Newsletter 23

Newsletter

Bolivarian Ministry of People’s Embassy of the Bolivarian Government Power for Foreign Affairs Republic of Venezuela of Venezuela

Vol. 4: Issue 23, 30th Oct, 2018

Weekly

What’s inside

Sale of Petro Begins in Venezuela

Sale of Petro Begins in Venezuela NAM advocates for the total elimination of nuclear weapons Venezuela Strengthens Alliance with Qatar Pence accusations show paranoia and US’s obsession for Venezuela Venezuela Rejects Statements of EU's Senior Official Venezuela repudiates interventionist and hostile actions of the ruling elite in Europe

Inside Africa:

Uganda opens Africa's 5th largest bridge "source of the Nile Bridge" Ethiopia's new president joins Africa's powerful women

“Venezuela begins the sale of Petros, a new cryptocurrency that will facilitate the financial exchange and the mobility of resources of the Venezuelan people and their economy under the new economic reality, multicentric and pluripolar.

Thanks to our brothers from the People's Republic of China! For being the first in line to buy Petros in yuan in the @SunacripVe / and the Venezuelan people can invest in petros thanks to President NicolasMaduro the defender of all Venezuelans.” Vice President Delcy Rodríguez tweeted in her official account.

Venezuelan Vice President for the Economic Area, Tareck El Aissami, ratified that transactions with the Venezuelan cryptoactive the petro, will initiate as planned. He informed that those who wish to purchase the cryptocurrency with foreign currency must attend the desks enabled for operations in the Cryptoactive Superintendency. He specified that purchasing contracts in Petros over 500 million dollars have been signed. “All suppliers which accept Petros as a payment mechanism for the purchase of godos and services of the Republic are welcome”, the Vice President affirmed in a press conference. El Aissami also informed that he will meet with workers savings Banks so that from November 5th they can initiate a savings plan in Petros.

The Venezuelan government issued its own crytocurrency in February to break the economic blockade that Washington imposed against the country. The Petro is backed by 5 billion oil barrels which the government conceded for these purposes.

Air Europa signs alliance in Petros As part of the Economic Recovery, Growth and Prosperity Program that the Executive is developing, the Bolivarian Government made an alliance with the airline Air Europa in order to boost the Tourism sector of the Bolivarian Economic Agenda.

In this sense, the vice president emphasized that “the agreement with the company Air Europa will not only favor the infrastructure and transport of the tourism sector, but also impact on the influx of visitors from the European continent to our country”.

“This great alliance has a great impact on the new economic start of the nation”, said El Aissami, who also thanked the airline for its confidence in Venezuela and highlighted the efforts of its international board to contribute to the country’s economic development. He explained that this important investment of Air Europa in Venezuela includes as well commercial alliance with the national aeronautical company Conviasa, European tour operators and airport administration at international airports.

The Economic Recovery, Growth and Prosperity Program, proposed last August by President Nicolás Maduro, consists in 10 strategic lines, among them, develop and promote production and generate foreign currency income for the nation.

Source:www.mppre.gob.ve

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NAM advocates for the total elimination of nuclear weapons “We emphasize, once again, that these upgradings, as well as the manufacture of new weapons of this type, also violate the commitments made by the nuclear-weapon States during the conclusion of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (Tpcen). and during the conferences of Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review”, warned FM Arreaza on behalf of the 120 States that are part of Mnoal.

The Movement of Non-Aligned Countries (Mnoal), under the presidency of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, celebrated and promoted the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, within the framework provided by the 73rd Period of Sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations (UN).

On behalf of the 120 Member States of the Mnoal, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza reaffirmed the principles of the organization about firearm and nuclear disarmament, as well as the non-proliferation of any kind of nuclear weapons.

At the same time, the organism reaffirmed that the organization of the High Level International Conference on Nuclear Disarmament, according to the provisions established in the General Assembly resolutions, will provide an important opportunity to examine the progress made in the field of disarmament and thus, promote even more such a noble objective.

“As long as nuclear weapons exist, the risk of their use and proliferation will persist; all use of nuclear weapons constitutes a violation of the Charter of the United Nations as well as a crime against humanity (…) It is a proven fact that any use of nuclear weapons would have humanitarian consequences of catastrophic proportions; therefore, the total elimination of nuclear weapons is the only and absolute guarantee against its use”, the diplomat emphasized.

The Mnoal considers the annual commemoration of the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons as one of the most effective ways to focus international public attention on the risks and threats posed to mankind by nuclear weapons and the need to eliminate them completely.

Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons

In this context, Mnoal expressed its deep concern about the delay in the progress towards nuclear disarmament and the lack of progress on the part of the nuclear-weapon States, with regard to the total elimination of their arsenals in accordance with their legal and multilateral obligations.

In his speech, the Venezuelan Foreign Minister stated that the Mnoal has taken note of the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which took place on July 7, 2017, within the framework of the United Nations Conference to negotiate a legally binding instrument. binding to forbid nuclear weapons.

Therefore, the Mnoal reaffirmed the need for the nuclear-weapon States, to take urgent and concrete actions aimed to achieve the goal of nuclear desarmament.

In this regard, he stressed that the aspiration of the agency is that once the Treaty comes into force, it contributes to advance towards the goal of the total elimination of nuclear weapons. “The time has come to adopt a new and comprehensive approach to nuclear disarmament”, he added.

The agency also reiterated its concern for the improvement of the existing nuclear weapons, the production of new types of nuclear weapons, as the military doctrines of some nuclear weapon States contemplate, and the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) of the Government of the United States.

Source:www.mppre.gob.ve

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Venezuela Strengthens Alliance with Qatar

President Maduro held a bilateral meeting with the ambassador of the State of Qatar in Venezuela, Rashid Mohsin Al Fetais, in the Office of the Miraflores Palace, with the aim of strengthening the bonds of cooperation that both nations maintain.

The Vice president of the Republic, Delcy Rodríguez, also participated in the meeting; the Foreign Minister of the Republic, Jorge Arreaza, the sectoral vice president of Communication, Culture and Tourism, Jorge Rodríguez, among other Venezuelan authorities.

It was with the arrival of the Bolivarian Revolution, that the bilateral ties were promoted with greater zeal among these sisterly countries, achieving to sign cooperation agreements in economic, oil and tourism.

With this meeting Venezuela ratifies its commitment and interest to consolidate relations with the Asian country, based on respect and mutual support.

Source: www.mppre.gob.ve

Pence accusations show paranoia and US’s obsession for Venezuela During a meeting with intellectuals that took place at the Miraflores Palace, the President said that before the aggressions the people of Venezuela will deepen the Bolivarian Revolution by accelerating the changes that are necessary.

World campaign The national president reiterated that Venezuela is the victim of a “brutal” world campaign that, with the complicity of the big media, impacts all the countries of Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean; which purpose is to present Venezuela as a threat and as a dictatorship.

As an “imperialist paranoia”, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro described the recent statements of the US Vice President, Mike Pence, in which he assured that the Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernández, blamed Venezuela to be the financier of the so-called caravan of migrants that heads to the United States.

He denounced the statements made from the world’s central power, ignoring the democratic trajectory of Venezuela that is impeccable from the ethical and political point of view.

“They do not mind lying: Maduro dictator! Humanitarian crisis!

And when you put together the components of that equation, you have only one result (…) to justify a war against Venezuela, an invasion, the assassination of the President, an attempted coup d’état, these are the political challenges we face”, he said.

“The imperialist paranoia begins to accuse the president -Nicolás- Maduro and Venezuela of everything that happens to them and they -the United States- are capable of doing anything in the world”, he said.

He warned about the paranoia of the extremist sectors of the US government against Venezuela, because in his opinion “they have an obsession because they have not been able to defeat us, they have not been able to make us surrender, nor can they ever do it because the Revolution is planted and decided to move along”.

Given this scenario, Venezuela has its strength and the best weapon for defense that is nothing more than the political consciousness of the Venezuelan people, he concluded.

Source: www.mppre.gob.ve

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Venezuela Rejects Statements of EU's Senior Official The Foreign Ministry recalled that 'Venezuela has a long and successful trajectory in terms of treatment and attention to migrants, as it is a country that has given shelter to more than six million Colombian refugees' who came to this country to escape the consequences of the civil war.

He also asserted that 'the Venezuelan State guarantees the security, welfare and full enjoyment of all its rights to the people of Venezuela, despite the economic blockade and 'diplomatic terrorism' orchestrated by the United States Government.'

Venezuela described as unacceptable and tendentious the recent statements of the high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini, against the democratic institutions of the South American nation.

In this regard, the Bolivarian Government deplored that 'the European Union should also subordinate itself to this hostile strategy against a democracy validated by a People that will never be subject to the protection of any foreign authority'.

In a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry, the Venezuelan government said that the assertions of the head of European diplomacy represent an 'arrogant act of interference' that calls into question the alleged interest of the regional bloc to promote cordial relations with Caracas.

Finally, the Venezuelan authorities exhorted the European Union to abandon its interventionist positions against the South American nation.

The text specified that Mogherini recorded the intention of the European Union to encourage, 'under the tutelage of the warmongering government' of the United States, 'the breakdown of social stability in Venezuela.'

In her recent statements, Federica Mogherini urged Venezuela to take action to 'strengthen confidence and relax tension,' restore the constitutional powers of the National Assembly (parliament) in contempt, and take concrete steps to restore what she called 'political pluralism,' among other interventionist indications.

'Subordinating itself to the U.S. strategy of discrediting and infamy against the Bolivarian Revolution, the European Union intends to give lessons on Human Rights, and particularly on issues such as migration,' the document underscored.

Source:www.mppre.gob.ve www.plenglish.com

Venezuela repudiates interventionist and hostile actions of the ruling elite in Europe Through his Twitter account @jaarreaza, the Foreign Minister said that “the ruling elite of Europe is trying to hide its incapacities behind the smokescreen of aggressions against Venezuela. With sanctions and threats, they are shamefully placed at the tail of Donald Trump, damaging the Venezuelan people and the million European citizens in our country�.

Before this new onslaught coming from imperial powers, the Venezuelan Government hopes that the European Union, far from promoting a warmongering and interventionist policy that threatens the sovereignty and self-determination of peoples, uses equality and mutual respect as a method of relations.

The FM of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Jorge Arreaza, repudiated the position assumed by the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker who, after holding a meeting with the Colombian president, IvĂĄn Duque, expressed his interfering and hostile position, leaving in evidence his support to the destabilizing actions that drive the foreign powers against the Venezuelan people.

Source: www.mppre.gob.ve

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Inside Africa:

Uganda opens Africa's 5th largest bridge "source of the Nile Bridge"

Africa's fifth-largest bridge has been opened in Jinja, the eastern region of Uganda, dubbed "Source of the Nile Bridge". The cable-supported bridge is 525 metres long and is expected to "last for 120 years", according to President Yoweri Museveni.

Uganda's new bridge, aptly called "Source of the Nile" as it runs across the Victoria Nile, cost an impressive US$112 million to construct. Of this cost, 80 percent was financed by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) at an annual interest rate of 0.01%, payable in 10 years with the option to extend. The bridge was built by a Japanese contractor, Zenitaka Corporation, in partnership with the South Korean Hyundai Engineering and Construction Company.

The enormous, dual carriageway Source of the Nile bridge is quite a sight to behold: It features tall inverted-Y pylon towers, white cables and a foundation of concrete and steel. According to project engineer Dr Hiroshi Akiyama, the white stay cables are meant to hold and hang the girder to support both human and vehicle traffic weight, while the inverted-Y pylon towers hold lightning arrestors that will protect the structure against lightning strikes.

It will be the second-largest bridge in East Africa should Tanzania complete its recently commissioned 680 metre-long Kigamboni Bridge. Furthermore, the bridge, which was completed in four years by a 67% Ugandan technical staff, is expected to ease the heavy traffic on the 64-year-old Nalubaale Bridge and connect Kampala with Kenya's Mombasa port. This essentially makes the bridge an economic lifeline for the landlocked country.

Shinichi Kitaoka, the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) president in Uganda, told local media that the facility was erected using Japan's latest technology in bridge engineering and its distinctive features will benefit the entire region. "The technology used here will inform future projects in Uganda and Africa," he said.

Despite the heavy reliance on boda bodas (motorcycles) for transportation, President Museveni says the bridge is "only for vehicles and pedestrians". The bridge is expected to also boost tourism, according to Samuel Muhoozi, the Director of Roads and Bridges at Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA). He told local media, "One of the aims of constructing this bridge was enhancing tourism with the addition of this iconic signature bridge in this picturesque location."

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Source: www.allafrica.com The opinions expressed in these articles are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Embassy

Ethiopia's new president joins Africa's powerful women Zewde will serve in her capacity as president of the federal republic of Ethiopia, for the next six years and while the position is largely ceremonial, she has already indicated that she will pursue an agenda to promote peace and women empowerment.

Rwanda’s Louise Mushikiwabo Having served as Rwanda’s top diplomat since 2009, Louise Mushikiwabo, who previously worked at the African Development Bank, relinquished her position this month when she was elected secretary-general of the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF).

The 57-year old will for the next four years, oversee the activities of the global body that brings together 58 countries and regional governments, representing 274 million speakers of French around the world.

Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala In July this year, social media giant Twitter announced the appointment of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to its board of directors.

Ethiopia’s new president, Sahle-Work Zewde has joined the ranks of African women that are leading history as pioneers and leaders in male-dominated spheres like politics.

The former Nigerian finance minister, who also several positions at the World Bank will work to make ‘Twitter a safer, healthier place’ for its over 300 million users.

Her appointment comes shortly after Ethiopia’s prime minister, Abiy Ahmed appointed a gender-parity cabinet that included 10 female ministers out of 20.

Senegal’s Fatma Samoura She is the highest ranking female official in the world’s football governing body, and the first ever woman to achieve the rank of FIFA secretary-general.

The African Union chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat commended Ethiopia and Rwanda for taking strides to demonstrate that men and women are equal in politics.

Senegalese Fatma Samba Diouf Samoura was appointed to the role in 2016, and has served with distinction, implementing FIFA’s reform agenda and organising the record breaking World Cup tournament in Russia.

The momentum to recognise men and women as equal in politics is vital as we work towards the Africa we want. ‘‘The momentum to recognise men and women as equal in politics is vital as we work towards the Africa we want,’‘ Faki said.

The 55-year old, who worked with the United Nations for 21 years, recently said she had encountered racism and sexism when she took over the job at FIFA, as some people resisted the idea of a ‘black woman’ in a senior position.

Zewde is currently the only female head of state in Africa, after Liberia’s Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who was the first democratically elected female president handed over office in January, having served the constitutionally mandated two terms.

Ethiopia’s first female president is a trailblazer, having also been the first woman appointed to head United Nations Office to the African Union.

Nigeria’s Amina Mohammed In 2016, Nigeria’s environment minister at the time, Amina Mohammed was appointed the deputy secretary-general of the United Nations.

Serving as the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative to the African Union, Zewde is an exceptional diplomat who has served the global organisation and her country for several years.

Amina had previously served as UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser to outgoing Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Post-2015 Development Planning.

She has served in ambassadorial roles for Ethiopia to Senegal, Djibouti, France, the United Nations and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

www.africanews.com The opinions expressed in these articles are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the Embassy

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