MEXICO, 12 February 2022, (TON): A journalist was shot dead in Mexico, an official said, the fifth such killing this year in a country notoriously dangerous for reporters.

Heber Lopez Vazquez, who ran a news website called Noticias Web in the southern state of Oaxaca, was shot in his car, state prosecutor Arturo Calvo told media.

Calvo said “two suspects were arrested as they tried to flee the scene of the crime and their guns were recovered.”

He added “it was not known who ordered the killing.”

Lopez’s death brings the number of journalists killed in Mexico this year to five, according to an AFP tally based on data from press freedom advocacy organization Reporters Without Borders.

Mexico is considered one of the world’s most dangerous countries for journalists.

At least seven were murdered last year, according to RSF, although it is not known whether in all of those cases the killing was linked to their work.

Mexican authorities said Wednesday that three men had been arrested over the murder of journalist Lourdes Maldonado, whose killing last month in Tijuana sparked international condemnation and calls for the government to do more to protect media workers.

JAKARTA, 12 February 2022, (TON): Indonesia ordered 42 Rafale fighter jets from France and may acquire two French submarines, while the United States approved Jakarta’s potential purchase of 36 F-15s in the face of growing tensions in the Asia-Pacific.

Indonesia’s first order for French warplanes comes as Jakarta replaces an ageing fleet consisting mainly of American F-16s and Russian Sukhois, as concerns grow about rising US-China tensions in Asia.

The Rafale agreement was announced as Indonesian Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto met his French counterpart Florence Parly in Jakarta.

Subianto confirmed a deal had been struck for the purchase of the jets, with a contract signed relating to the first six.

France’s defence ministry said the contract for the 42 aircraft and their weapons was worth $8.1 billion (7.1 billion euros).

Spokesman Herve Grandjean said the two countries also signed a letter of intent for research and development with a view to Indonesia ordering two Scorpene submarines.

Meanwhile, the US State Department said it had approved the potential F-15s sale along with other assorted military equipment for an estimated $14 billion.

TORONTO, 12 February 2022, (TON): The Biden administration urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government to use its federal powers to end the truck blockade by Canadians protesting the country’s pandemic restrictions, as the bumper-to-bumper demonstration forced auto plants on both sides of the border to shut down or scale back production.

For the fourth straight day, scores of truckers taking part in what they dubbed the Freedom Convoy blocked the Ambassador Bridge connecting Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit, disrupting the flow of auto parts and other products between the two countries.

The White House said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg spoke with their Canadian counterparts and urged them to help resolve the standoff.

Federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said Royal Canadian Mounted Police reinforcements are being sent to Windsor, Ottawa and Coutts, Alberta where another border blockade is happening.

Trudeau met virtually with leaders of Canada’s opposition late Thursday and said he spoke with Windsor’s mayor. Trudeau’s office said there is a willingness to “respond with whatever it takes” to end the blockades.

HELSINKI, 12 February 2022, (TON): Finland has sealed a deal to shop for dozens of F-35 stealth warplanes from the US, in an indication of its navy’s shut ties with NATO at a time of prime rigidity between the West and Russia in Europe.

The northern Eu country, which borders Russia and used to be traditionally impartial right through the Chilly Warfare signed the $9.4 billion settlement on Friday to shop for 64 radar-evading Lockheed Martin (LMT.N) jets.

Whilst the planes is not going to input carrier for a number of years, non-NATO Finland has prior to now mentioned 2027, the settlement displays the rustic’s deepening cooperation with the Western navy alliance and the way its defence forces materiel coverage is in line with all new apparatus being NATO-compatible.

Finland’s govt mentioned the verdict to shop for the U.S. jets, introduced in December, used to be a part of long-term plans to spice up the rustic’s defences, now not a reaction to the present disagreement between the West and Russia over Ukraine.

Finland’s ambassador to the US mentioned Mikko Hautala “it is a part of our long-term making plans and has not anything to do with the present scenario as such.”

TUNIS, 12 February 2022, (TON): The president of Tunisia has expressed his thanks to Saudi Arabia for its support through the Saudi Fund for Development.

President Kais Saied was speaking during a meeting with the CEO of the fund, Sultan bin Abdulrahman Al-Murshed, at Carthage Palace in Tunis.

Saied praised the work of the fund and expressed his thanks to King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Dr. Abdulaziz bin Ali Al-Saqr, the Saudi ambassador to Tunisia, was also at the meeting, which was held to discuss the development of closer Saudi-Tunisian ties, particularly with regard to projects under the SFD’s supervision.

Al-Saqr noted the good relationship between the two countries and thanked Saied for receiving the SFD delegation.

The ambassador was also present at a meeting between Tunisian Prime Minister Najla Bouden and Al-Murshed at government headquarters in Tunis.

The two sides looked at ways to strengthen economic partnerships, and discussed a number of current and future projects developed through the SFD.

BRUSSLES, 12 February 2022, (TON): A spokesman said “the European Union has told non-essential staff from its diplomatic mission in Ukraine that they should leave the country, but has not issued an evacuation order.”

The European decision comes after the United States and Britain urged their nationals to leave Ukraine, after the White House warned that it believes Russian forces are in a position to invade within days.

Peter Stano said “we continue to assess the situation as it develops in line with the duty of care we have toward our staff and in close consultation and coordination with the EU member states.”

“We are not evacuating. For the time being, the non-essential staff have been given the opportunity to telework from outside the country.”

The White House said US citizens should leave Ukraine ‘in the next 24 to 48 hours’.

The European Union has had a delegation in Kyiv since 1993, to promote ties between the bloc and Ukraine. The current EU ambassador is Estonian diplomat Matti Maasikas.

BRUSSLES, 12 February 2022, (TON): A spokesman said “the European Union has told non-essential staff from its diplomatic mission in Ukraine that they should leave the country, but has not issued an evacuation order.”

The European decision comes after the United States and Britain urged their nationals to leave Ukraine, after the White House warned that it believes Russian forces are in a position to invade within days.

Peter Stano said “we continue to assess the situation as it develops in line with the duty of care we have toward our staff and in close consultation and coordination with the EU member states.”

“We are not evacuating. For the time being, the non-essential staff have been given the opportunity to telework from outside the country.”

The White House said US citizens should leave Ukraine ‘in the next 24 to 48 hours’.

The European Union has had a delegation in Kyiv since 1993, to promote ties between the bloc and Ukraine. The current EU ambassador is Estonian diplomat Matti Maasikas.

GENEVA, 12 February 2022, (TON): Two independent UN human rights experts called on Sweden’s government not to issue a license to industrial backers of a planned iron-ore mine that environmentalists say would generate large amounts of toxic waste and other pollution.

The proposed project would involve British company Beowulf Mining and their Swedish subsidiary Jokkmokk Iron Mines AB. Teen environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who is Swedish, joined a protest against the planned mine over the weekend.

The experts say plans for the mine in the Gallok region have gone forward without obtaining the “free, prior and informed consent” of the indigenous Sami people, whose lives and livelihoods could face risks from the project. They said migration of reindeer, who are herded by the Sami, could be endangered.

They said in a statement “there has been insufficient assessment and recognition of the environmental damage the mine will cause.”

They pointing to a Swedish law passed on Jan. 27 but not yet in force that will require authorities to consult with the Sami before taking actions that could affect them.

WASHINGTON, 12 February 2022, (TON): The United States vowed “to commit more diplomatic and security resources to the Indo-Pacific to push back against what its sees as China’s bid to create a regional sphere of influence and become the world’s most influential power.”

In a 12-page strategy overview, the Biden administration said it would focus on every corner of the region from South Asia to the Pacific Islands to strengthen its long-term position and commitment.

It said referring to the People’s Republic of China “the PRC is combining its economic, diplomatic, military, and technological might as it pursues a sphere of influence in the Indo-Pacific and seeks to become the world’s most influential power.”

“Our collective efforts over the next decade will determine whether the PRC succeeds in transforming the rules and norms that have benefited the Indo-Pacific and the world.”

Release of the document was timed to coincide with a visit to the Indo-Pacific by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken intended to emphasize the priority the United States attaches to the region, even as Washington grapples with a dangerous standoff with Moscow, which has massed some 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s border, stoking Western fears of an invasion.

It also comes after China and Russia declared last week a “no limits” strategic partnership, their most detailed and assertive statement to work together and against the United States to build a new international order based on their own interpretations of human rights and democracy.

KABUL, 12 February 2022, (TON): The White House said “the US government is seeking to free up half of $7 billion in frozen Afghan central bank assets on its soil to help the Afghan people, pending a judicial decision, while holding the rest to satisfy lawsuits against the Taliban from victims of terrorism.”

President Joe Biden signed an executive order declaring a national emergency to deal with the threat of a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan, setting the wheels in motion for a complex resolution of competing interests in the Afghan assets.

The move comes hours before the US Justice Department is due to present a plan to a federal judge on what to do with the frozen funds amid urgent calls from US lawmakers and the UN for them to be used to address the dire economic crisis that has worsened since the Taliban's takeover in August.

Senior administration officials said they would work to ensure access to $3.5bn of the assets which stem mainly from aid provided to Afghanistan over the past two decades to benefit the Afghan people.

They said “Washington would set up a third-party trust in coming months to administer the funds but details were still being worked out on how that entity would be structured and how the funds could be used.”