Musings From Abroad

Spain, Mauritania to sign deal to address illegal migrants

Published

3 weeks ago

August 28, 2024

On Wednesday, the President of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, and the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced several agreements meant to curb the number of migrants who are crossing the Atlantic Ocean to reach the Canary Islands.

Sanchez is on a three-day tour of West Africa to strengthen ties with Mauritania, the Gambia, and Senegal—the countries from which the great majority of boats depart for Spain.

Speaking alongside Ghazouani, Sanchez declared that to fight networks involved in people smuggling and trafficking, Spain will extend its circular movement program to Mauritiusans and re-establish coordination between its security agencies and those of Mauritius.

“Despite the rhetoric that is growing in Europe, migration is not a problem,” Sanchez said.

“It is a need that involves certain problems and for this we must push formulas that allow us to manage the phenomenon of migration in a humane, safe and orderly way, to benefit our respective societies.”

For migrants and refugees attempting to reach Europe, the Canary Islands, which are close to the African coast, serve as a stopover.

According to Spain’s interior ministry, more than 22,000 people have arrived on the islands since January—more than twice as many as there were unauthorised entries during the same period last year.

“Until not long ago Spain was also a country of migrants … they aspired to better lives, much like those who take great risks and take on this dangerous adventure,” Sanchez added.

Thousands of Malian refugees who are escaping the violence and instability in their country, together with young individuals from other West African nations who are looking for better employment possibilities overseas, are among those who have made their way to the Canaries.

Additionally, the number of youngsters and teenagers visiting the Canary Islands by themselves is rising, overwhelming the local government.

When sailing conditions improve in the Atlantic Ocean between West Africa and the archipelago in the autumn, Spanish security forces say they are ready for even more arrivals.

Along with President Ursula von der Leyen of the European Commission, Sanchez visited Mauritania in February to launch a €200 million grant intended to boost employment possibilities and combat people smuggling networks.

Re-elected in June, Ghazouani announced that Mauritanian and Spanish leaders would get together the following year to evaluate the success of the agreements.

“Africa will continue being a priority for Spain’s foreign policy,” Sanchez added.

Related Topics:Featured Mauritania Spain

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Musings From Abroad

Blinken to address Gaza ceasefire and bilateral relations in Egypt

Published

17 hours ago

September 18, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Concerned about rising tensions in the Middle East, United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is scheduled to visit Cairo on Wednesday.

During his visit, he intends to further efforts to establish a truce in Gaza and fortify relations with Egypt, according to his spokesperson. The visit by the senior US diplomat occurs at a time when the area is still on high alert because of the possibility that the Gaza War could spread, especially after Hezbollah, a militant organisation, threatened to avenge Israel after accusing it of detonating pagers around Lebanon on Tuesday.

Regarding the explosions, Israel has not answered enquiries. Nearly 3,000 people were injured, and at least nine people lost their lives.

At a routine briefing, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller stated that while it was too soon to determine how the events in Lebanon might impact the Gaza ceasefire negotiations, diplomacy was thought to be the most effective means of easing tensions.

Before meeting with Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and other officials on Wednesday morning, Blinken met with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt at Al-Ittihadiya Palace in Cairo.

How we achieve a plan that we think would get support from both parties” to an Israel-Hamas truce was “squarely on the table” in Blinken’s conversations with Egyptian officials, Miller added.

For weeks, American authorities have stated that a fresh plan for a settlement that would see the release of hostages that Hamas had kidnapped from Israel on October 7, 2023, would be made available soon.

“There are some issues that we need to engage with the government of Egypt on as it relates to this ceasefire proposal that we are trying to bring to fruition,” Miller said.
According to a State Department official, Blinken will travel from Cairo to Paris on Thursday to meet with the foreign ministers of France, Italy, and Britain. During the meeting, they will talk about the Middle East, Ukraine, and other topics. According to the official, Blinken will also meet French President Emmanuel Macron.

This is the first time Blinken has skipped a stop in Washington’s closest regional ally, Israel since the Palestinian militant group Hamas started the Gaza War almost a year ago. Blinken will not be visiting Israel during this trip.

Miller explained that this was because Washington’s goal for this trip was to talk to Egypt about bilateral matters, and the proposal for a Gaza truce that the United States and its mediators have been working on was still not ready to be presented to Israel.

“So it would be premature to be presenting such a proposal, or doing any other diplomatic engagements,” he added.

In the crucial diplomatic effort to end the war, Egypt and Qatar have acted as a go-between for Hamas and Israel’s proposals and counterproposals. In an attempt to improve the flow of humanitarian supplies to Gaza’s 2.3 million war-torn citizens, Washington has also relied on Cairo.

In the raid on Israel last year, Palestinian militants claimed 1,200 lives and captured over 250 prisoners, according to Israeli accounts. Gaza claims that over 41,000 people have died as a result of Israel’s retaliatory attack, which has essentially destroyed the territory.

Washington has sent billions of dollars into military aid to Egypt over their decades-long cooperation, even in the face of allegations of serious abuses, including torture and enforced disappearances, under Sisi’s regime. The Egyptian government refutes the charges.

Last week, Blinken lifted human rights requirements on U.S. foreign military assistance to Egypt, allowing the entire $1.3 billion for the first time since President Joe Biden took office, signalling Cairo’s growing prominence.

After promising to prioritise human rights in U.S.-Egypt relations, Seth Binder, director of advocacy for the Middle East Democracy Centre in Washington, stated that the Biden administration has “completely abandoned any pretence that human rights matter to the relationship.”

Musings From Abroad

3 Americans sentenced to death in DR Congo for thwarted coup

Published

3 days ago

September 15, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

A military court has sentenced 37 accused persons to death for their roles in the failed coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in May, including three US nationals.

On May 19, armed men took over the presidential residence in Kinshasa for a short while until security forces assassinated their leader, Christian Malanga, a politician from the Democratic Republic of the Congo who was living in the US.

Marcel Malanga, his son, and Tyler Thompson, a friend of Marcel’s who played football with him in high school in Utah, were two of the Americans on trial. They’re both in their 20s.

Christian Malanga’s business associate Benjamin Zalman-Polun was the third American.
All three received the death penalty in a decision that was read aloud on television after being convicted guilty of terrorism, criminal conspiracy, and other offences.

Malanga had already informed the court that his father had threatened to murder him if he didn’t take part. In addition, he informed the court that he was going to Congo for the first time at his father’s invitation—a relationship he had not had in a long time.

After the failed coup, some fifty individuals, including citizens of the US, UK, Canada, Belgium, and the Congo, are awaiting prosecution. Thirty-seven offenders received death sentences.

The decision was announced in the courtyard of the military jail Ndolo, which is located outside of Kinshasa, beneath a tent. The defendants, dressed in prison-issue blue and yellow tops, were seated in front of the judge.

July marked the start of the trial. Ambassador personnel were present at the proceedings, according to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller in Washington, and they will keep a careful eye on any further developments.

“We understand that the legal process in the DRC allows for defendants to appeal the court’s decision,” he told a briefing.

Jean-Jacques Wondo, a citizen of Belgium and Congo, is one of the 37 defendants. Before the trial, Wondo’s family made video messages to Congo President Félix Tshisekedi pleading for his release.