| Iran steps further from nuke deal, adding pressure on Europe Posted: 07 Jul 2019 04:00 PM PDT  Iran increased its uranium enrichment Sunday beyond the limit allowed by its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, inching its program closer toward weapons-grade levels while calling for a diplomatic solution to a crisis heightening tensions with the U.S. Iran's move, coupled with earlier abandoning the deal's limit on its low-enriched uranium stockpile, intensifies pressure on Europe to find any effective way around U.S. sanctions that block Tehran's oil sales abroad. While Iran's recent measures could be easily reversed, Europe has struggled to respond, even after getting a 60-day warning that the increase was coming.
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| The Latest: Trump warns Iran to be careful on nuke issues Posted: 07 Jul 2019 03:56 PM PDT  President Donald Trump is issuing a warning to Iran after its announcement that it has increased its uranium enrichment above the limit set by the nuclear deal that Tehran signed with world powers in 2015.
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| Venezuela’s Next Round of Talks With Opposition Set for Barbados Posted: 07 Jul 2019 03:49 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- A third round of negotiations between Venezuela's government and the opposition will take place in Barbados, according to an emailed statement from National Assembly head Juan Guaido's office.The new exploratory talks seek to end a bitter clash between Nicolas Maduro, who has been accused of stealing his last election, and Guaido, who says he is the country's rightful leader. Prior negotiations had taken place in Oslo."We don't have unlimited time, every day our situation is becoming worse," according to the statement from Guaido, recognized by about 50 nations including the U.S. as the leader of the country. "Venezuelans, our allies and the world's democracies recognize the need to hold truly free and transparent elections."While the statement didn't mention a specific date, a person familiar with the conversations said they are scheduled to start Monday. Venezuela's Information Ministry didn't respond immediately to a request for comment.While Guaido's envoys will push for new elections in the talks, there are divisions within the opposition on whether Maduro can still be in power for a vote to take place.The European Union's special adviser on Venezuela, Enrique Iglesias, is set to visit the country next week. A United Nations report last week called for the Venezuelan government to take "immediate, concrete measures to halt and remedy the grave violations" of economic, social and civil rights.\--With assistance from Alex Vasquez.To contact the reporter on this story: Patricia Laya in Caracas at playa2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Daniel Cancel at dcancel@bloomberg.net, Kevin Miller, Linus ChuaFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Iran set to exceed nuclear deal uranium enrichment cap Posted: 07 Jul 2019 03:33 PM PDT  Iran said Sunday it was set to breach the uranium enrichment cap set by an endangered nuclear deal within hours as it seeks to press other parties into keeping their side of the bargain. The Islamic republic also threatened to abandon more commitments unless a solution is found with the remaining parties to the landmark 2015 agreement after Washington unilaterally pulled out. The 2015 deal was reached between Iran and six world powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, the United States and Russia -- and saw Tehran agree to drastically scale down its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
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| U.K. to Probe Leak of Envoy’s Memos Calling Trump ‘Inept’ Posted: 07 Jul 2019 03:01 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- The U.K. Foreign Office is investigating a leak of memos in which the British ambassador to the U.S. described President Donald Trump and his administration in unflattering terms, an official with the agency said.Kim Darroch, a career diplomat who's been his country's top representative in Washington since 2016, described Trump as "inept" and "incompetent," among other things, in diplomatic cables and briefing notes to his bosses, the Mail on Sunday reported.Trump, speaking Sunday to reporters as he departed Morristown, New Jersey, for Washington, said "we're not big fans of that man, and he has not served the U.K. well." The president added that "I can say things about him but I won't bother."Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who's currently vying to become U.K. prime minister, sought to distance himself from the sentiment expressed in the ambassador's cables, telling ITV News that Darroch had offered "a personal view."A Foreign Office spokeswoman earlier described the leaks as "mischievous behavior" and said that diplomats are paid to be candid.The newspaper reported that Darroch described the current White House as "uniquely dysfunctional" and given to "knife fights."Darroch, 65, is a former national security adviser to the U.K. government.In the memos, which were seen by the Mail on Sunday, Darroch didn't rule out Trump being indebted to "dodgy Russians," yet said that the president had frequently overcome a life "mired by scandal."Trump may "emerge from the flames, battered but intact, like [Arnold] Schwarzenegger in the final scenes of 'The Terminator,'" Darroch wrote, according to the newspaper. "Do not write him off."The leak comes after Trump traveled to the U.K. in early June to meet Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Theresa May, a visit in which he was treated to a state dinner. Darroch said Trump and his team had been "dazzled" by the pomp and circumstance surrounding the visit but remained self-interested.The Foreign Office didn't deny the accuracy of the memos. A spokeswoman said in a statement that "we pay them to be candid. Just as the U.S. ambassador here will send back his reading of Westminster politics and personalities."Hunt said Sunday that Darroch's assessments were "not the views of the British government, they are not my views and we continue to think that under President Trump, the U.S. administration is not just highly effective, but the best possible friend of the United Kingdom on the international stage."The response to Darroch's commentary cleaved along partisan lines. Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage, a close ally whom the president once said would make a "great" ambassador to the U.S., called the incumbent envoy "totally unsuitable for the job.""Experienced, capable and patriotic diplomats doing their jobs well by writing unvarnished analysis for their governments," political scientist Ian Bremmer, head of Eurasia Group, said on Twitter. "Farage wants him sacked; he'd rather be lied to."(Updates with Trump comments in third paragraph.)To contact the reporters on this story: Ros Krasny in Washington at rkrasny1@bloomberg.net;Kitty Donaldson in London at kdonaldson1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: James Ludden at jludden@bloomberg.net, ;Kevin Miller at kmiller@bloomberg.net, Mark NiquetteFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Iranian scientists accused of violating US sanctions Posted: 07 Jul 2019 01:14 PM PDT  When a respected Iranian scientist left Tehran bound for the U.S. last fall, he had plans to complete the final stage of his research on treating stroke patients as a visiting scholar at the prestigious Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Instead, when professor Masoud Soleimani touched down on U.S. soil, federal authorities armed with a secret indictment arrested him on charges that he had violated trade sanctions by trying to have biological material brought to Iran. Nine months later, as tensions escalate between the two countries, Soleimani sits in a detention center just south of Atlanta embroiled in a legal fight over the application of sweeping U.S. sanctions that have caused prices to skyrocket in Iran.
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| Mali PM vows heightened security in restive central region Posted: 07 Jul 2019 11:39 AM PDT  Mali Prime Minister Boubou Cisse on Sunday ended a five-day tour of the restive central region where he has vowed to beef up security, days after the UN humanitarian coordinator decried the "drastic toll" from violence there. Despite military help from France and the United Nations, Mali's government is struggling to calm violence that began in the north of the country in 2012, sparked by radical Islamist and Tuareg militias. Ethnic violence in central Mali surged after a predominantly Fulani jihadist group led by preacher Amadou Koufa emerged in 2015.
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| Top Secret: We Can Now Show You Inside the Cockpit of a B-2 Stealth Bomber Posted: 07 Jul 2019 11:00 AM PDT  For the first time in the 30-year history of the Air Force's B-2 stealth bomber program, video footage recently filmed in a B-2A "Spirit" stealth bomber cockpit while in flight is available for viewing at Defense News. Additional footage of the B-2 cockpit in-flight, as well as cockpit photographs are also available at JeffBolton.org.A product of Dallas-based film producer and radio personality Jeff Bolton, the historic video in this post shows the full array of instrumentation in this technological wonder, as well as a dramatic in-flight refueling from inside the cockpit of America's most secret aerial weapon. The B-2 stealth bomber deploys internationally, and also flies up to 44-hour round trip missions around the world from its home base at Whiteman Air Force Base (AFB) in Missouri. "In an era of rising tensions between global nuclear powers – the United States, China, Russia, and North Korea – this timely video of is a vivid reminder of the B-2's unique capabilities," said producer Jeff Bolton, "No other stealth bombers are known to exist in the world."
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| Organs of executed prisoners in Iran could be sold under new law Posted: 07 Jul 2019 10:36 AM PDT  A new law in Iran could see the organs of convicts on death row pre-sold to buyers if the prisoners agree before their executions. Reports suggested that under the new head of the Iranian judiciary, Ebrahim Raeesi, an article in the criminal justice laws has been included which says: "If a convict voluntarily offers his or her organ before or after execution and no medical obstacle is offered, then the judge can approve this in coordination with the ministry of justice and the coroners' office." Iran's Association of Surgeons has strongly condemned the move, describing it as "extremely worrying, damaging to our profession and the prestige of Iran in the eyes of the civilised world". Professor Ali Jafarian of the liver transplant unit at Khomeini hospital in Tehran, who is also a member of the American Society of Transplantation, told the semi-official ISNA news agency that no specialist surgeon in Iran would be prepared to follow the law as "it is immoral and against all the values of our profession". "Anyone sentenced to death would not be in a right frame of mind to 'voluntarily' offer their organs, unless they are forced to do so under immense pressure," Dr Jafarian said. "Members of our association of surgeon will never abide by this law." There is a huge market in Iran for organ transplants due to the vast number of the country's kidney, heart and liver patients. Thousands of people from Arab countries also visit Iran specifically for this purpose, spending millions of pounds at Iran's private clinics. It is legal to sell organs in Iran. According to Mrs. Katayoun Najafizadeh, the head of Iran's Organ Donations Society, currently more than 25,000 Iranian patients are waiting to receive a transplant, but last year only 926 organs, mainly from victims of car crashes, were made available to the country's specialist hospitals. The shortage has led to the emergence of an illicit market where many poor people openly advertise the sale of one of their kidneys to those in need for as little as £200. The only country in the world that used the organs of executed prisoners in this way was China, which banned the practice in 2015, although reports suggest that organs continue to be harvested.
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| Reports: Syrian president replaces security chiefs Posted: 07 Jul 2019 08:55 AM PDT ![Reports: Syrian president replaces security chiefs]( "Reports: Syrian president replaces security chiefs") Syrian President Bashar Assad has replaced some heads of influential security agencies, including Maj. Gen. Jamil Hassan, who has headed the powerful Air Force Intelligence Directorate since 2009, pro-government Syrian pages on social media reported Sunday. No reason was given for the shake-up, which came as government forces have made little progress in a two-month-old offensive against rebels in the northwestern Idlib province despite recapturing wide areas of the country in recent years. There was no immediate confirmation from the government or state media, which rarely report news related to intelligence agencies.
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| Leaking of UK ambassador memos branding Trump White House ‘inept’ investigated by Foreign Office Posted: 07 Jul 2019 08:38 AM PDT  The UK government has launched an investigation into who leaked to the media diplomatic memos from the UK ambassador in Washington.A Foreign Office spokesperson told The Independent a "formal leak investigation will now be initiated" after the Mail on Sunday obtained the highly sensitive documents in which Sir Kim Darroch called the Trump White House "uniquely dysfunctional" and questioned whether it "will ever look competent". In one scathing assessment, he wrote: "We don't really believe this administration is going to become substantially more normal; less dysfunctional; less unpredictable; less faction riven; less diplomatically clumsy and inept."The top diplomat also suggested that in order to communicate with the US president "you need to make your points simple, even blunt".Although likely to prove highly embarrassing for the government, the Foreign Office defended Sir Kim's comments as an "honest, unvarnished" assessment of politics in the US. "Their views are not necessarily the views of ministers or indeed the government. But we pay them to be candid. Just as the US ambassador here will send back his reading of Westminster politics and personalities," a spokesperson said."Of course we would expect such advice to be handled by ministers and civil servants in the right way, and it's important that our ambassadors can offer their advice and for it remain confidential. "Our team in Washington have strong relations with the White House and no doubt ... these will withstand such mischievous behaviour." Tom Tugendhat, chair of the foreign affairs select committee, had earlier called for a probe and said whoever was responsible for the "very serious breach" should be prosecuted.The Conservative MP also defended Sir Kim, telling BBC Radio 4's World at One the job of an ambassador was to "represent the interests and wishes of the British people" and that "diplomats must be able to communicate securely".Justice secretary David Guake branded the leaks "disgraceful" and said the ambassador was correct to offer his "unvarnished advice" to government. Nigel Farage, the Brexit Party leader and friend of Donald Trump, tweeted the leak showed Sir Kim was "totally unsuitable for the job".Following Mr Trump's state visit to the UK in June, Sir Kim warned that although the president had been "dazzled" by the pomp and ceremony of the trip, his administration would remain self-interested and "this is still the land of America First".In one of the most recent documents, Sir Kim referred to "incoherent, chaotic" US policy on Iran and questions Mr Trump's publicly stated reason for calling off a retaliatory air strike against Tehran following the downing of an American drone.The US and Iran have been at the brink of armed conflict over tensions in the Gulf, and Mr Trump stated that he called off a planned air strike with minutes to spare because of the potentially high number of casualties.But Sir Kim said that the explanation "doesn't stand up", and suggested it may have been motivated by Mr Trump's focus on the 2020 re-election campaign and his previous promises not to involve the US in foreign conflicts."It's more likely that he was never fully on board and that he was worried about how this apparent reversal of his 2016 campaign promises would look come 2020," Sir Kim said.He said it was "unlikely that US policy on Iran is going to become more coherent any time soon" as "this is a divided administration".In a particularly sensitive leak, a 2017 letter to the National Security Adviser Sir Mark Sedwill – sent 150 days into the Trump administration – laid bare the trouble in the White House.Media reports of "vicious infighting and chaos" were "mostly true" despite the president's attempts to brush them off.Referring to the early allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, the memo said "the worst cannot be ruled out". An investigation by Robert Mueller published earlier this year cleared Mr Trump of collusion, but not of obstruction of justice.Additional reporting by PA
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| Jordanian PM: Economic plan no substitute for Mideast peace Posted: 07 Jul 2019 07:40 AM PDT ![Jordanian PM: Economic plan no substitute for Mideast peace]( "Jordanian PM: Economic plan no substitute for Mideast peace") Jordan's prime minister says an economic deal cannot be a substitute for a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, echoing concerns by critics of the U.S. peace summit in Bahrain last month. Prime Minister Omar Razzaz said Sunday that the "road to peace is clear" and must be based upon the creation of an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. In Bahrain, the U.S. promoted its plan calling for $50 billion of investment in Palestinian areas and neighboring Arab countries.
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| Chinese tourists look on in amazement as Hong Kong street protesters march through city Posted: 07 Jul 2019 06:59 AM PDT  Protesters in Hong Kong took their message to a new audience on Sunday – mainland Chinese tourists – as coverage of the anti-government movement have been heavily censored by Beijing authorities. Thousands marched peacefully through popular tourist areas, snarling traffic in main thoroughfares, in the first major demonstration since Monday, when a small group of protesters seized the city's legislature. A traveling band sang songs and hit drums, lifting spirits along the roughly two-mile route, and chanting slogans: "Hong Kong people, add oil!" . Organisers said about 230,000 turned out for the protests, though police said the turnout was 56,000 at its peak. Many chatted with mainland Chinese tourists, explaining freedoms enjoyed in Hong Kong, a former colony whose freedoms are guaranteed in the Sino-British Joint Declaration, an agreement that went into effect when the British handed the territory back to Beijing. Others detailed why controversy erupted over an extradition proposal that would send suspects to face trial in China, where the ruling Communist Party largely controls the courts. State media coverage of the protests that have roiled Hong Kong for a month – ending in police spraying tear gas and firing rubber bullets – has been heavily restricted in China, largely focused on condemning demonstrators for engaging in violent clashes with the police. Beijing authorities have also said little, scolding the UK and other countries that have urged the government to uphold its end of the Joint Declaration for meddling in Chinese affairs. Censors in China routinely heavily control everything from news to movies available inside the mainland. Waves of people out on the street confounded Chinese tourists, some of whom were visiting Hong Kong for the first time and had never seen a demonstration – ever. "I don't really understand the issue," said Miao Yiwen, 20, a university student, who arrived in Hong Kong two days ago and was reading a local newspaper on a street corner half a block from the protests. "When I arrived in Hong Kong, I learned that there would be an event here today, but I don't get what's going on. Why is everyone so easily excitable?" she said, as the sound of protesters chanting in unison rose into the air. Another visitor, Summer, 20, said it was "stupid" of Hong Kong people to organise such a demonstration. "If you do this – have a lot of people to come out to demonstrate – then for sure there will be some unforeseen impacts on the economy, on tourism," he said, declining to give a surname. He thought it would the demonstrations would leave a bad impression on foreigners, and dissuade others from visiting. Others were upset their travel plans had been upended - trains going between Hong Kong and mainland China were cancelled Sunday and some tour groups rescheduled their outings. Crowds swelled quickly as more joined along the way, quickly reaching the march's end point – a high-speed rail station that connects mainland China to Hong Kong. The rail station itself was a flashpoint when it opened last September – a physical sign of China encroaching on Hong Kong – mainland law applies to the station and passengers must go through Chinese immigration and customs inside. It's also part of the "Greater Bay Area" plan to better integrate Hong Kong with its neighbouring Chinese cities, feeding unease of those who fear greater mainland presence in the city. Other changes have been less visible, say residents, with many worried about how a broader crackdown in China against lawyers, activists, journalists and anyone who opposes the government might be felt in Hong Kong as Xi Jinping, the head of the Communist Party, has consolidated power in recent years. Ever since the pro-democracy protests in 2014 Umbrella Movement ended without any concessions by the government, the political environment has completely changed, said Jasmine Fung, 28. "Even today, people are pretty upset, and pretty disappointed at the government," said Ms Fung, an office worker. "People are asking now, 'if I say this out loud, will I get in trouble?" I can see this loss of freedom of speech." After much violence over the last month between police and demonstrators, those out on Sunday wanted to keep the peace. The most aggressive behaviour came from a handful of protesters cursing at the police, accusing them of being more committed to protecting the rail line – high barricades and rows of police surrounded the station – than the people. While Hong Kong's chief executive, Carrie Lam, has said the extradition bill will be suspended for the time being, protesters have continued to take to the streets to demand the full withdrawal of the bill, Ms Lam's resignation and for an independent investigation into police brutality. Protesters plan to keep coming out in force to show the government that they remain united in their demands. More demonstrations are planned for the coming week. "We must protect our freedom, our autonomy," said Thomas, 25, who declined to give a surname over fears of government backlash. "Otherwise we could lose it overnight."
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| Omani foreign minister makes rare visit to Syria Posted: 07 Jul 2019 06:55 AM PDT  Oman's foreign minister made a rare visit to Syria on Sunday to discuss with President Bashar Assad ways of restoring stability and security in the region. Oman is one of few Arab countries that kept normal relations with Damascus after Syria was suspended from the Arab League in 2011 over its crackdown on Arab Spring protests.
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| AP EXPLAINS: Iran's nuclear program as 2015 deal unravels Posted: 07 Jul 2019 06:29 AM PDT  Iran announced Sunday it will raise its enrichment of uranium, breaking another limit of its faltering 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and further heightening tensions between Tehran and the U.S. Iran made the decision a year after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal. Iran has repeatedly warned Europe in recent weeks that it would begin walking away from an accord neutered by a maximalist American campaign of sanctions that blocked Tehran's oil sales abroad and targeted its top officials.
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| US call for Syria troops divides German coalition Posted: 07 Jul 2019 06:13 AM PDT  Discord broke out in German Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling coalition Sunday, after the United States urged the country to send ground troops to Syria as Washington looks to withdraw from the region. "We want ground troops from Germany to partly replace our soldiers" in the area as part of the anti-Islamic State coalition, US special representative on Syria James Jeffrey had told German media including Die Welt newspaper. Jeffrey, who was visiting Berlin for Syria talks, added that he expects an answer this month.
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| Britain says Iran must stop and reverse its nuclear activities Posted: 07 Jul 2019 06:04 AM PDT ![Britain says Iran must stop and reverse its nuclear activities]( "Britain says Iran must stop and reverse its nuclear activities") Iran has broken the terms of its 2015 nuclear deal and must immediately stop and reverse its activities, a spokesman for Britain's Foreign Office said on Sunday. Iran said on Sunday it will boost its uranium enrichment in a few hours above a cap set by the nuclear deal, a move that could eventually culminate in the return of all international sanctions on Tehran. "Iran has broken the terms of the JCPoA," the Foreign Office spokesman said, refering to the deal's formal name, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
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| U.S. Push for German Ground Troops in Syria Prompts Backlash Posted: 07 Jul 2019 05:59 AM PDT ![U.S. Push for German Ground Troops in Syria Prompts Backlash]( "U.S. Push for German Ground Troops in Syria Prompts Backlash") (Bloomberg) -- A U.S. envoy asked Germany to consider sending ground troops to Syria, putting Chancellor Angela Merkel's government on the spot.While German soldiers wouldn't necessarily need to engage in combat, they could ease the burden on U.S. forces by helping with air support, logistics, training and technical assistance, James Jeffrey, the U.S. special representative for engagement in Syria, was quoted as saying by the Welt am Sonntag newspaper and DPA newswire.Germany, a prime target of President Donald Trump's calls for U.S. allies to increase defense spending, has pledged Tornado surveillance planes to the U.S.-led coalition to defeat Islamic State fighters in Syria. A change in the mandate would require approval by parliament, where Merkel would be likely to face opposition from parts of her coalition.Germany can't send soldiers to Syria for "legal reasons," Fritz Felgentreu, a senior Social Democratic lawmaker, told Die Welt newspaper. The Social Democrats are Merkel's junior coalition partner.Johann Wadephul, deputy caucus chief of Merkel's Christian Democratic-led party bloc, told DPA that Germany shouldn't reject the U.S. request out of hand.Trump said in December he'd withdraw military forces from Syria, declaring Islamic State defeated. The announcement led to concerns that the U.S. was leaving Kurdish allies vulnerable to attacks from Turkey. Trump later agreed to keep as many as 400 U.S. troops in the country after American military officials and members of Congress said a withdrawal was premature.Jeffrey said he discussed the U.S. request with German government officials and they are considering what they can do about it, Welt am Sonntag reported.To contact the reporter on this story: Mariajose Vera in Munich at mvera1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Edith Moy at echan10@bloomberg.net, Tony Czuczka, James LuddenFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Labour Must Speed Up Backing U.K. Staying in EU, McDonnell Says Posted: 07 Jul 2019 05:23 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Follow @Brexit on Twitter, join our Facebook group and sign up to our Brexit Bulletin.Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn should move more quickly to make remaining in the European Union the party's official position before a possible general election, Labour's treasury spokesman John McDonnell said.While Labour's deputy leader, Tom Watson, has for months been calling for the party to adopt the policy, or seek a second referendum, Corbyn has so-far refused to commit. Instead he favors pushing for an election and is seeking consensus from his party rank and file on Brexit ahead of the annual conference in late September. McDonnell wants to quickly implement a policy to distance Labour from the Conservatives, who are pushing to leave.With Conservative leadership front-runner Boris Johnson refusing to rule out leaving the EU without a deal and some members of Parliament vowing to stop him, there's a rising possibility of nationwide elections in September or October to break the deadlock. Labour's support base isn't united on whether to leave or remain."We haven't been able to get the deal we wanted so I would vote remain, I would want to campaign for remain," McDonnell told BBC TV. "We need to decide early and get on with it."Meanwhile Conservatives from different wings of the party played down the possibility of an election this fall, just two or three months after the new prime minister assumes office. Johnson supporter Dominic Raab told Sky an election would be "unlikely" while Justice Secretary David Gauke, who would not back a no-deal Brexit, told the BBC that if the party held elections before Brexit is resolved there would be a "ceiling" on its support.As 180,000 members of the Conservative Party start to return postal ballots deciding the party's next leader, Johnson insisted he's "not bluffing" about delivering a no-deal Brexit by Oct. 31. He told the Sunday Telegraph EU leaders "have to look deep into our eyes and think my God, these Brits are actually going to leave. And they're going to leave on those terms."Even if Johnson, or rival contender Jeremy Hunt, decides to pursue a no-deal Brexit if any further negotiations with the EU fail, British parliamentarians are examining ways to block it.Conservative Sam Gyimah, who supports holding a second referendum on Brexit, said there were 30 or more Conservative lawmakers who would back "legislative options" to avoid no-deal and look to "create options" so that "no deal isn't the only option we face on October 31." Separately Gauke agreed there are a "sizeable number" of MPs talking about options to block no-deal.His Tory colleague Dominic Grieve said he is examining ways of amending a bill on Northern Ireland to block no-deal, which is being debated in Parliament Monday."Northern Ireland and Brexit go very closely together," Grieve told BBC radio on Sunday. "The chances are that if Brexit goes through as no-deal Brexit, it's going to be the end of the Northern Ireland union with the United Kingdom, with serious political consequences flowing from it. So that's a bill which is a perfectly legitimate place to start looking at how one might make sure how a Brexit deal is fully debated before it takes place."To contact the reporter on this story: Kitty Donaldson in London at kdonaldson1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at tross54@bloomberg.net, James AmottFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Iran says it will increase uranium enrichment as nuclear deal unravels Posted: 07 Jul 2019 05:19 AM PDT  Iran said on Sunday it would begin enriching uranium past the level agreed in a rapidly disintegrating 2015 nuclear deal. "In a few hours the technical process will come to an end and the enrichment beyond 3.67% will begin," said Behrouz Kamalvandi, the spokesman for Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, in a news conference broadcast live. In May, exactly a year after the United States announced its withdrawal from the deal, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced Tehran's intentions to step up its production of enriched uranium past the limits agreed in the deal. The breach was confirmed a week ago when Iran said it had passed the 300kg cap on its enriched uranium stockpile. The latest development will see Iran begin enriching uranium past the 3.67% fissile material limit agreed in the 2015 pact. Mr Kamalvandi said the move was intended for the enrichment of uranium for use in its Bushehr power plant, to the level of 5%. "We are fully prepared to enrich uranium at any level and with any amount," he said. Before the deal, Iran was enriching uranium to 20%, still significantly below the approximately 90% required for the manufacture of nuclear weapons. During the conference, senior Iranian officials said that Tehran would continue to renege on its commitments in the deal every 60 days, unless the remaining signatories to the pact, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russia, took steps to protect the country from expanded U.S. sanctions. The recent steps by Tehran put the deal's European signatories in an increasingly difficult position. They could follow the US, which has taken an increasingly hard line with Iran since withdrawing from the deal, in imposing sanctions, but this would likely destroy the deal altogether. Or the European states could try to persuade Iran to return to compliance with the deal. So far they have pinned their hopes on Instex, a new financial mechanism designed to allow European businesses to circumvent U.S. sanctions and trade with Iran. While the mechanism went live last week, there is little sign it will provide the economic relief sought by Tehran. Despite the rising tensions, Iranian and European officials left the door open for a multilateral solution. Rouhani and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed on Saturday to discuss conditions to resume a dialogue on Iran's nuclear programme by July 15.
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| UPDATE 1-France says it will not launch dispute resolution for Iran nuclear deal Posted: 07 Jul 2019 05:02 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-France says it will not launch dispute resolution for Iran nuclear deal]( "UPDATE 1-France says it will not launch dispute resolution for Iran nuclear deal") The French government will not trigger the Iran nuclear deal's dispute resolution mechanism for now, instead giving itself one week to try to get all parties talking again after Iran decided to enrich uranium above limits agreed in 2015. The French president on Sunday condemned the Iranian announcement, saying the decision was a "violation" of the agreement reached between Iran and world powers in 2015 to curb uranium enrichment.
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| Pope Francis says attack at Libya migrant center intolerable Posted: 07 Jul 2019 04:03 AM PDT  Pope Francis has said that the international community shouldn't tolerate acts of violence like the air attack that recently struck a detention center for migrants in Libya. Francis prayed for the victims of the strike, which on Wednesday killed at least 44 people and wounded dozens, in what the U.N. said could amount to a war crime. The Libyan attack raised new questions about the European Union's policy of cooperating with the militias that hold migrants in crowded detention centers to prevent them from crossing the Mediterranean.
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| Iraqi forces begin operation against IS along Syrian border Posted: 07 Jul 2019 03:36 AM PDT ![Iraqi forces begin operation against IS along Syrian border]( "Iraqi forces begin operation against IS along Syrian border") Iraq's security and paramilitary forces began Sunday a military operation along the border with Syria aimed at clearing the area of Islamic State group militants, the military said in a statement. Although Iraq declared victory against IS in July 2017, the extremists have turned into an insurgency and have carried out deadly attacks in the country. The military said the operation that began at sunrise was being carried out by Iraqi troops and members of the Popular Mobilization Forces that largely consist of Iran-backed militias.
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| Iran says its measures to reduce commitment to nuclear deal "reversible" Posted: 07 Jul 2019 02:58 AM PDT ![Iran says its measures to reduce commitment to nuclear deal "reversible"]( "Iran says its measures to reduce commitment to nuclear deal \"reversible\"") All measures taken by Iran to scale back its commitments to a 2015 nuclear deal were "reversible" if the European signatories of the pact fulfilled their obligations, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted on Sunday. Iran said on Sunday it is fully prepared to enrich uranium at any level and with any amount, in further defiance of U.S. efforts to squeeze the country with sanctions and force it to renegotiate the nuclear deal with world powers. "Today, Iran is taking its second round of remedial steps under Para 36 of the JCPOA.
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| UK justice minister says likely parliament will find a way to stop no-deal Brexit Posted: 07 Jul 2019 02:34 AM PDT ![UK justice minister says likely parliament will find a way to stop no-deal Brexit]( "UK justice minister says likely parliament will find a way to stop no-deal Brexit") British justice minister David Gauke said on Sunday he believed that parliament would find a way to stop a new prime minister taking Britain out of the European Union without a deal. Boris Johnson, the frontrunner to succeed Theresa May as prime minister this month, has said Britain must leave the European Union on Oct. 31 with or without a deal. "Given where the parliamentary majority is and the strength of feeling on a no-deal Brexit, I think there probably will be a parliamentary way in which this can be stopped," Gauke told BBC TV.
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| UPDATE 1-Netanyahu calls Iran's enrichment move a "very, very dangerous step" Posted: 07 Jul 2019 02:16 AM PDT ![UPDATE 1-Netanyahu calls Iran's enrichment move a "very, very dangerous step"]( "UPDATE 1-Netanyahu calls Iran's enrichment move a \"very, very dangerous step\"") Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday an announced increase of uranium enrichment by Iran was an extremely dangerous move and he again called on Europe to impose punitive sanctions on Tehran. Netanyahu made the remarks after Iran said it is fully prepared to enrich uranium at any level and with any amount, in further defiance of U.S. efforts to squeeze it with sanctions and force it to renegotiate a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. In a news conference broadcast live, senior Iranian officials said Tehran, which has denied seeking nuclear arms, would keep reducing its commitments every 60 days unless signatories of the pact moved to protect it from U.S. sanctions.
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| UPDATE 2-UK lawmakers weigh up options to try to block a no deal Brexit Posted: 07 Jul 2019 02:09 AM PDT ![UPDATE 2-UK lawmakers weigh up options to try to block a no deal Brexit]( "UPDATE 2-UK lawmakers weigh up options to try to block a no deal Brexit") British lawmakers from both the ruling Conservatives and opposition Labour on Sunday said they were looking at ways to prevent the country's next prime minister pursuing a no-deal Brexit against parliament's wishes. May's Brexit deal was rejected three times by parliament due to rebellions within her own party and opposition to it from Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), who prop up the Conservative government.
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| UK's Labour discusses timing of no confidence vote with Conservative lawmakers Posted: 07 Jul 2019 01:10 AM PDT ![UK's Labour discusses timing of no confidence vote with Conservative lawmakers]( "UK's Labour discusses timing of no confidence vote with Conservative lawmakers") Britain's opposition Labour Party will call a no confidence vote in the government when it believes members of the ruling Conservatives will support it, the party's trade spokesman Barry Gardiner said on Sunday. Boris Johnson, the frontrunner to become prime minister this month, has said Britain must leave the European Union on Oct. 31 with or without a deal. Several Conservative lawmakers have said they would consider voting to try to bring down a government which was pursuing a no-deal Brexit.
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| Shutdown Showdown: How the Strait of Hormuz Factors into the U.S.-Iran Crisis Posted: 07 Jul 2019 01:02 AM PDT  The recent mining of two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, attributed to Iran by the United States, offers an important window into the strategic thinking of Iran and similarly situated regional powers. The incident is notable because the act of mining a limited number of vessels makes relatively little sense when viewed through the lens of traditional patterns of coercive behavior. Limited coercive acts typically have little value with regards to gaining concessions from a determined opponent. Generally, these acts may serve as a visible demonstration of a state's willingness to enact some other, more substantial threat, such as shutting down the Strait of Hormuz outright. However, this requires the state making the threat to have the capacity to make good on its more substantial threats and for its opponents to believe that it is willing to incur the risks entailed. Iran, however, could not shut down the Strait of Hormuz for very long even if it wished to—something noted by President Donald Trump—and is unlikely to incur the substantial risks that an attempt would entail. Iran's opponents, then, clearly don't see its limited provocations as harbingers of something worse.
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| Key events raising tensions in the Persian Gulf Posted: 07 Jul 2019 12:57 AM PDT  Iran announced Sunday it will raise its enrichment of uranium, breaking another limit of its faltering 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and further heightening tensions between Tehran and the U.S. Iran made the decision a year after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the deal. Iran has repeatedly warned Europe in recent weeks that it would begin walking away from an accord neutered by a maximalist American campaign of sanctions that blocked Tehran's oil sales abroad and targeted its top officials.
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| Iran Says Seized Oil Tanker in Gibraltar Wasn't Sailing to Syria Posted: 07 Jul 2019 12:33 AM PDT ![Iran Says Seized Oil Tanker in Gibraltar Wasn't Sailing to Syria]( "Iran Says Seized Oil Tanker in Gibraltar Wasn't Sailing to Syria") (Bloomberg) -- Iran said an oil tanker that was seized by British forces near Gibraltar wasn't destined for Syria.The ship "was navigating in international waters," Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said at a press conference in Tehran. He said the tanker wasn't heading toward Syria, without saying where the vessel was going. "We consider this an act of piracy."Grace 1, a supertanker able to haul 2 million barrels of crude, was arrested earlier this week on suspicion that it was going to breach European Union sanctions by delivering crude to Syria. The cargo came from Iran.The Islamic Republic is consulting with the U.K. and Spain on the matter, Araghchi said.\--With assistance from Abbas Al Lawati.To contact the reporter on this story: Arsalan Shahla in Dubai at ashahla@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net, Mohammed Aly SergieFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| UPDATE 8-Iran ratchets up tensions with higher enrichment, draws warnings Posted: 07 Jul 2019 12:27 AM PDT ![UPDATE 8-Iran ratchets up tensions with higher enrichment, draws warnings]( "UPDATE 8-Iran ratchets up tensions with higher enrichment, draws warnings") Iran said on Sunday it will shortly boost its uranium enrichment above a cap set by a landmark 2015 nuclear deal, prompting a warning 'to be careful' from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has pressured Tehran to renegotiate the pact. In a sign of heightening tensions, France, Germany and Britain - all parties to the deal - expressed concerns over the step taken by Tehran, its latest effort to force the West to lift sanctions ravaging its limping economy.
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| France’s Le Maire Gives Europe’s Version of Trump’s ‘Art of the Deal’ Posted: 06 Jul 2019 11:41 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- For a self-proclaimed champion of Europe, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire isn't above indulging in some regional stereotypes.At an economics conference in Aix-en-Provence in southern France this weekend, the talk turned to European Union decision-making. When asked how the bloc's many countries reach deals on key issues, he replied: with great difficulty.His comments came after three days of brutal horsetrading and weeks of consultations over how to carve up the EU's top jobs. In the end, the bloc's leaders nominated Christine Lagarde to succeed Mario Draghi as president of the European Central Bank, and Ursula von der Leyen, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's defense minister, to head the European Commission, the EU's executive arm.Le Maire said cultural differences were behind the EU's often laborious decision-making, calling his theory a local version of President Donald Trump's book "The Art of the Deal.""The Brit always accepts deals, but after the deal is struck he never respects it," Le Maire said. "The Italian loves deal-making. He loves deal-making so much that he continues dealing even when there is already a deal."Sitting next to Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, head of Merkel's Christian Democratic Union party, Le Maire continued: "The German refuses the deal until it's accepted, and then he sticks to the deal."Possibly drawing on recent corporate drama in France's car industry, he concluded: The French "stick to deals, but often change partners."To contact the reporters on this story: Tara Patel in Paris at tpatel2@bloomberg.net;Ania Nussbaum in Paris at anussbaum5@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net, Patrick Henry, James ReganFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| UPDATE 1-U.S. sent message to Iran after drone downing, warning of limited strike - Iranian official Posted: 06 Jul 2019 11:37 PM PDT ![UPDATE 1-U.S. sent message to Iran after drone downing, warning of limited strike - Iranian official]( "UPDATE 1-U.S. sent message to Iran after drone downing, warning of limited strike - Iranian official") The United States conveyed a message to Iran warning of a limited strike against the country after its unmanned drone was shot down in the Gulf, Iran's civil defence agency chief was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency on Sunday. "After the downing of its intruding drone, the United States told us through diplomatic intermediaries that it wanted to carry out a limited operation," said Gholamreza Jalali, who is also a senior commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards.
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| U.S. sent message to Iran after drone downing, warning of limited strike - Iranian official Posted: 06 Jul 2019 10:50 PM PDT ![U.S. sent message to Iran after drone downing, warning of limited strike - Iranian official]( "U.S. sent message to Iran after drone downing, warning of limited strike - Iranian official") The United States conveyed a messgae to Iran warning of a limited stike against the country after its unmanned drone was shot down in the Gulf, Iran's civil defence agency chief Gholamreza Jalali was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency on Sunday. "After the downing of its intruding drone, the United States told us through diplomatic intermediaries that it wanted to carry out a limited operation," said Jalali who is also a senior commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards.
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| Saudi coalition intercepts rebel Yemeni drones Posted: 06 Jul 2019 08:35 PM PDT ![Saudi coalition intercepts rebel Yemeni drones]( "Saudi coalition intercepts rebel Yemeni drones") The Saudi-led coalition at war in Yemen said Saturday its forces intercepted drones fired by Yemeni rebels at the kingdom. The statement by the Saudi-led coalition said the drones had been launched by the Houthi rebels from Yemen's capital of Sanaa, but did not say where the drones had been intercepted. The coalition denied Houthi claims that the attacks resulted in the suspension of air traffic at two Saudi airports near the country's southern border with Yemen.
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| Trump Is Against South Korean Cooperation With the North: Yomiuri Posted: 06 Jul 2019 08:24 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- U.S. President Donald Trump opposed a request by South Korean President Moon Jae-in to resume economic cooperation with North Korea at a summit on June 30, the Yomiuri newspaper reported.Trump showed reluctance and was reported as saying that in order to restart economic cooperation between the two sides, denuclearization of North Korea needs to be ensured a bit more, the paper said, citing unidentified people familiar with the talks.Read more: Trump Makes History With Kim Jong Un, And Revives Nuclear TalksThe U.S. has refused to relax economic sanctions against North Korea. Moon had previously pressed for the easing of such restrictions and sought to resume stalled inter-Korean economic projects such as a joint factory park and mountain resort. The U.S. had been cool to the proposal, which would provide the cash-strapped regime with a jolt of foreign currency.\--With assistance from Jihye Lee.To contact the reporter on this story: Keiko Ujikane in Tokyo at kujikane@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Shamim Adam at sadam2@bloomberg.net, Niluksi KoswanageFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Duterte Won’t Let Up on Deadly Drug War Amid Calls for UN Probe Posted: 06 Jul 2019 07:44 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte pledged to continue his war against drugs in his final three years in office despite international calls for a probe into the rising death toll."Do not destroy my country for the three years that I am still here," Duterte said in a speech in Leyte, central Philippines, on Friday. "Do not produce drugs for our children to eat and go crazy. I will really kill you."Since taking office in 2016, Duterte has waged a campaign against drugs that has killed thousands and been condemned by human rights advocates. Philippine police place drug-related killings at 6,600 during his presidency, a quarter of the 27,000 estimated by rights groups. Iceland has initiated a resolution supported by 28 nations calling on the United Nations to investigate.Duterte's spokesman Salvador Panelo called the UN resolution an interference, saying that other nations may have been misled by "false news" on the drug war because the deaths were mainly caused by suspects resisting arrest.In his speech, Duterte reiterated that the Philippines cannot fight China over the territorial dispute in the South China Sea because of China's military might. He instead urged the U.S. to intervene."Let them assemble all their armaments there in South China Sea," he said. "Fire the first shot and I'll be glad to do the next."To contact the reporters on this story: Clarissa Batino in Manila at cbatino@bloomberg.net;Andreo Calonzo in Manila at acalonzo1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Shamim Adam at sadam2@bloomberg.net, Matthew BrockettFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Turkey Will Soon Have Russia's S-400 (And Is Stockpiling F-16 Parts) Posted: 06 Jul 2019 06:00 PM PDT  A Bloomberg report says Turkey has been stockpiling parts for F-16s and other military equipment in anticipation of a U.S. sanction for acquiring the Russian S-400 air defense system.Two anonymous officials from Turkey who spoke to the news outlet refused to clarify on what types of spares were accumulated, how much was acquired and how long they can last.Relations between the two countries deteriorated over the course of the Syrian civil war, when the U.S. armed a Kurdish militia that Turkey views as a terrorist group, and in the aftermath of a 2016 coup attempt against Erdogan that his government blames on a Turkish imam residing in the U.S.NATO member Turkey is determined to acquire ballistic missile technology, and aims to co-produce the next generation of the S-400, the officials added, citing discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Erdogan said his country will take delivery of the S-400 within days."The first batch of S-400s will be delivered in a week or 10 days," Haberturk newspaper cited him as saying in a report Monday. "I've clearly told this to Trump, Mr. Putin also said it."The U.S. argues that the pivot to Moscow could allow Russia to collect critical intelligence that would weaken NATO and compromise the American F-35 stealth fighter, which Turkish companies are helping to build. Yet while Congress is drawing up potential sanctions plans that at their harshest would cripple the Turkish economy, U.S. President Donald Trump has cast Turkey as a victim in the saga.
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| UPDATE 1-Macron warns Rouhani of consequences if nuclear deal weakened Posted: 06 Jul 2019 03:46 PM PDT ![UPDATE 1-Macron warns Rouhani of consequences if nuclear deal weakened]( "UPDATE 1-Macron warns Rouhani of consequences if nuclear deal weakened") French President Emmanuel Macron told his Iranian counterpart on Saturday that he was deeply concerned by any further weakening of the 2015 nuclear deal and warned that consequences would inevitably follow any such move. Macron spoke to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani a day before Iran is set to increase uranium enrichment purity above the limit set by Iran's deal with world powers. "The president recalled his deep concern in the face of the risk of a new weakening of the 2015 nuclear accord, and the consequences that would necessarily follow," a statement from the French presidency said.
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| Seized North Korean ship sought for American student's death Posted: 06 Jul 2019 03:40 PM PDT  The parents of Otto Warmbier have filed a claim for a seized North Korean cargo ship, seeking to collect on a multimillion-dollar judgment awarded in the American college student's death. The Warmbiers filed court papers Wednesday in New York federal court saying they have a right to the assets after North Korea failed to respond to a wrongful death claim that accused it of abducting Warmbier, who had traveled there for a guided tour ahead of a study abroad program in Hong Kong. "The Warmbiers are committed to holding North Korea accountable for the death of their son Otto, and will work tirelessly to seize North Korean assets wherever they may be found," Ben Hatch, an attorney for the family, said in an emailed statement.
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| Macron warns Rouhani of consequences if nuclear deal weakened Posted: 06 Jul 2019 03:08 PM PDT ![Macron warns Rouhani of consequences if nuclear deal weakened]( "Macron warns Rouhani of consequences if nuclear deal weakened") French President Emmanuel Macron warned his Iranian counterpart on Saturday that he was deeply concerned by any further weakening of the 2015 nuclear deal and warned that consequences would follow. Macron, who was speaking to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani a day before Iran is set to increase uranium enrichment purity above the limit set by Iran's deal with world powers, said he wanted to push dialogue between now and July 15 to bring all sides back to the negotiating table. "The president recalled his deep concern in the face of the risk of a new weakening of the 2015 nuclear accord, and the consequences that would necessarily follow," a statement from the French presidency said.
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| Trump White House 'uniquely dysfunctional', says UK's ambassador in Washington Posted: 06 Jul 2019 03:03 PM PDT  Donald Trump's White House is "uniquely dysfunctional" and "inept", according to leaked memos from the UK's ambassador in Washington.The documents detail Sir Kim Darroch's judgements on the Trump administration from 2017 to the present, and could prove highly embarrassing for the Foreign Office.Officials insisted the relationship with the US could withstand the "mischievous" leak and defended Sir Kim's candid style of assessment.In the diplomatic memos, obtained by the Mail on Sunday, Sir Kim questioned whether the White House "will ever look competent".In one scathing assessment, he wrote: "We don't really believe this administration is going to become substantially more normal; less dysfunctional; less unpredictable; less faction riven; less diplomatically clumsy and inept."The top diplomat also suggested that in order to communicate with the US president "you need to make your points simple, even blunt".Following Mr Trump's state visit to the UK in June, Sir Kim warned that although the president had been "dazzled" by the pomp and ceremony of the trip, his administration would remain self-interested and "this is still the land of America First".In one of the most recent documents, Sir Kim refers to "incoherent, chaotic" US policy on Iran and questions Mr Trump's publicly stated reason for calling off a retaliatory air strike against Tehran following the downing of an American drone.The US and Iran have been at the brink of armed conflict over tensions in the Gulf, and Mr Trump stated that he called off a planned air strike with minutes to spare because of the potentially high number of casualties.But Sir Kim said that the explanation "doesn't stand up", and suggested it may have been motivated by Mr Trump's focus on the 2020 re-election campaign and his previous promises not to involve the US in foreign conflicts."It's more likely that he was never fully on board and that he was worried about how this apparent reversal of his 2016 campaign promises would look come 2020," Sir Kim said.He said it was "unlikely that US policy on Iran is going to become more coherent any time soon" as "this is a divided administration".In a particularly sensitive leak, a 2017 letter to the National Security Adviser Sir Mark Sedwill – sent 150 days into the Trump administration – laid bare the trouble in the White House.Media reports of "vicious infighting and chaos" were "mostly true" despite the president's attempts to brush them off.Referring to the early allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, the memo said "the worst cannot be ruled out". An investigation by Robert Mueller published earlier this year cleared Mr Trump of collusion, but not of obstruction of justice.A Foreign Office spokesman said: "The British public would expect our ambassadors to provide ministers with an honest, unvarnished assessment of the politics in their country."Their views are not necessarily the views of ministers or indeed the government. But we pay them to be candid. Just as the US ambassador here will send back his reading of Westminster politics and personalities."Of course we would expect such advice to be handled by ministers and civil servants in the right way, and it's important that our ambassadors can offer their advice and for it remain confidential. Our team in Washington have strong relations with the White House and no doubt ... these will withstand such mischievous behaviour."Additional reporting by PA
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| France's Macron trying to save Iran nuclear deal by July 15 Posted: 06 Jul 2019 02:58 PM PDT  French President Emmanuel Macron says he is trying to find a way by July 15 to resume dialogue between Iran and Western partners. Macron's office said in a statement that the French leader spoke for more than an hour Saturday with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani amid a standoff between Tehran and the U.S. Macron expressed "strong concern about new weakening" of the 2015 accord aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear ambitions.
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| Johnson Wins Key Endorsement as Poll Signals Landslide U.K. Win Posted: 06 Jul 2019 02:45 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Boris Johnson, looking set for a landslide victory over rival Jeremy Hunt in the race to be Britain's next prime minister, has won the backing of a senior member of the cabinet: Home Secretary Sajid Javid.Javid, according to the Sunday Times, declared that the former foreign secretary Johnson is "better placed" than Hunt "to deliver what we need to do at this critical time."The endorsement followed publication of a YouGov poll Saturday in the Times showing Johnson is backed by 74% of Conservative Party members with Hunt languishing at 26%.The survey also suggests that the vast majority of the 160,000 grassroots party members who will receive their ballot papers this weekend don't believe Hunt's claim that he's prepared to take Britain out of the European Union without a deal. Only 27% think Hunt would do so, compared with 90% for Johnson.In an interview with the Times, Hunt sought to play down perceptions that Johnson's status as the Brexit referendum's poster child would influence the outcome of the vote. Preparing for an exit without an agreement with Brussels is key, he said, adding that the best way to deliver Brexit would be do so with an accord."The choice on this election isn't actually between our approach to no-deal, it's who is the candidate who is most likely to negotiate a deal so that we don't have those difficult decisions to take," Hunt said.In an interview with the Daily Mail, Johnson responded to a question on what he would do if, by the Brexit deadline at the end of October, the EU has refused to reopen the Withdrawal Agreement and Parliament has blocked a no-deal exit, saying it wouldn't happen "in a month of Sundays."Brexit has become an "existential" issue for both main parties so they need to "move on and get it done," the newspaper quoted him as saying.In the Daily Mail interview Johnson sought to buttress his law and order credentials with a commitment to ensure that serious sexual or violent offenders serve out their full sentences rather than being released at the halfway point as at present. Restrictions on stop-and-search, put in place by Theresa May when she was Home Secretary, should be dumped, he said.The new prime minister is expected to be announced -- and then take office -- during the week of July 22.To contact the reporters on this story: James Ludden in New York at jludden@bloomberg.net;John Glover in London at johnglover@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Matthew G. Miller at mmiller144@bloomberg.net, James AmottFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Iran hints it could enrich uranium to 5 percent Posted: 06 Jul 2019 01:47 PM PDT  A top advisor to Iran's supreme leader has hinted Tehran could boost its uranium enrichment to five percent for "peaceful" aims, ahead of deadline it set for world powers to save a landmark 2015 nuclear deal. Iran is acting on its May 8 threat to suspend from Sunday parts of the agreement in response to US President Donald Trump's reimposition of crippling sanctions after withdrawing from the deal in May last year. The accord capped Iran's enrichment maximum at 3.67 percent, sufficient for power generation but far below the more than 90 percent level required for a nuclear weapon.
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| Drone shootdown highlights history of U.S. incursions into Iran's airspace Posted: 06 Jul 2019 12:03 PM PDT  The U.S. military drone Iran shot down near the Persian Gulf June 20 likely didn't stray into Iranian airspace, as the Iranians claimed it had, according to several former senior officials. But had it done so, it would not have been the first U.S. drone to fly into Iran, according to two of those officials.
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| Former spy boss says Britain having political nervous breakdown Posted: 06 Jul 2019 11:43 AM PDT ![Former spy boss says Britain having political nervous breakdown]( "Former spy boss says Britain having political nervous breakdown") Britain is having a political nervous breakdown and is taking a huge risk as it prepares to leave the European Union after a divisive referendum, a former senior UK intelligence official said on Saturday. Sir John Sawers, who stepped down as head of Britain's MI6 foreign intelligence service in 2014, told the BBC that with Brexit looming he was concerned about the calibre of Britain's political leaders, both in the ruling Conservative Party and the main opposition Labour Party.
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