Eritrea-Russia

Shabait, Asmara, 17 December 2011- President Isaias Afwerki received and held talks in the morning hours today at the Denden Hall with the special envoy of President Dimitry Medviedev of the Russian Federation headed by Mr. Mikhail Margelov.

During the meeting, President Isaias commended the initiatives taken by the Russian Federation to send its special envoy to Africa for constructive engagement and said that the uni-polar balance of force created in the wake of the end of the Cold War has entailed negative consequences in ensuring international peace and economic growth.

The President further added that the erroneous policies pursued by the US in the Horn region of Africa in particular have spawned regional instability as well as the obstruction of justice and the rule of law.

President Isaias pointed out that although the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) that was established in accordance to the Algiers Agreement drawn-up by the US, the EU and the UN, has officially closed its doors completing its task of demarcation and delimitation of the border between both countries, and despite the fact that it submitted its ruling to both nations as well as to the United Nations, the implementation of the final and binding arbitral award has not been realized to-date because of the direct acts of hostility and obstructions imposed by the US Administration. “This has become a root cause of instability in the Horn region of Africa” – the President underlined.

President Isaias also indicated that all allegations made against Eritrea are fabricated lies in their totally and also fail to present concrete evidence whatsoever in support to the charges made. “The sanctions resolution of December 2009 and the recent sanction resolution adopted on December 5, 2011 are therefore an extension of US instigated misguided polices against Eritrea” – the President emphasized. He also pointed out that Russia, in view of the fact that it is an influential country and a member of the Security Council, has a vital role to play in the execution of justice and fairness in the world in general and the Horn region in particular.

During the meeting both sides agreed on the need to enhance in folds the already initiated and gradually developing educational and technical cooperation between both nations, giving impetus to investments and exports, as well as creating opportune grounds to work together in enhancing overall cooperation between Eritrea and the Russian Federation.

Moreover, President Isaias Afwerki and the special envoy of the Russian Federation held extensive talks on current regional as well as international developments.

In a statement to ERINA following the meeting, Mr. MiKhail Margielov said that the discussions he held with H.E. President Isaias Afwerki have been indeed helpful and that Eritrea and Russia hold similar views on the matters of importance raised.

In regards to the sanctions resolution adopted against Eritrea on December 5, Mr. MiKhail said “Russia maintains that issues should be resolved through discussions and understandings and does not believe in sanctions”. He also reiterated that Eritrea and Russia are on the same side of the fence in regards the matter.

The special envoy of the Russian Federation Mr. MiKhail Margielov is Chairman of the Committee for Foreign Affairs in the Federation Council of the Russian Federation.

Vitaly Churkin

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, November 30, updated below — After a draft resolution to impose more UN Security Council sanctions on Eritrea was “put in blue” at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, the Council delayed a planned 10 am open debate on its Working Methods to fight behind closed doors about voting on the sanctions.

As Inner City Press exclusively reported Tuesday night, US Ambassador Susan Rice said the vote should take place Wednesday since Gabon, Nigeria and the regional IGAD group want the sanctions.

But the other African member of the Council, South Africa, questioned the rush to vote. Eritrean president Afwerki as asked to speak to the Council. Ambassador Rice put on a block, and as of now no other member has (“dared to”) call for a procedural vote, which it is predicted Rice would lose.

Most Council members spoken to by Inner City Press feel that if any head of state wants to speak with the Council, especially before sanctions are imposed, it should be allowed as a matter of due process and precedent.

On Wednesday morning sources told Inner City Press that Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said there should be no vote on the Eritrea draft today. South Africa has amendments. Experts will meet — but will Rice get her way?

Tupolev

MOSCOW — Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his wife and some of the country’s most prominent military and civilian leaders died Saturday along with dozens of others when the presidential plane crashed as it came in for a landing in thick fog in western Russia.

Russian and Polish officials offered conflicting death tolls but agreed there were no survivors on the Soviet-era Tupolev, which was taking the president, his wife and staff to events marking the 70th anniversary of the massacre of thousands of Polish officers by Soviet secret police.

The Army chief of staff, Gen. Franciszek Gagor, National Bank President Slawomir Skrzypek and Deputy Foreign Minister Andrzej Kremer were also on board, the Polish foreign ministry said.

The head of Russia’s top investigative body, Sergei Markin, said there were a total of 132 people on the Tu-154. Poland’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Piotr Paszkowski, said there were 89 people on the passenger list but one person had not shown up.

“We still cannot fully understand the scope of this tragedy and what it means for us in the future. Nothing like this has ever happened in Poland,” Paszkowski said. “We can assume with great certainty that all persons on board have been killed.”

The governor of the Smolensk region, where the crash took place about 11 a.m. (0700 GMT), also said no one survived.

Rossiya-24 showed footage from the crash site, with pieces of the plane scattered widely amid leafless trees and small fires burning in woods shrouded with fog. A tail fin with the Polish red and white colors stuck up from the debris.

“The Polish presidential plane did not make it to the runway while landing. Tentative findings indicate that it hit the treetops and fell apart,” Sergei Anufriev said on state news channel Rossiya-24. “Nobody has survived the disaster.”

The presidential Tu-154 was at least 20 years old. Polish officials have long discussed replacing the planes that carry the country’s leaders but said they lacked the funds. According to the Aviation Safety Network, there have been 66 crashes involving Tu-154s, including six in the past five years. The Russian carrier Aeroflot recently withdrew its Tu-154 fleet from service.

The crash is likely to be a setback in Polish-Russian relations which had been improving of late after being poisoned for decades over the Katyn massacre.

Russia never has formally apologized for the murders of some 22,000 Polish officers, but Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s decision to attend a memorial ceremony earlier this week in the forest near Katyn was seen as a gesture of goodwill toward reconciliation. Rossiya-24 showed hundreds of people around the Katyn monument, many were holding Polish flags, some of them were weeping.

In Warsaw, Prime Minister Donald Tusk called an extraordinary meeting of his Cabinet and the national flag was lowered to half-staff at the presidential palace

Poland’s president is commander-in-chief of its armed forces but the position’s domestic duties are chiefly symbolic. Kaczynski, 60, became president in December 2005 after defeating Tusk in that year’s presidential vote.

The nationalist conservative was the twin brother of Poland’s opposition leader, former Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski.

Kaczynski had said he would seek a second term in presidential elections this fall. He was expected to face an uphill struggle against Parliament speaker Bronislaw Komorowski, the candidate of Tusk’s governing Civic Platform party.

According to the constitution, Komorowski would take over presidential duties.

Kaczynski’s wife, Maria, was an economist. They had a daughter, Marta, and two granddaughters.

Poland, a nation of 38 million people, is by far the largest of the 10 formerly communist countries that have joined the European Union in recent years.

Last year, Poland was the only EU nation to avoid recession and posted economic growth of 1.7 percent.

It has become a firm U.S. ally in the region since the fall of communism — a stance that crosses party lines.

The country sent troops to the U.S.-led war in Iraq and recently boosted its contingent in Afghanistan to some 2,600 soldiers.

U.S. Patriot missiles are expected to be deployed in Poland this year. That was a Polish condition for a 2008 deal — backed by both Kaczynski and Tusk — to host long-range missile defense interceptors.

The deal, which was struck by the Bush administration, angered Russia and was later reconfigured under President Barack Obama’s administration.

Under the Obama plan, Poland would host a different type of missile defense interceptors as part of a more mobile system and at a later date, probably not until 2018.

Kaczynski is the first serving Polish leader to die since exiled World War II- era leader Gen. Wladyslaw Sikorski in a plane crash off Gibraltar in 1943.

U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Saturday, “This is a horrible tragedy for Poland and we extend to the people of Poland our deepest condolences.”

Neighboring Germany’s foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, said he was “shocked and full of sadness” at Kaczynski’s death.

“All the German peoiple are mourning with our Polish neighbors,” Westerwelle said during a visit to South Africa.

Associated Press Writers Mansur Mirovalev in Moscow and Monika Scislowska in Warsaw contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Russian Envoy

SUNA News Agency reports that Sudanese Minister of Energy and Mining Al-Zubair Ahmed Al-Hassan Thursday received the Russian envoy for Sudan, Mikhail Margelov.

Both discussed ways of enhancing the economic co-operation between Sudan and Russia in the fields of energy, mining, petroleum and infrastructures in the field of processing industry and petro-chemicals. Present at the meeting were representatives of a number of Russian companies.

The minister welcomed the desire of the Russian side to consolidate its economic relations with Sudan, affirming Sudan’s readiness to engage in real partnership with Russia and to enable the Russian companies to operate in Sudan.

Meanwhile, representative of the Russian companies expressed their desire to establish investment projects in the oil, mining, gold and electricity power sectors in Sudan.

Both countries reviewed means for boosting the Sudanese – Russian bilateral relations and to consolidate them further.

The meeting, which was attended by the Russian Ambassador to Sudan, and a number of the representatives of the Russian companies in Sudan discussed horizons of investment in the fields of energy, oil, electricity, petro-chemical industries and heavy industry.

Alexander Pushkin

Asmara, 28 November 2009 – The newly erected Pushkin Monument in Asmara was inaugurated today.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony in which Government and PFDJ officials, members of the Russian Parliament and invited guests took part, the Administrator of the Central region, Mr. Tewolde Kelati, pointed out that the erection of the full-size Monument in Eritrean in honor of the renowned Russian poet Alexander Pushkin is the first of its kind in Africa.

The monument and the subsequent opening of the Pushkin Cultural Center would make due contribution to the development of culture, arts and education at the national and region level, he added.

Mr. Tewolde further stated that the erection of the Pushkin Monument would serve as a link between two cultures, though geographically wide apart. He further noted that Eritrea believes in the development of closer cultural exchange on the basis of equality on the part of the two sides.

The Administrator went on to express appreciation to all the parties, inducing the Eritrean-Russian Cooperation Association that made the necessary contribution to the successful accomplishment of the erection of the Pushkin Monument.

Also speaking on the occasion, Mrs. Elena Drapeko, Member of the Russian Parliament, explained that Pushkin’s great artistic works are treasured worldwide, and said that the renowned poet was proud of his African origin. She further expressed hope that the erection of the Monument would play due role in enhancing Eritrean-Russian relations.

A number of artistic presentations were staged during the inauguration ceremony, according to reports. Source: (Shabait)

Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin was the creator of modern Russian Literatur and therefore, one of the greatest poet in European and Russian history. Pushkin is comparable to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart or Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, in terms of the cultural heritage he left behind for mankind and the world. As a person Alexander is described as a man who expressed his love for humans, nature and simplicity through his scripts, poems and written tales.

His liberal views mixed with a new style of story telling sometimes caused him trouble with the authorities of his time, nevertheless he managed to revolutionized and form Russian Literature as we know it today.

He wrote one of his biggest master pieces, the novel Eugene Onegin, around 1825. Pushkin was born in Moscow and was regarded as a talent, who published his first poem at the age of fifteen, before his academic education in Saint Petersburg had even started.

Alexander’s great grand father was Abram Petrovich Gannibal, who was born in 1696 in Loggo Sarda a place close to Dekemhare at the Mareb River in Eritrea.  Abram was brought by Emperor Peter the Great as a child  to Russia and was baptized having Peter as his godfather.

According to historians, the boy was not the only black child to be taken from his native home in Africa during this era. Monarchs in Europe thought it to be fashionable to have black children at the royal courts.

Pushkin’s grand father enjoyed academic education in science, arts and warfare in Paris, under the umbrella of the Royal Tsar family. As a high ranking monarch Abram later became a general, military engineer and governor of Reval, which is known today as Tallin the capital of Estonia.