South Asia
The Pakistani Election Commission announced its decision to not pursue the allegations on horse-trading and corruption during the Senate elections that were held earlier this month. The ruling party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, had urged the body to look into the election of former premier Yusuf Raza Gilani into the Parliament’s upper house on the basis of video recordings. [Hindustan Times]
The authorities in the Maldives have released eight Tamil fishermen who were arrested after being caught fishing in the country’s territorial waters on February 24. This was a result of several diplomatic conversations between India and the Maldives. [The Hindu]
Central Asia and the Caucasus
Turkey and Uzbekistan signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday as both countries look to bolster economic ties. Following their meeting, in a joint press conference, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said that the MoU “will further develop the relations between both our ministries and our countries, and in the upcoming period, to increase trade, we intend to sign a preferential trade agreement and a free trade agreement (FTA).” [Daily Sabah]
The Kazakh Ministry of Defence said on Tuesday that the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) plans on conducting three military exercises in the country next year. Earlier on the same day, CSTO Secretary-General Stanislav Zas met with Kazakh Defense Minister Nurlan Yermekbayev to discuss the cooperation within the organization. [Eurasian Times]
East and Southeast Asia
Indonesia’s deforestation levels hit a record low in 2020. Between 2019 and 2020, the country increased the rate of deforestation by 75%. According to the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Indonesia lost 115,459 hectares (285,300 acres) of forest cover in 2020; an area as big as Los Angeles. [Mongabay]
North Korean citizen Mun Chol Myong is set to be extradited from Malaysia and will be tried for money laundering charges in the United States (US). The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) claims that Mun “led a criminal group that violated sanctions by supplying prohibited items to North Korea and laundered funds through front companies.” [The Jakarta Post]
Europe
Russia has signed a deal to produce Sputnik V in Italy. The agreement is the first such contract within the EU, and was signed between Adienne Srl, an Italian subsidiary of a Swiss-based pharmaceutical company, and Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund. Production of the planned 10 million doses is expected to begin in July. [Associated Press]
Greece, Cyprus and Israel have inked an MoU to build the world’s longest undersea power cable and link their electricity grid. The Euro-Asia interconnector project, which is worth about $900 million, is partly financed by the EU and will connect Cyprus and Israel to the bloc’s power network for the first time. [DW]
Turkey has reportedly sentenced five people to life imprisonment without parole for their involvement in the murder of Russia’s envoy to Ankara more than four years ago. Andrei Karlov was shot dead by an off-duty policeman while he was at a photo exhibition in the Turkish capital in December 2016, apparently due to Russia’s involvement in the Syrian war. [Al Jazeera]
The European Parliament voted to withdraw the parliamentary immunity enjoyed by Carles Puigdemont, a former leader of the Catalonia region in Spain who has been accused of spear-heading a secessionist movement in the country. This could prospectively open the door to several extradition proceedings against him. [El Pais]
The Civil Liberties Union for Europe released a report analysing 14 members of the European Union and concluded that the rule of law in several countries of the bloc, especially in Hungary and Poland, has substantially “weakened” during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, it also called out countries like Germany, Italy, and Spain, who have “strong democratic traditions”, for increasing their attacks on the media and consequently impacting the public’s access to information. [Politco]
Latin America and the Caribbean
Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza denounced the United States’ (US) decision to offer Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to all Venezuelans already in the US because of the ongoing humanitarian and economic crises in the country. Arreaza remarked that the US should instead focus on “lifting all arbitrary sanctions that generate pain and suffering of the Venezuelan people”. [Telesur]
Mounting pressure against corruption within his administration led to months-long protests demanding Chilean president Sebastián Piñera’s resignation in 2019 and 2020. This led to his approval rating dropping to around 6%. However, in a turn of events, as the country begins its COVID-19 vaccination programme, his approval rating has now jumped to between 14% and 20%. Piñera has been credited with striking deals with pharmaceutical companies that have paved the way for 21% of the population to receive the vaccine already. [Buenos Aires Times]
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
The Palestinian Authority’s Foreign Minister, Riyad al-Malki, said that he would seek to oppose any Israeli and American ploys to push the United Nations Security Council to halt the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation into war crimes committed by Israeli troops on Palestinian territory. In fact, Malki said that Palestine’s “friends” at the UNSC would veto any such measures. [The Jerusalem Post]
On Tuesday, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) hosted Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok in Riyadh. MBS emphasised Riyadh’s support towards maintaining “security and stability” in Sudan and explored avenues to expand bilateral ties. On the same day, MBS also met with Malaysian PM Muhyiddin Yassin, during which the two sides signed into action the creation of a Saudi-Malaysian Coordination Council. They also signed agreements related to the travel of pilgrims and a memorandum of understanding on unspecified “Islamic affairs”.[Ashraq Al-Awsat; Arab News]
North America
House Democrats on Tuesday said that the final vote on the administration’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package has been scheduled for Wednesday at 9 PM, following which it will be sent to President Biden to be signed into law. [Al Jazeera]
The US on Tuesday sanctioned two interrogation officials from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) over their involvement in “gross violations of human rights.” Ali Hemmatian and Masoud Safdari were designated for their mistreatment of Iranian political prisoners and protestors, and the individuals and their families are no longer permitted to enter the US. [US Department of State]
Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau spoke with his Ethiopian counterpart Demeke Mekonnen on Monday, and expressed Ottawa’s concerns about the ongoing crisis in Tigray and its impact on civilians. Garneau stressed the importance of protecting all civilians, including refugees in the region, and urged Ethiopia to allow humanitarian actors to provide the life-saving assistance that is urgently needed. [Global Affairs Canada]
Oceania
On Tuesday, the Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) issued a “high alert” warning, saying that Australian organisations were vulnerable to “extensive targeting” and that there had already been “confirmed compromises”. It is believed that Chinese hackers have targetted “vulnerable versions of Microsoft Exchange”, which many organisations use to host their e-mail servers. [news.com.au]
A survey by global market research and consulting firm Ipsos has revealed that 51% of New Zealanders are “likely” to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Additionally, 18% said they are “unlikely”, 24% said they were “unsure”, 38% said the vaccines were “moving through clinical trials too quickly”, and 27% expressed concerns about “potential side effects”. At the same time, 59% said they would back a decision to make the vaccine mandatory for adults. [RNZ]
Sub-Saharan Africa
The ruling party of the Ivory Coast, the RHDP, which is led by President Alassane Ouattara, secured a majority of seats in parliament, winning 137 out of 255 seats. This follows Ouattara’s landslide victory in the presidential election in November, which was boycotted by several opposition parties who deemed his decision to run for a third term to be ‘unconstitutional’. [Africa News]
The death toll from an explosion in the port city of Bata in Equatorial Guinea has risen to 98. The blasts were set in motion by a fire at the Nkoantoma Military Base, which then resulted in an explosion of improperly stored dynamite. The resulting explosions damaged virtually all of the city’s homes and buildings. [New Zimbabwe]
World News Monitor: 10 March, 2021
A quick look at events from around the globe.
March 10, 2021
SOURCE: JOSE LUIS ABECARA AGUESOMO / EPA