Foreign Policy Update – USA Gov Policy

CHINA

It is incredibly important that the US get to the bottom of what transpired at the start of the corona virus outbreak, according to Secretary of State Michael Pompeo. He said that the Chinese Communist Party needs to “come clean” about how this all began in order to save lives going forward. “We need our scientists, our academics, our epidemiologists all to have access to the data, access to a sample of the virus, access to the places it might have come to.”

When asked by a reporter if Washington should rethink the US-China relationship Pompeo noted that there’s places that the US can work alongside China while there are other areas such as trade where there is unfair treatment.

Pompeo pointed out that the State Department also is concerned about developments in the South China Sea where China is aggressively claiming territory beyond accepted international limits. He also pointed out that Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications company that is controlled by the Chinese Government, is courting countries around the world. The results, he said, is that American citizens’ data may be subjected to scrutiny by the Chinese Government if it crosses over the Chinese G5 network.

VENEZUELA

The US policy of maximum pressure on the former Maduro regime remains and is increasing in intensity in recent weeks, according to acting Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Michael Kozak. The Treasury Department earlier this week announced a new, narrowly limited, seven-month license for U.S. oil companies in Venezuela to wind down operations and engage only in those transactions necessary for the limited maintenance of essential operations, safety of employees, and preservation of assets in Venezuela. This license does not allow for business as usual, according to the State Department. Maduro will receive no money and no benefit from these operations.

CUBA

The United States remains steadfast in its support for the Cuban people and for holding the Cuban regime accountable for its human rights abuses. Earlier this week the State Department reported that the regime has taken advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to continue its exploitation of Cuban medical workers. The State Department said that Washington will continue to “stand up for the rights of Cuban medical personnel and to oppose their exploitation and abuse, particularly in this moment where we must protect doctors more than ever.” The Cuban regime takes up to 90 percent of what doctors earn.

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IRAN

Iran’s military announced Thursday it launched a satellite into orbit after saying they did not have a space program. Secretary Pompeo said it was “really jarring” to see that the “Iranians had lied once again.” He pointed out that they told the world that they didn’t have a military program that was involved in missiles and satellites.

The IRGC, the cutting edge of the Iranian military, announced that they had launched a satellite into low Earth orbit. IT is a move considered dangerous and destabilizing to other countries. Pompeo said that he intends to gather the nations across the world to disassociate themselves from Iran. He added he is confident that there will now be “more countries that understand what President Trump has understood since he first came into office, that the Iran deal was a crazy, bad deal, that we all need to move away from it, that the world needs to disassociate itself from Iran, and that the community of nations needs to come together and convince the Iranian regime to cease their activity, which has led to them being the world’s largest state sponsor of terror for so many years.”

When asked about Iranian military boats harassing US ships in the region, Secretary Pompeo said pointed out that the Trump Administration behaves totally different than the previous one. “You’ll recall when they took our Navy sailors, made them kneel down, and Secretary Kerry apologized to get them back. This President has taken a completely different approach. He has told the Iranian regime enough, we’re not going to permit this, we’re going to defend our soldiers, our sailors, our airmen, and Marines. I think the Iranians understand that as well.”

GUYANA

The still is no outcome in Guyana’s elections which were held more than seven weeks ago. The Guyana Elections Commission has a preliminary work plan for a recount but has not issued a timeline. The Statement said it remains “gravely concerned that so much time has passed without a credible result. Further delays violate the Guyanese people’s rights to a transparent, credible, and timely electoral process.”

DARIA NOVAK served in the United States State Department during the Reagan Administration, and currently is on the Board of the American Analysis of News and Media Inc., which publishes usagovpolicy.com and the New York Analysis of Policy and Government. Each Saturday, she presents key updates on U.S. foreign policy from the State Department.

Illustration: Pixabay

Quick Analysis

Russia Expanding Aggression

President Putin is using more than one pathway to enter Europe and undermine the West. While most of the world watches the conflict he initiated in Ukraine, the Russian government is actively pursuing a second front in a little noticed campaign in Cyprus. Although the corrupt Cypriot government ended its issuance of “golden passports” in 2020, Russian intelligence is functioning quietly there to transform this EU country into a Russian beachhead of illicit economic activity aimed at penetrating the capitalist West, according to Paul Goble of the Jamestown Foundation. Cyprus is not a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) nor does it receive as much attention as those countries who are member states. That adds to its allure as a prime location for Russia to attempt to gain a European foothold. Last week a NATO report, cited in the European Daily Monitor, noted that Russian intelligence agents have been plotting to destroy European infrastructure across the continent to disrupt states supporting Ukraine. It further suggests that Putin’s immediate goal is to lay the framework for a future move against the security organization’s members. Hungary, in particular, is another country garnering Moscow’s attention as it opposes the Western response to Russian aggression. Russia is focusing its intelligence efforts on other European, non-NATO member countries in addition to Cyprus, including Austria, Malta, and Ireland. The NATO report suggests that Moscow has had success in disseminating the Russian political narrative in these states to advance its campaign against the West. The island of Cyprus is proving to be a good target for Moscow as it is an ethnically divided island that is part of the EU since 2004. Northern Cyprus, officially called the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a de facto state that is only recognized by Turkey. The division precludes it from joining NATO. As Goble suggests, “it offers Russia troubled waters in which to fish.” Over the last 20 years, he points out, Cyprus’ challenges have opened it to a massive influx of Russian citizens, who now comprise approximately 10 percent of the island state’s population. Over 2,900 residents are Russians who entered until the “golden passport” program that allowed wealthy or well-connected Russians to move to Cyprus. It also provided them with documentation to travel freely throughout Europe! Although less visible on the world’s radar than the war in Ukraine, Moscow is also being helped by Cyprus’ banks opposition to seizing Russian assets and its support in evading Western sanctions. Russia has placed tens of billions of US Dollars there for money laundering. It has been more than two years since a single Russian “diplomat” has been deported and, in fact, the Embassy has grown to over 300 staffers on this tiny island state of only 1.2 million people. The Russian embassy in Nicosia has advanced communications antennae on its roof and opened a consulate on the northern end of the island. Moscow’s Ambassador, Mura Zyazikov, is a lieutenant general in the FSB with no diplomatic experience. The FSB, SVR (Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service), and GRU are actively using the island as a base of operations against NATO Member states, Israel, and other Western allies. Moscow backs pro-Russian political parties who in turn influence Cypriot decisions on education, language, and other issues. “Dmitry Khmelnitsky of the Dossier Center says that its findings should be of concern not only to Cyprus but to the West as a whole. Those who ignore what Moscow is doing because Cyprus does not follow the EU sanctions regime are missing something critical,” says Goble. “Cyprus does not seek to get rid of Russian agents and does not interfere with their work,” Khmelnitsky concludes, “despite the fact that what the Kremlin is doing is so clearly visible.” This has an impact not only on the small island but on the EU, NATO, and the West in general. Earlier this year the Moscow Times reported that when the FBI became more interested in Russian business and oligarchs in Cyprus, at least 10 of the major Russian businesses operating there left. Despite the government of Cyprus’ vow to implement plans for new sanctions against Russia, it continues to ignore Putin’s atrocities in Ukraine and to shield the wealth of the 50,000 wealthy Russian citizens and oligarchs residing there. Daria Novak served in the U.S. State Dept. Illustration: Pixabay