Tag: USA

Categories
-Top News China USA

US slaps curbs on 37 Chinese entities over spy ballon incident

Among them are entities allegedly linked to the spy balloon incident that stirred controversy last year, further fuelling tensions between the two global powers…reports Asian Lite News

In a move intensifying the already strained relations between Beijing and Washington, the Biden administration announced the addition of 37 Chinese entities to a trade restriction list on Thursday.

Among them are entities allegedly linked to the spy balloon incident that stirred controversy last year, further fuelling tensions between the two global powers.

The Commerce Department’s decision included certain units of China Electronics Technology Group, accused of seeking American technology to enhance China’s quantum technology capabilities with potential military applications, posing significant concerns for US national security.

Media reports have identified China Electronics Technology Group as a major supplier of military equipment for the Chinese government, although the group has yet to respond to the allegations.

“Today’s action is another decisive step in addressing challenges posed by the People’s Republic of China and its military modernisation,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Alan F. Estevez. “We must remain vigilant in our efforts to prevent entities such as these from accessing U.S. technologies that could be used in ways that harm our national security.”

US-China flag

Reacting strongly to the move, the Chinese embassy in Washington condemned it as “blatant economic coercion and bullying in the field of technology,” affirming China’s determination to defend the legitimate rights of its firms and institutions.

The Biden administration’s action signifies its persistent response to the spy balloon incident, which occurred in February 2023, triggering political uproar in the US and leading to the cancellation of Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s planned trip to China.

The Commerce Department had previously added five companies and a research institute to the entity list for their purported support of China’s military modernization efforts, particularly the People’s Liberation Army’s aerospace programs.

Recently, the Biden administration had issued a probe into Chinese-made electric vehicles, or EVs, and calls to increase tariffs on the import of solar panels from China to protect domestic producers.

The Biden administration has said it would investigate Chinese-made digitally connected vehicles, citing potential national security risks and concerns over their capability to collect sensitive information about American users, VoA reported.

ALSO READ: US Denies Meddling in Indian Elections

Categories
-Top News UK News USA

Lammy backs Trump’s Nato vision

Lammy Acknowledges Trump’s Concerns on European Defense Spending Amid Election…reports Asian Lite News

Donald Trump’s approach to Nato is “misunderstood”, David Lammy said as he promised a Labour government would work with the Republican if he returned to the White House.

On a visit to Washington, the shadow foreign secretary was meeting senior Democrats and Republicans as part of Labour’s efforts to build ties with the US ahead of the general election.

With the potential for Trump to win this year’s presidential election, Lammy acknowledged the Republican candidate’s concerns about European defence spending.

He suggested that Labour may be able to reach the goal of spending 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence quicker than Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s pledge to do so by 2030.

During his first term in office, Trump flirted with the idea of leaving the Nato alliance and repeatedly pushed for European nations to increase their own spending.

Earlier this year, he suggested a US under his leadership would not defend Nato allies who failed to meet the target of spending 2% of GDP – a measure of the size of the economy – on defence.

Lammy described Trump as “racist” and a “Nazi sympathiser” in 2017, saying he would protest on the streets if the then-president visited the UK.

“You are going to struggle to find any politician in the western world who hasn’t had things to say in response to Donald Trump,” Lammy said.

But he said that if he became foreign secretary, he would put the UK national interest first and “where I can find common cause with Donald Trump, I will find common cause”.

In a speech at the Hudson Institute think tank, Lammy said the former president was “a leader whose attitude to European security is often misunderstood. I do not believe that he is arguing that the United States should abandon Europe. He wants Europeans to do more to ensure a better-defended Europe.”

Only four European countries were meeting the 2% goal in 2016 when Trump was campaigning for the presidency, it was 10 by the time he left office in 2021, Lammy said, and was set to be 18 this year.

Lammy said: “I tell my European friends: don’t personalise this. ‘Do more’ is the American ask whoever wins. This is not because of a weakening of the transatlantic bond but because of the geopolitical reality in the Indo-Pacific.”

It was inevitable that the rise of China would lead to a greater US focus there, rather than Europe, he said. That meant “the European continent must do more to look after our own back yard”.

He added: “Britain will always work with the United States. Whatever the weather, whoever wins. If Keir Starmer’s Labour Party wins the privilege to serve, we will continue to do the same.”

Lammy restated Labour’s commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP “as soon as we can, in a responsible way”.

The shadow foreign secretary said Labour would have a defence review beginning on “day one” of a new administration and “we may get to 2.5% before 2030” if the public finances allow.

During his time in Washington, Lammy was expected to meet senior White House officials, including national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Brett McGurk, the national security council co-ordinator for the Middle East and North Africa.

On Capitol Hill, he was due to meet with Democrats including senators Amy Klobuchar, Christopher Murphy and Chris Coons.

But in a sign of Labour trying to build relationships with the party which could be in power in the US if Sir Keir Starmer wins the UK’s election, he was also due to have talks with Republican senators Lindsey Graham and JD Vance, House Intelligence Committee chairman Mike Turner and former Trump administration defence and security officials Elbridge Colby and Fred Fleitz.

ALSO READ: Interest rates expected to stay at 16-year high in UK

Categories
-Top News India News USA

US Denies Meddling in Indian Elections

“We don’t involve ourselves in elections in India, as we don’t involve ourselves in elections anywhere in the world,” said US official

The US has denied any involvement in India’s ongoing Lok Sabha elections, saying that it has adopted the same policy for such events taking place anywhere in the world.

“Of course, we don’t involve ourselves in elections in India, as we don’t involve ourselves in elections anywhere in the world. Those are decisions for the people of India to make,” US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said during a media briefing in Washington on Thursday.

Miller was responding to a question asking for his reaction on Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova’s comments on Wednesday where she had said that the US is trying to “complicate” the ongoing Lok Sabha elections in India, by making “regular unfounded accusations” on threats to religious freedom in the country.

The US State Department official also refused to react to the ongoing investigation on the alleged plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

“There is a publicly-returned indictment that contains alleged facts. They’re allegations until they’re proven before a jury that anyone can go and read. I won’t speak to them here because, of course, it’s an ongoing legal matter. And I’ll leave it at that,” said Miller.

ALSO READ: Russia Accuses US of Interfering in Indian Elections

Categories
-Top News Arab News Asia News

Netanyahu Defies Biden’s Threats

The Israeli Prime Minister added that “no amount of pressure” will stop Israel from “defending itself”…reports Asian Lite News

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said in a video statement that the Israeli forces will continue their attacks in Gaza despite the US threat to halt some weapon shipments.

“If Israel is forced to stand alone — Israel will stand alone,” said Netanyahu in a public speech made on Sunday’s Israeli Holocaust Memorial Day and posted on his official X account on Thursday.

The Israeli Prime Minister added that “no amount of pressure” will stop Israel from “defending itself” as quoted by Xinhua news agency report.

During a CNN interview on Wednesday, US President Joe Biden said that he would halt some shipments of US weapons to Israel if Netanyahu launches a major invasion of Rafah, the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip where more than one million Palestinians are taking refuge.

“We’re not walking away from Israel’s security. We’re walking away from Israel’s ability to wage war in those areas,” Biden added.

The US President admitted that Israel used US bombs on civilians in Gaza.

“Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which they go after population centres,” Biden said.

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday that the US had already paused “one shipment of high payload munitions” to Israel.

The US has sent hundreds of shipments of weapons to Israel since the ongoing conflict broke up on October 7, 2023, according to reports from US news outlets.

ALSO READ: Ukraine extends martial law, military mobilisation

ALSO READ: Lanka Cracks Down on Racketeers Sending Soldiers to Ukraine

Categories
-Top News Arab News USA

Iran Condemns US Threats to ICC Over Israel

Kanaani slammed recent threats by several US Republican Senators against the ICC to impose sanctions should the tribunal take any such action….reports Asian Lite News

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani has condemned the threats by a group of US lawmakers against the International Criminal Court (ICC) intending to prevent the tribunal from issuing arrest warrants against senior Israeli officials.

He made the remarks on Thursday in a post on social media platform X while reacting to warnings by pro-Israel US Congressmen that any arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials would encounter US retaliation, Xinhua news agency reported.

Kanaani also slammed recent threats by several US Republican Senators against the ICC to impose sanctions should the tribunal take any such action.

The Spokesman said that through “exerting pressure” on the ICC, these US Congressmen sought to grant Israeli officials and military commanders immunity for their “war crimes” against Palestinians, which is a “shameful and worrying” move.

He described the threats as “ugly interferences” that would set a “dangerous precedent” for contradicting the ICC’s “objectives and philosophy of prosecuting and punishing war criminals”.

Israel’s military said on Tuesday that it had started “a precise counterterrorism operation” in Rafah city in the south of the Gaza Strip and assumed “operational control” over the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, a vital point for humanitarian aid to enter the enclave.

The development in Rafah is the latest escalation in the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict that has persisted for seven months in Gaza.

ALSO READ: Iraqi pro-Iran group demands US troop exit

Categories
-Top News India News USA

Russia Accuses US of Interfering in Indian Elections

Russia Accuses US of Meddling in Indian Affairs, Alleges Election Interference…reports Asian Lite News

Targeting the US for interfering in India’s internal affairs, Russia has said that Washington is trying to “complicate” the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, including by making “regular unfounded accusations” on threats to religious freedom in the country.

Reacting strongly to the recent report released by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Washington not only “groundlessly” accuses India, but also many other states.

“Regular unfounded accusations by the United States against New Delhi – we see that they groundlessly accuse not only India, but also many other states – of violating religious freedoms are a reflection of the United States’ misunderstanding of the national mentality, the historical context of the development of the Indian state and disrespect for India as a state,” Zakharova told mediapersons in Moscow on Wednesday.

“I am sure that this also comes from the neocolonial mentality, the mentality of the colonial period, the period of the slave trade, and imperialism… This does not only apply to India. The reason is the desire to unbalance the internal political situation in India in order to complicate the general parliamentary elections taking place in the country. Of course, this is part of interference in India’s internal affairs,” added the Russian MFA spokesperson.

During the regular media briefing, Zakharova was also asked about a report published in a US newspaper that accused an Indian official of a “foiled assassination” plot on foreign soil.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. (Credit: Twitter/ @mfa_russia)

“According to the information we have, Washington has not yet provided any reliable evidence of the involvement of Indian citizens in the preparation of the murder of a certain G.S. Pannun. Speculation on this topic in the absence of evidence is unacceptable,” stated Zakharova.

Last week, India slammed the USCIRF report, saying that the agency’s efforts to interfere in India’s ongoing elections will never succeed.

“They have been releasing their reports earlier as well, in earlier years. The USCIRF is known as a biased organization with a political agenda. They continue to publish their propaganda on India masquerading as part of an annual report. We really have no expectation that USCIRF will even seek to understand India’s diverse, pluralistic and democratic ethos. Their efforts to interfere in the largest electoral exercise of the world will never succeed,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters in New Delhi.

ALSO READ: India supports homeland for Palestinians, says Jaishankar

Categories
-Top News Crime USA

Dozens of protesters arrested in George Washington University

Comer expressed disappointment over what he perceived as a failure on the part of the D.C. police force to address the situation adequately….reports Asian Lite News

Washington police took action early Wednesday morning, dispersing a pro-Palestinian encampment at George Washington University and making multiple arrests, as confirmed by authorities.

According to AFP report, the operation unfolded shortly after 4:00 am, with a significant police presence converging on a university quad, employing tactics such as arrests and pepper spray, according to reports from the student-led GW Hatchet newspaper and CNN, which estimated around three dozen individuals were detained.

As morning progressed, police maintained their presence at the scene, witnessed by an AFP reporter, overseeing the removal of tents and other paraphernalia, with one student holding a “Free Palestine” sign nearby.

This development coincided with the scheduled testimony of Washington, D.C.’s mayor and police chief before Congress, regarding the prolonged existence of the encampment, which had entered its second week.

Following the clearance of the encampment, House Oversight Committee Republicans, under the leadership of Representative James Comer, opted to cancel the anticipated hearing.

Comer expressed disappointment over what he perceived as a failure on the part of the D.C. police force to address the situation adequately.

In response, the police department defended its actions, asserting efforts to deescalate tensions prior to resorting to arrests. However, citing escalating incidents and information, they deemed it necessary to intervene.

The encampment at George Washington University forms part of a broader wave of campus protests nationwide, with students voicing opposition to the conflict in Gaza and advocating for divestment from U.S. weapons manufacturers and Israeli institutions.

US President Joe Biden has strongly condemned anti-Semitism at pro-Palestinian protests at universities and reaffirmed his “ironclad” support for Israel.

“My commitment to the safety of the Jewish people, the security of Israel, and its right to exist as an independent Jewish state is ironclad. Even when we disagree,” Biden said at the US Capitol on Tuesday at an event commemorating the victims of the Holocaust.

“There is no place on any campus in America or any place in America for anti-Semitism or hate speech or threats of violence of any kind,” he said.

Some of the rallies in support of Palestine at US campuses have also criticized Biden’s Middle East policy. He, meanwhile, has become more critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s actions in the Gaza war.

In his speech, Biden said people must learn from history, and pointed to the unprecedented massacre of more than 1,200 people by militants from the Palestinian Islamist organization Hamas and other groups in Israel on October 7 that led to the war.

Too many people deny, denigrate or distort the Holocaust and October 7, including the “appalling use of sexual violence by Hamas to torture and terrorize Jews,” Biden said. This is “despicable” and must stop.

ALSO READ: Biden condemns anti-Semitism, backs Israel

Categories
-Top News Politics USA

US House defeats motion to remove Speaker Mike Johnson

Greene called up her resolution to remove fellow Republican and House Speaker Johnson on the House floor Wednesday evening….reports Asian Lite News

The US House of Representatives has overwhelmingly voted to kill a resolution to remove House Speaker Mike Johnson.

The House on Wednesday voted 359-43 on a motion by Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia to oust Johnson from his post, with seven Democrats voting “present”, Xinhua news agency reported.

Greene called up her resolution to remove fellow Republican and House Speaker Johnson on the House floor Wednesday evening. But House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, immediately motioned to table the measure.

“A remarkable number of House Republicans joined with Democrats to rescue the speaker, who has only been in the job for a little over six months,” reported The Washington Post, adding that Johnson earned grudging respect from more traditional Republicans for ensuring the government didn’t run out of funding and sending aid to US allies and Israel and Ukraine, but he only did so with Democratic support, infuriating members like Greene.

Johnson has also been emboldened by the backing of former US President Donald Trump, who reiterated his support for the Louisiana Republican over the weekend, said the report.

It’s the second time in less than a year that Republicans have sought to remove their own party’s speaker. Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California was voted out of the job in October through a motion filed by a fellow member of the Republican Party.

Greene has called for Johnson’s removal in recent weeks, mostly over the US aid package for Ukraine. It’s the latest sign of continued Republican infighting.

ALSO READ: Biden condemns anti-Semitism, backs Israel

Categories
-Top News Crime USA

Three men nabbed in child abuse on Meta platforms

The arrests culminated from a meticulous undercover operation spanning months…reports Asian Lite News

New Mexico’s Attorney General, Raúl Torrez, unveiled charges on Wednesday against three individuals accused of exploiting Meta’s social media platforms to target and solicit minors for sex, media reported.

These arrests culminated from a meticulous undercover operation spanning months, orchestrated by the state Department of Justice, wherein decoy accounts were utilized to ensnare suspects, according to Associated Press report.

This probe commenced in December, coinciding with the state’s civil lawsuit against Meta, alleging the company’s negligence in implementing basic safety measures to safeguard children on its platforms.

During a press briefing, Attorney General Torrez disclosed that the suspects engaged in explicit communication and exchanged lewd content via Facebook’s messenger app, blatantly expressing their sexual interest in minors.

Torrez underscored the ease with which these individuals accessed the decoy personas, highlighting the gravity of such threats and urging heightened vigilance from society.

Blaming Meta’s executives, including CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Torrez accused the company of prioritizing profits over the welfare of children and parents.

He expressed frustration with Meta’s purported assurances and urged a more proactive stance in combating such nefarious activities.

Meta rebuffed these allegations, reiterating its commitment to leveraging technology to thwart suspicious interactions between adults and minors on its platforms.

The company asserted its collaboration with law enforcement agencies in investigating and prosecuting offenders, alongside initiatives such as hiring child safety experts and reporting content to relevant authorities.

While the state attorney general’s office continues its pursuit of child predators, Torrez refrained from speculating on the impact of these efforts on the ongoing civil litigation against Meta.

As part of this legal battle, prosecutors claim to have unearthed internal Meta documents estimating that approximately 100,000 children face sexual harassment daily on the company’s platforms.

The defendants in the criminal case, identified as Fernando Clyde, Marlon Kellywood, and Christopher Reynolds, face charges including solicitation of minors via electronic communication devices.

Prosecutors seek their detention pending trial, although hearings are pending, and legal representation for Clyde and Kellywood remains unconfirmed. Efforts to reach Reynolds’ legal counsel through the public defender’s office are underway.

ALSO READ: Biden condemns anti-Semitism, backs Israel

Categories
-Top News Arab News USA

‘Houthis targeted Gulf of Aden with four drones’

The group launched three unmanned aerial vehicles from Yemen toward the Gulf of Aden on Monday….reports Asian Lite News

The US Central Command said the Houthi militia in Yemen launched three drones and one anti-ship ballistic missile at international commercial and naval ships in the Gulf of Aden on Monday and Tuesday.

The group launched three unmanned aerial vehicles from Yemen toward the Gulf of Aden on Monday. One of the drones was destroyed by US-led marine coalition ships, Central Command forces destroyed another, and the third went down in the sea, causing no damage, the US military said.

Early on Tuesday, the Houthis launched an anti-ship ballistic missile over the Gulf of Aden, but did not target navy or commercial ships in key maritime lanes near Yemen.

“It was determined that these weapons presented an imminent threat to both coalition forces and merchant vessels in the region,” the US Central Command said.

UK Maritime Trade Operations, which monitors attacks on vessels, received a report from a ship’s master on Tuesday of two explosions close to the vessel off the coast of Yemen, near the southern city of Aden.

Yahya Sarea, a Houthi military spokesman who regularly confirms assaults on ships, has not claimed responsibility on behalf of the militia for any strikes since Friday.

In the past six months, the Houthis have sunk one ship, seized another and launched hundreds of ballistic missiles, drones and remotely controlled boats targeting international commercial and navy ships in waters off the coast of Yemen and in the Indian Ocean. The Houthis say their aim is to put pressure on Israel to end its war against Hamas in Gaza.

The US responded in January to the Houthi attacks by placing the group back onto its list of foreign terrorist organizations, from which it had been removed in February 2021, organizing a coalition of naval task forces to safeguard the Red Sea, and launching strikes against Houthi sites in Yemen.

Mahdi Al-Mashat, head of the Houthi Supreme Political Council, said during a live-fire drill in Sanaa on Tuesday that the US had offered incentives to the group in return for halting their attacks on shipping. However, he vowed attacks on ships linked to Israel would continues, along with efforts to seize control of the parts of Yemen that remain under government control.

“We will continue … until our country’s whole national territory is liberated, and the blockade and injustice placed on our people in Gaza are removed,” he said.

Meanwhile, local and international journalism organizations urged the Houthis to investigate the attempted assassination of a Yemeni journalist in Sanaa on Tuesday.

The Yemeni Journalist Syndicate said that Mohammed Shubaita, secretary-general of the organization and assistant secretary-general of the Federation of Arab Journalists, was shot in the leg and stomach and is being treated at a hospital in Sanaa. A relative who was with him was killed in the attack and another was wounded.

“The Journalists Syndicate strongly condemns this sinful attack and holds the de facto authority in Sanaa fully responsible for the safety of our colleague Mohammed Shubaita,” the organization said.

The International Federation of Journalists similarly denounced the assault and urged the Houthis to investigate the incident.

Anthony Bellanger, the federation’s general secretary, said: “The authorities must immediately open an investigation to clarify the circumstances of the heinous attack against our colleague Mohammed Shubaita and his relatives.

“Yemen is a hostile country for journalists where their safety is jeopardized, and the investigation must take into account Shubaita’s role as a journalist and union leader.”

In a message posted on social media platform X, Reporters Without Borders condemned the attack and called for a “full investigation into this heinous crime.”

ALSO READ: Biden condemns anti-Semitism, backs Israel