Overseas Security Advisory Council Daily News 3/17/2023

 

March 17, 2023

Today's Headlines OSAC's daily selection of global security news

Africa

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced $150 million in new humanitarian aid for Africa's Sahel region during a visit on Thursday to Niger, a country Washington views as an important ally in the fight against Islamist insurgencies.

Health officials in Burundi on Friday declared an outbreak of circulating poliovirus after confirming eight cases, the first such detection in over three decades, the World Health Organization said in a statement.

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has maintained that he will not be intimidated to call off the countrywide protests slated for Monday. Mr. Odinga, who addressed a in Nakuru City on Thursday, said the planned protests would be peaceful.

Two jihadist groups have for weeks been engaged in deadly clashes in their northeast Nigeria strongholds according to security sources and residents, who said hundreds of fighters had died.

East Asia & Pacific

Anyone can read what you share. By Richard C. Paddock When the soldiers from Myanmar’s notorious army reached the village of Nanneint, the residents fled. Some took refuge in the basement of a nearby Buddhist monastery. “They thought the soldiers ...

Zelenskyy cautiously welcomed Beijing's involvement but the overture appeared to go no further. Putin invited Xi to visit Russia during a video conference call the two held in late December. The visit, Putin said, could "demonstrate to the whole wor...

Japan and South Korea agreed to resume regular visits between their leaders and take steps to resolve a trade dispute during a long-awaited summit

(Bloomberg) -- Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha has issued a decree to dissolve parliament, paving the way for elections in May as the former coup leader seeks to extend military-backed rule despite his widespread unpopularity. Most Read ...

Europe

Zelenskyy cautiously welcomed Beijing's involvement but the overture appeared to go no further. Putin invited Xi to visit Russia during a video conference call the two held in late December. The visit, Putin said, could "demonstrate to the whole wor...

Protesters blocked a key highway around the French capital and escalated strikes at refineries Friday in a new show of anger after President Emmanuel Macron pushed through a contentious pension reform without ... traffic on the ring road outside the...

Poland will deliver a first batch of four ... said Friday that the Mig-29 fighter planes that Poland and Slovakia will soon deliver to Ukraine will be "destroyed," and denounced the "increasing involvement" of NATO countries in the conflict. "

Middle East & North Africa

Hundreds of elite officers in Israel’s military reserves say they will not show up for duty starting on Sunday in protest over the government’s plans to overhaul the judicial system.

Army says troops ‘neutralised’ two suspected militants in occupied northern West Bank city

South & Central Asia

Kazakhstan’s armed forces have undergone important personnel changes in the aftermath of the bloody January 2022 protests. Some officers have been promoted, others have simply have changed jobs. But some among the country’s armed forces have even be...

The Kazakhstan authorities have seized the property of the main operator of the Russian spaceport at Baikonur. 

ECP held back-to-back meetings with top Punjab officials and the secretary and additional secretary of the federal defence ministry to discuss security for polls

Public employees at Sri Lanka's ports, hospitals, schools, and railways went on strike on Wednesday to protest against high costs of living as the country struggles to recover from a severe financial crisis.

Western Hemisphere

El Salvador's Congress passed yet another extension suspending some constitutional rights in the Central American country's year-long fight against gangs late Wednesday.

A Haitian judge who reluctantly allowed suspects to be transferred to the United States hoped to have access to those suspects in the future. That may not be the case.

Greater quantities of synthetic opioid fentanyl directly enter the United States and Canada than Mexico, Mexico's president said on Thursday, pushing back against U.S. criticism of his record on cracking down on trafficking in the lethal drug.

OSAC Analysis Unclassified OSAC analytical reports and other resources

South & Central Asia

Afghanistan / India / Pakistan - South & Central Asia Update: March 15
Published: March 15, 2023

OSAC is trying a new product format: a brief update about topline private sector security concerns in each region. This update covers Pakistan's growing economic turmoil, Indian authorities searching BBC offices in Delhi and Mumbai, and leadership t...

Consular Messages - Department of State travel advisories and alerts

Europe

Scheduled demonstrations in Bratislava on March 16 and 18

Events - Upcoming OSAC meetings, webinars, and training courses

Global

Event Start Date: April 05, 2023

OSAC Tanzania Country Chapter Meeting

Event Start Date: April 26, 2023

The U.S. Embassy in Lilongwe invites you to attend U.S. Department of State’s Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) Country Chapter meeting, on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, from 9am to 10:30am at Farmer’s Daughter Café.

All Full Access OSAC members are invited to participate in OSAC's 1.5 day intensive "Topical Forum" on mitigating and managing the threats most impacting U.S. organizations operating around the world today May 9-10, 2023 at the US Department of Stat...

The OSAC Academia Sector Committee cordially invites all ASC members to attend the Spring Health, Safety, & Security Seminar hosted by Vanderbilt University, April 13 - 14.

The OSAC Energy Sector Committee (ESC) invites all ESC members to attend the upcoming ESC Spring Meeting at ExxonMobil Houston Campus in Spring, Texas on March 22 - 23, 2023.

The Europe Regional Committee (ERC) in partnership with the OSAC United Kingdom Country Chapter will be delivering a half day Crisis Management Workshop for Young Professionals in London on Wednesday, March 29, 2023. A full day Spring Conference and...

Event Start Date: March 29, 2023

Africa

Tanzania Country Chapter Meeting

East Asia & Pacific

All OSAC Pan-Asia Regional Committee (PARC) members are invited to attend the "Bouncing Back: Security in 2023 & Beyond" PARC Summit on April 26 - 27, 2023 at Bloomberg in Singapore.

Event Start Date: March 28, 2023

OSAC Phnom Penh country chapter members are invited to attend a chapter meeting at the US Embassy on 28 March from 3:30 - 5:30p local.

Event Start Date: March 29, 2023

OSAC Tokyo country chapter members are invited to a meeting at the Disney Ambassador Hotel from 3-5p local on 29 March.

Event Start Date: March 29, 2023

Join the Japan Country Chapter for our first in-person OSAC meeting in several years. During this kickoff meeting we will introduce the Japan Country Chapter Team and formulate OSAC priorities for the rest of 2023.

Event Start Date: April 20, 2023

OSAC Manila country chapter members are invited to attend a meeting on 20 April 2023.

Event Start Date: April 17, 2023

All OSAC Vietnam Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh members are invited to an in-person meeting on 17 April 2023 from 0830 - 1000a local.

Europe

Event Start Date: March 30, 2023

All OSAC Bulgaria Country Chapter members are invited to attend the Chapter's upcoming webinar, "How to Stop a Crisis," on March 30, 2023 at 3:00 PM Sofia local (EET).

Middle East & North Africa

The OSAC Middle East and North Africa Regional Committee (MENA RC) will hold its 9th annual conference May 31 - June 1 on the campus of NYU Abu Dhabi.

Event Start Date: March 22, 2023

The OSAC Iraq-Baghdad Chapter will meet in-person on Wednesday, March 22.

South & Central Asia

All OSAC Pan-Asia Regional Committee (PARC) members are invited to attend the "Bouncing Back: Security in 2023 & Beyond" PARC Summit on April 26 - 27, 2023 at Bloomberg in Singapore.

The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of State or any affiliated organization(s). Nor have these opinions been approved or sanctioned by these organizations. This product is unclassified based on the definitions in E.O. 13526. OSAC’s full disclaimer and copyright policy is available on our site.

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