Mediation

Nov 03, 2023

UPDATE: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is in the US this week in an effort to mend bilateral ties in a visit overshadowed by Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Gaza. The latest chapter in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which broke out on Oct. 7 and has resulted in over 7,900 deaths, mostly of Palestinians, is set to cloud his efforts in his meetings in Washington.

The two sides need to act with a sense of responsibility for the world, history and people, and push for the steady and sound development of China-U.S. relations in line with the three principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by Xi, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni peaking in English, said: “I see that there is a lot of fatigue, I have to say the truth, from all the sides. We [are] near the moment in which everybody understands that we need a way out. The problem is to find a way out which can be acceptable for both without destroying the international law.” The 13-minute call was recorded in September in the run-up to me

The resolution’s full title is the “necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba”. The Assembly voiced concern that despite its resolutions dating back to 1992 (Resolution 47/19), “the economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba is still in place”, and that "the adverse effects of such measures on the Cuban people and on Cuban nationals living in other countries”.

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has passed a resolution urging a humanitarian ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. It hopes aid can be delivered to the civilian population in Gaza. The resolution received support from more than 120 member nations, highlighting the global concern for the dire humanitarian situation in the region.

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Bilateral ties clouded by Israeli war on Gaza

Source: Anadolu Agency, Istanbul (amended)

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will travel to the US this week in an effort to mend bilateral ties in a visit overshadowed by Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Gaza. The latest chapter in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which broke out on Oct. 7 and has resulted in over 7,900 deaths, mostly of Palestinians, is set to cloud his efforts in his meetings in Washington.

The visit will mark the first to the US by a Chinese foreign minister in years after relations between the world’s two largest economies sharply deteriorated after the Trump administration chose to hit Chinese goods with tariffs.

Since then, no significant progress had been made until this summer, when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew to Beijing, where he met with President Xi Jinping.

“The world needs a generally stable China-US relationship,” Xi told Blinken, who also held meetings with Chinese officials.

“Whether the two countries can find the right way to get along bears on the future and destiny of humanity,” Xi emphasized.

China’s messages have remained nearly identical when it comes to relations with the US.

As Wang was preparing to fly to the US, Xi told visiting California Governor Gavin Newsom that "the progress made in China-US relations is hard-won and should be cherished. The interests of the two countries are closely entwined."

Blinken was the first US secretary of state to visit Beijing since 2019. Since then, several top US officials have made trips to China.

Relations between the two countries headed south when US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made an unannounced trip to Taiwan in August last year.

Beijing took several measures including firing missiles over the island nation and breaking off high-level military contacts with the Pentagon to express its anger over Washington’s courting of Taiwan, which it considers part of China and remains at the top of the agenda in bilateral relations.

“Taiwan independence means war,” the Chinese State Council’s Taiwan Affairs Office declared Wednesday.

Xi-Biden summit, bilateral, regional and international relations on agenda

As part of ongoing efforts to responsibly manage the US-China relationship, Blinken will discuss a range of bilateral, regional and global issues with Wang, according to the US State Department.

The meeting aims to maintain open channels of communication, it said in a statement.

According to Beijing, the two sides will “have in-depth exchanges of views” on shared issues.

Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China’s Foreign Ministry, pointed to Wang’s “friendly communication” with various quarters in the US where he will “state China’s principled position and legitimate concerns on bilateral relations.”

Beijing has also insisted in its communiques that the two sides must “follow through on the important common understandings between the two heads of state,” referring to a meeting between Xi and his US counterpart Joe Biden in Indonesia last November.

Xi and Biden had directed their teams to follow up on their Bali summit, but the discovery in February of a Chinese “surveillance” balloon over the US led to Blinken’s visit being postponed to June.

Wang’s trip to Washington also appears to be for discussing possible summit-level talks between Xi and Biden in San Francisco, which will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit next month.

Neither side has spoken about whether such a meeting will be held.

In his message sent Tuesday to a gala dinner held by the National Committee on US-China Relations in New York, Xi said Beijing was "ready to work with the US to make mutual progress.”

However, Washington has said “the United States will continue to use diplomacy to advance US interests and values, address areas of difference and make progress on shared transnational challenges.”

‘Cease-fire, peace, bombs and bullets’

Einar Tangen, a senior fellow at the Beijing-based Taihe Institute and founder of Asia Narratives, told Anadolu that China is trying to engage with the US, “but the question is how.”

“China is sending a special envoy to broker a cease-fire. The US is sending bombs and bullets, which will be used for a genocide while pretending it can be done humanely,” Tangen said, referring to Washington’s military support to Israel in its latest war on Gaza.

China has insisted in its all communications, including by Xi, that the solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a sovereign state of Palestine based on the 1967 borders.

It has criticized arms supplies to Israel and repeatedly called for the creation of a humanitarian corridor to Gaza.

The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip has soared to 6,546, including 2,704 children, 1,584 women, and 364 elderly people.

At least 1,400 Israelis have been killed in the conflict.

“Those treating this tragedy as a choice between Hamas and Israel are pushing a false dichotomy,” Tangen said.

“Beijing believes that the global situation demands cooperation beyond its own concerns, but with Washington in disarray and dysfunctional, the challenge is getting coordinated action,” he said.

Israel has launched relentless airstrikes on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas into Israeli territory on Oct. 7.

Bilateral military contacts and US’s military pacts in Asia-Pacific

The sudden disappearance and subsequent removal of Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu may have invited criticism against Beijing for its opaqueness over the issue, but it may bode well for China’s relations with the US.

Beijing had refused several requests from the Pentagon for talks and meetings between the two countries’ defense chiefs.

For any high-level contact, China wanted the US to lift sanctions on Li, who was sacked on Tuesday, for alleged corruption.

With Li gone, it is highly likely that the two sides will resume high-level military communication at a time when Chinese and US military aircraft and warships have conducted parallel operations in the disputed South China Sea.

China has also remained highly critical of Washington’s expanding military pacts and has warned against extending NATO to the wider Asia-Pacific.

However, Beijing has faced criticism over its expanding economic and military sphere in the region and beyond.

Its multi-trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative has remained in focus in Western discussions.

Read more here.

Biden meets Chinese FM in Washington

Source: Xinhua, China

U.S. President Joe Biden met here Friday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, first conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping's greetings to Biden.

The ongoing visit, Wang added, is aimed at communicating with the U.S. side to follow through on the important common understandings reached by the two heads of state, and proceed from the Xi-Biden Bali summit towards a San Francisco summit, so as to prevent bilateral ties from further deteriorating and bring the China-U.S. relationship back on the track of healthy and steady development at an early date.

The one-China principle and the three China-U.S. joint communiques are the most important political foundation for bilateral relations, which must be upheld without interference, Wang said.

U.S. President Joe Biden meets with Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chinese foreign minister, at the White House in Washington, D.C., the United States, Oct. 27, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

China heeds the U.S. hope to stabilize and improve relations with China, he said, adding that the two sides need to act with a sense of responsibility for the world, history and people, and push for the steady and sound development of China-U.S. relations in line with the three principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by Xi.

This is not only in the fundamental interests of the two countries and two peoples, but also the common aspiration of the international community, Wang said.

Biden, for his part, extended his greetings to Xi.

He made clear that he attaches importance to U.S.-China relations, expressing hope that the United States is willing to stay in contact with China to jointly address global challenges.

During his stay in Washington, Wang also had two rounds of talks with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and held strategic communication with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

Read more here.

Russia-Ukraine war key events, day 617

As the war enters its 617th day, these are the main developments.

Fighting

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni spoke of international fatigue with the conflict in Ukraine after being duped into speaking by two Russians pretending to head the African Union Commission. Asked about the war, Meloni, speaking in English, said: “I see that there is a lot of fatigue, I have to say the truth, from all the sides. We [are] near the moment in which everybody understands that we need a way out. The problem is to find a way out which can be acceptable for both without destroying the international law.” The 13-minute call was recorded in September in the run-up to meetings with African leaders at the United Nations General Assembly.
Ukraine’s Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said 118 settlements in 10 regions of Ukraine’s east had come under Russian fire in the previous 24 hours, marking the heaviest day of Russian shelling this year.
Ukraine said the Kremenchuk oil refinery in central Ukraine caught fire after a Russian drone attack that knocked out the power supply in three villages while falling debris from downed drones damaged railway power lines in a nearby region. Officials said the fire was quickly extinguished. Ukraine’s air force said air defences shot down 18 of 20 Russian drones and a missile before they reached their targets.
Writing in The Economist newspaper, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief General Valery Zaluzhny said the army needed new military capabilities and technological innovation – and air power, in particular – to break out of the current attritional fighting along the front line.
A court in the Russian-occupied part of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region sentenced three Ukrainian soldiers to jail after they were taken captive following the fall of Mariupol last year. Moscow’s Investigative Committee said the three were found guilty of killing eight civilians, with one soldier sentenced to life and the other two for 30-year terms.
Ukraine said Russian warplanes dropped “explosive objects” into the probable paths of civilian vessels in the Black Sea three times in the previous 24 hours, but that its fledgling shipping lane remained in operation. Kyiv set up the corridor after Moscow abandoned the United Nations-backed Black Sea grain deal in July.

France’s financial prosecutor charged Russian billionaire Alexei Kuzmichev, who is linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin and under European Union sanctions, with tax fraud. Kuzmichev also faces charges of concealing work with an organised crime group and money laundering.
Switzerland said it would maintain protection status for Ukrainians fleeing war until at least March 4, 2025. “The situation in Ukraine is not expected to change in the foreseeable future,” a statement from the Federal Council said.
South Korea’s intelligence services assert Pyongyang has sent about 10 arms shipments to Russia, with more than one million artillery shells transported by sea, South Korean ruling party lawmaker Yoo Sang-bum told reporters following a briefing. The deliveries would probably keep Russian forces in Ukraine supplied for two months, he added. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to visit South Korea on November 8 and 9, with North Korea and its deepening relationship with Moscow high on the agenda.

Read more here.

The UN General Assembly votes on the necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States against Cuba.

General Assembly votes overwhelmingly against US Cuba embargo

Resolution details

It recalled measures adopted by then US President Barack Obama in 2015 and 2016 “to modify several aspects of the application of the embargo, which contrast with the measures applied since 2017 to reinforce its implementation”.

The General Assembly reiterated its call for all States to refrain from promulgating and applying such restrictive laws and measures, in line with their obligations under the UN Charter and international law.

Click here for the full text of the resolution.

12:29 PM

That’s it for our live coverage of this annual meeting that once again, left just the US and Israel backing the more than 60 year old Washington policy to maintain economic and trade restrictions on Cuba, born out of the land and property seizures in the wake of the Castro-led Cuban revolution of 1959.

The General Assembly has adjourned.

12:21 PM

United States

In explaining its vote, the Representative of the United States, Paul Folmsbee, said that his country “stands resolutely” with the Cuban people.

“We strongly support their pursuit of a future with respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms,” he said, noting that sanctions are “one set of tools” in the US’ broader effort towards encouraging Cuba to advance democracy and promote respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

He said the US recognizes the challenges the Cuban people face, explaining that sanctions include exemptions and authorizations relating to exports of food, medicines, and other humanitarian goods to Cuba.

“The US opposes this resolution,” he said, encouraging the General Assembly to urge the Cuban Government to adhere to its human rights obligations “and listen to the Cuban people and their aspirations to determine their own future.”

12:04 PM

Several countries are taking the opportunity to explain why they voted, including Timor Leste and Sri Lanka, speaking now.

12:01 PM

Vote

Cuba’s finished speaking. And now for the vote...

Those in favour: 187

Those against: 2 (the US and Israel)

Abstentions: 1 (Ukraine)

United Nations

The UN General Assembly votes on the necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States against Cuba.

11:16 AM

Cuba

The Cuban foreign minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, is introducing the draft resolution now... He says the more than 60-year blockade violates the rights of all Cuban men and women.

Families lack goods, there are long queues, excessively high prices, and the Government makes great efforts to feed its people. He said the blockade deprives the agricultural industry of funds to buy animal fodder, industrial equipment and other necessities for food production.

Despite wavers on food products, the US is violating rules of international trade, he said.

“Cuba is prevented from buying from US companies and its subsidiaries in third countries, equipment, technologies, medical devices and end use pharmaceuticals, and is therefore forced to acquire them at exorbitant prices by way of intermediaries or to replace them with less-effective generic drugs,” he said, citing testimony from Cuban families wrestling with serious illnesses.

“How different could [their] lives have been, if Cuba was not prevented from acquiring directly from the US market the [medications] to prevent the spasms,” he wondered.

The Minister recalled the situation during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the challenges to acquire medical oxygen and the need for the US Government to grant a special licence for that transaction, “even during the pandemic”, which reflected the inhumane nature of the policy.

'Economic warfare'

He said 80 per cent of the population has never known life without the crippling US blockade. It is “an act of economic warfare, in times of peace”, creating a situation of ungovernability and an attempt to destroy the constitutional order, he added.

He said Cuba was not threat at all to the US and that to subject a small nation for decades to economic warfare, was unacceptable. The whole country was being deprived of the right to progress, through an “illegal, cruel and inhumane policy”, he said.

He reiterated Cuba’s support to and solidarity with Palestinian people, who were currently being massacred on their own illegally occupied land. “These barbaric acts must stop”, he added, referring to the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

The Cuban foreign minister said the US had been pressuring banks worldwide not to deal with his nation, becoming victims of US hostility and it’s harmful impact on the global financial system, he added.

He pointed out that the blockade separated Cuban families and deprives US citizens of their right to visit Cuba.

The “tightening economic siege” has been accompanied by a disinformation campaign against Cuba, he said, seeking to destabilize and discredit the country. He said there was a “media crusade” in the US aimed at encouraging discontent and a false impression of domestic political crisis.

He said he appreciated the support of more than 40 countries during the course of the two day debate.

Cuba would “continue to build bridges with the people of the US” and all emigres living abroad, he said, and never cease to defend their “free and sovereign homeland”, supporting its continuing transformation.

10:58 AM

Gabon

The Representative of Gabon, Ambassador Aurélie Flore Koumba Pambo,voiced her country’s concern over the continuing embargo.

“The scale of its impact is more and more harmful to the Cuban people,” she said, noting that the “economic blockade is a “clearly a hostile act to region and continental cohesion”.

Speaking on behalf of her country - currently serving on the Security Council - she said the embargo stood against international law, the UN Charter and normal measures that “govern peaceful relations between States.” She said had a negative impact on culture, public health and the wellbeing of Cuba's people.

“It is the main obstacle to the social and economic development of Cuba”, she added.

10:14 AM

Chile

Paula Narváez Ojeda, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Chile, reaffirmed her country’s conviction that the implementation of unilateral coercive measures runs counter to international law

“Chile does not agree with the imposition of unilateral sanctions of any kind, the only legitimate sanctions are those adopted by the Security Council in the exercise of its authority for the maintenance of international peace and security,” she said, referring to the responsibilities of the Council under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.

She noted that the economic embargo is an anachronism from a bygone age and must be ended once and for all.

10:07 AM

The President, or PGA as the UN acronym goes, has just formally begun proceedings. This is the 26th plenary meeting of the world body since the 78th session began in September.

The first to speak will be Peru, with 16 countries due to speak before the vote is due to take place.

Peru

Ambassador Luis Ugarelli said his country “shares the view of practically the entire international community” that the embargo is against the principles of the UN Charter and international human rights law, saying his country would support the resolution, as it has done for more than 30 years.

10:05 AM

The session is just about to get underway under the gavel of the President of the General Assembly, Dennis Francis. Delegates are still filing in to the gilded Hall at UN Headquarters.

The US imposed the embargo in response to the revolution led by Fidel Castro and subsequent nationalization of property belonging to US citizens under the new Government.

A thaw in diplomatic relations between Cuba and the Obama administration in 2016 led the US to abstain on the resolution for the first time, but the US reverted to opposing the measure in 2017.

For a look back at the state of relations in the General Assembly when the US embargo was first imposed, here's a video from our Stories From the UN Archiveseries featuring the longest address in history by the youthful Cuban leader:

The resolution has been overwhelmingly passed each time, but the pattern of voting has been carefully analyzed as a snapshot of current geopolitical alliances and tensions.

09:40 AM

Debate on the resolution began yesterday and continues today at 10 AM New York time, with Cuba and US among the key countries expected to take the floor today.

Yesterday saw an overwhelming number of Member States underscore the many harmful and long-lasting consequences the decades-long embargo has had on the Caribbean island nation.

Many cited the Secretary-General’s report on the impact on Cuba’s overall human development, with the Assembly calling for the embargo to be lifted every year the resolution has been debated.

Action on the draft

At the end of the debate, action is expected on the draft resolution entitled “Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States of America against Cuba.”

This item has been a regular fixture on the Assembly’s agenda, and the body has, in previous years, voted overwhelmingly in favour of an end to the measures.

Last year for instance, 185 Member States voted in favour to 2 against (Israel, United States), with 2 abstentions (Brazil, Ukraine), expressing concern about the adverse effects of such measures on the Cuban people and on Cuban nationals living in other countries.

Read more here.

Six Pacific nations oppose Gaza ceasefire and aid resolution

The UN wants to deliver aid to the civilian population in war-torn Gaza.

The call for a ceasefire comes amid ongoing hostilities in the Gaza Strip, where civilians have been suffering from the impact of conflict.

The resolution emphasises the need for a cessation of hostilities to allow vital humanitarian assistance to reach the people in need.

However, not all member nations voted in favour of the resolution.

Eyebrows raised

Fourteen countries, including some Pacific nations, opposed the resolution.

In what looks as though they’re aligning themselves with Israel and the United States, the stance has raised eyebrows in the international community.

The countries that voted against the UN resolution include Fiji, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, Marshall Islands, Nauru, and Micronesia among others.

Professor Steven Ratuva from the University of Canterbury shed light on one connection the Pacific nations and the United States have.

“One of the important factors in the vote as well is the rise of evangelical movements in the region which are linked to the evangelical movements in the United States, which are in support of Trump, in support of Israel and zionism generally.

He summed up that view as: “Whatever the consequences, Hamas started it and Israel will finish it, it’s in the Bible, it is driven, it is the will of God and so forth”.

‘Dead children seen necessary’

“So when you mix religion and politics together, humanity is out of the window, and the dead children are seen as a necessary way to get there,” he says.

Papua New Guinea’s decision to have an embassy in Jerusalem and Fiji’s consideration of opening one may also be influenced by their connections to the United States, Professor Ratuva feels.

“There are a number of reasons for that. One is the US connection and because they rely on the US in terms of sustenance and in terms of money; they have an agreement with the United States for money to come in.”

The United States, a staunch ally of Israel, also voted against the UN resolution, aligning itself with the 14 opposing nations.

This voting pattern shows that there is complicated politics in the Pacific region.

Countries such as New Zealand, and the Solomon Islands voted yes to the ceasefire aid, with Samoa, Kiribati and Tuvalu not voting at all.

While the resolution received a majority of votes in favour, it was noted that Israel was not legally bound by the resolution, and Hamas had not agreed to engage in negotiations.

Read more here.

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