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by Julien Girault Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — As Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares for a second five-year term, foreign investors will be watching for any sign that he finally intends to follow through on long-promised reforms to further open the world’s second-largest economy. Xi is expected to signal his future economic policies when he opens a five-yearly Communist Party congress on Wednesday that will renew his tenure as general secretary. While he […]
WASHINGTON, United States (Reuters) — Vice President Mike Pence underscored U.S. support for Japan on the North Korea issue on Monday (October 16), as he met with Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso to try and find common ground on thorny trade issues, during their second round of bilateral economic talks in Washington. The U.S. delegation led by Pence has said his administration hopes the talks, which kicked off in April, will lead to negotiations on […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is on track for a landslide win in Japan’s upcoming election, the latest survey suggested Monday, as a new party founded by Tokyo’s popular governor loses momentum. Abe’s conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is projected to win as many as 303 of the 465 seats up for grabs in the October 22 election, according to a poll by the Mainichi Shimbun. Its junior coalition partner Komeito is […]
by Sarah Benhaida with Ahmad al-Rubaye in Taza Khurmatu Agence France Presse BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Baghdad said Sunday that foreign Kurdish forces were present in the province of Kirkuk in what amounted to a “declaration of war”, dramatically raising the stakes in its dispute with Iraq’s Kurds. Kurdish officials denied Baghdad’s claim that forces from Turkey’s outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) were among its peshmerga fighters in an armed standoff with Iraqi troops in […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea is believed to be preparing to launch a ballistic missile ahead of an upcoming joint naval drill by the US and South Korea, a news report said Saturday, citing a government source. The US navy said Friday that a US aircraft carrier will lead the drill in the coming week, a fresh show of force against North Korea as tensions soar over the hermit state’s weapons programme. The […]
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — The death toll from California’s wildfires rose to 33 on Friday as firefighters made some progress in containing the infernos but said intensifying winds were a concern. “We’re not out of this emergency, not even close,” said Mark Ghilarducci, director of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. “But we are seeing some progress in areas the fires have impacted,” Ghilarducci told a news conference. “We’ll get ahead of […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Friday that Washington is working to reduce tensions between Iraqi federal and Kurdish forces, urging them to remain focused on the war against jihadists. “We are trying to tone everything down and to figure out how we go forward without losing sight of the enemy, and at the same time recognizing that we have got to find a way to move forward,” he told […]
by Damon Wake Agence France-Presse BRUSSELS, Belgium – Military intervention against North Korea would have “devastating consequences,” NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warned Friday, after US President Donald Trump said diplomatic efforts had failed. Tensions over North Korea’s weapons programs have soared in recent months, with Pyongyang launching a flurry of missiles and conducting its sixth and most powerful nuclear test last month in defiance of international sanctions. Trump’s continued threats of military action against Pyongyang to tame its […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Ousted South Korean president Park Geun-Hye will be kept in detention for a further six months, a Seoul court ruled Friday, as she stands trial in a corruption case that toppled her from power. The sprawling scandal involving the former leader and her powerful secret confidante, Choi Soon-Sil, unleashed massive nationwide protests last year and has exposed networks of privilege among the country’s business and political elite. Park, 65, […]
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — The death toll from devastating floods and landslides in north and central Vietnam has jumped to 54, officials said Friday, in one of the deadliest weather disasters to hit the country in years. Rescuers were desperately searching for 39 people still missing after heavy rains pounded several provinces this week, with forecasters warning of another major storm heading toward the country. This week’s catastrophes destroyed thousands of properties and wiped out swathes of […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — A shallow 2.9-magnitude earthquake struck near North Korea’s nuclear test site before dawn on Friday, weeks after Pyongyang’s biggest detonation, but South Korean experts said the tremor did not appear to be man-made. The tremor hit at 01:41 am (1641 GMT Thursday) with a depth of around five kilometres (three miles), the US Geological Survey said, with the epicentre located north of the Punggye-Ri testing site. “This event occurred in […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — The media has “exaggerated” the number of Rohingya refugees fleeing an army crackdown, Myanmar’s commander-in-chief said Thursday, in a brash rebuttal of accusations of ethnic cleansing by his forces. Some 520,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar’s western Rakhine state since August 25, when the military launched a sweeping campaign against militants from the Muslim minority. The crackdown has been so intense that the UN on Wednesday accused Myanmar of trying to purge its entire Rohingya […]
