MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin laid out a path Tuesday to staying in power beyond 2024, as lawmakers approved sweeping reforms to the constitution.
In a surprise address to the lower house State Duma, Putin said there could be a presidential “reset” allowing him to run after his current term expires.
“This would be possible... if the constitutional court rules such an amendment would not go against (the constitution),” he said.
Putin appeared before the Duma after lawmakers proposed a series of amendments to a package of constitutional reforms he announced in January.
Among them was an amendment put forward by Valentina Tereshkova, an MP and Soviet-era cosmonaut who was the first woman in space, that would annul previous presidential terms.
This would allow 67-year-old Putin, who was first elected in 2000, to run again after his current six-year term expires, and potentially stay in power until 2036.
“These amendments are long overdue, they are needed, and I am sure they will be useful for society, for our citizens,” he told lawmakers.
He said Russia needed evolutionary change, “because we have had enough of revolutions” while suggesting that the country may not yet be ready for a new leader.
Shortly after his address, Moscow’s mayor banned gatherings of more than 5,000 people through to April 10, justifying the move with the need to fight the spread of the coronavirus.
Lawmakers also proposed holding early parliamentary elections but Putin said that was not necessary and the amendment was withdrawn. He also rejected a call for a lifting of the overall two-term presidential limit.
Deputies then voted to approve the reforms in the key second reading, with 382 in favor, 44 abstentions and none against.
Opposition came outside the chamber, however, in the form of a protest by some 100 people in central Moscow while opposition groups called for rallies on Friday.
A third and final reading is due in the Duma on Wednesday, followed by approval in the upper house Federation Council and a public vote on the reforms planned for April 22.
Putin shocked Russia’s political establishment by announcing the package of reforms in January, the first major changes to the country’s basic law since 1993.
The political changes will also give parliament the power to choose the government and increase the role of the State Council, an advisory body.
Other proposals aim at boosting living standards, including a guaranteed minimum wage and state pensions adjusted to inflation.
And — in line with Putin’s strongly conservative views — the reforms would enshrine a mention of Russians’ “faith in God” and spell out that marriage is a heterosexual union.
Russia’s opposition, including Putin’s most prominent critic Alexei Navalny, has denounced the proposals as an effort to make him “president for life.”
“Interesting how things turn out,” Navalny said in a tweet after Putin’s speech.
“Putin has been in power for 20 years but he’s going to run for the first time.”
More than 20,000 protesters took part in a rally on February 29 calling on Putin not to hold on to power and opposition groups on Tuesday quickly put in requests for permission for more demonstrations.
But so far there has not been an upswell of opposition to the reforms, with polls showing many Russian are confused about what the constitutional proposals entail.
Observers had previously suggested that Putin could be looking to stay on in a behind-the-scenes role after 2024 as head of another state body.
But Dmitry Trenin, director of the Carnegie Moscow Center, said Tuesday’s events made it clear Putin wanted to remain in charge.
“It looks that after playing with ideas of State Council and Security Council Putin has finally decided in favor of running again in 2024,” Trenin said on Twitter.
“Putin intends to to govern us for at least two (more) terms ... Putin until 2036, it’s unthinkable,” said Ilia Azar, an opposition journalist.
Putin was re-elected to a fifth term in 2018 but his approval ratings have been slipping as Russia’s economy struggles under the weight of Western sanctions and living standards fall.
The economy is set for more turbulence after oil prices crashed following the collapse of an output limits deal between Russia and Saudi Arabia.
The value of the ruble and Russian stock exchanges have since tumbled.
But in presenting the amendment that would annul previous presidential terms, cosmonaut-turned-politician Tereshkova said the possibility of Putin staying on would be reassuring.
“The very existence of such an opportunity for the incumbent president — given his great authority — is a stabilising factor for our society,” she said.
Putin lays out path to staying in power
https://arab.news/y82g4
Putin lays out path to staying in power
- In a surprise address to the lower house State Duma, Putin said there could be a presidential reset allowing him to run after his current term expires
- This would allow 67-year-old Putin, who was first elected in 2000, to run again after his current six-year term expires, and potentially stay in power until 2036
Hindu-Muslim divisions sway voting in Indian district scarred by deadly riots
- Villages are largely self-segregated by religion in and around Muzaffarnagar in the most populous Uttar Pradesh state
- Violent clashes broke out in 2013 after two Hindus stabbed Muslim youth to death, accusing him of harassing their sister
MUZAFFARNAGAR: Hindu-Muslim enmity made way for peace in an Indian district that saw deadly riots a decade ago but religious divisions still influence residents who voted on Friday in general elections in which Hindu nationalism is a key theme.
Villages are largely self-segregated by religion in and around Muzaffarnagar district, in the most populous northern state of Uttar Pradesh, but people say there is no longer tension between the majority Hindu and minority Muslim communities.
Violent clashes broke out here in 2013 after two Hindus stabbed a Muslim youth to death, accusing him of sexually harassing their sister. They were later beaten to death by a Muslim mob, which sparked riots that killed about 65 people, mostly Muslims, and displaced thousands.
Violence has not returned to the district known as the country's sugarcane-belt, but political divisions remain as Hindus typically vote for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Muslims for the opposition.
Modi's government has "controlled Muslims", said Ramesh Chand, a Hindu biscuit baker in Kairana city near Muzaffarnagar.
Critics accuse the nationalist BJP of targeting India's 200 million minority Muslims to please their hardline Hindu base - charges they deny.
Modi is widely expected to win a third term on the back of strong growth, welfare and his personal popularity despite some concern about unemployment, price rises and rural distress.
Chand said Modi had improved security in the region. "We can live in peace, whether or not we have jobs ... We can sleep with our doors open."
There were opposing views too.
In Jaula village, sugarcane farmer Mohammed Irfan, 50, said Modi's "high-handedness against Muslims" as well as unemployment and inflation were major reasons for him voting for the opposition Samajwadi Party.
Uttar Pradesh elects 80 lawmakers to the 543-member lower house of parliament, the most among all states, and a strong showing here is critical to the nationwide outcome.
Support for Modi was visible in Kutba Kutbi village, the epicentre of the 2013 riots.
Although there is "brotherhood" between the two communities now, nearly all Muslim families left the village after the riots, said Vinay Kumar Baliyan, 43, a farmer who said he supports Modi for promoting economic growth and raising India's stature globally.
But Irfan said Muslims are expected to vote in larger numbers this time as Eid celebrations this month brought many migrant workers and students home.
After Pakistan alert, WHO likely to issue wider warning on contaminated J&J cough syrup
- The UN health body said it puts out global medical product alerts to ‘encourage diligence’ by authorities
- The WHO this week sent out alert on five batches of contaminated cough syrup ingredients found in Pakistan
LONDON: The World Health Organization is likely to issue a wider warning about contaminated Johnson and Johnson-made children’s cough syrup found in Nigeria last week, it said in an email.
Nigeria’s regulator recalled a batch of Benylin paediatric syrup last Wednesday, having found a high level of diethylene glycol in the product during routine testing.
The contaminant, alongside another closely related toxin, ethylene glycol, has been linked to the deaths of more than 300 children in Cameroon, Gambia, Indonesia and Uzbekistan since 2022, though there is no evidence that these incidents are linked with the latest recalls.
The UN health body said it puts out global medical product alerts to “encourage diligence” by national authorities and was likely to do so in this instance, “subject to confirmation of certain details from parties.”
The recalled batch of Benylin syrup was made by J&J in South Africa in May 2021, although Kenvue now owns the brand after a spin-off from J&J last year.
J&J has referred requests for comment to Kenvue. In an emailed statement on Friday, Kenvue said it had carried out tests on the batch recalled by Nigeria and had not detected either diethylene or ethylene glycol.
“We continue to work closely with health authorities and the WHO and are engaging with NAFDAC to understand their test results, including verifying the authenticity of the sampled product, the testing methodology used, and results reported by the agency,” the statement added.
Since Nigeria’s recall, five other African countries have also pulled the product from shelves — Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa, where the drug was made.
South Africa’s regulator has also recalled another batch of the syrup, which is used to treat coughs, hay fever and other allergic reactions in children.
Diethylene glycol is toxic to humans when consumed and can result in acute kidney failure, although there have been no reports of harm in the latest incident.
RAW MATERIALS
In the 2022 cases, the contamination in the syrups came from the raw materials used by manufacturers in India and Indonesia.
The WHO said it was collaborating with both the manufacturer and regulatory authority in South Africa to investigate the Benylin paediatric syrup, and had information on the source of the ingredients used. Kenvue has previously said it tested its ingredients before manufacture.
The agency said the possibility that the syrup was counterfeit was also “under consideration as part of investigations.”
Earlier this week the WHO sent out a separate alert on five batches of contaminated cough syrup ingredients found in Pakistan that appeared to have been falsely labelled as Dow Chemical products.
It was the first alert the WHO has sent on excipients — elements of a medicine other than the active pharmaceutical ingredient — rather than finished products, the agency confirmed on Friday.
The batches of propylene glycol were contaminated with ethylene glycol.
“It was critical for WHO to also alert manufacturers that may have been procuring this material to exercise more caution,” a WHO spokesperson said by email.
Propylene glycol is not an ingredient in Benylin paediatric syrup, a Kenvue spokesperson said on Friday.
Polish flag carrier LOT cancels Friday flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut, PAP reports
- Decisions about future flights would be made on an ongoing basis
WARSAW: Polish national airline LOT canceled flights on Friday to Tel Aviv and Beirut due to the unstable situation in the region, a spokesperson was quoted as saying by state news agency PAP.
“Today’s flight 151/152 to Israel from Warsaw and to Beirut 143/144 have been canceled,” Krzysztof Moczulski told PAP. He said decisions about future flights would be made on an ongoing basis.
French police arrest man who threatened to blow himself up at Iran’s Paris consulate
- Police verifying man’s identity and trying to determine whether he had weapons
PARIS: A man who had threatened to blow himself up at Iran’s consulate in Paris was arrested by police, a police source said.
French police earlier cordoned off the Iranian consulate, Reuters reporters saw, and did not immediately confirm finding any weapons.
A police source told Reuters the man was seen at about 11 am (0900 GMT) entering the consulate, carrying what appeared to be a grenade and explosive vest.
A Paris police official told The Associated Press that officers were verifying the man’s identity and trying to determine whether he had weapons.
Police earlier said they were at the scene and asked the public to avoid the area but provided no further details.
Service was interrupted on a nearby metro line for security reasons, the RATP metro company said.
A police cordon remained in place on Friday afternoon, but traffic was resuming in the area.
A person at the Iranian embassy who responded to a call from Reuters declined to provide any information on the situation.
It was unclear whether the incident had any link to the escalating tensions between Iran and Israel.
Earlier on Friday, explosions echoed over the Iranian city of Isfahan in what sources described as an Israeli attack, but Tehran played down the incident and indicated it had no plans for retaliation — a response that appeared gauged toward averting region-wide war.
The incident also comes as Paris is gearing up to host the summer Olympics.
* With Reuters and AP
Blinken says US ‘not involved in any offensive operation’
- ‘All I can say is for our part and for all the members of the G7 our focus is on de-escalation’
CAPRI, Italy: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday refused to comment on reports of an attack by Israel on Iran, beyond saying Washington was “not involved in any offensive operation.”
Speaking to journalists after a meeting with G7 counterparts in Italy, he declined to answer repeated questions about explosions in Iran, and reports that Israel had carried out retaliatory strikes.
“I’m not going to speak to these reported events... All I can say is for our part and for all the members of the G7 our focus is on de-escalation,” Blinken told a press conference on the island of Capri.
“The US has not been involved in any offensive operation,” he said.
Speaking to reporters earlier, G7 host Antonio Tajani, the foreign minister of Italy, said Washington had been informed in advance of the strikes, without giving details.
“The United States were informed at the last moment,” he said, adding that “it was just information” passed on — without saying who by.
The reports dominated the G7 Friday, with Tajani forced to change the agenda, but little public information emerged.
In its final statement, the Group of Seven ministers said: “In light of reports of strikes on April 19th, we urge all parties to work to prevent further escalation. The G7 will continue to work to this end.”
Israel had warned it would hit back after Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel almost a week ago, in retaliation for a deadly strike — which Tehran blamed on its foe — that levelled Iran’s consular annex at its embassy in Syria.
