They discussed the limited water resources available to Egypt, the negative climate change impacts, and the unilateral measures of filling and operating the GERD…reports Asian Lite News
Egyptian Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Mohamed Abdel-Ati has accused Ethiopia of shirking its obligations towards the Nile dam issue.
“Ethiopia has no political will to reach any deal about the filling and operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD),” Abdel-Ati said in an online meeting on Tuesday with Inger Andersen, executive manager of the UN Environment Program (UNEP).
They discussed the limited water resources available to Egypt, the negative climate change impacts, and the unilateral measures of filling and operating the GERD.
“As the most The most populous Arab country, Egypt suffers a shortage of water resources while Ethiopia enjoys enormous rainfalls, renewable groundwater in addition to the Nile River, and the huge amount of stored water behind the dams and in the natural lakes,” said Abdel-Ati.
Egypt is still below the UN threshold of water poverty.
The water shortage in Egypt is 13.5 billion cubic metres per year.
Egypt isn’t against the development of Ethiopia and the Nile Basin countries, but development should abide by international laws and respect the concerns of the downstream countries, the minister noted.
On Monday, Egypt received an official letter from Ethiopia about starting the second filling of the GERD reservoir.
Egypt and Sudan have referred the GERD issue to the UN Security Council, which is set to convene a discussion on Thursday.
Ethiopia, an upstream Nile basin country, started building the GERD in 2011 and carried out the first phase of filling the dam in July 2020 despite the concerns of the downstream countries Egypt and Sudan, which have repeatedly called for a tripartite binding agreement on the rules of filling and operating the dam.
Over the past few years, tripartite talks on the rules of filling and operating the hydropower dam with a total capacity of 74 billion cubic meters have been fruitless, including those hosted by the US and the recent ones by the African Union.
Iran has confirmed that it has started talks with Saudi Arabia in Iraq to defuse tensions between the two countries….reports Asian Lite News
Progress has been made in the recent talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the spokesman for the Tehran government Ali Rabiee said.
Issues have been discussed from a friendly and good-intention position in the recent talks between the two countries, and some progress has been made so far, Rabiee said on Tuesday during his weekly press conference.
“We understand that disputes may have complexities in some areas which require time to resolve. We will continue these talks to minimise differences,” Xinhua news agency quoted the spokesman as further saying.
Meanwhile, Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman for Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Iran has always welcomed dialogue to achieve results.
“Our view as per the negotiations with Saudi Arabia is positive,” Khatibzadeh said during his weekly press conference.
Iran has always wanted the countries of the region to maintain peace and security in the Gulf region, he noted.
Iran has confirmed that it has started talks with Saudi Arabia in Iraq to defuse tensions between the two countries.
Meanwhile, Iranian government has blamed Israel for a recent sabotage act against a nuclear facility near Karaj city.
“We have confirmed the sabotage, and we confirm it again. Of course, this action did not lead to human loss, and the damage on the equipment was insignificant,” government spokesman Ali Rabiee said during a press conference here on Tuesday.
“The roof of one of the sheds was punctured… This sabotage did not lead to damage to essential equipment,” spokesman said.
He said Israel “did this seeking to derail the nuclear talks and to send a signal that the world does not need to talk with Iran” over the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal.
On June 23, Iranian media reported a sabotage attempt on the nuclear facility near Karaj with no reference to the damage.
The Saudi delegation is chaired by the Saudi ambassador to the Netherlands and permanent representative to the OPCW, Ziyad Al-Attiyah….reports Asian Lite News
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has stressed the importance of making the Middle East a region free from weapons of mass destruction, including chemical weapons.
A delegation from Saudi Arabia is taking part in the 97th session of the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) being held between July 6-9 in the Hague, Netherlands, the Arab News reported.
The Saudi delegation is chaired by the Saudi ambassador to the Netherlands and permanent representative to the OPCW, Ziyad Al-Attiyah.
In a speech, Al-Attiyah has urged the need to strengthen cooperation to ban these weapons and prevent their proliferation.
Al-Attiyah also highlighted the Kingdom’s close adherence to the Chemical Weapons Convention as it strongly believes in the conventions’ objectives and its role in promoting international peace and security, according to the report.
He also reiterated the Kingdom’s condemnation of the use of chemical weapons or toxic chemicals used as weapons, in any place, by any side and under any circumstances.
He also welcomed the second report of the investigation and identification team on the use of chemicals in Syria, it was reported.
Meanwhile, Iran has confirmed that its position on the country’s 2015 nuclear deal and the removal of sanctions will not change even after the new government under President-elect Ebrahim Raisi takes over next month.
“The government of Raisi will also be committed to it (potential agreement) because adherence to the commitments and promises is always a principle for the Islamic republic,” Xinhua news agency quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh as saying to reporters on Tuesday.
Progress has been made in the nuclear talks in the Austrian capital of Vienna and it is acknowledged by all parties to the negotiation, Khatibzadeh added.
However, there are still important issues that largely need to be decided by other parties, especially the US, as the finalization of the agreement on the revival of the landmark nuclear deal, officially referred to as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), “depends on the political will and tough decisions of other parties involved”, he noted.
Prince Khalid met with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who confirmed Washington’s commitment to its defense relations with the Kingdom….reports Asian Lite News
Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman held talks with senior US military officials in Washington on Tuesday.
Prince Khalid met with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who confirmed Washington’s commitment to its defense relations with the Kingdom.
Prince Khalid said he discussed “longstanding and historic partnership between our two countries, our military and defense cooperation, and our mutual efforts to preserve regional stability,” with the officials.
The Pentagon said the US was also committed to working with Saudi Arabia to end the war in Yemen and in confronting Iran’s destabilizing activities in the region.
The US Department of Defense condemned the cross-border attacks launched by Yemen’s Houthi militia with Iranian support.
The Houthis have stepped up attacks targeting the Kingdom’s southern region since the beginning of the year, threatening vital, oil and civilian installations.
Prince Khalid is expected to hold talks with officials at the State Department on Wednesday, spokesman Ned Price said.
The White House said he met with national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman has underlined on the need of the alliance between OPEC and non-OPEC to continue the agreement to restrain production after it ends in April 2022, reports Asian Lite Newsdesk
The oil prices saw increase on Monday after an ongoing disagreement inside OPEC+ about output policy. And talks are underway to break the deadlock among producers in the group, media reported.
The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $75.18 a barrel on Friday, 2nd July, compared with $74.84 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.
Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister had said that extending the current OPEC+ deal is the “basis of the agreement” and it’s not a “branch” of it, the Arab News reported.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman also underlined on the need of the alliance between OPEC and non-OPEC to continue the agreement to restrain production after it ends in April 2022.
“The extension is there in the agreement… while increasing (production) isn’t mentioned,” the minister said in an interview with Al Arabiya TV.
The Saudi energy minister also said on Sunday that there should be an increase in production to meet an expected decline in oil supply during the summer period.
However, he also hailed the efforts made by the alliance, known as OPEC+, under the current agreement to restore the market balance, adding that its success wasn’t possible without the extra voluntary cuts that Saudi Arabia made under the current agreement.
There is consensus between OPEC+ member states regarding baseline oil output, except for one country, the energy minister said.
Meanwhile, the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure has affirmed that it is a longstanding and committed member of OPEC, and OPEC+, and have been a reliable partner in the current OPEC+ agreement, delivering compliance of 103% throughout its 2-year term.
In a statement today, the Ministry said that the “UAE believes that the market needs an increase in production and supports an increase from August.”
It added that the UAE has supported production increases in May, June and July of this year which had no extension conditions attached to them. “So it makes no sense to attach conditions to increase in August. We fully support an increase in August,” the statement stated.
The statement said, “The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) unfortunately only put one option forward, to increase production on the condition of an extension to the current agreement, which would prolong the UAE’s unfair reference production baseline until December 2022, from the existing agreement end date of April 2022. “
The UAE proposed to decouple the matters of increasing production and the extension of the agreement, to progress an increase to production starting in August. But the JMMC insisted on coupling the increase with the extension of the agreement.
It noted that the OPEC+ agreement is scheduled to run for another nine months until April 2022, “so there is plenty of time to review terms for its extension and we see no need for such a condition to be included at this time.”
The UAE is willing to extend the agreement further, if required, but requests that baseline production references be reviewed to ensure that they are fair to all parties as/when an extension is agreed to. The UAE suggested that this decision should be made in a later meeting, allowing an immediate unconditional decision on increasing production from August to progress.
“The UAE and its international partners have invested significantly in growing its production capacity and believes that, if/when the agreement is extended, the baseline reference figures should reflect its actual production capacity, rather than the outdated October 2018 production reference,” the statement concluded.
The Saudi Ministry of Interior has also announced that there will be institutional quarantine for all passengers, whether citizens or foreigners, coming from these countries, reports Asian Lite News
Saudi Arabia has banned the travel of citizens to UAE, Ethiopia and Vietnam without prior permission, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Saturday, citing an official source at the Ministry of Interior.
Flights to and from these countries as well as Afghanistan will be suspended on Sunday, July 4, at 11 p.m, the Saudi Gazette reported.
The source indicated there will be institutional quarantine for all passengers, whether citizens or foreigners, coming from these countries, after this date.
Citizens who intend to return before that date will be spared institutional quarantine.
The statement came at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the Implementation of UNSCR 2231…reports Asian Lite News.
India has urged Iran to continue to cooperate with IAEA in the performance of its verification activities and addressing all outstanding issues.
India supports the full and effective implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and Resolution 2231, said a statement by Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations TS Tirumurti on Wednesday.
The statement came at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the Implementation of UNSCR 2231.
“We have always maintained that all JCPOA related issues should be resolved peacefully through dialogue and diplomacy and have extended our support to all such efforts which help in constructively addressing and resolving outstanding issues,” it added.
“All participants should adhere to their respective obligations under UNSCR 2231. We hope that the ongoing engagement will result in a positive outcome,” Ambassador Tirumurti noted.
“Let me also use this opportunity to commend the IAEA for its role and continued efforts towards ensuring the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme,” he stated.
“We urge Iran to continue to cooperate with the IAEA in the performance of its verification activities and addressing all outstanding issues,” India’s Permanent Representative to UN argued.
It further said, “We count on the full implementation of the JCPOA by all parties, which will serve the shared and long-term interests of all countries.”
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is a detailed, 159-page agreement with five annexes reached by Iran and the P5+1 (China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) on July 14, 2015.
The nuclear deal was endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2231, adopted on July 20, 2015.
Iran’s compliance with the nuclear-related provisions of the JCPOA is verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) according to certain requirements set forth in the agreement.
The General Authority for Statistics measures the rate based on total working-age populations (Saudis and non-Saudis 15 years old and above)…reports Asian Lite News
Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate fell to 6.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to 7.4 per cent of the last quarter in 2020, state media reported.
The General Authority for Statistics measures the rate based on total working-age populations (Saudis and non-Saudis 15 years old and above), Xinhua news agency quoted the state media as saying on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate of total Saudis decreased to 11.7 per cent in the first quarter of 2021, compared to 12.6 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2020.
The results of the Labour Force Survey also show that the labour force participation rate of the total working-age population increased to 61.1 per cent during the first quarter of 2021 compared to 61 per cent in the fourth quarter of the previous year.
The survey and many other labour initiatives aim to further reduce unemployment rates, along with making Saudis the preferable job candidates in various vacancies through training and government support to the private sector.
Jordan king holds talks with Abbas ahead of Biden summit.Pic credits @RHCJO
The Jordan king will be the first Arab leader to meet at the White House with President Joe Biden and his team….reports Asian Lite News
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas held talks with King Abdullah before the Jordanian monarch’s key visit to Washington.
The king will be the first Arab leader to meet at the White House with President Joe Biden and his team.
Two Jordanian army helicopters flew to Ramallah to transport Abbas and his team to the talks.
After a one-on-one meeting in the presence of Crown Prince Hussein, Jordanian and Palestinian teams joined their leaders.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Malki, senior Fatah official Hussein Sheikh, Palestinian intelligence service chief Majed Faraj, and senior diplomatic adviser Majdi Khalidi attended the meeting.
On the Jordanian side, Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, General Intelligence Director Ahmad Hosni and other officials were present, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
Jordan king holds talks with Abbas ahead of Biden summit.Pic credits @RHCJO
Jordan’s Petra news agency said the king reiterated Jordan’s support for Palestinians “to obtain their just and legitimate rights in establishing their independent, sovereign and viable state, on the June 4, 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
King Abdullah stressed the need to translate the cease-fire agreement in Gaza into a permanent truce in order to pave the way for Palestinian rights, Petra said.
Abbas highlighted Jordan’s critical role in defending the rights of Palestinians in international circles.
Samir Habashneh, a former Jordanian interior minister, told Arab News that the Biden administration has yet to decide on its approach to the Palestinian conflict.
“For sure, it is different from the Trump administration’s direction and for sure it is in support of the two-state solution, but it hasn’t yet identified the alternative,” he said.
Jordan king holds talks with Abbas ahead of Biden summit.Pic credits @RHCJO
Habashneh, a leading member of a reform committee set up by King Abdullah, said that in a recent meeting the monarch stressed the importance of support for the two-state solution.
“The king’s strong opposition to the Trump plan played a major role in its defeat, but we need to work out the mechanism for how to move forward,” he said.
Habashneh said that he hopes Jordan can influence a Palestinian reconciliation.
“If I can whisper in the ears of our Palestinian brethren, it would be to move fast in the reconciliation process in order to block Israeli efforts to avoid dealing with the Palestinian leadership.”
Hazem Kawasmi, a Jerusalem-based political activist, told Arab News that the situation is quickly deteriorating and there is a need to “find ways to put out all these fires.”
Jordan king holds talks with Abbas ahead of Biden summit.Pic credits @RHCJO
He said: “Things in Jerusalem, and especially in Silwan, with tens of homes slated for destruction, are worrying as is the internal Palestinian protests in light of the death of Nizar Banat and the attacks on peaceful Palestinian protesters by the Palestinian security.”
The family of Banat, a prominent critic of the Palestinian Authority, who died in detention on June 24, said that security forces broke into his house in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron and hit him repeatedly with a metal rod before arresting him.
Oraib Rantawi, director of Al-Quds Center for Political Affairs, told Arab News that the Biden administration is stepping up its coordination with Jordan and Egypt, while “Trump and his people gave preference to the Gulf countries, and disregarded Jordan and Egypt.”
Jordan king holds talks with Abbas ahead of Biden summit
Rantawi said: “I expect that the internal situation is worrying Jordan, and Abbas will most certainly receive friendly advice from King Abdullah on the need to address internal issues that have weakened Abbas and his administration.”
Lamis Andoni, a longtime observer of Jordanian-Palestinian relations, told Arab News: “What is happening in Jerusalem, and its effects on the region and the future, will be an important topic discussed between them.”
Trump’s policies were a major problem for both Jordan and Palestine, she added.
“The policies of the previous US administration gave legitimacy to Israel to increase its expansion into Palestinian lands,” Andoni said.
She said that the Jordan visit is intended to strengthen Abbas’ standing amid growing protests and criticism directed at the Palestinian leader, she said.
“The agreements to normalise relations recently signed by Israel with some Arab countries are an illusion that will not succeed,” said Abbas…reports Asian Lite News
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has slammed the normalisation agreements that some Arab countries have reached with Israel in recent times.
“The agreements to normalise relations recently signed by Israel with some Arab countries are an illusion that will not succeed,” Abbas said in an online address on Tuesday.
The President added that peace and security “will only be achieved” at the end of the Israeli occupation, reports Xinhua news agency.
Abbas also said that peace with Israel can only be achieved by “the recognition of the Palestinian people’s legitimate rights, mainly the rights of freedom, independence, and establishing a Palestinian state”.
“We agreed to sign painful historic peace agreements, recognized the state of Israel under the UN Resolutions 242 and 338, and signed the Oslo accords in 1993,” he said, adding that the Jewish state has violated these agreements.
UAE, Israel ink key pact on economic, trade cooperation
In September last year, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed separate normalisation agreements with Israel.
Later, Morocco and Sudan followed in their footsteps.
Palestine has also called for imposing international sanctions against Israel to stop its policies against the Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that it supports an Amnesty International report issued on June 24 saying Israeli security forces committed violations against the Palestinians.
“Israel doesn’t care about reports issued by credible international organizations like Amnesty International, which considers Israeli practices the most heinous forms of racial discrimination against the Palestinians,” the Ministry statement said.
Pic credits Twitter@IsraelMFA
The statement also slammed the US and the European Union for not exerting serious pressure on the Israeli government to stop its practices against the Palestinians.
On June 24, the Amnesty International report said that Israeli police carried out “a catalogue of violations against Palestinians across Israel and occupied East Jerusalem”.
The report said the violations included “unlawful force against peaceful protesters, sweeping mass arrest and subjecting detainees to torture and other ill-treatment”.
There has been no immediate response from Israeli police to the Amnesty International report.
