Jose Mujica, former Uruguayan president and guerrilla, dies at 89
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The Guardian
4 hours ago
- The Guardian
UN's Albanese hails 30-nation meeting aimed at ending Israeli occupation of Palestine
The UN rapporteur hit with sanctions by the US last week has vowed not to be silenced as she hailed a 30-nation conference aimed at ending Israel's occupation of Palestine as 'the most significant political development in the past 20 months'. Francesca Albanese will say the two-day gathering in Bogotá, Colombia, starting on Tuesday and including China, Spain and Qatar, comes at 'an existential hour' for Israel and the Palestinian people. The aim of the conference is to set out steps the participating countries can take to implement a UN general assembly motion mandating member states to take measures in support of Israel ending its unlawful occupation of Palestine. The motion set a deadline of September 2025 to implement a July 2024 international court of justice advisory opinion that Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories was unlawful. The ICJ said in its advisory opinion that 'Israel's security concerns do not override the principle of the prohibition of the acquisition of territory by force' and called on it to end its occupation 'as rapidly as possible'. It said UN member states had an obligation 'not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by Israel's illegal presence in the occupied Palestinian territory'. The UK has yet to say what steps if any it is required to take in response to the ICJ opinion. The Colombian president and conference host, Gustavo Petro, says the meeting will show that the world is finally moving from condemnation of Israel's military action to collective action to bring it to a halt. The aim is to agree a detailed plan of political, economic and legal actions, but there are range of views over how far states can go politically or legally to isolate Israel, a country that feels secure so long as it maintains US support. The Hague Group was initially brought together by South Africa and Colombia, but since then support has grown and it now includes Algeria, Brazil, Spain, Indonesia and Qatar. Albanese, the UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, is determined to show that the US state department sanctions will not cow her. 'For too long, international law has been treated as optional – applied selectively to those perceived as weak, ignored by those acting as the powerful. This double standard has eroded the very foundations of the legal order. That era must end,' she will say in Bogotá. 'The world will remember what we, states and individuals, did in this moment – whether we recoiled in fear or rose in defence of human dignity. Here in Bogotá, a growing number of states have the opportunity to break the silence and revert to a path of legality by finally saying: enough. Enough impunity. Enough empty rhetoric. Enough exceptionalism. Enough complicity. The time has come to act in pursuit of justice and peace – grounded in rights and freedoms for all, and not mere privileges for some, at the expense of the annihilation of others.' Albanese will say that the UN charter and universal human rights instruments must remain everyone's compass. 'I trust that more states will align their policies with these fundamental principles as we move forward in this existential hour – for both the Palestinian and the Israeli people, and the integrity of the international legal order itself,' she will say. The sanctions on Albanese were imposed by the US state department for what it called her 'shameful promotion' of action by the international criminal court against the US and Israel. Albanese will directly address the sanctions in Bogotá. 'These attacks shall not be seen as against me personally. They are a warning to everyone who dares defend international justice and freedom. But we cannot afford to be silenced – and I know I am not alone,' she will say. 'This is not about me or any other single individuals but about justice for the Palestinian people at the most critical juncture in their history.' In an article for the Guardian published last week, Petro framed the stakes of the conference. 'We can either stand firm in defence of the legal principles that seek to prevent war and conflict, or watch helplessly as the international system collapses under the weight of unchecked power politics,' he wrote. A Hague Group conference in January attended by only nine nations committed to implementing the provisional measures of the international court of justice, issued on 26 January, 28 March and 24 May 2024. In practice this meant measures such arms embargos against Israel by preventing the docking of vessels at any port, if applicable, within their territorial jurisdiction. Varsha Gandikota-Nellutla, the executive secretary of the Hague Group, said: 'We meet in Bogotá with a twin imperative: to end Israel's impunity and sever the cords of complicity. The international court of justice has already made its rulings, deeming Israel's continued presence in the Palestinian territories as unlawful. There is no absence of legal clarity. 'States will now deliberate how to enforce their obligations – from ceasing arms exports and preventing harbour for vessels carrying military equipment to ensuring justice for all victims.'
The Independent
11 hours ago
- The Independent
To Whom it May Concern: Trump's tariff letters cause a stir among world leaders
Ninety trade deals in 90 days didn't happen early in President Donald Trump 's second term. 'Liberation Day' panicked the financial markets in April. And bespoke trade agreements with dozens of countries, he has said, takes too much time. 'There's 200 countries,'' the president acknowledged. 'You can't talk to all of them.'' So Trump repackaged his plan to slap tariffs on almost every nation in a series of unusual presidential letters to foreign leaders that set new thresholds not just for trade negotiations — but also for diplomatic style, tone and delivery. Most are fill-in-the-blank form letters that include leaders' names and a tariff rate. Words are capitalized using Trump's distinct social media style. A few typos and formatting issues appear throughout. They generally include an opening flourish of salutation, a grievance, the threat of a big jump in tariffs, a new deadline and an escape ramp allowing that 'we will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter' if certain conditions are met. Rather than typical diplomatic talk of things like enduring mutual respect, Trump closes with, 'Thank you for your attention to this matter!' and 'Best wishes,' followed by his signature of three long strokes linked by and about 14 short ones. He appears to have paid special attention to his letters to Canada, with which he's been fighting and taunting for months, and Brazil, which he singled out for 50% tariffs apparently based on a personal grudge rather than economics. A negotiation tactic The good news for the leaders of foreign countries, Trump suggested, is that if he sent you a letter, he wants to negotiate. 'A letter means a deal,' he said during a Cabinet meeting. 'We can't meet with 200 countries.' But he's also managed to make his erratic trade policy baffling for American trading partners eager to negotiate a way to dodge his wrath. The president escalated a conflict he started with America's second-biggest trading partner and longstanding ally, raising the tariff -- effectively a tax — on many Canadian imports to 35% effective Aug. 1. On Saturday, Trump announced more tariffs still, this time on two of the United States' biggest trade partners: the European Union and Mexico, at 30% each. And it's far from clear that these tariffs would benefit Americans' bottom lines. Trump's threat to boost import taxes by 50% on Brazilian goods could drive up the cost of breakfast in the United States by making staples of the American diet, such as coffee and orange juice, more expensive. Reception has been ... spotty The response to the letters, which the White House says will also be mailed, has been mixed. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney 's office issued a mild statement acknowledging the new Aug. 1 deadline and suggesting he would stay the course 'steadfastly defend(ing) our workers and businesses.' Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, meanwhile, vowed retaliatory tariffs and ordered his diplomats to return Trump's letter if it ever physically arrives at the presidential palace in Brasilia. ' Respect is good," Lula told TV Record. 'I like to offer mine, and I like to receive it.'
Telegraph
13 hours ago
- Telegraph
Javier Milei told to ‘grow up' by his vice-president
The strained relationship between Javier Milei, Argentina's president, and his vice-president has hit a new low after he shared posts on X calling her 'stupid' and a 'traitor'. Victoria Villarruel immediately responded on Instagram, telling her boss to 'behave like an adult' and accusing him of being out of touch because he lived in a 'palace'. The public spat was triggered by the senate approving motions aimed at raising pensions and allowances to compensate for inflation that still runs at 36 per cent – a reform vehemently opposed by Mr Milei. The president immediately vowed to veto the pension rise after the Bill was approved by 52 votes to four in a big setback for his radical austerity agenda. Mr Milei blamed Ms Villarruel, who presides over the senate, for failing to block the vote. 'And if, by some chance, which I don't expect will happen, but if the veto is overturned, we'll take it to court,' Mr Milei added. He then reposted the comment on X from a supporter, calling Ms Villarruel a 'traitor, demagogue and stupid in economic terms'. In her response, she said the president had already achieved a fiscal surplus for the first time in years, adding: 'Helping the most vulnerable shouldn't be so terrible. The issue is that a pensioner can't wait and a disabled female, even less.' She also called on her boss to spend less on foreign travel. In his 18 months in power, Mr Milei has gone on 24 international trips, an issue that his opponents repeatedly contrast with ordinary Argentines' drastic belt-tightening under his reforms. Relations have long been strained between the president and vice-president. Although they share a fierce antipathy to all things 'woke', the pair do not see eye to eye on most other issues. Even allies regard Mr Milei as having a one-track mind, obsessed with all things economic. But Ms Villarruel, who comes from an army family, has long been focused on justifying and minimising the serious human rights abuses that took place under the military dictatorship of the 1970s and 1980s. She is said to have been hoping to become defence minister as well as vice-president, but was instead frozen out of the president's inner circle. In May, he publicly refused to greet her during a ceremony at Buenos Aires' cathedral, something Ms Villarruel also highlighted over the weekend on Instagram, saying 'one never loses good manners'.
