LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will try to persuade rebellious lawmakers in his party to vote on Monday for a bill that would break international law by breaching parts of the Brexit divorce deal and that Brussels says will wreck trade talks.
The House of Commons will debate the Internal Market Bill, which the EU has demanded Johnson scrap by the end of September, in the latest brinkmanship of a four-year saga since Britain voted narrowly to leave the bloc.
After the debate, in a vote that may come late, lawmakers will decide if the bill should go to the next stage.
Johnson’s plan to explicitly break international law has plunged Brexit back into crisis less than four months before Britain is finally due to leave the EU’s orbit at the end of a transition period, and jeopardized trade talks.
EU diplomats and officials said the bloc could take legal action against Britain, though there would be no resolution before the end-of-year deadline for its full exit.
The EU has ramped up preparations for a no-deal Brexit, which would be chaotic for business, markets and nearly $1 trillion in annual trade.
Johnson, who has a majority of 80 in the lower house of parliament, faces a growing revolt. All of Britain’s living former prime ministers have expressed concern about his plan as have many senior figures in his Conservative Party.
“No British minister should solemnly undertake to observe treaty obligations with his fingers crossed behind his back,” Johnson’s former Attorney General Geoffrey Cox, who is influential with colleagues, said in The Times newspaper.
Conservative lawmaker Rehman Chishti, who was Johnson’s special envoy for freedom of religion, quit his role, saying he could not support the bill. “As an MP (lawmaker) for 10yrs & former Barrister, values of respecting rule of law & honoring one’s word are dear to me,” he tweeted.
British ministers say the bill, which explicitly states that it could be inconsistent with a host of international laws, is intended to clarify ambiguities — particularly over Northern Ireland — and act as a safeguard in case trade talks fall.
But some EU diplomats believe London is playing a game of chicken, inviting the collapse of trade talks to either get the deal it wants or leave without a deal.
The EU says it cannot trust those who break agreements and that if the bill is not effectively scrapped there will be no trade deal to cover everything from car parts to food.
The pound fell 3 percent last week on fears of a no-deal Brexit.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the bill was most likely a tactic and a “thin” free-trade deal was still possible as there were just a few outstanding issues.
If, as expected, it is passed in its second reading on Monday, there will be four more days of debate on the bill’s fine print — lasting into Tuesday of next week.
If the bill passes the lower house, it will undergo scrutiny in the House of Lords where opposition from Conservative members is expected to be even stronger.
UK’s Johnson faces revolt over plan to break Brexit treaty
https://arab.news/2gcp9
UK’s Johnson faces revolt over plan to break Brexit treaty
- Boris Johnson’s plan to explicitly break international law has plunged Brexit back into crisis
- The EU has ramped up preparations for a no-deal Brexit
NATO launches Baltic Sea patrols after suspected cable sabotage
The “Baltic Sentry” mission would involve “frigates and maritime patrol aircraft” among other assets, NATO chief Mark Rutte said
HELSINKI: The NATO military alliance said Tuesday it would launch a Baltic Sea monitoring mission following the suspected sabotage of undersea cables in recent months.
Several telecom and power cables have been severed with experts and politicians accusing Russia of orchestrating a hybrid war against the West as the two sides square off over Ukraine.
The “Baltic Sentry” mission would involve “frigates and maritime patrol aircraft” among other assets, NATO chief Mark Rutte said at a regional meeting in Finland’s capital Helsinki on Tuesday.
But he declined to give details on the number of vessels “because that might differ from one week to another” and he did not want to make “the enemy any wiser than he or she is already.”
NATO was also tight-lipped on the duration, saying in a statement the operation would continue “for an undisclosed amount of time.”
The suspected sabotage has been blamed on a “shadow fleet” of vessels — often aging and operating under opaque ownership — that carry Russian crude oil and petroleum products, embargoed since the invasion of Ukraine.
“Investigations of all of these cases are still ongoing, but there is reason for grave concern,” Rutte said.
He said protecting undersea infrastructure was of “utmost importance” not only for energy supplies but also for Internet traffic.
Leaders of NATO’s Baltic countries said in a statement after the Helsinki meeting that the shadow fleet “poses a particular threat to the maritime and environmental security in the Baltic Sea region and globally.”
They said the fleet “significantly supports funding of Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine.”
Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said foreign ministries from the Baltic Sea NATO states would set up a group of legal experts to assess what they could do without affecting freedom of navigation.
NATO said in late December it would increase its presence in the region but had not announced an operation.
Iro Sarkka, a researcher from the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, told AFP that NATO had been pushed into action by the Russian shadow fleet.
A comprehensive operation would serve as a “deterrent and a strategic signal” that NATO was prepared to act, according to Sarkka.
Tensions have mounted around the Baltic Sea since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A series of underwater blasts ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines that carried Russian gas to Europe in September 2022, the cause of which has yet to be determined.
In October 2023, an undersea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia was shut down after it was damaged by the anchor of a Chinese cargo ship.
Two telecom cables in Swedish waters were severed on November 17-18 last year.
And weeks later, on December 25, the Estlink 2 electricity cable and four telecom cables linking Finland and Estonia were damaged.
Investigators suspect the cables were damaged by the anchor of the Eagle S, a Cook Island-flagged oil tanker believed to be part of the “shadow fleet.”
Finnish police seized the Eagle S on December 28 as part of a criminal investigation.
Finnish authorities last week deemed the ship unseaworthy, barred it from sailing and have banned eight crew members from leaving the country while police carry out a probe.
Malaysia signs economic pact with UAE, eyes new opportunities in Middle East
- Pact with Malaysia is the UAE’s third in Southeast Asia, after Indonesia and Cambodia
- UAE is Malaysia’s second-largest trade partner in the Middle East, after Saudi Arabia
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the UAE on Tuesday, its first with a GCC country.
The countries started negotiations over a CEPA in 2023. It will lower tariffs, reduce trade barriers, promote private-sector collaboration, and create new opportunities for investment.
The deal was signed on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, in the presence of Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
“The Malaysia-UAE CEPA will open up deeper economic cooperation opportunities, including the elimination or reduction of tariffs and enhanced market access, which will drive exports and create new investment opportunities for key sectors,” Anwar said, after witnessing the signing ceremony with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.
Besides the UAE, Malaysia has signed CEPAs with India and Pakistan. It also enjoys free trade agreements with Australia, Japan, Chile and Turkiye.
For the UAE, it is the third such pact in Southeast Asia, after it signed similar deals with Indonesia in 2022 and Cambodia in 2023.
The immediate effect of the Malaysia-UAE CEPA is that for both countries it “opens up inter-region trade and increases access to non-traditional Western markets,” Dr. Lim Kim Hwa, director of the public policy think tank Penang Institute, told Arab News.
“The agreement will enhance trade, boost investments, and deepen Malaysia-UAE economic ties, providing both countries with clear clarity on tariff-free trade in the era of Trump 2.0. This provides both countries with market access certainty, thereby reducing the cost of business and diversify market access,” he said.
“Malaysia views the UAE as a strategic hub for Malaysian exporters to access markets in the Middle East and North Africa, particularly as Malaysian exports, such as electrical and electronics, machinery, jewelry, prepared foodstuff, tropical fruits, palm oil, cocoa and rubber, will immediately enjoy zero import duties when the CEPA agreement comes into force.”
The UAE is Malaysia’s second-largest trade partner in the Middle East, after Saudi Arabia, and contributes 32 percent of the Southeast Asian nation’s trade with the region.
The economic relationship is not massive but is growing rapidly. It stood at $8.61 billion in the first 11 months of 2024, registering growth of 8.6 percent on an annual basis for that period, according to data from the Malaysian Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry.
It “means there’s room to grow,” said Lee Heng Guie, executive director at the Socio-Economic Research Center in Kuala Lumpur. He expects the CEPA to spur more economic activity with the whole region.
“It’s a breakthrough,” Lee told Arab News. “Malaysia can use this CEPA to make more trade partners with other Middle Eastern countries, expand our economic ties with the Islamic world.”
Expanding economic ties with the Middle East — especially GCC countries — is a part of the Malaysian government’s policy. Since assuming office in late 2022, Anwar has committed to enhancing the country’s relations with the region and positioning it as a key economic gateway to the fast-growing Asia-Pacific.
As this year’s chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Malaysia will be hosting the 2025 ASEAN-GCC and ASEAN-China summits.
“Hopefully, that can spark more future strategic collaborations between the three blocs,” Lee said.
“Hopefully, this forum will have a further follow-up. Not just trade (and) investment, but people connectivity. Given the current geopolitical trade conflicts it’s good for this part of Asia and Middle East to come up with this kind ... of collaboration.”
Chinese tourist killed in jet ski collision in Thailand
- The cause of the incident was being investigated
- This marks the second incident involving Chinese tourists
BEIJING: One Chinese tourist was killed and another injured after their jet skis collided off Thailand’s Phuket island on Tuesday, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported, citing China’s embassy in Thailand.
The cause of the incident was being investigated, CCTV said.
This marks the second incident involving Chinese tourists near Phuket in just two days.
Thailand is a popular destination for Chinese tourists who are set to travel during the upcoming Lunar New Year break.
On Monday, a catamaran carrying 33 Chinese and 5 crew members capsized off the coast of Koh Racha island north of Phuket, CCTV reported.
All those on board were rescued with no casualties, the report said.
Last year, Chinese tourists accounted for the largest group of visitors to Thailand, with 6.7 million visits to the Southeast Asian country.
UK's Princess Kate visits hospital where she had cancer treatment
- For the treatment, Kate attended the Royal Marsden Hospital in central London
- She paid an official visit there to mark her becoming joint patron
LONDON: Kate, Britain’s Princess of Wales, visited a London hospital on Tuesday where she underwent cancer treatment last year to personally thank medics there for their care and support, her office said.
Kate, 43, underwent a course of preventative chemotherapy after major abdominal surgery a year ago revealed the presence of cancer.
For the treatment, which concluded in September, Kate attended the Royal Marsden Hospital in central London and on Tuesday she paid an official visit there to mark her becoming joint patron of its specialist cancer unit along with her husband Prince William.
On her visit she met patients and staff and spoke of her own treatment. A royal source said Kate had wanted to show her gratitude to the hospital staff and highlight its work.
“We are incredibly fortunate to receive Royal Patronage – it is inspiring for staff and patients and enables us to shine a light on the outstanding work our staff deliver every day for patients and their families,” said Cally Palmer, Chief Executive of The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust.
Kate’s illness meant she was absent from royal duties for most of last year, although she gave a number of health updates in highly personal video messages.
More than 1 million people displaced by raging Haiti gang violence, UN says
GENEVA: More than a million people, over half of them children, are now displaced within Haiti where gang violence continues unabated despite the start of a United Nations-backed security mission last year, UN data showed on Tuesday.
The tally of 1.04 million displaced people released by the International Organization for Migration represents a threefold increase from December 2023 when 315,000 people were homeless. Never before have so many people been displaced by violence in the country, according to UN data.
“Haiti needs sustained humanitarian assistance right now to save and protect lives,” said IOM Director General Amy Pope in a statement sent to journalists, stressing the need to address the root causes of the violence and instability.
Armed gangs within Haiti now have near-total control over the capital Port-au-Prince and wide remit over the rest of the country. An international mission approved last year tasked with restoring order has so far seen just a fraction of troops deploying, although two contingents of Guatemalan soldiers arrived this month to boost the mission’s forces.
IOM spokesperson Kennedy Okoth Omondi told a Geneva press briefing that spaces in shelters were running short, with many struggling to obtain basic services like food and water. Deportations of migrants from The Dominican Republic and elsewhere have added to the strain on communities, he added.
“What has really made this worse is the fact that we have seen over and over deportation still occurring back to Haiti, where communities are already struggling to basically survive,” he said.
