Visa issues between Thailand and Azerbaijan will be simplified, Apirat Sugondhabhirom, Ambassador of Thailand to Azerbaijan and Türkiye, told Report’s Ankara office.
Day: December 6, 2023
The Georgian delegation headed by the ruling party chair, Irakli Kobakhidze, began a four-day visit to Hungary, where they will hold consultations with Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semien, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly János Latorcai, Chairwoman of the Committee on European Union Affairs Judith Vargas, and Minister of EU Affairs János Bóka. The visit comes amidst an apparent divergence of opinions over the EU’s enlargement process and Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán’s recent statement that there is no place for an enlargement on the agenda of the EUCO’s December meeting.
Upon arrival in Budapest, the ruling party chair, Irakli Kobakhidze, forecasted the resignation of the President before the 2024 parliamentary elections and her participation in the elections. “There is a high probability that one or two months before the parliamentary elections, Salome Zurabishvili will resign and take part in the parliamentary elections, although everyone knows perfectly well what the rating of this person is, so she won’t succeed in strengthening the United National Movement,” claimed Irakli Kobakhidze. According to the GD party chair, in the face of the already crumbling United National Movement, the President will try to lead the new opposition coalition.
In the meantime, the cracks are widening in the largest opposition party, the United National Movement (UNM), as 14 more members of the Zugdidi Council (Sakrebulo) have departed the UNM amid the internal tensions and a rift between the current UNM leader, Levan Khabeishvili, and the ousted UNM chairman, Nika Melia. Five other members also left the UNM faction in the Chiatura Council. Several members of the UNM faction of Batumi’s office left the party a day earlier, citing disagreements with the UNM’s current leadership. The Georgian Dream chair, Irakli Kobakhidze, believes that the disintegration of the UNM is part of the plot masterminded by the former defense minister, David Kezerashvili, who intends to create a new political platform.
Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili met with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Joshua Huck, who is visiting Georgia. According to the official press release, the parties discussed the US-Georgia strategic partnership, regional stability, Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic trajectory, and the importance of EU candidacy. U.S. Ambassador Robin Dunnigan, Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili, and Head of the Government Administration Revaz Javelidze also attended the meeting.
The teachers went on hunger strike in front of the Education Ministry, claiming that the selection process for school principals launched by the ministry was unfair and that the positions were allocated selectively. An emergency medical team had to be mobilized as the teacher, Maia Ekaladze, developed health complications on the second day of the hunger strike. After meeting the Education Minister and his deputies, teachers Maia Ekaladze and her colleague Davit Peradze said that the meeting failed to address any of the teachers’ concerns, and the protesters have decided to continue their hunger strike.
Online media outlet On.ge reportedthat Rusa Shelia, a US-based correspondent for the ruling Georgian Dream’s mouthpiece, Imedi TV, resigned, citing the company’s alleged anti-USA agenda. Shelia noted that Imedi TV initially had no objection to publishing her interviews, commentaries, and other material; however, over time, the network’s interest in covering issues considered important to the Georgian and global media waned. She recalled that the shelving of the interviews and other material she produced began slowly, step by step, carefully and covertly. Instead, she claimed, she was given assignments exclusively “aimed at discrediting the United States.”
Washington
In response to the decision of Ukrainian authorities to deport Azerbaijani activist and blogger Elvin Isayev from the country, a week before the state visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Azerbaijan, Freedom House issued the following statement:
“Isayev’s sudden deportation from Ukraine on unsubstantiated grounds reflects the Ukrainian government’s prioritization of its relationship with an economically important dictatorship over the rule of law, especially in light of a recent decision by the European Court of Human Rights requiring the Russian Federation not to deport him back to Azerbaijan,” said Marc Behrendt, director of Freedom House’s Europe and Eurasia programs. “The Azerbaijani government’s targeting of its critics abroad, including through the use of political pressure, extradition requests, and INTERPOL “red notice” requests, extends the country’s ability to attack critics and dissidents beyond its borders. Isayev’s detention in Azerbaijan without charge or due process is unacceptable. We call on the Azerbaijan authorities to release him immediately.”
Background:
Elvin Isayev, an Azerbaijani blogger and activist, was swiftly deported from Ukraine on December 12 on grounds of “violating immigration laws,” according to a press release from the State Migration Service of Azerbaijan. Upon arriving in Azerbaijan on December 14, Isayev was placed in a pretrial holding cell based on a Baku court ruling issued on August 22. Besides the statement from the State Migration Service, the Azerbaijani government has not explained on what grounds Isayev was arrested, or what charges he faces.
Isayev had previously resided in Russia since 1998, where he regularly criticized Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on his blog and other social media platforms for acts of repression and corruption. He was stripped of his Russian citizenship based on a St. Petersburg court ruling on August 26, and faced deportation to Azerbaijan. An interim decision of the European Court of Human Rights under “Rule 39” suspended his deportation on the grounds that forcing Isayev to return to Azerbaijan could cause him irreparable harm.
While Ukrainian media outlets and civil society organizations have acknowledged his disappearance and demanded his immediate release, the Ukrainian government has not yet commented on Isayev’s deportation. Isayev’s extradition comes ahead of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s visit to Azerbaijan, planned for December 16–18.
Ukraine is rated Partly Free in Freedom in the World 2019 and Partly Free in Freedom on the Net 2019. Azerbaijan is rated Not Free in Freedom in the World 2019 and Not Free in Freedom on the Net 2019.
Categories
NPR News: 12-06-2023 12AM EST
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) on Tuesday announced measures to expedite the development and innovation of 6G technology.
The ministry has collaborated with pertinent departments to set development objectives, advance technological research and development, and foster global cooperation, said Zhang Yunming, vice minister of MIIT.
As part of its policy support, the ministry has also facilitated the formation of the IMT-2030 (6G) Promotion Group and allocated the 6GHz spectrum for 5G and 6G systems, he added.
In the subsequent steps, the ministry will solidify the foundations for 6G application and facilitate inter-sector collaboration to nurture a robust 6G ecosystem, while also propelling the formulation of globally unified 6G standards, Zhang said.