conflict

Russia vows response after Ukraine fires long-range US missiles

conflict

US cites new Russian tactics for decision to supply landmines to Ukraine

  • The decision was immediately slammed by rights groups.
  • The US decision to send anti-personnel landmines to Ukraine -- a major policy shift slammed by rights groups -- was triggered by a change in Russian battlefield tactics favoring infantry over mechanized units, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday.
  • The decision was immediately slammed by rights groups.
The US decision to send anti-personnel landmines to Ukraine -- a major policy shift slammed by rights groups -- was triggered by a change in Russian battlefield tactics favoring infantry over mechanized units, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday.
"They don't lead with their mechanized forces anymore," Austin told reporters while on a visit to Laos. "They lead with dismounted forces who are able to close and do things to kind of pave the way for mechanized forces."
The Ukrainians "have a need for things that can help slow down that effort on the part of the Russians." 
President Joe Biden's reversal of his previous curbs on US landmines comes just days after Washington gave Ukraine the green light to use US-made long-range missiles on targets within Russia, a longstanding ask from Kyiv.
The outgoing US administration is aiming to give Ukraine an upper hand before President-elect Donald Trump enters office.
Trump has repeatedly criticized US assistance for Ukraine, claiming he could secure a ceasefire within hours, without explaining details.
His comments have triggered fears in Kyiv and Europe about Ukraine's ability to withstand Russian attacks without US support.
In 2022, Biden said the United States would mostly ban its use of landmines, at the time specifically drawing a contrast with Russia's use of the weapons in Ukraine.
Both Russia and the United States -- neither of which are signatories to the UN Mine Ban Treaty -- have been criticized for their past use of anti-personnel mines. 
Ukraine is a signatory of the treaty. A report from the International Campaign to Ban Landmines on Wednesday said Kyiv was investigating the reported use of anti-personnel mines by its soldiers in 2022, in violation of the treaty.

'Threat to civilians'

The United States said Ukraine would be supplied with so-called "non-persistent" mines that can self-destruct or render themselves inactive after losing battery charge -- in theory limiting the risk to civilians.
"Within two weeks, if they have not been detonated, they become inert," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters. 
He said that Ukraine would need to conduct missions to get rid of unexploded ordnance at the end of the conflict regardless of the new weapons authorization.
The decision was immediately slammed by rights groups.
Mary Wareham, a deputy director at Human Rights Watch, said Ukraine's use of the mines would contravene the Mine Ban Treaty, and questioned the safety of the aging stocks Washington would be supplying.
"From a clearance perspective, de-miners have to approach any type of explosive object with the knowledge that it may explode," Wareham told AFP, adding that the self-deactivation feature is "not enough."
Amnesty International called Washington's decision "a deeply disappointing setback," saying "even the 'non-persistent' mines are a threat to civilians."
The Biden administration was similarly criticized last year for supplying Ukraine with cluster munitions.
The landmines will be provided as part of a larger tranche of aid being supplied to Ukraine valued at $275 million, which also includes HIMARS rocket ammunition, TOW missiles and small arms.

Battlefield escalation

Both Moscow and Kyiv are jockeying to secure battlefield advantage before Trump assumes office in January.
This week Kyiv fired long-range, US-supplied ATACMS missiles at Russian territory for the first time.
On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree lowering the threshold for when Russia could use nuclear weapons.
Laos, where Austin made his comments, is still recovering from heavy US bombing during the Vietnam War.
More than 20,000 people have been killed or injured from unexploded ordnance in the half-century since, according to The Halo Trust, a de-mining group.
bur-nro/bjt

business

Indian magnate Gautam Adani charged in US over massive bribery scheme

BY GREGORY WALTON

  • "This indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars, and to obstruct justice," said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa Miller.
  • Billionaire Indian industrialist Gautam Adani has been charged with paying hundreds of millions of dollars of bribes and hiding the payments from investors, US prosecutors said on Wednesday.
  • "This indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars, and to obstruct justice," said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa Miller.
Billionaire Indian industrialist Gautam Adani has been charged with paying hundreds of millions of dollars of bribes and hiding the payments from investors, US prosecutors said on Wednesday.
With a business empire spanning coal, airports, cement and media, the chairman of Adani Group has been rocked in recent years by corporate fraud allegations and a stock crash.
The close acolyte of Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a fellow Gujarat native, is alleged to have agreed to pay more than $250 million in bribes to Indian officials for lucrative solar energy supply contracts.
The deals were projected to generate more than $2 billion in profits after tax, over roughly 20 years.
None of the multiple defendants in the case, including Adani, are in custody, the prosecutor's office told AFP.
Prosecutors say one of Adani's alleged accomplices meticulously tracked bribe payments, using his phone to log the bungs offered to officials.
"This indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars, and to obstruct justice," said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa Miller.

'Fear of reprisal'

"Gautam Adani and seven other business executives allegedly bribed the Indian government to finance lucrative contracts designed to benefit their businesses... while still other defendants allegedly attempted to conceal the bribery conspiracy by obstructing the government's investigation," said the FBI's James Dennehy.
A self-described introvert, Adani keeps a low profile and rarely speaks to the media, often sending lieutenants to front corporate events.
Adani was born in Ahmedabad, Gujarat state, to a middle-class family but dropped out of school at 16 and moved to financial capital Mumbai to find work in the city's lucrative gem trade. 
After a short stint in his brother's plastics business, he launched the flagship family conglomerate that bears his name in 1988 by branching out into the export trade. 
His big break came seven years later with a contract to build and operate a commercial shipping port in Gujarat.
Adani Group's rapid expansion into capital-intensive businesses previously raised alarms, with Fitch subsidiary and market researcher CreditSights warning in 2022 it was "deeply over-leveraged."
In 2023 a bombshell report from US investment firm Hindenburg Research claimed the conglomerate had engaged in a "brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades."
Hindenburg said a pattern of "government leniency towards the group" stretching back decades had left investors, journalists, citizens and politicians unwilling to challenge its conduct "for fear of reprisal."
gw/nro

assault

Arrested son of Norwegian princess suspected of second rape

  • Born of a relationship before Mette-Marit's marriage to heir Prince Haakon, Marius Borg Hoiby was arrested on Monday evening on suspicion of rape. 
  • The eldest son of Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit is suspected of a second rape, police said Wednesday, two days after his arrest over another allegation of sexual assault.
  • Born of a relationship before Mette-Marit's marriage to heir Prince Haakon, Marius Borg Hoiby was arrested on Monday evening on suspicion of rape. 
The eldest son of Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit is suspected of a second rape, police said Wednesday, two days after his arrest over another allegation of sexual assault.
Born of a relationship before Mette-Marit's marriage to heir Prince Haakon, Marius Borg Hoiby was arrested on Monday evening on suspicion of rape. 
Since the investigation unearthed a second allegation, a lawyer for the force said, police requested the 27-year-old be remanded in custody, which a judge on Wednesday ordered for one week, according to media reports.
"Marius is facing serious accusations, which the police and the judiciary will deal with... I am convinced they will do a good job," Prince Haakon told public broadcaster NRK before the detention order.
Borg Hoiby's lawyer, Oyvind Bratlien, said he would appeal the detention ruling, but welcomed the fact that judges had not granted the police request for a two-week detention.
"We consider that promising," he said in a written statement to NRK.
Police lawyer Andreas Kruszewski had said on the sidelines of the hearing that the second allegation "involves sexual intercourse without consent with a woman incapable of resisting the act".
Investigators searched and seized items from the Borg Hoiby's home.
The rape charge comes after he was accused of bodily harm following a late-night row on August 4 at the Oslo apartment of a woman he was having a relationship with, police said.
Norwegian media reported that police found a knife stuck in one of the woman's bedroom walls at the time.
Borg Hoiby was arrested again in September for breaching a restraining order.
When he was detained on Monday he was in a car with the alleged victim of the August incident, according to police.
Borg Hoiby was raised by the royal couple alongside his step-siblings Princess Ingrid Alexandra, 20, and Prince Sverre Magnus, 18. 
Unlike them however he has no official public role.
nzg/ef/sbk/js

trade

Xi urges peace in Ukraine, ceasefire in Gaza during Brazil visit

BY RAMON SAHMKOW

  • He also called for "a ceasefire and an end to the war at an early date" in Gaza, the agency said.
  • Chinese leader Xi Jinping urged "more voices" to end the Ukraine war and a ceasefire in Gaza, as he conducted a state visit to Brazil's capital, Chinese state media said.
  • He also called for "a ceasefire and an end to the war at an early date" in Gaza, the agency said.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping urged "more voices" to end the Ukraine war and a ceasefire in Gaza, as he conducted a state visit to Brazil's capital, Chinese state media said.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva echoed those points as he met with Xi in a red-carpet welcome in Brasilia, and stressed a joint roadmap for peace in Ukraine that they are proposing.
"In a world plagued by armed conflicts and political strife, China and Brazil put peace, diplomacy and dialogue first," Lula said.
Xi said he wanted to see "more voices committed to peace to pave the way for a political solution to the Ukraine crisis," the Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported.
He also called for "a ceasefire and an end to the war at an early date" in Gaza, the agency said.
On Ukraine, the China-Brazil roadmap for mediating peace has been endorsed by Russia -- which is China's ally -- but rejected by Kyiv and its Western backers.
The Chinese president's appeal for a halt to fighting in Gaza -- where Israel is pressing an offensive against Hamas -- echoed one he and the other G20 leaders made during a summit held Monday and Tuesday in Rio.
That summit's joint statement called for a "comprehensive" ceasefire in both Gaza and Lebanon, where Israel is also waging an offensive against the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.
On Wednesday, the UN Security Council held a vote on a resolution calling for "an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire" in Gaza, but it was vetoed by Israel's ally the United States.

China filling 'vacuum'

Xi's state visit to Brasilia showcased closer relations between the biggest economies in Asia and Latin America, which analysts said also reflected shrinking US influence.
The two leaders signed 35 cooperation accords on areas including agriculture, trade, technology and environmental protection.
Xi said China-Brazil relations "are at their best in history" and the two countries are now "reliable friends," according to Xinhua.
Lula said he believed the growing Brazil-China ties "will exceed all expectations and pave the way for a new phase of bilateral relations."
He added that he looked forward to welcoming Xi to Brazil again next July for a BRICS summit.
The Chinese leader figured prominently at the G20 summit, and at an APEC one held last week in Peru -- in contrast with outgoing US President Joe Biden, who cut a spectral figure.
Fellow leaders looked past Biden, politically, to the coming US presidency of Donald Trump, which starts January 20.
"Xi Jinping is clearly looking to fill the vacuum that will come following the election of Trump, who does not value multilateralism," Oliver Stuenkel, an international relations expert at Brazil's Getulio Vargas Foundation think tank, told AFP.

'Synergies'

China is Brazil's biggest trading partner, with two-way commerce exceeding $160 billion last year.
The South American agricultural power sends mainly soybeans and other primary commodities to China, while the Asian giant sells Brazil semiconductors, telephones, vehicles and medicines.
Since returning to power in early 2023, Lula has sought to balance efforts to improve ties with both China and the United States.
A visit to Beijing this year by Vice President Geraldo Alckmin was seen as paving the way for Brazil to potentially join China's Belt and Road Initiative to stimulate trade -- a central pillar of Xi's bid to expand China's clout overseas.
But there was no announcement in that direction during Xi's visit. Instead both leaders spoke of finding "synergies" between that Chinese program and Brazil's own infrastructure development program.
South American nations that have signed up to Beijing's initiative include Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.
One of the accords signed Wednesday was on Brazil opening its market to a Chinese satellite company, SpaceSail, that competes with Starlink, founded and run by South African-born US billionaire Elon Musk, which already covers remote Brazilian regions.
Musk has a turbulent history with Brazil, whose courts forced his social media platform X to comply with national laws against disinformation.
bur/rmb/dw

efficiency

Musk outlines plans for mass cuts as Trump 'efficiency' czar

  • However Musk and Ramaswamy voiced confidence that recent rulings by the conservative-dominated Supreme Court would allow them to push through the ambitious agenda.
  • Elon Musk outlined plans Wednesday for his new role as "efficiency" czar -- signaling an assault on federal spending and staffing that would be backed by President-elect Donald Trump's executive powers and a conservative Supreme Court.
  • However Musk and Ramaswamy voiced confidence that recent rulings by the conservative-dominated Supreme Court would allow them to push through the ambitious agenda.
Elon Musk outlined plans Wednesday for his new role as "efficiency" czar -- signaling an assault on federal spending and staffing that would be backed by President-elect Donald Trump's executive powers and a conservative Supreme Court.
Writing in the Wall Street Journal, the world's richest man said he was taking aim at hundreds of billions of dollars in government spending -- including funding for public broadcasting and international aid -- as well as at bureaucracy that represents, according to him, an "existential threat" to US democracy.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, who also owns the X social media platform, said that he and Vivek Ramaswamy, a fellow businessman and Trump loyalist, would work to slash federal regulations and make major administrative changes.
"We are entrepreneurs, not politicians. We will serve as outside volunteers, not federal officials or employees," Musk and Ramaswamy wrote in their most detailed remarks since Trump named them heads of a new so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
They said DOGE -- expected to function more as an advisory group rather than a formal department -- will prepare a list of regulations which Trump could invalidate unilaterally.
"When the president nullifies thousands of such regulations, critics will allege executive overreach. In fact, it will be correcting the executive overreach of thousands of regulations promulgated by administrative fiat that were never authorized by Congress," they said.
Musk and Ramaswamy added that a reduction in regulations would pave the way for "mass head-count reductions across the federal bureaucracy," and said DOGE would aim to cut more than $500 billion in government expenditures.
"With a decisive electoral mandate and a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court, DOGE has a historic opportunity for structural reductions in the federal government," they said.

Supreme Court allies

Moves to gut programs will almost certainly face political pushback, even from Republicans, and prompt legal challenges.
However Musk and Ramaswamy voiced confidence that recent rulings by the conservative-dominated Supreme Court would allow them to push through the ambitious agenda.
"With a decisive electoral mandate and a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court, DOGE has a historic opportunity for structural reductions in the federal government," they said.
They said that DOGE's top goal was to not be needed by July 4, 2026, which was described as an expiration date for the project.
Musk become a close ally to Trump during his campaign, reportedly spending over $100 million to boost his presidential bid and joining him at rallies.
However, with Musk's businesses all having varying degrees of interactions with US and foreign governments, his new position also raises concerns about conflict of interest.
The South African-born billionaire invited Trump to watch a test flight of his SpaceX company on Tuesday in a sign of ever closer ties between the pair.
But their relationship -- defined by combustible personalities and some past policy differences -- could be subject to friction once the reality of political life sets in.
bjt/des

Venezuela

Italy joins US in recognizing Venezuelan opposition candidate as 'president-elect'

  • Far-right Meloni has twice received Edmundo Gonzalez in Italy, and self-declared "anarcho-capitalist" Milei has also recognized him as the election victor.
  • Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday recognized Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as the president-elect of the country, a day after the United States officially did the same.
  • Far-right Meloni has twice received Edmundo Gonzalez in Italy, and self-declared "anarcho-capitalist" Milei has also recognized him as the election victor.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday recognized Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as the president-elect of the country, a day after the United States officially did the same.
Meloni spoke after a meeting with Argentina's President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires.
"Together with the European Union, we are working for a peaceful and democratic transition in Venezuela so that the preference expressed by the Venezuelan people for president-elect Gonzalez Urrutia, and their legitimate aspirations of freedom and democracy, can finally become reality," said Meloni.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken prompted a furious reaction from Caracas Tuesday when he, too, used the term "president-elect" for the first time to refer to Gonzalez Urrutia.
Venezuela's incumbent President Nicolas Maduro insists he had won July elections despite the opposition saying it can provide proof of its victory in the form of a vote breakdown. 
Election authorities have declined to release their own detailed vote count despite domestic and international pressure.
Only a handful of countries, including Venezuela ally Russia, have recognized Maduro's victory claim.
He is accused of leading a harshly repressive leftist regime, with a systematic crackdown on the opposition.
Far-right Meloni has twice received Edmundo Gonzalez in Italy, and self-declared "anarcho-capitalist" Milei has also recognized him as the election victor.
The Italian and Argentine leaders -- both fans of US President-elect Donald Trump -- met after this week's G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro, and vowed to build "a special relationship."
Milei, for his part, reiterated his call for the creation of an "alliance of free nations" including the United States, Argentina, Italy and Israel.
Last week, he had said the members of such an alliance would be the "custodians of the Western legacy," threatened by "the cultural hegemony of the left."
tev/lm/nn/mlr/nro

unrest

Mali junta chief sacks PM and government

  • "The duties of the prime minister and the members of the government are terminated," according to a decree issued by Colonel Assimi Goita that was read out by the secretary general of the presidency, Alfousseyni Diawara, on state television ORTM. Some key junta figures such as Defence Minister General Sadio Camara and Minister of Reconciliation General Ismael Wague are members of the government.
  • Mali's junta chief on Wednesday sacked civilian Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga and the government, days after Maiga issued a rare criticism of the military rulers.
  • "The duties of the prime minister and the members of the government are terminated," according to a decree issued by Colonel Assimi Goita that was read out by the secretary general of the presidency, Alfousseyni Diawara, on state television ORTM. Some key junta figures such as Defence Minister General Sadio Camara and Minister of Reconciliation General Ismael Wague are members of the government.
Mali's junta chief on Wednesday sacked civilian Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga and the government, days after Maiga issued a rare criticism of the military rulers.
The West African country, plagued by jihadist and separatist violence, has been led by the military since back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021.
Maiga, who was appointed by the military after the second coup, had been seen as isolated in his position as prime minister, with little room for manoeuvre.
His dismissal creates further uncertainty in an already troubled context.
"The duties of the prime minister and the members of the government are terminated," according to a decree issued by Colonel Assimi Goita that was read out by the secretary general of the presidency, Alfousseyni Diawara, on state television ORTM.
Some key junta figures such as Defence Minister General Sadio Camara and Minister of Reconciliation General Ismael Wague are members of the government.
In June 2022, the junta promised to organise elections and hand over power to civilians by the end of March 2024, but later postponed elections indefinitely.
Maiga on Saturday publicly condemned the lack of clarity regarding the end of the transition to civilian rule.
He said the confusion could pose "serious challenges and the risk of going backwards".
Maiga, 66, previously served as a minister on several occasions and ran three times as a presidential candidate.
He was the civilian face of the junta's strategic pivot away from former colonial ruler France and toward closer political and military ties with Russia.
At the United Nations in September 2021, Maiga denounced what he called the "abandonment in mid-air" regarding the announced withdrawal of the French anti-jihadist force deployed in the country.
He said the withdrawal forced Mali to explore new avenues with other partners, at a time when the presence of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner loomed. 

Increasingly untenable

Maiga is a key figure in the M5-RFP political movement that took part in protests against Mali's former civilian president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, who was toppled by the military in August 2020.
But Maiga began to distance himself from the junta, prompting speculation for months that he would be sacked.
In May, the M5-RFP movement published a statement openly criticising the military rulers after they failed to meet their deadline to hand back power to civilians.
A close ally of Maiga, who signed the statement, was sentenced to a year in prison in July before being released in September after his sentence was commuted.
Maiga endorsed the statement but had until now kept his position at the head of the government.
After his criticism of the junta on Saturday, Maiga's position became increasingly untenable. 
An influential group supporting the military rulers, the Collective for the Defence of the Military (CDM), had called for him to step down within 72 hours.
Limited demonstrations took place on Tuesday in support of the military and calling for the prime minister's resignation.
Maiga's comments gave rise to speculation as to whether he was positioning himself for a possible future presidential election.
bur-acc/js

music

One Direction stars attend Liam Payne's funeral in UK

BY AKSHATA KAPOOR

  • He died from "multiple traumas" and "internal and external haemorrhaging" after the fall from the hotel room, a post-mortem examination found.
  • Family and friends of One Direction star Liam Payne, who died last month after falling from a Buenos Aires hotel room, gathered for his funeral in Britain on Wednesday.
  • He died from "multiple traumas" and "internal and external haemorrhaging" after the fall from the hotel room, a post-mortem examination found.
Family and friends of One Direction star Liam Payne, who died last month after falling from a Buenos Aires hotel room, gathered for his funeral in Britain on Wednesday.
Payne's former bandmates Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson were among the dozens of mourners at the private service at St Mary's Church in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, just outside London. 
Payne's tearful parents were joined by his two sisters, his girlfriend Kate Cassidy and former partner Cheryl Tweedy, with whom he has a son.
Around a dozen fans watched from behind a nearby cordon as guests hugged each other before walking past floral tributes into the 12th-century church to pay their final respects.
"Because his death was such a public death, to have the funeral in a private way... I think it was very nice," said onlooker Sheila Morris, a 65-year-old from Amersham. 
"It's a beautiful church... it's a very beautiful place for a funeral," she said.
Payne's coffin arrived in a white horse-drawn hearse topped with floral tributes spelling the words "Son" and "Daddy", followed by his parents.
Payne was found dead on October 16 after falling from the balcony of his third-floor room at the Casa Sur Hotel in the Argentinian capital.
His death, at 31, prompted a global outpouring of grief from family, former bandmates and fans, with thousands gathering in cities around the world to offer condolences.

'Completely devastated'

Payne shot to stardom as a teenager alongside Styles, Horan, Tomlinson and Malik after their appearance on the UK talent show "The X Factor" 14 years ago.
He died from "multiple traumas" and "internal and external haemorrhaging" after the fall from the hotel room, a post-mortem examination found.
The balcony attached to his room overlooked a rear patio that was about 14 meters (45 feet) high. 
Hotel staff had called emergency services twice to report a guest "overwhelmed by drugs and alcohol" who was "destroying" a hotel room.
Investigators have said he was alone at the time and appeared to have been "going through an episode of substance abuse".
In a short statement following his death, Payne's family said: "We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we'll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul."
One Direction said they had been "completely devastated" by his death.
After forming in 2010, the band went on to release an album of radio-ready songs each year in time for the holiday shopping season and became one of the highest-grossing live acts in the world.
In 2016, after Malik left, the group said it was on an indefinite hiatus but not splitting up.
Payne's first solo single "Strip That Down" peaked at number three on the UK charts and number 10 on the US Billboard top songs list.
But in recent years he had spoken publicly about struggles with substance abuse and coping with fame from an early age.
His last solo work, the single "Teardrops", was released in March, with a second album announced at the time.
Payne was born and raised in Wolverhampton, central England.
aks-pdh/jwp/js

conflict

Ukraine reportedly fires UK Storm Shadow missiles into Russia

  • The reported strikes came as Moscow looks to retaliate against Ukraine for firing US-supplied long-range missiles on Russian territory for the first time and with the Kremlin accusing outgoing US President Joe Biden of dragging out the war.
  • Ukraine has fired UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles into Russia for the first time, British media reported Wednesday, after being given the green light from London.
  • The reported strikes came as Moscow looks to retaliate against Ukraine for firing US-supplied long-range missiles on Russian territory for the first time and with the Kremlin accusing outgoing US President Joe Biden of dragging out the war.
Ukraine has fired UK-supplied Storm Shadow missiles into Russia for the first time, British media reported Wednesday, after being given the green light from London.
Several missiles were launched against at least one Russian military target, The Financial Times said, citing an unidentified Western official.
The Times said government sources had confirmed the use of the long-range missiles for the first time.
The Guardian said Britain had given Ukraine permission to use the missiles in Russia in response to Moscow's deployment of North Korean troops on the border.
Russian pro-Kremlin military bloggers wrote that around a dozen Storm Shadow missiles were fired on a target in the Kursk border region, which is partially held by Ukrainian forces.
Ukrainian media posted aerial video footage from a drone showing a series of explosions at what appears to be a country estate, naming the location as Maryino, where the presidential administration has a sanatorium. 
Ukrainian media reported the strikes could have targeted an underground military command centre.
Neither Moscow nor Kyiv have officially confirmed the missile attack or the use of Storm Shadows. 
The reported attack came after Washington this week said it had cleared Ukraine to use its ATACMS against military targets inside Russia -- a long-standing Ukrainian request.
Russia said Tuesday that the missiles had been used to target a military facility in the Bryansk border region.
The reported strikes came as Moscow looks to retaliate against Ukraine for firing US-supplied long-range missiles on Russian territory for the first time and with the Kremlin accusing outgoing US President Joe Biden of dragging out the war.
Russia has ramped up deadly missile strikes in recent days, targeting residential areas and Ukraine's energy grid. Air alerts blare out across the country daily.
The United States said Wednesday morning that it was shutting its Kyiv office to the public after having received "specific information of a potential significant air attack".
Canada, Greece, Hungary, Italy and Spain -- all NATO members -- followed suit.
The US Embassy said Wednesday evening that it would reopen Thursday, after having "temporarily modified operations" due to a warning of a "potential imminent air attack".

Strikes a 'daily reality'

Ukrainian officials criticised the rare move and called on its allies not to spread yet more fear among Ukrainian society.
"We remind you that the threat of strikes by the aggressor state has unfortunately been a daily reality for Ukrainians for over 1,000 days," Ukraine's foreign ministry posted on social media.
Air alert sirens sounded in Kyiv on Wednesday and authorities said falling debris from an intercepted drone attack in the morning caused minor damage.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address that the "panic messages that were reposted" on social media "only helps Russia". 
Nerves are already frayed in Kyiv after almost three years of war, and Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election has injected fresh uncertainty.
The Republican has repeatedly criticised US support for Ukraine and claimed he could broker a ceasefire within hours -- comments that have triggered fears in Kyiv and Europe about Ukraine's ability to withstand the Russian attacks without American support.
Both Ukraine and Russia are jockeying for upper hand on the battlefield before Trump re-enters the White House in January.
Russia on Wednesday accused Biden of prolonging the war by stepping up weapons deliveries to Kyiv in his final weeks in office.
"If you look at the trends of the outgoing US administration, they are fully committed to continuing the war in Ukraine and are doing everything they can to do so," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Peskov was responding to the US saying it would soon provide Ukraine with antipersonnel land mines.
This decision has prompted criticism from charities over the long-term risk to civilians, but Zelensky said in his evening address that landmines were "very important... to stop Russian assaults".
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that Russian forces "lead with dismounted forces" rather than tanks, and landmines "can help slow down that effort".

'Big mistake'

World leaders have taken note of the stepped-up American support for Kyiv.
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a NATO ally of the US, said Wednesday that the decision to allow Kyiv to use the powerful long-range missiles was a "big mistake".
"This step by Biden will not only escalate the conflict, but will lead to a greater reaction from Russia," Erdogan, who sees himself as a possible mediator, told journalists.
Moscow has struck a defiant tone, pledging retribution and continuing its advance on the front lines.
Its forces claimed Wednesday to have captured the village of Illinka, close to the strategic hub of Kurakhove in the eastern Donetsk region.
The Kremlin also rejected as "absurd" and "laughable" suggestions it was involved in the cutting of two telecommunications cables running under the Baltic Sea.
European officials have said they suspect "sabotage" and "hybrid warfare" linked to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Despite increased speculation of possible talks to end the conflict, there is no sign of Zelensky or Russian President Vladimir Putin being anywhere close to converging on a possible deal.
bur-jc-oc-am/js

conflict

Hezbollah says Israel 'cannot impose conditions' for truce

BY LISA GOLDEN WITH PIERRE-HENRY DESHAYES IN JERUSALEM

  • "Israel cannot defeat us and cannot impose its conditions on us," Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said in an address broadcast shortly after Hochstein announced his travel plans.
  • Hezbollah's leader delivered a defiant speech on Wednesday, saying Israel cannot impose conditions for a truce in Lebanon, as visiting US envoy Amos Hochstein headed to Israel to try to negotiate an end to the war.
  • "Israel cannot defeat us and cannot impose its conditions on us," Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said in an address broadcast shortly after Hochstein announced his travel plans.
Hezbollah's leader delivered a defiant speech on Wednesday, saying Israel cannot impose conditions for a truce in Lebanon, as visiting US envoy Amos Hochstein headed to Israel to try to negotiate an end to the war.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, in a near-simultaneous statement, said any ceasefire deal must ensure Israel still has the "freedom to act" against Hezbollah.
Hochstein said in Beirut that he would head to Israel on Wednesday to try to seal a ceasefire agreement in the war in Lebanon, which escalated in late September after nearly a year of deadly exchanges of fire across Israel's northern border.
Israel has vowed to secure the north and allow tens of thousands of people displaced by the cross-border hostilities to return home.
"Israel cannot defeat us and cannot impose its conditions on us," Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said in an address broadcast shortly after Hochstein announced his travel plans.
Qassem added that his armed group sought a "complete and comprehensive end to the aggression" and "the preservation of Lebanon's sovereignty".
He also vowed that the response to recent deadly Israeli strikes on Beirut would be on "central Tel Aviv", Israel's densely populated commercial hub.
Before heading to Israel, Hochstein met for a second time with Lebanon's Hezbollah-allied parliament speaker Nabih Berri, who has led mediation efforts on behalf of the Iran-backed group.
Wednesday's meeting "made additional progress, so I will travel from here in a couple hours to Israel to try to bring this to a close if we can", Hochstein told reporters in the Lebanese capital.
Hochstein had said on Tuesday that an end to the war was "within our grasp".
Ahead of his arrival, Israel's top diplomat Saar said: "In any agreement we will reach, we will need to keep the freedom to act if there will be violations."

Aid to Gaza

Hezbollah began its cross-border attacks in support of its ally Hamas following the Palestinian group's assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, which sparked the war in Gaza.
Hamas's attack resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said the death toll from the resulting war has reached 43,985 people, the majority civilians. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
The war has also created a grinding humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with residents suffering shortages of everything from food to fuel to medicine.
The Jordanian army said Wednesday that it had dispatched eight helicopters loaded with more than seven tonnes of food, medicine and supplies for children to Gaza, where it would be handed over to the World Food Programme near the southern city of Khan Yunis.
It was the first time Jordanian aircraft would land in Gaza to deliver aid in more than a year of fighting.
Since expanding its operations from Gaza to Lebanon in September, Israel has conducted extensive bombing primarily targeting Hezbollah strongholds.
Israel has also sent ground troops into southern Lebanon, where it said Wednesday one soldier had been killed -- the 50th to fall in Lebanon since the start of ground operations.
More than 3,544 people in Lebanon have been killed since the clashes began, authorities have said, most since late September. Among them were more than 200 children, according to the United Nations.
Israel has also recently intensified strikes on neighbouring Syria, a key conduit of weapons for Hezbollah from its backer Iran.
In the latest reported attack, the Syrian defence ministry said 36 people were killed and more than 50 wounded in Israeli strikes on the oasis city of Palmyra.

Fighting in south Lebanon

While Hochstein was in Beirut, the situation in the capital was relatively calm Tuesday and Wednesday, but south Lebanon, where Hezbollah holds sway, saw battles and strikes.
On Wednesday, the Lebanese army said Israeli fire killed one of its soldiers in the area, a day after it announced the deaths of three other personnel in a strike.
While not engaged in the ongoing war, the Lebanese army has reported 18 losses since September 23.
The Israeli military later said, without mentioning the deaths, that it was looking into reports of Lebanese soldiers wounded by a strike on Tuesday.
"We emphasise that the (Israeli army) is operating precisely against the Hezbollah terrorist organisation and is not operating against the Lebanon Armed Forces," the military told AFP in a statement.
Hezbollah said Wednesday that it had twice targeted Israeli troops near the flashpoint southern town of Khiam.
The state-run National News Agency said that Israeli forces were "attempting to advance from the Kfarshuba hills... to open up a new front".
"Violent clashes are taking place" between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, it added.
Israel said it hit 100 "terror targets" around Lebanon in the past day.
Hezbollah said it had launched drones at two military bases in northern Israel and fired rockets at the town of Safed.
bur-ser/smw/kir

rights

At least 150 people killed in violence in Haitian capital in past week: UN

  • Last year, in a gruesome chapter of the vigilante reprisals, a dozen alleged gang members were stoned and burned alive by residents in Port-au-Prince.
  • Soaring violence in Port-au-Prince since last week has left at least 150 people dead, bringing the number of deaths in Haiti this year to over 4,500, the United Nations said Wednesday.
  • Last year, in a gruesome chapter of the vigilante reprisals, a dozen alleged gang members were stoned and burned alive by residents in Port-au-Prince.
Soaring violence in Port-au-Prince since last week has left at least 150 people dead, bringing the number of deaths in Haiti this year to over 4,500, the United Nations said Wednesday.
"The latest upsurge in violence in Haiti's capital is a harbinger of worse to come," UN rights chief Volker Turk warned in a statement.
"The gang violence must be promptly halted. Haiti must not be allowed to descend further into chaos."
Violence has intensified dramatically in Port-au-Prince since November 11, as a coalition of gangs pushes for full control of the Haitian capital.
Well-armed gangs control some 80 percent of the city, routinely targeting civilians despite a Kenyan-led international force that has been deployed to help the outgunned police restore some government order.
"At least 150 people have been killed, 92 injured and about 20,000 forced to flee their homes over the past week," Turk's statement said.
In addition, "Port-au-Prince's estimated four million people are practically being held hostage as gangs now control all the main roads in and out of the capital".
The Haitian capital has seen renewed fighting in the last week from Viv Ansanm, an alliance of gangs that in February helped oust former prime minister Ariel Henry.
Turk said that at least 55 percent of the deaths from simultaneous and apparently coordinated attacks in the capital resulted from exchanges of fire between gang members and police.
He also highlighted reports of a rise in mob lynchings. 
Authorities said Tuesday that police and civilian self-defence groups had killed 28 gang members in Port-au-Prince after an overnight operation as the government seeks to regain some control.
Last year, in a gruesome chapter of the vigilante reprisals, a dozen alleged gang members were stoned and burned alive by residents in Port-au-Prince.
The UN rights office said the latest violence brought "the verified casualty toll of the gang violence so far this year to a shocking 4,544 dead and 2,060 injured". 
The real toll, it stressed, "is likely higher still". 
In addition, an estimated 700,000 people are now internally displaced across the country, half of them children, it said.
Turk warned that "the endless gang violence and widespread insecurity are deepening the dire humanitarian crisis in the country, including the impacts of severe food and water shortages and the spread of infectious diseases".
This was happening "at a time when the health system is already on the brink of collapse", he said, adding that "threats and attacks on humanitarian workers are also deeply worrying".
"Gang violence must not prevail over the institutions of the State," he said, demanding "concrete steps ... to protect the population and to restore effective rule of law".
nl/sbk

politics

Under-fire Spain minister defends agencies' role in floods

BY IMRAN MARASHLI

  • The European Parliament had blocked Teresa Ribera's appointment to an influential commission role encompassing the environment and competition, with opponents accusing her of neglecting her duties during the floods.
  • Spain's under-fire ecological transition minister, a candidate for a top European Commission post, said Wednesday that questioning the role of state agencies during the country's devastating floods was "dangerous".
  • The European Parliament had blocked Teresa Ribera's appointment to an influential commission role encompassing the environment and competition, with opponents accusing her of neglecting her duties during the floods.
Spain's under-fire ecological transition minister, a candidate for a top European Commission post, said Wednesday that questioning the role of state agencies during the country's devastating floods was "dangerous".
The state weather and environment services have faced intense scrutiny over their response to the October 29 disaster that killed 227 people and wreaked widespread destruction.
The European Parliament had blocked Teresa Ribera's appointment to an influential commission role encompassing the environment and competition, with opponents accusing her of neglecting her duties during the floods.
But feuding political groups reached a deal to back the bloc's new executive on Wednesday, clearing the way for Ribera's confirmation next week.
Regions are in charge of disaster management in Spain's decentralised political system, but the hardest-hit Valencia region's leader Carlos Mazon has said he received "insufficient, inaccurate and late" information.
Doubting state agencies was "deeply unfair and deeply dangerous", Ribera told parliament in a veiled retort to the conservative opposition.
"I would like to thank the work and dedication of the public servants who issued the information as was their duty," she added.
Mazon defended his handling of the catastrophe last week, citing an "information blackout" and criticising a government agency responsible for monitoring river levels.
Ribera said "there was never an information blackout" and enumerated a lengthy list of warnings issued by public bodies to the regional authorities.
Although the national weather agency issued the highest red alert in the morning of October 29, Valencia residents in many cases received telephone warnings only when water was already gushing through towns.
The socialist-led central government has said the conservative Mazon bore responsibility for the late issuing of the emergency alert.
"Having all the necessary information is of little use if the one who must respond does not know how," Ribera said.

Political polarisation

The right-wing opposition Popular Party (PP) has accused the government of abandoning the Valencia region for political gain.
The polarisation spilt over at EU level after the conservative EPP parliamentary group to which the PP belongs refused to approve Spain's commission nominee until she reported to the Spanish parliament.
"The European Commission does not deserve to come into existence with a candidate under suspicion," PP leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo wrote on X.
But officials from the EPP, Socialists and Democrats and centrist Renew groups said they had clinched an agreement on Wednesday to renew Ursula von der Leyen's 27-member commission, in a snub to the PP.
Ribera and her fellow candidates are due to have a parliament confirmation next week before starting the job in December.
"We have to be cautious, and until things are announced officially we have to wait calmly," Ribera told journalists before an evening appearance in the Senate.
imm/sbk

Ryanair

Ryanair threatens to drop 10 French airports over tax hike

  • Ryanair said the tax increase would fall most heavily on passengers using regional airports, which are primarily served by low-cost airlines and the tax hike would have a larger impact.
  • Low-cost airline Ryanair threatened Wednesday to stop serving 10 French regional airports if the government goes forward with a proposed tax hike. 
  • Ryanair said the tax increase would fall most heavily on passengers using regional airports, which are primarily served by low-cost airlines and the tax hike would have a larger impact.
Low-cost airline Ryanair threatened Wednesday to stop serving 10 French regional airports if the government goes forward with a proposed tax hike. 
The French government is scrambling to plug a larger-than-expected budget deficit, and a tripling of a tax on airline tickets, as well as private jets, is one of the measures currently under consideration.
"Ryanair is now reviewing its French schedules and expects to cut capacity to/from regional French airports by up to 50 percent from January 2025 if the French government proceeds with its short-sighted plan to triple passenger taxes," Ryanair's chief commercial officer Jason McGuinness said in a statement.
Ryanair currently operates flights at 22 smaller French regional airports. The two closest to Paris are not among those where Ryanair might cut services, but the airline did not indicate which are threatened. 
The Irish budget airline hopes to transport 5.7 million people along its French routes this year, an increase of 19 percent from 2023. 
Ryanair said the tax increase would fall most heavily on passengers using regional airports, which are primarily served by low-cost airlines and the tax hike would have a larger impact.
"The impact of increased passenger taxes will be most damaging for regional France which depends on competitive access costs," McGuinness said.
He added that there was fierce competition between regional airports and Ryanair would shift operations to airports that would help it reduce costs.
tq/rl/js

entertainment

'Rust' premieres three years after on-set shooting death

BY ANNA MARIA JAKUBEK

  • The "Rust" premiere is not the only controversy at the festival, whose jury head this year is Oscar winner Cate Blanchett.
  • The Western "Rust" got its world premiere on Wednesday at a Polish film festival, three years after its cinematographer was killed in an on-set shooting.
  • The "Rust" premiere is not the only controversy at the festival, whose jury head this year is Oscar winner Cate Blanchett.
The Western "Rust" got its world premiere on Wednesday at a Polish film festival, three years after its cinematographer was killed in an on-set shooting.
Hollywood star Alec Baldwin was accused of violating gun safety rules in the 2021 death of Halyna Hutchins, but his involuntary manslaughter trial collapsed earlier this year.
Hutchins's mother refused to attend the premiere "when there is still no justice for my daughter".
"Baldwin continues to increase my pain with his refusal to apologise to me and take responsibility for her death," Olga Solovey said Tuesday. 
Director Joel Souza, who was wounded in the shooting, introduced the movie at the Camerimage film festival -- known for celebrating cinematography -- in Torun, northern Poland.
He told AFP the "massive devastation" of the shooting had left him an emotional wreck.
"'Rust' just became this sort of insane hurricane," he said. "You're just left to sort of pick up the pieces." 
The filmmaker had been "on the fence" about completing the movie.
"There was a time when I thought I just didn't want to make movies anymore," he said.
But what convinced him to finish it was learning that Hutchins's husband wanted her final work to be seen.
Camerimage said it was Hutchins's "dream" to have her work shown at the festival. 
The premiere was preceded by a minute of silence for Hutchins, whom Souza described as "a real joy to know" and "someone who spoke Westerns very well".

'Unsettling' parallel

Baldwin, 66, did not attend the festival.
The Emmy-winning actor was holding a revolver during a rehearsal on set in New Mexico when a live round was fired, fatally wounding 42-year-old Hutchins.
In a tragic irony, the film centres on an accidental killing -- a parallel that Souza called "unsettling". 
"It's a strange one to unpack. When people hear about it, they generally fall silent for a few moments because they can't believe" it, he said. 
Souza and Baldwin developed the script from Souza's research on the youngest person ever to be hanged in the Old West.
"Rust" tells the story of an outlaw who rides to rescue his 13-year-old grandson from execution for an accident being treated as murder.
The film's armourer, Hannah Gutierrez, was sentenced to 18 months in prison after being convicted of involuntary manslaughter for accidentally loading Baldwin's prop gun with a live round.
Baldwin's trial collapsed in July when it emerged that prosecutors had not turned over a batch of bullets that detectives had found during their investigation.
Filming was completed last year in Montana.
Cinematographer Bianca Cline, who took over from Hutchins, said her job involved just "copying what she did", including by using the same lenses and matching the lighting. 
She said they tried to retain as many of Hutchins's frames as possible.

'Authentic'

Visually dark, the movie frequently shows characters in silhouette or with their faces partly in shadow. The shaky camera gives the Western a rough feel. 
In addition to violence of all kinds -- gunfights, beatings, brawls in the mud -- another motif is the grandson's longing for his late mother.
When his younger brother asks what she looked like, he says: "I can't remember". 
Film school student Michal Wozny, who attended the screening, said he thought of Hutchins and her now motherless son during those scenes. 
"Not only do you watch a movie and feel for the characters, but you're also aware of what happened in real life and all the feelings there," the 24-year-old told AFP.
He called the movie "beautiful and authentic". 
Hutchins, a former journalist from Ukraine who grew up on a Soviet military base, had been named one of the industry's rising stars in 2019 by American Cinematographer magazine.
While the tragedy prompted some calls for banning firearms from sets altogether, new Hollywood guidelines now specify that only an armourer can hand a weapon to an actor.
Prosecutors said Baldwin was handed the gun on set by the film's first assistant director, who later pleaded guilty to negligent use of a deadly weapon.
Souza said "the safety bulletin doesn't go quite far enough. I think they should mandate that no real weapons be used". 
The "Rust" premiere is not the only controversy at the festival, whose jury head this year is Oscar winner Cate Blanchett.
French director Coralie Fargeat pulled her movie starring Demi Moore, "The Substance" -- which won best screenplay at Cannes --  "after discovering the highly misogynistic and offensive words" of festival founder Marek Zydowicz.
Zydowicz appeared to suggest that including more women cinematographers might lead to "mediocre film production" in the line-up. He later apologised.
amj/mmp/sbk

conflict

US vetoes Gaza ceasefire call at UN

BY GREGORY WALTON

  • - 'No justification' -  Since the beginning of the conflict, the Security Council has struggled to speak with one voice, as the United States used its veto power several times, although Russia and China have as well.
  • The United States on Wednesday vetoed a UN Security Council push to call for a ceasefire in Gaza that Washington said would have emboldened Hamas.
  • - 'No justification' -  Since the beginning of the conflict, the Security Council has struggled to speak with one voice, as the United States used its veto power several times, although Russia and China have as well.
The United States on Wednesday vetoed a UN Security Council push to call for a ceasefire in Gaza that Washington said would have emboldened Hamas.
The resolution demanded "an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire" in the war between Israel and the Palestinian group, along with "the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages."
But Israel's UN ambassador Danny Danon said the resolution "was not a path to peace, it was a road map to more terror, more suffering and more bloodshed.
"Many of you attempted to pass this injustice. We thank the United States for exercising its veto."
Robert Wood, deputy ambassador to the United Nations, said that the US position remained there had "to be a linkage between a ceasefire and the release of hostages."
The war was triggered by the assault on Israel by Hamas militants on October 7, 2023, a cross-border raid that resulted in the deaths of 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said the death toll from the resulting war had reached 43,985 people, the majority civilians. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
Of 251 hostages seized during the October 7 attack, 97 remain in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
Almost all of Gaza's 2.4 million people have been displaced by the war, which has caused a humanitarian catastrophe.
Hamas condemned Washington as a "partner in the aggression against our people."
"It is a criminal, kills children and women and destroys civilian life in Gaza."
- 'No justification' - 
Since the beginning of the conflict, the Security Council has struggled to speak with one voice, as the United States used its veto power several times, although Russia and China have as well.
"China kept demanding 'stronger language," said a US official who also claimed that Russia had been "pulling strings" with the countries responsible for pushing the latest resolution. 
The few resolutions that the United States did allow to pass by abstaining stopped short of calling for an unconditional and permanent ceasefire.
In March, the council called for a temporary ceasefire during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, but this appeal was ignored by the warring parties.
And in June, the 15-member body pledged support for a US resolution that laid out a multi-stage ceasefire and hostage release plan that ultimately went nowhere.
"We regret that the Council could have incorporated compromise language the UK put forward to bridge the existing gaps... With that language, This resolution should have been adopted," Wood, the US envoy, said following the vote.
Slovenia's deputy ambassador to the UN Ondina Blokar Drobic said "we regret the veto was cast. Even more since this war, with its humanitarian impact and spillover effect, amounts to a serious threat to international peace and security."
Some diplomats have expressed optimism that following Donald Trump's election win, President Joe Biden might be more flexible in his few remaining weeks in power.
They hoped for a repeat of December 2016 when then-president Barack Obama's second term was finishing and the council passed a resolution calling for a halt to Israeli settlement building in the occupied territories, a first since 1979.
The United States refrained from using its veto then, a break from traditional US support for Israel on the sensitive issue of settlements.
"Once again, the US used its veto to ensure impunity for Israel as its forces continue to commit crimes against Palestinians in Gaza," Human Rights Watch said.
The resolution vetoed on Wednesday calls for "safe and unhindered entry of humanitarian assistance at scale," including in besieged northern Gaza, and denounces any attempt to starve the Palestinians.
Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations Majed Bamya said Wednesday that "there's no justification whatsoever for vetoing a resolution trying to stop atrocities."
abd-gw/bgs

NATO

Trump names loyalist Matthew Whitaker as NATO ambassador

  • Alliance chief Mark Rutte was quick to congratulate the Republican after his election victory and played up the positive impact he said Trump could have. 
  • President-elect Donald Trump, who has long criticized NATO as overly reliant on American money, on Wednesday nominated loyalist Matthew Whitaker to the crucial post of ambassador to the alliance. 
  • Alliance chief Mark Rutte was quick to congratulate the Republican after his election victory and played up the positive impact he said Trump could have. 
President-elect Donald Trump, who has long criticized NATO as overly reliant on American money, on Wednesday nominated loyalist Matthew Whitaker to the crucial post of ambassador to the alliance. 
"Matt is a strong warrior and loyal Patriot, who will ensure the United States' interests are advanced and defended," Trump said in a statement.
"Matt will strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability - He will put AMERICA FIRST," Trump said.
Whitaker served as acting attorney general during Trump's first term.
NATO has been bracing for Trump's return to the White House after he threatened in February to stop guaranteeing US protection for member states if he did not believe they contributed enough financially.
Alliance chief Mark Rutte was quick to congratulate the Republican after his election victory and played up the positive impact he said Trump could have. 
"His leadership will again be key to keeping our Alliance strong. I look forward to working with him again to advance peace through strength through NATO," Rutte said.
cjc/bjt/dw

nuclear

UN watchdog chief welcomes Iran nuclear gesture as Western powers seek censure

BY KIYOKO METZLER WITH RAMIN KHANIZADEH IN TEHRAN

  • Speaking to reporters, Grossi welcomed Iran's "concrete step" on agreeing to cap its sensitive stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
  • European powers and the United States have submitted a resolution censuring Iran for its lack of cooperation on its nuclear dossier, despite the head of the UN watchdog on Wednesday welcoming "a concrete step" by Iran to cap its uranium stockpile.
  • Speaking to reporters, Grossi welcomed Iran's "concrete step" on agreeing to cap its sensitive stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
European powers and the United States have submitted a resolution censuring Iran for its lack of cooperation on its nuclear dossier, despite the head of the UN watchdog on Wednesday welcoming "a concrete step" by Iran to cap its uranium stockpile.
As a board meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) started in Vienna, diplomats told AFP that Paris, Berlin, London and Washington formally tabled a censure motion critical of Iran.
The resolution is expected to come to a vote on Thursday, the diplomats said. 
The resolution follows a visit by IAEA chief Rafael Grossi to Iran, where he also toured the country's major enrichment sites in Fordo and Natanz. 
Speaking to reporters, Grossi welcomed Iran's "concrete step" on agreeing to cap its sensitive stockpile of highly enriched uranium. He said Tehran had implemented preparatory steps to stop adding to its inventory.  
"I attach importance to the fact that for the first time -- since the distancing of Iran from its past obligations -- they are taking a different direction," he said.
But in a phone conversation with Grossi, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi warned of a "proportionate" response if the board passes the resolution, the official IRNA news agency reported.
Araghchi also said the move is "in clear contradiction to the positive atmosphere created in the interactions between Iran and the agency."

'Major proliferation risks'

A senior diplomat voiced "scepticism" about Iran's last-minute offer to freeze its sensitive stockpile, saying it was "pretty disingenuous" as it did not require much effort and could be reversed. 
With the planned censure motion, diplomats aim to raise diplomatic pressure on Iran to come back into compliance and address the IAEA's long-standing concerns. 
According to the final version of the text seen by AFP, Western powers this time ask for a "comprehensive report" to be issued by Grossi "at the latest" by spring 2025.
The report would seek to shed more light on Iran's nuclear activities, including on Tehran's cooperation with the agency on uranium traces found at undeclared sites.
According to French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, who held talks with his Iranian counterpart, Tehran's expansion of its nuclear programme is "very worrying and entails major proliferation risks".
Tensions between Iran and the agency have repeatedly flared since a 2015 deal to curb Tehran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanction relief.
The deal fell apart after then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States in 2018 and reimposed heavy sanctions on Iran.
Tehran in response stepped back from its mandates under the deal, increasing its enrichment levels up to 60 percent, close to the 90 percent threshold required to develop a nuclear bomb.
Iran, however, has always denied seeking a nuclear weapon, saying the nuclear developments are for civil and peaceful purposes.
According to the IAEA, Tehran is the only non-nuclear weapon state to enrich uranium to 60 percent.
The agency said on Tuesday that Iran had increased its stockpile of enriched uranium in recent months, which reached more than 32 times the cap set in the 2015 nuclear deal.
The stockpile was estimated at 6,604.4 kilograms as of October 26, up 852.6 kilos from the last quarterly report in August.
Last week, Araghchi told Grossi that Iran was "willing to negotiate" but was not "under pressure and intimidation".
He also said that if a resolution against Tehran was passed, Iran would "take new measures in our nuclear programme that they will certainly not like."
The veteran diplomat was Iran's chief negotiator in talks that led to the 2015 nuclear deal.
rkh-anb-kym/tw

UN

As Trump returns, China seizes chance for climate mantle

BY SHAUN TANDON

  • The Asian power has now surpassed Europe as the second-largest historical emitter after the United States.
  • With Donald Trump expected to take the United States again out of climate diplomacy, China, the world's largest emitter but green energy powerhouse, is seizing on the chance to project itself as the global leader.
  • The Asian power has now surpassed Europe as the second-largest historical emitter after the United States.
With Donald Trump expected to take the United States again out of climate diplomacy, China, the world's largest emitter but green energy powerhouse, is seizing on the chance to project itself as the global leader.
At COP29 climate talks in Azerbaijan, China has sought to show a cooperative side and for the first time gave details on its international climate finance, while still firmly resisting pressure to be reclassified as a donor.
The go-nice approach -- a contrast to Beijing's frequent shrillness about international disputes -- keeps the tone from a year ago at COP28 in Dubai.
There, China and the then US envoy John Kerry worked together for a breakthrough call on the world to transition away from fossil fuels responsible for climate change.
Few expect the warm feelings between China and the United States -- which together account for 41 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions -- to persist after Trump returns to the White House on January 20.
Trump is an outspoken and three-fold sceptic -- on working with China, on providing foreign assistance and on climate change in general.
Trump's election "opens up an opportunity for China to step up into even more of a climate leadership role," said Belinda Schaepe, a China analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air in London.
"It makes it easy for China to portray itself as the more responsible global power of the two," she said.
But she said China would bolster its case if it offered forward-looking promises on aid and ambitious targets for cutting emissions through 2035, not just in the longer term.

Addressing critics on finance

In the Baku talks, wealthy countries are being urged to go beyond an expiring goal of providing $100 billion a year to poor countries worst hit by climate change.
China has resolutely resisted pressure by Western nations as well as some threatened island states to be considered a donor, which would subject it to greater accounting scrutiny.
Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, visiting Baku, revealed that China had contributed $24.5 billion in international climate finance since 2016.
Jennifer Morgan, Germany's negotiator, said the announcement "shows that China can do a lot and is already doing a lot".
"But we can only take account of what has been reported transparently," she said.
One option would be for China to promise future aid but on a voluntary basis, while remaining listed as a developing country.
The classification dates back to 1992, before China's breakneck economic development. The Asian power has now surpassed Europe as the second-largest historical emitter after the United States.
"Not only China, but also Gulf nations and other countries should give in line with their capabilities," said Susana Muhamad, Colombia's environment minister.
But she also said that if Trump pulled the United States out of the Paris accord, "I think there are countries that will take the climate lead and China is very committed, at least in terms of the multilateral process."
US climate negotiators' leverage evaporated with Trump's election on November 5.
President Joe Biden, on a visit Sunday to the Brazilian Amazon, said his administration has made good on his promise to deliver more than $11 billion in bilateral climate finance this year, a major increase during his term.

Turbulence ahead

China's priority on climate is rooted in self-interest as authorities address dire environmental woes.
China has also quickly emerged as the global leader on clean energy, dominating the electric car and solar industries -- leading both the United States and European Union to impose tariffs.
Li Shuo, director of the China climate hub at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said he saw China negotiating constantly in Baku with the Europeans -- much like they did previously with Kerry -- in anticipation of difficulties once Trump takes office.
"The politics will get worse before they get better. The US-China relationship will deteriorate and the China-EU relationship will see turbulence," he said.
But Li said that a US exit under Trump could have an unexpected upside in climate negotiations, if not on climate overall.
"Ironically, the Trump election might make dealmaking easier because the US carries the most extreme position," he said.
sct/lth/jj

opposition

Besigye kidnapping: Uganda president's doctor turned rival

  • Besigye ran again against his former patient in 2006 but spent most of the campaign defending himself against rape and treason charges that the High Court later found were trumped up.
  • Leading Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye has been arrested multiple times, pepper-sprayed, faced spurious charges of rape and treason, and once fled the country in fear of his life.
  • Besigye ran again against his former patient in 2006 but spent most of the campaign defending himself against rape and treason charges that the High Court later found were trumped up.
Leading Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye has been arrested multiple times, pepper-sprayed, faced spurious charges of rape and treason, and once fled the country in fear of his life.
The one-time close ally of President Yoweri Museveni fell out of favour with the iron-fisted strongman more than two decades ago and has become one of his harshest critics.
Frequently targeted by the authorities ever since, the four-time presidential candidate was reportedly kidnapped in Kenya this weekend and transported to a Kampala military prison.
Besigye, 68, was the trusted personal physician to Museveni during the bush war in Uganda from 1980 to 1986 that led to the overthrow of president Milton Obote, and he went on to hold several ministerial posts.
But he was banished after writing a letter in 1999 that criticised the Museveni regime as a one-man dictatorship.
The retired army colonel first ran against Museveni in 2001 and fled to South Africa for four years after losing, while still speaking out against the regime.
He established the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) with other disaffected Museveni allies, although he recently broke away to form another party.
Besigye ran again against his former patient in 2006 but spent most of the campaign defending himself against rape and treason charges that the High Court later found were trumped up.
He clocked up his third and fourth straight electoral defeats in 2011 and 2016, and decided against running in 2021, instead backing pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine.
An imposing figure, Besigye is frequently accused of nursing a personal grudge against Museveni instead of offering an alternative vision for his country.
"What happened in 1999 was that I just wrote a critique and handed it over to Museveni. I said, 'These things are going wrong.' That is all I did," he once told AFP in his distinctive gravelly voice.
"Up to now, that memo has never been discussed."

Personal grudge?

Known by supporters as either The Colonel or Doctor, Besigye hails from Rukungiri in western Uganda.
He lacks Museveni's rough charisma and generally appeals more to the educated urban elite, particularly in Kampala, while the president remains popular among peasant farmers.
He split from the FDC earlier this year after a dispute with other leaders over the alleged use of "dirty money" in its 2021 election campaign.
He founded the People's Front for Freedom (PFF) which applied for registration in August.
But he is still nagged by suggestions that his defection from government was borne of a personal grudge.
He has tacitly acknowledged to AFP what many in Kampala regard as an open secret: that before their marriage, Besigye's wife was romantically involved with the president.
Winnie Byanyima, who he married in 1999, is currently the executive director of UNAIDS and was previously head of the UK-based charity Oxfam.
"By the time I got into a relationship with Winnie, she had absolutely nothing to do with Museveni," he said.
bur/txw/er/fg

politics

N. Korea's latest weapon? Bombarding South with noise

BY CLAIRE LEE

  • We just don't know." - '70s horror flick' - The noise tormenting Ganghwa island residents appeared to be a rudimentary mix of clips from a sound library, typically common at any TV or radio broadcasters, audio experts told AFP.  The sound effects are "like something found in a South Korean horror film in the 70s and 80s," said sound engineer Hwang Kwon-ik.
  • Gunshots, screams, eerie laughter: South Korea's border island Ganghwa is being bombarded nightly with blood-curdling sounds, part of a new campaign by the nuclear-armed North that is driving residents to despair.
  • We just don't know." - '70s horror flick' - The noise tormenting Ganghwa island residents appeared to be a rudimentary mix of clips from a sound library, typically common at any TV or radio broadcasters, audio experts told AFP.  The sound effects are "like something found in a South Korean horror film in the 70s and 80s," said sound engineer Hwang Kwon-ik.
Gunshots, screams, eerie laughter: South Korea's border island Ganghwa is being bombarded nightly with blood-curdling sounds, part of a new campaign by the nuclear-armed North that is driving residents to despair.
Before it started, 56-year-old Kim Yun-suk fell asleep to the hum of insects and woke to the chirping of birds. Now, she is kept awake every night by what sounds like the soundtrack of a low-budget horror movie at top volume.
"The peaceful sounds of nature... have now been drowned out," Kim told AFP.
"All we hear is this noise."
The campaign is the latest manifestation of steadily-declining ties between the two Koreas this year, which have also seen Pyongyang test ever more powerful missiles and bombard the South with trash-carrying balloons.
Since July, North Korea has been broadcasting the noises for huge chunks of almost every day from loudspeakers along the border.
The northern point of Ganghwa -- an island in the Han river estuary on the Yellow Sea -- is only about two kilometres (a mile) from the North.
When AFP visited, the nighttime broadcast included what sounded like the screams of people dying on the battlefield, the crack of gunfire, bombs exploding, along with chilling music that started at 11:00 pm.
In the almost pitch-black fields, sinister noises echoed as the stars in the clear night sky shone beautifully alongside the coastal road lights, creating a stark and unsettling contrast.
North Korea has done propaganda broadcasts before, said 66-year-old villager Ahn Hyo-cheol, but they used to focus on criticising the South's leaders, or idealising the North.
Now "there were sounds like a wolf howling, and ghostly sounds", he said. 
"It feels unpleasant and gives me chills. It really feels bizarre."
Ganghwa county councillor Park Heung-yeol said that the new broadcasts were "not just regime propaganda -- it's genuinely intended to torment people".
- Torture - 
Experts said the new broadcasts almost meet the criteria for a torture campaign.
"Almost every regime has used noise torture and sleep deprivation," Rory Cox, a historian at University of St Andrews, told AFP.
"It is very common and leaves no physical scarring, therefore making it deniable."
Exposure to noise levels above 60 decibels at night increases the risk of sleep disorders, experts said, but AFP tracked levels of up to 80 decibels late at night on Ganghwa during a recent trip.
"I find myself taking headache medicine almost all the time," An Mi-hee, 37, told AFP, adding that prolonged sleep deprivation due to the noise has also led to anxiety, eye pain, facial tremors and drowsiness.
"Our kids can't sleep either, so they've developed mouth sores and are dozing off at school."
Distraught and desperate, An travelled to Seoul and got on her knees to beg lawmakers at the National Assembly to find a solution, breaking down in tears as she described the island's suffering. 
"It would actually be better if there were a flood, a fire, or even an earthquake, because those events have a clear recovery timeline," An said.
"We have no idea if this will go on until the person in North Korea who gives the orders dies, or if it could be cut off at any moment. We just don't know."

'70s horror flick'

The noise tormenting Ganghwa island residents appeared to be a rudimentary mix of clips from a sound library, typically common at any TV or radio broadcasters, audio experts told AFP. 
The sound effects are "like something found in a South Korean horror film in the 70s and 80s," said sound engineer Hwang Kwon-ik.
The two Koreas remain technically at war since the 1950 to 1953 conflict ended in an armistice not a peace treaty.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this year declared Seoul his "principal enemy" and has ramped up weapons testing and built closer military ties with Russia.
The isolated and impoverished North is known to be extremely sensitive about its citizens gaining access to South Korean pop culture. 
Some experts have suggested the latest broadcasts could be aimed at preventing North Korean soldiers from hearing the South's own propaganda broadcasts, which typically feature K-pop songs and international news.
In August, just weeks after South Korea resumed K-pop broadcasts in response to Pyongyang floating trash-carrying balloons south, a North Korean soldier defected by crossing the heavily fortified border on foot.
But Lee Su-yong, an audio production professor at the Dong-Ah Institute of Media and Arts, said "if there is sound coming towards the North that you want to mask, then the sound (you use to cover it) must also be directed toward the North."
"It seems less about masking noise and more about inflicting pain on people in the South," he told AFP.
Choi Hyoung-chan, a 60-year-old resident, said the South Korean government had failed to protect vulnerable civilians on the frontier.
"They should come here and try to live with these sounds for just ten days," he told AFP, referring to officials in Seoul.
"I doubt they could even endure a single day."
cdl/ceb/djw/tym