Int'l Conference in Egypt Recommends Support for Developing Countries to Protect Environment

Part of the IPU Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, which was held in Sharm el-Sheikh. (Conference Administration )
Part of the IPU Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, which was held in Sharm el-Sheikh. (Conference Administration )
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Int'l Conference in Egypt Recommends Support for Developing Countries to Protect Environment

Part of the IPU Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, which was held in Sharm el-Sheikh. (Conference Administration )
Part of the IPU Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, which was held in Sharm el-Sheikh. (Conference Administration )

Parliamentary delegations from 60 countries concluded on Thursday activities of the eighth Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Global Conference of Young Parliamentarians, which was held in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt’s South Sinai province.

They underscored the importance of supporting developing countries to protect the environment and promote green investment.

They also called for involving civil society representatives in climate legislation discussions.

The two-day event was held under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and in cooperation with the Egyptian House of Representatives and the IPU.

It focused on legislative, legal, and developmental approaches to climate change issues.

Egypt will host the COP27 United Nations Climate Change Conference in 2022 in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh in November. World leaders and heads of state and governments are expected to attend the summit.

Egypt's Speaker of the House of Representatives Hanafi El Jebali said at the closing session that dialogue among the world’s youths has become essential to address the extraordinary challenges the globe currently suffers.

IPU President Duarte Pacheco called for taking advantage of the upcoming summit to protect the planet, in light of the growing concerns of famine and food insecurity, while working to achieve and activate the discussions of young parliamentarians on the climate change crisis.

President of the IPU Forum of Young Parliamentarians MP Sahar al-Bazar, for her part, warned that climate change is an emergency case and an imminent threat, while referring to the link between climate change and human rights.

She called on the young parliamentarians to use the various legislation tools to reduce the effects of climate change as a matter of existential challenge.

Tamar Chugoshvili, the parliamentary expert and first vice deputy speaker of Goergia’s parliament, reviewed during one of Thursday’s sessions a report on parliamentary work in the field of climate.

She pressed for providing tools that can evaluate parliamentary participation in an effective manner, so that participation is considered positive, especially in terms of support and communication with many other institutions.

She also called for establishing a general mechanism to advance efforts through the participation of ordinary individuals and introducing them to parliamentary activities and works through various means.

Chugoshvili underscored the need to “improve performance and establish evaluation mechanisms on climate action to maintain public participation, stressing that participation is not limited to parliamentarian figures.



CENTCOM Nominee: US Needs Troops in Syria to Stop ISIS Comeback

US Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper 
US Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper 
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CENTCOM Nominee: US Needs Troops in Syria to Stop ISIS Comeback

US Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper 
US Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper 

ISIS remains a threat in Syria and a US military presence is still needed there to deal with it, US Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper said in his confirmation hearing to become the next head of US Central Command.

The Pentagon has already decided to significantly reduce the number of troops in the country from 2,000 to fewer than 1,000.

But Cooper told the Senate Armed Services Committee on June 24 there is a continued need for at least some presence. And he argued that the complex situation in Syria needs to be weighed before making additional troop cuts.

“Presence is indispensable in the execution of the counter-ISIS mission today,” said Cooper, who currently serves as the deputy commander of CENTCOM, which oversees US forces in the Middle East.

“We have led it. We lead it today, and I anticipate we’ll lead it into the future. Every decision made on force posture is going to be conditions-based as I look to the future,” he added.

When asked by Senator Joni Ernst about the church bombing in Syria few days ago, Cooper said, “We are focused on this problem set every single day. ISIS remains a threat, and as we look to the future, and if confirmed, I will remain nose down on this threat. It is an absolute priority.”

Cooper said the US was right to back Syrian President Ahmed Sharaa and that he was a vital partner in the campaign against ISIS.

“ISIS thrives in chaos,” Cooper said. “If the government of Syria, now seven months into their existence, can help suppress that ISIS threat, along with the US forces in the region, that stability helps create our own security.”

He added, “I think, given the dynamic nature of what’s happening today, that assessment [of required US troops in Syria] in the future could look different than it does today, perhaps.”

Cooper said the US played—and continues to play—a central role in the anti-ISIS campaign.

“The United States has led this mission from the outset. We still lead it today, and I expect that leadership to continue as we move forward, guided by operational realities,” he affirmed.