The United Nations voiced hope Monday for an easing of tensions after the arch-enemies Iran and the United States swapped prisoners.
“We very much hope that it leads to greater cooperation and a lessening of tensions,” said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
While they are major trade partners, Berlin-Beijing ties have been fraying as some in the German government take a harder line over issues ranging from human rights to Taiwan.
Baerbock, who has pushed for a more hawkish line, made the remarks in a Fox News interview on September 14 during a visit to the United States.
While talking about the Ukraine war, she said: “If Putin were to win this war, what sign would that be for other dictators in the world, like Xi, like the Chinese president? So therefore Ukraine has to win this war.” A foreign ministry spokesman in Berlin confirmed that Germany’s ambassador “was summoned to the Chinese foreign ministry (on Sunday)” in relation to the remarks.
The confirmation that China summoned ambassador Patricia Flor came after China said earlier Monday that it was “strongly dissatisfied” with Baerbock’s remarks.
“(The comments) are extremely absurd and are a serious infringement of China’s political dignity and an open political provocation,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a daily news conference.
Asked about China’s protests over her remarks during a visit to New York, Baerbock replied only that she had “taken note” of them.
A government spokesman refused to comment on what Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s view was about the remarks.
But the spokesman added that it was clear “that China is ruled by a Communist, one-party regime, and it is also clear that this does not correspond to our idea of a democracy”.
The invitation came during a meeting at the Turkish House, a prominent skyscraper near the United Nations headquarters in New York.
Erdogan’s proposal to Musk underscores Turkey’s growing interest in electric vehicles and sustainable transportation solutions. While Tesla has not yet officially responded to the invitation, this move aligns with the company’s global expansion strategy.
The Turkish President’s outreach to Musk occurred as Erdogan embarked on his visit to the United States to participate in the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
The meeting provided an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss the potential benefits of a Tesla factory in Turkey, which could not only bolster the country’s automotive industry but also contribute to the development of electric vehicle technology.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk is set to engage in discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in California on Monday, with a focus on the advancement of artificial intelligence technology. This meeting underscores Musk’s commitment to pioneering innovations in various sectors.
Tesla’s interest in expanding its manufacturing presence worldwide has been evident in recent months. In August, the electric carmaker expressed its intention to establish a factory in India dedicated to producing affordable electric vehicles. Currently operating six factories globally, with a seventh under construction in Mexico, Tesla’s pursuit of new manufacturing locations demonstrates its dedication to furthering its global reach.
Musk had previously indicated that a decision regarding the location of a new factory would likely be made by the end of this year. Tesla’s remarkable success is evident in its soaring stock prices, which have risen by an impressive 123% this year. The company also celebrated a significant milestone by producing its 5 millionth car.
In a separate venture, aside from his role at Tesla, Musk acquired X, formerly known as Twitter, for a staggering $44 billion in 2022. This acquisition marked Musk’s foray into the realm of social media.
The first minister said his government was “putting money where our mouth is” during a speech at a New York Climate Week event.
He announced funding for countries worst affected by climate change.
Mr Yousaf was the keynote speaker at an event on “financing climate justice”.
He warned countries in the global south who had contributed least to global CO2 emissions were bearing the brunt of the climate emergency.
“We are collectively guilty of catastrophic negligence and our children have every right to be angry and they have every right, quite frankly, not to forgive us if we do not step up,” the SNP leader said.
He announced an extra £800,000 of funding, in partnership with the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund, to help the victims of Storm Freddy in Malawi.
The first minister also said the government would partner with the Climate Justice Resilience Fund to deliver £5m for a non-economic loss and damage programme.
A further £1m is to be provided to address loss and damage through the Humanitarian Emergency Fund.
Mr Yousaf said it meant Scotland was fulfilling its pledge from COP27 to commit £7m to countries hit hardest by the climate crisis.
“We will transition from being the oil and gas capital of Europe to unleashing our renewable potential and becoming the net-zero capital of the world,” Mr Yousaf added.
“We will show moral leadership and ensure funding for loss and damage is not just pledged but paid and I would urge other nations to join us. The very existence of humanity depends on it.”
Earlier, a Scottish government minister said it was right that Mr Yousaf travelled more than 3,000 miles to attend the event in New York.
Mairi McAllan, secretary for transport, net zero and just transition, told Good Morning Scotland: “I understand the argument about reducing travel – it’s something we bear in mind.
“When it comes to the transformation that the climate emergency demands of us, it is very important to be having discussions in person and to be doing those negotiations both formally and informally.”
In August, the Scottish government’s climate justice fund pledged £24m to aid agencies working in Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia.
“It’s right that we do everything we can to support the nations who have done virtually nothing to contribute but who are on the first and worst receiving end of it,” Ms McAllan said.
The Scottish government is aiming to reach net-zero emissions by 2045, with its two largest cities – Glasgow and Edinburgh – setting the even more ambitious target of 2030.
But both Edinburgh and Glasgow city councils have warned that they lack the funds to reach those goals, with billions of pounds of investment required.
Ms McAllan acknowledged the cost of decarbonising was “really significant” but said the government was investing heavily in the process and “pioneering” progressive taxation.
“The public sector cannot fund the journey to net-zero alone and we need to private finance in a way which is responsible and which works for our communities but undoubtedly it will have to play a significant part in the journey,” she told BBC Scotland.
She called for more radical action from the UK government, describing Westminster policy as “increasingly out of date”.
The minister criticised the UK government for not introducing more progressive taxes on energy firms, failing to decouple the price of gas from electricity and not using more carbon capture and wind technology.
One of the key debates about the UK’s climate ambitions is over Rosebank, the country’s largest untapped oil field, off the coast of Shetland.
Ms McAllan stressed that the Scottish government did not hold powers over licensing such sites.
She added: “It’s an evidence-based approach that we want to see taken by UK government including a very strict climate compatibility test, and if Rosebank can’t meet a strict climate compatibility test I see no reason why it should go ahead.”
Her comments came after Oxfam released a report looking at how ministers could “make polluters across the UK pay for climate justice”.
It said greater levies on oil and gas firms and a tax system targeting those with extreme wealth could have raised between £10.5bn and £12.6bn in in 2022.
The study also found transport was currently Scotland’s biggest emitter, generating more than a quarter (26%) of the country’s carbon emissions.
But Lewis Ryder-Jones, Oxfam Scotland’s policy adviser, said his organisation was “pragmatic” in its approach to air travel when asked about Mr Yousaf’s trip to New York.
“Of course we want to see a reduction in flights used by everyone globally,” he told Good Morning Scotland. “That’s why we want to see a progressively increasing frequent flier levy.”
He added: “But the reality is people are going to need to fly and there are important reasons why people fly and those of us who take holidays every year should be allowed to do so.
“But through that process we must take responsibility for the emissions we are creating and the government has the power to increase the revenues we can get from those actions.”
A UK government spokesperson defended Westminster’s action to reduce emissions.
They said :”Our windfall tax on oil and gas companies is expected to raise an extra £26bn, whilst our tax system is also designed fairly so the richest bear the most burden – UK taxes on wealth are on par with other G7 countries and the top 5% of income taxpayers contribute half of all income tax.
“The UK is a world leader on net zero, cutting emissions faster than any other G7 country, and with 48% of our electricity coming from renewables in the first quarter of this year, the four largest operational wind farms in the world off our shores and significant investment in nuclear power, we expect that to continue.”
Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Sunday left for an official trip to the United States to address the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 78).
The caretaker premier’s five-day trip will include meetings with world leaders, attending a conference on climate change, and interactions with international media and US think tanks, the statement from the PM’s Office said.
He is expected to address the UNGA on September 22. Meanwhile, sources hinted that PM Kakar would undertake a brief visit to Saudi Arabia and the UAE before proceeding to the United States.
Last month, the PM Secretariat mentioned regarding premier’s visit from 18th to 23rd September, stating that will be among the guests to attend US President Joe Biden’s traditional reception on the inaugural day of the summit at the American Museum of National History adjacent to the UN Headquarters in Manhattan.
A small delegation will accompany the interim prime minister including Foreign Minister Syed Jalil Abbas Jilani, Information and Broadcasting Minister Murtaza Solangi, Climate Changes and Law and Parliamentary and Water Resources Affairs Minister Ahmad Irfan Aslam and Foreign Secretary Muhammad Syrus Qazi.
A day earlier, the caretaker premier in an interview with the Voice of America, affirmed that measures would be taken to ensure that the election process proceeds smoothly without disruptions and emphasised the commitment to upholding the democratic process in the country.
The interim set-up was ready to assist the ECP regarding the provision of financial resources and security for the polls, Kakar said.
He also expressed the confidence to overcome security threats at the country’s borders and complete the electoral process.
LAHORE: Qazi Faez Isa, Pakistan’s 29th chief justice, stands as a distinguished alum of London’s renowned Middle Temple, one of the four prestigious British Inns of Court with exclusive authority to admit members to the English Bar as barristers.
The trio of companion Inns includes Gray’s Inn, Lincoln’s Inn, and Inner Temple.
Over the past centuries, numerous eminent individuals who would later ascend to roles as global statesmen, prime ministers, presidents, chief justices, monarchs, chief ministers, governors, mayors, and other eminent pursued their law education at the esteemed Middle Temple.
Some of the names include King Edward VII; King Edward VIII; Princess of Wales Lady Diana; Duke of Cambridge Prince William; former British premiers John Major, Boris Johnson and David Cameron; Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew and his wife, Kwa Choo; British Supreme Court judges Simon Brown, Anthony Clarke and Mark Saville; Irish High Court judge Sir Donnell Deeny; Indian Viceroy Rufus Daniel Isaacs; eminent British legislator Geoffrey Howe, former Lord Chief Justices of England and Wales, Igor Judge, Alfred Lawrence and Sir Nicholas Hyde; President of British Supreme Court, Nicholas Phillips, Chief Minister West Bengal, Jyoti Basu, Lieutenant Governor of Bengal, Sir Andrew Fraser, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, Sir Anthony Hart, Chief Justice of the United States, John Rutledge; former London Mayor Sir Peter Estlin; and first home minister and deputy prime minister of India, Sardar Vallabhai Patel.
Other distinguished names comprise Hong Kong’s first chief justice of the Court of Final Appeal, Andrew Li, Hong Kong’s judge of Final Appeal Kemal Bokhary; Thailand’s former premiers, Sanya Dharmasakti, Pote Sarasin, and Phraya Manopakorn; ex-Chief Justice Allahabad High Court Sir John Edge; former judge of the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago Andre Mon Desir; speaker of the National Assembly of Mauritius Alan Ganoo; first Indian Governor of Bombay Raja Maharaj Singh; first Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas Sir Lynden Pindling; President of African National Congress Pixley Seme; second premier of Ceylon, Dudley Senanayake; and former speaker of Indian Lok Sabha, Somnath Chatterjee.
Apart from the Middle Temple, the other three Inns of Court such as Gray’s Inn, Lincoln’s Inn and Inner Temple have also produced and churned out some magnificent Pakistani personalities like Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Allama Iqbal, former Pakistani premie/president Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, former Pakistani president Wasim Sajjad, Pakistani Supreme Court judge Dorab Patel, former chief justice Lahore High Court and Allama Iqbal’s son, Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal, celebrated Pakistani jurist and politician Aitzaz Ahsan.
Other notable names include Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, British prime ministers Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair, ex-Indian president Shankar Dayal Sharma, Indian union ministers of defence Krishna Menon, and Bhimrao Ambedkar, the former Indian law minister and chief of the committee that drafted the Indian Constitution.
The surge in asylum seekers on the Italian island of Lampedusa has rekindled a fierce debate in Europe on how to share responsibility for the tens of thousands reaching the Continent each year.
“Irregular migration is a European challenge and it needs a European answer,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a visit to Lampedusa, offering a 10-point plan to help Rome deal with the crisis.
Since Monday, around 8,500 people — more than the island’s entire local population — have arrived in around 200 boats, according to the UN migration agency.
Lampedusa, Italy’s southernmost island, has long been a landing point for migrant boats from North Africa. But this week officials said its migration centre, built to house fewer than 400 people, was overwhelmed.
“We are doing everything possible,” Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said at a press conference with von der Leyen on Lampedusa.
It is “the future that Europe wants for itself that is at stake here, because the future of Europe depends on Europe’s capacity to face major challenges,” Meloni said.
The Italian Red Cross, which runs the overcrowded Lampedusa migration centre, said Sunday that 1,500 migrants remained there despite having a capacity for just 400.
Transfers of migrants to Sicily and the mainland have not kept up with the flow of new arrivals, although further transfers were expected to be made Sunday, the Red Cross said.
Kim’s tour of Russia’s far eastern region, which began on Tuesday, has focused intensely on military cooperation, including a symbolic exchange of rifles with Putin and an inspection of state-of-the-art Russian weapons.
Kim’s first official visit abroad since the coronavirus pandemic has sparked concerns that Moscow and Pyongyang will defy Western sanctions to secure an arms deal that could help the Kremlin continue its assault against Ukraine.
Before departing Vladivostok, the Far East Russian city just over the border with North Korea, Kim was presented with five explosive drones, a reconnaissance drone and a bulletproof vest as gifts from the governor of the Primorye region, which borders China and North Korea. He also visited the Far Eastern State University and appeared particularly pleased as he watched a walrus show at a local oceanarium.
Summing up the North Korean leader’s visit, Russian Natural Resources Minister Alexander Kozlov, who accompanied him on his last day, said “a lot” had been discussed. “Kim Jong Un was very interested in and paid attention to minute details,” Kozlov said.
He made no mention of any agreements concerning military matters, but said the two sides discussed increasing supplies of grain and the resumption of regular air travel. The two countries also discussed reviving long-muted infrastructure projects, he said. Government officials from the two countries also agreed to meet in Pyongyang in November, Kozlov added.
At the end of Kim’s visit, official Russian video footage showed him waving goodbye from his heavily armoured train to a Russian delegation, before the Russian march “Farewell of Slavianka” was played as the train departed.
Russia and North Korea, historic allies, are both under rafts of global sanctions — Moscow for its Ukraine offensive, Pyongyang for its nuclear weapon tests.
On Saturday, Kim met Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in Vladivostok, where he inspected state-of-the-art weapons including a hypersonic missile system.
The pair were seen smiling as they inspected some of Russia’s nuclear bombers at an airfield before boarding a warship.
On Wednesday, Putin and Kim held talks at Russia’s new Vostochny cosmodrome, roughly 8,000 kilometres from Moscow.
After the meeting Putin talked up the prospect of greater cooperation with North Korea and the “possibilities” for military ties.
Moscow is believed to be interested in buying North Korean ammunition to continue fighting in Ukraine, while Pyongyang wants Russia’s help to develop its internationally condemned missile programme. The Kremlin has said no agreement has or will be signed.
North Korean news agency KCNA has described Kim’s visit as “fervent and warm” and said a “new era of friendship, solidarity and cooperation” was opening between North Korea and Russia.
“He’s in the putrefaction stage now, because of the water.”
In a hospital car park in the eastern Libyan city of Derna, the final details of one of its many victims are being carefully checked and logged.
This is now one of the most vital jobs here, and one of the most distressing. The man is unrecognisable after spending a week in the sea. His body washed ashore that morning.
Expert hands gently probe, looking for identifying marks and taking a DNA swab. That’s important, in case there’s a family still alive to claim him.
Libya’s internationally recognised government says more than a quarter of the buildings in Derna were damaged or destroyed by last week’s catastrophic flood.
More than 10,000 people remain officially missing, according to figures from the UN’s Office for the Co-Ordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The Red Crescent has been issuing its own numbers.
The UN says the death toll so far stands at some 11,300. The final total remains unclear – although the one thing that is certain is the sheer scale of this catastrophe.
Mohammed Miftah knows in his heart his family are among the victims.
When he went to find his sister and her husband at their home after the floods, it had been washed away.
He’s heard nothing from them since. He shows me a video he took as the torrent rose, brown water pouring in through his front door.
A car is carried on the current and wedges into the open space, blocking it completely.
A barren wasteland with a lingering smell of death
Why damage to Derna was so catastrophic
CCTV shows cars swept away in Derna
“I saw cars coming down and I came out running,” he recalls.
“I thought that was it, that I was going to die. We could see our neighbours waving flashlights. In just a few moments, the lights went out, and they had disappeared.
“That was the hardest thing.”
Sabrine Ferhat Bellil, who said she lost her brother, his wife and 5 of his children when the deadly storm hit her city, reacts as she stands amid rubble beside her brother’s destroyed house, where she is hoping to find their bodies to bury, in Derna
Sabrine Ferhat Bellil lost her brother, his wife and five of his children when the deadly storm hit her city
As international aid begins to arrive in earnest, the Health Minister of Libya’s eastern government has announced that four Greek rescue workers were killed in an accident on the road to Derna.
Fifteen more were injured. They were on their way to join teams already on the ground from France and Italy.
Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have also flown in tons of extra supplies.
Mohammed Miftah fears some of his family members are among the dead
The next step is making sure they’re used properly and fairly.
Abdullah Bathily, the Head of the UN’s International Support Mission in Libya, told BBC Arabic the country now needs to create a transparent mechanism to manage all of its international donations.
It’s a concern borne from the well-known challenges of coordinating between the government in Tripoli which is internationally recognised, and the eastern Libyan government, which isn’t.
A destroyed car sits on top of a residential building following fatal floods in Dern
A destroyed car sits on top of a residential building following fatal floods in Derna
Back in the centre of Derna there are some points of light amid the mud and debris that has enveloped this city.
On one street corner, hundreds of colourful clothes lie scattered in piles.
Across the road a huge queue forms as fuel is handed out to survivors.
As the donations keep coming, one man arrives and places a box of warm scarves at the feet of an elderly woman.
He kisses her head tenderly, as she smiles and begins to choose one.
These are Libyans helping Libyans in one of their worst moments of crisis.
The opposition leader told the Financial Times that the current deal, which is due for review in 2025, is “too thin”.
Sir Keir was speaking at a conference of centre-left leaders in Montreal, Canada.
But he ruled out re-joining the customs union, the single market or the EU.
It remains unclear, however, if Brussels would be open to making major changes to the agreement, which was agreed by former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2021.
Sir Keir has repeatedly said he would not seek to rejoin the EU if his party comes to power, promising to “make Brexit work”.
His party has consistently held double-digit leads in the political opinion polls, with a general election expected to take place some time in 2024.
“Almost everyone recognises the deal Johnson struck is not a good deal – it’s far too thin,” he told the Financial Times.
“As we go into 2025 we will attempt to get a much better deal for the UK,” he said, although he did not specify what parts of the deal he would seek to improve.
He added that he was confident a better deal could be negotiated with Brussels, as well as a “closer trading relationship”.
“We have to make it work. That’s not a question of going back in, but I refuse to accept that we can’t make it work,” he said, adding that he was thinking about “future generations”.
“I say that as a dad. I’ve got a 15-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl. I’m not going to let them grow up in a world where all I’ve got to say to them about their future is, it’s going to be worse than it might otherwise have been.
“I’ve got an utter determination to make this work.”
The Labour leader spent the weekend meeting fellow centre-left leaders in Canada, including the country’s prime minister Justin Trudeau.
He is also expected to travel to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron later this week, where post-Brexit relations are expected to feature heavily in talks.
He also travelled to the Hague, the Netherlands, last week to meet with the EU’s law enforcement agency Europol, seeking a deal to try and stop smuggling gangs bringing people across the channel in small boats.
That led to accusations by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Home Secretary Suella Braverman that his party was planning to let the UK become a “dumping ground” for 100,000 migrants from the continent each year, claims he said were “complete garbage”.
