English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For April 05/2022
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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http://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2021/english.april05.22.htm

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Bible Quotations For today
The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 07/01-13:”After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He did not wish to go about in Judea because the Jews were looking for an opportunity to kill him. Now the Jewish festival of Booths was near. So his brothers said to him, ‘Leave here and go to Judea so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing; for no one who wants to be widely known acts in secret. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.’(For not even his brothers believed in him.). Jesus said to them, ‘My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil. Go to the festival yourselves. I am not going to this festival, for my time has not yet fully come.’After saying this, he remained in Galilee. But after his brothers had gone to the festival, then he also went, not publicly but as it were in secret. The Jews were looking for him at the festival and saying, ‘Where is he?’ And there was considerable complaining about him among the crowds. While some were saying, ‘He is a good man’, others were saying, ‘No, he is deceiving the crowd.’Yet no one would speak openly about him for fear of the Jews.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on April 04-05/2022
Faith, Hope And Persistence Do Miracles/Healing miracle of the blind beggar/Elias Bejjani/April 03/2022
Fears growing over who will pay for Lebanon’s bankruptcy/Najia Houssari/Arab News/April 04/2022
Al-Rahi says Aoun's term mustn't be extended, calls for revising Taef Accord
Mikati chairs fourth meeting of Lebanon Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Famework (3RF), meets Ministers of National...
Mikati Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Abdallah Bou Habib,
World Bank regional chief 'optimistic' about Miqati's reform efforts
Reports: Macron to revive efforts in support of Lebanon
Health Minister announces easing measures against Covid, warns loss of financial liquidity portends great danger to health system
ISF’s Osman, INM’s Beauchamp discuss support project for prisons
Ibrahim broaches general situation with UN’s Wronecka
Rochdi says U.N. making every effort to back Lebanon's education sector
Raad: U.S. bankrupted the Lebanese, we won't talk to Americans
Consultative Group on Reform, Recovery, and Reconstruction Framework holds fourth meeting
Geagea: Hizbullah must stop practicing corruption instead of talking about fighting it

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on April 02-03/2022
6 people are dead and at least 9 others are wounded after a shooting in downtown Sacramento
UN Security Council urges Houthis to abide by terms of truce
Iran blames US for the halt in Vienna nuclear talks with world powers
Iran says will return to Vienna only to finalize nuclear deal
Pentagon says ‘obvious’ Russia’s forces responsible for atrocities in Ukraine’s Bucha
Ukraine accuses Russia of massacre, city strewn with bodies
Bodies of 5 killed by Russians found in ‘torture chamber’ in Bucha: Ukraine official
Zelenskyy on Bucha civilian killings: Russians treat Ukrainians ‘worse than animals’
Non-Recognition of Russian Occupation
Next phase of Russia’s war on Ukraine could last ‘months or longer’: White House
Ukraine says Russia is preparing eastern assault, attack on Kharkiv
Washington provided Saudi Arabia, UAE with ‘appropriate military sales’: US envoy

Titles For The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 04-05/2022
Thwarting the people’s will in Iraq and Lebanon/Baria Alamuddin/Arab News/April 04/2022
US must make up its mind on who its real partners are/Sir John Jenkins/Arab News/April 04/2022
Listen-Audio/Why MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction) Is No Longer Reassuring/Foreign Podicy-FDD/April 04/2022
Congress Invests in National Cyber Resilience but Misses Important Opportunities in the Consolidated Appropriations Act/RADM (Ret) Mark Montgomery/Lawfare/April04/2022
Saving the Ayatollahs-Biden’s unwise Iran policy/Reuel Marc Gerecht and Ray Takeyh/National Review/April 04/2022
North Korea Looks to Capitalize on Washington’s Attention Deficit/Anthony Ruggiero and Behnam Ben Taleblu/The Dispatch/April 04/2022
Orde Kittrie on “How to Include Far More Lawfare Ammunition in Next UN General Assembly Resolution on Russian Invasion/BY CHARLIE DUNLAP, J.D/Lawfire/April 04/2022

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on April 04-05/2022
Faith, Hope And Persistence Do Miracles/Healing miracle of the blind beggar
Elias Bejjani/April 03/2022
http://eliasbejjaninews.com/archives/73575/elias-bejjani-faith-and-persistence-do-miracles/
John 09:39: “I came into this world for judgment, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind.”
On the sixth Lenten Sunday, our Maronite Catholic Church cites and recalls with great piety Jesus’ healing miracle of the blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, Bartimaeus. This amazing miracle that took place in Jericho near the Pool of Siloam is documented in three gospels:Mark 10/46-52. John 9/1-41 Matthew 20/:29-34.
Maronites in Lebanon and all over the world strongly believe that Jesus is the holy and blessed light through which believers can see God’s paths of righteousness. There is no doubt that without Jesus’ light, evil darkness will prevail in peoples’ hearts, souls and minds. Without Jesus’ presence in our lives we definitely will become preys to all kinds of evil temptations.John 09:5: “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world”.In every community, there are individuals from all walks of life who are spiritually blind, lacking faith, have no hope, and live in dim darkness because they have distanced themselves from Almighty God and from His Gospel, although their eyes are physically perfectly functional and healthy.
Meanwhile the actual blindness is not in the eyes that can not see because of physical ailments, but in the hearts that are hardened, in the consciences that are numbed and in the spirits that are defiled with sin. John’s Gospel gives important details about what has happened with Bartimaeus after the healing miracle of his blindness. As we read in the below enclosed Biblical verses that after his healing Bartimaeus and his parents were exposed to intimidation, fear, threats, and terror. But he refused to succumb or to lie.He held verbatim to all the course details of the miracle, bravely witnessed for the truth and loudly proclaimed his strong belief that Jesus who cured him was The Son Of God.His faith made him strong, fearless and courageous. The Holy Spirit came to his rescue and spoke through him.Romans 8:26: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans”Sadly our contemporary world hails atheism, brags about secularism and persecutes those who have faith in God and believe in Him.Where ever we live, there are opportunists and hypocrites like some of the conceited crowd members that initially rebuked Bartimaeus, and tried with humiliation to keep him away from Jesus, but the moment Jesus called on him they changed their attitude and let him go through.Meanwhile, at the present time, Christian believers do suffer dire persecution in many countries on the hands of ruthless oppressors, Jihadists and rulers who refuse to witness for the truth.But despite of all the dim spiritual darkness, thanks God, there are still too many meek believers like Bartimaeus who hold to their faith no matters what the obstacles or hurdles are.Lord, enlighten our minds and hearts with your light and open our eyes to realize that You are a loving and merciful father.
Lord Help us to take Bartimaeus as a faith role model in our life.
Lord help us to defeat all kinds of sins that take us away from Your light, and deliver us all from evil temptations.

Fears growing over who will pay for Lebanon’s bankruptcy
Najia Houssari/Arab News/April 04/2022
BEIRUT: Lebanon and its central bank are bankrupt, according to the country’s deputy prime minister. The “state is bankrupt … so is the Banque du Liban,” Saadeh Al-Shami said on Monday, adding that “the loss has occurred, and we will seek to reduce the losses for the people.”He said the losses would be attributed to the state, the central bank, and other lenders and depositors. “We cannot live in a state of denial as we cannot allow withdrawals for all people who have deposits in banks,” he said. Al-Shami’s statement came as a delegation from the International Monetary Fund is in talks with the Lebanese government on a financial recovery plan. Economic groups in Lebanon have objected to a plan presented to the IMF that clears the state of liability and leaves depositors and banks to foot the bill. It also turns state debt into heavy losses for the Lebanese economy and society. After a meeting with the head of the IMF mission, Ernesto Ramirez-Rigo, the groups said that depositors’ money had been squandered due to the fixing of the exchange rate, interest rate differences, and the state’s expenditure. They objected to “easy solutions, by adopting an accounting approach that eliminates losses without any special considerations.”They also stressed the need to preserve the rights of depositors and the continuity of the banking system. Saroj Kumar Jha, director of the Middle East department at the World Bank, said on Monday that the “economic situation in Lebanon is dire. The size of the economic downturn has reached about 60 percent since 2021.”He was speaking at the fourth meeting of Lebanon’s Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati. Jha also warned that if “the national reform program is not implemented well, this will constitute a greater contraction of the economy and will lead to a further deterioration of economic and social conditions.” He stressed the urgent need for “a reform plan that includes a financial program, debt repayment, restructuring the financial and banking sector and developing social protection systems.” Amid the economic crisis, the process of registering competing electoral lists for the May 15 parliamentary elections closed at midnight on Monday. More than 77 lists were registered and political observers are waiting to see if parliament will approve the capital control bill before the upcoming polls. Meanwhile, the ramifications of the economic crisis are being felt far and wide. Lebanese diplomats overseas did not receive their salaries in dollars last month, while the Lebanese pound has continued to fall in value. The Free Professions Syndicates held a solidarity rally with the professors of Lebanese University in front of the National Museum in Beirut. One of the academics told Arab News that a university professor’s salary was now only $150, despite public education teachers getting $180, backed by foreign aid. Similarly, the university’s budget had fallen to about $17 million, from $240 million in the past, the person said. As a result of strikes by professors and other employees over the loss of social and health insurance due to the collapse of the national currency and dollarization of the hospital sector, educational activity at the university has been halted for the past three weeks. The professors also complained about the blatant interference of politicians in appointing the university’s deans according to sectarian and political quotas. Another manifestation of the state’s bankruptcy are the mounting piles of trash in many areas around Beirut as a result of a strike by workers at the City Blue company. The industrial action followed a delay to wage payments after the Bank of Lebanon stopped paying the company’s dues last year. The wife of one of the strikers said on social media that the workers were unable to provide for their families. Several municipalities in southern Beirut have sought help from Hezbollah to remove trash from the streets.

Al-Rahi says Aoun's term mustn't be extended, calls for revising Taef Accord
Naharnet/April 04/2022
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi has stressed that President Michel Aoun’s term should not be extended, as he called for “reevaluating” the Taef Accord. “The constitution stipulates that the President cannot renew his term and this is what I advocate. We must elect a new president two months prior to the end of President Michel Aoun’s tenure,” al-Rahi said in an interview on LBCI television.“We want a president who can unify the Lebanese and who can carry the constitution and implement it without fear,” the patriarch urged.Asked to evaluate Aoun’s term, al-Rahi said: “I don’t want to evaluate President Aoun’s tenure, let him do the evaluation.”As to whom he would consider a “strong president,” the patriarch answered: “An impartial president is a strong president. If we find such a person I will say that this is the strong president.”Al-Rahi also strongly warned against postponing the parliamentary elections and said that he “will not tolerate that parliament extend its own mandate.”“In the presence of new faces we can achieve change. The era of blocking roads has ended. Elect those whose loyalty is for Lebanon, not for foreign forces; elect those who are not running after money,” the patriarch urged. Separately, al-Rahi said that the 1989 Taef Accord, or the country’s post-civil war constitution, must be “reevaluated.”The Accord has “a major flaw, which is that no authority can settle things and take a decision. Any strong party, whether through arms or politics, is doing this now,” the patriarch added. Asked about Bkirki’s dialogue with Hizbullah, al-Rahi said: “We have a dialogue with Hizbullah. If the Vatican tells us to engage in dialogue with Hizbullah, I would say: Engage in dialogue over what? Over politics? Over arms? Over Iran? If it says yes, I will be ready.”Lamenting that Lebanon’s judiciary is “politicized and sectarianized” and rife with “a lot of fabricated cases,” the patriarch asked about the judiciary’s efforts regarding “the port bombing crime” and the “judicial appointments.”“We want a separation of powers, seeing as who would have confidence in Lebanon if the country is not protected by the judiciary,” al-Rahi added. As for the controversy over Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh and the judicial measures against him in Lebanon, the patriarch said: “I had previously said that there should be a probe into the central bank governor and all ministries and funds, but the prosecution of a single person exclusively is rejected and this is not justice.”

Mikati Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Abdallah Bou Habib,
NNA/April 04/2022 
Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, on Monday chaired at the Grand Serail the fourth meeting of the Lebanon Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF), in joint coordination between the United Nations, the European Union and the World Bank.The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Saadeh Al-Shami, Minister of Social Affairs, Hector Hajjar, Minister of Trade and Economy, Amin Salam, the World Bank's Regional Director of the Mashreq Department, Saroj Kumar Jha, the United Nations Resident Coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rushdie, and Ambassadors of the European Union Ralph Tarraf, Denmark Merete Juhl, United States Dorothy Shea, Germany Andreas Kindl, Canada Chantal Chastena, France Anne Grillo, the Netherlands Hans Peter van der Woude, Sweden Anne Desmore, Britain Dr. Ian Collard, Italy Nicoletta Bombardieri, Switzerland Marion Weichelt Krupski, Spain José María Ferré de la Peña, Japan Takeshi Okubo,, as well as Civil society representative Asma Al-Zein, in addition to a number of representatives of diplomatic missions, donor bodies and civil society organizations.The meeting presented the progress of this program with regard to the main issues on governance, financial and economic reforms, and social assistance. Speaking during the meeting, Premier Mikati hailed the role played by the international community and the Lebanese civil society in partnership with the public sector, and affirmed that "the government is working through the relevant authorities in the public sector for a unified and comprehensive vision of development, recovery and reform among those concerned.”“We are close to finishing this unified vision to implement the necessary reforms,” Premier Mikati said. On the other hand, Premier Mikati met at the Grand Serail with National Education and Higher Education Minister, Dr. Abbas Al-Halabi, over educational matters. Mikati also met with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants, Abdallah Bou Habib, and discussed with him Lebanon’s participation in the Sixth Brussels Conference to discuss the issue of the displaced Syrians, which will be held on May 10th. Moreover, Mikati held a meeting with Minister of Environment, Nasser Yassin, MP Amine Sherri, and President of Southern Suburbs Municipalities Union, Mohamed Dergham, to discuss the waste crisis in Beirut’s southern suburbs (Dahieh) and South Mount Lebanon. Among Premier Mikati’s itinerant visitors for today had been a delegation representing the Lebanese Emigrants Council, headed by Dr. Nassib Fawaz, with talks touching on expatriates’ affairs.

Mikati chairs fourth meeting of Lebanon Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Famework (3RF)
NNA/April 04/2022 
Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, on Monday chaired at the Grand Serail the fourth meeting of the Lebanon Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF), in joint coordination between the United Nations, the European Union and the World Bank. The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Saadeh Al-Shami, Minister of Social Affairs, Hector Hajjar, Minister of Trade and Economy, Amin Salam, the World Bank's Regional Director of the Mashreq Department, Saroj Kumar Jha, the United Nations Resident Coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rushdie, and Ambassadors of the European Union Ralph Tarraf, Denmark Merete Juhl, United States Dorothy Shea, Germany Andreas Kindl, Canada Chantal Chastena, France Anne Grillo, the Netherlands Hans Peter van der Woude, Sweden Anne Desmore, Britain Dr. Ian Collard, Italy Nicoletta Bombardieri, Switzerland Marion Weichelt Krupski, Spain José María Ferré de la Peña, Japan Takeshi Okubo,, as well as Civil society representative Asma Al-Zein, in addition to a number of representatives of diplomatic missions, donor bodies and civil society organizations. The meeting presented the progress of this program with regard to the main issues on governance, financial and economic reforms, and social assistance. Speaking during the meeting, Premier Mikati hailed the role played by the international community and the Lebanese civil society in partnership with the public sector, and affirmed that "the government is working through the relevant authorities in the public sector for a unified and comprehensive vision of development, recovery and reform among those concerned.”“We are close to finishing this unified vision to implement the necessary reforms,” Premier Mikati said.

World Bank regional chief 'optimistic' about Miqati's reform efforts
Naharnet/April 04/2022
Prime Minister Najib Miqati chaired Monday the fourth meeting of the Consultative Group of the Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF) in coordination with the European Union, the United Nations and the World Bank. Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh Shami said that the conferees discussed in the meeting at the Grand Serail restructuring the banking sector, achieving an economic recovery plan and passing the capital control law and the state budget. He added that the negotiations with the International Monetary Fund are ongoing, hoping to sign soon a preliminary agreement with the IMF. U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rochdi said for her part that the meeting had demonstrated the challenges and discussed the progress in the agreed work plan which includes achieving macroeconomic stability, social protection, independence of the judiciary and the fight against corruption. She added that the needs of the Lebanese are a priority. World Bank Regional Director in the Middle East Saroj Kumar Jha said he was optimistic about the national reforms program led by Miqati. "There is a need for a reform plan that includes a financial program, debt repayment, restructuring the financial and banking sector, and developing social protection systems," Kumar Jha stressed.

Reports: Macron to revive efforts in support of Lebanon
Naharnet/April 04/2022
French President Emmanuel Macron will revive his political efforts, after the presidential elections in France, to help Lebanon overcome its crises. Diplomatic sources have told al-Liwaa newspaper, in remarks published Monday, that Macron will work on bridging the gap between the divergent Lebanese parties.
The sources quoted French officials as saying that Macron had sensed that some parties had previously "fabricated obstacles to disrupt the French initiative."Indeed, Macron had stressed in an electoral rally in France the importance of building alliances in the Middle East and of carrying on with the efforts to find solutions for Lebanon. "This country that we love so much," Macron said of Lebanon. The sources said that there is a continuous coordination between the U.S. and France to support the French efforts to support Lebanon politically and economically.The sources expected a strong French drive in this regard after the upcoming parliamentary elections in Lebanon. They said the French position will be translated in helping Lebanon to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund and in a humanitarian assistance through the Saudi-French fund.

Health Minister announces easing measures against Covid, warns loss of financial liquidity portends great danger to health system
NNA/April 04/2022
Minister of Public Health, Dr. Firas Al-Abiad, on Monday warned in a press conference held at the Ministry of Public Health that the loss of financial liquidity portended grave danger and negatively affected the health system in Lebanon. Consequently, he disclosed an expected meeting with the syndicate and the Central Bank Governor in the hope to find a solution within a short period of time, “otherwise the problem will become bigger than the one we are currently facing." The Minister of Health also touched on the situation of the Coronavirus in Lebanon, explaining that there is a decrease in the number of cases in Lebanon as the percentage of positive cases has dropped from 20% to 5%. He also said that according the World Health Organization’s latest reports, the immunity ratio of Lebanese citizens and residents has exceeded 80%. “This immunity may be forgotten by the body, especially in the elderly or those who have health problems, so it will not be permanent,” he added, stressing the importance of ongoing vaccination. Regarding the fourth dose, he explained that "the World Health Organization recommends it for older people - in the United States for those over fifty years old - or those with cancer and immune diseases."As for the Coronavirus measures in Lebanon, the Minister of Public Health announced a decision to ease those measures nationwide.

ISF’s Osman, INM’s Beauchamp discuss support project for prisons
NNA/April 04/2022
Internal Security Forces General Director, Major General Imad Othman, on Monday welcomed Acting Head of the Bureau of International Narcotics Matters (INM) at the US Embassy, ​​Reagan Beauchamp, and a number of concerned officials.
Osman was briefed on the outcome of the support project provided to prisons, especially in terms of setting standards for classifying prisoners, training personnel on how to communicate with prisoners, as well as on “Training of trainers” courses and training on equipment and devices provided by the aforementioned office in order to improve the functionality of tasks in prisons according to international standards.

Ibrahim broaches general situation with UN’s Wronecka
NNA/April 04/2022
General Security Chief, Major General Abbas Ibrahim, on Monday received in his office the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Joanna Wronecka, with whom he discussed the general situation and means of coordination between the General Security and the UN organizations.

Rochdi says U.N. making every effort to back Lebanon's education sector
Naharnet/April 04/2022
“For the future of Lebanon and its children, it is critical that the Lebanese Government and all stakeholders work together to rebuild the education system,” U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon Najat Rochdi has said. “With the vital support of international partners, U.N. agencies in Lebanon have been providing significant support to the entire Education sector. We are aware of the difficult situation that teachers are facing and are supporting the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to improve the conditions in schools for both teachers and children,” Rochdi said in a statement. She added: “We acknowledge the dedication and commitment of teachers to their students. The economic situation and the financial external environment are extremely challenging, and along with UNICEF, we have been advocating for the best interest of the teachers and the children.”Rochdi also noted that every day, U.N. agencies are “working closely with the Ministry of Education and Higher education and partners to ensure that the contracted teachers’ entitlements are fully paid.”“However, we are still waiting for the documents and data to be provided to UNICEF from the Ministry in order to pay the second shift teachers for hours completed so far in School Year 21/22. As such, U.N. agencies and International Community do not have any responsibility in the delay,” the U.N. coordinator pointed out. She added that it is critically important that the education of children “is not jeopardized, and that we keep schools open.”“Together with UNICEF and through generous funding from the European Union and Germany, we are supporting the enrolment of 336,000 Lebanese and approximately 198,000 Non-Lebanese children in the formal public school system. “During the 21/22 scholastic year and to support the safe school reopening, UNICEF together with donor partners has provided School Fund top-ups for every school, health and hygiene supplies, fuel, books and stationery benefitting all children in public formal education, no matter who they are, or what their nationality,” Rochdi went on to say.She added that the concerned U.N. agencies and the international community are “committed to providing the support, so that every vulnerable child living in Lebanon has access to quality education.”

Raad: U.S. bankrupted the Lebanese, we won't talk to Americans
Naharnet/April 04/2022
The head of Hizbullah’s parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammed Raad, on Monday accused Washington of being behind Lebanon’s historic financial and economic crisis, as he stressed that his Iran-backed “will not communicate with the Americans.”“What bankrupted the Lebanese and plunged them into the latest economic and financial crisis is the U.S. domination, which wanted to besiege the resistance and failed to do so,” Raad said in a speech in the southern town of Zefta. “It then sought to besiege all state institutions, which could not bear the siege, so they collapsed and became a burden on people, our resistant environment and the resistance,” the lawmaker charged. He added: “Some people say that those who don’t communicate with the Americans are not worthy of living in this country, but we won’t communicate nor talk with the Americans, and we have the right to defend our existence against those threatening it.”

Consultative Group on Reform, Recovery, and Reconstruction Framework holds fourth meeting
NNA/April 04/2022
The Consultative Group (CG) of the Reform, Recovery, and Reconstruction Framework (3RF) held its fourth meeting earlier today.
The 3RF Consultative Group consists of the Government of Lebanon, Lebanese civil society, the European Union, United Nations, the World Bank, and international donors. Together they monitor progress and give strategic direction to the reforms and activities under the 3RF.The 3RF Consultative Group members took stock of the progress made to date under the 3RF supported programs and reiterated its call to address the protracted crisis. Discussions focused on three strategic issues, namely economic stabilization and recovery, social protection, and justice and accountability.
The following is the Fourth Consultative Group Meeting: Co-Chairs' Statement
1.The fourth Consultative Group (CG) meeting of the Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF) was held on 1 April 2022 at the Grand Serail, co-chaired by the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Lebanese civil society, the European Union and the United Nations.
2. The CG witnesses the increasing despair of the Lebanese population. Delays in decision-making are leading the country towards a protracted and escalating humanitarian crisis. The people need to be put first. Lebanon needs to swiftly embark on a roadmap to exit this unfolding crisis through an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and a comprehensive economic stabilization and recovery programme. A strong and nationally owned social protection programme will help safeguard Lebanon’s human and social capital. Justice and accountability are sine qua non for both.
3.In the spirit of the 3RF, these are collective responsibilities. The CG acknowledges the difficult situation for the Lebanese Government, with the civil service not functioning at full capacity, a continuing refugee crisis, and the challenging global security and economic situation. The international community and civil society are committed to continuing to provide support in the interest of the Lebanese people. But the role of the Lebanese Government and Parliament cannot be substituted. Reforms are a necessity for recovery and not a request only from the international community. Lebanese Government and Parliament will have to find the political will to take collective steps beyond party politics; this will be an infusion of trust. The Government together with the Lebanese Civil Society should take ownership of the roadmap that the 3RF and its international partners offer, both at the strategic level in the CG and at a technical level through 3RF Working Groups. Now is the time for all of us to deliver results, better and faster.
4.Eighteen months after the Beirut port explosion, the investigation is stalled again. The victims and their families, and the people of Lebanon have the right to know what caused the explosion and to hold those responsible for this tragedy accountable.
5.Parliamentary elections are planned on 15 May 2022. The CG underlined the importance that Lebanese decision-makers take all measures and make available all necessary resources, including for the Supervisory Commission for Elections, to ensure fair, free, and transparent elections. The CG took note of the Parliament’s decision to postpone the municipal elections and emphasized the need to uphold all electoral milestones in line with Lebanon’s democratic principles and commitments. 6.The 3RF Secretariat presented a 360-degree stock take. As an innovative and ambitious organizing principle, the 3RF has proved its concept; it should now deliver on results. In 2021, there has been a significant increase in funding under the 3RF, with disbursements reaching USD 204 million, and focused on people-centred recovery. These have spanned several sectors including social protection, education, health, housing, waste management and economic opportunities. The CG called on donors and international organizations to maintain and increase financial and technical support for the 3RF in 2022 and beyond.
7. Coordination between state institutions on the 3RF was strengthened through the Central Management Unit (CMU) set up by the Prime Minister. This engagement should be stepped up, even after the elections, as much progress could be made even under a caretaker government. Civil society noted that the CMU was not as inclusive as committed to at the third meeting of the CG held on 16 November 2021. The Prime Minister confirmed his intention to invite Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and other stakeholders when the CMU is well established.
8.As implementation of the 3RF moves forward, the CG noted the importance of stepping up communications efforts highlighting the results achieved and their impact on people’s lives. Communications and outreach efforts should also address the citizens’ needs and challenges through an engagement platform that channels public views and concerns to relevant authorities and addresses queries and complaints promptly and efficiently.
9. Discussion in the CG focused on three strategic issues: economic stabilization and recovery, social protection, and justice and accountability. Lebanon’s economic and financial crisis is estimated to rank among the top three most severe economic collapses worldwide since the 1850s. According to Government estimates, real GDP is estimated to have declined by 5 percent in 2021, on the back of a 21.4 percent contraction in 2020, whereas the 2022 real GDP growth rate in Lebanon is predicted to be at -2.5 percent. The CG calls for the urgent adoption and implementation of a credible, comprehensive, equitable reform plan that includes a debt restructuring programme that would achieve short-term fiscal space and medium-term debt sustainability; a comprehensive restructuring of the financial sector in order to regain solvency of the banking sector; a new monetary policy framework that would restore confidence and stability in the exchange rate; a phased, equitable, fiscal adjustment aimed at regaining confidence in fiscal policy; and growth-enhancing reforms. The Minister of Economy and Trade clarified in his intervention that the new Competition Law will open up investment in public services sectors to the private sector.
10 The CG confirmed the central importance of justice, anti-corruption, and accountability. The CG reiterated its call for inclusive exchange of views between stakeholders before the adoption of the Independence of the Judiciary Law, with principles safeguarding the separation of powers. The CG welcomed the fruitful engagement between the Ministry of Justice and the Venice Commission, which has been requested to provide an independent legal opinion on the compliance of the draft Law with international practices. The CG commended the Minister of State for Administrative Reform for the progress made to implement the anti-corruption strategy and the associated Laws and decrees. The CG calls for the urgent mobilization of adequate resources for the National Anti-Corruption Commission to perform its duties. The Prime Minister also confirmed that the internal regulations of the National Human Rights Commission are ready to be adopted by the Council of Ministers once Parliament passes the budget.
11.The CG also discussed Social Protection, commending progress in the establishment of a unified registry covering all social assistance programmes and the upscaling and implementation of the social assistance and services programmes (NPTP, ESSN). The CG called for the adoption of the draft National Social Protection Strategy as a matter of urgency to ensure that social protection goes beyond social assistance and includes social insurance, financial access to basic services, social welfare, and economic inclusion and labour activation. This strategy will be a vehicle for a new social contract between the people and the state, to anchor future international investments, and avoid a protracted humanitarian crisis. 12 The CG praised the contribution of the first rotation of member civil society organizations, in providing strategic guidance, reviewing and monitoring implementation progress and advocating for various initiatives under the 3RF. The CG also wished the second rotation success, as well as the three additional members of the Independent Oversight Board (IOB). The IOB intervened to highlight the implementation of the Access to Information Law to reforms, crucial to enable more CSO involvement in the drafting of laws. The CG welcomed Norway and Sweden to the CG donor group. Donors agreed to continue to be represented by the European Union as co-chair of the CG.

Geagea: Hizbullah must stop practicing corruption instead of talking about fighting it
Naharnet/April 04/2022
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Monday hit out at Hizbullah over its latest anti-corruption remarks. “You can combat the part of corruption related to borders and smuggling between Lebanon and Syria, because the security of the region is in your hands and the smugglers are your people,” Geagea said during an electoral event. “The airport and the port are also in your hands and everyone knows about the rampant corruption there, not to mention the port explosion and the investigation’s developments,” the LF leader added. “How can Hizbullah explain its alliance with Jebran Bassil, the most corrupt of corrupts, across Lebanon, from Akkar to the South, and how can it justify its pressure on most lists in the various regions so that they ally with the Free Patriotic Movement? Not only you are not fighting corruption, you are rather aiding corruption and paving the way for it,” Geagea went on to say. He added that “no one has called on Hizbullah to combat corruption.”“All that is asked form it is not to practice corruption and to halt smuggling before anything else. It also can refrain from seeking to allow the most corrupt of corrupts to reach parliament,” Geagea suggested.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on April 04-05/2022
6 people are dead and at least 9 others are wounded after a shooting in downtown Sacramento
CNN/April 04/2022
Six people were killed and at least nine others were injured after a shooting in downtown Sacramento early Sunday morning, police said. “Officers located at least 15 shooting victims, including 6 who are deceased,” Sacramento police tweeted.
The shooting happened in the area of 10th and J Streets, Sacramento police spokesperson Sgt. Zach Eaton said.

UN Security Council urges Houthis to abide by terms of truce
Agencies/April 04, 2022
NEW YORK: The UN Security Council on Monday strongly condemned the cross-border terrorist attacks by the Houthi militia against Saudi Arabia last month. The Iranian-backed Houthis struck critical civilian infrastructure in the Kingdom on March 20 and 25. The Security Council expressed its expectation and demand that the Houthis abide by the terms of a “welcomed” truce, which came into effect on April 2, and immediately cease all cross-border attacks. They further recalled the Houthis’ obligations under international law, including those related to the protection of civilians and civilian objects.
During a session on Monday, the members of the Security Council also underscored the opportunity the truce affords to alleviate the humanitarian suffering of Yemenis and improve regional stability. The members urged the building of confidence through measures such as, but not limited to, the re-opening of Taiz road and the regular flow of fuel deliveries, goods, and flights, in accordance with the agreed truce. The Security Council called on all parties to seize the opportunity provided by the truce and work with the UN Special Envoy to make progress towards a comprehensive ceasefire and an inclusive political settlement. It also expressed full support for the UN Special Envoy’s political consultation efforts, reiterated the urgency of an inclusive Yemeni-led, Yemeni-owned process, under UN auspices, and underscored the importance of a minimum 30 per cent participation in them by women in line with the Outcomes of the National Dialogue Conference as recalled by resolution 2624 (2022). It welcomed the Gulf Cooperation Council initiative for Yemeni-Yemeni dialogue which launched last week in Riyadh, in support of the UN’s own efforts and expressed deep concern about Yemen’s humanitarian crisis and underlined the urgent need to fund the humanitarian response.

Iran blames US for the halt in Vienna nuclear talks with world powers
Reuters/ 04 April ,2022
The US is responsible for the pause in talks between Tehran and world powers in Vienna aimed at reviving their 2015 nuclear deal, an Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday. “America is responsible for the halt of these talks ... a deal is very much within reach,” Saeed Khatibzadeh told a weekly news conference. “Washington should make political decision for the deal’s revival,” he said, adding that Tehran would “not wait forever.” The US State Department said on Thursday that a small number of outstanding issues remain in the nuclear talks, adding that the onus was on Tehran to make those decisions. Iran has said that there are still outstanding issues, including Washington removing a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) designation against Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Also Tehran has been pushing for guarantees that any future US president would not withdraw from the agreement. The extent to which sanctions would be rolled back is another unresolved issue. A Russian demand forced world powers to pause nuclear negotiations in early March, But Moscow later said it had written guarantees that its trade with Iran would not be affected by Ukraine-related sanctions, suggesting Moscow could allow a revival of the tattered pact to go forward.

Iran says will return to Vienna only to finalize nuclear deal
Agence France Presse/ 04 April ,2022
Iran said Monday it will only return to Vienna in order to finalize an agreement to revive its landmark 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, with the last steps dependent on Washington. Tehran has been engaged in long-running negotiations in the Austrian capital to revive the deal, known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia directly, and the United States indirectly. "We will not be going to Vienna for new negotiations but to finalize the nuclear agreement," foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh told reporters in Tehran.
However, Iran said there were still outstanding issues that it was waiting on Washington to settle. "At the moment, we do not yet have a definitive answer from Washington," Khatibzadeh said. "If Washington answers the outstanding questions, we can go to Vienna as soon as possible."The JCPOA gave Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program to guarantee that Tehran could not develop or acquire an atomic bomb -- something it has always denied wanting to do.But the US unilateral withdrawal from the accord in 2018 under then-president Donald Trump, who re-imposed biting economic sanctions which prompted Iran to begin rolling back its own commitments.
- 'Final phase' -
The Vienna talks aim to return the US to the nuclear deal, including through the lifting of sanctions on Iran, and to ensure Tehran's full compliance with its commitments. Iranian and U.S. delegations in Vienna do not communicate directly but through other participants and the European Union, the talks' coordinator.
Nearly a year of negotiations have brought the parties close to renewing the 2015 accord. But the talks were halted last month, after Russia demanded guarantees that Western sanctions imposed following its invasion of Ukraine would not damage its trade with Iran. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov later said Moscow had received the necessary guarantees from Washington on trade with Iran. Among the key sticking points is Tehran's demand to remove from the US terror list the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideological arm of Iran's military. Washington recently confirmed that sanctions on the Guards would stay. On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury announced measures targeting several entities it accused of involvement in procuring supplies for Iran's ballistic missile program. A day later, Khatibzadeh said Washington's imposition of the fresh sanctions on the Islamic republic showed its "ill will" towards Iran. On Monday, Khatibzadeh levelled further criticism at the US. "Today, in the final phase, the United States seeks to deprive Iran of the economic benefits of the agreement," Khatibzadeh said.On Sunday, however, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said an agreement was "close", during a phone conversation with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. "We have passed on our proposals on the remaining issues to the American side through the EU senior negotiator, and now the ball is in U.S. court," Iran's top diplomat said.

Pentagon says ‘obvious’ Russia’s forces responsible for atrocities in Ukraine’s Bucha
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/05 April ,2022
Russia’s forces are “obviously” responsible for the atrocities committed in Ukraine’s town of Bucha, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Monday. “I think it is fairly obvious, not just to us but to the world, that Russian forces are responsible for the atrocities in Bucha,” he said. Kirby added: “Now exactly who – what units, whether they’re contractors or Chechens – I don’t think we are able to say right now. But we’re certainly not refuting that these atrocities occurred and occurred at the hands of Russians.”According to the mayor of Bucha, 300 residents were killed by Russian forces. Ukrainian officials entered the town on Sunday and reported mass graves and “executed” civilians. Pictures of bodies littering the streets and corpses with their hands tied behind their backs sparked a global outcry. Moscow denies targeting civilians and claimed that Kyiv “staged” a “provocation” for Western media. Kirby said: “We believe the Russians are committing war crimes in Ukraine. They need to be documented, evidence needs to be collected, and investigations need to be completed. The US will be a participant in that process.” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan had said earlier on Monday that the US will consult with its allies to ensure Russian President Vladimir Putin pays for the “war crimes” committed in Ukraine, and that the mechanism of accountability may take place in the International Criminal Court (ICC). On Monday, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov and expressed “outrage at the apparent atrocities committed by Russian forces in Bucha, and across Ukraine,” the Department said in a statement. Austin “reiterated the US commitment to use every tool available to document and share information I an effort to hold accountable those responsible.”

Ukraine accuses Russia of massacre, city strewn with bodies
Associated Press/April 04/2022
As foreign outrage mounts over evidence of possible executions and other atrocities by Russian forces in Ukraine, Germany's defense minister says Europe must consider stepping up penalties for Moscow by boycotting its gas exports, an economically painful step European leaders previously avoided. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Monday that "we strongly condemn attacks on civilians" following reports of bodies found with signs of torture in areas abandoned by Russian forces. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called reports of rape and other atrocities by Russian soldiers "beyond reprehensible."Meanwhile, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed in a video shown during the Grammy Awards in Las Vegas for musicians and other artists to help tell the story of Russia's invasion. "Support us in any way you can," Zelenskyy said. Also Sunday, at least seven people were killed and 34 wounded, including three children, by Russian shelling of Kharkiv in the northeast, Ukraine's second-biggest city, according to the regional prosecutor's office. In the Black Sea port of Mykolaiv, regional Gov. Vitaliy Kim said at least one person died in shelling and 14 were wounded. Ukrainian officials said bodies of 410 civilians were found in towns around the capital, Kyiv, that were recaptured from Russian forces. In Bucha, northwest of the capital, Associated Press journalists saw 21 bodies. One group of nine, all in civilian clothes, were scattered around a site that residents said Russian troops used as a base. They appeared to have been shot at close range. At least two had their hands tied behind their backs.Zelenskyy called the killings evidence of genocide, but Russia's Defense Ministry rejected the accusation. It said photos and videos of dead bodies "have been stage managed by the Kyiv regime for the Western media."The ministry said "not a single civilian" in Bucha faced any violent military action and the mayor did not mention any abuses a day after Russian troops left. Russian President Vladimir Putin's Feb. 24 invasion has killed thousands of people and forced more than 4 million Ukrainians to flee their country. Putin has said the attack is aimed at eliminating a security threat after Ukraine's government pursued membership in the U.S.-European NATO military alliance. The head of Ukraine's delegation in talks with Russia said Moscow's negotiators informally agreed to most of a draft proposal discussed during talks in Istanbul, but no written confirmation has been provided. Russian demands include Ukraine declaring itself neutral and renouncing membership in military alliances.
Russian forces retreated from some areas around Kyiv after Moscow said it was focusing its offensive on the country's east, where two regions are controlled by Russian-backed separatists. Russian troops had rolled into Bucha in the early days of the invasion and stayed up until March 30. The reports of atrocities are severe enough that European officials "would have to talk about halting gas supplies from Russia," German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said on public broadcaster ARD. "Such crimes must not go unanswered."Europe gets 40% of its gas and 25% of its oil from Russia, while such sales are the Kremlin's main source of export revenue. Governments have been scrambling to find ways to reduce that reliance. Estimates of the impact of a gas boycott on European countries vary but most involve a substantial loss of economic output. For its part, Russia is temporarily enjoying a windfall as global prices surge due to anxiety over possible supply disruptions. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko called on nations to end Russian gas imports. He said they were funding the killings. On Saturday, Lithuania announced it had stopped imports of Russian gas and urged other European governments to do the same. "If we can do it, the rest of Europe can do it too!" President Gitana Nauseda said on Twitter, referring to Russia as "the aggressor."Some European leaders said the killings in the Kyiv area amounted to war crimes. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called images of what happened near Kyiv "a punch to the gut" on CNN's "State of the Union." The United States has previously said that it believes Russia committed war crimes.
"It is a brutality against civilians we haven't seen in Europe for decades," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on the same broadcast. Russia asked for a meeting Monday of the U.N. Security Council to discuss events in the city. The United States and Britain have recently accused Russia of using Security Council meetings to spread disinformation.One resident of Bucha, who refused to give his name out of fear for his safety, said Russian troops went building to building and took people out of the basements where they were hiding. The resident said soldiers checked their phones for evidence of anti-Russian activity and took them away or shot them. The AP also saw two bodies, that of a man and a woman, wrapped in plastic that residents said they had covered and placed in a shaft until a proper funeral could be arranged.
"He put his hands up, and they shot him," said the resident who refused to be identified.
Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to Zelenskyy, claimed some of the women had been raped before being killed and the Russians then burned the bodies. On Monday, the Ukrainian military said its forces had retaken some towns in the Chernihiv region and humanitarian aid was being delivered. The road between Chernihiv and Kyiv was to reopen to some traffic later in the morning, according to the news agency RBK Ukraina. The mayor of Chernihiv, which has been cut off from food and other supplies for weeks, said Russian shelling has destroyed 70% of the northern city. In a video address posted online Sunday, Zelenskyy said Russian soldiers who killed and tortured civilians were responsible for "concentrated evil.""It is time to do everything possible to make the war crimes of the Russian military the last manifestation of such evil on earth," he said in remarks translated by his office. The president directed some of his remarks at the mothers of Russian soldiers."Even if you raised looters, how did they also become butchers?" he said. "You couldn't overlook that they are deprived of everything human. No soul. No heart. They killed deliberately and with pleasure." In Motyzhyn, some 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of Kyiv, residents told AP that Russian troops killed the town's mayor, her husband and her son and threw their bodies into a pit in a pine forest behind houses where Russian forces had slept. bInside the pit, AP journalists saw four bodies of people who appeared to have been shot at close range. The mayor's husband had his hands behind his back, with a piece of rope nearby, and a piece of plastic wrapped around his eyes like a blindfold. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk confirmed the mayor was killed while being held by Russian forces.

Bodies of 5 killed by Russians found in ‘torture chamber’ in Bucha: Ukraine official
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/04 April ,2022
Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s office reported on Monday finding the bodies of five men in the basement of a children’s health facility in the town of Bucha, adding that they were tortured and killed by Russia’s troops. “Torture chamber was discovered in a children's sanatorium in Bucha by prosecutors and Kyiv Regional police officers,” prosecutor Iryna Venediktova said on Twitter. She added: “We will establish all the circumstances of war crimes committed by the Russian Federation, the persons involved and bring them to justice.” According to the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's office, the five men were “unarmed civilians” who were “beaten” and “killed” by “Russian soldiers.”Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that Russians treated Ukrainians “worse than animals”, adding that he believed the atrocities committed in Bucha amounted to “genocide.”“These are war crimes, and they will be recognized by the world as genocide. We are aware of thousands of people killed and tortured, with their limbs cut off. Raped women, murdered children. I believe this is genocide,” Zelenskyy said. Meanwhile, the West has condemned Russia’s “war crimes” and the US announced that it will discuss with its allies how to hold Russian President Vladimir Putin accountable.

Zelenskyy on Bucha civilian killings: Russians treat Ukrainians ‘worse than animals’
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/04 April ,2022
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the town of Bucha on Monday to “show the world” the mass graves and atrocities committed by the Russian forces, vowing to hold Moscow accountable for treating Ukrainians “worse than animals”. “These are war crimes, and they will be recognized by the world as genocide. We are aware of thousands of people killed and tortured, with their limbs cut off. Raped women, murdered children. I believe this is genocide,” Zelenskyy said. He added: “What you see around, what they did to this modern town, is a characteristic of the Russian military, who treated people worse than animals. These are war crimes, and this will be recognized by the world as genocide.”According to the mayor of Bucha, 300 residents were killed by Russian forces. Ukrainian officials entered the town on Sunday and reported mass graves and “executed” civilians. Pictures of bodies littering the streets and corpses with their hands tied behind their backs sparked a global outcry. Moscow denies targeting civilians and claimed that Kyiv “staged” a “provocation” for Western media. Zelenskyy said: “It's very difficult to talk when you see what they've done here. Every day people are found there in barrels, in cellars, strangled, tortured.”

Non-Recognition of Russian Occupation
Agencies//04 April ,2022
The two Russia-Ukraine resolutions are also missing several other non-binding hooks which have strengthened UNGA resolutions addressing other conflicts. For example, neither resolution calls on member states to refrain from recognizing or assisting in the Russian occupation of Donbas, Luhansk, or any other part of Ukraine.
Drawing on the General Assembly’s own resolutions regarding the Russian occupation of Crimea, and prior resolutions regarding other disputed territories, such a provision could read something like: “Calls upon all States, consistent with their obligations under international law, not to recognize, and not to render aid or assistance in maintaining, the occupation by Russia of any part of Ukraine.”
Such a provision could be accompanied by a General Assembly determination such as the following, drawn from prior resolutions regarding other disputed territories: “Determines that all legislative and administrative measures and actions taken or to be taken by Russia, the occupying Power, that purport to alter the character and legal status of any part of Ukraine are null and void, constitute a flagrant violation of international law and of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, and have no legal effect, and calls upon Russia to rescind such measures and actions.”
The UNGA’s resolutions on other conflicts have sometimes been opposed by the West. This includes especially those on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, about which the UNGA and other UN bodies have issued an egregious number and variety of unfair, unhelpful, and inaccurate resolutions. However, even resolutions which are wrong from a policy perspective can provide a useful menu of the types of provisions which the UN believes the General Assembly has the legal authority to promulgate.
Accountability for War Crimes
Another type of non-binding hook missing from the Ukraine-invasion response resolutions is a call for accountability for Russian war crimes and crimes against humanity. Such a provision could emphasize to Putin and his henchmen, to the UN system, and to the International Criminal Court (ICC) that accountability for Russia’s violations is a global priority. While 39 ICC states parties have already formally urged the ICC prosecutor to investigate the Russian invasion, one line in a UNGA resolution could add scores of additional countries to the call for accountability.
A UNGA call for accountability could also prove useful to the national courts of countries including Germany whose laws enable them to prosecute certain heinous crimes no matter where they are committed, under the principle of universal jurisdiction. For example, in January a German court sentenced a Syrian former intelligence officer to life in prison for crimes against humanity committed in the Middle Eastern country’s civil war. In 2015, again in Germany, two Rwandan men accused of leading a rebel group in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo were jailed for war crimes.
Reaffirming Opposition to Crimea Invasion
Yet another surprising absence from the two resolutions is any reference to the Russian occupation of Crimea which began in 2014. A provision condemning that occupation and demanding its end would have made clear that Russia’s illegal occupation of Crimea is not somehow rendered less of a priority by the new invasion. The failure to reference it comes across as an unearned concession to Russian aggression.
Such a provision would importantly contribute to mitigating the damage done by the UNGA’s embarrassing December 16, 2021 vote on a resolution — condemning the occupation of Crimea and Russian abuses there — which passed by a vote of only 65 in favor to 25 against, with 85 abstentions. That failure, by a majority of the UN member states, to condemn the flagrantly illegal Russian occupation of Crimea may have helped encourage Putin’s decision, just three months later, to attempt to seize more Ukrainian territory.
Concluding Thoughts
While the March 2 and March 24 Russia-Ukraine resolutions have sent an important symbolic message of opposition to this year’s Russian invasion, precedent shows that the General Assembly could be doing much more to help mobilize member states, and especially their economies and legal systems, in the fight against Russian aggression. The U.S. and its allies should take the lead in advocating for a third, more robust resolution.
About the author
Orde F. Kittrie is a law professor at Arizona State University and a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He previously served for over a decade at the U.S. State Department, including as Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs and as lead attorney for strategic trade controls. FDD is a Washington, DC-based nonpartisan research institute focused on national security and foreign policy. Follow him on Twitter @OrdeFK
The views expressed by guest authors do not necessarily reflect the views of the Center on Law, Ethics and National Security, or Duke University.
Remember what we like to say on Lawfire®: gather the facts, examine the law, evaluate the arguments – and then decide for yourself!
Next phase of Russia’s war on Ukraine could last ‘months or longer’: White House
Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English/04 April ,2022
The next phase of Russia’s war on Ukraine could last for “months or longer” after Moscow’s forces pulled away from Kyiv as they shift towards the eastern regions, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Monday. He said that Russia is shifting its focus in the war against Ukraine after realizing the “West will not break” in its support of Kyiv’s government, but warned that Moscow was doubling down on its offensive after its troops retreated from the capital and repositioned towards the east of Ukraine. Sullivan also added that the US will announce new sanctions against Russia this week after Ukraine reported atrocities committed by the Russian forces in the town of Bucha. According to the mayor of Bucha, 300 residents were killed by Russian forces. Ukrainian officials entered the town on Sunday and reported mass graves and “executed” civilians. Pictures of bodies littering the streets and corpses with their hands tied behind their backs sparked a global outcry. Moscow denies targeting civilians and claimed that Kyiv “staged” a “provocation” for Western media. The US will push to make sure Russian President Vladimir Putin pays for the “war crimes” committed in Ukraine, Sullivan added. Washington will consult with its allies in Europe about the mechanism of that accountability which may take place in the International Criminal Court (ICC) or another venue. Sullivan said the US will also declare additional military assistance for Ukraine in the coming days.
Russian atrocities
The US is supporting an international team of persecutors and experts to help gather evidence of atrocities committed by Russian forces in Ukraine and hold Moscow accountable, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said. “We are tracking and documenting atrocities and sharing information with institutions working to hold responsible those accountable,” Price said, adding that reports suggest the atrocities are not the actions of rogue Russian soldiers but rather a part of a “broader, troubling campaign.” “The terrible death and destruction wrought by the Kremlin’s forces is going to continue as long as Putin continues this senseless, unprovoked war.”

Ukraine says Russia is preparing eastern assault, attack on Kharkiv
Reuters/04 April ,2022
Ukraine's defense ministry said on Monday Russia is preparing to launch a fresh assault in eastern Ukraine to try to take the city of Kharkiv and encircle Ukraine's heavily fortified eastern frontline. Russia was attacking the towns of Rubizhne and Popasna in Luhansk region to lay the way for an assault on the regional capital of Severodonetsk and also massing forces to capture the besieged port of Mariupol, defense ministry spokesman Oleksandr Motuzyanyk said. Reuters could not confirm the reports and Motuzyanyk did not provide any evidence to back up his account. Severodonetsk and Mariupol lie at the northernmost and southernmost ends of Ukraine's several-hundred kilometre “line of contact”, the ceasefire line that Ukrainian forces have held against Russian-backed separatist forces in Donbas since 2015. Motuzyanyk said Russian units were moving out of Belarus and into Russia, and Moscow was readying fuel and ammunition stockpiles in areas bordering east Ukraine. Russia was also preparing medical facilities for a potential influx of casualties.

Washington provided Saudi Arabia, UAE with ‘appropriate military sales’: US envoy
Joseph Haboush, Al Arabiya English/04 April ,2022
A senior US diplomat said Monday that Washington had provided Saudi Arabia and the UAE with “appropriate military sales” to prevent more attacks from Yemen and the Iran-backed Houthis. The relationship between Washington and its Gulf allies, specifically Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, has been hampered by the Biden administration’s efforts to “recalibrate” ties. “The US has provided very strong assurances,” US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking told Bloomberg TV. Lenderking added that this was “backed up by appropriate defensive military sales and that should serve as a strong deterrent for further attacks from Yemen.” Calling the US moves “a very strong positive for the region,” Lenderking said: “I think this step on Yemen definitely solidifies even further the US relationship with Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and I think that’s a very important dimension.”Lenderking was recently in the region and took part in the peace talks between warring factions in Yemen, which led to a two-month ceasefire. Shortly after taking office, US President Joe Biden and his top officials repeatedly called Saudi Arabia a “pariah” state, removed the Houthis from the terror blacklist, and froze arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Biden said he was considering re-designating the Houthis as a terrorist organization after the group targeted the UAE and ramped up its attacks on civilian targets in Saudi Arabia and on Saudi Aramco. In recent months, the US president has dispatched senior officials to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, imploring Riyadh to increase oil output due to soaring energy prices in the US and across Europe. Both Gulf countries rebuffed these calls and voiced their commitment to agreements reached between oil-producing nations in OPEC+.

The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on April 04-05/2022
Thwarting the people’s will in Iraq and Lebanon
Baria Alamuddin/Arab News/April 04/2022
Elections represent a contract between a nation’s people and the governing classes; the people have their say, and bestow a mandate to govern upon those they select. However, in some states this fundamental social contract has been broken beyond repair.
In the October 2021 elections, the Iraqi people spoke with remarkable clarity about who they did NOT want to represent them; the Iran-backed paramilitary coalition affiliated with Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi plunged from its already modest 48 seats out of 329, to just 17.
In any other parliamentary system, this would represent rejection to the point of near extinction. However, in Iraq, these Hashd factions — which according to the constitution should be banned from politics because of their paramilitary affiliations — have instead bullied and pressured the entire political system to a standstill, holding Iraq hostage until the levers of power are surrendered to them.
In consequence, parliament has failed for a third time to elect a president, a full six months after the elections, largely because vested interests have pressured enough factions and independent MPs to boycott sessions and bring everything to a standstill. The Hashd’s Iranian allies have threatened, bribed and blackmailed politicians behind the scenes. Iraqi social media users heaped derision on cowardly MPs who faked illness to excuse themselves from parliament in a willful sabotage of the political process.
Perhaps the most detested man in Iraq, former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, has exploited the deadlock to insist that his faction must be part of any future “consensus” government — even though the leader of the largest faction, Moqtada Al-Sadr, has insisted on Maliki’s exclusion because of the numerous catastrophes he has inflicted upon Iraq at the bidding of Iran and sectarian militants. Sadr told Maliki and Hashd leaders: “I will not reach consensus with you. Consensus means putting an end to the country… What you describe as political deadlock is better than agreeing with you and dividing the cake with you.” Nevertheless, the result is likely to be indefinite deadlock. Hashd factions and Hezbollah boast endlessly of their “resistance” to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, while they themselves facilitate an Iranian occupation of Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen that is every bit as pernicious and destructive. As in Iraq, so too in Lebanon; a political system repeatedly brought to a halt until Hezbollah and its allies extract exactly what they want.
With elections just over a month away, it pains me to say that Hezbollah remain the best organized team in the field, taking advantage of recent political turbulence to draw likely winners into their camp. Structurally, Hezbollah can win only a minority of seats, so it is entirely a question of how it can exploit its political leverage to thwart the popular will through “blocking thirds” and shady backroom deals. Hezbollah also draws on its immense financial reserves to bribe voters with food, money and welfare support, along with vague promises of cheap electricity and fuel from Iran — which if they ever materialize are likely to cost Lebanon far more than money.
The situation is highly fluid in Sunni areas after Saad Hariri’s withdrawal, but also throughout Christian constituencies as the collapse in support for Michel Aoun and Gebran Bassil’s Free Patriotic Movement because of their alliance with “Hizb-Al-Shaitan” offers opportunities for other factions and personalities. There has also been a commendably large increase in female candidates.
Hashd factions and Hezbollah boast endlessly of their “resistance” to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, while they themselves facilitate an Iranian occupation of Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen that is every bit as pernicious and destructive.
To widespread hilarity, Aoun has reassured voters that he would remain as president until he had rooted out every corrupt official. Hurrah! However, his list of “dirty” politicians must be extremely long, and presumably he’s saving close relatives and allies until last.
The Lebanon we know and love is dying on its feet, as the brightest and best leave in droves, fleeing hunger, poverty and unemployment. There is a yearning for change and we must use the elections as a crucial tool to this end.
In Lebanon and Iraq, Iran’s allies win over and over again because a critical mass of MPs, for their own corrupt personal gain, are willing to sell out their nations and their compatriots. And this is only possible because enough citizens naively or carelessly vote for such traitors.
As matters stand, these political systems have become wholly corrupted and are scarcely salvageable without radical action. Citizens must ask themselves whether they are content to be a colony for another occupying state, or whether they desire to be free, independent and sovereign. As the journalist Ali Hamadeh recently argued: “There is no reform without sovereignty, and no sovereignty without reform”.
Sir William Patey, the British ambassador to Baghdad in 2005-2006, spoke last week of having warned the British government that Iraq was “heading toward civil war unless we deal with the militias,” particularly after Maliki had been allowed to “strip out the guts of the Iraqi army.” He was speaking at an event to launch my new book on Iraq’s paramilitary factions, “Militia State,” which argues that the existence of these entities is inimical to the existence of any kind of democratic or representative system. Unfortunately, Sir William’s advice went unheeded and these militias have been allowed to consolidate their position until they became stronger than the state. Just as nominally rival factions came together as the March 14 Alliance to confront Syrian and Iranian dominance, we need new broad-based alliances that may differ widely in their politics but are united in their absolute rejection of Iranian dominance of their political systems. As I argue in my book, when a small, rejected minority acting in the interests of a hostile foreign state is repeatedly allowed to dominate governments, this is not democracy. When paramilitaries use violence to force the government’s hand, and assassinate rivals, activists and journalists, this is not democracy. And when governing systems can be held hostage for months on end until discredited elements are awarded top positions, this farce has absolutely nothing to do with democracy.
In these states, including Iran itself, people’s aspirations will continue to be thwarted until citizens assertively exercise their democratic rights with their feet and emerge en masse on to the streets to flush these criminals out of the corridors of power once and for all.
• Baria Alamuddin is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster in the Middle East and the UK. She is editor of the Media Services Syndicate and has interviewed numerous heads of state. Her new book, “Militia State —The Rise of Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi and the Eclipse of the Iraqi Nation State,” is published by Nomad Publishing.

US must make up its mind on who its real partners are
Sir John Jenkins/Arab News/April 04/2022
In 1974, the great French film director Jacques Rivette, by then almost the last man standing from the postwar generation of Nouvelle Vague cineastes, released what remains the most repetitive film I have ever seen. It was called “Celine et Julie vont en Bateau” (Celine and Julie Go Boating). It lasted three-and-a-half hours and was essentially a story about a series of events retold over and over again, seen from different angles, with different plot emphases and an admixture of magic, but never reaching a conclusion. At the time, I thought it was enormously profound, like the novels of Alain Robbe-Grillet. Now I’d rather eat broken glass.
And that, in short, is what the Iran negotiations in Vienna have become: A high-end soap opera whose protagonists constantly announce that they are almost there, only for that “almost there” to become another chapter with no ending. And the definition of closure changes subtly too. The EU representative will say that only a few loose ends need clearing up. The Iranians will say that their opponents need to be “realistic” (which clearly means something different in Farsi to its sense in English). The Russians will say that we need to make one final push and a new world of peace and prosperity for all is just around the corner, suggesting sotto voce that the US in particular is the obstacle. The US, meanwhile, will suggest a deal is perfectly doable, that it needs to be done tomorrow and that maybe it will never be done. It is all very confusing.
Interestingly, we see similar confusion over the current war in Ukraine. The Russians say they are winning. They then say they are withdrawing combat forces into Belarus for recuperation and intend to focus on the Donbas region in the east — where they had success with their signature version of hybrid warfare and disorienting disinformation campaigns after 2014. But these techniques do not seem to be working so well this time around. When Moscow publishes photographs or video footage designed to show Ukrainian forces mistreating Roma, for example, it turns out very quickly to be fake. When Ramzan Kadyrov has himself photographed apparently in the theater of war, he turns out to be next to a Rosneft service station — which do not exist in Ukraine — or actually in Grozny. The Ukrainians, meanwhile, are smarter and faster, with their president in particular being a spectacularly effective communicator. Vladimir Putin just looks as if he has put on weight. It is still very hard to work out what is actually going on, although it seems pretty clear that the Russians did not expect to meet such fierce and sustained resistance, have lost serious numbers of men and kit, and have shown themselves to be incompetent at the core enabling tasks of an army: Training, planning, intelligence and logistics.
And yet these two separate but connected issues — the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and Ukraine — are central to the way the world will look in the future. They both reflect the way in which disruptive and revanchist states have emerged to challenge what they perceive as the Western-dominated post-Second World War international order, based on a dispute resolution mechanism centered on the UN Security Council and the open trade economic norms encapsulated in the Washington Consensus of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Two separate but connected issues — the Iran nuclear deal and Ukraine — are central to the way the world will look in the future.
You can certainly criticize these institutions. They undoubtedly serve US interests. And they were made at a moment when global politics was dominated by Western powers. But that is just life. No international order is viable if it is not backed by hard power. After the Second World War, the US was the unquestioned hyperpower, whose security capabilities guaranteed the stability of Western Europe, Japan, Korea, Canada, Australasia and large parts of the Middle East. This helped the US sustain its political and economic dominance.
But it was also massively beneficial for lots of other people too. If you think that a more multipolar world will produce the same extraordinary surges in global well-being that the nearly 60 years from 1945 to 2003 did, then you are almost certainly mistaken. There are other forces at work, of course. Climate change, huge pressure on energy and other natural resources, environmental degradation, migration, the internet and social media, new and virulent cultural and political conflicts, the rapid rise (or perhaps I should say revival) of China, and so forth.
Our collective interest in withstanding attempts to seize the territory of another sovereign state by armed aggression or to subvert and destroy the capacities of other states in the interest of predatory, rapacious and entirely unrepresentative elites is now being tested in these two theaters — those of conflict in Ukraine and of negotiations in Vienna. And these are also tests of our collective ability to resolve all other global challenges. Simply thinking that Ukraine or Iran is a localized problem entirely misses the point. They are symptoms of a global malaise.
And part of that malaise is the recent failure or inability of the US to exercise effective global leadership. There are material reasons for this. America’s global share of world trade is now a fraction of what it was in 1950 — and significantly less than it was even 10 years ago. The conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq imposed serious strains on the political fabric of the country and on its armed forces. They also cost several trillion dollars. And the end of the Cold War reduced the need for Western solidarity and produced the illusion that we had entered a new and conflict-free age of enlightenment. We had not, of course, not even in Europe, some of whose politicians were rather too eager to cast themselves as philosopher kings or queens. The Balkan wars should have been a warning. Instead they were seen as an aberration.
Some political leaders retained the ability to see clearly. Laurent Fabius, the then-French foreign minister, wrote an illuminating piece for The Washington Quarterly in 2016 about the first JCPOA negotiations and their outcome. He explained the way in which the Iranians gamed the US and the salutary pushback from Paris in particular. We need this sort of hard-headed pragmatism again. It is certainly arguable that we are indeed seeing this from the Biden administration over Ukraine, where US (and British) intelligence has been adroitly deployed to deny Russia control over the information environment, while Washington and London have been the major suppliers of serious operational military assistance to Kyiv. It would be nice to think this is what we are going to see over Iran too.
However, the signs there are very mixed. The US has imposed some welcome new sanctions on individuals and institutions associated with recent Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attacks in Iraq. And, so far, Washington seems to be holding firm on the question of the designation of the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization. But the US delegation in Vienna seems divided. The highly experienced Dan Shapiro, who served as US ambassador to Israel and remains close to Israeli political and security leaders, last week became the second senior figure to leave this year. Whether these events represent serious differences of view over the approach to Iran and the IRGC in particular — with Rob Malley, the leader of the delegation, being more inclined to give Tehran what it wants — remains unclear. But it is worrying. And these worries are clearly part of the background to the current tensions between the leaders of some Arab Gulf states and Washington. The Biden administration needs to decide quickly who it believes its real partners are in a world that is becoming more polarized and conflict-ridden by the minute. That cannot be a question of absolutes. It is a matter of consistency. It is a matter of communication. And, above all, it is a matter of priorities. But what are they?
• Sir John Jenkins is a senior fellow at Policy Exchange. Until December 2017, he was corresponding director (Middle East) at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, based in Manama, Bahrain, and was a senior fellow at Yale University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs. He was the British ambassador to Saudi Arabia until January 2015.

Listen-Audio/Why MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction) Is No Longer Reassuring
Foreign Podicy-FDD/April 04/2022
https://www.fdd.org/podcasts/2022/04/01/mutually-assured-destruction-no-longer-reassuring/
Clifford D. May
Founder & President
Bradley Bowman
CMPP Senior Director
Rob Soofer
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
About
Central to America’s strategy in the Cold War was the principle of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). The idea was to make nuclear warfare a lose-lose proposition — a game you just can’t win. Whichever side was attacked would retain the capability to counterattack. Both sides would end up devastated, if not annihilated.
But MAD works only if both sides are equally averse to mass death and destruction.
When it comes to Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Ali Khamenei, and Kim Jong-un, can we be confident of that?
If not, what replaces MAD? Perhaps robust deterrence and comprehensive missile defense systems — neither of which can be achieved easily, cheaply, or quickly. And we’ve really not yet begun to pursue such goals.
To unpack these issues, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by Rob Soofer. Formerly the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear and Missile Defense Policy, Rob is now a Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Strategic Studies. He also previously served as a professor at the National War College and as a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Naval Reserve.
Also with us: Bradley Bowman, a West Point Graduate, who served as an active-duty U.S. Army officer, Black Hawk pilot, and top advisor to two U.S. Senators. Brad is now the senior director of FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power.

Congress Invests in National Cyber Resilience but Misses Important Opportunities in the Consolidated Appropriations Act
RADM (Ret) Mark Montgomery/Lawfare/April04/2022
Congress’s newly completed annual appropriations bill provides significant funding increases for a number of critical cybersecurity programs, including for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) at the Department of Homeland Security. This investment will likely drive transformational improvements in federal and national cybersecurity capabilities. At the same time, however, Congress failed to make similar investments in supporting programs at other agencies, like the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST), that serve as enablers of better cybersecurity in the federal government and nationwide.
Welcome Support for CISA, the National Cyber Director and the Department of Energy
The overall growth in CISA’s new budget reflects Congress’s mounting concerns after a year marked by alarming cybersecurity incidents in government and critical infrastructure. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022 expands CISA’s budget by more than 28 percent relative to the budget enacted for fiscal year 2021 (and more than $460 million over the administration’s request for fiscal year 2022).
In a March 2021 letter, leaders from the congressionally mandated Cyberspace Solarium Commission recommended that appropriators increase CISA’s main funding pool by at least $400 million, on top of the administration’s requested increase of over $100 million. The omnibus bill tops them both, providing CISA with an overall increase of almost $569 million—a landmark investment in America’s cybersecurity.
This increase enables major investments in the tools that allow CISA to serve as a key enabler of cybersecurity across the federal government and nationwide. In particular:
Sector risk management agencies (SRMAs)—The Department of Homeland Security serves as the primary connection point for eight of the 16 critical infrastructure sectors (chemical; commercial facilities; communications; critical manufacturing; dams; emergency services; information technology; and nuclear reactors, materials, and waste). In the administration’s annual budget request, CISA asked for roughly $18.2 million for SRMA management, an increase of about half a million over the prior year’s budget. The omnibus bill provides an increase of $39 million above the administration’s request. This investment will revolutionize CISA’s ability to support critical infrastructure sectors and to serve as a resource hub for all SRMAs across government.
Voluntary threat detection—Voluntary threat detection programs are key points of collaboration between CISA and critical infrastructure owners and operators. Most notably, the CyberSentry program places sensors on critical infrastructure networks where corporate networks meet industrial control systems. Under CISA’s fiscal year 2022 budget request, funding for this program would have held steady at roughly $8.2 million, but the omnibus bill provides an astounding $95.5 million increase over the request. These additional funds will establish a program management office as well as procure critical hardware and software to deploy sensors across more critical infrastructure sectors and develop better tools to analyze this collected data. This rapid growth in funding both signals confidence in the program and sets a very high bar for CISA, which will need to move quickly to obligate these funds before the 2022 fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.
Cybersecurity Education and Training Assistance Program (CETAP)—Properly funding cybersecurity education is an investment in the future of national resilience, and the homeland security section of the omnibus bill delivers on that goal. CETAP, an established program that Congress codified in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021, provides cybersecurity curricula and professional development to K-12 educators nationwide. After the administration recommended eliminating CETAP despite its successes, Congress instead appropriated $6.8 million for the program and required CISA, the Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD), and the Office of Management and Budget to work together to clarify interagency leadership of cybersecurity training and education programs.
And there is more. Congress increased CISA’s budget for the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC), an evolution of the Joint Cyber Planning Office mandated in Section 1715 of the 2021 NDAA. That funding will make major inroads toward operational planning and coordination with the private sector. Congress also appropriated $200,000 for a report on a Continuity of the Economy (COTE) planning effort, though future appropriations bills will likely reflect that implementing a plan to restart the nation’s economy after a large-scale cyberattack requires far more resources than the initial report.
Furthermore, lawmakers are demanding a briefing on cyber hiring, which will serve as a first step toward addressing persistent delays and limitations in CISA’s mission support services. The appropriations bill also provides additional guidelines for the Cyber Response and Recovery Fund created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. In the appropriations report, Congress requires CISA to establish rules specifying details like when the fund will be used, when costs will be reimbursable and other practical points of implementation. Finally, funding for a Cybersecurity Advisory Committee will reinforce CISA’s ability to draw expert advice.
Outside of CISA, appropriators’ comments about the ONCD merit attention. While acknowledging that the office received healthy funding of $21 million in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, lawmakers noted that they anticipate future appropriations for the ONCD “beginning in fiscal year 2023.” In the meantime, the bill reaffirms ONCD’s role in cyber workforce development, reinforcing the office’s work on the issue.
A final welcome highlight: Congress also increased funding for the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) at the Department of Energy by $29 million over last year, for a total appropriation of almost $186 million. The president’s budget had requested more—an increase of $45 million—but a 19 percent increase is nevertheless good news in the critical world of energy cybersecurity. As the SRMA for the energy sector, the Department of Energy, through CESER, provides technical assistance, guidance, training, and outreach to critical infrastructure owners and operators in the sector. The added funds will enable CESER to improve the resiliency of energy infrastructure and develop tools to provide greater situational awareness of the environmental and cyber risks that could lead to sector disruption. In particular, Congress appropriated up to $20 million for the Cyber Testing for Resilient Industrial Control Systems program. Lawmakers also required the department to provide greater detail on its cyber research plans in the coming year’s budget request, making this an interesting area to watch for future appropriations.
Underfunding the National Science Foundation and NIST
While the new appropriations bill is sound overall, it missed several key opportunities. Some departments and agencies with significant cybersecurity portfolios did not see meaningful increases. The issue is not the information technology budgets that federal agencies use to secure their own networks but, rather, the programmatic funding some agencies receive to enable better security nationwide. Outside of CISA, the latter category of funding is largely missing from the omnibus bill. The disappointments are most notable in the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, where Congress failed to follow its own guidance from separate House and Senate versions of the appropriations bills passed last summer.
NSF’s CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service (SFS) Program has a proven track record of providing high-quality cyber education to a diverse population of students across the country and then recruiting hundreds of those students into the government every year. This program received $60 million in fiscal year 2021. The Cyberspace Solarium Commission advocated for a $20 million increase but welcomed the $10 million increase reflected in the president’s budget and in the House and Senate versions of the appropriations bill filed earlier in 2021. However, the final bill’s modest 5 percent increase for a total budget of $63 million is both a disappointment and a missed opportunity to mitigate America’s shortage of cyber professionals, one of the most intractable challenges in federal cybersecurity.
Congress can fix this specific issue when it reconciles the House and Senate “China Bills” next month. Section 10304 of the House version contains appropriate SFS funding, which, if retained, would resolve this issue for the next five years. Relatedly, the House version of the report filed in summer 2021 called for a robust statistical analysis program at the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, focused on the cyber workforce. However, the final spending agreement includes a watered-down version of that plan, merely encouraging NSF to build on a tangentially related report from 2017.
The shortages in funding for NIST are even more dramatic. The Cyberspace Solarium Commission had recommended an increase of nearly $65 million to NIST’s cybersecurity and privacy budget for fiscal year 2022, noting NIST’s growing mandate and central role in the cybersecurity ecosystem. The commission found this dramatic increase to be appropriate because NIST provides tools used across sectors and worldwide, such as the National Vulnerability Database, the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and the NICE Workforce Framework for Cybersecurity. Additionally, NIST’s mandate has expanded significantly in recent years. Section 9401 of the 2021 NDAA authorizes a new nationwide cybersecurity workforce development effort through “regional alliances and multistakeholder partnerships.” Likewise, Executive Order 14028, issued in May 2021, tasks NIST with publishing guidance on security measures for critical software, minimum standards for software testing, enhancing software supply chain security, and a long list of other topics. NIST must do all of this, plus a full slate of equally critical work on privacy, on a budget that for years has hovered at just under $80 million.
While Congress’s joint explanatory statement accompanying the omnibus bill references a prior House report that included a $15 million increase, the final agreement apparently reduces that increase to only $1.5 million over fiscal year 2021 enacted spending. This represents a meager 1.9 percent in year-over-year growth in NIST’s budget for cybersecurity and privacy and significantly less than the modest 6 percent increase requested by the administration.
NIST’s work requires an extremely skilled and experienced workforce. If Congress and the administration continue to add to the agency’s list of unfunded and underfunded mandates, NIST will begin to lose that workforce. That would do irreparable damage to cybersecurity not only in the United States but globally. NIST products are a keystone of the cybersecurity ecosystem, and the agency’s ever-growing and critical work should be funded accordingly.
Congress’s Missed Opportunities at Treasury and State
Although the omnibus bill provides $80 million for the Treasury Department’s Cybersecurity Enhancement Account, those funds are meant to secure the department’s networks. Treasury is ideally placed to support an external cybersecurity role, which is not covered by the newly appropriated funds. The appropriations bill does not adequately resource the Treasury’s Office of Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection (OCCIP), which serves as the SRMA for the financial services sector. Providing private-sector connectivity on cybersecurity issues to global finance, local credit unions, insurance companies, investment firms, and more, Treasury is a particularly important node in the SRMA network. For two years running, the Cyberspace Solarium Commission leadership has recommended increases to the OCCIP budget to support its role as the SRMA for financial services. It is disappointing to see the missed opportunity again in this agreement.
Meanwhile, the world is watching in real time as a case study in cybersecurity capacity building unfolds in Ukraine. As National Security Agency Director Paul Nakasone noted before Congress in early March, Ukrainian work on cybersecurity has helped prevent serious Russian cyberattacks amid the invasion of Ukraine. Notably, the United States has invested tens of millions of dollars to support Ukrainian cybersecurity capacity building in recent years. With scenarios like this in mind, the Cyberspace Solarium Commission recommended increases to the State Department’s Economic Support Fund; the Assistance for Europe, Eurasia, and Central Asia Fund; Foreign Military Financing; and the Digital Connectivity and Cybersecurity Partnership. The recommended increases would total $50 million to advance this type of cybersecurity capacity building in strategically important countries around the world.
Unfortunately, the appropriations bill does not increase funding for cybersecurity capacity building in any of these funds. The State Department is currently undergoing a significant reorganization on cyberspace policy, so Congress may be waiting for that structure to take shape before increasing funding significantly. However, given the demonstrated success of current international cyber capacity building efforts, it is hard to see the lack of funding increase as anything other than a missed opportunity.
Conclusion
The omnibus bill’s significant appropriations increases for cybersecurity-focused organizations such as CISA are welcome and badly needed. But providing for internal federal cybersecurity addresses only half of the federal government’s cybersecurity mandate. National cyber resilience will fall short if Congress and the executive branch continue to overlook the indirect but important impact that other departments and agencies can have on national cybersecurity. Even as Congress just concluded fiscal year 2022 appropriations, planning for fiscal year 2023 budgets has already begun. Congressional and executive branch leaders should build on this year’s progress by helping other government agencies enable better cybersecurity for Americans nationwide.
*RADM (Ret) Mark Montgomery serves as senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and an FDD senior fellow. He also directs CSC 2.0, an initiative that works to implement the recommendations of the congressionally mandated Cyberspace Solarium Commission, where he served as executive director and as senior advisor to the co-chairs. Follow him on Twitter @MarkCMontgomery. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, non-partisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

Saving the Ayatollahs-Biden’s unwise Iran policy
Reuel Marc Gerecht and Ray Takeyh/National Review/April 04/2022
The Islamic Republic is in trouble. Its economy, heavily socialized and riddled with corruption, needs high-priced oil to stay afloat. Its politics are broken: Since the end of the 1990s, when a real reform movement, led mostly by lay, left-wing Islamists who thought that democracy could resuscitate and humanize the revolution, was suppressed, the regime has been rapidly losing ideological appeal and a solid base of support. Its bickering elite constantly plot against one another, finding common ground on fewer issues. Given its continuing commitment to subvert the regional order, the clerical regime remains permanently at odds with most of its neighbors.
In other words, the mullahs need a nuclear deal to give them relief from a predicament of their own making. As surely as détente prolonged the life of the Soviet Union, the West’s addiction to arms control is the theocracy’s own form of salvation. Contrary to what many observers have suggested, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the muscle behind the theocracy, supported Barack Obama’s nuclear agreement, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), because it brought so much cash with less-than-onerous inspections, sunsetting nuclear restrictions, no restraints on the IRGC’s foreign machinations, and no limitations on the country’s ballistic-missile program, which is under the IRGC’s control. By yielding little to and getting much from the Biden administration in the ongoing negotiations in Vienna, the clerical regime is trying again to have both guns and butter.
The defining truth: Iran isn’t an island of autocratic stability in a turbulent Middle East, which many commentators routinely suggested while the Arab world cracked up over the last 20 years. Economic malpractice, much more than sanctions, has left the Islamic Republic routinely subject to unrest. The mullahs have never managed to tame inflation, create suf­ficient jobs for the young, or temper their greed. When the Iranian press periodically reveals massive corruption scandals, this means, translated from Persian, that one mafia within the regime has the high ground over another, allowing prosecutors and judges, always aligned with the supreme leader’s current interests, to shred the offending party. American sanctions have aggravated all of these forces and the regime’s basic incompetence; the Covid-19 pandemic was so grossly mismanaged that even Iranian health officials have had the courage to say that U.S. sanctions, which have always had openings for health care, weren’t responsible for the shocking death tolls and clinical meltdowns. Or as the deputy minister of health, Younes Panahi, put it: “We have been dealt more damage by Covid-19 than we were in eight years of war [with Iraq].”
But economic incompetence rarely crashes a dictatorship; authoritarian states become wobbly when they lose their capacity to intimidate their sullen subjects. There is no social class that hasn’t registered its opposition to the clerical regime by taking to the streets. Teachers, farmers, laborers, university students, and even retirees have voiced their grievances, some displaying the bravery to face down, and occasionally force the retreat of, the regime’s security services. Ethnic unrest — the minorities probably make up a majority of the country — has become noticeably more vivid and violent in the last decade. The pious in shantytowns and those of more questionable faith in the well-to-do neighborhoods have found common cause in their rejection of theo­cracy. The class resentment that the mullahs relied on to keep order is gradually yielding to a sense of solidarity across large swaths of Iranian society. The evolution of the pro-revolution, Shiite-mysticism-loving populist and former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a particularly amusing reflection of the half-educated poor who have ardently supported the theocracy. Moving from a sincere admirer of supreme leader Ali Khamenei to a mocking critic (and the way he disses the supreme leader is polite compared with the scathing attacks he’s launched on others in the clergy), Ahmadinejad shows how corrosive, potentially convulsive dissent can rise to the top. The ruling mullahs and the Revolutionary Guards are keenly aware that when dissident clergy, merchants, the urban and increasingly secular middle class, students, and the poor all are cursing unha, “them,” the unnamed source of their pain, they aren’t talking about a few bad apples among the ruling elite. Even more worrisome is the increasing boldness of the discontented to name their oppressors. “Death to Khamenei!” was common in the nationwide protests in 2017 and 2019. The latter protests required automatic-weapons fire, mass incarceration, and torture to stamp out.
In reply to all of this anger, the supreme leader serenely touts his “resistance economy,” in which Iran weans itself off oil and somehow relies on its internal markets and trade with China. This is a plan for deepening poverty, as a nation of 85 million people cannot sustain itself without increasing the export of its most lucrative natural resource. Iran isn’t Turkey, the most Westernized of Muslim states, which has made lasting progress without petroleum.
Yet economics has never been what the Islamic Republic is about. “Regional strength gives us strategic depth and more national strength. Why should we stop this approach?” asked Khamenei, who has overseen the theocracy’s much more aggressive and more explicitly Shiite expansionist policies. The supreme leader picked up the nuclear mantle from the former major domo of the revolutionary clergy, Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, who probably should be credited for first making the mullahs’ nuclear dreams a reality. Nuclear empowerment is similarly a declared goal of Khamenei, who has correctly assessed how becoming a nuclear state is a game-changer. And the supreme leader hasn’t been timid about purging those who cast some skepticism about the importance of the regime’s atomic ambitions. Khamenei, whom Rafsanjani made the supreme leader, once was hesitant about exercising his authority amid the country’s many competing power circles. Today, he demands loyalty or silence from those who disagree with his decisions.
And Khamenei, who succeeded Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989, knows that big countervailing forces against him have often ebbed. Joe Biden came into office pledging to “pivot toward Asia,” an empty slogan that surely meant — still means — retreating from the Middle East more than it means confronting Beijing. The mullahs aren’t blind and deaf: This administration rather desperately seeks to revive a nuclear deal, with its quickly sunsetting limitations, with a regime that U.S. officials, unlike their predecessors in the Obama administration, don’t even pretend to see evolving toward moderation.
“Longer, stronger, and broader” was the White House’s initial mantra, meaning that once America returned to the agreement, it would seek to make its provisions stronger and its reach wider to include the clerical regime’s missiles and nefarious regional activities. All that talk is gone now. Tehran is set to receive billions in sanctions relief while moving ahead with its atomic ambitions. Terrorism, imperialism, ballistic missiles, and internal repression are effectively off the table. President Biden is now just transactional: very short-term nuclear therapy at a very high cost.
Nearly alone, the Islamic Republic sees an opportunity in Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. As Mohammad Marandi, a particularly loathsome member of Iran’s nuclear negotiating team, noted, “They need Iranian energy to calm down the markets. So, it’s for their own good to [finish] the negotiations as soon as possible.” Indeed, the chatter in Western chancelleries is that, perhaps after a nuclear agreement, Iran’s oil can come back to the market and offset any loss of Russian exports. The Islamic Republic in this telling is no longer one of America’s most enduring adversaries but a global stakeholder. And Biden has oddly summoned this authentic axis, Iran and Venezuela, to help him stabilize carbon-based-energy markets, which, not too long ago, his administration viewed suspiciously, if not dismissively, because of their contribution to climate change.
Unsurprisingly, the mullahs have eagerly engaged the administration — while making it stay in the kiddy corner. (U.S.–Iranian negotiations in Vienna must be transacted via third parties.) They’re being offered a lot while being required to do little. An arms-control agreement can also help tranquilize the clerical regime’s domestic troubles. With its coffers full, the Islamic Republic can rebuild its patronage networks. In the 1970s, it was the Western loans, credits, and technology transfers that kept alive the Soviet bloc. But relief from sanctions is a temporary respite for the clerics: They will surely benefit from another generation of Americans wishing to placate a revisionist state. Yet the bonds between state and society are too damaged to be so easily healed. Western benevolence can’t straighten out the Islamic Republic’s internal contradictions.
But a deeply troubled revolutionary regime whose financial fortunes are improving is still a dangerous adversary. The clerical regime’s Arab Shiite militias have undone the politics in Iraq and Lebanon, sustained the Assad dynasty in Syria, and killed scores of Americans. With more funds at its dis­posal, the theocracy is bound to enlarge its auxiliary forces and bring more havoc to the region.
In the debris of the Russian assault on Ukraine, there are stark historical lessons. Rash ideologues cannot be dissuaded by diplomatic resets and commercial entreaties. Their calculus often defies American officials too invested in their balance sheets and bottom lines. Another lesson: A Russia that possesses nuclear weapons can undertake blatant aggression without fear that its territory will be molested. An Islamist regime that has its own designs on the Middle East understands that nuclear deterrence works.
An arms-control accord between Iran and America is now all but inevitable, momentary hiccups notwithstanding. In the mainstream, liberal press, the clerical regime, led by Khamenei and his ruthless mini-me president, Ibrahim Raisi, may even soon be celebrated as “hard-line pragmatists.” (And if the mullahs and the Revolutionary Guards decide to test a nuclear weapon in the not-too-distant future, the same voices will surely find Iran’s ruling elite too dangerous to isolate.)
The Republican critics of the JCPOA and whatever now comes out of Vienna have been mostly fair and accurate. They are, nonetheless, not particularly reassuring, primarily because most Republicans also can’t free themselves from the infantilizing hopes of arms control. “Squeeze ’em until they relent,” which was essentially Donald Trump’s diplomatic strategy, is (barely) plausible against a determined, virulently anti-American theocracy if it is, say, a decade away from the bomb. If the enemy is 24 months away, which is an Israeli “guesstimate” that the Biden White House accepts, then that approach is, to put it politely, flawed.
By 2025, if a new, hawkish Republican president is in the White House, the clerical regime will have even more money, and its nuclear advances would place it inches from the bomb. Iran’s progress with centrifuges and uranium enrichment is irreversibly significant. And now the Israelis are signaling clearly that they are unwilling to roll the dice with preventive air raids. The Israeli moment has probably passed. Some Republicans have surely been hoping that the Jewish state would do what America has declined to do.
So where Republicans are going remains unclear. Toward a containment strategy where American power, on land, sea, and air, is increased in the Middle East? Or to just more of the same with a hopeful twist: Washington sells more-advanced weapons to the Sunni Arab Gulf states (which really don’t have the skill set or volition to use them), rebuilds a sanctions wall, and hopes that the Iranian people will rise up, tear down the theocracy, and play nice with the nuclear weapons they have in their possession?
It’s a certainty that the Iranian people will keep confronting their oppressors. Best news for them: The possession of atomic arms doesn’t make the theocracy safer from the anger of those who don’t feel blessed living in an Islamist state. Nukes didn’t save the Soviet Union; they won’t save the Islamic Republic.
Mr. Gerecht, a former Iranian-targets officer in the Central Intelligence Agency, is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Mr. Takeyh is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. Follow Reuel on Twitter @ReuelMGerecht. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, non-partisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

North Korea Looks to Capitalize on Washington’s Attention Deficit
Anthony Ruggiero and Behnam Ben Taleblu/The Dispatch/April 04/2022
A serious problem does not go away if you ignore it. It instead grows uncontrollably. Case in point: President Joe Biden has largely ignored North Korea’s advancing nuclear, missile, and military programs. And last week, as Biden prepared for important meetings with NATO over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un successfully launched an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first-time in half a decade. Japanese Prime Minister ​​Fumio Kishida called the launch an act of “unforgivable recklessness.”
Kim’s message was clear: Ignoring Pyongyang has costs. An ICBM test by North Korea should serve as an inflection point in U.S. policy. It’s now on the Biden administration to prove that such actions come with consequences and assiduously rebuild the coalition for pressure to blunt Kim’s weapons programs and extortion efforts.
North Korea’s latest ICBM launch follows a failed March 16 ICBM test. It is the clearest sign of the collapse of Kim’s self-imposed moratorium on long-range ballistic missile testing. Earlier this year, on February 26 and March 4, Kim conducted at least two launches using what U.S. officials called ICBM-related technology as part of a new missile system. An unnamed senior administration official called those launches a “serious escalation.” Kim is likely to have combined elements from these launches in his latest ICBM test.
Foreign military sources claim the missile, fired in a lofted trajectory, reached a peak altitude of 6,200 kilometers while flying for 71 minutes. Missiles fired on a lofted trajectory travel shorter horizontal distances. But the latest missile launch implies that Kim could fire the weapon at the continental U.S. on a normal ballistic trajectory. In late January, Kim also fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile known as Hwasong-12 otherwise capable of reaching Guam. North Korea has launched over a dozen missiles this year.
Although there is some debate as to the exact weapon that was tested, North Korea is working on a larger ICBM that can carry multiple warheads, potentially with the goal of being able to target multiple sites in the United States with one missile. Other military capabilities the North is developing include hypersonic missiles, as well as long-range land-attack cruise missiles. Cruise missile launches are not banned by U.N. Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs) on North Korea, which instead narrowly focus on ballistic missiles.
In the face of all these developments and the most recent ICBM test, the Biden administration continues to claim that “the door has not closed for diplomacy.” While the administration deserves the lion’s share of the blame for the state of U.S. policy, pressure against Pyongyang began to atrophy in 2018 when then-President Donald Trump embraced high-level diplomatic engagement as the cornerstone of his North Korea policy. Biden has built on his predecessor’s approach and highlighted in public and private its willingness to negotiate with North Korea. Kim has rejected these overtures and continued development of his prohibited programs.
The only realistic option for Washington is a punitive one. Critics will suggest that pressure does not work on Kim and that North Korea will never relinquish its nuclear weapons program. The Obama administration increased pressure on Pyongyang in 2016 and the Trump administration escalated that policy through 2018. There is no question that Kim was worried that the mounting financial, political, and military pressure at that time would threaten his hold on power. Mounting pressure was likely why Kim agreed to the leader-level summits.
And while denuclearization of North Korea remains the ultimate goal of U.S.-North Korea policy, sanctions can achieve important policy goals in the interim. These include reducing the funding available for Kim’s nuclear and missile programs and making material inputs for those programs harder and costlier to procure and produce.
A robust pressure policy on Pyongyang should begin with rebuilding a diplomatic coalition. The Biden administration announced last Friday that it will introduce a new sanctions resolution to “update and strengthen the sanctions regime.” At present, the U.N. Security Council is a lost cause because Russia and China will veto the U.S. resolution and prevent any additional UNSC action.
In the absence of a new resolution, the U.S. mission to the United Nations issued another strong statement on Friday, as it has done several times this year following Pyongyang’s missile launches. Unfortunately, even those non-controversial statements highlight the fractured nature of a once strong diplomatic consensus against the Kim regime. The administration has been unable to persuade more than eight Council members to support these statements.
Pivoting to financial pressure, Washington should quickly focus its sanctions efforts on three key areas: cutting access to the international financial system, impeding overseas sanctions busting and procurement networks, and cracking down on the illicit energy trade. Rather than meting out this punishment gradually, the Biden administration should do this all at once and with the same if not greater zeal that it is showing on the Russia sanctions front to make sure Kim gets the message.
First, the Treasury Department should in public and private warn financial institutions that they will lose access to the U.S. financial system if they support North Korean trade or sanctioned programs. Critics may counter that Biden should not isolate China and other countries that may be needed to support sanctions against Russia. Yet opposite is true, strong action on North Korea will reinforce the notion that Biden is serious about sanctions enforcement across the board.
Similarly, if the U.S. Treasury or the Justice Departments have identified Chinese, Russian, or other financial institutions aiding North Korea, now is the time to take action against these actors to both expose and penalize their activities.
The next target should be North Korea’s overseas diplomatic, financial, and commercial representatives. The Biden team should insist that countries implement, at a minimum, U.N. sanctions requiring the expulsion of representatives of designated entities or persons engaged in sanctions busting or illicit procurement. Every North Korean diplomat and representative may have the ability to engage in some form of sanctions evasion. If U.S. allies continue to harbor these representatives, Biden should consider sanctions against them or even a potential reduction in U.S. aid.
The final target should be Pyongyang’s longstanding track-record of violating Security Council sanctions by exporting coal and importing refined petroleum. The U.S. 7th Fleet participates in the Enforcement Coordination Cell, a multinational coalition (U.S., Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Japan, France, and Germany) that monitors violations of U,N, maritime sanctions. The U.S. should warn China that it must stop these transfers and if they do not the administration will switch from monitoring sanctions violations to interdicting these vessels.
Congress has a role to play too. North Korea sanctions passed both chambers with overwhelming majorities in 2016, 2017, and 2019. House and Senate foreign affairs and banking committees should hold oversight hearings to investigate the reduction in sanctions pressure since 2018 and enforcement of mandatory sanctions.
An ICBM test is a direct threat to the U.S. homeland and should be treated as such. Biden cannot ignore North Korea’s evolving missile and nuclear capabilities in the hopes of them fading away. Fortunately, there is a blueprint of how to pressure Pyongyang already on file. The question is, will Washington reach for it before it is too late?
*Anthony Ruggiero and Behnam Ben Taleblu are senior fellows at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). Anthony previously served in the U.S. government for more than 19 years, most recently as senior director for counterproliferation and biodefense on the U.S. National Security Council. Follow Anthony on Twitter @NatSecAnthony. Behnam covers Iranian political and security issues at FDD as well as functional issues like nonproliferation and arms control. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, non-partisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

Orde Kittrie on “How to Include Far More Lawfare Ammunition in Next UN General Assembly Resolution on Russian Invasion”
BY CHARLIE DUNLAP, J.D/Lawfire/April 04/2022
https://sites.duke.edu/lawfire/2022/04/03/orde-kittrie-on-how-to-include-far-more-lawfare-ammunition-in-next-un-general-assembly-resolution-on-russian-invasion/
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Today’s post is by Professor Orde Kittrie, and he makes a very interesting addition to our essays related to the war in the Ukraine by examining the UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions addressing the conflict. These resolutions “are considered to be recommendations and are not legally binding on the Member States,” but are still influential.
Professor Kittrie unpacks the two UNGA resolutions about the war, identifies some deficiencies, and advocates a third resolution to correct them. What makes his discussion especially interesting is that he puts them in the context of lawfare–a topic of particular interest to me, and one that several Lawfire® writers have examined recently, including with respect to Ukraine (see e.g., here).
Orde’s observations on lawfare merit special consideration because he is the author of Lawfare: Law as a Weapon of War and is clearly one of the world’s top experts. I found his in-depth dive into the UNGA resolutions to be fascinating and enlightening (especially regarding the scope of the sanctions “gaps’”).. I urge you to take a look!
How to Include Far More Lawfare Ammunition in Next UN General Assembly Resolution on Russian Invasion
by Orde Kittrie
On March 24, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted its second resolution addressing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Both this and the first resolution, adopted on March 2, symbolically demonstrated wide opposition to the invasion. However, a comparison with UNGA resolutions about other conflicts reveals these Russia-Ukraine resolutions could have done far more to encourage and assist UN members to impose economic sanctions and other lawfare-type accountability on Moscow.
The gaps in the two UNGA resolutions addressing the Russian invasion are particularly surprising because Ukraine and its allies have in general worked exceptionally systematically and creatively to harness international laws and organizations to their cause. Many of these efforts are reflected in an official Ukrainian government website detailing the country’s lawfare strategy against Russia.
The West should quickly spearhead another UNGA resolution, drawing on the repertoire of member state action recommendations contained in past resolutions against other targets. Such a resolution could significantly increase the cost to Russia of its invasion.
UNGA Resolution Can Create Action Hooks
While UNGA resolutions are not legally binding on UN member states, such resolutions can “call” for, “urge,” or otherwise recommend that all member states impose sanctions or other legal measures against the target.
Such recommendations are important because some UN member states find it difficult or impossible legally, or from a domestic political perspective, to promulgate sanctions or other legal measures against a foreign government or entity unless the UN has called upon member states to do so. A legally binding requirement in a UN Security Council resolution can of course obligate a member state to impose specified sanctions.
However, in many member states, a non-binding provision in a Security Council or General Assembly resolution that recommends a particular measure can be a pivotal hook for action if the government chooses to use it. For example, the non-binding “calls-upon” provisions in Security Council resolutions provided hooks for many UN member states to impose their own legally binding restrictions on transactions with Iran.
In addition, a sanctions recommendation in a UN resolution provides countries choosing to impose sanctions with an important rhetorical tool to shame or otherwise pressure sanctions laggard countries (and companies based in them).
UNGA Sanctions Recommendation Precedents
There is clear precedent for the General Assembly recommending that member states impose sanctions. For example, in response to the Korean War, General Assembly resolution 500 recommended that “every State . . . [a]pply an embargo on the shipment to areas under the control of the . . . People’s Republic of China and of the North Korean authorities of arms, ammunition . . . petroleum, transportation materials of strategic value, and items useful in the production of arms, ammunition and implements of war.”
In 1965, General Assembly resolution 2107, supporting independence movements in several Portuguese colonies, went even further. It urged UN member states to: a) “break off diplomatic and consular relations” with Portugal; b) “close their ports to all vessels flying the Portuguese flag or in the service of Portugal”; c) “refuse landing and transit facilities to all aircraft belonging to or in the service of the Government of Portugal and to companies registered under the law of Portugal”; d) “To boycott all trade with Portugal”.
In contrast, neither UNGA resolution addressing the Russian invasion of Ukraine includes any sanctions recommendations whatsoever.
Many Major Economies Still Lack Russia Sanctions
One tangible reflection of the Russia-Ukraine resolutions’ failure to request member state sanctions is that of the 193 UN member states, only about 40 (including the 27 EU members) have thus far imposed sanctions in response to the invasion. While the 40 sanctions-imposing countries represent over half of the global economy, the size and sophistication of many of the 153 non-sanctioning economies makes it relatively easy for Russia to undercut the sanctions which have been imposed.
Of the world’s twenty largest economies, the following reportedly have no such sanctions on Russia: China (the second largest), India (the sixth largest), Brazil (the 12th largest), Mexico (the 15th largest), Indonesia (the 16th largest), Turkey (the 19th largest), and Saudi Arabia (the 20th largest).
Sanctions Laggards Pose Evasion Risk
Several of those are amongst Russia’s principal trading partners (including China which was Russia’s top pre-war trading partner and Turkey which was fifth). Both China and Turkey have developed considerable sanctions evasion expertise over years of participation in Iranian efforts to evade Western sanctions.
Some of the 153 countries refraining from Russia sanctions could provide their own replacements for imports previously obtained by Russia from the 40 boycotting nations, and all of them pose a risk of serving as locations through which Western goods could be illicitly diverted to Russia. A resolution recommending sanctions would have facilitated pressuring those countries (and their companies) to refrain from doing so.
The U.S. and its allies have, and should use, far-reaching jurisdictional tools to impose penalties on countries and companies which engage in transactions with Russia which skirt U.S. and allied unilateral sanctions. But in light of widespread international antipathy towards U.S. deployment of what many countries consider to be “extraterritorial” jurisdiction, U.S. pressure would almost certainly be more effective if it were multilaterally grounded in a UN resolution.
Some UN member states which supported (or abstained from) the two Russia-Ukraine resolutions might have shifted their votes in Russia’s direction if the resolutions had recommended economic sanctions. That could have mitigated against including such a recommendation in the symbolically imperative first resolution.
But the relatively duplicative second resolution provided far less added value. China and India anyway abstained from both the second resolution (which received 140 votes in favor, five against, and 38 abstentions) and the first resolution (which received a similar 141 votes in favor, five against, and 35 abstentions)