CAIRO, 11 March 2022, (TON): Egypt and Sudan have called on Ethiopia to join them in serious mediated negotiations aimed at resolving an impasse over a giant Nile dam scheme.

The two nations want Addis Ababa to engage in tripartite talks on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project as soon as possible.

In a joint statement following a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and his Sudanese counterpart Ali Al-Sadiq, highlighted “the importance of continuing to seek serious negotiations under the auspices of the presidency of the African Union on the renaissance dam, so that this leads to a binding legal agreement that achieves the interests of the three countries.”

Shoukry and Al-Sadiq’s talks were held on the sidelines of the ministerial meeting of the Arab League in Cairo.

During their meeting they discussed ways to further strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries in all fields and coordinate their positions on regional and international issues.

The ministers also agreed on the importance of preserving Sudan’s unity, integrity, and sovereignty over its lands, with an emphasis on supporting the ongoing efforts aimed at achieving sustainable stability in the country.

LONDON, 11 March 2022, (TON): UK Minister Lord Ahmad calls out President Putin’s unprovoked, premeditated and illegal invasion of Ukraine and speaks about the war’s humanitarian impact.

Thank you Mr Chairman. Your Excellencies, I am grateful for the opportunity to speak on behalf of the United Kingdom today.

And in doing so talk about Russia’s flagrant disregard for their commitments to the OSCE and its principles.

The unprovoked, premeditated and illegal invasion of Ukraine is, simply put, a disgrace.

In particular, I would like to focus on the people affected by President Putin’s war. His war of choice.

Mr Chairman, we have been following, all of us, with growing horror, the news from Mariupol. The airstrike by Russia on a maternity hospital was abhorrent. It was reckless.

It was appalling. It underscores the terrible toll this war is exacting on Ukrainian families. While Russia’s representatives spout fiction about threats from Ukraine, it is UNICEF that has reported that at least 37 children have been killed 50 injured.

CAIRO, 11 March 2022, (TON): Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi spoke on the phone with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and discussed the latest developments in the Ukrainian crisis.

According to Bassam Rady, spokesman for the Egyptian presidency “El-Sisi stressed that the necessity of giving priority to the language of dialogue and offered Cairo’s support for all diplomatic efforts to reach a political settlement.”

El-Sisi said “Cairo is following developments with great concern, and attaches high priority to the safety and security of Egyptian citizens in Ukraine”expressing his appreciation for Russian measures to facilitate their evacuation and provide them with safety and security.

RIYADH, 11 March 2022, (TON): The Saudi and French ministers of transport, Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser and Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, respectively, have signed two memorandums of understanding related to the rail, transportation, and innovation sectors.

During a visit to France, Al-Jasser met with senior government officials and heads of specialized transport and logistics companies and highlighted the importance of joint cooperation and the promotion of investment opportunities in the sector.

He said “Saudi Arabia had ambitious plans for the industry as part of a national strategy for transport and logistics.”

WASHINGTON, 11 March 2022, (TON): The White House said that the United States would continue to have diplomatic talks with Iran about a nuclear deal.

White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said “our view is that we are close. We have been close for some time now.”

He said “the end of negotiations is always when the difficult and challenging parts of the conversation typically take place.”

PARIS, 11 March 2022, (TON): Ukrainians arriving in France’s English Channel port city of Calais with hopes of joining family in Britain can request visas at the local prefecture from Friday.

The structure was quickly set up by British authorities following complaints over treatment of stranded refugees.

The prefecture said in a statement “a British consular post was being set up at the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais region in nearby Arras.”

Ukrainians who fled the war with Russia in their homeland, arriving in Calais after long journeys, had previously been told to make their visa requests in Paris or Brussels, a policy French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said last Sunday was a bit inhumane.”

He urged Britain to “stop the technocratic nit-picking.

Several hundred Ukrainians have been turned back at British entry points in Calais in a situation the prefecture had described this week as “unrealistic.”

TOKYO, 11 March 2022, (TON): Japan, Egypt and Jordan held trilateral consultations about the Middle East for the first time via video conference, where they exchanged views on regional affairs and future economic cooperation.

According to the foreign ministry in Tokyo “the meeting between the three countries was agreed to be held during Former Foreign Minister MOTEGI Toshimitsu’s visit to Egypt and Jordan in 2021.”

The delegations agreed to hold the Trilateral Consultations on a periodic basis.

The Japanese delegation was led by Kansuke Nagaoka, director general of the Middle Eastern and African affairs bureau, while the Egyptian delegation was led by ambassador Alaa Moussa, assistant minister for Arab affairs, at the foreign ministry.

TEHRAN, 11 March 2022, (TON): Iran accused the US of working to complicate efforts to restore a 2015 nuclear deal, after new Russian demands linked to its invasion of Ukraine raised concerns of further delays.

It came on the day Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in major state policies, stressed that his country will not give up on elements of national strength, such as nuclear progress and regional influence.

Tehran is locked in negotiations with world powers to revive the nuclear deal that offered it sanctions relief in return for curbs on its atomic program.

Its arch-foe the US, under former President Donald Trump, unilaterally withdrew in 2018 from the accord known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Moscow said that before backing a revived deal, it wants written assurances from Washington that sanctions imposed on it over the Ukraine war will not affect its economic and military cooperation with Tehran.

WARSAW, 11 March 2022, (TON): US Vice President Kamala Harris embraced calls for an international war crimes investigation of Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and the bombing of civilians, including a maternity hospital.

Speaking alongside Polish President Andrzej Duda at a press conference in Warsaw, Harris expressed outrage over the bombing of the maternity hospital and scenes of bloodied pregnant women being evacuated, as well as other attacks on civilians.

She stopped short of directly accusing Russia of having committed war crimes.

Harris said “absolutely there should be an investigation, and we should all be watching.”

Duda, for his part, said “it is obvious to us that in Ukraine Russians are committing war crimes.”

He added that in his view the invasion was “bearing the features of a genocide it aims at eliminating and destroying a nation.”

Harris praised the Polish people for their generosity for taking in nearly 1.5 million refugees since Russia invaded Ukraine last month.

KABUL, 11 March 2022, (TON): A delegation of the Islamic Emirate led by acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has left Kabul for Turkey to attend the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, from March 11-13.

The meeting will focus on tensions in Ukraine, but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the Afghan situation will also be on the agenda of the talks. 

Zia Ahmad Takal, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate said “there will be talks with the international countries about Afghanistan and the acting Foreign Minister, on the sidelines of the meeting, will speak with the representatives of other countries regarding Afghanistan.” 

The Islamic Emirate earlier said that the delegation was invited by the Turkish Foreign Ministry. 

The political analysts believe that the official invitation of the Islamic Emirate to such meetings could pave the way for diplomatic relations between the current Afghan government and the world.