President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner have held onto real estate and business investments valued in the hundreds of millions, while working government jobs, according to ethics filings released by the White House. The documents show that the couple, who are both officially close advisers to the president, are still getting … Read more
The UN Security Council has voted to cut the size of Monusco, its largest and most expensive peacekeeping mission, which operates in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Under a draft plan, the total of 19,000 peacekeepers will be reduced by 3,000. The UN force is already undermanned by close to that number. The move came … Read more
Calls by the Trump administration for Germany and other Nato partners to increase spending on defence have been rejected by Germany. Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said it was “quite unrealistic” to believe Germany would spend 2% of its economic output on the military. Other spending such as development aid, he said, should be taken into … Read more
The former mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, said Friday the United States will keep its commitment to reduce greenhouse gases despite US President Donald Trump’s skeptical outlook on climate change. “No matter what roadblocks the White House and Congress throw up, the United States can — and I’m confident, will — meet the commitment … Read more
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson pressed NATO allies Friday to ramp up military spending and denounced Russia’s ‘aggression’ in Ukraine, toughening the Trump administration’s tone toward Moscow. Tillerson delivered the message as he met fellow NATO foreign ministers for the first time ahead of a May 25 summit to be attended by leaders including … Read more
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson headed to Brussels on Friday to push President Donald Trump’s demand for NATO allies to boost defence spending. Tillerson is meeting fellow NATO foreign ministers for the first time, ahead of a May 25 leaders summit with Trump in Brussels. Seeking to draw a line under the funding row, … Read more
The Palestinians and the United Nations on Friday condemned the Israeli cabinet’s approval of the first officially sanctioned new settlement in the occupied West Bank in more than 20 years. The security cabinet gave its unanimous backing to the new settlement late on Thursday as what is widely seen as the most right-wing government in … Read more
Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, who briefly served as national security adviser to President Donald Trump, is seeking immunity from prosecution in exchange for testifying on the president’s ties to Russia, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. According to the report, Flynn made the offer to the FBI, the House intelligence committee and the Senate … Read more
US Republican lawmakers on Thursday successfully rolled back Obama-era rules protecting funding to clinics that offer abortion services, as Vice President Mike Pence broke a Senate tie on the contentious measure. The rules had prevented states from withholding certain federal money — distributed under a “Title X” program that funds family planning clinics used in … Read more
When Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey teased that he had joined the world of social media with secret Facebook and Twitter accounts, tech writer Ashley Feinberg took the dare. After four hours of FBI-level sleuthing, she was pretty sure she had the answer: On both he was using the name of US Protestant … Read more
The US State Department is removing human rights conditions on a large sale of F-16 fighter jets to Bahrain, as the Trump administration moves to shore up ties with the Gulf ally, reports said Thursday. President Donald Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama had imposed the conditions on the sale to Bahrain of the 19 single-engine supersonic … Read more
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has described Turkey as a trusted ally after meeting its leaders in Ankara. His visit comes amid worsening relations between the two Nato allies. Speaking after meeting his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, Mr Tillerson said the US wanted strong links between the two countries. They are at odds over … Read more
German automaker Volkswagen AG said Thursday it reached a settlement with 10 US states on environmental and consumer claims stemming from its emissions cheating scandal. The company has agreed to pay $157.5 million to the states, including New York, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, resolving suits by the states against VW for violating emissions standards. “The agreement … Read more
US environmental groups and a Native American tribe have filed a lawsuit to block the Trump administration’s plans to resume leasing of federal lands for coal mining. President Donald Trump’s move this week to overturn a year-old moratorium on new coal mining leases “was unlawful because it doesn’t satisfy basic principles of reasoned decision making,” … Read more
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Thursday that the fate of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was up to the war-ravaged country’s people. Speaking after talks in Ankara, he added there was “no space” between Turkey and the US over fighting the so-called Islamic State group — even as his Turkish counterpart reiterated a … Read more
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was in Ankara on Thursday for talks on the Syria conflict, just a day after Turkey announced that its military offensive was over. Tillerson, the most senior US official to visit Turkey since President Donald Trump took office in January, is seeking to turn around recently rocky relations between … Read more
The debate surrounding US President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown has focused almost entirely on the Latino community, leaving other groups affected — notably Asians — largely out of the discourse, experts say. Of the estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants in the United States, some 80 percent are from Mexico or elsewhere in Latin America. But … Read more
Walk into Brett Vapnik’s medicinal marijuana dispensary in Los Angeles and the pungent aroma of pot is good and strong. All day long, hundreds of people file in and out — a sign of the strength of the pot industry, despite big question marks posed by the new administration of President Donald Trump. For now … Read more
A US central banker said on Wednesday he favors four increases in the key interest rate this year, one more than projected by the majority of Federal Reserve policymakers. Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren, previously known for supporting the Fed’s ultra-accommodative policy, seems to have had a drastic change of opinion, and now … Read more
President Donald Trump took action on Tuesday to curb rules that underpin American emissions targets, making it clear climate change was not a priority, but said nothing about the 2015 Paris accord. The White House has said discussions on the deal, which has been signed by more than 190 countries including the United States, are … Read more