Biden wobbles under weight of multiple open fronts around the world

US President Joe Biden's likely Republican opponent, former president Donald Trump, has zeroed in on the global instability as an excuse to attack Biden as weak. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 25 January 2024
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Biden wobbles under weight of multiple open fronts around the world

  • The US is not at war, but entanglement in multiple military fronts — plus the ongoing migrant strife along the US-Mexico border — is not an ideal environment for Biden as he ramps up his campaign for reelection in November

WASHINGTON: Long gone is the Joe Biden of February 2023, strolling confidently through the streets of Kyiv, basking in the role as champion of the Ukrainian cause in the fight against Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

Nearly one year after that triumphant appearance, the US president is instead facing the harsh realities of running for re-election while bogged down in one stagnant war and navigating the volatility of another, as the conflict in Gaza threatens at any moment to ignite the entire Middle East.
In fact, Israel’s war with Hamas has already boiled over into the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden as Yemen’s Tehran-backed Houthi rebels have attacked ships in the region and other pro-Iranian groups have targeted American troops in Iraq in Syria. Both have sparked retaliatory US strikes.
The United States is not at war, but entanglement in multiple military fronts — plus the ongoing migrant strife along the US-Mexico border — is not an ideal environment for Biden as he ramps up his campaign for reelection in November.
And even worse for the 81-year-old Democrat: his likely Republican opponent, former president Donald Trump, has zeroed in on this global instability as an excuse to attack Biden as weak.

For Democratic consultant Melissa DeRosa, “the feeling of instability caused by these conflicts, to say nothing of the border issues, will play a role in this election.”
“I do think it’s going to be a problem for Joe Biden,” she said, and “be something that Trump continues to play up” — especially the migration crisis, which she calls the president’s “Achilles’ heel” as record numbers of migrants have entered the United States in recent months.
Foreign policy has historically played only small roles in US presidential campaigns, and, barring major developments, those fundamentals are unlikely to change in 2024.
But Trump, well on his way to sewing up the Republican nomination, is spinning this anxiety around global uncertainty to his advantage — a message that lands well among his supporters.
“Foreign entities respect (Trump) more and fear him more than the present occupant of the White House,” New Hampshire Trump voter and 72-year-old architect Tony Ferrantello told AFP ahead of the state’s primary Tuesday.
Biden’s approval rating on foreign policy is underwater: 58 percent say they disapprove of his handling of international affairs, compared to 36 percent who approve, according to December-January poll average from the site RealClearPolitics.
It is an uncomfortable position for Biden, who presents himself as a foreign policy old hat, with eight years of dealing with world leaders as Barack Obama’s vice president and multiple terms as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Furthermore, Biden prides himself on having reinvigorated international alliances, including with NATO and in Asia, after having spent much of his 2020 campaign promising to bring America “back” to the world stage after the chaotic, isolationist Trump years.

But difficulties with the war in Ukraine loom large, as Biden has tried to position himself as leader of a vast multinational coalition supporting Kyiv after Russia’s 2022 invasion, all while avoiding direct confrontation between Washington and Moscow.
Now, two years on, he is dealing with fatigue from lawmakers and voters unsure about continuing to foot the bill for Ukraine’s defense without tangible returns on their investment.
In Congress, Republican opponents link these two issues together, offering their support for Ukraine aid in exchange for tougher immigration policies at the southern border.
Complicating matters further is Biden’s unwavering support for Israel’s war against Hamas, which has exposed him to intense criticism from his own supporters and others on the left.
Pro-Palestinian protesters interrupted Biden several times Tuesday during a speech on abortion rights, an issue the president is making central to his reelection campaign.
That tension could come back to bite him in November in key election swing states like Michigan, where there is a large Arab and Muslim population, and among young voters — both groups that are more likely to take issue with Biden’s handling of the war.
And that is all without even mentioning the potential of yet another front: in North Korea, as tensions between the North and staunch US ally South Korea have steadily worsened.
“North Korea exhibits a tendency to ramp up provocations during US election years,” warned Victor Cha and Andy Lim at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
 


UK Jewish charity given official warning over Israeli soldier fundraising

Updated 8 sec ago
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UK Jewish charity given official warning over Israeli soldier fundraising

  • Chabad Lubavitch Centres raised nearly £2,300 for IDF member based in northern Israel
  • Charity Commission says it is illegal for charities to raise money for foreign militaries

LONDON: A Jewish charity in London has been given an official warning after it campaigned to raise money for an Israeli soldier.

The Charity Commission, which regulates charities in England and Wales, said the Chabad Lubavitch Centres North East London and Essex acted “outside of its purposes” by fundraising for a member of the Israel Defense Forces.

The commission said it was illegal for charities to provide aid or military supplies to any foreign armed force.

The charity raised nearly £2,300 after it set up a fundraising webpage in October 2023 for a soldier stationed in northern Israel.

More than £900 of the money was sent directly to the soldier but trustees were unable to say how that money had been spent.

The remaining funds were spent on “non-lethal military equipment” purchased by the charity and sent to the soldier.

The commission received 180 complaints about the campaign and opened a regulatory compliance case into the charity in December 2023. The campaign page was taken down in January last year.

“The fundraising activity was outside the charity’s purposes — and not capable of being charitable,” the commission said on Thursday announcing the outcome of the case.

The commission said the trustees had failed to act in the best interests of the charity and its reputation. 

“This was misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of charity, as well as a breach of trust,” it added.

The charity’s stated purpose is to advance the orthodox Jewish religion, advance orthodox Jewish education and to relieve poverty and sickness.

It is part of a network of 2,500 Chabad Lubavitch centers around the world aimed at fostering Jewish family life, according to its website.

The official warning imposes a number of requirements on the charity’s trustees to correct the misconduct.

“It is not lawful, or acceptable, for a charity to raise funds to support a soldier of a foreign military,” Helen Earner, director for regulatory services at the Charity Commission, said.

“Our official warning requires the charity to set things right and is a clear message to other charities to stay true to their established purposes.”

In a statement published by Jewish News, the charity’s trustees said they accepted the commission’s findings.

The statement said that in the aftermath of Hamas-led attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, there was concern among the community served by the charity that there was not enough winter clothing and protective gear for the number of IDF reservists being called up.

“We acknowledge that in facilitating a campaign to provide warm clothing and the like, however briefly and however modest its results, the charity exceeded its purposes and we are grateful for the guidance provided by the Charity Commission to ensure that this won’t happen again,” the statement said.

The Charity Commission has seen a surge in complaints about organizations since the war in Gaza started.

The watchdog’s chairperson Orlando Fraser said in November that the commission had opened 200 regulatory cases related to the conflict and referred 40 cases to the police.

Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians and wounded at least 100,000. Hamas and other militants killed at least 1,200 people and seized about 250 hostages in the Oct. 7 attack.


Singapore says 3 men detained since October for seeking to join Mideast conflict against Israel

Updated 09 January 2025
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Singapore says 3 men detained since October for seeking to join Mideast conflict against Israel

SINGAPORE: Singapore said on Thursday it had detained three men since October last year who were preparing to travel to the Middle East to fight against Israel.
The Home Affairs Ministry said in a statement the three Singaporean men were not linked to one other and had been “radicalized” online, but there was no indication others had been recruited.
It was not immediately clear why the ministry announced the detention on Thursday.
Following their arrest in October, they were detained under Singapore’s Internal Security Act, which allows suspects to be held for lengthy periods without trial.
The three were a director of a digital marketing company, a lift mechanic, and a security guard, aged 41, 21, and 44, respectively.

BACKGROUND

The three men were a director of a digital marketing company, a lift mechanic, and a security guard, aged 41, 21, and 44, respectively.

One of the men had visited a shooting range in Thailand to learn to operate firearms, while two planned to visit shooting ranges in Indonesia, it said.
The ministry said restrictions were placed on two other Singaporeans in June and July last year under the security law, related to the conflict in Gaza.
More than 46,000 people have been killed in the Gaza war, according to Palestinian health officials.
Much of the enclave has been laid waste, and most of the territory’s 2.1 million people have been displaced multiple times and face acute shortages of food and medicine, humanitarian agencies say.


Zelensky meets Meloni for talks in Rome

Updated 09 January 2025
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Zelensky meets Meloni for talks in Rome

  • Meloni “reiterated the all-round support that Italy ensures and will continue to provide to the legitimate defense of Ukraine... ,” her office said
  • She also “expressed solidarity for the victims of the recent Russian bombings“

ROME: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks in Rome Thursday with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, after meeting other allies in Germany.
Meloni “reiterated the all-round support that Italy ensures and will continue to provide to the legitimate defense of Ukraine... to put Kyiv in the best possible condition to build a just and lasting peace,” her office said.
She also “expressed solidarity for the victims of the recent Russian bombings,” it said in a statement, as the grinding war nears the three-year mark.
Zelensky had earlier Thursday joined a meeting of about 50 allies at the US air base Ramstein in Germany — the last such gathering before Trump takes office on January 20.
The US president-elect has criticized the large amount of US aid for Kyiv and vowed to bring the war to a swift end, without making any concrete proposals for a ceasefire or peace agreement.
In Germany, Zelensky said Trump’s return to the White House would open a “new chapter” and reiterated a call for Western allies to send troops to help “force Russia to peace.”
In a post on X, Zelensky thanked Italy for its “unwavering support,” saying: “Together, we can bring a just peace closer and strengthen our collective positions.”
He and Meloni discussed “strengthening security, addressing global developments, and preparing for this year’s Ukraine Recovery Conference to be held in Rome,” he said.
Meloni, who has led NATO and EU member Italy since October 2022, has strongly supported Ukraine in its fight against Russia, but is also politically close to Trump.
At a press conference in Rome earlier, Meloni — who visited Trump at his Florida home last weekend — said she did not believe the president-elect would abandon Kyiv.
“Frankly I don’t foresee a disengagement,” she said, adding that Trump had previously “said precisely because we want peace, we will not abandon Ukraine.”
She added that she would support options for peace that Ukraine would support.
NATO and EU member Italy has sent arms and aid to Ukraine to help fight off Russia’s invading forces, but has refused to allow Kyiv to use its weapons inside Russian territory.
Zelensky’s spokesman Sergiy Nykyforov said the Ukrainian president would meet Friday with Italian President Sergio Mattarella, the country’s largely ceremonial head of state.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was also in the Italian capital on Thursday for separate talks with European counterparts on Syria. It was not clear if he planned to meet Zelensky during his trip.
US President Joe Biden had also been due to visit Rome in what was expected to be his final overseas trip in office, but canceled to focus on the federal response to wildfires raging across Los Angeles.


Scotland leader refuses to be drawn on Lockerbie bombing inquiry

Updated 09 January 2025
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Scotland leader refuses to be drawn on Lockerbie bombing inquiry

  • John Swinney would not speculate on backing public inquiry into 1988 attack while criminal case against suspected bomb maker underway in US
  • Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over UK that killed 270 people blamed on Libyan intelligence officials

LONDON: Scotland’s first minister has refused to be drawn on whether he supports a public inquiry into the 1988 bombing of a passenger plane blamed on Libyan intelligence officials.

The downing of Pan Am Flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie killed 270 people and remains by far the most deadly terror attack on British soil.

Libyan intelligence officer Abdel Baset Ali Al-Megrahi was jailed in 2001 for his role in the plot to place the bomb on board the flight. Al-Megrahi, who died in 2012, always insisted he was innocent and doubts have been raised about his conviction.

A television series released last week in the UK, which tells the story of the investigation by one of the victim’s fathers, has renewed interest in the case, as has an upcoming court case in the US of the alleged bomb maker, the Libyan Abu Agila Masud.

A member of the Scottish Parliament, Christine Grahame, asked First Minister John Swinney on Thursday if he supported a UK inquiry into the bombing given the “remaining concerns for some, including myself, about the credibility of the conviction” of Al-Megrahi.

She also highlighted what she described as the resistance of the UK Government to releasing relevant documents in relation to the bombing, the Daily Record reported.

Swinney said that while there was a criminal case underway in the US, “I would prefer not to speculate on possible inquiries.”

Al-Megrahi is the only person to have been convicted for the attack and there has been no public inquiry in the UK.

His trial by a Scottish court sitting in the Netherlands took place more than 11 years after the bombing and followed long negotiations with the then Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi to hand him over along with another suspect.

The recent TV series “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” stars British actor Colin Firth as Jim Swire, whose daughter was killed on the flight as it flew from London Heathrow to New York City four days before Christmas.

Swire believes that Al-Megrahi, who died in 2012 three years after being released on compassionate grounds, was innocent.

Two-thirds of the victims of the bombing were American and 11 residents in the town of Lockerbie were killed when sections of the aircraft fell on residential areas.


Russia breaches frontline river in east Ukraine, official says

Updated 09 January 2025
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Russia breaches frontline river in east Ukraine, official says

  • The Oskil river is the de-facto front line in parts of the eastern Kharkiv region
  • The major of the local hub, Kupiansk, said the situation was “extremely difficult”

KYIV: Russian forces have established a bridgehead on the Ukrainian-held side of a frontline river in the east of the country, a local official said Thursday, pointing to Kyiv’s mounting battlefield struggles.
The Oskil river is the de-facto front line in parts of the eastern Kharkiv region, with Ukrainian troops entrenched mainly on the western bank and Russian forces moving to capture the eastern side.
Kremlin forces have been launching audacious attempts to cross, and local Ukrainian official Andrii Besedin told state television Thursday they had managed to cross and establish positions.
“The enemy is trying to gain a foothold in the town of Dvorichna, which is already on the right bank of the Oskil, and expand the entire bridgehead,” he said.
Besedin, the major of the local hub, Kupiansk, said the situation was “extremely difficult” and warned that Russian troops could use the bridgehead to flank Ukrainian positions.
He said Russian forces were now just two kilometers (about one mile) outside of Kupiansk, which was one of the main prizes of a Ukrainian counteroffensive in late 2022.
“The enemy is constantly trying to carry out assault operations,” he said.
The advances conceded by the local official come at a precarious time for Ukrainian forces across the sprawling front, where Russian forces have been advancing at their fastest pace in around two years.
If Russia captures more territory around Kupiansk or in the wider Kharkiv area it would undo gains that Ukraine secured in a sweeping 2022 offensive that embarrassed the Kremlin.
Both sides are looking to secure a better position on the battlefield before incoming US president Donald Trump’s January 20 inauguration, almost three years after Russia invaded.