Síntesis informativa - 27 de agosto 2019
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Iran’s Rouhani Says No Talks With Trump Until Sanctions Are Lifted
President Hassan Rouhani of Iran said on Tuesday that he would not sit down for a meeting with President Trump until Washington had lifted all of its economic sanctions against Iran.
His comment came a day after President Emmanuel Macron of France said he would try to arrange a meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Rouhani in the next few weeks, in an attempt to ease the strained relationship between their countries.
Mr. Trump said he was open to the idea if the Iranians were “good players.” Mr. Rouhani responded in kind.
“In the relations between Iran and the U.S., we will not witness any positive development unless the U.S. abandons the sanctions and corrects the wrong path it has chosen,” Mr. Rouhani said during a meeting in Tehran on Tuesday, according to the semiofficial Iranian news agency Tasnim.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/27/world/middleeast/trump-rouhani-macron.html
Lebanon Accuses Israel of 2nd Attack in 2 Days
BEIRUT, Lebanon — An Israeli drone struck a Palestinian militia base in eastern Lebanon on Monday, Lebanon’s National News Agency said, the fourth time in three days that Israel has been accused of attacking Iranian-backed forces across the Middle East.
The string of events — only one of which Israel has claimed responsibility for — has heightened tensions and raised fears that what has so far remained a shadow war between Iran and Israel and their respective allies could escalate into a more direct conflict.
The strike on Monday hit the base of an Iranian-backed Palestinian militia, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, in the eastern Bekaa Valley. On Sunday, a drone exploded south of Beirut, shattering the windows of an office belonging to Hezbollah, another Iranian-backed group.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/26/world/middleeast/lebanon-israel-attack.html
From the Shadows, China’s Communist Party Mobilizes Against Hong Kong Protests
HONG KONG — Across the border from Hong Kong, the Chinese Communist Party screams its presence with banners and slogans on nearly every street. Yet in the former British colony, where China’s ruling party confronts what it calls a “life and death” struggle against a turbulent protest movement, it is invisible: It is not registered and has no publicly declared local members.
But in Hong Kong, this officially nonexistent organization is in the vanguard of defending Chinese rule in the face of its biggest public resistance since the authoritarian leader Xi Jinping came to power in 2012. The party, operating in the shadows through individuals and organizations, is driving an increasingly firm pushback against the antigovernment protests, now in their 12th week.
Parroting slogans scripted by the Communist Party on the mainland, activists in a host of local pro-China organizations have mobilized to discredit the protesters as violent hooligans bent on wrecking the city. It is a message supported by the party’s main proxy in the territory, the Central Liaison Office in Hong Kong, which formally represents the Chinese government.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/27/world/asia/hong-kong-communist-china.html
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THE GUARDIAN
Brazil officials failed to act after warning of 'fire day’ in Amazon, prosecutors say
Brazilian environmental officials and federal prosecutors say that they sent a warning that farmers and land-grabbers in the Amazon were planning a day of coordinated fires on 10 August to send a message to far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, but authorities failed to act.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/26/brazil-amazon-fire-day-warning
'Russians have special status': politics and mining mix in Guinea
Russia has been trying to rekindle Soviet-era relationships with governments across the African continent and build new ties. Arms and military advisershave been supplied to countries such as the Central African Republic. Pro-Kremlin, regime-friendly “observers” have been sent to fraught elections in Zimbabwe and the DRC, producing positive takes on elections marred by rigging and violence.
While it cannot compete with China’s economic might on the African continent, Russia is carving out its own role, focusing on relationships such as that with Guinea.
For some years Russia’s interests in Guinea have mostly been in mining. Guinea gets around a third of its revenues from the extractive sector.
Rusal owns the Kindia Bauxite Company (CBK), which accounts for a third of Rusal’s bauxite output, as well as the Dian-Dian Bauxite Company and the Friguia complex, which mines bauxite and refines it into aluminium. Nordgold, another Russian company, owns a goldmine in northern Lefa, into which it is pumping ever-greater sums.
UN calls for 'maximum restraint' after alleged Israeli strike in Lebanon
The United Nation has called for maximum restraint after a reported drone attack in a Hezbollah stronghold south of Beirut that was blamed on Israel.
Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, said Sunday’s strike was Israel’s first such hostile action since the 2006 war. It was followed by another alleged Israeli attack yesterday on an armed Palestinian faction in eastern Lebanon, according to the group and Lebanon’s national news agency.
Lebanon’s president, Michel Aoun, a political ally of Hezbollah, said the Israeli strikes were “similar to a declaration of war” and that the country had a right to defend itself. “We are a people seeking peace not war, and we don’t accept anyone threatening us in any war,” he said. Israel’s military said it would not comment on either of the two alleged attacks.
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XINHUA
China voices firm opposition to G7 statement on Hong Kong
BEIJING, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- China on Tuesday voiced strong dissatisfaction with and resolute opposition to "random accusations" and "irresponsible remarks" on Hong Kong affairs in a statement from the Group of Seven (G7) summit.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang made the remarks at a daily press briefing.
The G7 reportedly reaffirmed the existence and the importance of the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong and called for avoiding violence in a joint statement issued Monday at the end of a G7 summit held in Biarritz, France.
"As we have emphasized on many occasions, Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs, and no foreign governments, organizations or individuals have the right to intervene," said Geng, when responding to a query about China's comment on the statement from the G7 summit.
The demonstrations and violent protests have been running in Hong Kong for more than two months, and Hong Kong's rule of law, social order, economy and wellbeing of the people, as well as its international image have been severely impacted as a result, Geng said.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-08/27/c_138342884.htm
Trump says open to France-proposed meeting with Iranian president
BIARRITZ, France, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that he is open to a France-proposed meeting with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani "if the circumstances are right".
"In the meantime, they have to be good players," Trump told a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron at the end of the G7 summit in the southern French town of Biarritz.
The meeting was proposed by Macron, who said the Iranian President too was open to a meeting with Trump.
Denouncing again the "very bad deal" reached in 2015 with Tehran, Trump added that the G7 was working on a long-term agreement that guarantees that Iran does not acquire either nuclear weapons or ballistic missiles.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-08/27/c_138340351.htm
Iran's president says lifting sanctions precondition for talks with U.S.
TEHRAN, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday that the United States should lift sanctions against Iran as a precondition for negotiations on mutual issues.
In his speech aired live by the state TV on Tuesday, Rouhani said that the United States should lift all its "cruel" and "unlawful" sanctions against Iran and respect the Iranian nation's rights as the "first step" towards dialogue.
"Any change in our behavior will start with their (U.S.) repentance. I have said and again: they should re-embrace their obligations (under the 2015 nuclear deal) and change their path of mistakes," Rouhani said.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-08/27/c_138342829.htm
Turkey receives 2nd batch of S-400 defense system from Russia
ANKARA, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- Turkey on Tuesday received the second batch of the equipment of Russia-made S-400 defense system, Turkish Defense Ministry announced.
"The second batch of components of S-400 missile defense system has arrived at Murted Air Base near Ankara," the ministry said in a statement on Twitter.
"The delivery process will continue for around one month," it added.
The first batch of S-400 defense system was delivered from Russia to Turkey in July and completed on July 25.
Turkey signed a contract with Russia in April 2017 to purchase the advanced S-400 systems.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-08/27/c_138342829.htm
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AL JAZEERA
Iraqi bloc calls for US troop withdrawal after Israeli air raids
Parliament bloc representing Iran-backed paramilitary militias say Israeli aggression 'declaration of war' on Iraq.
The Fatah Coalition said on Monday that it holds the United States fully responsible for the alleged Israeli aggression, "which we consider to be a declaration of war on Iraq and its people".
Israeli also launched a similar attack against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, which Beirut called a "declaration of war".
Anger is mounting in Iraq following a spate of mysterious air raids that have targeted military bases and a weapons depot suspected of belonging to Iran-backed militias.
The drone attacks have not been claimed by any side but US officials have said Israel was behind at least one of the attacks.
The Shia militias have blamed the attacks on Israel but hold its ally the US ultimately responsible.
The attacks are threatening to destabilise security in Iraq, which has struggled to remain neutral in the conflict between Washington and Tehran.
Iran's Rouhani tells US: No talks until sanctions lifted
Iran's president says 'unjust' sanctions must be lifted to end deadlock, after Trump indicates willingness to meet.
"We will continue to scale back our commitments under the 2015 deal if our interests are not guaranteed," said Rouhani in the speech broadcast live. "Tehran has never wanted nuclear weapons."
"So take the first step. Without this step, this lock will not be unlocked," Rouhani said.
Rouhani and Trump are scheduled to be in New York to attend the UN General Assembly at the end of September, which could provide a stage for talks.
CIA not spying on the UAE: Report
UAE among a small list of countries where the US intelligence agency conducts a hands-off approach, ex-CIA agents say.
The report, published on Monday, said the CIA does not gather "human intelligence" - the most valuable and difficult-to-obtain information - from UAE informants on its government, according to three former CIA officials familiar with the matter, who spoke to Reuters.
Another branch, the National Security Agency (NSA), conducts electronic surveillance - a lower-risk, lower-reward kind of intelligence-gathering - inside the UAE, two sources with knowledge of NSA operations told Reuters.
The CIA also works with UAE intelligence in a "liaison" relationship that involves intelligence sharing on common enemies, such as Iran or al-Qaeda.
The CIA's hands-off practice - which hasn't been previously reported in the media - puts the UAE on an extremely short list of countries where the agency takes a similar approach, former intelligence officials said.
They include the four other members of an intelligence coalition called the "Five Eyes": Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
The UAE has played a role in several major regional and international issues, including the blockade of Qatar, as well as the conflicts in Libya and Yemen.
It finances renegade military commander, Khalifa Haftar, who is trying to topple a United Nations-recognised government in Libya.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/08/cia-spying-uae-report-190827054317701.html
Brazil to reject G7 offer of $22m aid to fight Amazon fires
Brazil rebuffs offer of support as fires continue to ravage the Amazon rainforest and Macron-Bolsonaro spat intensifies.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday during a G7 summit in Biarritz that the group - comprising the US, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, Britain and Canada - would donate $22m to help tackle the blazes. Separately, Britain and Canada also pledged $12m and $11m in aid respectively.
Brazilian officials gave no official reason for rejecting the group's offer, while it was not immediately clear if Britain and Canada's offers of aid had also been declined, but President Jair Bolsonaro had earlier accused Macron of treating Brazil as if it were a colony.
Some 1,113 new fires were ignited across Saturday and Sunday, according to Brazil's National Institute for Space Research (INPE), which monitors deforestation.
Despite the rise, Brazil's Defence Minister Fernando Azevedo e Silva claimed on Monday that the fires in the Amazon were "under control."
Fires are common during Brazil's dry season, but the numbers have surged this year.
Environmentalists and non-governmental organisations have attributed the spike in blazes to farmers setting the forest alight to clear land for pasture and to loggers razing the forest for its wood, with INPE itself ruling out natural phenomena being responsible for the surge.
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AL MAYADEEN
La agresión israelí contra Beirut es un gran error de Netanyahu, afirma alto funcionario iraní
Después del ataque con aviones no tripulados contra un bastión de Hizbullah en el sur de Beirut, atribuido a (Israel), Naciones Unidas exhortó a todas las partes que ejerzan "la máxima moderación"
Denuncian sabotaje a subestación eléctrica en Venezuela
El primer vicepresidente del Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela, Diosdado Cabello, denunció un sabotaje a la subestación eléctrica de San Gerónimo, en el estado de Guárico, atribuido a la derecha nacional con apoyo de Estados Unidos.
Recalcó que la Asamblea Nacional Constituyente (ANC) es el único poder plenipotenciario que puede convocar a los comicios.
El pasado 12 de agosto, la ANC creó una comisión especial (encabezada por Cabello), para evaluar la fecha de las elecciones de diputados a la Asamblea Nacional.
