McCain warns Trump not to walk out of NAFTA

US Republican Senator John McCain has called on the administration of President Donald Trump to preserve the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and further promote the free flow of trade as Washington starts renegotiating the trilateral deal.

In a statement released on Tuesday, McCain urged the US president not to impose new barriers that would hurt trade with America's closest trading partners, arguing that over the past two decades under NAFTA, trade with Mexico and Canada had increased and more jobs created.

"As renegotiations get underway, it's important for the administration to recognize NAFTA's many contributions and not impose new barriers that could harm our ability to trade with our closest neighbors," the Republican senator said.

"Along with the countless individuals in my home state and around the country who have benefited from NAFTA, I urge the administration to pursue an outcome that does not pick winners or losers, but further promotes the free flow of trade with Mexico and Canada that has and will continue to boost our economy," he added.

McCain had previously warned that withdrawing from NAFTA would be "a disaster," and other senators called on Trump to improve NAFTA rather than radically alter the agreement.

Seven rounds of formal negotiations are set to begin on Wednesday in response to Trump's assertion that global trade deals, including NAFTA, were poorly negotiated to the detriment of US companies. Trump has argued that NAFTA has led to the outsourcing of thousands of jobs from the United States to Mexico and China.

NAFTA was first proposed by the administration of former President George H.W. Bush and was finalized by his successor Bill Clinton.

While on the 2016 presidential campaign trail, Trump repeatedly censured US membership in international trade deals, pledging to renegotiate or withdraw the country from multilateral trade accords that for decades have served as foundations for global economics.

The US president formally abandoned Washington’s intent to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership -- the sweeping trade agreement signed under the preceding administration last year – just days after being sworn into office in January.

Algeria’s PM sacked after 79 days in office

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika sacked Prime Minister Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Tuesday, less than three months after appointing him, the presidency said, according to state media.

"President Abdelaziz Bouteflika on Tuesday relieved Prime Minister Abdelmadjid Tebboune of his duties and appointed Ahmed Ouyahia", the president's chief of staff, in his place, the presidency said in a statement carried by the official APS news agency.

Bouteflika's National Liberation Front (FLN) and the Rally for National Democracy (RND) led by Ouyahia together enjoy an absolute majority in parliament after winning re-election on May 4.In a surprise move three weeks after the vote, the president named Tebboune, who had been housing minister, to the post of prime minister in place of Bouteflika's ally Abdelmalek Sellal.

According to a government source who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity, 71-year-old Tebboune was dismissed because his "vision was not in line" with the president. The source also cited communication problems between the men.

The sacking comes days after reports that Bouteflika had sent a strongly worded letter to the premier, demanding he adjust his policies and criticizing a decision to restrict imports of many products.

But political analyst Rachid Tlemcani said Tebboune had been seeking to appease "certain oligarchs who belong to the presidential faction" and was the victim of a struggle in the leadership.

The May 4 poll was marred by low turnout amid voter disillusionment over what many see as broken government promises and a political system tainted by corruption.

A 2014 slump in crude oil prices forced the government to raise taxes and mothball many public projects. Today, in a country of 40 million where half the population is under 30, one young person in three is unemployed.

U.S. destroyer challenges China’s claims in South China Sea

Washington – A U.S. Navy destroyer carried out a “freedom of navigation operation” on Thursday, within 12 nautical miles of an artificial island built up by China in the South China Sea, U.S. officials told Reuters.

The operation came as President Donald Trump’s administration seeks Chinese cooperation in dealing with North Korea’s missile and nuclear programmes.

The officials said that the USS John S. McCain traveled close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands, in a challenge to China’s territorial claims. In March, a U.S. Navy warship sailed within 12 nautical miles of an artificial island built up by China in the South China Sea, the first such challenge to Beijing in the strategic waterway since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. The U.S. patrol, the first of its kind since October 2016, marked the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijing’s efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters. U.S. officials, had said that the USS Dewey traveled close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbours. The move angered Beijing, which reiterated its position that China has “indisputable sovereignty” over the Spratly Islands and their surrounding waters. “The U.S. military’s action was showing off force, promoting regional militarisation and could have easily led to a sea or air incident. “The Chinese army has expressed firm opposition and has lodged solemn representations with the U.S.,” Ren Guoqiang, spokesman for China’s Defence Ministry had said. (Reuters/NAN) 

My re-arrest’ll quicken actualisation of Biafra – Nnamdi Kanu

UMUAHIA—LEADER of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has said that the Federal government re-arresting him would quicken the actualization of the Republic of Biafra.

Kanu also said that nobody can restrict his movement in any part of the country and that he is free to go to any part of Nigeria, including Lagos, if he so wishes. According to the IPOB leader who spoke in Umuahia, nobody can stop him from visiting Lagos State if he wants to visit there, saying he was not bothered by threats by some elements that his safety would not be guaranteed in Lagos.

If you arrest me, Biafra will come even quicker than we anticipate. I am not afraid of being arrested. I have been there before and if need be, I will also be there again. “I will be very happy if they re-arrest me. If we are hoping for 90% compliance with the boycott of Anambra State Governorship election, my arrest will make the compliance 100 %. “But why will I be re-arrested and nobody is going to arrest Tanko Yakassai or Ango Abdulahi because of what they have been saying? Is it because they are Fulani? They own Nigeria? They are immuned to arrest? Is arrest only meant for Biafrans and not for Fulani? “Who will arrest Lawal Daura of DSS for flouting court order to release Bright Chimezie Isinwa of IPOB? The Fulanis say whatever they like and go free and nobody holds them accountable because they own Nigeria”, Kanu said. According to him, “I go to anywhere I want to go. I don’t listen to threats. They motivate me rather than dampen my spirit. That thing people say I cannot do is what I love to do. When the time comes, I will go to Lagos if I have to go to Lagos”. “I have friends with connections in Lagos, Fani Fayode is my friend and he is in Lagos. If I try to visit him in Yoruba land, then I must see him in Lagos”. Kanu also denied promoting hate speech as being accused of by his critics, saying that condemnation of the injustices in Nigeria or the agitation for self- rule does not in any way amount to hate speech. “I completely disagree with them. They are the pioneers of hate speech. Go through the text of speeches made by Ango Abdulahim, Tanko Yakassia or the ones made by one Abubarkar. Are those ones not hate speeches? Unfortunately, I blame the deplorable state of education in Nigeria because they don’t know what hate speech is all about. “Does asking for self determination amount to hate speech? Or asking for referendum hate speech? Where did they go to school? I think they need to invest more in education because self determination is no way equal to war or hate speech”, Kanu said.
The General Overseer of Mount Zion Faith Global Liberation Ministries Inc, aka By Fire By Fire, Nnewi, Anambra State, Bishop Abraham Chris Udeh has thrown his weight behind the call by IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu for a referendum or there would be no election in Anambra state. Bishop Udeh, who spoke to newsmen yesterday at his Church auditorium, said Kanu’s call for the boycott of the election unless a referendum is conducted was in order and should be obeyed. He said those who faulted Kanu on his insistence for referendum must have seen how the National Assembly threw away the issue of devolution of power or what some people call restructuring in its on-going constitutional amendment effort, adding that this alone has justified the call for referendum. The cleric noted that there was no amount of pressure that would make the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government to listen to the yearning of the people for restructuring. According to him, “these are the reasons that 

Venezuela quells 'paramilitary' attack at base; 2 dead

Venezuela remained a powder keg on Sunday as authorities said they had quelled an anti-government paramilitary attack at a military base that led to the deaths of two people, and the country's attorney general defied her ouster by the newly elected National Constituent Assembly.

A man who identified himself as an army officer announced the revolt on social media, an action he called a "legitimate rebellion" aimed at the government of leftist President Nicolás Maduro.

"We are united now, more than ever, with the brave people of Venezuela who do not recognize the legitimacy of Nicolás Maduro's murderous tyranny," according to a man who said he was Capt. Juan Caguaripano.The President, speaking on his weekly TV show, "Sundays with Maduro," made reference to the incident, saying "a week ago, we won with votes and today we had to beat terrorism with bullets."

"They attack with terrorism and hate. We attack with our work, our love. They destruct, we construct," he said.

Continued hardship

Sunday's incident came amid daily anxiety in the South American nation, where the economic hardship and bloody political turmoil that had roiled the country for months came to a head last week when the Constituent Assembly was voted into office, taking the place of the opposition-led National Assembly.

Authorities said the early-morning rebellion, which took place at a military base in Valencia, about 150 kilometers (95 miles) west of Caracas, was swiftly contained.Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said the attack was carried out by "delinquent civilians wearing military uniforms" in the early morning hours of Sunday, an act he labeled a "terrorist attack of a paramilitary nature."

Maduro said there were 10 attackers. "Two were killed "by shots fired by those who are loyal to our nation. One is injured. Out of these 10 attackers ... nine are civilians and only one is lieutenant who deserted his post months ago."

Venezuelan Minister of Communications Ernesto Villegas said seven people have been detained in the "mercenary attack."

'Operation David'

Social media videos showed a group of men in military uniforms launching a resistance movement they called "Operation David."

The man speaking in the video who identified himself as Caguaripano was with a dozen others, people he identified as soldiers from the 41st Brigade of Fort Paramacay in the city of Valencia. "I am joined here by officers and troops from this glorious unit who represent the real Venezuelan army, that has fought to forge our liberty," Caguaripano said in a video on social media.

The move, Caguaripano said in the video, was not a "coup."

"It is a civic and military action meant to reestablish the constitutional order and, more importantly, to save the country from its total destruction and to keep our young people and families from being murdered," he said.

But Padrino said Caguaripano was a "first lieutenant who had deserted his post," and those involved in the attack had been "repelled immediately."

Privately-owned online news channel Vivo Play broadcast video from outside the Fort Paramacay showing tanks moving inside the base and helicopters surrounding it. There were news images in Valencia of a barricade set by anti-government activists in flames.

North Korea vows to 'make the US pay dearly' as sanctions tighten

North Korea has accused the United States of "trying to drive the situation of the Korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war" after the UN Security Council unanimously adopted new sanctions Saturday in response to Pyongyang's long-range ballistic missile tests last month.

The measures aim to make it harder for North Korea to make money across the globe. They target North Korea's primary exports -- including coal, iron and seafood -- and attempt to cut off its additional revenue streams by targeting some of its banks and joint ventures with foreign companies.

The forceful comments, made in a statement released via the country's permanent mission to the United Nations Monday, condemned the sanctions in the "strongest terms" declaring the resolution a "wanton infringement upon the sovereignty of the country."

Speaking at the ASEAN Regional Forum on Monday, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho blamed the US for the current situation on the Korean Peninsula and said Pyongyang's "possession of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles is a legitimate option for self-defence in the face of a clear and real nuclear threat posed by the US."

"We will, under no circumstances, put the nukes and ballistic rockets on the negotiating table," Ri said, adding Pyongyang would "teach the US a severe lesson" if it used military force against North Korea.

North Korea's state-run KCNA news agency said the country's missile launches were a "stern warning to the US," and warned Washington against "believing that its land is safe across the ocean."

"(North Korea) will make the US pay dearly for all the heinous crimes it commits against the state and people of this country," KCNA said.

UN Ambassador Nikki Haley: 'We're prepared to do whatever it takes' on North Korea

US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley called newly approved sanctions on North Korea "a gut punch" to that country Saturday and warned of possible military action should the regime continue its aggressions.

"What I will tell you from the United States' perspective, we're prepared to do whatever it takes to defend ourselves and defend our allies," Haley told CNN's Ana Cabrera. "The ball is in North Korea's court. They now have to decide where they want to go from here. We hope that they will go the route of peace and security."

Haley pushed back on the notion that the Trump administration has presented inconsistent messaging about dealing with North Korea.

"I think the administration has said and will continue to say that North Korea has acted recklessly, irresponsibly, and it has to stop," Haley said. "We have tried to say multiple times that all options are on the table."The UN Security Council unanimously voted to impose wide-ranging sanctions against North Korea on Saturday for its continued intercontinental ballistic missile testing and violations of other UN resolutions. The sanctions resolution targets North Korea's primary exports, including coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood. The sanctions also target other revenue streams, such as banks and joint ventures with foreign companies.

Haley praised the unanimous vote on the resolution, saying that the UN "spoke with one voice."

"To have China stand with us, along with Japan and (South Korea) and the rest of the international community telling North Korea to do this, it's pretty impactful," Haley said. "This was a strong day in the UN, it was a strong day for the United States and it was a strong day for the international community. It was not a good day for North Korea."

When asked about the effectiveness of another set of sanctions -- those against Russia that President Donald Trump signed into law Wednesday -- Haley said "we'll have to wait and see."

"We should always be hard on any country that tries to meddle in our elections, whether it's Russia or anyone else," she said. Haley noted that Russia was part of the Security Council negotiations, adding that she hoped "their days of meddling in elections are over."

Trump has often taken to Twitter to voice his thoughts about other nations, tweeting Thursday that the United States' "relationship with Russia is at an all-time & very dangerous low." But when asked about this sort of "Twitter diplomacy," Haley said she has not received complaints.

"I have not had one country complain to me about the President's tweets," she told Cabrera. "This is a president who communicates through Twitter as much as he communicates through anything else. The countries pay attention."

"Never have they complained because, to them, they know where he stands and what he stands for," Haley said.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson reflects on another 'missed opportunity' after finishing empty handed

wait goes on. Three successive years a medal candidate and three successive years a disappointment.

It begs the question: What will it take for her to make good on her abundant talent?

The problem at these London World Championships on Sunday was that the ship had long ago sailed. It was not even lunchtime on day one of the heptathlon when a nightmare high jump – her favourite event – had put paid to her podium hopes.

Two years ago in Beijing it had been a horrifying long jump and last year in Rio it was the combined effect of two dismal throwing events.

No discernible pattern, but the same result – head in hands, forlorn look and an empty-handed departure. All the upheaval of relocating her life from Liverpool to a new training setup in southern France last winter for a fifth-place finish as Belgium’s Olympic champion Nafi Thiam ran away with the title.

Mr. & Mrs. A​' Ogie Alcasid and Regine Velasquez-Alcasid Set U.S. Tour Dates

Ogie Alcasid and Regine Velasquez-Alcasid are set to visit the U.S. this fall for their upcoming Mr. & Mrs. A Tourthrough California and New York.

One of the most influential power couples in the Philippine entertainment industry will kick off the run of shows at Pittsburg, California's Pittsburg High School on Oct. 29 and will conclude at the Los Angeles Theatre on Nov. 12 with a setlist of your favorite love songs and the couple's greatest hits.

Widely known as Asia's Songbird, Regine Velasquez-Alcasid is hailed as the Philippines' best-selling artist of all-time by the Philippine Association of the Record Industry, selling over 7 million units locally and another 2 million across Asia.

Before pursuing multiple philanthropic and business projects, Ogie Alcasid launched his music career as a balladeer in 1989 with his self-titled album, which reached gold status. He later turned to television as an actor, comedian, parodist and host. Ogie and Regine married in 2010.

Bobby Sticks It to Trump

WASHINGTON — As we contemplate crime and punishment in the Trump circle, it should be noted that our Russia-besotted president does share some traits with Dostoyevsky’s spiraling protagonist, Rodion Raskolnikov.

Both men are naifs who arrive and think they have the right to transgress. Both are endlessly fascinating psychological studies: self-regarding, with Napoleon-style grandiosity, and self-incriminating. Both are consumed with chaotic, feverish thoughts as they are pursued by a relentless, suspicious lawman.

But it is highly doubtful that Melania will persuade Donald to confess all to special counsel Robert Mueller III and slink off to Siberia.

We are in for an epic clash between two septuagenarians who both came from wealthy New York families and attended Ivy League schools but couldn’t be more different — the flamboyant flimflam man and the buttoned-down, buttoned-up boy scout. (And we know the president has no idea how to talk to scouts appropriately.)

One has been called America’s straightest arrow. One disdains self-promotion and avoids the press. One married his sweetheart from school days. One was a decorated Marine in Vietnam. One counts patience, humility and honesty as the virtues he lives by and likes to say “You’re only as good as your word.”Trump biographer Michael D’Antonio says the president has been lying reflexively since he was a kid bragging about home runs he didn’t hit. He gets warped satisfaction from making up stuff, like those calls from the head of the Boy Scouts and the president of Mexico that the White House just admitted never happened.Back when he was a Page Six playboy, Trump even invented two P.R. guys to play on the phone with reporters, so he could boast about himself three times as much, including fictitious claims of dating Carla Bruni and being hit on by Madonna.

He is never deterred by the fact that he can be easily caught. But considering he survived the “Access Hollywood” video, it’s no wonder he has a distorted sense of what is an existential threat.Going hammer and tong after hammer and sickle, Mueller has crossed Trump’s Red Line, using multiple grand juries and issuing subpoenas in a comprehensive inquiry covering not only possible campaign collusion but also business dealings by Trump and his associates with Russia. The Times reported Friday that Mueller’s investigators had asked the White House for documents related to Michael Flynn.

A White House adviser told me recently about how scary Mueller’s dream team is, and how Jared Kushner should be nervous. Every time Mueller adds a legal celebrity to his crew, the music gets cued for an “Ocean’s Eleven” or “Dirty Dozen” array of talent. One lawyer helped destroy the New York City mafia; another helped bring down Nixon; another tackled Enron; others are experts on foreign bribery and witness-flipping. As GQ’s Jay Willis wrote, “If these people were coming for you over a parking ticket, you’d be thinking about liquidating your life savings.”

Even before his panting, bodice-ripper of a report came out, Ken Starr was getting dismissed as a partisan Javert. He’s still risible, warning Mueller on CNN Friday that “we do not want investigators and prosecutors out on a fishing expedition.” You know you’re in trouble when Mr. Rod & Reel warns you about going fishing.

Mueller is taken seriously as Mr. Clean Marine, a Republican willing to stand on principle even against other Republicans, as when he and James Comey resisted W. on warrantless wiretapping. Mueller is seen as incorruptible, so his conclusions will most likely be seen as unimpeachable.

Trump does not yet seem to fathom that Mueller is empowered in a way no one else is to look at all sorts of things. This isn’t some tiff over a casino, where Trump can publicly berate opposing counsel and draw him into a public spat. Mueller won’t take the bait.

The Policies of White Resentment

White resentment put Donald Trump in the White House. And there is every indication that it will keep him there, especially as he continues to transform that seething, irrational fear about an increasingly diverse America into policies that feed his supporters’ worst racial anxieties.

If there is one consistent thread through Mr. Trump’s political career, it is his overt connection to white resentment and white nationalism. Mr. Trump’s fixation on Barack Obama’s birth certificate gave him the white nationalist street cred that no other Republican candidate could match, and that credibility has sustained him in office — no amount of scandal or evidence of incompetence will undermine his followers’ belief that he, and he alone, could Make America White Again.

The guiding principle in Mr. Trump’s government is to turn the politics of white resentment into the policies of white rage — that calculated mechanism of executive orders, laws and agency directives that undermines and punishes minority achievement and aspiration. No wonder that, even while his White House sinks deeper into chaos, scandal and legislative mismanagement, Mr. Trump’s approval rating among whites (and only whites) has remained unnaturally high. Washington may obsess over Obamacare repeal, Russian sanctions and the debt ceiling, but Mr. Trump’s base sees something different — and, to them, inspiring.

Like on Christmas morning, every day brings his supporters presents: travel bans against Muslims, Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Hispanic communities and brutal, family-gutting deportations, a crackdown on sanctuary cities, an Election Integrity Commission stacked with notorious vote suppressors, announcements of a ban on transgender personnel in the military, approval of police brutality against “thugs,” a denial of citizenship to immigrants who serve in the armed forces and a renewed war on drugs that, if it is anything like the last one, will single out African-Americans and Latinos although they are not the primary drug users in this country. Last week, Mr. Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions put the latest package under the tree: a staffing call for a case on reverse discrimination in college admissions, likely the first step in a federal assault on affirmative action and a determination to hunt for colleges and universities that discriminate against white applicants.

That so many of these policies are based on perception and lies rather than reality is nothing new. White resentment has long thrived on the fantasy of being under siege and having to fight back, as the mass lynchings and destruction of thriving, politically active black communities in Colfax, La. (1873), Wilmington, N.C. (1898), Ocoee, Fla. (1920), and Tulsa, Okla. (1921), attest. White resentment needs the boogeyman of job-taking, maiden-ravaging, tax-evading, criminally inclined others to justify the policie

The last half-century hasn’t changed that. The war on drugs, for example, branded African-Americans and Latinos as felons, which stripped them of voting rights and access to housing and education just when the civil rights movement had pushed open the doors to those opportunities in the United States.

Similarly, the intensified war on immigrants comes, not coincidentally, at the moment when Latinos have gained visible political power, asserted their place in American society and achieved greater access to schools and colleges. The ICE raids have terrorized these communities, led to attendance drop-offs in schools and silenced many from even seeking their legal rights when abused.

Trump 'not discussing' firing Mueller as Russia pressure mounts – Conway

Senior White House adviser Kellyanne Conway refused on Sunday to say if Donald Trump will commit to not firing Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating links between Trump aides and Russia who has empanelled a grand jury in Washington.

One of four senators who have introduced legislation to protect the former FBI director, meanwhile, said his firing “would be crossing a big line” and would likely see his immediate reinstatement by Congress.

Conway appeared on ABC’s This Week. “The president has not even discussed that,” she said. “He’s not discussing firing Bob Mueller. We are complying and cooperating ...”

Host George Stephanopoulos then interjected: “But will he commit not to fire him?”

“He’s not discussed firing Bob Mueller,” Conway said.

“That’s not what I’m asking,” Stephanopoulos said.He’s not discussed firing Bob Mueller,” Conway said.

“That’s not what I’m asking,” Stephanopoulos said.

“Hold on,” said Conway, “I’m not the president’s lawyer here. But I will tell you as his counsellor he is not discussing that.

“You have to listen to his special counsel Ty Cobb who works in the White House now, and he said very clear this week that we will continue to cooperate with Bob Mueller and his investigation even though … many of [Mueller’s team] are Democratic donors, but we’ll continue to co-operate and comply.”

In June a close associate of Trump, Newsmax chief executive Chris Ruddy, told PBS the president was considering firing Mueller.

Conway also said investigations into Trump and Russia were “a completely false and fabricated lie” and said: “But so far you’ve got … no collusion. And anybody who denies that is lying.”

UN imposes tough new sanctions on North Korea

The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions Saturday to punish North Korea for its escalating nuclear and missile programs including a ban on coal and other exports worth over $1 billion — a huge bite in its total exports, valued at $3 billion last year.

U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley called the resolution "the single largest economic sanctions package ever leveled against the North Korean regime" and "the most stringent set of sanctions on any country in a generation."

But she warned that it is not enough and "we should not fool ourselves into thinking we have solved the problem — not even close."

"The threat of an outlaw nuclearized North Korean dictatorship remains ... (and) is rapidly growing more dangerous," Haley told council members after the vote.

The U.S.-drafted resolution, negotiated with North Korea's neighbor and ally China, is aimed at increasing economic pressure on Pyongyang to return to negotiations on its nuclear and missile programs — a point stressed by all 15 council members in speeches after the vote.

The Security Council has already imposed six rounds of sanctions that have failed to halt North Korea's drive to improve its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons capabilities.

The resolution's adoption follows North Korea's first successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the United States on July 3 and July 27.

It condemns the launches "in the strongest terms" and reiterates previous calls for North Korea to suspend all ballistic missile launches and abandon its nuclear weapons and nuclear program "in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner."

The centerpiece is a ban on North Korea exports of coal, iron, lead and seafood products — and a ban on all countries importing these products, estimated to be worth over $1 billion in hard currency.

The resolution also bans countries from giving any additional permits to North Korean laborers — another source of money for Kim Jong Un's regime. And it prohibits all new joint ventures with North Korean companies and bans new foreign investment in existing ones.

It adds nine North Koreans, mainly officials or representatives of companies and banks, to the U.N. sanctions blacklist, banning their travel and freezing their assets. It also imposes an asset freeze on two companies and two banks.

A Security Council diplomat, who was not authorized to speak publicly and insisted on anonymity, called the newly sanctioned Foreign Trade Bank "a very critical clearing house for foreign exchange."

The Mansudae Overseas Project Group of Companies, which was also added to the blacklist, is described in the resolution as engaged in exporting workers for construction, including of monuments, in Africa and Southeast Asia.

The resolution asks the Security Council committee monitoring sanctions against North Korea to ban the import of many more so-called dual-use items, which have commercial purposes but can also be used in conventional, biological, chemical or nuclear weapons.

It also gives the committee a green light to designate specific vessels that are breaking sanctions from entering ports all over the world and to work with Interpol to enforce travel bans on North Koreans on the sanctions blacklist.

The resolution expresses regret at North Korea's "massive diversion of its scarce resources toward its development of nuclear weapons and a number of expensive ballistic missile programs" — a point stressed by Haley.

It notes U.N. findings that well over half the population lacks sufficient food and medical care, while a quarter suffers from chronic malnutrition.

"These sanctions will cut deep, and in doing so will give the North Korean leadership a taste of the deprivations they have chosen to inflict on the North Korean people," Haley said. "Revenues aren't going toward feeding its people. Instead, the North Korean regime is literally starving its people and enslaving them in mines and factories in order to fund these illegal missile programs."

Though the economic sanctions have teeth, Washington didn't get everything it wanted.

In early July, Haley told the Security Council that if it was united, the international community could cut off major sources of hard currency to North Korea, restrict oil to its military and weapons programs, increase air and maritime restrictions and hold senior officials accountable.

Neither oil nor new air restrictions are included in the resolution.

Its adoption follows U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's comments Wednesday reassuring North Korea that Washington is not seeking regime change or an accelerated reunification of the Korean Peninsula — comments welcomed by China's foreign minister.

China's U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi said the Chinese government hopes the United States will translate these commitments "into concrete policies" toward North Korea.

Tillerson also said the United States wants to talk eventually with North Korea but thinks discussions would not be productive if Pyongyang comes with the intention of maintaining its nuclear weapons.

North Korea has repeatedly said it will never give up its nuclear arsenal, which it sees as a guarantee of its security.

The resolution reiterates language from previous ones supporting a return to six-party talks with the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula; expressing the Security Council's commitment "to a peaceful, diplomatic and political solution to the situation"; and stressing the importance of maintaining peace and stability in northeast Asia.

Liu said "China has been making tireless efforts to promote denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to uphold peace and stability" and will keep working to convince other governments to support its suspension-for-suspension proposal.

Under the proposal and a roadmap supported by Russia, North Korea would suspend nuclear and missile tests in exchange for the U.S. and South Korea suspending their joint military exercises. It also includes security measures for both North Korea and South Korea leading to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

But Haley told the Security Council that U.S.-South Korean military exercises have been carried out regularly and openly for nearly 40 years and "they will continue."

Police send postcards with an edge to Europe’s most wanted Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/08/police-send-postcards-edge-europes-wanted/

European police forces are sending a series of cheeky “wish you were here” postcards this summer in a bid to track down 21 of the continent’s most wanted criminals. “Dear Artur, Belgian fries are the best and we know you miss them. Come back to enjoy them – we’ll have a nice surprise in store for you,” says one postcard from the Belgian police. 
Complete with a cartoon of the Manneken Pis, a bunch of fries and a glass of beer, the card is addressed to Artur Nawrocki, who is on the run after being convicted of drugs trafficking by a Brussels court in 2014. The summer postcard campaign by the European police agency, Europol, was unveiled Friday on its EU Most Wanted website as part of its ongoing initiative to hunt down Europe’s most wanted criminals. People can click on the postcard, which will then link them to the name and picture of the wanted person. “Cher Farouk, You must know that life is best in la douce France. We hope you will return to us soon,” says the card from the French police, adding in French “we miss you!” The picture shows the Eiffel Tower, a man in striped T-shirt and neck-scarf brandishing a baguette next to a croissant and a bottle of red wine, and is addressed to Farouk Hachi. He was sentenced in absentia in 2009 to 20 years in jail for several violent, armed bank robberies and is believed to have lived in France, Belgium and The Netherlands. Behind the humourous campaign though is a serious aim to drive people to the Europol website in the hope of tracking down criminals wanted for serious, violent crimes or sexual offences. “While most of us are enjoying a well-deserved summer break, criminals are not taking time off from crime,” Europol said in a statement. “Holiday destinations have proven to be popular hiding places for criminals on the run.” Since the launch of the “most wanted” list on www.eumostwanted.eu in January 2016, a total of 36 people have been found and arrested — 11 of them as a direct result of information passed to Europol. After a similar “advent calendar” campaign, three people were arrested, one of them a Briton who was recognised as a server in an Amsterdam bar, Europol press officer Tine Hollevoet told AFP. “Dutch people saw the advent calendar, they went to the website, noticed the fugitive, and recognised him as somebody working in the sports bar. Two days later he was arrested,” she said. “And that’s exactly what we want with this campaign.” Even criminals like to go on holiday where “life is good… good weather, beaches, good food,” she added. And although there are no statistics, countries such as Spain, Turkey and Italy have in the past proved popular hiding places for those on the run.

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/08/police-send-postcards-edge-europes-wanted/

2,000 ISIS fighters to die in Raqqa – Pentagon Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/08/2000-isis-fighters-die-raqqa-pentagon/

The U.S. Department of Defense says no fewer than 2,000 fighters of Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) will die in the Syrian city of Raqqa in the ongoing efforts to liberate the city. Brett McGurk Special Envoy to President Donald Trump for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS, Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS, said on Friday, according to Pentagon.

McGurk said “we estimate there are about 2,000 ISIS fighters left in Raqqa, and they will most likely die in Raqqa,” he said. The presidential envoy said that the mission against ISIS was “a campaign of annihilation”. “We make sure that before we do a military operation, we actually surround the enemy so that foreign fighters in particular cannot escape. “Every foreign fighter that made his way into Syria and Iraq, we want to make sure that they can never make their way out of Syria and Iraq,” he said. McGurk said that the gains against the terrorist organisation in recent months were due to some changes the coalition of countries fighting to defeat ISIS had made in the campaign. “And we are going to continue to accelerate the pressure on ISIS until this entire organisation collapses and they cannot hold any physical territory from which they can threaten us,” he pledged. The counter-ISIS aide regretted that the ISIS fighters on the ground were using the civilians “as their own shields” and “as their own hostages”. “They are using snipers to kill civilians who are trying to escape. “They’re trying to put suicide bombers in columns of displaced people as they try to get out – the similar tactics we’ve seen from this barbaric terrorist organisation in other cities.” According to him, an estimated 200 billion dollars is needed to rebuild the war-torn Syria. “By World Bank estimates, more than 200 billion dollars is needed to reconstruct Syria. It’s probably many multiples of that, and the international community is not going to come to the aid of Syria until there is a credible political horizon that can lead to a credible transition in Damascus. “That is the reality. So we are working through this two-phase structure and are very committed to that roadmap that is outlined in UN Security Council Resolution 2254,” he said.

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/08/2000-isis-fighters-die-raqqa-pentagon/

Apple 'working on non-iPhone Apple Watch'

Apple is working on an Apple Watch that does not need to be paired to an iPhone, according to a report.

Bloomberg reports that the new Watch will connect directly to LTE mobile networks.

The company has begun talks with providers in the US and Europe about offering the device later this year, the report says.

Apple launched the Watch in 2015 but is yet to share any sales figures.

In a recent call to investors, Apple boss Tim Cook said his firm's watch was the best-selling smartwatch in the world.

But in the wider wearables market, Apple lags behind Chinese firm Xiaomi and San Francisco-based Fitbit, according to Strategy Analytics.

Intel modem

While originally positioned as a luxury device, Apple has more recently focused on the fitness credentials of the Watch.

Untethering it from the iPhone would open up a range of new functionality - such as allowing users to download songs on the move, even if they do not have their smartphone with them.

"Apple clearly has big plans for Watch both in the health segment and as a gateway to the connected home,” said Carolina Milanesi, consumer tech analyst at Creative Strategies.

"Direct network connection helps in both making sharing data more reliable and faster."

However, there will be concern about the battery life of the device. Most of the computational heavy-lifting on the current Apple Watch is done via the paired iPhone.

According to Bloomberg’s report, the new device’s modem will be manufactured by Intel.

The device would come on to the market several years after Apple rivals Samsung and LG launched their own cellular-enabled smart watches. However such devices have tended to be too large to gain any kind of mainstream popularity.

Apple did not respond to the BBC’s request for comment on Friday.