President Joe Biden has labeled Japan and India as “xenophobic” countries that do not welcome immigrants, lumping the two alongside enemies China and Russia as he attempted to explain their economic circumstances and contrasted the four with the United States on immigration.

The remarks, made at a campaign fundraiser Wednesday evening, came just three weeks after the White House hosted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for a lavish official visit, during which the two leaders celebrated what Biden called a “unbreakable alliance,” particularly on global security issues.

The White House welcomed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a state visit last summer.

Japan is a vital US ally. India, one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, is an important partner in the Indo-Pacific, despite disparities on human rights.

 

AP According to Washington writer Sagar Meghani, President Biden has lumped together two critical allies and two rivals.

At a hotel event attended primarily by Asian Americans, Biden stated that the approaching presidential election was about “freedom, America, and democracy” and that the country’s economy was prospering “because of you and many others.”

“Why? “Because we welcome immigrants,” Biden explained. “Think about it. Why is China’s economy slowing so badly? Why is Japan facing trouble? Why is Russia? Why is India? Because they are xenophobic. “They do not want immigrants.”

The president continued, “Immigrants are what make us powerful. This is not a joke. That is not hyperbole; we have an influx of workers that want to be here and contribute.”

There was no quick response from the Japanese or Indian governments. White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Biden was making a broader statement about the United States’ immigration policy.

“Our allies and partners know well in tangible ways how President Biden values them, their friendship, their cooperation, and the capabilities that they bring across the spectrum on a range of issues, not just security-related,” Kirby said Thursday morning when asked about Biden’s “xenophobic” remarks. “They understand how much he completely and utterly values the idea of alliances and partnerships.”

Biden’s remarks occurred at the opening of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and he was introduced at the event by Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., one of two senators of Asian American origin. She is the national co-chair for his reelection campaign.

Japan has acknowledged its demographic decline, as the number of newborns born in the country in 2023 declined for the eighth consecutive year, according to figures released in February.

Kishida has referred to Japan’s low birth rate as “the biggest crisis Japan faces,” and the country has long been recognized for taking a more closed-door approach to immigration, however Kishida’s government has recently modified its policy to make it easier for foreign workers to come to Japan.

Meanwhile, India’s population has grown to become the world’s largest, with the United Nations predicting it will reach 1.425 billion. Its population is also predominantly youthful.

Earlier this year, India passed a new citizenship law that expedited naturalization for Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and Christians who fled Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. However, it excludes Muslims, who constitute the majority in all three countries. This is the first time India has established religious qualifications for citizenship.

John Kirby defended Biden’s remarks

In a press briefing on Thursday, National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communication John Kirby defended Biden’s remarks.

“Look, I think the broader point the president was making, and I think people all around the world recognize this, is that the United States is a nation of immigrants and it’s in our DNA,” Kirby told reporters at the White House. “We are stronger for it. We are not going to walk away from this. And that’s the larger point he was making.

When asked why the president singled out two ally nations to illustrate his point, Kirby declined, emphasizing that Biden’s intention was to commend the United States rather than disparage Japan or India.

“I am making a wider argument about our country, our country. “Our allies understand how much the president respects them, values their friendship, and appreciates their contributions,” Kirby answered. “And you don’t have to look honestly very far, very hard to see that bear out in the things that we’ve been doing in the Indo-Pacific with Japan, South Korea, the Philippines.”

Source: AP

Port-au-Prince, Haiti – Gangs in Haiti besieged multiple districts in Port-au-Prince, burning homes and exchanging Gunfire with police for hours as hundreds escaped the mayhem early Thursday, in one of the most serious attacks since Haiti’s new prime minister was appointed.

The attacks began late Wednesday in communities such as Solino and Delmas 18, 20, and 24, southwest of the main international airport, which has been shuttered for over two months due to ongoing gang violence.

“The gangs started burning everything in sight,” said a man named Néne, who refused to disclose his last name due to fear. “I was hiding in a corner all night.”

Gangs In Haiti Launch Fresh Attacks, Days After A New Prime Minister Is Announced

He walked with a companion, carrying a dusty red bag crammed with clothes—the only thing they could preserve. The garments belonged to Néne’s children, whom he had whisked out of Delmas 18 in the morning during a lull in the battle.

The neighborhoods formerly bustling with cars and pedestrians were like ghost towns long after morning, with only the occasional bleating from a lone goat breaking the calm.

An armored police truck patrolled the streets, passing burnt vehicles and cinderblock walls with the scrawled “Viv Babecue,” a reference to one of Haiti’s most powerful gang bosses.

People who escaped the onslaught in Delmas 18 and other adjacent communities held fans, stoves, mattresses, and plastic bags packed with clothes as they left on foot, on motorcycles, or in colorful mini buses known as tap-taps. Others were walking empty-handed after losing everything.

“There were gunshots left and right,” claimed Paul Pierre, 47, who was walking with his girlfriend looking for safety after their house burned down. They couldn’t salvage any of their possessions.

He stated that the nocturnal battle ripped children from their parents and husbands from their wives as people fled in terror, adding, “Everyone is just trying to save themselves.”

Martina, a woman who refused to provide her last name out of fear, claimed she was left homeless after armed assailants burnt her home. She fled with her 4-year-old, who she claims attempted to flee when the shooting started late Wednesday.

“I told him, ‘Don’t be afraid. “This is life in Haiti,” she remarked as she held a hefty load of goods on her head, including butter, which she wanted to sell to generate money and find a new home.

Gangs In Haiti Launch Fresh Attacks, Days After A New Prime Minister Is Announced

When asked to describe what transpired overnight, she answered, “Gunfire, Gunfire, everywhere! Nobody slept. “Everybody was running.”

Jimmy Chérizier, the head of the formidable gang federation G9 Family and Allies and a former elite police officer known as Barbecue, was in charge of the area where the incident occurred.

He and other gang bosses have been blamed for the coordinated attacks that began on February 29 in the capital, Port-au-Prince. Gunmen have torched police stations, opened fire on the main international airport, and stormed Haiti’s two largest prisons, freeing over 4,000 inmates.

The attacks eventually forced Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign, prompting the formation of a transitional presidential council. The council’s majority unexpectedly announced a new prime minister on Tuesday: Fritz Bélizaire, a former sports minister. The action threatens to split the nine-member council, which was sworn in last week.

As new authorities take over the country amid fighting, Haitians demand that they prioritize their protection, as gangs remain more strong and well-armed than the Haitian National Police.

More than 2,500 people were murdered or injured between January and March of this year, a more than 50% rise over the same period last year, according to the United Nations.

Meanwhile, over 90,000 individuals have fled Port-au-Prince in just one month, as gangs controlling an estimated 80% of the capital increasingly target formerly tranquil districts.

Ernest Aubrey told how he relocated to Delmas 18 years ago. He’s leaving home for the first time.

Gangs In Haiti Launch Fresh Attacks, Days After A New Prime Minister Is Announced

“It is too much. “We can’t resist any longer,” he said of the gangs. “They are taking everything we own.”

As he went with his heavy backpack, he noticed an acquaintance leaving in a car and dashed toward them to see if he could catch a ride.

Vanessa Vieux was one of the few who stayed at Delmas 18. Early Wednesday after the incident, she relocated her elderly mother to the countryside. She thought it was best not to give her home over to gangs. Furthermore, she has faith in Haiti’s National Police.

“I live next to a police officer,” she explained. “That’s why I’m not scared.”

SOURCE – (AP)

United Nations  — A week after vetoing a U.S.-Japan resolution to halt an arms race in space, Russia circulated a UN resolution urging all countries to take immediate steps to prevent weapons from being placed in outer space “forever.”

The Russian draft resolution, goes beyond the U.S.-Japan plan by calling not only for steps to prevent weapons from being deployed in outer space but also for preventing “the threat or use of force in outer space,” “for all time.”

Russia Proposes UN Resolution On Banning Weapons In Space, After Vetoing Similar UN-Japan Draft

It states that this should include deploying weapons “from space against Earth, and from Earth against objects in outer space.”

When Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia rejected the United States-Japan draft, he warned the Security Council that it did not go far enough in outlawing all sorts of weapons in space.

The vetoed resolution only addressed weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, and made no mention of other weapons in space.

It would have urged all countries to refrain from developing or deploying nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in space, as prohibited by a 1967 international convention adopted by the United States and Russia, and to recognize the importance of verifying compliance.

Before the US-Japan resolution was voted on April 24, Russia and China presented an amendment calling on all countries, particularly those with space capabilities, “to prevent for all time the placement of weapons in outer space, and the threat of use of force in outer spaces.”

Seven countries voted in favor, seven against, and one abstention, and the amendment failed to receive the requisite nine “yes” votes in the 15-member Security Council.

Following the decision, US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield informed the council that Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Moscow has no intention of placing nuclear weapons in space.

“Today’s veto raises the question: why? Why, if you are obeying the rules, would you oppose a resolution that reinforces them? “What could you possibly be hiding?” she inquired. “It’s confusing. And it is a disgrace.”

Russia Proposes UN Resolution On Banning Weapons In Space, After Vetoing Similar UN-Japan Draft

Putin was responding to the White House’s revelation in February that Russia had acquired a “troubling” anti-satellite weapon capability, but such a weapon is not yet operational.

Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s UN Ambassador, said after casting the veto that the US-Japan resolution cherry-picked weapons of mass devastation.

He emphasized that the US and its partners had already revealed plans to deploy weapons in outer space, which explains their activities.

Nebenzia also claimed that the United States has been opposing a Russian-Chinese proposal for a convention prohibiting the deployment of weapons in outer space since 2008.

Thomas-Greenfield accused Russia of undermining global treaties to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, recklessly invoking “dangerous nuclear rhetoric,” abandoning several arms control obligations, and refusing to engage “in substantive discussions around arms control or risk reduction.”

Russia Proposes UN Resolution On Banning Weapons In Space, After Vetoing Similar UN-Japan Draft

Much of the Russian draft resolution is identical to the US-Japan text, including the wording aimed at averting an arms race in space.

It urges all countries, particularly those with significant space capabilities, “to actively contribute to the goal of the peaceful use of outer space and the prevention of an arms race in outer space.”

According to Thomas-Greenfield, the world is only beginning to realize “the catastrophic ramifications of a nuclear explosion in space.”

SOURCE – (AP)