Denouncing “unrelenting horrors” in Syria, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appealed yesterday for an end to the violence and more aid to address a situation he said is catastrophic and worsening by the day.
“How many more people will be killed if the current situation continues?” Ban said, addressing a donors conference in Kuwait aimed at raising money for UN humanitarian work. “I appeal to all sides, and particularly the Syrian government, to stop the killing ... in the name of humanity, stop the killing, stop the violence.”
More than 60,000 people have been killed since Syria’s 22-month-old conflict began, the UN says.
An official of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a grouping of six Gulf Arab states, said a total of US$1 billion had been pledged by midday, after promises of US$300 million each from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
The UN warned on Monday that without more money it would not be able to help millions of Syrians and appealed for donations at the aid conference to meet its US$1.5 billion target.
Four million Syrians inside the country need food, shelter and other aid, while more than 700,000 more are estimated to have fled to countries nearby.
King Abdullah II of Jordan told the gathering that Syrians had taken refuge in his country in their hundreds of thousands, but Amman’s ability to help was at its limits.
“We have reached the end of the line, we have exhausted our resources,” he said.
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos said that agriculture was in crisis, hospitals and ambulances had been damaged, and painkillers were unavailable. Harsh weather had made matters worse, and people lack winter clothes, blankets and fuel, with women and children particularly at risk, she said.
“We are watching a human tragedy unfold before our eyes,” she said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS