Arab League declares annexation ‘war crime’

Israeli plan to apply sovereignty to any part of the West Bank will end the two-state solution and eliminate the possibility of establishing an independent, sovereign and geographically viable Palestinian state, said Riyad Malki, Foreign Minister of Palestinian Authority.

In a speech before an emergency videoconference meeting of the Arab League foreign ministers, he said if implemented, the Israeli plan would also place al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem under Israeli control “before it is demolished and replaced by the ostensible Temple.”

The meeting was held at the request of the Palestinians to discuss the “dangers” of the Israeli plan.

The Arab ministers condemned the plan as a “new war crime” and “flagrant violation of United Nations resolutions and international law.” They urged the United States to back away from supporting the plan and said the Arab countries will support by all political, diplomatic, legal and financial means any decisions taken by the Palestinians to confront it.

The foreign ministers also called on the Quartet (United States, Russia, European Union and United Nations) to convene an urgent meeting to save the chances of peace and a two-state solution and to take a position consistent with international decisions to compel Israel to “stop implementing its colonial plans, including annexation and settlement expansion.”

Malki warned that if the Israeli plan is implemented, it would “transform the conflict from a political to a religious conflict that will go on forever because the Palestinians would not accept it and won’t accept anything less than the borders of 1967 to establish their state, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

The Israeli plan to apply sovereignty to any part of the West Bank “would never guarantee stability, security and peace,” he said.

Malki accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of exploiting the coronavirus pandemic “to pass his decisions to annex large parts of the occupied Palestinian territory to Israel.”

 He also urged the Arab states to provide financial aid to the Palestinians as they face difficult financial conditions “due to the restrictions of the occupation.”

Any Israeli decision to annex parts of the West Bank would not change the status of these lands, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said in a speech during the meeting, adding that they will remain “occupied territories in accordance with international law.”

The purpose of Thursday’s meeting was to warn about the “dangers of the Israeli schemes to annex parts of the West Bank and the possible repercussions on regional stability,” he said. 

Turmoil in Jordan or coup sponsored by Israel

Former Mossad agent Roi Shpushnik was allegedly involved in the attempted coup in Jordan, according to reports in Jordan reported by Maariv, The Jerusalem Post's sister publication. According to the reports, the former Israeli agent offered Prince Hamza a plane to escape from the kingdom.

Earlier on Sunday, Jordan's Deputy Prime Minister Ayman Safadi said that Prince Hamza had liaised with foreign parties over a plot to destabilize the country.   

On Saturday the military said it had issued a warning to the prince over actions targeting "security and stability" in the key US ally. Prince Hamza later said he was under house arrest. Several high-profile figures were also detained.

"The investigations had monitored interferences and communications with foreign parties over the right timing to destabilize Jordan," Safadi said.

These included a Mossad agent contacting Prince Hamza's wife to organize a plane for the couple to leave Jordan, he said.

Many Jordanians were still grappling for answers in the aftermath of reports that Jordanian security forces foiled an attempt by Hamzah and some of his associates to topple the regime of King Abdullah.

People around Hamzah communicated with entities calling themselves “external opposition,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said Sunday. He did not provide details about the “external opposition.”

Sixteen Jordanians have been detained in connection with the case, including Bassem Awadallah, a former head of the royal court, and Sharif bin Zaid, a member of the royal family, Safadi said. He accused the detainees of planning to “undermine the security” of Jordan.

Safadi accused Hamzah of sending out a video message on Saturday night as part of an attempt to “distort the facts and gain local and foreign sympathy.”

Abdullah received phone calls on Sunday from the kings of Morocco and Bahrain and the emirs of Qatar and Kuwait, who expressed their countries’ “full solidarity” with Jordan.

The leaders also voiced support for all measures and decisions taken by Abdullah to safeguard Jordan’s security and stability, the Jordanian news agency Petra reported.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the Gulf Cooperation Council also voiced full support for Abdullah in maintaining security and stability in Jordan.

Trade with India: A debacle caused by lack of coordination among government functionaries

The reversal of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) decision on imports from India by the cabinet not only proves absence of coordination within the government, but also shows absence of comprehension and prudent thinking of serious matters that require sensible and level-headed approach.

A few days ago, at a press conference, Hammad Azhar, the newly appointed finance minister, had talked about ECC’s decision on trade with India, was based on economic factors. Interestingly, the summary moved in this regard was signed by Prime Minister himself.

The announcement made headlines both at home and in the neighboring country. The decision was viewed as part of recent measures to deescalate hostilities between Pakistan and India. Earlier, there was agreement of ceasefire across the line of control (LoC) as well as speeches were delivered by the Prime Minister and the Army Chief at the Islamabad Security Dialogue.

Ironically, the Federal Cabinet rejected the idea of opening trade between the two countries, leaving both the nations and the world stunned at the incongruence among the key facets of the government.

The debacle raises several questions that cannot be shrugged off by ministers. It has caused embarrassment. It points to a faulty system and also creates the impression that the key job of decision-making is conducted in a juvenile manner.

The explanations from Federal Ministers that ECC decisions can be overturned by the cabinet look novice. In fact Azhar at no point gave the impression that the ‘decision’ to trade with India was just a proposal under review.

It has now transpired that the foreign minister and some key members of government are against the idea of trading with India until New Delhi reviews its Kashmir policy and rescinds its decision to revoke special status of Indian held Kashmir.

While this approach may be in line with Pakistan’s stance on Kashmiris’ right to self-determination, it is also true that historically CBMs have been a part of the Pakistan-India equation.

The ECC decision may have been ostensibly about trade, but it would have needed input from all government departments, including the security establishment. Any decision having long-term consequences just can’t be made in isolation.

The fiasco is casting a cloud of uncertainty over Khan’s leadership skills. As demonstrated by this latest U-turn, communication problems, an inability to make and stick to decisions and poor conflict-resolution skills are becoming the hallmark of this government.

The nation has a right to know who is responsible for this debacle and what action will be taken to avoid such blunders in the future.

Time to reject Israeli manta that Iran is top menace of Middle East

A massive campaign is going on for some time that the recent moves by the US administration are aimed at creating peace in the Middle East. The multiple US-brokered deals between Israel, UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, known as the Abraham Accords are creating a new reality in one of the world’s most combustible neighborhoods.

The US leadership promises a more prosperous and securer future for Arabs and Jews alike. The Western plays the trumpet that impetus behind this historic normalization of relations between the Jewish state and its Muslim neighbors is practical. The media portrays Iran as phantom, a common threat labeled by the US State Department as the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism for nearly four decades. 

Western media portrays that Iran has been metastasizing across the region since its founding in 1979. From funding and arming anti-Israel terrorists, to blowing up Saudi oil facilities, to pirating commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf. They go the extent of saying Iran is the Middle East’s preeminent menace. 

Western media also says that the regime in Tehran does not represent the Iranian people. They quote the example of this chasm was on display after a US drone strike killed Iran’s top terrorist, Qasem Soleimani. Despite the mullahs’ efforts to turn this murderer into a martyr, Iranians ripped down the propaganda posters glorifying him. They also rejected the regime’s attempts to stir up hate against the United States and Israel. Videos from Iran showed average citizens going out of their way to avoid stepping on the US and Israeli flags printed on the ground outside of shopping malls, schools, and mosques – even on the day of Soleimani’s funeral.

The fact of the matter is that the Iranian people have more pressing issues at hand than the regime’s clumsy attempts at propaganda. Tehran’s sponsorship of terrorism, pursuit of nuclear weapons and long-range missiles to deliver them, and unconscionable hostage taking triggered the most crushing economic sanctions in history, crippling Iran’s energy, financial and industrial sectors, among others. Despite the immense resources of Iran, Iranians cannot even find the basics of food and housing, let alone dream of economic opportunities.

The biggest deception behind the Abraham Accords is that the Arabs are more interested in pursuing hi-tech and entrepreneurial opportunities rather than hating the Jews – and that Israel is actually the regional partner of choice in these areas. The biggest prove of this dichotomy is ongoing construction of settlements in the West Bank and other occupied territories.

The Jerusalem Post terms Turkey ‘spoiler’

The Jerusalem Post in one of its editorials has accused Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of playing the role of ‘spoiler’ when efforts are being made to normalize relations with various Muslim countries. One may recall that Turkey was the first Muslim country to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with Israel soon after its creation. I have pick up several paragraphs from the editorial to let the readers know how much Israel hates Turkey and Erdogan.

Turkey is again rolling out media narratives about reconciliation with Israel. The latest attempt by Turkey to influence media narratives on this so-called reconciliation were articles that appeared in Turkish and Israeli media suggesting an exchange of ambassadors might be in the air. However, an Israeli Foreign Ministry representative informed that Turkey has not requested that Israel agree to an exchange of ambassadors.

This is not the first time Turkey has done this under the ruling AK Party and its leader President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the spring of 2020, Turkey said it wanted reconciliation around the time that France, Greece, Egypt, Cyprus and the UAE were all condemning Turkish threats in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey’s attempt to push for a largely mythical reconciliation was underpinned by Ankara’s attempt to block an Israel-Greece-Cyprus deal on a pipeline and to stop Israel from joining the Eastern Mediterranean gas forum.

Turkey again claimed it wanted reconciliation after US President Donald Trump lost his election last year. Turkey’s Erdogan was close to Trump and had gotten the US to allow Turkey to invade and ethnically cleanse Kurds in Syria. Turkey used the Trump administration to threaten NATO allies, harass France, encourage Islamist extremism and send mercenaries to Libya and Syria. Trump’s loss led Turkey to decide that the only way to decrease an emerging Israel-Greece-UAE-Egypt alliance was to try to isolate Israel away from its new friends. Turkey had even threatened to break relations with the UAE if Abu Dhabi normalized relations with Israel. How can a country pretend to want normalization with Israel at the same time that it tries to isolate Israel and ruin Israel’s friendships with Greece, Cyprus and the UAE?

This is why Israel must always be wary of the press reports – usually fed to media from the highest levels in Ankara – about reconciliation. Turkey’s sole goal under Erdogan over the last decade has been to isolate Israel and empower Hamas terrorists and Israel’s enemies. Turkey has done this quietly through funding of Islamic organizations and attempts to take leadership of anti-Israel voices globally. Even as Saudi Arabia and the Gulf have moderated and rapidly improved relations with Israel, Turkey has become a leader – along with Iran – of anti-Israel propaganda. The hosting of Hamas has included terror plots hatched from Turkey. Turkey’s Erdogan has compared Israel to Nazi Germany on numerous occasions, a mix of genocidal antisemitism that has no place in international relations.

Erdogan must make amends for calling Israel a Nazi country if Ankara ever hopes to improve relations. Ankara must also expel Hamas members and stop the flirtation with anti-Israel extremist groups, whether those groups may be in Iran or Gaza. Turkey’s drift towards Iran is worrying for the region. It prefers to work with Iran and Russia to discuss Syria, rather than the US. This is despite Ankara’s media sometimes claiming that Turkey might be willing to work with Israel against Iran.

The real Turkish regime agenda was set out in an article in Turkey’s state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corporation that reflects Turkey’s government thinking. In it, the author denied that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and claimed that “Israel needs Turkey” and that Israel must “compromise.” Turkey never has to compromise. Turkey never does anything for Israel. This is the real agenda. Turkey wants Israel to beg and come to Ankara on a bended knee and this attitude has always underpinned Ankara’s recent treatment of Israel. It thinks that it can host Hamas terrorists, host plans to murder Israelis, give a red carpet to the Hamas commanders who have blood on their hands, who are welcomed with hugs by Erdogan, and also threaten Gulf countries against normalization with Israel, try to destroy Israel’s links to Greece and Cyprus and then order Israel to “compromise.”

The Next Giants

I am inclined to refer to writing by Shigesaburo Okumura, Editor-in-chief, Nikkei Asia. This, not only hints towards shifting paradigm, but also that world economic growth will be driven by Asia and not by United States or Europe. I quote below:

For the first time in 10 years, yellow sand from the deserts of Mongolia and Kazakhstan has blown into Tokyo. The arrival of the "Asian dust" is a traditional indicator of the coming of spring. It may only be a grain of sand, but seeing that tiny piece of earth makes me feel like I'm a part of Asia. That is not a bad feeling.
 
As the first Big Story of Japan's fiscal New Year, we look at a ranking of Asia's 500 fastest-growing companies, prepared in collaboration with the Financial Times of the UK and Statista of Germany.
 
Of those high performers, our story focuses on seven. That includes the top-ranked company, Carro, a Singapore-based online used-car sales platform. We also highlight its Malaysian competitor, Carsome, which stands at 17th in the ranking.
 
The secret of Carro's success is that it provides detailed reports of any flaws found with its vehicles.
 
In the world of microeconomics, used-car markets are considered a typical "market for lemons," in which buyers cannot judge the real value of the fruit based on its appearance. Removing information asymmetry between sellers and buyers is crucial if the market mechanism is to work effectively. It makes sense, then, that Carro's strategy is so popular among its customers: With the information gap removed, clients are able to buy used cars at a fair price.
 
Other than online car dealers, the story also features Indian mattress seller Wakefit; Singapore-based delivery company Ninja Logistics; South Korean robotics startup Twinny; Japanese software startup AI Inside, whose technology converts handwritten documents into digital data; and New Zealand electricity retailer Electric Kiwi.
 
The ranking is based on the companies' compound annual revenue growth rate between 2016 and 2019. The performances do not reflect the impact of COVID-19, but reading these entrepreneurial success stories, I am convinced that such "animal spirits" will drive the revival of the post-COVID world.
 
Market Spotlight this week is a story on Appier, the first Taiwanese startup to list in Japan since Trend Micro went public in 1998, while our Business Spotlight looks at Bilibili, known as "China's YouTube."
 
Asia Insight is an examination of the Tokyo Olympics. According to the latest Kyodo News poll, only 23.2% of Japanese support holding the games this year.
 
As for the mounting costs amid the diminishing enthusiasm, a professor at College of the Holy Cross in the United States points out in the story that the Tokyo Olympics are "basically the last in the old world where the concept was you spend an unlimited amount, and everyone should be all right with that because it's the Olympics."
 
While we're on the subject, there is talk of a possible boycott within the Western world of the Beijing Olympics in 2022, because of human rights issues related to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
 
Some apparel brands, including Muji, are facing potential criticism for using Xinjiang cotton, which has become a focus of attention amid claims of forced labor. The Japanese company maintains its cotton is ethically produced. The story describes the difficulties that private companies must navigate in dealing with this highly sensitive issue in China.
 
I also recommend our stories on Myanmar's Generation Z, and the reopening of the Suez Canal.
 
Please do not miss our opinion piece on the #StopAsianHate movement. The author writes that "'Asian hate' has also long encompassed stereotypes and discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities as well as against indigenous peoples, including within Asia" and that "the need to 'Stop Asian Hate' is not just a US or European challenge."
 
I agree that we have to discuss this issue in a broader context, so that more people regard this problem as their own.
 

Bangladesh GDP anticipated to grow by 5.6% in current fiscal year

Bangladesh gross domestic product (GDP) is anticipated to grow by as high as 5.6% in the current fiscal year, subject to three factors, says a World Bank report. These critical factors are: 1) outcome of ongoing vaccination campaign, 2) likely restrictions on mobility, and 3) pace of recovery of world economy.

While there are bright chances of growth during FY21, significant uncertainty surrounds both epidemiology and policy development,” said the “South Asia Economic Focus South Asia Vaccinates” report. “Thus, growth in FY21 could range from 2.6% to 5.6%.

Over the medium term, growth is projected to stabilize within a 5% to 7% range as exports and consumption continues to recover.

The prospects for economic rebound in South Asia are firming up as growth is set to increase by 7.25% in 2021 and 4.4% in 2022, said the report, creating hopes for substantial recovery from historic lows in 2020, putting the region on a path to recovery.

“But the growth is uneven and economic activity remains well below pre-COVID-19 estimates.”

Following a sharp GDP growth deceleration in FY20 due to the pandemic, the economy started recovering in the first half of FY21, as movement restrictions were lifted and international buyers reinstated export orders.

Going forward, a gradual recovery is expected to continue; particularly if the government’s COVID-19 recovery programs are implemented swiftly.

With growth firming up, poverty is projected to decline marginally in FY21.

The pandemic impacted the economy profoundly. A national shutdown from March to May last year resulted in severe supply-side disruptions in all sectors of the economy.

The government’s COVID-19 stimulus provided firms with access to working capital and low-cost loans to sustain operations and maintain employee wages in FY20 and FY21.

From June 2020 onward, movement restrictions have been progressively lifted, and transit and workplace movement patterns returned to pre-pandemic levels by October.

According to the report, the downside risks are likely to persist if new waves of COVID-19 re-emerge in Bangladesh or its trading partner countries.

“This could necessitate additional movement restrictions, dampen demand for readymade garment, and/or limit the outflow of migrant workers.”

Bangladesh is expected to graduate from the UN’s least-developed country status in coming years, which will present opportunities but also challenges, including the eventual loss of preferential access to advanced economy markets, the report said.

Estimated poverty rose sharply in the fiscal year 2019-20 amidst substantial job and income losses.

However, household surveys point to a gradual recovery in employment and earnings and a decline in poverty in the first half of the fiscal year 2020-21.

Food security improved across the country, with the most significant increase in Chattogram.

The report stated that risks to the outlook might persist.

It identified fiscal risks, including weak domestic revenue growth (if tax reforms are delayed) and higher expenditure for COVID-19 vaccination (if external financing is limited) and for supporting the Rohingya refugees (if donor fatigue sets in).

In the financial sector, contingent liabilities from non-performing loans combined with weak capital buffers could necessitate recapitalization (resulting in higher domestic government debt) and depress credit growth.

While external demand for RMG appears to be stabilizing, the recovery is fragile and could be vulnerable to new waves of COVID-19 infections.

Demand for Bangladesh’s overseas workforce in the Gulf region may also be impacted by the ongoing recession in the region, impairing future remittance inflows.