In Geopolitics Today: Friday, September 23rd
Israel to Sell Advanced Air Defence System to the UAE, Israel and Lebanon Close to Agreement in Maritime Exploitation Deal, and other stories.
Micronesia Denounces Japan over Nuclear Waste into the Pacific Ocean
Japan’s decision to approve the release of nuclear-contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean has drawn condemnation. The president of the Micronesia has denounced Japan at the United Nations over Tokyo’s recent decision to discharge the nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station.
The water has been stored in huge tanks in the plant, and now reportedly amounts to more than 1.3 million tonnes of nuclear-contaminated water. Japan's Foreign Ministry has said that its regulators have deemed it safe to release the water, which still contains traces of the radioactive isotope tritium after treatment. The plant's operator plans to filter the contaminated water in a bid to remove harmful isotopes, after which it will be diluted and released into the Pacific Ocean.
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Israel to Sell Advanced Air Defence System to the UAE
Israel is preparing to sell an advanced air defence system capable of defending against drone attacks to the United Arab Emirates. Israel has agreed to sell its SPYDER air defence system, a mobile system produced by Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems designed to shoot down aircraft, cruise missiles, drones and other airborne threats.
This is the first such deal between the two countries since they normalized ties in 2020 as part of the Abraham Accords. The need to bolster the UAE's air defence capabilities was highlighted by a series of missile and drone strikes on the Gulf state in January and February this year. That strikes rattled the leaders of the UAE, prompting them to seek out more capable means of intercepting drones and missiles. It was not immediately clear how many interceptors would be supplied as part of the deal, or if any have already been shipped.
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Sanctions Against Russia Fuelling a Global Fertilizer Shortage
Since Russia’s direct military intervention in Ukraine, sanctions against Russia have been contributing to a global fertilizer shortage. While the European Union insists that it is ensuring that exports of fertilizers and grain are exempt from the sanctions, in practice this is not the case. Sanctions continue to affect the Russia’s financial, transport and other sectors, which has meant that fertilizer supplies continue to be obstructed.
Prior to the war, Russia and Belarus produced nearly 20 percent of all global fertilizer supplies. Adding to the loss of these supplies, the cost of fertilizer production has also increased sharply due to high gas prices provoked by the embargoes imposed by the United States and the EU. Whereas European farmers may be able to face these escalating costs, this option is non-existent for poorer countries, particularly on the African continent.
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Israel and Lebanon Close to Agreement in Maritime Exploitation Deal
Israel's announcement in June 2020 of a new offshore bidding round for oil and natural gas exploration of a maritime area in the Eastern Mediterranean dubbed as Block 72 led to the start of US-brokered indirect talks between Israel and Lebanon. Israel says it will begin piping gas from Karish — one of the fields under dispute — by the 1st of October. In response, Lebanon has threatened military action if Israel starts production before a deal is reached.
Now, negotiations on a potential maritime border deal between Lebanon and Israel have reportedly made “major progress” according to the President of Lebanon, Michel Aoun. Lebanon and Israel, formally at war since 1948, have no diplomatic ties and have not found agreement on the border between their two countries as both claim an overlapping section of the Mediterranean Sea. The impetus to agree on where the boundary between the countries stood became more important when Israel discovered and began to extract oil and gas in its waters. Agreement here promises to be a major boost for the Eastern Mediterranean's role as an energy provider to Europe.