Moscow Welcomes US Plan to Extend Nuclear Arms Treaty

 Russia welcomed Friday the Biden administration’s announcement Thursday it is seeking a five-year extension of the New START arms control treaty, set to expire February 5, with the Kremlin saying it is waiting to see the details.NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg gives a press briefing at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 14, 2021.Also, on Thursday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the U.S. and Russia should extend the treaty and broaden it. ”We should not end up in a situation with no limitation on nuclear warheads, and New START will expire within days,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.”An extension of the New START is not the end, it’s the beginning of our efforts to further strengthen arms control,” Stoltenberg said. The treaty was signed in 2010 by then-U.S. President Barack Obama and then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Under the pact, each country is limited to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads. Former U.S. President Donald Trump had attacked the deal, contending that it put the United States at a disadvantage.    

Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons Enters into Force

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement welcomed the entry into force Friday of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), the first nuclear disarmament instrument in more than two decades.The treaty, endorsed by 51 states, mandates assistance, such as medical care, rehabilitation and psychological support to all victims under their jurisdiction. It also obliges them to clear areas known to be contaminated by nuclear use or testing.“The survivors of nuclear explosions and nuclear tests offered tragic testimonies and were a moral force behind the treaty,” Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for Guterres, said in a statement.Nuclear disarmament remains the highest priority of the U.N., the statement said, adding that countries around the world must take urgent action for the elimination of such weapons and prevent the human and environmental catastrophes the use of them would cause.The secretary-general is calling on all states “to work together to realize this ambition to advance common security and collective safety,” the statement said.“Today is a victory for humanity. This treaty – the result of more than 75 years of work – sends a clear signal that nuclear weapons are unacceptable from a moral, humanitarian, and now a legal point of view,” President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Peter Maurer said in a joint statement by ICRC and International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC).“The treaty presents each of us with a really simple question: Do we want nuclear weapons to be banned or not?” Francesco Rocca, president of IFRC, said. “The entry into force of the Nuclear Ban Treaty is the beginning, not the end, of our efforts.”The ICRC and IFRC urged world leaders, including those of nuclear powers, to join the path “toward a world free of nuclear weapons, in line with long-standing international obligations, notably those under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.”The world’s major nuclear-armed states, including the United States and Russia, have not endorsed TPNW.

Brazil to Receive More COVID-19 Vaccine Friday

Brazil expects to receive 2 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine Friday in its buildup to launching a mass immunization program.The vaccine is due to arrive a day after President Jair Bolsonaro fended off criticism by health officials over whether Brazil has enough vaccine to begin its nationwide immunization program.Bolsonaro, who has long played down the impact of the coronavirus, even after he contracted the disease, said the government will provide the vaccine to all Brazilians free of charge.However, health officials say the country’s 6 million doses of the China-based Coronavac vaccine and nearly 5 million doses of the vaccine on order is well below what is needed to immunize Brazilians.A second wave of coronavirus cases and concern over the government’s ability to secure more vaccine prompted the new mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Paes, to tweet Thursday that it will not be possible to host annual carnival celebrations in July.Brazil has more than 8.6 million coronavirus cases and 212,831 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.Brazil’s COVID-19 mortality total is second only to the United States’ 406,417 deaths as of Thursday evening.

US to Offer Russia 5-year Extension on Nuclear Treaty

The new administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is planning to offer Russia a five-year extension of a nuclear arms treaty that is set to expire February 5, U.S. officials said Thursday.Biden national security adviser Jake Sullivan was set to make the offer to Russia’s ambassador to the U.S., Anatoly Antonov, on Thursday afternoon, one official said.National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan speaks at The Queen theater, Nov. 24, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.The move is likely to be welcomed by Moscow and American allies in Europe.NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday said the U.S. and Russia should extend the treaty and broaden it.”We should not end up in a situation with no limitation on nuclear warheads, and New START will expire within days,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels.”An extension of the New START is not the end, it’s the beginning of our efforts to further strengthen arms control,” Stoltenberg said.The treaty was signed in 2010 by then-U.S. President Barack Obama and then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Under the pact, each country is limited to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads.Former U.S. President Donald Trump had attacked the deal, contending that it put the United States at a disadvantage.

Google Seals Content Payment Deal with French News Publishers

Google and a French publishers lobby said Thursday that they had agreed to a copyright framework for the U.S. tech giant to pay news publishers for content online, a first for Europe.The move paves the way for individual licensing agreements for French publications, some of which have seen revenues drop with the rise of the internet and declines in print circulation.The deal, which Google describes as a sustainable way to pay publishers, is likely to be closely watched by other platforms such as Facebook, a lawyer involved in the talks said.Facebook was not immediately reachable for comment.Alphabet-owned Google and the Alliance de la Presse D’information Générale (APIG) said in a statement that the framework included criteria such as the daily volume of publications, monthly internet traffic and “contribution to political and general information.”Google has so far only signed licensing agreements with a few publications in France, including national daily newspapers Le Monde and Le Figaro. These take into account the framework agreed with APIG, a Google spokesman said.Google News ShowcaseGoogle’s vehicle for paying news publishers, called Google News Showcase, is so far only available in Brazil and Germany.On Thursday, Reuters confirmed it had signed a deal with Google to be the first global news provider to Google News Showcase. Reuters is owned by news and information provider Thomson Reuters Corp.”Reuters is committed to developing new ways of providing access to trusted, high-quality and reliable global news coverage at a time when it’s never been more important,” Eric Danetz, Reuters global head of revenue, said in a statement.Google and APIG did not say how much money would be distributed to APIG’s members, who include most French national and local publishers. Details on how the remuneration would be calculated were not disclosed.The deal follows months of bargaining among Google, French publishers and news agencies over how to apply revamped EU copyright rules, which allow publishers to demand a fee from online platforms showing extracts of their news.Google, the world’s biggest search engine, initially fought against the idea of paying publishers for content, saying their websites benefited from the greater traffic it brought. 

European Central Bank Says COVID Stimulus Policies to Stay in Place

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said Thursday the bank will keep its COVID-19-related economic stimulus package in place as the 19-nation Eurozone economy continues facing economic threats from the pandemic. Speaking in Berlin, Lagarde said that while newly approved vaccines and vaccination programs in Europe are a plus, the surges of COVID-19 cases throughout the continent have prompted new lockdowns and restrictions that affect the service economy of most nations.  “The pandemic continues to pose serious risks to public health and to the euro area and global economies,” she said. FILE – European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, wearing a face mask, attends the 16th Congress of Regions (Congres des Regions) in Saint-Ouen, north of Paris, Oct. 19, 2020.Last year, the ECB implemented an emergency COVID-19 stimulus package that includes government and corporate bond purchases designed to pump money into member nations’ economies, keeping interest rates low and giving businesses access to cheap loans. The companies have used such loans to pay furloughed workers during the pandemic. In December, the bank added $607 billion to the plan, bringing the value of the program to $2.2 trillion, and extended it to March 2022.  Lagarde said given the recent surge in infections and the resulting economic restrictions put in place throughout Europe, the bank is prepared to offer even more economic support. Much like the Federal Reserve does in the United States, the ECB is the chief monetary authority for countries that use the euro, setting interest rates and supervising banks. So far, 19 of the 27 EU countries have adopted the euro as their main currency. 
 

Stakes High as Kremlin Critic Navalny Returns to Russia

The arrest of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has triggered international outrage and growing calls for his release. Navalny was detained Sunday upon his return to Russia nearly five months after he was nearly poisoned to death by a military-grade nerve agent.  Charles Maynes reports the opposition figure has gone from fighting for his life to fighting for his freedom.Videographer: Ricardo Marquina, Producer Henry Hernandez

Romania Activist Urges People to Do Something Good Every Day

A gentle hero to many in Romania, Valeriu Nicolae says that, at heart, he is more like former NBA star Michael Jordan — highly competitive and eager to improve in what he does best. In Nicolae’s case that is helping others.The Romanian rights activist has earned praise for his tireless campaign to improve the lives of the Balkan country’s poorest and least privileged residents, particularly children.This is a daunting task in the country of 19 million where hundreds of thousands of children lack basics and are unable to attend school. Romania is a member of the European Union but bad management and widespread corruption have stalled economic and social progress.Nicolae told The Associated Press that for society to change, individuals should, too. He also thinks it should become mandatory for politicians to help someone before they take public office.Valeriu Nicolae carries a box containing basic food, hygiene and medicinal products in Nucsoara, Romania, Jan. 9, 2021.”It should be the basics: do good things for others!” he said. “Even a tiny bit of good for someone around you, and no bad at all.”Since starting in 2007, Nicolae’s humanitarian organization Casa Buna, or Good House, has taken upon itself to support and supervise 315 children. The group provides aid and backing for the children and their families, including clothes, computers or books — but on condition they do not drop out of school.Nicolae is a strong advocate of education to keep children off the streets and prevent them from straying later in life into alcohol or drugs. His work has gained further importance during the coronavirus pandemic that has increased social isolation and made life even harder for the poorest around the world.On a frosty and snowy day this month, Nicolae’s team visited villages at the foot of the Carpathian mountains, some 200 kilometers (120 miles) northwest of Bucharest, to deliver aid such as flour, sugar or hygiene products to people enduring the cold winter weather.Many holding children, the residents of Nucsoara came out of their homes to greet Nicolae. Most of the houses in the village are unfinished, and families live cramped in small rooms. Among the necessities Nicolae brought along were toothbrushes, and he showed some of the children how to use them properly.”There is nothing better than seeing you’ve changed the life of a child for the better,” he said. “I don’t think there are many people more rewarded by what they do than me.”Himself coming from a poor background among Romania’s Roma, or Gypsy, community, Nicolae said he also was motivated by the help he received as a child which he said pushed him forward later in life. Throughout the Balkans, Roma minorities routinely face discrimination and remain among the poorest and most neglected communities.Painfully aware of the anti-Roma sentiments that are widespread in his country, but also of global racism, Nicolae was among the initiators of the Respect anti-racist campaign during the soccer 2010 World Cup in South Africa. He has won international awards in recognition for his children’s education bid.”I was successful in helping many children and adults. I am stubborn and don’t do things just for one day,” he said. “I also failed thousands of times but that has placed me in a position to succeed (the next time). I never failed in the same way twice.”A rare failure was Nicolae’s bid as an independent candidate in Romania’s December parliamentary election, when he fell just 17 votes short of a winning a seat after being denied a recount. Nicolae had hoped to press for education reforms to enable access to basic schooling, and also for better management of public money.”I want to be a better person, a little better every year if possible,” he said. Jokingly, he added: “I don’t want to be a saint, because saints tend to have a tragic end.”

Merkel Sees Broader Scope for Agreement with Biden

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday she sees more opportunity for agreement with new U.S. President Joe Biden than the previous administration, but she also continues to believe Germany and Europe cannot rely on U.S assistance as much as in the past.Speaking to reporters in Berlin, Merkel said just by looking at the executive orders Biden signed Wednesday after being sworn in, she can see “there is just a broader space for agreement with Biden.”  European, Other World Leaders Welcome Joe BidenThere were words of welcome Wednesday from across the world for Joe Biden as he was sworn in as America’s 46th presidentShe cited Biden’s decision to remain in the World Health Organization, rejoining the Paris climate agreement and his views on migration as areas where the U.S. and Germany can work together. But she added she is fully aware she cannot expect full political agreement with a new U.S. president on everything.   Merkel, who had, at best, a strained relationship with former U.S. President Donald Trump, said she came to the realization during his term that Germany and Europe cannot rely so much on the United States diplomatically and militarily. She said Thursday she still feels that way.  She added, “But the good news is: We in Germany are ready and so is the European Union. But overall, cooperation is once again based on common conviction.”

Latin American Leaders Congratulate Biden, Harris

Latin American leaders from Peru, Venezuela and Colombia are extending congratulations to U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.Colombian President Ivan Duque described Biden’s inaugural speech as transcending, saying his call for unity among the people of the United States and his call for the construction of common goals in the midst of differences has important repercussions in the world.Duque also said the 200-year-old diplomatic relationship between the United States and Colombia continues to strengthen toward common goals.Peruvian President Francisco Sagest said, his country is optimistic about a future of greater cooperation, investment, and trade with the United States.Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro wished Biden luck with a direct appeal to change the U.S. policies toward Venezuela.Biden has not commented publicly on U.S. policy toward Venezuela since taking office Wednesday, but his nominee for secretary of state, Antony Blinken, showed support for Maduro’s rival, Juan Guaido during his Senate confirmation hearing, according to ABC news.The U.S. and several western nations have favored opposition leader Guaido as Venezuela’s recognized leader, following the disputed 2018 presidential elections.

Chile Approves Emergency Use of Second Coronavirus Vaccine

Chile is getting a new weapon to help in its fight against the spread of the coronavirus.Health regulators approved the emergency use of the CoronaVac vaccine made by China’s Sinovac Biotech Ltd.Heriberto Garcia, director of Chile’s Public Health Institute, said very encouraging data from late-stage trials and the Health Institute’s independent investigations suggested CoronaVac was a “safe and effective vaccine to fight the pandemic.”Chile paid $3.5 million to host a clinical trial of the Sinovac vaccine and has ordered 60 million doses of the vaccine, according to Reuters.Garcia said Sinovac will arrive in Chile at the end of the month. Chile has already inoculated more than 29,000 people with the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, which arrived in the country late last month.Leaders of Chile’s Public Health Institute are also weighing approval of AstraZeneca’s vaccine for emergency use and have already signed a deal to purchase 14.4 million doses.So far, Chile has confirmed more than 677,000 COVID infections and 17,573 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.

In Belarus, a Press Badge Makes You a Target

Beatings, arrests, court cases, internet blocks and revocation of press credentials — being an accredited journalist is no longer a guarantee of protection for independent media in Belarus.Four members of Press Club Belarus, a network that focuses on journalism, have been in pre-trial detention since December 22, when club founder Yulia Slutskaya, program director Ala Sharko, financial director Sergei Olszewski and operator Pyatro Slutski, Yulia’s son, were FILE – Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya speaks to the media in Berlin, Dec. 14, 2020.Statistics by Press Under Pressure, a project run by the press club, say journalists have been detained almost 400 times since the election. Figures show 81 journalists arrested and 15 facing criminal cases.Human rights activists have rejected the line from Belarusian officials that members of the press club were involved in wrongdoing, calling the charges retaliatory.On January 13, a joint statement by human rights organizations in Belarus called Slutskaya, Sharko, Olszewski, Slutski and Lutskina political prisoners.The use of economic-related charges against human rights and political prisoners is a tactic that was used regularly during the Soviet era.ProsecutionsThe arrests at Press Club Belarus came one day after the Prosecutor General’s Office of Belarus opened criminal cases against opposition leader Tsikhanouskaya and members of the opposition Coordinating Council, accusing them of “creating an extremist formation” and conducting “activities with the aim of seizing state power unconstitutionally.”Meanwhile, prosecutors said they would prosecute all those who “contributed to the extremist formation.”Nadezhda Belokhvostik, editor in chief of press club-linked Media-IQ magazine, said members were shocked by the arrests.”We didn’t expect all this. We were preparing for the New Year. We had to have a holiday, Belokhvostik told VOA’s Russian Service. “Yulia Slutskaya was returning that day from vacation with her daughter and grandchildren. I was in the office and left maybe half an hour before the search and detention, when Sergei Olszewski and Pyatro Slutski were detained.”Her colleagues’ whereabouts were unknown for hours, said Belokhvostik, who learned of their detention only when state-run Belta News Agency reported the press club members were suspected of tax evasion.“Lawyers who were admitted more than 24 hours later were forced to sign for nondisclosure agreements,” Belokhvostik added. “This is a typical practice in Belarus to prevent lawyers from saying anything.”The duty officer at the Belarus Embassy in Washington referred VOA to the Foreign Ministry in Belarus. The ministry did not respond to VOA’s email requesting comment.FILE – Demonstrators rally in solidarity with arrested journalists, in Minsk, Belarus, Sept. 3, 2020. The poster, depicting some of the detained, reads: “They [only] did their job.” (Svaboda.org – RFE/RL)’It makes you a target’Natalia Belikova, manager of the press club’s international projects, called the tax charges and detentions a direct result of the organization’s mission to serve as a platform for professional development of independent media and journalists.”The press club has always supported its journalism colleagues, has always been in solidarity with colleagues,” Belikova said. “Since August, pressure on independent media in Belarus has increased very much, and we have recorded it.”Journalists are detained. Some are deprived of press credentials,” she added. “I think that the attack on the press club, among other things, is connected with the fact that we were in solidarity with all those journalists who are now working in desperate conditions.”Belikova also said authorities were irritated by the international resonance of their reporting and have responded with increasingly repressive tactics.”The work of journalists who have been deprived of press accreditation is by and large outlawed,” she said, explaining that they can’t cover protests without risking arrest for participating in illegal or unauthorized events.A portion of the home page of Minsk-based Tut.by. (Web screenshot)Belokhvostik, of Media-IQ, said the repression “is monstrous.”Belokhvostik said journalists who covered rallies have been detained for up to 25 days. She also highlighted that Katerina Borisevich, who reported for Tut.by on the fatal beating of a 31-year-old artist and teacher by plainclothes police, was being held in the same detention center as those detained from the press club.“The same ‘press’ vest, which all accredited journalists are obliged to wear in Belarus, doesn’t save anyone,” she told VOA. “On the contrary, it makes you a target.”Growing supportDespite the crackdown, Belikova said, sound reporting in Belarus continues.”There are editorial offices that have moved their main offices abroad in order to be able to continue working in Belarus,” she told VOA. “Their teams of journalists are in Belarus — let’s just say the head organizations have moved.”Public support for journalists is on the uptick.In early October, when reporters for the Minsk-based Tut.by faced a three-month suspension of press accreditation for covering anti-government protests, demonstrators shouted words of praise and support while marching past its offices. Others sent in information over apps like Telegram to help the news site stay updated.But working in the face of persecution comes at a cost.”To some extent, there’s some sense of unity in adversity, that people feel they’re all in it together,” said Belikova. “But at the same time, it is necessary to remember that the government doesn’t stop repression, which is only increasing. The cost of participation in actions related to your civic stance increases every day.”This story originated in VOA’s Russian Service.    

European, Other World Leaders Welcome Joe Biden

There were words of welcome Wednesday from across the world for Joe Biden as he was sworn in as America’s 46th president. They were mixed with parting shots from some leaders aimed at his predecessor, Donald Trump, who left Washington hours before the swearing-in. 
  
As the inauguration has been atypical — with no crowds and the Capitol guarded by thousands of National Guardsmen — so, too, the reaction has been out of the ordinary from overseas leaders.  
  
Some European leaders who had tempestuous relations with Donald Trump did not hold back on their relief at seeing President Biden installed.  
 
“Once again, after four long years, Europe has a friend in the White House,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday. 
  
“This new dawn in America is the moment we’ve been waiting for so long. Europe is ready for a new start with our oldest and most trusted partner,” she told European lawmakers in Brussels. She said she hoped Biden would be able to repair divisions in the United States and that his inauguration would be “a message of hope for a world that is waiting for the U.S. to be back in the circle of like-minded states.”European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen addresses European lawmakers during a plenary session on the inauguration of the new U.S. president and the current political situation, at the European Parliament in Brussels, Jan. 20, 20 Europe welcomes Biden 
  
German President Frank Walter Steinmeier called Wednesday “a good day for democracy.”  
 
 “I am relieved that Joe Biden is sworn in as president today and coming into the White House. I know that this feeling is shared by many people in Germany,” he said in a statement.  
  
Steinmeier praised the strength and endurance of American democracy, saying, “In the United States, (democracy) held up against a lot of pressure. Despite internal hostility, America’s institutions have proven strong — election workers, governors, judiciary and Congress.” 
  
Other European leaders avoided referring to past difficulties and appeared to be trying to make sure they are seen as good allies for the incoming administration.  
 
“In our fight against COVID and across climate change, defense, security and in promoting and defending democracy, our goals are the same and our nations will work hand in hand to achieve them,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a statement.  
  
Johnson told the House of Commons he looked forward to welcoming the new U.S. president to Britain later this year for a G-7 summit of the world’s leading nations and for a climate conference to be held in Glasgow.  
  
Italy’s prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, was also focused on the future. 
 
“We are looking forward to the Biden presidency, with which we will start working immediately in view of our presidency of the G-20,” he told Italian lawmakers on Tuesday. “We have a strong common agenda, ranging from the effective multilateralism that we both want to see, to climate change, green and digital transition and social inclusion.” 
  
But Spain’s socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez did not mince his words about what he thinks Biden’s election win means. 
 
“The (election) victory of Biden represents the victory of democracy over the ultra-right and its three methods, the massive deception, the national division and the abuse, even violent, of democratic institutions,” he said at a public event. “Five years ago, we thought Trump was a bad joke, but five years later, we realized he jeopardized nothing less than the world’s most powerful democracy.” 
  
The Trump administration and EU leaders clashed on several issues, including international trade and climate change, a reflection of deeply different world views. FILE – A NATO and a US flag flutter in the wind outside NATO headquarters in Brussels.Reaffirming NATO ties 
 
Trump upbraided Europeans for not spending enough on their defense, an issue that’s also likely to be raised by the Biden administration, but probably more diplomatically. At times, Trump painted Europe as a foe and sometimes questioned the value of NATO, a clear break with traditional transatlantic relations since World War II.   
  
Trump’s combative style, as well, was very different from what Europeans have experienced from other post-WWII American leaders.  
 
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tweeted congratulations to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, adding: “Today is the start of a new chapter for the transatlantic Alliance. … A strong NATO is good for both North America and Europe.”I congratulate President @JoeBiden on his #InaugurationDay. A strong #NATO is good for both North America & Europe, as none of us can tackle the challenges we face alone. Today is the start of a new chapter & I look forward to our close cooperation! https://t.co/cUB90k7XaW— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) January 20, 2021Biden is widely seen as the most pro-Atlanticist American president since George H.W. Bush. 
  
Two years ago, at a security conference in Munich, European leaders were tugging at Biden’s sleeves in the margins urging him to run for office. After enduring a rough-and-tough “America First” speech from then-U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, their nerves were soothed by Biden, when he quipped in his address: “This too shall pass. We will be back.”  
  
Policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic say they are now determined to repair frayed relations and to steady democracies roiled by unprecedented domestic political turmoil and challenged by authoritarian powers. 
 Asia reacts to President Biden 
  
Strengthening democracy, though, was not in the mind of China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, who told a press briefing Wednesday: “In the past four years, the U.S. administration has made fundamental mistakes in its strategic perception of China … interfering in China’s internal affairs, suppressing and smearing China, and causing serious damage to China-U.S. relations.” 
  
She said China’s leaders hope that the Biden administration will “meet China halfway and, in the spirit of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, push China-U.S. relations back to the right track of healthy and stable development as soon as possible.” 
  
Also, in Asia, around 100 Japanese supporters of Trump took to the streets of Tokyo Wednesday, waving American and Japanese flags and unfurling banners with false claims that Trump was “the true winner” of last November’s presidential election.  
 
“We wanted to show that many people in Japan are supporting President Trump,” the organizer, Naota Kobayashi, told Reuters. “We all chanted together so that our voice can fly over the Pacific Ocean and reach the U.S.” 
  
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani focused on the 2015 nuclear deal, from which Trump withdrew the United States, saying he hoped Biden would reenter the pact and lift American sanctions imposed on Iran.  
 
“The ball is in the U.S. court now. If Washington returns to Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal, we will also fully respect our commitments under the pact,” Rouhani said in a televised Cabinet meeting. 
 US-Russia ties 
  
Reaction from Russian officials has been muted. Ahead of the inauguration, Russian leader Vladimir Putin remained silent, but Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told a press briefing that he did not foresee a change in American-Russia relations. 
  
“Nothing will change for Russia. Russia will continue to live just the way it has lived for hundreds of years, seeking good relations with the U.S.,” he told reporters. “Whether Washington has reciprocal political will for that will depend on Mr. Biden and his team.” 
 
The Kremlin-controlled daily Izvestia newspaper noted “the prospects for Russian-U.S. relations under the new U.S. leader do not encourage optimism so far.” 
  
But Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet Union’s final leader, called for Moscow and Washington to repair strained ties. 
 
“The current condition of relations between Russia and the United States is of great concern,” Gorbachev told state-run news agency TASS. “But this also means that something has to be done about it in order to normalize relations. We cannot fence ourselves off from each other.” 
  
  

France’s Macron: No Repentance Nor Apologies for Algeria Occupation During Independence War

French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday that France is neither regretful nor apologetic about the atrocities committed in its former colony, Algeria, ahead of a key report on France’s colonial past. 
 
Between 1954 and 1962, Algerian revolutionaries and French forces engaged in a bloody war in which both sides committed war crimes but that ultimately led to the independence of the North African country. 
 
Macron said France has “no repentance nor apologies” for its occupation of Algeria or its actions during the eight-year war. He said the French government instead will undertake “symbolic acts” to make up for its past deeds. 
 
Nearly 60 years on, the war continues to strain French-Algieran ties, prompting France to put in efforts at restoring cordial relations. 
 
So far, Macron has been the only French president to recognize France’s criminal involvement in colonial Algeria. 
 
During his presidential campaign in 2017, he described France’s 132-year colonization of Algeria as a “crime against humanity” during an interview with an Algerian television channel. Macron’s comment caused a stir in France and was widely criticized by the far right. 
 
In 2018, he acknowledged that French forces used torture during the Algerian war — the first time any French leader had made such an admission. 
 
He tasked a French historian, Benjamin Stora, to assess the European country’s dealings in Algeria and propose ways of reconciliation. The report is expected to be published later Wednesday. 
 
The Elysee Palace said Macron will take part in a three-day commemorative event next year to mark the 60th anniversary since the end of the war in Algeria. 
 

British Government Looks Forward to Working with Biden

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Labor Party opposition leader Keir Starmer expressed good wishes Wednesday to U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on his Inauguration Day.  Speaking in Parliament during his weekly question time with lawmakers, Johnson said he is looking forward to working with Biden and with his new administration “strengthening the partnership between our countries and working on our shared priorities.” Johnson mentioned climate change, pandemic recovery and “strengthening our transatlantic security” as shared priorities between the two nations. Starmer also stood to welcome Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, calling their upcoming inauguration “a victory for hope over hate and a real moment for optimism in the U.S. and around the world.” In an editorial Wednesday in the British Daily Mail newspaper, former British Prime Minister Theresa May said Biden and Harris give Britain “partners for positive action to make the world a safer place.” May used the same editorial to sharply criticize Johnson, her successor as prime minister, saying his government had “abandoned global moral leadership.” 
 

EU Welcomes Biden Inauguration

Leaders of the European Union Wednesday hailed the inauguration of Joe Biden as a “new dawn” in America.
Speaking at the European Parliament in Brussels, ahead of Biden’s swearing-in as the 46th president of the United States, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, “This time-honored ceremony on the steps of the U.S. Capitol will be a demonstration of the resilience of American democracy and the resounding proof that once again after four long years, Europe has a friend in the White House.”
European Council President Charles Michel was equally effusive but frank about how the U.S.-EU relationship changed under President Donald Trump. He said, “Today is more than a transition; today is an opportunity to rejuvenate our transatlantic relationship, which has greatly suffered in the last four years.”    
The European Council is the E.U.’s political arm. Michel invited Biden to attend the council’s “extraordinary council meeting in Brussels, that can be in parallel to a NATO meeting.” He said European leaders want to work with the U.S. on boosting multilateral cooperation, ending the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling climate change, and joining forces on security and peace, among other issues.
The European leaders acknowledged the events of the last two weeks in Washington – the siege on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters. Michel said Biden’s inauguration is evidence the attackers failed and called on Biden to work with Europe.
“On the first day of his mandate I address a solemn proposal to the new U.S. president: let’s build a new founded pact for a stronger Europe, for a stronger America and for a better world,” he said.

Brazil Launches COVID-19 Vaccine Program for Hard Hit Indigenous People

Indigenous people in Brazil’s rainforest are getting their long awaited first doses of a vaccine against the coronavirus, which has infected thousands in their community and killed hundreds of others. The Brazilian military flew medical workers and 1,000 doses of the CoronaVac Chinese vaccine into the Amazon rainforest on Tuesday and began vaccinating the indigenous people, who celebrated the arrival of the vaccine. Isabel Ticuna, one of the people in her village to get inoculated said, “the vaccination is so important for all of our indigenous community, for all the villagers. It was this that we were waiting for.” The coronavirus pandemic has taken a tremendous toll on Brazil’s indigenous people because a large part of the population does not have immediate access to a medical facility. The coronavirus has killed 926 indigenous people in Brazil and infected more than 46,000, according to a tribal umbrella organization called Articulation of Indigenous People of Brazil.  So far, Brazil has confirmed more than 8,500,000 cases and 210,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University COVID Resource Center. 

New Law Threatens Future of Turkish NGOs

Nearly 680 non-governmental organizations in Turkey have condemned a new law aimed at increasing oversight of them, with critics saying it threatens to silence one of the country’s last independent and critical voices. “It’s creating a huge chilling effect,” said Yaman Akdeniz, co-founder of the Freedom of Expression Society, “They [government] want to create fear, and it has been successful so far with this law; there is fear in civil society.” The controversial measure took effect three weeks ago, shortly after it received parliamentary approval. The law ostensibly seeks to comply with a United Nations Security Council demand on preventing the financing of terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.  But international rights groups accuse the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of using the reform as a means to silence critical NGOs. “The law calls itself one thing, fighting proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. But within this law is this ulterior motive of going after NGO’s on a rather wide basis,” said senior Turkey researcher Emma Sinclair Webb, of U.S.-based Human Rights Watch. The rights group said the measure was rushed to parliament December 18 “without consultation with the civil society organizations it will affect most.” HRW also said in a recent statement that only six of the law’s 43 articles include means and regulations to combat the financing of terrorism. Under the new law, if any NGO board member or professional employee is put on trial on terrorism offenses, the Interior Ministry or a judge can appoint a “trustee” to run the NGO for the duration of the court case.”This system does not operate on the presumption of innocence until proven guilty,” said Akdeniz. “Being prosecuted is enough for the court to appoint a trustee. When that person takes control of the association, if there is any funding, that trustee will spend it as they wish. For example, the first thing a government trustee can do is to sack the employees and replace them, and this will completely change the NGO.”  The government has widely used trustees to replace elected mayors in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast. Dozens of mayors of the pro-Kurdish HDP have been removed following the launching of terrorism investigations.Demonstrators clash with Turkish riot police in Istanbul, during a “March for Democracy” called by Republican People’s Party (HDP), after three opposition MPs were revoked and sent to prison at Silivri, June 15, 2020.”In Turkey, we see tens of thousands are charged and being prosecuted under Turkey’s very broadly written and vague anti-terrorism legislation, without any evidence that they are materially connected to armed groups,” added Sinclair-Webb. “It’s very easy to see this pattern of prosecutions applied to people critical of the government. So, NGOs critical of the government are going to be very vulnerable under this new NGO law. ” Akdeniz has first-hand experience of challenging the vagaries of Turkey’s anti-terror laws, with much of his NGO’s work helping to defend people facing prosecution for social media posts that violate the country’s anti-terror laws. “We are providing legal assistance to a lady who is facing nine separate prosecutions, all to do with her Facebook activity,” said Akdeniz. Under the new legislation, government permission is now required for projects receiving overseas funding, a move Akdeniz says is aimed at the European Union.   “One of the main reasons is to hit the EU because the EU announced it would not give substantial funding to Turkish authorities [because of human rights concerns] but instead give it to civil society. I think Ankara is reacting; if you are going to fund civil society, we are going to regulate civil society,” said Akdeniz. The measure could also target Turkish NGOs that distribute EU funding. “Let’s say I am funding a women’s NGO whose members have been arrested, and under investigation, they [Interior minister] have the right to come to me and close down my organization,” said Murat Celikkan, co-director of Hafiza Merkezi, an Istanbul-based human rights NGO, which last year supported 48 such groups with EU funds. “With this new law, especially for rights-based NGOs which are very important for democracy and reforms in Turkey, it will be impossible to move to act as there is the threat of authorities confiscating everything you have or closing you down without even a trial or any judgment,” said Celikkan.  The government says Turkey faces terrorist threats, and its legislation meets international norms. The Interior Ministry has said it will publish regulations on how the law will be implemented. “We don’t know what will happen,” said Celikkan, adding, “We have to wait for the regulations on how they will implement the legislation. Will they target pro-Kurdish NGOs, human rights NGOs, Islamic NGOs which are critical of the government or everyone?” 

US Allies in Europe Welcome Biden Presidency, But Hurdles Lie Ahead

The inauguration of Joe Biden represents not only a new chapter for the United States, but for the world. For allies and adversaries alike, new relationships with the world’s superpower are already taking shape.In much of Europe, there is a mood of optimism.“After Joe Biden was elected, you could hear a collective sigh of relief going through European corridors of power,” said Rem Korteweg, foreign policy analyst at the Clingendael Institute in the Netherlands. “The climate agenda, global trade policy, multilateral institutions and European security are very much on the top of the agenda of European leaders when it comes to talking to Joe Biden. He is a very strong supporter of the transatlantic security relationship and is a steadfast supporter of NATO.”Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping hold a video conference, Dec. 30, 2020.Meanwhile, European trade with the U.S. is stumbling. Under Trump, the United States and Europe slapped tariffs on some imports of each other’s goods. French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said this week that Europe would try to end spiraling tit-for-tat tariffs.“At the top of the agenda will be to clearly say ‘stop’ to the trade war between the U.S. and Europe. ‘Stop’ to the sanctions from the U.S. administration on French vineyards, for instance. ‘Stop’ to the Boeing-Airbus case, which is clearly not in the interest of neither the U.S. nor European countries,” Le Maire told reporters.Britain has traditionally been seen as the transatlantic bridge between the U.S. and Europe. But its ties to the EU have been cut by Brexit.“So, when it comes to trade issues, or perhaps also climate change or areas of economic regulation, or dealing with financial crises, the United Kingdom is not going to be America’s first port of call,” Korteweg said.Biden has in the past been a vocal critic of Britain’s exit from the EU. Britain insists its “special relationship” with the U.S. will be unaffected, and analysts say London remains a key security partner for Washington. Britain is due to host the G-7 meeting in June, and the COP26 climate summit in November.In this photo made available by 10 Downing Street, Britain’s Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab gestures during a coronavirus media briefing at 10 Downing Street, in London, April 16, 2020.British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said Tuesday reviving the Iran nuclear deal, or JCPOA, from which the U.S. withdrew in 2018 under Trump, is a top priority.“It is welcome that President-elect Biden and the new administration has talked about coming back into the JCPOA, enhancing and strengthening it,” Raab told British lawmakers.Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic has brought health and economic crises to both Europe and the United States. In the near term, analysts say dealing with the deadly health emergency will likely take priority on both sides of the Atlantic. 

EU Calls on Member States to Speed Up Vaccination Programs

The European Union’s executive arm, the EU Commission, called on member states Tuesday to speed up their COVID-19 vaccination programs, saying nations should have at least 80% of their priority populations – front-line workers and people over 80 – vaccinated by March. At a news conference in Brussels, Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas said the goal is to have 70% of the EU’s adult population immunized by summer. European Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas speaks during a news conference on actions to prevent a possible COVID-19 third wave, at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 19, 2021.The EU has sealed six vaccine contracts for more than 2 billion doses, with Moderna, AstraZeneca-Oxford, Sanofi-GSK, Janssen Pharmaceutica NV, Pfizer-BioNTech and CureVac. But only the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines have been approved for use so far in the bloc, enough to vaccinate 380 million people, more than 80% of the bloc’s population. Compared with Britain, the United States and United Arab Emirates, the EU as a whole got a late start with its vaccination programs, and individual nations lagged behind that as well.  In a statement from her Twitter account Tuesday, EU Commission Chair Ursula Von der Leyen said meeting the 70% vaccination goal by summer could be “a turning point in our fight against the virus.”EU Commissioner for Health Stella Kyriakides talks during a plenary session on EU global strategy on COVID-19 vaccinations at the EU parliament in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 19, 2021.According to Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides, 400,000 EU citizens have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. The European Commission has been weighing a Greek proposal to issue vaccination certificates to help get travelers to their vacation destinations more quickly and avoid another disastrous summer for Europe’s tourism sector. Kyriakides said the commission is working with member states to allow a vaccination certificates program to be quickly implemented across the bloc. 
 

Biden’s Homeland Security Nominee Vows to Follow US Immigration Law

The incoming Biden administration will work “to cease funding for further construction” of the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary nominee Alejandro Mayorkas, who told senators Tuesday that U.S. law will dictate whether individuals in migrant caravans are allowed to remain in the United States. 
 
Mayorkas appeared for his Senate confirmation hearing one day after reports surfaced that Biden intends to propose an eight-year path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants shortly after taking office Wednesday, signaling an immediate focus on a topic that has both consumed and paralyzed Congress for decades. Biden to Propose 8-year Path to Citizenship for Immigrants It would provide an eight-year path to citizenship for an estimated 11 million people living in the US without legal statusRepublican lawmakers pressed Mayorkas on whether the Biden administration would spend $1.4 billion that Congress appropriated late last year to continue border wall construction, one of President Donald Trump’s top priorities that has been fiercely opposed by Democrats, including President-elect Joe Biden. 
 
Mayorkas said he would examine whether existing funds must be spent and underscored Biden’s opposition to further wall appropriations. He did not signal any intention by the incoming administration to tear down wall sections already built. FILE – President Donald Trump signs a plaque that bears his name on the 450th mile of the border wall in Texas, January 12, 2021. 
The hearing came as a caravan of Central American migrants pushes north toward the United States. Republican Senator Mitt Romney of Utah asked Mayorkas if the caravan would be allowed to enter the United States or turned back at the border. 
 
“We are a nation of immigrants and we are also a nation of laws, and I intend to apply the law,” the Cuban-born Mayorkas responded. “If people qualify under the law to remain in the United States, then we will apply the law accordingly. If they do not qualify to remain in the United States, then they won’t.” 
 
The nominee rejected calls by progressive elements of the Democratic coalition that helped elect Biden to defund U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE), an agency within DHS that, among other duties, carries out deportations of undocumented immigrants. Alejandro Mayorkas, nominee to be Secretary of Homeland Security, testifies during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, January 19, 2021. 2015 DHS inspector general’s report The hearing lasted more than two hours and featured repeated questions about Mayorkas’ role in the granting of U.S. visas to wealthy foreign investors when he served as director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) during the former Obama administration. A 2015 DHS inspector general’s report concluded that Mayorkas intervened in the EB-5 investor program at the behest of some powerful Democrats in a way that “created an appearance of favoritism and special access.” Mayorkas noted that the report found no legal wrongdoing. 
 
“The inspector general did not take issue with the disposition of the cases in which I became involved because I studied the law, and I followed the facts, and that is my North Star. And it always has been. And any suggestion to the contrary, is incorrect,” Mayorkas said.  FILE – District of Columbia National Guard stand outside the Capitol, January 6, 2021, after a day of rioting protesters.DHS after Capitol riot If confirmed, Mayorkas would be the first Latino and first immigrant to lead that Department of Homeland Security. In addition to leading USCIS, he served as Obama’s deputy secretary of DHS, the third-largest federal agency in the nation.   DHS was created after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, a period when threats originating abroad were seen as paramount. 
 
Addressing the January 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol carried out by Trump loyalists, Mayorkas expressed horror and said authorities have yet to learn everything that happened that day.  
 
He vowed to “do everything” to ensure that “the tragic loss of life, the assault on law enforcement, the desecration of the building that stands as one of the three pillars of our democracy, the terror that you felt your colleagues, staff and everyone present will not happen again.” 

Russia Dismisses Calls for Sanctions After Navalny Arrest

Russia dismissed calls Tuesday for opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s release and threats of sanctions after his arrest, calling the issue a national matter.Responding to calls for sanctions against Moscow a day after Navalny was arrested, a Kremlin spokesperson said Navalny’s case would be dealt with internally.FILE – Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov listens during a news conference in Moscow, Russia, Dec. 19, 2019.“We can’t and are not going to take these statements into account,” Dmitry Peskov told reporters Tuesday.”This is about a Russian citizen not complying with Russian law. This is an absolutely domestic matter, and we will not allow anyone to interfere in it,” he went on.Navalny returned Monday to Russia after spending months in Germany recovering from poisoning — an attack he blames on Russian security forces backed by longtime president Vladimir Putin. Putin has denied these allegations.A Russian court Monday sentenced Navalny to 30 days in a Moscow prison over parole violations, setting the stage for a later trial that could send the Kremlin’s most vocal critic to prison for several years. Authorities converted the Moscow suburban police station where the opposition leader had been held for less than 24 hours into a makeshift courtroom. They claim Navalny violated his parole rules of a 2014 corruption conviction — a case European human rights groups have called “arbitrary.”Navalny and his legal team were given little advance notice of the hearing, in sharp contrast to Russian state media cameramen who were in position to film the deliberations as they unfolded. 

Serbia Becomes First European Country to Use Chinese COVID Vaccine for Mass Rollout

Hundreds of members of Serbia’s military lined up on Tuesday in their camouflage uniforms at an exhibition hall in Belgrade where nurses injected them with a Chinese-made vaccine against COVID-19.
Last week Serbia received one million doses of Chinese Sinopharm’s COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the first European country to start a mass inoculation program with it.
Serbia is vaccinating essential workers such as police officers, teachers and soldiers after last month starting to treat the elderly in care homes and medical workers with its supplies of vaccines developed by Pfizer and BioNTech , and Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine.
Belgrade maintains close ties with Beijing and Chinese companies have invested billions of euros in Serbia, mainly in infrastructure and energy projects.
Defense minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said over 700 members of the military, including himself had been vaccinated with the Chinese vaccine.
“I have been inocculated with the Chinese vaccine which we completely trust … I’ve said I will get the same vaccine as our troops,” Stefanovic told reporters.
More than 20,000 Serbians have been vaccinated so far since the mass inoculation began in late December.
Over the weekend, President Aleksandar Vucic said Serbia expects to get another 250,000 doses of the Sputnik vaccine and 20,000 doses of Pfizer vaccines in the coming days.
In the Western Balkan region, inoculation has started only in Serbia and Albania, while Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia have not yet received supplies of any vaccine.
China approved the shot developed by Sinopharm’s BIBP in late December, its first COVID-19 vaccine for general public use. No detailed efficacy data has been released, but BIBP has said the vaccine is 79.34% effective based on interim data.
In Serbia, which has a population of about 7 million, 3,771 people have died from COVID-19 and 347,111 fell ill with it.

US Sanctions 23 Actors With Ties to Venezuelan Oil

The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday sanctioned three individuals, fourteen entities, and six vessels for their ties to a Mexico-based network involved in the sale of Venezuelan oil benefitting the government of President Nicolas Maduro.The list of actors designated by Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) includes an Italian and a Swiss citizen, as well as a Venezuelan-Spanish dual citizen. The listed entities include organizations based in places like Malta, Panama and Zimbabwe. Two U.S. companies based in New York City were also designated.Starting today, U.S. property of the sanctioned entities is frozen, while U.S. based companies that are more than 50% owned by the designated individuals and entities are blocked. “Those facilitating the illegitimate Maduro regime’s attempts to circumvent United States sanctions contribute to the corruption that consumes Venezuela,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said. “The United States remains committed to targeting those enabling the Maduro regime’s abuse of Venezuela’s natural resources.”Last June, OFAC designated five other actors for their participation in a sanctions-evasion scheme benefitting the Maduro regime and the state-controlled oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA). PdVSA and the Venezuelan Central Bank have also been sanctioned under President Donald Trump. As of October 2020, the Treasury Department had imposed sanctions on around 160 Venezuelan or Venezuelan-connected individuals, while the State Department had revoked the visas of more than 1,000 individuals and their families, according to the U.S. Congressional Research Service.The U.S. is among the Western nations that recognized opposition leader Juan Guido as Venezuela’s interim president.