Accidents
India-Russia defence deals face US sanctions as Donald Trump tries to punish Vladimir Putin
…Indonesia oil well fire kills 10 people, destroys houses***
U.S. sanctions on Russian military exports have put the brakes on a $6 billion deal with India and may derail the arms purchases of other U.S. allies around Asia, experts say.
Under a law that U.S. President Donald Trump signed in August, any country trading with Russia`s defence and intelligence sectors will face sanctions.
The law is designed to punish Russian President Vladimir Putin for the 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, involvement in the Syrian civil war and meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
But American allies who buy weapons and equipment from Russia, the world`s second-largest arms exporter, could suffer as well.
The highest-profile example is India, which wants to buy five S-400 long-range surface-to-air missile systems that the country`s military sees as a game changer. The systems are touted as being able to counter the ballistic missiles and stealth aircraft that China is developing, while overwhelming the capabilities of Pakistan, India`s other main adversary.
The deal, which Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi struck as part of an inter-government agreement in 2016, has run headlong into the U.S. sanctions law, two officials in Delhi said.
Indonesia and Vietnam also buy weapons from Russia while being regional partners of the United States. Jakarta closed a $1.14 billion pact for Sukhoi fighters recently, while Vietnam is seeking more jet fighter-bombers from Russia.
And with both Almaz-Antey Air and Space Defense Corporation, which makes the S-400, and Rosoboronexport, which negotiates Russian export deals, listed as under sanction, those deals have become trickier.
“The optics of a major arms purchase from Russia looks quite `iffy` from the point of view of Western capitals, especially at a time when Russia-West relations are at an all-time low and India seeks strategic convergence with the West, including with the U.S.” said Abhijnan Rej, a defence strategy expert at Observer Research Foundation, a New Delhi think tank.
The U.S.-led airstrikes this month against facilities of the Syrian government, an ally of Russia, has further aggravated tensions between the superpowers.
A Russian source close to the Indian S-400 deal said “a lot will depend on the confidence and sanity of our Indian partners.”
The effects of the U.S. sanctions law could be more sweeping than intended, said Cara Abercrombie, a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Vietnam, whose air force flies Russian-made Su-30 fighters and uses the S-300 air defence system, wants to continue modernising its inventory.
Vietnamese military scholar Carl Thayer said he believed Moscow was still pushing Hanoi to invest in state-of-the-art S-400 missile defences as part of its long-term military plans.
“I think it is clear that Russia is still pressing Vietnam for big deals,” Thayer said, noting that the two countries already have had reciprocal visits by defence ministers this year.
But with the United States working hard to promote sales of American military hardware, and sanctions against Russia`s exporting agencies, Vietnam`s plans could prove overly costly.
Indonesia, meanwhile, said the delivery of the first couple of Sukhoi Su-35 jets out of a total of 11 is on track for this year. Officials said that so far they did not anticipate any changes to the deal with the Russians.
Indonesian defence officials declined to describe what, if anything, they might do to tackle the fallout of the sanctions imposed on Russian arms sales.
Indian Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale and Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra held discussions with U.S. officials in Washington last month to try to find a solution, a second Indian official said.
The issue is crucial to the Indian military, because without Russian parts, supplies and maintenance help, “our ships won’t sail, our planes won’t fly,” the official said. “We can hardly be the regional security provider that America wants us to be at this rate.”
One way to avoid secondary sanctions would be if the U.S. determines that India is reducing its dependence on Russian arms, said Atman Trivedi, managing director of Hills & Company, a Washington-based firm that advises on international trade and investment.
Russian hardware represented 62 percent of the country`s total weapons imports during the past five years, compared with 79 percent in 2008-2012, the Stockholm Peace Research Institute said in a report last month.
The U.S. administration could also declare that imposing sanctions on India, a major defence partner, would hurt U.S. national security interests. That would allow a waiver permitting India to do business with Russia.
Meanwhile, at least 10 people were burned to death after an apparently unregulated oil well in Indonesia’s Aceh province caught fire.
National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said the well caught fire earlier Wednesday and is still burning.
He said the well was gushing when it ignited and many people were nearby trying to collect the oil.
The agency listed 19 people as injured and said five houses were destroyed by the inferno.
Zee with additional report from Fox News
…As Islamic leaders in Kwara condemn the killing of Hafsoh Lawal
Incessant road crashes have sadly continued to take severe tolls on Nigerians, with the latest report showing that 10 persons have died in Yobe, while three others sustained injuries in an accident that occurred on Damaturu- Maiduguri Road.
The State police command spokesman, SP Dungus Abdulkarim, confirmed this in Damaturu on Tuesday.
He said that the incident occurred at a security checkpoint in Warsala Town around 10 am on Tuesday when a truck loaded with cement and passengers hit a car before it plunged into a ditch.
Abdulkarim said that of the 13 passengers on the trailer,10 died instantly, while the three sustained injuries.
He said the injured had been conveyed to the Specialist Hospital, Damaturu for treatment.
The spokesman said that the investigation revealed that the truck allegedly lost control and rammed into a car at the checkpoint before it made its way into the ditch.
He said the car driver, who was alone in the car, survived the accident unhurt, but the car was damaged.
In another development, Islamic leaders in Kwara, under the aegis of Kwara State Council of Ulama, on Tuesday condemned the alleged killing of Hafsoh Lawal by one Abdulrahman Bello for ritual purposes.
The leaders included the Chief Imam of Offa, Sheikh Muyideen Hussein; Chief Imam of Malete, Abdullah Ibrahim; the Ajanasi of Ilorin; Chief Imam of Gambari, among others
Lawal, a final-year student of Kwara College of Education, was allegedly killed by Bello for rituals.
Sheikh Mohammad Salih, Chief Imam of Ilorin, made the condemnation on behalf of the council in Ilorin during a news conference.
Salih appealed to the police command in Kwara to be thorough in its investigations.
According to him, anyone found culpable in a criminal act should be brought to book to serve as a deterrent to others with criminal intentions.
“We are interested in the course of justice for Hafsoh and her family. On our own part, we will not relent in assisting the security agencies in getting to the root of the matter.
“Nigerians should avoid the profiling of any community for the sinful acts of a few individuals in our midst.
“Ilorin and indeed, Kwara, are not homes for ritualists. We are known for our Islamic culture, of which ritualism is not a part.
“Ritual acts are offensive to all known religions. We must all rise up and be counted in the war against it,” he said.
The chief imam also said there would be a meeting with various Muslim leaders and clerics to prevent a similar occurrence in Kwara and the nation.
According to Salih, efforts will also be doubled in preaching the correct attitude towards the propagation of Islam.
“Since the unfortunate incident, we have stepped up counselling activities of alfas and other clerics on the best conduct in preaching Islam that Kwara and Ilorin have been known for through the ages.
“The council, therefore, condemns the murder of Miss Hafsoh Lawal by Alfa Abdulrahaman Bello for ritual purposes.
“We commiserate with the family of Hafsoh, who has been thrown into mourning due to the ungodly act of Abdulrahman. In this moment of grief, it is only Allah who can console the family,” he said.
The chief imam also commended Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara for the peaceful co-existence which encouraged the growth and development of the state.
… following electric power surge!
On Tuesday, fire gutted some shops in the Ladipo market, destroying goods worth several millions of Naira.
The Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, confirmed this in a statement on Tuesday.
He said the agency received distress calls through its 767 and 112 emergency toll-free lines at about 00.09hrs concerning the fire outbreak.
”LASEMA immediately activated the state’s emergency response plans and response team from its Cappa Base.
”Upon arrival at 00.16hrs at the scene of the incident, it was discovered that a warehouse surrounded by shops was gutted by the fire.
”Investigations revealed that the inferno was caused by an electric power surge after public electricity power supply was restored to the area,” he said.
Oke-Osanyintolu said that there was no record of injury or loss of life during the incident.
”Valuable goods worth a fortune were, however, destroyed by the inferno,” he said.
He said that the goods destroyed include electronics, generating sets, bicycles, auto spare parts, phones, and home appliances.
The permanent secretary said that occupants of the warehouse have been sensitised on the appropriate safety measures to take to prevent a re-occurrence in the future.
A tanker loaded with Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) has exploded in Ibadan, killing its driver and injuring one other person.
Mr Yemi Akinyinka, General Manager (GM), Oyo State Fire Services Agency, confirmed the incident in a statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday in Ibadan.
He explained that the tanker lost control, rammed into two other trucks, and somersaulted into a nearby pit before bursting into fire.
The GM said the incident resulted in the death of the tanker driver and injured the motor boy.
“The incident happened around Fijabi House, Agbowo, Ojoo/Iwo Road Expressway.
“The agency received a distress call about the fire incident at exactly 2.45 a.m. through a telephone call.
“The service swiftly deployed personnel to the scene and curtailed the fire from spreading to the nearby residential area.
“On arrival, we met three trucks of 20-metre distance from one another involved in the fire incident,
“The driver was burnt to death while the motor boy was rescued alive and taken to the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, for treatment,” he said.
Akinyinka stressed that the tanker was utterly destroyed by the fire while the other two trucks were rescued by the agency’s personnel.
“The agency’s Director of Operations, Mr Ismail Adeleke with team members, the police, and some other security agencies were at the scene to prevent a breakdown of law and order,” he said.
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