International
Russia defends health check law for foreigners
AFP
The Kremlin on Friday defended new legislation requiring foreigners in Russia to undergo health checks every three months, after the law drew the ire of the business community.
The legislation set to go into force at the end of the month will require foreigners present in Russia for more than three months to pass a litany of medical exams — including for HIV, syphilis, tuberculosis, leprosy, drugs and Covid-19 — every quarter.
They will also have to submit their fingerprints and biometric data to the authorities.
The only people exempt from the new regulations are diplomats, citizens of Belarus and children under six.
“The president, you know, is in favour of creating the most comfortable conditions for foreign businesses here — for investors and foreign specialists,” Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
“However, there are certain rules,” he said.
“But if problems arise, we will react,” he added.
On Thursday, the health ministry said that tests would not actually have to be done every three months, despite language in its decree accompanying the law saying the medical certificates would be valid for three months.
The new legislation will allow the government to keep closer tabs on foreigners in the country, as authorities expand surveillance and data collection.
It has sparked protests from a host of foreign business organisations in Russia, including the American Chamber of Commerce and the Association of European Businesses.
The new law also threatens hundreds of thousands of migrant workers from ex-Soviet Central Asia who are essential to the Russian economy.
International
Brazil’s Lula wishes Trump a successful term focused on prosperity and peace
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wished the new U.S. President, Donald Trump, a “successful” term that promotes “prosperity and well-being for the U.S. people” and “a fairer and more peaceful world.”
“On behalf of the Brazilian government, I congratulate President Donald Trump on his inauguration,” said the progressive leader on his social media, shortly after Trump took the oath of office at the Capitol in Washington.
Lula, 79, highlighted that the relationship between Brazil and the United States, one of its most important trade partners, is “marked by a history of cooperation, based on mutual respect and historical friendship.”
“Our countries maintain strong ties in various areas such as trade, science, education, and culture. I am confident that we can continue to make progress in these and other areas,” he added.
International
Iran hopes U.S. will adopt realistic approaches under Trump administration
Iran declared on Monday that it hopes the new U.S. administration under Donald Trump will adopt “realistic approaches” toward Tehran and show “respect” for the interests of the countries in the region.
The Republican tycoon will take the oath for his second term as president of the United States on Monday at noon Washington time (17:00 GMT).
“We hope that the approaches and policies of the new U.S. government will be realistic and based on respect for the interests… of the countries in the region, including the Iranian nation,” said the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaeil Baqaei, during a weekly press briefing.
During his first term (2017-2021), Trump implemented a “maximum pressure” policy toward Iran.
In 2018, under his administration, the United States withdrew from the international nuclear deal with Iran, concluded three years earlier, which offered Tehran relief from sanctions in exchange for assurances that the country would not seek to acquire nuclear weapons. Tehran denies any such intentions.
In response, Tehran significantly increased its stockpile of enriched materials and raised the enrichment threshold to 60%, approaching the 90% required to produce an atomic bomb, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Tehran, which has expressed a desire to relaunch negotiations to revive the deal, defends its right to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes and denies any intention to develop nuclear weapons.
International
Trump to sign executive order recognizing only two sexes
Donald Trump will sign an executive order instructing his administration to “recognize” the existence of only “two sexes,” future White House officials announced on Monday, just before the Republican’s inauguration.
“What we are doing today is defining that the policy of the United States is to recognize two sexes: male and female,” said the official, speaking to the press on the condition of anonymity.
The aim of the decree is “to defend women against the ideological extremism of gender and to restore biological truth within the Federal Government,” the official added, explaining that a person’s sexual identity will be defined solely by the gametes they possess.
During his campaign, Trump repeatedly promised to put an end to the “transgender delusion.”
The elected president also plans to eliminate federal funding for programs supporting diversity in the administration, the same officials from his incoming cabinet stated.
“We are going to end this type of funding, we are going to put an end to these programs,” said one source from the future team, speaking anonymously about antiracism and diversity training courses.
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