https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/as-the-japanese-yen-crumbles-tokyo-announces-new-sanctions-o

As the Japanese Yen crumbles, Tokyo announces new sanctions on Russia

The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced on Monday imposing new sanctions on Russia, targeting 20 Russian companies and one individual.

According to the Ministry, a ban on exports of goods related to chemical weapons was introduced, targeting Russian Mashpriborintorg, Inteko, NGO Etalon, JCS Energiya, Tambov plant October among others.

The Japanese Ministry stated that effective 26th of September, "our country introduces a ban on exports and other activities in relation to 21 organizations," saying that it is, "a contribution to international efforts in connection with the situation in Ukraine and taking into account the measures taken by leading countries," raising the total number of sanctioned Russian companies and organizations since the start of the Ukrainian war to 287.

The first list of sanctions issued by Japan targeting Russia was announced by PM Fumio Kishida back in February, directly after the US announced its first round of sanctions on Russia.

According to Kishida, Japan's sanctions include blocking the issuing of Russian bonds in Japan, freezing the assets of specific Russian people, and limiting travel to Japan.

However, the actions of Japan against Russia were not left unanswered, as the Russian Foreign Ministry announced back in May sanctions against 63 Japanese citizens, including Japanese PM Fumio Kishida and Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, banning them from entering Russia due to the Western-backed anti-Russian campaign launched by Tokyo.

Russia responds to unfriendly nations

As the hysteric sanctions on Russia started taking place, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree back in May authorizing the use of new special tit-for-tat economic measures in response to hostile activities by certain foreign nations and international organizations.

The document forbids fulfilling obligations and finalizing deals with foreign persons and legal organizations under retaliatory restrictive measures, as well as exporting raw materials and goods from Russia for the benefit of these individuals.

According to the decree, these measures are taken to protect Russia’s national interests "due to unfriendly actions which contradict international law by the United States of America and foreign states and international organizations that joined them directed at illegitimately depriving the Russian Federation, the citizens of the Russian Federation and Russian legal entities of property right and restricting their property right."

Japan and Russian Gas dilemma

Upon Russian President Vladimir Putin ratifying the new decree in the economic-trade relations between Russia and unfriendly foreign nations, Japan announced in August plans to keep its firms’ shares in the Russia-led Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project, notwithstanding the new Russian protocol, "for our country, which is 90% dependent on Middle Eastern oil, Sakhalin-1 is an important source of supplies outside the Middle East. There are no changes in our position on maintaining the shares of our companies," the Japanese Minister of Economy stated.

It's noteworthy that the new Japan sanctions come amidst a months-long Yen freefall, where the Japanese central bank (Nichigin) conducted its first currency intervention on the 22nd of September, to try and pull the staggering yen from the hot water it has plunged into for months, selling the US dollar and buying the yen from the Japanese market.

The Bank of Japan's intervention marks its first since June 1998, as the yen's value continues dwindling, reaching its lowest rate since 1998.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/british-pound-dips-to-41-year-low-against-the-us-dollar

British pound dips to 41 year low against the US Dollar

During the early Asia-Pacific trade on Monday, the British pound plummeted to its lowest rate against the US dollar since 1971. After a Friday fall of 3.61%, the sterling extended its losses to more than 4%, reaching $1.0327, before rising back to $1.05.

The Chief Market Strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex, Marc Chandler, commented that an emergency meeting may be held by the Bank of England to deal with the "incredible" plummet of the sterling, as he described it.

The plunge came after an announcement made last week by UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng of a new mini-budget, revealing huge tax cuts funded by a significant increase in borrowing.

The announcement led to a sharp slide in UK bonds and currency, after a negative reaction from the financial markets, leaving investors "searching out a response from the Bank of England," as stated by the head of research at Pepperstone, Chris Weston, to the Daily Mail, adding that, "sterling is getting absolutely hammered" and that investors are "saying this is not sustainable when you've got deteriorating growth and a twin deficit.”

The UK Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves commented on the budget to the House of Commons last week, saying that British PM Liz Truss and Chancellor Kwarteng "are like two desperate gamblers in a casino chasing a losing run," all whilst describing the budget as a "plan to reward the already wealthy," adding that the argument proposed by the minister "isn’t a great new idea or a gamechanger, as the minister said, as much as they’d like us to think so."

Reeves argued that "What this plan adds up to is to keep corporation tax where it is today, and take national insurance contributions back to where they were in March. Some new plan."

The mini-budget was only supported by a few Conservative MPs, while opposed by others, most notably the former whip of Tory Chief, Julian Smith, who stated it is wrong to impose a "huge tax cut for the very rich at a time of national crisis and real fear and anxiety amongst low-income workers and citizens."

The Telegraph reported last week that Tory MPs will oppose Truss if the pound dips below the US Dollar, and that they will, "hit the nuclear button," against the proposed tax cuts, citing one of the MPs saying, "my biggest anxiety is that I’m going to wake up on Monday and it’s going to be Black Monday.”

The UK Chancellor announced the mini-budget last Friday and claimed that it aims to boost economic growth and resolve the cost of living crisis. Kwarteng promised to increase GDP growth to 2.5% and suggested borrowing more than £411 billion ($446 billion) over five years.

The new measures will include calls for investing £60 billion ($65 billion) over the next six months to lower energy prices for UK homes and businesses. The basic income tax rate will be reduced from 20% to 19% while a previously proposed corporate tax increase of 25% will be overturned and firms will remain to pay a rate of 19% tax. Those earning more than £150,000 ($158,000) per year will see their income tax rate slashed from 45% to 40%. The bonus ceiling for bankers will be removed, while alcohol tariffs will be frozen. Kwarteng also outlined a slew of supply-side measures and a plan to create low-tax investment zones.

It's noteworthy that the UK reported past August that it is witnessing its highest inflation surge of 10% for the first time in 40 years, mounting more pressure on the Bank of England and causing further drops in wages but rapid rises in prices.

The Bank of England warned a couple of months ago that the UK economy will enter its longest recession since the Great Financial Crisis later this year, with economic output declining each quarter from the fourth quarter of 2022 through the fourth quarter of 2023. Soaring natural gas prices are likely to drive consumer price inflation to 13.3% in October, from 9.4% in June, the bank projected.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/lebanon:-written-offer-for-maritime-demarcation-expected-thi

Lebanon: Written offer for maritime demarcation expected this week

Lebanese President Michel Aoun was briefed by the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Elias Bou Saab, on the results of his recent visit to New York, the latest developments related to the maritime border demarcation file, and his meetings with the American mediator, Amos Hochstein.

The Presidency released a Tweet stating that Bou Saab confirmed that "the written offer that Hochstein will send is expected to arrive in Baabda (Lebanese Presidential Palace) before the end of this week."

Earlier, the Lebanese President spoke about breakthroughs on the issue of demarcation of the Lebanese southern maritime borders, assuring that Lebanon will receive the wealth it deserves and that this file is reaching its "Happy endings".

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati also stressed earlier that Lebanon adheres to its sovereignty, wealth and rights in its territorial waters, saying that the country is nearing an agreement with "Israel" on the demarcation of maritime borders.

A few days ago, Israeli media said that Washington made a new offer to "Israel" and Lebanon on the demarcation of the maritime border, noting that "the settlement proposal is centered around line 23."

The US mediator in the southern maritime border demarcation file visited Lebanon on September 9 and presented new proposals to Lebanon, Al Mayadeen revealed in an exclusive report.

The recent rapid development of events was followed by a speech made by Hezbollah Secretary-General, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, where he explicitly stated that while the Resistance waits on the results of the negotiations, its "eyes and missiles are directed towards Karish."

It's noteworthy that the Lebanese Resistance, Hezbollah, has been a very effective factor in bringing the Israelis to the indirect negotiations table after it announced from day one that it has the Lebanese government's back in its righteous and sovereign claims, and extraction from Karish without guarantees to Lebanon that it will be able to explore and extract its maritime resources is a red-line, with the Israeli military receiving the threats loud and clear and increasing preparation to anticipate operations against the gas platform by the Resistance.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/saudi-laws-strip-women-of-children-custody-leave-them-strand

Saudi laws strip women of children custody, leave them stranded

Carly Morris, a US citizen, traveled to Saudi Arabia with her little daughter in the summer of 2019, expecting to spend some quality time with the girl's Saudi father, Morris' ex-husband.

After landing in Riyadh, Morris' ex-husband seized their travel documents and arranged for the girl, eight-year-old Tala, to become a Saudi citizen, ensuring he could bar her from leaving.

Three years later, Morris is trapped in the desert kingdom, under a regime that highlights the power men like her husband enjoy over women as per the country's so-called guardianship laws.

Morris is stranded in a country where she does not understand the language and cannot legally work, with her funds depleted and her credit cards maxed out. To make ends meet, she has had to borrow money and food from strangers.

"I will not leave without my daughter," Morris, 34, told AFP in a phone interview from the house her ex-husband rents for them in the central city of Buraidah.

The Saudi system is stacked against women in Morris' situation, particularly foreigners, who are frequently forced to choose between staying in the country with their children and returning home without them, according to lawyers and experts.

Not a first

Under the guise of easing notorious guardianship laws in Saudi Arabia that greatly restrict women's ability to travel and work, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler, has coupled the alleged easing with conditions that bring Saudi women to square one.

Human rights groups note that women, for example, still require a male guardian's permission to drive a car and face discrimination when it comes to custody disputes, despite claims that this is not the case.

Hala Al-Dosari, an activist and former visiting scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, slammed the recent changes and stressed that they still "did not limit a man's ability to have the upper hand…"

"Absolute authority over children is given to the father to decide where to live, (go to school) and travel, and not to the mother," she said.

According to Bethany Al-Haidari of the New York-based Human Rights Foundation, Morris is not alone and she is not the only case facing such a long, painstaking ordeal.

"There are countless women and children trapped in similarly degrading conditions in Saudi Arabia," she said.

"Legal trouble" sneaking in

Out of nowhere, women in Morris' situation suddenly find themselves facing legal trouble they have no knowledge of.

This month, Saudi prosecutors summoned Morris and informed her that she was under investigation for "disturbing public order."

Morris believes that the alleged "public disturbance order" has to do with taking her case to social media. After all, in MBS' dictionary, expressing your views on a social media outlet amounts to a crime punishable by law.

Not only that. Morris was even informed a few days ago that she had been placed under a travel ban, according to an electronic notice seen by AFP, thus preventing her from leaving the country if she ever decides so.

The family of Morris's ex-husband did not respond to requests for comment.

MBS' crackdown: A Saudi mother sentenced to 34 years for Tweeting

MBS' crackdown on social media activists for the mere reason of tweeting or sharing posts is nothing new.

Earlier in August, a Saudi university student who had returned home for a vacation was sentenced to 34 years in prison for following and retweeting dissidents and activists on her personal Twitter account.

The sentence was handed down by Saudi Arabia's so-called "special terrorism court" just weeks after US President Joe Biden's visit to the Kingdom, which human rights activists warned could give Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) a green light to intensify his crackdown on dissidents and other pro-democracy activists.

The case poses evidence of how MBS has targeted Twitter users in its repression campaign, while also controlling a significant indirect stake in the US social media company through Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF).

Part 1

>>17584460

In MBS' playbook, Tweeting is a crime

Salma Al-Shehab, a 34-year-old mother of two, aged four and six, was initially sentenced to three years in prison for the "crime" of using an internet website to "cause public unrest and destabilize civil and national security."

However, an appeals court handed down the new sentence - 34 years in prison followed by a 34-year travel ban - after a public prosecutor requested that the court consider other alleged crimes.

Al-Shehab was not a prominent or particularly vocal Saudi activist, neither in Saudi Arabia nor in the United Kingdom.

This incident was followed by another when another woman was jailed for using Twitter.

Court records reviewed by a human rights organization show that a second Saudi Arabian woman, Nourah bint Saeed Al-Qahtani, has been sentenced to decades in jail for using social media to "violate the public order" by the country's terrorism court.

A specialized criminal court allegedly found Al-Qahtani guilty of "using the internet to tear [Saudi Arabia's] social fabric" and sentenced her to 45 years in prison as a result, according to documents obtained and examined by Democracy for the Arab World Now (Dawn).

Dawn informed the Guardian of its findings, which the latter said had been corroborated by Saudi sources, in hopes that the public would be able to shed light on Al-Qahtani's case.

Abdullah Alaoudh, the director for the Gulf region at Dawn, said Saudi authorities appear to have imprisoned Qahtani for “simply tweeting her opinions,” adding that “it is impossible not to connect the dots between Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s meeting with [US] President Biden last month in Jeddah and the uptick in the repressive attacks against anyone who dares criticize the crown prince or the Saudi government for well-documented abuses."

Part 2 - End

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/uae-to-supply-germany-with-lng-diesel

UAE to supply Germany with LNG, diesel

German multinational energy company RWE has struck an agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to provide Europe's largest economy with liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the end of December, RWE announced on Sunday.

After Germany was heavily dependent on Russia for gas, it has been looking to diversify its energy supply since the war started in Ukraine, and the consecutive sanctions against Moscow prompted a race against the clock to diminish the country's reliance on Russian gas before winter.

The announcement came on Chancellor Olaf Scholz's second day of his trip to the Gulf region in the hope of sealing new energy deals to replace Russian supplies and mitigate the energy crisis.

"We need to make sure that the production of LNG in the world is advanced to the point where the high demand that exists can be met without having to resort to the production capacity that exists in Russia," Scholz told journalists before the agreement was announced.

The LNG delivery will be 137,000 cubic meters, RWE revealed, and the first to be provided to a floating LNG terminal at Brunsbuettel near Hamburg.

"This marks an important milestone in building up an LNG supply infrastructure in Germany and setting up a more diversified gas supply," RWE stated.

The president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, signed a deal with Scholz that covers boosting industrial growth and energy security.

In addition, ADNOC reserved an unknown number of LNG cargos for Germany in the coming year, the state news agency WAM reported on Sunday.

Scholz visited Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia and stated his country was resolved to never again rely on a single energy supply and highlighted "progress" in gas projects.

His visit to Qatar comes just one day after TotalEnergies of France announced a fresh $1.5 billion deal to help Doha enhance its natural gas production.

>>17584085

For this?

>>17584404

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/thousands-in-moldova-protest-urging-govt-to-resign-amid-infl

Thousands in Moldova protest, urging gov't to resign amid inflation

Thousands in Moldova's capital protested on Sunday demanding the country's pro-Western government resign amid mounting anger over spiraling natural gas prices and inflation.

The small east European country, wedged between Ukraine and Romania, has witnessed rising political tensions in recent months as gas prices jumped after the war in Ukraine.

Thousands of people protested outside the Moldovan president's official residence in central Chisinau, according to a Reuters reporter, chanting slogans like "down with (President) Maia Sandu" and "down with the government".

Sandu has repeatedly denounced Russia's actions in Ukraine and is pushing for membership in the European Union. Her critics argue that she should have negotiated a better gas agreement with Russia, Moldova's main supplier.

On Friday, Moldova's gas regulator increased prices for households by 27 percent.

Protesters have set up around 10 tents outside the residence by the afternoon.

Last week, thousands protested high inflation and fuel costs outside Moldova's government in the ex-Soviet state's main square in Chisinau, demanding the resignation of pro-Western President Maia Sandu and her government.

"Sandu's biggest shortcoming is being unable to communicate with ordinary Moldovans," Analyst Vitalie Andrievschi told Reuters. "Sandu and her government are unable to assume their share of responsibility and punish those clearly unable to do their jobs."