Foreign Policy Update – USA Gov Policy

NORTHERN TRIANGLE

The United States is committing $4 billion to the countries in the Northern Triangle area of Latin America to combat corruption, migration issues, democracy and human rights. Accord to Julie Chung, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, the State Department is working out the details of the president’s proposed program.

NICARAGUA

“The United States has been very concerned about the situation in Nicaragua, the oppression of people, of freedom of press, of civil society and human rights defenders,” according to Acting Assistant Secretary Chung. She noted that Costa Rica has been a strong partner within the OAS framework and has called for democracy and human rights in Nicaragua. She added that in Washington there are big concerns about elections being planned for later this year and whether the right conditions are there for those free and fair elections.

HONG KONG

The Chinese government continues to undermine the democratic institutions of Hong Kong, denying Hong Kong residents the rights that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) itself has guaranteed, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken. In a statement release by the Department this week, the Secretary said that “The Hong Kong Legislative Council (LegCo) passage on May 27 of new measures that alter the composition of the LegCo and Election Commission severely constrains people in Hong Kong from meaningfully participating in their own governance and having their voices heard.”

Decreasing Hong Kong residents’ electoral representation, according to Blinken, will not foster long-term political and social stability for Hong Kong.  The legislation defies the Basic Law’s clear acknowledgment that the ultimate objective is the election of all members of the LegCo by universal suffrage.  He called on China and the Hong Kong authorities to allow the voices of all Hong Kongers to be heard.

EGYPT

When reporting the symptoms to a primary physician, patients may need to return to the facility in order to have their dosages price of sildenafil visit for info adjusted. The treatments like cheap women viagra vacuum devices, ICP, hormone replacement therapy, ED drugs etc. Erectile Dysfunction is mainly a persistent inability to have intercourse with generic cialis no rx the partner. Visit Here:- / A number of men suffer from erectile dysfunction, in which a man is unable to carry out their mission. check out this cheapest cialis in canada

Secretary Blinken met in Cairo with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi to convey President Biden’s appreciation to President Sisi for Egypt’s critical mediation efforts in support of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and other groups in Gaza and for Egypt’s help in evacuating American citizens to safety. Blinken reaffirmed the strong strategic partnership between the United States and Egypt, and President Biden’s commitment to the relationship and America’s commitment to Egypt’s water security and resolution of the dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). The Nile River accounts for 97% of Egypt’s supply of freshwater.

GAZA

In a press briefing this week in the Middle East, Blinken said that “The most urgent thing is humanitarian assistance for the people in Gaza, and particularly water, sanitation, electricity.” Beyond that he suggested reconstruction and rebuilding as additional priorities. Blinken said he wants to see reduced tensions and the building of more trust. On Tuesday, Washington announced it is in the process of providing more than $360 million of assistance to the Palestinian people. It includes nearly $40 million in new assistance that is directed primarily to support the humanitarian efforts in the West Bank and Gaza. The new assistance includes nearly $33 million for UNRWA in support of the West Bank and Gaza operations, an additional five and a half million for humanitarian partners.

ISRAEL

When asked in a television interview this week when President Biden planned to visit Israel, Secretary Blinken said: “I don’t have the time, I don’t have the date….” He added that anti-Semitic acts of violence are on the rise in the United States and that this is not a good sign.

BELARUSThe forced diversion of a flight between two EU member states and the subsequent removal and arrest of journalist Raman Pratasevich in Minsk drew sharp condemnation from the State Department this week. “We demand his immediate release. This shocking act perpetrated by the Lukashenka regime endangered the lives of more than 120 passengers, including U.S. citizens,” said Secretary Blinken. Initial reports suggested the involvement of the Belarusian security services and the use of Belarusian military aircraft to escort the plane are deeply concerning and require full investigation. Given indications the forced landing was based on false pretenses, the US is calling for the earliest possible meeting of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization to review the events.

DARIA NOVAK served in the United States State Department during the Reagan Administration, and currently is on the Board of the American Analysis of News and Media Inc., which publishes usagovpolicy.com and the New York Analysis of Policy and Government. Each Saturday, she presents key updates on U.S. foreign policy from the State Department..

Illustration: Pixabay

Quick Analysis

Ukraine’s Frozen Conflict

As we approach winter in the northern hemisphere, the war in Ukraine is beginning to resemble a “frozen conflict” from many perspectives. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently told the media he hopes the war will end faster once President-elect Trump takes over in January. Opinions in Moscow, however, differ from that of the Ukrainian leader. Russian President Vladimir Putin argues that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) needs to exclude Ukraine from joining in “exchange” for peace. If it does not, he says, then no end to the war is in sight. So far there is no Christmas solution. Several NATO countries, according to Vladimir Socor of the Jamestown Foundation, are tentatively considering “coalitions-of-the-willing” to provide security for Ukraine outside of the formal NATO framework. There is, however, no collective mechanism today under which such an arrangement is viable. According to the NATO Charter, while Ukraine is a NATO partner country, it may not join as a full member since it has not fulfilled the requirements for membership. That has not stopped NATO and allies from continuing “to provide Ukraine with unprecedented levels of support, helping to uphold its fundamental right to self-defence,” according to the organization. Socor says that keeping Ukraine out of NATO will not advance peace with Russia. Waiting for a peace settlement, he suggests, would only serve to encourage Moscow to continue the war indefinitely. Although the Biden Administration officially withdrew its support for Ukrainian membership in 2021, NATO maintains an “open door” policy toward membership-seeking countries. The current White House position led the way for European states to oppose Ukraine’s membership saying that a decision should be delayed until “conditions are met.” Biden pushed for changing “open door” to a “bridge” metaphor. It is not intended as an across-the-board NATO policy and has been implemented in the past on a case-by-case basis, says Socor. “The alliance’s open-door policy was not fully insulated from Russia’s non-statutory blocking power, and NATO-aspirant countries’ path toward membership was not always irreversible.” Russia has successfully blocked states like Georgia from joining, first in 2008 and again after the war in Ukraine began in 2014. Russia recognizes the value add of Ukraine to NATO is enormous and that Kyiv has a better case than some other nations. Putin’s invasion was, in part, intended to foreclose that option. By 2021, Moscow was pushing hard to maximize its war objectives, which included further annexations of Ukrainian territory. A main goal for Putin was, and is, to ensure there is no Ukraine left to join NATO. As President-elect Trump prepares to assume office in January, he is faced with the historical challenges presented by the war. Post-conflict security guarantees were the center of several proposals made during the 2023 military stalemate. The incoming Trump Administration has yet to outline how it intends to handle the Russia-Ukraine war. Analysts in Washington believe that the new Administration will expect its European allies to guarantee the majority of Ukraine’s security needs. As we approach 2025, several European nations have acknowledged that they do not view Ukraine as eligible for NATO membership as it would draw the organization into the middle of the conflict. Others want to wait until the war is over or pending a “peace” settlement before considering Ukrainian membership. Socor reports that some “influential voices” are suggesting that “Kyiv should join NATO after “freezing” the war along a stable armistice line, de facto accepting Ukraine’s partition, with NATO security guarantees applying de jure to the government-controlled territory only.” This would mean starting accession talks soon with the actual talks to commence only after a ceasefire is in place. Trump arrives in Washington at a time when Putin’s hybrid strategies of war in Ukraine have eviscerated commonly-held differences between war and peace. “Absent a political consensus in NATO over Ukrainian membership, certain European allies, including France’s President Emmanuel Macron, are holding informal consultations about post-conflict security guarantees to Kyiv by NATO members outside of NATO’s framework,” according to the Jamestown Foundation. The Biden Administration downplayed the discussions on possible forms of military assistance and defense industry cooperation by sending only an Assistant Secretary of State. For a European peace to hold the Trump Administration would need to formally extend the United States’ nuclear deterrence to Ukraine. Options under discussion in Europe include a “coalition of the resolute” to deploy forces to Ukraine as part of a possible armistice package, deterring further Russian attacks, says Secor. European officials are also debating, without any agreement, whether its military forces could perform non-combat logistical roles to free Ukrainian forces to fight. None of the possible courses of action has moved forward as all eyes are waiting on the incoming Trump Administration for clues about its intended level of support for a NATO framework and other non-NATO proposals. Daria Novak served in the U.S. State Dept.