All posts by MPolitics

World Powers, Iran Hold ‘Constructive’ Talks on Reviving Nuclear Deal

Iran and world powers held what they described as “constructive” talks on Tuesday and agreed to form working groups to discuss the sanctions Washington might lift and the nuclear curbs Tehran might observe as they try to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.European intermediaries have started shuttling between Iranian and U.S. officials in Vienna as they seek to bring both countries back into compliance with the accord, which lifted sanctions on Iran in return for curbs to its nuclear program.Former U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018, prompting Iran to steadily overstep the accord’s limits on its nuclear program designed to make it harder to develop an atomic bomb — an ambition Tehran denies.Tuesday’s talks included a meeting of the remaining parties to the original deal — Iran, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia — in a group called the Joint Commission, chaired by the European Union. The United States did not attend.Protestors of an Iranian opposition group are sent away near the Grand Hotel Wien where closed-door nuclear talks with Iran take place in Vienna, Austria, April 6, 2021.While neither Washington nor Tehran say they expect any quick breakthroughs from the talks, both they and the EU described the early exchanges in positive terms.”Constructive Joint Commission meeting. There’s unity and ambition for a joint diplomatic process with two expert groups on nuclear implementation and sanctions lifting,” EU chief coordinator Enrique Mora said on Twitter.”I will intensify separate contacts here in Vienna with all relevant parties, including US,” he added.The two expert-level groups have been given the task of marrying lists of sanctions that the United States could lift with nuclear obligations Iran should meet, and reporting back on Friday, when the Joint Commission will meet again.”The talks in Vienna were constructive … our next meeting will be on Friday,” Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi told Iranian state television.”It is a welcome step, it is a constructive step, it is a potentially useful step,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters in Washington, even as he repeated the U.S. expectation that the indirect talks would be “difficult.”A resolution of the nuclear issue could help ease tensions in the Middle East, notably between Iran and Israel, as well as with U.S. Sunni Arab allies such as Saudi Arabia, who fear the possibility of Shi’ite Iran obtaining nuclear weapons.In a possible sign of such strains, an Iranian cargo ship came under attack in the Red Sea, Al Arabiya TV reported, citing unnamed sources, and semi-official Iranian news agency Tasnim said the vessel was targeted by a limpet mine.Al Arabiya cited its sources as saying the ship was attacked off Eritrea and was affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards but gave no evidence to support the assertion.Speaking on condition of anonymity, U.S. officials told Reuters the United States did not carry out such an attack.

US Won’t Commit to NATO Membership for Ukraine

The United States reaffirmed its commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity Tuesday but stopped short of publicly backing Kyiv’s call for a quicker path to membership in NATO. “We’ve long been discussing that aspiration with Ukraine,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters when asked about Ukraine’s latest push to join the Western military alliance. “We are strong supporters of them,” she added. “But that is a decision for NATO to make.” Ukraine, along with the U.S. and other Western allies, has been expressing growing concern about Russian troop movements in recent days along the Ukrainian border that some see as an attempt to intimidate Kyiv. In calls earlier Tuesday with both NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged the alliance to send Moscow a message by allowing Ukraine to finally join. “Reforms alone will not stop Russia,” Zelenskiy tweeted following the call with Stoltenberg. “@NATO is the only way to end the war in #Donbas,” he said, referring to the region in eastern Ukraine, parts of which are held by Russian-backed separatists. “Ukraine’s MAP (Membership Action Plan) will be a real signal for Russia,” Zelenskiy added. U.S. defense officials Tuesday declined comment on Ukraine’s request for NATO membership, though they expressed continued concern about Russia’s actions. “We continue to see Russian forces arrayed along the border with Ukraine, in Crimea specifically, more toward the southeast,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters, calling the Russian movements concerning. “We call on Russia to make their intentions more clear as to what they’re doing with this array of forces along the border,” Kirby said.  “We continue to call for the cease-fires that were called for by the Minsk Agreement … and to bring the temperature down,” he said. Ukraine says shelling by pro-Russian forces in Donbas has killed 24 soldiers this year and eight in just the past two weeks. Russia has denied that its military movements pose a threat to Ukraine. During a visit to India Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov described recent statements by Kyiv as worrisome and said Russia had reached out to other European countries. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also accused Kyiv of seeking to further destabilize the situation. “So far we’re not seeing an intention by the Ukrainian side to somehow calm down and move away from belligerent topics,” Peskov said. The separatists in Donbas have been fighting with Ukrainian forces since Russia seized the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014. The U.S. and other Western countries accuse Russia of arming the separatists and of sending Russian troops to aid their efforts. Information from Reuters was used in this report. 

Russia’s Lavrov in Pakistan to Discuss Bilateral Ties, Afghan Peace 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov began a two-day official visit Tuesday to Pakistan amid growing diplomatic, economic, and military ties between the two countries. 
 
Pakistani and Russian officials said Lavrov’s delegation-level talks with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi also will focus on ongoing diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the war in neighboring Afghanistan. 
 
Qureshi received the chief Russian diplomat and his delegation at the military base outside Islamabad, where the two leaders also held an initial interaction. 
 
“Pakistan attaches great importance to its relations with Russia and the relationship is gradually expanding,” a post-meeting statement quoted the Pakistani foreign minister as telling the visitor. 
 
Additionally, Lavrov, accompanied by Russian presidential envoy to Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov, is scheduled to hold meetings with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and the country’s military leadership. 
 
“There are plans to conduct a detailed discussion on the current status of bilateral relations and their development prospects, including opportunities for further strengthening trade, economic and counterterrorism cooperation,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a pre-visit statement. 
 
Foreign Minister Lavrov last visited Islamabad in 2012, and the ensuing years saw a marked improvement in Russia’s otherwise strained and mistrustful relations with Pakistan. 
 
The distrust stemmed from Islamabad’s decision to side with the United States-backed Afghan armed resistance of the 1980s that forced Moscow to withdraw Soviet occupation forces from Afghanistan. 
 
Bilateral trade between Russia and Pakistan last year hit an all-time high of $790 million, an increase of 46 percent, mainly due to large supplies of Russian wheat to help Islamabad bridge its domestic shortfalls. 
 
Officials said both countries are working closely to increase business partnerships in the energy sector to open a fast-growing gas market for Russian energy companies. 
 
Moscow and Islamabad signed an agreement in 2015 to build a 1,100-km pipeline in Pakistan linking the port of Karachi to the city of Lahore to transport 1.6 billion cubic meters of gas per day. 
 
Russian and Pakistani officials say negotiations on the multi-billion dollar “flagship project” are ongoing “with a view to an early start of its practical implementation.” 
 
The Russian foreign minister is visiting the region as a May 1 deadline approaches for American forces to exit Afghanistan in line with an agreement Washington signed with the Taliban insurgency in February 2020. 
 
Lavrov landed in Pakistan after visiting India, where he stressed the need for the inclusion of the Taliban in any political settlement to end the civil war in Afghanistan. 
 
“Any other way that foresees the exclusion of any group from this process will not deliver an implementable and sustainable peace agreement,” Lavrov told reporters in New Delhi before leaving for Islamabad. 
 
Last month, Moscow hosted an Afghanistan conference, where representatives of the Afghan government and the Taliban, along with senior Chinese, U.S. and Pakistani diplomats, explored ways to push Afghan peace efforts. 
 
President Joe Biden’s administration is reviewing the deal with the Taliban and has also intensified efforts to push the two Afghan adversaries to urgently resume peace talks and negotiate a power-sharing deal. 
 
Biden said last month it will be tough for the U.S. to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan by May 1 for logistical reasons. 
 
On Monday, White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said the president is continuing to consult internally with his national security team and U.S. partners and allies on the way forward. 
 
“Well, he set the expectation it will be tough for a full withdrawal, for logistical reasons, by that timeline. And that certainly has—also something that we’ve conveyed clearly to our partners as well,” Psaki said when asked whether U.S. troops were expected to remain in Afghanistan beyond the May deadline. 
 
The Taliban repeatedly has urged Washington to abide by the mutually agreed upon timeline and withdraw all foreign forces from the country. The insurgent group has threatened to resume attacks on U.S. and allied forces if the U.S. fails to honor the deadline. 
 
The U.S.-Taliban deal binds the insurgents to immediately halt attacks on foreign troops in Afghanistan. 
 
Pakistan and Russia both maintain close contacts with the Taliban. 
 
Afghan officials accuse Islamabad of sheltering insurgents and helping them militarily, charges Pakistani officials reject and take credit instead of facilitating the signing of the U.S.-Taliban peace deal.  
 
Pakistan still hosts several million Afghan refugees and has long blamed the displaced population for serving as hiding place for Taliban fighters.

Norwegian Coast Guard Rescues Crew of Dutch Cargo Ship in Distress

Norwegian coast guard officials said Tuesday the 12-member crew of a Dutch cargo ship that was adrift and in danger of capsizing in rough seas has been rescued off the coast of Norway.Crew members onboard the Eemslift Hendrika raised an alert in the North Sea on Monday, prompting the coast guard to launch a helicopter operation to evacuate the vessel.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline.Download File360p | 7 MB480p | 10 MB540p | 14 MB720p | 35 MB1080p | 59 MBOriginal | 60 MB Embed” />Copy Download AudioCoast guard video shows rescuers airlifting the crew from the ship as it was battered by waves of up to 15 meters in height. Some crew members were seen being airlifted from the sea, while others were rescued from the ship’s deck. While the crew is safe, the coast guard told Norwegian Public Radio that the 111-meter Netherlands-registered ship had lost power in its main engine and was now drifting toward land. The vessel is carrying smaller yachts, and officials fear a fuel oil spill if the ship capsizes and sinks. 

France to Open Archive for Period Covering Rwandan Genocide

France’s role before and during the 1994 Rwandan genocide was a “monumental failure” that the country must acknowledge, the lead author of a report commissioned by President Emmanuel Macron said, as the country is about to open its archives from this period to the public.The report, published in March, concluded that French authorities remained blind to the preparations for genocide as they supported the “racist” and “violent” government of then-Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana and then reacted too slowly in appreciating the extent of the killings. But it cleared them of complicity in the slaughter that left over 800,000 people dead, mainly ethnic Tutsis and the Hutus who tried to protect them.Macron’s decision to commission the report — and open the archives to the public — are part of his efforts to more fully confront the French role in the genocide and to improve relations with Rwanda, including making April 7, the day the massacre began, a day of commemoration. While long overdue, the moves may finally help the two countries reconcile.Historian Vincent Duclert, who led the commission that studied France’s actions in Rwanda between 1990 and 1994, told The Associated Press that “for 30 years, the debate on Rwanda was full of lies, violence, manipulations, threats of trials. That was a suffocating atmosphere.”Duclert said it was important to acknowledge France’s role for what it was: a “monumental failure.””Now we must speak the truth,” he added. “And that truth will allow, we hope, (France) to get a dialogue and a reconciliation with Rwanda and Africa.”Macron said in a statement that the report marks “a major step forward” toward understanding France’s actions in Rwanda.About 8,000 archive documents that the commission examined for two years, including some that were previously classified, will be made accessible to the general public starting Wednesday, the 27th anniversary of the start of the killings.  Duclert said documents — mostly from the French presidency and the prime minister’s office — show how then-President Francois Mitterrand and the small group of diplomats and military officials surrounding him shared views inherited from colonial times, including the desire to maintain influence on a French-speaking country, that led them to keep supporting Habyarimana despite warning signs, including through delivery of weapons and military training in the years prior to the genocide.”Instead of ultimately supporting the democratization and peace in Rwanda, the French authorities in Rwanda supported the ethnicization, the radicalization of (Habyarimana’s) government,” stressed.FILE – Historian and Commission chief on France’s role in 1994’s Rwandan genocide, Vincent Duclert, right, presents a report to French President Emmanuel Macron, at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, March 26, 2021.France was “not complicit in the criminal act of genocide,” he said, but “its action contributed to strengthening (the genocide’s) mechanisms.””And that’s an enormous intellectual responsibility,” he said.  The report also criticized France’s “passive policy” in April and May 1994, at the height of the genocide.  That was a “terrible lost opportunity,” Duclert noted. “In 1994, there was a possibility to stop the genocide … and it did not happen. France and the world bear a considerable guilt.”Eventually they did step in. Operation Turquoise, a French-led military intervention backed by the U.N., started on June 22.Duclert said that France’s “blindness must be questioned and, maybe, brought to trial,” though he insisted it was not the commission’s role to suggest charges.The report was welcomed as an important step by activists who had long hoped France would officially acknowledge its responsibilities in the genocide. On a visit to Rwanda in 2010, then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy admitted that his country had made “errors of judgment” and “political errors” regarding the genocide — but the report may allow Macron to go further.  Dafroza Gauthier, a Rwandan who lost more than 80 members of her family in the mass killing, welcomed it as a “a great document against genocide denial.””For 27 years, or longer, we were in a kind of fog,” said Gauthier, who with her husband, Alain, founded the Collective of Civil Plaintiffs for Rwanda, a French-based group that seeks the prosecution of alleged perpetrators of the genocide. “The report is clearly stating things.”There also may be a shift in the attitude of Rwandan authorities, who welcomed the report in a brief statement but have given no detailed response. They said the conclusions of their own report, to be released soon, “will complement and enrich” it.  That’s different from Rwanda’s firm assertions of French complicity as recently as 2017. Relations between the two countries, strained for years since the genocide, have improved under Macron’s presidency.Félicien Kabuga, a Rwandan long wanted for his alleged role in supplying machetes to the killers, was arrested outside Paris last May.And in July an appeals court in Paris upheld a decision to end a years-long investigation  into the plane crash that killed Habyarimana and set off the genocide. That probe aggravated Rwanda’s government because it targeted several people close to President Paul Kagame for their alleged role, charges they denied.It now appears Rwandan authorities will accept “the olive branch” from Paris, said Dismas Nkunda, head of the watchdog group Atrocities Watch Africa who covered the genocide as a journalist.  “Maybe they’re saying, ‘The past is the past. Let’s move on,'” he said of Rwandan authorities.  The Gauthiers said the report and access to the archives may also help activists in their efforts to bring people involved in the genocide to justice — including potentially French officials who served at the time.There have been three Rwandan nationals convicted of genocide so far in France, they stressed. Four others are expected to go on trial. That’s out of about 30 complaints against Rwandan nationals living in France that their group has filed with authorities.  That’s still “very few” compared to the more than 100 alleged perpetrators who are believed to live on French territory, they said.
 

Hikers Scramble as New Fissure Opens Up at Icelandic Volcano

Steam and lava spurted Monday from a new fissure at an Icelandic volcano that began erupting last month, prompting the evacuation of hundreds of hikers who had come to see the spectacle. The new fissure, first spotted by a sightseeing helicopter, was about 500 meters (550 yards) long and about a kilometer (around a half-mile) from the original eruption site in the Geldinga Valley.  The Icelandic Department of Emergency Management announced an immediate evacuation of the area. It said there was no imminent danger to life because of the site’s distance from popular hiking paths. The Icelandic Meteorological Office said the new volcanic activity wasn’t expected to affect traffic at nearby Keflavik Airport. The long-dormant volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwest Iceland flared to life March 20 after tens of thousands of earthquakes were recorded in the area in the past three weeks. It was the area’s first volcanic eruption in nearly 800 years.People watch as lava flows from an eruption of a volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland late on March 24, 2021.The volcano’s proximity to Iceland’s capital, Reykjavík, about 32 kilometers (20 miles) away, has brought a steady stream of tourists to the area, even with the country in partial lockdown to combat the coronavirus. Around 30,000 people have visited the area since the eruption began, according to the Icelandic Tourist Board. Live footage from the area showed small spouts of lava coming from the new fissure. Geophysicist Magnus Gudmundsson said the volcanic eruption could be moving north from its original location. “We now see less lava coming from the two original craters,” he told The Associated Press. “This could be the beginning of second stage.” Iceland, which sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic, averages one volcanic eruption every four to five years. The last one was at Holuhraun in 2014, when a fissure eruption spread lava the size of Manhattan over the interior highland region.  In 2010, ash from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano shut down much international air travel for several days. 

Navalny Moved to Sick Ward as Fellow Inmates Hospitalized With Suspected Tuberculosis

Jailed Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny has been moved to a sick ward after complaining of a cough and temperature, the Izvestia newspaper reported Monday. Earlier Monday, Navalny said in an Instagram post that a third prisoner in his quarters had been sent to the hospital with suspected tuberculosis. In the post, Navalny said prison doctors had officially diagnosed him with a “severe cough” and a temperature of 38.1 degrees Celsius, which indicates a slight fever. Navalny, 44, President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic, is currently incarcerated in Penal Colony No. 2, about 100 kilometers from Moscow, which is known as one of the toughest penitentiaries in Russia. FILE – A general view shows Penal Colony No. 2, where opposition leader Alexey Navalny, who was sentenced this month on parole violations, supposedly serves his jail term, in the town of Pokrov, Russia, Feb. 28, 2021.Navalny said his prison unit consists of 15 people, three of whom have been hospitalized with suspected tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is a potentially serious infectious disease that mainly affects the lungs and is spread from person to person through tiny droplets released into the air mainly through coughing and sneezing. It has largely been eradicated in developed countries, and a person with a healthy immune system often successfully fights it. In his Monday post, Navalny said his prison unit had been malnourished with clay-like porridge and frozen potatoes. He is currently on a hunger strike to demand better conditions. Malnutrition and weight loss undermine an immune system’s ability to fight tuberculosis. Navalny had previously complained of acute back and leg pain, and his guards not allowing him to sleep. Navalny criticized recent news reports by state-owned media that he is serving in a prison with comfortable conditions. He invited state media correspondents to spend the night in his prison with tuberculosis-infected cellmates. Russian police arrested Navalny in January upon his return from Germany on charges of violating his parole, sparking large-scale protests. The anti-corruption fighter had been recuperating in Berlin for several months after being poisoned with a military-grade nerve agent. Navalny has accused agents of Russia’s Federal Security Service of attempting to assassinate him with the poison. A Moscow court in February found him guilty of violating the terms of his parole from an older embezzlement case that is widely considered to be politically motivated. His suspended 3-and-a-half-year sentence was converted into jail time, though the court reduced that amount to 2-and-a-half years for time already served in detention. Navalny’s imprisonment has drawn a chorus of international criticism, with the United States and its allies demanding his unconditional release and vowing to continue to hold those responsible for his poisoning to account. 
 

US Asks Russia to Explain ‘Provocations’ on Ukraine Border

The United States, finding reports of Russian military movements on Ukraine’s border credible, asked Moscow to explain the “provocations” and is ready to engage on the situation, the U.S. State Department said Monday. The reported Russian troop buildup and movements bordering eastern Ukraine have become the latest point of tension in icy U.S.-Russian relations less than three months after U.S. President Joe Biden took office. State Department spokesman Ned Price told a news briefing that the United States would be concerned by any effort by Moscow to intimidate Ukraine, whether it occurred on Russian territory or within Ukraine. He declined to say whether the United States believed Russia was preparing to invade the neighboring former Soviet republic. Later Monday, a State Department spokesperson told Reuters that the United States is “open to engagement with Moscow” on the situation, describing as credible reports of Russian troop movements on Ukraine’s border and Crimea, the peninsula seized by Russia in 2014. The movements, the spokesperson said, were preceded by violations of a July 2020 cease-fire that killed four Ukrainian soldiers and wounded four others. “We call on Russia to refrain from escalatory actions,” the spokesperson said. FILE – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a news briefing in Kyiv, Ukraine, Oct. 12, 2020.The comments followed a telephone call Friday in which Biden reassured his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, of “unwavering support” in Ukraine’s confrontation with Russia-backed separatists holding parts of the country’s eastern Donbas region. Russia on Monday denied that Russian military movements posed a threat to Ukraine and dismissed fears of a buildup, even as it warned that it would respond to new Ukrainian sanctions against Russian companies. White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that “recent escalations of Russian aggression and escalation in eastern Ukraine” is “something we’re watching closely.” Biden’s call with Zelenskiy came after the NATO alliance expressed concern over what it said was a large Russian military buildup on Russia’s side of the border with eastern Ukraine. “We’ve asked Russia for an explanation of these provocations,” Price said. “But more importantly, what we have signaled with our Ukrainian partners is a message of reassurance.” Pressed on whether the United States viewed troop movements on Russia’s side of the border as intimidation of Ukraine, Price responded, “Of course, the Russians have for quite some time sought to intimidate and bully their neighbors.” Ukraine, Western countries and NATO accuse Russia of sending troops and heavy weapons to prop up proxies who seized a swath of the eastern Donbas region in 2014. Moscow says it provides only humanitarian and political support to the separatists. 
 

Russia Backs Off Plan to Block Twitter, Extends Slowdown

Russia Monday backed off a threat to block Twitter inside the country but said it will continue to slow down the social media site until mid-May.The move comes as the state media watchdog, Roskomnazdor, said Twitter has been removing banned content more quickly. It had said Twitter failed to remove content encouraging child suicide, pornography and content about drug use.Roskomnazdor said it took into account “the decision made by Twitter for the first time to change the principles and speed of its own moderation service in Russia, and the removal of a significant part of the prohibited content,” according to a statement.Still, the agency said Twitter took, on average, 81 hours to remove flagged content. Russian laws require that such content be removed within 24 hours after notification.Twitter now has until May 15 to come into “full compliance” with Russian law, the agency said.Roskomnazdor announced March 10 that it would slow Twitter and threatened to block it completely.Twitter said it has been in contact with Roskomnazdor.“It was a productive discussion about how we can both work to ensure that reports of such illegal content are dealt with expeditiously,” Twitter said in a statement.Twitter maintained it has a zero-tolerance policy for child exploitation, and content encouraging suicide and unlawful behavior.In addition to potentially harmful content, Russian officials have been critical of social media’s role in fueling protests. In January, tens of thousands of Russians participated in protests calling for the release of jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny.Officials said social media platforms were used to encourage children to participate in the demonstrations.The Russian government has been threatening Twitter and Facebook for years with shutdowns, but never followed through.  

Putin Signs Law that Paves the Way to Him Ruling Until 2036 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a controversial bill that opens the door for him to potentially remain in power until 2036. The bill, which was recently approved by the lower and upper chambers of parliament, aligns the election laws with constitutional changes approved by voters last year. One of the constitutional changes resets Putin’s term-limit clock to zero, allowing him to seek reelection when his current term expires in 2024, and again in 2030 if he wishes. Under the current election laws, a president is forbidden from seeking a third consecutive six-year term. Putin is currently in his second consecutive six-year term. The constitutional amendments were initiated in January 2020 by the 68-year-old Russian leader, who has been running the country as prime minister or president since late 1999. The nationwide vote for the amendments held last summer sparked protests in Moscow that were dispersed by law enforcement. According to the results of a poll by the independent Levada Center last month, 41 percent of Russians do not want Putin to stay in power after his current term expires in 2024. 

Top EU Officials Head to Turkey for a Reset

Top European Union officials head to Turkey Tuesday to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a bid to reset relations.In a bid to ease the latest tensions, European Council president Charles Michel and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen will seek a framework for cooperation with Turkey when they meet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Tuesday.The EU wants to continue a 2016 refugee agreement that turned Turkey into Europe’s gatekeeper for migrants and refugees. Analyst Sinan Ulgen of the Edam research organization in Istanbul said Ankara is ready for a deal – at a price.”The Turkish government seems to want to extend this deal provided that the EU sets up a funding mechanism that is similar to the financial package of years past. And also, the EU will give the go-ahead to the start of the negotiations for the modernization of the customs union (agreement) and the revitalization of the visa liberalization process,” said Ulgen.Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan waves from the video monitor as he participates in a video conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel in Brussels, March 19, 2021.Michel and Von Leyen will be conveying to Erdogan the message of last month’s EU summit:  that any concessions will be tied to Turkey’s continuing talks with EU member Greece. The talks aim to resolve territorial disputes over the dividing Aegean and Mediterranean seas, which are believed to have significant energy reserves. Analyst Asla Aydintasbas said despite the Turkish-Greek talks, the situation remains volatile.”While we have had the start of Turkish Greek talks that were meant for de-escalation, it is really ripe for tensions because you still do have any solution to some of the underlying issues in the Aegean,” said Aydintasbas.But Turkey’s human rights record is not expected to be high on the agenda of Tuesday’s discussions. Last month, Ankara pulled out of a critical convention to protect women and prosecutors, opened a closure case against Turkey’s second-largest opposition party, the pro-Kurdish HDP.But Emma Sinclair Webb of the New York-based Human Rights Watch fears pragmatism is usurping principle and her group is calling on the European Union not to ignore human rights issues.”I think Ankara believes it can get away with anything at the moment, but I do think it’s time for the EU to start to speak with a much tougher language to Ankara, to answer back. The EU looks weak by constantly trying to put a positive spin on things, developments that are unconscionable,” said Webb.With Turkey hosting about four million Syrian refugees, analysts say the priority of EU leader’s Tuesday meeting with Erdogan will likely be to ensure Turkey’s ongoing role as refugee gatekeeper and avoid tensions with Greece. 

Northern Ireland Sees 3rd Night of Unrest Amid Post-Brexit Tensions

Police and politicians in Northern Ireland appealed for calm on Monday after a third night of violence that saw Protestant youths start fires and pelt officers with bricks and gasoline bombs.The flareups come amid rising tensions over post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland and worsening relations between the parties in the Protestant-Catholic power-sharing Belfast government.The Police Service of Northern Ireland said officers were attacked in Londonderry on Sunday night, and there was also unrest in two pro-British unionist areas near Belfast. Police said most of those involved were teenagers.Chief Superintendent Darrin Jones condemned the “senseless and reckless criminal behavior that (does) nothing but cause damage to the community.”The disturbances followed unrest Friday and Saturday in unionist areas in and around Belfast and Londonderry, also known as Derry, that saw cars set on fire and projectiles and gasoline bombs hurled at police officers. Police said 27 officers were injured, and eight people have been charged, the youngest a boy of 13.Britain’s economic split from the European Union at the end of 2020 has shaken the delicate political balance in Northern Ireland, a part of the U.K. where some people identify as British and some as Irish.A new U.K.-EU trade deal has imposed customs and border checks on some goods moving between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K. The arrangement was designed to avoid checks between Northern Ireland and Ireland, an EU member, because an open Irish border has helped underpin the peace process built on the 1998 Good Friday accord.The accord ended decades of violence involving Irish republicans, British loyalists and U.K. armed forces in which more than 3,000 people died. But unionists say the new checks amount to a new border in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K.The Democratic Unionist Party, which jointly governs Northern Ireland with Irish nationalist party Sinn Fein, has called for the Brexit deal to be scrapped.Unionists are also angry at a police decision not to prosecute Sinn Fein politicians who attended the funeral of a former Irish Republican Army commander in June. The funeral of Bobby Storey drew a large crowd, despite coronavirus rules barring mass gatherings.The main unionist parties have demanded the resignation of Northern Ireland’s police chief over the controversy, claiming he has lost the confidence of their community.Mark Lindsay, chairman of the Police Federation of Northern Ireland, said the “political atmosphere” was being used as an excuse for violence, orchestrated by banned paramilitary groups.”Older, more sinister, elements use the youth and use children…to achieve their aims,” Lindsay told BBC radio.

Italian Ballroom Dancers Twirl Through Lockdown

Social distancing is not usually part of the ballroom dancing lexicon. But in an industrial zone on the outskirts of Rome, couples of every age twirl and turn across the dance floor, even through a pandemic, just as ballroom dancers have done for decades around the world. While much of Italy is in a coronavirus lockdown, with live music and theatrical performances barred, cinemas shuttered and many sporting activities limited, competitive ballroom dancing is alive and well here, albeit with precautions. The couples at the New Dancing Days hall are preparing for the Italian Championships in Rimini in July and as such are allowed to keep practicing, given that the government considers their activity in the national interest. It is the same allowance that has enabled other federally recognized competitive athletes to keep training in Italy even during the latest round of virus-related closures. “Yes, we can do it. Here we can keep on dancing,” said Raffaella Serafini, the 45-year-old owner of New Dancing Days and a 35-year veteran of competitive ballroom dancing. In the huge hall with mirrors on the walls and multi-colored lights, couples wear masks during warm-ups and pauses but are allowed to remove them while performing traditional ballroom or Latin dances. Most keep them on anyway. “It’s something beautiful for us because we’re older, but we can still put ourselves in play,” said Franco Cauli, a 70-year-old dancer who along with his 74-year-old partner is training for a competition at the end of April. He said he felt safe with the health protocols taken by the school and says participants rigorously respect them. The Italian Dance Sport Federation has decreed that 34 athletes are allowed to train in a school the size of New Dancing Days, recognizing that continuity in practice is necessary. Currently there are 17 couples, aged nine to 76, who train up to five days a week. From a viewing spot above the dance floor, Serafini keeps an eye on her twirling students and shouts directions to them. If she sees something wrong, she will stop the music, go down to the dance floor and demonstrate the correct way to do a step, pose or twirl. “The school is my great pride. When I see them on the dance floor, it is like I am there,” she said. 

Christians Celebrate Easter in Unusual Circumstances Again This Year

Millions of Christians around the world are celebrating Easter Sunday in unusual circumstances again this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, but there are fewer restrictions than the last year in some countries.In the United States, as more than 100 million people have received at least one dose of the vaccine, churches in some states are open for Easter services.Half a world away, Australians were celebrating Easter Sunday in a relatively unrestricted environment as the country did not report new locally acquired coronavirus cases. Community transmission of COVID-19 is largely eliminated in the country, according to health officials.In Italy, however, a strict Easter lockdown was observed, as the entire country is considered a high-risk zone.In a scaled-back Easter vigil service in St. Peter’s Basilica, in the Vatican on Saturday, Pope Francis urged the faithful not to lose hope during the “dark months” of the pandemic.Due to social-distancing requirements, only about 200 people wearing masks attended the service, which marks the period between Christ’s crucifixion and his resurrection on Easter Sunday.The Vatican cut out the traditional sacrament of baptism for a few adults to decrease the chance of contagion.

Scuffles Erupt in London as Thousands Join ‘Kill the Bill’ Rallies Across Britain

Thousands of demonstrators joined rallies across Britain on Saturday against a proposed law that would give police extra powers to curb protests, with some scuffles breaking out following a march in London.The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill aims to toughen measures officers can take to disperse demonstrations, such as imposing time and noise limits, which campaigners and activists fear would be used to curb dissent.”Kill the bill” marches were held in dozens of towns and cities, supported by big campaign groups such as climate change campaigners Extinction Rebellion and the Black Lives Matter movement.Police restrain a demonstrator during clashes following a ‘Kill the Bill’ protest in London, April 3, 2021. The demonstration is against the contentious Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.Nearly all were peaceful, but there were minor clashes in central London between protesters and police following a rally attended by several thousand people.”The policing operation in central London has now moved to the enforcement stage and arrests are being made,” said London’s Metropolitan Police on Twitter. The force deployed a large number of officers in the capital to end the protest.The new bill follows actions by Extinction Rebellion that paralyzed parts of London in early 2019 and fueled calls from some politicians for the police to be given tougher powers to prevent excessive disruption.Since the proposed law was brought before parliament last month, there have been sporadic demonstrations across the country, with Saturday’s rallies being part of what organizers said was a national weekend of action.Former Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn addresses demonstrators during a ‘Kill the Bill’ protest in London, April 3, 2021. The demonstration is against the contentious Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill going through Parliament.”[I’m here] to defend the rights of free speech, and the rights of organizations in our society,” said Jeremy Corbyn, former leader of the opposition Labor Party, who was among those who took part in the London protest.”These demonstrations, 50 of them today, will make a difference,” he told Reuters opposite the houses of Parliament.Much of the protest so far has been focused in the southwestern English city of Bristol, where some demonstrations have turned violent; officers have been bombarded with projectiles and police vehicles set on fire, which Prime Minister Boris Johnson described as “disgraceful attacks.”A large crowd gathered again in Bristol on Saturday evening, although the rally there was peaceful.Some senior officers have said the “kill the bill” tag was deliberately provocative because “the bill” is a nickname in Britain for the police.  

Unrest Breaks Out in Northern Ireland for Second Straight Night 

Cars were set alight and masked people pelted a police van with petrol bombs Saturday, the second straight evening of disorder in pro-British parts of Northern Ireland amid rising post-Brexit tensions in the region.Many pro-British unionists fiercely oppose the new trade barriers introduced between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom as part of Britain’s departure from the EU and have warned that their unease could lead to violence.Political leaders, including Britain’s Northern Ireland minister, had appealed for calm earlier Saturday, but police said they were responding to reports of disorder in Newtownabbey on the northern outskirts of Belfast.A video posted on Twitter by the Police Federation for Northern Ireland showed four masked individuals flinging petrol bombs from close range at an armored police van, which they also kicked and punched.Fifteen officers were injured in the Sandy Row area of Belfast on Friday when a small local protest developed into a riot. Police said the rioters attacked them with masonry, metal rods, fireworks and manhole covers.The injuries included burns, head wounds and a broken leg, resulting in the arrest and charging of seven people, two of them as young as 13 and 14. Twelve officers were also injured in separate rioting Friday in Londonderry.First minister blamedOther political parties blamed the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) of Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster on Saturday for stoking tensions with staunch opposition to the new trading arrangements.”By their words and actions they have sent a very dangerous message to young people in loyalist areas,” said Gerry Kelly, a lawmaker from the pro-Irish Sinn Fein party, which shares power in the devolved government with the DUP, in a statement.A DUP lawmaker, Christopher Stalford, said rioters were “acting out of frustration” after prosecutors opted not to charge any members of Sinn Fein last week for alleged breaches of COVID-19 restrictions.The DUP has called for the head of the police force to resign over the issue.The British-run region remains deeply split along sectarian lines, 23 years after a peace deal largely ended three decades of bloodshed. Many Catholic nationalists aspire to unification with Ireland while Protestant unionists want to stay in the U.K. 

Pope, at Easter Vigil, Hopes for Post-pandemic Rebirth 

Pope Francis, leading an Easter vigil service scaled back because of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Saturday that he hoped the dark times of the pandemic would end and that people could rediscover “the grace of everyday life.”This year is the second consecutive Easter that all papal services are being attended by about 200 people in a secondary altar of St. Peter’s Basilica instead of the nearly 10,000 that the largest church in Christendom can hold.The service began two hours earlier than usual so that participants could get home before a 10 p.m. curfew in Rome, which, like the rest of Italy, is under tough lockdown restrictions during the Easter weekend. Italy reported more than 140,000 new cases of the coronavirus in the past week, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, and nearly 3,100 deaths.At the start of the service, the basilica was in darkness except for the flames from candles held by participants to signify the darkness in the world before Jesus. As the pope, cardinals and bishops processed to the altar and a cantor chanted three times, the basilica’s lights were turned on.In his homily, Francis, marking the ninth Easter season of his pontificate, said the festival brought with it the hope for renewal on a personal as well as a global level.”In these dark months of the pandemic, let us listen to the risen Lord as he invites us to begin anew and never lose hope,” Francis said.Just as Jesus brought his message “to those struggling to live from day to day,” he said, people today should care for those most in need on the fringes of society.”[God] invites us to overcome barriers, banish prejudices and draw near to those around us every day in order to rediscover the grace of everyday life,” Francis said.On Easter Sunday, the most important day in the Christian liturgical calendar, the pope will deliver his “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) message. 

Vatican Readies for Easter, Again With No Crowds

As Italy struggles with a resurgence of COVID-19 cases, the government announced a new nationwide lockdown across the country for the Easter holiday weekend.
The measures come as the head of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis, officiated at the Way of the Cross procession in a nearly empty Saint Peter’s Square Friday, ahead of the Easter holiday Sunday, for the second consecutive year.
A new three-day national lockdown began Saturday in Italy as the country continues to struggle with a surge in COVID-19 infections and daily deaths amid a slow roll-out of vaccines.
The lockdown measures, enforced by thousands of police officers deployed across the country, do not allow any travel between Italian regions unless strictly necessary and limit visits to family members and friends to two people once a day. Customary Easter Monday picnics have also been banned.
The aim is to curb the spread of the virus as much as possible as hospitals and intensive care units countrywide are again seeing a resurgence of COVID-19 patients. After more than a year and over 110,000 deaths from the coronavirus, Italy has grown tired of the extended restrictions. But across the country, most of the population is complying with the rules.
At the Vatican, Good Friday began with a visit by Pope Francis to the vaccination center inside the city state where around 1,200 people were inoculated with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine this week. It is part of an effort to include the “poor and most marginalized people” according to the Papal Almoner, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski.Pope Francis speaks to medical staff on Good Friday at a vaccination site at Paul VI Hall where the poor and homeless are being inoculated, at the Vatican, April 2, 2021. (Vatican Media/Handout via Reuters)The pope prayed for people suffering during the pandemic, asking for strength for those caring for the sick.
The “Via Crucis” or “Way of the Cross” procession was held for the second consecutive year in a nearly empty Saint Peter’s Square where candles were placed in a circle around its central obelisk. 
The procession includes prayers at each of a series of images representing biblical events leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The pandemic, however, has forced the traditional procession at Rome’s ancient Colosseum, normally attended by hundreds of people, to be scaled back and moved to the Vatican.
This year’s meditations were written and read during the ceremony by children and young people from Rome, many expressing feelings about this difficult year. One child wrote of feeling lonely because of the pandemic and not being able to visit grandparents, another of losing his grandad to the virus, alone in the hospital.
Italians will be allowed to attend Easter service this year officials said. Pope Francis is planning to hold an Easter Vigil Mass on Saturday and will be delivering his “Urbi et Orbi” or “To the City and the World” message on Easter Sunday, the most important day in the Christian liturgical calendar.
 

EU-China Relations Enter Downward Spiral

Once-warm relations between the European Union and China have taken a sharp turn for the worse, punctuated by a series of tit-for-tat sanctions imposed by Beijing and Brussels.Only three months after China and the EU struck a landmark economic treaty, the 27 foreign affairs ministers of the EU announced sanctions last week against officials involved in China’s mistreatment of its ethnic Uyghur minority in its northwest Xinjiang region.Hours later, Beijing retaliated with its own sanctions on 10 EU individuals and four entities, including five members of the European Parliament, or MEPs.While U.S.-China relations have declined in recent years, the European countries have enjoyed a much softer ride. After years of negotiations, Beijing and Brussels finally struck a deal aimed at liberalizing trade between them in the last days of December.The breakthrough was made possible by last-minute concessions from Chinese President Xi Jinping and pushes from German officials. The deal, which remains subject to approval by the European Parliament, would ensure that European investors have better access to the fast-growing Chinese market and can compete on a more level playing field in that country.Until recently, this trend seemed to continue. According to data released by Eurostat on March 18, EU exports to China totaled 16.1 billion euros ($19 billion) in January, an increase of 6.6% year-on-year.The momentum is reversed now, however, with the tit-for-tat sanctions and a boycott of European brands being encouraged by Beijing.”It is the EU’s first sanctions against China on human rights issues since the Tiananmen Square incident in 1989,” said Grzegorz Stec, an expert at the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Germany, one of the four entities sanctioned by China.Stec told VOA that the EU has imposed sanctions on China for other reasons, including a move against two Chinese people for cyberattacks last year. But this time, he said, “the EU made it clear that it was due to the human rights issue. China clearly regards this issue as China’s internal affair, and China’s countermeasures are unprecedented.”MEPs outragedAmong the individuals being sanctioned by China are five MEPs.Raphael Glucksmann, a French MEP and longtime French human rights advocate, said he sees the Chinese action, which includes a ban on visits to the country, as a recognition of his advocacy for Uyghur rights. After his election in 2019, Glucksmann was widely quoted as saying his goal was to become “the voice of the voiceless people.””Fortunately, we have worked hard to raise the public’s attention to this issue, which is why they (China) are angry with me,” Glucksmann told VOA.He pointed out that in addition to individuals, China sanctioned the Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights. “It is a sanction on the democratic institution of the Parliament.”Shortly after Glucksmann was put on the blacklist by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, he became the target of attacks on Chinese social media. In a show of solidarity with the legislator, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian met Glucksmann last week and tweeted: “On the documented human rights abuses in Xinjiang, France’s position is firm.”Another sanctioned parliamentarian, Ilhan Kyuchyuk of Bulgaria, told VOA in an email that the EU sanctions on China are based on solid legal evidence.”Our relation with China is very important. It is a strategic relationship because we both are key actors in global scene. However, we cannot remain silent when it is obvious what is happening to the Uyghurs and other minorities.”Kyuchyuk said the EU “will continue to express concerns about freedom of expression and association, including the situation of persons belonging to minorities.”Michael Gahler, the foreign policy coordinator and spokesperson of the European People’s Party, the largest political party in the European Parliament, told VOA that he suspected he had been included in the sanctions because of his role as chair of the chamber’s Taiwan friendship group. The German politician said future dialogue between the EU and China will be “more difficult and burdensome.”Gahler pointed out that the Mercartor Institute, one of the most respected European research institutes, is also on the sanctions list. He said in an email that this should be taken into consideration by all the universities and think tanks that are co-financed by the Chinese state through Confucius Institutes or Chinese companies.”Academic freedom is for all or none,” he said. “Those who engage in appeasement are also responsible.”Slovakian MEP Miriam Lexmann said she believes that “credible reports show that the (Chinese Communist Party’s) actions fulfill all criteria of a genocide under the 1949 Genocide Convention.”Lexmann, also on the Chinese sanctions list, accused China of engaging “in threats and countersanctions against those, especially democratically elected parliamentarians, who seek to raise awareness to these terrible human rights abuses.”If China continues with this kind of response, it will make clear that it is not interested in being a partner but a systematic rival that undermines fundamental values and principles which are a ‘condicio sine qua non’ for any cooperation,” Lexmann said in an email.Deal jeopardized?It took seven years and 35 rounds of talks to negotiate the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment. Now, just months later, its ratification by the European Parliament is in doubt because of the tit-for-tat sanctions.The agreement was scheduled to be reviewed and implemented this year, but three of the main political parties in the Parliament have said that as long as the sanctions remain in place, the Parliament will refuse to even open the debate for ratification.”The lifting of sanctions against MEPs is a precondition for us to enter into talks with the Chinese government on the investment deal,” said Kathleen van Brempt, an MEP from the left-leaning Socialist and Democrats group.Glucksmann, one of EU’s most effective activists on the Uyghur issue, said he believes it is time for China to pay a price.”What we should do is to announce clearly that we won’t be voting on the China-Europe investment agreement as long as the sanctions are going on,” Glucksmann said in a telephone interview.Stec, founder of the Brussels-based nonprofit platform “EU-China Hub,” said Beijing may not believe that the diplomatic turmoil will wipe out the achievements of the agreement.Eyck Freymann, a China expert at Oxford University, said last week was more of a political turning point than an economic one. “China and Europe remain deeply integrated in trade, and this relationship will not unravel overnight — if it ever does,” he told VOA.The author of the book One Belt One Road: Chinese Power Meets the World, Freymann pointed out that there are still powerful interest groups in Europe that want to maintain a good relationship with China.However, he said, “As long as human rights is on the top of the agenda, the China-Europe economic relationship cannot deepen or broaden.”   

After Week of Record Warmth, Europe Temperatures to Nosedive

After a week or more of temperatures from Britain to eastern Europe running as much as 20 degrees above average, forecasters are saying the region will be plunged into record cold next week with a likelihood of snow in some areas. Meteorologists say a strong high pressure system remained over much of Europe the last half of March, trapping heat below it. Monthly high temperature records have fallen in at least three countries. Germany and the Netherlands Wednesday set all-time March records, reporting highs of 27.2 degrees Celsius and 26.1 degrees Celsius, respectively. In Britain Tuesday, Kew Gardens, about 15 kilometers west of London on the River Thames, hit 24.5 degrees Celsius, the highest March temperature in Britain since 1968. French meteorologists also recorded warmth Tuesday as the nation’s average temperature was higher than on any other March day in recorded history. More than 220 weather stations, or roughly 37% of France’s network, observed new maximum March temperatures. Climate scientists say these are the latest in a series of heat records that are disproportionately outpacing the occurrence of cold extremes, largely the product of a changing climate and a planet whose temperatures are skewed hot. The warm weather also made COVID-19 restrictions all the more difficult to enforce in many areas, said officials. But forecasters say that will come to a dramatic end in the next three to five days, as models show a wave in the jet stream forcing out the high pressure and allowing much colder Arctic air into the region, swinging temperatures from record highs to record lows for this time of year. Forecasters say the frigid air is likely to drop temperatures below 0 Celsius in some areas with snow likely in Scotland and higher elevations of Italy and eastern Europe.
 

Biden Affirms US ‘Unwavering Support’ for Ukraine in Call

President Joe Biden Friday expressed strong U.S. support Friday for Ukraine in a call with the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the White House said.
 
“President Biden affirmed the United States’ unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s ongoing aggression in the Donbass [sic] and Crimea,” the statement said.
 
NATO said Thursday it was concerned about a Russian military buildup near Ukraine’s borders, as NATO ambassadors met to discuss the recent spike in violence in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. Russia annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, drawing Western condemnation and tit-for-tat sanctions.  
 
Biden emphasized his administration’s commitment to a strategic partnership with Ukraine and support for Zelenskiy’s anti-corruption plans and reform agenda.
 
“The leaders agreed these reforms are central to Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations,” the statement said. Zelenskiy said on Twitter he was glad to speak with Biden and appreciates U.S. support on different levels.
 
“We stand shoulder to shoulder when it comes to preservation of our democracies. My commitment to transform [Ukraine], improve transparency & achieve peace is strong. The American partnership is crucial for Ukrainians,” Zelenskiy said.Glad to talk to @POTUS. ?? appreciates ?? support on different levels. We stand shoulder to shoulder when it comes to preservation of our democracies. My commitment to transform ??, improve transparency & achieve peace is strong. The American partnership is crucial for Ukrainians— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) April 2, 2021In November, Biden defeated then-President Donald Trump, who was impeached in 2019 over what White House aides described as an effort to withhold nearly $400 million in security aid and a coveted White House visit unless Ukrainian officials announced investigations Trump sought into Biden.
 
That exchange was at the center of a charge by the Democratic-led House of Representatives that Trump abused his power for political benefit. The U.S. Senate, then controlled by Trump’s fellow Republicans, acquitted him of the charge and another of obstructing justice. Trump denied any wrongdoing. 

Police in Brussels Clash With April Fools Partiers

Workers in Brussels were cleaning up the city’s Bois de la Cambre park early Friday after an April Fools’ Day prank brought thousands of young people there Thursday amid a COVID-19 lockdown, leading to clashes with police.A social media posting last month advertising “La Boum” (The Party) for Thursday, April 1, promising a concert was apparently intended as an April Fools’ Day joke. But police said they became concerned when nearly 20,000 people indicated plans to attend.Brussels police Wednesday issued warnings that the advertised “party” was a hoax and in violation of COVID-19 regulations. But officials say about 2,000 people showed up anyway, many of them frustrated by restrictions and drawn out by warm weather.Clashes began later Thursday when police attempted to disperse the crowd, which threw bottles and other projectiles. The police, some on horseback and others in riot gear, responded with water cannons and tear gas.Reports say at least four people were arrested and both police and party goers were injured, some seriously enough to seek treatment at local hospitals. Brussels police and prosecutors say they are investigating who was behind the social media prank.Some of the young people in the park told reporters they came not because of the promised concert or to provoke the police, but because they were bored, sick of the restrictions and wanted to get out.  Belgium’s current pandemic restrictions prohibit gatherings of more than four people. 
 

Italy May Be in Easter Lockdown, But the Party’s On at Sea

ABOARD THE MSC GRANDIOSA — Italy may be in a strict coronavirus lockdown this Easter with travel restricted between regions and new quarantines imposed. But a few miles offshore, guests aboard the MSC Grandiosa cruise ship are shimmying to Latin music on deck and sipping cocktails by the pool.In one of the anomalies of lockdowns that have shuttered hotels and resorts around the world, the Grandiosa has been plying the Mediterranean Sea this winter with seven-night cruises, a lonely flag-bearer of the global cruise industry.After cruise ships were early sources of highly publicized coronavirus outbreaks, the Grandiosa has tried to chart a course through the pandemic with strict anti-virus protocols approved by Italian authorities that seek to create a “health bubble” on board.Passengers and crew are tested before and during cruises. Mask mandates, temperature checks, contact-tracing wristbands and frequent cleaning of the ship are all designed to prevent outbreaks. Passengers from outside Italy must arrive with negative COVID-19 tests taken within 48 hours of their departures and only residents of Europe’s Schengen countries plus Romania, Croatia and Bulgaria are permitted to book under COVID-19 insurance policies.  On Wednesday, the Grandiosa left the Italian port of Civitavecchia for its week-long Easter cruise, with 2,000 of its 6,000-passenger capacity and stops planned in Naples and Valletta, Malta, before returning to its home port in Genoa.Passengers welcomed the semblance of normalcy brought on by the freedom to eat in a restaurant or sit poolside without a mask, even if the virus is still a present concern.”After a year of restrictive measures, we thought we could take a break for a week and relax,” said Stefania Battistoni, a 39-year-old teacher and single mother who drove all night from Bolzano, in northern Italy, with her two sons and mother to board the cruise.The pandemic has plunged global cruise ship passenger numbers from a record 30 million in 2019 to over 350,000 since July 2020, according to Cruise Lines International, the world’s largest cruise industry association representing 95% of ocean-going cruise capacity. Currently, fewer than 20 ships are operating globally, a small fraction of CLIA’s members’ fleets of 270 ships.  The United States could be among the last cruise ship markets to reopen, possibly not until fall and not until 2022 in Alaska. Two Royal Caribbean cruise lines that normally sail out of Miami opted instead to launch sailings in June from the Caribbean, where governments are eager to revive their tourism-based economies.MSC spokeswoman Lucy Ellis said positive virus cases have cropped up on board MSC ships, particularly during the fall surge.  “The important thing is we have never had an outbreak,” she said. The Grandiosa is equipped with a medical center with molecular and antigen testing facilities, as well as a ventilator.  Extra cabins are set aside to isolate suspected virus cases. Because of the contact tracing wrist bands, if a passenger tests positive, medical personnel can identify anyone with whom they were in contact. Once the situation is clear, anyone who is positive is transferred to the shore.According to an independent consulting firm, Bermello Ajamii & Partners, just 23 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed on ships since the industry began its tentative relaunch last summer, for a passenger infection rate of 0.006%.  But cruise industry critics say the risk isn’t worth it and add that cruise companies should have taken the pandemic timeout to address the industry’s longstanding environmental and labor problems.”All large cruise ships burn huge volumes of the dirtiest, cheapest fuel available,” said Jim Ace of environmental group Stand Earth, a member of the Global Cruise Activist Network. “Cruise ship companies could have used the COVID shutdown to address their impacts on public health and the environment. Instead, they scrapped a few of their oldest ships and raised cash to stay alive.”On board, though, passengers are relishing the chance to enjoy activities that have been mostly closed in Italy and much of Europe for a year: a theater, restaurant dining, duty-free shopping and live music in bars.  The rest of Italy is heading back into full lockdown over the Easter weekend, with shops closed and restaurants and bars open for takeout only to try to minimize holiday outbreaks. In addition, Italy’s government imposed a five-day quarantine on people entering from other EU countries in a bid to deter Easter getaways.”Let’s say that after such a long time of restrictions and closures, this was a choice done for our mental health,” said Federico Marzocchi, who joined the cruise with his wife and 10-year-old son Matteo.  The cruise industry is hoping for a gradual opening this spring.Cruises are circulating on Spain’s Canary islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa, including the company AIDA catering to German tourists. Costa Cruises, which with MSC is one of Europe’s largest cruise companies, will resume cruises on May 1, with seven-night Italy-only cruises. Costa plans to begin sailing in the western Mediterranean from mid-June.  Britain is opening to cruise ships in May, with MSC and Viking launching cruises of the British Isles, among several companies offering at-sea “staycation” cruises aimed at capturing one of the most important cruise markets. The cruise industry is hoping Greece will open in mid-May, but the country hasn’t yet announced when it will reopen tourism.  The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a “framework” for resuming cruises in the U.S., but the industry says the health agency hasn’t spelled out the details that companies need to operate their ships. Once the CDC provides technical requirements, industry officials say it takes about 90 days to prepare a ship for sailing.The cruise companies complain that last fall’s CDC framework is outdated and should be scrapped. They say it was issued before vaccines were available and before the restart of cruises in Europe, which they say have safely carried nearly 400,000 passengers under new COVID-19 protocols. And they complain that cruising is the only part of the U.S. economy that remains shuttered by the pandemic.The Cruise Lines International Association trade group is lobbying for an early July start to U.S. cruising.”Cruisers love to cruise, and they will go where the ships are sailing,” said Laziza Lambert, a spokeswoman for the trade group. “The longer cruises are singularly prohibited from operating in the United States, the more other places in the world will benefit from the positive economic impact generated by an influx of passengers.” 

Dutch Prime Minister Fights for Political Life in Tough Debate

Caretaker Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte fought for his political life Thursday in a bitter parliamentary debate about the country’s derailed process of forming a new ruling coalition following an election last month.Rutte’s conservative party, known by its Dutch acronym VVD, won the most seats in parliament in the vote, putting him in line to form his fourth governing coalition and possibly become the country’s longest-serving prime minister.That looked a long way off Thursday as lawmakers accused him of trying to sideline a popular lawmaker, a charge that Rutte denies.Negotiations halted a week ago after one of the two officials leading the coalition talks tested positive for COVID-19 and was photographed carrying notes laying out details of the talks.Sigrid Kaag, leader of the centrist D66 party that finished second in elections last month, right, gestures during a debate in parliament in The Hague, Netherlands, early Friday, April 2, 2021.Among the text was a line saying: “Position Omtzigt, function elsewhere.” That was a reference to lawmaker Pieter Omtzigt of the Christian Democrat Appeal party, who, with his tough questions, has long been a thorn in the side of the government.After the note was photographed, Rutte told reporters last week that he had not discussed Omtzigt in his coalition talks. But according to notes made by civil servants that were published Thursday, Rutte did talk about the lawmaker.Rutte told the ensuing debate that he did not remember that part of the discussion and had answered reporters’ questions “in good conscience.””I am not standing here lying. I am telling the truth,” Rutte said.One of the officials who led the coalition talks, caretaker Interior Minister Kajsa Ollongren, also told lawmakers that she did not recall discussing Omtzigt with Rutte, saying that it was the first of 17 separate discussions with party leaders.”We didn’t speak with anybody, with none of the party leaders about a function elsewhere for Mr. Omtzigt,” she said as the hourslong debate extended deep into the night.The debate around the coalition talks and Rutte’s leadership comes as the Netherlands is battling rising coronavirus infections despite a monthslong lockdown. Rutte’s popularity soared last year as he was seen as a steady hand steering the Netherlands through the coronavirus crisis, but it ebbed as the March election approached.Opposition lawmaker Geert Wilders demanded that Rutte step down immediately and called for a motion of no confidence.”Don’t you realize that your time is up?” Wilders said.Omtzigt was not present for the debate between party leaders. He is taking time off, after complaining of exhaustion.Sigrid Kaag, leader of the centrist D66 party, which finished second in the election, said she had seen a “pattern of forgetfulness, amnesia” from Rutte over his more than a decade in office.”How can you, in the greatest crisis that we face in the Netherlands, restore the trust that has again been damaged?” Kaag asked.