This week’s violence produced another tragic symbol of Ukraine’s resistance to Russia. Images of a young girl who died in a missile strike have galvanized anger and strengthened resolve.
President Joe Biden’s administration has claimed that Washington is the partner of choice in “every capital around this region”
Washington has re-established itself under President Joe Biden’s watch as the dominant security and economic partner desired by Middle East governments, halting a trend toward countries seeking closer ties with Russia and China, a senior White House official has claimed.
“If you go back to this region, say, I don’t know, 18 months ago, you heard an awful lot of just really significant hedging and, I would say, in many capitals, a real drift towards Russia and even China in many ways,” a Biden administration official told reporters on Friday. “Really, that has been arrested and, in many instances, very specific instances – not all which I can talk about – reversed.”
The official spoke on the condition of anonymity, touting Biden’s alleged accomplishments during the president’s four-day trip to the Middle East this week. Wrapping up his first visit to the region since taking office in January 2021, Biden met with leaders of nine countries at the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) +3 Summit in Saudi Arabia before heading back to Washington on Saturday.
Questioned about the fact that none of the countries represented at the summit has sanctioned Russia over the Ukraine crisis, the senior White House staffer insisted that the US is winning the geopolitical battle for influence in the Middle East. He said it’s only “natural” that GCC members and other countries in the region also have relationships with Russia and China.
“But when it comes to the partnerships and the partnerships of choice, and particularly in the security realm – but also in the trade, investment, commerce, tech realm – we heard from every capital around this region that their first choice, their priority, is the United States of America,” he said. “And that is something that we are very much committed to following up on and finding areas in which we can partner.”
The official argued that Biden’s visit made clear that the US has “no intent to leave a vacuum here in the Middle East, particularly for Russia or China to fill, or for that matter, Iran.” He noted with concern that Russian delegations reportedly visited Iran in recent weeks to view attack-capable drones that might be used in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit Tehran on Tuesday.
“Russia is effectively making a bet on Iran, and we are making a bet on a more integrated, more stable, more peaceful and prosperous Middle East region,” the White House official said.
After years of attempts at nation-building and regime changes through military force, which were “out of America’s reach to deliver and drained our attention and resources and capacity,” the US has changed course, the staffer said. “We are focused on what we think is a far more realistic set of objectives, very central to our interests and the interests of our partners.”
Biden’s strategy is based on Washington’s ability to build alliances, integrate the region, find connections that don’t exist and strengthen the ties that develop, the White House official said. “I think it is an era in which the unique capabilities of the United States can play a really important role here in forging new partnerships and strengthening alliances and coalitions,” he said.
The UN human rights office said on Saturday it was deeply concerned by worsening violence in and around the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince and rising abuse at the hands of heavily armed gangs, against vulnerable local communities.
Venezuela’s rural, remote, indigenous communities have been particularly affected by COVID-19 and the country’s socio-economic crisis; community gardens help Wayúu women from Rio Negro to make ends meet, and provide a haven from violence.
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Authorities issued their first ever “red” warning for extreme heat early next week. The alert covers large parts of England on Monday and Tuesday when temperatures may reach 104 F for the first time.
Trinidad and Tobago has accused the world’s most affluent countries of hoarding Monkeypox vaccines
Developed nations have been hoarding Monkeypox vaccines, showing little regard for other countries’ needs, Trinidad and Tobago’s health minister has claimed, comparing the situation to what happened at the height of the Covid 19 pandemic.
At a virtual press conference on Wednesday, Terrence Deyalsingh said “something rather unfortunate is happening on the vaccine front” with the Monkeypox virus, where “bigger, wealthier countries are stockpiling vaccines for their populations, leaving smaller countries like Trinidad and Tobago at a disadvantage.”
The minister expressed disappointment that the international community has failed to learn from the Covid 19 pandemic, with developed nations reverting to the same “regrettable” hoarding behavior.
Deyalsingh argued that vaccines against Monkeypox should be “made available on a more equitable level to all countries,” taking into account population size and individual risk profiles.
So far, no cases of Monkeypox have been detected in Trinidad and Tobago, though the presence of the virus has been confirmed in nearby Jamaica and The Bahamas.
According to estimates provided by the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, as of Wednesday, 10,857 cases of Monkeypox had been confirmed globally, a little over two months since it started spreading outside of its endemic region in West Africa.
The disease is believed to have claimed at least three lives so far this year, with Western Europe, North America and Brazil among the most affected regions.
The Monkeypox virus causes a disease similar to smallpox, though less severe. It can be transmitted through contact with bodily fluids, lesions on the skin, or in the mouth or throat, as well as respiratory droplets and contaminated objects. The disease is believed to be particularly prevalent among homosexual men.
At the height of the Covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO), and groups including the African Union, repeatedly criticized rich nations for hoarding much-needed Covid vaccines to the detriment of poorer countries.
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