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Ukraine’s Zelenskiy appeals for bipartisan support in speech to US Congress

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2022

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told the US Congress on Wednesday that the tens of billions of dollars of aid it had approved to help it fight a Russian invasion was not charity, but an investment in global security.

In his first visit out of his country since the war began in February, Zelenskiy told lawmakers in the soaring House of Representatives chamber that he hoped they would continue to support Ukraine on a bipartisan basis – a major point as Republicans are due to take the majority in the House on Jan. 3.

“Your money is not charity,” Zelenskiy said, clad in the khaki fatigues that have been his public uniform throughout the 300 days of the conflict. “It is an investment in global security and democracy.”

Following a meeting at the White House with Democratic President Joe Biden, Zelenskiy’s speech needed to resonate with House Republicans, who have voiced increasing scepticism about continuing to send so much aid to Ukraine.

Zelenskiy’s arrival was greeted with multiple raucous ovations in the nearly full chamber. Three members held up a large Ukrainian flag as he walked in.

“It is a great honour for me to be at the U.S. Congress and speak to you and all Americans. Against all doom and gloom scenarios, Ukraine did not fall. Ukraine is alive and kicking,” said Zelenskiy.

“We defeated Russia in the battle for the minds of the world,” he said.

Zelenskiy joined a long list of world leaders to address joint meetings of the Senate and House, a tradition that began in 1874 with a visit by Hawaiian King Kalakaua and included almost legendary wartime visits by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, as well as kings, queens and one pope.

House members and senators from both parties leaped repeatedly to their feet to cheer parts of Zelenskiy’s speech in English such as, “Ukraine holds its lines and will never surrender,” as he likened his country’s battle against Moscow’s forces to great battles of World War Two and even the American Revolution.

There are no signs of peace talks to end the war and both Russia and Ukraine have signalled a willingness to keep fighting, although Zelenskiy said he discussed a 10-point Ukrainian peace formula with Biden.

“I’m glad that President Biden supported our peace initiative today. Each of you today ladies and gentlemen can assist in the implementation to ensure that American leadership remains solid, bicameral, and bipartisan,” Zelenskiy said to the lawmakers.

Reuters

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Births in Japan set to fall below 800,000 in 2022

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2022

The number of births in Japan in the first 10 months of 2022 was 669,871, down by 33,827, or 4.8%, from the same period the previous year, according to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.

 If this trend continues, the annual tally will likely fall below last year’s record-low finalized figure of 811,622 and drop below the 800,000 lines for the first time since the tallying started.

In addition to the long-term trend of a declining birthrate, this year’s decrease is believed to have been due to growing reluctance on the part of young people to marry and have children for reasons such as concern about economic conditions amid the prolonged impact of the novel coronavirus, which has been spreading since 2020.

According to preliminary vital statistics data for October released by the ministry on Tuesday, there were 70,235 births in October, 2,894 fewer than a year ago. It was the ninth consecutive month of year-on-year decline.

In the 12 months through October, there were 809,070 births, down by 33,404 from the same period last year. A sharp drop in the number of marriages in 2020 from the previous year appears to have affected the number of births in 2022.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths in the 12 months through October, was 1,546,142, an increase of 99,045 from the same period last year.

The preliminary figure for newborns includes the number of children born to foreign nationals living in Japan and Japanese nationals living overseas, so the finalized figure, which will be released after it is narrowed down to Japanese citizens who reside in the country, is expected to be lower than the preliminary figure.

The number of births has set a new all-time low every year since 2016. It fell below 1 million in 2016 and below 900,000 in 2019.

“It is inevitable that the number of births will fall below 800,000 this year. This is because it has been declining by about 3.5% year-on-year for the past five years or so. The number of marriages has also plummeted due to the pandemic,” said Takumi Fujinami, a senior researcher at the Japan Research Institute.

The Japan News

Asia News Network

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US to give $1.85 billion in new military aide, including Patriots, to Ukraine

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2022

The United States will provide $1.85 billion in additional military assistance for Ukraine, including a transfer of the Patriot Air Defense System, President Joe Biden said on Wednesday.

The announcement came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrived in Washington to meet Biden and address Congress on his first known overseas trip since Russia invaded Ukraine 300 days ago.

The Patriot system is “a defensive system, it’s not escalatory, it’s defensive” Biden said in a joint news briefing with Zelenskiy.

The Patriot is considered to be one of the most advanced U.S. air defence systems and offers protection against aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles. It typically includes launchers along with radar and other support vehicles.

Zelenskiy on Wednesday said the U.S. promise to provide the Patriot surface-to-air missile defence system was an important step in creating an effective air shield.

Russia said last week that U.S. plans to supply Patriot missile defence systems to Ukraine were a “provocation” and a further expansion of U.S. military involvement in the Ukraine conflict.

The Kremlin had said that if delivered, U.S. Patriot missile defence systems would be a legitimate target for Russian strikes against Ukraine.

The Pentagon said the aid package would also include ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems (HIMARS), precision-guided artillery rounds and precision aerial munitions.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, the United States has committed about $21.2 billion in military assistance to Kyiv.

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UN council demands end to Myanmar violence in first resolution in seven decades

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2022

The UN Security Council adopted its first resolution on Myanmar in 74 years on Wednesday to demand an end to violence and urge the military junta to release all political prisoners, including ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Myanmar has been in crisis since the army took power from Suu Kyi’s elected government in February last year, detaining her and other officials and responding to pro-democracy protests and dissent with lethal force.

“Today we’ve sent a firm message to the military that they should be a no doubt – we expect this resolution to be implemented in full,” Britain’s UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward said after the vote on the British-drafted resolution.

“We’ve also sent a clear message to the people of Myanmar that we seek progress in line with their rights, their wishes and their interests,” she told the council.

The 15-member council has long been split on how to deal with the Myanmar crisis, with China and Russia arguing against strong action. They both abstained from the vote on Wednesday, along with India. The remaining 12 members voted in favour.

“China still has concerns,” China’s UN Ambassador Zhang Jun told the council after the vote. “There is no quick fix to the issue … Whether or not it can be properly resolved in the end, depends fundamentally, and only, on Myanmar itself.”

He said China had wanted the Security Council to adopt a formal statement on Myanmar, not a resolution.

Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said Moscow did not view the situation in Myanmar as a threat to international peace and security and therefore believed it should not be dealt with by the UN Security Council.

Until now the council had only agreed to formal statements on Myanmar, where the army also led a 2017 crackdown on Rohingya Muslims that was described by the United States as genocide. Myanmar denies genocide and said it was waging a legitimate campaign against insurgents who attacked police posts.

Negotiations on the draft Security Council resolution began in September. The initial text – seen by Reuters – urged an end to the transfer of arms to Myanmar and threatened sanctions, but that language has since been removed.

The adopted resolution expresses “deep concern” at the ongoing state of emergency imposed by the military when it seized power and its “grave impact” on the people of Myanmar.

It urges “concrete and immediate actions” to implement a peace plan agreed by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and issues a call to “uphold democratic institutions and processes and to pursue constructive dialog and reconciliation in accordance with the will and interests of the people.”

The only other resolution adopted by the Security Council was in 1948, when the body recommended the UN General Assembly admit Myanmar – then Burma – as a member of the world body.

Reuters

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Putin oversees launch of Siberian gas field feeding pipeline to China

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin presided over the launch of a major new Siberian gas field on Wednesday to help drive a planned surge in supply to China.

The Kovykta gas field will feed into the Power of Siberia pipeline carrying Russian gas to China. With recoverable reserves of 1.8 trillion cubic meters, it is the largest in eastern Russia.

The launch is part of Russia’s strategy to shift gas exports to the east as the European Union cuts reliance on Russian energy in response to what Moscow casts as its “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Putin hailed it as a “significant event” for Russia’s energy industry and the whole economy. He joined a video link to workers at the site, who were shown lined up on the snow in blue protective suits and white helmets, and gave the order “Start work!” to inaugurate the project.

Russia started selling natural gas to China at the end of 2019 via the Power of Siberia pipeline, which supplied about 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas in 2021 and is due to reach its full capacity of 38 bcm in 2025. Russia is now Beijing’s No. 3 gas supplier.

In February, Putin reached an agreement to sell an additional 10 bcm of gas to China from Russia’s Far East through a new, smaller pipeline to China’s northeast.

Russia also plans to construct another major pipeline, the Power of Siberia 2, via Mongolia with a view to selling an additional 50 bcm of gas per year.

Putin said last week the projects would allow Russia to boost its gas sales to China to 48 bcm annually by 2025 and to 88 bcm by 2030.

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev made a surprise visit to China on Wednesday for talks with President Xi Jinping, which Medvedev said had included discussion of the “no limits” strategic partnership that the two countries announced in February.

Reuters

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‘We have no future’: female students turned away from Afghan universities after Taliban ban

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2022

Female university students in Afghanistan were turned away from campuses on Wednesday after the Taliban-run administration said women would be suspended from tertiary education.

The decision to bar women was announced on Tuesday (December 21) evening in a letter to universities from the higher education ministry.

“When I got close to the university, I saw a strange environment. Taliban Humvees were parked at the entrance gate, and the Taliban were behaving so badly, telling us, ‘return to your homes, girls have no right to study anymore,” said Maryam, who studies at Kabul University.

Another university student, Sahar, said she tore up all her notebooks when she heard the news. She had come to Kabul University to enroll, but was denied entrance by Taliban guards at the gate.

“We urge the international community to support us, and negotiate with Taliban to allow us to continue our studies, studying is my only passion and I love to study,” said Sahar.

The announcement by the Taliban administration, which has not been internationally recognised, came as many university students were sitting end-of-term exams.

One mother of a university student, who asked not to be named for security reasons, said her daughter called her in tears when she heard of the letter, fearing she could no longer continue her medical studies in Kabul.

The bar on women students is likely to complicate the Taliban administration’s efforts to gain international recognition and to get rid of sanctions that are severely hampering the economy.

Foreign governments, including the United States, have said that a change in policies on women’s education is needed before it can consider formally recognising the Taliban-run administration, which is also subject to heavy sanctions.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan asked the Taliban-run administration to “immediately” revoke the decision.

It also urged the authorities to reopen girls’ schools beyond the sixth grade and “end all measures preventing women and girls from participating fully in daily public life”.

Several Taliban officials, including the deputy foreign minister and administration spokesperson, have spoken out in favour of female education in recent months. The supreme Taliban spiritual leader, based in the southern city of Kandahar, has the final say on major decisions.

A spokesperson for the Taliban-run higher education ministry confirmed there was a letter instructing Afghan public and private universities to suspend access to female students immediately, in accordance with a Cabinet decision.