US Needs Immediate Action to Bring China Relations Back to the Track of Sound Development

By Wang Yi

Oct 30, 2022 11:45 PM

China US File Photo:CFP

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said on Friday that the Biden administration “is waiting to see how leadership changes in China will affect the economic relationship between the countries, and will continue to defend American interests.” “I think it’s really ‘wait and see’ and ‘to be determined,’ Tai said in an interview with Bloomberg. 

Be it before or after the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China's foreign policy has always maintained its continuity and stability, and its purpose of promoting common development has not changed. A wait-and-see stance is totally unnecessary and unreasonable if US politicians try to artificially create uncertainty and play up the tensions of “US-China confrontation.”

While the global economy, still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic and rampant inflation, is facing an increasingly gloomy and uncertain outlook, the week-long 20th CPC National Congress offers a great sense of certainty for China's social and economic development. China’s development and opening up won’t stagnate, but will continue to advance.

It should be pointed out that China's economy will maintain sustained and stable growth. The US should not misjudge China's economic situation and make wrong policies in its cooperation with China. The strong resilience and solid fundamentals of China’s economy has not changed. China will continue to deepen reform, expand opening-up, and improve its domestic market environment, which will bring more opportunities for foreign companies, including American companies.

While saying it will take a wait-and-see approach, the US is actually pushing an economic decoupling, which is fully responsible for the current bilateral economic and trade tensions. The US side should stop the decoupling approach as soon as possible and promote the bilateral economic relationship back on the right track.

The Biden administration has clearly continued the Trump administration’s tough stance on China, trying to shift the US economic problems by blaming China. However, the US decoupling policy violated economic laws, seriously hurt interests of US businesses, and aroused strong dissatisfaction among them.

The American Chamber of Commerce in China in May released the 2022 American Business in China White Paper, stating that the chamber remains opposed to any effort at outright decoupling of the US-China relationship. The costs of decoupling from losing trade and foreign investment benefits for both countries would be significant and are unlikely to generate clear winners.

As a global manufacturing hub, China has a significant status in global industrial and supply chains. China’s economic progress and upgrading will not be affected by the US’ geopolitical gambits that are designed to contain China and exclude China from supply chains. China is also the largest and fastest-growing market, an important destination of US exporting products and services. The Chinese market has strong research and development systems and is a key revenue source of many US companies.

The China-US trade and economic relationship is currently at a low point. What is needed is not to wait and see, but to take concrete actions. The recovery of China-US trade and economics to the right track will benefit the US economy. It is hoped that the US side will heed calls from the rational and pragmatic voices emanating from US companies and push China-US relations back to the right track of healthy and stable development.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn

DPRK Operates For the Good of Beloved People

Chairman Kim Jong Il toured all parts of the country throughout his life, displaying superhuman will and energy with ardent love for his people.

One day decades ago, he climbed a mountain in the capital city of Pyongyang, which commanded the Party flag fluttering on the roof of building of the Party Central Committee.

Feasting his eyes on the flag for a while, he said to an official that the sacred red flag of our revolution represents the masses of the people—workers, peasants and working intellectuals—and that they are the excellent, greatest and most beautiful beings in the world.

One day when splendid fireworks were set off in the sky of Pyongyang to celebrate a holiday, he said to the accompanying officials in the following vein: I have a work to do. It is to bring the greatest happiness to our excellent people. How can I give up the revolution and seek for my own comfort, abandoning them who have gone through all sorts of hardships.

The stories about his ardent love for the people are still cherished deep in the minds of the Korean people. He saw to it that an airplane of the Korean People’s Army was mobilized to save a girl drifting in the sea, that a trading ship on the ocean voyage changed its course to save two crewmen who were seized with a sudden illness and that a helicopter was sent to save the life of triplets born in a remote village in Kangwon Province.

He visited the Kwangbok Area Supermarket on December 15, Juche 100 (2011).

He said as follows: It is cold today, but it warms my heart to see the supermarket filled with goods. I feel the happiest when I have done something for the good of the people. My happiness and pleasure lie in just those of the people.

Only for the sake of the beloved people! This was his lifelong criterion and the whole of his life.

2022-10-28

DPRK National Sci-tech Presentation in Construction Sector Held

The national sci-tech presentation in the construction sector took place at the Paektusan Institute of Architecture on October 25 and 26 under the sponsorship of the Central Committee of the Architects Union of Korea.

The presentation was held on the theme of “To Realize the people’s dreams and ideals with our science and technology”.

It was attended by officials, lecturers, researchers and designers from several units, including the Pyongyang Municipal Construction Commission, Pyongyang University of Architecture and Pyongyang Urban Designing Institute.

Presented there were over 120 valuable papers conducive to accelerating the construction projects for promoting the people’s wellbeing and the industrial construction for building up the economic foundations of the country.

Proposals “Study on architectural plan of terraced houses in conformity with geographical features of mountainous gorge city” and “Structural design of 80-storeyed skyscraper” were highly appreciated for their practical significance.

During the presentation, there was a designing experience presentation on Songhwa Street which has been built as a monument associated with the loving care for the people and the local-industry factories in Kimhwa County in Kangwon Province which have been built as models of local-industry development.

2022-10-27

Russia Suspends Implementation of Grain Deal for Indefinite Term – MFA

The reason is the terrorist attack in Sevastopol

MOSCOW, October 30. /TASS/. Moscow has suspended the implementation of the food deal starting from Saturday and for an indefinite term due to the terrorist attack on Sevastopol, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

The Russian Foreign Ministry pointed out that using as a cover the humanitarian corridor created under the ‘Black Sea Grain Initiative’ for exports of Ukrainian agricultural products, the Ukrainian military conducted a mass drone attack from the air and sea on the ships and infrastructure of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet at the naval base in Sevastopol.

"In connection with the actions of the Ukrainian armed forces, led by British specialists, which targeted, among others, the Russian ships ensuring the functioning of the said humanitarian corridor (which cannot be defined otherwise than but as an act of terrorism), Russia cannot provide security guarantees for the civilian dry cargo vessels participating in the ‘Black Sea Grain Initiative’ and suspends its implementation from today and for an indefinite period," the ministry said.

"Corresponding instructions have been given to the Russian representatives in the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, which supervises the transportation of Ukrainian food," it added.

On Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry said that Russia was suspending its participation in the grain deal after the terrorist attack in Sevastopol, which was carried out by the Kiev regime with the participation of British specialists against the Black Sea Fleet and the commercial vessels involved in ensuring security of the grain corridor. Earlier, the Defense Ministry said that the Kiev regime had carried out a terrorist attack using nine drones and seven marine autonomous surface vehicles. All of them were destroyed.

Ukrainian military’s offensive attempt in Kherson Region fought off – official

Ukrainian servicemen attempted to attack the village of Bruskinskoe

KHERSON, October 30. /TASS/. The Ukrainian military has mounted an offensive towards Bruskinskoye, Kherson Region, but all their attacks were repelled by the Russian army, Kherson Region Deputy Governor Kirill Stremousov wrote on his Telegram channel on Saturday.

"In the Nikolayev - Krivoy Rog direction, the Ukrainian Nazis attempted another offensive on the village of Bruskinskoye. As a result of the intensive fire and successful actions of the Russian Armed Forces, the Nazis were pushed back to their initial positons," he said.

According to Stremousov, more than 18 Ukrainian troops and 4 pieces of hardware were eliminated.

Kiev Carried Out Terrorist Attack on Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol - Ministry

British experts prepared Ukrainian military for the terrorist attack in Sevastopol, the Russian Ministry of Defense told

MOSCOW, October 29. /TASS/. The Kiev regime carried out a terrorist attack on the ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian ships in Sevastopol, using drones, the Russian Ministry of Defense told reporters on Saturday.

"Today at 04:20 am, the Kiev regime carried out a terrorist attack on ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian ships," the ministry said.

According to the statement, nine drones and seven autonomous marine unmanned vehicles were involved in the attack. "All air targets were destroyed," the ministry said.

The Black Sea Fleet ships that were attacked earlier on Saturday were involved in ensuring the security of the grain corridor used to export agricultural goods from Ukrainian ports. "The Black Sea Fleet ships that were the target of the terrorist attack are involved in ensuring the safety of the grain corridor within the international initiative to export agricultural products from Ukrainian ports," the Defense Ministry said.

According to the governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, the attack of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the use of drones in the waters of the Sevastopol Bay on Saturday was the most massive offensive since the beginning of the special operation. "Today we witnessed the most massive attack by UAVs and remote-controlled surface drones in the waters of the Sevastopol Bay in the history [of the special military operation]," Razvozhaev said. He noted that all broadcasts from CCTV cameras in Sevastopol that were previously available to civilians will be closed.

British experts

Experts from the UK Royal Navy, who were preparing military personnel of Ukraine’s 73rd Maritime Special Operations Center for the recent terrorist attack in Sevastopol, were also involved in the Nord Stream gas pipelines sabotage.

"According to the information available to us, representatives of the UK Navy participated in planning, supporting, and executing the terrorist act in the Baltic Sea on September 26 in order to disrupt the Nord Stream and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines," the statement said.

According to the ministry, British experts also prepared Ukrainian military for the terrorist attack in Sevastopol. "The preparation of this terrorist act and the training of military personnel of the Ukrainian 73rd Maritime Special Operations Center were carried out under the guidance of British specialists located in the city of Ochakov, Nikolaev region," the department said.

The Ministry reported earlier on Saturday that Ukraine carried out a terrorist attack on the ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian ships in Sevastopol, using drones. "Today at 04:20 am, the Kiev regime carried out a terrorist attack on ships of the Black Sea Fleet and civilian ships," the ministry said.

According to the statement, nine drones and seven autonomous marine unmanned vehicles were involved in the attack, all air targets were destroyed.

96,000 Haitians Displaced by Recent Gang Violence in Capital: IOM Report

By News Desk 

October 28, 2022

A Woman Stands In Front Of Her Home At A Displacement Site In Port Au Prince Haiti

The number of people displaced by gang-related violence in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, has tripled in the past five months, according to a report published this week by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The assessment, conducted between June and August 2022, identified over 113,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Haiti. Of these, 96,000 individuals fled insecurity in the capital, due to inter-gang violence and social unrest. An additional 17,000 individuals remain displaced as a result of the worst earthquake in a decade, which devastated the country’s southern regions in August 2021.

Gang-related violence in Port-au-Prince Metropolitan Area had resulted in racketeering, kidnappings, and wider criminal acts in a context characterized by deep inequalities, high levels of deprivation of basic human needs, and a fragmented security environment.

Neighbourhoods with the highest levels of violence often report economic distress, with recent surges in food and fuel prices further destabilizing already precarious livelihoods.

“Thousands of women, children, and men have been forced to leave their homes seeking shelter away from violence and destruction,” said Ulrika Richardson, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Haiti. “The United Nations is working hard hand-in-hand with humanitarian, government, and local partners to help alleviate the hardships many of the most vulnerable families are facing.”

The report was produced by IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM), in coordination with the Haitian Directorate-General for Civil Defense. The DTM assessments provide accurate, regular data on internally displaced populations to inform evidence-based humanitarian action. These assessments mark the growth of DTM activities in Haiti, as IOM remains one of the main data providers on population mobility, forced displacement, and the humanitarian situation in Haiti.

“This data collection represents a key contribution to the humanitarian response in Haiti,” said Michele Klein Solomon, IOM Regional Director for Central and North America and the Caribbean. “It provides a better understanding of the scale, scope, and patterns of displacement, vital to inform the planning and implementation of evidence-based responses,” she added.

An early warning system on forced displacement set up by DTM shows that close to one-fifth of neighborhoods in Port-au-Prince were affected by generalized violence in July.

As part of the United Nations’ coordinated response to growing humanitarian needs in Haiti, IOM has provided crucial humanitarian aid to some 19,000 individuals in 2022.

IOM interventions include the distribution of relief items and medical kits, health consultations, and tailored assistance to persons with disabilities, as well as a free line providing psycho-social support and referral services to migrants and IDPs. Additionally, IOM has assisted over 6,400 families with relocation and rental allowances.

South African Security Agencies Tell Public Not to Spread False Alarming Information

By Xinhua 

October 29, 2022

South Africa’s National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NATJOINTS) on Friday told the public not to spread the false and alarming information which insinuates that the country is at risk of terrorist attack.

The NATJOINTS, comprised of various government departments led by the State Security Agency, South African Police Service and South African National Defence Force, said they meet on a regular basis to assess the safety and security of the country.

On Wednesday, the U.S. embassy in South Africa issued a security alert alleging that there will be a possible terror attack in Johannesburg’s Sandton on Saturday.

“NATJOINTS notes with concern the proliferation of false or misleading messages about possible targets of terrorist attacks, and the general public is discouraged from sharing misleading information to avoid creating unnecessary panic and alarm,” NATJOINTS said in a statement, adding that South African intelligence community has engaged to ensure that credible information would be shared.

The country’s law enforcement agencies said with effect from Oct. 15, they are on a safe festive season campaign to ensure holidaymakers are safe. They said the safety and security of citizens remain the top priority and they have measures in place to deal with threats to national security.

“It takes all threats seriously and has countermeasures in place to assess and mitigate terrorism threats. All hands are on deck and all law enforcement agencies have joined forces to ensure that South Africans and those who live in this country are and feel safe,” said NATJOINTS.

There are over 50 events to be hosted in Gauteng Province during Oct. 28-30, which are of a sporting, cultural and recreational nature, NATJOINTS said, noting that the law enforcement personnel have been deployed to ensure they are safe.

Ghana Assumes UN Security Council Presidency On November 1

By GNA 

October 29, 2022

Photo taken on March 2, 2016 shows the United Nations Security Council approves new resolution on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), at the UN headquarters in New York, the United States. (Xinhua/Li Muzi) (zw)

Ghana will on Tuesday, November 01, assume the Presidency of the United Nations (UN) Security Council, a historic moment in the country’s two-year tenure at the Security Council.

The significance of Ghana presiding over the Council’s affairs for the month of November, stems from the fact that the UN Security Council is the principal organ for the maintenance and furtherance of international peace and security.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration in a media release, copied to the Ghana News Agency outlined some programmes of activities in November towards Ghana’s Presidency of the UN Security.

It said on Tuesday, November 01, there would be a press briefing by Mr Harold Adlai Agyeman, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Ghana to the United Nations in New York, to the UN Press Agencies at 1630 hours.

It said on the same day at 1900 hours, Mr Agyeman would also brief the wider UN Membership on the Programme of Work and Ghana’s priorities during the month.

The release said on Thursday, November 03, there would be an Open Ministerial debate to be chaired by Madam Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration on the topic, “Integrating Effective Resilience Building in Peace Operations for Sustainable Peace” from 1400 hours to 1700 hours and 1900 hours to 2200 hours in the UN Security Council Chamber.

It said on Thursday, 10th November, from 1400 hours to 1700 hours, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo would chair a debate at the Heads of State level on the topic, “Counter-terrorism in Africa: An Imperative for Peace, Security, and Development”.

The release said the Permanent Mission of Ghana to the United Nations, New York, has informed that UNTV sends out feeds of meetings and briefings via fiber outbound lines through two companies, “Encompass” and “IDB-The Switch”.

It said UNTV also covers all briefings at the Press Briefing Room, and it is always assigned to the outbound Line “Encompass 4025” as well as the Switch UNN TV.

It noted that, however, UNTV does not cover United Nations Security Council (UNSC) wrap-in briefings to member states, but WebTV does.

It said media houses who were not included on the UNTV daily schedule client list could send an email to redi@un.org to enable them to receive daily coverage schedule to find out which outbound lines the press conferences, briefings, UNSC stakeouts, and UNSC meetings will be aired on for the day.

The release said in its capacity as President of the UN Security Council, Ghana hopes to build consensus in the Council and across the UN on the need to ensure that Peace Operations, including kinetic and non-kinetic interventions, take into consideration the changing security landscape by fully addressing underlying causes and drivers of conflict, linked to the growing youth bulge, poverty, climate change and absence of resilient institutions.

Two Explosions Rock Somalia’s Capital, Killing at Least 30

By OMAR FARUK

Rescuers remove a seriously-injured body from the scene of a double car-bomb attack in the capital Mogadishu, Somalia Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022. Two car bombs exploded Saturday at a busy junction in Somalia's capital near key government offices, leaving "scores of civilian casualties," police told state media. (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh)

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Two car bombs exploded Saturday at a busy junction in Somalia’s capital near key government offices, causing “scores of civilian casualties” including children, national police said. One hospital worker counted at least 30 bodies amid fears of possibly many more.

The attack in Mogadishu occurred on a day when the president, prime minister and other senior officials were meeting to discuss expanded efforts to combat violent extremism, especially by the al-Qaida-affiliated al-Shabab group that often targets the capital. It also came five years after another massive blast in the exact same location killed over 500 people.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Al-Shabab rarely claims attacks with large numbers of civilians killed, as in the 2017 blast. But President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud blamed al-Shabab by name, calling the attack “cruel and cowardly.”

A volunteer at the Medina hospital, Hassan Osman, said “out of the total of at least 30 dead people brought to the hospital, the majority of them are women. I have seen this with my own eyes.” At the hospital and elsewhere, frantic relatives peeked under plastic sheeting and into body bags, looking for loved ones.

The Aamin ambulance service said they had collected at least 35 wounded. One ambulance responding to the first attack was destroyed by the second blast, director Abdulkadir Adan added in a tweet.

“I was 100 meters away when the second blast occurred,” witness Abdirazak Hassan said. “I couldn’t count the bodies on the ground due to the (number of) fatalities.” He said the first blast hit the perimeter wall of the education ministry, where street vendors and money changers were located.

An Associated Press journalist at the scene said the second blast occurred in front of a busy restaurant during lunchtime. The blasts demolished tuk-tuks and other vehicles in an area of many restaurants and hotels. He saw “many” bodies and said they appeared to be civilians traveling on public transport.

The Somali Journalists Syndicate, citing colleagues and police, said one journalist was killed and two others wounded by the second blast while rushing to the scene of the first.

The attack occurred at Zobe junction, which was the scene of a huge al-Shabab truck bombing in 2017 that killed more than 500 people.

Somalia’s government has been engaged in a high-profile new offensive against the extremist group that the United States has described as one of al-Qaida’s deadliest organizations. The president has described it as “total war” against the extremists, who control large parts of central and southern Somalia and have been the target of scores of U.S. airstrikes in recent years.

The extremists have responded by killing prominent clan leaders in an apparent effort to dissuade support for that government offensive.

On Saturday, Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre said the attack would not dampen the public uprising against al-Shabab, and he and the president expressed the government’s determination to wipe out the extremist group.

___

Associated Press journalist Mohamed Sheikh Nor in Mogadishu, Somalia, contributed.

Governments: French Conservationist Abducted in Eastern Chad

N’DJAMENA, Chad (AP) — A French national working in wildlife conservation was abducted in northeastern Chad by unknown kidnappers, the governments of both countries said Saturday.

Jerome Hugonnot was working for the Sahara Conservation Fund in Wadi Fara province bordering Sudan at the time of his abduction Friday, Chadian government spokesman Aziz Mahamat Saleh said in a statement.

The Chadian government has mobilized all its resources to find Hugonnot, Saleh said, adding that the kidnappers were “individuals not yet identified.” A number of armed groups operate along the Chad-Sudan border.

“We are aware of the kidnapping of one of our compatriots in Chad and are in touch with his family, as well as with Chadian authorities, in order to obtain his release quickly,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement.

French media reported that Hugonnot also has Australian citizenship.

The Sahara Conservation Fund and its partners have spent years in Chad working to reintroduce a species of desert antelope known as the scimitar-horned oryx.

Official: M23 Rebels Capture 2 More Towns in Eastern Congo

By JUSTIN KABUMBA

Residents flee fighting between M23 rebels and Congolese forces near Kibumba, some 20 kms 12 miles) North of Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, Friday Oct. 28, 2022. Hundreds have been killed and nearly 200,000 people displaced since fighting erupted a year ago. Congo has long accused Rwanda of backing the rebels. (AP Photo/Justin Kabumba)

GOMA, Congo (AP) — Rebels seized two major towns in eastern Congo after fierce fighting Saturday, doubling the territory they now control, a civil society leader and residents said.

Fighting between the Congolese army and M23 rebels intensified in the vicinity of Rutshuru Centre and Kiwanja on Saturday, with heavy gunfire breaking out in the morning.

John Banyene president of the local civil society, told The Associated Press that the rebels now controlled Rutshuru Centre and Kiwanja, which is 70 kilometers (43 miles) from the regional capital, Goma.

“As we speak, we confirm that the M23 rebels and their allies control the town of Kiwanja, but the armed forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo are not giving up,” Banyene told journalists in Goma.

There was no immediate confirmation from Congolese authorities or the military on the reported seizure of the two towns.

Daniel Subuka, a Kiwanja resident contacted by telephone by AP, said he saw well-armed M23 rebels making their way into Kiwanja and others heading toward Rutshuru Centre.

The M23 rebels had been largely inactive for nearly a decade before they reemerged last November in eastern Congo. Authorities say nearly 200,000 people have been displaced even before the latest surge in violence over the last week.

Congo’s government has accused neighboring Rwanda of supporting the M23, an allegation Rwanda’s government has repeatedly denied.

The U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo known as MONUSCO tweeted Saturday that it “strongly condemns the hostile actions of M23 and their serious repercussions on the civilian population.”

MONUSCO said it has raised the alert level of its troops, which are deployed to support the Congolese army in its operation against the M23, and said it is providing air support, intelligence and equipment.

Fresh Fighting Erupts in Eastern DRC

Internally displaced people in eastern DRC

Africa News

The sound of gunfire has returned to the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 Fresh fighting has erupted on Friday between government forces and the M23 rebels.

UN forces were also on the move heading towards the front line.

The fighting prompted many locals to flee.

"We saw Tutsis (referring to M23 rebels allegedly supported by Rwanda, Ed.) had arrived where we live in Ngugo and after that we heard gunfire and then we fled.

It was very, very hard to bear", said Faida Chantal Nsumba, a displaced person from Ngugo.

The displaced people say that they are now facing the prospect of hunger in the camps where they will stay as they wait for the fighting to subside.

"There was loads of shooting in our area and that created total panic. Now we are here we are suffering from hunger. There's nothing to eat and we left others and kids back there", added Nshiyimana Kwako, another displaced person.

According to the United Nations nearly 40,000 Congolese have been forced to flee in just one week.

Guinea's Colonel Doumbouya Visits Sierra Leone

Guinea's junta ruler, Colonel Mamady Doumbouya (centre)

Africa News

The leader of Guinea's ruling junta, Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, was greeted in Freetown during a visit to neighbouring Sierra Leone.

Doumbouya was met by Sierra Leone's president, Julius Maada Bio, and promised to strengthen the ties between the two countries.

"It is an honour for me to come and see my brother Bio, because he is the first president who came to visit us when we took power on 5 September (2021, Ed.), on 11 October President Bio was already in Conakry. That was a testimony of the friendship, the brotherhood between the Republic of Guinea and the Republic of Sierra Leone. And we will work further on this, to strengthen once again our ties of cooperation, brotherhood and friendship", affirmed Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, Head of Guinea's ruling junta.

Sierra Leone's President, Julius Maada Bio, added: 

"Guinea and Sierra Leone, we are not (just) neighbours, we are so related that it is difficult to draw a boundary between us. But that is what happened after colonialism, the 'scramble for Africa'. So we have to keep this relationship between our two countries, and basically that's what we are doing", he said. 

Colonel Mamady Doumboya led a coup in September 2021 ousting former president, Alpha Condé. 

Since October last year that Doumboya is serving as Guinea's interim president.

Shoigu Tells Putin Partial Mobilization Over in Russia

The defense minister pointed out that particular attention was focused on training those called up from the reserve at training centers and firing ranges

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu Mikhail Metzel/POOL/TASS

NOVO-OGARYOVO, October 28. /TASS/. The partial mobilization has ended in Russia, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu told President Vladimir Putin on Friday.

"The deployment of citizens called up for mobilization was completed today. The conscription of citizens has stopped. The target you set - 300,000 people - has been met. No additional assignments are being planned," the Russian defense minister said.

"Within the framework of the special military operation, military enlistment offices will continue to replenish the military only by recruiting volunteers and candidates for military service under contract," Shoigu said.

The defense minister pointed out that particular attention was focused on training those called up from the reserve at training centers and firing ranges, where 218,000 people are currently sharpening their skills as members of a crew or a detachment. After finishing their training, 82,000 draftees were deployed to the area of the special military operation. Of those, more than 41,000 are deployed as members of military units.

"During the partial mobilization, over 1,300 representatives of executive power and over 27,000 businessmen were sent to the armed forces. About 13,000 citizens volunteered before they received their conscription notifications, and were sent to the armed forces as volunteers. The average age of mobilized citizens is 35 years," Shoigu said.

The minister emphasized that Russian service members who take part in combat during the special military operation will be designated as combat veterans and will receive social protection benefits.

Among other things, Shoigu admitted having problems with supplies and various types of allowances at the initial stage, but pointed out that those problems had already been resolved, so the arriving troops are provided with the allowances, uniforms, equipment and food in accordance with the requirements for contract soldiers.

China Hopes Ukraine Crisis Has Diplomatic Solution — Foreign Ministry

"China hopes that all sides will intensify their efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict and achieve a speedy de-escalation and resolution of the current situation at the political level, including through negotiations," Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said

BEIJING, October 28. /TASS/. In a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Thursday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was hopeful that the Ukraine conflict would be resolved through diplomatic negotiations, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a briefing on Friday.

"China hopes that all sides will intensify their efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict and achieve a speedy de-escalation and resolution of the current situation at the political level, including through negotiations," he said.

Wang Wenbin added that the two top diplomats agreed on the need to de-escalate the conflict and to prevent the use of weapons of mass destruction in order to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a special military operation following a request for help from the leaders of the Donbass republics. In response, the West began slapping ever more sweeping sanctions on Russia and started funneling weapons to Kiev, and the price tag for this military aid is currently estimated at billions of dollars.

Zimbabwe’s Ruling Party Backs Leader Despite Huge Inflation

By FARAI MUTSAKA

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe’s president on Friday officially opened a ruling party congress that is set to renominate him as the party’s presidential candidate for next year’s election, but soaring inflation and a government crackdown on dissent are fueling tensions in the southern African nation.

The ruling ZANU-PF party on Saturday will officially nominate President Emmerson Mnangagwa as its election candidate and party leader for the next 5 years, a choreographed step that all party organs have already endorsed him.

Yet the 80-year old is likely to face a strong challenge from 44-year-old popular opposition leader, Nelson Chamisa, whom he narrowly beat in 2018.

Mnangagwa took over from his mentor, the late Robert Mugabe, following a coup in 2017 and subsequently won a disputed election the following year.

“Let us give him another five years…so that he propels our country to the land of our dreams. He is the one and only candidate we know,” vice president and former army general Constantino Chiwenga said to applause from hundreds of party supporters in the capital, Harare, many dressed in the party’s green, yellow and red colors emblazoned with the president’s face.

In turn, Mnangagwa promised a “thunderous victory.”

“We pronounce our readiness to yet again win another mandate to govern. Under our watch, ZANU-PF will continue to govern this land,” he said.

Zimbabwe’s electoral body says the general election should be held by August next year. But many opposition figures say they are already battling intense government repression similar to that during Mugabe’s iron-fisted rule.

Dozens of people — including opposition supporters, political activists, journalists, church leaders, trade unionists and student leaders — have been arrested, detained or are appearing in court on charges that some legal experts equate to harassment.

Criticism of Mnangagwa’s government has been stoked by Zimbabwe’s inflation of 268%, currently estimated to be one of the world’s highest. Rising numbers of people are being pushed into informal trade such as street vending.

Mnangagwa blames sanctions imposed by the United States about two decades ago for his country’s economic problems.

In a tweet on Oct. 25, an annual date that Zimbabwe and the regional Southern African Development Community body have set to lobby against the sanctions, the U.S. Embassy in Harare said “the direct impact of sanctions on the average Zimbabwean is minimal compared to the economic devastation caused by years of corruption, poor policy choices, and economic mismanagement.”

UN: Flooding in West, Central Africa Displaced 3.4M People

People wade through flooded roads In Bayelsa, Nigeria, Thursday, Oct. 20, 2022. More than 600 people have been killed so far this year and 1.3 million forced from their homes by Nigeria’s worst floods in a decade. Authorities are blaming the disaster on unusually heavy rainfall and the release of excess water from the Lagdo dam in neighboring Cameroon. (AP Photo/Reed Joshua)

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N.’s refugee agency said Friday that destruction from flooding has displaced more than 3.4 million people in west and central Africa.

UNHCR said Friday that Nigeria’s worst floods in a decade have killed hundreds, displaced 1.3 million residents and affected over 2.8 million people in the West African nation of 218 million.

Survivors had to scurry for higher ground as water submerged farmland and infrastructure. Many have been living in camps for the internally displaced that were set up in part to help people fleeing simmering violence in the region, among other troubles.

“The climate crisis is happening now – destroying livelihoods, disrupting food security, aggravating conflicts over scarce resources and driving displacement,” UNHCR spokesperson Olga Sarrado said. “The link between climate shocks and displacement is clear and growing.”

The agency noted that the government in Chad, where floodwaters affected more than 1 million people, has declared a state of emergency. Floods also have killed hundreds of people and displaced thousands in in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, UNHCR said.

The downpours in West Africa contrast with the worst drought in 40 years in the Horn of Africa.

Nigeria records flooding every year, often as a result of inadequate infrastructure and non-adherence to environmental guidelines. Authorities in September blamed this year’s floods on water overflowing from some local rivers, unusual rainfalls and the release of excess water from Lagdo dam in neighboring Cameroon’s northern region.

Lesotho Businessman Sworn in as Prime Minister

By HERBERT MOYO

MASERU, Lesotho (AP) — Lesotho’s businessman-turned-politician Sam Matekane was sworn in Friday as the new prime minister of the southern African country.

He won the most seats during the Oct. 7 elections but needed the support of smaller parties to form a new government with his Revolution For Prosperity party.

Regional leaders attending the event included South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who described Lesotho as being over the years “a refuge for many people facing many challenges in their own countries.”

Matekane said there was no time to waste in dealing with the challenges facing his country’s population of 2.1 million.

During his campaign, Matekane promised to expand markets for garments manufactured in Lesotho and to diversify the products exported to the U.S. under the African Growth Opportunities Act.

The garment-making industry is Lesotho’s largest employer after the government and had more than 45,500 textile workers at the beginning of 2020, according to official statistics. But about 25% lost their jobs amid the global economic slump caused by COVID-19.

Renewed Clashes in East Congo Send Residents Fleeing

By JUSTIN KABUMBA

Residents flee fighting between M23 rebels and Congolese forces near Kibumba, some 20 kms ( 12 miles) North of Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, Friday Oct. 28, 2022. Hundreds have been killed and nearly 200,000 people displaced since fighting erupted a year ago. Congo has long accused Rwanda of backing the rebels. (AP Photo/Justin Kabumba)

GOMA, Congo (AP) — Renewed clashes between government soldiers and M23 rebels in eastern Congo forced more people from their homes Friday, deepening a crisis that the U.N. says already displaced 40,000 in a week’s time.

The clashes that started at around 5 a.m. sent panic-stricken residents fleeing the towns of Rugari, Kalengera and Kabaya. Some headed for Kanyaruchinya near Goma, where many displaced people have gone since fighting between the two sides resumed on Oct. 20.

“We ask the authorities to find out where we are going to live,” Faida Chantal Nsumba, one of the people who left to get away from the fighting, said Friday.

Aline Semasanga and her family fled to Rumangabo without taking anything with them.

“We waited for bullets fired by the military,” she told The Associated Press. “We were very worried and afraid. Some died and others ended up with us here because God protected us. We ask our government to bring us peace so that we can return home.”

The M23 rebels had been largely inactive for nearly a decade before they reemerged in November 2020. Hundreds were killed and nearly 200,000 people displaced before the surge in violence over the last week.

Congo’s government has accused neighboring Rwanda of supporting the M23, an allegation Rwanda’s government has repeatedly denied.

Residents who fled described chaos and violence in the towns where the most recent fighting took place.

“There were many shots in our area, and it created a total panic,” Nshiyimana Kwako said. “Now we are suffering, we are hungry. We have nothing to eat and we have left other children there.”

Tanzania’s Commercial Capital Imposes Water Restrictions

DODOMA, Tanzania (AP) — One of Africa’s largest and fastest growing cities has imposed water restrictions as officials blame dry weather and dropping river levels.

Some of the more than 6 million residents of Tanzania’s commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, say thousands of homes have had no water for weeks.

The country’s water minister, Jumaa Aweso, said the city’s water authority has been working to provide a better supply from the struggling Lower Ruvu water treatment plant.

Frustration is growing. Resident Victor Musa said it has been three days and “I have no water.” He alleged that even the rationing plan is faulty, saying his family and other homes received the last supply of water for just 20 minutes.

Last year, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa inspected the water treatment plants after the city went for days without water. President Samia Suluhu Hassan directed authorities to ensure they protect water sources from encroachers.

Civil society groups have criticized the city’s water authority over the rate of water lost because of illegal connections and other factors.