If China breaches border, Russia won’t come to your defence, United States warns India

According to The Bangladesh Chronicle, the United States has warned India against warming up relationship with Russia, ahead of a visit by Moscow’s top diplomat to press New Delhi to resist Western pressure to condemn its invasion of Ukraine.

It may be recalled that India abstained from UN resolutions censuring Moscow and continues to buy Russian oil from its longstanding and time-tested friend and the biggest supplier of arms.

Delhi shares Western alarm over Beijing’s assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region, with 20 Indian and four Chinese troops killed in a brawl on their disputed Himalayan border in 2020.

Daleep Singh, Washington’s chief sanctions strategist was quoted by local media in a visit to Delhi as saying that India could not rely on Russia if there was another clash.

“Russia is going to be the junior partner in this relationship with China. And the more leverage that China gains over Russia, the less favourable that is for India,” Singh was quoted as saying on Thursday.

“I don’t think anyone would believe that if China once again breached the Line of (Actual) Control, that Russia would come running to India’s defence,” he said, referring to the India-China border.

Moscow, facing massive Western sanctions in response to its invasion of Ukraine in February, has declared a “no-limits partnership” with China, which also did not condemn Russian actions.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Delhi late Thursday from China, where he had hailed Beijing as part of a new “multipolar, just, democratic world order”.

India and Russia are working on a rupee-ruble mechanism to facilitate trade and get around Western sanctions on Russian banks, according to media reports.

Russia has written to India’s defence ministry requesting clearance of payments worth US$1.3 billion that have been halted since last month, according to the local Economic Times newspaper.

Singh said the US was ready to help India — the world’s third biggest oil importer and consumer — diversify its energy and defence supplies.

But he added that there would be consequences for countries seeking to circumvent the sanctions.

“I come here in a spirit of friendship to explain the mechanisms of our sanctions, the importance of joining us, to express a shared resolve and to advance shared interests. And yes, there are consequences to countries that actively attempt to circumvent or backfill the sanctions,” he said.

“We are very keen for all countries, especially our allies and partners, not to create mechanisms that prop up the ruble and that attempt to undermine the dollar-based financial system,” he said.

India is part of the Quad alliance with the United States, Japan and Australia — seen as a bulwark against China.

After the 2020 clash on the China border, India rushed large amounts of military hardware to the frontier, most of it Russian-origin. 

چین نے سرحد کی خلاف ورزی کی تو روس آپ کے دفاع میں نہیں آئے گا: امریکہ نے بھارت کو خبردار کر دیا

بنگلہ دیش کرانیکل کے مطابق امریکہ نے روس کے ساتھ تعلقات میں گرمجوشی کے پیشِ نظرہندوستان کو خبردار کیا ہے۔ یہ بیان ماسکو کے اعلیٰ سفارت کار کے ہندوستان کے دورہ سے قبل جاری کیا گیا ہےتاکہ ہندوستان پردباؤ ڈالا جائے کہ وہ یوکرین پر روس کی حملے کی مذمت کرے۔

یاد رہے کہ بھارت نے ماسکو کی مذمت کرنے والی اقوام متحدہ کی قراردادوں پر اپنی رائے دینے سے پرہیز کیا اور اپنے دیرینہ دوست اور ہتھیاروں کے سب سے بڑے سپلائرسے تیل خریدنا جاری رکھا۔

دہلی نے ایشیا پیسیفک کے علاقے میں بیجنگ کی جارحیت پر مغربی خدشات سے اتفاق کیا، 2020 میں ہندوستان کی متنازعہ ہمالیائی سرحد پر  چین کے ساتھ جھڑپوں میں 20 ہندوستانی اور چار چینی فوجی مارے گئےتھے۔

دلیپ سنگھ، واشنگٹن کے چیف پابندیوں کے حکمت عملی کے ماہر نے مقامی میڈیا سے گفتگو کرتے ہوئےدہلی کے دورے کے حوالے سے کہا کہ اگر کوئی اور تصادم ہوا تو بھارت روس پر بھروسہ نہیں کر سکتا۔

چین کے ساتھ اس تعلقات میں روس جونیئر پارٹنر بننے جا رہا ہے اور چین روس سے جتنا زیادہ فائدہ اٹھاتا ہے، ہندوستان کے لیے اتنا ہی کم سازگار ہوگا،‘‘ سنگھ نے جمعرات کو کہا۔

"مجھے نہیں لگتا کہ کوئی بھی اس بات پر یقین کرے گا کہ اگر چین نے ایک بار پھر لائن آف (حقیقی) کنٹرول کی خلاف ورزی کی تو روس ہندوستان کے دفاع کے لئے بھاگ کر آئے گا،" انہوں نے ہندوستان-چین کے سرحدی تنازعہ کا حوالہ دیتے ہوئے کہا۔

فروری میں یوکرین پر حملے کے جواب میں بڑے پیمانے پر مغربی پابندیوں کا سامنا کرنے والے ماسکو نے چین کے ساتھ "غیر محدود شراکت" کا اعلان کیا ہے، جس نے روسی اقدامات کی بھی مذمت نہیں کی۔

روس کے وزیر خارجہ سرگئی لاوروف چین سے جمعرات کو دیر گئے دہلی پہنچے، جہاں انہوں نے بیجنگ کو ایک نئے ملتی پولرسسٹم کا ذکر کیا اور اسے ایک منصفانہ، جمہوری عالمی نظام کا حصہ قرار دیا۔

میڈیا رپورٹس کے مطابق، بھارت اور روس تجارت کو آسان بنانے اور روسی بینکوں پر مغربی پابندیوں کو ختم کرنے کے لیے روپیہ-روبل کے طریقہ کار پر کام کر رہے ہیں۔

مقامی اخبار اکنامک ٹائمز کے مطابق، روس نے ہندوستان کی وزارت دفاع کو 1.3 بلین امریکی ڈالر کی ادائیگیوں کی منظوری کی درخواست کی ہے جو گزشتہ ماہ روک دی گئی تھیں۔

سنگھ نے کہا کہ امریکہ بھارت کی مدد کرنے اور اس کی توانائی اور دفاعی سپلائی کو متنوع بنانے کے لیے تیار ہے  – ہندوستان دنیا کا تیسرا سب سے بڑا تیل درآمد کرنے والا اور صارف ہے۔

لیکن انہوں نے مزید کہا کہ پابندیوں کو روکنے کی کوشش کرنے والے ممالک کے لیے اس کے نتائج ہوں گے۔

"میں یہاں دوستی کے جذبے کے ساتھ آیا ہوں تاکہ ہماری پابندیوں کے طریقہ کار، ہمارے ساتھ شامل ہونے کی اہمیت، مشترکہ عزم کا اظہار کرنے اور مشترکہ مفادات کو آگے بڑھانے کے لیے آیا ہوں۔ اور ایسے ممالک کو خطرناک نتائج سے آگاہ کرنا ہے جو پابندیوں کو روکنے یا پیچھے ہٹانے کی سرگرمی سے کوشش کرہے ہیں،" انہوں نے کہا۔

انہوں نے کہا کہ "ہم تمام ممالک، خاص طور پر اپنے اتحادیوں اور شراکت داروں کے لیے بہت خواہش مند ہیں کہ وہ ایسا طریقہ کار نہ بنائیں جو روبل کو فروغ دے اور جو ڈالر پر مبنی مالیاتی نظام کو کمزور کرنے کی کوشش کرے۔"

ہندوستان امریکہ، جاپان اور آسٹریلیا کے ساتھ کواڈ الائنس کا حصہ ہے جسے چین کے خلاف ایک مضبوط اتحاد کے طور پر دیکھا جاتا ہے۔

چین کی سرحد پر 2020 کی جھڑپ کے بعد، ہندوستان نے بڑی مقدار میں فوجی جنگی سازوسامان سرحد پر پہنچا دیا، جس میں زیادہ تر روسی ساخت کا ہے۔

 

Need to understand unique identities of diverse neighborhoods of Jerusalem

According to a report in The Jerusalem Post, in the summer of 2020, JIPR researcher Tehila Bigman set out to examine the nature of interactions in Jerusalem's mixed neighborhoods. Residents from nine (mixed and separated) Jerusalem neighborhoods participated in the study.

Through questionnaires, interviews and observations, the researcher developed a picture of the residents’ perspective, as well as their perception of the challenges and opportunities inherent in living in mixed neighborhoods.

The study found that in order to create living spaces that provide a sense of security for all residents, it is important to establish anchors of identity for each of the resident population groups, but it is not necessary to create separate residential neighborhoods.

More than 90% of the residents stated that they would feel comfortable in their residential area as long as they could receive services adapted to their religious identification and feel they belong to a large enough group.

A smaller percentage indicated that it is important to them that the neighborhood’s character overlap with their own religious identification or that most of the population is like them.

As to the anchors, when participants were asked, “Which institutions or services are most important for you to have in the neighborhood?” the most prevalent answers among Haredi respondents were a synagogue (96%) and a mikveh (75%).

The most prevalent answers among religiously observant respondents were a synagogue (71%) and parks or playgrounds (59%).

The most prevalent answers among secular respondents were a shopping center (62%) and a library (57%).

Each of the sectors ranked “a suitable education system” third.

Finally, the findings point to a significant gap between what residents perceive as personally beneficial and what they perceive as beneficial to Jerusalem.

About 30% of the participants disagreed with the statement, “Residing near people like me improves the quality of life for me / my children.”

As to benefits for the city, about half of the participants (49%) agreed that the quality of life in Jerusalem would improve if people resided near others who differ from them.

In only a few decades, the sectorial division within Israel will resemble the current division within Jerusalem, according to demographic forecasts.

Accordingly, Jerusalem can play a key role in providing models for the cooperative management of private and public spaces alike.

If Jerusalem and Jerusalemites succeed in managing shared spaces constructively, they will be offering hope for cooperative management across Israel.

 

 

Russia-Ukraine conflict: A US manufactured crisis

Few people today ask the most important question about the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Many people want America to stay out of the fight, but even they don’t ask the vital questions.

Why does the world face a crisis today? Why has a border dispute between Russia and Ukraine escalated to the point where people fear nuclear war?

The answer is simple. The United States, under the leadership of President Joe Biden and the forces controlling him, has done this and, by doing so, brought the world to the brink of disaster. As always, the great Dr. Ron Paul gets it right: “Three weeks into this terrible war, the US is not pursuing talks with Russia, instead of supporting negotiations between Ukraine and Russia that could lead to a ceasefire and an end to the bloodshed, the US government is actually escalating the situation which can only increase the bloodshed.

“The constant flow of US and allied weapons into Ukraine and talk of supporting an extended insurgency does not seem designed to give Ukraine a victory on the battlefield but rather to hand Russia what Secretary of State Blinken called ‘a strategic defeat.’

“It sounds an awful lot like the Biden Administration intends to fight Russia down to the last Ukrainian,” wrote Paul. ”The only solution for the United States is to get out. Let the Russians and Ukrainians reach an agreement. That means no NATO for Ukraine and no US missiles on Russian borders? So what! End the war then end NATO.”

Let’s look at an analogy that will help us understand Paul’s point. For years, the Ukrainian government has attacked an area in the Donbass region that has seceded from Ukraine and formed an independent, pro-Russian, republic. Just before Putin moved against Ukraine, Ukrainians increased the scale and scope of their attack.

Rick Rozoff describes what they did, “Two-thirds of Ukrainian army servicemen have been amassed along the Donbass contact line, Eduard Basurin, spokesman for the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) militia, said on Thursday.

“Another three brigades are on their way to Donbass, which is 20,000 to 25,000 troops more. The total number will reach 150,000, not to mention the nationalists. This is about two-thirds of Ukrainian Armed Forces’ personnel,” Basurin said on the Rossiya 1 television channel (VGTRK) on Thursday.

Ukrainian troops are stationed along the 320-kilometer front line, he said.”

Unlike what has just happened, the Ukrainian attack did not result in US sanctions on Ukraine. There were no meetings of the UN to condemn Ukrainian aggression. There was no talk of world war. On the contrary, the Ukraine government used American weapons in its attack and asked America for more weapons to continue their attack.

Let’s listen to Rozoff again, “The Armed Forces of Ukraine used the American anti-tank missile system Javelin in the hostilities in Donbass. This was announced by the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Kirill Budanov in an interview.

“Budanov said that ideally, the US would help deter any Russian incursion, through additional military aid and increased diplomatic and economic pressure, including more sanctions against Russia and the seizure and blocking of Russian banking accounts.

“Also, in addition to US aid already promised and delivered, including Mark VI patrol boats, Javelin anti-armor systems and AN/TPQ-53 light counter-fire radar systems, Ukraine seeks additional air, missile and drone defense systems and electronic jamming devices, Budonov said. Patriot missile batteries and counter rocket, artillery and mortar systems are on Ukraine’s wish list.

“The AN/TPQ-53 systems were used to great effect, Ukraine military officials have previously reported. Budanov said the Javelin systems have also been used against Russian forces. Those, along with Turkish-manufactured drones, used against Russian-aligned separatist artillery troops, have a significant psychological deterrent value, said Budanov.”

The US should have not have shipped arms to Ukraine. Doing this made the situation worse. But for what we’re saying now, it doesn’t matter what you think of the policy. The key point is that because there was no international outcry and no sanctions, the matter remained a local fight. If Biden and his team had reacted to the so-called Russian invasion in the same way, the matter would have remained a local quarrel. Russia and Ukraine would have made a deal and that would be that.

The neocon warmongers and other defenders of democracy, who unfortunately include some deluded libertarians object. Don’t we have a duty to resist aggression? The answer is clear, No, we don’t. We do not have a duty to evaluate every foreign quarrel and assess who is at fault. We do not have a duty to require leaders of regimes we, or rather our masters in Washington, don’t like to accept existing boundaries of countries as unchangeable. We should reject the false doctrine of “collective security,” which makes every border dispute a world war.

The great American historian Charles Beard recognized what was wrong with “collective security” in the 1930s. In his article, “Giddy Minds and Foreign Quarrels,” he asked: “On what … should the foreign policy of the United States be based? Here is one answer and it is not excogitated in any professor’s study or supplied by political agitators. It is the doctrine formulated by George Washington, supplemented by James Monroe, and followed by the Government of the United States until near the end of the nineteenth century, when the frenzy for foreign adventurism burst upon the country.

This doctrine is simple. Europe has a set of ‘primary interests’ which have little or no relation to us, and is constantly vexed by ‘ambition, rivalship, interest, humor, or caprice.’

The United States is a continental power separated from Europe by a wide ocean which, despite all changes in warfare, is still a powerful asset of defense. In the ordinary or regular vicissitudes of European politics the United States should not become implicated by any permanent ties. We should promote commerce, but force ‘nothing.’ We should steer dear of hates and loves. We should maintain correct and formal relations with all established governments without respect to their forms or their religions, whether Christian, Mohammedan, Shinto, or what have you.”

Beard then responded to those who wanted to scrap our traditional policy of non-intervention with “collective security”. In the rest of the world, outside this hemisphere, our interests are remote and our power to enforce our will is relatively slight. Nothing we can do for Europeans will substantially increase our trade or add to our, or their, well-being. Nothing we can do for Asiatics will materially increase our trade or add to our, or their, well-being. With all countries in Europe and Asia, our relations should be formal and correct. As individuals we may indulge in hate and love, but the Government of the United States embarks on stormy seas when it begins to love one power and hate another officially.”

We should heed Beard’s wisdom today. Otherwise, the world may go up in flames.

 

Sanctions against Russia a threat to US dollar dominance

The recent financial sanctions imposed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine are likely to weaken the dominance of US petrodollar as the world currency, Gita Gopinath, First Deputy Managing Director, International Monetary Fund (IMF) told The Financial Times.

The sanctions may result in a more fragmented international monetary system, warned Gopinath.

She had previously said that the sanctions against Russia would not foreshadow the demise of US dollar as the world’s reserve currency and that the Ukraine crisis would slow growth, but would not cause a global recession.

The United States, European Union (EU) and Group of Seven nations have hit Russia with a bundle of heavy sanctions and blocked the country from using SWIFT, the global communications service that clears international financial transactions, virtually cutting it off from the global financial markets and international trade.

The United States also froze US$630 billion in assets held in international reserves by the Russian Central Bank.

The Russian government is retaliating by demanding payment in rubles or gold for purchases of energy and other important commodities.

“If they want to buy, let them pay either in hard currency and this is gold for us, or pay as it is convenient for us, this is the national currency,” said the head of Russia’s energy committee, Pavel Zavalny.

The United States and the Britain have imposed embargoes on Russian energy exports, but EU, which is more reliant on energy imports, is more reluctant to ban it. The new policy has hit EU the hardest, sending gas prices on the continent up by 30% on March 30.

Meanwhile, ruble has since risen to a three-week high past 95 against dollar after the Moscow Stock Exchange reopened after the initial round of sanctions.

Zavalny has suggested that buyers from countries friendly to Russia, such as China, could pay in their own fiat currencies or in Bitcoin.

Russia had been planning for years to reduce its dependence on petrodollar since the United States imposed sanctions in retaliation for its annexation of Crimea in 2014. The current crisis in Ukraine has only accelerated those plans.

Before the recent conflict, Russia still had roughly a fifth of its foreign reserves in dollar-denominated assets, mainly held overseas in Germany, France, Britain and Japan, which have since sided with the United States to isolate Moscow from the global financial system.

Gopinath said that Russia’s response to the sweeping sanctions could encourage the emergence of small currency blocs based on trade between separate groups of countries and would lead to further diversification of the reserve assets held by national central banks.

“Countries tend to accumulate reserves in the currencies with which they trade with the rest of the world, and in which they borrow from the rest of the world, so you might see some slow-moving trends towards other currencies playing a bigger role in reserve assets,” she said.

However, Gopinath doubts that the dominance of US dollar would likely be challenged in the medium term, as it is backed by strong and highly credible institutions and the fact that it is freely convertible.

“Dollar would remain the major global currency even in that landscape but fragmentation at a smaller level is certainly quite possible,” said Gopinath.

“We are already seeing that with some countries renegotiating the currency in which they get paid for trade.”

Gopinath did note that dollar’s share of international reserves had fallen from 70% to 60% over the past 20 years, with the emergence of other trading currencies.

About a quarter of the decline in dollar’s share is attributed to greater use of Chinese yuan, but less than 3% of global central bank reserves are denominated in that currency, according to the IMF.

The IMF deputy director said that the conflict is spurring the adoption of an international digital finance system, utilizing cryptocurrencies and central bank digital currencies.

“All of these will get even greater attention following the recent episodes, which draws us to the question of international regulation,” said Gopinath. “There is a gap to be filled there.”

The CCP had been preparing for the use of yuan as a global currency before the current crisis and was already ahead in adopting a central bank digital currency.

However, Gopinath said that yuan was unlikely to replace the dollar as the dominant reserve currency.

“That would require having full convertibility of the currency, having open capital markets and the institutions that can back them. That is the slow-moving process that takes time, and dollar’s dominance will stay for a while,” she said.

 

Russian troops hand over control of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant back to the Ukrainians

Russian troops handed control of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant back to the Ukrainians and began leaving the heavily contaminated site more than a month after taking it over, authorities said Thursday, as fighting raged on the outskirts of Kyiv and other fronts.

Ukraine’s state power company, Energoatom, said the pullout at Chernobyl came after soldiers received significant doses of radiation from digging trenches in the forest in the exclusion zone around the closed plant. But there was no independent confirmation of that.

The withdrawal took place amid growing indications the Kremlin is using talk of de-escalation in Ukraine as cover while regrouping, resupplying its forces and redeploying them for a stepped-up offensive in the eastern part of the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine is seeing a buildup of Russian forces for new strikes on the Donbas, and we are preparing for that.

Russian forces seized the Chernobyl site in the opening stages of the February 24 invasion, raising fears that they would cause damage or disruption that could spread radiation. The workforce at the site oversees the safe storage of spent fuel rods and the concrete-entombed ruins of the reactor that exploded in 1986.

Edwin Lyman, a nuclear expert with the US-based Union of Concerned Scientists, said it seems unlikely a large number of troops would develop severe radiation illness, but it was impossible to know for sure without more details.

He said contaminated material was probably buried or covered with new topsoil during the cleanup of Chernobyl, and some soldiers may have been exposed to a hot spot of radiation while digging. Others may have assumed they were at risk too, he said.

Early this week, the Russians said they would significantly scale back military operations in areas around Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv to increase trust between the two sides and help negotiations along.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said intelligence indicates Russia is not scaling back its military operations in Ukraine but is instead trying to regroup, resupply its forces and reinforce its offensive in the Donbas.

“Russia has repeatedly lied about its intentions,” Stoltenberg said. At the same time, he said, pressure is being kept up on Kyiv and other cities, and “we can expect additional offensive actions bringing even more suffering.”

The Donbas is the predominantly Russian-speaking industrial region where Moscow-backed separatists have been battling Ukrainian forces since 2014. In the past few days, the Kremlin, in a seeming shift in its war aims, said that its main goal now is gaining control of the Donbas, which consists of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, including Mariupol.

The top rebel leader in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, issued an order to set up a rival city government for Mariupol, according to Russian state news agencies, in a sign of Russian intent to hold and administer the city.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that conditions weren’t yet ripe for a cease-fire and that he wasn’t ready for a meeting with Zelenskyy until negotiators do more work, Italian Premier Mario Draghi said after a telephone conversation with the Russian leader.

 

Biden administration considering largest ever release from emergency oil reserve

The sanctions on Russia and its demand to get paid in ruble have started impacting United States and members of European Union. The latest move to release oil from strategic reserves is the third attempt to reign in prices as OPEC Plus sticks to its plan on increasing output.

The Biden administration is considering releasing up to 180 million barrels of oil over several months from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The move would mark the third time the United States has tapped its strategic reserves in the past six months, and would be the largest release in the near 50-year history of the strategic reserves.

It is evident that the releases have not managed to lower prices as world demand has nearly reached pre-pandemic levels while supply has tightened globally.

Oil prices have surged since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February and the United States and allies responded with hefty sanctions on Russia, the second-largest exporter of crude worldwide.

Brent crude, the world benchmark, rose to about US$139/barrel earlier this month, highest since 2008, and was near US$110/barrel in Asian trading on Thursday.

Russia is one of the world’s top producers of oil, contributing about 10% to the global market (Russia exports 4 to 5 million bpd). But sanctions and buyer reluctance to buy Russian oil could remove about 3 million barrels per day (bpd) of Russian oil from the market starting in April, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has said.

The news comes just before the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, an oil producer group known as OPEC Plus that includes Saudi Arabia and Russia, meets to discuss reducing supply curbs.

The United States, Britain and others have previously urged OPEC Plus to quickly boost output. However, the group is not expected to deviate from its plan to keep boosting output gradually when it meets Thursday.

The United States currently holds 568.3 million barrels as SPR, its lowest since May 2002, according to the US Energy Department.

The United States is considered a net petroleum exporter by the IEA. But that status could change to net importer this year and then return to exporter again as output has been slow to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was not immediately clear whether a 180 million barrel draw would consist of exchanges from the reserve that would have to be replaced by oil companies at a later date, outright sales, or a combination of the two.

US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said last week while on a trip to Europe that the United States and its allies in the IEA were discussing a further coordinated release from storage.

The IEA has called an emergency meeting for Friday to discuss oil supply, a spokesperson for Australian Energy Minister Angus Taylor said.

IEA member states agreed earlier in March to release over 60 million barrels of oil reserves, with 30 million barrels coming from the US-SPR.

US crude futures fell by US$4.70 to US$103.12/barrel and Brent futures declined by US$4.45, or 3.9% to US$109 a barrel on news of the potential release.

The White House said Biden will deliver remarks at 1730 GMT on his administration’s actions to reduce the impact of Putin’s price hike on energy prices and lower gas prices at the pump for American families. It did not give additional details.

High gasoline prices are a political liability for Biden and his Democratic Party as they seek to retain control of Congress in November elections.

The Biden administration is considering temporarily removing restrictions on summer sales of higher-ethanol gasoline blends as a way to lower fuel costs for US consumers, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Adding more ethanol to gasoline blends could potentially reduce prices at US gas pumps because ethanol, which is made from corn, is currently cheaper than straight gasoline.

 

 

China holds multinational meeting to discuss Afghanistan situation

China is holding two multinational meetings in the ancient town of Tunxi to discuss the economic and humanitarian crisis facing Afghanistan, as Beijing makes a diplomatic push for the country’s stability and development under the Taliban.

Afghan acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is attending the two-day meeting to be attended by foreign ministers of Afghanistan’s immediate neighbors – Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

Diplomats from Indonesia and Qatar will send their representatives as guest attendees to the regional meeting to be hosted by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

“The talks will echo positively with the third meeting of foreign ministers of the Afghan neighbouring countries, to further cement the consensus of all parties … to help Afghanistan achieve peace, stability and development at an early date,” Wang Wenbin, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, said.

A separate meeting of the “Extended Troika” will be held concurrently among special envoys for Afghanistan from China, the United States and Russia, China’s foreign ministry said.

“China, the United States, Russia and Pakistan are all countries with significant influence on the Afghan issue,” the foreign ministry spokesperson Wang said of the Troika meeting at a daily briefing on Tuesday.

Tom West, the US special representative for Afghanistan, will attend the meeting of the so-called Extended Troika, a US State Department spokesperson said.

The meetings are being held in Tunxi, an ancient town in Anhui province, possibly because of the relative ease of maintaining a bubble amid coronavirus lockdown in major cities.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday arrived in Tunxi for the talks with his Chinese counterpart but it is not confirmed if he will attend the Afghan meetings.

Lavrov has largely stayed in Russia since last month’s invasion of Ukraine but did travel to Turkey on Tuesday for talks with his counterpart from Kyiv.

The talk comes in the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and as Afghanistan suffers an economic and humanitarian crisis worsened by a financial aid cutoff and sanctions following the Taliban takeover as US-led troops withdrew in August.

Taliban, who fought the US forces for 20 years, returned to power in August 2021 after the collapse of West-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani.

The talks also come amid widespread condemnation of the Taliban’s U-turn last week on allowing girls to attend public high schools, which has sparked consternation among funders ahead of a key aid donors’ conference.

The school closure prompted US officials to cancel talks in Doha with the Taliban and a State Department warning that Washington saw the decision as “a potential turning point in our engagement” with the armed group.

The US believes that it shares with other Extended Troika members an interest in the Taliban making good on commitments to form an inclusive government, cooperate on counterterrorism and rebuild the Afghan economy, the State Department spokesperson said.

Diplomats and aid groups have warned that Taliban decision to keep the schools shut could make donors, already facing increased needs because of the Ukraine crisis, scale back their commitments.

On Wednesday, the World Bank put four projects in Afghanistan worth US$600 million on hold over the school ban.

Britain on Wednesday pledged an additional US$374 million for life-saving food and other aid in Afghanistan, a day ahead of an international conference seeking more than US$4 billion, even as concerns mount over Taliban rule.

The UN humanitarian appeal, the largest ever launched for a single country, is only 13 percent funded, UN spokesperson Jens Laerke said ahead of Thursday’s pledging conference.

Roughly 23 million people are experiencing acute hunger and 95 percent of Afghans are not eating enough, while 10 million children are in urgent need of aid to survive, according to the UN.

China has studiously avoided mentioning the limits on girls’ education and other human rights abuses, particularly those targeting women while keeping its Kabul embassy open.

Lately, Chinese Foreign Minister visited the Afghan capital Kabul, where he met the Acting Afghan Foreign Minister to discuss political and economic ties, including starting work in the mining sector and Afghanistan’s possible role in China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, the Afghan foreign ministry said.

The surprise stop in Kabul came as the international community fumes over the Taliban administration’s broken promise a day earlier to open schools to girls beyond the sixth grade.

China, in line with the international community, has not recognized Afghanistan’s so-called “Islamic Emirate”, but has refrained from making harsh criticism against the group.

A month before the Taliban took power, Chinese Foreign Minister, had hosted a high-power delegation from the group on July 28, 2021, meeting in the Chinese port city of Tianjin. Wang referred to the group as pivotal force important to peace and reconstruction in Afghanistan.

On that and other occasions, the Chinese have pushed the Taliban for assurances it will not permit operations within its borders by members of China’s Turkic Muslim Uighur minority, which has faced repression from Beijing.