in the state. According to the minister of foreign affairs of Kyrgyzstan Erlan Abdyldaev, “In 2014, the EU subsidized 184 million euros in consolidation of the Rule of Law, fight against corruption, legal and judicial reforms”(2017, p.11). The Rule of Law initiative influenced the judiciary system through conducting collaborative seminars, assembling the judges and introducing them with new techniques and methodologies. Application of rule of law and progressive reports in judicial system has been seen as necessary precondition for democratic governance in Kyrgyzstan.

In powerful and prospering European states, Singapore or the United States, the capacity of the Supreme Court is huge, and the most significant differentiation is that the judges overseas do not depend on the government. People respect and obey the laws; they are not corrupted and carry out transparent system of working. Hence, the level of crimes and corruption is also less. So, further development of the Rule of Law Platform in Kyrgyzstan is deemed to be vital.

The next important element gained after the EU-Kyrgyzstan cooperation is that Kyrgyzstan was able to have GSP+ status with the EU in 2016, which stands for the Generalized Scheme of Preferences. This status positively simplified and benefited the trade relations in Kyrgyzstan. For instance, Kabar National News Agency explains this conception by interpreting that “The GSP+ enhanced preferences mean full removal of tariffs on more than 6000 product categories, a step forward from the GSP scheme. Kyrgyz exporters will be able supply to the European Union at zero tariff rate agricultural products such as fruits, processed fruits, dried fruits, tobacco, and textiles, felt products, clothing, including leather, and carpet”(European, 2016). This status contributes to the development of economic sector, since good trade relations with foreign states raise the investment on agriculture, food production and the exchange of goods.

Moreover, food production and exporting to the EU member states is particularly beneficial to Kyrgyzstan. For instance, the Kyrgyz dried fruits stand out from other states with its ecological cleanness (European, 2016). Therefore, the representatives of the Delegation of the EU highly believe that Kyrgyz farmers have a full potential to successfully send products overseas and increase strategic trade relations with European states.

The next embodiment of continental approach is the external relationship of Kyrgyzstan with Russia. It is worth underlining the fact that Kyrgyzstan is aimed at consolidation of the strategic partnership, diplomatic ties with Russia, since “S.Jeenbekov’s first presidential trip to Russia manifests the president’s foreign policy preferences”(C.Putz, 2017, p.1). The annexation of the state to the Eurasian Economic Union is considered to be the fundamental explanation to the development of Kyrgyz-Russian partnership.

Political experts and analysts emphasize that the creation of the Kyrgyz-Russian Fund and the new distribution of customs duties are perceived as the major advantages of the collaboration between two states. As a matter of fact, Marina Indina argues that, “Within six months, in 2016 the national budget of the Kyrgyz Republic has gained $160 million additional revenue due to the establishment of imports customs duties system” ( 2016, p.3). We can be informed that the imports customs duties provided positive outcomes for business entrepreneurs and agriculture owners. Due to the functioning of the Kyrgyz-Russian Fund, citizens have more financial opportunities in running their own businesses.

By contrast, many representatives of anti-Eurasian movement argue that the scale of economic development of EAEU members is absolutely varied. For instance, the expert on foreign policy of the Institute of World Economy and Politics say that, “Kazakhstan’s GDP is $203bln, Belarus’s GDP is $71 billion and Russia’s two trillion dollars (J.Sarabekov, 2015, p.3). The relatively high rate of GDP of member states creates challenges for Kyrgyzstan in dealing with the increase of import duty of the EAEU. Being the member of the World Trade organization, Kyrgyzstan had low import rates that helped Kyrgyz workers to buy cheap products from China and re-export to neighboring states. For instance, (J.Sarabekov, 2015, p.7) “The low customs rate of Kyrgyzstan in comparison with other EAEU members led to the increase in prices of import goods from China.

Consequently, workers in market such as “Kara-Suu”, “Madina”, “Dordoi” are burdened with high import rates that led to the decrease of the level of re-export and the increase of bankruptcy.

Furthermore, with a mission to strengthen the national security policy, Kyrgyzstan considers opening of military bases and militarization action as key components of its multidimensional foreign policy agenda. According to Catherine Putz, “The state officials highlight that in order to improve national security; the state should be open to the establishment of Russian military base in the south Kyrgyzstan. S.Jeenbekov says it is up to Russia”(2018, p.13).

The country’s support of the opening of the second Russian military base in the southern part only confirms its strategic military preferences. Additionally, president’s choice of the construction of Russian military base in Kyrgyzstan manifests the state’s high level of trust to Russia in prospective armed conflict with threatening states.

In this respect, it can be analyzed that Kyrgyzstan’s multi-vector policy derived from national security interest. Analysis of post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan foreign policy from 1991 till 2014 clearly showed how Kyrgyzstan interplayed with all major players in the region and benefited from cooperation. However, from 2014 geopolitical interests of neighboring Russia and China has increased in the region, resulting the intensification of regional cooperation in particular hydropower and security area (D.Taldybaeva, 2017).

Today, when Kyrgyzstan is involved in tight cooperation with Russia and China, when Russia and China extended their geopolitical interest in the region, a representative of Eurasian Research Institute argues that Kyrgyzstan should further strengthen their relations with their historical overlords, due to Chinese economic growth which already is ranked in the first place (D.Taldybaeva, 2017).

The prioritized areas of economic relations with China are reflected in the realization of hydropower projects and repairing of old of highways of Kyrgyzstan. Regarding this point, Dinara Taldybaeva says that, “China’s State Power Investment Corporation and the government of Kyrgyzstan agreed on the construction of the Kazarman chain of hydropower plant on the Naryn river with the subsidies over $1,565” (2017, p.3).

So, it should be noted that China is one of the prominent investors on economic development projects. Indisputably, regional challenges including security and economic issues cannot be solved without participation of Russia and China. However, it would be wrong to exclude the role of the EU and western countries in Central Asia for stability. Stability and development in Central Asia will take place only when illnesses of economy such as corruption and family regimes will be eradicated. Regional cooperation of Central Asian countries with China and Russia do not consider addressing fights against corruption or democratic governance. Therefore, the role of the EU funded projects is crucial to civil society development and democracy promotion for Kyrgyzstan as well as to other Central Asian countries.

Global approach

The Kyrgyz Republic is building its own international course, depending on changes and trends in the world around, based on its potential and role in world processes. Kyrgyzstan implements foreign policy in accordance with the Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, universally recognized principles and norms of international law. At the end of the 20th century, the country faced tasks related to the search, establishment of the place and role of the new state in the world community.

In order to fully participate in cooperation with foreign countries in the frame of international organizations, the Kyrgyz Republic pursues a multi-vector, balanced and pragmatic foreign policy. The modern foreign policy situation is strongly influenced not only by the achievements of diplomats and politicians in the field of international relations, but also by domestic political and economic situation in the country. At the same time, the image of the Kyrgyz Republic in terms of its readiness to comply with all previously reached agreements and commitments in all formats of cooperation is expected to be associated with reliability and stability.

While talking about global context, the paper would highlight the case of the Kyrgyzstan in United Nations. Like many countries Kyrgyzstan also developed programs such as national strategy on sustainable development, which is based on United Nations international goals. Almost all UN agencies focus on humanitarian and development area.

As a matter of fact, the recent report by the UN in Kyrgyzstan highlights that” Kyrgyzstan’s authorities supplied a new data collection machine to reveal gender-based violence and human trafficking at a roundtable prepared in partnership with the UNODC” (M.Brazko, 2018). With the help of this roundtable, the crimes related to human trafficking and gender violence will be detected faster that will result in the reduction of this serious law offences. Therefore, one can notice that Kyrgyz Government has been supporting active collaboration in the frame of UN. The nutrition programs and poverty reduction, advancement of gender equality, education and health improvement are included in national strategy for sustainable development.

During the presidency of the new president Sooronbay Jeenbekov, most local human rights activists hope for change in freedom of speech, human rights and political participation. For instance, progressive reform in government system, started since the resignation of Prime- Minister Sapar Isakov (A.Dzumashova, 2018). The government of Jeenbekov shows high commitment to fight against corruption. In addition, after the visit to European Commission, Jeenbekov denied from accusation against Journalist Kabay Karabekov (Kabay, 2018), which also shows his democratic step towards freedom of speech.

This is still a short period to give ab assessment for the tendency of Jeenbekov’s policy in the frame of UN. What can be concluded that the new government also supports cooperation of Kyrgyzstan in the frame of UN and all UN launched programs are encouraged.

Conclusion

It is worth concluding that the geopolitical and economic situations burdened the state to establish independent foreign policy strategy and led to the consolidation of multi-dimensional policy. Additionally, the national security incentives caused the state presidents of Kyrgyzstan to sign bilateral agreements on the continental, regional and global levels.

This paper investigated that the regional approach of Kyrgyzstan helped to settle the border issues with Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan which positively affected the interstate alliance and the opening of Uzbekistan- China-Kyrgyzstan automobile route. Additionally, the meeting of Sooronbai Jeenbekov and Nursultan Nazarbaev in Minsk contributed to the elimination of tense diplomatic relations with Kazakhstan. Hence, the active collaboration with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan is vital in the development of domestic trade turnover, re-exporting and opening potential for farmers and factory workers.

Furthermore, the continental approach has manifested that the functioning of Kyrgyz Russian Fund is deemed to be the major development step in the state. Simple preferential terms due to the Eurasian Economic Union opened new possibilities for Kyrgyz migrants and the increase of the state’s GDP. At the same time, the president welcomes the second construction of military base by Russia which is believed to increase the security. On the other hand, Kyrgyzstan faced challenges in re-exporting and production of its own domestic products. The point is that uneven economic development rate of Kyrgyzstan in comparison with other EEAU creates visible downsides in the short-run perspective.

Regarding the level of cooperation of Kyrgyzstan with the UN, it has been emphasized that Sooronbai Jeenbekov highly encourages further partnership in combat with corruption, state poverty, weak nutrition and initiating cross-border communication and peace-building programs. Concentration on the development of free mass media and the recent alternation of the Prime- Minister and state officials demonstrated the democratic preferences of the president. Tight diplomatic relations with Russia, China, Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan guarantee the improvement of national security and flourishing of peaceful border relations. However, the collaboration with the EU, UN, and non-governmental organizations assists in the elimination processes of corruption and law enforcement strategies.

*Cholpon Kainazarova, is a student at the International Alatoo University in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

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As North Korea’s president pledges to “denuclearize” the Korean peninsula, an international team of scientists is publishing the most detailed view yet of the site of the country’s latest and largest underground nuclear test on Sept. 3, 2017.

The new picture of how the explosion altered the mountain above the detonation highlights the importance of using satellite radar imaging, called SAR (synthetic aperture radar), in addition to seismic recordings to more precisely monitor the location and yield of nuclear tests in North Korea and around the world.

The researchers – Teng Wang, Qibin Shi, Shengji Wei and Sylvain Barbot from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, Douglas Dreger and Roland Bürgmann from the University of California, Berkeley, Mehdi Nikkhoo from the German Research Centre for Geosciences in Potsdam, Mahdi Motagh from the Leibniz Universität Hannover, and Qi-Fu Chen from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing – will report their results online this week in advance of publication in the journal Science.

That explosion took place under Mt. Mantap at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site in the country’s north, rocking the area like a 5.2-magnitude earthquake. Based on seismic recordings from global and regional networks, and before-and-after radar measurements of the ground surface from Germany’s TerraSAR-X and Japan’s ALOS-2 radar imaging satellites, the team showed that the underground nuclear blast pushed the surface of Mt. Mantap outward by as much as 11 feet (3.5 meters) and left the mountain about 20 inches (0.5 meters) shorter.

By modelling the event on a computer, they were able to pinpoint the location of the explosion, directly under the mile-high summit, and its depth, between a quarter and a third of a mile (400-600 meters) below the peak.

They also located more precisely another seismic event, or aftershock, that occurred 8.5 minutes after the nuclear explosion, putting it some 2,300 feet (700 meters) south of the bomb blast. This is about halfway between the site of the nuclear detonation and an access tunnel entrance and may have been caused by the collapse of part of the tunnel or of a cavity remaining from a previous nuclear explosion.

“This is the first time the complete three-dimensional surface displacements associated with an underground nuclear test were imaged and presented to the public,” said lead author Teng Wang of the Earth Observatory of Singapore at Nanyang Technological University.

Putting all of this together, the researchers estimate that the nuclear test, North Korea’s sixth and the fifth inside Mt. Mantap, had a yield between 120 and 300 kilotons, about 10 times the strength of the bomb dropped by the United States on Hiroshima during World War II. That makes it either a small hydrogen, or fusion, bomb or a large atomic, or fission, bomb.

The new scenario differs from two reports last week, one of which has been accepted for publication in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, that pinpointed the blast nearly a kilometer to the northwest of the site identified in the new paper, and concluded that the blast rendered the entire mountain unfit for future nuclear tests.

“SAR really has a unique role to play in monitoring explosions because it is direct imaging of the local ground surface, unlike seismology, where you learn the nature of the source analyzing waves radiating outward from the event at distant stations,” said Dreger, a UC Berkeley professor of earth and planetary science and a member of the Berkeley Seismological Laboratory. “SAR provides some measure of ground truthing of the location of the event, a very challenging thing to get at. This is the first time anyone has actually modeled the mechanics of an underground explosion using satellite and seismic data together.”

“As opposed to standard optical imaging satellite imagery, SAR can be used to measure earth deformation day and night and under all weather conditions,” added Dreger’s colleague and co-author Roland Bürgmann, a UC Berkeley professor of earth and planetary science. “By precisely tracking the image pixel offsets in multiple directions, we were able to measure the full three-dimensional surface deformation of Mt. Mantap.”

According to Dreger, the new information suggests the following scenario: The explosion occurred more than a quarter mile (450 meters) below the summit of Mt. Mantap, vaporizing granite rock within a cavity about 160 feet (50 meters) across – the size of a football stadium – and damaging a volume of rock about 1,000 feet (300 meters) across. The blast likely raised the mountain six feet (2 meters) and pushed it outward up to 11 feet (3-4 meters), though within minutes, hours or days the rock above the cavity collapsed to form a depression.

Eight and a half minutes after the bomb blast, a nearby underground cavity collapsed, producing the 4.5-magnitude aftershock with the characteristics of an implosion.

Subsequently, a much larger volume of fractured rock, perhaps 1 mile (1-2 kilometers) across, compacted, causing the mountain to subside to about 1.5 feet (0.5 meters) lower than before the blast.

“There may be continuing post-explosion compaction at the mountain. It takes time for these aseismic processes to occur,” Dreger said.

While it is possible to discriminate explosions from natural earthquakes using seismic waveforms, the uncertainty can be large, Dreger said. Explosions often trigger nearby earthquake faults or other natural rock movements that make the seismic signals look earthquake-like, confusing the analysis. The SAR data revealed that additional constraints from the local static displacement can help to narrow down the source.

“I am hoping that by jointly analyzing the geodetic and seismic data, we will be able to improve discrimination between earthquakes and explosions, and certainly help with estimating the yield of an explosion and improving our estimation of source depth,” Dreger said.

“This study demonstrates the capability of spaceborne remote sensing to help characterize large underground nuclear tests, if any, in the future,” Wang said. “While surveillance of clandestine nuclear tests relies on a global seismic network, the potential of spaceborne monitoring has been underexploited.”

Countries in Asia and the Pacific have made inroads towards achieving several of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, but progress remains uneven across the region, according to a new report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

Launched at the 74th Commission session (CS74), which opened today in Bangkok, the Asia and the Pacific SDG Progress Report 2017 assesses how far the region has progressed in implementation of the SDGs, two years after the 17 Goals were adopted by world leaders in 2015. The Report shows that satisfactory progress has been made at the regional level towards eradicating poverty (Goal 1), promoting health and well-being (Goal 3), and achieving quality education for all (Goal 4).

However, progress on many of the targets has fallen short and in some cases, is deteriorating. Out of the 57 targets analyzed in the Report, 37 show insufficient progress in the region, while negative trends are noted on seven targets related to decent work and economic growth (Goal 8), industry (Goal 9), climate action (Goal 13) and sustainable use of oceans and forests (Goals 14 and 15).

Launching the report at the CS74 senior official’s segment, Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCAP underscored that while there is success to celebrate, much more needs to be done to ensure that no one is left behind by 2030.

“Our region needs to significantly step up its development reform efforts in several areas. Inequalities are found to be widening because rapid economic growth has not always been equitably shared,” said Dr. Akhtar. “More balanced and equitable growth must remain a priority. Across all the SDG areas, work to find multilateral solutions to overcome transboundary challenges must be enhanced for our benefit and that of future generations.”

The Report highlights significant disparities in progress across subregions and countries according to income level, which could further threaten the Asia-Pacific region’s ability to achieve the SDGs. There are also major gaps in the availability of data. Only 25 per cent of the official SDG indicators can currently be used to assess progress in the region, which limits robust assessments by countries and can impede efforts to overcome development challenges.

The recently-held (2017) Catalan independence referendum has thrown Spain and Catalonia into severe political crisis and has created uncertainly for the foreign investors inside Catalonia.

What fate would the Catalans have embraced had Catalonia broke away from Spain after referendum?

Catalans from all walks of life would have suffered severe problems had the pro-independence camp got what they wished for in the referendum.

Here’s some food for thought for the Catalans who voted in the referendum and who didn’t, and for the ones who had been a keen spectator from Europe and elsewhere.

State Structures

Inception of an independent state requires the setting up of the essential state structures, including central bank, tax authority, judicial system, social security, a diplomatic service, a central bank and even an army.

Though most of these state structures/elements are available to Catalonia as an Spanish state/province, there are obvious concerns whether these elements are self-sufficient and mature enough to take the responsibilities of a newly born state.

Chaos

Had Catalonia become a sovereign state, a greater political uncertainty would have arose. There would be political chaos between the ones who opted for independence and the ones who didn’t.

The ones who sought to remain with Spain, or at least didn’t actively support pro-independence campaigns, could have ended up facing rage and infuriated gestures from the opposite camp immediately after independence (had it been achieved).

Debt, currency, exodus of businesses

Moreover, Catalans would then have to assume a significant part of Spain’s debt. They would have to find a currency other than the Euro, as Spain would veto Catalan membership in the Euro Zone.

Without a confirmed currency in the market and with political uncertainty, there would have been a likely evacuation of multinational and Spanish companies from Catalonia to other parts in Spain. Already some multinational and Spanish companies either left or declared to leave Catalonia immediately after last independence referendum.

Access to EU market

If the membership to the European Union (EU) was delayed after Catalonia’s independence, Catalan products would have lost the privilege of unrestricted access to the EU market.

This newly independent state would have lost the leverages of entering into the EU member states’ markets as a free trade zone – a leverage its commercial products enjoy now as Spanish products.

Duties on Catalan goods and services would have been imposed not only by Spain, but also by other EU member states. Moreover, in times of economic disasters, Catalonia could not have called upon the help of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and the European Central Bank (ECB).

Western China and central Asia are positioned centrally along the Millennium Silk Road–a core region bridging the east and west. Understanding the potential changes in climate over this core region is important to the successful implementation of “Belt and Road Initiative” (a US$1 trillion regional investment in infrastructure).

In a recently published study in Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters, scientists from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, projected both mean and extreme climate changes using the ensemble mean of CMIP5 models. The comparison of mean and extreme climate changes under 1.5°C and 2°C global warming scenarios highlights the impacts that can be avoided by achieving global warming of half a degree lower.

The results show a warming of about 1.5°C, 2.9°C, 3.6°C and 6.0°C under the RCP2.6, 4.5, 6.0 and 8.5 scenarios, respectively, by the end of the 21st century, with respect to the 1986-2005 baseline period.

Meanwhile, the annual mean precipitation amount increases consistently across all RCPs, with an increase by about 14% with respect to 1986-2005 under RCP8.5. The warming over the Millennium Silk Road region reaches 1.5°C before 2020 under all the emission scenarios. The 2020s (2030s) see a 2°C warming under the RCP8.5 (RCP4.5) scenario.

“Our study suggests that half a degree less global warming will result in significant avoided impacts in the Silk Road core region,” sayid the lead author Prof. Tianjun Zhou.

According to the study, half a degree less global warming will avoid a further warming of 0.73°C (with an interquartile range of 0.49?-0.94?), as well as increasing the number of extreme heat events by 4.2 days, at a cost of a lower increase of 2.72% (0.47%-3.82%) in annual precipitation. The change in consecutive dry days is region-dependent.

Researchers at Oregon State University are challenging the premise that trophy hunting is an acceptable and effective tool for wildlife conservation and community development.

They argue that charging hunters to kill animals and claim body parts should be a last resort rather than a fallback plan.

In a paper published in Conservation Letters, the researchers label the practice as morally inappropriate and say alternative strategies such as ecotourism should be fully explored and ruled out before trophy hunting is broadly endorsed.

“Trophies are body parts,” said lead author Chelsea Batavia, a Ph.D. student in OSU’s College of Forestry. “But when I read the literature, I don’t see researchers talking about them like that. Nobody’s even flinching. And at this point it seems to have become so normalized, no one really stops to think about what trophy hunting actually entails.”

Furthermore, the authors point out, the notion that trophy hunting is imperative to conservation seems to have taken hold largely without compelling empirical evidence. Such an assumption is not only unsubstantiated but can also serve to squelch the search for alternatives.

“Rejecting trophy hunting could open up space for innovation and creativity,” they write.

Batavia worked with colleagues in Oregon State’s Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society and collaborators from Canada and Australia. The idea for the paper occurred to them over the course of a review of scholarly literature on trophy hunting.

“Conservation scientists commonly recognize strong public opposition to the practice, and at times even point to some sort of ethical tension, but they don’t really define or address it,” Batavia said.

She and her co-authors decided it was time to break the silence and highlight an issue they suspect may underpin the public discomfort around trophy hunting – that it involves a hunter paying a fee to kill an animal and subsequently retaining some or all of the animal’s body as a trophy.

Part of the ongoing problem, the researchers write, is the word “trophy,” a sanitized expression for the tusks, ears, feet, heads, etc. that hunters remove from the animals’ bodies.

“It’s almost like an ethical distraction, calling it by some other name,” said co-author Michael Paul Nelson, a professor and the Ruth H. Spaniol Chair of Renewable Resources at OSU. “We have these metaphors that we hide behind. It’s like we recognize it’s an ethically loaded topic but we don’t know what to do about it. And we’ve tied conservation to the practice of trophy hunting – how do we get off that train?”

Proponents argue that trophy hunting supports conservation goals by generating money and reducing poaching and also that it bolsters local economies.

Nelson, Batavia and their co-authors recognize these benefits, but they counter that “collecting bodies or body parts as trophies is an ethically inappropriate way to interact with individual animals, regardless of the beneficial outcomes that do or do not follow.”

“We owe these animals some basic modicum of respect,” the researchers suggest. “To transform them into trophies of human conquest is a violation of common decency, and to accept trophy hunting as the international conservation community seems to have done is to aid and abet an immoral practice.”

If it’s determined that saving wildlife is inexorably linked to trophy hunting, conservationists should then “accept the practice only with a due appreciation of tragedy, and proper remorse,” the researchers write. They do acknowledge the possibility that future scientific research may suggest trophy hunting is in fact critical to the conservation mission in certain contexts.

“In that case trophy hunting should be used reluctantly,” they write. “The enthusiasm with which trophy hunting has already been championed as a potential conservation success story is misplaced. Trophy hunting violates the dignity of individual nonhuman animals, and is beneath our dignity as human beings. Continuing complicity by conservationists without fully exhausting other options is not now appropriate nor has it ever been.”

Experts from the Economics and Business Institute at the University of Seville have just published a study of the use of online banking by the over-60s, which shows that the digital divide of these users, far from being linked strictly to age, is more connected to psychographic characteristics, such as perceived self-sufficiency, anxiety levels, and the influence of social groups. This is what these same authors have named in other studies the ‘psycho-digital’ divide. Therefore, the researchers state that the majority of over-60s access online banking when they understand its usefulness, although they assume certain risks because of a lack of competence, and that they also value very positively the influence that they exercise over younger family members, who are more used to using electronic services.

The internet and online services can be a form of social integration for the over-60s and a way to achieve a higher level of active ageing, provided that the design of these services manages to overcome certain psychological barriers and the older user has the support of younger members of their family who have more digital skills. Online services can, in this way, be a way of achieving a greater level of comfort, independence and inclusion in the digital environment, all of which helps active ageing in this section of the population.

Three hundred and ninety-six over-60s took part in this project. Information was obtained using a self-completed questionnaire completed in the presence of the researchers. This questionnaire was first submitted to a focus group for pre-testing.

“The most recent users of online banking are those for whom Information Technology forms no part of their daily routine or who don’t feel comfortable using it. This means that they feel more insecure and that they choose to continue going to branches of the banks where they can receive the support of the staff there”, said the University of Seville teacher Ángel F. Villarejo-Ramos.

Despite the fact that the over-60s are an important segment of this market due to their ever-increasing numbers (because of increased life expectancy) and to their greater spending power, in many cases banks have not done enough to encourage their acceptance and use of online banking, by helping them overcome the difficulties that doing so can pose for older customers. As on other occasions, it is the clients themselves, through their own behavior, as shown in the research in this area, who have expressed their level of acceptance and use in the face of this technological innovation.

“The banks should show that their online services are useful in daily life and communicate this fact by means of, for example, explanatory leaflets, advertisements, adapted applications and favoring user recommendations. The design of a friendly and accessible interface for their online banking platform would have the result of people trying the service; some over-60s using the service would give them an experience they could share with others; and with a usable, interactive design, it would be easy to learn to use online banking, helping to create favourable conditions that for the over-60s the positive aspects of online banking outweigh its drawbacks”, added Villarejo.

Heading a military delegation, Afghanistan’s Defense Minister General Tariq Shah Bahrami is in Iran for talks on defense cooperation and international issues.

The Afghan minister arrived in Tehran on Saturday at the invitation of his Iranian counterpart Brigadier General Amir Hatami.

He is scheduled to meet senior Iranian military and political officials for talks about the development of Tehran-Kabul defense ties, regional cooperation and international issues.

In June 2017, Iran and Afghanistan held the first round of talks on a comprehensive strategic partnership document as part of efforts to boost bilateral relations in various areas, including security, defense, economy, culture, and education.

In February this year, the defense ministers of Iran and Afghanistan called for efforts to enhance bilateral and regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism given the relocation of terrorist groups from Syria and Iraq to Afghanistan.

Cassava is a staple in the diet of more than one billion people across 105 countries, yet this “orphaned crop” has received little attention compared to popular crops like corn and soybeans. While advances in breeding have helped cassava withstand pests and diseases, cassava yields no more today than it did in 1963. Corn yields, by comparison, have more than doubled.

University of Illinois researchers analyzed four African cultivars to find out how breeding has impacted photosynthesis–the process that transforms light energy and carbon dioxide into yield. They found that unimproved landraces of cassava – cultivars that have not been bred for improvements like pest and disease resistance – are actually 20 percent better at photosynthesizing than their improved counterparts, as reported in Food and Energy Security.

This research is part of the international research project Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE) that is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research, and U.K. Department for International Development. The Cassava Source-Sink, or CASS, project generously provided the cassava cultivars.

“Cassava breeders have diligently worked to improve the pest and disease resistance of this crop, which has been absolutely critical,” said RIPE Director Stephen Long, Ikenberry Endowed Chair of Plant Biology and Crop Sciences in the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. “The next step is to improve cassava yield potential by improving its photosynthetic performance. There is clearly room for improvement of genetic yield potential in cassava through photosynthesis, and we must remember that increased genetic yield potential underpinned successes of the Green Revolution.”

Data from this study is being incorporated into a computer model simulation of cassava, enabling the team to virtually tweak and manipulate photosynthesis “in silico” to determine what genetic changes will increase cassava’s photosynthetic efficiency and yield.

However, many of the needed changes to improve photosynthesis cannot be achieved through traditional breeding and will require genetically engineering cassava, which has so far been challenging compared to our major grain and seed crops.

“Genetic engineering of cassava is our major hurdle going forward,” said RIPE postdoctoral researcher Amanda De Souza, who led this study. “We know it is possible because colleagues working on the Gates Foundation-supported CASS project have been successful with a model cassava cultivar, but this cultivar is so disease-susceptible that it can’t survive in the real world. We need to extend this capability to African cultivars that can thrive in the fields of smallholder farmers.”

(RFE/RL) — Israel has won the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest, beating out second-place Cyprus and third-place Austria at the annual pop-song festival seen by tens of millions of viewers around the world.

Based on online and phone voting during the event on May 12, Israel’s Netta Barzilai captured the top prize with her song Toy.

This year’s event was held in Lisbon aftert the Portuguese contestant, Salvador Sobral, won last year’s event in Kyiv. With its victory, Israel will host the 2019 contest.

“Next time in Jerusalem!” Netta shouted after her victory.

“I’m so happy. Thank you so much for choosing difference, thank you so much for accepting differences between us, thank you for celebrating diversity.”

Moldova placed 10th, Albania 11th, Ukraine 17th, and Serbia was 19th out of the 26 contestants.

Barzilai was tipped as a top contender to win the title ahead of the contest. Her song entry had been clicked more than 23 million times on YouTube.

This year saw the return to the competition of Russia, a traditional favorite, after missing last year’s event amid a diplomatic spat with host Ukraine.

But it was a short return: Russia’s contestant Yulia Samoilova went out in the semifinals, while Ukraine singer Melovin advanced to the Grand Final.

Eurovision was first held in 1956 with the aim of uniting Europe after World War II.

Several people have been stabbed at the Place de l’Opéra in central Paris, with police confirming the attacker has been neutralized. Footage from the scene shows people running in panic and a body covered in blood.

Paris police have confirmed that the assailant has been killed. They said five people were injured in the attack, two of them critically, and one victim died.

The attack took place in the heart of the city, in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris.

Video footage shared by local journalist on the scene, Remy Buisine, shows several emergency vehicles crowding a laneway where the attack took place.

Disturbing footage purportedly filmed from the window of Hotel Louvre Marsollier on Rue Marsollier, where the attack took place, was posted by Carol Drummond on Twitter. It showed people running through the streets in a panic, as a body lays on a crosswalk in the street. Drummond has since deleted the video.

“I welcome the cool response of the police,”tweeted French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb. “My thoughts are with the victims of this heinous act”

Police yet have to identify the motive of the attacker and determine whether the attack was linked to terrorism. A spate of attacks has rocked Paris in recent years, including the November 2015 attacks perpetrated by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) militants that left over 130 people dead.

Several media outlets, citing witnesses, reported that the assailant shouted “Allahu Akbar” (“God is great” in Arabic) as he attempted to charge at the diners in one of the restaurants at the scene. One witness, identified only as Fiona, told the Independent that the visitors of a local restaurant barricaded themselves inside against the rampaging attacker.

“Some guys including my friend blocked the door in case he would try to enter,” Fiona told the newspaper.

Jonathan, a waiter at a restaurant near the Opera House told Europe 1 that the assailant was acting like he was “crazy or drugged.” The station also reported, citing sources, that the attacker appeared to shout “Allahu Akbar.”

Jérémie Pham-Lê, a journalist at Le Parisien, reported, citing a police source, that the man was goading police into using lethal force on him, shouting “kill me or I kill you,” as law enforcers arrived.

Beijing has officially opened its new train route to Iran, as the US urges its companies to wind down their operations with Tehran.

As US President Donald Trump hardens his confrontational attitude to Tehran, tearing up the 2015 nuclear deal and calling for a new sanctions regime, China is more than ready to grab the opportunity for trade by opening a new international railroad connecting Tehran and Bayannur, a city in China’s Inner Mongolia region.

The exact route of the railroad is yet to be disclosed, as there are currently several major railroad projects, some of them even including China’s biggest regional rival, India. But, considering Bayannur is located near the northern border of China and there’s already an international railroad to Kazakhstan there, it is likely that the new trade route goes through the territories of former Soviet republics Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

According to the Washington Post, China has sent the inaugural train from Bayannur carrying — you’ll never guess — 1,150 tons of sunflower seeds, because Bayannur is China’s biggest sunflower seed production area. China exports some 180,000 tons of sunflower seeds every year, supplying Middle Eastern, European and US markets, according to Xinhua.

Compared with ocean shipping, the train route shortens the delivery time by some 20 days, and Chinese sunflower seeds are now expected to get to Tehran in two weeks — less than half as long as before.

The news comes at a time when an all-out military conflict between Iran is Israel is looming. In this light, Washington’s call for companies to stop doing business with Iran might be perceived as a precaution in light of a coming war. If so, then China would seem to be taking Iran’s side with its trade projects.

Or, Trump’s call might just be just another attempt to entice US companies home. With Trump, you never know.

During a media briefing Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said that Iran and China would “maintain normal economic ties and trade.”

“We will continue with our normal and transparent practical cooperation with Iran on the basis of not violating our international obligations,” he said.

According to the Washington Post, Iran sells more to China than to any other country and celebrated a 25 percent increase in exports there last year. The value of Chinese exports to Iran also increased by more than 21 percent last year, according to Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration’s statistics.

The Trump administration has called on Qatar to cut support for pro-Iranian militias in the region, according to a British newspaper.

The request comes after a number of e-mails were disclosed allegedly between senior officials in Doha and leading figures of Hezbollah and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corp, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

The e-mails show Doha paid hundreds of millions of dollars to secure the release of Qatari hostages held by Shiite militias. They include conversations with Qassem Soleimani, head of Tehran’s Al-Quds force, and Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah. Both are designated terrorist groups in the US and other countries.

“What these e-mails show is that a number of senior Qatari government officials have developed cordial relations with senior figures in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, as well as a number of Iranian-sponsored terrorist organizations,” a senior US security official told the Telegraph.

“At a time when the US government is trying to persuade Iran to end its support for terror groups in the Middle East, we do not believe it is helpful that Qatar continues to have ties with such organizations.”

In one of the e-mails, a senior Qatari official says millions of dollars were paid to Soleimani in April 2017, and another payment was made to an Iraqi Shiite militant group.

New accounts by witnesses suggest that the killers of a group of people in a poor neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro on November 11, 2017, were members of the army special forces, Human Rights Watch said.

Human Rights Watch interviewed two witnesses and reviewed witness accounts from case files indicating that the clothing and gear of the killers were the same as those of the army personnel who arrived on the scene minutes later.

“Today marks six months of suffering for the survivors and for the families of those killed in Complexo do Salgueiro,” said Maria Laura Canineu, Brazil director at Human Rights Watch. “New witness testimony points to the possible involvement of the army special forces in the killings.”

Witnesses also said that police and army personnel who arrived at the scene provided no medical assistance to those injured, delayed attempts by relatives to take victims to the hospital, and did not secure the crime scene. Seven people died at the scene and an eighth person died later of his wounds.

Two witnesses said that the killers opened fire around 1 a.m. from a forested area on people passing through a thoroughfare in the Complexo do Salgueiro neighborhood.

As the killers shot their victims, members of the army’s special forces battalion and of CORE – the elite unit of Rio de Janeiro´s civil police – were approaching aboard a civil police vehicle and two army Guarani armored vehicles. They were conducting a joint operation whose objective commanders still have not clearly explained.

Human Rights Watch interviewed one of the men who was injured, who said that after opening fire, the shooters emerged from the forested area. He said that they wore black, hid their faces behind balaclavas, used gloves, had flashlights mounted on their helmets, and carried rifles equipped with both flashlights and laser-vision. Luiz Otávio Rosa dos Santos, a motorcycle taxi driver who later died, told a Rio state prosecutor that he saw “red light” beaming from the rifles used by the men shooting at him.

The injured man said that the killers, and a third man who had been injured, were clearly visible by the side of the road, near a lamppost, when the civil police and one Guarani armored vehicle passed without stopping.

Two women who arrived after the shooting described the uniforms and weapons of the special forces personnel in the same way the two injured men described those of the killers.

One woman, a relative of a victim, was trying to reach the crime scene in a car with three neighbors at about 2 a.m. She said that men in black clothing and balaclavas wearing helmets mounted with flashlights, shouted at them to stop, pointed laser beams at them, and ordered them to put their hands out the car windows.

The men let them go. They drove behind one of the army’s armored vehicles, which moved slowly toward the crime scene and swerved on the road to prevent them from passing it. She said the men on the road and others on the armored vehicle had the same uniforms and gear.

Another woman who was a passenger in a motorcycle taxi that passed by shortly after 1 a.m. gave civil prosecutors a similar description. She said that five men, armed with rifles equipped with laser-vision and flashlights, stopped them, but let them go after checking to see if they had weapons.

Four days before the killings, security forces carried out a similar operation in the same area. The Eastern Military Command acknowledged in an email to Extra reporter Rafael Soares that it employed helicopters on November 7, 2017, to transport personnel to forested areas within the Complexo do Salgueiro. On November 10, at 11 p.m., residents reported to Defezap – an independent phone service through which people report police abuse – that they saw men rappelling into the forested area from helicopters without lights.

The killings occurred only weeks after a law entered into force that shields the armed forces from prosecution in civilian courts when they kill civilians during policing operations. Under the new law, only federal military prosecutors can investigate members of the armed forces and file charges against them, and a court panel of four military officers and one civilian will hear the cases. Human Rights Watch condemned the law’s passage as a move likely to increase the risk of impunity for serious human rights violations.

Under international human rights law, serious human rights violations should be met with an impartial and independent judicial investigation. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has consistently maintained that this guarantee is incompatible with the investigation and trial, in military courts, of alleged rights violations by military personnel against civilians. On that basis, the IACHR and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights both condemned the passage of Brazil’s 2017 law on military jurisdiction. The Inter-American Court on human rights has held that military courts should have a “restrictive and exceptional” scope that takes account of the rights affected in any particular case, and has on several occasions ruled the exercise of military jurisdiction over alleged abuses against civilians to be inappropriate. Rio de Janeiro´s public defender´s office has petitioned the IACHR to accept the Salgueiro case.

A federal military prosecutor told Human Rights Watch on May 3 that she had interviewed members of the special forces about the November raids but had not interviewed any civilian witnesses yet, six months later, but she intended to. Civil police investigators and state prosecutors have interviewed CORE personnel and civilian witnesses, but have not interviewed army personnel.

Federal military and state prosecutors should also investigate allegations that army and civil police personnel failed to secure medical care for those injured, Human Rights Watch said. The survivors and witnesses said that the forces who arrived at the scene did not help those injured or call emergency services.