| Trump defends decision to abandon Kurdish allies in Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 04:48 PM PDT  President Donald Trump on Monday cast his decision to abandon Kurdish fighters in Syria as fulfilling a campaign promise to withdraw from "endless war" in the Middle East, even as Republican critics and others said he was sacrificing a U.S. ally and undermining American credibility. Trump declared U.S. troops would step aside for an expected Turkish attack on the Kurds, who have fought alongside Americans for years, but he then threatened to destroy the Turks' economy if they went too far. It was the latest example of Trump's approach to foreign policy that critics condemn as impulsive, that he sometimes reverses and that frequently is untethered to the advice of his national security aides.
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| Kurds Have Been Preparing for Trump’s Syria Betrayal—With a Vengeance Posted: 07 Oct 2019 04:43 PM PDT  Delil Souleiman/GettyLate Sunday night in Washington, the White House announced it was pulling U.S. troops out of northeast Syria to clear the way for a Turkish invasion. The Kurds there who led the fight on the ground that defeated the so-called Islamic State had seen President Donald Trump's betrayal coming. But still they hoped it could be avoided. "Don't let the Turks disrupt my wedding," our translator texted in September prior to our arrival in the region. For more than a year, we have been visiting almost monthly to interview captured ISIS cadres held by the Kurdish and Arab troops of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as part of a project for the International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism. Trump's Crazy Syria Move Will Wipe Out America's Allies and Set Up a Big ISIS ComebackIn September, we saw the Turkish threat to invade at any moment was held off by tense U.S. negotiations in which the SDF made considerable concessions, allowing Turkey to patrol jointly a large swath of territory while agreeing to remove checkpoints and military positions farther back from the Turkish border."They should put their patrols inside Turkish territory, and not enter Syria," SDF leaders told us at the time, as they reluctantly acquiesced to U.S. demands.* * *BITTER FRIENDS* * *Many current and former White House advisors counseled against the kind of announcement made Sunday night. Defense Secretary James Mattis resigned last year over Trump's threat to remove the few thousand U.S. troops in Syria, who not only served as advisors in the fight against ISIS, but as deterrence against Turkish operations east of the Euphrates River. In a particularly bitter post on Twitter, Bret McGurk, who served as the special U.S. presidential envoy for the fight against ISIS from 2015 to 2018, wrote, "Donald Trump is not a Commander-in-Chief. He makes impulsive decisions with no knowledge or deliberation. He sends military personnel into harm's way with no backing. He blusters and then leaves our allies exposed when adversaries call his bluff or he confronts a hard phone call."The U.S. military learned about the withdrawal plan only after Trump decided on it following his Sunday phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It has pulled out of two small observation posts in the security-mechanism zone near the Syria-Turkey border so far. But no further withdrawals are imminent, according to a knowledgeable source. The military, remembering Trump's December order out of Syria and subsequent reversal, is waiting to learn if Trump will follow through with withdrawal this time.A recently departed senior Pentagon official considered the pullout a "blatant betrayal" of the U.S.' Kurdish partners that gives "carte blanche to Erdogan" for a widely forecast bloodletting. "It's going to be a massacre, that's clear," the ex-official told The Daily Beast. "It's fundamentally wrong. They destroyed the Caliphate."But the Kurds are not entirely defenseless. Military leaders of the dominant group, known as the YPG or People's Protection Units (and their female YPJ partners), already were in overdrive in September, preparing for what they had long anticipated—a possible betrayal by their closest ally, the United States.* * *DIGGING IN* * *Alongside every major highway and criss-crossing the entire Northern Syria area, in fields, cities and towns, we saw digging for an extensive system of tunnels. "We're ready either way," the Kurdish leaders told us when we asked if they trusted the Americans to keep the Turks at bay.Kurds don't have much, but their spirit of freedom and their desire to protect their hard-won territory and what they see as their incipient democracy was evident everywhere in September as the YPG troops prepared for battle with a much better equipped foe—the Turkish armed forces, the second biggest military in NATO. But nobody who fought ISIS in Syria in one vicious battle after another has forgotten that the huge Turkish army stood by and did nothing against the Islamic State as its killers carried out genocidal campaigns against Yazidis and Shiites, while abducting, torturing, ransoming or beheading Americans, Europeans, and Japanese, among others. Through all that, NATO ally Turkey was not interested in intervention. Far from it.That was until the White House statement Sunday night, up to which the U.S. military denied Turkey the ability to operate in airspace over SDF controlled territory, effectively making it more difficult to enter Northern Syria to conduct the "terrorist cleansing operation" that Turks insist upon. They already carried out one such operation in Afrin, west of the Euphrates, in January 2018, displacing Kurds and effectively taking over the area, using what Kurds claim are former ISIS cadres to fight for them.Turks view the Northern Syria area of Rojava, and the YPG dominated SDF, as controlled by Kurdish PKK terrorists operating under another name—wolves in sheep's clothing. Indeed, in times past—until 1998—PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, lived freely in Syria and the father of the current Assad allowed him to train and equip his highly disciplined terrorist group for attacks into Turkey. It's also true that over time, the various governing parties of Syria, Iraq and Iran have made use of PKK assaults on Turks as a way to exert pressure on Turkish politics. Turkey has suffered greatly from PKK terrorist attacks both inside Turkey and globally, and the PKK is clearly designated on the U.S. and EU's list of terrorist organizations. In recent concessions to Turkey's alarm over the SDF, a group they view as being in the hands of the PKK, the U.S. recently added additional individuals involved in the PKK to the U.S. State Department's specially designated terrorist list. Turkey has also developed drones that fly over the Qandil mountains, in northern Iraq, making it easier to spot PKK movements and routinely send fighter jets to bomb them. In the case of northern Syria however, until President Trump's announcement late Sunday night Washington time, the U.S. policy was to deny the Turks military incursions into territory where U.S. troops patrol and the U.S. military controls the airspace and claims by Turkey that the SDF is PKK have also been hotly disputed.While Turkey sees the SDF as dominated and led by a terrorist organization, the U.S. has a completely different perspective, viewing the YPG and SDF as valued allies in the fight against ISIS. Indeed, YPG and YPJ (Women's People's Protection Units) fighters lost over 1,000 lives fighting ISIS and it is common to see Kurdish men and women in Rojava on crutches, in wheelchairs and otherwise suffering from serious and lifelong injuries sustained in the battle to retake ISIS dominated areas, including Raqqa. While the rest of the world was silent, the YPG and YPJ can also take credit for going to the rescue of the Yazidis on Sinjar mountain in 2014, fighting to stop ISIS from carrying out a massive genocidal campaign in which ISIS cadres captured and enslaved countless Yazidi women, boys, and girls. The men were killed by ISIS, the boys killed or indoctrinated. The women and girls subsequently were raped and treated as chattel. But thousands were able to escape with YPG help.* * *THE PRISONERS* * *At present the SDF houses thousands of captured ISIS prisoners, holding the men in repurposed schools and prisons overflowing with former fighters and in camps similarly run at overcapacity for ISIS women and children. According to a March 2019 UN report, a total of 8,000 Islamic State fighters currently are held in SDF custody. In our recent visits to north and east Syria from May through August, relying on our primary intelligence sources, we were told that approximately 2,000 of these Islamic State prisoners were considered "foreign terrorist fighters" from North Africa, Europe, and the Americas.The same data was also corroborated in an August 2019 press release by the Office of the Spokesperson, Special Envoy of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, Ambassador James Jeffrey. Just under a 1,000 of the prisoners are believed to be Europeans. ICSVE has interviewed approximately five percent of those detained. Most appear to have become totally disillusioned, are exhausted from battle and prison and say they want to lay down arms. While there is no specific deradicalization or rehabilitation program applied to them at present and we have been requested by the SDF and also agreed to build one, it's safe to say the majority are spontaneously deradicalizing and simply want to return home to their former lives after facing a judicial process.The SDF prisons are overcrowded and the SDF leadership repeatedly has expressed a need to ICSVE researchers for technical assistance in dealing with terrorist prisoners and for financial assistance to build at least five prisons. Riots and attempted jail breaks have occurred in SDF prisons holding foreign fighters. Likewise, recent news reporting shows over-capacity has prisoners sleeping next to each other on their sides to be able to fit into small and overcrowded rooms. Three detention centers holding ISIS women and children also are administered by the SDF: Camps Hol, Ain Issa and Roj. According to a UN Report as of April 2019 an estimated 75,000 women and children were being held. Our data suggests that at least 60,000 are Syrians and Iraqis. At least 8,000 children and 4,000 wives of foreign fighters remain in the camp.Women and children live in tents in these camps which are hot in the summer, freezing cold during winter, and leak cold rainwater as well. Dust blows around the camps causing breathing difficulties for some. Women and children have died of typhus, tent fires, and other dangers in the camps. Recently vaccinations have been offered, but many mothers don't trust the program and refrain from having their children vaccinated. The women cook for themselves and complain that the food provided them lacks nutritious fruits and vegetables. Schools are lacking as well.All of the camps housing women have suffered from ISIS enforcers still dedicated to the group who require the other women to continue to cover themselves and punish those who speak out against them. These women have attacked other women, set their tents on fire, stolen their possessions, attacked, bitten, beaten and stabbed guards and have murdered other women creating a sense of chaos, constant danger and oppression in the camps. Recently a gun fight broke out in Camp Hol, with one woman killed and seven wounded.Foreign fighters from about 60 countries remain in SDF custody. We have interviewed foreign fighters who are nationals of the United States, Canada, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, the UK, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Dagestan, Turkey, Denmark, Russia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia, Indonesia, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Libya, Switzerland, Egypt, and Germany. * * *A TRIBUNAL?* * *While the SDF has struggled to contain the overflow of captured ISIS fighters, they have been frustrated by Turkish politics and threats to their very existence. In recent years with the Syrian uprising and rise of ISIS in Iraq and Syria, the Turks saw it to be to their advantage to fund, train and equip Islamist rebels that they believed could keep the Kurdish independence movements in Syria in a weakened state or altogether destroyed. The Kurds, meanwhile, fought back in 2015 when ISIS invaded the city of Kobani on the Turkish border and rose up as a valiant on-the-ground force to repel the terrorists. The U.S. led coalition began arming and supplying the YPG and YPJ, and providing air cover, infusing the Kurds with a powerful sense of valor and military might that ultimately led to the complete territorial defeat of an Islamic State "Caliphate" that had taken as its motto "remain and expand."ISIS is hardly a defeated foe however, with weekly sleeper cell attacks occurring in both Syria and Iraq and the likes of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi still making video and audio appeals to supporters around the world to reinstate the Caliphate, starting with breaking the ISIS prisoners out of captivity.The subject of ISIS captives is one of great importance to President Trump who repeatedly has threatened to release the roughly 12,000 ISIS foreign men, women and children prisoners held by the SDF in prisons and camps. Trump's view is that each country has to take its citizens back, even countries like Sweden that lack a terrorism law under which to prosecute returnees, and countries like France, which already has a serious militant jihadi prison problem and fears any more potential ISIS cadres inside its penitentiaries. These countries have continued to tell the SDF that an international tribunal can be established in its territory to try ISIS prisoners in place. But the UN Counter Terrorism Directorate and U.S. State Department strongly disagree with this proposal and President Trump continues to tweet that he is simply going to release the prisoners to European countries refusing to repatriate them—even though it is the SDF, not Washington, that has them in custody.In a series of tweets on Monday, Trump claimed erroneously that most of the ISIS prisoners are foreigner terrorist fighters and seemed to ignore that ISIS, even when based far away in Syria, is a very real threat to U.S. citizens and interests. It is "time for us to get out of these ridiculous Endless Wars, many of them tribal, and bring our soldiers home. WE WILL FIGHT WHERE IT IS TO OUR BENEFIT, AND ONLY FIGHT TO WIN. Turkey, Europe, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russia and the Kurds will now have to … figure the situation out, and what they want to do with the captured ISIS fighters in their "neighborhood." They all hate ISIS, have been enemies for years. We are 7000 miles away and will crush ISIS again if they come anywhere near us!"While arguments of who should be responsible to prosecute and hold ISIS prisoners can be made on both sides, in many ways Europe, Jordan and many other countries effectively did "flush the toilet" of their militant jihadi problem by allowing them to freely exit their countries to go fight in Syria, most of them ultimately joining ISIS. The U.S. at present repatriates all of its ISIS fighters bringing them to swift and sound justice at home.* * *ISIS AMBASSADOR TO TURKEY* * *Turkey also has a responsibility in the rise of ISIS, having allowed over 40,000 foreign fighters to cross over its border into Syria, many unabashedly on their way to join the Islamic State. Many prisoners tell us of Turkish complicity with their journey into ISIS-land and being wished well by border guards who winked as they crossed into Syria.Abu Mansour, a 36-year-old Moroccan ISIS emir interviewed by ICSVE in February 2019 in Iraqi prison, told us that he basically functioned as the ISIS ambassador to Turkey, negotiating border issues, the transfer of ISIS wounded into Turkey for treatment, the flow of foreign fighters across the Turkish border into ISIS territory, and other logistics. "The subject of Turkey is a very big one," he said, "and the mutual interests include the obvious and the hidden.""Their benefit was that it was a border area and we have a border strip with them," Abu Mansour continued. "Security is one of them, and they wanted to control north of Syria." The Turks wanted to control the entire border region in Syria and even into Iraq as far as Mosul, according to Abu Mansour, but they wanted to do it through a proxy force. "So, they wanted to find organizations that would do this favor for them, including terminating the presence of the Kurdish Workers Party [the PKK], without a direct interference from Turkey. At the same time, especially since they were part of NATO, they don't want to anger NATO, because they need NATO."By the same token, Turkish President Erdogan's background as a committed Islamist created a certain sympathy, as did his ambition to revive in modern form the old Ottoman empire, Abu Mansour claimed. "The pretext of [controlling the] Kurdistan Workers' Party [PKK] is a strong pretext for Turkey, but they have ambitions, as they have entered regions that don't have PKK in them." Abu Mansour explained the Turkish and ISIS relationship through his own experiences. In 2013, he said, he was assigned to receive the ISIS volunteers arriving in Turkey, but later, "I supervised the country entry operations, registration as a whole." Then in 2015, he said, "I worked on external relations, relations with the Turkish intelligence. It started when I was at the borders." First there was an agreement about passing the wounded from Syria into Turkey, about the border crossing and security arrangements. "Ambulances, especially in critical and serious situations, could go straight to the [border] gate," said Abu Mansour. "Then a Turkish ambulance takes the case to the Turkish hospitals, and it is followed up inside Turkey. There was a hotline with intelligence who are located at the borders. Most places were available, [including] hospitals in Turkey [and] there was a technical staff of doctors who follow up the case in Turkey. The [Turkish] state was paying for certain operations performed in private hospitals, but most cases referred by the public hospitals were for free."Abu Mansour said he had "face-to-face meetings with Turkish delegations. Sometimes they represented the intelligence services, sometimes the Turkish army, depending on the issue. "Most meetings were in Turkey on the border strip, but there were also meetings in Ankara and Gaziantep, depending on the issue," said Abu Mansour. He would travel with a delegation of two or three ISIS people."Referencing the easy relationship, as he saw it, between ISIS and the Turkish intelligence and military, Abu Mansour claimed, an ISIS emir could "go to Ankara without a problem. They always sent a car, or a bodyguard. At one point, we met weekly, depending on the issue and its importance to Turkey and to us, according to the demand."The situation described by Abu Mansour raises a question: did the ultimate defeat of ISIS in fact deprive the Turks of the proxy buffer zone they wanted—which they are now invading Syria to establish?Abu Mansour recalled, "Turkey asked on many occasions for a safe zone." This would be a demilitarized zone where it would provide ISIS with whatever it wanted, but only inside Syrian territories. According to Abu Mansour, , ISIS refused to grant it, and relations started to fall apart. Eventually, Turkey grew sick of the back and forth, and there was also a split in ISIS leadership, with one faction deciding it would take the terror war into Turkey with a 2016 bombing at Istanbul airport. At the time, Abu Mansour was in Gaziantep, Turkey, and the Turkish authorities told him they thought this was an orchestrated act to pressure Ankara. But he says that was not the case. The external security services of ISIS had started setting their own agenda, "carrying out operations everywhere," Abu Mansour told us. "We reached a state in which they couldn't care less about politics, and they worked like gangs, [and would] strike anywhere."While Turkey continues to claim that the SDF, our strongest ally in fighting ISIS, is a terrorist dominated group, many questions remain about Turkey's own complicity with ISIS. Given that during a bitterly fought war with ISIS, in which many Kurdish lives were lost, that the SDF managed to take control of the area, institute a functioning political system that included granting an impressive array of minority rights and rights to women, the SDF deserves our respect and protection.But U.S. President Donald Trump has put a price on all this. "The Kurds fought with us," he tweeted, "but were paid massive amounts of money and equipment to do so." That they saved countless lives in the process, including American lives, does not seem to have been a factor.Spencer Ackerman also contributed reporting to this article.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.
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| Ireland to prepare for the worst with 'no deal Brexit' budget Posted: 07 Oct 2019 04:01 PM PDT ![Ireland to prepare for the worst with 'no deal Brexit' budget]( "Ireland to prepare for the worst with 'no deal Brexit' budget") Ireland's finance minister will present a "no deal" Brexit budget for 2020 on Tuesday, detailing how he will keep firms afloat and allow the state's finances to return to deficit if Britain leaves the European Union in a chaotic manner. With Britain's latest scheduled exit from the EU just three weeks away, Minister Paschal Donohoe made the call last month to assume the worst, eschewing the breadth of tax cuts and spending increases of recent years to set aside funds for exposed businesses. Ireland is considered the most vulnerable among remaining EU members to Brexit due to its close trade links and shared land border with the United Kingdom.
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| Trump Sows Turkey Chaos as U.S. Denies Endorsing Syria Incursion Posted: 07 Oct 2019 03:58 PM PDT ![Trump Sows Turkey Chaos as U.S. Denies Endorsing Syria Incursion]( "Trump Sows Turkey Chaos as U.S. Denies Endorsing Syria Incursion") (Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump hasn't endorsed a Turkish incursion into Syria, a senior administration official said, deepening confusion around his policy after an uproar from Republicans that he planned to abandon U.S. Kurdish allies.The official said Trump has cautioned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that he will bear responsibility for Islamic State prisoners in the region, as well as a resurgence of violence if the militants are freed and any harm to civilians in areas Turkey occupies.The official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.Trump later suggested his move to clear the way for a Turkish invasion was intended in part to pressure European countries including France and Germany that, he said, have refused to accept the return of citizens who joined Islamic State.Trump said at a meeting with military leaders that he had urged U.S. allies to reclaim their citizens, but they had refused."We're not going to move the fighters to Guantanamo Bay and take care of them for many, many years into the future, that's not for us," he said. "Now it's time for Germany and France and all of the nations where they came from to take them back and they chose no. Maybe they're going to change their tune now, I don't know."Trump has come under criticism from allies including Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and his former United Nations ambassador, Nikki Haley, for his announcement late Sunday that the U.S. wouldn't stand in the way of the Turkish incursion.The White House statement was read around the world as Trump abandoning U.S. policy that Kurdish allies would be protected from Turkish aggression in exchange for their help in defeating Islamic State.Former Vice President Joe Biden, who is among the top Democratic contenders to challenge Trump's re-election in 2020, said in a statement that "once again, an impulsive and erratic president has abandoned friends of the United States with a late-night tweet."American officials didn't immediately explain the president's change in position on Syria. Trump's order to remove about 50 U.S. troops from a Syria border region Turkey intends to invade doesn't represent a green light for the incursion, the U.S. official said. The official added that Trump had discussed the decision with officials at the State Department and Pentagon before the White House announcement, and that the agencies should not have been surprised.The U.S. had successfully dissuaded Turkey from an invasion for two years, but if Erdogan orders an operation, the U.S. doesn't want its soldiers endangered or caught in the crossfire, the official said.I've told President Erdogan, I hope he's going to treat everybody with great respect," Trump said at the meeting with military leaders. Earlier, he told reporters at the White House: "I have consulted with everybody.""I fully understand both sides of it but I campaigned on the fact I was going to bring our soldiers home," he said.The administration official did not say that any U.S. soldiers would be brought home as a result of the withdrawal. The troops moved from the border region, mostly special forces soldiers, would be re-positioned at different U.S. bases in Syria, the official said.(Updates with more Trump remarks, beginning in fourth paragraph)To contact the reporters on this story: Josh Wingrove in Washington at jwingrove4@bloomberg.net;Justin Sink in Washington at jsink1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, John HarneyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Boris Johnson Preparing for Brexit Talks to Collapse: Spectator Posted: 07 Oct 2019 03:57 PM PDT ![Boris Johnson Preparing for Brexit Talks to Collapse: Spectator]( "Boris Johnson Preparing for Brexit Talks to Collapse: Spectator") (Bloomberg) -- Boris Johnson's government is preparing for Brexit talks to collapse, a move for which it will blame Ireland and European Union leaders, according to a text message from one of the prime minister's officials reported by the Spectator magazine.The message, which ran to nearly 800 words, was published in full by the magazine on its website. It was attributed simply to someone in Johnson's office.It blamed the EU's refusal to move on the Irish border question, which has stalled talks for more than a year, on Parliament for passing a law that aims to stop Johnson taking the U.K. out of the bloc without a deal. As a result of that, the author claimed Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar had decided not to make concessions on the border.The message suggested that the main way Johnson would try to avoid delaying Brexit would be to try to get an EU country to veto one. It said Britain would offer rewards to any country opposing an extension to negotiations. According to the Spectator, the U.K. would also threaten cooperation on areas including defense and security if it stays in the EU.Johnson Warned Against Big Tax Cuts as U.K. Faces No-Deal ShockNevertheless, the author seemed to accept that an extension was likely, and that Johnson would then fight an election, promising a no-deal Brexit immediately if he won.Talks about Johnson's Brexit plan, announced last week, are due to continue Tuesday in Brussels. The U.K. side has given more legal detail about how its plan would work, but EU leaders are still demanding that Britain drop its plan to introduce a customs border on the island of Ireland. There's an informal deadline for the talks of the end of this week. Johnson yesterday called counterparts in what Brexit minister James Duddridge told Parliament was an attempt to "whip up enthusiasm for the deal and avoid no-deal."Rules and QuestionsMeanwhile, Johnson's government has delayed publishing its rules for when it would be able to intervene to help businesses after a disagreement over what those rules should be.According to a person familiar with the plans, speaking on condition of anonymity, changes to state aid rules were going to be published Tuesday. That has now been held back.The precise nature of the disagreement isn't clear, but for months there has been an argument within government on the issue. The Treasury has argued that the European Union's rules should be copied into British law, to give businesses continuity, and to promote competition. EU rules aim to prevent governments from distorting markets by helping particular companies.On the other side of the argument are ministers who want the government to be able to help businesses struggling in the wake of a no-deal Brexit. Without the constraints of the EU's rule, the government would be able to back national champions, potentially undercutting rival European firms.To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Hutton in London at rhutton1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at tross54@bloomberg.net, Robert JamesonFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Trump left isolated as Republican allies revolt over US withdrawal from Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 03:52 PM PDT  Mitch McConnell and Lindsey Graham lead condemnation of foreign policy move that could prove 'disaster in the making'Donald Trump with Mark Milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, in the Cabinet Room on Monday. Lindsey Graham said abandoning the Kurds would be 'a stain on America's honour'. Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/APDonald Trump was dangerously isolated on Monday as, in a rare rebuke, some of his most loyal allies revolted against his decision to withdraw US troops from north-eastern Syria.Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell led a chorus of Republicans who, having defended the president on almost every other issue – including over impeachment – decided to draw a line in the sand."A precipitous withdrawal of US forces from Syria would only benefit Russia, Iran, and the Assad regime," McConnell said. "And it would increase the risk that Isis and other terrorist groups regroup."He added: "As we learned the hard way during the Obama administration, American interests are best served by American leadership, not by retreat or withdrawal."The criticism was significant because McConnell is usually at pains not to cross Trump even at his most capricious. Last week the Kentucky senator released a Facebook video promising to stop Democratic-led impeachment in its tracks.Article 1 of the United States constitution gives the House of Representatives the sole power to initiate impeachment and the Senate the sole power to try impeachments of the president. A president can be impeached if they are judged to have committed "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors" – although the constitution does not specify what "high crimes and misdemeanors" are.The process starts with the House of Representatives passing articles of impeachment. A simple majority of members need to vote in favour of impeachment for it to pass to the next stage. Democrats currently control the house, with 235 representatives.The chief justice of the US supreme court then presides over the proceedings in the Senate, where the president is tried, with senators acting as the jury. For the president to be found guilty two-thirds of senators must vote to convict. Republicans currently control the Senate, with 53 of the 100 senators.Two presidents have previously been impeached, Bill Clinton in 1998, and Andrew Johnson in 1868, though neither was removed from office as a result. Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 before there was a formal vote to impeach him.Martin BelamThe unusual fracture emerged on Sunday night when, shortly after a phone conversation between Trump and Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the White House announced removal of US troops from the Syria-Turkey border area. "Turkey will soon be moving forward with its long-planned operation into Northern Syria," it added.Critics of all political stripes have long feared that the move could open the way for a Turkish strike on Kurdish-led fighters in the area. Kurdish groups have fought alongside a small US presence in Syria to drive Islamic State militants from the region.The Republican backlash was rapid and potentially unnerving for a president whose fate is tethered to the party and the assumption that it will acquit him in the Senate if, as widely expected, the Democratic-led House of Representatives votes for impeachment.Lindsey Graham, chairman of the Senate judiciary committee, who has become an outspoken defender (and frequent golf partner) of Trump, did not acquiesce this time. Abandonment of the Kurds would be "a disaster in the making", he said, and "a stain on America's honour".Graham told Fox News: "I hope I'm making myself clear how short-sighted and irresponsible this decision is. I like President Trump. I've tried to help him. This, to me, is just unnerving to its core."Graham wrote on Twitter that if the plan goes ahead, he will introduce a Senate resolution opposing it and seeking reversal of the decision. He added: "We will introduce bipartisan sanctions against Turkey if they invade Syria and will call for their suspension from NATO if they attack Kurdish forces who assisted the US in the destruction of the ISIS Caliphate."Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican in the House, whose attempts to defend Trump's phone call with Ukraine's president have provoked mockery, said: "If you make a commitment and somebody is fighting with you, America should keep their word."Michael McCaul of Texas, the lead Republican on the House foreign affairs committee, also urged the president to reconsider. "The United States should not step aside and allow a Turkish military operation in north-east Syria," he said. "This move will undermine our ongoing campaign to prevent an Isis resurgence and will ultimately threaten our homeland."Additionally, the United States needs to stay engaged to prevent further destructive involvement in the region from our adversaries like the Assad regime, Putin and Iran."Notably, senator Marco Rubio of Florida, reluctant to criticise Trump even when the president suggested that China investigate former vice president and 2020 election rival Joe Biden, was clear , describing the retreat as "a grave mistake that will have implications far beyond Syria"And Nikki Haley, Trump's former UN ambassador, admonished Trump without mentioning his name. "We must always have the backs of our allies, if we expect them to have our back," she tweeted. "The Kurds were instrumental in our successful fight against ISIS in Syria. Leaving them to die is a big mistake. TurkeyIsNotOurFriend"Ominously for Trump, even conservative Fox News aired dissent. Host Brian Kilmeade described the pullout as "a disaster", telling viewers of Fox & Friends: "Abandon our allies? That's a campaign promise? Abandon the people that got the caliphate destroyed?"Republicans who have contradicted Trump before did so forcefully again. Utah senator Mitt Romney described Trump's announcement as "a betrayal", adding: "It says that America is an unreliable ally; it facilitates ISIS resurgence; and it presages another humanitarian disaster."Romney and Democratic senator Chris Murphy issued a joint statement insisting Trump's administration "explain to the American people how betraying an ally and ceding influence to terrorists and adversaries is not disastrous for our national security interests".Democrats also piled in but there was a lone voice of support for the president on Capitol Hill. Republican senator Rand Paul, long a critic of foreign intervention, said: "So many neocons want us to stay in wars all over the Middle East forever. [Trump] is absolutely right to end those wars and bring the troops home."Trump himself was undeterred by the blowback. Speaking at the White House on Monday, he said he has "great respect" for the prominent Republican critics. And added: "People are extremely thrilled because they say it's time to bring our people back home. We're not a police force. They're policing the area. We're not a police force. The UK was very thrilled at this decision … many people agree with it very strongly."
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| GOP Senators Unnerved and ‘Concerned’ About ‘Betrayal’ of Kurds in Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 03:18 PM PDT  BRENDAN SMIALOWSKIPresident Donald Trump's decision to pave the way for a Turkish invasion of northern Syria at the expense of Kurdish allies in the region has infuriated Republican allies in the Senate who have spent the last two weeks twisting themselves in knots to defend him from an impeachment inquiry. Late on Sunday, the White House released a one-paragraph statement declaring that a Turkish invasion of northern Syria was imminent, and the United States would "not support or be involved in the operation" and "will no longer be in the immediate area." For Kurds in the region—who have been fighting ISIS with U.S.-supplied weapons and are largely considered the strongest fighting force in Syria—the declaration amounts to an abrogration of agreements with the United States to defend them against Turkey, which considers them to be terrorists. In June, Trump himself warned that abandoning the alliance would allow Turkey to "wipe out the Kurds, who helped us with ISIS."Trump's Crazy Syria Move Will Wipe Out America's Allies and Set Up a Big ISIS ComebackThe backlash from his Republican allies was swift. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), led the way on Monday morning, with the South Carolina senator calling the move "shortsighted and irresponsible" on Fox & Friends, a show that effectively serves as a televised presidential daily brief for Trump."This impulsive decision by the president has undone all the gains we've made, thrown the region into further chaos, Iran is licking their chops, and if I'm an ISIS fighter, I've got a second lease on life," Graham said. "I will do everything I can to sanction Turkey's military and their economy if they step one foot into Syria. I hope I'm making myself clear how shortsighted and irresponsible this decision is."Graham even referenced the House's impeachment inquiry, unprompted, before adding that while "I've tried to help him," the president's behavior was "just unnerving to its core."Graham, who has spent years trying to steer Trump closer to the hawkish foreign policy stances held by his Republican predecessors, opened the floodgates for Republicans who see Trump's move as a threat to a critical U.S. ally in the region, and a potentially disastrous embrace of an autocratic regime.Indeed, Monday saw widespread pushback from around the Senate GOP, from lawmakers who've cozied up to Trump to those who have been more willing to call him out. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), a Trump ally who has nudged him toward more hawkish positions on Venezuela and Iran policy, called the decision "a grave mistake that will have implications far beyond Syria." Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) said that he was "deeply concerned" that the decision could leave Kurds who risked their lives to fight ISIS in harm's way.And Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), probably Trump's most vocal Senate GOP critic, characterized the pullout as "a betrayal" that "presages another humanitarian disaster" in Syria. Romney went so far as to join Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) to demand that administration officials explain their move to lawmakers and the public. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE), meanwhile, has toned down his Trump criticism lately but warned that the retreat would "likely result in the slaughter of allies who fought with us, including women and children." Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) managed to subtweet the president, calling Trump's move "a terribly unwise decision" moments after the president described his wisdom on the matter as "great and unmatched."Even Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, in a rare rebuke of the president whom he has pledged to protect from removal from office, pleaded with Trump to maintain an American presence in the region and to prevent Turkey from invading."I urge the president to exercise American leadership to keep together our multinational coalition to defeat ISIS and prevent significant conflict between our NATO ally Turkey and our local Syrian counterterrorism partners," McConnell said in a statement. Major new conflict between Turkey and our partners in Syria, McConnell said, "would seriously risk damaging Turkey's ties to the United States and causing greater isolation for Turkey on the world stage."Among Trump's allies seeking to thread the needle between opposing the withdrawal and ensuring that the president didn't feel attacked was Sen. Ted Cruz, who tweeted that while Trump was "right to want to bring our soldiers home," it would be "DISGRACEFUL" (capital letters Cruz's) to allow Turkey to attack Kurdish allies in the region."Our enemies and rivals (Iran, Russia, etc.) don't abandon their allies," Cruz said. "If we want allies to stand with America in the future, we shouldn't either. Honorable nations stand by their friends."Seemingly alone among Senate Republicans in supporting the withdrawal was Sen. Rand Paul, who is perhaps the biggest cheerleader of Trump's isolationist instincts. The Kentucky senator told reporters that he stands with Trump "as he once again fulfills his promises to stop our endless wars and have a true America First foreign policy."Other Senate Republicans have remained tight-lipped on the president's decision, perhaps praying that Trump will reverse course on the withdrawal—as he did in December 2018, after sharp rebukes from within the party and the resignation of Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis halted a hastily announced drawdown of U.S. troops from Syria.Asked during an event celebrating a trade agreement with Japan on Monday afternoon about whether he had consulted with the Joint Chiefs of Staff about the decision, Trump insisted that he had."I consulted with everybody," Trump said.Additional reporting: Sam Brodey 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.
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| U.S., Japan Sign Limited Deal on Farming, Digital Trade Deals Posted: 07 Oct 2019 02:16 PM PDT ![U.S., Japan Sign Limited Deal on Farming, Digital Trade Deals]( "U.S., Japan Sign Limited Deal on Farming, Digital Trade Deals") (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. and Japan signed a limited trade deal intended to boost markets for American farmers and give Tokyo assurances, for now, that President Donald Trump won't impose tariffs on auto imports.The accords on agriculture and digital trade cover about $55 billion worth of commerce between the world's largest- and third-biggest economies, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said at a ceremony in the Oval Office alongside Trump.The accord is a "game changer for our farmers" and ranchers, Trump said at the event.The goal is for the accord to take effect Jan. 1.Trump, who faces re-election next year, was eager to make a deal with Japan to appease U.S. farmers who have been largely shut out of the Chinese market as a result of his trade war with Beijing. American agricultural producers, also reeling from bad weather and low commodity prices, are a core component of Trump's political base.Under the deal, Japan will lower or reduce tariffs on some $7.2 billion of American-grown farming products, including beef and pork.Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's priority was to win a pledge that the U.S. won't slap tariffs on Japanese automobile exports, a sector valued at about $50 billion a year and a cornerstone of the country's economy.Read more: Click here for the most recent research from Bloomberg EconomicsThe written text of the deal doesn't explicitly cover auto tariffs, but Abe has said he received assurances that Japan would be spared from them.The proposed pact won't lower the barriers protecting Japan's rice farmers -- a powerful group supporting Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party. This could help the prime minster smooth the deal's course through parliament, where it must be ratified before coming into effect.The U.S. has said this agreement -- which was signed in principle on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly last month -- is just the first phase of a broader agreement.To contact the reporters on this story: Justin Sink in Washington at jsink1@bloomberg.net;Jennifer A. Dlouhy in Washington at jdlouhy1@bloomberg.net;Brendan Murray in London at brmurray@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Margaret Collins at mcollins45@bloomberg.net, Sarah McGregor, Robert JamesonFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| The strategic incoherence of Trump's Syria critics Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:58 PM PDT ![The strategic incoherence of Trump's Syria critics]( "The strategic incoherence of Trump's Syria critics") It's always foolish to put your faith in Donald Trump. He's incapable of thinking strategically about anything besides advancing his own material interests.So it makes perfect sense to presume that Trump's apparent decision to permit Turkey to conduct military operations against (until now) American-backed Kurdish forces near the Turkish border in Syria has nothing to do with geopolitical strategy or any process of foreign policymaking beyond his personal and business relationship with Turkey's quasi-authoritarian president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.But that doesn't mean that the bipartisan freak-out against Trump's policy shift is founded in a coherent strategic vision. It isn't. Instead it grows out of a combination of inertia, hubris, pusillanimity, and moralism -- all of them traits that have been on the ascent since the end of the Cold War, and especially since the September 11 attacks.The one positive thing to come out of Trump's flailing foreign policy is that it has exposed the incapacity of the country's leading thinkers in international affairs to offer a compelling reason to resist the president's mischief-making and revert to the status quo. That doesn't give us much to work with now. But it just might set America up for an eventual reckoning with our foolishness and mistakes over the past few decades.The most common response to Trump's announced change of course in Syria has been a cry of lament for the fate of Kurds, who may well find themselves the target of Turkish attacks. How can we abandon allies who fought by our side against the Islamic State and allow them to be crushed by a dictator like Erdogan?There's just one problem -- or rather, several. For one thing, the Kurds aren't our allies. Allies are defined by mutuality: We promise to defend a given state if attacked, that state promises to defend us if we are attacked. The Kurds, a stateless ethnic group found in Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran, has zero capacity to come to America's defense. They are American clients: We have provided them with aid and protection in return for help in fighting ISIS in Syria and Iraq. Precisely how long should the United States be obligated to provide that protection in a dangerous part of the world 6,000 miles from our borders? None of Trump's critics in and out of Congress will tell us. Instead, they'd rather posture earnestly and avoid having to answer.If the U.S. has an ally in the region, it is … Turkey, a member of NATO, an explicit defense alliance. Do those denouncing Erdogan favor ejecting Turkey from NATO, thereby revoking the country's status as an American ally? Maybe that makes sense. But deciding whether it does would require engaging in clear-sighted strategic thinking about NATO, its purpose, and American interests in the Middle East, which is something no one wants to do. They'd rather keep Turkey in NATO -- because no one ever leaves NATO, and because keeping Turkey in the organization helps to antagonize Vladimir Putin -- and then bash the government in Ankara when it's convenient to do so.When critics of Trump's policy shift want to sound harder-nosed, they move beyond Turkey and the Kurds and talk instead about how irresponsible it would be to give up the fight against ISIS: If we don't stay in Syria, terrorists will grow powerful again, threatening the U.S. homeland like they did on 9/11!The first thing to be asked in response to those making such claims is whether they think it's possible for the U.S. to win any war anywhere in the world. Because if the battle against ISIS, which began in earnest five years ago, is measured against the goals enunciated at the start -- the elimination of ISIS's territorial caliphate -- it has been a smashing success. We won. The caliphate is gone. Yet now the goalposts have been shifted. Now "victory" has been redefined to mean … I'm not really sure. Sometimes it sounds like the goal is to make sure ISIS or a successor Islamist organization doesn't arise. At other times it appears to mean something even more amorphous, like the complete elimination of any person who might aspire to revive the caliphate at some time in the future.But is that a sensible foreign policy goal? Keeping an American military footprint in the desert of Syria and Iraq in order to exert control over what happens there for fear that it may possibly cause eventual harm to the United States, a continent and an ocean away? Even assuming this makes sense, for how long should it continue? Five more years? Ten? Twenty? More? And what metrics should we use to evaluate whether it's really benefiting the country, or is working, or has worked?No one wants to say because no one has an answer that makes sense. It's enough, they think, to speak gravely and vaguely about dire threats and keep us doing the same thing -- always expanding American commitments abroad, never pulling them back, and never even prioritizing among them. Anywhere.The U.S. is committed, all at once, to defending Europe, including serving as a check on Russia's ambitions in Eastern Europe, and to defending Israel. It also wants to micromanage regional rivalries across the Middle East in perpetuity. And keep a lid on terrorist activity across North Africa. And win an 18-year-old game of Whack-a-Mole against the Taliban in Afghanistan. And contain North Korea. And stand toe to toe with a rising China. And determine the outcome of a political transition in Venezuela.That's a lot for any country to handle intelligently or wisely -- because having such control-freak ambitions in the world isn't intelligent or wise in the first place. That doesn't mean that Donald Trump's acting out in defiance of Washington's foreign policy consensus makes sense. But it does mean that those who oppose the president need to do more than run screaming back into the arms of that consensus without reflection on its many unacknowledged problems and confusions.Want more essential commentary and analysis like this delivered straight to your inbox? Sign up for The Week's "Today's best articles" newsletter here.
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| The Latest: Trump warns Turkey against injuring US troops Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:51 PM PDT  President Donald Trump is warning Turkey that there will be "big trouble" if any American personnel in Syria are injured, as Turkey prepares to mount an operation against Kurdish fighters who had been allied with the U.S. against the Islamic State. Trump is dismissing the suggestion that he is siding with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the American-allied Kurds.
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| Donald Trump threatens to 'obliterate' Turkish economy if it goes too far with Syria invasion Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:45 PM PDT  US President Donald Trump warned Turkey against going too far in Syria, after giving Ankara a green light to invade its southern neighbour. Mr Trump said on Monday he was done with "ridiculous endless war" as he stood aside to allow a long-threatened Turkish assault on Kurdish-held Syria, effectively abandoning its allies who fought Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). The US had for months been working with Turkey to try to create a buffer zone along its border with northern Syria between the Turkish military and Kurdish forces which Ankara sees as terrorists. But amid an outcry from the region and strong opposition at home from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, the US leader appeared to reverse himself, though without drawing any specific red lines that might protect Kurdish allies. "If Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I've done before!)," Mr Trump tweeted. Turkey - Syria map Other US officials, apparently surprised by Trump's Sunday announcement, stressed that Washington will not actively support the long-threated Turkish action, warning of destabilizing blowback to the region. "The Department of Defense made clear to Turkey - as did the president - that we do not endorse a Turkish operation in Northern Syria," said Pentagon spokesperson Jonathan Hoffman. Turkey has repeatedly criticised the slow implementation of the buffer zone and threatened a unilateral assault, but until Monday the US had refused to stand aside. "The Kurds fought with us, but were paid massive amounts of money and equipment to do so. They have been fighting Turkey for decades," Mr Trump said in an earlier series of tweets. A member of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) takes part in a demonstration alongside Syrian-Kurds in the town of Amuda Credit: AFP "Turkey, Europe, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russia and the Kurds will now have to figure the situation out." US Republican and Democrats had warned such an offensive on the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), which lost 11,000 troops in the battle against Isil, could lead to a massacre of Kurds and send a worrying message to American allies across the world. The US began pulling back some of its 1,000 troops from border towns Tel Abyad and Ras al-Ayn on Monday, and has said it will potentially depart the country should widespread fighting break out. The announcement, first made by the White House overnight on Sunday, appeared to take both the Kurds and US coalition forces, which had been carrying out joint patrols with Turkey on the ground, completely by surprise. Kurdish sources say they were acting in good faith trying to establish a security mechanism with the US to placate Turkey, but now felt that Ankara had been using it as a cover for reconnaisance. Mustafa Bali, spokesman for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), tweeted: "We are not expecting the US to protect NE Syria. But people here are owed an explanation regarding security mechanism deal, destruction of fortifications and failure of US to fulfill their commitments." The White House statement was released after a phonecall between US President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday night. Mr Erdogan had reportedly assured the US president that Ankara would take over the detention of Isil militants captured by the SDF, on the battlefield. The Kurds have been holding thousands of Syrian and thousands more foreign Isil suspects in prisons and camps across the north of the country. Mr Trump has repeatedly asked countries under the US-led coalition against Isil to repatriate their citizens. However, the UK, France, Germany, and other allies have so far refused. Conditions inside the prisons holding Isil suspects, run by the Kurdish forces in north-east Syria Credit: CBS News "The United States will not hold them for what could be many years and great cost to the United States taxpayer," the White House statement said. "Turkey will now be responsible for all ISIS fighters in the area captured over the past two years in the wake of the defeat of the territorial "Caliphate" by the United States." The decision is a massive blow to the Kurds, who not only helped hold back Isil but have for years been building an autonomous statelet in the northeast of Syria. Turkey claims its planned "safe zone" is to purge the border of YPG forces, which it sees as a terrorist offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought an insurgency inside its territory for the past 35 years. The proposed corridor would have an initial depth of 18 miles and a length of 300 miles and includes the Kurds' biggest urban centres, including the city of Qamishli which has an estimated 250,000 population. Turkey on Monday night carried out air strikes on the Iraqi side of the Iraq-Syria border crossing, in what was thought to be an attack on the YPG's supply line. Western diplomats told the Telegraph they are working on the theory that Mr Erdogan will begin by attempting to take a smaller sliver between the towns of Tel Abyad and Ras al-Ain on the border, but the Turkish president himself has previously hinted at much wider ambitions. Mr Erdogan has said he wants to return two million of the mostly Sunni Arab Syrian refugees Turkey is hosting to the buffer zone, which some have said would amount to an ethnic repopulation. The Kurds fear many of the Syrians that might be placed in the zone are not native to north-east Syria, and might displace the Kurdish culture and rights. The UN said that it was "preparing for the worst", fearing an assault would send large numbers of civilians fleeing. "This Turkish military operation in northern and eastern Syria will have a significant negative impact on our war on ISIS and will destroy everything that has been achieved from the state of stability over the past years," the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said in a statement. They said they would defend themselves against "Turkish aggression" and called on all sects, including Kurds, Arabs, Syriacs and Assyrians to join them. Defending its Kurdish allies would have seen the US come against its Nato partner Turkey, which Washington was keen to avoid. President Donald Trump has since taking office attempted to disentangle the US from drawn-out wars in the Middle East. His goal of swift withdrawals in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan have been stymied by concerns from US officials and American allies about the dangerous voids that would remain.
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| Why the EU is rejecting Boris Johnson's latest Brexit plan Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:43 PM PDT ![Why the EU is rejecting Boris Johnson's latest Brexit plan]( "Why the EU is rejecting Boris Johnson's latest Brexit plan") It was no secret that the European Union wasn't prepared to accept U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson's latest Brexit proposal, but The Guardian obtained leaked documents with the EU's point-by-point reasoning for its rejection.Johnson's plan included Northern Ireland remaining in an all-Ireland regulatory zone within the EU's single market for goods and electricity, but with a catch that the EU reportedly couldn't come to terms with. Northern Ireland's parliament would hang on to veto powers to block the arrangement every four years, which was cause for concern for the EU.Beyond that, The Guardian reports that the EU believes Johnson's plan could eventually result in abuses within the trading market. For example, they argue Johnson and his team provided no details about how to combat smuggling and that they removed assurances made by previous Prime Minister Theresa May that Northern Ireland would not enjoy a competitive advantage when it comes to trade. The EU also noted that the U.K. would have access to EU databases which would allow it to police the Irish customs border and the U.K.-Northern Ireland regulatory border even if the proposal was vetoed.EU sources denied that Brussels would present a counteroffer to Downing Street. "It is the U.K. that wants to replace the backstop -- and that is our solution," one senior EU diplomat said. Read more at The Guardian.
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| North Koreans Think Trump Admin Talks Are ‘Sickening.’ So Should You. Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:26 PM PDT  Alex Wong/GettyIf President Donald Trump is thinking a deal with his friend Kim Jong Un might distract from his troubles at home, he'd better think again. The abrupt end of "working-level" negotiations between U.S. and North Korean officials in Stockholm over the weekend proves yet again that talking isn't working. "Kim thought he could sucker us because of the president's statements and because our alliances are in trouble and because he believed Trump wanted a foreign policy success," said David Maxwell, retired special forces colonel and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "We have to keep pushing Kim to really conduct negotiations, but the minute we give in to giving him concessions, he has won and we have lost."While Trump Shrugs, North Korea's Building Better MissilesIf the firing of the hawkish John Bolton as Trump's national security adviser "helped Kim think he could get what he wants," said Maxwell, the North Koreans at Stockholm yet again confirmed that Kim is not about to give up his precious nukes. The nuclear program was initiated by his grandfather, Kim Il Sung, perpetuated by his father, Kim Jong Il, and is now the centerpiece of Kim's defense policy.North Korea's foreign ministry left no doubt about the failure of the talks. "We have no intention to hold such sickening negotiations as what happened this time," said the statement, throwing cold water over the session in Stockholm, which had lasted eight hours and thirty minutes. The U.S. negotiator, Stephen Biegun, had tried in vain to present ideas that the Americans should have known would be unacceptable. A North Korean official identified only as a spokesperson, possibly First Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, who is a key figure in talks with the U.S., sarcastically mimicked Washington's demand for "complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearization." The U.S., said the spokesperson, must take "a substantial step to make complete and irreversible withdrawal of the hostile policy toward the DPRK," i.e., the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.The statement wound up with a threat intended to catch the attention of Trump as he contemplates maybe a third summit with Kim–his fourth if you count their impromptu meeting on the North-South line at Panmunjom at the end of June.Better watch out, was the message. If the U.S. "again fingers [points] at the old scenario," said the spokesperson, "the dealings between the DPRK and the U.S. may immediately come to an end." Indeed, the statement concluded, "the fate of the future DPRK-U.S. dialogue depends on the U.S. attitude, and the end of this year is its deadline."The Americans for their part seemed to think another round of talks would be just the thing to head off that looming deadline lest Kim inspire a crisis similar to that of two years ago when tests of nuclear warheads and long-range missiles were the norm. State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said the U.S. was accepting Sweden's invitation to meet again in two weeks, but North Korea was having none of it."The U.S. is spreading a completely ungrounded story that both sides are open to meet after two weeks," said the North Korean spokesperson, but "it is not likely at all that it can produce a proposal commensurate to the expectations of the DPRK and to the concerns of the world in just fortnight [sic]."The statement decried the U.S. failure to come up with what the North Koreans call "a new calculation method," dismissing out of hand the litany of proposals that Biegun had put on the table.The exact nature of that "calculation method" was not clear, but presumably it calls for prolonging the moratorium on testing nuclear warheads and intercontinental ballistic missiles in exchange for relief from sanctions. The North might even suspend its aging nuclear complex at Yongbyon while fabricating warheads elsewhere in a step-by-step process immune from serious inspections and would surely press for an "end-of-war" declaration under which the U.S. would have to withdraw most of its 28,500 troops from South Korea."The fundamental problem with Trump's North Korea efforts—they can't be called an actual policy—is that North Korea has not even considered giving up its nuclear weapons," said David Straub, retired senior U.S. diplomat in Seoul and Washington. "As long as that's the case, no amount of Trump sucking up to Kim will make a real difference, and Trump backed off maximum pressure long ago."To veteran U.S. diplomats, Trump's grasp on reality is far from clear. "As with many of his other policies, Trump is engaged in fantasy," said Straub, "but because he engages in fantasy, who can predict how he will now respond?" Straub asks if Trump "is mad at Pompeo and his negotiating team and will order even more gifts and concessions?"Evans Revere, who once headed the North Korean desk at the State Department and was number two U.S. diplomat in Seoul, sees the outcome at Stockholm as "a very predictable collapse." The North Korean strategy, said Revere, "appears to have been to take advantage of the U.S. fixation on working-level talks, use the testing of increasingly capable ballistic missiles to pressure Washington, and to issue threats about an end-of-year deadline to ensure the United States team came to the table with a more generous, flexible, and creative offer than the one Trump made in Hanoi."Trump, Revere believes, "backed off maximum pressure long ago."Under the circumstances, the U.S. was in no mood to articulate publicly its proposals at Stockholm. "The U.S. brought creative ideas and had good discussions with its DPRK counterparts," said Ortagus at the State Department, citing but not explaining "a number of new initiatives that would allow us to make progress."Clearly the North Koreans saw all that stuff as diplo-speak for an elaborate ruse to get them to give up their nukes while the North has flaunted its military prowess in short-range missile tests.Trump has said such tests are not in violation of any understanding reached with Kim at their first summit in Singapore last year, but North Korea most recently has aroused concerns by test-firing a short-range missile from an under-water platform. North Korea's party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, called the prototype for a submarine-launched ballistic missile a "time bomb" and "most fearful dagger" pointed at its enemies. In theory, a submarine might be able to launch such a missile, tipped with a nuclear warhead, while submerged undetected off the U.S. west coast.In fact, the North Koreans in Stockholm seemed to have gained a measure of revenge for the humiliation of the second Trump-Kim summit in Hanoi at the end of February when Trump walked out without reaching so much as a meaningless statement with Kim similar to the one that ended the Singapore summit.Donald Trump Enters the Eccentric Dictator Phase of His PresidencyThat denouement, which the North Koreans blamed on Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, resulted in the dismissal of the top North Korean advisers surrounding Kim, notably Kim Yong Chol, the North's former intelligence chief, whom Pompeo had seen in Pyongyang, New York, and Washington. Trump, after his 45-minute closed-door meeting with Kim on the North-South line at Panmunjom on June 30, said Kim had agreed on working-level talks to bring about a real deal on the basis of their summit in Singapore. "The Kim regime may misperceive from Singapore that it can throw negotiators under the bus, rush into another summit, and extract greater concessions from Trump," said Leif-Eric Easley, professor of international relations at Ewha University in Seoul, "but a lesson from Hanoi is that if the North Koreans want sanctions relief, they're going to have to do the work at the working level." This time, however, the new North Korean negotiator, Kim Myong Gil, a veteran diplomat who had negotiated with Americans in talks in the '90s and then as ambassador to the United Nations, was taking no chances. The meeting, he said, had "not fulfilled our expectations and broke down." Presumably, on orders from Pyongyang, he was not going to concede anything in return for whatever concessions the Americans might offer. Instead, he staged a walkout of his own.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.
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| 'Silencing' of Iraq protests coverage feared after attacks Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:12 PM PDT  A spree of attacks and threats against media outlets in Iraq has alarmed the United Nations, journalists and monitors, who demand the government prevent the "silencing" of journalists covering mass protests. Raids over the weekend carried out by unidentified gunmen have added to concerns for freedom of expression that were first flagged when authorities implemented a near-total internet blackout after anti-government protests erupted last week in the capital and the country's south. On Saturday evening, the Baghdad bureaus of Kurdistan-based NRT TV, Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya and local Al-Dijla channel were raided by masked men, the stations said.
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| Report: Iran plans to start using more advanced centrifuges Posted: 07 Oct 2019 01:09 PM PDT  Iran plans to start using a new array of advanced centrifuges for enriching uranium, the country's nuclear chief said Monday according to state television, in a move likely to intensify pressure on Europe to save Tehran's collapsing nuclear deal with world powers. Ali Akbar Salehi told Iranian state TV that an array of 30 IR-6 centrifuges will be inaugurated in the coming weeks. Under the terms of its 2015 deal — which the U.S. unilaterally withdrew from over a year ago — Iran had committed to not using the array until late 2023.
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| North Korea criticizes upcoming UN Security Council meeting Posted: 07 Oct 2019 12:45 PM PDT  The council scheduled closed consultations Tuesday on recent North Korean tests at the request of the United Kingdom, France and Germany. North Korea's U.N. Ambassador Kim Song told several reporters Monday the United States is "behind the impure moves" of the three countries, saying the meeting would not take place without the consent of the Trump administration.
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| US withdrawal from Syria leaves fate of Isis fighters and families in detention uncertain Posted: 07 Oct 2019 12:28 PM PDT  Trump's latest move has officials scrambling to understand the implications as Turkish forces gather near the Syrian borderTurkish fighters gather near the north-east Syrian border in preparation of a widely-anticipated invasion. Photograph: Nazeer Al-Khatib/AFP via Getty ImagesKurdish forces in Syria have said the fate of tens of thousands of suspected Islamic State fighters and their families is uncertain, after US forces began a sudden withdrawal from the country, abandoning their former ally on the eve of a widely-anticipated Turkish invasion.The effects of the shock retreat continued to reverberate through the region on Monday as Turkish forces massed near the border with the Kurdish stronghold of north-eastern Syria.The looming offensive– which was green-lighted by Donald Trump in a phone call to Recep Tayyip Erdogan late on Sunday – came as a surprise to US officials and allies, who were scrambling to understand the implications. There was a furious backlash in Congress, including from some of Trump's closest allies, who accused the president of betraying the Kurds.The decision represents the latest in a series of erratic moves by Trump, who is fighting impeachment at home, apparently taken without consultation with, or knowledge of, US diplomats dealing with Syria, or the UK and France, the US's main international partners in the country.A White House statement on Sunday night after his conversation with his Turkish counterpart said that: "Turkey will soon be moving forward with its long-planned operation into northern Syria", adding that US forces were being removed from the area.The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said on Monday its US partners had already begun withdrawing troops from areas along Turkey's border. Footage aired on Kurdish news agency Hawar purportedly showed US armoured vehicles evacuating key positions in the border region.The SDF spokesman, Mustafa Bali, accused the US of leaving the area to "turn into a war zone", adding that the SDF would "defend north-east Syria at all costs".But on Monday the Pentagon, which has been cooperating with Turkey along the Syrian border, issued a statement saying: "The department of defence made clear to Turkey – as did the president – that we do not endorse a Turkish operation in northern Syria. The US armed forces will not support or be involved in any such operation."State department officials also sought to minimize the announcement, telling reporters that only about two dozen American troops would be removed from the Turkey-Syria border, and suggesting that Turkey might not go through with a large-scale invasion.In the face of fierce criticism from both political rivals and allies in Congress, Trump took to Twitter to try to defend the move and threaten Turkey."I held off this fight for almost 3 years, but it is time for us to get out of these ridiculous Endless Wars, many of them tribal, and bring our soldiers home," he said."As I have stated strongly before, and just to reiterate, if Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I've done before!)," he said.It was unclear however, what was "off limits".In earlier tweets, Trump had appeared unsentimental about the Kurds, noting that they had been paid "massive amounts of money and equipment" in the four year campaign, when they were used as the main US proxy to fight Isis in Syria.But the issue of Isis foreign fighters, most of them European, has clearly preoccupied the US president.Both Trump and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have repeatedly called on European states to repatriate around 20,000 foreign nationals currently held in north-east Syria for trial and rehabilitation at home.Trump argued it was up to Turkey and Europe and others, "to watch over the captured Isis fighters and families".An SDF spokesman, Amjed Osman, said on Monday it was not clear what would happen to the prisoners. "We repeatedly called for foreign states to take responsibility for their Isis nationals. But there was no response," he said in a statement. It is far from clear if Turkey has the capacity – or desire – to take custody of the detainees being held in crowded Kurdish jails and displacement camps, stretching the SDF to its limits and prompting warnings that militants are using the prisons to regroup.Some 74,000 women and children of the caliphate are held at the infamous Hawl camp, where they are guarded by just 400 SDF soldiers. But the camp, a hotbed of violence and extremist ideology, falls outside the parameters of the 32km-deep safe zone on the Turkish-Syrian border that Erdogan has said his forces would establish.Aid agencies warned that an offensive could displace hundreds of thousands of people, and create a new humanitarian disaster.Save the Children said that more than 9,000 children from 40 countries were being held in camps and depended on humanitarian aid to survive."Reports of imminent military operations and troops already sent to the border are deeply troubling. The international community, including the UK, should take urgent steps to do what's best for these children and bring them to their home countries before access becomes even more unpredictable," the group said.The Guardian understands that the SAS and French special forces present in Rojava would be tasked with securing the camp perimeters if the Kurds withdrew. However, with only several hundred troops between them, their numbers would need to be quickly boosted by regular soldiers to avoid a catastrophic collapse in security.In Washington, the move was condemned by allies and opponents of the president. House speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, said the move "poses a dire threat to regional security and stability, and sends a dangerous message to Iran and Russia, as well as our allies, that the United States is no longer a trusted partner".Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said: "A precipitous withdrawal of US forces from Syria would only benefit Russia, Iran, and the Assad regime. And it would increase the risk that Isis and other terrorist groups regroup."Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump loyalist on most issues, said he would call for Turkey's suspension from NATO and introduce sanctions against Ankara if the Turks attack Kurdish forces."This decision to abandon our Kurdish allies and turn Syria over to Russia, Iran, & Turkey will put every radical Islamist on steroids. Shot in the arm to the bad guys. Devastating for the good guys," Graham wrote in a tweet.During the campaign against Isis, the SDF did the bulk of the ground fighting to defeat Isis in Syria, losing 11,000 troops in the grinding battle. The senior ranks of the organisation are dominated by members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought a four-decade guerilla war against the Turkish government.Ankara has long complained that, while fighting Isis, PKK forces were also waging war in Turkey.
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| As impeachment looms, GOP revolts against Trump on Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 12:26 PM PDT  They may have his back on impeachment, but some of President Donald Trump's most loyal allies are suddenly revolting against his decision to pull back U.S. troops from northern Syria. On Monday, one chief Trump loyalist in Congress called the move "unnerving to the core." An influential figure in conservative media condemned it as "a disaster." And Trump's former top NATO envoy said it was "a big mistake" that would threaten the lives of Kurdish fighters who had fought for years alongside American troops against the Islamic State group. Trump's surprise move, which came with no advance warning late Sunday and stunned many in his own government, threatened to undermine what has been near lockstep support among Republicans at a critical moment in his presidency.
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| Philippine Leader Rodrigo Duterte Says He Has Neuromuscular Disease Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:51 AM PDT  MANILA, Philippines -- President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines has revealed that he has a neuromuscular disease that has led to a slew of medical problems, including making his eye droop.Duterte, who was in Russia for a state visit, told the Filipino community there Saturday night that he has myasthenia gravis, a chronic autoimmune disease that leads to skeletal muscle weakness. He said the disease ran in his family.The revelation came amid continued public speculation about his health. There have been periods when the famously bombastic president has been out of the public eye for days, prompting headlines guessing about his whereabouts and even rumors of his death.But his communications officers have said that Duterte, 74, like any other older person, needs his own personal time.The president revealed the ailment after he apparently made a joke about not being able to look straight at a woman with whom he had danced a duet during the event in Moscow."I have a talent," Duterte said, according to official transcripts provided by his office afterward. "When I look at you, my other eye droops. Do you see? The other eye is smaller. It goes where it wants."He added: "Actually, that's myasthenia gravis. It's a nerve malfunction."Duterte said his grandfather had also had the disease, adding, "So I believe, really, in genetics."The disease often affects the muscles that control the eyes, facial expression, speaking and swallowing, according to the Philippine Medical Association.Duterte came to power in 2016 vowing to rid the country of drug dealers and to wipe out other crimes. Since then, the Philippines' war on drugs has led to thousands of killings allegedly by police and vigilantes, which rights groups have denounced as an atrocity.This year, the United Nations' Human Rights Council voted to examine the thousands of killings linked to Duterte's campaign.Over the years, his public outbursts have included insults against women, the United States and God.In May, the president dropped out of sight for a week, prompting concerns on social media. His aides later tried to quell the rumors by releasing photographs of Duterte having breakfast.One image showed him with the latest issue of a newspaper, suggesting an effort to prove that the picture had been taken on the same day.Last year, Duterte revealed that he had undergone an endoscopy and colonoscopy and that doctors had found he had, he said, "a bad case of Barrett."He was referring to Barrett's esophagus, a complication of gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, in which the contents of the stomach flow backward into the esophagus.The president has also said he has Buerger's disease, which leads to constriction of blood vessels in the arms and legs.This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| Donald Trump allies turn on president over 'betrayal' of Kurdish allies in Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:48 AM PDT  Donald Trump's allies have turned on the president after he took the decision to green-light an offensive by Turkish on its Kurdish allies in Syria. President Trump apparently made the decision without consultation from his own advisers or intelligence services, who warned that it could prove to be one of the most reckless decisions of his presidency. Mr Trump appeared focused on making good on his political pledges to bring home American troops from "ridiculous endless wars", even at the risk of sending a troubling signal to American allies abroad. Key Republican leaders in Congress appeared taken aback by the move, which they called a "betrayal" that could stain the US's name. "I want to make sure we keep our word for those who fight with us and help us," Kevin McCarthy, House Minority Leader, said, adding that, "If you make a commitment and somebody is fighting with you. America should keep their word." Mr Trump defended his decision in a series of breathless tweets, writing: "I was elected on getting out of these ridiculous endless wars, where our great Military functions as a policing operation to the benefit of people who don't even like the USA (sic)." Senator Lindsey Graham, a top Republican ally of Mr Trump, said Congress could impose economic sanctions on Turkey and threaten its Nato membership if Ankara invaded Syria. A female fighter of the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) flashes the victory gesture while celebrating near the Omar oil field in the eastern Syrian Deir Ezzor province on March 23, 2019, after announcing the total elimination of the Islamic State (IS) group's last bastion in eastern Syria. Credit: AFP Mr Graham also said that Mr Trump's moves were a "disaster in the making" that would empower Isil in Syria. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, one of Mr Trump's key allies, added his voice of dissent, saying: "A precipitous withdrawal of US forces from Syria would only benefit Russia, Iran, and the Assad regime." The warning was echoed by the US's partners on the ground, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which claimed yesterday their ability to contain thousands of prisoners in their detention had become severely compromised. "We were doing our best to provide the best kind of security... but with the Turkish invasion we are forced to pull out some of our troops from the prisons and from the camps to the border to protect our people," Mustafa Bali, spokesman for the Kurdish-led SDF said. "The Islamic State will benefit from the security vacuum that will follow, and will strengthen and regroup itself," he said, adding that it would undo years of work defeating the jihadists. The SDF has been holding some 10,000 male Isil suspects, including an estimated 10 Britons, in prisons across north-eastern Syria, many of which fall inside Turkey's proposed 18-mile deep, 300-mile-long buffer zone. This does not include the more than 70,000 women and children held in detention camps would could also be at risk. The White House statement announcing the news was released shortly after a phone call between Mr Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday night. Foreign prisoners in Syria detained by the SDF in Baghuz during the battle for Isil's last stronghold Credit: CBS Mr Erdogan had reportedly assured the US president that Ankara would take over the detention of Isil militants captured by the SDF. He said in a brief statement to press on Monday that he thought the numbers of Isil prisoners had been exaggerated but Turkey was ready to "remove them swiftly", without elaborating. Mr Trump has repeatedly asked countries working with the US-led coalition against Isil to repatriate their citizens, even threatening on numerous occasions to release them. However, the UK, France, Germany, and other allies have so far refused. "The United States will not hold them for what could be many years and great cost to the United States taxpayer," a White House statement released on Sunday said. "Turkey will now be responsible for all ISIS fighters in the area captured over the past two years in the wake of the defeat of the territorial "Caliphate" by the United States." On Monday night, US Central Command, however, issued a statement saying that the US does not support Turkey invading Kurdish territory. "The Department of Defense made clear to Turkey - as did the President - that we do not endorse a Turkish operation in Northern Syria. The US Armed Forces will not support, or be involved in any such operation," said Jonathan Hoffman, Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs. Turkey - Syria map Coalition sources said the chance of a smooth handover from Kurdish to Turkish control was "virtually impossible", leaving the prospect of prisoners breaking free in the chaos. Western diplomats told the Telegraph they too were surprised by Mr Trump's statement, saying they had not been told in advance. They said European governments were rethinking their strategy on suspects being held in Syria. Mr Trump's decision to pull back from Syria was criticised by Brett McGurk, the former special presidential envoy for the global coalition to defeat Isil who quit in December over differences of opinion with the president on post-Isil US strategy. "Donald Trump is not a Commander-in-Chief. He makes impulsive decisions with no knowledge or deliberation," Mr McGurk tweeted. "He sends military personnel into harm's way with no backing. He blusters and then leaves our allies exposed when adversaries call his bluff or he confronts a hard phone call." The US had for months been working with Turkey to try to create a "safe zone" along its border with northern Syria between the Turkish military and Kurdish forces which Ankara sees as terrorists. At a glance | The four Kurdistans Turkey has repeatedly criticised its slow implementation and threatened a unilateral assault, but until now the US had refused to stand aside. "The Kurds fought with us, but were paid massive amounts of money and equipment to do so. They have been fighting Turkey for decades," Mr Trump said in a series of irate tweets. "Turkey, Europe, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russia and the Kurds will now have to figure the situation out." Analysts said on Monday that the US's Kurdish had been left feeling abandoned. "For some time there is a belief in Washington that President Trump and the conventional US are two separate things. Perception is that he makes decisions without consulting his own government, advisers. Kurds and people on the ground they have been surprised by the decision," Mutlu Civiroglu, Washington-based Kurdish Affairs analyst, told the Telegraph. "Kurds are worried, disappointed. They put a lot of trust in the US, which is the only reason they went ahead with the security mechanism put forward by the US and they expect America to stand with them."
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| Mitch McConnell urges Trump to reconsider Syria pullback Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:41 AM PDT ![Mitch McConnell urges Trump to reconsider Syria pullback]( "Mitch McConnell urges Trump to reconsider Syria pullback") It's not every day that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are on the same page, but today is that day.McConnell released a statement Monday afternoon breaking with President Trump on his recent decision to pull back troops from northern Syria as Turkey prepares a military incursion."A precipitous withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria would only benefit Russia, Iran, and the Assad regime," McConnell says. "And it would increase the risk that ISIS and other terrorist groups regroup. I urge the president to exercise American leadership to keep together our multinational coalition to defeat ISIS and prevent significant conflict between our NATO ally Turkey and our local Syrian counterterrorism partners."> McConnell wants Trump to change his mind on Syria, says a precipitous withdrawal benefits Russia, Iran, Assad and warns about ISIS pic.twitter.com/7NmHN98qWD> > -- Steven Dennis (@StevenTDennis) October 7, 2019He concludes by suggesting the Trump administration is at risk of succumbing to what he sees as the foreign policy failings of the Obama administration, writing that "American interests are best served by American leadership, not by retreat or withdrawal."This came as Trump was facing a flood of criticism from the right including from one of his biggest allies in the Senate, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who wrote that the decision will have "disastrous consequences for our national security."Almost immediately after McConnell's statement, Pelosi released a statement of her own urging Trump to reconsider as well, though with far harsher language. Pelosi calls Trump's move a "reckless, misguided decision" that "betrays our Kurdish allies" in "a foolish attempt to appease an authoritarian strongman." Amid this bipartisan criticism, Trump defended the move in a tweet in which he touted his own "great and unmatched wisdom."
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| Israeli officials wrap up Netanyahu's pre-indictment hearing Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:09 AM PDT  Israel's state prosecutors and Benjamin Netanyahu's lawyers concluded the pre-indictment hearing over a slew of corruption allegations against the prime minister on Monday. Netanyahu's lawyers arrived at the Justice Ministry in Jerusalem for the fourth and final day of the proceedings where they were meeting with Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit and his team to appeal that the cases against Netanyahu be dropped. Mandelblit has recommended that Netanyahu be indicted for fraud, breach of trust and bribery in three separate cases that have dogged the long-serving premier.
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| For Kurds, US pull-back feels like being abandoned once more Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:07 AM PDT  For Syria's Kurds, the United States' abrupt pull-back from positions in northeast Syria carries a sharp sting, reviving the community's memories over being abandoned in the past by the Americans and other international allies on whose support they had pinned their aspirations. The Kurdish-led forces have been the U.S.' partner in fighting the Islamic State group for nearly four years. Now the pull-back exposes them to a threatened attack by their nemesis, Turkey.
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| The Latest: UN chief urges 'maximum restraint' in NE Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:04 AM PDT  U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is urging "maximum restraint" by all parties in Syria's conflict, ahead of what Turkey says is its imminent offensive into the country's northeast. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Guterres is greatly concerned, especially at the risk to civilians in any escalation of fighting. The U.N. chief emphasizes that civilians must be protected, and all parties must guarantee "sustained, unimpeded and safe humanitarian access to civilians in need," Dujarric says.
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| Senate Republicans Recoil From Trump’s Decision to Abandon Kurds Posted: 07 Oct 2019 11:00 AM PDT ![Senate Republicans Recoil From Trump's Decision to Abandon Kurds]( "Senate Republicans Recoil From Trump's Decision to Abandon Kurds") (Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. forces from Syria and abandon Kurdish allies has prompted a furious backlash among key members of his most important bulwark against an impeachment conviction: Senate Republicans.Hawkish GOP senators, whom Trump will need to keep him in office if the House moves ahead with impeachment, condemned the president's decision as a win for terrorists and a defeat for American credibility. Some are already discussing legislation to push back."A precipitous withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria would only benefit Russia, Iran and the Assad regime," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement. He urged the president to "keep together our multinational coalition to defeat ISIS and prevent significant conflict between our NATO ally Turkey and our local Syrian counterterrorism partners."Foreign policy has long been the issue where Republicans are most likely to disagree with Trump, and it's not clear that strong words against the president's Syria policy will cost him any political support. Trump would have to lose the support of at least 20 Republican senators to be removed from office if the House votes to impeach him.The harshest criticism Monday came from South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, a strong Trump ally and frequent golf companion. Graham said this "impulsive decision" will benefit Iran and cost the U.S. leverage in the region.Graham also said he and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen will introduce sanctions against Turkey if the NATO ally invades Syria. He said he expects such sanctions to get a two-thirds majority -- enough to override a Trump veto.After criticism from Graham and others, Trump tweeted that he would "totally destroy and obliterate" Turkey's economy if it took "off limits" actions that he didn't specify. He also said Turkey must "watch over" about 12,000 captured Islamic State fighters and tens of thousands of their family members living in jails and camps in Kurdish-held territory.The Senate earlier this year had a veto-proof margin to pass an amendment authored by McConnell opposing a withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan. On Monday, Criticism in Congress was bipartisan, focused on the move to abandon Kurdish forces who helped U.S. forces fight ISIS, and who are holding thousands of ISIS fighters in custody.Other Senate Republicans pushing back on the president include Marco Rubio of Florida, Mitt Romney of Utah and Susan Collins of Maine, though none other than Graham have yet said they plan to act on their dismay.Romney, who heads a Foreign Relations subcommittee on the Middle East and counterterrorism, released a joint statement with Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy, the top Democrat on the panel, saying Trump's decision "severely undercuts America's credibility as a reliable partner and creates a power vacuum in the region that benefits ISIS." They demanded that the administration explain the decision to the full committee.Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse, who is up for re-election next year, warned against partnering with Turkish President Recep Erdogan."If the president sticks with this retreat, he needs to know that this bad decision will likely result in the slaughter of allies who fought with us, including women and children," Sasse said in a statement Monday. "I hope the president will listen to his generals and reconsider."Some House Republicans also criticized the abrupt withdrawal. Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney, a member of GOP leadership, called the decision a "catastrophic mistake." New York Republican Elise Stefanik recently returned from a bipartisan trip to the region and joined a statement with Democratic representatives condemning Trump's "rash decision.""Not only will this decision further destabilize the region, it will make it more difficult for the United States to recruit allies and partners to defeat terrorist groups like ISIS," the statement said.One of Trump's Senate allies approved of Trump's decision: Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has long called for withdrawing troops from Syria and Afghanistan.(Updates with McConnell quote in third paragraph)\--With assistance from Erik Wasson.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, Anna Edgerton, Laurie AsséoFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Syria's Kurds stand to lose all gains from US pullout Posted: 07 Oct 2019 10:55 AM PDT  Syria's Kurds accused the U.S. of turning its back on its allies and risking gains made in the fight against the Islamic State group as American troops began pulling back on Monday from positions in northeastern Syria ahead of an expected Turkish assault. U.S. President Donald Trump's abrupt decision to stand aside — announced by the White House late Sunday — infuriated Kurds, who stand to lose the autonomy they gained in the course of Syria's civil war. The Kurdish force pledged to fight back, raising the potential for an eruption of new warfare in Syria.
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| The True Cost of the Attack on Saudi Arabia's Oil Supply Posted: 07 Oct 2019 10:39 AM PDT  Saudi Arabia has been the kingpin of American strategy toward Iran. Any loosening of Washington's ties with Riyadh is bound to redound to Tehran's benefit.
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| Rand Paul is pretty much the only senator backing Trump's Syria decision so far Posted: 07 Oct 2019 10:04 AM PDT ![Rand Paul is pretty much the only senator backing Trump's Syria decision so far]( "Rand Paul is pretty much the only senator backing Trump's Syria decision so far") Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is going against the grain.A number of Paul's GOP colleagues have come out against the White House's decision to pull back troops from Northern Syria, while greenlighting a Turkish invasion of the region. Even President Trump's allies like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) are calling for a bipartisan rebuke of the plan, especially since they believe it puts Kurdish allies, who are viewed as enemies by Ankara, at risk.But not Paul. The senator isn't generally afraid to disagree with or criticize Trump, but he has always been a staunch non-interventionist, and was ready to back the president's plan to get U.S. troops out of a foreign war.> I stand with @realDonaldTrump today as he once again fulfills his promises to stop our endless wars and have a true America First foreign policy.> > -- Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) October 7, 2019Paul has also previously advocated for a softer approach when dealing with Iran, as well, which is relevant to the current situation. Many of the Republicans who have come out in opposition to the pullback believe that the removal of troops in northern Syria will embolden Tehran to escalate tensions in the region.Either way, Paul looks like he'll be sitting alone at this particular lunch table for now, as the Republican opposition continues to pile up. > Backing Trump on Syria: > Rand Paul > Opposing: > Lindsey Graham > Kevin McCarthy > Liz Cheney > Romney > Rubio > Susan Collins > Haley > Huckabee> > -- Steven Dennis (@StevenTDennis) October 7, 2019
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| Iraqi police replacing army in volatile Baghdad neighborhood Posted: 07 Oct 2019 09:50 AM PDT  Iraq's prime minister on Monday ordered the police to replace the army in a heavily populated Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad where dozens of people were killed or wounded in weekend clashes stemming from anti-government protests, the military said. Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi gave the order after a week of violence in Iraq left more than 100 dead and thousands wounded. Since Oct. 1, spontaneous rallies have erupted in Baghdad and a number of southern cities by Iraqis demanding jobs, better basic services such as electricity and water, and an end to endemic corruption.
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| Trump boasts of 'great and unmatched wisdom' and threatens to 'obliterate' the Turkish economy Posted: 07 Oct 2019 09:18 AM PDT ![Trump boasts of 'great and unmatched wisdom' and threatens to 'obliterate' the Turkish economy]( "Trump boasts of 'great and unmatched wisdom' and threatens to 'obliterate' the Turkish economy") President Trump seemingly set out to quell fears Monday that the White House was creating an opening for Turkey to attack U.S.-allied Kurdish forces in Northern Syria.The White House announced Sunday night that U.S. troops would leave northern Syria and that Turkey would launch an invasion in the region. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan considers the Kurdish fighters "terrorists," as a result of a longstanding separatist movement among Kurds in Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Turkey, but the U.S. considered the Kurdish forces in northern Syria their strongest allies in the fight against the Islamic State, which is why Trump has received bipartisan criticism for leaving them vulnerable to Turkish forces.Trump, though, said that Turkey won't do anything he, in his "great and unmatched wisdom," considers "off limits" or else he'll "totally destroy and obliterate" the Turkish economy -- again.> As I have stated strongly before, and just to reiterate, if Turkey does anything that I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I've done before!). They must, with Europe and others, watch over...> > -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2019Trump doesn't mention the Kurds by name, but he has boasted about preventing Erdogan from attempting to "wipe out" the Kurds in the past, so it stands to reason he was referring to them. > Trump in June: https://t.co/Y1U2Za6clN pic.twitter.com/FQJsG6YZg1> > -- Dan Froomkin (@froomkin) October 7, 2019
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| North Korea warns U.S., Europeans against raising its missile tests at U.N. Posted: 07 Oct 2019 09:06 AM PDT ![North Korea warns U.S., Europeans against raising its missile tests at U.N.]( "North Korea warns U.S., Europeans against raising its missile tests at U.N.") The 15-member council is due to meet behind closed doors on Tuesday after North Korea said it had test-fired a new submarine-launched ballistic missile last week. The discussion was requested by Germany with the support of Britain and France.
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| UN racism rapporteur criticizes Dutch burqa ban Posted: 07 Oct 2019 09:04 AM PDT  Tendayi Achiume, a rapporteur for the U.N. Human Rights Council, said Monday that the small number of women who wear face-covering Islamic veils reported suffering more harassment since the law went into force on Aug. 1. In a preliminary report following a visit to the Netherlands, Achiume also touched on the thorny issue of Dutch colonial history. In her report, following days of meetings with government and municipal officials, rights activists and other groups, Achiume praised the Dutch government for promoting gender equality and the rights of LGBTI people and urged similar efforts to improve racial and ethnic equality.
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| Lindsey Graham is already leading a bipartisan rebuke of Trump's Syria pullout Posted: 07 Oct 2019 09:04 AM PDT ![Lindsey Graham is already leading a bipartisan rebuke of Trump's Syria pullout]( "Lindsey Graham is already leading a bipartisan rebuke of Trump's Syria pullout") President Trump's promise to pull out of Syria is not going over well.The White House announced Sunday night that the U.S. will "no longer be in the immediate area" of northern Syria where Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday a Turkish military incursion was "imminent." Erdogan's promise left even Trump's allies skeptical of the U.S. decision to leave America's Kurdish allies, and led Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to partner with a Democrat and prepare a response to whatever Erdogan has planned.On Monday morning, Graham had tweeted that Trump's Syria decision was "a disaster in the making," while Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) tweeted "Congress must make it clear that Turkey will pay a heavy price if they attack the Syrian Kurds." Graham then tweeted that he'd talked to Van Hollen about doing just that, announcing that "we will introduce bipartisan sanctions against Turkey" and move to remove the country from NATO if it attacks Syria or the Kurds.> Hope and expect sanctions against Turkey - if necessary - would be veto-proof. > > This decision to abandon our Kurdish allies and turn Syria over to Russia, Iran, & Turkey will put every radical Islamist on steroids. Shot in the arm to the bad guys. Devastating for the good guys.> > -- Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 7, 2019Graham's "veto-proof" guarantee probably won't be necessary considering Trump's subsequent and, uh... passionate response. > ....the captured ISIS fighters and families. The U.S. has done far more than anyone could have ever expected, including the capture of 100% of the ISIS Caliphate. It is time now for others in the region, some of great wealth, to protect their own territory. THE USA IS GREAT!> > -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2019
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| Lindsey Graham Blasts Trump’s ‘Irresponsible’ Syria Decision: ‘Unnerving to Its Core’ Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:58 AM PDT  REUTERSOne of President Donald Trump's most loyal supporters in the Senate raged against the president's Sunday night announcement that America will bow out of Syria while Turkey attacks allied Kurds in the region, calling the decision on Monday "shortsighted and irresponsible."Appearing on Trump-boosting morning show Fox & Friends, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was asked whether he supported the president's move, prompting the hawkish Republican lawmaker to exclaim, "Absolutely not.""If I didn't see Donald Trump's name on the tweet, I thought it would be [former President] Obama's rationale for getting out of Iraq." he said. "This is gonna lead to ISIS's reemergence!"Graham went on to say this was a "big win for ISIS," claiming that the Kurds in the area will align with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad because they'd have no choice due to the United States abandoning them. "So this is a big win for Iran and Assad," he added.(During another Fox & Friends segment, co-host Brian Kilmeade criticized the president as well, calling the president's decision "disastrous" and that it would leave the Kurds to fend for themselves.)The South Carolina senator then stated that the "Kurds stepped up when nobody else would to fight ISIS," noting that if we abandon the Kurds at this point, nobody will want to help America in the future in fighting radical Islam. Graham also pushed back on Trump's claim that ISIS has been eradicated."The biggest lie being told by the administration [is] that ISIS is defeated," he declared. "This impulsive decision by the president has undone all the gains we've made, thrown the region into further chaos. Iran is licking their chops. And if I'm an ISIS fighter, I've got a second lease on life. So to those who think ISIS has been defeated, you will soon see.""I hope I'm making myself clear how shortsighted and irresponsible this decision is, in my view," Graham concluded.The GOP lawmaker continued to blast the president's move on Twitter following his Fox & Friends appearance, saying he doesn't "believe it is a good idea to outsource the fight against ISIS to Russia, Iran and Turkey.""I feel very bad for the Americans and allies who have sacrificed to destroy the ISIS Caliphate because this decision virtually reassures the reemergence of ISIS. So sad. So dangerous," he wrote in another tweet. "President Trump may be tired of fighting radical Islam. They are NOT tired of fighting us."Furthermore, piggybacking off his assertion on Fox & Friends that he would do everything he can to sanction Turkey if they invade Syria, Graham announced that he would "introduce bipartisan sanctions against Turkey if they invade Syria and will call for their suspension from NATO if they attack Kurdish forces who assisted the U.S. in the destruction of the ISIS Caliphate."Graham wasn't alone among Trump's allies and loyalists to call out the president over his decision to stand aside as Turkey attacks one of America's most reliable allies in the region. For example, Nikki Haley, former U.S. ambassador to the U.N., said we "must always have the backs of our allies" and leaving the Kurds to "die is a big mistake." And Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), weeks after competing with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) for Trump's affections, called it a "catastrophic mistake" to pull out of Syria, adding that terrorists "thousands of miles away can and will use their safe-havens to launch attacks against America."Facing overwhelming criticism from within his own party on the Turkey-Syria decision, Trump tweeted late Monday morning that if Turkey does anything that "I, in my great and unmatched wisdom, consider to be off limits, I will totally destroy and obliterate the Economy of Turkey (I've done before!)."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.
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| Incoming top EU diplomat commits to save Iran nuclear deal Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:47 AM PDT  The Spaniard set to become the European Union's point-man in Iran says the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran must be preserved. Borrell, who is currently foreign minister in Spain's caretaker government and set to take over in Brussels from Federica Mogherini on Nov. 1, says "the political unity of the Europeans will be crucial" in keeping the agreement going.
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| Sanchez Pitches for Moderate Vote Amid Fractured Spain Politics Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:46 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez painted himself as the voice of moderation in Spanish politics as the country braces for an election campaign in the shadow of forthcoming verdicts in a trial of Catalan separatists and international disputes over trade and Brexit."I humbly ask people to think who can guide our country with moderation toward progress," Sanchez said in Madrid as he presented his Socialist party's campaign pledges. His pitch to voters includes further increases to pensions and the minimum wage.Spaniards head to the polls on Nov. 10 after Sanchez's efforts over the summer to forge a new government came to nothing over his refusal to allow the anti-austerity party Podemos to join his Socialists in a coalition.Even so, the prospect of a new election -- the fourth in four years -- is focusing the minds of Sanchez's political rivals. Albert Rivera, the leader of the center-right Ciudadanos party, signaled over the weekend he might be open to talks with Sanchez while Pablo Casado, leader of the conservative People's Party told El Mundo newspaper he might consider pacts with "historical rivals" such as the Socialists.Spain needs a coherent government as it faces down threats including the response in Catalonia to a verdict due in coming days on the case of jailed pro-independence Catalan leaders. Other challenges include a potential hard Brexit, and the consequences of a cooling economy amid international trade disputes.Sanchez said the Socialists' full electoral programs will be unveiled in coming weeks. Listed below are some of the 35 "social commitments," he unveiled in Madrid on Monday:Peg pensions to the consumer price indexIncrease minimum wage to reach 60% of the average wage by the end of his next mandateRoll back the most "harmful" parts of the labor market reform passed by the PP government in 2012Improve housing opportunities for young peopleCreate a watchdog to protect banking costumersMake Spain's tax system more progressiveTo contact the reporter on this story: Thomas Gualtieri in Madrid at tgualtieri@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Charles Penty at cpenty@bloomberg.net, Ben SillsFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Vladimir Putin climbs mountain and picks mushrooms on Siberian birthday trip Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:40 AM PDT  Vladimir Putin has climbed a mountain and picked mushrooms and berries in the Siberian wilderness to celebrate his 67th birthday, even as his ratings continue to flag. In a video and photographs published by the Kremlin, Mr Putin drove an off-road vehicle through a forest with defence minister Sergei Shoigu and flew in a helicopter over jagged peaks, sweeping forests and a dramatic river canyon. Wearing sunglasses and carrying a large wooden staff, the president hiked up a mountain overlooking the Yenisei river at an altitude of "almost 2,000 metres". "We've climbed above the clouds," he remarked, gazing into the distance. Mr Putin has become known for outdoor exploits to show of his health and daring Credit: Alexei Druzhinin /Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP He and Mr Shoigu gathered lingonberries and mushrooms, chuckling at one with a pine cone caught on top, and picnicked around a campfire. The head of Tuva later said the video was taken in his remote region on the Mongolian border, where the Russian leader went hiking and boating last year. Mr Putin took the trip a few days ago, his spokesman said, and plans to spend his actual birthday on Monday "in nature with relatives and friends". Last year Mr Putin celebrated his birthday at his seaside residence in Sochi with Italy's former PM Silvio Berlusconi, and he has previously marked the occasion with vodka and sausages with Xi Jinping of China. Defence minister Sergei Shoigu is from Tyva and has taken Mr Putin there several times Credit: Alexei Druzhinin /TASS via Getty Images A host of post-Soviet leaders as well as Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu and Serbia president Aleksandar Vucic congratulated Mr Putin by phone, the Kremlin said. In two decades in power, Mr Putin has often shown off his vigour and adventurousness through outdoor stunts like flying a glider with cranes, firing a crossbow at a gray whale, releasing tigers into the wild and putting a tracking collar on a polar bear. On his holidays he's typically shown hunting, fishing, hiking or riding, often bare-chested. By these high standards, the latest photo op was somewhat subdued, with Mr Putin apparently limping at one point during the hike. Mr Putin and Mr Shoigu also picked lingonberries, mushrooms and pine cones Credit: KREMLIN PRESS SERVICE/HANDOUT/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images This summer was one of strife as massive protests shook Moscow, further eroding the president's ratings after an unpopular pension age hike last year. A poll published this month showed that only 43 per cent of Russians would vote for their current leader if elections were held on Sunday. This repeated his rating from August, which was his lowest since 2001. However, 60 per cent of those surveyed said they approved of his performance.
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| Portugal's Costa Pins Debt Strategy on a Rosy Growth Outlook Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:38 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Amid cheering supporters on his election night, Portugal's Prime Minister Antonio Costa went out of his way to reassure investors he has an ambitious target to tackle the country's big Achilles heel, its towering debt.The problem is that his strategy assumes robust economic growth, not a given in today's uncertain world. The external climate is deteriorating fast and there are signs that job creation is slowing. Portugal's four main export markets are within the European Union, where expansion is falling to around 1%, and whose biggest economy looks set to enter recession.Let's look at the numbers. Costa said he'd bring public debt to under 100% of GDP by the end of his next four-year term in 2023, from currently 122%. In the government's base-case scenario, that assumes average annual GDP growth of around 2%. Consensus forecasts and even the Bank of Portugal's estimates are now closer to 1.7% growth. Rabobank even sees a slowdown to 1.2% next year, and that assumes an orderly Brexit and no U.S. import tariffs on European cars.The debt-reduction target "is quite ambitious," Michiel van der Veen, an economist at Rabobank, said in an interview, citing already slowing growth and trade tensions. "They need to take care of the demands that people are making for more government expenditure.''Indeed, there have been signs of social discontent, and voices demanding an increase in spending have become louder. Given his larger majority in parliament and reduced dependence on the far-left, the 58-year-old Costa could entertain spending cuts to offset slower growth.But for the man who came to power reversing some of the unpopular belt-tightening measures imposed during the 2011 bailout, the chances of an about-turn are slim.The entire strategy is to reduce debt by outgrowing it, not by squeezing the budget to pay it down more quickly, said Filipe Garcia, an economist at financial consulting company IMF-Informacao de Mercados Financeiros SA."To reduce the debt ratio in this way, which is a slow process, Portugal needs a favorable external environment," said Garcia. "I am afraid that, in the context of a crisis or interest rate hikes, the debt reduction process will be interrupted."The government says that in a worst-case scenario in which GDP growth would slow from 1.6% in 2019 to 1.3% in 2023, it would miss its target, though debt would still fall to 103% of GDP.For now investors aren't terribly concerned. On the contrary, the yield on 10-year Portuguese bonds fell as low as 0.11% Monday, edging below the Spanish equivalent for the first time since December 2009.The reason for such calm? The European Central Bank is lending a helping hand with near-zero borrowing costs, said Garcia.(Updates with Portugal yields in tenth paragraph.)To contact the reporters on this story: Henrique Almeida in Lisbon at halmeida5@bloomberg.net;Joao Lima in Lisbon at jlima1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Raymond Colitt, Chris ReiterFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| UK to publish updated no-deal Brexit tariffs shortly -minister Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:37 AM PDT ![UK to publish updated no-deal Brexit tariffs shortly -minister]( "UK to publish updated no-deal Brexit tariffs shortly -minister") The British government has reviewed the tariffs it plans to apply in the event the country leaves the European Union without a deal and will publish them shortly, junior trade minister Conor Burns said on Monday. In March, it set out the tariffs it planned to impose for up to 12 months after a no-deal Brexit. "The government has remained responsive to the concerns of business and has reviewed the tariffs that will come into effect if the UK left the EU without a deal," Burns told parliament.
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| Boost for Johnson as Court Rules in His Favor: Brexit Update Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:35 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- Follow @Brexit, sign up to our Brexit Bulletin, and tell us your Brexit story. As Brexit negotiations resumed in Brussels, Boris Johnson got a boost from the courts. A Scottish judge ruled in the prime minister's favor in a case that could have forced him to obey a law requiring him to delay Brexit if he can't reach a deal.But the lift may only be short-lived. The judge ignored the prime minister's frequent assertions he won't seek an extension and instead relied on assurances from government lawyers that he would obey the law. That may make it harder for Johnson to leave without a deal on Oct. 31.Key Developments:Johnson's lead negotiator, David Frost, is in Brussels for talks with European CommissionScottish judge rules in Johnson's favor after pledges over Brexit delayWhen This $2 Trillion Market Turns, Start Worrying About BrexitBrexit Deal Prospects Fade as Talks Stall, EU Signals PessimismJohnson Calls EU Counterparts to Urge Shift (4 p.m.)Boris Johnson spoke to his counterparts in Denmark, Sweden and Poland this afternoon, his office said. Brexit minister James Duddridge told Parliament the prime minister was trying to "whip up enthusiasm for the deal and avoid no-deal."Questioned over how the government would meet its apparently contradictory commitments to leave the EU by Oct. 31 and to abide by a law requiring it to seek a delay to Brexit if there isn't a deal, Johnson's spokesman James Slack told reporters: "The manner in which this is achieved is a matter for the government." he gave no further details.Government Won't Publish Brexit Legal Text (3:45 p.m.)Brexit Minister James Duddridge said the government won't make public the full legal 44-page text of its latest proposals to the EU.The full text "will only be published when doing so will assist with the negotiations," Duddridge told MPs after being questioned about the issue in the House of Commons. "We're not going to provide that legal text if it's going to get in the way of negotiations and get in the way of a deal."Keir Starmer, Brexit spokesman for the opposition Labour Party, said both Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and European Commission President Jean-Claude Junker had asked for the document to be published. "The only party insisting on secrecy is the U.K. Government," he told lawmakers. "The question is obvious: What is the Government hiding?"No Deal Trade Burden at 8 Billion Pounds (1:30 p.m.)Businesses trading between the U.K. and European Union will face almost 8 billion pounds ($9.9 billion) of additional costs in a no-deal Brexit, according to new estimates by the U.K's tax and customs authority HMRC.Importers will pay a total of 3.8 billion pounds submitting the necessary customs declarations forms if the U.K. leaves the EU without a deal at the end of this month. Exporters' costs will rise to 3.9 billion pounds, HMRC said.The calculation shows the cost for one year and is based on 2017 trade flows. HMRC said it calculated that year's EU-U.K. trade flows as if they were carried out with the U.K. outside the bloc.Johnson Wins Scottish Challenge on Extension (12:55 p.m.)A Scottish judge refused to put further obligations on Boris Johnson, saying his "unequivocal assurances'' to seek an extension to the Brexit deadline were sufficient.At a hearing in Edinburgh on Friday, Johnson's lawyers promised he will obey a law that forces him to postpone Brexit. The claimants had argued that Johnson couldn't be trusted and should be forced to comply with the legislation under threat of a fine or imprisonment."I am not persuaded that it is necessary for the court to grant the orders sought or any variant of them," Judge Peter Cullen said while giving his ruling.Jo Maugham, one of the challengers, said he will appeal the decision.Johnson May Meet Varadkar As EU Seeks Progress (12:15 p.m.)Boris Johnson may try to meet with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in the coming days as he seeks to show progress in Brexit talks, according to a U.K. official speaking on condition of anonymity.The U.K. accepts both sides need to know where the proposals put forward by Johnson are heading by Friday, the person said. Both Varadkar and French President Emmanuel Macron signaled they want progress by the end of the week.If insufficient progress is made, then Johnson's plan may not even appear on the agenda for the Oct. 17-18 EU Council meeting, the person said.Brexit TimelineTime for EU to Compromise, U.K. Says (11:45 a.m.)Boris Johnson wants the EU to engage fully with his proposals for the Irish border and it's the bloc's turn to compromise, the prime minister's spokesman James Slack told reporters in London.Reiterating that he won't accept Northern Ireland being in a separate customs territory from the rest of the U.K., Slack said London has made compromises and expects Brussels to follow suit. He doubled-down on the premier's pledge to leave with or without a deal on Oct. 31."We are ready to talk with the EU at a pace to secure a deal so that we can move on and build a new partnership between the U.K. and the EU, but if this is to be possible, the EU must match the compromises that the U.K. has made," Slack told reporters. "The prime minister believes that we have set out a fair and sensible compromise."Johnson will call the leaders of Poland, Sweden and Denmark on Monday, Slack said.EU Demands 'Workable Solution' (11:35 a.m.)David Frost, the U.K.'s chief negotiator, is at the European Commission for Brexit talks today, commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva said.The negotiations this week are "to give the U.K. the opportunity to present their proposals in more detail and then we'll take stock," she said.She added that the U.K. has to come up with "a workable solution now and not something based on untried and revocable arrangements."Scottish Ruling Expected at Noon (Earlier)The latest Scottish court ruling related to Brexit is expected at noon Monday. Politicians are seeking a ruling that forces Prime Minister Boris Johnson to obey a law that requires him to seek an extension if he can't reach a deal with the European Union.Jolyon Maugham, a lawyer backing the case, said there are two elements to the ruling. First, will the court order Johnson to act as the law dictates, which would create the possibility of fines or even a jail term if he fails?Second, is sending a letter requesting the extension -- which Johnson's lawyers have promised to do -- enough to comply with the law. Or could the court look at other actions by Johnson that might be seen as undermining the law?Earlier:Brexit Deal Prospects Fade as Talks Stall, EU Signals PessimismWhen This $2 Trillion Market Turns, Start Worrying About Brexit\--With assistance from Edward Evans, Anthony Aarons, Ian Wishart, Alex Morales and Jessica Shankleman.To contact the reporters on this story: Jonathan Browning in London at jbrowning9@bloomberg.net;Robert Hutton in London at rhutton1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at tross54@bloomberg.net, Edward Evans, Thomas PennyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| EU needs more troops, says incoming foreign affairs chief as he calls for 'power politics' Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:32 AM PDT  The EU must have more troops and be prepared to use them across the globe, the bloc's incoming foreign affairs chief has told the European Parliament. Josep Borrell, who is nominated to be the EU's next chief diplomat, said that Europe could not allow itself to become "irrelevant" on a world stage dominated by superpowers such as the US and China. "We have the instruments to play power politics," he said at a European Parliament hearing into his candidacy to head up the EU foreign affairs service, "The EU has to learn to use the language of power." "We should reinforce the EU's international role and further our military capacity to act," the 72-year-old Spanish socialist added. "We should pool our national sovereignties together to multiply the power of individual member states," Mr Borrell said, "I am convinced that if we don't act together Europe will become irrelevant." Mr Borrell called for the numbers of EU troops that could be deployed to be raised to at least 55-60,000. He said the 60,000 target was first set in 1999 by EU leaders after the Balkan war. The EU does have "battlegroups" of 3,000 soldiers from across the EU on standby every six months but these have never been used and would require the unanimous support of every member state before they could be. Mr Borrell said the EU had to speak with a unified "truly integrated" foreign policy voice on the world stage. He said the total defence spend in the EU was half the GDP of Belgium and more than in China and Russia. But that spending did not translate into military capacity because it was fragmented among the EU member countries, Mr Borrell said. He backed EU plans for pooling defence research projects. Some critics have accused those plans of being a stepping stone towards a future EU Army. FAQ | European joint defence force Although that idea has been publicly supported by Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron and incoming European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, it is an extremely distant prospect at the moment. "We have to spend together," he said, "We have to be more operational on the ground, we have to deploy forces, starting in our neighbourhood." "We should envisage a Europe that can defend itself while working for a multilateral peaceful world order," Mr Borrell said before insisting this would strengthen NATO rather than be a rival to it. He earlier warned, in a thinly veiled swipe at the US and Donald Trump, that some of the EU's allies were "disengaging" from the international rules based system. He also told MEPs that the EU could not allow itself to be "squeezed" between the US and China in the trade war between the two superpowers. If his candidacy is backed by the European Parliament, Mr Borrell will become the EU's chief diplomat on November 1, succeeding Federica Mogherini.
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| Graham Says Trump’s ‘Biggest Lie’ Is of Islamic State’s Defeat Posted: 07 Oct 2019 08:07 AM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- One of Donald Trump's biggest defenders in Congress rebuked the president's decision to step aside from Kurdish allies in Syria while Turkey's military advances, saying it would result in the re-emergence of ISIS."ISIS is not defeated, my friend. The biggest lie being told by the administration is that ISIS is defeated," Senator Lindsey Graham told "Fox and Friends" in a phone call Monday. "The Caliphate is destroyed, but there's thousands of fighters" still there.Graham said he would sponsor a resolution urging Trump to reconsider the decision he called "shortsighted and irresponsible." Graham said he and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen will also introduce a resolution to impose sanctions on Turkey if it invades Syria.The sharp criticism from Graham, a South Carolina Republican who usually is one of Trump's fiercest defenders in the Senate, signals the president's plan could meet resistance on Capitol Hill. Other Republican lawmakers were joining in expressing misgivings on Monday, echoing the admonishment that prompted Trump to reverse course on a similar pullout announced last year.Senator Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, said on Twitter that "the Trump administration has made a grave mistake that will have implications far beyond Syria."Representative Peter King, a Republican from New York, tweeted that the move "betrays Kurds, strengthens ISIS and endangers American homeland."And Trump's former United Nations ambassador, Nikki Haley, emphasized the risks of the U.S. abandoning allies in the Mideast. "We must always have the backs of our allies, if we expect them to have our back," she said on Twitter. "The Kurds were instrumental in our successful fight against ISIS in Syria. Leaving them to die is a big mistake."Even before the pushback, Trump was defending his decision Monday, insisting on Twitter that the U.S. can't afford to be stuck in "ridiculous endless wars." The U.S. was only supposed to be in Syria for 30 days but stayed and "got deeper and deeper into battle with no aim in sight," Trump tweeted, insisting he'd held off this fight for almost three years.Trump's move represents a significant shift in U.S. policy that raises questions about the fate of tens of thousands of Islamic State detainees and casts further doubt on the reliability of the U.S. as an ally in the region.Trump said Turkey, Europe, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russia and the Kurds will now have to "figure the situation out, and what they want to do with the captured ISIS fighters in their 'neighborhood."'The White House said Turkey would take responsibility for any Islamic State fighters captured in the area over the past two years. It gave no details and it wasn't immediately clear what, if any, plan the NATO allies had agreed to handle the detainees or how they would be transferred to Turkish custody.But the assurance represents a potential win for Trump, who has insisted that the U.S. would bear no responsibility for any Islamic State detainees, as he gears up for the 2020 election.Close U.S. AllyThe Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have been a close U.S. ally in the fight to defeat Islamic State. But Turkey considers Syria's Kurdish militants a threat to its national security, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said his forces are ready to begin a military operation against them in northeastern Syria.The U.S. in 2015 provided air support for Kurdish militias to retake the critical town of Kobani from Islamic State and has since used Kurdish fighters as ground troops in the campaign to clear Syria of the group.Trump's approach to Syria has previously caused friction with administration officials. Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, resigned last December after Trump said the U.S. would withdraw troops from Syria and Afghanistan -- a decision Trump later reversed.Graham, who has not shied from criticizing other Trump moves on foreign policy, said that fatigue with the fight is not a reason to abandon it. Leaving the U.S. wartime Kurdish allies will only make it harder to find allies in the future, he warned."If we abandon them, good luck getting anybody to help America in the future with radical Islam, al Qaeda and ISIS," Graham said. "You may be tired of fighting radical Islam, but they're not tired of fighting you."Graham called Trump's decision "impulsive" and said the ensuing chaos in the region will only help U.S. foes. "Iran is licking their chops," he said. "And if I'm an ISIS fighter, I've got a second lease on life."An adviser to the Syrian Democratic Forces said that Trump's move will strengthen Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies Iran and Russia."The Kurds told me this morning they were going to fight," Moti Kahana, an adviser to the Kurdish-led forces, said by telephone from New Jersey. "They have two options. They can partner with Iran and Assad in order to prevent Turkish intervention into Syria or face a fight against Turkey in the northern border area and with Iran" in the southeast.Even if the Kurds don't fight, Kahana said, "they will shift their alliance from the Americans" to Russia, Assad and Iran.Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a tweet that the U.S. is "an irrelevant occupioer in Syria" and it's "futile to seek its permission or relyl on it for security."(Updates with comment from adviser to Syrian Kurds, Iran's Zarif in final paragraphs.)\--With assistance from Steven T. Dennis.To contact the reporters on this story: Jennifer A. Dlouhy in Washington at jdlouhy1@bloomberg.net;Glen Carey in Washington at gcarey8@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, Elizabeth Wasserman, Larry LiebertFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| 'We Absolutely Could Not Do That': When Seeking Foreign Help Was Out of the Question Posted: 07 Oct 2019 07:53 AM PDT  WASHINGTON -- One day in October 1992, four Republican congressmen showed up in the Oval Office with an audacious recommendation. President George Bush was losing his reelection race, and they told him the only way to win was to hammer his challenger Bill Clinton's patriotism for protesting the Vietnam War while in London and visiting Moscow as a young man.Bush was largely on board with that approach. But what came next crossed the line, as far as he and his team were concerned. "They wanted us to contact the Russians or the British to seek information on Bill Clinton's trip to Moscow," James A. Baker III, Bush's White House chief of staff, wrote in a memo later that day. "I said we absolutely could not do that."President Donald Trump insists he and his attorney general did nothing wrong by seeking damaging information about his domestic opponents from Ukraine, Australia, Italy and Britain or by publicly calling on China to investigate his most prominent Democratic challenger. But for every other White House in the modern era, Republican and Democratic, the idea of enlisting help from foreign powers for political advantage was seen as unwise and politically dangerous, if not unprincipled.A survey of 10 former White House chiefs of staff under Presidents Ronald Reagan, Bush, Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama found that none recalled any circumstance under which the White House had solicited or accepted political help from other countries, and all said they would have considered the very idea out of bounds."I served three presidents in the White House and don't remember even hearing any speculation to consider asking for such action," said Andrew H. Card Jr., who ran the younger Bush's White House and was the longest-serving chief of staff in the past six decades.William M. Daley, who served as commerce secretary under Clinton and chief of staff under Obama, said if someone had even proposed such an action, he probably would "recommend the person be escorted out of" the White House, then fired and reported to ethics officials.Other chiefs were just as definitive. "Did not happen on Reagan's watch. Would not have happened on Reagan's watch," said Kenneth M. Duberstein, his last chief of staff. "I would have shut him down," said Leon E. Panetta, who served as Clinton's chief of staff and Obama's defense secretary.The sense of incredulity among White House veterans in recent days crossed party and ideological lines. "This is unprecedented," said Samuel K. Skinner, who preceded Baker as chief of staff under Bush. Other chiefs who said they never encountered such a situation included Thomas F. McLarty III and John D. Podesta (Clinton) and Rahm Emanuel, Denis R. McDonough and Jacob J. Lew (Obama).History has shown that foreign affairs can be treacherous for presidents, even just the suspicion of mixing politics with the national interest. As a candidate in 1968, Richard M. Nixon sought to forestall a Vietnam peace deal by President Lyndon B. Johnson just before the election.Associates of Reagan were accused of trying to delay the release of hostages by Iran when he was a candidate in 1980 for fear that it would aid President Jimmy Carter, but a bipartisan House investigation concluded that there was no merit to the charge. Clinton faced months of investigation over 1996 campaign contributions from Chinese interests tied to the Beijing government.In none of those cases did an incumbent president personally apply pressure to foreign powers to damage political opponents. Trump pressed Ukraine's president this summer to investigate involvement with Democrats in 2016 and former Vice President Joe Biden while holding up $391 million in U.S. aid. Trump has said he was simply investigating corruption, not trying to benefit himself."The right way to look at it is the vice president was selling our country out," Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal lawyer, said in an interview Sunday. Trump was fulfilling his duty, he said. "I don't see what the president did wrong."Giuliani has been leading Trump's efforts to dig up evidence of corruption by the Democrats in Ukraine, meeting with various officials and negotiating a commitment by the newly installed government in Kyiv to investigate conspiracy theories about Ukrainian involvement in the 2016 election and supposed conflicts of interest by Biden.Told that past White House chiefs of staff said any legitimate allegations should be handled by the Justice Department, not the president, Giuliani said: "That's if you can trust the Justice Department. My witnesses don't trust the Justice Department, and they don't trust the FBI." He added that he would not have either until Attorney General William P. Barr took over.Barr has contacted foreign officials for help in investigating the origin of the special counsel investigation by Robert Mueller into Russian interference and ties with Trump's campaign, part of an effort to prove that the whole matter was a "hoax," as the president has insisted.Trump defends himself by saying that other presidents have leaned on foreign governments for help. That is true, but when other presidents have pressured counterparts and even held up U.S. assistance to coerce cooperation, it has generally been to achieve certain policy goals -- not to advance the president's personal or political agenda.As an example, Trump often cites Obama, who was overheard telling President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia in 2012 that he would have more "more flexibility" to negotiate missile defense after the fall election. While that may be objectionable, it is not the same thing as asking a foreign government to intervene in a U.S. election."They assume everybody's as sleazy and dirty as they are, which is not the case," Emanuel said.Trump points to Biden, arguing that the former vice president was the one who abused his power by threatening to withhold $1 billion in U.S. aid to Ukraine unless it fired its prosecutor general.Biden's son Hunter Biden served on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, earning $50,000 a month. The company's oligarch owner, Mykola Zlochevsky, had been a subject of cases overseen by the prosecutor, and so Trump contends that Biden sought the prosecutor's ouster to benefit his son.As a matter of appearances, at least, the former vice president's family left him open to suspicion. Even some of his defenders say it was unseemly for Hunter Biden to seemingly trade on his family name. The elder Biden has said he never discussed his son's business dealings in Ukraine with him, but some Democrats suggest he should have if only to prevent just such a situation from arising.For all of that, however, no evidence has emerged that Biden moved to push out the prosecutor to benefit his son. No memo or text message has become public linking the two. None of the U.S. officials who were involved at the time have come forward alleging any connection. No whistleblower has filed a complaint.In pressing for the prosecutor's ouster, Biden was carrying out Obama's policy as developed by his national security team and coordinated with European allies and the International Monetary Fund, all of which considered the Ukrainian prosecutor to be deliberately overlooking corruption.Indeed, at the time Biden acted, there was no public evidence that the prosecutor's office was actively pursuing investigations of Burisma, though Zlochevsky's allies say the prosecutor continued to use the threat of prosecution to try to solicit bribes from the oligarch and his team.The 1992 episode involving Bush and Baker provides an intriguing case study in the way previous administrations have viewed seeking political help overseas. At the time, Bush was trailing in the polls and eager for any weapon to turn things around.Reps. Robert K. Dornan, Duncan Hunter and Duke Cunningham of California and Sam Johnson of Texas urged the president to ask Russia and Britain for help.Dornan, reached last week, said Baker offered no objections during the meeting. "Baker sat there in the Oval Office like a bump on a log," he recalled. "He said nothing." If Baker advised Bush not to reach out to foreign governments, then he did so after the congressmen had left, Dornan said.Dornan said that was a mistake and that Bush should have done as Trump has. "The bottom line from me was, 'If you don't do this, Mr. President, leader of the free world, you will lose,'" Dornan said. "And he didn't do it and he lost. Baker cost Bush that second term."As it was, Baker and some of his aides got in trouble anyway because State Department employees searched Clinton's passport file to determine whether he had ever tried to renounce his U.S. citizenship. They found no such evidence, but an independent counsel was appointed to investigate whether the search violated any laws.The attorney general who requested the investigation? Barr, in his first tour running the Justice Department. The independent counsel who was appointed? Joseph diGenova, a lawyer now helping Giuliani look for information in Ukraine. In the passport case, diGenova concluded that no laws had been broken and that he should never have been appointed in first place.As for seeking help from Russia and Britain, Baker declined to comment last week, but his peers said he did exactly as they would have. "It would have been ludicrous at that stage to do anything," Skinner said. "Baker's decision was obviously the right one."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2019 The New York Times Company
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| With eye on Syria, Greece expands refugee transfers Posted: 07 Oct 2019 07:49 AM PDT  Greek authorities are expanding a program to transfer migrants and refugees from overcrowded camps on the islands to the mainland amid concern that the number of arrivals from nearby Turkey could continue to rise. More than 500 asylum-seekers arrived early Monday on ferries from the islands at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, and were being taken in buses to a newly setup camp in northern Greece. An expected incursion by Turkish forces into northeastern Turkey has increased concern in Greece that more refugees may try to reach the European Union following a summer surge in arrivals.
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| Motorcycle Tragedy Is a Real Test for Boris Johnson Posted: 07 Oct 2019 07:09 AM PDT  (Bloomberg Opinion) -- It is every family's worst nightmare: a traffic accident that takes the life of a loved one, often through no fault of their own. Such incidents are usually an agonizing, private tragedy for those involved. The allegations in the case of 19-year-old Harry Dunn, however, are a matter of transatlantic diplomacy and threaten to become an embarrassment to the British prime minister Boris Johnson.They are also a reminder that diplomatic immunity is often used as a shield in ways that were never intended. Johnson, who once criticized the absurdity of the protections offered, can't let his voice be muffled this time by his need to keep the Americans onside after Brexit.On Aug. 27, Dunn's motorcycle collided head-on with a Volvo outside a U.S. intelligence base about 70 miles northwest of London; he suffered multiple injuries and was later pronounced dead. Dunn's devastated family say they were told by police that they believe the Volvo driver was traveling on the wrong side of the road.The driver of the vehicle, named as 42-year-old Anne Sacoolas, is the wife of a U.S. diplomat who may have only been in the country for a short period. Police reported that she was cooperative initially and had no plans to leave the country. But after Dunn's death, Sacoolas claimed immunity and returned to the U.S. with her family.The case has sparked outrage in the U.K. Harry Dunn and his family have suffered the ultimate irreversible harm, but they seem to have no recourse at all. Under the 1961 Vienna Convention, diplomats and their families are protected from prosecution in their host country, though the principle dates back thousands of years.It has survived so long for good reason. Not all judicial systems were independent or trustworthy. During the Cold War, there was always the danger that a honeytrap might ensnare a diplomat. But a road in Northamptonshire in 2019 is a long way from such dangers. In recent decades, immunity seems to be abused by diplomats more often than correctly invoked. Waivers of diplomatic immunity are, in practice, rare. Some years ago the Daily Telegraph revealed that the Metropolitan Police made 19 applications for such waivers in the five years to 2007 and most were rejected. A French diplomat accused of assault was sent home. Saudi officials escaped having to account for allegations of indecent assault and drug-dealing.Yet this isn't just a problem of serious crimes and misdemeanors. If you included parking violations and other smaller offences, diplomatic law-breaking would count for a significant waste of time and resources for the London police.As London mayor, Johnson regularly criticized the U.S. ambassador Robert Tuttle for failing to pay the city's daily 8 pound ($9.90) congestion charge over three years. "I think it's the Geneva Convention which prevents me from slapping an 'asbo' on every single diplomat who fails to pay, I think it's an unbelievable scandal," Johnson said at the time, referring to the Anti-Social Behavior Order penalty that was often used back then against London's young hooligans.On Monday Johnson broke his silence on Dunn, calling on the U.S. embassy to waive immunity and saying he'd raise the issue with the White House personally. He treads a fine line. His predecessor Tony Blair never lived down accusations that he was George W. Bush's "poodle"; Johnson is struggling to appease Trump's sensitivities on Iran and Huawei, both areas where the U.K. disagrees with the president.Brexit complicates things. Trump's promise of a U.S./U.K. trade deal has become a cornerstone of Johnson's promise that Brexit will be a success. But the Trump impeachment proceedings have been noted in Westminster. Johnson is often compared to the American president; their chumminess will look less advantageous the more trouble Trump finds himself in.Were immunity to be lifted and Sacoolas found to have caused death by dangerous driving, she might not be sent to prison. Sentences of up to 14 years can be handed down if the offender is under the influence of drink or drugs. But the maximum custodial term for death by "careless or inconsiderate driving" is five years and that is reserved "for rare cases when the blame is exceptionally high." We're not likely to find out anway.Could there be a better system? The renowned trial lawyer Geoffrey Robertson has argued that countries should either waive immunity or submit to an international court in criminal cases, with judges from the involved nations. "Any country that chooses to protect an embassy official against prosecution must be treated with the contempt it deserves: Its ambassador should be carpeted, any aid budget reviewed and full details of charges and evidence released to the media," Robertson wrote nearly a decade ago.It's hard to live up to such ideals when your entire post-Brexit strategy is about keeping one country happy.To contact the author of this story: Therese Raphael at traphael4@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: James Boxell at jboxell@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Therese Raphael writes editorials on European politics and economics for Bloomberg Opinion. She was editorial page editor of the Wall Street Journal Europe.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Motorcycle Tragedy Is a Real Test for Boris Johnson Posted: 07 Oct 2019 07:09 AM PDT  (Bloomberg Opinion) -- It is every family's worst nightmare: a traffic accident that takes the life of a loved one, often through no fault of their own. Such incidents are usually an agonizing, private tragedy for those involved. The allegations in the case of 19-year-old Harry Dunn, however, are a matter of transatlantic diplomacy and threaten to become an embarrassment to the British prime minister Boris Johnson.They are also a reminder that diplomatic immunity is often used as a shield in ways that were never intended. Johnson, who once criticized the absurdity of the protections offered, can't let his voice be muffled this time by his need to keep the Americans onside after Brexit.On Aug. 27, Dunn's motorcycle collided head-on with a Volvo outside a U.S. intelligence base about 70 miles northwest of London; he suffered multiple injuries and was later pronounced dead. Dunn's devastated family say they were told by police that they believe the Volvo driver was traveling on the wrong side of the road.The driver of the vehicle, named as 42-year-old Anne Sacoolas, is the wife of a U.S. diplomat who may have only been in the country for a short period. Police reported that she was cooperative initially and had no plans to leave the country. But after Dunn's death, Sacoolas claimed immunity and returned to the U.S. with her family.The case has sparked outrage in the U.K. Harry Dunn and his family have suffered the ultimate irreversible harm, but they seem to have no recourse at all. Under the 1961 Vienna Convention, diplomats and their families are protected from prosecution in their host country, though the principle dates back thousands of years.It has survived so long for good reason. Not all judicial systems were independent or trustworthy. During the Cold War, there was always the danger that a honeytrap might ensnare a diplomat. But a road in Northamptonshire in 2019 is a long way from such dangers. In recent decades, immunity seems to be abused by diplomats more often than correctly invoked. Waivers of diplomatic immunity are, in practice, rare. Some years ago the Daily Telegraph revealed that the Metropolitan Police made 19 applications for such waivers in the five years to 2007 and most were rejected. A French diplomat accused of assault was sent home. Saudi officials escaped having to account for allegations of indecent assault and drug-dealing.Yet this isn't just a problem of serious crimes and misdemeanors. If you included parking violations and other smaller offences, diplomatic law-breaking would count for a significant waste of time and resources for the London police.As London mayor, Johnson regularly criticized the U.S. ambassador Robert Tuttle for failing to pay the city's daily 8 pound ($9.90) congestion charge over three years. "I think it's the Geneva Convention which prevents me from slapping an 'asbo' on every single diplomat who fails to pay, I think it's an unbelievable scandal," Johnson said at the time, referring to the Anti-Social Behavior Order penalty that was often used back then against London's young hooligans.On Monday Johnson broke his silence on Dunn, calling on the U.S. embassy to waive immunity and saying he'd raise the issue with the White House personally. He treads a fine line. His predecessor Tony Blair never lived down accusations that he was George W. Bush's "poodle"; Johnson is struggling to appease Trump's sensitivities on Iran and Huawei, both areas where the U.K. disagrees with the president.Brexit complicates things. Trump's promise of a U.S./U.K. trade deal has become a cornerstone of Johnson's promise that Brexit will be a success. But the Trump impeachment proceedings have been noted in Westminster. Johnson is often compared to the American president; their chumminess will look less advantageous the more trouble Trump finds himself in.Were immunity to be lifted and Sacoolas found to have caused death by dangerous driving, she might not be sent to prison. Sentences of up to 14 years can be handed down if the offender is under the influence of drink or drugs. But the maximum custodial term for death by "careless or inconsiderate driving" is five years and that is reserved "for rare cases when the blame is exceptionally high." We're not likely to find out anway.Could there be a better system? The renowned trial lawyer Geoffrey Robertson has argued that countries should either waive immunity or submit to an international court in criminal cases, with judges from the involved nations. "Any country that chooses to protect an embassy official against prosecution must be treated with the contempt it deserves: Its ambassador should be carpeted, any aid budget reviewed and full details of charges and evidence released to the media," Robertson wrote nearly a decade ago.It's hard to live up to such ideals when your entire post-Brexit strategy is about keeping one country happy.To contact the author of this story: Therese Raphael at traphael4@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: James Boxell at jboxell@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Therese Raphael writes editorials on European politics and economics for Bloomberg Opinion. She was editorial page editor of the Wall Street Journal Europe.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| UPDATE 2-UK retailers suffer worst September on record, BRC says Posted: 07 Oct 2019 06:23 AM PDT ![UPDATE 2-UK retailers suffer worst September on record, BRC says]( "UPDATE 2-UK retailers suffer worst September on record, BRC says") British retailers endured their worst September since at least the mid-1990s as people spent money on entertainment instead, according to surveys that painted a muted picture of household demand ahead of Brexit. In a potential warning sign for consumer spending, which has helped the economy in the run-up to Brexit, the British Retail Consortium said total retail sales values declined 1.3% in September compared with the same month last year. A separate survey published on Monday by payment card company Barclaycard showed broader consumer spending -- which includes retail sales -- rose by a "modest" 1.6% in annual terms in September.
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| Pakistani PM Khan to meet China's Xi to discuss Kashmir, CPEC Posted: 07 Oct 2019 06:22 AM PDT ![Pakistani PM Khan to meet China's Xi to discuss Kashmir, CPEC]( "Pakistani PM Khan to meet China's Xi to discuss Kashmir, CPEC") Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing on Tuesday to discuss the security situation in the disputed region of Kashmir as well as economic ties, his office said on Monday. Tensions over Kashmir have risen drastically since August when New Delhi revoked the autonomy of its portion of the territory, which both India and Pakistan rule in part and claim in full. Pakistan expelled India's ambassador and suspended bilateral trade soon after and Khan launched an international diplomacy campaign in an attempt to draw global condemnation of India's treatment of Kashmiris.
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| Trump Defends Decision To Abandon Kurdish Allies Fighting ISIS In Syria Posted: 07 Oct 2019 06:10 AM PDT  "Turkey, Europe, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Russia and the Kurds will now have to ... figure the situation out," the president tweeted.
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| Lindsey Graham blasts Trump for Syria pullback: 'A disaster in the making' Posted: 07 Oct 2019 06:06 AM PDT ![Lindsey Graham blasts Trump for Syria pullback: 'A disaster in the making']( "Lindsey Graham blasts Trump for Syria pullback: 'A disaster in the making'") Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is out with a rare rebuke of President Trump, making his case somewhere he knows will reach the president: Fox & Friends.Graham spoke out Monday morning over the White House's announcement that the U.S. would be pulling troops out of northern Syria, where Turkey is planning a military incursion. In an appearance on Fox & Friends, Graham blasted the decision as "shortsighted and irresponsible," also calling the whole situation "just unnerving to its core." Host Brian Kilmeade made clear earlier in the show he totally agrees, while House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is also expressing doubts and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) calls the decision a "grave mistake."Just to make himself as clear as possible, Graham took to Twitter after his Fox & Friends appearance to call the decision a "disaster in the making" that, among other things, "ensures ISIS comeback" and "will be a stain on America's honor for abandoning the Kurds."> I don't know all the details regarding President Trump's decision in northern Syria. In process of setting up phone call with Secretary Pompeo. > > If press reports are accurate this is a disaster in the making.> > -- Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 7, 2019> * Ensures ISIS comeback. > * Forces Kurds to align with Assad and Iran. > * Destroys Turkey's relationship with U.S. Congress. > * Will be a stain on America's honor for abandoning the Kurds.> > -- Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 7, 2019> Also, if this plan goes forward will introduce Senate resolution opposing and asking for reversal of this decision. Expect it will receive strong bipartisan support.> > -- Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 7, 2019This is, at least, "assuming the press reports are accurate," Graham says, making clear he's trying to set up a call with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The Associated Press' Zeke Miller notes, "Not briefing one of your closest Hill allies about a policy they're not going to like (after doing the same thing to them in December) is a choice."
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