WASHINGTON,  08 December 2021, (TON): A senior administration official said “President Joe Biden will make it clear to Russian President Vladimir Putin that there would be "very real costs" should Russia take military action against Ukraine when the two leaders meet on a video call Tuesday.”

During the call, which comes as Russia has deployed more than 90,000 combat troops along Ukraine's border, Biden will lay out a range of actions the U.S. and its European allies would take, including additional sanctions, should Russia invade Ukraine.

The official said that the U.S. believes Russia is putting in place the capacity to engage in military action but is unclear whether Putin has decided to carry out the plans.

Along with the military buildup, Russia has also been significantly ramping up a misinformation campaign to make Ukraine appear as the aggressor.

The official said “the U.S. and European allies have been in "intensive discussions" about what they would collectively do if Russia invades Ukraine, including "substantial economic countermeasures" that would cause "deep economic harm.”

The official added "when it comes to Ukraine, we have made clear our deep concern about evidence that Russia is stepping up its planning for significant military action against Ukraine.”

GAZA, 08 December 2021, (TON): Israel announced the completion of a barrier along the Gaza border, described as an “iron wall” equipped with underground sensors, radars and cameras to curb threats.

Israel has maintained a blockade on Gaza since 2007, the year Hamas took power in the Palestinian enclave, tightly restricting the flow of goods and people in and out of the territory home to some two million people.

An Israeli defence ministry statement said that the 65 kilometre barrier, completed after three-and-a-half years of construction, includes an “underground barrier with sensors”, a six metre-high smart fence, radars, cameras and a maritime monitoring system.

PARIS, 08 December 2021, (TON): France’s foreign minister said “he expected nuclear talks between Iran and world powers to resume on Thursday, but after last week he had not been encouraged and feared Iran’s new negotiating was trying to gain time.

The elements today of the discussion that re-started are not very encouraging because we have the feeling the Iranians want to make it last and the longer the talks last, the more they go back on their commitments and get closer to capacity to get a nuclear weapon.

He said talks were likely to resume on Thursday despite no advances last week, but he hoped things would take a positive turn otherwise it could lead to a “serious situation.”

RIYADH, 08 December 2021, (TON): The Kingdom’s defense ministry said “the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) and the US Air Force launched a bilateral exercise.”

The live-fire ACE exercise was launched at King Faisal Air Base in the Northern Sector and King Fahd Air Base in the Western Sector.

The RSAF is participating with Typhoon and F-15 C/SA aircraft, and the US Air Force with F-16 fighter jets.

The ministry said “the exercise aims to refine and develop the air and technical skills of the air crews, in addition to exchanging military expertise in the field of planning and implementing air operations, and raising the level of combat readiness.”

TEHRAN, 08 December 2021, (TON): Iran said that it was ready to resume nuclear talks but based on draft proposals it submitted last week, accusing Western powers of stalling negotiations in Vienna.

Last week, the Islamic republic returned to international talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear deal after a five-month pause.

It submitted two draft resolutions on the lifting of US sanctions and nuclear-related measures. But at the weekend the United States, as well as European participants at the Vienna talks, accused Iran of back-tracking.

A senior US administration official said the proposals “walked back any of the compromises that Iran had floated” during the previous six rounds of negotiations.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh hit back “our texts are fully negotiable.”

He told a news conference about the draft proposals,” also charging that the other parties “want to play a blame game”.

KHARTOUM, 08 December 2021, (TON): UN agencies reported “with escalating violence displacing thousands of people since November, the humanitarian situation in Sudan’s Darfur is getting worse and around 6.2 million people will need humanitarian assistance next year.”

The Principal Situation Coordinator for the region at the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), Toby Harward, told journalists in Geneva that the agency is deeply concerned about the situation.

According to him, nearly 10,000 Sudanese have fled a wave of intercommunal violence in the Jebel Moon, a locality in West Darfur, one of the five Darfur States. Over 2,000 of them, mostly women and children, have sought refuge in neighbouring Chad.

Tensions remain high in Jebel Moon and violent incidents have occurred in the past few days in other West Darfur localities, including in El Geneina on 5 December.

UNHCR is also receiving alarming reports from other parts of Darfur about the destruction of villages, the rustling of livestock.

The ongoing violence, coupled with a poor rainy season and pest infestation, has also disrupted the farming season. Displaced farmers are worried about a total failure of their harvest.

Some people have found refuge in five locations near the border in Chad. These new arrivals are in urgent need of food, water, and shelter.

WASHINGTON, 08 December 2021, (TON): The Navy will commission the future USS Daniel Inouye (DDG 118), an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, during a 10:00 a.m. (HST) ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickham, Dec. 8.

The future USS Daniel Inouye is named in honor of the late U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, who served as a Hawaii representative in the Senate from 1963 until he died in 2012.

The Carlos Del Toro, Secretary of the Navy, will deliver the keynote address at the ceremony. Remarks will also be provided by The Honorable David Ige, Governor of Hawaii.

TEHRAN, 08 December 2021, (TON): Syrian Foreign and Expatriates Minister, Fayssal Mikdad said that terrorism, aggression, unjust siege and unilateral coercive measures can’t dissuade the Syrian people from continuing their resistance and steadfastness in the face of arrogance and schemes of the enemies.

Mikdad ‘s remarks came during a meeting with Iranian Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani in Tehran.

Mikdad stressed that the ongoing Zionest entity’s aggressions on Syria give a real example of terrorism and constitute a provocative act.

He added that the US and Turkish occupation of parts of the Syrian territories constitute a violation of the principle of sovereignty and an aggression against the unity of the country’s territories.

He went on to say that America continues to seek to revive terrorist cells ai-med at preventing establishment of stability in Syria. He pointed out to the large-scale economic oppo-rtunities available for cooperation between Syria and Iran, calling for increasing the presence of the Iranian public and private companies in the Syrian markets.

For his part, Shamkhani condemned the continuous attacks of the Zionist entity on the Syrian lands, stressing that it is a continuation of the entity’s brutal attacks on Palestine and Lebanon.

BRUSSELS, 08 December 2021, (TON): The EU representation will appear in Kabul in the coming weeks, but this will not mean recognition by Brussels of the radical Taliban movement that has come to power in Afghanistan.

This statement was made at a press conference in the European Commission by the representative of the EU foreign policy Nabil Massrali.

She said, stressing that she cannot disclose details at this time “we are working to ensure a minimum EU presence in Kabul. It’s a matter of weeks, not months. And this is not a sign of recognition.”

Massrali said “a minimum EU presence in Kabul is needed to provide assistance to the Afghan population.”

WASHINGTON, 08 December 2021, (TON): US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin held two hours of virtual talks on Ukraine and other disputes amid Western fears that Moscow is poised to invade its southern neighbour.

Russian TV footage showed Biden and Putin greeting each other in a friendly manner at the start of what was expected to be a tense exchange. Biden told Putin he hoped their next meeting would be in person.

The White House issued a statement saying the talks had started, but did not display any visuals from the secure 'Situation Room' where Biden was located.

According to the White House “the two leaders talked for two hours and one minute.”

The Kremlin has said “it hopes the two leaders can hold an in-person summit to discuss what it has described as the lamentable state of US-Russia relations, which have sunk to their lowest since the end of the Cold War.”

US officials said before the video conference that Biden would tell Putin that Russia and its banks could be hit with the toughest economic sanctions yet if it attacks Ukraine.