<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-545076" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth.jpeg 1858w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the BRICS Business Forum in Moscow, Russia October 18, 2024.  Alexander Zemlianichenko | Via Reuters</figcaption></figure>



Russia is rolling out the red carpet to its geopolitical allies as it hosts the latest BRICS summit on Tuesday, pushing its agenda to create a “new world order” that challenges the West.



The group was initially comprised of Brazil, Russia, India and China before South Africa joined in 2010, giving the organization of rapidly economically-developing nations its current name. It has since morphed into a geopolitical forum for the world’s most powerful nations outside of the West.



The BRICS now have additional clout after Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates joined the group in January, with membership to the bloc becoming an attractive prospect for countries looking to boost trade, investment and economic development.



Russia has been trying to woo what’s collectively known as the “Global South” — or economically-developing countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America — and contrast to the “Global North” of industrialized nations, traditionally led by the U.S.



Russian President Vladimir Putin frequently comments on his ambition to establish what he calls a “new world order” to rival and usurp the geopolitical and economic pre-eminence enjoyed by the U.S.-led West.



Russia, holder of the rotating BRICS presidency and economically isolated and heavily sanctioned by the West, can also turn to this year’s summit to demonstrate that it still commands respect on the global stage and has powerful allies willing to turn a blind eye to its ongoing war in Ukraine.



Putin has described the beefed-up BRICS group as a “strong indication of the growing authority of the association and its role in international affairs” and signaled on Friday that he intends for the so-called “BRICS +” format to challenge the West on both a geopolitical and economic front.



“The countries in our association are essentially the drivers of global economic growth. In the foreseeable future, BRICS will generate the main increase in global GDP,” Putin told officials and businessmen&nbsp;last Friday&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;BRICS business forum in Moscow,&nbsp;which precedes the group’s summit,&nbsp;in comments translated by Reuters.



“The economic growth of BRICS members will increasingly depend less on external influence or interference. This is essentially economic sovereignty,” Putin added.



Earlier in October, Putin said Moscow was open to using the summit for discussions with its allies on the “the parameters of interaction in the emerging multipolar world, and is open to discussing the issues of building a new world order with all our friends, partners and like-minded people,” he said, according to Russian state-owned news agency Tass.



Putin added that “it is in this spirit that we are preparing the BRICS and Outreach/BRICS Plus summit,” referring to the last day of the three-day summit when officials from almost 40 Asian, African, Middle Eastern and Latin American countries are attending as part of the group’s bid to expand ties with the “Global South.”



The expansion of the BRICS coalition is both significant and performative, one security analyst told CNBC.



“It is indicative of a collective movement away from the West, a demonstration of a fundamental shift within the world order that is seeking to challenge Western economic hegemony,” Callum Fraser,&nbsp;a research fellow in Russian and Eurasian security at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think tank, told CNBC Monday.



Fraser added that it was “still unclear to what degree BRICS+ will be able to challenge the Western-dominated G7, or even to what degree they are able to align their visions of the international system.”



“Currently, the main glue that holds them together is the aspiration to achieve the same quality of life as in the West that they feel unable to achieve through cooperation with the West. Ultimately, BRICS+ is only anti-West in that it operates as an alternative institution. This means that it still remains to be seen what BRICS+ will provide for its member states, but increased cooperation among its members is extremely likely,” he said.



Russia’s chairing of the summit would be “utilized to maximum effect to demonstrate Russia’s strong position within this emerging order,” Fraser added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-leaders-attending"><a></a>Global leaders attending</h2>



The 16th BRICS summit is taking place under the theme of “strengthening multilateralism for&nbsp;just global development and&nbsp;security,” with the Kremlin stating that BRICS leaders will exchange views on&nbsp;“pressing issues on&nbsp;the&nbsp;global and&nbsp;regional agenda,” as well as on “the&nbsp;three main pillars of&nbsp;cooperation identified by&nbsp;the&nbsp;Russian chairmanship: politics and&nbsp;security, the&nbsp;economy and&nbsp;finance, and&nbsp;cultural and&nbsp;humanitarian ties.”



The Kremlin added that the possible expansion of the BRICS group through the establishment of a new category of “partner states” would also be discussed.



It’s unclear whether the elephant in the room — Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine — will be acknowledged at the summit. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Izvestia newspaper that the conflict in Ukraine was not on the agenda, but he insisted that participants could “raise this issue at their discretion,” according to a Google translation.



The Kremlin appears eager to avoid mention of what it calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine, stating that the BRICS+ discussions would concern&nbsp;“pressing international issues, with a&nbsp;particular focus on&nbsp;the&nbsp;escalating situation in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Middle East and&nbsp;interactions between the&nbsp;BRICS countries and&nbsp;the&nbsp;Global South in&nbsp;the&nbsp;interests of&nbsp;sustainable development.”



Putin is set to hold meetings with various leaders in attendance, including India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, China’s President Xi Jinping, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.



It’s also expected that Putin and his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian&nbsp;could sign a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ agreement” at the summit that could signal their commitment to deepening military and defense cooperation. following several years of exchanging military and technical support amid the war in Ukraine.



Meetings with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi are also slated to take place this week, according to comments from Yury Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy aide. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva cancelled his trip to Russia after injuring his head in an accident at his home last weekend.



Saudi Arabia, which has been invited to join the BRICS&nbsp;group but has not yet formally acceeded, is also participating in the latest summit in the southwestern Russian city of Kazan. Argentina decided in 2023 not to join the group, citing a change in foreign policy.

108049870-17292742572024-10-18t103613z_1061388036_rc2xmaa99x9x_rtrmadp_0_russia-brics-putin-growth

Russia pushes ‘new world order’ agenda as it hosts beefed-up BRICS summit

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="548" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-820x548.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-529650" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-820x548.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-1536x1026.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/7BCG6QNXMJLJZG2Q5Z4UAZGMHE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield attends a United Nations Security Council meeting about the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza, at the U.N. headquarters in New York City, U.S., September 4, 2024. REUTERS/David &#8216;Dee&#8217; Delgado/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



UNITED NATIONS, Sept 12 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The United States supports creating two permanent United Nations Security Council seats for African states and one seat to be rotated among small island developing states, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield will announce on Thursday.



The move comes as the U.S. seeks to repair ties with Africa, where many are unhappy about Washington&#8217;s support for Israel&#8217;s war in Gaza, and deepen relations with Pacific Islands nations important to countering Chinese influence in the region.



Thomas-Greenfield told Reuters she hopes the announcement will &#8220;move this agenda forward in a way that we can achieve Security Council reform at some point in the future,&#8221; describing it as part of U.S. President Joe Biden&#8217;s legacy.



The push for two permanent African seats and a rotating seat for small island developing states is in addition to Washington&#8217;s long-held support for India, Japan and Germany to also get permanent seats on the council.



Developing nations have long demanded permanent seats on the Security Council, the most powerful body in the United Nations. But years of talks on reform have proved fruitless and it is unclear whether U.S. support could fuel action.



Ahead of making the announcement at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Thursday, Thomas-Greenfield clarified to Reuters that Washington does not support expanding veto power beyond the five countries that hold it.



The Security Council is charged with maintaining international peace and security and has the power to impose sanctions and arms embargos and authorize the use of force.



When the U.N. was founded in 1945, the Security Council had 11 members. This increased in 1965 to 15 members, made up of 10 elected states serving two-year terms and five permanent veto-wielding nations: Russia, China, France, the U.S. and Britain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-legitimacy-problem">LEGITIMACY PROBLEM</h2>



U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres backs Security Council reform.



&#8220;You have a Security Council that corresponds exactly to the situation after the Second World War &#8230; that has a problem of legitimacy, and that has a problem of effectiveness, and it needs to be reformed,&#8221; Guterres told Reuters on Wednesday.



Any changes to the Security Council membership is done by amending the founding U.N. Charter. This needs the approval and ratification by two-thirds of the General Assembly, including the Security Council&#8217;s current five veto powers.



The 193-member U.N. General Assembly has annually discussed reform of the Security Council for more than a decade. But momentum has grown in recent years as geopolitical rivalries have deadlocked the council on several issues, particularly after permanent veto-wielding member Russia invaded Ukraine.



&#8220;Much of the conversation around Security Council reform has been just that: a conversation,&#8221; Thomas-Greenfield will say on Thursday, according to prepared remarks reviewed by Reuters of her announcement that Washington supports moving to negotiations on a draft text to amend the U.N. Charter to expand the council.



Thomas-Greenfield told Reuters she could not say how long it might take to get the General Assembly to vote on such a resolution.



Each year the General Assembly elects five new members from different geographical groups for two-year terms on the Security Council. Africa currently has three seats rotated among states.



&#8220;The problem is, these non-permanent seats don&#8217;t enable African countries to deliver the full benefit of their knowledge and voices to the work of the council &#8230; to consistently lead on the challenges that affect all of us &#8211; and disproportionately affect Africans,&#8221; Thomas-Greenfield will say.



She will also say that small island developing states deserve a rotating elected seat because they offer &#8220;critical insights on a range of international peace and security issues: including, notably, the impact of climate change.&#8221;



(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Don Durfee and Tom Hogue)

FILE PHOTO: UN Security Council meeting in New York

US supports two permanent UN Security Council seats for Africa

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="570" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-820x570.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-512563" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-820x570.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-300x209.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-768x534.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-1536x1068.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2T3ATFNZVRN27LLBDMQ2WMTFI4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">South Africa&#8217;s former President Jacob Zuma, leader of the uMkhonto we Sizwe party, arrives to give an address on current political developments post-elections, in Sandton, South Africa, June 16, 2024. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG, July 29 (Reuters) &#8211; Former South African president Jacob Zuma has been expelled from the African National Congress after backing a rival party in May&#8217;s parliamentary election, the ANC said on Monday.



Zuma was suspended from&nbsp;his long-time party&nbsp;in January after announcing he would&nbsp;support the&nbsp;new uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) in the general election.&nbsp;He later became the leader and face of MK.



MK did better than expected in the poll and won about 15% of the vote, a major factor in the ANC&#8217;s loss of its majority for the first time since the apartheid era.



&#8220;Former President Jacob Zuma has actively impugned the integrity of the ANC and campaigned to dislodge the ANC from power, while claiming that he had not severed his membership,&#8221; ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula told the media.



&#8220;This conduct is irreconcilable with the spirit of organisational discipline and letter of the ANC Constitution.&#8221;



The ANC won 40.18% of the vote in the election, down from 57.50% it gathered in 2019, forcing it into a coalition government for the first time since it took power at the end of white minority rule in 1994. MK is now the official opposition.



MK responded to media reports that Zuma had been expelled in a statement earlier on Monday, criticizing the ANC&#8217;s process and condemning &#8220;grave injustices&#8221; against Zuma.



&#8220;President Zuma will engage his legal team to urgently determine the course of action,&#8221; it said.



Zuma will have 21 days to appeal the decision, the ANC said.



Zuma, whose nine years in office from 2009 were marked by corruption scandals and sluggish economic growth, has been at odds with the ANC&#8217;s leadership since he was forced to quit as party leader in 2018. He has repeatedly lashed out against his successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa.



(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Writing by Tannur Anders; Editing by Nellie Peyton and Peter Graff)

South Africa’s former President Zuma briefs media on political developments

South Africa’s ANC expels former president Zuma after election betrayal

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-510532" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/GettyImages-2162833993-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN &#8211; JULY 20: Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump walks offstage after speaking at a campaign rally at the Van Andel Arena on July 20, 2024 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Trump&#8217;s campaign event is the first joint event with his recent vice presidential pick Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and the first campaign rally since the attempted assassination attempt his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



Former President Donald Trump would likely take his trade war and economic decoupling policies to new levels if he were elected to a second term in the White House, experts told CNBC.



While Joe Biden also placed strategic competition with China at the forefront of his economic policy, economists and trade experts largely expect Trump would further cut and destabilize trade relations between the world’s two largest economies.



“A Trump victory is highly likely to increase trade and economic hostilities between the U.S. and China, ramping up the trade and financial decoupling between the two countries,” said Eswar Prasad, an economics professor at Cornell University.



Trump is widely expected to face incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris after Biden bowed out of the race and endorsed her. According to Prasad and other experts, Harris’ approach to China would likely be similar to that of Biden.



While Trump and Biden both took a protectionist stance, their strategies and tactics differed greatly, explained Prasad, who previously served as head of the International Monetary Fund’s China and financial studies divisions.



“Trump relied on tariffs to keep out imports from China. Biden — while keeping those tariffs in place and even increasing tariffs on certain imports — has focused more on restricting China’s access to technology transfers and computer chips,” he said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tariff-man"><a></a>‘Tariff man’</h2>



Trump’s biggest diversion from Biden-era trade policy would likely be tariffs levied on China.



The self-proclaimed “tariff man” set off a trade war with Beijing during his first term. He placed a series of duties on $250 billion of Chinese imports, disregarding warnings the levies would raise prices and hurt consumers. 



After defeating Trump in 2020, Biden retained his predecessor’s tariffs and even added his own, announcing stiff new duties on about $18 billion worth of Chinese imports, including electric vehicles, solar cells, lithium batteries, steel and aluminum. 



Experts told CNBC they expect Harris to largely continue Biden’s tariff policy. Trump, on the other hand, has already proposed increasing rates on Chinese imports by at least 60%. 



“I certainly don’t know if Trump is willing to pursue such extreme measures, but I do believe that he’s likely to increase tariffs to some degree during a second term,” said Stephen Weymouth, a professor of international political economy at Georgetown University.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Economist Stephen Roach said Trump raising tariffs in a second term would be the “functional equivalent of the nuclear option” in international economic conflict.&nbsp;



William Reinsch, Scholl chair in international business at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the tariffs risk another trade war that would end most goods exchange between the two countries at an “enormous economic cost.”



Even if Trump’s aim is not a full decoupling but forcing Beijing into negotiating a more favorable trade deal, Reinsch said there’s little reason to believe that would work.



The Trump administration reached a “phase one trade deal” with China in 2019, but few terms were honored and subsequent phases never materialized.



Some commentators said Trump picking JD Vance as his running mate further signals the Republican is serious about his tariff plans. The senator from Ohio has been a staunch supporter of tariffs on China, identifying the country as the biggest threat facing the U.S. 



“If I was a China policy maker, this selection would have me shaking in my boots,” said Arthur Dong, professor of strategy and economics at Georgetown.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Tech war</h2>



In contrast, the Biden-Harris administration’s key policies focused on limiting China’s access to technology transfers and directing domestic subsidies to develop high-tech industries and supply chains in the U.S.



The administration dramatically expanded the list of technologies and Chinese companies subject to U.S. export controls in efforts to cut support to critical tech industries in China, such as advanced semiconductors. The Trump administration had enacted some similar controls.



The Biden administration also announced rules limiting U.S. investment in Chinese firms developing sensitive technologies, citing national security concerns.



In perhaps Biden’s biggest move, the administration signed the CHIPS and Science Act in August 2022, putting aside almost $53 billion to invest in domestic semiconductor manufacturing and research to boost U.S. competitiveness with China.



Chris Miller, author of “Chip War,” noted export controls and the CHIPS Act were passed with bipartisan support in Washington, and thus, such policies are likely to remain a priority regardless of what happens in November.&nbsp;



“I expect that the U.S. will ratchet up restrictions a notch or two regardless of who wins the election,” Miller said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Diplomacy&nbsp;</h2>



A second term for Trump would also impact U.S. diplomacy and dialogue with Beijing beyond trade matters, said Rorry Daniels,&nbsp;managing director of the Asia Society Policy Institute.



She said channels for the two countries to discuss policy issues decreased significantly during the Trump administration, whereas the Biden administration emphasized its diplomatic engagement efforts.



The current administration has also sought greater coordination with “likeminded partners,” such as lobbying Japan and the Netherlands to cooperate on semiconductor restrictions. 



“That’s both helped minimize the blowback of his trade policy actions, while in many ways also making them more effective,” said Nick Marro, lead analyst for global trade with the Economist Intelligence Unit, adding he expects any future Democratic administration to retain this multilateral approach.&nbsp;



On the other hand, he said Trump opts for a more “go-it-alone” approach, allowing for a more rapid adoption of U.S. measures on China.



While the Biden-Harris administration’s “more measured and cautious” approach to China trade and diplomacy has done more to stabilize the relationship, Marro said he doubts Beijing is excited about either candidate.



“There’s this feeling that, regardless of&nbsp;which party&nbsp;sits in the White House,&nbsp;US-China relations will remain on a crash-course throughout the remainder of this decade.”



— CNBC’s Zenith Wong contributed to this report

Donald Trump And J.D. Vance Hold First Joint Campaign Rally After The RNC

Trump 2.0 could go ‘nuclear’ on China trade, while economists say Harris would remain tough

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1332" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-423884" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-300x195.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-820x533.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-138x90.jpg 138w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-768x500.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/CH74466FLFPLDMIKLENAOZO5UY-1536x999.jpg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks in Munich, Germany February 18, 2023. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay//File Photo</figcaption></figure>



Washington and the world are still reeling from President Joe Biden’s surprise announcement on Sunday that he is ending his teetering re-election campaign.



But Biden’s swift endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him at the top of the Democratic ticket is energizing Democrats and breathing new life into their campaign to defeat former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance.



The “Biden for President” campaign committee has officially been renamed the Harris for President committee, maintaining the Biden team’s infrastructure, staff and — crucially — its $98 million in cash reserves.



Democrats excited about a new ticket have donated tens of millions of dollars online to the Harris for President campaign.



Now, speculation swirls about who the former California senator could choose for a potential running mate, if she becomes the party’s nominee. Several Democratic governors are early favorites, with strategists eyeing Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Roy Cooper of North Carolina and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.



Republicans are meanwhile scrambling to retool a Trump campaign that was built to defeat Joe Biden into one capable of defeating a very different candidate.



Both parties want to know what happened to make it possible for a would-be assassin to shoot at Trump while he was on stage at a rally in Butler Pa. on July 13. Trump survived the attempt, but one of his supporters in the audience was killed.



This is a developing story&#8230;

FILE PHOTO: Vice President Kamala Harris

Democrats rally behind Kamala Harris after Biden drops out; running-mate speculation swirls

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2048" height="1424" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-scaled.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-417906" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-300x209.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-820x570.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-768x534.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/CQH2GCFS7VKHNNUO4RF6ABAM54-1536x1068.jpg 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks as he attends the signing into law of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022, which will level the playing field for American exporters and importers, including farmers, and reduce costs for American consumers by lowering the cost of ocean shipping, at the White House in Washington, U.S., June 16, 2022. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein</figcaption></figure>



President&nbsp;Joe Biden&nbsp;on Sunday&nbsp;dropped out&nbsp;of the&nbsp;2024 presidential race&nbsp;and endorsed Vice President&nbsp;Kamala Harris&nbsp;as the Democratic Party’s nominee, bowing to weeks of growing pressure by his own party members to quit his re-election bid against former President&nbsp;Donald Trump.



“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” Biden wrote in a post on the social media site X.



“And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote.



“I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision,” wrote Biden, whose bombshell decision came after a sharp spike in recent days in the number of congressional Democrats publicly calling for him to step aside for another nominee.



Biden in a subsequent tweet wrote that his “very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President.”



“And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump,” Biden wrote.



“Let’s do this.”



Harris in a statement said, “I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination.”



Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in a joint statement from the Democratic power couple, said, “We are honored to join the President in endorsing Vice President Harris and will do whatever we can to support her.”



Biden, who has been isolated at his Rehoboth, Delaware, beach home after being diagnosed with Covid-19, and Harris spoke on Sunday before he announced he would drop out of the election race.



NBC News reported that Biden at 1:45 p.m. ET Sunday told his senior campaign team that he had changed his mind about remaining in the contest.



On Sunday evening, on a campaign staff call, Biden campaign co-chair Jen O’Malley Dillon called for staff to rally behind their new candidate and said that their jobs would safely transfer to the Harris campaign, three sources familiar with the call told NBC News.



She also acknowledged the emotional weight of the moment: “It is ok to grieve, it is ok to be unsure but also be optimistic about our path forward.”



Trump in a phone interview with NBC News said of Biden’s decision, “He should never have been there in the first place.”



“He should have stayed in his basement,” said Trump, who was formally nominated as the Republican Party’s candidate last week, days after narrowly avoiding being killed in an assassination attempt at a Pennsylvania campaign rally on July 13.



Democratic National Committee Jamie Harrison in a statement said, “In the coming days, the Party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward as a united Democratic Party with a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.”



“This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the Party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people,” Harrison said.



Biden’s move echoes the decision by another Democratic incumbent, President Lyndon Johnson, to drop out of the 1968 election as he faced turmoil over the Vietnam War, low approval ratings, and a surprisingly strong performance by Sen. Eugene McCarthy in the New Hampshire primary.



Biden’s campaign for weeks had insisted he would remain in the race, despite growing concern since his disastrous debate with Trump in late June that he was too old and frail to compete against the former president and serve a full second term if re-elected.



As of Sunday, nearly 40 Democratic members of Congress had urged Biden to drop out. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who recently switched his political affiliation from Democrat to independent, earlier Sunday publicly said Biden should quit the race.



Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the California Democrat who previously served as speaker of the House of Representatives, in a tweet Sunday wrote, “President Joe Biden is a patriotic American who has always put our country first.”



“His legacy of vision, values and leadership make him one of the most consequential Presidents in American history,” Pelosi wrote. “With love and gratitude to President Biden for always believing in the promise of America and giving people the opportunity to reach their fulfillment. God blessed America with Joe Biden’s greatness and goodness.



Biden’s decision to drop out blows open the presidential race less than four months before Election Day.



It also poses extraordinary questions and challenges for the Democratic party, which now must scramble to assemble a new presidential ticket.



The next candidate will need to compete against the Republican ticket of Trump and Sen. JD Vance, win over donors, delegates and other allies who were loyal to the incumbent — all while convincing voters of their own worthiness for the nation’s highest office.



Biden’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



Biden started to hemorrhage support from his own party and allies after his June 27 debate against Trump.



While he is only three years older than Trump, Biden looked and sounded significantly worse on the debate stage. He displayed a stiff posture and sometimes vacant-looking gaze, and he frequently gave answers that were raspy, unclear and ineffective.



In both substance and appearance, Biden contrasted sharply with Trump, who looked and sounded the same as he has in recent years.



The debate instantly set off a crisis among Democrats. Even before it ended, party operatives were raising doubts about whether Biden could effectively campaign against Trump.



High-profile Democratic donors and backers openly urged Biden to drop out, with some vowing to&nbsp;withhold campaign contributions&nbsp;in the meantime.



Biden and his aides spent weeks trying to stanch the bleeding.



In his first post-debate interview, Biden said he was convinced that he is the best person to take on Trump, adding that he could only be persuaded to step down “if the Lord Almighty comes out and tells me that.”



But as his resolute posture failed to quell the&nbsp;unrest in his party, Biden suggested he could be moved to withdraw in other ways.



In a BET interview that aired Wednesday during the Republican National Convention, Biden said he might reconsider his decision to stay in the race “if I had some&nbsp;medical condition that emerged.”



On the same day that interview was set for broadcast, Biden&nbsp;tested positive for Covid. He canceled a scheduled appearance in Las Vegas and returned his beach house in Delaware.



Biden is already the oldest person ever to serve in the White House.



He would have been 86 at the end of a second term. He had&nbsp;weathered questions&nbsp;about his physical and mental fitness even during his 2020 run.



Those concerns grew in the 2024 cycle, but they were aggressively batted down by Biden’s campaign and White House aides, and the president’s relative lack of press conferences and interviews may have shielded scrutiny about his acuity.

U.S. President Joe Biden signs into law the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022

Biden drops out of 2024 presidential election, endorses Kamala Harris as Democratic nominee

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-505670" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/HIIJDZFCB5P35MGUWBAGP3Y76E-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A person casts a ballot in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at a polling station in Paris, France, July 7, 2024. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier</figcaption></figure>



July 9 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Elections are taking place this year in countries home to almost half of the world&#8217;s population, from Taiwan&#8217;s general election in January to the U.S. presidential race in November.



The votes come amid growing economic and geopolitical strife, with the Ukraine war, conflicts in the Middle East and rising trade tensions between the United States and China, the world&#8217;s two largest economies.



In some countries, there are concerns about the resilience of democracy itself as political discourse has polarized or been warped by disinformation. Many of this year&#8217;s elections will not be free and fair &#8211; or their results will be disputed.



Half-way through the biggest year for elections in history, here are some common themes that have emerged in Reuters&#8217; reporting from around the world:



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cost-of-living">COST OF LIVING</h2>



From the price of green onions in Indonesia to higher fuel bills across Europe, rises in the price of food, energy and other basics have hit the living standards of households across the world. Incumbent governments and leaders are paying for it.



Polling showed that cost of living concerns were a powerful factor in a fall in support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#8217;s party in India, losses suffered by mainstream parties in June&#8217;s European Parliament elections and the poll rout of Britain&#8217;s ruling Conservatives.



In Africa, discontent over living standards and unemployment contributed to the ANC&#8217;s loss of its majority in South Africa&#8217;s election. Worsening poverty is likely to help shape the outcome of Ghana&#8217;s December vote to succeed President Nana Akufo-Addo.



Polling ahead of the U.S. election suggests voters are similarly unimpressed with President Joe Biden&#8217;s efforts to improve their livelihoods, with many Americans feeling their living standards are falling despite strong headline economic data. One outlier: In Mexico, the ruling MORENA party emerged the winner after offering ample subsidies to low-income voters.



While economic policymakers say there are signs that inflation is returning to normal, they warn it has not yet been fully tamed and many economies remain fragile.



&#8220;A number of pressure points could throw the global economy off track,&#8221; Agustin Carstens, head of the central bank umbrella group the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), warned in June.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-green-transition">GREEN TRANSITION</h2>



With the cost of living uppermost in many voters&#8217; minds, climate change action has often been crowded out of election campaigns &#8211; even as global temperatures break new records and death tolls from extreme heat climb.



While surveys show Europeans still support ambitious action on global warming, the debate there has focused on the perceived cost to livelihoods, with farming and other lobbies stepping up calls for an easing of net-zero policies.



In the EU elections, ecologist Greens shed most of the gains made five years earlier. In Britain, Labour dropped a 28-billion-pound green investment pledge ahead of the July 4 general election, saying the country could not afford it, while their Conservative rivals described themselves as &#8220;on the side of drivers&#8221;, attacking low-traffic and low-emission schemes.



The biggest challenge to the green transition may come from the United States, with Donald Trump campaigning on policies supporting continued fossil fuel use. It remains to be seen how much of Biden&#8217;s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) green subsidies stay in place in the event of a Trump victory.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-swing-to-the-far-right">SWING TO THE (FAR)RIGHT?</h2>



The cost of living crisis has led to rising support for far-right movement&nbsp;in Western countries&nbsp;with a mix of anti-immigration and nationalist policies, often unfunded economic spending plans and populist rhetoric attacking global elites.



Back in March, Portugal&#8217;s Chega party quadrupled its seats in parliament to become the country&#8217;s third-largest party. Three months later, its far-right, eurosceptic peers across Europe made gains in elections to the European Parliament.



In France, Marine Le Pen&#8217;s National Rally failed in elections on Sunday to achieve the majority they were coveting but became the largest single party in a hung parliament that now risks plunging Europe&#8217;s second-largest economy into policy paralyis.



In Britain, the anti-immigrant, nationalist Reform Party won over four million votes, contributing to the collapse in support for the ruling Conservatives even if Britain&#8217;s first-past-the-post electoral system meant it only won a handful of seats.



Austria&#8217;s Sept. 29 election will be closely watched, with polls showing the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) leading rivals after it ranked first in European Parliament elections.



In the United States, Trump has made immigration one of his top domestic campaign issues, declaring he would carry out mass deportations, end birthright citizenship, and expand a travel ban on people from certain countries.



Mohit Kumar, chief economist for investment house Jefferies, noted that immigration as an election theme was hottest in precisely the large Western economies whose ageing populations were creating labour shortages.



&#8220;Economically we need immigration but the political dynamics are shifting away from immigration,&#8221; he said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-debt-and-election-largesse">DEBT AND ELECTION LARGESSE</h2>



With economic hardship so prevalent, many politicians are offering to spend big and cut taxes in a bid to win power &#8211; at the risk of adding to global debt already at record levels after huge post-pandemic stimulus packages in rich-world economies.



Credit rating firm S&amp;P Global has warned the United States, France and other Group of Seven (G7) governments were unlikely to halt rises in their debt &#8220;at the present stage in their electoral cycles&#8221;.



The BIS annual report in June said an election year like this brought an &#8220;especially high&#8221; risk of fiscal expansion that could complicate efforts to bring inflation down to target.



Budget watchdogs in Britain and France &#8211; two countries struggling to balance their budgets &#8211; noted that many spending pledges were either unfunded or unrealistically costed.



Trump has pledged to keep in place a broad 2017 tax cut that he signed while in office, and his economic team has discussed a further round of cuts beyond those enacted in his first term.



Biden, meanwhile, proposes raising levies on businesses and rich individuals, while vowing not to increase taxes for households earning less than $400,000 a year and to assist low- and middle-income Americans with childcare costs. U.S. federal government currently has more than $34 trillion in debt.



Such levels of debt are seen making the global economy more vulnerable to financial shocks and the International Monetary Fund has urged governments to reduce their borrowing.



&#8220;Unfortunately, fiscal plans so far are insufficient and could be derailed further given the record number of elections this year,&#8221; its chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said in a recent blog.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-defence-and-security">DEFENCE AND SECURITY</h2>



As geopolitical tensions rise, defence and security matters have been prominent in a number of election campaigns so far this year &#8211; particularly in countries near the hotspots.



In February, Finland elected as president Alexander Stubb, who campaigned on the previously non-aligned country fully participating in NATO and allowing the transit of nuclear arms through it. Incumbents in Lithuania won an election dominated by concerns over Russia and calls for higher defence spending.



Taiwan&#8217;s presidential and parliamentary elections on Jan. 13 focused around arguments on how best to deal with China, which views the island as its own territory. The ruling DPP party secured the presidency for a third term as its candidate vowed to safeguard Taiwan from intimidation while emphasising the need for dialogue with Beijing.



In the United States, Democratic voters&#8217; anger over Israel&#8217;s military action in Gaza &#8211; and over Biden&#8217;s continued support of Israel – has emerged as a major vulnerability for him. American views on the conflict have broken down along party lines with Republicans largely supporting Israel.



While Biden voices unwavering support for NATO, Trump has said that if he is returned to the White House, America would fundamentally rethink NATO&#8217;s purpose. He has also asserted without evidence that if elected he would end the conflict in Ukraine before even taking office. On that, Biden has retorted that Trump has &#8220;no idea what he&#8217;s talking about&#8221;.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-democracy-at-stake">DEMOCRACY AT STAKE?</h2>



Pro-democracy watchdogs estimate that nearly three-quarters of the world&#8217;s population live in autocracies. Observers and human rights groups have signalled concerns about the fairness of elections this year in Bangladesh, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Cambodia, Iran and Russia. Votes in Algeria and Uzbekistan face similar questions.



Modi&#8217;s electoral setback has been hailed by some commentators as proof of the resilience of its democracy. There was relief at the peaceful handover of power in Senegal in March after moves by the incumbent to delay the vote triggered protests.



Democracy&#8217;s biggest test this year may, however, be in Washington.



Trump refuses to commit to accepting the election results or to rule out possible violence around the Nov. 5 contest. He is already laying the groundwork to contest a potential defeat.



&#8220;We should be quite worried,&#8221; Steven Levitsky, political scientist and professor of government at Harvard University, told a Brookings think tank event in June.



&#8220;A democracy cannot survive if one party in a two-party system is not committed to playing by the democratic rules of the game.&#8221;



(Graphics by Sumanta Sen and Anand Katakam; Editing by Simon Robinson and Daniel Flynn)

France votes in the second round of the 2024 snap legislative elections

How this year of elections is set to reshape global politics

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-445639" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SWEUMT7U2BNOBJQWUWR7XK5WEI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes the weekly cabinet meeting at the Defence Ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel, January 7, 2024. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/Pool</figcaption></figure>



THE HAGUE, Jan 12 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Israel will respond on Friday to accusations brought by South Africa at the U.N.&#8217;s top court that its military operation in Gaza is a state-led genocide campaign aimed at wiping out the Palestinian population.



South Africa, which filed the lawsuit at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December, asked judges on Thursday to impose emergency measures ordering Israel to immediately halt the offensive.



It said Israel&#8217;s aerial and ground offensive &#8211; which has laid waste to much of the narrow coastal enclave and killed more than 23,000 people according to Gaza health authorities &#8211; aimed to bring about &#8220;the destruction of the population&#8221; of Gaza.



Israel rejected the accusations of genocide as baseless and said South Africa was acting as a mouthpiece for Hamas, which it views as a terrorist organisation seeking to eliminate the Jewish state. Its military was targeting Hamas militants, not Palestinian civilians, it said.



Israel launched its all-out war in Gaza after a cross-border rampage on Oct. 7 by Hamas militants in which Israeli officials said 1,200 people were killed, mainly civilians, and 240 taken hostage back to Gaza.



The 1948 Genocide Convention, enacted in the wake of the mass murder of Jews in the Nazi Holocaust, defines genocide as &#8220;acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group&#8221;.



Since Israeli forces launched their offensive, nearly all of Gaza&#8217;s 2.3 million people have been driven from their homes at least once, causing a humanitarian catastrophe.



Post-apartheid South Africa has long advocated the Palestinian cause, a relationship forged when the African National Congress&#8217; struggle against white-minority rule was cheered on by Yasser Arafat&#8217;s Palestine Liberation Organisation.



The court is expected to rule on possible emergency measures later this month, but will not rule at that time on the genocide allegations &#8211; those proceedings could take years.



The ICJ&#8217;s decisions are final and without appeal &#8211; but the court has no way to enforce them.



(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch, Stephanie van den Berg and Toby Sterling and Bart Meijer; Editing by Alex Richardson)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes the weekly cabinet meeting, in Tel Aviv

Israel to counter genocide accusations at World Court

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-445398" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SK2F2TSLLRNTNDNQ44N4CXN4LE-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">People sit inside the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the day of the trial to hear a request for emergency measures by South Africa, who asked the court to order Israel to stop its military actions in Gaza and to desist from what South Africa says are genocidal acts committed against Palestinians during the war with Hamas in Gaza, in The Hague, Netherlands, January 11, 2024. REUTERS/Thilo Schmuelgen</figcaption></figure>



GAZA/THE HAGUE, Jan 11 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Israel faced down accusations at the World Court on Thursday of genocide in its war in Gaza, as the first residents returned to scenes of total devastation in northern areas where Israeli forces have begun withdrawing this week.



Three months of Israeli bombardment has laid much of the narrow coastal enclave to waste, killing more than 23,000 people and driving nearly the entire population of 2.3 million Palestinians from their homes. An Israeli blockade has sharply restricted supplies of food, fuel and medicine, creating what the United Nations describes as a humanitarian catastrophe.



Israel says its only means to defend itself is by eradicating Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, whose fighters sworn to Israel&#8217;s destruction stormed through Israeli communities on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and capturing 240 hostages. Israel blames Hamas for all harm to civilians for operating among them, which the fighters deny.



The case, brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague, accuses Israel of violating the 1948 genocide convention, enacted in the wake of the mass murder of Jews in the Holocaust, which mandates all countries to ensure such crimes are never repeated.



Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy compared the lawsuit to a centuries-old antisemitic conspiracy theory falsely accusing Jews of killing babies for rituals: &#8220;The State of Israel will appear before the International Court of Justice to dispel South Africa&#8217;s absurd blood libel, as Pretoria gives political and legal cover to the Hamas rapist regime.&#8221;



The preliminary hearings this week will consider whether the court should order Israel to stop fighting while it investigates the full merits of the case.



In Rafah, in southern Gaza where the bodies of members of the al-Arjany family killed overnight, including three small children, were laid out in shrouds outside a morgue, neighbours said the court must intervene to halt the war.



&#8220;To the ICJ: what is the fault of this baby?&#8221; said neighbour Khamis Kelab, cradling the smallest of the shrouded bodies in his arms as women wailed nearby.



&#8220;What did this girl do? What crime did she commit? Was she a terrorist? Did this baby fire rockets?&#8221; he said. &#8220;She was inside a tent, in the freezing cold, she was hit by a strike, this baby is just a few days old, you people.&#8221;



South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said his country was driven to bring the case by &#8220;the ongoing slaughter of the people of Gaza&#8221;, and motivated by South Africa&#8217;s own apartheid history.



&#8220;Israel has a genocidal intent against the Palestinians in Gaza,&#8221; Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, advocate of the High Court of South Africa, told the court in the Hague. &#8220;The intent to destroy Gaza has been nurtured at the highest level of state.&#8221;



The case reveals stark international polarisation. Several Western countries joined Washington in calling genocide accusations against Israel unjustified, not least given the ruthlessness of the Hamas attacks that precipitated the war.



&#8220;In fact, it is those who are violently attacking Israel who continue to openly call for the annihilation of Israel and the mass murder of Jews,&#8221; said State Department spokesperson Matt Miller.



Some developing states, including heavyweight Brazil, backed South Africa.



Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters: &#8220;We urge the court to reject all pressure and take a decision to criminalise the Israeli occupation and stop the aggression on Gaza.&#8221;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-gaza-will-be-rebuilt-we-will-rebury-our-dead">&#8216;GAZA WILL BE REBUILT. WE WILL REBURY OUR DEAD&#8217;</h2>



Since the New Year, Israel has announced a new phase in the war, to begin drawing down forces in the northern half of the Gaza Strip where its offensive began. Even so, fighting has only intensified in southern areas.



The relative quiet in the north has let residents begin trickling back into obliterated cities, finding a moonscape often with scant trace of where homes once stood.



Yousef Fares, a freelance journalist, filmed himself walking through a wasteland surrounded by scorched ruins that was once a part of Gaza City, home to nearly a million people. A few civilians passed by, some wobbling on bicycles over a track across the mud.



&#8220;All the houses you see are destroyed, completely or partially,&#8221; he said.



&#8220;We are now at the Tuffah old cemetery, which is over 100 years old. All those graves were exhumed, they were run over by the Israeli bulldozers and tanks. People are coming from various areas of Gaza City to search for the bodies of their sons.&#8221;



Abu Ayesh, who returned to a nearby part of Gaza City, told Reuters by phone that the destruction was &#8220;earthquake-like&#8221;.



&#8220;I tell (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu that Gaza will be rebuilt, we will build our homes and we will rebury our dead.&#8221;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-netanyahu-no-intention-to-re-occupy-gaza">NETANYAHU: NO INTENTION TO RE-OCCUPY GAZA</h2>



While Washington has backed Israel&#8217;s military campaign as justified by its right to self-defence, it has also called on its ally to scale the war back, do more to protect civilians, and maintain the hope of a future independent Palestinian state.



This week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the region, meeting Israeli and Palestinian officials and leaders of neighbouring Arab States, defending Israel&#8217;s campaign to eradicate Hamas but pushing for it to work with the Palestinian Authority (PA), which recognises Israel.



Israel has been vague about its ultimate intentions but says it wants security control of Gaza indefinitely and won&#8217;t hand it to the PA, which exercises limited self rule in the Israeli occupied West Bank but was pushed out of Gaza in 2007 by Hamas.



Some far-right members of Netanyahu&#8217;s coalition government have openly called for Palestinians to leave Gaza and Israelis to settle there permanently. In a post on X, Netanyahu insisted this was not Israel&#8217;s aim.



&#8220;Israel has no intention of permanently occupying Gaza or displacing its civilian population,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;Israel is fighting Hamas terrorists, not the Palestinian population, and we are doing so in full compliance with international law.&#8221;



(Reporting by Mohammed Salem in Rafah, Gaza; Nidal al-Mughrabi in Qatar; Dan Williams and Henriette Chacar in Jerusalem; Anthony Deutsch in the HagueWriting by Peter Graff; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

People sit inside the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the day of the trial to hear a request for emergency measures by South Africa, who asked the court to order Israel to stop its military actions in Gaza, in The Hague

Israel faces genocide charges at World Court; Gazans return to wasteland

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="575" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-820x575.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-440852" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-820x575.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-128x90.jpg 128w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-768x539.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-1536x1077.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NWWPQTPSUBJFTJAOHNDF3BPMFA-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Opposition supporters prepare to demonstrate, while riot police amass around Congolese opposition presidential candidate Martin Fayulu&#8217;s headquarters to block a protest by the opposition who are calling for a re-run of last week&#8217;s national election, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo December 27, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Nyemba</figcaption></figure>



Dec 29 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Democratic Republic of Congo is gradually releasing preliminary results from the Dec. 20 presidential election following a chaotic vote and an unscheduled ballot extension that have led the opposition to demand a re-run.



Below are the latest figures from the election commission, known as the CENI, along with details about how the commission is counting votes and releasing its tally, and why critics are disputing the results.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-do-the-latest-results-show">WHAT DO THE LATEST RESULTS SHOW?</h2>



The latest CENI update on Thursday showed President Tshisekedi well ahead of his 18 challengers, with just over 76% of around 12.5 million votes counted so far.



Businessman Moise Katumbi and former energy executive Martin Fayulu stand in second and third place respectively with almost 17% and more than 4% of the vote.



The provisional tally so far is based on results from 46,422 out of almost 76,000 polling stations, according to the CENI.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-are-they-being-released">HOW ARE THEY BEING RELEASED?</h2>



The CENI set up a results centre in Kinshasa called Basolo &#8211; &#8220;Truth&#8221; in the Lingala language &#8211; from where it has issued updates on a near-daily basis since Dec. 22.



The commission refers to these results as trends and has not yet said how many of Congo&#8217;s 44 million registered voters participated in the election.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-is-the-ceni-counting-votes">HOW IS THE CENI COUNTING VOTES?</h2>



According to Congolese electoral law, results released by the CENI are meant to be based on tallies of the paper votes cast in each polling station that have been signed off by witnesses and observers. This is meant to improve transparency and allow results to be easily double-checked if contested.



But the CENI president has told local media provisional results released so far have been based on a combination of such tallies and figures taken straight from voting machines.



In a report on the election released on Dec. 28, the main independent CENCO-ECC election monitoring group urged the CENI only to publish results based on correctly consolidated tallies from local centres.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-are-critics-disputing-the-results">WHY ARE CRITICS DISPUTING THE RESULTS?</h2>



Opposition presidential candidates say election day irregularities, including the CENI&#8217;s unscheduled extension of some voting beyond Dec. 20, have compromised the credibility of the results, calling for them to be annulled.



The CENCO-ECC observer mission and another local election monitoring group, which together deployed thousands of observers, have also highlighted issues on election day and during the vote-count they say throw the integrity of the results into question.



The CENI has acknowledged there were delays on election day, but says it is still on track to deliver a free and fair vote.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-could-we-get-full-results">WHEN COULD WE GET FULL RESULTS?</h2>



The CENI is scheduled to release full provisional results from the presidential vote by Dec. 31.



(Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Alex Richardson)

Congo deploys riot police ahead of banned anti-election protest

FACTBOX-The latest results in Congo’s disputed election

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="521" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-820x521.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-435811" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-820x521.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-300x191.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-142x90.jpg 142w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-768x488.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-1536x977.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2NYL26N5I5JW3NDSK4SNUHQ7QM-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) party supporters gather as they wait for the arrival of Democratic Republic of the Congo&#8217;s President Felix Tshisekedi for a campaign rally at the Afia stadium in Goma, North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo December 10, 2023. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



KINSHASA, Dec 13 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Democratic Republic of Congo&#8217;s government has asked the United Nations to allow its peacekeeping mission to help with the logistics of organising national elections next week, according to a letter seen by Reuters.



There have been challenges in the distribution of voting materials in Africa&#8217;s second-largest country due to a lack of paved roads and conflict in rebel-plagued eastern provinces, where a U.N. peacekeeping mission is deployed.



The mission, known as MONUSCO, has already helped deliver voting materials in the eastern provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu. Its mandate is currently limited to those areas.



In a letter dated Dec. 12, the Kinshasa government asked the U.N. Security Council to allow MONUSCO to extend its logistical support to other provinces.



The mission&#8217;s spokesperson, Ndeye Khady Lo, confirmed the letter and said the mission was waiting for the Security Council&#8217;s reply.



Congo&#8217;s government and its national electoral commission (CENI) did not immediately respond to requests for comment.



Some analysts and civil society groups have raised concerns that the election on Dec. 20 could be delayed. In 2018, Congo postponed the vote by one week just three days before it was set to take place.



The CENI last week asked the presidency to provide aircraft urgently to help distribute voting materials in hard-to-reach areas.



The government has meanwhile asked neighbouring Angola to lend it some planes for the election period. But its request was refused because it came too late, a diplomatic source said.



(Reporting by Sonia Rolley; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by Nellie Peyton and Mark Heinrich)

UDPS party supporters gather as they wait for the arrival of Democratic Republic of the Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi for a campaign rally at the Afia stadium in Goma

Congo asks U.N. to help with challenging election logistics

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="615" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-820x615.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-433965" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-820x615.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-300x225.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-120x90.jpg 120w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/URAEOTS2UJMPBFGFRNZO4L4MSQ-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Supporters of Union for Democracy and Social Progress {UDPS} gather to attend the launch of the first official day of campaign for the presidential election of December 20, by their leader Felix Tshisekedi in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, November 19, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Nyemba</figcaption></figure>



Dec 8 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Voters in Democratic Republic of Congo go to the polls on Dec. 20 and international investors are keenly watching to see if a political shake-up occurs in one of the world&#8217;s top suppliers of critical minerals.



A win for President Felix Tshisekedi would likely mean a continuation of his goal to lure more foreign investment and renegotiate contracts to improve terms for Congo.



Tshisekedi&#8217;s opponents include mining magnate Moise Katumbi and former oil executive Martin Fayulu whose business backgrounds they both say will help them clean up Congo&#8217;s corruption-plagued extractive industries if they win.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mines-amp-minerals">MINES &amp; MINERALS</h2>



Congo is the world&#8217;s biggest producer of cobalt, a key component in batteries for electric cars and mobile phones. It is also the world&#8217;s third-largest copper producer and holds significant deposits of lithium, tin, tungsten, tantalum and gold.



The Congolese mining sector, particularly its copper and cobalt mines, is now largely dominated by Chinese companies, but Tshisekedi has tried to woo other foreign investors and renegotiate existing deals to improve Congo&#8217;s stake in major projects.



&#8220;A Tshisekedi victory would provide a degree of policy continuity for investors in the mining sector, albeit of a resource nationalist nature,&#8221; said Aleix Montana, Africa Analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft.



Whoever wins will have to take the lead on ongoing talks with China including on the new terms for the Sicomines joint venture, part of a $6 billion metals-for-infrastructure deal from 2008.



&#8220;Tshisekedi in a new term would have stronger legs to stand on in terms of the negotiating position,&#8221; said Indigo Ellis, managing director at consultancy Africa Matters Ltd (AML).



With Tshisekedi&#8217;s backing, state mining group Gecamines has also said it plans to renegotiate some terms on its joint venture contracts with partners including Glencore&nbsp;GLEN.L&nbsp;and Chinese investors in a push to buy copper and cobalt proportional to its stakes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oil-amp-gas">OIL &amp; GAS</h2>



Tshisekedi has tried to develop Congo&#8217;s largely untapped fossil fuel reserves by auctioning the rights to 30 oil and gas blocks – many of them in environmentally sensitive areas.



The sale was officially launched in July 2022, but the auctions have been plagued by delays with only the licensing round for the three gas blocks completed so far albeit with the notable absence of major foreign players.



The government says Congo has 22 billion barrels of crude reserves and it is targeting production of 200,000 barrels per day, which would make Congo one of Africa&#8217;s biggest oil producers. The timeline for the development of the blocks remains unclear.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-risky-business">RISKY BUSINESS</h2>



Tshisekedi came to power with the promise to root out endemic corruption. Many Western investors have continued to steer clear, but analysts say that may change in the coming years as global powers seek access to minerals needed to drive the clean energy transition.



&#8220;The race &#8230; is forcing Western miners to re-evaluate their risk appetite, said Montana from Verisk Maplecroft, which rates Congo seventh worst globally on its index that assesses the risk of governments seizing more control of revenue from the extractives sector.



Nevertheless many investors are waiting to see that elections go peacefully and the transfer to the next term is smooth. The last election in 2018 was the first transfer of power at the ballot box after decades marked by coups and civil conflict.



&#8220;It makes sense for them (investors) to wait and see what happens,&#8221; said AML&#8217;s Ellis.



(Reporting by Felix Njinji; Writing by Alessandra Prentice; editing by David Evans)

FILE PHOTO: Congolese president Tshisekedi launches electoral campaign with Kinshasa rally

What is at stake for investors in Congo’s election?

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="590" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-820x590.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-429138" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-820x590.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-300x216.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-125x90.jpg 125w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-768x553.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-1536x1106.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/JHXDMXCSE5LZJG7LNLI4TT4SNI-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">President Felix Tshisekedi, leader of Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) walks with his wife Denise Nyekeru Tshisekedi as he arrives during the launch of the first official day of the campaign for the presidential election of December 20, in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, November 19, 2023. REUTERS/Benoit Nyemba</figcaption></figure>



KINSHASA, Nov 19 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi launched his re-election bid on Sunday in a packed-to-capacity stadium in the capital Kinshasa, urging voters to give him another mandate to consolidate his achievements.



More than 43 million registered voters are eligible to take part in the general election and presidential polls on Dec. 20.



Tshisekedi, 60, who came to power in 2018 following a disputed election in the world&#8217;s largest producer of battery material cobalt and a major copper producer, is seeking another term following a turbulent five years in office.



Speaking at the 80,000-capacity Kinshasa Martyrs Stadium, packed with his coalition supporters decked in party colours and carrying effigies of its leaders, Tshisekedi told the cheering crowd he had delivered free basic education and planned to soon introduce universal healthcare.



&#8220;In just two years we have been able to do all of these actions that you have seen, but we can do better. Vote for me to consolidate the gains we already have,&#8221; Tshisekedi said, adding that his first two years in office were constrained by a power-sharing agreement with former president Joseph Kabila.



&#8220;The others will come and start from scratch, it is better to consolidate what we have started,&#8221; he said.



Tshisekedi will face 25 other candidates in the presidential race, including old rival Martin Fayulu, a 66-year-old former Exxon Mobil executive who came second in the 2018 election.



Other challengers include Nobel Peace Prize-winning gynaecologist Denis Mukwege, who is running for the first time, Moise Katumbi, a millionaire businessman and former governor of the copper-rich Katanga region, and former prime minister Augustin Matata Ponyo.



Tshisekedi, son of long-term opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, had on taking office promised to root out corruption and authoritarian rule, rebuild the economy, tackle inequalities and deal with Congo&#8217;s prolonged security crisis, but critics say he has fallen short on these issues.



His first term has been mired by economic hardship, the COVID-19 pandemic, Ebola outbreaks and persistent insecurity, particularly in the east where the resurgent M23 rebel group seized swathes of territory displacing over 1 million.



&#8220;I&#8217;m backing Tshisekedi because he is the ideal choice for Congo given what he has done already. He has proven that if we give him another mandate, he&#8217;ll do even better,&#8221; said Alidor Ilunga, a 35-year-old supporter.



Rival Fayulu launched his campaign in Bandundu, around 400km (249 miles) northeast of the capital, also on Sunday, while other candidates including Katumbi are expected to launch theirs from Monday.



(Reporting by Ange Kasongo; Writing by Bate Felix; Editing by David Holmes)

Congolese President Tshisekedi launches electoral campaign with Kinshasa rally

Congo’s Tshisekedi kicks off re-election bid with vow to consolidate achievements

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427633" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/PICJOSJU3ZIDPGUR5CMU73CAGM-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: Gabon coup leader General Brice Oligui Nguema is sworn in as interim president during his swearing-in ceremony, in Libreville, Gabon, September 4, 2023. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, Sept 21 (Reuters) &#8211; When Gabon&#8217;s General Brice Oligui Nguema ousted his distant cousin last month, he became the eighth military leader who has taken power by force in Africa since 2020. But one aspect about the country was different: it had sold a sizeable amount of bonds on international capital markets, and had just weeks prior sealed continental Africa&#8217;s first debt-for-nature swap.



The putsch not only sent Gabon&#8217;s bonds tumbling 10%, but also hit those issued by a number of other countries including neighbouring Cameroon, as jittery investors scanned for who might be next.



The apparent coup trend is adding to other major concerns deterring many investors from&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;&#8211; a wave of debt crises, tense geopolitics and an extreme vulnerability to climate change.



&#8220;Nearly all markets in that region are paying some price in terms of rising cost of debt,&#8221; said Sergey Dergachev, portfolio manager at Union Investment.



A UNDP study dated July shows how the costs add up. It estimated Guinea&#8217;s 2008 coup and one in Mali in 2012 wiped a combined $12-$13.5 billion off the two countries&#8217; economies over a 5-year period. This represented 76% of Guinea&#8217;s 2008 gross domestic product and almost half of Mali&#8217;s 2012 GDP, the study calculated.



There have been scores of coups and attempted coups in recent decades including in Thailand, Ecuador, Egypt and Turkey.



Investors in those markets reacted reflexively &#8211; sell first, think later.



Gabon&#8217;s coup not only hurt its bonds, it also ratcheted up the interest rate premium, or &#8216;spread&#8217;, investors demand to hold bonds in JPMorgan&#8217;s multi-country &#8220;Nexgem&#8221;&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;index, a move that has still not fully retraced.



Cameroon has been particularly sensitive. Its bonds have lost more ground than Gabon&#8217;s since the coup. The country&#8217;s President Paul Biya has ruled for over 40 years through crackdowns and contested elections and wants his son to take over.



In focus too is Senegal, whose President Macky Sall recently ruled out running for a third term after violent unrest, and Congo Republic which had to quash weekend rumours of an overthrow while President Denis Sassou Nguesso &#8211; in power for 38 years &#8211; was in New York for the U.N. General Assembly.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unequal-coups">UNEQUAL COUPS</h2>



&#8220;Certainly there&#8217;s a lot of eyeballs on this (coup) theme right now,&#8221; said Eamon Aghdasi, a sovereign analyst at investment firm GMO, who co-authored a recent paper on whether democracy matters to debt investors.



&#8220;As a bondholder, the worst-case scenario is that a new government comes in and repudiates the previous government&#8217;s debt&#8221;.



There is no sign of Gabon&#8217;s new leaders repudiating debt, though payments on bonds have run into trouble elsewhere, such as Niger.



Credit ratings usually suffer too. Fitch and Moody&#8217;s have put Gabon on a downgrade warning since the Aug. 30 overthrow. Agencies slashed ratings for Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, although further afield, Thailand&#8217;s never budged despite two coups in the last two decades.



&#8220;Coups, in general, in&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;or anywhere else, can cause problems for debt repayment partly because of the potential for sanctions,&#8221; S&amp;P Global analyst Ravi Bhatia said, adding that vital international support can also get shelved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rising-costs">RISING COSTS</h2>



Gabon, where the Bongo family had ruled for nearly 60 years amid stark inequality, has yet to face the kinds of sanctions imposed on Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Niger &#8211; although its International Monetary Fund programme was already off track.



Moody&#8217;s cited the rise in oil prices in its decision to hold off on a full downgrade, as well as Gabon&#8217;s membership of the Central&nbsp;African monetary union (CFA franc), which shields it from currency volatility.



The country&#8217;s bond spreads have eased somewhat since investors&#8217; initial panic and could recover entirely, some analysts say, if it makes its first post-coup bond payment on time next month.



&#8220;You may get a situation where bondholders might say, if it&#8217;s a change away from long-term single leaderships, then it may well be a turn for the better,&#8221; said Simon Quijano-Evans, chief economist with Gemcorp. &#8220;As long as elections and democracy come back&#8221;.



Broadly though, concerns about sovereign stability across&nbsp;Africa&nbsp;loom large. This year&#8217;s &#8220;Fragile States Index&#8221; published by non-profit The Fund for Peace rated 46&nbsp;African countries as at least somewhat unstable.



Even in Kenya, a solid democracy on the other side of the continent, investors warn that general risk aversion could push up the cost of issuing a new bond.



(Reporting By Libby George and Marc Jones, additional reporting by Karin Strohecker; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

FILE PHOTO: Gabon coup leader General Brice Oligui Nguema is sworn in as interim president in Libreville

Counting the cost of contagion fears from Africa coups

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-820x461.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427215" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-820x461.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/HIA46EEL7ZJN3JVG6KDGWO25D4-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A military vehicle passes by people celebrating after military officers announced they had taken power, after the state election body announced President Ali Bongo had won a third term, in Port Gentil, Gabon August 30, 2023 in this still image obtained from social media video. Gaetan M-Antchouwet via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



LIBREVILLE, Sept 4 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;The leader of a coup that ousted Gabon&#8217;s President Ali Bongo was sworn in&nbsp;as interim president&nbsp;and cheered by jubilant supporters on Monday in a televised&nbsp;ceremony&nbsp;designed to cast the military as liberators of an oppressed society.



In West and Central Africa&#8217;s eighth coup in three years, army officers led by General Brice Oligui Nguema seized power on Aug. 30, minutes after an announcement that Bongo had won an election they annulled and said was not credible.



Nguema&nbsp;was given a standing ovation by military officers and officials as he arrived for the ceremony, and again just after he was sworn in by a panel of constitutional court judges.



State TV showed images of a cheering crowd and armoured personnel carriers firing into the sea to mark the moment.



In a speech, Nguema proposed reforms including a new constitution to be adopted by referendum, new electoral and penal codes, and measures to prioritise local banks and companies for economic development. He also said political exiles would be welcomed back and political prisoners freed.



Repeatedly interrupted by cheers, he described the coup, which&nbsp;ended the Bongo family&#8217;s 56-year&nbsp;hold on power in the oil-producing country,&nbsp;as a moment of national liberation and a manifestation of God&#8217;s will.



&#8220;When the people are crushed by their leaders &#8230; it&#8217;s the army that gives them back their dignity,&#8221; he said. &#8220;People of Gabon, today the times of happiness that our ancestors dreamt of are finally coming.&#8221;



Several figures from Bongo&#8217;s government, including the vice president and prime minister, attended the ceremony.



Bongo himself remains under house arrest. He was elected in 2009, taking over from his late father who came to power in 1967. Opponents say the family did too little to share Gabon&#8217;s oil and mining wealth with the country&#8217;s 2.3 million people.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pledge-to-return-power-to-civilians">PLEDGE TO RETURN POWER TO CIVILIANS</h2>



Nguema reiterated that his administration would organise free and fair elections, though he gave no timetable.



&#8220;After this transition &#8230; we intend to return power to civilians by organising new elections that will be free, transparent, credible and peaceful,&#8221; he said.



Previously, Nguema had said the junta would proceed &#8220;quickly but surely,&#8221; but cautioned that too much haste could lead to elections that lack credibility.



The coup had drawn&nbsp;cheering crowds onto the streets of the capital Libreville but condemnation from abroad.



Leaders of the Central African regional bloc ECCAS are due to meet in person on Monday to discuss their response. Last week they urged partners led by the United Nations and the African Union to support a rapid return to constitutional order.



Gabon&#8217;s main opposition group, Alternance 2023, which says it is the rightful winner of the Aug. 26 election, has called on the international community to encourage the junta to hand power back to civilians.



Members of Alternance 2023 met Nguema on Sunday for talks, a source in the alliance told Reuters, without sharing further details.



Gabon&#8217;s international bonds continued to claw back ground after their sharp tumble last Wednesday. The 2025 bond recorded the biggest gains, up 1.8 cents in the dollar according to Tradeweb data.



However, the bonds which are trading between 91.3 cents from 2024 maturities and 74 cents for issues coming due in 2031, are still down around 5 cents from their pre-coup levels. US362420AB78=TE, XS1245960684=TE, US362420AD35=TE, US362420AD35=TE



(Additional reporting by Nellie Peyton and Karin Strohecker; Writing by Alessandra Prentice and Estelle Shirbon; Editing by Peter Graff and Christina Fincher)

Military vehicle passes by people celebrating in Port Gentil

Gabon coup leader sworn in as interim president in scene of jubilation

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-427174" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Z4DVFX4YZBISTIKKKGFNVAHVZY-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Trucks carrying industrial equipments wait because of the closure of the border after the coup in Gabon, in the border town of Kye-Ossi, Cameroon August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Desire Danga Essigue/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LIBREVILLE, Sept 1 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Gabon&#8217;s main opposition group, Alternance 2023, called on the international community on Friday to encourage the junta that overthrew President Ali Bongo to hand power back to civilians.



Military officers seized power in a coup on Wednesday minutes after an announcement that Bongo had secured a third term in an election. They placed him under house arrest and picked General Brice Oligui Nguema as transitional leader.



The junta has said little about its immediate plans after ending the Bongo family&#8217;s almost six decades in power, a move that drew cheering crowds onto the streets of Libreville.



Bongo had ruled since 2009, taking over from his father when he died after he had been president since 1967. Opponents say the family did little to share Gabon&#8217;s oil and mining wealth with its 2.3 million people, almost a third of whom live in poverty.



&#8220;We were happy that Ali Bongo was overthrown but &#8230; we hope that the international community will stand up in favour of the Republic and the democratic order in Gabon by asking the military to give back the power to the civilians,&#8221; Alexandra Pangha, spokesperson for Alternance 2023 leader Albert Ondo Ossa, told the BBC.



Alternance 2023 has said it wanted a full vote count from Tuesday&#8217;s election which it said would show Ondo Ossa had won. Gabon&#8217;s election commission said Bongo had been re-elected with 64% of the vote, while Ondo Ossa secured almost 31%.



Pangha said the opposition hoped to get an invitation from the junta to discuss the Central African country&#8217;s transition plan and return to the republican order but said it had not received anything yet.



Nguema, leader of the officers behind the coup, is expected to be sworn in as transitional president on Monday, the junta has said. He will also give his first presidential address.



&#8220;We think it&#8217;s absurd for the putschists to swear in on Monday,&#8221; Pangha said.



The African Union&#8217;s Peace and Security Council demanded on Thursday that the military refrain from any interference in the political process and called for fair and transparent elections.



France, Gabon&#8217;s former colonial ruler, and other Western powers have condemned the military takeover.



(Reporting by Alessandra Prentice and Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Edmund Blair)

Gabon shutdown leaves truck drivers stranded at border crossing

Gabon opposition calls for pressure on junta to hand power to civilians

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="541" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-820x541.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-426985" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-820x541.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-300x198.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-137x90.jpg 137w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-768x506.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-1536x1013.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/HC4HTARYCNKDXDWVB6A4ZKHGDU-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a plenary session of the BRICS summit via a video link in Moscow, Russia, August 23, 2023. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS</figcaption></figure>



Aug 28 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed bilateral ties including&nbsp;trade, energy and space&nbsp;cooperation&nbsp;with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi by phone, the Kremlin said on Monday.



The two leaders also discussed the planned expansion of the BRICS group of emerging economies &#8211; comprising India, Russia, China, Brazil and South Africa &#8211; as well as a summit of the G20 club of major economies that New Delhi will host next month.



Russia has sought to further strengthen already warm ties with India after its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 triggered sweeping Western sanctions on Moscow. India is a major buyer of Russian oil.



&#8220;Topical issues of Russian-Indian relations, which are progressively developing in the spirit of a particularly privileged strategic partnership, were considered (in the call),&#8221; the Kremlin said in a statement.



&#8220;The positive dynamics of trade and economic cooperation was affirmed,&#8221; it added.



Last week Modi and Putin both took part in the BRICS summit in South Africa, though the Russian leader attended only via video link because of an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for him over alleged war crimes in Ukraine.



The Kremlin, which strongly denies the ICC allegations, has said Putin will also not attend the G20 gathering in India.



Both Russia and India launched lunar probes this month, but only the Indian one landed successfully on the moon while the Russian craft crashed.



(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Gareth Jones)

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