In Geopolitics Today: Friday, October 21st
Ukraine Presses Israel for Arms Transfers, China and Russia Partner on Satellite Navigation, and other stories.
US and EU Military Support Seeks to End Insurgency in Mozambique
The discovery of large gas reserves in Mozambique have drawn increased military support from Washington and Brussels to aid their energy companies set up operations in the unstable country. While battling a pervasive insurgency, the huge liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects set up in Mozambique promise a way to replace Russian natural gas supplies to Europe.
A number of LNG projects are under construction by the French giant TotalEnergies and its US rival ExxonMobil, with projects still on hold as they await for a better security situation before returning thousands of skilled workers. While government officials in the capital Maputo are saying the insurgency is under control and are encouraging the displaced to return to their homes and energy companies to resume their projects, instability still plagues much of the country. Mozambique's army and police forces, backed up by troops from Rwanda and support from the Southern African Development Community, have enjoyed some recent successes in containing the extremist rebellion.
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Ukraine Presses Israel for Arms Transfers
Ukraine has formally requested that Israel supply it with air defence systems. The request was made as an ongoing aerial bombardment using Iranian armed drones has been conducted by the Russian armed forces, knocking out Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Kiev seeks to leverage Israel’s adversarial relations with Iran to draw military support in the form of air defence systems.
Israel finds itself in an uncomfortable position as the United States, its foremost ally and security guarantor, is intensely pressuring its allies to help Ukraine quickly build an air defence network. Yet Israel has thus far shied away from arming Ukraine over fears of unsettling its relations with Russia. Israeli military objectives in Syria prevent a total breakdown of relations with Russia as Moscow still possesses considerable military capabilities across Syria, where the Israel continues to conduct hundreds of strikes aimed at curbing Iranian weapon transfers to Hezbollah.
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China and Russia Partner on Satellite Navigation
China and Russia have signed contracts to host ground stations for their respective global navigation satellite systems, BeiDou and GLONASS. These stations will improve the performance of their domestic alternatives to the US operated GPS system, providing improved precision, navigation, and timing services for both military and civilian purposes.
The contracts were signed during a meeting of the Project Committee on Important Strategic Cooperation in Satellite Navigation. Under the contracts, Beijing will place three ground monitoring stations at various locations in Russia, while Moscow will set up the same number of stations in China. The move comes as part of a bilateral process which cultivates cooperation between the networks of ground stations already built in both countries in recent years. Sino-Russian talks on the mutual hosting of ground stations have been ongoing since at least 2014.
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Australia Deepens Defence Cooperation with Fiji
Australia and Fiji have made a deal that will see the two countries increase defence cooperation, with both sides emphasizing more effective future cooperation in times of crisis. The agreement was signed by Australia's Minister for Defence Richard Marles and Fiji's Minister for Defence Inia Seruiratu, with the two leaders calling the agreement an “important milestone” in the defence relationship the two countries enjoy.
Under the terms of the agreement, it will be easier for each country's defence forces to operate together. The agreement is said to cover issues including immigration and customs, uniform arrangements, and criminal and civil jurisdiction over visiting forces. On the same day, Canberra announced that it would increase aid to the region, upping the proposed sum to $900 million over four years from the previously proposed $525 million. Countries in the region are expected to use the aid to fund aerial surveillance, media companies, training for police forces and an Australian police station in the Solomon Islands.