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Challenging Covid and China, enraging France and Europe

Johnson’s principal goal was preparing for the next general election, due in 2024 or possibly earlier, by sending a positive message about his plan for post-Covid economic recovery. It was also obviously about his control of his own party. “Boris has shown people he’s in charge,” one Tory said. “People won’t mess around now. Anyone can get chopped.”
Not surprisingly, Gavin Williamson, the education secretary was the most prominent minister to be sacked. He has been struggling with a poor reputation due to incompetent handling of the pandemic’s effect on schools and especially exams. He is being replaced by Nadhim Zahawi, born in Baghdad to Kurdish parents, and whose last job was a chairman of the successful Covid vaccines rollout.
Johnson’s many critics are unhappy that the home secretary, Priti Patel, has not been replaced. Of Asian origin herself, she has been widely seen as anti-immigrant in her hostile approach to asylum-seeking foreigners.
The main change in the reshuffle – in terms of Britain’s external relations – was the replacement of Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, by Liz Truss (previously the international development secretary) who is only the second woman to hold the high-profile role. Raab has been demoted to justice secretary, but was given an artificial boost by Johnson as his deputy prime minister.
Raab was a victim of the controversial US decision to withdraw from Afghanistan without consulting allies, including the UK, which has long boasted of a “special relationship” between London and Washington. Raab compounded the sense of crisis by going on holiday just as Kabul fell to the Taliban. His unpopularity with British diplomats and defence ministry officials did not help either.
Truss will accompany Johnson to New York this week to attend the UN General Assembly. In her previous role she gained experience of international diplomacy but is quite outspoken for her demanding new job. It has dismayed many liberal Tories who see it as yet another sign that the UK’s foreign policy ambitions are diminishing.
And the global challenges for the UK became painfully clear a day after the reshuffle, when French ministers reacted furiously to the agreement between the US, Britain and Australia. Under that pact, known as Aukus, Washington and London will share sensitive technology with Canberra to let it develop its first nuclear-powered submarines – though not nuclear weapons.
The pact was described by the UK’s national security adviser, Stephen Lovegrove, as “perhaps the most significant capability collaboration in the world anywhere in the past six decades”. It means Australia will end the contract given to France in 2016 to build 12 diesel electric-powered submarines to replace its existing fleet. The deal marks the first time the US has shared nuclear propulsion technology with an ally apart from the UK.
Broader questions about the agreement are mostly about how to respond to China following President Joe Biden’s policy of confronting Beijing, given the perceived scale of the Chinese threat in what Biden described and “the free and open Indo-Pacific” and to address the region’s “current strategic environment”.
China condemned the three English-speaking countries as in the grip of an “obsolete cold war zero sum mentality and narrow-minded geopolitical concepts” and should “respect regional people’s aspiration <…> otherwise they will only end up hurting their own interests”.
Paris was also very angry. A statement issued by the French embassy in Washington said the decision to “exclude” France “shows a lack of coherence that France can only note and regret” while the French foreign minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, less diplomatically, called the deal “brutal and unilateral” and ”a stab in the back”. Florence Parly, the defence minister, called it “an enormous disappointment.” In an unprecedented move France then withdrew its ambassadors from Washington and Canberra and was scathing about “junior” British participation in the pact. Germany warned that the deal threatens western unity.
It means China now faces a powerful new defence alliance in the Indo-Pacific, one that has been welcomed by regional partners such as Japan. It also reaffirms that, after leaving the EU, the US still wants the UK, and not the EU or Nato, engaged as its principal military partner. That is good news for Johnson – with his post-Brexit slogan of “global Britain” but bad news for Nato, which French president Emmanuel Macron described recently as “brain-dead.”
It also gives Biden focus for his post-Afghanistan tilt to Asia. On 24 September, he will chair the first in-person summit of the Quad –involving Japan, the US, Australia and India. Canberra’s blunt demand for an enquiry into the origins of the Covid pandemic is another factor in mounting tensions with Beijing.
In these profoundly uncertain times, whatever happens next, one thing is crystal clear: Liz Truss is going to have her work cut out as the UK’s new foreign secretary.
by: IAN BLACK

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BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
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