Columbiana

Syria's Assad gets a prize with US withdrawal, Russia deal

Once again, Syrian President Bashar Assad has snapped up a prize from world powers that have been maneuvering in his country's multifront wars. Without firing a shot, his forces are returning to towns and villages in northeastern Syria where they haven't set foot for years. Assad was handed one victory first by U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw American troops from northeastern Syria, analysts said.

The Latest: Russian assures security of civilians at border

Russia's defense minister has spoken to the Kurdish military chief to discuss the Russian military patrols in northeastern Syria. Russia and Turkey on Tuesday struck a deal to share control of northeastern Syria, halting the Turkish offensive against the Kurds that was launched on Oct. 9. The deal allows Turkey to retain control of the area it has overtaken in the assault, while Russian and Syrian troops will control the rest of the Turkey-Syria frontier.

In Egypt, 8 dead after chaotic day of heavy rains, flooding

People captured images of Tuesday's downpours and flooding on their mobile phones, posting images on social media, including scenes of cars submerged by flood waters. The Civil Aviation Ministry said that terminal was only being used by a private carrier for one or two flights a day and shared photos of it after it was cleaned up.

Kim Orders 'Shabby' South Korean Hotels in Resort Town Destroyed

SEOUL, South Korea -- North Korea said Wednesday that its leader, Kim Jong Un, had ordered the demolition of South Korean hotels and other buildings in a resort complex that the two countries once operated together.The resort town at Diamond Mountain, or Kumgang, just north of the inter-Korean border, opened in 1998, at a time of reduced tensions between the Koreas. Until it was closed during a dispute in 2008, it served as a major source of foreign currency for the cash-starved North, frequently hosting South Korean tour groups.Kim said during a recent visit that the South Korean facilities were "shabby" and lacked "national character," comparing them to "makeshift tents in a disaster-stricken area," the North's official Korean Central News Agency reported Wednesday.Kim has pressed South Korea to reopen the complex since last year, when he first met with the South's president, Moon Jae-in. But the South said it could only consider doing so as part of a broader agreement between the United States and North Korea to end the North's nuclear weapons program.Kim called for "building new modern service facilities our own way that go well with the natural scenery of Mount Kumgang." He also criticized what he called "the mistaken policy of the predecessors" -- a reference to his father, Kim Jong Il, the North's previous dictator -- for the decision to "rely on others" for the resort project, meaning the South.Such criticism of the ruling Kim family's policies would be a capital crime for most North Koreans. But since he took power in 2011, Kim Jong Un ​has often broken that tradition, notably by criticizing state-run factories and construction projects​ as unproductive, as he has tried to rebuild his country's economy.A key element of Kim's plan for building a "self-reliant" economy, in the face of international sanctions over his nuclear program, is developing tourism along its scenic east coast and near Mount Baekdu along the Chinese border. Tourism is excluded from the sanctions that the United Nations has imposed on the North.The Diamond Mountain resort was Kim Jong Il's major effort in the tourism sector. He gave the South Korean conglomerate Hyundai the right to build and run a resort town there, in a joint venture with his totalitarian government. Starting in 1998, Hyundai built or renovated hotels, port facilities, restaurants, spas, ​a concert hall and a golf course​ at the scenic spot​.Nearly 2 million South Korean tourists visited before it was closed, helping North Korea earn ​hundreds of millions of dollars at a time when was struggling to recover from a devastating famine.Diamond Mountain was one of the most visible symbols of an era of inter-Korean cooperation that ended in 2008, when a new, conservative ​government​ took power​ in Seoul​. That government, led by President Lee Myung-bak, suspected that the tourist revenue was going to the North's nuclear weapons development. It pulled Hyundai out of the project after a North Korean security guard shot and killed a South Korean tourist who apparently had wandered into a restricted area.Since then, North Korea has occasionally threatened to confiscate and liquidate the shuttered South Korean properties at Diamond Mountain, whose value has been estimated at $400 million​. The resort has occasionally been used to host reunions of families separated during the Korean War.North Korea has recently invited tourists from China and other countries to the mountain for hiking trips, according to news reports.On Wednesday, Lee Sang-min, a spokesman for the South's Unification Ministry, said South Korea hoped to hold discussions with North Korea to defend its property rights at the resort. Hyundai said it was closely watching for further developments.​But ​Kim indicated that North Korea was no longer interested in letting South Koreans run the facilities​ again, although they would be welcome to visit​."He said that we will always welcome our compatriots from the South if they want to come to Mount Kumgang, after it is wonderfully built as the world-level tourist destination," the North Korean news agency said.This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company

Former top general gets a shot at forming Israeli government

Israel's former military chief Benny Gantz was tasked Wednesday with forming the next government, but he has few options after last month's elections left him in a near tie with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu was given the first opportunity to form a government after assembling a large right-wing bloc but announced this week that he had failed to build a 61-seat majority. Gantz faces similarly steep odds, raising the possibility that Israel will hold a third election in less than a year.

Putin aims to boost Moscow's clout with Russia-Africa summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin courted dozens of leaders of African nations Wednesday at the first-ever Russia-Africa summit while a pair of nuclear-capable bombers made an unprecedented visit to the continent, reflecting Moscow's new push for clout. Speaking at the two-day summit attended by leaders of 43 of Africa's 54 countries, Putin hailed the continent's "enormous potential for growth" and negotiated deals to tap its riches including diamonds, uranium and oil. Putin said Russia's annual trade with African nations doubled in the last five years to exceed $20 billion, and expressed confidence that it could double again "as a minimum" in the next four or five years.

EU backs Brexit delay as Johnson eyes election

European Union members backed a plan to postpone Brexit on Wednesday but have yet to agree on how much longer to give London to resolve its political crisis. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is struggling to persuade British MPs to quickly ratify the divorce accord he struck with EU leaders last week, and is pushing for a snap election. Johnson spoke to European Council president Donald Tusk on Wednesday and, according to a European source, he told him he does not want to delay Brexit beyond October 31.

Germany’s NATO Allies Give Tentative Welcome to Syria Peace Plan

(Bloomberg) -- Germany’s NATO allies offered encouragement to Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer’s call for an international force to stabilize the situation in northern Syria.NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the U.S. ambassador to the organization, Kay Bailey Hutchison, both welcomed the proposal on Wednesday in Brussels when previewing an Oct. 24-25 meeting of the alliance’s defense ministers. Hutchison signaled that the German initiative would require European troops on the ground to make it work.Kramp-Karrenbauer’s suggestion is "certainly a positive," Bailey Hutchison told reporters. "If the Turks will ask for more help from the international community, I think the Europeans can step forward."The response in Brussels was very different to the reaction in Berlin, where the plan was sprung on many of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s allies with little warning earlier this week and was greeted with barely veiled contempt by the junior coalition partner, the Social Democrats.“I find it somewhat unusual – and I don’t think it should become the way the cabinet works,” Social Democratic caucus leader Rolf Muetzenich told reporters in Berlin on Tuesday. “I do think that Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer should learn a little from the discussion that she’s confronted in the past few hours.”Kramp-Karrenbauer, known as AKK in Germany, said an internationally agreed security zone would defuse the fighting in northern Syria and allow the focus to return to fighting the Islamic State and allowing displaced Kurds to return. It’s not clear how the plan would overlap with Turkey’s proposed security zone, designed to be off-limits to U.S.-backed Kurdish forces. Turkey is seeking to clear a swath of territory along its border with Syria currently occupied by Kurds.“This will certainly be discussed during our meeting," Stoltenberg told a news conference. "And I expect AKK to share her thoughts with the other allies.’’The idea has the backing of the chancellor, but the idea of a military venture in the Middle East puts AKK on risky terrain with a German public that has been broadly resistant to such entanglements since World War II.The defense minister late on Wednesday suggested that Russia and Turkey alone couldn’t be left to control northern Syria and that the European Union had a type of moral obligation to become involved. "I cannot say that this initiative will be successful in the end," she said at an event in Erfurt. "But I would blame myself if I wouldn’t at least give it a try."AKK herself has been struggling to establish her authority since being chosen to succeed Merkel as head of the Christian Democrats last year. Two months ago she asked Merkel for the defense minister’s job in an effort to boost a slide in her approval ratings and her plan for an internationally-monitored security zone in northern Syria was the latest in a series of interventions that have irritated people in Berlin.Dim ViewFor now, her party is closing ranks behind her. Merkel, who earlier this year took a dim view of the new CDU leader’s performance, backed her defense minister in a closed-door meeting with lawmakers in Berlin, according to two people present. A similar security-zone proposal was raised in 2016 during the siege of Aleppo, Merkel said. AKK even drew a round of applause.But earlier in the day, officials in Merkel’s coalition were scrambling to figure out what was being announced.Syria was discussed at length at a Sunday evening meeting of coalition leaders, including the CDU, their Bavarian allies in the Christian Social Union and the Social Democrats. But AKK made no mention of such a plan at the time, CSU caucus leader Alexander Dobrindt said. He himself learned of the initiative only Tuesday morning.Germany Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, another Social Democrat, complained that he was informed via text message.“We would like to know what Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer’s ideas look like concretely, because we’re getting a lot of questions from abroad on what the German position is,” Niels Annen, Germany’s deputy foreign minister and a Social Democrat, told ZDF. “We need to answer that.”(Adds AKK comment in ninth and tenth paragraphs.)\--With assistance from Caroline Alexander.To contact the reporters on this story: Patrick Donahue in Berlin at pdonahue1@bloomberg.net;Arne Delfs in Berlin at adelfs@bloomberg.net;Jonathan Stearns in Brussels at jstearns2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Raymond ColittFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

Russian forces deploy at Syrian border under new accord

Russian military police began patrols on part of the Syrian border Wednesday, quickly moving to implement an accord with Turkey that divvies up control of northeastern Syria. The Kremlin told Kurdish fighters to pull back from the entire frontier or else face being "steamrolled" by Turkish forces. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan echoed those warnings, saying his military would resume its offensive against Kurdish fighters if the new arrangements are not carried out.

The Latest: Gantz tasked with forming Israeli government

Israel's president has tasked former military chief Benny Gantz with forming the next government after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to assemble a 61-seat majority coalition. The two rivals were deadlocked following last month's elections, with neither able to easily form a majority coalition, raising the possibility of an unprecedented third election in less than a year. President Reuven Rivlin formally granted the mandate to Gantz late Wednesday, giving him 28 days to form a government.

Byzantine church to mystery martyr unearthed near Jerusalem

Israeli archaeologists have revealed an elaborately decorated Byzantine church dedicated to an anonymous martyr that was recently uncovered near Jerusalem. The Israel Antiquities Authority showcased some of the finds from the nearly 1,500-year-old structure on Wednesday after three years of excavations. The findings will be exhibited at Jerusalem's Bible Lands Museum.

Trump claims he saved lives of 'thousands' in Syria as he declares end of US involvement in the war

President Donald Trump has claimed the US had saved the lives of “thousands” in Syria and took credit for the ceasefire, in a barnstorming speech declaring the end of American involvement in the war. “This is an outcome created by us, the United States, and nobody else,” he said, addressing reporters at the White House a day after Turkey and Russia brokered a deal for Kurdish-held north-east Syria without the US president. Mr Trump green-lit a Turkish-led offensive along the Syrian border two weeks ago, effectively abandoning Kurdish partners who had helped to defeat Islamic State. International condemnation followed as hundreds of thousands of civilians fled the fighting and more than 80 Syrian civilians were killed. Russian military vehicles entering the city of Kobani on the border with Turkey. VOApic.twitter.com/6was7YmHaK— Sirwan Kajjo (@SirwanKajjo) October 23, 2019 Mr Trump imposed sanctions on Ankara in response to its offensive moves, but announced in his speech yesterday that these would be lifted if the ceasefire held. "We’ve avoided another costly military intervention, many thousands of people could have been killed,” he said, flanked by Mike Pence, Vice President, and Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State. “Turkey, Syria and all forms of the Kurds have been fighting for centuries. We have done them a great service, a great job for all of them,” he said, declaring the US was done fighting others’ wars. “We’re getting out. Let’s someone else fight over this long bloodstained sand.” He promised in the future to only deploy American troops into battle when the US’s national interests are at stake, and only when there was a plan to win. “We will only win,” he said. His claims of success bore little resemblance to the reality on the ground, however, and were likely intended for his base at home to whom he had promised an end to "endless wars". The US president’s announcement came a day after a deal was struck between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin to "facilitate the removal" from the border region of Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) fighters. Russian President Vladimir Putin receives Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Sochi Credit: Getty The agreement will also see Turkey preserve a so-called "safe zone" inside Syria about 75 miles long and 20 miles deep.  Turkey’s defense ministry said that the withdrawal from the buffer zone would mean that there was “no further need to conduct a new operation,” preventing a feared humanitarian catastrophe. The deal effectively redraws the map of northern Syria and ends nearly six years of autonomy carved out by the local Kurdish administration.  Russian and allied Syrian government forces began patrolling for the first time yesterday in towns US forces were once stationed.  Humvees bearing Russian flags were filmed driving into Kobane, marking the first pro-regime presence in the area in more than seven years. The talks, which took place in Mr Putin’s dacha in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, confirmed Moscow’s position as powerbroker in Syria. A convoy of Russian military vehicles drives toward the northeastern city of Kobane Credit: AFP "The United States has been the Kurds' closest ally in recent years. (But) in the end, it abandoned the Kurds and, in essence, betrayed them," Dmitri Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, said pointedly on Wednesday. "Now they (the Americans) prefer to leave the Kurds at the border (with Turkey) and almost force them to fight the Turks." Or as Mevlut Cavusoglu, the Turkish foreign minister, put it: “When you are present on the ground, then you are also present on the negotiating table." The US, which did not have a seat at the table for Tuesday’s talks, has been shut out of decision-making and left with little leverage to demand assurances for its former Kurdish partners. Mark Esper, US secretary of defence, meanwhile, was in Baghdad on Wednesday meeting with Iraqi prime minister Adel Abdul Mahdi to manage the fallout of their quick retreat. The US withdrew the bulk of its some 1,000 troops from Syria on Monday, greeted on the way out by Kurdish residents throwing rotten fruit and holding up signs reading: “We will not forget this betrayal”. The Pentagon had announced the troops were expected to move to western Iraq to continue the campaign against Islamic State and "to help defend Iraq". But it appeared the move was not first approved by Baghdad, which issued a statement saying they did not have the right to remain in the country. Mr Esper was told he had 30 days to remove the troops.

Donald Trump declares Syria ceasefire permanent and lifts Turkey sanctions

* ‘Let someone else fight over this long-bloodstained sand’ * US special envoy reports Turkish ‘war crimes’ to CongressDonald Trump is flanked by Vice-President Mike Pence, left and the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, while announcing the lifting of sanctions on Turkey at the White House. Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty ImagesDonald Trump has announced that the US will lift sanctions on Turkey, taking credit for a ceasefire deal that should end Ankara’s attack on Kurdish-led forces – at the price of ending the Kurds’ dream of local autonomy.The US president, who has come under withering criticism for abruptly withdrawing US troops – and paving the way for a deadly Turkish offensive against the Kurds – said on Wednesday that a “small number” of US troops would remain in Syria’s oilfields.In a televised address on Wednesday, Trump emphasized that US troops were “safe” and said America would leave other powers to fight each other in the region.He added: “Let someone else fight over this long-bloodstained sand.Wednesday’s announcement came as Russian troops expanded their presence across north-eastern Syria, the result of an agreement between Ankara and Moscow.Just a week ago, Trump announced a series of financial punishments on Ankara – including the reimposition of 50% tariffs on Turkish steel – after Turkey launched its attack on Kurdish-led forces in north-eastern Syria.That offensive began hours after a phone call between Trump and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in which the Turkish president, informed Trump of his plans, and understood the US president to give a green light.“The government of Turkey informed my administration that they would be stopping combat and their offensive in Syria, and making the ceasefire permanent,” Trump said.“I have, therefore, instructed the secretary of the Treasury to lift all sanctions imposed October 14,” he added.“How many Americans must die in the Middle East in the midst of these ancient sectarian and tribal conflicts?” Trump said. “I am committed to pursuing a different course, one that leads to victory for America.”Who is in control in north-eastern Syria?Until Turkey launched its offensive there on 9 October, the region was controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which comprises militia groups representing a range of ethnicities, though its backbone is Kurdish. Since the Turkish incursion, the SDF has lost much of its territory and appears to be losing its grip on key cities. On 13 October, Kurdish leaders agreed to allow Syrian regime forces to enter some cities to protect them from being captured by Turkey and its allies. The deal effectively hands over control of huge swathes of the region to Damascus.That leaves north-eastern Syria divided between Syrian regime forces, Syrian opposition militia and their Turkish allies, and areas still held by the SDF – for now.On 17 October Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, agreed with US vice-president Mike Pence, to suspend Ankara’s operation for five days in order to allow Kurdish troops to withdraw. The following week, on 22 October, Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin agreed on the parameters of the proposed Turkish “safe zone” in Syria.How did the SDF come to control the region?Before the SDF was formed in 2015, the Kurds had created their own militias who mobilised during the Syrian civil war to defend Kurdish cities and villages and carve out what they hoped would eventually at least become a semi-autonomous province. In late 2014, the Kurds were struggling to fend off an Islamic State siege of Kobane, a major city under their control. With US support, including arms and airstrikes, the Kurds managed to beat back Isis and went on to win a string of victories against the radical militant group. Along the way the fighters absorbed non-Kurdish groups, changed their name to the SDF and grew to include 60,000 soldiers.Why does Turkey oppose the Kurds?For years, Turkey has watched the growing ties between the US and SDF with alarm. Significant numbers of the Kurds in the SDF were also members of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) that has fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for more than 35 years in which as many as 40,000 people have died. The PKK initially called for independence and now demands greater autonomy for Kurds inside Turkey.Turkey claims the PKK has continued to wage war on the Turkish state, even as it has assisted in the fight against Isis. The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US, the UK, Nato and others and this has proved awkward for the US and its allies, who have chosen to downplay the SDF’s links to the PKK, preferring to focus on their shared objective of defeating Isis.What are Turkey’s objectives on its southern border?Turkey aims firstly to push the SDF away from its border, creating a 20-mile (32km) buffer zone that would have been jointly patrolled by Turkish and US troops until Trump’s recent announcement that American soldiers would withdraw from the region.Erdoğan has also said he would seek to relocate more than 1 million Syrian refugees in this “safe zone”, both removing them from his country (where their presence has started to create a backlash) and complicating the demographic mix in what he fears could become an autonomous Kurdish state on his border.How would a Turkish incursion impact on Isis?Nearly 11,000 Isis fighters, including almost 2,000 foreigners, and tens of thousands of their wives and children, are being held in detention camps and hastily fortified prisons across north-eastern Syria.SDF leaders have warned they cannot guarantee the security of these prisoners if they are forced to redeploy their forces to the frontlines of a war against Turkey. They also fear Isis could use the chaos of war to mount attacks to free their fighters or reclaim territory. On 11 October, it was reported that at least five detained Isis fighters had escaped a prison in the region. Two days later, 750 foreign women affiliated to Isis and their children managed to break out of a secure annex in the Ain Issa camp for displaced people, according to SDF officials.It is unclear which detention sites the SDF still controls and the status of the prisoners inside.Michael SafiSome troops would remain in Syria’s oilfields, Trump said. “We have secured the oil and, therefore, a small number of US troops will remain in the area where they have the oil.”As Trump was speaking, his special envoy for Syria, James Jeffrey, told the US Congress that American forces had seen “several incidents of what we consider war crimes” by Turkish forces, during the recent attack on the Kurds.Jeffrey also said that “over 100” Islamic State prisoners had escaped during the Turkish offensive and “we do not know where they are.”Earlier on Wednesday, Syrian and Russian media showed footage of Russian military police vehicles on the outskirts of the important towns of Manbij and Kobani, one day after Erdoğan, met Vladimir Putin in Sochi.A statement carried on Russia’s Interfax agency said Russian patrols had already begun inside Manbij, a town that until two weeks ago was a key US base in the region.The deal was hailed as a “big success” by Trump, although his critics say it cements Russia’s role as prime powerbroker in the Middle East.In an earlier tweet, the US president claimed the Kurds were safe and Isis prisoners secured.> Big success on the Turkey/Syria Border. Safe Zone created! Ceasefire has held and combat missions have ended. Kurds are safe and have worked very nicely with us. Captured ISIS prisoners secured. I will be making a statement at 11:00 A.M. from the White House. Thank you!> > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 23, 2019Turkish troops, allied Syrian rebel proxies, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and soldiers belonging to the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, are now all present in the border zone, with Russia the only negotiating force between them.The talks on Tuesday between Erdoğan and the Russian president defined the contours of Turkey’s long-proposed border “safe zone”: Turkish troops in the area seized since the offensive began on 9 October will remain in situ, and Russian soldiers and the Syrian army will control the rest of the frontier.Moscow and Damascus will supervise the removal of Kurdish fighters and weaponry to the depth of 18 miles (29km) from their current positions on the border before 26 October, after which joint Russian-Turkish patrols will begin across the entire border area to a depth of six miles, with the exception of the de facto Kurdish capital, Qamishli.On Wednesday, the Russian ministry of defence published a map showing 15 planned border observation posts that will be manned by the Syrian regime.The deal in effect redraws the map of northern Syria and ends five years of semi-autonomy carved out by the local Kurdish administration and its military forces, after Kurdish officials reached an agreement with Assad, their former enemy, for military reinforcements to fend off the Turkish attack.However, the fate of local military councils set up by the SDF in border towns previously under their control and what happens to the SDF’s non-Kurdish units remains unclear. The SDF and Kurdish politicians are yet to comment on the Sochi deal.It is believed they will retain control of the approximately 90,000 men, women and children with links to Islamic State being held in Kurdish-run prisons and detention camps.Turkish officials including Erdoğan threatened on Wednesday that Ankara would resume the offensive if neither Russia nor the US guaranteed the total withdrawal of Kurdish fighters from the border region.Ankara says the YPG is indistinguishable from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK), which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state for decades. Erdoğan said Putin responded by saying he would not let that happen.The border towns of Ras al-Ayn and Tel Abyad, which have experienced fierce fighting, remained quiet on Wednesday, one day after a separate, poorly observed US-brokered ceasefire expired.Erdoğan is scheduled to visit the White House next month.At least 120 Syrians have died and 176,000 people have fled their homes over the last two weeks of violence, with 20 Turkish civilian deaths on the other side of the border.

Russia steps up its presence in north-east Syria after Turkey deal

More Russian troops arrive in border region as Donald Trump hails situation as a ‘big success’A convoy of Russian military vehicles drives towards the north-eastern Syrian town of Kobane. Photograph: AFP via Getty ImagesRussian troops have expanded their presence across north-eastern Syria, the result of an agreement between Ankara and Moscow that should end Turkey’s attack on Kurdish-led forces at the price of ending the Kurds’ dreams of local autonomy.Syrian and Russian media showed footage of Russian military police vehicles on the outskirts of the important towns of Manbij and Kobani on Wednesday, one day after the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, met Vladimir Putin in Sochi.A statement carried on Russia’s Interfax agency said Russian patrols had already begun inside Manbij, a town that until two weeks ago was a key US base in the region.The deal was hailed as a “big success” by Donald Trump, although his critics say it cements Russia’s role as prime power broker in the Middle East after the US president’s announcement that American special forces would withdraw from the area.Who is in control in north-eastern Syria?Until Turkey launched its offensive there on 9 October, the region was controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which comprises militia groups representing a range of ethnicities, though its backbone is Kurdish. Since the Turkish incursion, the SDF has lost much of its territory and appears to be losing its grip on key cities. On 13 October, Kurdish leaders agreed to allow Syrian regime forces to enter some cities to protect them from being captured by Turkey and its allies. The deal effectively hands over control of huge swathes of the region to Damascus.That leaves north-eastern Syria divided between Syrian regime forces, Syrian opposition militia and their Turkish allies, and areas still held by the SDF – for now.On 17 October Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, agreed with US vice-president Mike Pence, to suspend Ankara’s operation for five days in order to allow Kurdish troops to withdraw. The following week, on 22 October, Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin agreed on the parameters of the proposed Turkish “safe zone” in Syria.How did the SDF come to control the region?Before the SDF was formed in 2015, the Kurds had created their own militias who mobilised during the Syrian civil war to defend Kurdish cities and villages and carve out what they hoped would eventually at least become a semi-autonomous province. In late 2014, the Kurds were struggling to fend off an Islamic State siege of Kobane, a major city under their control. With US support, including arms and airstrikes, the Kurds managed to beat back Isis and went on to win a string of victories against the radical militant group. Along the way the fighters absorbed non-Kurdish groups, changed their name to the SDF and grew to include 60,000 soldiers.Why does Turkey oppose the Kurds?For years, Turkey has watched the growing ties between the US and SDF with alarm. Significant numbers of the Kurds in the SDF were also members of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) that has fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for more than 35 years in which as many as 40,000 people have died. The PKK initially called for independence and now demands greater autonomy for Kurds inside Turkey.Turkey claims the PKK has continued to wage war on the Turkish state, even as it has assisted in the fight against Isis. The PKK is listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US, the UK, Nato and others and this has proved awkward for the US and its allies, who have chosen to downplay the SDF’s links to the PKK, preferring to focus on their shared objective of defeating Isis.What are Turkey’s objectives on its southern border?Turkey aims firstly to push the SDF away from its border, creating a 20-mile (32km) buffer zone that would have been jointly patrolled by Turkish and US troops until Trump’s recent announcement that American soldiers would withdraw from the region.Erdoğan has also said he would seek to relocate more than 1 million Syrian refugees in this “safe zone”, both removing them from his country (where their presence has started to create a backlash) and complicating the demographic mix in what he fears could become an autonomous Kurdish state on his border.How would a Turkish incursion impact on Isis?Nearly 11,000 Isis fighters, including almost 2,000 foreigners, and tens of thousands of their wives and children, are being held in detention camps and hastily fortified prisons across north-eastern Syria.SDF leaders have warned they cannot guarantee the security of these prisoners if they are forced to redeploy their forces to the frontlines of a war against Turkey. They also fear Isis could use the chaos of war to mount attacks to free their fighters or reclaim territory. On 11 October, it was reported that at least five detained Isis fighters had escaped a prison in the region. Two days later, 750 foreign women affiliated to Isis and their children managed to break out of a secure annex in the Ain Issa camp for displaced people, according to SDF officials.It is unclear which detention sites the SDF still controls and the status of the prisoners inside.Michael SafiThe US president was planning to make a fresh statement on the issue on Wednesday morning. In an earlier tweet he claimed the Kurds were safe and Isis prisoners secured.> Big success on the Turkey/Syria Border. Safe Zone created! Ceasefire has held and combat missions have ended. Kurds are safe and have worked very nicely with us. Captured ISIS prisoners secured. I will be making a statement at 11:00 A.M. from the White House. Thank you!> > — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 23, 2019Turkish troops, allied Syrian rebel proxies, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and soldiers belonging to the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, are now all present in the border zone, with Russia the only negotiating force between them.The talks on Tuesday between Erdoğan and the Russian president defined the contours of Turkey’s long-proposed border “safe zone”: Turkish troops in the area seized since the offensive began on 9 October will remain in situ, and Russian soldiers and the Syrian army will control the rest of the frontier.Soldiers with a Russian military police vehicle in Kobani. Photograph: AFP via Getty ImagesMoscow and Damascus will supervise the removal of Kurdish fighters and weaponry to the depth of 18 miles (29km) from their current positions on the border before 26 October, after which joint Russian-Turkish patrols will begin across the entire border area to a depth of six miles, with the exception of the de facto Kurdish capital, Qamishli.On Wednesday, the Russian ministry of defence published a map showing 15 planned border observation posts that will be manned by the Syrian regime.The deal in effect redraws the map of northern Syria and ends five years of semi-autonomy carved out by the local Kurdish administration and its military forces, after Kurdish officials reached an agreement with Assad, their former enemy, for military reinforcements to fend off the Turkish attack.However, the fate of local military councils set up by the SDF in border towns previously under their control and what happens to the SDF’s non-Kurdish units remains unclear. The SDF and Kurdish politicians are yet to comment on the Sochi deal.It is believed they will retain control of the approximately 90,000 men, women and children with links to Islamic State being held in Kurdish-run prisons and detention camps.Turkish officials including Erdoğan threatened on Wednesday that Ankara would resume the offensive if neither Russia nor the US guaranteed the total withdrawal of Kurdish fighters from the border region.Erdoğan asked Putin what would happen if the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the largest and most important unit within the SDF, put on Syrian army uniforms in order to stay in the border area, according to Hürriyet newspaper.Ankara says the YPG is indistinguishable from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK), which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state for decades. Erdoğan said Putin responded by saying he would not let that happen.The border towns of Ras al-Ayn and Tel Abyad, which have experienced fierce fighting, remained quiet on Wednesday, one day after a separate, poorly observed US-brokered ceasefire expired.Trump tweeted: “Safe Zone created! Ceasefire has held and combat missions have ended. Kurds are safe and have worked very nicely with us. Captured ISIS prisoners secured.”Erdoğan is scheduled to visit the White House next month.The deal was greeted more cautiously by the Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, who said the need for a political solution in north-east Syria would be discussed by defence ministers in Brussels on Thursday.At least 120 Syrians have died and 176,000 people have fled their homes over the last two weeks of violence, with 20 Turkish civilian deaths on the other side of the border.

Trump Announces New Syria Plan: Blood for Oil

REUTERSPresident Donald Trump announced Wednesday he’s keeping a small U.S. force in northeastern Syria, even as he declaimed responsibility for fighting the so-called Islamic State there.“Let someone else fight over this long bloodstained sand,” Trump said from the Oval Office, in what sounded like a victory speech over an outcome negotiated between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Ratifying the Turkish invasion that began Oct. 9 and has displaced what UNICEF estimates as 80,000 children, Trump announced he will permanently lift “all sanctions imposed” on Turkey. The decision ensures Erdoğan will face no consequences for its invasion of northeastern Syrian areas previously held by Kurdish forces fighting alongside the United States. It was not immediately clear where this residual force of U.S. troops will be stationed or what local partner they will have. The U.S. military command, which has been taken by surprise by a wrenching month of withdrawal decisions, did not immediately respond to comment. The other enduring U.S. base in the war-torn country, known as al-Tanf, is in the southeastern Syrian desert, far from the oil fields and pipelines that Trump claimed as the residual mission for the U.S. in Syria. “We will be deciding what to do with [the oil] in the future,” Trump declared. Using U.S. forces to claim another nation’s oil is likely to prompt backlash, though it is unclear whether Trump’s pronouncements, an echo of his campaign rhetoric, will translate to actual American policy.After Trump gave Erdoğan a green light to invade on Oct. 6, the administration, facing substantial political opposition, has attempted after the fact to portray itself as opposing the incursion. Last week, Vice President Mike Pence and other senior administration officials in Ankara announced a ceasefire that ratified all of Turkey’s military goals: clearing the Kurds out of a 20-mile-deep area away from the Turkish border. The vice president said that while the ceasefire held, the Turks would enjoy a reprieve from the sanctions the U.S. placed on Turkey post-invasion. Trump claimed victory out of the five-day durability of the ceasefire, something that resulted from a deal reached Tuesday by Erdoğan and Putin for joint Turkish-Russian patrols in an area that effectively redraws the Turkish-Syrian border. Yet Trump presented this fait accompli as “an outcome created by us, the United States, and no other nation.” He praised Erdoğan as “a man I have gotten to know very well” and referenced an invitation to the White House that he first extended to his Turkish counterpart days before the offensive began. It was not the only unreality in Trump’s brief speech. He claimed all ISIS fighters had been recaptured, said the U.S. has been in Syria for “almost ten years” instead of the four years it has been there, portrayed the conflict between Kurds and Turks as ancient instead of political and glossed over the horrific scenes of violence against Kurds that resulted from the Turkish invasion. Trump’s posture on Wednesday was to wash his hands of whatever ISIS resurgence results. “Now Turkey, Syria and others in the region must work to make sure ISIS doesn’t regain any territory,” he said. “It’s their neighborhood.”Even though he made no effort to explain when the new, plunder-driven goals of the U.S. in Syria will be satisfied, permitting an actual withdrawal, Trump contended that he had reoriented the U.S. military out of a generation of conflict in the Middle East that has agonizingly produced neither peace nor victory.With “a clear objective, a plan for victory and a path out of conflict,” Trump said, the U.S. will now “only win—our whole basis has to be the right plan, we will win, no one can beat us.” Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

Johnson Stuck in Limbo as He Awaits EU Decision: Brexit Update

(Bloomberg) -- Sign up to our Brexit Bulletin, follow us @Brexit and subscribe to our podcast.Boris Johnson said French President Emmanuel Macron could veto another extension to the Brexit deadline, potentially forcing the U.K. out of the bloc with no deal in eight days’ time.According to a spokesman for the U.K. opposition, Johnson made the remark during a private meeting with Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn, who raised doubts about the scenario.Johnson is stuck and Brexit is in limbo. The prime minister held fruitless talks with Corbyn after failing to persuade Parliament to rush his Brexit deal into law. Now he must wait for the European Union to decide whether to agree to his reluctant request for a three-month delay. Donald Tusk is keen on pushing the deadline back to Jan. 31, and EU ambassadors will meet later.Key Developments:German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas hints a Brexit extension could come with conditionsEU27 ambassadors meet to discuss U.K.’s request for a delay; a special leaders’ summit could be held on Oct. 25 or Oct. 28Opposition Labour Party willing to back election if risk of no-deal Brexit is removedJohnson insists he wants U.K. to leave on Oct. 31, but fails to reach deal with Corbyn on a new timetable ratify Brexit dealMust Read: What If Macron Blocked a Brexit Delay? His Reasons to Be TemptedBrexit Twists Point to Election. Here’s How It Works: QuickTakeEU Will Keep Extensions Coming, Bulgarian PM Says (5 p.m.)Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said the EU will keep providing extensions to avoid the risk of a no-deal Brexit.“There’s no chance that we don’t give them a chance,” Borissov said in a TV interview. “Imagine what will happen to the visa regime. And to the customs union, to the common market.”The Bulgarian prime minister added that his U.K. counterpart is suffering the same fate as his predecessor.“I think my friend Theresa May is the happiest person now, because what Boris Johnson used to do to her, he now suffers the same in full,” Borissov said. “We’ll write ‘postpone’, and ‘postpone’ and ‘postpone’, and we’ll keep on like that for another 90-100 years.”Johnson Tells Merkel U.K. Should Leave Oct. 31 (4:25 p.m.)Boris Johnson spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday to reiterate his view that Brexit should not be delayed, according to the prime minister’s spokesman. The two leaders spoke for 10 minutes by phone, James Slack said, declining to say what Merkel told Johnson.The prime minister’s view is that Brexit on Oct. 31 is still possible, Slack told reporters in London. He said Parliament has handed control of the next stage of the process to the European Union by voting down Johnson’s timetable to debate his Brexit bill.In addition to calls with Merkel and EU Council President Donald Tusk (see 1:15 p.m.), Johnson spoke to his Irish counterpart Leo Varadkar on Tuesday night, Slack said.EU Won’t Make Delay Decision Today: Officials (4 p.m.)The European Union’s 27 remaining countries won’t decide on a Brexit delay when their ambassadors meet in Brussels later on Wednesday, two EU officials said.European Council President Donald Tusk will probably make a decision on Friday -- either on the length of the delay or, if there’s no consensus within the EU, to call a summit of leaders, the officials said.Tusk is consulting heads of government in the bloc and the most likely option remains to extend until Jan. 31 with the ability to leave earlier, according to the officials, who were speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are private.How Brexit Could Be Done by End-November: MPs (3:15 p.m.)Boris Johnson could get Brexit done by the end of November if he were willing to negotiate a new legislative timetable, according to two pro-European Members of Parliament who were expelled from the Conservative Party by the premier for opposing his strategy.Both MPs, who asked not to be named, said that six days of debate in the House of Commons would suffice, with a similar period in the House of Lords. Both also said they’d back an amendment to keep the U.K. in a customs union with the European Union -- something Johnson opposes because it curtails Britain’s ability to strike its own trade deals.These MPs are among the staunchest opponents of Johnson’s attempt to ram through the bill. Their proposal suggests Johnson may not have to wait too long to get his deal done, if he were willing to give MPs six days to debate it, instead of the three he originally offered.Johnson Sees Possible France Veto: Labour (1:45 p.m.)Boris Johnson told Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in their meeting Wednesday that French President Emmanuel Macron could veto a Brexit extension, and asked Corbyn how he would respond. Corbyn expressed his doubt about that scenario, according to a Labour Party spokesman.Corbyn also reiterated to the prime minister that Labour would back a general election once the threat of a no-deal Brexit has been removed, the spokesman said.Earlier, a spokesman for the prime minister said he didn’t expect further talks with Labour on a new timetable for the government’s Brexit bill after Parliament rejected Johnson’s accelerated schedule on Tuesday (see 12 p.m.).EU Leaders May Meet on Extension: Varadkar (1:35 p.m.)EU heads of state may meet as soon as Friday to decide on the U.K.’s request for a Brexit extension until January, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said in Parliament in Dublin. The meeting may take place on Monday if the leaders don’t all immediately agree to extend, he said.The new withdrawal agreement negotiated by Boris Johnson will not be changed, Varadkar said, adding that even if the deal is approved, the transition period may need to be extended beyond the end of 2020.Varadkar, who spoke to Johnson by phone on Tuesday night, said the U.K. leader was “very pleased” to have a won a vote on his deal in the London Parliament but “concerned” his timetable to get his plan approved had been defeated.Tusk tells Johnson He’s Recommending Delay (1:15 p.m.)European Council President Donald Tusk told Boris Johnson in a phone call that he will be recommending to the other 27 member states that they should grant the prime minister’s request for an extension.“I gave reasons why I’m recommending the EU27 accept the U.K. request for an extension,” Tusk wrote on Twitter.Johnson, who wrote to the EU to ask for a delay on Saturday evening after losing a vote in Parliament, told Tusk he “continues to believe that there should be no extension,” his spokesman James Slack told reporters in London. A further delay would not be in the interests of either side, Slack said.EU Ambassadors to Discuss Extension (12:45 p.m.)Ambassadors from the EU’s other 27 governments will meet in Brussels at 5:30 p.m. local time to discuss the U.K.’s request for a Brexit delay.They can’t make the final decision -- that will have to come from EU Council President Donald Tusk on behalf of all the leaders -- but they will give a sense of what the EU’s response will be.It could be that the decision is a formality, or Tusk will have to convene a summit. Oct. 28 has been penciled in for that meeting, but most EU officials hope it won’t be necessary.Johnson Still Wants Brexit on Oct. 31 (12:40 p.m.)Boris Johnson told Parliament he still wants to deliver Brexit by Oct. 31, though he offered no path to achieving this goal.Asked by former Tory Chancellor of the Exchequer Kenneth Clarke to set out a new compromise timetable to get his Brexit bill through Parliament, Johnson said it would depend on how the EU responds to the request for a Brexit delay that he sent to the bloc on Saturday night.“I think it would be still very much in the best interests of this country and democracy to get Brexit done by Oct. 31,” Johnson said.Deal ‘a Great Advance,’ Johnson Says (12:15 p.m.)Johnson defended his deal with the EU and urged the opposition to enable him to push it through Parliament.“I believe the union is preserved and we are able to go forward together as one United Kingdom and do free trade deals that have been impossible under previous deals,” Johnson told MPs in the House of Commons. “This is a great advance for the whole of the U.K. and we intend to develop that with our friends in Northern Ireland.”“I do think it’s a great shame the House willed the end but not the means” in Tuesday night’s votes, Johnson said. He urged Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn to “get Brexit done” and accused him of having “no other purpose in seeking to disrupt Brexit than seeking a second referendum.”Johnson Meets Corbyn for Talks on Exit Law (12 p.m.)The premier hosted his arch rival, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, for a discussion in Parliament aimed at seeing whether there is any hope of agreeing a new timetable for MPs to debate and scrutinize the Brexit deal.Johnson was thwarted on Tuesday night when the House of Commons refused to allow him to rush his deal through Parliament and into law on a fast-track program. According to an official from Johnson’s Conservative party, Corbyn did not propose anything other than more delays and a referendum.A Labour Party spokesman said: “Jeremy Corbyn reiterated Labour’s offer to the prime minister to agree a reasonable timetable to debate, scrutinize and amend the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, and restated that Labour will support a general election when the threat of a no-deal crash out is off the table.”France Waits To See How Long U.K. Needs (11.55 a.m.)France thinks the U.K. Parliament should be able to scrutinize the Brexit legislation in a matter of days and wants to wait for Johnson’s view on that before deciding how long to delay the exit date, according to a French official. The French believe a maximum of 15 days should be given, the official said, rather than the full three months to Jan. 31 that Johnson reluctantly requested.This contradicts the thinking in many European capitals, as suggested in a tweet last night by EU Council President Donald Tusk, that the EU should grant the U.K. a three-month delay, with the ability to end the extension early.Government Wants New Timetable for Bill: Smith (11:45 a.m.)Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith, also a former chief whip, suggested the government’s priority is to propose a new legislative timetable for the government’s Brexit bill after the House of Commons rejected an accelerated schedule on Tuesday.Speaking to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, Smith said he hopes to get a so-called program motion “that is to the satisfaction of a majority of people in this House and resolve this situation.” He also said he thought last night’s votes were the “beginning of the end of this chapter.”Nothing Agreed at Johnson-Corbyn Meeting: BBC (11:40 a.m.)The BBC said “nothing was agreed” at the reported meeting between Boris Johnson and Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn (see 11:30 a.m.) on a new timetable for the prime minister’s Brexit bill.Johnson, Corbyn Discuss New Timetable: Times (11:30 a.m.)Boris Johnson and opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn are meeting to discuss a new timetable for the prime minister’s Brexit bill to be debated in the House of Commons, the Times newspaper reported on Twitter, without saying where it obtained the information.Varadkar Backs Brexit Extension (11 a.m.)Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar appeared to back a flexible extension to the Brexit process, after speaking to European Council President Donald Tusk. Varadkar confirmed his support for a delay, while both men noted that it would still be possible for the U.K. to leave before Jan. 31 if the withdrawal agreement is ratified before then, according to an Irish government statement.Fundamental Changes Needed: DUP’s Wilson (10:50 a.m.)Sammy Wilson, Brexit spokesman for the Democratic Unionist Party, reiterated that his party would not support the withdrawal agreement in it’s current form, calling parts of it “unpalatable and unacceptable.”Wilson told RTE radio he would use a Brexit extension to persuade the U.K. government “to change its position” on the deal which he said would change Northern Ireland’s constitutional position within the U.K.“It’s very difficult to take at face value” assurances Johnson made in Parliament about light touch rules around movement between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, he said, adding his party would support a move by the prime minister to hold a general election.Maas Indicates Delay May Come With Conditions (10 a.m.)A Brexit extension to Jan. 31 shouldn’t simply be given by the European Union, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Wednesday, raising the prospect it may come with conditions. “We have to know: What is the basis for it? What will happen by then? Will there be an election?” Maas said to broadcaster N-TV.“Above all we have to know what the British are planning and what Johnson is planning. At the moment that’s once again completely unclear,” Maas said. A short extension of two or three weeks to get approval in Parliament, on the other hand, is “less of a problem.”Labour Wants Election Once EU Sets Delay (9:45 a.m.)Richard Burgon, Labour’s justice spokesman, said the main opposition party would back a general election as soon as the European Union agrees an extension, and as long as that extension is for more than just a few weeks.Burgon also said Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s offer to work with the government to come up with a “reasonable” alternative timetable for scrutinizing the Brexit bill still stands.“Until a general election is called we’ll carry on making that offer, to try and improve that bill to make it closer and closer to what we would call a credible Leave option,” he said.Extension Needed to Break Impasse: Duncan-Smith (Earlier)Iain Duncan Smith, a hard-line Brexiteer and former leader of the Conservative Party, said he’d rather have an election than extend the timetable for passing the Brexit bill.If the EU grants a three month extension, then Parliament would take up all of that time and would hang amendments on it “like a Christmas tree,” he told Bloomberg TV.Earlier:Boris Johnson Eyes Election After Parliament Forces Brexit DelayJohnson Faces Extension Rebellion After Defeat: Brexit BulletinBrexit Has the British Fleeing to Europe: Leonid Bershidsky\--With assistance from Tim Ross, Anna Edwards, Helene Fouquet, Jessica Shankleman, Patrick Donahue, Greg Ritchie, Peter Flanagan and Slav Okov.To contact the reporters on this story: Robert Hutton in London at rhutton1@bloomberg.net;Ian Wishart in Brussels at iwishart@bloomberg.net;Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at tross54@bloomberg.net, Stuart Biggs, Thomas PennyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

Trump lifts sanctions on Turkey, says cease-fire permanent

President Donald Trump said Wednesday he will lift sanctions on Turkey after the NATO ally agreed to permanently stop fighting Kurdish forces in Syria and he defended his decision to withdraw American troops, saying the U.S. should not be the world's policeman. "We're getting out," Trump said at the White House, asserting that tens of thousands of Kurdish lives were saved as the result of his actions. Trump warned that if Turkey does not honor its pledge for a permanent cease-fire, he will not hesitate to reimpose sanctions.

As Kremlin scrambles for Africa, Putin praises ties at major summit

President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday hosted a major summit aimed at reviving Russia's influence in Africa, telling leaders from the continent he would seek to double trade in the coming years. All 54 African states were represented at the first Russia-Africa Summit in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, with Putin meeting leaders for bilateral talks throughout the day. Trade between Russia and Africa has more than doubled in the past five years to more than $20 billion, Putin said, adding that some consider this "a good figure".

What If Macron Blocked a Brexit Delay? His Reasons to Be Tempted

(Bloomberg) -- Emmanuel Macron is playing the tough guy on Brexit again.As the European Union discusses whether to give Prime Minister Boris Johnson the Brexit delay he has asked for but doesn’t really want, the French president has signaled he’s ready to block it.With any postponement of the U.K.’s departure needing the unanimous support of EU leaders, the man in the Elysee Palace has the power to dictate Britain’s future.“The Oct. 31 deadline must be met,” Macron said at the conclusion of last week’s EU summit. After Tuesday’s vote in the House of Commons, it almost certainly won’t be met.His junior European affairs minister, Amelie de Montchalin, said on Wednesday that France wouldn’t block a short extension of five to 10 days -- but what if Johnson and other EU leaders asked for more time to negotiate?With Angela Merkel -- much more open than Macron to a Brexit delay -- moving toward the end of her time as German chancellor, the French leader is looking to take over the mantle of Europe’s de facto chief. He has already opposed other EU countries on enlargement and the bloc’s budget.Brexit fatigue is rampant across the EU and governments are beginning to resent how much time and energy is being spent on the subject. Macron could view this as the opportunity to show he can move things on.As French presidents have found since Charles de Gaulle twice blocked the U.K.’s bid to join the EU in the 1960s, being tough on Britain can play well at home, too. Macron’s poll ratings have dipped since he saw off contenders from the established parties to win the election in 2017.For Johnson, Macron is becoming an unlikely ally. Any prospect of a delay helps the prime minister persuade politicians in London they should back his Brexit deal immediately. Johnson told opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in a meeting on Wednesday that Macron could wield the veto, a Labour Party spokesman said.We’ve been here before. Macron was just as belligerent before the decision to delay Brexit in April and, while the extension ended up being shorter than many governments were hoping for, it was still approved.EU officials in Brussels say they can’t see any likelihood of Macron following through on his threat. For one thing, it could lead to a no-deal Brexit that would harm French citizens, especially in areas of the country that Macron is trying to woo. But it’s still a tempting possibility for him.(Corrects de Montchalin’s title in fourth paragraph.)To contact the reporter on this story: Ian Wishart in Brussels at iwishart@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Edward Evans, Paul SillitoeFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

Will loyalists turn against Trump after Bill Taylor’s game-changing testimony?

Diplomat added significant ballast to the allegation Trump was trying to extort Ukraine into ginning up bad news about Biden * What Bill Taylor’s impeachment inquiry testimony tells usDonald Trump listens as Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, speaks to the press during a meeting in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations general assembly on 25 September. Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty ImagesThe impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump has heard some extraordinary testimony over the last month. From the first mention of Trump’s desired “deliverable” from Ukraine, successive layers of witnesses and documents have added to an indictment of the president’s conduct that only gets heavier, as Trump howls his defenses to the wind.On Tuesday, things got even worse for Trump – much worse, as many saw it.For almost 10 hours, William Taylor, a former military officer and career diplomat with the rank of ambassador under the last four presidents, spoke with congressional investigators about how the Trump administration has been conducting a two-track foreign policy in Ukraine, where Taylor is in charge of the US embassy.We don’t yet know most of what was said. The current public record of the closed-door testimony comprises only a copy of Taylor’s 15-page opening statement – and the spectacle of the ashen faces of members of Congress as they filed out from the hearing.“This testimony is a sea change,” congressman Stephen Lynch told reporters.In his testimony, Taylor explained his discovery of an “irregular, informal policy channel” by which the Trump administration was pursuing objectives in Ukraine “running contrary to the goals of longstanding US policy”. What the “informal channel” wanted – and briefly obtained, Taylor said – was for the Ukrainian president to agree to go on CNN to announce an investigation of Joe Biden, whom Trump sees, perhaps mistakenly, as a top 2020 threat.Bill Taylor, acting ambassador to Ukraine, testified of ‘an informal policy channel’ by which the Trump administration was pursuing objectives in Ukraine. Photograph: Alex Wroblewski/Getty ImagesThe Trump administration held up “much-needed military assistance” to Ukraine in an effort to extract the Ukrainian statement, Taylor said. “More Ukrainians would undoubtedly die without the US assistance,” he noted.In a process scrambled so far by misleading Trump tweets and relying in part on anonymous witnesses, the testimony of Taylor, a Vietnam veteran respected in both parties with 50 years of public service behind him, landed as a potential game-changer. It was just the kind of testimony that seemed to answer even the most stubborn demands of Trump loyalists such as Senator Lindsey Graham for additional, definitive proof that Trump was turning the broad power of his office to his own narrow devices.“If you could show me that, you know, Trump actually was engaging in a quid pro quo, outside the phone call, that would be very disturbing,” Graham said at the weekend.The senator denied in a Fox News appearance Tuesday that Taylor had delivered such evidence. But Taylor added significant ballast to the allegation that Trump was attempting to extort Ukraine into ginning up bad news about Biden.What Taylor added was a careful stitchwork of detail, describing who was working to extort the Ukrainians, how they were going about it, how their aims clashed with stated US policy, how the Ukrainians responded, and what people said to him about it at the time.Taylor made clear he has the memos and other records to back up his story. And he exposed the slapstick clumsiness of the Trump flunkies working the “informal channel” – notably Gordon Sondland, the hotelier and Trump mega-donor turned ambassador.“Ambassador Sondland tried to explain to me that President Trump is a businessman,” Taylor testified. “When a businessman is about to sign a check to someone who owes him something, he said, the businessman asks that person to pay up before signing the check.”But “the explanation made no sense”, Taylor argued. “The Ukrainians did not ‘owe’ President Trump anything, and holding up security assistance for domestic political gain was ‘crazy’.”Reaction to Taylor’s testimony generally fell between shock and dumbfoundedness. “I cannot overstate how damaging this Ambassador Taylor testimony is to Trump,” tweeted Neal Katyal, the former acting solicitor general.“Taylor’s statement is a completely devastating document,” wrote Susan Hennessey, the executive director of the Lawfare site. “I know they will find a way but it’s just impossible to imagine how Republicans in Congress will be able to defend this. It is well beyond what most assumed was the worst-case scenario.”The White House issued a statement Tuesday night impugning Taylor, a Trump appointee, as part of a cadre of “radical unelected bureaucrats waging war on the constitution”. But the taller the evidence against him, the smaller Trump’s protests seemed.Democratic senator Amy Klobuchar, a presidential candidate, challenged Republicans to take a stand. “After Diplomat Taylor’s testimony you can no longer question whether this happened,” she tweeted. “The question is if you choose to follow the law or be part of the cover-up.”Trump huddled Tuesday night with members of his legal team, the Wall Street Journal reported, and he urged congressional Republicans to do more to rebut the impeachment inquiry. But there were reportedly no talking points, and no one knew quite what they were supposed to say, or whom to take that direction from.Notably absent from the meeting of Trump’s advisors was Rudy Giuliani, whom Taylor describes as running the shadow operation in Ukraine. “The official foreign policy of the United States was undercut by the irregular efforts led by Mr Giuliani,” Taylor said. He described a seemingly free hand for Giuliani, whose foreign clients include or have included Ukraine-based antagonists of current and former US officials, to open and close diplomatic channels and to direct US policy as he pleased.One of the weightiest impacts of Taylor’s testimony might have to do with the senior US officials it names. Taylor took his concerns about Trump’s alleged attempt to extort Ukraine, he said, to both national security adviser John Bolton and to secretary of state Mike Pompeo. Bolton, who has since resigned, reacted with outrage and frustration.Pompeo, who is eyeing a US Senate bid in his home state of Kansas, apparently greeted Taylor’s warning with silence.“This is not the story of corruption in Ukraine,” tweeted the political strategist David Axelrod. “It’s the story of corruption at the highest levels of the US government. It’s the story of extortion, with US military aid to a besieged ally held hostage to the president’s personal political project.”Trump’s critics say the story is plain: that the president twisted the immense powers of his office to personal ends, in betrayal of constitution and country. When it comes time to prove it, Taylor’s testimony is likely to be front and center.

Yemen rebels, government set up joint positions in key port city

Yemen's government and Huthi rebels have set up joint observation posts as part of de-escalation moves in the flashpoint city of Hodeida, a move the United Nations welcomed on Wednesday. The world body's envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths wrote on Twitter that the establishment of the four positions along frontlines in the key port city, and the deployment of liason officers, were positive moves.

Russian Nuclear Bombers Land in S. Africa in Rare Cooperation

(Bloomberg) -- Russia on Wednesday landed the world’s biggest military aircraft in South Africa, the Tupolev Tu-160 ‘Blackjack’ bomber, in a rare display of cooperation between the defense forces of the two countries.The two bombers, which are capable of launching nuclear missiles, are the first to ever land in Africa and were escorted by fighter jets from the South African Air Force as they arrived at the Waterkloof air base in Tshwane. The bombers arrived at around 4 p.m. and a number of other Russian military aircraft will also land at the site. The bombers had initially been scheduled to land earlier.“The military-to-military relations between the two countries are not solely built on struggle politics but rather on fostering mutually beneficial partnerships based on common interests,” the South African National Defence Force said in a statement. Russia’s defense ministry put out a similar statement.The arrival of the bombers in Africa’s most industrialized nation coincides with Russian President Vladimir Putin hosting an Africa summit this week, the first such event to be organized by Russia. The nation is competing with China and the U.S. for influence in Africa.(Updates time of landing in second paragraph)\--With assistance from Stepan Kravchenko.To contact the reporter on this story: Antony Sguazzin in Johannesburg at asguazzin@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: John McCorry at jmccorry@bloomberg.net, Pauline BaxFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

Lifting the Veil: North Korea's KN-23 Missile and KN-25 MLRS

It is unclear if the DPRK will directly go back to the testing of ICBMs. However, given North Korea’s new willingness to conduct tests of shorter-range weapons, it is likely we will see further tests of such systems before the end of the year. Here is what you need to know about two key weapons platforms Pyongyang recently tested.

Iraq official: US troops from Syria to leave Iraq in 4 weeks

U.S troops withdrawing from northeastern Syria to Iraq are "transiting" and will leave the country within four weeks, Iraq's defense minister said Wednesday. Najah al-Shammari made the remarks to The Associated Press following a meeting in Baghdad with visiting U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who arrived as Iraqi leaders chafed over reports the U.S. may want to increase the number of troops based in Iraq, at least temporarily. Iraq's military said Tuesday that American troops leaving northeastern Syria don't have permission to stay in Iraq in a statement that appeared to contradict Esper, who has said that all U.S. troops leaving Syria would continue to conduct operations against the Islamic State group from Iraq to prevent its resurgence in the region.

Brexit’s Risk to the Union Is Becoming Clearer

(Bloomberg) -- Want to receive this post in your inbox every day? Sign up for the Balance of Power newsletter, and follow Bloomberg Politics on Twitter and Facebook for more.Far from the arcane drama at Westminster, warning signs are flashing that Boris Johnson’s path to leaving the European Union carries peril for the integrity of the U.K. itself.The prime minister won a fleeting victory in Parliament last night when MPs indicated their support for his renegotiated Brexit deal, only to balk at fast-tracking it into law.But Northern Ireland’s unionists are outraged at the deal’s provisions for the province to be treated under a different set of customs rules from the rest of the U.K. The pro-Brexit Democratic Unionist Party unanimously opposed the accord yesterday.They’re in rare agreement with the Irish nationalists of Sinn Fein: Both see it as weakening the union and edging Irish reunification closer to reality. Prominent loyalist Jamie Bryson forecast “an organic explosion of anger” if Johnson’s deal is passed.In Scotland, where a majority voted in 2016 to remain in the EU, the nationalist government is angry at not being awarded the same tailor-made customs arrangement as Northern Ireland. It is redoubling calls for a second referendum on independence.Johnson will push for an election to try to break the deadlock in Parliament — and the momentum is with him. He may yet win his Brexit, but the price may be losing the union.Global HeadlinesStrained loyalty | Donald Trump’s self-inflicted crises are testing the Republican senators the president will be counting on in an impeachment trial that lawmakers in both parties now see as all but inevitable. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell took the rare step yesterday of criticizing Trump by name (for his decision to withdraw U.S. forces from northern Syria) and called the president’s description of House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry as a lynching “an unfortunate choice of words.”Read about how the acting U.S. envoy to Ukraine’s explosive testimony to House investigators yesterday has damaged Trump’s defense and left Secretary of State Michael Pompeo in a tough spot.Happening today: Impeachment investigators will hear from Laura Cooper, a deputy assistant secretary of defense.Competing for influence | Fresh from striking a Syria deal with Turkey, Russian President Vladimir Putin is turning his attention to the contest for geopolitical influence in Africa. He’s hosting leaders of more than 50 African states in Sochi today at Russia’s first summit with the continent. Moscow is trying to regain lost ground in Africa after the Soviet Union’s collapse, though it now trails far behind powers such as China.Management change? | The Chinese government is considering a plan to replace Hong Kong’s embattled leader next year, a pro-establishment lawmaker said, in a potential strategy shift as demonstrations continue to rock the Asian financial center. Following through would be risky for President Xi Jinping’s Communist Party since there’s no guarantee it would do anything other than embolden the protesters demanding direct elections.On the outs | Trump has been privately testing the idea of replacing his chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney. As Saleha Mohsin and Jennifer Jacobs report, Trump said to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in front of a roomful of staff about a month ago: You have such great ideas, why don’t you be my chief? He has made similar remarks about Chris Liddell, a deputy chief of staff, and asked advisers whether his counselor Kellyanne Conway would be good for the role.Late last night, Trump responded on Twitter, saying, “Wrong, never even discussed this with Kellyanne Conway or Steve Mnuchin. Just more Fake News!”Opposition meltdown | Policy splits between white and black leaders and months of infighting have left South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, on the brink of an implosion. As Antony Sguazzin reports, that’s giving the ruling African National Congress breathing room as it attempts to recover its popularity following the scandal-ridden nine-year rule of Jacob Zuma.What to WatchMark Zuckerberg plans to defend Facebook’s Libra project before a congressional panel, saying the cryptocurrency won’t be launched without approval from the U.S. government, even as the social-media giant’s Washington lobbying strategy is faltering. Chilean President Sebastian Pinera unveiled a series of social measures designed to appease protesters who have brought major cities to a near standstill in the past five days. Ethiopian authorities are probing missing funds a military contractor already accused of graft was meant to spend on a showpiece Nile tributary dam that’s raised tensions with Egypt. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and Nobel Peace Prize-winning Ethiopian premier Abiy Ahmed are due to discuss the dispute while in Russia today.Tell us how we’re doing or what we’re missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net.And finally ... Once known as “America’s toughest sheriff,” Joe Arpaio isn’t content with being first recipient of a criminal pardon from Trump — he wants his contempt of court conviction thrown out as well. Arpaio, who made a name for himself targeting Latinos in the Phoenix area with traffic stops based solely on the suspicion they were undocumented immigrants, will try to convince a federal appeals court today to throw out his original conviction. \--With assistance from Kathleen Hunter, Brendan Scott and Anthony Halpin.To contact the author of this story: Alan Crawford in Berlin at acrawford6@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Karl Maier at kmaier2@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

Gullah Geechee: distinct US culture risks losing island home to climate crisis

Fierce storms and rising seas are causing existential angst for communities in Alaska, Arizona and other states on the front line of the climate crisisQueen Quet at the Hunting Island Nature Center in St Helena Island, South Carolina. ‘Our very existence is threatened by the rapid erosion of our Sea Islands.’ Photograph: Lynsey Weatherspoon/The GuardianThe 2019 hurricane season, which has already seen parts of Texas flooded and the Bahamas devastated, is prompting existential angst for a unique US culture that fears being torn asunder by the climate crisis.Fiercer storms and the encroaching seas are gnawing away at the Gullah Geechee nation, a distinct cultural group that historically dwelt on a 425-mile stretch of coastline from Jacksonville, North Carolina, to Jacksonville, Florida. Today, the bulk of this community, descendants of African slaves and native Americans, resides only on the low-lying fringes of South Carolina and Georgia.Hurricane Dorian, which lacerated the Caribbean in early September, uprooted trees and left debris strewn across historic Gullah Geechee sites, according to Queen Quet, the elected chieftess and head of state for the community, which declared its own nationhood in 2000. A destructive recent pattern, marked most severely by Hurricane Matthew in 2016, is taking hold.“The biggest concern is the massive number of [storms] that are arriving on our coast annually,” said Queen Quet, also known as Marquetta L Goodwine, who is also a computer scientist and historian. In the English-based creole language used by the Gullah Geechee, she is known as the “head pun de boddee”.St Helena Island, South Carolina. Photograph: Lynsey Weatherspoon/The Guardian“We are convinced that this is directly linked to climate change dynamics,” she said. “There have never been this many hurricanes and tropical storms in succession. This is causing a major strain on the community being able to recover financially from these.”A rapidly warming ocean and atmosphere is helping fuel stronger, if not more numerous, hurricanes, climate scientists have found. But periods of drought and rising sea levels are also a major concern for the Gullah Geechee, owing to their precarious perch on a string of tidal and barrier islands called the Sea Islands, previously the site of rice, cotton and indigo plantations.“The very existence of the Gullah Geechee nation is threatened by the rapid erosion of our Sea Islands due to the sea level rise issues brought on by climate change,” said Queen Quet, who has attempted to rouse the US government and the United Nations to the cause of a culture expressed through its arts, basket weaving and spiritual music, much of it based upon an intrinsic link to the sea. Queen Quet: ‘There have never been this many hurricanes and tropical storms in succession. This is causing a major strain on the community being able to recover financially.’ Photograph: Lynsey Weatherspoon/The GuardianBecause of their geographic isolation, the Gullah Geechee developed a distinct language and culture, stemming from west and central Africa. Beginning in the late 19th century, theirs was a slow-paced life of fishing and mule carts on dirt roads. Dishes were based around okra, rice and yams. Many of the traditions continue today, with heritage tours helping provide locals with an income as well as cultural preservation. Threats loom, however.Earlier this year Queen Quet appeared in front of a congressional committee to explain how prized seafood is disappearing as the waters warm. Shellfish are threatened as the ocean acidifies while once-common catfish are vanishing. Her people’s unique culture “will not continue to thrive or survive if we are displaced from the Sea Islands,” Queen Quet warned.The plight of the Gullah Geechee is echoed in other distinct cultures across the US that find themselves on the frontline of the climate crisis. Often forced on to land vulnerable to drought or flooding by colonial dispossession and a lack of political clout, these communities face an overwhelming threat to their way of life.“There will be tremendous stories of adaption and change as well as horrifying stories of losing homelands, family and cultural practices,” said Kyle Whyte, an expert in indigenous environmental issues at Michigan State and a member of the Potawatomi native American people.“Lots of indigenous cultures place importance upon resilience but that doesn’t mean that climate change risks aren’t a threat. Many are going to have to work very hard to maintain their way of life.” ‘Home is being eaten by the sea’In Arizona, the Navajo are under pressure from rising temperatures and a dwindling water supply. In Washington state, the Quinault Indian Nation is attempting to relocate the village of Taholah – including its housing, post office, school, daycare, gym and police and fire service – to 200 acres of higher ground due to the threat of riverine flooding.Further north, Alaska is heating up at twice the global average, causing roads to buckle and houses to subside as permafrost locked in the soils starts to melt.Native communities, which rely on stable sea ice for subsidence hunting and transportation, are at particular risk, with at least a dozen towns attempting to relocate. One, the small coastal town of Newtok, received $15m in federal funding last year to start moving houses to safer ground, although the fate of other at-risk towns remains unclear.The threat to traditional practices has helped spur a legal challenge led by young Alaskans who are suing their state government over the harm caused by the climate crisis.The small coastal town of Newtok in Alaska received $15m in federal funding last year to start moving houses to safer ground, although the fate of other at-risk towns remains unclear. Photograph: Andrew Burton/Getty Images“Climate change is not just a political issue for me, it’s my lifestyle, it’s what I face every day back at home,” said lead plaintiff Esau Sinnok, an indigenous Alaskan from Shishmaref, a barrier island menaced by coastal erosion. “The one and only place I get to call home is being eaten by the sea.”Adapting to the changing environment isn’t simple – funding and political will is lacking and minority communities can feel wary dealing with US authorities that have previously wrought dispossession and discrimination.Splits within communities can also appear. Isle de Jean Charles in Louisiana, populated by the ancestors of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw tribe who were forced there after fleeing persecution, has lost 98% of its land mass over the past six decades due to coastal erosion, leaving a slender strip of land just two miles long and a quarter-mile wide.In 2016, residents were the first to be given federal funding to relocate the community to drier ground, although many now don’t want to sever their deeply rooted bonds to the island. “This here can’t be remade someplace,” island resident Chris Brunet told the LA Times.“Cultural practices across the US have already been threatened for many decades and climate change is making things worse,” said Whyte. “These people are often tied to a certain area and don’t have the options to move like other people. They can exercise their culture and self-determination on small areas of land only. Native people certainly didn’t choose to be in this situation.”Queen Quet said lawmakers need a much greater appreciation of the cultural threat posed by climate change.“Without the ability to continue our cultural traditions on the land and the sea, we would not be able to continue to live in the healthy, balanced manner that is central to traditional Gullah Geechee culture,” she said. “You may move to another place, but that does not mean that the environment of that new place will allow your cultural traditions to be sustained. Heartache has killed many people that have been displaced.”

Merkel’s Successor Splits German Coalition With Rogue Syria Plan

(Bloomberg) -- Chancellor Angela Merkel’s designated successor is causing trouble in Berlin with her efforts to assert authority.Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has been undermined by a series of errors since she was chosen to follow Merkel as leader of the Christian Democratic Union last year. In the latest on Tuesday, just two months after also taking the job as defense minister, she sprang a proposal for an internationally-monitored security zone in northern Syria with little warning. Allies in the coalition, which includes Social Democrats, complained they were informed late or not at all.“I find it somewhat unusual – and I don’t think it should become the way the cabinet works,” Social Democratic caucus leader Rolf Muetzenich told reporters in Berlin on Tuesday. “I do think that Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer should learn a little from the discussion that she’s confronted in the past few hours.”The political storm that surrounded Kramp-Karrenbauer’s rushed roll-out comes after she stumbled for months in her role as Merkel’s heir apparent, committing a string of gaffes and failing to communicate. That assessment was buttressed as many party colleagues were caught unawares by the plans of AKK, as she is also known.If nothing else, the volley drove a wedge between the CDU and its junior coalition partner just as the Social Democrats approach a sensitive decision on whether to remain in the 17-month old government.Dim ViewFor now, her party is closing ranks behind her. Merkel, who earlier this year took a dim view of the new CDU leader’s performance, backed her defense minister in a closed-door meeting with lawmakers in Berlin, according to two people present. A similar security-zone proposal was raised in 2016 during the siege of Aleppo, Merkel said. AKK even drew a round of applause.That sense of unity only went so far. Earlier in the day, officials in Merkel’s coalition were scrambling to figure out what was being announced.Syria was discussed at length at a Sunday evening meeting of coalition leaders, including the CDU, their Bavarian allies in the Christian Social Union and the Social Democrats. But AKK made no mention of such a plan at the time, CSU caucus leader Alexander Dobrindt said. He himself learned of the initiative only Tuesday morning.“We would like to know what Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer’s ideas look like concretely, because we’re getting a lot of questions from abroad on what the German position is,” Niels Annen, Germany’s deputy foreign minister and a Social Democrat, told ZDF. “We need to answer that.”Annen also said prospects for any such plan would hinge on the deal struck Tuesday by Russia and Turkey to secure a buffer zone in northern Syria, involving a coordinated effort with Syrian forces to remove Kurdish fighters from the border area.Kramp-Karrenbauer is battling to reverse an increasing sense of disappointment among the party faithful 10 months after she was elected its chief in a tight vote. Complaints range from a leadership vacuum AKK has left to an inability to implement or communicate fresh ideas, according to at least three people familiar with the thinking within the party.The fresh approach of 57-year-old AKK hasn’t been a boon to the CDU’s public backing. The party has 27% support, down five points from the week she was elected in December of last year, according to an Oct. 19 Forsa poll. Separately, Bild newspaper last week carried a headline showing a “horror” poll for AKK, who came last in a list of top German politicians.Kramp-Karrenbauer would have to forge a unified position among coalition partners to gain any traction, according to a German government official. Judging by the Social Democrats’ response, that’s unlikely to happen before the NATO defense ministers’ meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday, when she intends to present her proposal. Germany Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, a Social Democrat, complained that he was informed via text message.“I don’t believe much in SMS diplomacy,” Maas told local media. “That can quickly turn into SOS-Diplomacy.”Muetzenich, the usually soft-spoken SPD caucus leader who has opposed German participation in military interventions, was more withering, asking how such a security zone could win United Nations approval after failing to do so for years.Still, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday that he welcomes the proposal. “This will certainly be discussed during our meeting," Stoltenberg told a news conference. "And I expect AKK to share her thoughts with the other allies.’’Kramp-Karrenbauer said an internationally agreed security zone would defuse the fighting in northern Syria and allow the focus to return to fighting the Islamic State, or ISIS, and allowing displaced Kurds to return. It’s not clear how the plan would overlap with Turkey’s proposed security zone, designed to be off-limits to U.S.-backed Kurdish forces. Turkey is seeking to clear a swath of territory along its border with Syria currently occupied by Kurds.Irrespective of the merit of the Syria proposal, a German bid for a military venture in the Middle East puts AKK on risky terrain with a public that has been broadly resistant to such entanglements throughout the country’s post-World War II history.(Adds Stoltenberg comment in third to last paragraph.)\--With assistance from Jonathan Stearns.To contact the reporters on this story: Patrick Donahue in Berlin at pdonahue1@bloomberg.net;Arne Delfs in Berlin at adelfs@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Raymond ColittFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

The Latest: US troops from Syria to leave Iraq in 4 weeks

Iraq's defense minister has said after meeting U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper that American forces withdrawing from Syria to Iraq will leave the country within four weeks. Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari made the remarks to The Associated Press on Wednesday, following a meeting with Esper, who arrived in Baghdad a day to discuss the troops.

Climate change amplifies conflicts, hinders peacebuilding: Somalia report

Climate change poses serious challenges to current and future peacebuilding efforts and can amplify conflicts, according to a report on years of devastating violence and drought in Somalia released Wednesday. Researchers at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) looked at how conflicts and the peacebuilding efforts of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) have been affected by climate change, and found that it "amplifies existing challenges and strengthens radical groups". "What it shows is that the security landscape is changing with climate change," Florian Krampe, senior researcher at SIPRI's climate change programme, told AFP, adding that many of the findings are applicable to other conflicts.

Kim Jong-un orders demolition of South Korean-funded buildings at flagship tourist resort

Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, has ordered the destruction of all facilities built by South Korea at the Mount Kumgang tourist zone, apparently because of Seoul’s refusal to break ranks with the United States. Mr Kim visited the resort, which was initially operated by the two nations and was seen as a way of improving cross-border ties, and declared that “all the unpleasant-looking facilities” designed by South Korea should be torn down, state-run media reported. In their place, North Korean-style “modern service facilities” would be built, he said. Opened in 1998 as part of efforts to build trust and promote exchanges, around one million South Koreans visited the 204 square-mile resort region, which was also an important source of hard currency for Pyongyang.  Trips over the border came to a sudden end in July 2008, when a North Korean soldier shot dead a South Korean tourist who had strayed into a restricted zone. With bilateral ties warming in the last two years, discussions had begun about South Korean tourists returning to Mount Kumgang as a relatively straightforward confidence-building measure. In their meeting in September, Kim and Moon Jae-in, the South Korean president, agreed that tours should resume as soon as conditions permit. South Korean invested villas line the coastline of the Mount Kumgang resort, also known as Diamond Mountain, in North Korea. Credit: AP Mr Moon has hesitated to approve visits, however, as international sanctions remain in place, including sanctions on economic projects that enable the North to obtain hard currency. North Korea has stepped up its criticisms of the South in recent weeks, claiming Seoul has failed to meet its commitments to improve bilateral relations. On Tuesday, North Korean media condemned Seoul’s plans to carry out a series of missile tests and develop new weapons systems, including nuclear-powered submarines, describing the moves as “outright provocations” that would “have consequences”. It also accused the South of “enhancing its pre-emptive attack capability against the North”. South Korea’s responses have remained conciliatory, with Suh Ho, the vice unification minister, stating on Tuesday that Seoul remains committed to a “peace economy” that will deepen cross-border economic cooperation and reduce the chances of a return to an era of confrontation. Mr Moon has proposed removing landmines from the Demilitarised Zone that divides the two nations and transforming it into a “peace zone”, while South Korea has been the largest international donor of humanitarian aid to the North so far this year.  Seoul has provided international aid agencies with US$9 million this year, about 30 per cent of the total international assistance to the North.

Climate change amplifies conflicts, hinders peacebuilding: Somalia report

Climate change poses serious challenges to current and future peacebuilding efforts and can amplify conflicts, according to a report on years of devastating violence and drought in Somalia released Wednesday. Researchers at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) looked at how conflicts and the peacebuilding efforts of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) have been affected by climate change, and found that it "amplifies existing challenges and strengthens radical groups".