Home » Archives by category » World News (Page 1687)
Britain’s trade minister Liz Truss has said the National Health Service (NHS) would not be put up for sale, as she prepares to discuss a free-trade deal with the U.S. in the next few weeks. “My main priority now will be agreeing a free-trade deal with…
July 28, 2019Read More
Dan Coats, the US director of national intelligence who clashed repeatedly with Donald Trump, is reportedly to step down from his position within days. Mr Coats, 76, had disagreements with the president over Russia, Iran, North Korea, and Brexit. Mr Trump was said to be considering replacing him with John Ratcliffe, a Republican congressman who has been a staunch loyalist, according to the New York Times. Mr Ratcliffe sits on the House judiciary committee, and Mr Trump was said to have been impressed by his recent aggressive questioning of special counsel Robert Mueller. Mr Coats, who was appointed by Mr Trump, has served in the role since March 2017. He clashed with Mr Trump early on, taking a hard line toward Russia that sharply contrasted with the conciliatory approach the president pursued with Vladimir Putin, the Russian president. Earlier this year Mr Coats told Congress that North Korea was unlikely to give up its nuclear weapons, contradicting Mr Trump’s statement that Pyongyang no longer posed a threat. He also told Congress that Iran had continued to comply with a nuclear deal that Trump abandoned. Mr Coats, a former Republican senator, served in Mr Trump’s cabinet. He was previously US ambassador to Germany under George W Bush. The role he holds was created after the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, and he has overseen the work of America’s 17 intelligence agencies. Mr Coats was also out of step with Mr Trump on Brexit. In January Mr Coats made clear his opposition to a no-deal Brexit. He said: “The possibility of a no-deal Brexit, in which the UK exits the EU without an agreement, remains. This would cause economic disruptions that could substantially weaken the UK and Europe.”
July 28, 2019Read More
Great Britain once had a marvelous navy, its warships boasting names like Courageous, Dauntless, Indefatigable, and Ultimatum. Her fleets were more than a source of national pride—they manifested it, a physical assurance that Britain had the ability to…
July 28, 2019Read More
* Axios and New York Times predict latest White House departure * Texas congressman John Ratcliffe in frame as replacementDan Coats testifies on Capitol Hill in January. Photograph: Joshua Roberts/ReutersUS director of national intelligence Dan Coats i…
July 28, 2019Read More
The Wall Street Journal quietly added a massive correction to a story that, if accurate, would have had significant implications for nuclear talks between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.On Thursday, the newspaper reported th…
July 28, 2019Read More
Navalny, a longtime critic of President Vladimir Putin, was recently arrested after calling for a mass protest in Moscow.
July 28, 2019Read More
Iran is to restart activities at its controversial Arak heavy-water reactor, the head of the country’s nuclear agency announced on Sunday. Heavy water can be used to make plutonium, an important ingredient in the construction of nuclear weapons. Under the terms of the landmark 2015 nuclear accord, Tehran agreed to repurpose the facility towards research and medicine. But in the latest escalation over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organisation, told lawmakers on Sunday that it would renege on the commitment, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency. Tehran has been gradually reducing its compliance with the nuclear deal signed with global powers after Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the US out last year. The Arak announcement came as Iranian officials met with the remaining signatories to the JCPOA, including the UK, France and Germany, in Vienna to try and salvage the painstakingly-agreed accord. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said earlier this month that unless European states provided more effective relief from US sanctions, Tehran would take steps to restart the reactor to “the condition you say is dangerous and can produce plutonium.” Iran was required to destroy key components of the reactor as part of the deal, although Mr Salehi told Iranian television in January that Iran had secretly ordered replacements. Iran’s decision to restart the Arak reactor is part of its strategy of “maximum pressure pushback”, Dr Sanam Vakil, senior research fellow in the Middle East North Africa programme at Chatham House, told the Telegraph. Analysts believe that Iran may be seeking leverage in the diplomacy with European nations and ahead of a US deadline on Thursday as to whether it will extend sanctions waivers to foreign companies working on Iran’s civilian nuclear regime. An Iranian official told Reuters that all steps taken so far are “reversible” if other parties to the deal fulfilled their pledges. “Other parties should accelerate their efforts, otherwise Iran will take a third step,” he said. Iran nuclear deal | Key details Yesterday’s nuclear deal meeting was significant because “the symbolism of the diplomacy is really important for Iran,” said Ms Vakil. However, she expressed doubts over whether it would provide a solution for the ailing deal, saying it was unlikely to be “decisive in any way.” Tensions between Iran and other signatories, particularly the UK, are high following the seizure of an Iranian-flagged tanker off Gibraltar in early July and the seizure by Iranian Revolutionary Guards of a British-flagged tanker two weeks later. Prior to the meeting in Vienna, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called the seizure of the Iranian tanker a “breach of the JCPOA” in comments carried by state TV, while a government spokesman described a plan for a European-led mission to ensure safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz as “provocative”. Rising tensions between UK, US and Iran Royal Navy destroyer HMS Duncan arrived in the Gulf Sunday to provide support for frigate HMS Montrose, which operates in the region, until she comes off duty in late August. “Merchant ships must be free to travel lawfully and trade safely, anywhere in the world,“ said recently appointed Defence Secretary Ben Wallace. ”While we continue to push for a diplomatic resolution that will make this possible again without military accompaniment, the Royal Navy will continue to provide a safeguard for UK vessels until this is the reality.”
July 28, 2019Read More
German soldiers will be encouraged to travel on the country’s rail network in uniform as part of a plan by the new defence minister to make the armed forces “more visible”. Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, a favourite of Chancellor Angela Merkel, has pledged to push for increased military spending as she tries to strengthen the bond between Germans and their armed forces. She told the German Bundestag last week that politicians needed to do more to highlight the sacrifices made by men and women in uniform. A proposal, leaked to Bild newspaper, to provide free train tickets to the country’s 180,000 soldiers as long as they are dressed in their khakis has met with approval; a survey published on Sunday showed that three quarters of Germans were in favour of the initiative. But Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer faces an uphill struggle in a country still scarred by its aggressive early 20th century militarism. Politicians often avoid being photographed next to military hardware for fear of the damage it could do to their public image. Awarding soldiers medals for bravery, a policy which was reintroduced a decade ago, is also politically contentious. This difficult relationship has contributed to chronic under-funding in the armed forces, a state of affairs which led Mrs Merkel’s former top military adviser to warn that the army would be helpless in the face of a Russian invasion. Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer, who leads Mrs Merkel’s center-right Christian Democrat (CDU) party, has laid out plans to increase the military budget to two per cent of GDP in order to meet a pledge made by Nato members in 2014. This proposal has already met serious resistance from coalition partners the Social Democrats. Germany’s military spending is expected to hit 1.35 per cent of GDP this year, compared with 1.23 per cent in 2018, according to AP. Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer took over from Mrs Merkel as CDU leader at the end of last year and is the veteran Chancellor’s preferred choice to take over when she retires. But the CDU have stagnated in polling and now faces competition from the Greens for the mantle of Germany’s most popular party. Since Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer joined the government last week, polling has shown no improvement in their fortunes.
July 28, 2019Read More
Israel and the United States completed a series of tests of the new long-range missile defense system in Alaska. The tests were conducted at Pacific Spaceport Complex-Alaska in Kodiak. MDA Director Vice Adm. Jon Hill says the success in Kodiak helps …
July 28, 2019Read More
Libyan health authorities say an airstrike hit a field hospital south of the capital, Tripoli, killing at least four doctors and a paramedic. Health authorities did not say which side was behind the airstrike, which wounded eight health workers. The …
July 28, 2019Read More
Syrian opposition activists and a war monitor say five people have been killed in airstrikes on a town in the country’s northwest as the government keeps up its deadly air campaign against the rebel-controlled region. The Syrian Observatory for Human …
July 28, 2019Read More
Recent Comments