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No sanctions relief for N. Korea until ‘verifiable & irreversible’ denuclearization – Mattis
Pyongyang
will have to demonstrate clear steps towards denuclearization before
any sanctions are eased, US Defense Secretary James Mattis has
warned, ahead of highly anticipated US-North Korean leaders’ talks.
“We
will continue to implement all UN Security Council resolutions on
North Korea. North Korea will receive relief only when it
demonstrates verifiable and irreversible steps to denuclearization,”
Mattis stated in Singapore on Sunday.
The
remark was given at a meeting with the South Korean and Japanese
defense ministers, Itsunori Onodera and Song Young-moo, on the
sidelines of the Asia Security Summit, known as the Shangri-La
Dialogue. It was the first time since October that the three top
defense officials have met.
“We
can anticipate, at best, a bumpy road to the negotiations,” the
defense secretary added.
NATO
is not obliged to come to the rescue should a hypothetical war break
out between Iran and Israel, Jens Stoltenberg has told Germany’s
Der Spiegel, amid increased tensions between the bitter Middle East
rivals.
“Israel
is our partner, but not a member of NATO. The security guarantee of
Article 5 does not apply to Israel,” Secretary General of North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg told the
magazine. Article 5 of NATO’s treaty stipulates that an attack
against one ally is considered as an attack against all allies, but
it does not apply to those designated only as “partners” of the
alliance.
Stoltenberg
added that the alliance is not involved in Mideast peace efforts, or
in conflicts in the region. “This is not our job,” he stressed,
somehow overlooking that, just last year, NATO formally joined the
US-led coalition against IS (Islamic State, formerly ISIS/ISIL)
terrorists in Iraq and Syria.
Were
such a hypothetical war to break out, it also remains an open
question if the US will rush to defend its closest regional ally, as
Washington and Tel Aviv do not have a formal mutual defense treaty,
despite a new milestone in bilateral relations being reached when the
US recognized Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and moved its embassy
there.
In
a major turn of events which places the entire Atlanticist order in
question, NATO's secretary-general says NATO refuses to back Israel
in the event it attacks, or is attacked by, it's regional foe Iran
In
a major turn of events which places the entire Atlanticist order in
question, NATO’s
secretary-general says NATO refuses to back Israel in
the event it attacks, or is attacked by, it’s regional foe Iran.
This
news has spread quickly across social media, as Jens Stoltenberg
explained NATO’s now official position to the
magazine Der Spiegel.
Published today, June 2nd, Stoltenberg iterated that while Israel is
a ‘partner’, it is not a member, and that NATO’s “security
guarantee” does not and will not apply to Israel.
China
is reportedly looking to line up other countries against the U.S. in
a pending trade war, after the White House announced an unexpected
move forward on trade tariffs, the Wall Street Journal reported
Wednesday.
The
countries in question are mostly in Europe and Asia, where companies
could benefit from China's plans to give foreign companies more open
access to its markets.
A
day earlier, the White House said it would have a final list of $50
billion in imports that would be subject to 25 percent tariffs by
June 15.
New
Jersey Governor Phil Murphy's administration ordered an immediate
halt to state spending and hiring, because of what NJ.com describes
as "an esoteric accounting maneuver caught up in charged state
budget talks."
In
short, if the state doesn't quit non-essential spending or the state
Legislature doesn't allow the Murphy administration to shuffle
spending from one part of the budget to another, they risk ending
next month's fiscal end-of-year in the red, according to the New
Jersey Treasury Department.
President
Trump wants to impose a total ban on the imports of German luxury
cars, according to a new report from CNBC and German magazine
WirtschaftsWoche.
Several
U.S. and European diplomats told the news outlets that Trump told
French President Emmanuel Macron about his plans last month during a
state visit.
Trump
reportedly told Macron that he would maintain the ban until no
Mercedes-Benz cars are seen on Fifth Avenue in New York.
The
world should stand up to Washington’s bullying behavior, Iran’s
foreign minister was quoted as saying on Sunday by state media in a
letter to counterparts, as the top diplomat intensifies efforts to
save a nuclear deal after a U.S. Exit.
In
a letter from Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to his
counterparts last week, he asked “the remaining signatories and
other trade partners” to “make up for Iran’s losses” caused
by the U.S. exit, if they sought to save the deal.
“The
JCPOA (nuclear deal) does not belong to its signatories, so one party
can reject it based on domestic policies or political differences
with a former ruling administration,” Zarif was quoted as saying in
the letter, parts of which were published by the state news agency
IRNA on Sunday.
The
nuclear deal was the result of “meticulous, sensitive and balanced
multilateral talks”, Zarif said, and could not be renegotiated as
the United States has demanded.
He
said U.S. “illegal withdrawal” from the deal and its “bullying
methods to bring other governments in line” with that decision have
discredited the rule of law in international arena.
Why India is ignoring US sanctions and sticking with Iran
It's
not just about oil – there's a complex interconnection of
geopolitics and geoeconomics between the two countries
Pay
very close attention to what India’s External Affairs Minister,
Sushma Swaraj, said after meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister
Mohammad Javad Zarif earlier this week in New Delhi:
“Our
foreign policy is not made under pressure from other countries … We
recognize UN sanctions and not country-specific sanctions. We didn’t
follow US sanctions on previous occasions either.”
Iran
has threatened to give petroleum giant Total's stake in the South
Pars gas fields to China if the French company could not secure
protection from U.S. nuclear-related sanctions.
Total
signed a $4.8 billion contract to develop phase 11 of the South
Pars—by far the world's largest natural gas field—last July,
after the 2015 nuclear deal struck between the U.S., Iran and five
other world powers saw a rolling back of sanctions against the
revolutionary Shiite Muslim nation in exchange for it cutting nuclear
production. Trump's May 8 withdrawal from the nuclear accord,
however, has put this investment at risk and Iranian Petroleum
Minister Bijan Zanganeh said the state-owned China National Petroleum
Corporation (CNPC), which already claims 30 percent of the project,
could take the French supercompany's 50.1 percent stake.
"Total
has 60 days to negotiate with the U.S. administration while the
French government can also use these 60 days to negotiate with the
U.S. administration so that Total can stay in Iran," Zanganeh
said in a statement, according to The Financial Times.
"If
the U.S. administration does not agree with Total staying in Iran,
China will replace this company," he added.
The
United States has only a few days to take some urgent action if it
wants to avoid a full-scale trade war with its European allies,
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire warned during a G7 meeting.
“We
still have a few days to take the necessary steps to avoid a trade
war between the European Union (EU) and the US and prevent a trade
war between the G7 members,” Le Maire told reporters after a
meeting of finance ministers of the G7 in Canada at the Whistler
Mountain Resort in British Columbia. He added that it is up to the US
to take the first step.
“The
ball is in the United States’ court. It is up to the US
administration to make the right decisions to ease the situation and
ease the difficulties,” he added. Other senior officials from the
world’s leading economies joined the French minister in calling for
urgent action.
Over
70 Syrian tribes issued a joint statement on Saturday that announced
the formation of a new combined force that would fight the US-backed
militias and foreign troops in northern Syria.
The
tribesmen from the Al-Hasakah, Aleppo, and Al-Raqqa governorates
reportedly met in the government-held city of Deir Hafer, where they
all agreed that they will come together to expel the US and their
militias from their provinces.
Given
the size of these tribes, they could present a serious problem for
the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria, if
they receive military assistance from the Syrian Arab Army (SAA).
Syrian
President Bashar Al-Assad stated during his latest interview with
Russia Today that the US-backed forces and foreign troops in northern
Syria will be dealt with militarily if they do not withdrawal.
The
Pentagon responded to this threat by warning the Syrian President
that any attack on their forces in Syria will end ‘badly’ for
him.
Defence
ministers tell security forum they are contributing to rule-based
order
France
and Britain will sail warships through the South China Sea to
challenge Beijing’s expanding military presence in the disputed
waters, their defence ministers said on Sunday.
The
two countries, both permanent members of the United Nations Security
Council, made the remarks at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore,
echoing the latest US plan to ramp up its freedom of navigation
operations to counter Beijing’s militarisation in the region and
its stance that territorial disputes should be a matter between China
and its Asian neighbours.
Sources
from inside the Pentagon have told me the word on NATO from the White
House is stunning: "If
NATO members continue to fail in meeting their spending obligation,
the United States will begin a speedy NINETY PERCENT REDUCTION in
forward-deployed troops, planes, and all other war-fighting
equipment."
Officers
in the Pentagon have been told to begin planning such a drawdown to
begin 6 months from now, around Christmas. That will have given
NATO members over a full year to bring their spending up to Treaty
compliance. If they fail to do that, the US drawdown is to
commence.
Tackling
NATO nations failing to meet their alliance obligations is a key
priority for President Trump, his right-hand-man in Europe has
revealed in major and unprecedented remarks on the credibility of the
military of the European Union’s largest economy.
Speaking
to Breitbart
London during a sit-down interview at
the U.S. residence in Berlin, recently confirmed Ambassador Richard
Grenell delivered a frankly worded condemnation of Germany’s
contribution to the NATO alliance to which the United States is a
significant contributor.
Tackling
NATO nations failing to meet their alliance obligations is a key
priority for President Trump, his right-hand-man in Europe has
revealed in an exclusive interview.
Speaking
to Breitbart London during a sit-down at the U.S. residence in
Berlin, recently confirmed Ambassador Richard Grenell delivered a
frankly worded condemnation of Germany’s contribution to the NATO
alliance to which the United States is a significant contributor.
The
Arkady Babachenko “Putin kills journalist” hoax goes from bad to
worse for Ukraine.
Tackling
NATO nations failing to meet their alliance obligations is a key
priority for President Trump, his right-hand-man in Europe has
revealed in an exclusive interview.
Speaking
to Breitbart London during a sit-down at the U.S. residence in
Berlin, recently confirmed Ambassador Richard Grenell delivered a
frankly worded condemnation of Germany’s contribution to the NATO
alliance to which the United States is a significant contributor.
Spy scandal in Ukraine: Special forces tried to recruit RIA Novosti reporter, asking to leak data
A reporter working for
RIA Novosti news agency in Lithuania, Irina Vysokovich, travelled to
the Ukrainian town of Kherson to cover the trial of her colleague,
Kirill Vyshinsky, deputy editor-in-chief of RIA Novosti Ukraine. He
had been arrested in Kiev and accused of treason.However, Vysokovich
didn’t make it to court on Friday as events took a turn worthy of a
spy blockbuster. Before she managed to enter the courtroom, she was
put into a car and driven to the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU)
office.
The reporter was
interrogated for several hours about her work by special service
agents. They then made the reporter sign papers stating that she was
ready to leak data on her colleagues.
‘We must respond to US tariffs, end sanctions on Russia’ – Austrian vice chancellor
It’s
time to respond to US President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs and
lift EU sanctions against Russia, Austrian Vice-Chancellor
Heinz-Christian Strache said ahead of President Vladimir Putin’s
visit to Vienna.
Rethinking
EU sanctions policy towards Russia is “desirable” because the
measures are damaging the national economy, Strache told the Austrian
newspaper Osterreich in an interview published on Saturday.
“I
have always warned against pushing Russia into the arms of China. It
is high time to put an end to these annoying sanctions and normalize
political and economic relations with Russia,” he said.
Strache
was responding to a question asking whether the EU should change its
approach to Moscow in the light of the US tariffs on European steel
and aluminum. The tariffs, imposed by Trump, officially took effect
on June 1. The president claims this measure will protect US
manufacturers, while the EU denounced the tariffs as “unjustified,’
accusing America of starting a “trade war.”
The
rise of right-wing governments continues across Europe as the
opposition anti-migrant Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) is leading
at Sunday’s general election in Slovenia, with the vote count still
underway.
The
SDS was ahead of the pack with 26.3 percent after some 25 percent of
votes had been counted, the State Election Commission said. They were
followed by Lista Marjana Sarca (LMS), which was running in the
election for the first time, with 12.2 percent.
A
total of 25 parties contested the election in the Balkan republic,
with nine of them expected to make it to parliament, according to
exit polls.
Earlier
this week, several media outlets reported, citing Sinjar Governor
Mahma Khalil that the US military had been deployed to the Sinjar
Mountain of Iraq’s Mosul province
This is the obsession (along with a new Brexit vote) of the British liberal press.
This is the obsession (along with a new Brexit vote) of the British liberal press.
More
than 350 mosques and Muslim organisations have written to the
Conservative Party backing calls for a formal inquiry following a
number of allegations of Islamophobia, The Independent can reveal.
The
calls mirror and endorse those made by the Muslim Council of Britain
(MCB), who wrote to the party last week urging a full audit to tackle
the “more than weekly occurrences of Islamophobia from candidates
and representatives of the party”.
Now
11 separate umbrella organisations from all over the UK including
Wales, Belfast, Scotland and Manchester have backed the calls for an
urgent inquiry after a dozen examples of Islamophobia from party
members in a two-month period from April were revealed.
War Erupts Between Italy's Government And Soros: "You Profited From The Death Of Hundreds Of People"
A
feud has broken out between liberal billionaire activist and fervent
Clinton supporter, George Soros, and Italy's anti-immigrant League
party, which on Friday formed a populist movement in coalition with
the 5-Star party, and whose leader Matteo Salvini stepped into his
new job as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior on
Friday, pledging to deport hundreds of thousands of illegal
immigrants.
Demonstrations were held in Britain, Germany, the United States and several other countries. Around 400 people gathered outside Leeds Crown Court on Saturday for a march through the city center, while approximately 1,000 filled the streets of Manchester for a #FreeTommy demonstration, reported to have been spearheaded by the Democratic Football Lad's Alliance.
Tommy Robinson Protests Continue For Second Week As Thousands Take To The Streets
Thousands
of Tommy Robinson supporters and free speech advocates around the
world took to the streets for a second week of protests against
the imprisonment of the UK journalist and political activist.
Robinson was arrested on May 25 outside Leeds Crown Court for
reporting on a pedophile grooming trial. After a brief court
proceeding in which he did not have access to his
lawyer, Robinson was handed a 13-month prison sentence
for violating the terms of a suspended sentence on a similar
offense.
Demonstrations were held in Britain, Germany, the United States and several other countries. Around 400 people gathered outside Leeds Crown Court on Saturday for a march through the city center, while approximately 1,000 filled the streets of Manchester for a #FreeTommy demonstration, reported to have been spearheaded by the Democratic Football Lad's Alliance.
In
a world where bizarre crowdfunding campaigns have become all the
rage, with good samaritans even venturing
to raise $30,000 so
that a cash-strapped Kim Jong-Un can stay in his Trump Summit
hotel...
...
a politically turbulent Malaysia, whose currency and stock market
recently plunged, then spiked after a shock political outcome in last
month's election, likened by many to Trump's unexpected presidential
victory, has decided to take crowdfunding to the next level, and as
the BBC
reports, last
Wednesday the local finance ministry resorted to an unorthodox way of
raising money to pay off their country's debt: beginning online.
Perhaps
because they felt in a "historically" generous mood after
the first change in government in over 60 years, Malaysians gave
nearly $2 million in the 24 hours after authorities announced a fund
would be set up to raise cash.
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