TOKYO, 18 June 2022, (TON): The head of the U.S. Marine Corps said “his forces are committed to defending southwestern Japanese islands as the allies try to bolster their defenses amid growing threats from China and Russia.”

Lt. Gen. Steven Rudder said “at the beginning of talks with Japanese Defense Minister Nibuo Kishi that the U.S. Marine presence is focused on the so-called first island chain in the western Pacific the string of islands stretching from Japan’s East China Sea islands.”

Rudder said “with our forces west of the international dateline, we will continue to live, train, and work in the first island chain primarily with the assistance and support of our Japanese host.”

He said “the United States and Japan are looking to develop capabilities and tactics to ensure readiness in the region.”

LONDON, 18 June 2022, (TON): Amnesty International has criticized the world’s unwillingness to discuss what is occurring in the Palestinian occupied territories.

Reiterating claims from an Amnesty report published in February that said “Israel has engaged in a policy of apartheid against the Palestinian people, Secretary-General Agnes Callamard said there was too much fear to speak about the situation.”

Callamard said at an event held in London this week “this research was four years in the making, it was research on the ground, legal research, and expertly peer reviewed.”

“Territorial fragmentation, segregation and control, dispossession of land and property, and denial of rights these characteristics of apartheid can be found in all areas, showing that the policy of apartheid by Israel is imposed over all Palestinians in the territory it controls.

“But there is too much silence, too much fear to speak up and by stating terms apartheid, crimes against humanity we expose the issue, open the wound and hope it can be fixed.”

WASHINGTON, 18 June 2022, (TON): The US imposed sanctions on Chinese and Emirati front companies and on a network of Iranian firms that help export Iran’s petrochemicals, a step that may raise pressure on Tehran to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

The US Treasury department said it had imposed penalties on two front companies based in Hong Kong, three in Iran, and four in the UAE, as well as on Chinese citizen Jinfeng Gao and Indian national Mohammed Shaheed Ruknooddin Bhore.

Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson said in a statement “the United States is pursuing the path of meaningful diplomacy to achieve a mutual return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.”

Under the pact, Iran limited its nuclear program to make it harder for Tehran to obtain a nuclear weapon in exchange for relief from US, European Union and United Nations sanctions that had choked Iran’s oil-dependent economy.

LONDON, 18 June 2022, (TON): State news agency reported “the UAE has sent a plane carrying 27 tons of food and medical supplies to support Ukrainian refugees in Poland.”

It added “the move was part of continuous relief support from the UAE to contribute to alleviating the humanitarian repercussions faced by displaced Ukrainians and refugees.”

Salem Ahmed Al-Kaabi, the UAE ambassador to Ukraine, affirmed his country’s keenness to help provide humanitarian relief and the necessary support and assistance to Ukrainian refugees, within the framework of the Emirate’s approach to help alleviate suffering around world.

The UAE has sent 6 planes to Poland and Moldova, carrying 156 tons of food and medical aid and ambulances.

KYIV, 18 June 2022, (TON): British Prime Minister Boris Johnson offered to launch a military training program for Ukrainian forces as he met President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on his second trip to the Ukrainian capital since Russia’s invasion.

Johnson, who survived a no confidence vote earlier this month, was greeted by Zelensky as a great friend and posted a picture of himself with the Ukrainian president, with the words Mr President, Volodymyr, It is good to be in Kyiv again.

His office said “Johnson offered to launch a major training operation for Ukrainian forces, with the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days at the meeting.”

Johnson said “my visit in the depths of this war, is to send a clear and simple message to the Ukrainian people, the UK is with you, and we will be with you until you ultimately prevail.”

TEL AVIV, 18 June 2022, (TON): Israel has praised Argentina for holding a Venezuelan plane that included Iranian crew, saying the flight shows Tehran is trying to expand its influence in South America.

Washington also made clear it is keeping close tabs on the investigation into the Boeing 747, which was loaded with automotive parts and raised questions because its 19 crew members is an unusually large number for a cargo plane.

In a statement, the Israeli Embassy commended the fast action by Argentine authorities who identified in real time the potential threat posed by the aircraft, which has been grounded at Argentina’s main airport outside Buenos Aires since June 6.

The embassy said “Israel is particularly worried about Iranian airlines that are dedicated to arms trafficking and the transfer of people and equipment for the Quds Force, which are under sanctions by the United States for being involved in terrorist activities.”

KYIV, 18 June 2022, (TON): The UN said “the humanitarian situation in eastern Ukraine is extremely alarming and continues to deteriorate, four months into the Russian invasion.”

The UN’s humanitarian agency, OCHA, said in a statement “nearly four months since the start of the war, the humanitarian situation across Ukraine particularly in the eastern Donbas is extremely alarming and continues to deteriorate rapidly.”

It said the situation is particularly worrying in and around Severodonetsk the eastern Ukrainian city where bloody battles have raged for weeks.

Hundreds of civilians are believed to be trapped in the city, with some sheltering in the local chemical plant.

MOSCOW, 18 June 2022, (TON): A Moscow court has sentenced a former US diplomat to 14 years in prison for large-scale cannabis smuggling, the latest American to be caught up in Russia’s legal system.

Russia and the United States regularly clash over the detention of each other’s citizens and sometimes exchange them in scenes reminiscent of the Cold War.

The sentence comes as relations between Moscow and the West, particularly Washington, are tense after Moscow began its military operation in pro-Western Ukraine.

The Khimki court said in a statement “the American citizen (Marc) Fogel has been found guilty.”

It said Fogel committed “large-scale drugs smuggling by crossing the Russian border, as well as large-scale illegal storage of drugs without a commercial purpose.”

Russian authorities in January said Fogel had been arrested by customs officers after arriving from New York with his wife at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow.

RIYADH, 18 June 2022, (TON): Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman met with the Chadian Minister of Defense General Daoud Yahya Ibrahim.

During the meeting “they reviewed aspects of relations between their two countries and prospects for cooperation in the defense field, in addition to a number of issues of common interest.”

The meeting was attended by the Chief of the General Staff, Gen. Fayyad Al-Ruwaili.

By Nasriya Naffin (TON Sri Lanka)

Bangladesh has shown remarkable progress in global trade as a leading supplier in the recent past with a rapidly growing economy. Bangladesh has shown an average economic growth rate of about 6.5 per cent over the last decade and has managed to maintain a growth rate of five per cent even during the COVID 19 pandemic. The country is expecting to cancel its name from the United Nations as least‑developed country (LDC) list in 2024.

However, if Bangladesh comes out of the LDC category the country will also lose many of its current duty‑free export privileges. To overcome these losses Bangladesh has started working hard to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). ASEAN is an organization of 11 South East Asian countries. Bangladesh has been a member of the ASEAN Regional Forum since 2006. The country has formally initiated negotiations with ASEAN to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) hoping for greater market access.

Due to its large market volume and most of the raw materials for Bangladesh's garment and other industries has been imported from these South East Asian countries, FTA with ASEAN going to be a plus for the country's economy.  

The ministry of commerce, Bangladesh is planning to send a special representative to the ASEAN headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia to have a discussion in this regard. The Bangladesh ambassador to Indonesia will also join the meeting. The Bangladesh officials will highlight the prospects of having free trade agreements with them and the advantages of investing in their country.  

Bangladesh is hoping that its exports will enjoy the duty-free quota-free (DFQF) market access in some developed nations till 2029 even if they come out of the LDC category.

As of now, Bangladesh is enjoying zero-duty benefits, preferential trade benefits and regional trade benefits on exports to 38 countries, including 28 in the EU. This is going to be a good opportunity for the ASEAN nations to work hand in hand with Bangladesh so that they too can enjoy the benefits from DFQF market access. The country is also benefiting from duty-free access to the US for 97 per cent of its products excluding garments. 

Bangladesh also believes that the trade volume between them and ASEAN may multiply if a joint feasibility study is conducted to evaluate the static and dynamic effects of FTA. Data collected in 2020 reveals that Bangladesh has imported goods from 10 ASEAN countries namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam for nearly 7 billion USD.

However, the exports from Bangladesh to the Association of South East Asian Nations remains still less than USD 1 billion per annum. The country can gain many advantages from signing an FTA with ASEAN rather than signing individual bilateral agreements with each ASEAN member. Moreover, Bangladesh has also focused on the newly industrialized south East Asian countries with a vast trade potential that are close to them and are also members of ASEAN. 

According to a study titled Bangladesh: A story of a Phoenix, in 2030, the ASEAN region is going to be the fourth-largest economy in the world.   The region’s total expenditure on clothing and footwear totaled USD 51.2 billion in 2017. Its digital economy generates USD 150 billion in revenue every year and will add an estimated USD 1 trillion to the regional GDP in the next 10 years. 

ASEAN countries hold 200 million digital consumers and 230 million online customers at present and these numbers are expected to expand by 7.3 percent annually on an average.  

At present Bangladesh has truly little foreign direct investments (FDI) compared to some of its rivals like Vietnam. FDI’s are a vital source of investment for developing countries. Therefore, it is essential for the country to sign an FTA with ASEAN. By signing an FTA with ASEAN, not only the trade and export of the country will get a boom but it will help to brand Bangladesh.

Bangladesh needs several investments as infrastructure development and if this investment can come through ASEAN the country can develop it ports, roads, and airports. 

Owing to the fact that Bangladesh has a rapidly growing massive population who belong to the middle-class makes it a great market place to ASEAN countries which presents promising benefits to ASEAN countries. However, the trade officials think all may not go smoothly for Bangladesh by getting into an FTA. According to them, the huge tariff gap between ASEAN member countries and Bangladesh can become a big loophole. The economists believe the country should also widen the range of exports apart from garments after exiting from the poor-country club to enjoy the benefits from free trade pacts. At present, Bangladesh does not have any FTAs even with all the efforts the government has taken to sign such a deal.