BRUSSELS, 22 December, 2020, (TON): The European Union rejected the U.K.’s latest concessions on fishing, two officials said, dealing a setback to efforts to secure a post-Brexit trade deal. Bloomberg reported.

On Monday, the U.K. made an offer that would see value of the fish the EU catches in British waters shrink by 30%, according to people familiar with the discussions. Last week, the U.K. insisted the EU accept a 60% cut, but the bloc has refused to accept a reduction of more than 25%.

With only nine days left before the U.K. leaves the bloc’s single market and customs union with or without an agreement, there are few signs a deal is within reach.

The U.K. is also still opposed to the EU’s demand that the bloc should be able to impose retaliatory tariffs, particularly on energy, if Britain rows back on any fisheries deal, a concept known as cross-retaliation. The U.K. has said it is prepared to accept penalty tariffs on fish -- but not in other areas.

The European Commission is consulting member states on the British offer, and Michel Barnier, the bloc’s chief negotiator, is scheduled to brief their 27 ambassadors at about 4 p.m. in Brussels on Tuesday. It’s possible a compromise can still be reached, officials added.

Fishing has been one of the key sticking points in talks over a future UK and EU trade deal. The issue is highly charged for both Britain and for EU members with northern fishing fleets, such as France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark. EU fishermen fear that losing any access to the rich UK fishing waters will threaten their livelihoods.

SEOUL, 22 December, 2020, (TON): South Korea said on Tuesday, December 22, it had scrambled fighter jets in response to an intrusion into South Korea's air defence identification zone by 19 Russian and Chinese military aircraft.

According to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) four Chinese warplanes entered the Korea Air Defence Identification Zone (KADIZ) followed by 15 Russian aircraft.

The South Korean military dispatched air force fighters to take tactical measures.

The South Korean military said in a statement the Chinese military had informed South Korea that its planes were carrying out routine training before the Chinese aircraft entered the KADIZ.

"This incident seems to be a joint military drill between China and Russia but it requires a further analysis," the JCS said in a statement.

In July last year, South Korean warplanes fired hundreds of warning shots towards Russian military aircraft on a joint air patrol with China, when they entered South Korean airspace.

South Korea and Japan, which both scrambled jets to intercept the patrol at the time, accused Russia and China of violating their airspace. Russia and China denied it.

Russia has already shown its ability to strike a balance between China and South Korea during the THAAD dispute. But circumstances have changed as China–Russia defence cooperation has increased while the US regional security architecture is facing a major hurdle in the current dispute between Japan and South Korea. Still, as Russia moves forward to pursue its interests at what appears to be a weakening in the US defence network in Northeast Asia.

BEIJING, 22 December, 2020, (TON): The foreign ministers of China and Russia say the United States should return to a 2015 multilateral nuclear agreement between Iran and major world powers "unconditionally" at an early date and lift sanctions against Iran as well as third-party entities and individuals.

The Russian and Chinese foreign ministers made the remarks while addressing a virtual meeting of foreign ministers of the remaining parties to the landmark deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), on Monday, which was presided over by European Union foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday that US withdrawal from the JCPOA and its so-called "maximum pressure" policy on Iran are the root causes of challenges pertaining to Tehran's nuclear program.

Wang said that, at present, the Iranian nuclear situation has come to a critical juncture. U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has made it clear that the United States has the willingness to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Meanwhile, the United States continues to intensify its pressure on Iran.

The top Chinese diplomat also called on Iran to fully resume its nuclear commitments as per the JCPOA and proposed that the deal's signatories hold consultations in this regard as soon as possible so as to start the process of US returning to the agreement.

Also attending the meeting were Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.

Under the circumstances, Wang put forward four suggestions on the Iran nuclear issue, the first of which is to unswervingly uphold the agreement. The second is to promote an early return of the US to the Iran nuclear deal. The third is to settle disputes fairly and objectively during the implementation of the deal, while the fourth is to properly handle regional security issues.

Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who also addressed the meeting, said for his part that the US should not put forward any preconditions for its return to the JCPOA, Russian Foreign Ministry quoted him as saying.

"We believe that the US return to the JCPOA should be without any preconditions. Our partners and we are ready for meaningful work in this area, and we are ready to help the Americans to step on the path of correction. This is in our shared interest," Lavrov added.

President Donald J. Trump withdrew the United States from the JCPOA agreement in May 2018, saying it failed to address Iran’s ballistic missile program and its role in regional wars. The US reimposed sanctions on Iran.

KABUL, 22 December, 2020, (TON): Afghan Journalist Rahmatullah Nekzad was shot dead by unknown assailants using a silenced pistol while walking to a nearby mosque, a police spokesman said.

He is the fifth journalist killed in the last two months in the country. 

Nekzad was head of the Ghazni Journalists' Union, he had worked on a freelance basis for the Associated Press news agency and the Al Jazeera broadcast network, according to the Afghan Journalists Safety Committee.

Arrested at various times by the United States, the Afghan government and Taliban insurgents, his peers said he prided himself in telling all sides of a story. He is survived by six children.

The killing of prominent Afghan journalist Rahmatullah Nekzad draw strong condemnation in Afghanistan, with the country's president Ashraf Ghani calling it a "terrorist attack."

The international press freedom group Reporters Without Borders has called Afghanistan one of the world's deadliest countries for reporters.

The Afghan Journalists' Safety Committee said at least seven media personnel have been killed this year, including two journalists killed in separate bombings last month. Nekzad was the fifth journalist to be killed in the past two months.

The war imposed and constant abuses by warlords constitute a permanent threat to journalists, the media and press freedom in Afghanistan.

NEW YORK, 22 December, 2020, (TON): The Security Council on Monday recognized the role of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in promoting international peace and security.

In a presidential statement, the Security Council recognizes the positive contribution of the ICJ to the rule of law at the international level and its key role in adjudicating disputes among states, thus defusing tensions and restoring peaceful relations among states.

The Security Council notes the growing number of cases brought to the ICJ on all aspects of international relations, demonstrating confidence in the court, said the statement. 

The council recognizes the need to enhance efforts aimed at capacity building and assisting member states, upon their request, in the implementation of their respective obligations under the UN Charter, including the obligation to settle disputes by peaceful means, it said.

The statement said the Security Council expresses its continued commitment to foster interaction between itself and the ICJ in accordance with their respective mandates under the UN Charter.

JERUSALEM, 22 December, 2020, (TON): Israel's military chief, Aviv Kochavi, on Monday warned Iran that any attack against Israel will be responded with a forceful attack.

"Lately, we've noticed a rise in Iranian threats against Israel," Kochavi said during a ceremony, referring to fears of Iranian retaliation to the recent death of an Iranian nuclear scientist who was allegedly assassinated by Israel.

Kochavi said that if Iran or Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese armed group and party, "will take action against the State of Israel, they will find themselves in a very costly endeavor."

"The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) will strike all those involved in activities against Israel or against Israeli targets, whether in part or in full, whether near or far," he warned.

"I say these things simply, clearly and with complete commitment: our retaliatory steps have been prepared and rehearsed. I advise our enemies not to test us," he said.

Iran–Israel proxy war is bound in threats, hostility of Iran's leaders against Israel, and their declared objective to dissolve the Jewish state. Iran sees Israel's actions in Syria as provocative. Israel is opposed to Iran's growing military role on its border. The nuclear dimension of Iran is also rearing its head.

LONDON, 22 December, 2020, (TON): Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that there were still problems in Brexit trade talks and that Britain would thrive without a deal.

“The position is unchanged: there are problems,” Johnson told reporters when asked if there would be a trade deal. “Its vital that everybody understands that the UK has got to be able to control its own laws completely and also that we’ve got to be able to control our own fisheries.”

“WTO terms would be more than satisfactory for the UK. And we can certainly cope with any difficulties that are thrown our way. Not that we don’t want a deal but that WTO terms would be entirely satisfactory,” he said.

Johnson said he spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron, about border issues, but not about Brexit.

“Its his birthday by the way, but we vowed to stick off Brexit because that negotiation is being conducted as you know via the European Commission and that’s quite proper,” Johnson said.

A Brexit trade deal would ensure that the goods trade which makes up half of annual EU-UK commerce, worth nearly a trillion dollars in all, would remain free of tariffs and quotas.

Failure to agree a deal on goods trade would send shockwaves through financial markets, hurt European economies, snarl borders and disrupt supply chains.

In the case of a “no deal” on trade, Britain would lose zero-tariff and zero-quota access to the European single market of 450 million consumers overnight.

The UK officially left the EU on 31 January, 2020, but trade and other sectors remain within the bloc's structures until the end of the year.

Unless Johnson can strike a trade deal with the EU in the next 10 days, the UK will leave the bloc’s informal membership on 31 December at 2300 London time without one and the trade between the two sides will fall back on rules and tariffs established by the World Trade Organization in 1995.

BANGUI, 21 December 2020, (TON): According to Central African Republic, Russia and Rwanda sent hundreds of troops into the country after an alleged coup bid took place before presidential and parliamentary polls scheduled for next week.

On Saturday, the government of the CAR accused former president Francois Bozizé of an attempted coup after three powerful rebel groups merged and started to advance on the capital Bangui.

“Russia has sent several hundred soldiers and heavy weapons” in the framework of a bilateral cooperation agreement, government spokesman Ange MaximeKazagui said on Monday.

“The Rwandans have also sent several hundred men who are on the ground and have started fighting.”

Rwanda confirmed the deployment, saying the move was in response to the targeting of its troops in the UN peacekeeping force by rebels supported by Bozizé, who ruled the CAR from 2003 to 2013.

There was no immediate confirmation from Moscow although the Kremlin voiced “serious concern” about events in CAR.

KABUL, 21 December, 2020, (Media Report): A UN aid agency warned on Monday that about 16 million Afghans, including 5.5 million who were lacking food insecurity, have been in urgent need of aids in Afghanistan.

The Kabul-based Office for Coordination of the Humanitarian Aids (OCHA) said in a statement that 16 million Afghans will be in need of humanitarian aids in 2021.

The agency said over the past five years, the food security situation in the war-torn country, has steadily deteriorated and the percentage of insecure people doubled from 37 in 2015 to 76 in 2020.

"The number of people in crisis or emergency levels of food insecurity has risen from 13.9 million in November 2019 to 16.9 million, or 42 percent of the population in November 2020," the statement read.

According to OCHA, the economic and social conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic have also exacerbated protection risks for vulnerable families.

Many Afghans, according to the source, had already depleted limited financial, mental, and social coping capacities due to prolonged conflict or recurrent natural disasters.

Financial strains and fear of catching COVID-19 meant that facility-based primary health and trauma services were underutilized in 2020, resulting in deteriorating health needs in 2021, the statement noted.

BERLIN, 21 December, 2020, (TON): German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Monday urged Iran not to waste the opportunity offered by the prospect of Joseph Biden’s United States administration returning to the nuclear non-proliferation deal.

Speaking after a video conference of officials from the countries in the JCPOA deal, Maas said that Iran should avoid taking any tactical steps that would make it hard for Biden to reverse President Donald Trump’s decision to quit the deal.

“To make possible a rapprochement with the U.S. under Biden, there should be no further tactical manoeuvres of the kind we’ve seen too many of in the recent past,” he told reporters. “This chance, this last window of opportunity, must not be wasted.”

Under the agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran dismantled much of its nuclear program and gave international inspectors extensive access to its facilities in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.

President Donald J. Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in May 2018, saying it failed to address Iran’s ballistic missile program and its role in regional wars.

The US reimposed sanctions and moved to wipe out Iran’s oil exports, prompting Iran to resume some of its nuclear activities. Following the US killing of Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani in January 2020, Iran announced plans to halt most of its commitments to the deal. However, Joe Biden has pledged to return to the deal.