Hungary responds after US senator says he blocked HIMARS purchaseEnceladus skrev: ↑onsdag 14 juni 2023 16:37 GOP senator blocks arms sale to Hungary for stalling Sweden’s NATO bid
Skulle inte Republikanerna vara isolationister?Washington Post skrev:In a statement to The Washington Post, Risch (Idaho) said Hungary must allow Sweden into NATO if it wants the arms package, which includes 24 HIMARS rocket launcher batteries, and more than 100 rockets and pods along with associated parts and support.
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“For some time now, I have directly expressed my concerns to the Hungarian government regarding its refusal to move forward a vote for Sweden to join NATO,” he said.
“The fact that it is now June and still not done, I decided that the sale of new U.S. military equipment to Hungary will be on hold,” he added.
Ungern påstår att landet inte längre är intresserat av Himars. Å andra sidan finns det tecken på att Ungern planerar att ratificera Sveriges ansökan i juli.Defense News skrev:The Hungarian government has said it abandoned plans to order High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems after last year’s bilateral talks failed to produce an agreement with the United States.
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Speaking to The Washington Post, Risch explained he halted the potential $735 million deal with Hungary due to its government’s refusal to agree to Sweden’s accession to NATO. The lawmaker is the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
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While Budapest’s latest announcement could represent a face-saving attempt, it also demonstrates the growing distance between the Hungarian government and many of its Western partners. Following Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, several NATO members accused Hungary of failing to present an unequivocally negative stance against Russian President Vladimir Putin, with whom Orbán has long maintained excellent relations.
Alongside NATO’s eastern front, the expanding group of members who have ordered the Lockheed Martin-made missile launchers includes Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania.
Ungern är ett kustlöst land omringat av Nato och Ukraina. Ungerns flygvapen har uteslutande svenska stridsflygplan, nämligen Gripensystemet 39C/D. Utan västerländsk utrustning skulle landet alltså enbart leva på Nato försvarsgarantier. Men det vore en riskabel strategi då landet behöver Nato mer än tvärtom.
Africa exerting ‘pressure’ on Putin over Ukraine, says Sierra Leone president
Hur stort stöd har Ryssland i Afrika egentligen? Det finns spekulationer om att Kina har skickat denna delegation för att sätta mer press på Putin.Financial Times skrev:African leaders are “working to bring pressure” on Russia’s Vladimir Putin and others to end the war in Ukraine that has caused a cost of living crisis on much of their continent, according to the president of Sierra Leone.
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Many nations rely on food imports, but few are as dependent as Sierra Leone, which has to buy in almost everything its 8.4mn citizens consume. The country ranks 112th of 121 countries on the Global Hunger Index compiled by a group of European NGOs, making it one of the world’s most food insecure nations.
The leaders of South Africa, Egypt, Senegal, Zambia, Uganda and the Republic of Congo will travel to Kyiv to meet Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday, and then to Moscow the following day for talks with Putin.
Explosions rock Kyiv as African peace mission visits Ukraine
Rysk diplomati har kanske nått vägs ände...Reuters skrev:At least two explosions rocked Kyiv on Friday and air raid sirens blared as African leaders began a peace mission, hoping to mediate between Ukraine and Russia.
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The African peace mission, which includes South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Senagal President Macky Sall, could propose a series of "confidence building measures" during initial efforts at mediation, according to a draft framework document seen by Reuters.
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Those measures could include a Russian troop pull-back, removal of tactical nuclear weapons from Belarus, suspension of implementation of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant targeting Putin, and sanctions relief, it indicated.