World

Russian energy giant Gazprom suspended gas deliveries to Germany on a major pipeline on Wednesday, the latest in a series of supply halts that have fuelled an energy crisis in Europe.

Gazprom said supplies via Nord Stream 1 were “completely stopped” for “preventative work” at a compressor unit, shortly after European gas network operator ENTSOG announced that deliveries had ceased.

Gazprom has also said it would suspend gas supplies to France’s main provider Engie from Thursday after it failed to pay for all deliveries made in July.

The latest stop comes as European countries have faced soaring energy prices since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February and subsequently curbed its gas deliveries to the region.

Germany, which is heavily dependent on Russian gas, has accused Moscow of using energy as a “weapon”.

But Gazprom has said the three-day maintenance work was “necessary” and had to be be carried out after “every 1,000 hours of operation”.

Germany’s Federal Network Agency chief Klaus Mueller has called it a “technically incomprehensible” decision, warning that it was likely just a pretext by Moscow to wield energy supplies as a threat.

Experience shows that Moscow “makes a political decision after every so-called maintenance”, he said, adding that “we’ll only know at the beginning of September if Russia does that again”. 

– ‘Much better position’ –

With winter around the corner, European consumers are bracing for huge power bills. Some countries like France have warned that rationing is a possibility.

The European Union is preparing to take emergency action to reform the electricity market in order to bring galloping prices under control, with energy ministers scheduled to hold extraordinary talks next week.

Asked if gas supplies would resume after the three-day works were completed on Saturday, Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said “there is a guarantee that, apart from technical problems caused by sanctions, nothing interferes with supplies”.

Western capitals “have imposed sanctions against Russia, which do not allow for normal maintenance, repair work”, he added, in what appeared to hint at a replay of an earlier round of start-stop rigmarole.

Gazprom had already carried out 10 days of long-scheduled maintenance works in July. While it restored gas flows following the works, it drastically dwindled supplies just days later, claiming a technical issue on a turbine.

The Russian company insists that a key turbine could not be sent to Russia because of sanctions on Moscow. But Germany, where the turbine was located, has said Moscow was itself blocking the component’s delivery to Russia.

An official at Gascade, which operates the distribution network within Germany, also viewed Gazprom’s latest actions sceptically.

“In July, it was regular maintenance planned for a long time by Nord Stream 1, this time it was not planned and we don’t know what is behind this operation,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

A day ahead of the new shutdown, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany was now “in a much better position” in terms of energy security, having achieved its gas storage targets far sooner than expected.

Germany’s gas storage tanks were now almost at 85 percent of capacity, said Mueller, assessing that “Germany is better prepared for the new ‘maintenance’ by Nord Stream”. 

Europe as a whole was also getting a march on filling its gas storage tanks. On Sunday, storage levels were already at 79.9 percent of capacity in the EU.

– ‘Gas emergency’ –

At the same time, fears over throttled supplies have also driven companies to slash their energy usage.

Germany’s industry consumed 21.3 percent less gas in July than the average for the month from 2018 to 2021, said the Federal Network Agency.

Mueller has said such pre-emptive action “could save Germany from a gas emergency this winter”.

And Europe’s biggest economy was already racing to turn its back on Russian gas. 

At the German coastal city of Lubmin, where Nord Stream 1 comes onshore, plans are already well underway for the switch to liquefied natural gas (LNG).

The LNG, transported in by ships, will arrive at Lubmin’s industrial port and be converted back into gas and pumped into Gascade’s distribution network, which has so far been used to funnel Russian gas around the country.

“We expect to be able to inject gas into the distribution network on December 1,” said Stephan Knabe of Deutsche ReGas — the company managing the LNG project.

The Taliban declared Wednesday a national holiday and decorated the capital with coloured lights to celebrate the first anniversary of the withdrawal of US-led troops from Afghanistan.

The country’s new rulers — not formally recognised by any other nation — have reimposed their harsh version of Islamic law on the impoverished country, with women squeezed out of public life.

But despite the restrictions, and a deepening humanitarian crisis, many Afghans say they are glad the foreign force that prompted the Taliban insurgency left after a brutal 20-year war.

“We are happy that Allah got rid of the infidels from our country, and the Islamic Emirate has been established,” said Zalmai, a resident of Kabul.

“Happy Independence Day,” tweeted government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.

In a separate statement, the government said the day marked “the country’s freedom from American occupation”.

“So many mujhahideen have been wounded (over the years), so many children became orphans and so many women become widows.”

The authorities held an official celebration at Bagram air base, which US forces used to launch air strikes against the Taliban.

Foreign media outlets were not allowed to attend the event.

Kabul was quiet on Wednesday morning with a few Taliban fighters driving around the city and most residents staying indoors after the government declared a national holiday.

– Fireworks in Kabul –

The plane carrying the last US troops took off from Kabul just a minute before midnight on August 31 last year.

That departure ended America’s longest war, which began in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York.

Some 66,000 Afghan troops and 48,000 civilians were killed in the conflict, but it was the deaths of US service members — 2,461 in total — that became too much for the American public to bear.

“The burden of the war in Afghanistan, however, went beyond Americans,” the US military said Tuesday.

More than 3,500 troops from other NATO countries were also killed.

Two weeks before the end of last year’s withdrawal, the Taliban seized power following a lightning offensive against government forces.

Banners celebrating victories against three empires — the former Soviet Union and Britain also lost wars in Afghanistan — flew in Kabul on Wednesday.

Hundreds of white Taliban flags bearing the Islamic proclamation of faith flew from lamposts and government buildings, while squares in the capital were decorated with lights.

On Tuesday night, the skies above Kabul were lit up with fireworks and celebratory gunfire from crowds of Taliban fighters.

In Massoud Square, near the former US embassy, armed fighters carrying Taliban flags chanted “Death to America”. Others drove around the city honking their horns. 

– Flaunting equipment –

Taliban social media accounts posted videos and pictures of newly trained troops — many flaunting equipment the US military left behind during its chaotic withdrawal.

“This is how you troll a superpower after humiliating them and forcing them to withdraw from your country,” read a tweet with a photo of a giant Taliban flag now painted on the wall of the former US embassy.

Despite the Taliban’s pride in taking over, Afghanistan’s 38 million people face a desperate humanitarian crisis — aggravated after billions of dollars in assets were frozen and foreign aid dried up.

Hardships for ordinary Afghans, especially women, have increased.

The Taliban have shut secondary girls’ schools in many provinces and barred women from many government jobs.

They have also ordered women to fully cover up in public — ideally with an all-encompassing burqa.

“Women are mentally disturbed because they have no career, no education, and no basic rights,” said Zulal, a former government employee in the city of Herat who lost her job after the arrival of the Taliban.

“Girls are particularly distressed after their schools were closed. You can see it on their faces.”

Taliban spokesman Mujahid last week claimed there had been “major achievements” in the past year.

“Afghans are no more being killed in war, foreign forces have withdrawn, and security has improved,” he told reporters.

Documents at former US president Donald Trump’s Florida home were “likely concealed” to obstruct an FBI probe into his potential mishandling of classified materials, the Justice Department said in a court filing Tuesday.

The filing provides the most detailed account yet of the motivation for the FBI raid this month on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, which was triggered by a review of records he previously surrendered to authorities that contained top secret information. 

Before the raid, the FBI uncovered “multiple sources of evidence” showing that “classified documents” remained at Mar-a-Lago, the filing says.

“The government also developed evidence that government records were likely concealed and removed… and that efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government’s investigation,” the filing adds.

The DOJ said it provided the detailed background on the build-up to the raid “to correct the incomplete and inaccurate narrative set forth in (Trump’s) filings.”

The filing responds to Trump’s request last week for an independent party, or “special master,” to screen files seized in the FBI raid for materials protected by personal privilege.

Naming a special master could potentially block investigators’ access to the documents, especially if he or she accepts Trump’s claims that most were privileged.

The filing argues that the court should not appoint a special master, “because those records do not belong to (Trump).”

The “appointment of a special master is unnecessary and would significantly harm important governmental interests, including national security interests,” the filing adds.

Trump, who is weighing another White House run in 2024, has accused the Justice Department under Democratic President Joe Biden of conducting a “witch hunt” and said the judge “should never have allowed the break-in of my home.”

At a charity clinic in a southern Pakistani village, dozens of people affected by relentless rains and floods crowd around the door waiting to talk to a volunteer doctor.

The village of Bhambro is in a poor district of Sindh province, hard-hit by record floods that have destroyed more than a million homes and damaged critical infrastructure including health facilities across the country.

Bhambro is surrounded by vast stretches of flooded farmland, its streets full of mud and strewn with debris and manure — conditions ripe for outbreaks of malaria, cholera and skin diseases such as scabies.

“Skin diseases are the main problem here because of dirty, stagnant water and unhygienic conditions,” said Sajjad Memon, one of the doctors at the clinic, which is run by the charity Alkhidmat Foundation.

He used the flashlight on his mobile phone to examine patients, who were mostly reporting scabs and rashes on Tuesday.

Many had made their way to the clinic walking barefoot through filthy floodwater and mud.

“My child’s foot is burning with pain. My feet too,” said Azra Bhambro, a 23-year-old woman who had come to the clinic for help.

Abdul Aziz, a doctor in charge of Alkhidmat’s clinics in the area, told AFP that cases of scabies and fungal infections were on the rise.

Scabies outbreaks are common in crowded places with tropical conditions — such as flood relief camps and shelters — and can lead to severe itching and rashes, according to the World Health Organization.

Memon told AFP that many of the patients at the clinic could not afford to purchase shoes.

– Major health hazards –

The millions of people affected by the floods face major health hazards including potentially deadly diseases such as malaria and dengue fever, the WHO warned in a statement Tuesday.

Sindh province, in Pakistan’s south, has been hit particularly hard, with vast swathes of land under water and many villagers forced to head to large cities for shelter, food aid and medical assistance.

The health threat is even greater in areas such as Bhambro, where health services were already limited, and for the tens of thousands who are taking shelter in crowded relief camps.

“Ongoing disease outbreaks in Pakistan, including acute watery diarrhoea, dengue fever, malaria, polio, and Covid-19 are being further aggravated, particularly in camps and where water and sanitation facilities have been damaged,” the WHO said.

Japan’s defence ministry requested a $40 billion budget on Wednesday, pointing to the war in Ukraine and warning that the world faces its “toughest challenges” since World War II.

Japan’s defence spending has risen almost annually over the last decade, but pressure has grown for more following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and China’s growing pressure on Taiwan.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has promised sweeping upgrades, and his defence ministry unveiled a wishlist including armed drones and research on hypersonic missiles.

“The international community faces a period of the toughest challenges since World War II. The existing order faces serious challenges, as the world enters a new era of crisis,” the ministry warned in its request.

“What is happening in Europe can happen in the Indo-Pacific region,” it added, using another term for the Asia-Pacific region.

It said it was seeking 5.59 trillion yen ($40 billion) for the financial year starting April 2023 — a record but a modest increase from last year’s 5.48 trillion request.

However, the final figure — not due until the government finalises several defence policies including a five-year spending outline — is expected to be higher.

Defence officials declined to speculate on the final budget, but nationalist members of Kishida’s ruling party want defence spending to hit two percent of GDP within five years — around 10 trillion yen ($72 billion).

That could make Japan the third-largest military spender after the United States and China, rivalling India and surpassing Britain and Russia.

– ‘A vulnerable country now’ –

Japan’s military is not officially recognised under the country’s post-war constitution and spending on it is limited to nominally defensive capabilities.

The defence budget has traditionally hovered around one percent of GDP, but Nozomu Yoshitomi, a former army major general who now teaches defence policy at Nihon University, said it must increase.

“Japan is a vulnerable country now, being directly exposed to a powerful China,” he told AFP.

“It feels only natural that Japan increases its defence budget.”

Toshiyuki Ito, a professor at the Kanazawa Institute of Technology and a retired vice admiral at Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force, said boosting military spending to two percent of GDP may be difficult.

“It’s difficult to imagine it will go straight to an additional five trillion yen,” he told AFP.

He said an extra two trillion yen a year was a more realistic target and would provide much-needed funds to improve pay and supplies for Japanese troops.

“We need to invest in people and routine maintenance,” he told AFP.

Kishida has not yet committed himself to a specific target, saying increases will be weighed against tax revenues and spending priorities.

Any increase in military spending will put more pressure on Japan’s government, which is already saddled with enormous costs associated with an ageing and shrinking population.

Russian energy giant Gazprom suspended gas deliveries to Germany for maintenance on a major pipeline on Wednesday, the latest in a series of supply halts that have fuelled an energy crisis in Europe.

Gazprom said supplies via Nord Stream 1 were “completely stopped” for “preventative work” at a compressor unit, shortly after the the pipeline’s operator, Entsog, announced that deliveries had stopped.

The move comes as European countries have faced soaring energy prices since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February and subsequently curbed its gas deliveries to the region.

Germany, which is heavily dependent on Russian gas, has accused Moscow of using energy as a “weapon”.

But Gazprom has said the three-day maintenance work was “necessary” and had to be be carried out after “every 1,000 hours of operation”.

Germany’s Federal Network Agency chief Klaus Mueller has called it a “technically incomprehensible” decision, warning that it was likely just a pretext by Moscow to wield energy supplies as a threat.

Experience shows that Moscow “makes a political decision after every so-called maintenance”, he said, adding that “we’ll only know at the beginning of September if Russia does that again”. 

– ‘Much better position’ –

With winter around the corner, European consumers are staring down the barrel of huge power bills. Some countries like France have warned that rationing is a possibility.

The European Union is preparing to take emergency action to reform the electricity market in order to bring galloping prices under control, with energy ministers scheduled to hold extraordinary talks next week.

Asked if gas supplies would resume after the three-day works were completed on Saturday, Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said “there is a guarantee that, apart from technical problems caused by sanctions, nothing interferes with supplies”.

Western capitals “have imposed sanctions against Russia, which do not allow for normal maintenance, repair work”, he added, in what appeared to hint at a replay of an earlier round of start-stop rigmarole.

Gazprom had already carried out 10 days of long-scheduled maintenance works in July. While it restored gas flows following the works, it drastically dwindled supplies just days later, claiming a technical issue on a turbine.

The Russian company insists that a key turbine could not be sent to Russia because of sanctions on Moscow. But Germany, where the turbine was located, has said Moscow was itself in fact blocking the turbine’s delivery to Russia.

An official at Gascade, which operates the distribution network within Germany, also viewed Gazprom’s latest actions sceptically.

“In July, it was regular maintenance planned for a long time by Nord Stream 1, this time it was not planned and we don’t know what is behind this operation,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

A day ahead of the new shutdown, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany was now “in a much better position” in terms of energy security, having achieved its gas storage targets far sooner than expected.

Europe as a whole was also getting a march on filling its gas storage tanks. On Sunday, storage levels were already at 79.9 percent of capacity in the EU.

– ‘Gas emergency’ –

At the same time, fears over throttled supplies have also driven companies to slash their energy usage.

Germany’s industry consumed 21.3 percent less gas in July than the average for the month from 2018 to 2021, said the Federal Network Agency.

Mueller has said such pre-emptive action “could save Germany from a gas emergency this winter”.

And Europe’s biggest economy was already racing to turn its back on Russian gas. 

At the German coastal city of Lubmin, where Nord Stream 1 comes onshore, plans are already well underway for the switch to liquefied natural gas (LNG).

The LNG, transported in by ships, will arrive at Lubmin’s industrial port and be converted back into gas and pumped into Gascade’s distribution network, which has so far been used to funnel Russian gas around the country.

“We expect to be able to inject gas into the distribution network on December 1,” said Stephan Knabe of Deutsche ReGas — the company managing the LNG project.

The company believes that up to 4.5 billion cubic metres of gas can be imported via the Lubmin LNG terminal alone, making up around eight percent of Nord Stream 1’s capacity.