Day: June 19, 2023

China said on Monday it wants to use the government consultations with Germany to deepen cooperation and overcome differences, German Press Agency dpa reported, citing a Chinese embassy press statement.

After the arrival of a 10-member Chinese government delegation in Berlin on Monday, Prime Minister Li Qiang called for strengthening cooperation and deepening strategic partnership between the two countries.

“Today’s world is in a new phase of change and chaos,” Li said in a statement released by the Chinese embassy. “Especially in times like this, however, it is all the more necessary that the people in China and Germany uphold the tradition of friendship,” he added.

Li hoped for a “strong positive signal for stable international industrial and supply chains as well as world peace and prosperity.”

“It will be a journey that will continue our friendship and deepen our cooperation,” the Chinese premier added.

At the start of his visit to Germany, Li was received by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Bellevue Palace.

It is the new Chinese prime minister’s first trip abroad since he took office in March. He is accompanied by nine other government representatives who will take part in the German-Chinese government consultations on Tuesday.

The Chinese delegation will remain in the country until Wednesday and, after the political talks in Berlin, it will also visit Munich to meet company representatives there. Head of state and party leader Xi Jinping is not traditionally present at such consultations.

‘Very important working meeting’

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is scheduled to receive the Chinese Prime Minister for dinner later in the evening.

The German government regularly holds such meetings with particularly close partners or with countries that are particularly important to it, such as China, India, or Brazil.

The government consultations with China are the seventh since 2011. Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang will not be at the talks as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will be visiting Beijing.

Meanwhile, Scholz said he expected a ‘very important working meeting,’ adding that it is the right time and there is a world situation in which it makes particular sense to exchange ideas with one another.

The main topic will be the fight against climate change and the associated restructuring of the economy. But talks will also dwell on the Russian war in Ukraine, in which China, with its special envoy Li Hui, is trying to mediate and is pushing for negotiations.

The German government views China as a partner, competitor and systemic rival.

“We see that the elements of rivalry and competition have increased in recent years,” said the German national security strategy that was approved by the Cabinet last Wednesday.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The spokesperson for Trkiye’s Justice and Development (AK) Party on Monday slammed Greece’s illegal and life-threatening policy of migrant pushbacks.

Last week, a boat sinking off the coast of southwestern Greece left at least 80 irregular immigrants dead – mostly from Pakistan, Egypt and Syria – and 500 others missing in the Mediterranean Sea, feared drowned.

According to human rights watchdogs, the Greek Coast Guard might have ignored SOS signals from the boat, while some survivors say the coast guard might have tried to tow the boat into Italian waters.

‘There should now be an international investigation commission and a team of international observers to carry out observations in that region,’ spokesman Omer Celik said after a meeting of the party’s Central Executive Board (MYK).

The Greek Coast Guard, employing both uniformed and non-uniformed individuals, intentionally punctures migrant boats and leaves them to their fate, aiming to push them towards either Turkish or Italian waters, Celik added.

‘The actions carried out by the Greek Coast Guard now need to be investigated as direct acts of crimes against humanity. They are trying to kill people, and they are killing them,’ Celik stressed.

Condemning those who remain silent and turn a blind eye to these actions, Celik said, “This is unfortunately a shameful hypocrisy, a double standard. The Greek Coast Guard is turning the Mediterranean into a migrant graveyard in front of everyone’s eyes.”

Human rights groups and media outlets have frequently reported on illegal pushbacks and other human rights breaches by Greek authorities.

Trkiye and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice of pushing back irregular migrants, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Monday pledged $150 million for humanitarian response in conflict-torn Sudan.

This came in a donor conference held in Geneva to raise funds for humanitarian aid in Sudan, which has been ravaged by clashes between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group since April.

The conference is also attended by Egypt, Germany, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the European Union, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

‘The Sudanese people look forward to the pledges that will be made during the conference,’ Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said via videoconference.

He said Saudi Arabia will provide humanitarian aid worth $100 million to Sudan.

‘Saudi Arabia has flown 13 planes and two ships loaded with aid to Sudan,’ he added.

‘Saudi Arabi will continue its efforts to reach a political solution to the crisis in Sudan,’ bin Farhan said.

Qatar, meanwhile, pledged $50 million for humanitarian response in Sudan.

‘We stand with the Sudanese people and support all efforts to find a political solution to the crisis,’ Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman said.

Addressing the conference, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry called for the provision of urgent relief to Sudan.

‘Egypt provided around 300 tons of urgent medical and food aid and received more than 250,000 Sudanese, which is equivalent to 60% of the total number of people fleeing violence,’ he added.

According to local medics, nearly 1,000 civilians have been killed and 5,000 others injured since the outbreak of violence in Sudan.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that more than 2.2 million people have been displaced by the current conflict in Sudan.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi

Source: Anadolu Agency

Europe has been warming faster than any other continent in recent decades, with temperatures rising at twice the global average rate, according to a new report by the World Meteorological Organization.

The European State of the Climate 2022 report showed that over the past eight years, global temperatures have consistently reached record highs, making it the warmest period on record.

In 2022, it was the fifth-warmest year globally and notably, various regions across the world witnessed unprecedented temperature levels.

Europe, in particular, experienced its warmest summer ever recorded, surpassing the previous record set in 2021 by 0.3-0.4C.

Western Europe, including the United Kingdom, endured scorching heatwave conditions, with temperatures exceeding 40C (104F) for the first time.

Additionally, the average sea surface temperature surrounding Europe’s seas reached an all-time high.

Weather events led to the deaths of 16,000 people on the continent last year, 99.6% due to heatwaves.

Between 1993 and 2022, the global mean sea level experienced a rise of approximately 9.7 centimeters (3.9 inches).

The report also showed that there is an ongoing acceleration in the rate of sea level rise, with the past decade witnessing an average increase of 4.2 millimeters per year.

Carlo Buontempo, director of the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, stated that they anticipate the rise in temperatures to continue.

“Unfortunately, this cannot be considered as a one-time event or an anomaly in the climate,” said Buontempo, stressing that extreme heatwaves are likely to occur more frequently and intensively.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The UN welcomed on Monday an agreement between the US and China to stabilize tense relations following the US secretary of state’s visit to Beijing.

“Any dialogue between the United States and China on this is crucial to improving coordination on a wide range of major issues,” said UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq.

Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping for talks on Monday, the highest-level contact between the world’s top two economies since Xi met his US counterpart Joe Biden last November in Indonesia.

Xi said that the two sides made progress and reached agreement on some specific issues.

Blinken said profound differences remained and that both sides were open to further talks. He said “military-to-military contacts are hugely important,” adding that he “repeatedly” raised the issue with Chinese officials.

Relations between the US and China deteriorated during the Trump administration with a trade war and have since remained tense due to the conflict over Taiwan and an alleged Chinese spy balloon over the US.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A Dutch court found Spartak Moscow forward Quincy Promes guilty of assault and sentenced him to 18 months in jail, according to the Dutch media.

The former Dutch international striker has managed to avoid attempted murder and manslaughter charges. However, prosecutors found enough evidence against him for a prison term.

He was involved in an altercation in 2020 where he stabbed his cousin in the knee.

The 31-year-old will also have to pay pound 7,000 ($7,650) in compensation to his victim.

Promes, who is currently facing prosecution in the Netherlands for his alleged participation in drug trafficking, can appeal against the conviction, the court said.

He scored seven goals in 50 caps for the Netherlands and was named Russia’s footballer in the 2017 Russian League with Spartak Moscow.

Source: Anadolu Agency

About 25,000 people were evacuated after a massive fire broke out in Germany’s biggest amusement park on Monday, police said.

The incident occurred at the Europa-Park amusement park in Rust, near the French border, at 4.40 p.m. local time (1440 GMT).

According to officials, the fire erupted in an engine room of an area known as the Magic World of Diamonds.

Police said that two people were slightly injured in the incident.

Video footage showed a dense plume of black smoke billowing from inside the amusement park.

The famous theme park, also known as German Disneyland, covers 950,000 square meters (10 million square feet) and attracts some 5.75 million visitors per year.

Source: Anadolu Agency