In Geopolitics Today: Tuesday, December 20th
Iran and the EU Restart Talks on Nuclear Deal, Mauritius and the United Kingdom Hold Talks on the Future of Chagos, and other stories.
Iran and the EU Restart Talks on Nuclear Deal
The top foreign policy representatives of Iran and the European Union have reportedly resumed efforts to restore the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. While the recent meeting in Jordan signals an interest in re-joining the agreement, the United States appears disinterested in re-joining the deal at this time.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell sat down on the side-lines of the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership hosted by Jordan’s King Abdullah. Iran’s top negotiator in the nuclear talks, Ali Bagheri Kani, and the EU’s coordinator, Enrique Mora, were also reportedly present in a meeting that is said to have addressed Twitter following the meeting that also saw discussion on “deteriorating” Iran-EU relations.
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Leaders of Belarus and Russia Meet for Talks on Energy and Defence
The Russian President Vladimir Putin has travelled to Minsk to hold defence and energy talks with his Belarussian counterpart. The meeting saw the two sides discuss natural gas contract terms, increased defence cooperation and joint military drills.
The two allies agreed to a new price for the continued supply of Russian natural gas to Belarus for the next three years, although the details of the agreement have not been made public. In addition, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed Russian S-400 and Iskander missile systems are deployed on combat duty with Belarusian forces.
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Mauritius and the United Kingdom Hold Talks on the Future of Chagos
Mauritius and the United Kingdom are in talks over the future of the islands in the Chagos archipelago. At stake is the future of the indigenous population, the Chagossians, who were expelled from the islands in the 1960s and 1970s.
The locals were expelled by UK authorities before London took control over the archipelago as an overseas territory. Shortly thereafter, the largest island of Diego Garcia was leased to the United States, which built (and still operates) a military base there. Mauritius maintains that the Islands are its own and families of exiled Chagossians have fought for their return in courts. However, a timeline for negotiations over the future of the archipelago remains elusive and there is little indication that a deal of any kind is close.
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Swedish Supreme Court Blocks Extradition of Journalist to Turkey
Sweden's Supreme Court has rejected the extradition of Bulent Kenes, an individual that Turkey has requested Sweden extradite in exchange for Turkey lifting its veto on Stockholm’s accession to NATO.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said that the rejection of the extradition by the Swedish Supreme Court is a “very unfavourable development,” adding that he would raise the issue with his Swedish counterpart in an upcoming meeting this Thursday. Sweden and Finland agreed to address Ankara’s concerns during a NATO summit in June under a trilateral memorandum that saw invitations to join NATO extended to Sweden and Finland. The court ruling
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The EU Lifts Obstacles to Supplying Africa with Russian Fertilizers
Rules set by the European Union as part of the sanctions regime against Russia have limited the flows of fertilizer products to Africa. The contradictory rules have caused considerable insecurity as fertilizers were still not being delivered to non-EU countries.
The fertilizer blockade has exacerbating hunger, particularly in Africa. Over time, the EU has come under international pressure that has resulted in the easing of sanctions on certain entities. Thus, the EU has loosened sanctions on six Russian billionaires by permitting EU countries to make frozen assets available when necessary to allow delivery of fertilizers. This ruling was resisted by Poland and the Baltic states, who have prioritized weakening Russia over ensuring fertilizer deliveries to Africa.