Washington, United States | AFP | Donald Trump signed the first veto of his presidency Friday, overriding congressional opposition to secure emergency funds to build more walls on the US-Mexico border. Trump declared in the Oval Office that he was “proud” to sign the veto. It came after he suffered …
Read More »‘Trump just not worth impeaching’
Washington, United States | AFP | House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, America’s most powerful Democrat, said in remarks published Monday that she does not support impeaching Donald Trump, arguing the Republican president is “just not worth it.” “I’m not for impeachment,” Pelosi told The Washington Post in a wide-ranging interview, the …
Read More »US spies elevate China rivalry to war of ideologies
Washington, United States | AFP | In a move that could harden Washington’s posture toward Beijing for years, the US intelligence community has characterized relations with China as a global ideological showdown that will not be doused by trade deals or commercial theft crackdowns. US spy chiefs abruptly shifted their view …
Read More »‘Significant progress’ expected in China trade talks: US official
Washington, United States | AFP | The United States hopes to make “significant progress” during high-stakes trade talks with Chinese officials this week, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday. Beijing and Washington have a month remaining in a 90-day truce declared in December before US tariffs on hundreds of billions in Chinese exports are …
Read More »Race for ‘hypersonic’ weapons heats up as France joins fray
Paris, France | AFP | World powers are vying to develop so-called “hypersonic” weapons that travel several times the speed of sound, with France the latest to join a field led so far by Russia and China. Hypersonics are like missiles that travel at over five times the speed of …
Read More »Facebook has ‘new tools’ against EU election meddling
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | Facebook unveiled Monday new tools to counter online political meddling in the European elections, part of a campaign to answer growing pressure to rein in disinformation. The US tech giant’s vice president, former British deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, said in a speech the methods …
Read More »Butterflies, the unlikely victims of Trump’s border wall
Mission, United States | AFP | In Mission, Texas, the construction of part of a long-promised wall on the border with Mexico to stem the tide of undocumented migrants is already in progress. Among the many who will be affected? Butterflies. Mission, located in the lower Rio Grande Valley, is …
Read More »‘Without precedent:’ Trump drama enters Act Two
Washington, United States | AFP | Call Donald Trump an egomaniac, call him a showoff. Point out that he seems to revel in insult and outrage. The thing is, he might just agree. The uniqueness of the 45th US president extends to his pride in his brazenly unconventional persona. Trump …
Read More »Interpreters demand to stay out as Trump row throws spotlight
Washington, United States | AFP | Explosive allegations that US President Donald Trump concealed conversations with Russia have thrown an unwelcome spotlight on interpreters, whose quick wit is vital to diplomacy and who stay scrupulously in the shadows. Interpreters, whether they are working at high-stakes international summits or in low-level …
Read More »Erdogan, Trump consider creating security zone in Syria
Ankara, Turkey | AFP | Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US counterpart Donald Trump mooted Monday the creation of a “security zone” in northern Syria as tensions rose over the fate of Kurdish fighters in the war-torn country. In a telephone conversation, the leaders “discussed the idea of creating …
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