MOSCOW, 17 July 2022, (TON): Russia said on Saturday its forces would step up military operations in Ukraine in all operational areas as Moscow's rockets and missiles pounded cities in strikes that Kyiv says have killed dozens in recent days.

Regional governor Oleh Synehubov said “rockets hit the northeastern town of Chuhuiv in Kharkiv region overnight, killing three people including a 70-year-old woman and wounding three others.”

The region's governor Valentyn Reznichenko said “to the south, more than 50 Russian Grad rockets pounded the city of Nikopol, on the Dnipro River, killing two people who were found in the rubble.”

CAIRO, 17 July 2022, (TON): Egypt’s Planning and Economic Development Minister Hala Al-Saeed met Bahrain’s Minister of Sustainable Development Nour bint Ali Al-Khulaif at the UN’s headquarters in New York, where they discussed ways to cooperate.

Al-Saeed is representing Egypt at the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development 2022, which is being held under the theme of “Building Back After the Pandemic; Work, Health, and Well-being.”

She praised Egyptian-Bahraini relations at the beginning of their meeting, saying they were characterized by their growth, especially in light of the constant interest in these relations by the two countries’ political leadership.

She referred to the ministry’s role and the most important matters it undertook, pointing to Egypt's Vision 2030 which was launched in 2016 in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.

LONDON, 17 July 2022, (TON): UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will attempt to expand Britain’s Rwanda migration scheme to include Turkey if she wins the Conservative Party leadership battle to become prime minister.

In a bid to build support from MPs, Truss said that she would approach Turkey which houses almost four million migrants to join the controversial scheme.

The Rwanda program enables the deportation of illegal migrants and asylum seekers to Rwanda for processing and resettlement. The scheme was launched to help combat a surge in migrant channel crossings from France.

Conservative MP Christopher Chope said that Truss had told him that she intended to seek similar deals with other countries, including Turkey and Spain.

But the Truss campaign subsequently excluded the latter country from her plans.

ATHENS, 17 July 2022, (TON): Authorities said “an Antonov cargo plane operated by a Ukrainian airline crashed Saturday near the city of Kavala in northern Greece.”

Local residents reported seeing a fireball and hearing explosions for two hours after the crash.

Greek Civil Aviation authorities said the flight was heading from Serbia to Jordan. The An-12, a Soviet-built turboprop aircraft, was operated by cargo carrier Meridian.

Greek media reported there were eight people on the plane and that it was carrying 12 tons of “dangerous materials,” mostly explosives.

But local officials said they had no specific information on the cargo and provided varying numbers of people on board.

JEDDAH, 17 July 2022, (TON): The one-day Jeddah Security and Development Summit, hosted by Saudi Arabia, brought leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council member countries, in addition to Jordan, Egypt and Iraq, together with US President Joe Biden.

In a joint statement at the end of the event, the leaders affirmed their common vision for a region where peace and prosperity prevail.

They renewed their call for Iran to fully cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency and with regional countries to keep the Gulf free of weapons of mass destruction.

On regional affairs, the leaders affirmed their common vision for a region where peace and prosperity prevail, noting that this requires taking all necessary measures to jointly confront the challenges the region faces, and requires adherence to the rules of good neighborliness, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.

By Nasriya Naffin, TON Sri Lanka

Germany intends to continue bilateral development cooperation with Nepal beyond 2023 announces the German embassy in Kathmandu. German Ambassador Dr. Thomas Prinz recently met Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to hand over a letter from Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz to express their interest in continuing their support to Nepal’s development efforts in some of the key areas such as, Sustainable Economic Development, Climate and Energy, and Health and Social Protection.

At the event, German Ambassador Dr. Thomas Prinz said: “I am extremely happy that the German Government has decided to continue bilateral development cooperation with Nepal. It gives us the chance to jointly tackle important challenges like climate change.”

It was said that the representatives of Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development BMZ will be paying an official visit to have a government to government dialogue before the end of the year.

Nepal and the Federal Republic of Germany established their diplomatic relationship for the first time in 1958. Ever Since bilateral relationship between Nepal and Germany have been growing on the foothold of mutual understanding, friendship and cooperation. They also have well established residential Republic  Embassies in each other’s capital cities. The  Federal  of  Germany  founded its  Embassy  in 1963 while Nepal founded its Embassy in 1965. Germany and Nepal celebrated their 60^th anniversary in 2018 with various programs organized across both countries to mark the establishment of diplomatic relations between them. Germany and Nepal have had long-standing bilateral collaborations for over 60 years. German Development Cooperation has been of immense support to Nepal in achieving Sustainable Development Goals.

It is important to have a look at the factors that have helped two nations to remain in a long standing relationship that has benefitted both nations to flourish.

 Diplomatic visits

Paying frequent diplomatic visits has contributed to strengthen close and cordial bilateral relations between both the countries. Prominent visits have become more frequent after the restoration of democracy in 2006.

 Developmental efforts

Germany plays a vital role in Nepal’s development efforts as a significant donor. Development cooperation between Germany and Nepal commenced in 1961. Germany began by providing technical assistance to start a Technical Training Institute at Thapathali. Germany also invested in the Middle Marsyangdi Hydroelectric Project.

Discussions on Bilateral Development Cooperation between both countries were held recently in 2018 in Berlin. The major areas of development with the cooperation of Germany include Energy, transmission lines and infrastructure development. After the pandemic Germany has also decided to assist the Government of Nepal with Technical support to meet the challenges of COVID-19.

Academic and cultural collaborations

Nepal and Germany signed a cultural agreement in 1992 in order to restore cultural sites. The projects in Nepal, focused on the cities of Patan and Bhaktapur, and the research work of German archaeologists have been of immense help in this area. Manuscripts for the project of the University of Hamburg to Catalogue Nepali (Tibetan and Newari) also came to an end in 2002. Heidelberg University has its own office in the country which offers long-term training programs in Germany that contributes to the development of human resources in Nepal. Goethe Centre in Nepal offers German language classes for those who are interested in learning the language and German has also been taught at Tribhuvan University over many years.

Disaster relief

To overcome the aftermath of the earthquakes in 2015, the Federal Foreign Office of Germany offered an immediate relief equivalent to EUR 3.5 Million through several channels, especially through the INGOs. The Government of Germany promised to support reconstruction works worth EUR 30 million to be spent under the declared priority sector such as health. An estimate of around EUR 120 million was brought in by the NGOs and the private sectors to support the affected people.

Trade Collaborations

Nepal’s major export trading products to Germany are carpets and textiles. Germany’s key export trading products to Nepal are machinery and industrial products.  Since October 1986 an investment protection agreement has been in place. The Nepal-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NGCCI) founded in 1990, located in Kathmandu promotes bilateral trade relations. Besides carpets, Nepal also exports handicraft, silver jewellery, garments, leather, wooden and bamboo goods, lentils, tea, essential oils from herb and aromatic plants to Germany. Nepal mainly imports industrial raw materials, chemicals, machinery equipment and parts, electric and electronic goods, vehicles etc.

Other collaborations

Germany has expressed its interest in collaborating with Nepal in security printing and management of Gautam Buddha International Airport.

Taking a look at the kind of relationship and the type of work Nepal and Germany have done together as two nations have mutually helped people in both countries without a doubt and it is commendable indeed. Nepal and Germany have set good examples on building and maintaining bilateral relations to the world.

KABUL, 17 July 2022, (TON): Speaking to a gathering in the southern province of Khost, the acting minister of interior, Sirajuddin Haqqani, called on the US to free up the $7 billion in frozen Afghan central bank assets, calling the ban an unjust decision.

Haqqani said “the formation of an inclusive government will come into effect itself whenever the western ideology is removed from Afghanistan.”

Haqqani said “did they achieve anything over the past 20 years? Now, they have frozen the Afghans’ assets and have taken revenge on a certain number of people. You fought against them for 20 years.”

Haqqani said “Afghanistan should not wait for recognition and that essential steps needed to be taken.”

DHAKA, 17 July 2022, (TON): The World Bank has approved a $500 million credit to help Bangladesh improve disaster preparedness against inland flooding in 14 flood-prone districts benefiting over 1.25 million people.

The Resilient Infrastructure for Adaptation and Vulnerability Reduction project will help Bangladesh reduce vulnerability to riverine and flash floods by constructing over 500 multipurpose flood shelters, access roads, and climate-resilient community infrastructure.

In normal times, the flood shelters will operate as primary schools and they will be equipped with solar energy systems, water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities, that cater to the needs of women and vulnerable populations.

The project will also help strengthen the capacity of communities and government agencies to prepare and respond to floods and undertake behavioral change interventions.

DHAKA, 17 July 2022, (TON): The European Union ambassador and head of delegation to Bangladesh, Charles Whitely, said “the delegation was currently trying to develop political engagement with Bangladesh.”

In a Meet the Ambassador, Charles Whitely also said the EU also interested in partnering with Bangladesh in terms of security cooperation, maritime issues, energy, and climate change.

The Meet the Ambassador was hosted in a city hotel by the Centre for Governance Studies in collaboration with Friedrich-Ebert- Stiftung in Bangladesh, according to a press release by the CGS.

Charles Whitely was the key speaker and discussed various bilateral, regional and international issues.

DHAKA, 17 July 2022, (TON): Ambassador Egypt to Bangladesh Haytham Ghobashy paid a courtesy call on BGMEA President Faruque Hassan at the latter’s office in Gulshan, Dhaka.

According to a press release “BGMEA Directors Asif Ashraf, Barrister Vidiya Amrit Khan, former BGMEA Director Imrul Anwar Liton and Priti Ali of the Egypt Embassy were also present on the occasion.”

They had discussions about possible areas of expanding trade between Bangladesh and Egypt and how both countries can collaborate in a meaningful way to boost bilateral trade.