WASHINGTON, 21 November 2021, (TON): Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III met on November 20 with Indonesian Minister of Defense Prabowo Subianto in Manama, Bahrain, during the annual Manama Dialogue.

Secretary Austin re-affirmed the United States’ policy championing a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific that upholds international law and is based on shared principles.

Secretary Austin further reiterated the United States’ support for Indonesian leadership in the region and the importance of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

SANAA, 21 November 2021, (TON): A local military official told media “Yemen’s Joint Forces on the country’s western coast seized control of strategic locations in the provinces of Taiz and Hodeidah.”

Backed by air cover from the Arab coalition warplanes, the Joint Forces announced that they had seized control of Hays district in Hodeidah, including a strategic road that links the provinces of Ibb, Taiz and Hodeidah, shortly after launching an offensive to liberate strategic highlands south and east of the district.

Some military units advanced into the Shamer area in Taiz’s Maqbanah district as other forces announced the liberation of Al-Araf mountain, which overlooks the Al-Bareh district in Taiz.

A military official from the Joint Forces’ Giants Brigades said “we are now in Shamer and are pushing to seize control of Maqbanah-Shamer.”

By seizing control of the main road that links Shamer with Maqbanah, the Joint Forces would effectively cut off Houthi supply routes west of Taiz, and would surround Industrial Al-Bareh, an area that hosts major factories in Taiz province.

ROME, 21 November 2021, (TON): The Italian Coast Guard rescued more than 420 migrants, including dozens of minors, from boats in difficulty in the Mediterranean Sea including using cargo ships to block the wind that was buffeting one of the overcrowded vessels.

A coast guard statement said 70 migrants were brought safely by one of its motorboats to the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa, south of Sicily.

The statement said “meanwhile, a different coast guard vessel was headed to the port of Porto Empedocle evening in Sicily with more than 350 migrants aboard after they were plucked to safety from a foundering fishing boat 70 miles (115 kilometers) from the Sicilian coast.”

Among them were more than 40 minors.

That fishing boat “was in danger, due to the bad weather conditions at sea and due to the elevated number of persons on board,” the Coast Guard said. After being rescued by two motorboats, they were transferred to a larger Coast Guard vessel.

WASHINGTON, 21 November 2021, (TON): Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Senegalese President Macky Sall reaffirmed the U.S.-Senegalese partnershipon in Dakar.

Secretary Blinken and President Sall discussed shared global priorities of ending the pandemic, reigniting inclusive economic growth, and strengthening democratic governance and respect for human rights in the region.

The Secretary applauded Senegal’s leadership on a range of issues in Africa and discussed deepening security cooperation while working together to meet the challenge of climate change.

MOSCOW, 21 November 2021, (TON): Military exercises with the participation of the armed forces of Latvia, Lithuania and the NATO combat group “Winter Shield 2021” located in Latvia will be held from November 22 to December 4 at the Adazi training ground near Riga, news agency LETA reports, citing the Latvian Ministry of Defense.

“From November 22 to December 4, the Adazi training ground will host the annual international military exercises” Winter Shi-eld 2021 “(Winter Shield 2021 – ed.)

To train and improve the combat capabilities of the formations, as well as mutual cooperation and cohesion of the armed forces to ensure the protection of the Baltic region.

The military exercises will be attended by soldiers from the mechanized infantry brigade of the ground forces, the Home Guard, the Lithuanian Armed Forces, the NATO enlarged presence combat group in Latvia and soldiers under the command of the US armed forces in Europe.

The press quotes-release of the Ministry of Defense of Latvia LETA “the multinational combat group in Latvia is headed by Canada, it includes more than 1,500 military p-ersonnel from Albania, the Czech Republic, Italy, Icel-and, Canada, Montenegro, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain, who perform their duties in a rotational manner in Latvia.”

MOSCOW, 21 November 2021, (TON): The press service of the fleet said “Russians Servicemen of the Northern Fleet conducted anti-submarine tactical exercises in the Barents Sea, having worked out torpedo firing at an underwater target.”

The message says “submariners of the Northern Fleet have practiced torpedo firing in the Barents Sea. The nuclear submarine missile cruiser of the Northern Fleet, performing planned combat training tasks in the Barents Sea, has worked out the use of torpedo weapons against an underwater target. The anti-submarine tactical exercise was held in a bilateral format. The cruiser was opposed by a multipurpose nuclear submarine. one of the submarine forces of the Northern Fleet.”

According to the press service, the torpedo attack was carried out at a depth of about 100 m. The shooting was carried out with practical ammunition.

WASHINGTON, 21 November 2021, (TON): A group of US senators are opposing the Biden administration’s first major arms sale to Saudi Arabia over Riyadh’s role in the conflict in Yemen, three senators announced.

A joint resolution of disapproval to block a proposed $650 million in US arms sales to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was introduced by Republicans Rand Paul and Mike Lee, as well as Bernie Sanders who caucuses with Democrats.

While many US lawmakers consider Saudi Arabia an important partner in the Middle East, they have criticized the country for its involvement in the war in Yemen, a conflict considered one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.

They have refused to approve many military sales for the kingdom without assurances US equipment would not be used to kill civilians.

Activists have said “Saudi Arabia has lobbied heavily against extending a mandate of United Nation investigators who have documented possible war crimes in Yemen by both the Riyadh-led coalition and the Houthi movement.”

TRIPOLI, 21 November 2021, (TON): Hundreds of Libyans protested in Tripoli Friday against war criminals running in next month s presidential election, after eastern strongman Khalifa Haftar and a son of ousted dictator Moamer Kadhafi announced bids.

Demonstrators stamped on posters of Haftar and Seif al-Islam Kadhafi, and voiced anger over a controversial electoral law criticised for bypassing due process and favouring a bid by Haftar.

One speaker called for “all those who have committed crimes against the Libyan people” to be disqualified from the race.

Another said “the blood of our martyrs wasn t spilt in vain.”

The protests come at the end of a week that saw both Haftar and Kadhafi register to run in the December 24 election, which is part of a United Nations-led process attempting to draw a line under a decade of conflict since the fall and killing of Kadhafi senior in a 2011 revolt.

But the runup to the vote has been marred by bitter divisions over the legal and constitutional framework, and many in western Libya have rejected any run by Haftar, who led a devastating but ultimately unsuccessful campaign to seize the capital before he was pushed back in 2020.

TEHRAN, 21 November 2021, (TON): Iran's Revolutionary Guards said that they had seized a foreign ship in Gulf waters loaded with what they described as smuggled diesel.

Guards commander Ahmad Hajian said “the ship's 11 crew had been detained, but did not give details on their nationality or identify the ship.”

Iran's state broadcaster quoted Hajian said "after inspection, more than 150,000 litres of smuggled diesel were discovered.”

The semi-official Fars news agency, which is close to the Revolutionary Guards, released video footage showing speed-boats intercepting a vessel and masked armed Guards boarding it.

Iran, which has some of the world's cheapest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and the fall of its national currency as it faces U.S. sanctions, has been fighting fuel smuggling by land to neighbouring countries and by sea to Gulf Arab states.

It has frequently seized boats it says are being used for smuggling fuel in the Gulf.

WASHINGTON, 21 November 2021, (TON): A ship carrying two refitted former US Coast Guard patrol boats designed to beef up the Ukrainian Navy transited the Dardanelles strait days after Ukraine said it feared Russia might be preparing an attack on it.

The ship carrying the two Island-class patrol boats departed Baltimore for the Ukrainian port of Odessa on Nov. 8. Ukrainian sailors have already undergone extensive training on the vessels in the United States. Ukraine got two similar vessels in 2019.

The US embassy in Kyiv said “the two new boats are part of a security package to Ukraine worth over $2.5 billion since 2014, the year when Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula and Russian-backed separatists seized a swath of eastern Ukraine.”

The United States, Ukraine and NATO have accused Russia of threatening behaviour towards Kyiv in recent weeks alleging that it has built up its forces in proximity to Ukraine in an unusual way.

Russia said “it has the right to move its troops anywhere it wants on its own territory and is not planning to attack anyone.”

The Kremlin said that NATO would cross a Russian red line if it expanded its military infrastructure in Ukraine, and Moscow has since accused Ukraine and NATO of destabilising behaviour, including in the Black Sea.