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26, June 2018

North, South Korea mull connecting railways ⁰

Officials from North and South Korea have met to discuss connecting the railways that run useless across their border amid a rapprochement on the long-divided peninsula.

The talks were held in the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two Koreas on Tuesday, the first on the issue in 10 years.

A train line connecting Seoul to Pyongyang and on to Sinuiju on the Chinese border already exists. It was built by Japan in the early 20th century, long before the 1950-53 Korean War, which politically divided the two Koreas.

Linking up the railways and modernizing the North’s aging rail infrastructure would benefit trade-dependent South Korea as it would give it a land route to the markets of China, Russia, and on to Europe.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have significantly eased since January this year, when North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed interest in the betterment of relations with South Korea. Vigorous diplomacy soon followed, and Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in then met in a historic summit.

Later, the US, too, engaged in diplomacy with Pyongyang, which culminated in a summit between Kim and US President Donald Trump in Singapore on June 12.

The two Koreas have, however, advanced their relations far more swiftly than Washington and Pyongyang. The US continues to maintain harsh sanctions on the North.

South Korea’s chief delegate Kim Jeong-ryeol said in the Tuesday meeting that progress on the railway issue would only become possible after international restrictions on North Korea are eased.

“But, he said, “we can thoroughly research and study various projects we can pursue after the sanctions are lifted.”

26, June 2018

US to ‘reassess’ N Korea talks if Kim fails to deliver ⁰

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the United States stays committed to talks with North Korea but will “reassess” all ties if North Korea leader Kim Jong-un fails to deliver on denuclearization promises that he made to President Donald Trump.

Speaking to CNN in a phone interview on Monday, the top US diplomat said both sides were working together to achieve what Kim and Trump agreed upon during their historic summit on June 12 in Singapore.

“I am not going to put a timeline on it, whether that’s two months, six months, we are committed to moving forward in an expeditious moment to see if we can achieve what both leaders set out to do,” Pompeo said.

Pompeo emphasized that future of the talks depended on Pyongyang’s steps towards nuclear disarmament and Washington would “constantly reassess” progress in this regard.

In exchange for Kim’s promise to dismantle his nuclear weapons program, Trump has put on hold joint military drills with South Korea and Japan off the Korean Peninsula.

“The President was clear. Each of the actions we have taken, his decision to suspend the high level war games, it’s only so long as there is a good faith negotiation progress, productive results being achieved,” Pompeo said.

“If we can’t do that, if it turns out that there is no capacity to deliver the outcome that both presidents said they wanted, yeah, we reassess,” he added.

‘Unequivocal’ Kim

Pompeo claimed that Kim sounded “unequivocal” on denuclearization both during the Trump meeting and before that, when he personally met the North Korean leader as CIA director.

“I heard it myself when I visited there as CIA director, I heard it myself when I visited Pyongyang as Secretary of State and I heard it again where there was a group together with the President and Chairman Kim,” he said.

Pompeo said it was too soon to expect a clear roadmap for ending decades of tensions between the two sides, but they were on the right track.

“So long as that commitment stays in place, the United States is prepared to do exactly what the president said,” the state secretary added.

Despite the new developments, Washington has made it clear that it won’t lift tough economic sanctions against Pyongyang until its complete denuclearization.

Source: Presstv

25, June 2018

Cameroon Dangles Unsavoury Bait To Ambazonians ⁰

A bloody conflict pitting Cameroun government forces and restorationist forces of Ambazonia is in its eighth month. Cameroun government has come up with a humanitarian assistance package to placate the suffering internally displaced populations and refugees from the Northwest and Southwest regions of the Cameroons.

The conflict begun in November 2016 with lawyers and teachers putting forward demands, which if addressed in timely manner and appropriately would have prevented the present bloody conflict. Instead, Cameroun government chose strong arm methods to quell the civilian demands of the populations. There were kidnappings, imprisonment without trial, mass rape, killings and scorched earth policy with the burning down of whole villages.

Restorationists retaliated fistfully, inflicting fatal blows and the fabric of government security groups. Scores of military and paramilitary have been killed.

Government forces, radicalized their actions. Unarmed civilians were slaughtered by Cameroun troops, with such savagery that should be the handiwork of a terrorist movement.

While restorationists take on government troops and administrators, perceived as architects of mismanagement and brutality, Cameroun government attacks everyone in targeted Anglophone villages as terrorists to be wiped out.

All Anglophones are presented to the world as terrorists, as such, restorationists claim they have only been defending their kindred targeted for genocide by Cameroon.

Government still believes they would be able to crush the restorationists, yet they dangle unsavoury baits to the suffering masses of the Northwest and Southwest regions of the Cameroons. The leadership of Ambazonia is warning people not to accept such GIFTS and has gone ahead to threaten to attack bearers of such GIFTS.

Violence has been equalized in the Cameroons with both sides of the conflict excelling in savagery. The restorationists are feeling embolden with their early gains on the warfront. They have succeeded the violent State military unleashing untold brutality on unarmed civilians.

Balance of power has been established, with government coming down from its high horse to entertain the possibility of dialogue on a peaceful resolution. Hawks among government, who were earlier opposed to any discussion on the form of the State are now ready to talk about federalism.

Restorationists say a lot of water has passed under the bridge, and they would stop at nothing short of independence.

In this conundrum, government came us with a plan to raise 12.7 billions Francs CFA for reconstruction, medical care and food supply to the displaced Ambazonians.

Yet The Minister of Territorial Administration, Paul Nai Atanga is calling the fired up Ambazonian Defence Forces to lay down their arms and surrender. As he touts the restorationists, they intensify their attacks against soldiers and administrators on the field.

Government’s narrative must change if they are seriously seeking an honourable way out of the conflict. The war is unwinnable, and if government does not change its approach the troops would be doomed to meet the Waterloo restorationists have prepared for them.

While government troops are afraid of dying, the restorationists are ready to die for independence of Ambazonia. In this dilemma, government should withdraw its troops from the conflict zone and act as if they are conceding. They should help the restorationists to organize themselves to secure the Northwest and Southwest regions.

Failure would only attract the restorationists to cross their perceived borders to wreck havoc in the other eight regions of the Cameroons.

Source: Modern Ghana

25, June 2018

FIFA World Cup: Russia’s winning form faces first big test against Uruguay ⁰

After defying expectations with decisive wins in their first two games, guaranteeing their position in the knockout rounds, World Cup hosts Russia face their biggest challenge yet on Monday as they take on Uruguay.

Russia went into the tournament with the lowest FIFA ranking of all the 32 participants, at number 70, behind such teams as Scotland and Burkina Faso.

But the team shocked critics with a resounding 5-0 thrashing of Saudi Arabia in their June 14 opener, before crushing Mohamed Salah’s Egypt 3-1 on June 19 – allowing Russia to get out of the group stage for the first time since they played as the Soviet Union in 1986.

‘We did our homework’

Russia manager Stanslav Cherchesov has argued that the team’s success is due to more than a home-country advantage. “It is not an accident that we have two wins under our belt,” he said. “We did our homework. We learned from our mistakes that didn’t allow us to be successful in the past.”

The performance of the team’s top scorer, Denis Cheryshev, is symbolic of Russia’s shock success. Before the World Cup, the Villareal striker had failed to score a single goal in his 11 appearances for the national team. But he has become Russia’s top scorer of the tournament so far, netting three goals – including an outstanding lob of the Saudi keeper from just inside the box.

Cheryshev is not the only overlooked Russian player to impress. Midfielder Aleksandr Golovin had done little to attract the attention of Europe’s top clubs since joining the CSKA Moscow first team in 2014, but played a pivotal role in Russia’s 5-0 crushing of Saudi Arabia, with one goal and two assists.

Similarly, Golovin’s midfield colleague Roman Zobnin went into the World Cup after two undistinguished years at Spartak Moscow, but gave a remarkably protean performance against Egypt, attacking and tracking back with equal skill, winning 10 out of 14 duels.

Suarez-Cavani partnership

However, Uruguay are likely to be much tougher opponents than Saudi Arabia or Egypt. The team boasts a formidable attacking partnership, combining the menace of Barcelona striker Luis Suarez (110 goals in 130 matches for his club) with the poaching proficiency of PSG forward Edinson Cavani (116 goals in 165 matches for his).

The South American team stands at 14th place in the FIFA rankings and came second in the CONMEBOL qualifiers, despite Suarez’s absence in the first four matches and that of Cavani in the first two.

That said, Spain and Portugal – one of which Russia will likely face in the second round – are even more impressive sides. The former retain much of the distinctive ‘tika-taka’ approach that brought them to World Cup victory in 2010, while the latter side is centred around Cristiano Ronaldo, widely considered one of the greatest players of all time.

If the World Cup hosts beat Uruguay before defeating one of the Iberian teams in the second round, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s 2010 statement that he expects his country to lift the trophy on home soil will no longer seem quite so fanciful.

Source: France 24

25, June 2018

South Sudan foes meet face-to-face for first time in 2 years to end war ⁰

Major foes in the years-long conflict in South Sudan have embarked on a new round of peace talks to end the deadly war in the country.

The talks between President Salva Kiir and arch-foe Riek Machar in the Sudanese capital Khartoum began on Mondayو with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni mediating the negotiations that many hope would end South Sudan’s four-and-a-half year brutal civil war.

The talks come after a first meeting in Ethiopia on Thursday failed to achieve any breakthrough. Regional East African leaders have been struggling to come up with a solution to the conflict in South Sudan, the world’s newest country which would be hit with United Nations sanctions if it fails to put an end to the bloodshed.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed and nearly four million others displaced as a result of the war, which erupted in December 2013 when disputes intensified between Kiir and his then deputy Machar. The two met face-to-face for the first time in two years in Addis Ababa on Wednesday, but failed to reach any agreement. South Sudan’s government said right after the meeting that it “had enough” of Machar.

“As the people of South Sudan, not the president alone, but as the people of South Sudan, we are saying enough is enough,” said Michael Makuei, a government spokesman, on Friday, while rejecting the idea that Machar could be part of any transitional government.

From left to right, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and South Sudanese President Salva Kiir participate in a peace meeting in Khartoum, Sudan, on June 25, 2018. (Photo by AFP)

South Sudan has repeatedly indicated that a future government could include rebel figures other than Machar who is blamed to have triggered the conflict by plotting a coup against Kiir five years ago. The official position, which was reiterated after talks in Ethiopia, once again showed the ever-increasing personal enmity between Kiir and Machar, which many say is the main cause of the protracted conflict in South Sudan that gained independence from Sudan in 2011.

However, Sudanese Foreign Minister Al-Dierdiry Ahmed said Monday that despite all existing differences between the two foes, talks in Khartoum could bear fruit.

“In this round of talks we are looking for a breakthrough to this thorny issue,” said Ahmed.

Source: Presstv

25, June 2018

Southern Cameroons Crisis: CDC finally laid to rest as three companies seal deal ⁰

The largest employer after the Cameroon government has been handed over to foreign investors. A CDC protocol agreement signed on Wednesday 20th June, 2018 in Yaoundé finally brought to reality the much rumoured speculation of privatisation. Three companies: Tylium from Egypt, Fertilore and Timac Agro from France are the new owners of the multi agro industrial establishment in Southern Cameroons.

Cameroon Concord News sources revealed that Tylium is interested in the palm oil and rubber sectors, while the two French firms want to revamp production and fertilization of the CDC plantations. Present during the signing of the protocol agreement were the Minister of Agriculture and Rural development and the General Manager of Cameroon Development Corporation, Njie Franklin Ngoni.

Cat calls have greeted the deal with many Southern Cameroonians saying that the timing of the sale was deliberate and an act of economic war against Ambazonians by the Francophone dominated government of President Biya. An aide to Acting President Dr Ikome Sako was quoted as saying that French involvement in CDC is a calculated strategy to stifle the Southern Cameroons resistance.

The historic agro industrial plant in West Africa now has only the medical and technical services including the head office. Banana and tea had been long privatized.

By Tina Nene Nganda

25, June 2018

Sasse Old Boys: SOBA UK Secretary General says the national body needs a decent man to run its affairs ⁰

Press Statement: Update on Decisive Action(s) taken against the splinter group of SOBA UK

Fellow Sobans, On 24th February 2018, the members of the SOBA UK General Assembly convened and voted unanimously to:

a) reject calls for fresh elections in the UK by SOBA General in Cameroon and,

b) take necessary actions to redress any infringement of the SOBA UK trade marks.

We repeat that SOBA UK has for some time now been the subject of sustained attack from the activities of members of the splinter group purporting to be SOBA UK, which is a clear infringement of our intellectual property and disregard for the already well established association in the United Kingdom.

Exactly two weeks ago on 8th June 2018 we informed you that the Executive of SOBA UK had commenced decisive action against certain individuals of the splinter group. We outlined specific activities that demonstrated bad faith, opportunism and collusion with key elements of SOBA General in Cameroon, notably Prof Ephraim Ngwafor and Mr Ebot Mfoataw to undermine the SOBA UK General Assembly of registered members.

The actions initiated so far are focused on recovering intellectual property that belongs to SOBA UK in an attempt to resolve the confusing situation amongst members of the public of the splinter group also calling themselves SOBA UK instead of using an alternative name and freely associating as they see fit. The said individuals of the splinter group were contacted by our legal representative and given a period of two weeks to return SOBA UK’s intellectual property and to stop purporting to be SOBA UK. We regret to inform you that our legal representative informed us at close of play Friday 22nd June, 2018 that these individuals had failed to meet the requirements of our requests. Instead of doing everything possible to remove themselves from what is a very serious and urgent situation, the said individuals provided a lengthy and misleading write-up that did not address the specifics of what they had been accused of. Furthermore, the write-up shows deep collusion between the splinter group and Prof. Ephraim Ngwafor and the dubious plan to attempt to usurp the legitimate association of SOBA UK members. We have taken the exceptional step of publishing the write-up so that this collusion can be evidenced to our membership.

From the write-up provided, extracts of SOBA General constitution (separate from the SOBA UK constitution) amended by Professor Ephraim Ngwafor show material changes to the 2018 SOBA Constitution that could in theory affect all Soban groups worldwide. These most recent changes have been made without due consultation or ratification from the SOBA UK General Assembly. It is obvious that these changes have been done in an effort to prop up the splinter group in the UK and seek control of SOBA UK and its assets, both financial and otherwise. Specifically, amending the constitution to create the so called SOBA General Council that gives it powers to dissolve any elected Executive of SOBA anywhere in the world and appoint an election commission and its members, is a gross abuse of the goodwill of Sobans to freely associate around the world.

On behalf of our registered members in the UK, considering no ratification of such dubious constitutional changes, the nonpayment of any registration into SOBA in Cameroon, our obligations from the SOBA UK Constitution, the SOBA UK General Assembly, our ownership of UK trademarks and autonomy, we are making it clear that these constitutional changes by Prof Ephraim Ngwafor in SOBA are null and void, and will not stand the scrutiny of any court in the UK.

On the intellectual property in the UK, we the members of SOBA UK, live in the UK, freely and voluntarily associate and do business in the UK and own the intellectual property in the UK in order to protect SOBA UK and avoid confusion in the public and abuse of our UK brand name. The process of achieving a trade mark was not taken lightly by us or by the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO). For a legitimate group that had demonstrated hard-work, track record of operating and doing its business over many years in the United Kingdom, the evidence was and continues to be available in abundance for the award of our trade marks in the UK. Our trademarks have been evidenced by certificates and TM numbers which are made available to anyone who wishes to verify online. Those who believe they can challenge these facts with their alternative version of doing business in the UK are more than welcomed to do so. Our members however, remain very confident of their standing and brand name in the UK.

There has been a narrative provided by Prof Ephraim Ngwafor that his firm has achieved trade marks for SOBA with the African Intellectual Property Organisation (OAPI) but with no trade mark numbers or certificates provided. Whilst this does not strictly concern us in the UK, we have reasonable grounds to believe that no such trademarks have been achieved as of this date and this irresponsibly exposes SOBA in the African region. The OAPI is part of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and they follow the same standards of issuing trade mark evidences as the UK IPO. It is also worth noting that even with such a trade mark from OAPI it would not cover business undertaken outside the region and certainly not in the United Kingdom. Therefore these misleading statements about the intellectual property rights of SOBA UK are totally baseless and our members should remain very confident from many years participation in legitimate SOBA UK activities.

Finally, the failure of the said individuals of the splinter group to adhere to the deadline set by our legal representatives is regrettable because of the potential consequences to them of now pursuing these matters fully through the legal system. The various cases brought against the individuals by members of SOBA UK are founded on solid evidence. We strongly advice those concerned to consider the potential impact to their individual circumstances first and respond to the reasonable requests from our members. We will keep you posted in the coming weeks, as we remain hopeful of achieving a reasonable conclusion to these matters.

Yours faithfully,

John Bawak

Secretary General SOBA UK

On behalf of Executive and Members of SOBA UK Signed:

On the 24th day of June 2018 United Kingdom.

25, June 2018

That Depressing Amnesty International report on the Anglophone Crisis ⁰

The rather combative government riposte to the Amnesty report was an unnecessary own goal that sullies and casts aspersion on Cameroon’s image before the international community.

The alarm bell sounded by Amnesty International on the vicious cycle of violence currently taking place in the Anglophone regions is hardly surprising, coming as it were amidst the grotesque campaign of human savagery and barbarism by murderous nihilistic soldiers, responsible for the brutal killing of hundreds of innocent Anglophones and burning down over 100 villages till date. In its latest report, the London-based human rights group said “security forces have tortured people, fired on crowds and destroyed villages, in a spiral of violence that keeps getting more deadly.” Amnesty said security forces have tortured at least 23 people, including minors to extract confessions, while Ambazonia fighters have killed at least 44 security forces and targeted suspected Anglophone sympathizers of the Biya regime. The report is bound to cause consternation within and outside Cameroon with adverse consequences for the army chain of command, including President Biya as commander-in-chief, who risks potential criminal liability for individual or command responsibility for war crimes of murder, torture, extra-judicial executions and enforced disappearances. It is certainly impossible to live down the damning report, but the combative government riposte of dismissing the report as biased;accusing AI of hostility is an unacceptable impudent display of statecraft. Any effort to discredit AI will instead attract global opprobrium against Cameroon, which might inevitably lead to the nation’s military and political leaders being dragged to the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague for prosecution.

Titled: “A turn for the worse: Violence and human rights violations in Anglophone Cameroon,” the report which is based on in-depth interviews with victims and eye-witnesses, and material evidence including satellite images, documents how Anglophones are paying the highest price as violence escalates in the North West and South West regions. The report details a range of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity committed by security forces deployed to counter the Anglophone insurgency. Amnesty particularly noted that: “People in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions are in the grip of a deadly cycle of violence. Security forces have indiscriminately killed, arrested and tortured people during military operations which have also displaced thousands of civilians.”

According to the report, victims described being blindfolded and severely beaten with sticks, ropes, wires and guns, as well as being electrocuted and burnt with hot water. Some were beaten until they lost consciousness, and Amnesty documented that at least one person died in custody. One man who was arrested on December 13, 2017 in Dadi gave a harrowing account of the torture he suffered: “… They tied our hands behind our backs, gagged us and tied our faces with our towels and shorts, which they tore. They then made us lie in the water, face down for about 45 minutes… During three days, they beat us with shovels, hammers, planks, and cables, kicked us with their boots and poured hot water on us… when I tried to move and shouted, one of them used the cigarette he was smoking to burn me.”

AI said satellite images and photographic evidence show the complete destruction of Anglophone villages, burned to the ground by soldiers in response to the killing of security officers by Ambazonia forces. “In some cases, following these security operations, people were arbitrarily arrested and tortured while detained in illegal detention facilities and in secret. For instance, at least 23 people, including minors, arrested in Dadi village in Akwaya by security forces, spent three days incommunicado during which, they were tortured to extract confessions of supporting the separatists. “In another instance, the bodies of four men, arrested in Belo by the security forces the day before, were found bloodied; with signs of torture at the Bamenda regional hospital mortuary,” AI noted.

The Amnesty report epitomizes, in a dramatic fashion, the rampaging culture of impunity in the army. It is indeed a tragedy that the nation’s military would be accused of such egregious human rights violations that cast the country negatively in terms of moral accountability and respect for the rule of law. That the army could be accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, hints of an imprudent display of lawlessness.That security forces, whose prime responsibility is the protection of lives and property should be accused of having the blood of many civilians on their hands, is neither edifying to the military, nor the nation. It is one more embarrassment that Cameroon can do without.

The report also reflected the heightened state of impunity and indecorous professional conduct in military circles.The images of torture and systemic abuse of Anglophones in secret detention centers, which have gone viral on social media, advertised a certain violation of even the basic rules of war, which exposed a breakdown in the leadership command chain. Notwithstanding the situation, as the ethos of modern democracies demand, the military cannot operate outside the law. This is what makes the excesses documented in the report, all the more puzzling!

Be that as it may, the Amnesty report was also an unwholesome expression of the helplessness of the commander-in-chief. All in all, the impression created is that President Biya, as commander-in-chief has been taken hostage by the army chiefs and their cohorts who are profiteering from the crisis. This being the case, the import of the report is for Biya now to take effective action to protect the Anglophone population against the army’s campaign of terror within the boundaries of the rule of law; to change the scorched-earth strategy for handling the Anglophone crisis by discarding the indiscriminate use of brutal force that inevitably creates a vicious cycle of violence.

Rather than dismiss the Amnesty report as a grossly impaired document that is baseless and not grounded in facts, President Biya should take the opportunity to restore the rule of law and engage in genuine dialogue with the Ambazonia leadership. Peace will not be achieved unless the culture of impunity among the security forces is broken and Cameroon outlaws torture. The military high command must be investigated for sanctioning or failing to prevent the torture and deaths of people in their custody, arrested in the counter-insurgency operations. The soldiers certainly have no reason to raze villages and kill innocent civilians, including a 96-year-old bed-ridden woman, burnt to death by soldiers in Kwa kwa. If things went wrong in the past, this is the time to correct them.

Mr. President may find it necessary, as an image boosting measure, to commit his government’s willingness to conduct a thorough investigation into all the allegations with a view to determining the truth, sanctioning those culpable, and preventing a recurrence. The government must, as a matter of urgency, set the record straight with verifiable data of the number of detainees in various detention cells, the charges preferred against them, the status of their prosecution and the number of those that have died in custody. The government can continue to wallow in self-delusion, but the obstinate refusal to dialogue with the Ambazonia leadership, and the misguided demonization of Ambazonia forces as terrorists will neither end the insurgency nor repair Cameroon’s battered international image.Despite all the rampage, the army has been struggling to counter the Ambazonia fighters. The soldiers remain on the defensive.

Amnesty is however unequivocal that these breaches including torture, extrajudicial executions and detention without trial, including the trail of blood and death wherever the army appears, can only make an already desperate situation worse. In AI’s view, “the government’s heavy-handed response will do nothing to calm the violence – in fact it is likely to further alienate Anglophone communities and fuel further unrest,” noted Samira Daoud, Amnesty Deputy Director for West and Central Africa. Amnesty concluded by saying: “Authorities must ensure accountability for crimes committed by the security forces as well as by the armed separatists. They must immediately end the use of unlawful, unnecessary and excessive force and ensure that people are protected.” Mr. President should create a commission of inquiry with parliamentary oversight to undertake an independent investigation not just of the Amnesty report; but the entire anti-Anglophone counter-insurgency operation to ensure security forces operate within the rule of law and with respect for the rights of citizens. The report of such an enquiry should be made public and those found to have compromised service integrity made to face the full wrath of the law. That is what is expected of any responsible government confronted with such grievous allegations.Trying to kill the messenger because the government hates the message is a self-defeating strategy.

By Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai

25, June 2018

Nine EU nations set to formalize a joint military intervention force ⁰

The French defense chief says nine European Union countries are set to formalize a plan for the creation of a joint European military intervention force, which would have the backing of Britain following its exit from the 28-nation bloc.

Representatives of the EU countries—France, Germany, Belgium, Britain, Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Spain and Portugal—will meet in Luxembourg later on Monday to sign a letter of intent on the issue, Florence Parly said in an interview with Le Figaro.

The plan, which was launched last year by French President Emmanuel Macron, involves “joint planning work on crisis scenarios that could potentially threaten European security,” according to a source close to the minister.

The force is intended to be rapidly deployable to deal with those situations, including natural disasters, intervention in a crisis or evacuation of people.

The joint military force would be separate from other EU defense cooperation and will operate independently of the union.

“This is clearly an initiative that allows the association of some non-EU states,” Parly said. “The UK has been very keen because it wants to maintain cooperation with Europe beyond bilateral ties.”

Germany, which was initially reluctant to join the military plan, announced earlier this month that it would support it.

The new government in Italy “is considering the possibility of joining” but has not made a final decision yet, said the French minister. The former government had shown interest in the plan.

In December 2017, 25 EU states inked a major military deal, under which they agreed to cooperate in various projects, but it is not clear whether London would be allowed to take part in any of them once it leaves the bloc.

Britain, Europe’s biggest military power along with France, will no longer be allowed to operate within the union after its separation from the bloc.

The United Kingdom voted to leave the EU by a margin of 51.9 percent to 48.1 percent in a referendum held on June 23, 2016. It is now involved in a complicated debate with the EU for the separation.

Source: Presstv

25, June 2018

Senegal, Japan draw 2-2 in World Cup thriller ⁰

Japan and Senegal have displayed an excellent thriller in the World Cup as they share points to remain hopeful of a place in the round of 16.

The hard-fought battle between football powerhouses from Asia and Africa ended in a 2-2 draw in Yekaterinburg Arena, Russia, on Sunday.

The Group H match was marked with two brilliant comebacks for Japan as strikes from Takashi Inui and Keisuke Honda deservedly matched goals from Senegal’s Sadio Mane and Moussa Wague.

Inui’s curled finish in the 34^th minute leveled a game that could end with Senegal’s lead at the break. Mane scored in the 11^th from a ball deflected by Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima which then bounced off the leg of the Senegalese captain into the net.

Senegal’s Wague scored with a powerful shot in the 64th minute before Japan substitute Honda netted from Inui’s pull-back on 78 minutes.

The 32-year-old Honda, who replaced Shinji Kagawa in the second half, became the first Japanese in history to score in three different world cups.

Both teams now top Group H with four points as they clinched unexpected victories in their opening matches of the World Cup. Japan beat South America heavyweight Colombia 2-1 while Senegal recorded the same score-line against Poland.

The World Cup will run until July 16 in Russia.