Strained by the spread of COVID-19 creeping over its eastern border with China, Kyrgyzstan has drawn support from its European partners to aid its economic recovery. The European Union not only pledged support to Kyrgyzstan to fight COVID-19, it increased the amount of financial aid targeting the country’s financially stressed social service sector. Kyrgyzstan reported losing tens of millions of dollars in taxes and customs duties from the COVID-19 lockdown. The EU has been actively engaging Kyrgyzstan following the rollout of its Central Asia Strategy in 2019, which emphasizes human rights, border security, environment protection, economic development and regional cooperation.…
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VOICE OF AMERICA During the spring 2020 coronavirus pandemic, Pakistan announced it had erected security fencing along more than 70% of the country’s 2,600-kilometer border with Afghanistan and expected to complete the project in 2021. Pakistan’s Army oversees the $500 million project to secure the historically porous frontier between the two countries. In addition to building 3-meter-high metal fencing topped with razor wire, Pakistan is equipping guard posts with modern surveillance gear. “The fencing activity has not stopped. The stretch of Pak-Afghan border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is near completion and the work is speedily underway on the stretch in Baluchistan,”…
UNIPATH STAFF In the largest seizure of illegal drugs in Lebanese history, security forces in March 2020 intercepted 25 metric tons of domestically produced cannabis resin destined for consumers in Africa. Smugglers attempted to move the drugs in a convoy of eight trucks carrying bags of fertilizer, but security inspectors in the port of Beirut uncovered the scheme. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime recognized Lebanese anti-narcotics success by ranking it third in the world in the amount of cannabis resin seized. The resin is the main component of hashish. Lebanese authorities regularly destroy cannabis crops grown in…
UNIPATH STAFF United States Central Command holds dozens of engagements each year to help partner nations respond more effectively to chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) attacks and incidents. Such engagements — which entail decontamination, the use of personal protection equipment, sterilization and isolation of casualties — turned out to be timely with the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020. In places like Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, military units were deployed to supplement the work of civilian agencies in suppressing the spread of the virus. For…
UNIPATH STAFF A mid the outbreak of COVID-19 around the world, the Armed Forces Medical Services Directorate in Saudi Arabia mobilized military hospitals, mobile medical units, specialized centers, and a fleet of medevac planes to support the Ministry of Health. Military medical personnel also launched numerous health care initiatives to help COVID-19 patients, their families and visitors to expedite recovery and inhibit the spread of the disease. One innovation was the “Reassure Me” initiative that used video conferencing software to allow virtual visitation of hospitalized patients without spreading the disease to families and friends. An initiative called “Psychological Support” offered…
The Jordan Armed Forces opened the Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Training City near Zarqa, paid for a with a generous donation by the United Arab Emirates (UAE). By naming the training city after the crown prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces, Jordan also honored one of its top allies in the region. The purpose of the facility is to centralize training for every branch of the Jordan Armed Forces in one large complex. His Royal Highness Crown Prince Al Hussein ibn Abdullah II of Jordan officially dedicated the complex in March…
Uzbekistan and Tajikistan have agreed to broaden intelligence sharing designed to reduce smuggling, terrorist financing, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the spread of violent extremism. The agreement in April 2020 to share military intelligence deepens cooperation between two neighbors that have striven to improve bilateral relations over the past three years. The accord also provides for more joint exercises and exchange of military know-how. Military cooperation between the two countries began to develop after Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s state visit to Tajikistan in March 2018. The engagement resulted in several historic defense agreements: on the transit of military…
UNIPATH STAFF Arabian Gulf states conducted joint security drills in February 2020 meant to foil terrorist attacks, rescue hostages and deactivate bombs. The police-focused exercise — called Arab Gulf Security 2 — occurred over three weeks at the Dubai Police Academy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Special police units from the Emirates trained with their counterparts from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The goal of the exercise was to raise the level of readiness and standardize procedures among elite units within the interior ministries of Gulf Cooperation Council member states. Simulations allowed units to show off their skills:…
UNIPATH STAFF Stability and security were the major topics of April 2020 discussions between Kazakhstani President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Amid talks about trade and security cooperation, Tokayev and Pompeo discussed joint action to stem the spread of the COVID-19 virus in light of Kazakhstan’s long common border with China. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) outlined how it could help Kazakhstan fight the disease, in cooperation with the Kazakhstani Health Ministry, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the World Health Organization. USAID’s plans included opening laboratories for large-scale testing against…
Responding to the United Nations secretary-general’s request in March 2020 for a cease-fire to focus on COVID-19, U.N. Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths led separate talks with the warring parties in Yemen. The Saudi-led Arab Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen answered the United Nations’ call and declared a unilateral cease-fire in Yemen in early April 2020. The breather allowed Yemenis to mobilize their assets to combat COVID-19 and prepare talks with the Houthi rebels to end the conflict in Yemen. A Saudi official announced that the two-week cease-fire “may be extended if the Houthis respond positively,” but stressed…