Day: May 8, 2023

War in Ukraine cannot be ended with “piecemeal gains,” Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said. “30 years after the end of the Cold War, Russia tells the West: ‘Let’s make a new agreement, make a new bargaining, and build a new global security architecture. Let me be in it, (where I) feel safe, let the West, Ukraine, Europe, and NATO be in it, as well’,” Kalin told the Haberturk news channel on Sunday. Without bargaining for such an agreement at the strategic level, Kalin said, he “does not believe that the Ukrainian war can be ended with piecemeal gains (by either side).” “This is the impression I got during my meeting with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,” he added. When asked “Will Putin take Ukraine city after city?”, Kalin said: “No, he (Putin) said, they have no intention of continuing this war forever. But the major question on the table is what an honorable way out for both sides will be.” About Trkiye’s suggestion, Kalin said: “We have a suggestion. Let me not say ‘plan’ in order not to be misunderstood, there is a perspective — that we are working on in this regard. But I have to say that at the moment, the international atmosphere is in favor of war rather than peace. The great powers want this war to continue.” “You know, they called it a war of attrition at first…We saw that this would not happen, in fact, you know, if Russia had been brought to heel in the first six months with economic sanctions and other things, it would have already been brought to its knees,” he added. Regarding the ongoing war since last February, Kalin said it had a “very serious” economic and military cost, adding that even today, in the Bakhmut region, where conflicts are intense, 100-200 people from both sides are dying. “There is a very bloody war there, unfortunately. The attention of the world has turned to other places, but the war continues there with all its violence. It is not possible to say that Russia has won, and it is not possible to say that Ukraine has won too,” he added.

Source: Anadolu Agency

At least 14 people were injured on Monday in Russian attacks throughout various regions of Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv. Serhiy Popko, the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said in a statement on Telegram that a drone strike in the capital injured five people, and damaged more than 10 cars. Popko said that falling debris also damaged the windows and facades of residential buildings, notably in the Sviatoshynskyi district in Kyiv. ‘Information on destruction and victims in all areas of the city is being clarified,’ Popko further said. Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synyehubov said separately on Telegram that Russia carried out attacks in the populated areas of the Kharkiv, Kupiansk, Chuhuiv and Izium districts. ‘According to the updated information of the Regional Emergency Medical Assistance Center, seven civilians were injured. Four of them had minor injuries and did not require hospitalization. Three people received moderate injuries and were hospitalized,’ Synyehubov said. Elsewhere, Donetsk Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Telegram that two residents of Donetsk were injured in the settlements of Shcherbynivka and Katerynivka. Ukraine’s Operational Command South also announced on Facebook that a missile attack was launched on the port city of Odesa. ‘Kh-22 missiles were directed at a warehouse of a food enterprise and at a recreation area on the Black Sea coast,’ the statement said, adding that rescue services are working to extinguish fires and that information on possible victims is being clarified. The Russia-Ukraine war, now in its 14th month, has killed 8,709 civilians and wounded 14,666, according to the latest UN figures.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Olympique Lyon’s president Jean-Michel Aulas has resigned after over three decades at the helm, the French Ligue 1 club said on Monday. Aulas will remain honorary president, the club said, adding that John Textor has been appointed interim president. The club thanks Aulas for his ‘commitment and unreserved dedication’ to Olympique Lyonnais for 36 years, during which more than 50 titles have been won for both men’s and women’s teams. Under the helm of Aulas, Lyon won seven consecutive French Ligue 1 titles from 2002 to 2008.

Source: Anadolu Agency

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez discussed the Russian war on Ukraine in Madrid. Guterres briefed Sanchez on the UN’s ongoing efforts to extend, expand and improve the Black Sea Grain Initiative, as well as to remove remaining obstacles to the exports of Russian food products and fertilizers, according to a UN statement. They also discussed the situation in the Middle East, Afghanistan and Western Sahara as well as current challenges to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, the statement said. Guterres also expressed his appreciation for Spain’s active support to the UN and multilateralism. Sanchez, for his part, said on Twitter that he reiterated Madrid’s support to end Russian aggression in Ukraine, achieve lasting peace and end food insecurity. He added that he expressed Spain’s commitment to the next Sustainable Development Summit once again. Guterres will receive Carlos V European Award on Tuesday from Yuste Foundation on the occasion of Europe Day.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Global leaders should scale up the use of renewables and accelerate the energy transition for boosting regional climate resilience, a new study by the UN said. ‘The region needs to strengthen multilateral, sub-regional and regional power connectivity by developing enabling frameworks, such as intergovernmental agreements on energy cooperation and interconnection,’ said the study by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). The Race to Net Zero: Accelerating Climate Action in Asia and the Pacific further recommends developing a regional green power corridor framework that would present scenarios for the increased deployment of renewable energy. It also emphasized boosting technical cooperation to develop and promote regional fuel efficiency and minimum energy performance standards to boost energy efficiency and reduce manufacturing costs. ‘The region needs to expand climate-smart trade, including by incorporating climate-related provisions in RTAs (Regional Trade Agreements) and adapting non-tariff measures to boost the positive impacts of trade on climate action,” the report said, recommending the creation of a regional fund that defrays the costs of preparation of low-carbon transition. Referring to the lack of preparedness to support adaptation and mitigation efforts the study said that the average annual economic losses caused by natural and biological hazards in the regions are estimated at $780 billion. ‘This is forecast to rise to $1.1 trillion in a moderate climate-change scenario and $1.4 trillion in a worst-case scenario.’ – Asia Pacific ‘more vulnerable’ The study warned that most countries in Asia and the Pacific are insufficiently prepared to face extreme weather events and natural disasters. According to the study, the Asia Pacific region suffers the worst consequences of climate change, “a key perpetrator, accounting for over half of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.” “This share is increasing as populations grow and economies continue to be powered by fossil fuels,” the study said. It warned that adverse weather conditions are growing in intensity and frequency due in part to climate change. Assessing the overall global climate change impacts, the report noted that over the past 60 years, temperatures in Asia and the Pacific have increased faster than the global mean. ‘Six of the top 10 countries most affected by disasters are in the region [Asia and the Pacific], where food systems are disrupted, economies damaged, and societies undermined,’ the study unveiled. ‘Measures to put the economies of Asia and the Pacific on a low-carbon pathway, and adapt and become more resilient to the impacts of climate change, must be front and center of the region’s post-pandemic recovery,’ said Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, United Nations under-secretary-general and executive secretary of ESCAP. The research, however, noted that the sum of countries’ actions in nationally determined contributions to cut emissions and adapt to climate change falls short of the required ambition under the Paris Agreement. ‘A 16% increase in greenhouse gas emissions from 2010 levels is forecast, a world away from the 45% reductions needed to keep warming within 1.5°C. Without decisive action, global warming will remain a central driver of poverty and inequality in the region,’ the study underlined.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Nigerian Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja began hearing petitions on Monday challenging Bola Ahmad Tinubu’s victory in the February presidential election. The five-member tribunal panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani has announced that it will begin its pre-hearing session with three petitions challenging the election of Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate. In Monday’s hearing, Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, prayed to the court to overturn Tinubu’s victory on rigging charges. He argued in the petition that there were numerous violations of the law and other irregularities in the presidential election in February, and he added that the electoral agency had violated its own regulations by delaying the uploading of polling station results on electronic machines, leaving the outcome open to manipulation. The tribunal has postponed further pre-hearing proceedings until Wednesday after hearing the case. The court similarly set the same date for a second petition filed by the Action People’s Party, which includes almost the same allegations as the one challenging Tinubu’s victory. The People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP) case, in which Atiku Abubakar is the party’s presidential candidate, was postponed by the tribunal until Tuesday. Atiku has requested the tribunal to permit live broadcasting of the day-to-day proceedings pertaining to his petition. Both Atiku and the PDP have prayed to the court specified in the petition for “an order directing the Court’s Registry and the Parties on Modalities for Admission of Media Practitioners and their Equipment into the Courtroom.” Justice Haruna Tsammani urged the parties to list all the witness statements and documents they would rely on or object to during the actual hearing of the petitions. Meanwhile, the Action Alliance has withdrawn its petition against Tinubu. No explanation for the withdrawal was given when the pre-hearing started.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The European Union on Monday canceled its Europe Day diplomatic reception in Israel amid rising tensions between the bloc and Benjamin Netanyahu’s government over West Bank policies. ‘This year we have decided to cancel the usual diplomatic reception’ for Europe Day on May 9, Peter Stano, lead spokesperson of the EU diplomatic service, said in a statement. ‘We do not want to offer a platform to someone whose views contradict the values the European Union stands for,’ he explained. The move came after the Israeli government decided to assign National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, leader of the far-right Jewish Power faction, to represent the Netanyahu Cabinet at the Europe Day reception. Ben-Gvir is known as a hard-liner Jewish settlement activist, and has been previously convicted for incitement and support for a Jewish terrorist group. He has repeatedly joined Israeli settlers in storming the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem. ‘The Europe Day cultural event for the Israeli public will be maintained’ on Tuesday, Stano added. EU, Israel at odds over settlement, demolition of Palestinian property Cancellation of the EU ceremony drew fire from Ben-Gvir. ‘It is a shame that the European Union, which claims to represent the values of democracy and multiculturalism, is undiplomatically shutting mouths,” his office said in a statement. Held on May 9, Europe Day celebrates peace and unity in Europe, marking the famous Schuman declaration that launched European integration. Diplomatic relations between the EU and Israel have grown tense over EU criticism of the government’s West Bank policies. The bloc on Sunday condemned the demolition of an EU-funded school in the West Bank affecting the education of over 80 Palestinian children, and called on Israel ‘to halt all demolitions and evictions.’ Last month, the Israeli media also reported that EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell could not arrange an official visit to the country due to diplomatic tensions. In a speech at the European Parliament in March, Borrell criticized Israel’s settlement policy and warned against disproportionate military action against Palestinians. The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is seen as occupied territory under international law, thus making all demolitions and Jewish settlements there illegal. Like Trkiye and much of the international community, the EU does not recognize Israel’s sovereignty over the territories it has occupied since 1967. *With reporting by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara

Source: Anadolu Agency