Biden announces nearly $3bn in fresh Ukraine military aid

The United States has announced nearly $3bn in new military aid to Ukraine, with President Joe Biden saying the assistance aims to help the country defend against Russia’s invasion.

According to international media, in a statement on Wednesday, as Ukraine marked its independence from the Soviet Union, Biden said the $2.98bn package would allow Kyiv to acquire air defence systems, “artillery systems and munitions, counter-unmanned aerial systems, and radars”.

This is the single largest US aid package for Ukraine since Russian forces began their full-scale military invasion of the country in February.

“I know this independence day is bittersweet for many Ukrainians as thousands have been killed or wounded, millions have been displaced from their homes, and so many others have fallen victim to Russian atrocities and attacks,” Biden said in the statement.

For months, Russia has warned the US and European nations against providing heavy weaponry to Ukraine. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other government officials have urged their allies to send more assistance to help the country stave off Russian forces.

In total, the US has committed approximately $10.6bn in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration in January 2021, international media reported.

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Breaking News Live Updates - 17 August 2022: India Reports 9,062 Fresh Covid Cases, 15,220 Recoveries in Last 24 Hours

FOR 17th August 2022

By News18/ Updated: August 17, 2022, 05:55 IST

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China imposes fresh trade curbs on Taiwan amid tensions over Pelosi's visit

The moves are part of a "common pattern for Beijing", according to analysts, who fear more disruptions of agricultural and food trade can be expected in the coming days.

Nancy Pelosi has met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, who presented the US House speaker with a civilian honour. (Reuters)

China has rolled out curbs on the import of fruit and fish from Taiwan, while halting shipments of sand to the island in the wake of a visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

China's Customs Administration said on Wednesday it would suspend some citrus fruit imports from Taiwan over alleged "repeated" detection of excessive pesticide residue, and the import of fish owing to positive coronavirus tests on packages.

In a separate notice, the Commerce Ministry added it would also "suspend the export of natural sand to Taiwan" from Wednesday, without providing details.

Natural sand is generally used for producing concrete and asphalt, and most of Taiwan's imported sand and gravel comes from China.

The moves are part of a "common pattern for Beijing", said Even Pay, an agriculture analyst at consultancy Trivium China.

More disruptions of agricultural and food trade can be expected in the coming days, she added.

"When diplomatic or trade tensions are running high, Chinese regulators typically take an extremely strict approach to compliance... looking for any issues that can be used to justify a trade ban," she said.

The trip by Pelosi, who is second in line to the presidency and the highest-profile elected US official to visit Taiwan in 25 years, has ignited a diplomatic firestorm.

READ MORE: US defends Pelosi's Taiwan visit as angry China warns of 'consequences' 

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zI_bWy63Nh8[/embed]

Trade restrictions 

China is Taiwan's biggest trading partner and export market, with bilateral trade growing 26 percent on-year to $328 billion in 2021, official data shows.

It is not the first time Beijing has taken aim at the island's exports.

China banned pineapple imports in March 2021, citing the discovery of pests, in a move that was widely seen as politically driven.

Beijing has ramped up pressure on Taiwan since President Tsai Ing-wen took office in 2016, as she views the island as a de facto sovereign nation and not part of "one China".

On top of the latest bans, Taipei's Council of Agriculture said Tuesday that China had cited regulatory breaches in suspending the import of other Taiwanese goods, including fishery products, tea and honey.

Meanwhile, Chinese authorities also announced planned live-fire military drills encircling Taiwan, in a move Taipei's defence ministry said threatened key ports and urban areas.

At some points, the zone of Chinese operations will come within 20 kilometres (12.4 miles) of Taiwan's shoreline, according to coordinates shared by the People's Liberation Army.

READ MORE: Pelosi visits Taiwan brushing aside China, Russia warnings

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTy1yjB-c10[/embed]

Source: TRTWorld and agencies

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Fresh clashes erupt in Guinea despite ban on protests

Protesters in capital Conakry suburbs burn tyres, overturn rubbish bins and throw stones at police vehicles as anger grows against junta and its handling of plans to return to democracy.

FNDC, an influential political coalition, called for the demonstrations to denounce the junta's "unilateral management" of the return to civilian rule (AFP)

Fresh clashes between protesters and security forces have erupted in Conakry despite a ban by the junta on demonstrations amid discontent with the regime's planning to transition back to democracy.

The latest clashes came after protests against Guinea's junta and its handling of plans to return to democracy brought the capital to a standstill on Thursday, with organisers claiming that one person was killed.

Protesters in the Conakry suburbs on Friday burned tyres, overturned rubbish bins and threw stones at police vehicles with officers responding with teargas, according to an AFP news agency journalist.

Thursday's protest took place ahead of comments by the chair of a regional bloc who claimed to have persuaded the junta to shorten its timeline for a return to democracy. The junta has not confirmed his comments.

The National Front for the Defence of the Constitution (FNDC), an influential political coalition, called for the demonstrations to denounce the junta's "unilateral management" of the return to civilian rule after it seized power in 2021.

READ MORE: ECOWAS ‘convinces’ Guinea to two-year transition of power

Rough return to democracy

A junta led by Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, which overthrew president Alpha Conde in September last year, has pledged to hand over power to elected civilians within three years. 

But regional powers have rejected this timeline, with Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) suspending Guinea after the coup.

Speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron at a briefing in Bissau on Thursday, the ECOWAS regional bloc chair Umaro Sissoco Embalo said he had recently convinced Guinea's junta to hasten the return to democracy.

"I was in Conakry with the president of the commission (of ECOWAS) to make the military junta understand the decision of the summit of heads of state that the transition cannot exceed 24 months", Embalo said.

"They had proposed 36 months, but we succeeded in convincing them," he added.

But Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, a Guinean minister and spokesperson for the transitional government, told AFP that "neither the government nor the presidency confirms this information about the duration of the transition in Guinea".

READ MORE: Guinea junta leader announces 39-month transition period

Source: AFP

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