Rouhani felicitates New Year to Iranian Christians
South Korean authorities have seized a Panama-flagged vessel suspected of transferring oil products to North Korea in violation of international sanctions, a customs official said on Sunday. The seizure was the second to be revealed by South Korea within a few days. The ship, KOTI, was seized at Pyeongtaek-dangjin port, the official told Reuters, without elaborating, due to the sensitivity of the issue. The port is on the west coast, south of Incheon.
A marine official also confirmed the seizure, which he said was done “recently”. The KOTI’S estimated time of arrival at the port was Dec. 19, according to Vesselfinder Ltd., a tracking service provider,
The ship can carry 5,100 tons of oil and has a crew mostly from China and Myanmar, Yonhap News Agency reported, adding that South Korea’s intelligence and customs officials are conducting a joint probe into the vessel.
A Foreign Ministry spokesman confirmed the probe, declining to provide details.
“The government has been in close consultations with related countries and ministries to thoroughly implement the sanctions by the UN Security Council,” the spokesman said.
On Friday, South Korea said that in late November it seized the Hong Kong-flagged Lighthouse Winmore, which is suspected of transferring as much as 600 tons of oil to the North Korea-flagged Sam Jong 2.
The UN Security Council last month unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea for a recent intercontinental ballistic missile test, seeking to limit its access to refined petroleum products and crude oil.
The United States has also proposed that the United Nations Security Council blacklist 10 ships for transporting banned items from North Korea, according to documents seen by Reuters on Tuesday.
Fireworks lit up the sky above Sydney Harbour, highlighting the city’s New Year’s celebrations. About 1.5 million people packed the city’s foreshore to watch the pyrotechnics light up the sky above the historic bridge and the iconic opera house, the first major celebrations worldwide after New Zealand.
Tens of thousands turned out earlier in New Zealand’s largest city Auckland for the annual New Year’s Eve street party, marked by a major fireworks display from the Sky Tower.
As the New Year dawned in this southern hemisphere nation, fireworks boomed and crackled above city centers and harbors.
Celebrations moved to Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and finally the Americas, with dazzling light shows bidding farewell to 2017.
Stricter security has been a key focus amid fears that crowds could be targets for vehicle and other terror attacks.
In Australia, the stronger police presence included some officers carrying semi-automatic rifles in Sydney and bollards used as barriers against vehicles.
Other cities are also on alert following deadly vehicle assaults over the past two years in Barcelona, Nice and London.
New York’s Times Square celebrations were set to go ahead despite the Arctic chill gripping much of the central and northeastern United States and Canada.
In a message, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani congratulated the New Year to Iran’s Christian community.
Looking ahead to 2018
Daesh’s defeat in Iraq and Syria was one of the key stories of 2017, although the terrorists remain a threat and numerous attacks around the world were claimed by them or Al-qaeda-linked groups.
Donald Trump stole the news spotlight after making his debut as US President in January 2017, with “America first” policies and a bombastic personal style that has shaken up international diplomacy.
The former reality television star is likely to continue dominating headlines in 2018, with escalating tensions over North Korea among a host of global challenges.
Other political and diplomatic earthquakes set to rumble into 2018 include the crisis in the Middle East between Saudi Arabia and its allies against Qatar, and the humanitarian disaster in Yemen.
In Europe, further talks on Brexit will help shape the region’s future trade relationship while Russia is set to host the football World Cup amid frictions with the West.
AFP and AP contributed to this story.
province bordering Pakistan and a stronghold for Daesh, comes days after the group claimed an assault on a Shia cultural center in Kabul that left 41 people dead and more than 80 wounded.
That followed a Christmas Day attack, also claimed by Daesh, near an Afghan intelligence agency compound in the Afghan capital that left six civilians dead. On December 18 terrorists from the group stormed an intelligence training compound in Kabul, triggering an intense gunfight with police, two of whom were wounded.
The terror outfit has gained ground in Afghanistan since it first appeared in the Middle East in 2015, and has scaled up its attacks in Kabul and elsewhere.
The latest news comes at the end of a particularly deadly year for Afghans, with the number of civilian casualties on track to be one of the highest on record since the US invasion in 2001.
More than 8,000 civilians were killed or wounded in conflict-related violence in the first nine months of this year, according to data compiled by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.
Last year’s civilian casualty toll of 11,418 was the highest for a single year since the UN began systematically documenting civilian deaths and injuries in 2009. Annual statistics released by the British-iranian Chamber of Commerce (BICC) indicates a significant surge in the two countries’ trade following the signing of the landmark nuclear agreement — also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) — in July 2015 between Iran and P5+1.
According to the report seen by IRNA, total export from the UK to Iran during 2015-2016 increased by 50 percent to reach €171.5 million from €112.9.
This is while a reverse trend had been observed when Western sanctions against Iran peaked during 2011-2013. The report indicates that UK exports to Iran stood at €203.5 million in 2011 but the figure decreased to €119.6 and €89.4 million in 2012 and 2013 respectively.
The nuclear deal in 2015 however had a great impact on boosting bilateral trade and fostering economic relationship between the countries.
Speaking to IRNA, BICC Chairman Lord Norman Lamont said Britain is willing to raise its exports and imports to and from Iran.
He further disclosed that British companies are willing to enter Iran’s trade market following the complete removal of the sanctions.
The BICC report also indicates a surge in UK import from Iran after 2015. It said imports had increased by 70 percent in 2016 compared to 2015.
New figures for 2017 have not yet been published, but senior members of the chamber hint at a steep trajectory.