In Geopolitics Today - Thursday, January 20th
Moldova Declares a Nation-wide State of Emergency, Israel Signs Submarine Deal with Germany, China Rewards Fishing Crews for Finding Spy Devices
Moldova Declares a Nation-wide State of Emergency
The Parliament of Moldova has declared a nationwide state of emergency in order to secure gas supplies amid a crisis over rising natural gas prices. Moldova currently receives its gas from Russia via Moldovagaz, a subsidiary of the Russian giant Gazprom which holds 50% ownership of the Moldovan company. The month-long state of emergency imposed by the government will allow Chișinău to source gas from other European countries.
Currently, only 67% of Moldova's gas needs are covered, prompting the country's parliament to make the declaration. Moldovan Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita told parliament that the country is "facing a critical situation" because Gazprom has sent an official notice stating that failure to pay outstanding debts would lead to a cessation of gas deliveries. Gavrilita said that her government is negotiating with Gazprom to resolve the crisis, but negotiations are complicated because Moldovan gas supplies pass through the pro-Russian territory of Transdniestria. To assist Moldova in overcoming this crisis, the Romanian government has stepped in to offer assistance to Moldova in the form of a €100 million technical and financial assistance program.
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Israel Signs Submarine Deal with Germany
Israel has reached agreement on a €3 billion deal to buy three new diesel-powered submarines from Germany. The deal with the German industrial engineering and steel conglomerate ThyssenKrupp will see the first diesel-electric submarines constructed and delivered to the Israeli Navy in 2031, with a further two expected to be complete at a later date.
Israel's Navy already operates five German-built Dolphin-class submarines, with a sixth currently under construction. The three new submarines to be built by ThyssenKrupp will form a new class of submarines in the Israeli Navy under the name "Dakar." The Dakar-class will be the most advanced ever delivered to Israel and will increase the size of Israel's submarine fleet to nine. The German government will reportedly finance 20% of the deal, or €600 million. In addition to the deal, a parallel strategic cooperation agreement was signed between Israel’s Economy and Industry Ministry and ThyssenKrupp, which stipulates reciprocal purchases by ThyssenKrupp and Israeli producers of military equipment over a period of 20 years to the value of €850 million.
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China Rewards Fishing Crews for Finding Spy Devices
Government officials in the Chinese province of Jiangsu have reportedly rewarded two fishing crews for finding and turning in “suspicious” underwater devices. An article on China’s state-owned Xinhua news agency website indicated that officials are encouraging fishing crews to seek out suspicious devices found undersea and to turn in any findings in order to claim financial rewards from the state.
The report said that fishing crews in Jiangsu province have already discovered 10 such underwater surveillance devices since 2020, and government authorities published a photograph displaying some of the devices found. The report claimed that all were of foreign origin, and were described as some kind of reconnaissance devices that had been “secretly deployed by foreign countries.” In an effort to tackle this, Jiangsu officials are actively encouraging scavenging activities to incentivize civilian vessels to aid in counter-intelligence operations in China’s territorial waters.
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