Iran calls on Muslim countries to cut ties with Israel, Russia tightens immigration, President Biden widens gap

Ukraine passed a bill to mobilize the military, the US, Australia, Japan, and the Philippines patrolled more in the East Sea, the Ukrainian President publicly announced plans to destroy the Crimea bridge, Russia launched missile attacks on many cities in Ukraine... are some of the world's outstanding news in the past 24 hours.

Ukrainian President publicly announced plans to destroy the Crimea bridge. (Source: AFP)

The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some of the day's international news highlights.

Russia-Ukraine

*Russia declares any talks on Ukraine without Moscow are meaningless: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on April 11 that any talks on Ukraine without Russia are meaningless.

In the statement, Mr. Peskov affirmed: "We have said many times that negotiations without Russia are meaningless. President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly emphasized that we remain open to the negotiation process."

The Swiss government announced on April 10 that it will host a two-day summit in June aimed at achieving peace in Ukraine, although Russia has made it clear that it will not participate in the conference. (Sputnik News)

*Ukrainian Parliament passes bill on military mobilization: In the second and final round of review, the Ukrainian Parliament on April 11 passed a bill on tightening regulations on military mobilization in the country.

According to information from the session, 283 MPs voted in favor of the bill, 21 voted against and 15 abstained. The provisions of the bill include tightening the mobilization procedures, including penalties for evasion, and clarifying the subjects of mobilization.

As a result, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians are expected to be mobilized. Strana newspaper estimated Ukraine’s potential mobilization at around 700,000. The government had previously said it would need to mobilize around 500,000, although authorities later said that number would be slightly reduced. The bill does not allow for long-serving soldiers to be demobilized. (AFP)

*Ukrainian President publicly announces plan to destroy Crimea bridge: In an interview with German media group Axel Springer, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly announced his intention to attack bridges and airports, including the vital Crimea bridge connecting mainland Russia with the Crimean peninsula.

Accordingly, destroying the bridge will be a task in Ukraine's new counteroffensive in 2024. Other targets include infrastructure serving military missions. The Crimea Bridge was destroyed by Ukraine twice, in October 2022 and July 2023. Both times there were casualties and significant damage, but the Crimea Bridge is still operational to date . (AFP)

*Ukraine's power grid suffers major damage: Ukraine's national power grid operator - Ukrenergo said on April 11 that power substations and power generation facilities in five regions of the country were damaged by overnight attacks by Russia.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia attacked Ukraine with more than 40 missiles and 40 drones overnight. Oleksiy Kuleba, deputy head of the Ukrainian president's office, announced that the Russian attack in the eastern Kharkov region of Ukraine had cut power lines to more than 200,000 consumers.

On the same day, Mr. Zelensky called on Western countries to provide more air defense systems to deal with large-scale Russian attacks. (Reuters)

*Russia launches missile attacks on several cities in Ukraine: Ukrainian authorities announced that Russia has launched a new missile attack, causing a series of explosions in the northeastern, southern and western regions of the country on the morning of April 11.

On his Telegram page, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said that residents heard explosions in the city. Similarly, the governors of Zaporizhzhia and Lvov regions also reported explosions.

According to the source, Ukrainian air defense forces are operating in the area. (Sputnik news)

Asia-Pacific

*US, Australia, Japan, Philippines to conduct more joint patrols in the East Sea: A senior US official announced on April 11 that the US, Australia, Japan and the Philippines will conduct more joint maritime patrols in the East Sea.

According to the official, during the first US-Japan-Philippines trilateral summit on April 11, Washington will announce the implementation of coast guard patrols next year in the Indo-Pacific region, building on the first coast guard patrol held last year.

Last weekend, the four countries conducted their first maritime patrol in the South China Sea in a show of force following recent incidents between Chinese and Philippine vessels. (Sputnik news)

*South Korean Prime Minister offers to resign: On April 11, local media quoted a source from the South Korean Presidential Office as saying that Prime Minister Han Duck Soo has offered to resign after the ruling People's Power Party (PPP) suffered a heavy defeat in the April 10 parliamentary election.

It is unclear whether President Yoon will accept the resignation of Prime Minister Han Duck Soo and his aides. Executive power in South Korea is largely concentrated in the president. The prime minister is the number two and would lead the country if the president were to become incapacitated. In a separate press conference, PPP leader Han Dong Hoon said he would also resign to take responsibility for the election defeat. (Yonhap)

Europe

*Finland considers allowing NATO troops to be stationed: New Finnish military commander Janne Jaakkola announced on April 11 that Helsinki will consider allowing NATO troops to be present in the country.

Mr Jaakkola, who took over as commander of Finland's defence forces last week, said the Nordic country had a relatively strong military and did not face any immediate threat, although he said that depended on how the conflict in Ukraine developed.

Finland will become NATO’s 31st member in April 2023. It is the only member state on the eastern flank without a permanent foreign military presence. Finland wants to base NATO’s ground forces in the city of Mikkeli, about 140 km (87 miles) from the Russian border. (Reuters)

*Ukraine and Latvia sign bilateral security agreement: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on April 11 that he and his Latvian counterpart had signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement.

Posting on social network X, President Zelensky emphasized that the President of Latvia "and I have just signed a bilateral security agreement... This agreement provides for Latvia's annual military assistance to Ukraine at the level of 0.25% of GDP. Latvia also made a 10-year commitment to support Ukraine in the fields of cyber defense, mine clearance and unmanned technologies, as well as support the process of Ukraine's accession to the EU and NATO".

Earlier in the day, President Zelensky affirmed that securing air defense systems is Kiev's "number one priority." For his part, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said his country is "truly committed to doing its utmost" to provide Ukraine with the necessary equipment. (AFP)

*Russia tightens immigration regulations: The State Duma (lower house) of Russia has approved in the first reading a bill tightening the procedure for applying for a temporary residence permit in Russia in a simplified form.

Under the new regulations, a two-year marriage must be confirmed by a court. If a foreigner is deprived of custody of a child in connection with the marriage or the marriage is declared invalid by a court, the temporary residence permit will not be issued or will be revoked. The new residence permit mechanism is aimed at combating sham marriages with foreigners.

Previously, it was enough to marry a citizen with a Russian passport to get a temporary residence permit. President Vladimir Putin called for changes to migration policy after the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall theater, and also demanded that the events not be used to incite ethnic hatred, xenophobia and Islamophobia. (TASS)

Middle East – Africa

*Iran calls on Muslim countries to cut ties with Israel: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on April 10 called on Muslim countries to cut economic and political ties with Israel.

This statement was made by Mr. Raisi during a phone call with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to discuss the situation in the Gaza Strip and the Israeli attack on the consular building in the Iranian Embassy compound in the Syrian capital Damascus on April 1.

Mr. Raisi further alleged that the current support of the US and Western countries for Israel, as well as the indifference of international organizations and human rights bodies, have enabled Tel Aviv's aggressive actions against the oppressed people in the Gaza Strip.

Referring to the Israeli missile attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1, which killed seven Iranians, including two generals, Mr. Raisi said Iran would take appropriate measures to respond. (Al Jazeera)

*Russia calls for restraint in the Middle East: The Kremlin on April 11 called on all countries in the Middle East to show restraint and prevent the region from falling into chaos.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there had been no request for Russia to mediate between Israel and Iran, although according to Peskov, Israel's attack on the consular building in the Iranian embassy complex in Damascus violated all principles of international law.

"Right now it is important for all sides to maintain restraint so as not to completely destabilize the situation in the region. We call on all countries in the region to exercise restraint," Mr. Peskov stressed.

Iran has vowed to avenge the April 1 airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus that killed a top Iranian general and six other military officers, further escalating tensions in a region already rattled by the Gaza war. (TASS)

*Israel is ready for conflict: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on April 11 that Israel is continuing the war in Gaza but is also preparing for scenarios in other areas. Netanyahu's statement came amid concerns that Iran is preparing to attack Israel in response to Israel's killing of senior Iranian commanders.

“We are preparing to ensure the security of the State of Israel both defensively and offensively,” said Prime Minister Netanyahu.

Meanwhile, on the same day, the German Foreign Ministry said that German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had a phone call with her Iranian counterpart about the tense situation in the Middle East, calling on all parties in the region to act responsibly and exercise maximum restraint." (Reuters)

*Israeli Prime Minister did not know about the murder of Hamas leader's children: Israeli media reported on April 11 that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Internal Security Agency (Shin Bet) did not consult Prime Minister Netanyahu and other senior political leaders before killing the three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in an airstrike in Gaza.

The news agency added that Ismail's sons Amir, Mohammad and Hazem were targeted in the air strike, not because they were sons of the Hamas political leader. The killing of Haniyeh's relatives has complicated ceasefire talks in Gaza in exchange for the release of 133 Israeli hostages believed to be still being held in Gaza. (Al Jazeera)

America - Latin America

*President Biden widens lead over Trump: According to the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, incumbent US President Joe Biden has widened his lead over his predecessor Donald Trump ahead of the November general election, as the Republican candidate prepares to face the first of four criminal trials against him.

About 41% of registered voters in the five-day poll that ended on April 8 said they would vote for Mr. Biden, while 37% chose former President Trump, a result that showed Mr. Biden’s advantage had increased from just 1 percentage point in a Reuters/Ipsos poll in March 2024.

The new poll also shows that a majority of Americans view the charges against former President Trump as serious. Trump is scheduled to appear in Manhattan court on April 15 for the first of four upcoming criminal trials. (CNN)

*US imposes sanctions on companies related to Russia, China: On April 10, the US imposed trade restrictions on five companies that are believed to be helping produce and purchase unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for Russia to use in Ukraine and for Houthi forces to use in attacks on the Red Sea.

Russian and Chinese companies are among 11 added to the U.S. Commerce Department's "Entity List," meaning suppliers need licenses before shipping goods and technology to those on the list. (Reuters)

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