Complicit in genocide

Germany has expressed little concern over the devastating impact of the Gaza war on Palestinians.

Zahid Hussain 

DAWN

Published April 10, 2024 

NICARAGUA has gone to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) with a complaint against Germany for “facilitating the commission of genocide” against the Palestinian people, in coordination with Israel. The South American country has called upon the ICJ judges to stop Berlin from providing Israel with weapons and other assistance.

In its 43-page submission, Nicaragua has stated that Germany stood in violation of the 1948 UN Genocide Convention. “By sending military equipment and now defunding UNRWA [UN agency for Palestinian refugees] … Germany is facilitating the commission of genocide,” the Nicaraguan representative said in his opening statement before the top UN court. It is “imperative and urgent” the court ordered such measures, given that the lives of “hundreds of thousands of people” were at stake.

Germany has politically and militarily backed Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed more than 33,000 people, most of them women and children. The country is the second biggest arms supplier to the Zionist state after the US, accounting for 30 per cent of the weapons being used by the Israeli military in its war on Gaza. The two countries together provide 98pc of the weaponry, making them complicit in the ongoing genocide.

German arms exports to Israel have increased tenfold in the last one year. According to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the major surge in arms supply came during Israel’s offensive. Berlin has also stopped its funding to UNRWA after an unsubstantiated allegation by Israel that some staff members of the UN agency were involved in the Oct 7 Hamas attack inside Israel. Germany had hitherto been the second-largest contributor to the UN organisation.

Germany has expressed little concern over the devastating impact of the Gaza war on Palestinians.

The European nation, which is a signatory to the Genocide Convention set up in the wake of the Holocaust, is among the very few countries that are not willing to support the increasing international demands for a ceasefire. It has continued its arms supply to Israel despite widespread public protests within the country and outside. Germany abstained twice from a vote in the UN General Assembly calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

While proclaiming unconditional support for Israel, German leaders have expressed scant concern over the devastating impact of the war on the hapless Palestinian population. When asked about her government’s scant efforts towards ensuring a ceasefire, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said: “It is not the job of politicians to tell the guns to shut up.” Her stance may have softened after her latest tour of the region, describing the situation in Gaza as “hell”, but there is still no call for a ceasefire from Germany.

Nicaragua’s government, led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front, has filed charges against Germany in the wake of the ICJ’s ruling in a separate case filed by South Africa in January this year ordering Israel to do “everything in its power to prevent genocidal acts”. Pretoria accused Israel of perpetrating genocide in the Gaza Strip. The UN court has also ordered the Zionist state to step up access to humanitarian aid for Gaza.

Although the ICJ’s rulings are obligatory, Israel, as usual, has flouted its orders and has, instead, intensified its military operation, reducing a large part of the occupied territory to rubble. It has also rejected the UN Security Council’s resolution calling for a ceasefire. It is obvious that the support of the US and some Western countries, particularly Germany, has lent impunity to Israel’s genocidal war.

A major reason for Berlin’s resolute support for Israel is its guilty conscience over the Holocaust, carried out by Hitler in the 1940s, which exterminated millions of Jews. Ironically, Germany has tried to make amends for its Nazi past by backing the Zionist state, which is itself carrying out a genocide now.

Germany has long made Israel’s security its Staatsräson (‘reason of state’). The term was first coined by a German ambassador to Israel in the early 2000s and has often been quoted by the German leadership to justify its unflinching support for the Zionist state. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently made another argument for his country’s support for Israel, saying that it was “a democracy”.

Such arguments trivialise the war crimes perpetrated by Israel, and give credence to the allegation of Berlin being an accomplice in the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Germany has rejected the allegations made by Nicaragua and declared that it has “violated neither the Genocide Convention nor international humanitarian law” and that it could demonstrate this before the ICJ.

It will, however, be hard for Berlin to refute the charges against its government, particularly as it is facing intense criticism from within for its blind support for Israel. The German government has banned all anti-Israel protests, declaring them anti-Semitic. But the restriction has failed to contain the growing public outrage over Israel’s war crimes. The strongest voice is coming from the administration’s own ranks.

A group of some 600 German civil servants have reportedly issued a statement calling on the government to “cease arm deliveries to the Israeli government with immediate effect”. The memorandum has accused Israel of committing war crimes in Gaza in contravention of international law. The statement cited the ICJ’s ruling in January that Israel’s military actions are “plausible acts of genocide”.

Surely, Germany is not the only Western country to have either actively backed Israel’s war crimes or looked away — an attitude that has exposed the hypocrisy of the so-called civilised world. Yet, while the growing public pressure at home and the horrors of Israel’s war have compelled a number of Western countries to moderate their stance, finally calling for at least a temporary ceasefire, there is no indication yet of Berlin giving up its support for Israel’s war.

Since the US does not recognise its jurisdiction, it cannot be charged by the ICJ. But Germany can. Nicaragua has done a commendable job by taking the case to the court, highlighting Berlin’s complicity in war crimes. It may not stop Germany’s military and political support for Israel, but will certainly help expose the so-called morality of Western nations.

The writer is an author and journalist.
zhussain100@yahoo.com
X: @hidhussain
Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2024

No joy in Gaza

That hardly detracts from Israel message to aid agencies.  

 ‘Don’t feed the Palestinians: punishable by death.’

Mahir Ali 

DAWN

Published April 10, 2024 

THE targeted slaughter last week of seven employees of World Central Kitchen (WCK) kicked off an international reaction that would not have occurred had the targets been Palestinian or, more broadly, Arab. This wasn’t an ‘error’ on the part of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), it was part of a pattern that has been evident since Oct 7.

The Israeli response following the Biden administration’s threats of an unspecified policy change if the Netanyahu government did not take more action to protect civilians suggested that such action had hitherto proved insufficient — if it existed in the first place. Which it clearly did not. To cite just one aspect of the genocidal campaign, 15 to 20 civilian deaths were officially deemed permissible for every suspected junior Hamas operative. For purportedly senior figures, the level of acceptable ‘collateral damage’ soared to 100.

These details come from a report this month by Yuval Abraham in the Israeli magazine +972, revealing the existence of an AI programme dubbed ‘Lavender’ that picks targets for assassination based on “massive amounts of data”. According to Abraham’s Israeli intelligence sources, the IDF, during the first months of the war, “almost completely relied on Lavender, which clocked as many as 37,000 Palestinians as suspected militants”. He cites one of the sources as acknowledging that intelligence personnel devoted little more than “20 seconds to each target before authorising a bombing”.

He adds that “additional automated systems, including one called ‘Where’s Daddy?’ … were used … to track targeted individuals and carry out bombings when they entered their family’s residences”, presumably so that children and spouses could simultaneously be pulverised. After all, as some rabbis and several politicians have indicated, even infants are fair game as they will only grow up to be a problem for the Zionist state.


It is not easy to say ‘Eid Mubarak’.

Death by starvation is a part of the package. ‘Aid drops’ and US-supplied bombs sometimes arrive simultaneously. The Biden administration made a big deal out of the president’s apparent warning to Benjamin Netanyahu that the unadulterated adulation of Israel that has been the US norm for more than half a century might lapse if “Israel did not take more action to protect civilians and aid workers in Gaza”, as the New York Times put it.

Take more action? Has Israel already been protecting civilians and no one has noticed, apart from ‘Genocide Joe’ Biden and a few other American Zionists? The fact is that far too many Americans, Jews and gentiles, who might unthinkingly have voted Democrat previously, might be disinclined to do so in November. Nancy Pelosi signing on to a plea to temporarily halt lethal arms sales to Israel, or Chuck Schumer advocating the replacement of Benjamin Netanyahu, is unlikely to make much difference. Sufficiently woke Americans can see through the absurdity of aiding and abetting Israel while hesitantly denouncing its genocidal excesses without recognising them as such.

Israel plays along by, for instance, ‘regretting’ that it purposefully targeted European WCK employees or sacking a couple of IDF personnel. It has even ostensibly opened another gateway for aid delivery — but that hardly detracts from its message to aid agencies. As Al Jazeera columnist Andrew Mitrovica put it, the signal is tantamount to warning: ‘Don’t feed the Palestinians: punishable by death.’

UNRWA, the chief source of solace for Palestinian refugees, was hobbled for the same reason. Almost all of Israel’s Western collaborators signed on to that absurd cause.

Even after six mon­ths of daily crimes aga­inst humanity, the US and its fellow travellers restrict themsel­ves to issuing empty thre­­ats — mainly aga­inst Netanyahu, who is merely a particularly obnoxious symptom of the Zionist state’s trajectory since 1948 — instead of taking actions that could almost instantly curtail Israel’s vengeful bloodlust, and perhaps even its persistent determination to exaggerate the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas.

Any scope to observe the month of fasting was bound to be diminished by enforced starvation, amid dire warnings of an Israeli-enforced famine. And, after sixth months of relentless death and destruction, it’s hard to imagine anyone actually celebrating Eid.

In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the tragic hero, having murdered his royal benefactor, is perturbed by his inability to pronounce a particular word. “I had most need of blessing, and ‘Amen’/ Stuck in my throat,” he complains to his wife, who responds, “These deeds must not be thought/ After these ways so, it will make us mad.”

The world’s response to an unfolding genocide 30 years after the horrendous killings in Rwanda, with too few honourable exceptions, makes it inevitable that, this year, ‘Eid Mubarak’ sticks in my throat.

mahir.dawn@gmail.com

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2024

The American eclipse

Rafia Zakaria 

DAWN

Published April 10, 2024

DURING the afternoon of April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse bisected the US. Not everyone sees solar and lunar eclipses as purely scientific events that have to do with the physical position of the moon or Earth and the sun’s light. According to myths and legends — and there are many in different religious traditions and cultures — solar eclipses are moments of omens and portents. For weeks leading up to the event, astrologers and psychics predict all kinds of things that could happen in the months following the eclipse. Astrologers say that the total time during which the sun is obscured, in this case three and a half to four minutes, corresponds to that many number of months in terms of the duration of the eclipse’s ‘effects’.

As if the eclipse were not enough, a comet called 12/P Pons-Brooks has also appeared in the sky at the same time as the eclipse. This comet, which appears every 71 years, is called the ‘Devil’s comet’ because it has a horned shape. The first spectacular image of the comet, which can be seen with the naked eye in many parts of the US, shows a bluish tail against the darkness of the sky. The last time that this comet was seen was in 1954 and it will not appear again until the end of the century in 2095. Jupiter, Saturn, Venus and Mars, a spectacular array of planets, were also visible at the time of the eclipse during the period of totality, which is the point when the moon has completely obscured the sun.

The US is a superpower currently involved in the grotesque genocide taking place in Gaza. According to Ali Olomi, a professor of mediaeval Islamic history and esotericism at Loyola Marymount University, the solar eclipse portends dire things for rulers and tyrants, with strong significance for Jerusalem. Others have gone on to spell doom for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the architect of the genocide in Gaza, pointing to his recent health problems and expecting him to lose political support and power.

Meanwhile, many Christians in the US see the events of the eclipse and the war in the holy land as a sign of the second coming of Christ. Such celestial ‘omens’ have gained a greater following because the path of this eclipse and the one that occurred in 2017, also in the US, together formed the shape of the cross.

Undoubtedly, even for those who do not believe in any higher powers, witnessing a total eclipse is a profound experience.

Some of these ardent believers in predictions of the end times point to Verse 15:33 in the Gospel of Mark, which says: “And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour”, referring to the dark hours of the crucifixion in Christianity. The belief is that the obscured light of the sun is a sign of God’s wrath at the inability of humankind to remain true to the righteous path.

In Islam, special prayers are suggested for the time of a solar eclipse. American Muslims gathered to perform these prayers, known as Salat al-Kusuf, in different parts of the US. Held at various Islamic centres, these prayers are meant to show obedience and surrender to the power of the Divine. According to Prof Omid Safi, professor of Islamic Studies at Duke University in the US, Islamic tradition holds that eclipses, both solar and lunar, are signs of divine matters unfolding in nature. Notably, a lunar eclipse also occurred in the US just two weeks prior to this solar eclipse.

For those who have witnessed a solar eclipse, the event is disconcerting. In the middle of the day, the sun begins to be obscured. There is not total darkness, but a kind of dusk or twilight falls upon the earth. Animals then get very agitated and confused and birds either become quiet or start making a lot of noise. The BBC recently quoted a behavioural ecologist as saying, “[Light] is such a huge cue that affects everything from plants to animals.”

There can also be a palpable temperature change, as the warmth of the sun is suddenly cut off and the temperature may fall to night-time levels.

Undoubtedly, even for those who do not believe in any higher powers, witnessing a total eclipse is a profound experience underscoring the insignificance of human life against the far bigger presence of the universe. On most ordinary days, we go about our lives and pay little attention to the fact that the planet that we call home is a sphere spinning round a star in space. It seems that in our busy lives there is no time anymore to reflect on nature or to consider the facts of planetary rotations and revolutions. For us, the sun simply rises and sets every day, and a waxing and waning moon appears throughout the month. The might and beauty of a total eclipse is that it forces humans so engrossed in the details of their own lives, responsibilities and problems, joys, and sorrows to pause and consider their very minor position in a universe which is so enormous that their minds can barely take in its vastness and majesty.

In this sense, even witnessing recordings of the progress of an eclipse is often accompanied by a realisation of the insignificance of mankind; it is an acknowledgement that provides its own sense of liberation. The workings of this divinely created universe are so much larger than our small lives and our petty problems. Focusing on this fact will help us locate ourselves as part of a cosmic system whose workings are magical and whose very gift is to present us with our own position in the vastness of time and space.

The writer is an attorney teaching constitutional law and political philosophy.
rafia.zakaria@gmail.com
Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2024

US topples China as Taiwan’s largest export market due to chips, AI demand

AFP Published April 12, 2024

Semiconductor chips are seen on a circuit board of a computer in this illustration picture taken February 25, 2022. — Reuters

The United States has topped long-time leader China as Taiwan’s main export market for four consecutive months due to a surge in demand for microchip products and AI technology, Taipei’s finance ministry said on Friday.

Self-ruled Taiwan is a microchip-manufacturing powerhouse, churning out the world’s most advanced silicon wafers necessary to power everything from e-vehicles and satellites to fighter jets and increasingly to power AI technology.

For two decades, its top export market has been China — which claims Taiwan as part of its territory — but December data from Taiwan’s finance ministry shows the United States topping the list for the first time since August 2003.

In December, Taiwan exported $8.49 billion in products to the United States, compared with $8.28bn to mainland China.

The trend continued through March, when US exports increased by 65 per cent to $9.11bn, a 6pc jump, while mainland China received $7.99bn.

Those figures exclude Hong Kong, which holds its own status as a customs territory. When combined with mainland tallies, China remains the top destination for Taiwanese goods.

Taiwan’s finance ministry official in the trade division attributed the recent US tilt to the global “reorganisation of electronics and ICT (information and communication technology) supply chains, and the popularity of the AI industry”.

Since Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen came to power in 2016, she has been working to strengthen economic ties with the United States, seeing Washington as a crucial partner as neighbouring China grows increasingly aggressive.

Dawn Business

 

Vessel Condition, Human Error Blamed for Loss of Thai Navy Frigate

U.S. Navy diver salvages the mast from the wreck of the Sukhothai, February 2024 (USN)

PUBLISHED APR 11, 2024 10:12 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

The Royal Thai Navy has completed its investigation into the sinking of the frigate Sukhothai in 2022, blaming a combination of bad weather, vessel condition and human error for the casualty. 

On the night of December 18, 2022, the 36-year-old frigate Sukhothai encountered heavy weather while operating about 20 miles off Bang Saphan, Thailand. Instead of continuing onward to Bang Saphan, where there would be no assist tugs, the commanding officer opted to reverse course and return to the naval base at Chon Buri, on the other side of the Gulf of Thailand. 

Conditions continued to worsen, and wave heights reached about 20 feet. The vessel lost power and began to flood, and her pumps were unable to keep up. Response vessels could not transfer over salvage pumps because the surface conditions were too rough. The vessel suffered progressive flooding, and at 0012 hours, the Sukhothai capsized and sank.

76 survivors were rescued, including 18 who were hospitalized. 24 deceased crewmembers' bodies were recovered, and five remain missing at sea.

After the casualty, divers from the Royal Thai Navy and the U.S. Navy inspected the ship and found evidence of physical damage. The wave breaker just forward of the main cannon had torn off, leaving a one-inch hole in the deck where water could enter. The gun turret also showed signs of impact damage from an unknown object, and there were two substantial penetrations on the port side above the waterline, about one foot long each - also from impact with an unidentified object. In addition, the hatch for a line locker was unsecured, and the hatch for the cannon's gun bay compartment was not possible to close, according to The Nation Thailand. All of these factors could potentially contribute to flooding in heavy seas. 

In addition, the investigation found fault with the commanding officer's decision to turn back and head for Chon Buri. Bang Saphan was closer, and the decision "was made hastily and without thorough consideration," the investigators concluded. 

The former CO, Capt. Pichitchai Tuannadee, acknowledged that the decision had been his, though he said that he and his crew had acted with the best intentions to save their ship. Tuannadee resigned from the Navy at the same press conference, and said that his departure would preserve the honor of the post he held. Before leaving, he will serve out a 15-day punitive detention.

The Thai government initially pledged to raise the wreck of the Sukhothai, but the project proved to be too expensive and risky. Instead, it opted to work with the U.S. Navy's salvage specialists to remove or decommission the ship's weapons, munitions and sensitive materials.  

 

South Korea's President Wants $4B Fund to Build More Boxships

Office of the President of the Republic of Korea

PUBLISHED APR 11, 2024 10:26 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

South Korea's president has pledged to invest $4 billion in financing to expand the nation's container ship fleet, adding about one million TEU in capacity to the global fleet. 

"We will provide 5.5 trillion won ($4 billion) worth of eco-friendly ship financing to national shipping companies to increase the size of their fleets and make them more eco-friendly," said President Yoon Suk Yeol. "Through this, we will expand the fleet of national shipping companies to a total of 2 million TEU by 2030, and increase the proportion of eco-friendly vessels among national ocean shipping companies to 60 percent."

If carried out, this would effectively double South Korea's fleet and add about 900,000 TEU to the global supply of cellular capacity, an increase of about three percent. The fleet is expected to remain oversupplied, because of a rash of new deliveries this year and next. 

National champion carrier HMM stands to benefit from the financing. The Korean government is HMM's majority owner with a 58 percent stake.

Yoon also pledged to boost Korea's port-automation technology sector with financing worth about $360 million, and to give Korean companies an edge in the green transition with a $725 million fund for green corridors and bunkering infrastructure. 

Japan has previously filed two trade complaints with the WTO over Korean industrial-policy programs of this type. The Korean government has historically denied that it subsidizes its shipbuilding industry, but Japan takes exception to the state financial support programs that Korea has implemented for domestic yards and vessel operators. The WTO's rules put limits on state-backed funds, loans and guarantees, though enforcement is difficult. 

 

Turkey Disagrees with Greece’s Marine Park Plans in the Aegean Sea

Greece wants to turn 11 uninhabited islands in the Aegean into a marine park (NASA file image)

PUBLISHED APR 11, 2024 11:03 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

 

Turkey has issued a stern response following an earlier announcement this week by Greece that it was looking to establish two new marine parks, one in the Aegean Sea and the other in the Ionian Sea. The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs unveiled these plans ahead of the ninth Our Ocean Conference, scheduled to be held in Greece next week from April 16-17.

“In the context of the conference, the Greek government will announce the immediate creation of two large national marine parks. These two parks will be among the largest in the Mediterranean. For their surveillance, state-of-the-art monitoring system will be used including drones, radar, satellites and boats, in real time,” said the ministry.

However, the move has upset Turkey, with the Turkish foreign ministry swiftly issuing a statement cautioning Greece to desist from making unilateral decisions on matters Aegean Sea, where the two countries have overlapping claims. Greece and Turkey disagree on the extent of their territorial waters in the area and delimitation of the continental shelf. Most importantly, Turkey rejects what it refers to as militarization of some islands in the Aegean by Greece.

In its statement, Turkey said that Greece is trying to exploit environmental issues for its benefit on the outstanding maritime dispute in the Aegean.

“We recommend Greece not to involve within its agenda the outstanding Aegean issues, regarding the status of some islands and islets, whose sovereignty has not been ceded to Greece by the international treaties,” remarked the Turkish Foreign Ministry. “We would also like to advise third parties, including the EU, not to become a tool for Greece’s politically motivated attempts regarding environmental programs.”

Greece has responded to these claims asking Turkey to stop politicizing a “purely environmental issue”. The Greek foreign ministry added that environmental protection should raise awareness among governments rather than be used as an instrument of geopolitical gain. Greece emphasized that its goal of expanding marine protected areas is in tandem with the global ambition of protecting 30 percent of the ocean by 2030. The government also gave a commitment that at around the same time, commercial fishing will not be allowed in 10 percent of its seas.

In December, Turkish President Erdogan paid a visit to Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Athens, in a diplomatic effort to manage the longstanding tensions between the two countries.

Budget Watchdog Forecasts Big Cost Overrun for Marine Corps' Landing Ships

The heavily-modified OSV HOS Resolution shows one possible configuration for a Marine Corps landing ship (USN)

PUBLISHED APR 11, 2024 11:27 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

 

The cost of procuring a fleet of small amphibious ships to support the Marine Corps is expected to be three times higher than the U.S Navy expects, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has said.

In a new review of the Navy’s Medium Landing Ship (LSM) program, CBO also reckons that apart from costing more, the class of 18 to 35 new ships is also facing uncertainties in terms of design, capabilities, size, and survivability features.

The LSM program is critical to the Marine Corps' new operational concept, dubbed Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO), which calls for dispersing small units around an island archipelago. The Navy's FY2024 budget submission calls for buying the first ship at a cost of $188 million in 2025. The cost for the subsequent ships would fall to about $150 million.

CBO has dismissed the Navy’s estimates, and believes that the program will cost significantly more. In its report, CBO projects that it will cost the Navy between $6.2 billion and $7.8 billion in 2024 (inflation-adjusted) to procure 18 ships under the program. This translates to between $340-430 million per ship.

If the Navy changed the LSM’s design to make it equivalent to an amphibious warfare ship, then each vessel could cost between $475 million and $600 million, adding between $2 billion and $3 billion to the costs of an 18-ship program and between $5 billion and $6 billion to the costs of a 35-ship program.

The Navy could save on costs if the LSMs were designed to more commercial standards, as sought by the Marine Corps. This would mean between $110 million to $140 million per ship, dramatically reducing cost. 

Uncertainties also linger on design characteristics to potential shipbuilders.

Part of the uncertainty emanates from the fact that the Navy is struggling to make a final decision on the preferred design from concepts presented by five companies. Besides, the Navy is yet to make a decision on whether a single shipyard should build all the ships or have them built in multiple yards.

In terms of size, the ships are expected to be 400 feet long, have a beam of 55 feet, displace 2,522 long tons and have a 12-foot draft. They are also expected to have a transit speed of 14 knots with a range of 3,500 nautical miles, have a capacity of 70 sailors and a service life of 20 years.

Marine Corps leadership is pushing for 35 ships, nine for each Marine Littoral Regiment, plus a handful of extras expected to be in maintenance availabilities at any given time. 

The ships are intended to transport, deploy, and, if necessary, resupply and redeploy Marine littoral regiments in and around a theater of operations, particularly in the western Pacific and in any potential conflict with China. CBO said that the Navy could do more to clarify how LSM will be used - and particularly, how or whether it would be used in an active conflict zone. 

“A ship that is not expected to face enemy fire in a conflict could be built to a lesser survivability standard, with fewer defensive systems than a ship that would sail in contested waters during a conflict,” observed the CBO.

Orlen Trading Switzerland Investigated for Possible Sanctions Breach

By Julianne Geiger - Apr 11, 2024

Polish special services are currently investigating whether Orlen Trading Switzerland, a subsidiary of Polish refiner Orlen (PKN.WA), may have violated sanctions regarding the import of oil from Russia or Iran, broadcaster Radio Zet reported on Thursday.

This investigation represents just the latest inquiry directed at the state-controlled company, following allegations of artificially lowering prices ahead of the 2023 election and selling assets below fair value for the purposes of acquiring a smaller peer.

Orlen has denied breaching any sanctions. The ongoing scrutiny comes amidst allegations that the previous nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) administration had exerted political influence over state-controlled entities.

The report from Radio Zet surfaced shortly after Orlen announced on Wednesday a substantial write-down of 1.6 billion zloty ($403.82 million) on the value of Orlen Trading Switzerland (OTS), consequently impacting the group's 2023 profit.

In August 2023, Orlen's utilization of tankers that previously carried Russian crude to Asia for importing oil from the Middle East raised concerns about adherence to EU and G7 price caps for Russian crude. "All our activities, including those related to the delivery of crude oil, are in line with the applicable sanctions," Orlen said at the time.

Despite Orlen's then denial of involvement in Russian oil shipments, the company's strategies shifted amidst geopolitical sanctions to focus on purchases from Middle Eastern and U.S. crude, as well as Asian fuels.

Orlen was previously one of the biggest buyers of Russian crude oil for use in its refineries in Poland and Lithuania.

Last summer, PKN Orlen's Chief Executive Daniel Obajtek likened the act of losing Russian oil to forfeiting $27 million per day because of the price difference between Russian oil and these alternative supplies. Obajtek clarified that PKN Orlen was still purchasing Russian oil through the Druzhba network for its Czech refinery in Litvinov, which was not covered by sanctions.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

China Moves to Stabilize Long-Term Coal Supply and Prices

By Tsvetana Paraskova - Apr 12, 2024

China’s top economic planning body has finalized plans to create a reserve system for coal production by 2027 to avoid new shortages and ensure stable supply and prices.     

China aims to have 300 million metric tons of annual “dispatchable” coal production by 2030, according to the plan from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).  

In 2021, when China was hit by blackouts, the world’s second-largest economy set a goal to have coal reserves stocked at mines, power plants, and ports equivalent to 15% of its annual production.

Now China is looking to set up a new coal reserve system to have spare coal production capacity, with coal ready to be mined when and if needed.

The coal mines that will be included in the capacity reserve system should be ready to send coal supply whenever authorities consider the domestic market is tight or prices move above a “reasonable” range, according to a notice of the planning body cited by Reuters. 

Big and modern mines in the biggest coal-producing areas in Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang with good track records of safety will be first in line to be included in the new coal reserve plan, the Chinese state planner says. 

The creation of a coal reserve system will aim to ensure enough coal supply during peak power demand periods or in extreme weather conditions. It is also viewed as a way to stabilize coal prices in tighter market conditions.  

So far this year, coal output in China has wobbled after authorities in the northern province of Shanxi, the top coal-producing region, ordered in February miners to reduce production and carry out safety inspections between March and May, following several fatal incidents at mines in China in recent months.

In January and February 2024, total Chinese coal production declined by 4% compared to the same period of 2023.

Weaker coal prices and demand and mine closures due to safety checks are set to reduce coal output in the Shanxi province by 4% this year, for the first time in seven years, according to a plan announced by the provincial government.  

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com