France votes amid tensions around attacks, migration

December 06, 2015

PARIS (AP) — French voters are casting ballots Sunday for regional leaders in an unusually tense security climate, expected to favor conservative and far right candidates and strike a new blow against the governing Socialists.

Islamic State-inspired attacks on Paris Nov. 13 and a Europe-wide migrant crisis this year have shaken up France's political landscape. Marine Le Pen's anti-immigration National Front is hoping the two-round voting that starts Sunday will consolidate political gains she has made in recent years — and strengthen its legitimacy as she prepares to seek the presidency in 2017.

The unpopular Socialist president, Francois Hollande, has seen his approval ratings jump since the Paris attacks, as he intensified French airstrikes on Islamic State targets in Syria and Iraq and ordered a state of emergency at home. But his party, which currently runs nearly all of France's regions, has seen its electoral support shrivel in recent years amid economic disappointment.

Voters are choosing leadership for the country's 13 newly redrawn regions in elections that start Sunday and go to a second round Dec. 13. Le Pen is campaigning to run the northern Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie, which includes the port city of Calais, a flashpoint in Europe's migrant drama. Polls suggest she could win.

Her young niece, Marion Marechal-Le Pen, appears to be on even stronger footing in her race to lead the southern Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur region, including the French Riviera and part of the Alps. A win for either would be unprecedented in France, for a party long seen as a pariah.

Socialist Prime Minister Manuel Valls and the conservative-leaning national business lobby issued a public appeal this week to stop the National Front's march toward victory. Le Pen has worked to undo its image as an anti-Semitic party under father and co-founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen, and has lured in new followers from the left, the traditional right and youth.

The arrival of hundreds of thousands of migrants in Europe and the exploits of IS, which has claimed responsibility for the Paris attacks, have bolstered the discourse of the National Front. It denounces Europe's open borders, what it calls the "migratory submersion" and what it claims is the corrupting influence of Islam on French civilization.

EU, Turkey seek better relations at emergency refugee summit

November 29, 2015

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders and the Turkish prime minister sealed a joint summit with a commitment to re-energize Turkey's long-stalled membership talks and bolster their common resolve to deal with the Syrian refugee crisis.

The 28 EU leaders were leaning hard on Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to stem the flow of migrants seeking a better future in Europe's heartland and European Council President Donald Tusk said the latest estimate showed that "approximately 1.5 million people" had illegally entered the bloc this year, a lot coming through Turkey.

It left the EU in need of help from Ankara, even if their recent relations have been sown with discord. On Sunday, it was hugs all around as Tusk and Davutoglu completed what they called a breakthrough summit to put relations on an even keel again.

"Turkish membership will be an asset," said Davutoglu after "no disagreements emerged" during the hastily-called emergency meeting. Both sides got concessions: The EU desperately needs Turkish help to contain the flow of migrants into the bloc, and Turkey resuscitated long-mothballed hopes to join a bloc in which it would, by population, become one of the biggest member states.

The refugee crisis has reminded European leaders just how much Turkey — whether a bloc member or not — is a pivotal partner for the EU and a buffer state from the bedlam rocking much of the Middle East in recent years.

French President Francois Hollande said Sunday that the EU will need to monitor Turkey's commitments "step-by-step," deal with the migrant crisis, fight extremism and help end Syria's political crisis. He said any funds for a 3 billion-euro ($3.2 billion) package to help Turkey deal with the migrants on its territory will be released progressively as the commitments are checked.

Davutoglu said that money wasn't earmarked for Turkey per se but for the refugees on Turkish soil. Yet the hundreds of thousands of migrants coming into the EU this year have caused the worst refugee crisis in Europe since World War II, and EU nations have been at pains to draw Turkey in as part of the solution.

"Turkey must do its utmost to contain the illegal immigration into Europe and the number of refugees has to decline substantially," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said. As a sweetener it is again discussing issues that were long off the table.

Davutoglu said Turkey stood committed to help, but couldn't make hard promises. "I wish to say the number of migrants will decline, but we cannot say this because we don't know what's going on in Syria," he said.

As part of the carrot approach, the EU promises to make haste with talks on easing visa restrictions and fast-tracking Turkey's EU membership. "I want there to be an agreement so that Turkey takes on commitments. Europe supports it, and the refugees can be welcomed," Hollande said.

Davutoglu said he was "thankful to all European leaders for this new beginning, which is not just a beginning of a meeting but the beginning of a new process, which is very important for the future of our common bond in Europe."

The International Organization for Migration said almost 900,000 people fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia have entered Europe this year seeking sanctuary or jobs, a figure much lower than Tusk's assessment. More than 600,000 have entered through Greece, many after making the short sea crossing from Turkey, the IOM said.

More than 2 million refugees from Syria also live in Turkey, but according to Amnesty International, only around one in 10 are being helped by the government. The rest fend largely for themselves. Even if support for closer relations with Turkey has often been lukewarm at best in many of the EU member states, the refugee crisis has forced a drastic revision of relations with Ankara.

"Turkey is right to expect that the EU provides relief," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said. Others though pointed out that any aid had to be offset by Turkish commitments on reform and respect for human rights.

Tusk put it straight to Davutoglu during the opening session of the summit. In return for EU aid, he said, "we expect to see an immediate and substantial reduction of irregular migrants arriving to Europe." Furthermore, he added, the EU nations want Turkey "to realize the common objective of coming closer together through reforms, the upholding of the highest standards of human rights and media freedom and the implementation of agreed roadmaps and benchmarks" that are part of the EU membership talks.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said Turkey couldn't be given a "blank check" from the EU to help it handle the roughly 2 million Syrian refugees in the country and added his nation is not ready yet to free up money. And even if Turkey has long sought to join the bloc, Michel said Turkey is "far away from membership" and "there is much progress that needs to be made."

In a recent membership progress report on Turkey, the EU criticized Ankara's interference with its justice system and Turkish government pressure on the media. Last week, two more opposition journalists were jailed in Turkey.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said that there was enough to bind both sides together. "Turkey and Europe need each other. We are facing the same problems — from the war in Syria to terrorism to the stability or instability for the region . we can be partners. We have to put all the issues we have on the table."

Maria Cheng contributed to this report.

UK army joins rescue teams amid severe flooding

December 07, 2015

LONDON (AP) — Britain's army was called in to help put down sandbags and evacuated people from their homes Sunday as stormy weather left the country's northern towns and cities severely flooded.

Storm Desmond's torrential rain and strong winds swept across northwestern England and Scotland over the weekend. In Cumbria, known for its scenic Lake District National Park, officials say rainfall between Friday and Saturday likely exceeded an average month's worth in the area.

The deluge left the Cumbrian city of Carlisle and hundreds of homes submerged. Many rivers burst their banks and in some streets, cars have been left almost entirely underwater. Rescue teams helped ferry those forced to leave their homes in boats.

About 60,000 homes in northern regions were left without power and electricity. In Kendal, rescue teams are searching for an elderly man who reportedly fell into a swollen river, and in London police say a 90-year-old man died after he was believed to have been blown into the side of a moving bus by a gust of wind.

Further flooding and disruption is expected as forecasters warn of more heavy rain on Monday in Scotland, northwestern England and Wales.

Travel chaos, floods as Storm Desmond hits Britain

December 05, 2015

LONDON (AP) — Authorities in Britain have closed roads, evacuated homes and issued severe flood warnings as stormy weather hits the country.

Weather forecaster the Met Office issued its highest red rain warning for northwest England and southwest Scotland, as Storm Desmond brings strong winds and heavy, persistent rain to those regions. The agency says it expects up to 200 mm (7.9 inches) of rainfall in the northwest region of Cumbria, especially over exposed mountains. The Environment Agency also warns of significant flooding around the country as river levels rise.

Dozens of highways and main roads were closed Saturday due to landslides or flooding.

Britain launches airstrikes on IS in Syria

December 03, 2015

AKROTIRI, Cyprus (AP) — British warplanes carried out airstrikes in Syria early Thursday, hours after Parliament voted to authorize air attacks against Islamic State group targets there.

Four Royal Air Force Tornados took off from a British air base in Akrotiri, Cyprus, shortly after the 397-223 vote by lawmakers in the House of Commons. A Ministry of Defense spokesman told the AP the planes had conducted strikes in Syria, and details about their targets would be provided later Thursday.

He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with British policy for government spokespeople. The RAF has been launching strikes against IS targets in Iraq since 2014. The decision to expand the campaign to Syria came after an emotional 10 1/2-hour debate in which Prime Minister David Cameron said that Britain must strike the militants in their heartland and not "sit back and wait for them to attack us."

Opponents argued that Britain's entry into Syria's crowded airspace would make little difference, and said Cameron's military plan was based on wishful thinking that overlooked the messy reality of the Syrian civil war.

Cameron has long wanted to target IS in Syria, but had been unsure of getting majority support in the House of Commons until now. He suffered an embarrassing defeat in 2013 when lawmakers rejected a motion backing attacks on the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The mood has changed following the Nov. 13 Paris attacks, claimed by IS, that killed 130 people. Both France and the U.S. have urged Britain to join their air campaign in Syria, and Cameron said Britain should not let its allies down.

He said Britain was already a top target for IS attacks, and airstrikes would reduce the group's ability to plan more Paris-style carnage. "Do we work with our allies to degrade and destroy this threat and do we go after these terrorists in their heartlands, from where they are plotting to kill British people?" he said. "Or do we sit back and wait for them to attack us?"

He said that attacking IS was not anti-Muslim but "a defense of Islam" against "women-raping, Muslim-murdering, medieval monsters." Cameron was backed by most members of his governing Conservative Party — which holds 330 of the 650 Commons seats — as well as members of the smaller Liberal Democrat party and others.

Labor, the main opposition, was divided. Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn — who represents the left wing of the party — spoke against what he called a "reckless and half-baked intervention." But more than 60 Labor lawmakers, including senior party figures, voted in support of airstrikes, a move likely to make fissures between the right and the left of the party even worse.

Labor foreign affairs spokesman Hilary Benn said Britain could not "walk by on the other side of the road" when international allies were asking for help against IS "fascists." Britain already conducts airstrikes against IS targets in Iraq, and in August launched a drone strike that killed two British IS militants in Syria.

British officials say Royal Air Force Typhoon and Tornado fighter jets, armed with Brimstone missiles capable of hitting moving targets, would bring the campaign highly accurate firepower and help minimize civilian casualties.

President Barack Obama welcomed the British vote to join the air campaign in Syria, saying the Islamic State group "is a global threat that must be defeated by a global response." Critics claim British airstrikes will make little practical difference, and that ground forces will be needed to root out IS. Britain has ruled out sending troops, and critics of the government have responded with skepticism to Cameron's claim that there are 70,000 moderate Syrian rebels on the ground.

Cameron stood by that claim Wednesday, though he conceded, "I'm not saying that the 70,000 are our ideal partners." Karin von Hippel, who was chief of staff to U.S. Gen. John Allen when he was the United States' anti-ISIS envoy, said force alone would not defeat the militants — but neither would diplomacy by itself.

"The Brits have expertise and capabilities," she said. Their involvement "brings moral authority and legitimacy to the fight." The British vote came as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said NATO members were ready to step up military efforts against the Islamic State group — and held out hope of improved cooperation between the West and Russia to end Syria's four-year civil war.

A day after U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said the United States would deploy a new special operations force to Iraq to step up the fight against the militants, Kerry said other countries could provide assistance that did not involve combat. He said the effort to expand operations would require more medical facilities, intelligence-gathering, military support structure, refueling operations, aerial defenses and other action.

The German Cabinet has approved plans to commit up to 1,200 soldiers to support the anti-IS coalition in Syria, though not in a combat role. Despite talk of increased international cooperation, tension has soared between Russia and Turkey after the shooting down of a Russian military jet by Turkish forces last week.

On Wednesday, Russia's deputy defense minister, Anatoly Antonov, accused Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his family of benefiting from illegal oil trade with Islamic State militants. Erdogan called the claim "slander" and said Turkey would not "buy oil from a terror organization."

Russia and the United States also disagree about tactics in Syria, with Moscow backing Assad and Washington saying he must go. But Kerry, speaking after NATO meetings in Brussels, said that if Russia's focus on fighting IS was "genuine," it could have a constructive role in bringing peace. He didn't say whether the U.S. might be willing to bring Russia into its military effort against the group, as some members such as France have proposed.

The top NATO commander in Europe, U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, said the bulk of Russia's air operations in Syria are still directed against moderate anti-Assad opposition forces, not Islamic State positions.

U.S. officials had hoped Russia would change its bombing focus after the Oct. 31 attack on a Russian airliner over Egypt, which killed 224 people. Asserting that the "vast majority" of Russian sorties targeted moderate groups, Breedlove said coalition forces were "not working with or cooperating with Russia in Syria" but had devised safety routines to make it easier for both groups.

The British debate was sometimes bad-tempered as opposition lawmakers demanded Cameron apologize for remarks, reportedly made at a closed-door meeting, in which he branded opponents a "bunch of terrorist sympathizers."

Cameron did not retract the comments but said "there's honor in voting for, there's honor in voting against" the motion to back airstrikes. From the passionate speeches in the House to the anti-war protesters outside Parliament, the debate recalled Britain's divisive 2003 decision to join the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq on what turned out to be false claims about Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction. Many lawmakers came to regret supporting the war and ensuing chaos, and blamed then-Labor Prime Minister Tony Blair for lacking a plan for post-war reconstruction.

Labor leader Corbyn said that "to oppose another reckless and half-baked intervention isn't pacifism. It's hard-headed common sense." Labor's Shabana Mahmood — one of the few Muslim lawmakers in Parliament — called IS "Nazi-esque totalitarians who are outlaws from Islam," but said she opposed the strikes because "we cannot simply bomb the ground, we have to have a strategy to hold it as well."

But Cameron said doing nothing was a worse option. "The risks of inaction are greater than the risks of what I propose," he said.

Lawless reported from London. Associated Press writers Danica Kirka and Gregory Katz in London, Suzan Frazer in Ankara, Deb Riechmann in Washington, Jamey Keaten in Brussels and Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad contributed to this report.

British leader sets Syria airstrikes debate for Wednesday

November 30, 2015

LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister David Cameron called for a debate and vote in Parliament on Wednesday on whether Britain should launch airstrikes against militants in Syria, arguing that the nation must stand with its allies in confronting extremism.

Cameron's statement Monday comes only hours after opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn decided that Labor Party lawmakers would be allowed to vote their conscience on the matter — rather than to keep party discipline and have a unified stance.

The move by the Labor leader gave Cameron confidence he had the votes to clinch an expansion of the mandate of British forces to hit Islamic State group militants — also known as ISIL — not just in Iraq, but Syria as well.

"I can announce that I will be recommending to Cabinet tomorrow that we hold a debate and a vote in the House of Commons to extend the airstrikes that we have carried out against ISIL in Iraq to Syria, that we answer the call from our allies and work with them because ISIL is a threat to our country and this is the right thing to do," he said.

Cameron has repeatedly said he wouldn't take the matter to Parliament unless he could be certain of victory, worried that Britain's prestige would be at risk. If the measure is approved in Parliament, British military operations are expected to start shortly afterward.

Britain's Royal Air Force is already part of a U.S.-led campaign against the militants in Iraq, and the question before lawmakers would be whether the mandate for the strikes should be expanded to Syria. Cameron has said, "we have to hit these terrorists in their heartlands," and argued that it made no sense to stop at borders that were ignored by the militants.

The government has been trying to build support among lawmakers for military action before calling the vote in Parliament. "It is in the national interest, it is the right thing to do, we will be acting with our allies, we will be careful and responsible as we do so, but in my view it's the right thing to do this to keep our country safe," he said after returning to his Downing Street office after attending the opening of climate talks in Paris.

The U.N. Security Council called last week for nations to unite against the extremists after the attacks in Paris and the downing of a Russian civilian airliner over Egypt's Sinai Desert. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for those and other recent attacks.

The recently elected Corbyn, who is extremely skeptical about military interventions, faced a possible rebellion and mass resignations from legislators who back military action if he had used his position as party leader to force members to vote against the airstrikes.

Sweden will not take part in French strikes in Syria

Thursday, 17 December 2015

Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallström announced yesterday that her country would not take part or support the French aerial attacks against Daesh in Syria and Iraq, Anadolu reported.

In a joint press conference held with Swedish Defense Minister Peter Hellqvist, Wallström said: “France asked us to support its aerial operation in Iraq and Syria, but the Swedish government will not offer this support.”

The minister added: “[Sweden] might offer a logistic support represented by transmitting French troops to the region,” but nothing more.

In addition, she noted that her government would send 200 soldiers to Mali in 2017 to work under the UN leadership.

Source: Middle East Monitor.
Link: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/europe/22892-sweden-will-not-take-part-in-french-strikes-in-syrian.