| Trump Intel Pick John Ratcliffe Started Theory Of FBI Anti-Trump 'Secret Society' Posted: 29 Jul 2019 05:31 PM PDT  Alex WongDonald Trump's new pick for Director of National Intelligence played a role last year in popularizing what briefly became one of the right's most easily-debunked conspiracy theories about the investigation into Trump and Russia, offering what he presented as evidence of an anti-Trump "secret society" operating within the FBI.Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX), a member of the House Judiciary Committee, has been an outspoken critic of the FBI's investigation into contacts between Trump's campaign and Russia before the 2016 election. Like other Republicans, he seized on text messages between FBI officials Lisa Page and Peter Strzok, who were having an affair, as proof that the FBI had been biased against Trump in the run-up to the election. One of Ratcliffe's biggest contributions to the Republican pushback on the investigation came in January 2018, when he claimed that he had seen text messages between Page and Strzok that suggested the existence of a "secret society" working against Trump. But Ratcliffe's claims, which were subsequently amplified by pro-Trump media outlets, fell apart when the fuller text exchanges became public.Ratcliffe's congressional office didn't respond to a request for comment.Trump Invites Putin to Visit, and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats Learns About It From Tweet Read to Him on StageRatcliffe, who was tapped by Trump to replace the departing Dan Coats, first made his "secret society" claim on a Jan. 22, 2018 appearance on Fox News. "We learned today about information that in the immediate aftermath of his election, there may have been a 'secret society' of folks within the Department of Justice and the FBI, to include Page and Strzok, working against him," Ratcliffe said. "I'm not saying that actually happened, but when folks speak in those terms, they need to come forward to explain the context."According to then-Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC), who appeared alongside Ratcliffe on Fox News that day, it was Ratcliffe himself who was responsible for discovering the supposedly incriminating text messages. Ratcliffe followed that cable news appearance by promoting his claim on Twitter, claiming the text messages were proof of "manifest bias" at the top of the FBI. "The texts between Strzok and Page referenced a 'secret society," Ratcliffe tweeted. EMBED - https://twitter.com/RepRatcliffe/status/955599629206335488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw While he was making these claims, Ratcliffe never described the full text message he was quoting from. Still, right-wing media picked up on his explosive notion of an anti-Trump cabal inside the FBI. The Daily Caller declared that Ratcliffe had found proof of an "Anti-Trump 'Secret Society' At FBI." "FBI CONSPIRACY?" tweeted Fox News host and Trump confidante Sean Hannity, who later deleted the tweet. A day after Ratcliffe's initial claim on Fox, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) moved the conspiracy further, claiming that Republican investigators had learned of meetings of an off-site "secret society" from an "informant." Johnson eventually had to back down from his proclamation, saying he had only heard the term from the Strzok-Page text messages. Despite the excitement that greeted Ratcliffe's claims among Trump supporters, the actual "secret society" text message turned out to be less sinister than initially suggested. ABC News published the full text message two days after Ratcliffe made his viral Fox appearance, revealing that the "secret society" text referenced calendars of a "beefcake" Vladimir Putin that Strzok was giving out as gifts to people who worked on the Russia investigation. "Are you even going to give out your calendars?" Page wrote. "Seems kind of depressing. Maybe it should just be the first meeting of the secret society."Shortly after the ABC story broke, discussion about an anti-Trump "secret society" largely disappeared from right-wing media. Even Johnson, one of the secret society's most enthusiastic promoters, conceded there was a "real possibility" that Page's text message was a joke. Ratcliffe himself appears to have abandoned the claim, at least publicly. He hasn't tweeted about it since he first pushed it in Jan. 2018. Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| Senate bows to Trump vetoes, allows Saudi arms sales Posted: 29 Jul 2019 04:37 PM PDT  The Senate failed Monday in a bid to override a trio of vetoes issued by President Donald Trump, allowing the administration to move forward with plans to sell billions of dollars of weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Trump's decision to sell the weapons in a way that would have bypassed congressional review infuriated lawmakers from both parties. In a bipartisan pushback, Democrats and Republicans banded together to pass resolutions blocking the $8.1 billion weapons sales to the U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf.
|
| Trump’s Polarizing Pick for Spy Chief Has Tough Path in Senate Posted: 29 Jul 2019 04:04 PM PDT ![Trump's Polarizing Pick for Spy Chief Has Tough Path in Senate]( "Trump's Polarizing Pick for Spy Chief Has Tough Path in Senate") (Bloomberg) -- Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats won 85 Senate votes when he was confirmed early in Donald Trump's presidency. Trump's choice to replace Coats, Representative John Ratcliffe, probably will have to rely exclusively on Republican votes -- and even that could be a challenge.Republican senators have been unusually silent on Ratcliffe after Trump announced he intends to nominate him to replace Coats, a former Indiana senator who maintained close relationships with members of both parties and was known for contradicting the president's stance on issues including North Korea's willingness to disarm and Russia's election interference.Ratcliffe, who tore into former Special Counsel Robert Mueller at a House hearing last week, has said he agrees with Trump's characterization of the two-year probe into the 2016 election as a "witch hunt," saying the discussion of Russian influence "was really a way to invalidate his election."After Trump announced Coats' departure and his choice for a replacement on Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released a lengthy statement bemoaning the departure of his longtime Senate colleague. He lauded the intelligence chief's work safeguarding elections against Russian meddling and emphasized the need for U.S. intelligence agencies to be free of political bias to "deliver unvarnished hard truths" to the nation's leaders.Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, also praised Coats effusively, saying he did "a great deal to direct our attention toward growing aggression from Russia, China and Iran." Burr said in a statement Monday that he called Ratcliffe to congratulate him, adding, "When the White House submits its official nomination to the Senate Intelligence Committee, we will work to move it swiftly through regular order."Other senior Republican senators including Roy Blunt of Missouri, a member of the Intelligence Committee, also praised Coats' service without commenting on Ratcliffe, a Texas House member and former U.S. attorney with one of the most conservative voting records in Congress.Ratcliffe did have one strong early backer, South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham."Congressman Ratcliffe will be a worthy successor and has my full support," said Graham, the Senate Judiciary chairman who has become one of Trump's chief allies in Congress. "He understands the only way America can be safe is to be strong."Spotlight on CollinsIf Trump sends Ratcliffe's nomination to the Senate, one Republican in particular will face pressure from both sides: Susan Collins of Maine, who has fashioned herself as an independent-minded senator. But her votes in favor of Trump nominees has caused her poll ratings to plummet in her home state, and she faces a tough re-election fight next year."I don't know Representative John Ratcliffe at all," Collins said in a statement Monday, adding that when his nomination is submitted, the Intelligence Committee "will thoroughly consider his nomination and hold a public hearing."Collins sits on the Intelligence panel, which has eight Republicans and seven Democrats. If the Democrats all stick together and a single Republican opposes Ratcliffe, McConnell would have to maneuver to discharge the nomination with a negative recommendation -- something unprecedented for the post."We need an independent voice in that position," said GOP Senator John Thune of South Dakota, asked whether he was concerned that Ratcliffe agreed that Trump had been subjected to a "witch hunt." He added, "I'm sure that will be part of the questioning when he's up here for confirmation."Senator John Cornyn of Texas, also a member of the Intelligence Committee, said he's known Ratcliffe for a long time and will support the nomination."I have confidence that John understands the difference between being a member of Congress" and national intelligence director, Cornyn said, highlighting the nonpartisan nature of the job.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer indicated that Democrats will put up a fight."It's clear Rep. Ratcliffe was selected because he exhibited blind loyalty to @realDonaldTrump with his demagogic questioning of Mueller," Schumer tweeted. "If Senate Republicans elevate such a partisan player to a position requiring intelligence expertise & non-partisanship, it'd be a big mistake."Defeating the nomination on the floor would require four Republican senators to join every Democrat. Few Republicans these days are willing to cross Trump, however, given his strong standing among the party's base.Political QuestionSecretary of State Michael Pompeo, who served with Ratcliffe in the House, dismissed concerns about Ratcliffe being a purely political pick by Trump."I remember people said I'd be too political to be the CIA director," Pompeo said in remarks Monday at the Economic Club of Washington. He said he felt confident that he dispelled such criticism."He's very smart," Pompeo, who also was a staunchly conservative House member before Trump picked him to head the CIA and then the State Department, said of Ratcliffe. "I'm very confident he'd do a good job."Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have called for investigating their contention that during the Obama administration anti-Trump forces in the FBI, Justice Department and the intelligence agencies worked with Democrats to concoct the theory that Trump's 2016 campaign worked with Russia on election meddling aimed at helping him win."That's why the president gets so upset by that and why he uses the term 'hoax' or 'witch hunt," Ratcliffe said in an interview with Fox News after Mueller testified to two House panels. "He's saying that the Russian interference didn't have anything to do with him or influence his success in the 2016 election, and he's right."Ratcliffe, 53, has been a key member of a Republican-led House task force pursuing the theory that anti-Trump bias and support for Democrat Hillary Clinton tainted the Russia probe early on. He previously attacked then-Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein over the investigation."If you set out to create an appearance of bias, or prejudice, or impropriety, or conflict of interest, the only way you could do a better job of doing it is pick this team and then have them wear their 'I'm with her' t-shirts to work every day," Ratcliffe told Rosenstein during a Judiciary Committee hearing. Attorney General William Barr is conducting an investigation into what he's called possible "spying" on the Trump campaign.Ratcliffe was mayor of Heath, Texas -- population 7,329 in 2010, according to the Census Bureau -- from 2004 to 2012. He was the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Texas under President George W. Bush. He founded the Austin office of the Ashcroft Group, a collection of law firms headed by former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft.Since 2015, Ratcliffe has been a member of the U.S. House, representing a sprawling district in the northeast corner of Texas that includes all or parts of 18 counties along the border with Oklahoma.(Updates with senators' comments starting in the ninth paragraph)\--With assistance from Billy House and Laura Litvan.To contact the reporter on this story: Steven T. Dennis in Washington at sdennis17@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Larry LiebertFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Boris Johnson Issues Ultimatum to EU Over Brexit Talks as Pound Slumps Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:30 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Boris Johnson will not start talks with European Union leaders over Brexit unless they first agree to his demand to reopen the divorce deal they struck with his predecessor, Theresa May, his office warned Monday. So far, EU leaders have refused.The pound fell to its lowest in two years on growing fears the new premier will steer Britain into an economically damaging no-deal split. Johnson stepped up the government's preparations for leaving the EU without an agreement as his senior officials warned that the country will have no choice, if the bloc does not change its approach to further negotiations.With fewer than 100 days left until the U.K. is due to exit the 28-member bloc on the deadline of Oct. 31, Johnson is tearing up the way Britain's government operates to ready the country for the potential impact of a no-deal breakup. More money is being made available for contingency planning, and a mass public information campaign will launch in the weeks ahead to advise businesses and citizens how to prepare.Johnson has packed his cabinet with pro-Brexit ministers and officials who led the 2016 Vote Leave campaign with him, to ensure every part of the state is geared toward exit day on Halloween.The prime minister still says he wants a deal with the EU but has two key conditions: the bloc must re-open the Withdrawal Agreement it negotiated last year, and it must agree to scrap the so-called backstop guarantee for the Irish border -- the provision intended to ensure there's no need for checks on goods crossing the land border with Ireland.Johnson has said the backstop is "undemocratic" because it risks locking the U.K. into a trading relationship with the EU indefinitely.EU leaders have repeatedly said they're not prepared to revise the deal that May tried and failed to get approved by the U.K. Parliament and that any accord must contain the backstop.As a result, Johnson sees no point in meeting with them face-to-face, his spokeswoman Alison Donnelly said on Monday. "The prime minister will be happy to sit down with leaders when that position changes, but he's making it clear to everybody he speaks to that that needs to happen," she said.While the government would prefer to leave with a deal, Donnelly said, its "central scenario" is to do so without one unless the EU shifts its position. The pound fell more than 1%.Market JittersDuring a trip to Scotland, Johnson insisted he still believed a deal was achievable."We're very confident, with goodwill on both sides, two mature political entities -- the U.K. and EU -- can get this done," Johnson said in televised comments. "It's responsible for any government to prepare for a no deal if we absolutely have to. That's the message I've been getting across to our European friends. I'm very confident we'll get there."The key point for the EU to understand is that the backstop is "dead," along with May's withdrawal agreement, he said.Johnson's office said he is expected to continue speaking on the phone to EU leaders over the coming days. He's been telling them that he won't meet them only to be told that "they cannot possibly reopen the withdrawal agreement," Donnelly said. Officials in both the U.K. and Ireland said Johnson and Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar are expected to speak soon.Standing FirmBut there's no sign of the EU shifting its position. According to an Irish government spokesman, Foreign Minister Simon Coveney spoke to his U.K. counterpart Dominic Raab on Friday, reiterating that the withdrawal agreement is closed. On Monday, a European Commission spokeswoman said that while an orderly withdrawal is in everyone's interest, the bloc is well-prepared for a no-deal Brexit.The EU has repeatedly said that the only way to make the contentious backstop provision redundant would be for the U.K. to change its red lines and opt to stay in the EU's single market and the customs union. Johnson has pledged not to do this.The British government has dramatically stepped up its planning for a no-deal Brexit and on Monday, his Brexit enforcer, Michael Gove, led the first daily meeting of top officials working to get the country ready to leave on time.Johnson also held talks in Scotland with Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, who opposes a no-deal Brexit, and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who wants to keep Scotland in the EU.On Tuesday, Johnson will travel to a farm in Wales to hear the views of agricultural workers on their hopes for Brexit. Speaking before his trip, he said Brexit would allow the U.K. to scrap the EU's Common Agricultural Policy and export more food and farm produce around the world when new trade deals are signed."Once we leave the EU on Oct. 31, we will have a historic opportunity to introduce new schemes to support farming – and we will make sure that farmers gets a better deal," Johnson said.(Adds Johnson visit to Wales in final paragraphs.)To contact the reporters on this story: Jessica Shankleman in London at jshankleman@bloomberg.net;Tim Ross in London at tross54@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Flavia Krause-Jackson at fjackson@bloomberg.net, Stuart Biggs, Mark WilliamsFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| UN urges world 'not to turn its back' on Yemen Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:03 PM PDT  A senior UN official appealed Monday for the international community "not to turn its back" on Yemen and to honour its pledges of aid for the impoverished and war-battered country. "Four years of conflict according to the UNDP latest report have set back Yemen by 20 years," United Nations Development Programme administrator Achim Steiner told AFP in an interview in Amman. "Currently in the next two or three months we can expect that if funding does not materialise, over 21 programmes will have to be rolled back," Steiner added following his first visit to Yemen since taking up his post in 2017.
|
| Sudanese activists say 5 killed at student protest Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:03 PM PDT  Sudanese security forces fired on student demonstrators in a central province on Monday, killing at least five people, protest organizers said. The Sudanese Doctors Central Committee said the demonstration in Obeid, in North Kordofan province, was organized by high school students to protest military rule. The committee is part of the Sudanese Professionals' Association, which spearheaded months of protests leading to the military overthrow of President Omar al-Bashir in April.
|
| Trump Pals Pushed Nuke Firm That Wanted to Undercut Protections Against a Saudi Bomb Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:00 PM PDT  Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast / Photos GettyTwo of President Trump's closest advisers pushed hard for a firm trying to circumvent the safeguards meant to keep Saudi Arabia from building a nuclear weapon. That's one of the many conclusions of a year-long investigation by the House Oversight Committee, which found that Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and former inaugural committee chair Tom Barrack worked to enrich themselves and their colleagues in the nuclear energy sector. A centerpiece of the effort: helping American companies land contracts in Saudi Arabia—at least in one case, without the guardrails needed to keep the Saudis from making weapons-grade nuclear fuel.Flynn and Barrack used their relationships with the White House—as well as with officials from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Russia—to advance their personal interests and the interests of executives at the nuclear firm IP3. The CEO of the firm, Admiral Mike Hewitt, began working with Flynn and Barrack in the fall of 2016 in an attempt to influence the incoming Trump administration's Saudi Arabia policy, according to the House Oversight report. The effort drew in a host of other officials in the Trump administration, including Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner."The Trump Administration has virtually obliterated the lines normally separating government policymaking from corporate and foreign interests," the report states. "Documents show the Administration's willingness to let private parties with close ties to the President wield outsized influence over U.S. policy towards Saudi Arabia."Barrack is currently being scrutinized in New York for his lobbying work and investigators have asked him about his work related to the Saudi nuclear deal, according to a New York Times report from Sunday. Flynn, who left the administration in February 2017, is awaiting sentencing after being indicted by Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office and pleading guilty to charges of lying to the FBI.The committee said in its report that Trump officials and advisers, including Flynn and Barrack, attempted to help fast-track a plan whereby the U.S. and Saudi Arabia would agree to cooperate on nuclear energy and firms like IP3 could clinch contracts to develop Riyadh's reactors. IP3 and other U.S. nuclear energy companies were looking for a way to get the industry back on even ground after years of decline and it saw Saudi Arabia as their way forward. But despite IP3's connections in high places, many in the nuclear sector feared something was amiss. Industry executives with companies like Westinghouse, one of the only companies with the ability to export technology to Saudi, originally threw their support behind IP3, though they worried about the firm's "questionable reputation," calling it the "Theranos of the nuclear industry," according to the communications obtained by the House oversight committee and quoted in the report. Part of the industry's concern over IP3 derived from the firm's campaign to convince the administration to consider signing a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia that did not require the country to adhere to the so-called "gold standard."The term—first coined in January 2009 when the U.S. signed a deal with the United Arab Emirates—requires a foreign government to commit to forgoing enriching and processing plutonium, which can be used to make fuel for reactors but also nuclear weapons. In his travels across the Middle East with Flynn in 2015, IP3 CEO Hewitt became aware that Saudi Arabia, in its search for tenders to build nuclear reactors, did not want to subscribe to America's "gold standard" policy. The argument from Riyadh was that the country did not want to adhere to the strictest of nuclear safeguards in perpetuity if Iran, its regional foe, would one day be able to build up its nuclear program, according to two senior administration officials who spoke to The Daily Beast.That's when Hewitt and IP3 started looking for a way to convince the Trump administration to sign a deal with Saudi Arabia that allowed Riyadh some wiggle room. "IP3 boasted of 'unique access' to President Trump and senior White House officials, disparaged growing bipartisan congressional efforts to limit the transfer of nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia, and characterized the 'Gold Standard' of prohibiting Saudi Arabia from enriching uranium for weapons as an obstacle to be 'overcome,'" the report said.In April of 2017, Hewitt emailed White House and Department of Energy officials a paper that advocated against requiring Saudi Arabia to agree to the gold standard. "Gold Standard has slowly killed our leverage and cooperating with the U.S. has been diminished," Hewitt wrote in an email in April 2017, according to the report. IP3 wasn't just lobbying the American government in pursuit of a Saudi deal. The company also leaned on Flynn and Barrack to gain access to the halls of power in the Kremlin and in Riyadh. The House oversight report said that in 2015 and 2016 "Flynn informed his business partners about upcoming interactions with officials in Russia and the Middle East —including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman—and offered to use these contacts to further IP3's business." In December of 2016, just days before President Trump's inauguration, IP3 executives traveled Saudi Arabia and used their connections to Flynn to float the idea of U.S. companies transferring technology to the country and to solicit a $120 million investment from then-deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, known as MBS, in exchange for a 10 percent stake in IP3. At the same time IP3 was using its relationship with Flynn to get ahead, KT McFarland, Flynn's deputy, introduced the firm to Barrack. Going forward IP3 relied heavily on the intervention of Barrack to win over the Trump administration, according to the oversight report. Barrack, for his part, pushed the IP3 plan—while also seeking "powerful positions within the Administration—including Special Envoy to the Middle East and Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates," the report said. In May 2016, before then-candidate Trump had clinched the Republican nomination, Barrack shared a draft of the candidate's first major energy speech to a middleman, businessman Rashid Al-Malik, who then passed it along to Saudi and Emirati officials to "coordinate pro-Gulf language," the report said. Following an exchange with foreign campaign officials, Barrack emailed a draft of the speech to former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, saying "We should partner with our Gulf Allies to draft a comprehensive economic security strategy as well as materially assist in their diversification efforts."Neither Barrack or Al-Malik appeared as registered lobbyists in the Department of Justice's Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) database, the report said.In the days leading up to Trump's inaugural, Barrack and IP3 concocted a convoluted idea—known as the Middle East Marshall Plan—that brought in Russia and Middle Eastern countries to help the U.S. build nuclear power plants in the region. Draft materials for the plan, circulated to multiple different Trump officials, included a decision memo entitled "A Marshall Plan for the Middle East" and had a signature line for "Donald J. Trump," according to the oversight report.In February 2017 Barrack sent a text to Jared Kushner about setting up a meeting so he could brief the president's son-in-law."I think this could be a great arrow in the quiver of your Middle East arrows," Barrack wrote to Kushner. Several months later, on March 14, 2017, according to correspondence obtained by the committee, Barrack and employees of his company Colony NorthStar met with President Trump about the plan. As part of that push, Barrack and IP3 put together an idea to partner with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and UAE capital to acquire Westinghouse —a company in the consortium that was, in cooperation with IP3, bidding for a contract in the country. Westinghouse is one of the only nuclear energy companies in the U.S. with the ability to export technology abroad.Barrack briefed members of the administration about the plan, including Kushner, according to the report. On August 2017, Kushner sent an email to an IP3 advisor saying: "'Met them today and am trying to gather the interagency assessment of the importance, impact and national security considerations both domestically and internationally.'"Barrack and IP3 attempted to pull in financial firms Blackstone and Apollo Global Management to help in their attempt to acquire Westinghouse, but the entire effort eventually fell apart. Brookfield Asset Management —a firm that bought the Kushner Company 666 5th Avenue building—eventually acquired the nuclear energy company.The original Middle East Marshall plan, as put forward by Barrack and IP3, eventually fell through and by early 2018, IP3 was also on the outs of the American consortium that had come together to coordinate a bid for Saudi Arabia. Westinghouse terminated its agreement with IP3, telling industry partners that the firm's "actions may create a faulty assumption that IP3 is in charge."Today, IP3 is pursuing a cooperation deal with South Korea in an attempt to find work in the Saudi nuclear industry, as first reported by The Daily Beast. According to the report, IP3 plans on partnering with Korean state-run energy firms. The IP3-Korea plan would potentially allow for Riyadh to bypass entering into a gold standard agreement, raising concerns among officials in the Trump administration that it will have little leverage in ensuring Saudi Arabia adheres to certain nuclear safeguards.It appears the other American consortium has moved forward in their attempts to clinch contracts. The Daily Beast reported that the Trump administration had signed at least seven authorizations that allowed U.S. companies to share information with Saudi Arabia about their plans to help the country develop its nuclear sector. Those authorizations, two of them doled out following the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, have been held from public view.-30-Over the past year the committee has investigated the Trump administration's relationship to Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. In particular, committee investigators zeroed in on and the development of a plan for American companies to help Riyadh reduce its dependence on oil and to develop its nuclear sector. The committee released an interim report in February that relied heavily on White House whistleblower testimony. In that report, the committee said IP3 had developed a proposal for Saudi Arabia that was "not a business plan" but rather "a scheme for these generals to make some money." IP3 refutes that claim."IP3 has focused for over three years on the national security importance of being the country of choice for the peaceful, safe and secure development of nuclear power," the firm told The Daily Beast in a previous statement. A Republican rebuttal to the committee's interim report, released last week, said the committee's evidence "does not show that the Trump Administration acted inappropriately in the proposed transfer of nuclear energy technology to Saudi Arabia," according to a statement by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH). Since February, the oversight committee has obtained more than 60,000 pages of documents. The documents reveal new information about Flynn and Barrack's involvement in the Saudi nuclear plan, according to the committee.Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| Mitch McConnell: Top Trump ally angrily hits back at 'modern-day McCarthyism' amid row over election security and Russia Posted: 29 Jul 2019 01:43 PM PDT  Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has angrily hit out at critics who accused of him ignoring threats to US elections from Russia, claiming the "unhinged smears" amounted to "modern-day McCarthyism".Last week, Mr McConnell, a leading Republican ally of the president, blocked two measures designed to strengthen election security.He claimed the bills, proposed by Democrats, were being tabled for the party's political benefits. But a number of people accused of ignoring the threat of repeated Russian interference, with some even labelling him "Moscow Mitch".On Monday, Mr McConnell rejected the criticism in a speech on the floor of the Senate."I was called unpatriotic, un-American and essentially treasonous by a couple of left-wing pundits on the basis of bold-faced lies," he said."I was accused of aiding and abetting the very man I've singled out as an adversary and opposed for nearly 20 years -Vladimir Putin."He said his critics, among them the MSNBC television channel and some journalists at the Washington Post, were guilty of smears. "Welcome to modern-day McCarthyism," he said.The bills Mr McConnell blocked had been proposed by Democrats Chuck Schumer and Richard Blumenthal.They called for them to be passed by unanimous consent; under the rules governing the upper chamber of Congress, any one senator can try to pass a bill, but equally any one senator can object. One of the bills would require the use of paper ballots, while the other would require candidates, campaigns or family members to notify the FBI about any assistance of offers from foreign governments. "Clearly this request is not a serious effort to make a law. Clearly something so partisan that it only received one single solitary Republican vote in the House is not going to travel through the Senate by unanimous consent," Mr McConnell said.Democrats were furious by his remarks, coming as they did, a day after former social counsel Robert Mueller had testified about alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election, and said the threat had not gone away. "They're doing it as we sit here," he said. "These pundits are lying, lying when they dismiss the work that has been done," Mr McConnell said on Monday. "They're lying when they insist I have personally blocked actions which, in fact, I have championed and the Senate has passed. They are lying when they suggest that either party is against defending our democracy."Joe Scarborough, an MSNBC broadcaster, who had been critical to the Senate Republican leader, responded to Mr McConnell's remarks on Twitter. "MoscowMitch threatened those who tried to warn Americans against Russia's interference in American democracy. MoscowMitch keeps blocking legislation to stop what Trump's intel chiefs call Russia's subverting of American democracy," he wrote. "MoscowMitch is harming Kentucky and America."
|
| Report alleges ethical abuses at UN agency for Palestinians Posted: 29 Jul 2019 12:45 PM PDT  An internal ethics report has alleged mismanagement and abuses of authority at the highest levels of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees even as the organisation faced an unprecedented crisis after US funding cuts. The allegations included in the confidential report by the agency's ethics department are now being scrutinised by UN investigators. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said it is cooperating fully with the investigation and that it cannot comment in detail because the probe is ongoing.
|
| Putin opponent sent back to jail after suspected poisoning Posted: 29 Jul 2019 12:44 PM PDT  Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was moved back to jail from a hospital Monday even though his physician raised suspicions of a possible poisoning after he suffered facial swelling and a rash while in custody. Details about Navalny's condition were scarce after he was rushed to a hospital Sunday with what authorities said was a suspected allergy attack inside a detention facility where he was serving a 30-day sentence for calling an unsanctioned protest. The 43-year-old political foe of President Vladimir Putin was arrested several days before a major opposition rally Saturday that ended with nearly 1,400 people detained.
|
| UN envoy calls for truce in Libyan war for Muslim holiday Posted: 29 Jul 2019 12:42 PM PDT ![UN envoy calls for truce in Libyan war for Muslim holiday]( "UN envoy calls for truce in Libyan war for Muslim holiday") The U.N. envoy for Libya called Monday for a truce between the country's warring parties during the upcoming Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, warning that the ongoing conflict can grow into "a full-blown civil war" with potentially existential consequences for Libya and its neighbors. Ghassan Salame told the Security Council that the truce for Eid, the festival of sacrifice which will fall around August 10, should include confidence-building measures including a prisoner exchange and release of detainees. Libya's civil war in 2011 toppled and later killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi and in the chaos the country was divided.
|
| Iran vs. Royal Navy: British Naval Destroyer Deploys to Persian Gulf Posted: 29 Jul 2019 12:26 PM PDT  The Royal Navy destroyer HMS Duncan has arrived in the Persian Gulf, temporarily doubling the number of British warships in the Persian Gulf following repeated Iranian attacks on British ships.The brief increase in British warships in the region, from one to two, underscores just how few ships the Royal Navy can deploy even in an emergency. More help likely won't be coming.Duncan, a Type 45 destroyer, on July 28, 2019 joined the frigate HMS Montrose escorting vessels sailing under the British flag through the Strait of Hormuz. Naval escorts are an effective way of deterring the kinds of attacks that frequently have occurred in the summer of 2019.On July 19, 2019 Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps militia forces seized the British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero in the Strait of Hormuz, escalating a long-simmering conflict that began after U.S. president Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 deal that lifted sanctions on Iran in exchange for limits on Iran's nuclear program.After Trump restored economic sanctions, Tehran resumed stockpiling uranium. Iran and the West soon began tussling over Persian Gulf shipping.Royal Marines in early July 2019 seized an oil tanker en route to Syria that British authorities suspected of breaching E.U. sanctions. Authorities told the BBC the ship could be carrying Iranian crude oil to the Baniyas refinery in Syria.
|
| TSA: Man checked missile launcher in luggage at BWI Posted: 29 Jul 2019 10:44 AM PDT  BALTIMORE (AP) -- Federal officials say they've found a missile launcher in a man's luggage at the airport in Baltimore. The Transportation Security Administration said in a statement that the military grade weapon was located in the man's checked luggage at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. TSA officers called airport police who found the man and detained him for questioning.
|
| Iranian women face 10 years for sharing videos of hijab removal Posted: 29 Jul 2019 10:32 AM PDT  Iranian officials have warned that posting video footage of women removing their mandatory headscarves in public could lead to up 10 years imprisonment, according to media reports yesterday. The announcement specifically named the US-based social media platform of Masih Alinejad, which since 2014 has been inviting Iranian women to post pictures of themselves without the hijab. Ms Alinejad has been accused by the Iranian regime of working as an agent of the US government over the website, known as My Stealthy Freedom. "As Masih Alinejad has a contract with the Americans, all those women who send the video footages of removing their hijab to her will be sentenced between one to 10 years of jail according to the article 508 of the Islamic Criminal Justice Act," the head of Tehran's Court of Revolution cleric Mousa Ghazanfarabadi told Fars news. Earlier this year Ms Alinejad met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who "thanked her for her bravery and continued dedication to the cause of freedom for Iranian women". In recent days the morality police in Iran has reacted to a number of incidents in which its vigilantees have been attacked in Tehran metro while "advising" women not to remove their hijab. She has denied working for any foreign governments. Asked by the Fars news agency if sending video clips to an individual in US amounts to a criminal act, Mr Ghazanfarabadi has said: "My understanding of the law is that three types of video recordings are criminal acts; to film our military installations; to record private life of another citizen and the third case is to record a film with the aim of working with an enemy government". In 2015, the Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy gave Alinejad its women's rights award for "giving a voice to the voiceless and stirring the conscience of humanity to support the struggle of Iranian women for basic human rights, freedom, and equality". The hijab mandatory in public for all women in Iran with punishment for violations usually two months imprisonment and a £20 fine.
|
| Yemeni officials: Saudi-led airstrike kills 10 civilians Posted: 29 Jul 2019 10:23 AM PDT |
| Trump’s intel pick collaborated with a fierce Russia foe Posted: 29 Jul 2019 10:14 AM PDT ![Trump's intel pick collaborated with a fierce Russia foe]( "Trump's intel pick collaborated with a fierce Russia foe") GOP Rep. John Ratcliffe, the president's nominee for director of national intelligence, once worked with a leading Putin critic on the Magnitsky Act — which Russians have been pushing to overturn.
|
| Aleksei Navalny ‘Poisoning’ Comes at a Critical Moment in Moscow Protests Posted: 29 Jul 2019 10:08 AM PDT  Epsilon/GettyMOSCOW—How far will the government of Russian President Vladimir Putin go to silence opposition figure Aleksei Navalny? At a moment when more than 1,400 people have been arrested at peaceful protests in Moscow, and the challenges to Putin's presidency are mounting, there's now widespread speculation that Navalny just fell prey to yet another Kremlin poison plot.Alexei Navalny on Standing Up to Putin and His Murderous MinionsNavalny's trips to jail have become so frequent it almost seems he's commuting to prison. Every time he calls his supporters to an anti-government rally, authorities round him up: the usual suspect calling for less corruption, more democracy. This year alone, the creator of the Moscow-based Anti-Corruption Foundation has spent 90 days behind bars, and his following just keeps growing. More than five million Russians, most of them in their twenties and thirties, read Navalny's sharp, witty, often devastating investigations on social media. His courage is such that the arrests only burnish his popularity.But on Sunday—a day when more than 1,400 demonstrators were arrested in a brutal police crackdown—Navalny's wife Yulia went to visit him at the prison where had been locked up in solitary confinement since July 24.Navalny wasn't there. "Don't you know?" said a staffer at the jail. "An ambulance took him away to a hospital with some kind of strong allergic reaction." Yulia knows her husband: he never would have agreed any medical treatment if the situation was not serious.The next thing Yulia and the Foundation's team members learned was that the "allergy" caused Navalny's eyes and face to turn red and swell. Their concerns turned to alarm. There is a long list of poison victims Putin considers dangerous critics or even traitors. Among them was journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was given some sort of toxic substance in a cup of tea in 2004, but survived, only to be gunned down in 2006. Ukrainian politician and liberal lawmaker Victor Yushchenko was poisoned, nearly died, and was permanently disfigured while running for the Ukrainian presidency in 2004. In Britain the 2006 murder of former KGB and FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko with the rare isotope polonium 210, and the attempted murder last year of ex-GRU agent Sergei Skripal, using the exotic nerve agent novachok, are notorious.No wonder, then, that Navalny's friend and spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, told The Daily Beast, "We are extremely worried about Aleksei, it could be some chemical agent sprayed in his cell or on his bed."She said, "A crowd of young people came to the hospital to support their leader last night and police detained 21 people, which made Navalny's supporters even angrier." The incident comes at what starts to feel like an inflection point. Despite Enormous Risks, Young Russians Flock to Aleksei Navalny, Putin's Toughest CriticThe arrests and interrogations of Putin's critics began last week in anticipation of elections for Moscow's city council. Police went to all the candidates who hoped to take part this September, searched the politicians' homes at night, confiscated computers, cell phones and detained everybody who might lead political rallies.Over the weekend harassment intensified. "Police detained us early in the morning [Saturday] and let us go in late evening, so we would not go to the protest," Yarmysh said. "The Kremlin miscalculated their strategy: our supporters joined non-sanctioned rallies, in spite of the risk. People have changed in Russia, there is no tolerance left for humiliations."Former KGB officer Gennady Gudkov took Navalny's sickness very seriously. "Russian secret police poisoned people for hundreds of years, there is a huge scientific field here devoted to this this ugly business," Gudkov told The Daily Beast. "A secret agent could have shaken Navalny's hand or put something in his food to permanently damage the politician's face or his eyesight." Gudkov sounded angry: "Last week the law stopped working in Moscow." Gudkov's son, Dmitry Gudkov, is currently under arrest. "Some three men abducted Dmitry from a food store yesterday without introducing themselves, without any explanation," Gudkov said on Monday. "The methods this criminal gang use against the opposition politicians remind me of a military junta: armed men keep Dmitry Gudkov at the police station right now, illegally; they could ruin his health, since no law stops them now."Another opposition rally is planned for this weekend. The organizers demand opposition candidates be freed and registered for the Moscow city council elections.Maksim Lyskov, a 27-year-old economist, said that after he read about Navalny's hospitalization he decided to join the upcoming rally. "A few years ago police broke Navalny's wrist, now it looks like they poisoned him, so we should all rise, speak out, so the guys in the Kremlin hear us," Lyskov said. "I am sure Navalny has made mistakes, he is not an angel, but his anti-corruption reports have opened my mind to what is really happening and the Kremlin seems to be scared of him."On Monday afternoon Navalny was moved from the hospital back to his jail cell, raising new worries. "Doctors and Navalny's colleagues believe that this is highly unprofessional and dangerous," Yarmys said. "If he reacts to the mysterious chemicals a second time, the medicine that has been helping him might not work. He should stay at the hospital."Ilya Azar, a 35-year-old member of the Moscow city council believes that the repressive strategy is short-sighted. "I was outraged when I saw police detaining people outside Navalny's hospital last night. I was thinking about the beginning of the Maidan revolution in Ukraine: it grew massive, after police beat up and arrested a few young activists." So massive, indeed, that it brought down the government in Ukraine in 2014.Moscow authorities mobilized thousands of National Guard forces last weekend to stop the non-sanctioned protest. One man named Konstantin Kovalov happened to run by the Moscow city hall several hours before the beginning of the opposition rally on Saturday only to be beat up by police, who broke his leg. An ambulance took a Moscow council member, Alexandra Parushina, to a hospital after a police club cracked her head. "These brutal methods just stir up the protest, this is not a smart strategy; somebody out there seems to be in hysterics," Azar told The Daily Beast.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| Interview With Konstantin Remchukov: Moscow Election Protests Reflect A “Stark” Generational Shift Posted: 29 Jul 2019 09:52 AM PDT  Russia has been experiencing a fresh wave of tumult over the past weekend as a protest rally took place on Saturday about upcoming Moscow municipal elections. The Russian authorities banned over a dozen candidates from participating in the September elections and alleged that numerous signatures to qualify for the ballot were forged. Over 1,300 demonstrators were arrested and opposition leader Alexei Navalny hospitalized on Sunday; his lawyer is stating that Navalny was poisoned while imprisoned.What are the implications of the protests and the elections? Does the Russian government face mounting opposition to its rule? What is Russian president Vladimir Putin contemplating as he confronts new parliamentary elections in 2021?To answer such questions, National Interest editor Jacob Heilbrunn turned to Konstantin Remchukov, an authority on Russian politics and the proprietor and editor-in-chief of Nezavisimaya Gazeta, an influential daily newspaper. He is also the chairman of the Moscow Public Chamber, a top advisory body to the city government. You can follow him at: @KVRemchukov.Remchukov describes himself on Twitter in the following terms: "My own views and opinions. Imposed by no one but my life experience/interests."Jacob Heilbrunn: How significant were the demonstrations in Moscow on Saturday about the Moscow municipal elections?
|
| Trump appoints loyalist to top intelligence post after ousting of man who produced scathing assessments of Russia Posted: 29 Jul 2019 09:34 AM PDT  Donald Trump is to nominate a loyalist who recently performed a strong public defence of the president to be the country's top intelligence official, after the departure of a veteran who presented harsh assessments about Russia the Oval Office did not agree with.The president said Dan Coats, a long time fixture of the Republican intelligence establishment, would be standing down as director of national intelligence, a position created in the aftermath of the attacks of 9/11 to coordinate the 17 US intelligence agencies.In his place, the president will nominate Republican congressman John Ratcliffe, from Texas, who is said to have little experience of dealing with the intelligence world."I am pleased to announce that highly respected congressman John Ratcliffe of Texas will be nominated by me to be the director of national intelligence. A former US attorney, John will lead and inspire greatness for the country he loves," he tweeted on Sunday. "Dan Coats, the current director, will be leaving office on August 15th. I would like to thank Dan for his great service to our country."Reports said the president had been impressed by the way Mr Ratcliffe recently defended him during one of the recent congressional hearings, at which former special counsel Robert Mueller testified.Mr Coats, 76, a former senator, had clashed with the president over their differing views on Russia. Mr Coats was of the view that Moscow, which allegedly interfered in the 2016 presidential election, remained a danger to the US; Mr Trump took a different perspective.The most public display of their differences played out last summer, when Mr Trump and Vladimir Putin held a press conference in Helsinki. During the event, Mr Trump appeared unwilling to challenge Mr Putin over Russia's alleged interference.Asked whether he believed Russia had interfered, Mr Trump said: "All I can do is ask the question. My people came to me, Dan Coats came to me and some others, they said they think it's Russia. I have president Putin; he just said it's not Russia."He added: "I will say this, I don't see any reason why it would be."Mr Coats issued a statement the same day which said: "The role of the intelligence community is to provide the best information and fact-based assessments possible for the president and policymakers."A few weeks afterwards, Mr Coasts apologised for appearing to scoff at the news Mr Trump had invited Mr Putin to Washington. Mr Coats was onstage at an event in Colorado when he was told the White House had just announced the president had invited Mr Putin to visit in the autumn. "Say that again. Did I hear you?," Mr Coats asked his interviewer, NBC's Andrea Mitchell. Mr Coats will join a long list of senior officials to leave the administration since Mr Trump took office in January 2017, either through resignation or firing. The list includes a defence secretary, attorney general, two national security advisers, a secretary of state, an FBI director, numerous top White House officials and assorted other cabinet members.Additional reporting by Reuters
|
| Syrian troops advance in northwest, breaking stalemate Posted: 29 Jul 2019 08:48 AM PDT |
| Glock: The 1 Gun That Always Seems To Always Dominate (Why?) Posted: 29 Jul 2019 08:17 AM PDT  Here is the answer. For much of the mid-twentieth century, handgun development was in a period of stagnation. The development of the semiautomatic pistol had ushered in a new weapon that, although more complex than a revolver, had a higher ammunition capacity. Quickly adopted by armies around the world, the steel-framed semiautomatic reigned for decades. Then, in the 1980s, something came along that disrupted the firearms industry: the Glock handgun. Today it's carried by armies worldwide, from the U.S. Army Rangers to the British Armed Forces.Recommended: Why North Korea Is Destined to Test More ICBMs and Nuclear WeaponsRecommended: 5 Most Powerful Aircraft Carriers, Subs, Bombers and Fighter Aircraft EverRecommended: North Korea Has 200,000 Soldiers in Its Special Forces
|
| Iraq displays stolen artifacts recovered from UK, Sweden Posted: 29 Jul 2019 08:11 AM PDT  Iraqi officials are displaying stolen artifacts from the country's rich cultural heritage that were recently recovered from Britain and Sweden. Many archaeological treasures from Iraq, home of the ancient "fertile crescent" considered the cradle of civilization, were looted during the chaos that followed the 2003 U.S. invasion and whisked out of the country. Now Iraq is making a massive effort to bring these pieces home, working closely with the U.N. cultural organization.
|
| UK says EU must compromise on Brexit deal Posted: 29 Jul 2019 07:25 AM PDT  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday urged EU leaders to drop their opposition to renegotiating Brexit, as the pound slumped on growing concerns about a no-deal departure. Johnson, who took office last week, wants to change the exit terms struck by predecessor Theresa May but insists he will leave the European Union without any agreement at all if necessary on October 31. "The withdrawal agreement is dead," Johnson told reporters during his first visit to Scotland.
|
| Women taking photos of themselves without headscarves face 10-year prison sentence in Iran Posted: 29 Jul 2019 06:28 AM PDT  Iranian women who post photos of themselves online without their headscarves on could face up to 10 years in prison.They face the punishment for posting images or video online, and for sending them to Masih Alinejad, a US-based activist who founded the "White Wednesdays" campaign in Iran to oppose the compulsory hijab.The campaign encourages women to post photos of themselves without headscarves.The semi-official Fars news agency quoted the head of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, Mousa Ghazanfarabadi, saying "those who film themselves or others while removing the hijab and send photos to this woman ... will be sentenced to between one and 10 years in prison."Wearing the Islamic headscarf is mandatory in public for all women in Iran. Those who violate the rule face up to two months in prison and a fine of £20.Scores of women in Iran have been arrested for removing their headscarves as part of the "White Wednesdays" campaign.Last year, an Iranian woman was sentenced to two years in prison and 18 years probation for removing her headscarf in a protest.Shaparak Shajarizadeh said she had been sentenced for "opposing the compulsory hijab" and "waving a white flag of peace in the street".
|
| Putin Reminds Russians He Can Do Suppression Posted: 29 Jul 2019 06:22 AM PDT ![Putin Reminds Russians He Can Do Suppression]( "Putin Reminds Russians He Can Do Suppression") (Bloomberg Opinion) -- July 27 saw a new post-Soviet era record set in Moscow: 1,373 people were taken into custody following a day of protests. Meanwhile, jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny suffered a strange "allergic reaction" after calling for the demonstrations. These developments were set in motion by something seemingly trivial: An election to Moscow's city council. One of Russia's weakest regional legislatures, it can't even hold the capital's mayor responsible for doing whatever he wants with the city budget.The disproportionate violence unleashed on the protesters – dozens were severely beaten – shows how deep the Kremlin's paranoia runs. With the patriotic fervor inspired by the annexation of Crimea and other foreign adventures exhausted, President Vladimir Putin and his entourage have little to offer voters and clearly fear the largely directionless anger prevalent in Russian society. The city election is scheduled for September 8. Normally, it would be a tame affair. Five years ago, candidates backed by the pro-Putin United Russia party won 38 out of the 45 seats on a turnout of just 21%. This time, though, a number of candidates hostile to the Kremlin attempted to stand, among them some of Navalny's close associates. (The corruption-fighter can't run himself because of a previous conviction on what were, in my view, trumped-up charges of theft.)To run, an independent candidate needs to collect thousands of supporters' signatures, which are then reviewed by the electoral commission. All the opposition candidates were denied a place on the ballot after their backers were deemed to be fake. This was despite the fact many hundreds of signatories were willing to testify that they had signed.This illegal act by the authorities was insulting in its jeering openness. Still, not too many Muscovites got excited about another rigged election. In July, the city empties for the vacation season. Last week, the rejected candidates managed to rally more than 20,000 people, a small crowd for a metropolis the size of Moscow.It was enough, though, to make the authorities lose their cool when Navalny took the floor at that rally and called on Muscovites to gather in front of the mayor's office on July 27. This earned the opposition leader 30 days in jail for inciting an unsanctioned protest. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin cautioned residents against showing up, promising to put down any protests with force – a pledge kept by an unusually large contingent of riot police outside the mayor's control. (They were part of the National Guard, commanded by former Putin bodyguard Viktor Zolotov.)Still, some 15,000 protesters roamed central Moscow for most of the day, shouting anti-Putin slogans and running intermittently into determined groups of riot police, who had clearly been ordered to take no pity on the mostly young crowd. Though the protest was peaceful, the record number of detentions filled every police station in town to overflowing, and rubber sticks were used without mercy.The crisis could have been resolved by allowing a few opposition activists to run for the city council. Perhaps that would have been Sobyanin's instinct. In 2013, he went out of his way to make sure Navalny could run against him. The corruption fighter won 27% of the vote to the mayor's 51%, a result Navalny unsuccessfully contested. This time, however, the decision to shut out the opposition at any cost appears to have been made in the Kremlin, which looks to have taken over the political management of the Moscow election.The violence and arrests were also likely to have been ordered by the Kremlin. Moscow police, who were also out in force, were visibly less eager than the National Guard. After a few attempts to pacify angry citizens in recent weeks, Putin seems determined to show the opposition the limits of what he will allow. Navalny, in particular, appears to have received a chilling warning. The day after the protest, he was hospitalized after suffering an apparent allergic reaction. In in a Facebook post, his doctor, Anastasia Vasilyeva, herself an opposition activist, voiced her suspicion that he had been poisoned.Obviously, the election of a few Kremlin opponents to the Moscow city council would have been no threat to Putin's rule. Nor, for that matter, were the thousands of young people demanding their right to vote in fair elections. Moscow has seen bigger protests that have failed to displace Putin.The president, however, appears worried that a random spark could ignite a bigger fire. The country's economy is projected to grow by just 1.2% this year, according to the Bloomberg consensus forecast. In June, Russians' disposable incomes were down 0.2% on a year ago.There are clear indications that voters are angry. In June, Levada Center, the country's last big independent pollster, reported that 27% would be willing to participate in protests against falling living standards – about twice the normal level – and 22% would join protests with political demands.Since Putin has no rosy vision to offer and no means to speed up growth in an economy dominated by corrupt, inefficient state-run companies, he has focused on showing Russians that protest won't work and that his regime commands overwhelming force.With that goal in mind, provoking the relatively weak protests in Moscow may even benefit the Kremlin: Muscovites aren't well-liked in the rest of the country, and the harsh police action got a lot of attention on the social networks. It's a relatively low-cost way to show off the regime's suppression potential. The flip side of such action, of course, is that it can also fuel the vague irritation many Russians feel. Even if they don't rise up at the sight of some young people being beaten up – as Ukrainians did in 2013 – the Kremlin's message that protesting is pointless is a dangerous one in Russia, too. There won't a revolution over a rigged city council election, but Putin is playing with fire. Suppression is never a long-term answer.To contact the author of this story: Leonid Bershidsky at lbershidsky@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Edward Evans at eevans3@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Leonid Bershidsky is Bloomberg Opinion's Europe columnist. He was the founding editor of the Russian business daily Vedomosti and founded the opinion website Slon.ru.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Putin Reminds Russians He Can Do Suppression Posted: 29 Jul 2019 06:22 AM PDT ![Putin Reminds Russians He Can Do Suppression]( "Putin Reminds Russians He Can Do Suppression") (Bloomberg Opinion) -- July 27 saw a new post-Soviet era record set in Moscow: 1,373 people were taken into custody following a day of protests. Meanwhile, jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny suffered a strange "allergic reaction" after calling for the demonstrations. These developments were set in motion by something seemingly trivial: An election to Moscow's city council. One of Russia's weakest regional legislatures, it can't even hold the capital's mayor responsible for doing whatever he wants with the city budget.The disproportionate violence unleashed on the protesters – dozens were severely beaten – shows how deep the Kremlin's paranoia runs. With the patriotic fervor inspired by the annexation of Crimea and other foreign adventures exhausted, President Vladimir Putin and his entourage have little to offer voters and clearly fear the largely directionless anger prevalent in Russian society. The city election is scheduled for September 8. Normally, it would be a tame affair. Five years ago, candidates backed by the pro-Putin United Russia party won 38 out of the 45 seats on a turnout of just 21%. This time, though, a number of candidates hostile to the Kremlin attempted to stand, among them some of Navalny's close associates. (The corruption-fighter can't run himself because of a previous conviction on what were, in my view, trumped-up charges of theft.)To run, an independent candidate needs to collect thousands of supporters' signatures, which are then reviewed by the electoral commission. All the opposition candidates were denied a place on the ballot after their backers were deemed to be fake. This was despite the fact many hundreds of signatories were willing to testify that they had signed.This illegal act by the authorities was insulting in its jeering openness. Still, not too many Muscovites got excited about another rigged election. In July, the city empties for the vacation season. Last week, the rejected candidates managed to rally more than 20,000 people, a small crowd for a metropolis the size of Moscow.It was enough, though, to make the authorities lose their cool when Navalny took the floor at that rally and called on Muscovites to gather in front of the mayor's office on July 27. This earned the opposition leader 30 days in jail for inciting an unsanctioned protest. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin cautioned residents against showing up, promising to put down any protests with force – a pledge kept by an unusually large contingent of riot police outside the mayor's control. (They were part of the National Guard, commanded by former Putin bodyguard Viktor Zolotov.)Still, some 15,000 protesters roamed central Moscow for most of the day, shouting anti-Putin slogans and running intermittently into determined groups of riot police, who had clearly been ordered to take no pity on the mostly young crowd. Though the protest was peaceful, the record number of detentions filled every police station in town to overflowing, and rubber sticks were used without mercy.The crisis could have been resolved by allowing a few opposition activists to run for the city council. Perhaps that would have been Sobyanin's instinct. In 2013, he went out of his way to make sure Navalny could run against him. The corruption fighter won 27% of the vote to the mayor's 51%, a result Navalny unsuccessfully contested. This time, however, the decision to shut out the opposition at any cost appears to have been made in the Kremlin, which looks to have taken over the political management of the Moscow election.The violence and arrests were also likely to have been ordered by the Kremlin. Moscow police, who were also out in force, were visibly less eager than the National Guard. After a few attempts to pacify angry citizens in recent weeks, Putin seems determined to show the opposition the limits of what he will allow. Navalny, in particular, appears to have received a chilling warning. The day after the protest, he was hospitalized after suffering an apparent allergic reaction. In in a Facebook post, his doctor, Anastasia Vasilyeva, herself an opposition activist, voiced her suspicion that he had been poisoned.Obviously, the election of a few Kremlin opponents to the Moscow city council would have been no threat to Putin's rule. Nor, for that matter, were the thousands of young people demanding their right to vote in fair elections. Moscow has seen bigger protests that have failed to displace Putin.The president, however, appears worried that a random spark could ignite a bigger fire. The country's economy is projected to grow by just 1.2% this year, according to the Bloomberg consensus forecast. In June, Russians' disposable incomes were down 0.2% on a year ago.There are clear indications that voters are angry. In June, Levada Center, the country's last big independent pollster, reported that 27% would be willing to participate in protests against falling living standards – about twice the normal level – and 22% would join protests with political demands.Since Putin has no rosy vision to offer and no means to speed up growth in an economy dominated by corrupt, inefficient state-run companies, he has focused on showing Russians that protest won't work and that his regime commands overwhelming force.With that goal in mind, provoking the relatively weak protests in Moscow may even benefit the Kremlin: Muscovites aren't well-liked in the rest of the country, and the harsh police action got a lot of attention on the social networks. It's a relatively low-cost way to show off the regime's suppression potential. The flip side of such action, of course, is that it can also fuel the vague irritation many Russians feel. Even if they don't rise up at the sight of some young people being beaten up – as Ukrainians did in 2013 – the Kremlin's message that protesting is pointless is a dangerous one in Russia, too. There won't a revolution over a rigged city council election, but Putin is playing with fire. Suppression is never a long-term answer.To contact the author of this story: Leonid Bershidsky at lbershidsky@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Edward Evans at eevans3@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Leonid Bershidsky is Bloomberg Opinion's Europe columnist. He was the founding editor of the Russian business daily Vedomosti and founded the opinion website Slon.ru.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| New video from Iran shows Guard warning away UK warship Posted: 29 Jul 2019 06:00 AM PDT  In new video released Monday, an Iranian Revolutionary Guard officer is heard telling a British warship not to interfere or put their "life in danger" as the paramilitary force, using speedboats and a helicopter, seized a U.K.-flagged commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this month. The video includes a shot apparently filmed on the day of the July 19 incident from above the British warship Foxtrot 236 that was in the vicinity of the U.K.-flagged Stena Impero, showing the British navy unable to prevent Iran's seizure of the ship in the critical waterway. It also offers additional audio to that released by maritime security risk firm Dryad Global, which last week made public a portion of the exchange between the Foxtrot and the Iranian Guard during the incident.
|
| British PM Johnson: We need a new trade deal with EU Posted: 29 Jul 2019 05:55 AM PDT ![British PM Johnson: We need a new trade deal with EU]( "British PM Johnson: We need a new trade deal with EU") British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said there was every chance of striking a new Brexit deal with the European Union and that he wanted a grand new trade deal too. "At the core of it all a new free trade deal that allows us to take back control of our tariffs and our regulations and to do things differently where we want to," he said.
|
| Serbia's leader praises Putin for boosting its military Posted: 29 Jul 2019 05:03 AM PDT  Serbia's leader on Monday praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for boosting the Balkan nation's military with battle tanks and armored vehicles, amid Western fears that the arms buildup could threaten fragile peace in the region. President Aleksandar Vucic inspected the delivery of 10 recently arrived Russian armored patrol vehicles at a Serbian army military base, part of the promised supply of 30 secondhand T-72 tanks and 30 BRDM-2 reconnaissance vehicles. Romania is a NATO member while Serbia claims military neutrality despite close ties with Moscow.
|
| China Warns Hong Kong Unrest Goes ‘Far Beyond’ Peaceful Protest Posted: 29 Jul 2019 04:39 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- China warned that Hong Kong's unrest had gone "far beyond" peaceful protest, after a chaotic weekend of tear gas and clashes illustrated the government's struggle to quell a leaderless, unpredictable and widespread movement.China's top agency overseeing Hong Kong condemned "evil and criminal acts committed by radical elements" in an unprecedented briefing Monday. While officials reaffirmed support for the city's government and police force, the decision to address foreign media in Beijing signaled growing concern as eight weeks of unprecedented unrest start to shake business confidence in the former British colony."The central government is in quite a difficult situation over Hong Kong," Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations and director of the Center for American Studies at Renmin University. "Today's statements by the Hong Kong affairs office generally is to assure that the central government is supporting the Hong Kong government to take more police action against the violent protesters."The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, which answers to China's cabinet, was compelled to respond after three days of protest that saw unauthorized demonstrations across four districts, including the airport and downtown shopping areas. Police on Sunday night fired clouds of tear gas over demonstrators in the normally buzzing area of Sai Ying Pun, which also hosts the main Chinese government office in Hong Kong.At least 49 people were arrested Sunday after bricks, glass bottles and paint bombs were hurled at police and traffic signs were removed. The events followed a day of clashes in the northwestern suburb of Yuen Long, where a stick-wielding mob had attacked activists a week earlier.As the city cleaned up Monday, the American Chamber of Commerce's Hong Kong chapter urged government action to address grievances underlying the protests, saying steps must be taken to restore sagging confidence and calling for the withdrawal of extradition legislation that sparked demonstrations. A survey of chamber members found deepening perception that Hong Kong had become a "riskier place" to do business.The developments raised new fears that the violence may continue to escalate, forcing Chinese President Xi Jinping to send in the military or take other actions that undermine the "high degree of autonomy" promised to Hong Kong before its 1997 return. Xi has so far maintained support for the city's embattled leader, Chief Executive Carrie Lam.China's statements supporting the police and playing down any prospect of military action, appeared to relieve some earlier market anxiety. The MSCI Hong Kong Index closed 1.6% lower on Monday, after slipping as much as 2.2%."What has happened in Hong Kong recently has gone far beyond the scope of peaceful march and demonstration, undermined Hong Kong's prosperity and stability, and touched on the bottom line of the principle of 'one country, two systems'," HKMAO spokesman Yang Guang said. "No civilized society under the rule of law would ever allow acts of violence to take place."Yang didn't rule out military action, pointing to a section of law that gave Hong Kong authorities the power to request support. He outlined three bottom lines for the city: No harm to national security, no challenge to the central government's authority and no using Hong Kong as a base to undermine China.Still, opposition lawmakers said the agency did little to resolve a crisis that they trace to the city's inability to elect its own leaders. In a news conference Monday, lawmakers accused the government of shifting the blame to radical protesters, Western countries and the foreign media."Beijing tried to make some feeble attempt to help maintain what they assume are the security problems in Hong Kong," said Claudio Mo, a legislator and high-profile participant in several peaceful marches. "That won't help the governance and political crisis that Hong Kong is facing."The shifting tactics employed by black-shirted protesters on Sunday seemed to catch the police off guard. First, they marched east through the city's central business district, then west, before spontaneously splitting in two. By evening, the police were firing tear gas and rubber bullets in battles with brick-throwing protesters in narrow city streets.Earlier Monday, an edition of the Communist Party's flagship newspaper urged stern action by Hong Kong's police to restore order. "At a time like this, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Government and the police should not hesitate or have any unnecessary 'psychological worries' about taking necessary steps," the piece published in the overseas edition of the People's Daily newspaper said.Since it began, the protest movement has widened to include calls for Lam's resignation and an investigation into the force used by police as they've dispersed crowds. In recent weeks protesters have focused their anger on China itself, amid fears their freedoms are being increasingly restricted under Beijing's rule."Even Carrie Lam's resignation and universal suffrage aren't going to resolve the crisis in Hong Kong," said Oscar Cheung, an office worker in his twenties, as he gathered in a downtown area on Sunday. "The truth is China is having a tighter and tighter grip on Hong Kong and our rights."(Updates throughout. An earlier version of this story corrected the name of the Hong Kong Economic Journal.)\--With assistance from Sofia Horta e Costa and Chloe Whiteaker.To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Iain Marlow in Hong Kong at imarlow1@bloomberg.net;Dandan Li in Beijing at dli395@bloomberg.net;Jinshan Hong in Hong Kong at jhong214@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Karen LeighFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Iran says US rejected offer as 'not seeking dialogue' Posted: 29 Jul 2019 04:14 AM PDT  Iran said on Monday the US had rejected an offer from Tehran for more robust nuclear inspections in exchange for lifting sanctions because Washington is "not seeking dialogue". Under the 2015 nuclear deal agreed to by Tehran, Iran must ratify a document, known as the additional protocol, prescribing more intrusive inspections of its nuclear programme eight years after the deal was adopted. "If the US is really seeking an agreement... Iran can make the additional protocol into law (in 2019) and (the US) at the same time bring a plan to the Congress and lift all illegal sanctions," said foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi.
|
| Israel's Arab parties unite, aim for gains in upcoming vote Posted: 29 Jul 2019 03:59 AM PDT  Israel's four Arab political parties formalized a merger on Monday ahead of September elections, hoping to boost turnout among the minority that comprises a fifth of the country's population. The Palestinian nationalist Balad party announced late Sunday night that it would join a reunited Joint List of Arab parties, months after infighting fragmented the political alliance. Ayman Odeh, head of the Hadash party, said Monday that now that the parties have reunited, they can address the "great challenge" facing the country's Arab minority.
|
| British PM Johnson tells EU: Ready to talk Brexit when you shift position Posted: 29 Jul 2019 03:38 AM PDT ![British PM Johnson tells EU: Ready to talk Brexit when you shift position]( "British PM Johnson tells EU: Ready to talk Brexit when you shift position") British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told EU leaders he will sit down for Brexit talks when they indicate that they are ready to shift position on the divorce deal, otherwise Britain will prepare for leaving without an agreement, his spokeswoman said. "The PM has been setting out to European leaders the position ... that the Withdrawal Agreement with the backstop has not been able to pass parliament on the three occasions it was put in front of parliament. "The prime minister would be happy to sit down when that position changes.
|
| Maximum Pressure: Two Words That Could Start a War with Iran Posted: 29 Jul 2019 03:20 AM PDT  President Trump has said he does not want war with Iran, but that his main objective is to prevent Tehran from getting a nuclear weapon. On the advice of National Security Advisor John Bolton, the administration has pursued that goal using "maximum pressure," a tactic which thus far has consistently failed. Bolton's preferred strategy has pushed Iran closer to the bomb, incentivized menacing behavior, and increased the chance of war. If we are to check this deteriorating situation before it's too late, a new, realistic strategy is necessary now.Fortunately, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is willing to work with Washington if such a pivot materializes. Iran, he said Wednesday, is "completely ready for just, legal and honest negotiations" for a new nuclear deal. "But at the same time," he added, Iran is "not ready to sit at the table of surrender under the name of negotiations." This is precisely why maximum pressure doesn't work: It issues demands to Tehran but offers no benefits. Thus trying to force Iran to capitulate on all points and surrender national sovereignty virtually assures our interests continue to suffer and that the risk of war remains pointlessly high.
|
| Johnson’s Brexit Plans Face Scottish Barrier Posted: 29 Jul 2019 03:07 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Want to receive this post in your inbox every day? Sign up for the Balance of Power newsletter, and follow Bloomberg Politics on Twitter and Facebook for more.Boris Johnson has a Scottish problem, and she's not going away.Ruth Davidson, the charismatic leader of the Conservative Party in Scotland, is resolutely opposed to the new prime minister's fall-back plan of a no-deal Brexit. She's already threatening to fight if he tries to force the U.K. out of the European Union without a divorce accord in October."I don't think the government should pursue a no-deal Brexit and, if it comes to it, I won't support it," Davidson wrote in a Scottish newspaper yesterday.There is little love lost between the two Tories, who campaigned against each other during the 2016 referendum, which Johnson's pro-leave side won.But Johnson needs Davidson now. A popular Conservative is a rare thing in Scotland. She is credited with helping the party cling to power at the last election by winning seats north of the border and remains influential in Westminster. Johnson, meanwhile, is still toxic in Scotland, so he could use Davidson to both bolster the party nationally and to hold off Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, and her push for independence.As Johnson prepares his team to take the U.K. out of the EU on Oct. 31, with or without a deal, he's demanding total loyalty from officials. But he's powerless to silence Davidson. As Johnson might say, when the pair meet today some plaster could well come off the ceiling.Global HeadlinesDriving the week | Democrats insist they've got answers for Michigan's myriad economic woes. And they're not taking the state for granted after Hillary Clinton became the party's first presidential candidate in 28 years to lose there in 2016. But Democratic hopefuls will face a skeptical audience when they arrive for this week's debates in the Motor City. Kamala Harris is rolling out a "Medicare for All" proposal that preserves a role for private insurers, positioning herself between rivals Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden. As House Democrats examine whether to recommend presidential articles of impeachment, read about Tom Steyer's argument that doing so would be good politics for Democrats in the latest edition of Bloomberg's Campaign Update. Rare briefing | China said violent protests in Hong Kong wouldn't be tolerated and go "beyond the scope" of peaceful demonstration, its highest-profile response yet to unrest that flared this weekend in the city. The comments by the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, which answers to China's cabinet, came amid worries the violence could lead Beijing to send in its army as the protest movement widens.Baltimore bashing | Trump has instigated a fresh feud, this time with a prominent black lawmaker, calling House Oversight and Reform Chairman Elijah Cummings's Baltimore district "a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess." Cummings, a vocal critic of Trump's policies on the U.S.-Mexico border, and other Democrats denounced the comments as racist. Trump pledged in 2016 to fix poverty in inner cities, along with crime and drug problems.Mystery illness | Russia's top opposition leader, Alexey Navalny, was moved from prison to a hospital yesterday after possibly being exposed to "an unknown chemical substance" that caused a severe allergic reaction, according to his doctor. Navalny, 43, was jailed for 30 days last week for urging people to join Moscow protests on Saturday when police detained more than 1,400. His personal doctors have been barred from checking on him in the hospital, his spokeswoman said.Spilling the beans | A senior Venezuelan defector has revealed details of Nicolas Maduro's authoritarian rule, including widespread spying on the opposition, and how the leader, his family and associates embezzle the proceeds of oil and other treasures as the nation descends into chaos and starvation. General Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera told Jose Enrique Arrioja and Ethan Bronner in Miami that as the former head of national intelligence, he too bears responsibility for Maduro's stay in power. What to Watch This WeekAssociation of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers converge on Bangkok. U.S-China trade talks resume. Subscribe to Bloomberg's Terms of Trade newsletter to receive all the big developments in your inbox each weekday. Johnson will get an early flavor of how his message is going down with U.K. voters, with a by-election Thursday in Wales. The U.K. says it's continuing to engage with Iran to secure the release of a seized British oil tanker and defuse tensions.And finally... India's prime minister seems to have more than just jobs and a rapidly weakening economy on his mind. Narendra Modi is set to appear on Bear Grylls' Man Vs Wild to raise awareness about wildlife conservation. Grylls today tweeted a clip that shows the 68-year-old leader riding a dinghy down a river and trekking through a forest. Modi's not the first politician to appear on the show — President Barack Obama traveled to Alaska in 2015 to promote action on climate change. \--With assistance from Kathleen Hunter, Ruth Pollard, Karen Leigh and Anthony Halpin.To contact the author of this story: Tim Ross in London at tross54@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Karl Maier at kmaier2@bloomberg.net, Alan CrawfordFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Report alleges ethical abuses at UN agency for Palestinians Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:49 AM PDT  An internal ethics report has alleged mismanagement and abuses of authority at the highest levels of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees even as the organisation faced an unprecedented crisis after US funding cuts. The allegations included in the confidential report by the agency's ethics department are now being scrutinised by UN investigators. The agency -- the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) -- said it is cooperating fully with the investigation and that it cannot comment in detail because the probe is ongoing.
|
| Inside the Secret Campaign to Export U.S. Nuclear Tech to Saudi Arabia Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:19 AM PDT  Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/GettyWhen President Donald Trump took the stage in the East Room of the White House earlier this month to give his first speech on the environment, nuclear energy executives and industry leaders held their breath. They exchanged text messages with fellow colleagues during the speech's broadcast, wondering aloud to one another if Trump had taken the bait.Since the fall of 2016, the executives have built an underground coalition along with academics, technology experts and well-connected politicos, including some lobbyists, to get the president and his administration to support—even promote—an American nuclear energy comeback. The industry has declined in recent years due mostly to the closing of critical nuclear infrastructure and plants. Between 2010 and 2018, only one new nuclear power plant came online in the United States.But the coalition had a plan for a big return by way of exporting U.S. nuclear technology overseas. The comeback, as the coalition saw it, would come via Saudi Arabia and would rely on using President Trump and his son-in-law Jared Kushner's cozy relationship with the country's de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. Riyadh had launched its Vision 2030—a project to decrease the country's reliance on oil by building up its other economic sectors, including nuclear—and it was looking for tenders to build its first reactors.With that, the American nuclear executives saw a way back into the fold and deployed a force to secretly convince the White House and Capitol Hill to consider a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia and to soften its stance on requiring Riyadh sign on to the strictest of nuclear safeguards. That convincing came with a promise: If the administration backed American nuclear enterprises in Saudi it could fulfill one of its main policy goals—countering Russia and China. The coalition leaned on Trump officials to help them push forward its case, including former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and Trump adviser Tom Barrack. Barrack is now under investigation in New York for his lobbying work. The New York Times reported that investigators have asked Barrack about his work related to the Saudi nuclear deal. Flynn, who left the administration in February 2017, was later indicted by Robert Mueller's special counsel's office and plead guilty to charges of lying to the FBI about his communications with then Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak.The coalition's campaign is still being carried out, predominantly behind closed doors."Nuclear energy is desperate in this country to land business and they see Saudi as one of their few opportunities, " said Miles Pomper, a senior fellow at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. "They are trying everything."The coalition's secret campaign to win over the Trump administration is concerning officials and Capitol Hill who are fearful that the plans for Saudi Arabia will move forward despite the fact that they raise legal concerns and could potentially threaten U.S. national security, according to two senior administration officials and more than half a dozen lawmakers. Congress is currently wrapping up an investigation into the origins of the coalition's plans.But with the president's speech on the environment earlier this month, the nuclear energy industry saw a sign —even if small— that their campaign was working and that their plans for Saudi Arabia were still on the table. Energy Secretary Rick Perry took the stage and said what the coalition had hoped the president would have said himself, according to two executives who spoke to The Daily Beast."We know that by investing in innovative solutions... like our nuclear power, exporting those technologies to other countries... being able to share our technologies around the world… that's what this President is all about," Perry said.And then, there was a nod of support from Trump: "What Rick has done with our nuclear supply—nuclear energy, and all forms nuclear—has been absolutely incredible," Trump said. "That's fantastic."The exchange wasn't a direct indication that the administration was on board with everything the coalition had pitched, but nuclear energy wonks viewed the president's words as a major win. "It was like hearing everything we have been working toward come together for the first time," one executive told The Daily Beast.Getting that win wasn't easy, the source said.In the fall of 2016, the nuclear industry, wanting to launch a campaign to win over the incoming Trump administration, collaborated with IP3, a firm that includes former generals, diplomats, and energy experts. The firm is known for having connections to Flynn and Barrack. In a report earlier this year, the House Oversight Committee said IP3 had developed a proposal for Saudi Arabia that was "not a business plan" but rather "a scheme for these generals to make some money." IP3 refutes that claim."IP3 has focused for over three years on the national security importance of being the country of choice for the peaceful, safe and secure development of nuclear power," the firm said in a statement. "Perhaps no other issue has more bipartisan support than nuclear energy linked to national security. Despite this fact the U.S. has watched as Russia and China have grown their nuclear capacity… to edge the U.S. out of the international market."With IP3's help, the nuclear industry coalition in the days leading up to Trump's inauguration attempted to overcome a major hurdle: convincing the incoming administration to let American companies pursue nuclear work in Riyadh without a 123 Agreement—a key, legally binding commitment that requires countries doing nuclear deals with the U.S. to sign on to nonproliferation standards. The U.S. has entered into those agreements with more than 40 countries.Nuclear energy executives traveled to Saudi Arabia in 2015 during the Obama administration to discuss a potential deal with the country and knew then that the Saudi Royal Court would not be inclined to sign such an agreement, according to three senior administration officials who spoke with The Daily Beast. Those same sources said that Saudi Arabia was wary of signing a strict agreement while the U.S. was at the same time working on a deal that it thought would one day allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.The pushback prompted the coalition's massive blitz to get the next White House to see it their way—or Saudi Arabia's way. Flynn and Barrack were two of the individuals that helped broker meetings between officials and the coalition, according to two senior administration officials.In tandem with Flynn's departure from the administration, the coalition faced a setback. It continued to secure meetings with officials throughout 2017 and 2018 but it faced significant opposition from career officials who said there was little chance the U.S. would enter into a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia without a 123 Agreement. So, the campaign shifted gears and began pushing a different strategy: convincing the administration and Capitol Hill that Saudi Arabia should not have to commit to forgoing enrichment and reprocessing—methods used in making a nuclear weapon. It was a bold and controversial argument, but one individuals working in the coalition thought could stick if Democratic lawmakers would tone down the tough talk on Saudi Arabia. That became nearly impossible following the killing of Jamal Khashoggi and Congress' denouncements over the administration's lack of response.Since Khashoggi's murder, IP3 and other nuclear energy experts have flooded the media with opinion articles, and academic reports, laying out the reasons why China and Russia were beating out the U.S. in the nuclear export game. Westinghouse, a nuclear energy company based in Pittsburgh, spent more than $300,000 last quarter lobbying Capitol Hill on key legislation related to the export of nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia, according to its latest disclosure form. (Westinghouse is the only U.S. company with the means to export its technology to Riyadh for the purposes of helping the country develop its nuclear sector). Lawmakers who spoke to The Daily Beast over the last several months, both Republicans and Democrats, said advocates in the coalition presented them with detailed memos about how the U.S. could benefit from American companies clinching contracts in the country and why it supported the Trump administration's national security goals. Those lawmakers said that they were also presented with reasons why forcing Saudi Arabia to adhere to what's known in the industry as the "gold standard" would limit American nuclear companies' competitiveness. The U.S. Atomic Energy Act requires the U.S. sign the 123 Agreement with countries it plans to cooperate with on nuclear energy and sets forth conditions and controls to govern nuclear commercial transactions. In addition to a 123 Agreement, the U.S. has sought to uphold the "gold standard" in almost ever nuclear deal since 2009.The standard, first established during the end of the George W. Bush administration when the U.S. signed a nuclear deal with the United Arab Emirates, requires foreign countries to not enrich and reprocess nuclear fuel. For their part, Democrats on Capitol Hill say they've all but tuned out the nuclear energy representatives who are pushing for what they view as a dangerous and illegal plan to enter into a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia. "Congress has to be concerned about both the Khashoggi situation and about the efforts by the Trump administration to pursue arms sales on an emergency basis without congressional authority," said Daryl Kimball, executive director at the Arms Control Association. "These guys [in the coalition] are very nervous now because they know their pitch is going to be more difficult to sell."Trump officials, including Energy Secretary Perry, have appeared before Congress several times to answer questions about the administration's plans for a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia. While officials have said they are committed to requiring that Saudi Arabia sign a 123 Agreement with the U.S., they have wavered on the extent to which the administration would require Riyadh adhere to additional nuclear safeguards.The issue first drew attention after The Daily Beast reported that the Trump administration had signed at least six authorizations that allowed U.S. companies to share information with Saudi Arabia about their plans to help the country develop its nuclear sector. Those authorizations had been held from public view, according to Perry, because individual companies had requested it. The names of the companies who received the authorizations have not been released, though several sources on Capitol Hill told The Daily Beast that the Energy Department shared them with Congress. The news of the authorizations prompted intense scrutiny on Capitol Hill by lawmakers who, angered by the brutal killing of Khashoggi, have denounced the administration's relationship with Saudi Arabia. "Some of the Democrat's staff is livid [about the 810s]. It deepens their suspicions and skepticism," Kimball said. "And Republicans are nervous about this." The Daily Beast recently learned and reported that two of the authorizations doled out by the administration were approved following the murder of Khashoggi."The alarming realization that the Trump Administration signed off on sharing our nuclear know-how with the Saudi regime after it brutally murdered an American resident adds to a disturbing pattern of behavior," Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) said in a statement. "President Trump's eagerness to give the Saudis anything they want, over bipartisan Congressional objection, harms American national security interests."Khashoggi's murder and Congress' outrage has limited the nuclear industry coalition's ability to make headway over the last year.As a result, some U.S. entities represented in the coalition have developed a new plan, as first reported by The Daily Beast, which includes partnering with South Korean state-run energy firms. The plan would potentially allow for Riyadh to bypass entering into a gold standard agreement, raising concerns among officials in the Trump administration that it will have little leverage in ensuring Saudi Arabia adheres to certain nuclear safeguards.The report into the House Oversight Committee's congressional investigation into the coalition's plan and its development is set to be released in the coming days.Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| The Russian Sleazeball Peddling Girls to Billionaires Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:14 AM PDT  Photo Illustation by The Daily Beast/Photos Getty; AlamyODESSA, Ukraine—Disgust flashed across Kristina Goncharova's delicate features when she heard the name Peter Listerman. In Odessa, Ukraine's graceful Black Sea resort, every local fashion agency and beauty contest organizer knows Listerman, a man always looking to hire Russian and Ukrainian models for his VIP escort agencies. And to 24-year-old Goncharova, Listerman's name brings a whole storm of associations with dubious big-money characters treating teenage girls as if they were animals at a pet store. Even back in 2016, sources familiar with the beauty business were not surprised to see a report on the New York Post's gossipy Page Six site connecting Listerman to Jeffrey Epstein: "Instead of having his assistants troll local high schools, the billionaire money manager—and registered sex offender—is importing his playmates from Russia." The article suggested Listerman had been seen visiting Epstein's apartment and noted a TV interview in which Listerman said he introduced many oligarchs to Russian models, but insisted: "I'm not a pimp, just [a] matchmaker."Now Epstein is held in a federal lockup in Manhattan, facing up to 45 years in prison for molesting and trafficking minors. And Listerman appeared to be running scared as soon as we started asking questions.Jeffrey Epstein Arrested for Sex Trafficking of MinorsEarlier this month, celebrities arrived here from all over the world for the 10th annual Odesa International Film Festival. Young Ukrainian models took part in the Fashion Weekend events, with photo shoots on the beach. And sure enough, Listerman showed up as well. We found him drinking in the company of some young women by the pool at the Palace Del Mar hotel. (He was easy to track: he kept posting bawdy videos of himself at the Del Mar or the Dacha restaurant talking about... sex.) When asked about his dealings with Epstein, Listerman tried to turn his activities into a joke: "I invented myths and fairy tales to entertain people," Listerman told The Daily Beast. But when pressed to explain the details about the alleged traffic of teen models, he declined to answer and subsequently blocked a reporter on his Instagram and Facebook pages. What's certain is that Listerman's pursuit of potential "matchmaking" talent is notorious, and for decades the activities of Listerman, a Russian citizen, were an open book. He often bragged about his business on Russian TV, referring to the women he hooked up with rich men as "chickens" or "tyolki," which means heifers, young cows that have never been bred. He also called women his "shaggy gold," alluding to pubic hair.Here is how he described the type he is searching for in an interview with a Russian tabloid, Komsomolskaya Pravda, during his visit to the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk in 2009: "My Hollywood clients and oligarchs are sick of emancipated Muscovites, European and American women, who resemble robots. Everybody is sick of these evil women, they want gentle and romantic!"Russian and Ukrainian organizers of beauty contests try to distance themselves from Listerman as if from a contagious infection. Earlier this year Listerman was noticed outside the luxurious Borvikha concert hall in Moscow right before the Miss Russia 2019 beauty contest. "The scandalous matchmaker was not allowed even to cross the threshold," Komsomolskaya Pravda reported.In the early 2000s, Moscow's glamorous world of wild oil money embraced the cynical philosophy of "Uncle Petia," as Listerman is sometimes called: "God created 50 percent of people who are ready to sell their guts and 50 percent of those who just pretend they cannot but secretly they are ready for anything," he said in one of his interviews. In a 2007 movie, Gloss, by Andrei Konchalovsky, a procurer seemingly modeled on Listerman is named Petia. He checks if young women's feet are gentle and agile enough before sending them off for consideration as mistresses for "a very serious client in Sardinia." One of the models Petia sells to an English lord is a virgin.* * *The Beauty Queen Machine* * *For years, Tatiana Savchenko, the founder of Odessa's first modeling school, has seen the real-life Listerman cruising for her students at fashion shows and beauty contests. "I have heard him approach women at our agency with his usual, 'Hey, beautiful, I have a client for you!'" Savchenko told The Daily Beast. "It took a lot of work to keep him from tricking our teen models in his traps."Goncharova, who was one of Savchenko's students, actually trained from the time she was five to become a beauty queen. She attended ballet, singing, painting and chess classes; she learned to speak French and English, to move gracefully, and answer questions about her ambitions. In a recent interview with The Daily Beast, Goncharova said that "the world's famous seller of young models to oligarchs"—Listerman—had been writing "What's up, Bride-to-Be?" messages to her for years. The young model won the Miss Teen Ukraine contest in 2010 and her dream came true: she was invited to take part in Miss Teen World in Houston. That was when she received the first, "Hey, Beautiful," message from Listerman, who wanted to meet with her. She was 14 years old. Goncharova, a tall, long-limbed Ukrainian model with big doe eyes is gentle, romantic—and horrified to hear about Epstein's case with such details as the "orgy island" and the alleged connection to Listerman. "I had enough of a brain to turn him down when I was a minor but many girls look for a chance to meet with him, say yes to his offers, as he is paying them much more than €300 [$334], the average of what we make per day working as professional models in Europe," she said. And Listerman is relentless. In 2016, he sent her private messages on Facebook every few months. "Hi, Mama, how is Odessa?"; "Is Leonardo DiCaprio with you now?" and then four months later: "Hi, Bride-to-Be, have you been successful?" He knew that as a beauty queen she was. In 2017 Goncharova won Miss Tourism International, a contest of models from 20 countries. But clearly Listerman had another notion of success—hooking up with someone very rich.Today, Goncharova says, she realizes that she has been surrounded with girls obsessed with dreams of American wealth and luxury since her childhood. The daughter of a model, when she came to Savchenko's school, Savrox Models, at the age of five her first teacher was none other than Oleksandra Nikolayenko, who won Miss Ukraine in 2001.Later that same Nikolayenko met Donald Trump's friend, casino and hotel owner Phil Ruffin. "Ukrainian models and American billionaires found their way to each other at beauty contests," Savchenko, who had met Trump and Ruffin at several international competitions, told The Daily Beast. "Not everybody needed Listerman's services."Made Desperate by War, Odessa's Women Look to Model's Cinderella StorySavchenko went to the Nikolayenko-Ruffin wedding at Mar-a-Lago and remembers vividly her encounter with the future U.S. president: "Donald grabbed me by my waist and whispered compliments that made me blush."Teenagers from poor Ukrainian regions, where five years of war and economic crises have wrought widespread devastation, imagine themselves escaping to a modeling career, maybe marrying a political leader, a rich businessman, or a foreign sugar daddy.On a recent scouting trip in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, the managing organizer of Miss Ukraine Universe, Aleksey Diveyev-Tserkovny, announced the organizers could turn any woman into a model. "When 2,000 beauties showed up, we decided to just let them quickly go past us so we could pull the most beautiful ones from the crowd," Diveyev-Tserkovny said last week. "But there were so many beautiful girls that my head was spinning." When asked about Listerman and Epstein, Diveyev-Tserkovny shook his head in disapproval. "To speak to me about Listerman's hunt for girls is the same as to speak about porn films to an expert in art-house film festivals," he said. "Listerman has been chasing me, trying to make friends for a long time, since the beauty contest we organize is No. 1 in Ukraine." * * *The Instagram Pageant* * *Awareness of the role procurers play in Russia and Ukraine is slowly on the rise. Some young women have spoken out about sexual abuse and suffering. But others are posting their nude and semi-nude pictures on Instagram. "I am not sure how to stop girls flocking into escort agencies—just search for love in Odessa or in Ukraine and you will see tons of young women revealing their bodies," said Savchenko. "The number of girls interested in beauty contests is shrinking, replaced by an Instagram race for popularity." Modeling schools organizing beauty contests check every participant's page on social media. "We play the role of a filter: if some girl posts her nude pictures on Instagram we immediately reject her," Savchenko added.Boris Nemtsov, the opposition politician and critic of Vladimir Putin assassinated in 2015, wrote about Listerman in his book Confession of a Rebel. Soon after Putin's first election in 2000, Nemtsov, a Russian parliament member at the time, stayed in the same hotel as Putin and businessman Vladimir Potanin in the French ski resort of Courchevel. "We come downstairs and see around 10 long-legged girls. Potanin and I were in shock. It turns out Petia Listerman, a famous 'promoter' brought them." Nemtsov asked Listerman why he brought the women to the hotel: "But you are also men, after all," Listerman said, assuming that explained everything.The "promoter" has bragged in multiple interviews about finding Russian model wives for big name stars, claiming soccer champion Cristiano Ronaldo and NHL star Alex Ovechkin met their spouses through him. He claimed he had a contract with Tatiana Akhmadova for half of all her divorce proceedings after introducing her to billionaire Farkhad Akhmadov. None of those claims have been substantiated in any detail.In any case, there's more—or less—than matrimony on offer for a prospective "bride-to-be.""Listerman's business is surely not just about marriage—we are aware that there is an international market of models supplied to escorts around casinos, yachts and resorts," Savchenko told The Daily Beast. It's doubtful that any of the Russians or Ukrainians that Page Six noticed around Epstein were there to be life partners.The problem of human trafficking from and through Ukraine is huge, and not limited to would-be models. According to the International Organization for Migration, 230,000 Ukrainian women, men and children have become victims since 1991. But Goncharova, for one, thinks that Ukraine's new first lady Olena Zelenskaya could do great service leading the anti-sex-traffic campaign and increasing awareness among young people. As for Goncharova herself, after a lifetime of modeling, at 24 she is disillusioned and says she is planning to quit the business.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
|
| Iranians sending photos to US-based activist face prison Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:03 AM PDT |
| Top Defector Tells of Spying, Stealing and Mutiny in Venezuela Posted: 29 Jul 2019 02:00 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Days after being named chief of Venezuela's feared Sebin intelligence agency last fall, General Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera was called in by President Nicolas Maduro and asked where the enemy was."I don't understand the question, sir," Figuera says he responded."I want a report every two hours of what the political opposition is doing," Maduro replied, listing some of the 30 politicians whose whereabouts and activities were to be surveilled. Reports, he said, needed to be sent not only to him but to his wife, Cilia Flores, and to Vice President Delcy Rodriguez. The monitoring involved spreadsheets with photos, mobile phone taps and round-the-clock shifts of on-the-ground four-agent teams observing movements and meetings.Figuera, the most significant Venezuelan defector of the past two decades, is in the U.S. offering details of Maduro's increasingly authoritarian rule and the schemes by which he, his family and associates embezzle the proceeds of oil, gold and other national treasures as the once-wealthy nation of 30 million descends into chaos and starvation.Over five hours of interviews with Bloomberg in a Miami hotel and a nearby sports bar, Figuera, a burly 55-year-old trained in Cuba and Belarus, contended that the Venezuelan intelligence services have infiltrated Colombia's security apparatus. With that penetration, early this year the Venezuelans tracked the movements of a key defector, Colonel Oswaldo Garcia Palomo, who was captured, tortured and interrogated after sneaking across the Colombian border to help organize a rebellion."A member of the Colombian intelligence service was in touch with one of ours and gave Palomo a telephone," he said. "With that telephone they followed him." Figuera contended that Palomo's torture took place not at his Sebin agency but at the DGCIM, military counterintelligence. Figuera said Palomo, who's still in Sebin prison, is a friend whose mistreatment horrified him.The Colombian presidency said in reply to written questions that it is looking into the matter. The defense ministry didn't respond to written requests for comment.Much of Figuera's narrative surrounds his claim that the abuse, corruption and authoritarianism he encountered after he took up his top position shocked him. This has been met with skepticism by leaders of the opposition who note that Figuera spent a decade as deputy head of DGCIM before taking over Sebin and that he certainly seemed fully integrated into the most brutal elements of the security apparatus before defecting.Figuera addressed this, saying: "I share responsibility for Maduro's stay in power, like any official who's been part of this criminal enterprise. But if someone has evidence against me, I have no fear to face justice."Figuera's status in the U.S. is temporary. Removed from a list of sanctioned Venezuelan officials upon defecting, he's been granted a permit to stay but not to be a resident. His wife, Barbara Reinefeld, who attended the second part of the interview, has a longer-term visa because she has a sister and a son living in the U.S. The couple are staying with family in Miami as they try to figure out what's next, although Figuera says he wants only to return to his homeland as soon as possible, adding that he believes Maduro can't last out the year. A senior U.S. official said that if Figuera wants to stay, he'll have to apply for residency or asylum.April BetrayalOn April 30, when Juan Guaido, recognized as Venezuela's interim president by the U.S. and more than 50 countries, went to a military base to drive Maduro from power, Figuera was part of the plot. He and Guaido believed other top officials were with them, including the president of the Supreme Court and the defense minister. But they didn't show -- it remains unclear whether they hesitated at the last minute or only feigned interest -- leaving Figuera alone among senior officials to openly declare a shift in loyalty. He hasn't spoken to either Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez or Supreme Court President Maikel Moreno since his departure and says he longs to look each in the eyes and challenge him over his betrayal.Shortly after the failed attempt, he escaped to Colombia. In June, after fearing for his life there, Figuera flew to the U.S. where he spent days briefing U.S. officials.Guaido and his aides, who have named officials in Caracas as well as ambassadors and advisers in Washington and elsewhere to serve as a rival government to Maduro's, seem unsure what to do with Figuera. Some have accompanied him to briefings and interviews but he hasn't been integrated into the group.Carlos Vecchio, the Guaido ambassador to Washington, said in an interview that Figuera's role is to provide evidence against Maduro. The interim government isn't offering him any support in the US.Figuera was until three months ago one of Maduro's most trusted lieutenants, attending key meetings and helping him consolidate power. In March of last year, he said in the interview, Maduro sent him to the Dominican Republic to meet an official of the Central Intelligence Agency to negotiate an end to the U.S. economic embargo, suspend sanctions and open a channel of communication. The Americans had different ideas. They wanted Maduro to step down, release an American from prison and permit new elections. The effort went nowhere.Illicit GainsFiguera said that up close, he realized that the president is seeking personal enrichment and totalitarian control. He said the president's 29-year-old son, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, has created a gold trading monopoly involving businessmen Eduardo Rivas and Alex Saab. When Figuera tried to launch an investigation into the gold trade, Vice President Rodriguez told him to back off, he said. Saab, a Colombian citizen, was indicted July 25 on U.S. money laundering charges, accused of funneling hundreds of millions of dollars to overseas accounts. Figuera also named Industry Minister Tareck el Aissami as the coordinator of international gold sales. Aissami was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2017.Maduro Guerra declined to comment in an email response; Rodriguez didn't respond to a request for comment, nor did the Information Ministry.In recent months, Figuera began discussing with select colleagues how to edge Maduro out of power. They talked about setting up a South African-style reconciliation commission and a reformed political order. A number of top officials took part in the planning, he said, but declined to name them out of concern for their safety. Figuera said he is also part of an effort to document Maduro's misdeeds and present the evidence to international tribunals of justice.He said the Cuban protective force around Maduro has increased markedly in recent weeks to some 200 agents from around 20. The U.S. and much of the West have sought to isolate Maduro, especially after his re-election last year in a race widely condemned as rigged and illegitimate, and get him replaced by Guaido. But Cuba, Russia, China, Turkey and Iran remain allies helping the regime stay in power, Figuera said.He dismissed the recent negotiations between the government and opposition in Norway, now in Barbados, as useless unless Maduro agrees to step down. Otherwise, he said, the president will try to use the talks to buy time and reduce sanctions, which are hurting."What's going on in Venezuela?" he said when asked to sum things up. "Well, it's being destroyed."\--With assistance from Fabiola Zerpa and Matthew Bristow.To contact the reporters on this story: Jose Enrique Arrioja in New York at jarrioja@bloomberg.net;Ethan Bronner in New York at ebronner@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Daniel Cancel at dcancel@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Putin opponent Navalny may have been exposed to 'toxic agent': doctor Posted: 29 Jul 2019 12:53 AM PDT  Russia's jailed opposition politician Alexei Navalny might have been exposed to an unidentified "toxic agent," his personal doctor said on Monday, while health officials insisted his condition was satisfactory. "Some toxic agent may be the reason for Alexei Navalny's 'illness'," his physician Anastasia Vasilyeva said in a post on Facebook, adding that officials at Moscow's hospital No 64, which treated him, have behaved strangely. On Sunday, President Vladimir Putin's top opponent was rushed from jail to hospital suffering an acute allergic reaction.
|
| UPDATE 3-UK plays Brexit hardball with 'stubborn' EU, pound tumbles to a 28-month low Posted: 29 Jul 2019 12:38 AM PDT ![UPDATE 3-UK plays Brexit hardball with 'stubborn' EU, pound tumbles to a 28-month low]( "UPDATE 3-UK plays Brexit hardball with 'stubborn' EU, pound tumbles to a 28-month low") Sterling slid to a 28-month low on Monday as Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government said it now assumed there would be a no-deal Brexit because a "stubborn" European Union was refusing to renegotiate their divorce. Many investors say a no-deal Brexit would send shock waves through the world economy, tip Britain's economy into a recession, roil financial markets and weaken London's position as the pre-eminent international financial centre. Johnson's bet is that the threat of a no-deal Brexit will persuade the EU's biggest powers - Germany and France - to agree to revise the divorce deal that Theresa May agreed last November but failed three times to push through the British parliament.
|
| Why North Korea Fears the F-35 Stealth Fighter Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:50 PM PDT  There is no shortage of instantaneous reactions when North Korea conducts a ballistic missile test. That missile launches are relatively common within the North Korea context—Pyongyang has tested dozens of missiles over the last several years, including the intercontinental Hwasong-15—-doesn't overshadow the adrenaline rush that ensues the moment another one is announced. Last week's test of a short-range ballistic missile, supposedly molded on Russia's SS-26 Iskander, was no exception. While military experts were trying to get as much technical information about the missile as possible, North Korea analysts were debating about the message Kim Jong-un was hoping to send to Washington and Seoul. Could it be a warning to President Trump that the North Koreans are losing the last of their patience with diplomacy? Was it a ploy to add more leverage before working-level denuclearization talks resume?
|
| UPDATE 1-Britain is turbo-charging no-deal Brexit preparations - foreign minister Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:48 PM PDT ![UPDATE 1-Britain is turbo-charging no-deal Brexit preparations - foreign minister]( "UPDATE 1-Britain is turbo-charging no-deal Brexit preparations - foreign minister") Britain is turbo-charging its no-deal Brexit preparations and will be ready to leave the European Union with or without a deal on Oct. 31, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Monday. Raab, an avowed Brexiteer, said the "undemocratic" Irish backstop had to go from the Withdrawal Agreement. "We want a good deal with EU partners and friends but that must involve the abolition of the undemocratic backstop," Raab told the BBC.
|
| Iran Says It Sees No ‘Sincerity’ in Pompeo’s Offer for Talks Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:44 PM PDT ![Iran Says It Sees No 'Sincerity' in Pompeo's Offer for Talks]( "Iran Says It Sees No 'Sincerity' in Pompeo's Offer for Talks") (Bloomberg) -- Iran doesn't think the U.S. is seeking talks or an agreement with the Islamic republic, Abbas Mousavi, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry in Tehran, said days after Secretary of State Michael Pompeo expressed willingness to travel to Tehran to address the Iranian people.This is a "defensive move" by American officials in response to Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif's recent trip to New York where he addressed the U.S. public, Mousavi said in comments aired live on state-run Press TV news channel. "Iran sees no sincerity" in Pompeo's offer, he said.To contact the reporter on this story: Ladane Nasseri in Dubai at lnasseri@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Alaa Shahine at asalha@bloomberg.net, Paul AbelskyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny could have been poisoned, says doctor Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:41 PM PDT  Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny who was taken from jail to hospital suffering an allergic reaction could have been exposed to an "unknown chemical substance", his doctor said. The Putin critic is serving a 30-day jail sentence for calling a mass protest after authorities blocked prominent opposition candidates from taking part in Moscow city elections. His spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh on Sunday said he was receiving treatment for a "severe allergic reaction". His personal physician Anastassia Vassilieva later said on Facebook after visiting Navalny in hospital that he was suffering with swollen eyelids and multiple abscesses on his neck, back, torso and elbows. "We can't rule out that his skin has been exposed to a toxin and been damaged by an unknown chemical substance from a third person," she said, adding that Navalny has never had any allergies. Ealier in the day Yarmysh said the source of the allergic reaction had not been determined. "He is currently in the ward under the supervision of police officers. He is being provided with the necessary medical assistance," she added. Navalny hoped to stand against President Vladimir Putin in an election last year but was barred because of a fraud conviction he and supporters say was politically motivated. The 43-year-old has served several short jail sentences over his protest activity. Two years ago, Navalny had to travel to Spain for surgery after a street attack left him nearly blind in one eye. Sunday's hospitalisation came a day after almost 1,400 people were arrested at the demonstration the opposition leader had called. Leonid Volkov, Navalny's former campaign manager, said he had a similar reaction after he served a sentence in the same cell last month for violating protest laws. He rejected talk of a "conspiracy", calling instead for a "serious inspection" of hygiene standards at the jail, in a tweet posted Sunday.
|
| Talks with US possible if they led to tangible results - Iran foreign ministry spokesman Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:30 PM PDT ![Talks with US possible if they led to tangible results - Iran foreign ministry spokesman]( "Talks with US possible if they led to tangible results - Iran foreign ministry spokesman") Talks between Iran and the United States would be possible if based on an agenda that could lead to tangible results, but Washington is not seeking dialogue, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Monday. U.S. President Donald Trump has said he would be willing to hold talks with the Islamic Republic.
|
| Brexit Bulletin: Is Anyone Ready? Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:30 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Today in Brexit: Boris Johnson's government is ramping up the no-deal rhetoric. But is it all a high-stakes bluff?What's Happening?The weekend messaging was clear: Boris Johnson's new team wants us to know it is serious about a no-deal Brexit.Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid used a Sunday Telegraph article to announce he is stepping up Treasury preparations. No-deal supremo Michael Gove said government was now "working on the assumption" that talks with the European Union would flounder. An abrupt divorce "is now a very real prospect," and the government machine "is being retooled" for the task, Gove wrote in the Sunday Times. However, a study of contingency plans by the Confederation of British Industry, the country's biggest business lobby group, warns that right now neither the EU nor the U.K. is ready for an Oct. 31 schism. "There are no areas of relevance to the economy where the U.K., EU and the business community are all prepared well enough for no deal," the authors write. "No one is ready."'No-Deal Brexit': What It Means and Why It's a Risk AgainSeparately, an Institute for Government report published today says that Johnson must follow through on his pledge to "turbocharge" no-deal preparations. In that context, Sunday's pronouncements from Javid and Gove were the first revving of the booster engines. Johnson should not assume U.K. businesses are prepared, the think tank says, and should note significant potential impacts on Northern Ireland before and after any no-deal divorce.The IoG is also clear that the Brexit boil will not be lanced simply by leaving without a deal. The prime minister would inevitably face complex EU negotiations and parliamentary showdowns after Oct. 31, according to Joe Owen, Brexit director at the IoG. "All his political bandwidth would be spent on Brexit issues instead of the domestic agenda he wants to pursue." Government ministers are talking tough, but do they mean what they say, and can they pull it off? The reality might not be as clear-cut as the rhetoric.Today's Must-ReadsEurope's leaders have failed to anticipate the risks of an overnight UK exit, Wolfgang Munchau writes in the Financial Times. Will they stand firm with the deadline approaching and thousands of EU jobs at risk? Boris Johnson is channelling the spirit of punk to push through Brexit — and it could work, says John Harris in the Guardian. Johnson's adviser Dominic Cummings has warned government aides they'll be sacked if they're found leaking to the press, according to a "leak" to the Daily Telegraph.Brexit in BriefJobs at Risk | PSA Group, the French carmaker that owns Vauxhall, will pull all production from Ellesmere Port and switch to a plant in mainland Europe if Brexit leaves the British factory unprofitable, the Financial Times reports. "I have to protect the company," Chief Executive Officer Carlos Tavares said.Naysayer | Scottish Conservative Leader Ruth Davidson used her regular column in the Scottish Mail on Sunday to say she'll work with the new prime minister but won't countenance leaving the EU without a deal. "My message is simple," Davidson wrote. "Not on my watch." Johnson visits Scotland today.Corbyn 'Ready' | Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said he's ready for a general election at any time. "We oppose no deal, and people should have a final say on it," Corbyn said on Sky News's Sophy Ridge program on Sunday. "In the event of a no-deal Brexit, we'll campaign to remain."Summer Homework | Corbyn's Brexit spokesman Keir Starmer has held private talks with Tory ex-Chancellor Philip Hammond, according to the Observer. Starmer told the newspaper that cross-party moves to block a no-deal Brexit were accelerating, and would continue over the summer ahead.Rates to Remain | The Bank of England's latest interest rate decision comes on Thursday, with economists predicting no change to the current rate of 0.75%. A sharp growth slowdown, Brexit uncertainty and a shaky global backdrop have bolstered the case for keeping rates on hold. Meanwhile, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates on Wednesday.Robust Market | Investment in residential property projects in the U.K. rose by more than 150% in 2018, according to a report by broker JLL. London led the charge with 2 billion euros invested, almost doubling from 2017. London is now the fourth-biggest European city for multifamily investment, behind Berlin, Copenhagen and Paris.On the Markets | The threat of a sudden slump in the pound is growing, analysts say. Although it rose slightly last week when Johnson took office, sterling then fell below $1.24 by the end of the week. It traded at $1.2368 early this morning, with an April 2017 low of $1.251 now in view. Want to keep up with Brexit?You can follow us @Brexit on Twitter and join our Facebook group, Brexit Decoded. For all the latest news, visit bloomberg.com/brexit. Got feedback? Send us an email.Know someone who'd like the Brexit Bulletin?Colleagues, friends and family can sign up here, and our new newsletter, the Brussels Edition, offers in-depth coverage of the EU.For even more: Subscribe to Bloomberg All Access for our unmatched global news coverage and two in-depth daily newsletters, The Bloomberg Open and The Bloomberg Close.To contact the author of this story: Adam Blenford in London at ablenford@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Neil Callanan at ncallanan@bloomberg.net, Leila TahaFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
|
| Britain is turbo-charging no-deal Brexit preparations - foreign minister Posted: 28 Jul 2019 11:17 PM PDT ![Britain is turbo-charging no-deal Brexit preparations - foreign minister]( "Britain is turbo-charging no-deal Brexit preparations - foreign minister") Britain is turbo-charging its no-deal Brexit preparations and will be ready to leave the bloc with or without a deal on Oct. 31, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Monday. Raab, an avowed Brexiteer, said the "undemocratic" Irish backstop had to go from the Withdrawal Agreement. "We want a good deal with EU partners and friends but that must involve the abolition of the undemocratic backstop," Raab told the BBC.
|
