Connect with us

DIPLOMACY

US approves $95bn in aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan

Published

on

The US House of Representatives on Saturday approved $61 billion in new aid for Ukraine, ending a six-month political impasse.

The aid to Ukraine will be combined with aid to Israel and Taiwan for a total foreign aid package of $95 billion.

House Speaker Mike Johnson worked with Democrats and overcame fierce opposition to Ukraine funding within his own party to pass the legislation by a vote of 311 to 112.

“We did our job here, and history will judge us kindly,” Johnson said after the vote.

The Senate is expected to pass the package negotiated with the White House this week. Senate Democrats and Republicans have agreed to take up the package, starting with procedural votes on Tuesday, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement.

Congratulations from Zelenski

The vote represents a victory for Republican ‘defence hawks’ over the more isolationist wing of the party led by Donald Trump. Nevertheless, more Republicans voted against further aid to Ukraine than for it.

House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, said: “We can’t be afraid of our shadows. We have to be strong. We have to do the right thing,” he said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky celebrated the vote on social media platform X, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov condemned the new aid.

Democrats and some Republicans waved Ukrainian flags during the vote.

Russia to retaliate against seizure of Russian assets

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said: ‘Traditional Republicans, led by House Ways and Means Chairman Mike Johnson, went along with this. We have a responsibility to resist authoritarianism,” he said.

Earlier on Saturday, the House also passed an $8 billion aid package for Taiwan. The House also passed a bill that would force Chinese-controlled ByteDance to divest from the popular social media app TikTok or face a US ban.

The bill also authorises the seizure of Russian assets to fund aid to Ukraine. Russia will retaliate against the seizure of its assets, the TASS news agency quoted Peskov as saying.

The Senate is due to start voting on the combined package on Tuesday.

Trump’s ‘loan to Ukraine’ proposal to be implemented

The $61 billion Ukraine bill includes $13 billion to replenish Ukraine’s stockpile of US weapons and $14 billion for US defence systems for Ukraine.

It also provides $7 billion for US military operations in the region.

The bill’s $9.5 billion in economic aid to Ukraine comes in the form of a loan that the president can cancel in full after the next election. The idea for the loan was first put forward by Donald Trump.

4 billion in missile aid to Israel

The aid bill for Taiwan includes $2 billion in foreign military financing for Taiwan and $1.9 billion to replenish US arms stocks to cover goods and services provided to Taiwan. It also provides $3.3 billion for undersea infrastructure development.

The aid bill for Israel, passed by 366 votes to 58, includes $4 billion for Israel’s missile defence following last weekend’s drone and rocket attacks by Iran. At the insistence of Democrats, the bill includes $9 billion in global humanitarian aid to be used in Gaza.

Johnson ignored calls from ultra-conservatives within the party to include the ‘US Border Act’.

President Joe Biden welcomed the House vote, thanking Johnson, Jeffries and the lawmakers who ‘voted to put our national security first’.

Conservative Republicans mobilise against Johnson

Three conservative representatives, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Paul Gosar of Arizona, say they are prepared to vote to remove Johnson from office.

“Nothing is being done to secure our border or pay down our debt. Ukraine is not even in NATO,” he said.

Massie also said on Saturday that he hoped the growing Republican opposition would force Johnson to resign. “If it comes to that, there will be a vote to remove Johnson,” he said.

DIPLOMACY

Chinese satellite company to challenge Musk’s Starlink in Brazil

Published

on

A Chinese state-backed company is set to launch a satellite internet service in Brazil, aiming to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink.

Spacesail, a developer of high-speed internet services via satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), made the announcement during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Brazil. The visit marked the signing of an expanded partnership with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

This development follows ongoing tensions between Musk, owner of SpaceX and its Starlink subsidiary, and Brazilian authorities over allegations of misinformation on his X social media network.

According to Chinese state media, Spacesail has partnered with Brazil’s state-owned Telebrás to deliver satellite communications and broadband internet to underserved areas.

A spokesperson for the Brazilian communications ministry stated that the companies would assess demand in regions lacking fiber-optic infrastructure, with plans to launch the service by 2026.

“Spacesail is committed to being Brazil’s long-term partner,” CEO Jie Zheng told reporters on Tuesday.

Musk-Lula tensions highlight Starlink’s market dominance

Brazil is actively encouraging competitors to Starlink, which controls nearly 50% of the satellite internet market in Latin America.

Earlier this year, Musk faced legal challenges in Brazil after refusing to comply with court orders to remove accounts allegedly promoting extremist content on X. This led to a temporary ban on the platform and fines for Starlink, further straining Musk’s relationship with Brazil’s left-wing government.

Tensions resurfaced recently when Brazil’s First Lady, Rosângela Lula da Silva, addressed Musk during an event on social media regulation.

Spacesail’s announcement aligns with concerns over waning U.S. influence in South America, often regarded as Washington’s “backyard.”

During his diplomatic tour, Xi Jinping attended the opening of a Chinese-built mega-port in Peru before traveling to Rio de Janeiro for the G20 summit. In Brasília, he and Lula upgraded their bilateral relationship to a “Sino-Brazilian community with a shared future”, emphasizing a fairer, more sustainable world.

The two leaders signed 37 agreements spanning agriculture, trade, infrastructure, technology, and industry. However, Brazil declined to join China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), signaling confidence in securing Chinese investments without full membership.

Operating under the name Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology, Spacesail plans to accelerate satellite deployment with a target of 15,000 LEO satellites by 2030. The company launched its first rounds of satellites in August and October this year, showcasing its rapid growth and potential to disrupt the market.

Continue Reading

DIPLOMACY

China refuses to meet with U.S. Defence Secretary

Published

on

China has reportedly refused to meet with the United States Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin at the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting-Plus in Laos this week.

According to CNN, Austin sought a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Dong Jun, during the event as part of ongoing efforts to maintain military communication channels between the United States and the People’s Republic of China. However, a senior defence official traveling with Austin in Laos revealed that China rejected the offer, citing the recent U.S. arms sale to Taiwan as a key factor.

Three weeks ago, the United States approved a $2 billion arms deal with Taiwan, which included the provision of advanced surface-to-air missiles—marking the first time Taiwan has received such systems. China condemned the sale and vowed to take “resolute countermeasures” to protect its sovereignty.

China’s decision to decline the meeting in Laos follows just days after U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping held what the U.S. described as a “cordial and constructive” meeting in San Francisco. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan emphasized that the dialogue was “wide-ranging” and not focused on mediating between Beijing and the incoming U.S. administration.

Relations between the two nations have remained strained since then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in 2022, which prompted China to sever multiple lines of communication with the United States, including those related to military and climate cooperation. While military-to-military communication had recently resumed following the Biden-Xi meeting, this latest refusal highlights continued tensions in U.S.-China relations.

Continue Reading

DIPLOMACY

G20 calls for more aid for Gaza, two-state solution and peace in Ukraine

Published

on

The leaders of the world’s 20 largest economies issued a joint statement on Monday calling for a global deal to fight hunger, more aid for war-torn Gaza and an end to hostilities in the Middle East and Ukraine.

The joint statement was approved by members of the group, but not unanimously. It also called for a future global tax on billionaires and reforms to the United Nations Security Council to allow it to expand beyond its current five permanent members.

At the start of the three-day meeting, which officially ends on Wednesday, experts doubted that Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva would be able to persuade the assembled leaders to reach an agreement at a meeting fraught with uncertainty over the new administration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and heightened global tensions due to wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Argentina objected to some language in early drafts and was the only country not to endorse the entire document.

Still, the fact that a joint statement was issued was a ‘success’ for Lula.

The declaration condemned wars and called for peace, but did not condemn any crimes.

Gaza and Ukraine on the agenda

Referring to the ‘catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and the escalation in Lebanon’, the declaration stressed the need to increase humanitarian aid and better protect civilians.

“We reaffirm the Palestinian right to self-determination and reiterate our unwavering commitment to the vision of a two-state solution, with Israel and the state of Palestine living side by side in peace,” it said.

Israeli attacks have so far killed more than 43,000 Palestinians in Gaza and more than 3,500 in Lebanon, according to local health officials.

Biden, who met with G20 leaders before the statement was issued, suggested that ‘Hamas is solely responsible for the war’ and called on other leaders to ‘increase pressure on Hamas’ to accept a ceasefire agreement.

Biden’s decision to ease restrictions on Ukraine’s use of longer-range U.S. missiles, allowing it to strike Russia, was also on the agenda for the meeting.

“The United States strongly supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. I think everyone around this table should do the same,” Biden said at the summit.

Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attend the meeting, sending Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov instead. The G20 statement highlighted the ‘humanitarian suffering in Ukraine’ and called for peace, without mentioning Russia.

Billionaire tax and the fight against hunger

The statement called for a possible tax on global billionaires, which Lula also supports. Such a tax would affect about 3,000 people worldwide, including about 100 in Latin America.

The declaration also included a clause promoting gender equality.

Argentina signed the G20 declaration but had problems with references to the UN’s 2030 sustainable development agenda. Far-right President Javier Milei described the agenda as a ‘supranational programme of a socialist nature’. He also objected to calls to regulate hate speech on social media, which Milei said violated national sovereignty, and to the idea that governments should do more to fight hunger.

Much of the declaration focuses on Lula’s priority of eradicating hunger.

The Brazilian government stressed that Lula’s launch of the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty on Monday was at least as important as the final G20 declaration. As of Monday, 82 countries had signed the plan, the Brazilian government said. The plan is also supported by organisations such as the Rockefeller Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Call for United Nations reform

Leaders have pledged to work for ‘transformative reform’ of the UN Security Council to ‘adapt it to the realities and demands of the 21st century, making it more representative, inclusive, efficient, effective, democratic and accountable’.

Nearly eighty years after the founding of the United Nations, almost all countries agree that the Security Council needs to be expanded to reflect the world of the 21st century and to include more voices. The main dilemma and the biggest disagreement are how to do this. The G20 statement did not answer this question.

“We call for an expanded composition of the Security Council that improves the representation of underrepresented and under-represented regions and groups, such as Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America and the Caribbean,” the declaration said.

Shortly before the UN summit in September, the United States announced its support for two new non-permanent seats for African countries and a first non-permanent seat for small island developing states. But the Group of Four – Brazil, Germany, India and Japan – prefer each other’s proposals for permanent seats. The larger Uniting for Consensus group of a dozen countries, including Pakistan, Italy, Turkey and Mexico, wants additional non-permanent seats for longer terms.

Xi backs calls for reform and equality

Speaking at the summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized the interests of the so-called global south, which includes emerging economies, and called for reform of international institutions and consensus on how to achieve parity in finance, trade, digital technology, and the environment.

The Chinese leader said artificial intelligence should not be ‘a game of rich countries and the rich’ and stressed the need to improve digital governance for inclusive economic globalization.

Xi reiterated host Brazil’s call for greater economic equality, including poverty eradication and reform of institutions such as global creditors for developing countries.

Xi called for reform of the World Trade Organization’s dispute settlement mechanism to return to normal operation “as soon as possible”. The mechanism remains in limbo as the U.S. has blocked appointments to the Appellate Body over concerns of judicial activism.

China had filed a dispute settlement case at the WTO after the European Union imposed new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles last month.

Continue Reading

MOST READ

Turkey