South Asia
Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Asif stressed that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has not consulted anyone on the replacement for Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Bajwa. This comes after President Arif Alvi expressed concern that Sharif had discussed the matter with his brother Nawaz in London this past week. Alvi has stressed that the constitution does not permit such discussions. [Geo TV]
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid announced that the group identified and destroyed an ISIS cell in Kabul on Monday, killing five. fighters. The Taliban also killed six ISIS fighters in a separate operation in Nangarhar on Sunday.[Khaama Press News Agency]
Central Asia and the Caucasus
Azerbaijani security officials on Monday arrested five people for spying for Iran, just days after the countries accused each other of violating their territorial integrity. Authorities said the five Azerbaijani citizens had been spying on the country’s military to collect information about Azerbaijan’s military cooperation with Israel and Turkey. [Al Jazeera]
Indian and Kyrgyz delegations on Monday “undertook a comprehensive review” of bilateral ties, agreeing to increase cooperation in several areas, including political, military, and economic. During a meeting in Bishkek, the two delegations discussed improving trade and investment ties. [Indian Ministry of External Affairs]
East and Southeast Asia
United States (US) President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese agreed on the need to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait during their meeting on Sunday. Biden also thanked Albanese for supporting the US by imposing “costs on Russia for its unprovoked war on Ukraine.” [Taiwan News]
United States (US) President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol vowed on Sunday to make “a unified, coordinated response” to North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programme. US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters that “What (the US) would really like to see is enhanced trilateral security cooperation where the three countries are all coming together.” [CBS News]
Europe
Several Conservative members of the British parliament criticised the United Kingdom’s (UK) $65 million deal with France for targeting migrants rather than preventing smuggling and human trafficking. The deal is the fourth agreement to counter illegal migrants crossing the English Channel to enter the United Kingdom. [The Guardian]
The British government announced fresh sanctions against 22 Iranian political and security officials over their violent response to ongoing women’s rights protests. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly called on the Iranian government to stop its violent crackdowns against protestors and respect their freedom of expression. [UK Government]
On Monday, 94 members of the 193-seat United Nations General Assembly voted in favour of a resolution to hold Russia responsible for the Ukraine war and deemed that it “must bear the legal consequences of all of its internationally wrongful acts, including making reparation for the injury, including any damage, caused by such acts.” Belarus, China, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Russia, and Syria were among the 14 countries that voted against the motion, while India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Israel, Nepal, Pakistan, South Africa, and Sri Lanka were among the 73 that abstained. It also suggested that the members should create an international register with Ukraine’s cooperation to document proof against Russia. [Reuters]
Latin America and the Caribbean
Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry has dismissed Justice Minister Berto Dorce and Interior Minister Liszt Quitel. In fact, Dorce was sacked just days after he was ordered to dismiss Government Commissioner Jacques Lafontant. Henry has yet to clarify why the three officials were sacked but it comes amid widespread public backlash against him over rising crime, inflation, and shortages in the country. [Al Jazeera]
United States Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland will begin her three-nation tour of Latin America and the Caribbean in Jamaica today, where she will meet with Prime Minister Andrew Holness and Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson-Smith. She will then travel to Ecuador to meet with President Guillermo Lasso and Foreign Minister Juan Carlos Holguín, before flying to Colombia to meet with President Gustavo Petro and Foreign Minister Álvaro Leyva. While in Jamaica, she will also take part in a virtual meeting with other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders on the humanitarian crisis in Haiti. [teleSUR]
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
German police on Monday arrested a Moroccan national for spying on Moroccans who are critical of the regime in Rabat, residing in Germany. Officials accused the person of working with the Moroccan intelligence agency. [Deutsche Welle]
An Iranian court on Monday issued the first death penalty against a protester after hundreds of lawmakers demanded that all arrested anti-regime protests face capital punishment. The court sentenced five other protesters to ten years in prison. For almost two months, protesters have been calling for the end of the regime after a 22-year-old woman was killed in police custody for “improperly” wearing her hijab. Over 300 protesters have died in clashes with security forces so far. [Iran International]
North America
On Monday, two anonymous Biden administration officials revealed that the United States (US) is trying out some “specific and very technical tweaks and neutering” to the deadly Gray Eagle drones, which fly at 25,000 feet for nearly 30 hours and can carry four Hellfire missiles. Another US official confirmed that the Army is studying the changes that can be made to ensure that it does not lose any of its sensitive onboard technology. [CNN]
During the Public Order Emergency Commission hearing on Monday, a document revealed Canadian Security intelligence Service (CSIS) Director David Vigneault believed that the Freedom Convoy protests in February “at no time” posed as a “threat to the security of Canada as defined by the service’s legal mandate.” He is also expected to testify next week. [Global News]
Oceania
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern inked two agreements on education and civil aviation cooperation during her visit to Vietnam on Monday. Both sides also agreed to increase cooperation in defence, food security, energy, information, and transnational crime. They also set a two-way trade volume goal of $2 billion by 2024. [Vietnam Express]
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) closely tracked two Australian warships last month as they traversed near the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea as part of a trilateral transit with warships from the United States and Japan. An anonymous Australian defence official said the PLA demonstrated a “significant increase in tactical acumen and use of EM (electronic warfare) capabilities.” [ABC News]
Sub-Saharan Africa
Russian Deputy Interior Minister Igor Zubov and Malian Minister of Security and Civil Protection Daoud Ali on Monday signed a security cooperation agreement. It follows the withdrawal of British, German, and French troops from the country and could signal a greater role for Kremlin-linked Russian paramilitary company Wagner Group. [News 360]
A 23-year-old Zambian student, Lemekhani Nathan Nyirenda, who has been serving a prison sentence near Moscow since April 2020 was killed in combat in Ukraine, suggesting that Russia is recruiting prisoners both from Russia and abroad for its war. Zambian Minister of Foreign Affairs Stanley Kakubo said he is “deeply saddened by the untimely death of Mr. Nyirenda in such circumstances.” The Zambian government has demanded Russia to explain the “circumstances under which a Zambian citizen who is serving a prison sentence in Moscow could have been recruited to fight in Ukraine and lost his life.” [Africanews]