English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For December 17/2020
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news

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Bible Quotations For today
You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come
Saint John 07/32-36/:”The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering such things about Jesus, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent temple police to arrest him. Jesus then said, ‘I will be with you a little while longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will search for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.’ The Jews said to one another, ‘Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? What does he mean by saying, “You will search for me and you will not find me” and, “Where I am, you cannot come”?’

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on December 16-17/2021
MoPH: 1912 new coronavirus cases, 14 deaths
President Aoun discusses security measures on holiday eve with Minister Mawlawi
Mikati meets World Bank delegation, Economy Minister
Miqati Again Says Won't Convene Cabinet without Prior Agreement
Khalil, Zoaiter Ask Cassation Court to Look into Anti-Bitar Lawsuit
Lebanon’s central bank offers dollars amid deep financial crisis
Qassem Says Didn't Tell Rivals to 'Look for Another Homeland'
Public Transport Drivers Block Roads across Lebanon
Salama - The Lebanese Association for Family Health concludes Japan-Funded Project on HIV and Reproductive Health
Salt to the wound, the standoff between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon is far from over/Rita Boulos Chahwan in Beirut/AhramOnline/December 16/2021

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December 16-17/2021
Israeli missile strike kills soldier in Syria, state media says
Syrian Soldier Killed in Israeli Missile Raid
Saudi FM reiterates need to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapon
US Warns it Will ‘React’ to Any Iranian Nuclear Escalation
Iran Mounts ‘Scientific Incursion’ into Syria’s Public Universities
Omicron Injects Urgency into EU Summit
Bleak Outlook for Drought-hit Iraqis
St. John the Baptist Catholic church inaugurated in UAE
Egypt condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia
Canada/Joint statement from the International Coordination and Response Group for the victims of Flight PS752

Titles For The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 16-17/2021
Lithuania Stands Up to China: Europe Should Too/Soeren Kern/Gatestone Institute/December 16/2021
Turkish lira sinks further with Erdogan’s latest rate cut/Mustafa Sonmez/Al-Monitor/December 16/2021
Gadhafi’s son shakes up Libyan elections/Mustafa Fetouri/Al-Monitor/December 16/2021
The Gas Weapon In a Russia-Ukraine Conflict/Liam Denning/Bloomberg/Asharq Al-Awsat/December, 16/2021
Gulf States Anticipate the Nuclear Deal/Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al-Awsat/December, 16/2021
Egyptian Scholar Sentenced to Five Years Imprisonment for Recounting Accurate History of Islam/Raymond Ibrahim/December 16/2021

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on December 16-17/2021.
MoPH: 1912 new coronavirus cases, 14 deaths
NNA/December 16/2021 
Lebanon has recorded 1912 new coronavirus cases and 14 deaths during the last 24 hours, as reported by the Ministry of Public Health on Thursday.

President Aoun discusses security measures on holiday eve with Minister Mawlawi
NNA/December 16/2021 
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, received Interior Minister, Judge Bassam Mawlawi, and deliberated with him the security situation and the measures that will be taken to keep pace with the festive period.
Minister Mawlawi briefed President Aoun on the investigations into the recent security incidents, and today's Central Security Council session, in which the security situation and ways to combat crime were discussed, in addition to the measures taken during the holidays, with strict measures to confront the spread of the Corona virus. -- Presidency Press Office

President asserts Lebanon’s increasing need for international support to overcome economic crisis and begin recovery
NNA/December 16/2021
President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, met State Secretaries in the Consulate of the Polish President, Minister Bogna Janke, and Minister Adam Kwiatkowski, today at the Presidential Palace.
The meeting was also attended by Polish Ambassador to Lebanon, Przemyslaw Niesiolowski, and several embassy diplomats, and Professor, Waldemar Cislo.
Relations between Lebanon and Poland, and the ways to address these relations were discussed. The Polish delegation briefed the President on the assistance provided by their country to Lebanon in order to overcome the economic crisis, most notably the immediate food and medical aid after the Beirut Port blast, in addition to the recent approval by the Polish government to send 500,000$ of aid to be distributed in coordination with the Melkite Greek Catholic Church in Lebanon. Poland also provided aid to support Syrian refugees in Lebanon, and participated with Germany in financing the RACE program by 3 million $ for the rehabilitation of 10 public schools. For his side, the President thanked the Polish delegation for the support, and praised the relations of cooperation and friendship which bind the two countries, noting the sacrifices made by Polish soldiers working within the UNIFIL forces. President Aoun also presented the difficult economic circumstances which Lebanon is facing, and the increasing need for international support to enable Lebanon to overcome the current crisis and begin the stage of recovery. Moreover, the President pointed to the direct impact of the presence of large numbers of displaced Syrians on our land for nearly ten years, which had very large negative repercussions on the economy, security and social life. President Aoun also called on Poland to support the Lebanese position and call for encouraging the return of displaced Syrians to their homeland, and to provide them with aid inside Syria.
Finally, the President praised Poland’s achievements in combatting corruption, and noted that Lebanon had signed a memorandum of understanding with Poland to cooperate in the fight against corruption, back in year 2018. President Aoun hoped to benefit from Poland’s experience in this field to support the anti-corruption process it has been waging since assuming its constitutional responsibilities. -- Press Office

Mikati meets World Bank delegation, Economy Minister
NNA/December 16/2021
Prime Minister Najib Mikati met Thursday at the Grand Serail with a delegation of the World Bank, chaired by Regional Director of the Mashreq Department Saroj Kumar Jha. Mikati later met with a delegation of the Alawite sect, comprising MP Ali Darwiche and a panel of scholars and dignitaries.
The PM also received Minister of Economy Amin Salam. Separately, Mikati chaired a consultative meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh Chami and the Ministers of Finance, Sports, Tourism, Economy, Defense, and Agriculture.

Miqati Again Says Won't Convene Cabinet without Prior Agreement
Naharnet/December 16/2021
Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Thursday warned that calling for a Cabinet session without a prior agreement with the boycotting parties “aggravate” the situation. “Everyone must stop considering the government to be a barricade for futile political wrangling,” Miqati said. “It is true that the governmental work is continuing through the ministerial meetings we’re holding, or through the competent ministries and administrations, but the absence of Cabinet meetings represents a main gap that we’re seeking to address calmly and patiently,” the premier added. He accordingly cautioned that “calling for a Cabinet session amid the current tense circumstances, and without securing the minimum level of understanding, would stoke the dispute and make things more complicated.”Miqati also pleaded to the parties, stressing that “the time is no longer appropriate for obstruction, arrogance or imposing conditions and counter-conditions.”“The levels of collapse require all efforts to come together to find solutions,” he urged. Miqati’s remarks come two days after President Michel Aoun said a Cabinet session should be held, “even if it gets boycotted” by Hizbullah, the Amal Movement and their allies. Cabinet has not convened since October 14, when a political crisis erupted over Judge Tarek Bitar’s probe into the Beirut port blast, with Hizbullah and Amal demanding that a decision be taken in Cabinet to remove him over alleged bias. Aoun's camp and other parties have meanwhile voiced their rejection of any political interference in the judiciary.

Khalil, Zoaiter Ask Cassation Court to Look into Anti-Bitar Lawsuit
Naharnet/December 16/2021
Ex-ministers Ghazi Zoaiter and Ali Hassan Khalil on Thursday filed a request asking the Court of Cassation to again look into a recusal lawsuit they had filed against Beirut port blast investigator Judge Tarek Bitar, MTV reported.
The request was filed by Zoaiter’s son, the lawyer Mohammed Zoaiter, before the head of the First Chamber of the Court of Cassation Judge Naji Eid on behalf of the two former ministers. The request asks the Court to look into the lawsuit that had been filed against Bitar “seeing as Eid has become the relevant authority to look into recusal lawsuits,” the TV network added. Informed sources had told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper in remarks published Wednesday that Khalil’s lawyers “are racing against time and are the ones in the most hurry to recuse Bitar in this period, especially after the latter returned the in-absentia arrest warrant issued against their client to the public prosecution and asked that it be enforced as soon as possible.”

Lebanon’s central bank offers dollars amid deep financial crisis
Reuters/16 December ,2021
Lebanon’s central bank said on Thursday it would sell US dollars to commercial banks at the rate on its Sayrafa foreign exchange platform, but analysts said offering more hard currency would do little to steady the already crippled Lebanese pound. Lebanon’s economy has been in freefall since 2019, when a mountain of debt and political gridlock, drove the nation into its deepest crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war. The Lebanese pound, which was exchanged freely at 1,500 to the dollar before the crisis, has collapsed to around 25,000 on the unofficial market. On the central bank’s foreign exchange platform, known as Sayrafa, Thursday’s rate was 22,300. Beirut-based financial adviser Mike Azar said the central bank’s latest move was “to stabilize the lira but an insolvent bank that is bleeding FX ... cannot stabilize the currency by market intervention. It has no credibility.”As Lebanon plunged into crisis, depositors - many of whom had dollar accounts - were locked out of their savings and only allowed to withdraw them in Lebanese pounds at a rate that was far below the unofficial exchange rate on the street. Last week, the central bank said depositors withdrawing from their dollar accounts would receive Lebanese pounds at a rate of 8,000 to the dollar, an improvement on the previous rate of 3,900, but still well below the street rate or Sayrafa rate. In Thursday’s statement, the central bank said depositors could use Lebanese pounds they had withdrawn to buy back dollars but at the Sayrafa rate, effectively meaning they receive a roughly 70 percent ‘haircut’ on the value of their original dollar deposit..

Qassem Says Didn't Tell Rivals to 'Look for Another Homeland'
Naharnet/December 16/2021
Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem on Thursday clarified recent remarks that have stirred an uproar in the country, noting that they have been deliberately misrepresented. “Some rabid individuals have voiced insults… and some of them want to attack Hizbullah in any way possible,” Qassem said in a statement issued by his office. Decrying that “instructions were made to intensively attack an idea that was not raised,” Hizbullah number two said he told opponents to look for “another solution,” not “another homeland.”“The other solution might be dialogue, counter-evidence or a stance backed by practical steps,” Qassem explained. He added that he totally opposes “the segregation of citizens,” emphasizing that “no one has the right to ask any Lebanese citizen to leave this homeland.” “Lebanon is a final homeland for all its sons and the right to disagree is preserved, but what’s needed is for officials to read words carefully so that they don’t mislead the people nor misinterpret the remarks,” Qassem went on to say. He had said in a speech on Friday that Hizbullah wants Lebanon to be “sovereign, independent and strong,” and that “Lebanon has earned a reputation in the world due to the resistance and due to victories.”
“This is the Lebanon that we want... Those who don’t want it can search for another solution. You do not resemble Lebanon, we’re the ones who resemble it, because those who are attached to a homeland must be attached to it while it is sovereign, free and independent,” he added.

Public Transport Drivers Block Roads across Lebanon
Naharnet/December 16/2021
Taxi and public transportation drivers on Thursday blocked several vital roads across Lebanon to press authorities to fulfill promises made to support them economically in the face of a crunching economic and financial crisis that has affected all sectors. In the capital, the drivers blocked the intersection at the Mohammed al-Amin Mosque in downtown Beirut and the Hamra Street. Outside the capital, protesters blocked the Dora roundabout and seaside road, the Kfarshima bridge, the Aley roundabout, the Chtaura public road and the Palma highway in Tripoli. Sit-ins were also organized in Nabatiyeh and Sidon.
All roads were reopened around noon. Speaking to a radio station, the head of the Unions and Syndicates of Land Transport Sector, Bassam Tlais, said the “escalatory steps” are aimed at “pressing the government to implement what had been agreed on.”He added that the “escalatory plan” will continue, without specifying a date for the next wave of protests.

Salama - The Lebanese Association for Family Health concludes Japan-Funded Project on HIV and Reproductive Health
NNA/December 16/2021
The Lebanese Association for Family Health 'Salama' concluded its project on "Reducing maternal mortality and morbidity related to reproductive health among Syrian refugees and the Lebanese host communities in the Bekaa" funded by Japan Trust Fund and extending from September 1, 2019 till December 31, 2021. A closing ceremony was hosted on the occasion at the Movenpick Hotel in Beirut, in the presence of President of Salama Association, Dr. Joseph Challita, representative of the Japanese Embassy in Lebanon, Ms. Maki Yamaguchi, representative of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Ms. Mireille Rahmeh, Head of the Lebanese Order of Midwives, Ms. Daad Akoum, and a crowd of volunteers and representatives of international organizations and civil society groups.
The welcome speech was delivered by the association's president, Dr. Challita, who affirmed Salama's unyielding endeavors to contribute to reducing problems related to family planning and reproductive health in Lebanon.
"We are honored by your presence today at the closing ceremony of our project funded by Japan. This project aims at reducing maternal mortality and morbidity related to reproductive health among Syrian refugees and host communities in the Bekaa, and has spanned for two years, kicking off on September 1, 2019 and concluding on December 31, 2021," Challita said.
"As you know, the Lebanese Association for Family Health 'Salama' is a member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), which is the largest voluntary non-governmental organization in the world, working on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) issues and advocating for them. IPPF operates in nearly 170 countries," he went on to explain.
"Salama seeks, through its clinics, to ensure that all groups of society, especially marginalized groups, have access to the sexual and reproductive health services they need, especially since many women and girls in Lebanon find themselves in need of contraceptives/family planning and sexual health services yet have no access to them, for an array of reasons, such as their low income, or the fact that they reside in rural areas, have special needs, or are People Living with HIV , in addition to a series of other factors somewhat common among marginalized and disadvantaged groups," Challita added.
He thanked, in this context, the Japanese government for its continuous support to the association since 2017, noting that funds were provided for Salama to establish and operate its clinic in the Bekaa-Karak area, purchase a car for field visits, and provide services in rural areas.
"For the second time, the Japanese government has been generous in supporting our endeavors to provide services and assistance in light of the humanitarian crises facing host communities in the Bekaa."
"We are gathered here today to celebrate our success in implementing this project. Let us strive together, as always, to make our voices heard by leaders and decision makers who have the ability to create an environment that facilitates equal access to contraceptives and family planning services for all women and girls. This is done by setting the appropriate policies and the necessary budgets, and by providing these services to the widest possible segment of society," Challita urged.
He concluded his address by stressing that Salama will pursue its mission to advocate for reproductive and sexual health rights, provide and support high-quality services, and raise awareness among all groups of society, especially the most vulnerable and marginalized.
Executive Director of Salama Association, Ms. Lina Sabra, indicated in her speech that the clinic established by Salama in Karak was funded by Japan, and that "the association received support, once more, from the Japanese government through Japan Trust Fund in order to operate the same clinic, provide services, and raise awareness. In both projects, the association was committed to the priorities of Japan's official development assistance ODA policy, which focuses on empowering all marginalized groups that need services and respecting the cultures of different communities. Through the two projects, Salama focused on contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 3, 5, and 13."
"We will communicate with decision-makers in the country to set a budget for sexual and reproductive health services, and we are working hand-in-hand with the International Planned Parenthood Federation for this end," Sabra said, revealing a planned conference with Arab parliamentarians to provide training on how to allocate budgets at the countries levels to meet the populations' sexual and reproductive health needs. However, due to the global coronavirus pandemic and the recent emergence of the Omicron variant, the conference has been postponed to a date to be determined later."
Sabra finally thanked Japan and the Japanese government for their full support to the awareness projects carried out by the association.
Head of the Lebanese Order of Midwives in Lebanon, Daad Akoum, pointed out that partnership with the Salama Association has started since the Beirut Port explosion, for the aim of supporting affected people and providing them with subsidies and medicines, in addition to conducting home visits to pregnant and breastfeeding women to check in on them throughout their pregnancy and also postpartum, and provide psychological support and healthcare for them by ensuring they have access to supplements and family planning services.
In Akoum's words, Salama is working tirelessly to reduce morbidity and mortality related to maternal and reproductive health among Syrian refugees and the most in need Lebanese communities in the Bekaa. "We had initially contributed to this project by providing training to the association's staff on family planning counseling and on how to provide correct information to the beneficiaries in all matters pertaining to sexual and reproductive health. We have also contributed to the project by preparing scientific and practical content on the subject of breastfeeding to be circulated through video presentations and publications..."
Representative of the Japanese embassy, Maki Yamaguchi, also delivered a word in which she expressed her pleasure to be present at the closing ceremony of this successful project, which spanned for two years, stressing her country's full support for this type of awareness campaigns and the provision of quality services to communities.
She said: "In light of the multiple crises that Lebanon is facing, it has become difficult for the Lebanese community and the Syrian refugees to access the necessary health services, hence the importance of launching successful projects," adding that, "despite all the efforts made by all donors, the health system in Lebanon is still suffering." The Japanese official stressed that the goal of the project was to reduce the rate of deaths and diseases in Lebanese and Syrian refugees societies, declaring that her country's government will maintain its unyielding support for Lebanon by upholding all projects related to human development. The closing ceremony also featured awareness videos highlighting the importance of breastfeeding, a video footage of a campaign titled "Violence is a habit…violence isn’t normal”, and a detailed presentation on the achievements of the project.
Project objectives:
This project aims to reduce maternal and child mortality and morbidity related to sexual and reproductive health among Syrian refugees and Lebanese host communities by increasing the provision of services related to sexual and reproductive health, family planning, and HIV. It also deals with empowering Syrians Refugees and host communities to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.
Services: As for the services provided by this project, they are diverse, as more than 102,000 sexual and reproductive health services were delivered to 6,115 beneficiaries from all groups of society. A project targeting pregnant women was implemented, through which women were provided with Anti-Natal Care ANC and Post-Natal Care PNC at the Salama clinics, and the costs of childbirth were covered in 3 partner hospitals. After that, the children were examined and cared for at the clinics. 200 mama-baby Kits were distributed to mothers who were in dire need of such an assistance in light of all the crises facing Lebanon, namely the unavailability/soaring prices of medicines, sanitary pads, diapers, and formula.
In partnership with the Lebanese Order of Midwives in Lebanon, staff and volunteers were trained on family planning counseling and methods. A total of 39,484 family planning services were provided. Given the success of these distinguished programs, in addition to networking with other projects (funded by the UK Government and UNFPA), Salama has managed to exceed its target and provided nearly 60,000 additional services.
Awareness: Volunteers and staff provided awareness sessions for 8,950 beneficiaries on sexual and reproductive health topics: family planning methods, unsafe abortion, gender-based violence, sexually-transmitted infections and HIV, breastfeeding, breast cancer, proper nutrition, personal hygiene, pregnancy, and coronavirus. Furthermore, field visits were conducted across camps and homes for the purpose of educating people, providing services, and distributing 1,000 "dignity kits" (in addition to 3,000 dignity kits from another project). Women were in dire need of these kits, given the dreadful economic conditions prevailing over Lebanon. Salama also issued a brochure on breastfeeding, in partnership with the Lebanese Order of Midwives in Lebanon.
Campaigns: During the month of October, which is designated for breast cancer awareness, Salama implemented a breast cancer awareness campaign and made referrals for free mammography, in collaboration with the Lebanese Red Cross and local laboratories. It also launched awareness campaigns across social media platforms, the first of which about breastfeeding during the World Breastfeeding Week from August 1 to 7, and the second about violence during the 16-days of activism against gender-based violence from November 25 till December 10. The online campaigns reached more than a million viewers.
Challenges: Salama faced various challenges throughout the project period, starting with the political crises in Lebanon and the roads cut off, moving on to the economic and financial crises and the difficulty in withdrawing money from banks, through to the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent general mobilization, and finally, to the power cut offs, the gasoline shortage, and the inability to secure medicines and family planning services.
Despite it all, Salama managed to face these challenges head-on by cutting down on working days, welcoming beneficiaries on pre-set appointments, commitment to precaution procedures, adopting alternative means to secure electricity, and hiring young volunteers to help in clinics.

Salt to the wound, the standoff between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon is far from over
Rita Boulos Chahwan in Beirut/AhramOnline/December 16/2021
The diplomatic crisis between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon is far from over. On Tuesday, Lebanon’s Minister of Agriculture Abbas Hassan added salt to injury when he said that the war in Yemen must end regardless of who the winner is. Former lebanese information minister George Kurdahi had tackled the same issue, which prompted Riyadh to ban Lebanese imports and induced his resignation earlier this month.
In an attempt to reconcile relations, French President Emmanuel Macron embarked on a tour to the Gulf. In Saudi Arabia he held talks with Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman and called Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
Macron said on Saturday that France and Saudi Arabia were committed to Lebanon, despite Saudi Arabia’s uneasiness with Iran’s sway over the small Mediterranean country. Crown Prince Bin Salman relayed “a clear message that Saudi Arabia and France want to be fully committed,” he said. “We want to commit ourselves to supporting the Lebanese people and therefore do everything possible to ensure that trade and economic reopening can take place,” Macron told reporters in remarks before departing the Kingdom. “We also want the [Lebanese] government to be able to work in a normal way and therefore to meet as soon as possible, and to carry out useful reforms.”
This “important step” didn’t have any positive impact on Lebanon. Toni Nissi, the president of the International Lebanese Committee for UN Security Council Resolution 1559, a pro-democracy NGO, told Al-Ahram Weekly that the press release of the meeting held between Bin Salman and Macron expressed positive feelings towards this small country. This concurs with the international opinion regarding resolving Lebanon’s crisis and how they are searching for ways for the Lebanese government to comply with international agreements, laws and decisions in Resolutions 1559 and 1701. These were taken by the UN Security Council and they should be applying them totally for the credibility of Lebanon in the international community. According to Nissi, the resignation of Kurdahi isn’t enough for them, what is needed is the application of the whole Lebanese government’s commitment towards the GCC countries in terms of not exporting drugs to them; the army alone should be handling weapons and the security of Lebanon and not use the country as a platform for any armed conflict in any Arab countries, nor be involved in the Yemen War against them. Nissi says that all that was mentioned in the press release of the meeting between Bin Salman and Macron isn’t feasible in terms of reforms to obtain loans from the IMF, since the Shiite group Hizbullah and its ally Amal are imposing their control on political life and blocking any steps forward.
The result of the meeting between Bin Salman and Macron has not had any impact on Hizbullah’s vision for Lebanon or the Middle East, according to the Lebanese writer Kassem Kassir, since for this Shiite group their arms are sacred and related to the solution of the conflict with Israel. For Kassem, discussing Hizbullah’s arms implies discussions related to the defensive strategy. He assured that this Shiite group doesn’t want any clash between Lebanon and the Arab world and should not be victimising it.
Chadi Nachabe, a political researcher and consultant, feels that the Mikati government is able to manage the Lebanese border and control drug exportation, which are recommendations of the GCC. This positive point, which is feasible, is nonetheless followed by a list of negative and unrealisable ones, like fighting corruption. This doesn’t mean that Lebanon is not part of the common interests of the USA, France, KSA and other countries from the EU, and they do not want any security issues in Lebanon, as he said, because Hizbullah will be the only winner in that situation. Some foreign countries have fears relating to the migration flow should any security problems occur as well.
At the moment Lebanon keeps sending negative signals to the Arab world, the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed in a statement, its “regret that the Lebanese capital, Beirut, is hosting a press conference of hostile members for the purpose of broadcasting and promoting abusive and malicious allegations against the Kingdom of Bahrain.” The ministry added that “an official protest memorandum has been sent to the General Secretariat of the Arab League in this regard, which includes the Kingdom of Bahrain’s denunciation of this unfriendly step by the Lebanese side.” They called on the Lebanese government to “prevent such reprehensible practices that aim at offending the Kingdom of Bahrain, contradicting the most basic diplomatic norms and are inconsistent with the brotherly relations that bind the two brotherly peoples.”
Meanwhile, the dollar rate is still rising and humanitarian conditions are growing worse with no political or economic solutions in sight.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on December 16-17/2021
Israeli missile strike kills soldier in Syria, state media says
Reuters/December 16, 2021
CAIRO: An Israeli air strike killed a soldier in southern Syria on Thursday, Syrian state media reported, in an attack in a frontier area where Israel has expressed concern about deployments of Iran-backed forces. An Israeli military spokesperson declined to comment on the report. Israel has mounted frequent attacks against what it has described as Iranian targets in Syria, where Tehran-backed forces including Lebanon’s Hezbollah have deployed over the last decade to support President Bashar Assad in Syria’s war. Citing a military source, Syrian state news agency SANA said “the Israeli enemy carried out an aerial aggression,” firing missiles from the Golan Heights, territory Israel captured from Syria in 1967. Syrian air defenses shot down most of the rockets, SANA said. The attack led to “the martyrdom of a soldier and some material losses,” it added. In 2019, then US President Donald Trump broke with other world powers by recognizing Israel as sovereign on the Golan Heights, which it annexed in 1981 in a move not recognized internationally.

Syrian Soldier Killed in Israeli Missile Raid
Agence France Presse/December 16, 2021
A Syrian soldier was killed Thursday in an Israeli missile raid from the occupied Golan Heights into southern Syria, state media reported. "At around 12:50 am, the Israeli enemy carried out an air raid with several missiles in the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan and targeting several positions in the south," according to a military source quoted by SANA. The Syrian air defenses managed to "shoot down most of the missiles", the source added, which specified that "the aggression caused the death of a soldier and material damage."In early December, Israel carried out strikes on an Iranian arms shipment at the port of Latakia, located in President Bashar al-Assad's western Syrian heartland, without causing any casualties. In late November, three soldiers and two Syrian fighters affiliated with Lebanon's Hizbullah were killed in Israeli strikes, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitor with a wide network of sources in Syria. Since civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, Israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes on Syrian territory, targeting government positions as well as allied Iran-backed forces and Hizbullah fighters. An Israeli military spokesperson refused to comment on the report. But Israel has repeatedly said it will not allow its archfoe Iran to extend its footprint in the country. The conflict in Syria has killed nearly 500,000 people since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of peaceful demonstrations.

Saudi FM reiterates need to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapon
Arab News/December 16/2021
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia reiterated the need to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon on Thursday. Speaking at a joint press conference in Cairo, Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said that the Kingdom was keen on establishing security in the Middle East with Egypt. Prince Faisal expressed his pleasure at being in the Egyptian capital and said that the two countries share “strong and solid relations.” He added that political and security challenges faced by the Arab region were discussed during a meeting with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, including the importance of elections in Libya going ahead as planned. “Libya's stability is essential,” the Kingdom’s foreign minister said. He added that there was a need for the Kingdom and Egypt to cooperate in the field of counterterrorism. Meanwhile, Shoukry said his country is working closely with Saudi Arabia to achieve security and stability in the region.
“We have a special and strategic relationship with Saudi Arabia,” the Egyptian foreign minister said.

US Warns it Will ‘React’ to Any Iranian Nuclear Escalation
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 16 December, 2021
The United States would not expect a special meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog's board this year if the agency's deal with Iran on replacing its surveillance cameras at a centrifuge-parts workshop is carried out, a US official said on Wednesday. "If implemented as agreed with the (International Atomic Energy Agency) Director General, we would not foresee needing a special Board of Governors (meeting) on this set of issues before the end of the year," said the official on condition of anonymity. "Of course, if there are any new nuclear escalations, we would react accordingly,” Reuters quoted the official as saying.
Iran and the IAEA have earlier announced reaching an agreement on replacing surveillance cameras at the workshop in the TESA Karaj complex that had been removed after an apparent attack, removing one potential obstacle to wider nuclear talks. One of the IAEA's four cameras at the workshop was destroyed in June in apparent sabotage that Iran blamed on Israel. Iran then removed the cameras and did not let the IAEA return to replace them, angering the US and its allies. Iran said Wednesday that it “voluntarily” agreed to grant access to the nuclear watchdog in an effort to prevent misunderstandings, according to a report by Nournews, an outlet close to Iran’s security forces. The IAEA will soon install new surveillance cameras at Iran’s Karaj centrifuge component manufacturing workshop under an agreement reached by Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi and the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, the Vienna-based watchdog stated. On November 23, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi visited Tehran and said he wanted to deepen cooperation with Iran, days before the resumption of negotiations between Tehran and world powers to revive a 2015 nuclear deal.
“I sincerely hope that we can continue our constructive discussions to address and resolve all outstanding safeguards issues in Iran,” Grossi said in a statement.

Iran Mounts ‘Scientific Incursion’ into Syria’s Public Universities
Damascus - Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 16 December, 2021
Syria’s Damascus University and Iran’s Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research have signed an agreement for exchanging scientific databases and research achievements. The pact also included establishing a business incubator and a science and technology park at Damascus University.
According to the Syrian Ministry of Higher Education, the agreement was signed in the presence of Minister of Higher Education of Syria Bassam Ibrahim and Hamid Reza Tayyebi, the president of the Iranian Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research.
The agreement aims to enhance cooperation in the field of exchanging books, publications, scientific materials, bulletins, and periodicals. It also seeks mutual benefit from e-libraries and organizing joint scientific and cultural conferences and seminars. About a month ago, Iran’s Malek-Ashtar University of Technology and Damascus University signed an MoU in the field of research and graduate studies, especially in the areas of industries, technical sciences, mechanics, robotics, and computer sciences. In Syria, there are branches of six Iranian universities. There is a branch for Al-Mustafa International University, which is one of the largest university-style seminary institutes in Iran. It was founded in 1972 and its branch in Syria opened in 2013 with three divisions in the governorates of Aleppo, Latakia and Damascus. The other five universities had opened their campuses in Syria after the outbreak of the civil war in 2011.
Syrian opposition members note that Iran is seeking more influence over Syria’s public education sector, especially after Russia’s 2015 military intervention in the war-torn country. Russia had imposed teaching the Russian language as a second language in Syrian public schools.
Russia’s moves had prompted Iran to compete in entering the Syrian public education sector after its interest was focused on spreading Shiism and teaching the Persian language through private Sharia schools. In Damascus alone, there are 40 schools supervised by the Ministry of Endowments, Hussainiyas and the Great Prophet Center.“As the regime regained control over large areas in 2018, especially in the countryside of Aleppo, Iran infiltrated the government education sector,” said a Syrian opposition source. “A cooperation agreement was signed in 2020 that includes the restoration of schools, the printing of books, and the development and support of vocational and technical education,” they added. The number of schools that Iran has restored and rehabilitated has reached about 250 schools, at the cost of SYP 12 billion (approximately $3 million). An Iranian scientific delegation headed by Tayyebi visited the city of Homs earlier this week. The delegation toured Al-Baath University, where it inspected laboratories and research centers in the Faculties of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering. During discussions with the President of Al-Baath University, Al-Abd Al-Basit Al-Khatib, the delegation reviewed the signing of a joint scientific cooperation agreement that includes the medical, engineering, and agricultural fields. Local media quoted Al-Khatib as saying that Al-Baath University aspires to redouble joint efforts with the Iranians. The president said that his university also aspires to enhance the exchange of expertise between Syrian and Iranian universities in conducting scientific research, training, and qualification.

Omicron Injects Urgency into EU Summit
Agence France Presse/Thursday, 16 December, 2021
The lightning spread of Omicron in Europe and elsewhere added a sense of urgency to an EU summit on Thursday, with leaders struggling to present a united, bloc-wide approach. Projections that the highly infectious Covid strain could be dominant in the EU as early as next month have pushed the issue to the top of the agenda and ignited fears of a health crisis. Arriving at the Brussels meeting, Irish premier Micheal Martin said Omicron was "of significant concern obviously in terms of the capacity of that variant to spread rapidly and create pressure on our societies and our health systems.
"So today we'll be looking for greater coordination on a number of fronts," he said. As France imposed drastic new restrictions on arrivals from Britain, which is outside the EU and particularly hard hit by the variant, Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Europe would have to expect "new measures".
"The one answer to Omicron right now is the acceleration of our vaccination programs with particular emphasis on the booster shots," he told reporters, describing the measures as "a battle against time". The summit will also tackle other big topics pressing hard on EU capitals, in particular the Russian military build-up that could presage an invasion of Ukraine. That risk dominated a get-together on Wednesday between EU leaders and their neighboring eastern European counterparts, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
An ongoing confrontation with Belarus over migration flows testing the EU's borders and spiking energy prices aggravating sky-high inflation round out the high-level talks. فIt all made for a charged summit, the last before France takes over the rotating six-month European Union presidency from Slovenia in the New Year.
An Omicron winter
Europe is bracing for an Omicron winter, with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen saying on Wednesday: "We're told that by mid-January, we should expect Omicron to be the new dominant variant in Europe."
The timing is perilous. Although many EU countries are in the global vanguard in terms of vaccination rates, the roll-out is patchy across the 27-nation bloc. Nine EU countries have vaccination rates below 60 percent. Omicron's apparent ability to mute the effects of existing vaccines has galvanized efforts to get booster shots into arms. But the EU health agency ECDC on Wednesday warned jabs alone now would not be enough, given that Omicron infections double around every two days. "There will be no time to address the vaccination gaps that still exist," said Andrea Ammon, director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. "The coming months will be difficult," acknowledged EU health commissioner Stella Kyriakides.
Crumbling coordination
While some hope -- based on initial data from South Africa, where Omicron is already dominant -- the new strain produces milder symptoms than the Delta variant, mathematical modelling suggested its sheer infectivity could overwhelm hospitals. The draft summit conclusions stress that "rolling out vaccinations to all and deploying booster doses are crucial" while also maintaining cross-EU coordination. The united front, however, is visibly weakening.  Italy, Ireland, Portugal and Greece have all tightened entry restrictions for EU arrivals by requiring pre-arrival Covid tests even of vaccinated travelers.
Their measures appeared to undermine the rules of an EU Covid certificate that since July has ensured easy intra-EU travel without quarantine or tests for the vaccinated. While EU countries can suspend some of the rules in health emergencies, they need first to notify Brussels 48 hours in advance.
A European Commission spokesman said Italy did not do so. An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity, admitted to journalists that, for EU capitals, "at times you need to decide very fast" when faced with an emergency. "Italy has a very high vaccination rate. I can understand why member states are taking very strong measures to combat the virus," he said. He said the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine was the most popular in the EU, and added that should vaccines be needed specifically for Omicron "my guess is they are only available in the second quarter," between April and June next year.

Bleak Outlook for Drought-hit Iraqis
Asharq Al-Awsat/Thursday, 16 December, 2021
Half of the families living in drought-affected areas of Iraq need humanitarian food aid, the Norwegian Refugee Council said in a study released on Thursday. Experts have warned that record low rainfall, compounded by climate change, are threatening social and economic disaster in war-scarred Iraq, AFP said.
The NRC said its research shows that "one in two families in drought-affected regions require food assistance because of drought, while one in five do not have sufficient food for everyone in the family". The NGO based its study on interviews in 2,806 homes across seven provinces, among them Anbar in the west, Basra in the south and the north's Nineveh. These three are traditionally considered to be the breadbasket of Iraq but have been hit hard by the crisis. The United Nations says about one-third of Iraq's population lives in poverty, despite the country's oil wealth. The effects of low rainfall have been exacerbated as the levels of the country's two main rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, drop because of upstream dams in neighboring Iran and Turkey. "Communities across Iraq have faced damaging losses to their crops, livestock, and income. Children are eating less, and farmers and displaced populations are hit hardest," the report said, adding young people are particularly vulnerable. The NRC said 37 percent of farmers growing wheat and 30 percent of those planting barley saw their expected crop yields fall by at least 90 percent. "Families are telling us they have to borrow money to eat amid soaring prices and dwindling savings," said Maithree Abeyrathna, NRC's Head of Programs in Iraq. "They say their only source of living is vanishing in front of their eyes. Their lands are drying up and there is nothing they can do about it." Last month, the World Bank warned that Iraq could suffer a 20-percent drop in water resources by 2050 due to climate change. "The outlook for 2022 is worrying, with continued water shortages and drought conditions likely to devastate the coming farming season, the NRC study said.

St. John the Baptist Catholic church inaugurated in UAE
Arab News/December 16/2021
VATICAN CITY: A civil ceremony has been held to mark the opening of the Church of St. John the Baptist in the UAE city of Ruwais, just a week after the inauguration of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia in Bahrain.
The church was built on a plot of land in the Al-Ruwais residential complex donated by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and the monarch’s representative in Al-Dhafra. The event was held in the presence of Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al-Nahyan. Located about 240 km west of Abu Dhabi, this is the first Catholic church in the Al-Dhafra region, which borders Qatar. It will cater mostly to about 600 immigrant families from other Asian nations who live and work in Ruwais. The church has capacity for about 800 people, while a multipurpose conference room on the second floor can hold almost 1,000. A statue of the Virgin Mary and a crucifix made for the Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in Abu Dhabi during his historic 2019 trip to the Gulf have been placed inside the church. The first Mass will be held on Friday and will be presided over by Monsignor Paul Hinder, vicar apostolic of southern Arabia (the UAE, Oman and Yemen) and apostolic administrator sede vacante of northern Arabia (Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain). The parish priest is the Rev. Thomas Ampattukuzhy, who has overseen the project and construction work since the laying of the foundation stone that was blessed by Hinder on Dec. 30, 2018. According to Vatican media, on the eve of the inauguration, the ecclesiastical leaders of the region wished to express their gratitude and thanks to the UAE royal family, emphasizing the spirit of “tolerance, fraternity and solidarity” that have long been the guidelines of the policy of the Emirates.

Egypt condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia
Arab News/December 16/2021
CAIRO: The Egyptian Foreign Ministry has described the Houthi militia’s continued targeting of Saudi territory from Yemen as “cowardly terrorist” attacks. The latest targets were the cities of Jazan, in the southwest of the Kingdom, which suffered some material losses, and nearby Abha. Two ballistic missiles aimed at Abha were intercepted and destroyed. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement early on Thursday that “the repeated targeting of civilian facilities and innocent civilians by the Houthi militia is a threat to the security and stability of Saudi Arabia, as well as a flagrant violation of the rules of international law.”The statement continued, “Egypt once again expresses its full solidarity with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the measures it is taking to confront these despicable terrorist attacks and stresses the close link between the security and stability of the two brotherly countries.” Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will hold talks on Thursday with Prince Faisal bin Farhan, the Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is visiting Cairo. During the meeting, which is being held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the two will discuss ways to enhance Egyptian-Saudi relations in various fields, as well as regional and international issues of common concern. The two ministers are scheduled to hold a joint press conference at the conclusion of the talks.

Canada/Joint statement from the International Coordination and Response Group for the victims of Flight PS752
The International Coordination and Response Group for the victims of Flight PS752 met today and have issued the following joint statement:
“The International Coordination and Response Group representing Canada, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Ukraine, met virtually to discuss the Islamic Republic of Iran’s response to our offer to discuss reparations for the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 (PS752) and which steps need to be taken to ensure accountability and justice.
“We have delivered a further request inviting Iran to discuss the matters that pertain to our claim and demands for reparations for the downing of PS752 during the week of January 17, 2022.
“However, due to the apparent reluctance of the Islamic Republic of Iran to address this matter in a constructive and timely manner, our response to Iran indicates that they have until January 5, 2022 to confirm whether they are willing to engage in negotiations with the Coordination Group, after which we will have to assume that further attempts to negotiate reparations with Iran are futile. The Coordination Group will have to seriously consider other actions to resolve this matter within the framework of international law.
“It has been nearly two years since the downing of Flight PS752, and yet the Islamic Republic of Iran has shown no interest in adhering to its international legal obligations. The Coordination Group’s patience is wearing thin. The Group stands in solidarity with the victims’ loved ones and remains united in its objective to hold the Islamic Republic of Iran accountable for the acts and omissions by civilian and military officials that led to the deaths of 176 innocent people.”

The Latest The Latest LCCC English analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources published on December 16-17/2021
Lithuania Stands Up to China: Europe Should Too
Soeren Kern/Gatestone Institute/December 16/2021
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda says that his country will not capitulate to bullying from China and that he is committed to defending the principles and values of democracy from attack.
"China is trying to make an example out of us — a negative example — so that other countries do not follow our path. Therefore, it is a matter of principle how the Western community, the United States, and European Union react." — Arnoldas Pranckevičius, Lithuania's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs.
"The tiny nation of Lithuania is punching way above its weight and has set a benchmark that the rest of the European Union must support and follow. Such leadership, particularly when stronger countries like Germany and France are buckling under the pressure and onslaught of this rising rogue nation, needs to be supported by countries across the world." — Gautam Chikermane, Vice President, Observer Research Foundation.
"It is time for the EU to end its extramarital affairs with authoritarianism.... That China is a threat to democracies, in general, and the EU, in particular, is visible to all but the EU. Other than geography, the essence of the EU is values. And one event after another, one country at a time, the EU is giving them up." — Gautam Chikermane.
"China as a communist superpower is so scared of 3-million Lithuania on the other side of the globe. Lithuania is the bravest country in Europe. We should all stand up with Lithuania." — Jakub Janda, Director, European Values Center for Security Policy.
"We support democracy, as we will never forget the cruel lesson of living under occupation by a Communist regime for 50 years." — Lithuanian Member of Parliament Dovilė Šakalienė.
"We would like to have relations with China based on the principle of mutual respect. Otherwise, the dialogue turns into unilateral ultimatums, requirements which are not acceptable in international relations." — Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda, in an interview with the Financial Times.
China has blocked all imports from Lithuania and has ordered multinational companies to sever ties with the Baltic country, in retaliation for Lithuania's decision to allow Taiwan to open a representative office in its capital, Vilnius.
China has blocked all imports from Lithuania and has ordered multinational companies to sever ties with the Baltic country or face being shut out of the Chinese market.
The extraordinary sanctions, which amount to a full economic boycott of Lithuania, are in retaliation for the country's decision to allow Taiwan to open a representative office in its capital, Vilnius.
Taiwan has other offices in Europe and the United States, but they use the name of its capital city, Taipei, due to the host countries' preference to avoid any semblance of treating Taiwan as a separate country. Beijing insists that the democratically self-ruled island is a part of the territory of the communist People's Republic of China and has no right to the trappings of a state.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda says that his country will not capitulate to bullying from China and that he is committed to defending the principles and values of democracy from attack.
Lithuania, which has a population of fewer than 3 million, regained independence in 1990 after almost half a century of occupation by the Soviet Union. Lithuania has become one of the strongest defenders of democracy within the European Union and NATO.
On December 9, Lithuania's Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mantas Adomėnas, said that China had warned multinational companies to stop doing business with Lithuanian suppliers:
"China has been sending messages to multinationals that if they use parts and supplies from Lithuania, they will no longer be allowed to sell to the Chinese market or get supplies there. We have seen some companies cancel contracts with Lithuanian suppliers."
The Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists, which represents thousands of Lithuanian companies, confirmed that some multinational companies that buy goods from Lithuanian suppliers were being targeted by China. In an interview with the Reuters news agency, Confederation President Vidmantas Janulevičius said:
"This week was the first time we saw direct Chinese pressure on a supplier to drop Lithuanian-made goods. Previously, we only had threats it could happen, now they became reality.
"For us, the most painful part is that it's a European company. Many Lithuanian businesses are suppliers for such companies."
Lithuania's direct trade with China is relatively small; the country exported €300 million worth of goods to China in 2020, less than 1% of its total exports. It is, however, home to hundreds of companies that make products for multinationals that sell to China.
On December 1, China delisted Lithuania as a country of origin, meaning that its goods cannot clear customs. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that China effectively had blocked all imports from Lithuania.
In a December 3 interview with the Financial Times, Landsbergis denounced the "unannounced" and "unprecedented" sanctions. He said that Lithuania would ask the European Commission, the administrative body of the European Union, for assistance.
Lithuania's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Arnoldas Pranckevičius, speaking at the Aspen Security Forum in Washington, DC, warned that China's harassment of Lithuania should be a "wakeup call" for Europe:
"China is trying to make an example out of us — a negative example — so that other countries do not follow our path. Therefore, it is a matter of principle how the Western community, the United States, and European Union react."
Europe Divided
Help from the European Commission is unlikely to come soon, as the EU is deeply divided over relations with China. Larger member states such as France and Germany are reluctant to jeopardize economic ties with China, while smaller member states, including Lithuania, Czechia, Slovakia and Slovenia have urged the EU to stand united against Chinese pressure.
On December 8, the European Commission issued a tepid statement which said that it would launch an investigation into whether China's measures against Lithuania are in breach of the rules of the World Trade Organization:
"The EU has been informed that Lithuanian shipments are not being cleared through the Chinese customs and that import applications from Lithuania are being rejected. We are in close contact with the Lithuanian government and are gathering information via the EU Delegation in Beijing in a timely manner. We are also reaching out to the Chinese authorities to rapidly clarify the situation....
"If the information received were to be confirmed, the EU would also assess the compatibility of China's action with its obligations under the World Trade Organization.
"The EU remains committed to its One China Policy and recognizes the government of the People's Republic of China as the sole government of China. Within the framework of this long-established policy, the EU will pursue cooperation and exchanges with Taiwan in areas of common interest."
The daily tabloid Global Times, the English-language mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, warned the EU to "act with caution" when it comes to Lithuania's trade complaint:
"Even though Lithuania is an EU member, there is no need to let China-EU trade be derailed or hijacked by Lithuania's wanton provocation of China's internal affairs.
"Nevertheless, we have no intention to deny that economic and trade cooperation between Lithuania and China will be affected after China downgraded its diplomatic relations with Lithuania to the level of chargé d'affaires, the lowest rank of diplomatic representative, over the latter's breach of the One-China principle.
"Make no mistake that any country that provokes China's core interests is bound to find itself on the receiving end of countermeasures."
On December 13, during a meeting of EU's 27 foreign ministers, the Lithuania-China issue reportedly was not even discussed, even though it was earmarked by Germany's new foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock. The issue presumably was vetoed by France, which currently holds the six-month rotating EU presidency.
Laurence Norman, Europe correspondent for the Wall Street Journal, tweeted:
"EU foreign mins did not discuss Lithuania-China situation today. Extraordinary. A silence which will ring very loud in Beijing."
Meanwhile, Landsbergis, the Lithuanian foreign minister, said that he would not be attending the 2022 Olympic Games in China. France countered that it would not take part in any boycott. Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said that any common EU position would not be reached quickly: "You know as well as I do that we will not find a solution regarding the Olympic Games today or this week."
China analyst Theresa Fallon tweeted:
"EU demonstrates once again that values are only talked about at conferences... lonely Lithuania stated it will have diplomatic Olympic boycott. But France, Luxembourg, Hungary will attend Olympics."
The Reuters news agency noted:
"The bloc is torn over whether to join the United States, Canada, Australia and Britain in deciding not to send their government officials to the Beijing Winter Games in February, fearful of Chinese retaliation that would hurt trade."
Select Commentary
Analyst Giovanni Giamello, writing for the Berlin-based Mercator Institute for China Studies, noted that Lithuania's deepening relations with Taiwan are part of a broader strategy to strengthen relations with the United States:
"Beijing requires its partners to recognize only the People's Republic of China (PRC) and to treat the so-called Republic of China not as an independent Taiwan but as a 'rogue province' of the PRC. Vilnius' defiance of this requirement should not be misread as potentially reckless idealism — it is a deft move by a small state on the geopolitical stage....
"Lithuania perceives Beijing as a threat more than other EU countries do — not least because of China's relationship with Russia....
"It was a conscious choice by Vilnius to stress — and strengthen— its ties with the US as the threat from China was seen to be rising. The US is Lithuania's most valuable ally and security guarantor — the same role it has in Taiwan. Other Baltic states share the same concerns, and some Central and Eastern European countries are starting to take more interest in Taiwan....
"Vilnius has taken a clear geopolitical decision to stand up to China and side with the US.... It is time for other EU countries that are discontented with or wary of China to clearly spell out similar stances."
The London-based magazine, The Economist, wrote:
"The governments in many eastern European countries can trace their roots back to the anti-Soviet movements of the late 1980s and 1990s. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia are all led by centrist or center-right coalitions that are increasingly hawkish on China. Many see similarities between the Soviet Union, which once controlled them, and today's oppressive China.
"But their concerns are not just historic. In the Czech Republic, for example, public opinion began to sour towards China in 2017 when it was accused by journalists and politicians of trying to interfere in Czech politics by dangling the promise of massive investments. In 2018 the Czech intelligence service said Chinese espionage was a greater threat to the country's security than Russian interference.
"Marcin Jerzewski of Taiwan NextGen Foundation, a Taipei-based think-tank, says there is a growing awareness in central and eastern Europe that Taiwan 'is the best partner for sharing best practices against authoritarianism.'"
Asia analyst Gautam Chikermane, Vice President of the Observer Research Foundation, an India-based foreign policy think tank, noted that Lithuania's embrace of Taiwan provides the EU with an opportunity to stand up to China's bullying tactics:
"In terms of GDP, Lithuania ranks 22nd out of 27, below Luxemburg, Bulgaria, and Croatia. In terms of per capita income, it ranks 19th, below Estonia, Czech Republic and Portugal. But in terms of taking a moral and spirited stance against the excesses of China, the tiny nation of Lithuania is punching way above its weight and has set a benchmark that the rest of the European Union (EU) must support and follow. Such leadership, particularly when stronger countries like Germany and France are buckling under the pressure and onslaught of this rising rogue nation, needs to be supported by countries across the world....
"What's surprising, even shocking, is the way the EU biggies are bending over backwards to accommodate the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), ignoring human rights issues and labor camps in China....
"While the Big 2 [France and Germany] continue to make spaces to accommodate Chinese hegemony, ignore its use of forced labor in Xinjiang and allow it to infiltrate the EU, it is the smaller and younger countries like Lithuania that are taking the moral high ground, by standing up for the principles on which the EU was founded....
"Under the Chairman of Everything in China, Xi Jinping, the country has told the world that it has economic power and will weaponize it to smother everything, from using democracy and its institutional fractures to rewriting maps for conquest to extending its surveillance state architecture to the rest of the world. It is time for the EU to end its extramarital affairs with authoritarianism.... That China is a threat to democracies, in general, and the EU, in particular, is visible to all but the EU. Other than geography, the essence of the EU is values. And one event after another, one country at a time, the EU is giving them up....
"For the moment, it seems Brussels is hiding its head and values in the sands of trade. Instead, it should use Lithuania to ramp up the unity, collate interests, and declare a state of reciprocity.
"Intoxicated by the servility and the accommodation by the EU, the CCP is running amok. It has hit Lithuania with unofficial trade sanctions, as it did earlier with eight countries: Canada, Japan, Lithuania, Mongolia, Norway, the Philippines, South Korea, and of course, Taiwan.
"This entire narrative of assuaging an 'angry China' is manipulated by the CCP, fed to a pliant media, and digested by policyframers. That the EU is following this narrative as a US $15-trillion strong concert of democratic nations is a shame. It needs to understand its own power, economic as well as strategic, and prevent further assaults by China on its members.
"The CCP has no scruples; it does not believe in the rule of law. When countries kneel, Beijing kicks. This is natural. Bend before a bully and you strengthen the bullying. At such a time, when smaller nations are raising the pitch, the hands-off approach from the EU is a shame. It is Vilnius today. To think that this assault will not reach Berlin and Paris tomorrow is being strategically naïve — the barbarians from Beijing will be at their gates sooner rather than later.
"It's time the EU got its act together. And the first step, howsoever late, begins with Lithuania."
Jakub Janda, director of the Prague-based European Values Center for Security Policy, concluded:
"China as a communist superpower is so scared of 3-million Lithuania on the other side of the globe. Lithuania is the bravest country in Europe. We should all stand up with Lithuania."
Appendix 1: Timeline of Bilateral Relations
Lithuania established formal diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China (PRC) in September 1991, after it regained its independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union. As part of its diplomatic agreement with the PRC, Lithuania recognized the so-called One-China policy, which asserts that Taiwan is part of China.
The Chinese government says that Lithuania, by allowing Taiwan to use its official name on its representative office mission in Vilnius, is violating the 1991 agreement. Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė counters that the agreement signed with China has not been violated and is still in force. She adds that the opening of Taiwan's representative office, which does not have a formal diplomatic status, should not have come as a surprise to anyone:
"Our government's program says Lithuania wants a more intense economic, cultural and scientific relationship with Taiwan. I want to emphasize that this step does not mean any conflict or disagreement with the 'One China' policy."
In recent years, Lithuania, much to the irritation of China, has repeatedly voiced support for Taiwan. In April 2020, for instance, more than 200 Lithuanian political and intellectual elites jointly sent a letter to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda calling on the government to support Taiwan's participation in the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international organizations. In May 2020, the Lithuanian foreign ministry called on WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to invite Taiwan to an international assembly on the Coronavirus pandemic.
Since then, recent events include:
November 9, 2020. Lithuania's new government pledged to support "freedom fighters" in Taiwan. A coalition agreement — signed by leaders of the Homeland Union, Liberal Movement and Freedom parties, which together won 74 seats in the 141-seat parliament during elections held on October 25 — committed the new government to carry out a "values-based" foreign policy: "We will actively oppose any violation of human rights and democratic freedoms, and will defend those fighting for freedom around the world, from Belarus to Taiwan."
Taiwan's Foreign Ministry thanked Lithuania for its support:
"Lithuania and Taiwan are like-minded partners, and the foreign ministry sincerely thanks friends in Lithuania for continuing to take concrete actions to defend shared values."
China's embassy in Vilnius said that Beijing is ready to work with Lithuanian government "on the basis of mutual respect to sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as non-interference in each other's domestic affairs."
March 22, 2021. The European Union and the United Kingdom joined the United States and Canada and imposed sanctions on four Chinese officials accused of responsibility for abuses against Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, a remote autonomous region in northwestern China. The Chinese government responded to the EU sanctions by announcing its own sanctions on 14 European entities and persons, including Lithuanian Member of Parliament Dovilė Šakalienė, who has publicly criticized the Chinese government for human rights abuses.
May 20, 2021. The Lithuanian Parliament approved a non-binding resolution which described China's treatment of its Uyghur minority as "genocide." The Parliament called for a U.N. investigation of internment camps and asked the EU to review relations with Beijing. The resolution further called on China to abolish a national security law in Hong Kong, and to let observers into Tibet and to begin talks with its spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. Lithuanian Member of Parliament Dovilė Šakalienė, who sponsored the resolution, said: "We support democracy, as we will never forget the cruel lesson of living under occupation by a Communist regime for 50 years."
May 22, 2021. Lithuania withdrew from a '17+1' dialogue forum between China and Central and Eastern European countries. The so-called Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries (China-CEEC) was established by China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2012. Critics argue that the forum is part of a "divided and conquer" strategy designed to benefit China at Europe's expense. Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that the group was "divisive" and the urged EU to pursue "a much more effective 27+1 approach and communication with China."
July 20, 2021. Taiwan's Foreign Minister, Joseph Wu, announced that Taiwan would open a representative office in Lithuania to expand its relations with the Baltic nation and other Central European countries. He said that the new office would be called the Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania — the first time the island's name has been used for one of its offices in Europe. Lithuanian MP Dovilė Šakalienė tweeted: "What a beautiful morning #Lithuania and #Taiwan will become even closer friends. We both are small democratic states, both neighbored by bloody authoritarian regimes, but both not easily intimidated."
August 10, 2021. China recalled its ambassador to Lithuania. In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said: "We urge the Lithuanian side to immediately rectify its wrong decision, take concrete measures to undo the damage, and not to move further down the wrong path."
August 11, 2021. The European Union External Action Service said that the EU does not regard the opening of a representative office [as opposed to an embassy or consulate] in or from Taiwan as a breach of the EU's One-China policy.
August 13, 2021. China's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hua Chunying replied:
"There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. The People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. This is an indisputable fact, a universally recognized norm governing international relations and the common consensus of the international community. Any country, when following the one-China policy, must strictly abide by the one-China principle, including severing all official ties with the Taiwan authorities. Certain countries and people are trying to confuse public opinion with malicious intentions, but their plot is doomed to fail. China urges the EU to uphold a correct position on Taiwan-related issues and refrain from sending wrong signals on issues concerning China's core interests and creating new troubles for China-EU relations."
August 15, 2021. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda, in an interview with the Financial Times, said:
"We would like to also have relations with China based on the principle of mutual respect. Otherwise, the dialogue turns into unilateral ultimatums, requirements which are not acceptable in international relations...
"As a sovereign and independent country, Lithuania is free to decide which countries or territories it develops economic and cultural relations with."
Nausėda said that Lithuania had learned "certain moral lessons" since independence:
"We really take our responsibility as a new member of NATO and the EU very seriously because of our historical lessons and experience. Our history was painful, our history was complicated. But we think that principles and values even in the 21st century mean a lot and we try to defend them."
September 3, 2021. Lithuania recalled its ambassador to China.
September 22, 2021. Lithuania donated more than 200,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines to Taiwan. This is in addition to 20,000 doses it donated to Taiwan in June. Taiwan's vaccination program has been hobbled by supply delays
September 30, 2021. Lithuania's Parliament passed a law that establishes the legal basis for the country to open an economic and trade office in Taiwan. The new office, which is expected to open by the end of 2021, could be named the "Lithuanian Representative Office" or the "Lithuanian Trade Representative Office," according to Lithuania's Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mantas Adomėnas. Lithuanian Economy Minister Aušrinė Armonaitė said that many other members of the European Union have already opened an office in Taiwan, and that Lithuania will do the same.
November 18, 2021. Taiwan formally opened its office in Vilnius. In a statement, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said:
"The Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania officially commences its operation in Vilnius on November 18, 2021. The blessed opening will charter a new and promising course for the bilateral relations between Taiwan and Lithuania....
"Taiwan and Lithuania have huge potential for cooperation in various industries such as semi-conductor, laser, fintech and many others. Just recently in late October, a Taiwan delegation promoting economic, trade and investment ties with Lithuania had a successful visit in Vilnius. The two sides signed six MOUs, ushering in a shared vision of blueprint for closer cooperation ahead, laying a solid foundation for greater bonds of our two peoples. Taiwan will cherish and promote this new friendship based on our shared values."
November 19, 2021. In a statement, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said:
"The Lithuanian government, in disregard of the Chinese side's strong objection and repeated dissuasion, has approved the establishment of the so-called 'Taiwanese Representative Office in Lithuania' by the Taiwan authorities. This act creates the false impression of 'one China, one Taiwan' in the world, flagrantly violates the one-China principle, and renounces the political commitment made by Lithuania in the communiqué on the establishment of diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. It undermines China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and grossly interferes in China's internal affairs. The Chinese government expresses strong protest over and firm objection to this extremely egregious act, and will take all necessary measures to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Lithuanian side shall be responsible for all the ensuing consequences."
November 21, 2021. China downgraded its diplomatic ties with Lithuania to the level of chargé d'affaires, a rung below ambassador. In a statement, China's Foreign Ministry said that Lithuania had "undermined China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and grossly interfered in China's internal affairs," thereby creating a "bad precedent internationally."
November 23, 2021. Lithuania signed a $600 million export credit agreement with the U.S. Export-Import Bank. The deal could more than offset the Chinese economic sanctions against Lithuania.
December 1, 2021. China delisted Lithuania as a country of origin, meaning that its goods cannot clear customs. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that China had blocked all imports from Lithuania.
December 2, 2021. Seventeen Lithuanian MPs from the ruling coalition called on politicians, the National Olympic Committee and athletes to boycott the Beijing Winter Olympics. A statement said that prestigious sporting events should not be hosted by authoritarian countries that use sports to try to improve their image.
Appendix 2. China's Anti-Lithuanian Propaganda
Chinese officials and government media outlets have produced a steady stream of highly aggressive anti-Lithuanian propaganda consisting of threats, insults and smears, all aimed, apparently, at tarnishing Lithuania's reputation.
The Global Times, which reflects the sentiments and values of Chinese Communist Party officials, publishes daily diatribes against Lithuania. During a three-week period (November 23-December 14) the tabloid published dozens of articles in which it variously described Lithuania as: "a modern-day Nazi state," "a short-sighted pawn," "a trivial force," "a trouble maker," "despicable," "extreme," "filled with anger and hatred," "hypocritical," "irrational," "irresponsible," "mouse dung," "muddleheaded," "non-mainstream," "non-sensical," "not a country but a geographical destination," "on thin ice," "opportunistic," "oversensitive," "provocative," "racially puritan," "radical," "reckless," "rogue," "unreasonable," "unscrupulous," and "white supremacist."
According to the Global Times, Lithuania is guilty of: "anarchy," "antagonizing Beijing," "assaulting China," "brutal betrayal," "challenging China's bottom line," "challenging the red line," "chicanery," "collusion," "continuing on the wrong path," "continuous daydreaming," "damaging bilateral political bias," "deliberate provocation," "deliberate sabotage," "diplomatic provocation," "following orders," "following twisted and rogue logic," "gambling," "going against the trend of the times," "going too far," "hijacking," "hurting the feelings of the Chinese people," "instigating conflicts," "kidnapping the EU," "kidnapping the interests of more than 2 million Lithuanians," "losing diplomatic independence," "making excuses," "making mistakes," "miscalculation," "overestimating itself," "painting 'beautiful' skin on its ugly face," "political provocation," "punching above its weight," "putting other countries on the 'pirate ship,'" "reckless provocation," "repeatedly touching China's red line," "sacrificing people's real interests for politicians' abstract values," "setting a bad precedent," "short-sighted provocation," "sophistry and political maneuvering," "souring diplomatic relations," "standing on the anti-China forefront," "supporting secessionist forces," "trampling on China's sovereignty," "treachery," "trying to gain bargaining chips," "walking along this path of tragedy," "walking on the wrong path," and "wanton provocation."
Lithuania's actions are: "a bad precedent," "a mistake," "a smear," "a stunt," "coming to a dead end," "completely unnecessary," "crazy," "dangerous," "delusional," "despicable," "diplomatic and economic suicide," "doomed to reach a dead end," "extremely immoral," "faithless," "hostile," "malicious," "mean," "polluting friendly ties," "potentially high-cost," "provocative," "reckless," "self-defeating," "short-sighted," "stupid," "surprisingly naïve," and "very risky."
Lithuania seeks: "attention," "international exposure," "short-term political gain," "recognition," "rewards," "the international spotlight," and "to position itself as the EU leader in the forthcoming clash between the EU and China."
Lithuania deserves: "consequences," "countermeasures," "economic pain," "harsh consequences," "isolation," and "punishment."
Lithuania must: "adhere to the One-China principle," "correct its mistakes," "immediately correct its mistake," "pay a price," "pay the price," "realize its mistakes," "realize the seriousness of its blunder," "stop the smear bias," "suffer consequences," and "take responsibility for its wrong actions."
In a November 22 editorial titled, "Let's Have a Frank Talk about Lithuania over Taiwan Question," the Global Times referred to Lithuania as vermin:
"Lithuania is a small country. Is it even qualified to spoil the situation and stir up trouble with China? The country's population is not even as large as that of Chaoyang district in Beijing. It is just a mouse, or even a flea, under the feet of a fighting elephant."
On November 30, China's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao Lijian falsely accused Lithuania of anti-Semitism. He tweeted:
"In #Lithuania, there was once massacre of Jews in history. Today, racism remains a grave problem in the country, with Jews and other ethnic minorities suffering serious discrimination."
The Jewish Community of Lithuania (JCL) refuted his claim: "Lithuania is a democratic country that respects its Jewish citizens and treats all its citizens equally."
The irony seems lost on Zhao. Human rights experts say that the Chinese Communist Party has detained at least one million Uyghur Muslims in up to 380 internment camps, where they are subject to torture, mass rapes, forced labor and sterilizations.
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Turkish lira sinks further with Erdogan’s latest rate cut
Mustafa Sonmez/Al-Monitor/December 16/2021
Ankara’s controversial economic policy coupled with external forces portend a continuing deprecation of the Turkish lira that will only worsen inflation and other economic parameters.
Turkey’s Central Bank lowered its policy rate by 100 basis points to 14% Thursday, delivering a fourth cut in as many months in line with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s unconventional view that high interest rates cause high inflation, even as prices continue to soar amid the ongoing freefall of the Turkish lira.
In a sign of deepening mistrust in Ankara’s economic management, the lira tumbled past 15 versus the dollar Thursday, hitting record lows. The currency was already in a tailspin in anticipation of the rate cut, losing some 10% of its value this week alone.
The four rate cuts since September, totaling 500 basis points, have pushed real yields deep into negative territory. Annual consumer inflation hit 21.3% in November, according to official data, which itself is widely disputed as unreliable. No matter how hard Ankara might be trying to camouflage inflation, dizzying price increases on goods such as food, automobiles and energy that have major weights in the inflation basket threaten to propel the annual consumer inflation rate to 32% in December, which would mean real yields sinking to -18% and the economy deeper into uncharted waters.
The Central Bank intervened four times in the forex market this month — apparently at the government’s behest — to prevent what it described as “unhealthy price formations,” selling an estimated $4 billion in foreign currencies, even though it has depleted its foreign reserves and come to rely on currency swaps. The interventions failed to slow the crash of the lira, but there was a glimmer of hope that the currency’s collapse might deter the bank from another rate cut.
The bank’s monetary policy committee had spoken of “limited room” for fresh rate cuts after its Nov. 18 meeting. Central Bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu issued a similar message earlier this month, which also seemed to raise the possibility that the bank might keep rates unchanged in December. For Erdogan, however, stepping back from his obstinacy on rate cuts would have been a political fiasco. So he pressed on at the expense of dragging Turkey into utter economic uncertainty.
The unrelenting rush for dollars despite significant improvements in the industrial output and the current account balance comes as another sign of how the government’s credibility problem has worsened. Industrial production was up 8.5% annually in October, with the manufacturing output increasing some 9%, according to official data released Dec. 13. Simultaneously, the current account data showed a $3.2 billion surplus in October, driven by hard currency revenues in the tourism sector. It was the third consecutive month that Turkey posted a current account surplus, bringing its annual current account deficit down to $15 billion. The 2021 deficit had been originally projected at $21 billion.
Such macro indicators may look bright but they are of little concern for the ordinary people, who are grappling with skyrocketing prices and scrambling for hard currency to shield their savings from inflation and the devaluation of the lira.
Consumer prices are likely to increase as much as 10% in December, bringing the annual rate to 32%. The widening gap between the inflation rate and the Central Bank’s 14% policy rate would further discourage deposit holders from keeping their money in liras.
According to official data, 64.2% of all bank deposits, worth 5.4 trillion liras ($350 billion), were in foreign currencies as of Dec. 6. Deposits held by real persons amounted to 3.3 trillion liras ($210 billion), and about 65% of those savings were in foreign currencies. In other words, about 35% of deposits are still in liras, but everyone is aware that sticking to the lira means negative real yields or the melting of savings. Thus, people remain willing to transit to the dollar despite the soaring price of the greenback amid waning confidence in Erdogan’s government.
The worth of a lira tumbled to an average of 6.9 cents in mid-December, compared to 11.7 cents in September, when the Central Bank began to lower rates. This means a dreadful depreciation of 41% in four months.
More alarmingly, the future appears to hold little promise of improvement. Both the government’s approach and external financial trends portend further deprecation of the lira and thus the worsening of other economic parameters, chief among them inflation.
With US annual inflation at a four-decade high of 6.8%, the Federal Reserve is turning hawkish, planning to phase out its pandemic bond-buying stimulus faster than expected and raise interest rates three times next year. The Fed’s balance sheet has reached about $9 trillion, up from some $3.7 trillion before the pandemic. As the Fed reduces liquidity down the road, the dollar would appreciate, causing global ripples. Bracing for the impact, developing countries in particular have been hiking interest rates to defend their currencies, except for Turkey. Insisting on irrational policies, Erdogan’s government has condemned the lira to deeply negative real yields.
Erdogan hopes that lower borrowing costs will help economic growth to boost his sagging popular support ahead of elections in 2023. Yet, he refuses to recognize the extent to which the soaring prices are exasperating the populace. To ease their disgruntlement, Erdogan seems to count on the 50% hike of the minimum wage, which he took care to personally announce Thursday, shortly after the Central Bank’s rate cut. The minimum wage — the pay of more than a half of the country’s wage earners and a benchmark for the salaries of others — was raised to 4,250 liras ($275) a month for next year, yet the unruly inflation — expected to exceed 40% in the first quarter of 2022 — threatens to dampen the president’s hopes.
In sum, Erdogan may be planning to navigate the turmoil by taking greater economic risks, including the expansion of the treasury’s gaps and heightening its borrowing costs, but he will struggle to recover the credibility he has lost. The ancient wisdom that “trust, like the soul, never returns once it is gone” is truer than ever for Turkey.

Gadhafi’s son shakes up Libyan elections
Mustafa Fetouri/Al-Monitor/December 16/2021
Elections scheduled for Dec. 24 are now uncertain because of haggling among Libya's political factions.
Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, late leader Moammar Gadhafi's second son and once heir, will run in Libya’s Dec. 24 presidential elections. The High National Election Commission (HNEC) objected to his application, but a court in the southern city of Sabha reinstated him on Dec. 2, rejecting HNEC’s appeal.
Gadhafi was among 25 others who were disqualified, most of whom have now been readmitted into the crowded race. HNEC’s Resolution 79 cited missing documents and noncompliance with the presidential election law.
Gadhafi is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity during the uprising of 2011 that toppled his late father. At the time, he had no official role in either the government or the army and security forces. In 2015, he was tried and sentenced to death by a court in Tripoli heavily criticized by international rights groups. Two years later, he was released after Libya’s parliament passed a general amnesty law from which he and many others benefited.
Gadhafi was out of the public view between 2017-2021, prompting speculation about his whereabouts and whether he was even alive. During that time, he was active behind the scenes, meeting supporters and mediating tribal conflicts, particularly in southern Libya.
Yusuf, one of his closest associates (he requested that his family name not be published), told Al-Monitor that the young Gadhafi “was always active, working almost every day.” According to Yusuf, Gadhafi “played a very successful role in reconciling two of Sabah’s biggest tribes” last year.
He also kept in contact with his representative in Europe, Mohammed Abu Ajeila al-Ghadi, who went on to represent him in the UN-led dialogue that elected Libya’s Unity Government Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, whose government gained a vote of confidence on March 10.
In a surprising move, Gadhafi gave his first interview in over a decade to The New York Times magazine in which he said my guards “are now my friends,” referring to the Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq Brigade, an armed group based in the western city of Zintan, which first captured him in November 2011 as he tried to flee the country after the fall of his father’s government a month earlier.
The same group would secure his trip across more than 700 kilometers (434 miles) to Sabha in the south to register Gadhafi on Nov. 14 for the presidential elections.
Now that he is officially in the race despite the HNEC’s attempts to disqualify him, his close supporters are keeping a watchful eye over what might transpire. Yusuf believes there is a concerted effort by different political actors and “foreign countries” to have him disqualified from the race. Without naming any specific country, Yusuf said, “Many countries do not like him.”
When asked whether Gadhafi stands a chance in winning the elections, Yusuf said, “[I’m] 100% sure that Saif will win.” Libya has neither official nor professional opinion polls, but Yusuf pointed to social media as an indicator. "All over Facebook, [Saif] is the favorite contestant.” In the absence of any official polls, relying on social media becomes the obvious choice to get a read on the mood of the general public.
The same opinion is shared by Suleiman Hussein, a social sciences professor at Tripoli University, who thinks Gadhafi is “popular and lucky at the same time.” His popularity was reflected in people taking to the streets in many Libyan towns in celebration when he first announced his candidacy. "The continued failure of all governments” that came to power since 2011 is “the most effective campaigner in support of Saif. This is what makes him lucky too,” he added.
Libya has gone through difficult spells of civil war, helped by NATO, which toppled the Gadhafi government in October 2011. Living conditions for ordinary people have deteriorated, and many Libyans now are unable to afford basic necessities. Hussein said, “Libyans support Saif because they miss his father,” the late colonel who was murdered on Oct. 20, 2011. “Libyans miss the security and peace” provided by the senior Gadhafi, said the professor.
Social and tribal leader Ali Aljamal, from Bani Walid southwest of Tripoli, told Al-Monitor in a phone interview that “Bani Walid and many other cities” are voting for “their son (Saif).” The mountain town has always been pro-Gadhafi, and it is only “logical that we vote for his son,” he added.
Saad Ibrahim, from Sirte, the late Gadhafi’s birthplace, told Al-Monitor over the phone, “I think Saif will win at least 70%” of the votes in the city of around 120,000 people." Ibrahim, a lawyer and social activist, thinks Sirte has a chance now to “show where its loyalty lies.”
The coastal city suffered tremendous losses and destruction during the civil war of 2011, and it was there that Gadhafi, the father, made his last stand against the rebels. In 2015, the city became the stronghold of the Islamic State before the terror group was ejected a year later.
As for the ICC arrest warrant for Gadhafi, Ibrahim told Al-Monitor, “The ICC has no bearing on Libya’s internal affairs.” Libya is not party to the international court, and “it is not alone in being outside the court."
A former US diplomat with strong ties to the Biden administration speaking anonymously told Al-Monitor that “America would not mind” dealing with Libya even if Gadhafi is elected president. “I do not expect Saif to be officially received in Washington,” but dealing with his government would not be a problem, the former diplomat added.
Still, Gadhafi’s supporters are worried about what might be "cooking behind the scenes," as Ibrahim puts it. It is unclear if the elections will take place in a few days.
Stephanie Williams, the former acting UN envoy to Libya who is credited with mediating the deal that made elections possible, returned after leaving the mission last summer. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed Williams on Dec. 6 as his special adviser on Libya after his current envoy, Jan Kubis, announced his resignation last month.
While Williams will not take over the UN mission, she will be in charge of the political file in Libya, including elections. Last year and earlier this year, she succeeded in bringing Libyan factions to a series of negotiation rounds that produced the political roadmap that called for the December elections. The experienced former US diplomat also played an active role in brokering the October 2020 cease-fire that is still holding.
Gadhafi’s close advisers believe Libya’s future is at stake and their man is in the best position to return security and stability. They point to the fact that he has not been involved in any violence in the country since 2011, which, according to Yusuf, makes him “favored by the majority of Libyans.” The big question remains whether the polls will actually open on Dec. 24. And if they are delayed, as most expect, when will Libyans get the chance to vote for their president?

The Gas Weapon In a Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Liam Denning/Bloomberg/Asharq Al-Awsat/December, 16/2021
According to Vladimir Putin, “true sovereignty of Ukraine is possible only in partnership with Russia.” Besides the delicious contradiction there, it shows how far the Russian president’s designs on Ukraine stretch beyond the gas pipelines that fueled previous crises. (You can read the whole, rather turgid essay here.) Yet if Russia does invade Ukraine (again), the effect on energy markets this winter is something Western countries will need to contend with.
The most obvious point of impact, one that obsesses Washington, is the roughly 40% of Europe’s gas imports that come from Russia. In the past, spats between Moscow and Kyiv would occasionally result in cutoffs because the pipelines run through Ukraine. But now the Nord Stream 2 project linking Russia directly with Germany has been built to avoid that. The US regards this as part of the Kremlin’s multidecade project to use gas as a weapon to divide European allies. For Germany, it’s a way to diversify supply routes to alleviate the risks that come with buying a lot of gas from Russia.
Putin is happy to exploit this tension between Washington and Berlin. There is little prospect of Nord Stream 2 being blocked, as much as the US would like to see that happen. The thing is all but built and awaits regulatory approval. Europe’s gas market is already jittery, with storage tanks only 62% full — lower than the 80% average level for this time of year. When the Germans delayed their approval of Nord Stream 2 in November, already eye-watering European gas prices shot higher. Any threat by Germany to cut off extra gas supply to itself in this situation would be hollow. As Kevin Book of ClearView Energy Partners puts it: “Sawing towards the trunk while standing on a branch only happens in cartoons.”
In voicing support for Ukraine this weekend, Germany’s new chancellor, Olaf Scholz, was careful to not put Nord Stream 2 directly on the block. His ambiguity echoes the joint declaration his predecessor made with the US in July. That committed Germany to: … take action at the national level and press for effective measures at the European level, including sanctions, to limit Russian export capabilities to Europe in the energy sector, including gas, and/or in other economically relevant sectors.
This is the diplomatic equivalent of “we’ll see how it goes, shall we?” It’s worth noting that although the US might publicly press Germany to take a stand if Russia attacks, the defense budget bill passed in the House earlier this month contains no language targeting Nord Stream 2 with sanctions.
If anything, it is in Scholz’s interest to see the pipeline approved sooner rather than later. The longer it takes, the greater the risk that approval will be overtaken by some new Russian aggression in Ukraine. That would highlight Germany’s weakness and probably stoke divisions within both the coalition government and the European Union. And getting Nord Stream 2 off the table now might sideline an issue that has tended to dominate and divide trans-Atlantic energy discussions.
Rather than the Germans cutting off a gas pipeline that hasn’t even started up, might Russia stop the gas supply if faced with other countermeasures? That’s possible given Ukraine’s apparent existential importance to Putin. But condemning Europe to a mixture of hypothermia and recession this winter would unite his opponents, undoing the divisions he has managed to exploit thus far.
The symbiosis at the heart of the Russian-European gas relationship — the former needing money and expertise and the latter, heat and power — has kept it going for more than half a century, including during the Cold War. But Putin is now aggressively testing the bond. Even if the latest Ukraine tensions pass without incident, this year’s curiously timed depletion of Gazprom PJSC’s European storage tanks and Putin’s own bitter rhetoric against European energy-market liberalization have probably done lasting damage.
In the short term, the energy weapon can be effective in forcing one’s wishes on importing nations because consumption is relatively inelastic. But the history of some of Putin’s OPEC+ buddies and his own earlier faceoffs with Ukraine show that the long-term blowback — customers diversifying their energy supply, for example — can inflict lasting damage. This is especially relevant when Europe is pushing an ambitious green agenda backed by effective carbon tariffs, which pose a particular risk to Russia’s emissions-intensive exports.
Still, we’re talking about Putin and Ukraine. Far from giving him pause, the notion that his biggest energy customer is intent on going green might spur him to go for broke. If European dependence on Russian gas is destined to diminish, then waiting only weakens Putin’s leverage. Whatever else the energy transition means, it won’t end energy geopolitics.

Gulf States Anticipate the Nuclear Deal
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al-Awsat/December, 16/2021
Even at the peak of the internal conflict between Gulf states, none of the six Member States withdrew from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) they had collectively founded in 1981. Ambassadors kept representing their states, and GCC staff kept working in the headquarters throughout the period of estrangement, in a reflection of Member States’ keenness not to burn all the bridges and to keep the GCC as a primary line of defense of their higher interests.
A significant part of the Riyadh Summit declaration, issued on 14 December, was dedicated to discussing external threats, albeit without naming any specific entity. The declaration spoke of countering threats and unifying the political rhetoric “by unifying political stances and developing political partnerships at both the regional and international levels.”
The declaration reminded of Article 2 of the Joint Defense Agreement, which considers any attack on one of the Member States an attack on all Member States, and any threat to one of them as a threat to all.” The declaration underlined “the importance of concerted efforts to coordinate the foreign policies of Member States and ensure their complementarity.”
The Al-Ula Summit, held in Saudi Arabia in January 2021, had cleared the atmosphere between Member States after the fallout. Then came Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s recent visit to Gulf countries to pave the way for the agreement that was concluded in this latest summit.
The question remains as to how Gulf governments will respond to any potential Western agreement with Iran following the current negotiations.
The main challenge that lies ahead for Gulf states is to put an end to individual action and unify their stances on how to deal with the Vienna negotiations and their outcomes, regardless of whether these talks succeed or fail. The comprehensive nuclear deal that Western powers and Iran signed in the Swiss city of Lausanne in 2015 had uncovered shocking surprises for the countries of the region, particularly GCC states. Later, the deal hit an impasse, and the two parties returned to the negotiating table to try, once again, to resolve their dispute, which gave states in the region another opportunity to ensure they are not discounted, as happened in the previous deal.
In fact, any alternative agreement that fails to account for the security interests of the region’s countries could pose a threat to them all, but particularly to Gulf states, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen. The danger lies in that Iran will have a nuclear weapon should the negotiations fail, but will be let loose to invade the region with its traditional weapons should the negotiations succeed. At the end of day, everyone dreads mounting tensions and escalation in the region, regardless of whether or not the deal engenders these circumstances.
Among all the entities of the Arab world, the bloc of Gulf states is the most concerned with political and military readiness. As such, it is well aware that unified stances and coordinated diplomatic action are the fastest path to cement its influence and power. Today, the landscape in Riyadh suggests that a unified Gulf rhetoric is imminent. In the midst of all the conflicting signals from Vienna, Washington, and Tehran, the coming few weeks will be crucial for us.
The Gulf proposition is mistakenly seen as opposing the nuclear deal, but that’s not the case. Instead, the Gulf considers this deal an incomplete solution, for it endorses the lifting of economic sanctions imposed on Iran –which Gulf states had shouldered along with most of the world’s countries– without forcing Tehran to halt its destabilizing military operations in the region and all the wars and miseries it sparked.
GCC states have clearly shown their willingness to positively take part in a political solution, so long as such a solution puts an end to chaos and achieves stability in the region.

Egyptian Scholar Sentenced to Five Years Imprisonment for Recounting Accurate History of Islam
Raymond Ibrahim/December 16/2021
Dr. Maher calling on Egyptian president Sisi to judge his case.
According to a Nov. 19, 2021 report, “An Egyptian court sentenced an 80-year-old-intellectual earlier this week to five years in prison over his remarks on the early Islamic conquests.” Dr. Ahmed Abdu‘ Maher, a high-profile lawyer, expert on Islam, and author of 14 books on Islamic history and jurisprudence, was found guilty of “contempt of Islam, stirring up sectarian strife and posing a threat to the national unity.”
One of Maher’s chief “crimes” is his view on the seventh and eighth century Arab conquests—a view based on a close and correct reading of both Muslim and non-Muslim sources: that Arabs conquerors invaded non-Muslim regions—specifically the Middle East, North Africa, and Spain—and engaged in atrocity after atrocity; that, while “spreading Islam” was the motive later Islamic historiography attributed to the Arabs, their true actions belied a lust for rape and rapine; and that they overthrew and supplanted much more advanced societies, to the region’s lasting regret.
Put differently, Maher’s views are identical with those presented in Sword and Scimitar: Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West, particularly its first three chapters that revolve around the early Arab conquests. As the Nov. 19 report continues,
Maher claimed in many of his speeches, writings, and TV appearances, that the early Islamic conquests were “military invasions”, and called on Egypt’s top Islamic institution—Al-Azhar—to apologise on behalf of the Prophet Muhammad’s companions who led the raids. According to Maher, those “invasions aimed to enslave women rather than spread Islam” around the world.
Maher’s position naturally goes counter to the mainstream Islamic presentation of the early Arab conquests, which are referred to as futuhat—literally, “openings” for the light of Islam to enter (or fatah in the singular, as the Palestinian group tellingly calls itself). In this context, every land ever invaded or seized by Muslims was done “altruistically” to bring Islam to wayward infidels, who are seen as the aggressors for unjustly resisting Islam. Or, in the words of an article titled “The Wisdom of Jihad,” published by the popular website, Islam Question and Answer, jihad does not “only and simply mean to kill non-Muslims”; rather, “The kuffaar [non-Muslims] whom we fight will themselves benefit from jihad. We strive against them and fight them so that they will enter the religion of Allah which is acceptable to Him, which will lead to their salvation in this world and in the Hereafter.”
Maher made his position especially well-known back in early 2017, when the Muslim world was in an uproar after the announcement of President Donald Trump’s “Muslim ban” (as referred to by his woke enemies). Then, Maher had posted a video on YouTube (since removed, naturally, though not before I had translated relevant excerpts, which follow):
Friends, in regards to … Donald Trump, we wanted to ask our brothers—the fuqaha [jurists of Islamic law] and the ulema [scholars of Islam]—a question: if this man … were to coerce, through the power of arms, the greater majority of Muslims living in America … to become Christians, or pay jizya, otherwise he takes over their homes, kills their men and enslaves their women and girls, and sells them on slave markets; if he were to do all this, would he be considered a racist and a terrorist or not?
Of course, I’m just hypothesizing, and know that the Bible and its religion do not promote such things, but let’s just assume: Would he be a racist or not? Would he be a terrorist or not? How then [when one considers] that we have in our Islamic jurisprudence, which you teach us, and tell us that all the imams have agreed on, that the Islamic openings [i.e., conquests] are the way to disseminate Islam? This word “openings” [futuhat]—we must be sensitive to it! The Islamic openings mean swords and killing. The Islamic openings, through which homes, fortresses, and territories were devastated, these … [are part of] an Islam which you try to make us follow.
So I wonder O sheikh, O leader of this or that Islamic center in NY, would you like to see this done to your wife and daughter? Would you—this or that sheikh—accept that this be done to your children? That your daughter goes to this fighter [as a slave], your son to this fighter, a fifth [of booty] goes to the caliph and so forth? I mean, isn’t this what you refer to as the Sharia of Allah? … So let’s think about things in an effort to discern what’s right and what’s wrong.
In short, Maher asked the clerics of Islam what, precisely, they were complaining about. All that Trump had done is ban immigration from Muslim nations closely associated with terrorism. What if he actually treated Muslims in America the way Muslims have always treated non-Muslims under their authority—the way Islamic law, sharia, demands—that is, in a manner far worse than simply banning immigration from terrorist countries in the interest of national security?
For having such views and asking such questions, Maher has just been sentenced to five years imprisonment—the maximum penalty—in accordance with Article 98 F of the Egyptian penal code, better known as the “anti-blasphemy law,” which states that:
Detention for a period of not less than six months and not exceeding five years, or paying a fine of not less than five hundred pounds and not exceeding one thousand pounds shall be the penalty inflicted on whoever exploits and uses the religion in advocating and propagating by talk or in writing, or by any other method, extremist thoughts with the aim of instigating sedition and division or disdaining and contempting any of the heavenly religions or the sects belonging thereto, or prejudicing national unity or social peace.
Nor is Maher’s case an aberration; as the Nov. 19 report says, “Several other intellectuals, writers, and public figures have stood trial or received verdicts over the past few decades for their views under the infamous anti-blasphemy law.”
On Nov. 29, Maher appeared on BBC Arabic. He refused to offer an apology, insisted that all he had done is relay accurate history and ask commonsensical questions, and urged Egyptian President al-Sisi—now his only hope, as Maher’s recent five-year-imprisonment sentencing is final and cannot be appealed before a higher court—to consider pardoning him.
As obscene as Maher’s experiences are, it’s worth noting that something similar is happening in the West, though in reverse: whereas Muslim nations insist on portraying their brutal and savage heroes of the past as noble and pious, Western nations insist on portraying their noble and pious heroes of the past as brutal and savage (in a word, “racist”). As Western governments become more third-world dictatorial—and as their woke-war on history becomes more fanatical—look to see elements of Maher’s fate surfacing in the West.