Jakarta, Indonesia (ANTARA) – President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) informed on Friday that 493 land plots in the new capital city (IKN) Nusantara have been prepared to be offered to private investors.
He conveyed this after receiving a report from the acting head of Nusantara Capital Authority (OIKN), Basuki Hadimuljono, and the acting deputy head of OIKN, Raja Juli Antoni.
“There are 493 plots of 2–3 hectares that have been prepared, which we will launch so that investment can come in again,” Widodo announced at the inauguration of Nusantara Swissotel in Nusantara, East Kalimantan, on Friday, which was followed on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel.
He said that the land plots could later be used to build hotels and offices, or to conduct trade activities. The plots are planned to be offered next week, he added.
Earlier, on August 21, 2024, Hadimuljono said that seven investors will participate in the Phase 8 project groundbreakings in Nusantara in September.
He informed that the groundbreakings would be held for educational and hotel projects, among others.
According to the OIKN, a total of 45 investors participated in the Phase 1 to 6 project groundbreakings. Meanwhile, the Phase 7 groundbreaking on August 12 involved four domestic investors — BCA, Swiss-Belhotel, Royal Golden Eagle, and Intiland.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (DT/AFP) – Malaysian authorities have rescued hundreds of children from care homes where they were allegedly physically and sexually abused and have arrested scores of people in large scale raids, police said Wednesday.
Police inspector-general Razarudin Husain said 402 children, aged between one and 17, were rescued during raids at various charity homes in the states of Selangor and Negri Sembilan on Wednesday.
The morning raids involved almost 1,000 personnel from police and other agencies.
That led to some 170 arrests, including Islamic religious teachers and caretakers at the welfare homes, he added.
Initial investigations revealed that the victims were sexually abused by their caretakers and forced to abuse other children, Razarudin told a news conference in Pahang state.
“Those who were sick were not allowed to seek medical attention until their condition became critical,” he said. Some young children were also burned with a hot spoon when they made mistakes, and caretakers had touched the children’s bodies as if to conduct medical checks, he said.
He said the children would be temporarily housed at a police training centre in the capital Kuala Lumpur and would undergo health checks.
Police believed that GISB, which operates in a number of countries, including Indonesia, Singapore, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and France, exploited the children and used religious sentiments to collect donations, said Razarudin.
The case is being investigated under laws covering sexual offences against children and human trafficking.
Two of the premises raided were registered with the state government as Islamic schools, JAIS said in a statement on Thursday.
The department had monitored the schools as recently as July but found no offences had been committed. It said it would investigate further and take appropriate action should any violations be found.
A GISB spokesperson said on Thursday that the group will cooperate with authorities.
GISB has been linked to the now-defunct Malaysia-based Al-Arqam religious sect, which was banned by the government in 1994. On its website, the company says that its aim is “to develop the Islamic way of life”.
Robert Gass, a representative in Malaysia for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said on Thursday that the organisation was “deeply shocked and appalled” by the alleged abuse and called for long-term professional medical and psychosocial support for the children.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to Attend 2024 Quad Leaders’ Summit in Wilmington
Canberra, Australia (DT) – Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will travel to Wilmington, Delaware, on September 21, 2024, for the Quad Leaders’ Summit. He will join U.S. President Joseph R. Biden Jr., Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio at this pivotal meeting.
The Quad, a strategic diplomatic partnership comprising Australia, India, Japan, and the United States, aims to foster an open, stable, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. This collaborative effort focuses on upholding sovereignty and managing competition responsibly.
The Quad’s initiatives are making significant impacts in the Indo-Pacific, with ongoing efforts in enhancing clean energy supply chains, supporting maritime security, training infrastructure professionals, improving regional health security, and advancing undersea cable connectivity.
At the summit, Prime Minister Albanese will engage in discussions on regional challenges and explore ways to further the Quad’s practical and positive agenda. This will be the fourth in-person Quad Leaders’ Summit, with plans for India to host the 2025 summit.
New Delhi, India (DT) – In a significant development, the Supreme Court has granted bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
The verdict marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing legal proceedings involving Kejriwal. Follow our live updates for the latest news and reactions.
Perception matters and CBI must dispel the notion of being a caged parrot and must show it is an uncaged parrot. CBI should be like caesar’s wife, above suspicion: Justice Bhuyan (Reports)
Manish Sisodia has once again affirmed that no politician matches Arvind Kejriwal’s integrity, honesty, and patriotism.
#WATCH | Delhi: Supreme Court grants bail to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in a corruption case registered by CBI in the alleged excise policy scam.
Former Delhi Deputy CM & AAP leader Manish Sisodia says, "It has been proven once again that there is no other politician as true,… pic.twitter.com/9XQIIPZHWx
Who is Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, the judge who granted bail to Arvind Kejriwal and addressed issues related to the CBI? Justice Bhuyan emphasized that the CBI must overcome its reputation as a “caged parrot” and demonstrate its independence, akin to Caesar’s wife—above suspicion.
Justice Ujjal Bhuyan was born on August 2, 1964, in Guwahati. His father, Suchendra Nath Bhuyan, was a Senior Advocate and former Advocate General of Assam. He completed his schooling at Don Bosco High School, Guwahati, and continued his education at Cotton College, Guwahati. After earning an Arts degree from Kirori Mal College, Delhi, he obtained his LL.B. from Government Law College, Guwahati, and his LL.M. from Gauhati University, Guwahati.
Justice Bhuyan was enrolled with the Bar Council of Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram, and Arunachal Pradesh on March 20, 1991. He practiced before the Principal Seat of the Gauhati High Court in Guwahati and its benches in Agartala, Shillong, Kohima, and Itanagar. He also appeared before the Central Administrative Tribunal, Guwahati Bench, the Assam Board of Revenue, various Civil Courts, the Labour Court in Guwahati, and the State Consumer Forum in Arunachal Pradesh.
He served as the Standing Counsel for the Income Tax Department for 16 years, beginning as Junior Standing Counsel in May 1995 and becoming Senior Standing Counsel on December 3, 2008. He was the Additional Government Advocate for Meghalaya at the Gauhati High Court from April 2002 to October 2006 and served as Special Counsel for the Forest Department, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, from December 2005 to April 2009. He was appointed Standing Counsel of the Gauhati High Court on March 3, 2010.
On September 6, 2010, he was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Gauhati High Court. He was appointed Additional Advocate General of Assam on July 21, 2011. Justice Bhuyan was a member of several legal associations, including the Gauhati High Court Bar Association, Lawyers Association, Guwahati, the Bar Association of India, the All India Federation of Tax Practitioners, and the Indian Law Institute, Assam Chapter.
He was appointed as an Additional Judge of the Gauhati High Court on October 17, 2011, and his appointment was confirmed on March 20, 2013. He also served as the Executive Chairman of the Mizoram State Legal Services Authority and was closely involved with the Judicial Academy, Assam, and National Law University, Guwahati.
Transferred to the Bombay High Court, Justice Bhuyan took the oath as a Judge on October 3, 2019. After a two-year term, he was transferred to the Telangana High Court and took the oath as a Judge on October 22, 2021. He served as the Executive Chairman of the Telangana State Legal Services Authority and was appointed Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court, assuming office on June 28, 2022.
On July 5, 2023, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended his appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India, and he was elevated to this position on July 14, 2023. As Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court, he also served as Chancellor of the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) until his elevation to the Supreme Court.
Justice Bhuyan remains actively involved in legal education as a Member of the General Council and Executive Council of the National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bangalore, and a Member of the General Council of Maharashtra National Law University, Aurangabad.
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico is poised to amend its constitution this weekend to require all judges to be elected as part of a judicial overhaul championed by the outgoing president but slammed by critics as a blow to the country’s rule of law.
The amendment passed Mexico’s Congress on Wednesday, and by Thursday it already had been ratified by the required majority of the country’s 32 state legislatures. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said he would sign and publish the constitutional change on Sunday.
Legal experts and international observers have said the move could endanger Mexico’s democracy by stacking courts with judges loyal to the ruling Morena party, which has a strong grip on both Congress and the presidency after big electoral wins in June.
Mexico City legislators demonstrate against judicial reform, with signs that read in Spanish “No justice” at the Mexico City Congress, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP. Photo/Felix Marquez)
López Obrador says the overhaul would crack down on corruption in a system that most Mexicans agree is broken. But critics believe the move will deal a blow to checks and balances and make it easier for cartels and criminals to influence the courts.
The overhaul has fueled weeks of strikes and protests by judicial employees, law students and many other Mexicans.
On Wednesday, it crossed its biggest hurdle by passing Mexico’s Senate. Angry protesters stormed the chambers Tuesday in a last ditch effort to block the proposal, but senators moved to another location and passed the measure in the early morning after hours of verbal sparring.
As of Thursday, 18 legislatures already had ratified the overhaul.
López Obrador said he would time his signing of the measure for Sunday’s celebration of Mexico’s Independence Day. The event will allow the populist leader to solidify the judicial transformation as his legacy, just weeks before he leaves office on Sept. 30.
“With now 18 approving it, well, now it’s legal,” López Obrador said during in a morning news briefing on Thursday.
“It’s an incredibly important reform, reaffirming that in Mexico there is authentic democracy. The people electing their representatives, electing their public servants in all three branches, that is democracy,” he said.
Dakar, Senegal (AP) — Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye dissolved the opposition-led parliament on Thursday, paving the way for a snap legislative election six months after he was voted in on an anti-establishment platform.
The new election will take place Nov. 17, Faye said in a televised address Thursday evening in which he asked voters to give his party a mandate so that he can carry out the “systemic transformation that I promised.” Analysts say that Faye’s political party, PASTEF, has a high chance of securing a majority, given his popularity and his margin of victory in the March presidential election.
The Benno Bokk Yaakar opposition platform led by former President Macky Sall condemned the move. They said Faye had convened a legislative session under false pretenses in order to announce the dissolution and accused him of “perjury.”
Faye, 44, won the vote in March to become Africa’s youngest elected leader, less than two weeks after he was released from prison. His rise has reflected widespread frustration among Senegal’s youth with the country’s direction — a common sentiment across Africa, which has the world’s youngest population and a number of leaders accused of clinging to power for decades.
During the presidential campaign, he promised widespread reforms to improve the living standards of ordinary Senegalese, including fighting corruption, reviewing fishing permits for foreign companies, and securing a bigger share from the country’s natural resources for the population. He was elected with 54% of the votes.
But six months later, these pledges have yet to materialize.
Faye and Ousmane Sonko, the country’s prime minister and a popular opposition figure who helped catapult Faye to victory, have blamed the parliament. Their political party, PASTEF, does not hold a majority in the assembly, which Faye says has blocked him from executing the promised reforms.
In June, the opposition coalition canceled a budgetary debate in a dispute over whether Sonko was required to issue his government’s policy roadmap, with Sonko arguing that he was not required to.
The tensions between the government and the parliament are “unprecedented,” Alioune Tine, founder of Afrikajom think tank, told The Associated Press. “It is all the result of the dysfunctions of the electoral process of the 2024 presidential election,” Tine said.
Faye’s decision to dissolve the national assembly does not come without risks, Gilles Yabi, political analyst and founder of WATHI think tank, told the AP.
The assembly has until the end of December to vote on the budget for next year, but new legislative elections might make it hard to meet this deadline.
The presidential election in April tested Senegal’s reputation as a stable democracy in West Africa, a region rocked in recent years by coups and attempted coups.
Both Faye and Sonko were released from prison less than two weeks before the vote following a political amnesty announced by outgoing President Macky Sall. Their arrests had sparked months of protests and concerns that Sall would seek a third term in office despite term limits. Rights groups said dozens were killed and about 1,000 were jailed.
Over 60% of Senegalese are under 25, and 90% work in informal jobs. Senegal has been hit by skyrocketing inflation in recent years, making it difficult for them to get by.
The country is also the major source of irregular migration to Europe, with thousands leaving every year on rickety, artisanal fishing boats in search of economic opportunities.
Thursday’s announcement came days after one such boat carrying almost 90 people capsized, killing at least 39.
New Delhi, India (DT) — Founder and Chairman of India’s Adani Group Gautam Adani has decided to contribute US$1 million to the Central Relief Committee of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front to help the Southeast Asian nation overcome the devastating consequences of typhoon Yagi.
In his letter addressed to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, on behalf of Adani Group, Gautam Adani sincerely extended his deepest condolences to all Vietnamese people, especially those who are facing severe consequences caused by typhoon Yagi and floods.
“We are extremely saddened to witness the huge loss of lives and properties due to the devastation of the typhoon as well as the difficulties many parts of northern Viet Nam suffering”, he wrote.
For generations, the country and people of Viet Nam have always shown extraordinary strength and incredible determination in overcoming adversity. And in especially difficult times, it is extremely important to strengthen solidarity towards the people affected by the typhoon, he shared.
Rescue workers search for the missing after a flash flood buries a hamlet in mud and debris in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi in Lao Cai province, Vietnam Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (Duong Van Giang/VNA via AP)
With the US$1 million-assistance package, Gautam Adani expressed his hope to make contribution to the common efforts of the entire people and provide necessary support for relief activities in typhoon-hit provinces and cities in northern Viet Nam and Vietnamese-Czech Friendship Hospital in Hai Phong City.
“We always stand ready to accompany and stand side by side with Vietnamese people to overcome this unprecedented historical natural disaster”, he wrote.
Typhoon Yagi ravaged 26 northern provinces, leaving 324 people dead or missing, including 24 children. It has damaged an estimated 141,469 homes, 550 health facilities, and 805 schools, while around 400,000 homes lack access to safe water. Approximately two million children have been left without access to education, psychosocial support, and school feeding programs./.
Hanoi, Vietnam (DT/AP) — The death toll in the aftermath of a typhoon in Vietnam climbed to 330 on Saturday as rescue workers recovered more bodies from areas hit by landslides and flash floods, according to state media agency VGP.
State-run broadcaster VTV said emergency crews have now recovered 48 bodies from the area of Lang Nu, a small village in northern Lao Cai province that was swept away in a deluge of water, mud and debris from mountains on Tuesday. Another 39 people are still missing.
Across Vietnam, 103 people are still listed as missing and more than 800 have been injured.
As of 5:00 p.m. on September 12, death toll from typhoon Yagi rose to 226 people, according to the Viet Nam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority (VDDMA).
Meanwhile other 104 people are still missing in the aftermath of typhoon Yagi, the strongest storm to hit Asia this year.
Lao Cai has been the hardest-hit locality with 98 deaths and 81 missing people, followed by Cao Bang with 43 deaths and nine missing people, Yen Bai with 42 deaths and two missing, and Quang Ninh with 15 deaths.
Storm-induced deaths were also reported in Hai Phong (two), Hai Duong (one), Ha Noi, (one), Hoa Binh (seven), Lang Son (three), Bac Giang (two), Tuyen Quang (five), Ha Giang (two), Lai Chau (one), Vinh Phuc (two), Phu Tho (11), Son La (one) and Thai Nguyen (two).
Top leaders fan out to flood-hit areas
Party General Secretary and State President To Lam arrived in the northern province of Phu Tho on Thursday afternoon to inspect the extent of damage and cleanup efforts and visit residents affected by typhoon Yagi and subsequent flooding.
The same day, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited Lang Nu Village in Phuc Khanh commune, Bao Yen district, Lao Cai province to oversee and direct search and rescue operation for the missing victims following a massive landslide which crashed into the village early on September 10.
Rescue workers and a sniff dog search for the missing after a flash flood buries a hamlet in mud and debris in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi in Lao Cai province, Vietnam Thursday, Sept. 12. 2024 (Duong Van Giang/VNA via AP)
National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man on September 12 led a delegation to the northern province of Thai Nguyen to inspect the extent of damage caused by typhoon Yagi and subsequent floods.
Also on Thursday Chairman of the Central Inspection Commission Tran Cam Tu visited Lang Nu Village to inspect the ongoing rescue and relief operations.
Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh came to Ha Nam and Hoa Binh provinces to inspect dyke management work as flood water levels in northern Viet Nam’s rivers remain high.
A helicopter of Regiment 916 of the Air Defense – Air Force Service’s Air Division 371 took off at Hoa Lac Airport in Ha Noi on September 12 to carry out rescue missions and transport essential supplies to flood-affected areas in Nguyen Binh district of the morthern mountainous province of Cao Bang./.
Washington, USA (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are making a beeline for swing states that they hope to flip in their favor this year, both of them trying to expand their narrow paths to victory in a closely fought presidential campaign.
Harris has her sights set on North Carolina, where she’s scheduled to hold rallies in Charlotte and Greensboro on Thursday, her first political event after she buoyed supporters with her commanding performance in Tuesday’s debate.
Trump is heading west to Tucson, Arizona, as he looks to stabilize his campaign, which continues to struggle to recalibrate nearly two months after Harris replaced President Joe Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket. Although Harris’ team said she’s willing to do another debate, the Republican candidate has waffled.
“Are we going to do a rematch?” Trump said Wednesday. “I just don’t know.
The candidates are barnstorming one day after they marked the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, a somber occasion that provided little respite from partisan politics in a high-speed campaign season.
At a fire station in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, close to where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed after passengers fought back against their hijackers, Trump posed for photos with children who wore campaign shirts. One of the shirts proclaimed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Biden and Harris were “dumb and dumber and dumbest.”
Biden and Harris visited the same fire station earlier in the day. Someone there offered Biden a red-white-and-blue baseball hat that said “Trump 2024,” and suggested the president put it on to demonstrate his commitment to bipartisan unity. Biden briefly put it on and flashed a wide grin.
Only a handful of battleground states will decide the outcome of the election.
Democrats haven’t won North Carolina’s electoral votes since 2008, when President Barack Obama was elected for the first time. However, Trump’s 2020 margin of victory of 1.3 percentage points was his narrowest win of any state that year, and Democrats hope that North Carolina’s growing and diversifying population will give them an edge this time.
Harris’s campaign said Thursday’s trip will be her ninth to the state this year, and recent polls show a tight race. More than two dozen combined campaign offices — supporting Harris and the rest of the party’s candidates — have been opened, and popular Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is one of her top surrogates.
Republicans have been confident about Trump’s chances in the state, and the former president held rallies there in August.
Registered independents — known in North Carolina as unaffiliated — are the state’s largest voting bloc and are usually key to determining outcomes in statewide elections. A state Supreme Court ruling this week affirming that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. must be removed from North Carolina ballots could bring additional votes Trump’s way given Kennedy’s endorsement.
The state’s Republican Party has dismissed concerns that a poor showing by its gubernatorial nominee, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, could harm the electoral chances of other party candidates, including Trump.
The rise of Arizona Democrats has been driven by the arrival of transplants from blue states and a political realignment that has seen suburban voters — particularly college-educated women — shift away from Republicans.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris’ running mate, held a rally in the state on Tuesday ahead of the debate, and the Democratic ticket campaigned together there last month.
Republicans still outnumber Democrats in Arizona, but a third of voters are independent. Ohio Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s running mate, appeared last week in a heavily Republican area of metro Phoenix with Charlie Kirk, the founder of an influential conservative youth group.
Trump was last in Arizona two weeks ago for a news conference along the U.S.-Mexico border, where he drove one of his most effective attacks on Harris over the number of people crossing the border to seek asylum, followed by a rally at a former hockey arena in the Phoenix area.
Kyiv, Ukraine (AP) — The United States and Britain pledged nearly $1.5 billion in additional aid to Ukraine on Wednesday during a visit to Kyiv by their top diplomats as Ukrainian officials renewed their pleas to use Western-provided missiles against targets deeper inside Russia.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced more than $700 million in humanitarian aid, while British Foreign Secretary David Lammy confirmed that his country would provide another $782 million in assistance and loan guarantees. Much of the effort was aimed at bolstering the energy grid that Russia has repeatedly pounded ahead of an expected difficult winter.
Blinken and Lammy traveled together to the Ukrainian capital on a rare joint tour to underscore their commitment to the country in its war. Air-raid sirens sounded repeatedly during the visit, causing delays in their schedule and forcing them to cancel a wreath-laying ceremony.
Blinken said he would bring the discussion with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about the missiles “back to Washington to brief the president.” Blinken said U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will “no doubt” talk about the issue when they meet Friday in Washington.
“Speaking for the United States, we have adjusted and adapted as needs have changed, as the battlefield has changed. And I have no doubt that we’ll continue to do that as this evolves,” Blinken told a news conference.
U,S.s Secretary 0 State Antony Blinken, left, Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy, right, and Ukraine’s F Foreign Minister Andrity Sybiha: attend a jointr news c conference: at the Ministry of F Foreign Affairs in Kyń, Ukraine, Wednesday, Sept. 1,2 2024. (APF Photo/Mark:S Schiefelbein, Pool)
The diplomatic visit unfolded as Russia’s bigger and better-equipped army bears down on Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region and conducts aerial attacks on cities across the country using missiles, glide bombs and drones that claim many civilian casualties.
Lammy said the 2 1/2-year conflict is at a “critical” juncture following Ukraine’s daring incursion last month into Russia’s Kursk region.
“We convey the deepest condolences for the shocking attacks that we have seen, over the loss of civilian life, particularly women and children — horrific, barbaric, unbelievable,” Lammy said.
But relations between Ukraine and its Western partners have been increasingly strained by Kyiv’s repeated appeals for the West’s authorization to use long-range weapons from the United States and other allies to strike targets deeper inside Russia.
That issue took on added urgency after Russia’s latest reported acquisition of ballistic missiles from Iran, but Western leaders have so far balked at Ukraine’s request, fearing that, if granted, it could escalate the war.
Biden has allowed Ukraine to fire U.S.-provided missiles across the border into Russia in self-defense, but has largely limited the distance they can be fired.
Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy speaks during a meeting with U.S.Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)
Zelenskyy said he hoped for changes to those limitations.
“Let’s count on some strong decisions, at least,” he said. “For us, it’s very important.”
He said he hoped to speak to Biden later this month, noting that U.S. military and financial support is crucial.
“We rely heavily on it, and frankly, we can’t prevail without it,” Zelenskyy said.
However, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin last week pushed back on the idea that long-range strikes would be a game-changer.
“I don’t believe one capability is going to be decisive, and I stand by that comment,” Austin said at a meeting of allied military leaders in Germany. The Ukrainians have other means to strike long-range targets, he added.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told Lammy he hoped an agreement on using long-range assets “for strikes on the territory of our enemy” could be reached. “We hope for your help and support in this issue.”
A hard winter likely lies ahead for Ukraine. Its power grid is under severe strain after Russian missiles and drones knocked out around 70% of the country’s generation capacity.
Kyiv officials will also have to navigate the outcome of the U.S. election in November, which could produce important policy shifts in Washington. Former President Donald Trump said in a presidential debate Tuesday that he wants the war to end but did not clearly say he wants Ukraine to win.
“We remain committed to Ukraine’s victory,” Blinken said. “The bottom line is this: We want Ukraine to win.”
Ukrainian officials politely sidestepped making any comment on the debate. Zelenskyy said he did not watch it, while Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, insisted U.S. policy was ultimately unlikely to change.
“Yes, it’s clear that there will be a new president. But we believe, and are convinced, in the strong support of the American people,” Sybiha said. “We are firmly, firmly convinced that this support will continue.”
The latest American aid package includes $325 million in energy support to help repair and restore Ukraine’s power generation facilities, provide emergency backup power for critical services and strengthen the physical security of energy infrastructure.
Some $290 million will fund food, water, shelter, health care and education programs for Ukrainians in need in the country and refugees outside the country. The remaining $102 million will be used for mine-removal work.
Late last week, the U.S. announced it would send $250 million more in weapons to Ukraine, including air-defense missiles and artillery.
Wednesday’s visit was, unusually, announced in advance — a public signal of American and British support for Ukraine.
The British diplomats reached the Ukrainian capital by train from Poland. Blinken traveled from London, where he accused Iran of providing Russia with Fath-360 short-range ballistic missiles, calling the move a “dramatic escalation” of the war.
Referring to those missiles, Shmyhal added: “Russia’s use of weapons from its terrorist allies to strike at Ukraine continues their genocidal war and terrorism on our territory. We must be able to respond to such terrorism in kind by destroying military targets on their territory to ensure greater safety for our citizens.”
Associated Press writers Jill Lawless in London and Derek Gatopoulos in Kyiv contributed to this report.
