KABUL, 29 January 2022, (TON): Qatar, Turkiye, and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) agreed on “several key issues” to operate the airport in the Afghan capital Kabul.

A Qatari Foreign Ministry statement said “the delegations of the State of Qatar, the Republic of Turkey and the Afghan caretaker government concluded in Doha a tripartite meeting on the management and operation of Kabul International Airport.”

The ministry added “they agreed on several key issues on how to manage and operate the airport.”

The ministry said that the meeting in Doha came as a continuation of previous talks, the latest round of which took place in Kabul last week. The final round of negotiations will take place next week, it added.

Flights were suspended at Afghanistan’s main international airport in Kabul after the IEA took over power last August and the US troops destroyed equipment and a radar system at the facility before leaving the country.

NEW DELHI, 29 January 2022, (TON): The Indian government denied visas to 170 Pakistani tourists who completed their preparations for a tour to the neighbouring country starting from January 29.

According to Faith Tourism Coordinator MNA Dr Ramesh Kumar, the Indian government denied the visas on the pretext of Covid-19 restrictions.

He said that 170 tourists had registered for the tour and the group wanted to visit Ajmer Sharif, New Delhi, Mith, Jaipur and other areas of India.

The visit was supposed to conclude on February 1 but it has been deferred after the Indian government's refusal.

Diplomatic sources told media that there is no agreement on visit visas between Pakistan and India.

They further said that India will not recognise the efforts of any individual for faith tourism between the two countries.

He added that both nations would have to negotiate to resolve the issue.

NEW DELHI, 29 January 2022, (TON): The United States has said “Russia selling S-400 missile defense system to India "shines a spotlight on the destabilising role" that Moscow is playing in the region and potentially beyond as well.”

The US continues to have its concerns over India purchasing the multi-billion missile defense system from Russia. India has asserted that its decisions are based on its national interest to protect its national security.

State Department Spokesperson Ned Price told reporters "well in many ways, this doesn't change the concerns that we have with the S-400 system. I think it shines a spotlight on the destabilising role that Russia is playing not only in the region but potentially beyond as well.”

He said "when it comes to CAATSA sanctions, you've heard me say before, we haven't made a determination with regard to this transaction, but it's something we continue to discuss with the government of India given the risk of sanctions for this particular transaction under CAATSA.”

Price was responding to a question on implications of the Russian S-400 system to India on its bilateral ties with New Delhi given the unprecedented tension it is having with Moscow on what it calls an imminent Ukrainian invasion.

DHAKA, 29 January 2022, (TON): Japan will contribute a total of $2 million in emergency grant aid for supporting the displaced Rohingya Muslims living in Bhasan Char.

According to the Embassy of Japan in Dhaka “this contribution includes $1 million to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and $1 million to World Food Programme (WFP).”

The embassy said in a press release “this support will allow implementing humanitarian assistance activities for the displaced Rohingyas, who are in need of urgent assistance in Bhasan Char in areas such as food and health.”

Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Ito Naoki said “resolving Rohingya issues is of utmost importance for the peace and stability of the region. I appreciate the Bangladesh government’s efforts to protect the Rohingya people and the dedicated work of the international organizations.”

The embassy said “Japan supports the steady and smooth operations of the international organizations under the MoU signed between the Bangladesh government and the United Nations in October 2021, which is a basic framework of assistance for Bhasan Char.”

Ambassador Naoki said "Japan expects the UN will respond to prevailing and increasing humanitarian and protection needs on the island, and strongly hopes that this assistance will contribute to better service delivery and improve living conditions of people living on Bhasan Char.”

DHAKA, 29 January 2022, (TON):  Bangladesh has urged Malaysia to consider recruiting IT-trained manpower from Bangladesh those could contribute more to the economic growth and activities in Malaysia.

A press release said “the urge was made during a telephone conversation between Bangladesh foreign minister Dr AK Abdul Momen and his Malaysian counterpart Saifuddin Abdullah.”

During the talk, Dr Momen expressed Bangladesh Government's readiness to contribute to the economic growth and activities in Malaysia by sending more workforces through safe and regular migration channel.

He lauded the signing of the MoU on recruitment of Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia and appreciated Malaysian Government's decision on opening up the recruitment opportunities for Bangladeshi workers in all sectors of the economy.

The Malaysian foreign minister stressed on expanding cooperation in the arena of digital economy by forging closer cooperation between the ICT authorities of the two countries.

Lauding the Bangladesh-Malaysia bilateral relations, Saifuddin Abdullah stressed on elevating the relationship to a 'strategic level'.

LONDON, 28 January 2022, (TON): With the continuing Russian threat to the people and sovereignty of Ukraine, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace held talks with his counterparts in the Netherlands and Germany this week, as well as with the NATO Secretary General, to discuss a co-ordinated NATO response.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said “Germany and the Netherlands are great friends of the United Kingdom.”

From my meetings with Ministers Ollongren and Lambrecht, and my discussions with Secretary Stoltenberg, I have no doubt that NATO is united in its determination to uphold European Security and that any further Russian invasion of Ukraine would be a strategic mistake met by swift and severe consequences.

After holding discussions with the Dutch Minister of Defence Kajsa Ollongren in the Hague, the Secretary of State travelled on to Brussels for talks with the Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Tod D. Wolters.

He then travelled to Berlin for his first visit since the formation of the new German government and the appointment of the new German defence minister, Christine Lambrecht.

WASHINGTON, 28 January 2022, (TON): The US envoy to Yemen Tim Lenderking held talks with senior UK and Gulf officials in London, as part of his first tour of 2022 to reinvigorate peace efforts in coordination with the UN.

During talks with the British Minister for Middle East and North Africa James Cleverly, the two sides stressed they are “committed to working together to advance a durable resolution to the Yemen conflict, help stabilize the economy, and support urgent steps to ease the humanitarian crisis.”

The US envoy also took part in a UK-hosted Quint meeting to discuss the situation in Yemen with senior representatives from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman and Britain, along with UN special envoy Hans Grundberg.

A State Department spokesperson told median “Lenderking was in Riyadh, the UAE and Oman last week, where he focused on the urgent need for de-escalation and the protection of all civilians, bringing the parties together to support a UN-led inclusive peace process, and doing more to address economic stability, humanitarian assistance access and fuel shortages.”

His visit comes as the Houthi militia have stepped up cross-border attacks against populated areas in Saudi Arabia and have attempted to strike the UAE capital twice in the last two weeks.

BRUSSELS, 28 January 2022, (TON): High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, Josep Borrell, will visit Kenya from 28-29 January and Mozambique from 30-31 January.

In Kenya, the High Representative will have several bilateral meetings and kick off the EU-Kenya Strategic Dialogue with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Raychelle Omamo, and other Kenyan ministers.

The Strategic Dialogue will strengthen the EU’s and Kenya’s regional and multilateral cooperation and focuses on the areas of peace, security and stability; democracy, governance and human rights, including gender equality; trade and investment; social development; climate change and the green transition; and the digital agenda.

The EU-Kenya Strategic Dialogue was agreed by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and President Uhuru Kenyatta, in June 2021, to take the bilateral relationship to a new level.

High Representative Borrell will also launch the Kenya-European Union Cooperation Programme for the period 2021-2027, with an amount of €324 million for the first four years, and targeting above all environmental sustainability and resilience; human development and digital inclusion; and peace and stability, with a special focus on women and youth.

In addition, he will also visit some EU supported projects and initiatives in Kenya that work on justice reform for the most vulnerable, green job creation and economic growth, and on wildlife and preservation of natural resources.

MOSCOW, 28 January 2022, (TON): Russian media reported that Russia said that a nuclear missile crisis between Moscow and Washington was unavoidable without measures to ensure restraint and predictability.

Vladimir Ermakov, a senior Russian foreign ministry official, said “Moscow thought the United States was preparing to deploy short and intermediate range missiles to Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.”

SANAA, 28 January 2022, (TON): Yemeni government officials and human rights activists have condemned a Houthi missile attack in the central city of Marib that killed five civilians and wounded 23 others, some of them children.

Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Muammar Al-Eryani said a missile fired by the Iran- backed militia hit the airport neighborhood.

He called on the world to punish the Houthis for their crimes against civilians.

He said on Twitter “Houthi terrorist militia’s deliberate targeting of residential areas and civilians in Marib is a full-fledged war crime.”

He added that the “cowardly act of revenge” reflected the losses suffered by the Houthis at the hands of the “heroes of the army, resistance and Giants Brigades on various war fronts.”

The official of local news agency reported that many people were critically wounded in the attack and had been taken to two government-run hospitals in Marib.

The American Center for Justice said in a statement that condemns in the strongest terms the Houthi group’s continued targeting of civilians and residential neighborhoods in the city of Marib using balistic missiles in a systematic manner.