Aiuti svedesi all'Ucraina, elezioni in Sud Africa 🗞️ Rassegna del 30/05/2024

Israele

(New York Times)Gaza Offensive Will Last at Least Through End of Year, Israeli Official Says

• Israel’s national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, said Wednesday that he expected Israel’s military operations in Gaza to continue through at least the end of the year, appearing to dismiss the idea that the war could come to an end after the military offensive against Hamas in Rafah.
   

• “We expect another seven months of combat in order to shore up our achievement and realize what we define as the destruction of Hamas and Islamic Jihad’s military and governing capabilities,” Mr. Hanegbi said in a radio interview with Kan, the Israeli public broadcaster.
   

• Israeli officials have told the public to expect a protracted campaign that would progress in phases toward lower-intensity fighting. Mr. Hanegbi’s assessment, however, appeared to be at odds with earlier projections by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said in April that the country was “on the brink of victory” in its war against Hamas. In recent weeks, Israeli troops have repeatedly returned to areas of northern Gaza in an attempt to tamp down a renewed insurgency there by Hamas militants.

(New York Times)U.S. Pier for Gaza Aid Damaged by Rough Seas

• The temporary pier that the U.S. military constructed and put in place to provide much-needed humanitarian aid for Gaza has broken apart in rough seas, the Pentagon said on Tuesday.
   
• “Unfortunately, we had a perfect storm of high sea states, and then, as I mentioned, this North African weather system also came in at the same time, creating not an optimal environment to operate,” Sabrina Singh, the Pentagon deputy press secretary, said at a news conference.
   
• Army engineers are working to put the pier back together and Defense Department officials hope that it “will be fully operational in just a little over a week,” she said.

Ucraina

(Kyiv Independent) Sweden announces $1.3 billion in military aid for Ukraine in largest package ever

• Sweden's Defense Ministry announced a fresh package of military aid for Ukraine valued at 13.3 Swedish krona ($1.3 billion) on May 29. It is Sweden's largest tranche of military assistance since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
   
• The package includes ASC 890 radar reconnaissance and control aircraft, the "entire Swedish stock" of Pansarbandvagn 302 infantry fighting vehicles, artillery shells, anti-air missiles, and materials to help maintain and replenish previously donated military equipment, the defense ministry said.
   
• The package also includes financial assistance, satellite communication resources, and a mandate by Sweden's Total Defense Research Institute to help Ukraine develop its own research capabilities.
   
• The Swedish government said earlier in May that it was planning to allocate 75 billion Swedish krona ($7 billion) in military support to Ukraine from 2024 to 2026. With this proposal, Stockholm's civilian and military aid to Ukraine since the outbreak of the full-scale war will amount to over 100 billion Swedish krona (over $9 billion).

(Kyiv Independent) Finland, Canada, Poland don't prohibit Ukraine from striking targets in Russia with their weapons

• Representatives of Finland, Canada, and Poland issued separate statements on May 29 saying Ukraine can use their weapons to strike targets on Russian territory.
   
• Kyiv can strike military targets on Russian territory with Finnish-supplied weapons as it has a right to self-defense under the U.N. Charter, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said in an interview on May 29 with the Finnish newspaper Uusi Suomi. "Finland has not set any special restrictions on its aid to Ukraine, but assumes that it will be used in accordance with international law," Valtonen said.
   
• Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said at a press conference on May 29 saying Ottawa does not oppose Kyiv using Canadian-supplied weapons to strike Russia.
• Polish Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk echoed her message, telling Polish radio station Radoi Zet that Warsaw does not have any restrictions on Ukraine's use of Polish-supplied weapons in Russia.

Europa

Georgia

(New York Times) Georgia’s Ruling Party Secures a Contentious Law on Foreign Influence

• Georgia’s Parliament overrode a presidential veto to give final approval on Tuesday evening to a contentious bill that has plunged the country into a political crisis and threatened to derail the pro-Western aspirations of many Georgians in favor of closer ties with Russia.
   
• The law will require nongovernmental groups and media organizations that receive at least 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as organizations “pursuing the interests of a foreign power.” The country’s justice ministry will be given broad powers to monitor compliance. Violations could result in fines equivalent to more than $9,000.
   
• The passage of the bill is likely to represent a pivotal moment for Georgia, which has been one of the most pro-Western states to emerge from the collapse of the Soviet Union. The bill has already unsteadied Georgia’s relationship with the United States and the European Union, and it could upset the fragile geopolitics of the Caucasus, a volatile region where the interests of Russia, Turkey, Iran and the West have long come into conflict.
   
• The bill has set off night after night of protests in the capital, Tbilisi, that have often descended into clashes with the police. Dozens of protesters have been beaten and arrested as the police used pepper spray, tear gas and fists to disperse them.

Politica internazionale

Nord America

America Latina

Haiti

(New York Times) Haiti Names New Prime Minister to Try to Lead Country Out of Crisis

• An experienced international aid official, Garry Conille, was unanimously appointed prime minister of Haiti by a Presidential Transition Council on Tuesday, which tasked him with leading the country out of its current crisis until elections for a new president can be held.
   
• Mr. Conille will take on his new role just as a U.N.-backed security mission led by Kenyan police is scheduled to begin operations in the violence-torn Caribbean nation, which is battling to restore political stability and tackle armed gangs who control large parts of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
   
• Fluent in English, French and Creole, Mr. Conille’s credentials include a 25-year career working for the United Nations and other aid agencies. He also briefly led Haiti as prime minister over a decade ago during another period of crisis following the devastating 2010 earthquake.

Africa

Sud Africa

(Guardian) South Africa elections: voting under way amid grim national mood

• South Africans are voting in what are expected to be the most competitive elections since the end of apartheid, which could result in the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party losing its majority for the first time since Nelson Mandela led it to power 30 years ago.
   
• The national mood is grim owing to some of the world’s highest rates of unemployment and inequality, power cuts, water shortages and violent crime. Younger generations do not feel the same gratitude and loyalty to the ANC as many of their parents and grandparents do, for leading the successful fight for multi-racial democracy.
   
• Polls have consistently shown the ANC getting less than 50% of the national vote, down from 57.5% in the last elections in 2019. This raises the prospect of South Africa’s first coalition government since the “government of national unity” during Mandela’s single presidential term, when the country was seen as a beacon of hope for Africa and the world.