The Bangladesh Today (04-02-2018)

INTERNATIONAL
SUNDAy, fEbRUARy 4, 2018
7
North Korea made $200m
flouting sanctions:UN
North Korea earned nearly $200m
(£141m) last year by exporting banned
commodities in breach of international
sanctions, a UN report says, reports
BBC.
The confidential report by a panel of
experts said several countries including
China, Russia and Malaysia had failed
to stop the illegal exports. It said there
was evidence of military co-operation
with Syria and Myanmar.
Pyongyang is subject to sanctions
from the US, UN and EU over its
nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
But the report, which was
submitted to the UN Security Council
and seen by news agencies, said the
North "continued to export almost all
the commodities prohibited in the resolutions...
between January and September
2017".
The report said several unnamed
multinational oil companies were
being investigated for their alleged role
in supplying petroleum products to
North Korea. It said shipments of coal
had been delivered to China, Malaysia,
South Korea, Russia and Vietnam in
breach of sanctions using "a combination
of multiple evasion techniques,
routes and deceptive tactics". The
expert panel accused North Korea of
"exploiting global oil supply chains,
complicit foreign nationals, offshore
company registries, and the international
banking system".
China's embassy in North Korea
denied flouting Security Council sanctions,
but said in a statement that the
two neighbours had maintained "normal
trade exchanges". It said Chinese
food, fruit and household products
were still being sold in North Korea.
Sanctions in recent years have targeted
North Korea's coal trade with China, as
well as banned exports of ore and other
raw materials and imposed travel bans
and asset freezes on individuals and companies
linked to its nuclear programme.
The latest UN sanctions, announced
in December, were estimated to reduce
the nation's petrol imports by up to
90%. It included a ban on exports of
North Korean goods, such as machinery
and electrical equipment.
Meanwhile, all North Korean nationals
working abroad were told to return
home within 24 months. UN monitors
found that Myanmar and Syria continued
to co-operate with North Korea's
main arms exporter, Komid, despite it
being on a UN sanctions blacklist.
The report said there was evidence
that the North was helping Syria to
develop chemical weapons and providing
ballistic missiles to Myanmar.
Between 2012 and 2017 the panel
revealed there had been more than 40
North Korean shipments to companies
acting for the research centre overseeing
Syria's chemical weapons programme.
Syrian officials had told the
monitors that the only North Korean
experts on its territory were involved in
sport.
Myanmar's ambassador to the UN
said the country had no arms relationship
with North Korea.
Qatar's defence minister stressed the need for open dialogue as a means to end the ongoing GCC crisis.
Photo: Internet
Saudi, UAE intended to invade
us: Qatar Defence minister
Saudi Arabia and the United
Arab Emirates had
intentions to invade Qatar
at the beginning of a diplomatic
crisis that erupted in
June, according to Qatar's
defence minister, reports
Al Jazeera.
In an interview with the
Washington Post on Friday,
Khalid bin Mohammad Al
Attiyah said his Gulf neighbours
have "tried everything"
to destabilise the country, but
their intentions to invade
were "diffused" by Qatar.
"They have intentions to
intervene militarily," said
Attiyah.
When asked to confirm
whether he thought such a
threat still existed today, he
responded: "We have diffused
this intention. But at
the beginning of the crisis,
they had this intention.
"They tried to provoke the
tribes. They used mosques
against us. Then they tried to
get some puppets to bring in
and replace our leaders."
KHALID BIN MOHAM-
MAD AL ATTIYAH ON THE
GCC CRISIS:
Q:?You have Turkish
troops in your country. Were
you actually afraid that Saudi
Arabia or the UAE might
invade?
A:?I wouldn't say afraid.
They have intentions to intervene
militarily.
Q:?Saudi and UAE?
A:?Yes, for sure. They have
this intention. But our relations
with Turkey go way
back before the crisis.
Q:?But you seriously think
the UAE and Saudi Arabia
have intentions to invade?
Today?
A:?We have diffused this
intention. But at the beginning
of the crisis, they had
this intention. They have
tried everything. They tried to
provoke the tribes. They used
mosques against us. Then
they tried to get some puppets
to bring in and replace
our leaders.
Attiyah, who met US
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis
last week during a visit to
Washington, DC, described
the beginning of the crisis by
the Saudi-led bloc as an
"ambush" that was "miscalculated".
In June 2017, Saudi Arabia,
the UAE, and Egypt and
Bahrain cut off diplomatic relations
with Qatar and imposed a
land, sea and air blockade after
accusing it of supporting "terrorism"
and "extremism".
Qatar has strongly denied
the allegations. Attiyah said
Qatar is the only country that
has signed a memorandum of
understanding with the US to
counter terrorism in the
region - namely in Iraq,
Afghanistan, and Syria.
He stressed the need for
open dialogue as a means to
end the ongoing crisis. Asked
about Doha's relations with
Saudi's rival, Iran, Attiyah
noted that Qatar maintains
"friendly relations with everyone".
"We are responsible for the
supply of [an enormous
amount] of the world's energy.
We have to have a smooth
flow of energy, and that
means we have to eliminate
having enemies," he said,
referring to the country's
shared oilfield with Iran.
According to Attiyah, the
Saudi-led bloc had planned
to replace Qatari Emir Sheikh
Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani
with a new leader.
"They put their puppet,
[Sheikh Abdullah bin Ali Al
Thani, a relative of a former
Qatari emir], on TV," he said
of the "failed" attempt.
"They can't do anything.
The Qatari people love their
emir." On January 14, Sheikh
Abdullah released a video
statement, saying he was a
"prisoner" in the UAE, and
that if anything happened to
him, "Sheikh Mohammed" is
responsible.
While he did not specify,
Abdullah appeared to be
referring to Abu Dhabi's
Crown Prince Mohammed
bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Days
later, he was hospitalised in
Kuwait. Later, reports
emerged he threatened suicide.
Not all details in GOP memo help
undercut Mueller probe
President Donald Trump and his supporters are
using a congressional memo alleging FBI surveillance
abuse to raise questions about the origins of
a federal investigation into his campaign's ties to
Russia. But the four-page document includes revelations
that might complicate the effort to undermine
special counsel Robert Mueller's ongoing
probe, reports Dawn.
The document contends that the FBI relied
excessively on an ex-British spy whose opposition
research was funded by Democrats when it
applied for a surveillance warrant on a Trump
campaign associate. Yet it also says the investigation
into potential Trump ties to Russia actually
began several months earlier - "triggered," it says,
by information involving a separate campaign
aide. The spy who compiled the allegations
admitted to having strong anti-Trump sentiments,
but he was not a random find for the
bureau. Rather, he was a "longtime FBI source"
with a credible track record, says the memo from
the House intelligence committee's Republican
chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes, and his staff.
The warrant authorizing the FBI to monitor the
communications of campaign adviser Carter
Page? Approved by a judge on four occasions,
according to the memo, and signed off on by
Trump's hand-picked deputy attorney general,
Rod Rosenstein. That omission is important,
Republicans say, because a judge should have
known that "political actors" were involved in
allegations that led the Justice Department to
believe Page might be an agent of a foreign power
- something he has consistently and strenuously
denied.
Research from former spy Christopher Steele,
according to the memo, "formed an essential
part" of the application to receive the warrant,
though It's unclear how much or what information
he collected was included in the application,
or how much has been corroborated. Steele's
opposition research effort was initially funded by
the conservative Washington Free Beacon. It was
later picked up by the Clinton campaign and the
DNC through a Washington law firm
The FBI this week expressed "grave concerns"
about the memo and called it inaccurate and
incomplete. Beyond that, though, the memo confirms
the FBI's counterintelligence investigation
into the Trump campaign began in July 2016 -
months before the surveillance warrant was even
sought - and was "triggered" by information concerning
a different campaign aide, George
Papadopoulos. Papadopoulos pleaded guilty last
year to lying to the FBI and is cooperating with
Mueller's investigation.
Inspections of ships have been stepped up, but the UN says more must be done.
Maldives
president fires
2nd police
chief in 3 days
The president of the Maldives
has fired a national
police chief for the second
time in three days, as
political unrest grows
after a court ordered the
release and retrial of
political prisoners,
including an ex-president,
reports Dawn.
President Yameen Abdul
Gayoom's office says he
dismissed Ahmed Saudhee
on Saturday and appointed
Deputy Police Commissioner
Abdulla Nawaz to
act as interim police chief.
No reason was given for
the dismissal.
Saudhee was appointed
interim police chief Friday,
one day after Yameen
fired Ahamed Areef for not
answering his phone calls.
Thursday night's court ruling
ordered the release and
retrial of politicians opposed
to Gayoom, including ex-
President Mohammed
Nasheed, saying their guilty
verdicts were politically influenced.
The ruling has led to
protests by opposition supporters
urging the government
to obey the order.
90 migrants feared
drowned after
boat capsizes off
Libya: UN
About 90 people are feared
drowned after a smuggler's
boat carrying mostly Pakistani
migrants capsized off
Libya's coast early Friday,
the U.N.'s migration agency
said, reports CNN.
Ten bodies have washed
ashore near the Libyan town
of Zuwara following the
tragedy in the early morning,
said International
Organization for Migration
spokeswoman Olivia Headon,
citing information from
its partner agencies.
Initially, the Libyan coast
guard said a patrol it sent out
found no signs of a capsized
boat, survivors, or drowned
migrants. But late at night, it
cited a statement from officials
in Zuwara who said that
13 bodies had been found, all
Pakistani except for one
Libyan woman. Pakistan's
Foreign Ministry said 11 of its
citizens had drowned in the
incident. Ministry spokesman
Mohammad Faisal told The
Associated Press that Pakistani
diplomats reached
Libya's coastal area to collect
more details and begin the
process of repatriating the
bodies of the deceased.
Headon said Pakistani
nationals are increasing
among the number of
migrants attempting to cross
the Mediterranean to Italy
and Europe via Libya. By
nationality, Pakistanis last
year made up the 13th
largest nationality represented
among migrants
making the crossing, but
they were the third-largest
contingent in January.
Australia has said it plans to become one of
the world's top 10 defence industry exporters
within a decade, reports BBC.
The nation currently sells about A$2bn
(£1.15bn; $1.6bn) in defence equipment each
year, making it the 20th largest arms
exporter. Manufacturers would now be
offered government-backed loans to stimulate
the industry, PM Malcolm Turnbull said.
Aid groups said the move would not help
global efforts to build peace, an assertion
rejected by the government. The nation said
it would primarily focus on boosting exports
to the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand, but
it would also target markets in Asia and the
Middle East. "This is all about Australian
jobs," Mr Turnbull told reporters on Monday,
adding that "the goal is to get into the
top 10". The expansion includes setting up a
A$3.8bn loan scheme to help Australian
companies sell defence equipment overseas.
The government will also establish separate
agencies to better co-ordinate and promote
industry exports. Defence Industry
Minister Christopher Pyne said prospective
Photo: Internet.
Australia aims to become
'top 10' defence exporter
buyers would face stringent checks to ensure
"[we] don't get into markets where we don't
want to be".
Critics said Australia should not deepen its
investment in defence exports.
"We should not be getting into the game of
marketing weapons which kill, maim, and
bring great sorrow and destruction to communities
around the world," Marc Purcell,
chief executive of Australian Council for
International Development, told the Australian
Broadcasting Corp. However, Mr
Turnbull said nations could not forgo
defence spending because the "price of liberty
is eternal vigilance".
"So that is why every nation, responsible
nation, including our own, sets out to have
the capabilities to defend itself, whatever and
however circumstances may develop in the
future," he said. The US is the world's largest
arms exporter, making up a third of all sales,
according to the Stockholm International
Peace Research Institute.
The next biggest exporters are Russia, China,
France and Germany and the UK.
US says Russia 'developing' undersea
nuclear-armed torpedo
Just as the White House is
caught in a political minefield
over the Russia investigation,
the Pentagon is taking
its toughest line yet
against Russia's resurgent
nuclear forces, reports
CNN.
In its newly released
Nuclear Posture Review, the
Defense Department has
focused much of its multibillion
nuclear effort on an
updated nuclear deterrence
focused on Russia.
"Russia considers the
United States and the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO) to be the principal
threats to its contemporary
geopolitical ambitions," the
report says. "The Defense
Intelligence Agency currently
estimates Russia has a
stockpile of 2,000 "nonstrategic"
nuclear weapons
including short-range ballistic
missiles, gravity bombs
and depth charges that can
go on medium range
bomber aircraft," according
to the report.
"DIA also estimates Russia
has nuclear armed anti-ship,
anti-submarine missiles and
torpedoes. What do they need
nuclear depth charges for?"
one US official asked. President
Donald Trump highlighted
the importance of the
review's conclusions Friday in
a written statement.
The Pentagon is adamant
the Nuclear Posture Review
walks the line between
maintaining a nuclear
deterrence and encouraging
controls on nuclear
weapons. The report also
publicly acknowledges, for
the first time, that Russia is
"developing" a "new intercontinental,
nuclear armed,
nuclear-powered, undersea
autonomous torpedo."
Known in English as the
"Status-6" system, the program
is described by US
officials as essentially a
drone-type device fired
underwater that can potentially
travel thousands of
miles and strike US coastal
targets such as military
bases or cities. Upon detonation,
the device is
designed to cause large
zones of radioactive contamination.
The review calls for more
focus on US "low yield"
nuclear weapons to try to
convince Russia that the US
has a credible deterrent
against the potential Russian
threat. The plan calls for
modifying existing US warheads
on submarinelaunched
ballistic missiles
in a $50 million five-year
program.
Each submarine would
only carry a few of these
new missiles, armed primarily
with strategic
longer-range missiles. But
according to some experts,
the plan translates Trump's
urge to "greatly expand and
strengthen" the arsenal
into policy.
Longer-range missiles
could come over the next
decade, and the US would
plan to develop and field
sea-launched cruise missiles
also with lower-yield
warheads. The review is
calling for all of this along
with an overall modernization
of the nuclear force
because the Pentagon
requires an "investment in a
credible nuclear deterrent
with diverse capabilities,"
chief Pentagon spokesperson
Dana White told
reporters.