The Libya peace talks may have broken down after a day but Russia and Turkey, who sponsored a ceasefire, seem determined to pursue a deal amid speculation of wider interests in the negotiations.
While the focus has been on Libya, there is growing suspicion the talks are linked to the nine-year civil war in Syria, where, as in Libya, Moscow and Ankara back opposing sides.
Observers have said the joint mediation efforts mirror those in Syria, where Turkey, Russia and Iran launched the Astana process in 2017 aimed at creating a post-conflict roadmap for Syria.
“There’s a connection between Libya and Syria,” said Alexey Khlebnikov, a Middle East expert and Russian foreign policy analyst at the Russian International Affairs Council in Moscow.
“Turkey started to take more aggressive and decisive moves on the Libya front as it has no room to expand its influence in Syria. Libya serves as additional leverage towards Russia.”
Since Russia became directly involved in 2015, Turkey’s goals in Syria, which once included the overthrow of President Bashar Al Assad, have become more distant.
The rebels it backs have found themselves isolated in the northwestern province of Idlib, seemingly at the mercy of Syrian government attacks backed by Russian air power, while hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians have headed towards the Turkish border.
October’s incursion into northeast Syria to push back Kurdish fighters has seen Turkey’s initial goal of establishing a broad security corridor along its border between the River Euphrates and Iraq reduced to a much smaller sliver of land jointly patrolled by Turkish and Russian troops. Syrian regime forces have also moved into the area.
The Libya talks in Moscow came after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan surprised the world last week by announcing a January 12 ceasefire between the rival factions.
On Monday, Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who heads the eastern-based forces that have besieged Tripoli since April, and Fayez Al Sarraj, head of the Government of National Accord, were due to formalise the truce but instead left without an agreement.
Moscow maintains ties with both sides.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged all sides to return to negotiations while Mr Erdogan told his party’s MPs on Tuesday that it was “now up to Putin and his team” to bring Mr Haftar back to the table.
Despite their differences over Syria, Turkey has become increasing close to the Kremlin with improved defence, trade and energy links in recent years. Last week’s ceasefire announcement took place after the Istanbul unveiling of a Black Sea gas pipeline to supply Russian gas to Europe via Turkey.
“When Putin and Erdogan met on January 8 they discussed both Syria and Libya and what’s interesting is that after the meeting, on January 12, Damascus also announced a ceasefire [in Idlib],” Mr Khlebnikov said.
He noted that it was “indicative” that had Mr Putin stopped off in the Syrian capital before arriving in Istanbul. “Most probably it was to make sure Assad was ready to commit to a cessation of hostilities so [Putin] could strike further deals with Erdogan.”
The Moscow summit was an attempt for Russia to extend an Astana-like process to Libya, Mr Khlebnikov added.
It also saw Turkish intelligence chief Hakan Fidan meet his Syrian counterpart, Ali Mamlouk. Although they have met since Turkey severed ties with Damascus in 2012, it was the first time such a meeting had been officially acknowledged.
A Turkish official said they discussed working against the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, or YPG, which controlled Syria’s northeast prior to Turkey’s incursion in October.
Syrian state media said Mr Mamlouk called for Turkish forces to leave Syria and respect its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Turkey controls swathes of northern Aleppo province as well as having troops acting as observers in Idlib.
“Turkey needs Syria right now because Syrian intelligence have a far better handle on which terrorist groups might be a threat to Turkey,” said Kamal Alam, a London-based military analyst specialising in Turkey and Syria.
“This includes Syrian groups that Turkey’s backed themselves who could turn against Turkey and of course Kurdish groups which Syria has always had better intelligence about.”
He added: “The Syrians have told Turkey ‘We will not give you any intelligence cooperation until you withdraw forces or stop backing terrorists.’”
Referring to Russian-Turkish ties, Mr Alam said the two hold “almost daily” exchanges on joint interests, whether it be Syria, defence, energy or trade.
“The Turkey-Russia relationship is moving to an extremely important strategic economic relationship,” he said, adding that both countries are aiming to form a three-way deal with Syria for post-conflict reconstruction.
The Beach Bum
Director: Harmony Korine
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Isla Fisher, Snoop Dogg
Two stars
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
Challenge Cup result:
1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults
Day 3, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Just three balls remained in an exhausting day for Sri Lanka’s bowlers when they were afforded some belated cheer. Nuwan Pradeep, unrewarded in 15 overs to that point, let slip a seemingly innocuous delivery down the legside. Babar Azam feathered it behind, and Niroshan Dickwella dived to make a fine catch.
Stat of the day - 2.56 Shan Masood and Sami Aslam are the 16th opening partnership Pakistan have had in Tests in the past five years. That turnover at the top of the order – a new pair every 2.56 Test matches on average – is by far the fastest rate among the leading Test sides. Masood and Aslam put on 114 in their first alliance in Abu Dhabi.
The verdict Even by the normal standards of Test cricket in the UAE, this has been slow going. Pakistan’s run-rate of 2.38 per over is the lowest they have managed in a Test match in this country. With just 14 wickets having fallen in three days so far, it is difficult to see 26 dropping to bring about a result over the next two.
Formula One top 10 drivers' standings after Japan
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 306
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 247
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 234
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull 192
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 148
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull 111
7. Sergio Perez, Force India 82
8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 65
9. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 48
10. Nico Hulkenberg, Renault 34
Abandon
Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay
Translated by Arunava Sinha
Tilted Axis Press
MATCH INFO
Day 2 at Mount Maunganui
England 353
Stokes 91, Denly 74, Southee 4-88
New Zealand 144-4
Williamson 51, S Curran 2-28
All about the Sevens
Cape Town Sevens on Saturday and Sunday: Pools A – South Africa, Kenya, France, Russia; B – New Zealand, Australia, Spain, United States; C – England, Scotland, Argentina, Uganda; D – Fiji, Samoa, Canada, Wales
HSBC World Sevens Series standing after first leg in Dubai 1 South Africa; 2 New Zealand; 3 England; 4 Fiji; 5 Australia; 6 Samoa; 7 Kenya; 8 Scotland; 9 France; 10 Spain; 11 Argentina; 12 Canada; 13 Wales; 14 Uganda; 15 United States; 16 Russia
The Breadwinner
Director: Nora Twomey
Starring: Saara Chaudry, Soma Chhaya, Laara Sadiq
Three stars
At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
Fixture and table
UAE finals day: Friday, April 13 at Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
- 3pm, UAE Conference: Dubai Tigers v Sharjah Wanderers
- 6.30pm, UAE Premiership: Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Premiership – final standings
- Dubai Exiles
- Abu Dhabi Harlequins
- Jebel Ali Dragons
- Dubai Hurricanes
- Dubai Sports City Eagles
- Abu Dhabi Saracens
The biog
Mission to Seafarers is one of the largest port-based welfare operators in the world.
It provided services to around 200 ports across 50 countries.
They also provide port chaplains to help them deliver professional welfare services.
India squads
Test squad against Afghanistan: Rahane (c), Dhawan, Vijay, Rahul, Pujara, Karun, Saha, Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Umesh, Shami, Pandya, Ishant, Thakur.
T20 squad against Ireland and England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Raina, Pandey, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh.
ODI squad against England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Shreyas, Rayudu, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh
MATCH INFO
Austria 2
Hinteregger (53'), Schopf (69')
Germany 1
Ozil (11')
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Turkish Ladies
Various artists, Sony Music Turkey
World Cup final
Who: France v Croatia
When: Sunday, July 15, 7pm (UAE)
TV: Game will be shown live on BeIN Sports for viewers in the Mena region
Company info
Company name: Entrupy
Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
Based: New York, New York
Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
SQUADS
Bangladesh (from): Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Liton Das, Taijul Islam, Mosaddek Hossain, Nayeem Hasan, Mehedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Ebadat Hossain, Abu Jayed
Afghanistan (from): Rashid Khan (capt), Ihsanullah Janat, Javid Ahmadi, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Qais Ahmad, Sayed Ahmad Shirzad, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zahir Khan Pakteen, Afsar Zazai, Shapoor Zadran
Read more from Aya Iskandarani
At a glance
- 20,000 new jobs for Emiratis over three years
- Dh300 million set aside to train 18,000 jobseekers in new skills
- Managerial jobs in government restricted to Emiratis
- Emiratis to get priority for 160 types of job in private sector
- Portion of VAT revenues will fund more graduate programmes
- 8,000 Emirati graduates to do 6-12 month replacements in public or private sector on a Dh10,000 monthly wage - 40 per cent of which will be paid by government
WHAT FANS WILL LOVE ABOUT RUSSIA
FANS WILL LOVE
Uber is ridiculously cheap and, as Diego Saez discovered, mush safer. A 45-minute taxi from Pulova airport to Saint Petersburg’s Nevsky Prospect can cost as little as 500 roubles (Dh30).
FANS WILL LOATHE
Uber policy in Russia is that they can start the fare as soon as they arrive at the pick-up point — and oftentimes they start it even before arriving, or worse never arrive yet charge you anyway.
FANS WILL LOVE
It’s amazing how active Russians are on social media and your accounts will surge should you post while in the country. Throw in a few Cyrillic hashtags and watch your account numbers rocket.
FANS WILL LOATHE
With cold soups, bland dumplings and dried fish, Russian cuisine is not to everybody’s tastebuds. Fortunately, there are plenty Georgian restaurants to choose from, which are both excellent and economical.
FANS WILL LOVE
The World Cup will take place during St Petersburg's White Nights Festival, which means perpetual daylight in a city that genuinely never sleeps. (Think toddlers walking the streets with their grandmothers at 4am.)
FANS WILL LOATHE
The walk from Krestovsky Ostrov metro station to Saint Petersburg Arena on a rainy day makes you wonder why some of the $1.7 billion was not spent on a weather-protected walkway.
more from Janine di Giovanni
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Russia v Scotland, Thursday, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'Laal Kaptaan'
Director: Navdeep Singh
Stars: Saif Ali Khan, Manav Vij, Deepak Dobriyal, Zoya Hussain
Rating: 2/5
The years Ramadan fell in May
RESULTS
West Asia Premiership
Thursday
Jebel Ali Dragons 13-34 Dubai Exiles
Friday
Dubai Knights Eagles 16-27 Dubai Tigers
SERIE A FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Sassuolo v Bologna (11.45pm)
Saturday
Brescia v Torino (6pm)
Inter Milan v Verona (9pm)
Napoli v Genoa (11.45pm)
Sunday
Cagliari v Verona (3.30pm)
Udinese v SPAL (6pm)
Sampdoria v Atalanta (6pm)
Lazio v Lecce (6pm)
Parma v Roma (9pm)
Juventus v Milan (11.45pm)
INFO
What: DP World Tour Championship
When: November 21-24
Where: Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae.
MATCH INFO
Newcastle 2-2 Manchester City
Burnley 0-2 Crystal Palace
Chelsea 0-1 West Ham
Liverpool 2-1 Brighton
Tottenham 3-2 Bournemouth
Southampton v Watford (late)
What is hepatitis?
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver, which can lead to fibrosis (scarring), cirrhosis or liver cancer.
There are 5 main hepatitis viruses, referred to as types A, B, C, D and E.
Hepatitis C is mostly transmitted through exposure to infective blood. This can occur through blood transfusions, contaminated injections during medical procedures, and through injecting drugs. Sexual transmission is also possible, but is much less common.
People infected with hepatitis C experience few or no symptoms, meaning they can live with the virus for years without being diagnosed. This delay in treatment can increase the risk of significant liver damage.
There are an estimated 170 million carriers of Hepatitis C around the world.
The virus causes approximately 399,000 fatalities each year worldwide, according to WHO.
