Geopolitics
[ Mothership ] A glimpse inside an overloaded US military plane with over 600 Afghans fleeing country
The cargo plane, which was one of the many which were able to take off with hundreds of civilians on board, was carrying over five times of its suggested load as it departed. Over 600 Afghans, including women and children, were packed into that space. Some of the other flights may have had an even…
Read More[ Jamestown Foundation ] Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan’s Latest Merger Enables Renewed Attacks in Pakistan
The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), announced on August 7 that it had merged with a former al-Qaeda-affiliated, anti-state Pakistani jihadist group once led by Ustad Aslam (Umar Media, August 7). It becomes the ninth jihadist group to join the TTP since July 2020. Among the other groups are three TTP splinters, two…
Read MoreTaliban: The war is over in Afghanistan
Taliban spokesman, Mohammad Naeem, for the Taliban’s political office told Al-Jazeera Mubasher TV that the war is over and that the type of rule and the form of regime will be clear soon. This happens as Afghanistan President, Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, saying that he wanted to avoid bloodshed – a move…
Read MorePetition to call for UN recognition of Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG) underway
A petition is started on Change.org by “Nang Si Si Win NUG support group Australia” to call for the recognition of Myanmar’s government in exile, the National Unity Government (NUG) by the United Nations General Assembly. When we first encountered the petition, it was around 7000 signed. Currently as of the writing of the article,…
Read More[ Business Insider ] Chinese sleeper agents are trying to enter the UK through a scheme designed for Hong Kongers fleeing the city, report says
– Chinese agents are trying to enter the UK with a visa designed to give refuge to Hong Kongers. – Sources told The Times agents try use the visa introduced after China’s new national security law. – It is not clear if any have been successful, and the UK government said it has a strict vetting process.…
Read More[ The Guardian ] Myanmar duo arrested in New York over plot to kill UN ambassador
Two Myanmar citizens have been arrested in New York state for plotting with an arms dealer in Thailand – who sells weapons to the Burmese military – to kill or injure Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations. The US attorney’s office for the southern district of New York said on Friday that Phyo Hein Htut, 28, and…
Read More[ SCMP ] Biden administration approves its first arms sale to Taiwan
The potential US$750 million deal includes 40 new M109 self-propelled howitzers and almost 1,700 kits to convert projectiles into more precise GPS-guided munitions The proposed sale would improve Taiwan’s capability to blunt a Chinese land invasion The US State Department notified Congress on Wednesday of a proposal to sell some US$750 million of weapons to…
Read More[ CNN Philippines ] Duterte admits US vaccine donations persuaded him to cancel VFA termination
https://www.cnn.ph/news/2021/8/3/Duterte-US-vaccine-donations-cancelation-of-VFA-termination.html President Rodrigo Duterte revealed on Monday that COVID-19 vaccine donations from the United States played a role in his decision to recall the termination of the Visiting Forces Agreement. “Give and take lang tayo, so pasalamat tayo sa kanila at may naibigay naman ako sa kanila na (we thank them, and I also gave them a) concession,”…
Read More[ The Jerusalem Strategic Tribute ] Can America Regain Global Leadership? A View From Singapore
Can America regain global leadership? The question reflects the shock and dismay with which foreign policy establishments in North America and Europe greeted and viewed Donald Trump’s election as the 45th president of the United States. They came to regard what Trump said and did in office between 2017 and 2021 as a repudiation of…
Read More[ Reuters ] U.S., Britain believe Iran attacked Israeli-managed tanker off Oman
“Upon review of the available information, we are confident that Iran conducted this attack, which killed two innocent people, using one-way explosive UAVs,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement, adding there was “no justification” for the attack. “We are working with our partners to consider our next steps and consulting with…
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