Latest news with #JamesRisch
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Senators warn U.S. risks losing ground to China in East Africa amid rising extremism
WASHINGTON, May 13 (UPI) -- As the United States nears a critical crossroads in East Africa and the Horn of Africa that could either cement long-term regional stability or deepen global insecurity, Republican and Democrat lawmakers and foreign policy experts sounded an alarm during Tuesday's Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. "We must stop building U.S. policy around individual leaders and instead focus on strengthening institutions, expanding private sector ties and empowering the region's young, dynamic populations," said Chairman Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho. Due to a lack of meaningful U.S. messaging, East African countries have increasingly turned to adversaries like China, according to former ambassador to Botswana Michelle Gavin, and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. She added that many in the region believe China better understands the paradox of resource-rich nations grappling with poverty and unemployment, where wealth often fails to circulate back to local communities. Committee members spotlighted the need for a growing U.S. presence in East Africa as it relates to national security and economic interests. East Africa and the Horn are at the intersection of key maritime trade routes, and the U.S. holds a large military presence in Djibouti. China has increased its military presence throughout East Africa. It built a base in Djibouti in 2017, developed a training school in Tanzania and then just last weekend invited African leaders to Beijing for the African Defense Chiefs meeting. Extremist insurgency groups like Al- Shabaab and Houthis, as well as violence from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, have created instability in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia. Risch claimed these groups were weakening the countries' institutions, making them susceptible to adversarial influence, notably from China, Iran and Russia. President Donald Trump has put pressure on the Houthis. Since March, the U.S. military has bombed the Houthis due to the insurgent group's attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea. According to Joshua Meservey, a Hudson Institute senior fellow, Kenyan officials cautioned that Al-Shabaab presents the biggest threat to the Red Sea. They warned of the possibility of the two extremist groups collaborating and creating a larger issue in the area, even given their opposing sides. Meservey laid out a four-tiered approach to "ensure Americans benefit from the opportunities in East Africa while protecting against the threats." He stressed America's need for creating an East African strategy that takes into account broader African and global strategy. To do this, he suggested commercial engagement be at the core of the U.S. approach. He further said that forging a better strategy would benefit the United States because he sees East Africa as an "investment destination for American goods and for potential technological breakthroughs." But Meservey suggested lawmakers assess how Washington can "positively influence democratic growth," given the United States' failed state-building experiment in Somalia. Yet, for more than a decade the United States' approach remained the same. By supporting government and civic institutions, Merservey suggested that the United States develop a country-focused framework. "Washington should concentrate its finite resources in countries that have a baseline level of competence, strategic importance and willingness to work with the U.S.," he said. One suggested way is to bring more African students to the United States to study and expose them to U.S. points of views. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., shared wanting to work with Risch to bring back funding for the Young African Leaders Initiative. The initiative was an exchange program with various participating colleges, one of them the University of Delaware in Coons' home state. Ranking member Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., pointed to the stark contradictions between the Trump administration's rhetoric and the reality of its policies. "This administration's cuts to foreign aid programs have been very damaging to what we need to do on the continent of Africa," Shaheen said. "While reports from the State Department indicate that life-saving aid continues to flow, what my staff, who traveled to Africa three weeks ago, saw on the ground was very different." Shaheen showed the committee photos from the trip that pictured the real-time effects of foreign assistance cuts made by the Trump administration. In South Africa, two HIV/AIDS clinics dedicated to women and vulnerable children had been shut, both linked to State Department funding cuts. In Angola, a hospital used to receive ready-to-eat foods, such as canned food and baby formula, from USAID to address starvation and famine. The hospital was out of supplies during her staff's visit. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., similarly showed concern for aid being cut by the Trump administration, highlighting that "research has shown that violent extremism surges during humanitarian crises." In questioning former ambassador Gavin, Rosen maintained that Islamic insurgents in Somalia take advantage of crises. "It does feed right into the messaging about who the enemy is, but it also creates the kind of resource scarcity that leads to desperation, people seizing, who might not really be ideologically aligned, but are looking to survive," Gavin responded. Shaheen also shared concerns about messaging of U.S. foreign policy and the impact of misinformation by China and Russia. Gavin responded that supporting independent media and investigative journalism would be crucial in a region like East Africa. Funding cuts to USAID included millions in grants provided to support and train independent and non-state news outlets, particularly in repressive regimes. One of the suggested approaches to improve messaging would be more active U.S. embassies. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., criticized the Trump administration for being slow to nominate ambassadors throughout Africa, warning that this could undermine the hopes moving forward in increasing U.S. presence in East Africa.
New York Post
06-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Senate Republicans push to defund entities that grant Palestinian Liberation Organization special privileges
WASHINGTON — A new bill by Senate Republicans would cut funding to the United Nations — and other international organizations — that offer the Palestinian Liberation Organization special privileges, according to text of the bill exclusively shared with The Post. The No Official Palestine Entry Act of 2025 would tighten a US law that bars subsidizing organizations that grant the representative body of Palestinian people the same standing as member UN states. It would extend it to any international organization that gives the PLO 'any status, rights or privileges beyond observer status.' Advertisement The Post has exclusively learned that a new bill proposed by Senate Republicans would cut funding to the United Nations. PPO/AFP via Getty Images 'Once created to be a bastion of peace and security in the world, the United Nations is now a seat of antisemitism and in desperate need of reform,' Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman James Risch (R-Idaho) said. 'Israel is one of America's greatest allies and we cannot tolerate or fund any anti-Israel bias or favoritism for the Palestinian Liberation Organization at the UN,' he added. Advertisement The bill, introduced Tuesday morning by the SFRC, comes a week after Risch introduced the Stand With Israel Act, which would slash funding to UN agencies that downgrade or restrict the participation of the Jewish State. 'These bills will ensure that America has Israel's back when it matters most,' Risch said. Other international organizations will also lose funding, including the Palestinian Liberation Organization. AFP via Getty Images It also comes a day after Israel announced it would dramatically ramp up its military offensive against Hamas by seizing the whole of Gaza, which the terrorist group governed. Advertisement The bill is sponsored by Risch, Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Lindsey Graham and and Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Ted Cruz and John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Dave McCormick (R-Pa.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Pete Ricketts and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) It also has support in the House, with Reps. Jim Baird (R-Ind.), Michael McCaul and Randy Weber (R-Texas), Claudia Tenney and Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), Maria Salazar (R-Fla), Barry Moore (R-Ala.), Rudy Yakym and Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) co-sponsoring. The bill specifically notes that the principal of blocking the PA's recognition beyond an observer status 'shall not be construed to apply to Taiwan,' which has a similar experience of being in recognition limbo in international organizations.
Axios
01-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Scoop: GOP chairs blast UN focus on Israel investigations
Key GOP committee chairs are threatening sanctions and accusing the UN's Human Rights Council (HRC) of wrongfully targeting Israel for investigation, according to a letter being sent to the UN secretary general on Monday evening. Why it matters: The letter comes ahead of a Tuesday vote on a resolution that they expect includes a special mechanism for the investigation and prosecution of Israeli actions in Gaza. Another UN commission accused Israel of "genocidal acts" earlier this month. House Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast (R-Fl.) and Senate Foreign Relations Chair James Risch (R-Idaho) are warning that any nation or UN entity that supports the international investigative mechanism "will face the same consequences as the ICC," citing last month's sanctions. Zoom in:"This one-sided focus on Israel undermines the legitimate and genuine threat posed by real human rights abusers. This includes the Hamas terrorists," the lawmakers write in the letter, first obtained by Axios. "It's part of a concerning and insidious anti-Israel trend within the United Nations, specifically as relates to the HRC, and appears to be little more than a bare-faced attempt to prop up other anti-Israel action at the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ)," they continue.
