Month: September 2021

As the evacuation of tens of thousands from the airport in Kabul was underway, the attempted rescue of dozens of veterinary staff and hundreds of animals from a British animal rescue charity in Afghanistan caught the attention of the media. Their plight led to a heated dispute between the charity and the British government, as Henry Ridgwell reports from London.Camera: Henry Ridgwell   Produced by: Marcus Harton 
 
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France and Germany on Wednesday urged Iran to return rapidly to nuclear negotiations, after a break in talks following Iranian elections in June, with Paris demanding an “immediate” restart amid Western concerns over Tehran’s expanding atomic work.France’s foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told his newly-appointed Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in a telephone call it was urgent for Tehran to return to the talks, Le Drian’s ministry said in a statement.A sixth round of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington was adjourned in June after hardliner Ebrahim Raisi was elected Iran’s president. Raisi took office on August 5.Since April, Iran and six powers have tried to work out how Tehran and Washington can both return to compliance with the nuclear pact, which former U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions on Tehran.”The minister underlined the importance and the urgency of an immediate resumption of negotiations,” the foreign ministry said after the conversation between Le Drian and Amirabdollahian.Le Drian repeated his concern with regard to all the nuclear activities carried out by Iran in violation of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Iran has gradually violated limits in the agreement since Washington abandoned it in 2018.The next round of talks has yet to be scheduled.Two senior Iranian officials told Reuters in July Raisi planned to adopt “a harder line” in the talks.Amirabdollahian said on Monday the talks might resume in “two to three months”, although it’s unclear whether that time frame began from now or when the new administration took over last month.Germany earlier also raised pressure on Tehran asking it to resume talks “as soon as possible.””We are ready to do so, but the time window won’t be open indefinitely,” a ministry spokesperson told a briefing.Last month, France, Germany and Britain voiced grave concern about reports from the U.N. nuclear watchdog confirming Iran has produced uranium metal enriched up to 20% fissile purity for the first time and lifted production capacity of uranium enriched to 60%. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visits the White House for talks Wednesday with U.S. President Joe Biden, a trip that has been in the works for two years and delayed one day due to consultations about events in Afghanistan.  Senior U.S. administration officials said the message behind the visit is “the United States’ commitment to Ukraine sovereignty, territorial integrity, and Euro-Atlantic aspirations.”   The officials told reporters the agenda would include security issues, energy and climate policy and anti-corruption efforts in Ukraine. The officials also said the two sides would be announcing several agreements, including security assistance for Ukraine, humanitarian aid for those “impacted by the crisis with Russia in the east” and coronavirus aid. During the administration of former President Donald Trump, surrogates for Trump pressed Ukraine to open an investigation into activities involving the son of then-candidate Biden. The incidents led to President Trump’s first impeachment by the House of Representatives, and the political furor sidelined relations with Kyiv.  Analysts say there are both challenges and opportunities in the meeting between Biden and Zelenskiy in Washington. Ukraine Ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova expressed optimism about the visit, saying it sends an important message about the U.S.-Ukraine relationship.Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Defense Minister Andrii Tarant are welcomed at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, Aug. 31, 2021.“After (German) Chancellor (Angela) Merkel, President Zelenskiy is the second leader the U.S. is inviting to the White House with a visit to discuss some strategic issues,” Markarova told VOA. “So, I believe it shows the level of attention, focus and importance of our bilateral relations for both Ukraine and the United States.”    American experts agree that the Biden-Zelenskiy meeting is an opportunity to strengthen Ukraine-U.S. relations. Steven Pifer, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, says the outcome of the meeting will depend to a great extent on Zelenskiy. “It seems to me, though, that part of the ability to make this a successful meeting will depend on what President Zelenskiy asks for,” Pifer told VOA. “He should moderate some of his requests because if he asks too much, he may be disappointed. You do not want to ask the question unless you are sure the answer is going to be ‘yes.’”   Among the more sensitive subjects are NATO membership and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Europe, which Ukraine opposes. Experts say it is important that Zelenskiy remain realistic and balanced when discussing these issues. “He should not expect any commitment from the United States regarding Ukraine and NATO. He should also not expect any change in the Biden position on Nord Stream 2,” said John Herbst, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and the director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center. “Zelenskiy has to make clear that he still opposes that decision and would like to see a change without antagonizing the president. So, he can do that, I think, by mentioning it, but not in a confrontational way in their White House meeting.” Daria Kalenyuk, the executive director of the Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Action Center, says Zelenskiy should remain assertive when discussing the Nord Stream 2 issue. She said White House’s decision to waive sanctions on Nord Stream 2 contradicts Biden’s statements on fighting corruption abroad. “The right thing would be to talk, not only about corruption in Ukraine, but also about geopolitical corruption and strategic corruption. We can and should ask why Nord Stream 2 is being finished despite it being the symbol of strategic corruption,” Kalenyuk said. Regarding security cooperation, the Biden administration has decided to support providing additional military aid to Ukraine in case of a possible escalation of its longstanding conflict with Russia in eastern Ukraine. In addition, Biden did signal his intention to provide Ukraine with $60 million more in U.S. military equipment. “I would think that additional American military assistance would be good,” Pifer said. “First of all, because it would help improve Ukrainians’ defense capabilities. That’s the practical step. But second of all, it would be a way to send a strong message of American support for Ukraine.” Ambassador Herbst said Biden should also be interested in supporting Ukraine through strong rhetoric. “He needs to demonstrate in very clear ways that the United States has Ukraine’s back — is supporting Ukraine — as Moscow continues this war. And Biden has even more reasons now to do it, after his administration’s disastrous handling of the pullout from Afghanistan. He needs to show that, in fact, he is a strong international player.” At the same time, the White House has repeatedly emphasized that it expects Ukraine to deliver tangible results in the country’s fight against corruption. Pifer said the biggest thing Zelenskiy can bring is a credible, compelling message of Kyiv’s commitment to reform.  “And that means a more open and competitive economy. It means rule of law, including reforming the judicial sector,” Pifer said. “It means reducing the outsize political and economic influence of the oligarchs. It means combating corruption.”  Ambassador Markarova is convinced the two presidents will see eye to eye, even on the more complex issues. “We know that both Ukraine and the U.S. are strategic partners and friends. So, the two leaders will discuss all the issues on the agenda like partners — sincerely and earnestly. And they will find solutions that are acceptable for both sides,” she said. Myroslava Gongadze contributed to this report. 
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Dozens of Russian independent media have been labeled “foreign agents” in the run-up to parliamentary elections, which are now only three weeks away.As of August 31, the Ministry of Justice website lists 43 media outlets and journalists and 76 civil society groups as “foreign agents.” Another 46 groups have been given the label of “undesirable organization.”Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during an annual nationwide televised phone-in show in Moscow, June 30, 2021.The list includes large news outlets and prominent Russian journalists who have investigated President Vladimir Putin and his allies. The U.S. Congress-funded Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty are among those named.Russian journalists who spoke with VOA saw the labeling as an attempt by the Kremlin to destroy independent media and prevent any protests about September’s parliamentary elections or the 2024 presidential vote.The designation is also affecting an election-monitoring group and candidates for the opposition Yabloko party, who were ordered to indicate their affiliation with “foreign agents” on campaign materials.The legislation was introduced in 2012. It was amended in response to the U.S. ordering Moscow-funded news groups to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act in 2017.Since then, Russia has applied the label broadly to independent media outlets and critics and has told others they must indicate their connections to named agents.The Justice Ministry did not respond to VOA’s request for comment.The foreign agent label is “another mechanism” to fight dissent, Yabloko party candidate Alexei Krapukhin told VOA.Krapukhin’s election campaign has called for an end to repression and for protests over the resetting of presidential terms that would allow Putin to run for a fifth term.Russia’s New Constitution to Further Silence DebateAmendments, proposed new laws could block reporting on anything that contradicts Kremlin narrative, experts say But when Krapukhin sent a campaign video to Moscow Media, which oversees TV channels and radio stations, he was told to either remove the mention of Yabloko or indicate the party’s affiliation with registered agents.Russia’s state-run Central Election Commission said that because Yabloko nominated two candidates affiliated with “foreign agents,” the party must indicate the relationship in at least 15% of all campaign advertisements, including those on TV and voting ballots.Krapukhin successfully challenged the order. But, he told VOA, “the Kremlin is creating an information cocoon around the upcoming election.””Independent media are the lens for people to look at the state. If there are no independent journalists, there is no understanding of the country’s problems,” Krapukhin said.Tainted by labelRequirements under the foreign agent law are cumbersome and can lead to penalties and turn away potential business, some journalists said.When the Justice Ministry labeled Russia’s last independent TV channel, Dozhd, a foreign agent in August, the channel’s editorial board called the decision “insidious.” The ministry said in a statement that Dozhd received more than 130,000 euros ($153,000) from the European Commission for EU-Russia coverage and that it distributes material from foreign mass media, including VOA. In June, the station was removed from the Kremlin press pool after covering rallies for jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny, and it is one of the few remaining channels providing independent coverage of protests. Russian Opposition Leader Faces New Charge, More JailRussia’s Investigative Committee said Alexei Navalny’s non-profit group encouraged Russians to break the lawNow the station must indicate that every report on TV, the internet or its social media platforms was produced by a “foreign agent.” ”We are required to tag everything, even Instagram stories,” Dozhd Editor-in-Chief Tikhon Dzyadko said. But with a large number of posts, “there is always the possibility that we will simply skip this marking (if) someone is tired or forgets.”If that happened, Dzyadko said, the penalty would be huge, including up to two years in prison if fines for noncompliance are not paid.RFE/RL has filled a case with the European Court of Human Rights after being fined millions of dollars since January under the law. A more serious consequence, Dzyadko said, is that “business may not want to deal with us. Big money is known to love silence. And being included in the list of foreign agents means that you are an enemy of the state; you are potentially dangerous.”Dzyadko cited the case of independent news website Meduza, which lost advertising after being labeled a foreign agent earlier this year.Russia Using Foreign Agent Law to Attack Journalism, Media SayExorbitant fines, repressive accounting of all personal spending, and labels that sow distrust are part of Russia’s ‘fight against the spread of ideas,’ say those affected by legislation’People will not be silent’Since a constitutional referendum last year cleared Putin to run for a fifth term, 25 journalists and seven media outlets have been labeled foreign agents by Russia.At first the action appeared linked to the parliamentary elections, but now it seems the 2024 presidential election is the focus, said Dozhd journalist Ekaterina Kotrikadze.”The goal is to drown out liberal ideas and free speech before the elections in 2024, as the Kremlin is eager to avoid repeating the path of Belarus,” Kotrikadze said. “They are doing everything so that there are no large protests, large rallies — so that they do not have to use that much force as (Belarus President Alexander) Lukashenko.” But, she said, the Kremlin’s plan will not work. ”Russia is such a huge country, and there are many honest free journalists and political figures. People will not be silent.”In some cases, individual journalists as well as their newsrooms are listed as foreign agents.When Russia designated Vazhnye Istorii (Important Stories) — an outlet known for investigating Putin and his allies — as a foreign agent, it listed six of the news group’s journalists.Those people must now register as legal entities, submit reports to authorities and add a ‘foreign agent’ label to all their public social media posts, including personal ones.”I am not a foreign agent. This law is a shame, and it’s illegal,” Dmitry Velikovsky, a Vazhnye Istorii journalist, told VOA. “I am not a media outlet, I am a (Russian) citizen who writes articles in the media and writes what he wants on Facebook.”Velikovsky believes he and his colleagues were included in retaliation for reporting on Putin’s family and allies.”All those personally listed were investigative reporters who covered the Panama Papers leaks, where Putin’s childhood friend Sergei Roldugin appears,” Velikovsky said, adding that Vazhnye Istorii also investigated the transfer of billions of dollars from Russian state banks and businessmen to the accounts of people close to Putin and large Russian companies. His colleague Irina Dolinina, who is also on the list, told VOA the label “overcomplicates life and puts personal safety at great risk.””On every post on any social media and even in public chats, I have to put this huge humiliating mark, and now I have to open a legal entity to report my personal spending to authorities,” she said. “All ‘foreign agents’ are a couple of steps away from being in prison.”Survival modeThe situation in Russia has deteriorated significantly compared with the environment during the parliamentary elections five years ago, said Vasily Vaisenberg, editor in chief of news agency Zakon.Член ЦИК Игорь Борисов предложил специально маркировать наблюдателей, которые связаны с организациями-инагентами. “Вполне допустимо, что мы не будем запрещать ОП назначать таких наблюдателей, но соответствующим образом их маркировать”— ИА Закон (@zakon_agency) August 12, 2021″In 2016, parts of the society had certain hopes,” Vaisenberg said. “There is no hope now.”The journalist also works with the election monitoring group Golos (Voice), which in August was listed as an “unregistered foreign agent.”Vaisenberg said it was unclear what restrictions authorities might place on independent observers.A few days before Golos was added to the list, Central Election Commission of Russia member Igor Borisov had proposed identifying observers associated with “foreign agent organizations.”Borisov was cited in articles saying the observers would not necessarily be banned, but “labeled accordingly.”Alexei Kurtov, president of the Russian Association of Political Consultants, told VOA that the current climate “forces all the media to be more careful, more restrained.””Many news outlets seem to have to stand on tiptoe, not knowing what direction the wind blows,” Kurtov said. He added that Russians who want uncensored information would “have to read between the lines. Again.”But in some cases, media outlets added to the Justice Ministry list have closed down.Investigative outlet The Project was shuttered after the company and some staff were added to the register in July.Maria Zheleznova, a former Project journalist who is still listed as an individual “foreign agent,” said on Facebook that the label is equivalent to “an instant ban on activities threatened by immediate prosecution for the creator.” Mikhail Rubin, former deputy editor in chief for The Project, told VOA that the previous tactic of self-censoring on some issues, such as critical coverage of Putin, is no longer enough.”A huge number of media outlets in Russia have chosen this tactic of survival. They do not touch Putin, they don’t conduct their own investigations, they don’t write about Navalny, but otherwise they are trying to conduct some kind of transparent journalism,” Rubin said. “No, guys, it doesn’t work anymore.”Rubin believes Russia will soon demand “absolute demonstrative loyalty” from all media groups.Authorities are already demanding complete loyalty, even from newspapers that are popular among the elite only, Rubin said, adding, “This is the call to the Russian elite that they should demonstrate absolute loyalty to Kremlin.”This story originated in VOA’s Russian service. Ksenia Turkova, Rafael Saakov contributed to this report.
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The Polish government has asked President Andrzej Duda to declare a state of emergency along the Poland-Belarus border. Poland accuses Belarus of using migrants as political pawns by pushing them into the European Union in retaliation over EU sanctions. According to a recent BBC report, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko accused Poland of starting a “border conflict” and violating his country’s territory. The state of emergency would create a three-kilometer-wide zone around the border that would prohibit outsiders from entering. FILE – Polish President Andrzej Duda speaks in Gdansk-Westerplatte, Sept. 1, 2020.”Please expect Poland’s security to be strengthened in the nearest time through acts of law, and also through subsequent actions on Poland’s border,” Duda said. The country’s parliament would need to approve the emergency declaration, and Duda said he thinks it would. About 30 migrants, mostly from Iraq and Afghanistan, have been in limbo at the border for weeks. So far, Poland’s response has been to deploy troops to the border and install a barbed wire fence. Last week, it said it had provided tents, blankets and power generators to the migrants, who remain on Belarusian territory. Also last week, the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, called for Poland to provide medical and legal support to the migrants. Some refugee rights groups say several migrants are sick. One group reportedly tried to cut a hole in the barbed wire fence. About 3,000 migrants have attempted to enter Poland from Belarus this month, The Associated Press reported. Poland is not alone in accusing Belarus of using migrants as political pawns. Other Baltic states have said Minsk is pushing migrants toward them in response to the EU sanctions following a crackdown against those protesting the disputed reelection of President Lukashenko in August 2020. Last week, the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, said it was monitoring the situation. “We firmly reject attempts to instrumentalize people for political purposes,” spokesman Christian Wigand said in Brussels. “We cannot accept any attempts by third countries to incite or acquiesce in illegal migration” to the EU.  Some information in this report comes from the Associated Press and Reuters. 
 
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Under a small bridge more than 100 kilometers from the Turkish border with Iran, a small group of boys and young men waits quietly for a smuggler.  They are unwashed, exhausted and hungry. Most of them are under 18, and they are all from Afghanistan. When the Taliban began taking over their towns and villages, they fled their homes with almost nothing. Currently, after more than two months of travel, they have even less. “I brought shampoo, soap, money, my phone and a watch,” says Saboon Afghan, 24, the oldest in the group and its de facto leader. “I used up some and the rest was stolen. Now, I just have these clothes and an empty bag.” Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
Zaki Wassim, 17, at right, sits beside his brother under the bridge. Both of them are trying to reach Istanbul for the second time, after being sent back to the Iranian border by Turkish police a few weeks ago. (VOA/Yan Boechat)”We were walking openly on the streets for an hour when the police arrested us last time,” says Zaki Wassim, 17, from Kabul, explaining what happened when he tried to enter Turkey from Iran about a month ago. “The next evening, they took us in a bus to the border and shouted, ‘Don’t come back to Turkey.'” Influx angers some Turks Earlier this month, the Taliban swept into Kabul after taking over vast swaths of Afghanistan in a matter of days. Since then, mass evacuations have left the Kabul airport in chaos, and Islamic State suicide bombers have killed at least 170 people and 13 U.S. service members.  The country is on edge, waiting to find out what will happen now that the United States has met its self-declared August 31 deadline to pull out of Afghanistan completely. Afghan refugees detained in a Turkish deportation center watch journalists touring their facility with Turkish officials in Van, Turkey, Aug. 30, 2021. (VOA/Yan Boechat)Turkish officials also are waiting to see what happens next, saying it may be weeks or months before they can resume deportations. Turkey currently has 25 deportation centers, all filled to capacity with mostly Afghan refugees, and it plans to build eight more. “We cannot send them back because of human rights issues,” says Omurcu. “But if things go well, we will resume normal deportations.” Soldiers patrol the Turkish-Iranian border trying to prevent Afghans refugees from entering Turkey, on Aug. 30, 2021. (VOA/Yan Boechat)Many Turkish people are angered by the influx of Afghan refugees, saying their country is being damaged economically and socially by the crisis. Turkey already hosts more than 4 million refugees and asylum-seekers, more than any other country in the world, including 3.6 million Syrian refugees. During the tour, officials express sympathy for the detainees, showing playrooms for children, Turkish language classes, and a line of young men picking up what appears to be a healthy meal. They also express sympathy for the angered Turkish nationals, who want refugees out of their country.  “Illegal entries are out of control in Turkey,” Omurcu continues. “It is too much.” Asylum claims The process for becoming a legal refugee in Turkey involves applying for asylum via government officials. In most countries, the U.N. refugee agency, the UNHCR, processes the claims, but Turkey relieved the agency of that responsibility in 2018. Under the bridge, the boys do not seem to know much about the process, saying first they were driven from their homes by crushing poverty. Later, they explain the poverty was a result of war and violence. Both the United Nations and Turkey are clear: fleeing violence and danger can make you eligible for refugee status. Fleeing poverty does not, even if the two are intertwined.  At the deportation center, some refugees point out that no one plans to become a refugee, so it is reasonable that some people do not know how to organize their tragic stories in order to fit into a legal definition. Soraya, 19, fled her home in the western part of Afghanistan when the Taliban was getting closer. She left with her sister and five nephews and nieces, After crossing Iran and entering Turkey they decided to go to the police and seek asylum, pictured Aug. 30, 2021. (VOA/Yan Boechat)Soraya, 19, was in her third semester at a university when she ran from her home in western Afghanistan. She was studying physics and chemistry, hoping one day to become a doctor.  When the Taliban took over her town, she and her sister fled with her nieces and nephews. Besides the violence of the war, they feared they would be in danger, just for being educated women.  And while she hopes Turkey will help her find a safe place to live, outside of the detention camp, she doesn’t see it as Turkey’s responsibility. “This is my request for the whole world,” she says. “Please pave the way for us. We escaped the battles ourselves. Now we need help.” Mohammad Mahdi Sultani contributed to this report.
 
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Deportation centers in Turkey are filled to capacity as refugees from Afghanistan continue to cross the border from Iran by night, hoping to evade police and resettle. As VOA tours a deportation center in Van, officials say they are not sending people back to Afghanistan, but they also have no plans to release detainees. VOA’s Heather Murdock has this report from Van, on the Turkish border with Iran.Camera: Yan BoechatMohammad Mahdi Sultani contributed to this story.
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