US President Donald Trump said Saturday he was open to meeting Kim Jong Un at the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea while on a trip to Seoul this week.
"After some very important meetings, including my meeting with President Xi of China, I will be leaving Japan for South Korea (with President Moon). While there, if Chairman Kim of North Korea sees this, I would meet him at the Border/DMZ just to shake his hand and say Hello(?)!," Trump tweeted from Japan's Osaka, where he is attending the G20 summit.
The surprise offer came amid a recent flurry of diplomacy over North Korea's nuclear programme after a Trump-Kim summit in Hanoi collapsed without an agreement.
After several months of public silence, an exchange of letters between the leaders appeared to have thawed the deep-freeze and raised hopes for a third summit meeting after a historic first tete-a-tete in Singapore on June 12, 2018 and the second in Hanoi in February.
Trump will be heading to Seoul immediately after 

Trump says open to meeting North Korea's Kim at DMZ

PTI Automatic

An American neo-Nazi who killed an activist when he rammed his car into a group of counter-protesters during a white supremacist rally was ordered jailed for life without possibility of parole on Friday.
James Alex Fields Jr, 22, had pleaded guilty to 29 federal hate crimes charges in March in a deal with prosecutors that eliminated the possibility of a death sentence.
The charges were linked to the 29 people wounded when he drove his car through a crowd in Charlottesville, Virginia on August 12, 2017, when he killed 32-year-old paralegal Heather Heyer.
"As a result of this act of domestic terrorism that was charged as 29 hate crimes, a United States district judge this afternoon determined that Mr Fields deserved to spend the rest of his life in federal prison and imposed that sentence," said US Attorney Thomas Cullen.
According to the local CBS6 news channel, Judge Michael Urbanski said Fields was "a profoundly disturbed young man" with a history of violence and releasing him back ..

Neo-Nazi in Charlottesville attack given life sentence

Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar has ordered his forces to attack Turkish ships and interests in the country, his spokesman said on Friday, accusing Turkey of backing his rivals in Libya's conflict.
"Orders have been given to the air force to target Turkish ships and boats in Libyan territorial waters," said General Ahmad al-Mesmari, adding that "Turkish strategic sites, companies and projects belonging to the Turkish state (in Libya) are considered legitimate targets by the armed forces".
Haftar's self-styled Libyan National Army, which holds eastern Libya and much of the country's south, launched an offensive to take the capital in early April.

Libya's Haftar orders forces to attack Turkish ships and interests: spokesman

At least 43 illegal miners died when part of a copper mine collapsed in southeastern DR Congo, a Congolese official said on Friday.
Details of the exact toll were still unclear after two galleries caved in on Thursday at a mine in the Kolwezi area operated by Kamoto Copper Company (KCC), a subsidiary of the Swiss company Glencore.
Glencore had put the number of fatalities at 19 but noted in a statement that there could be "possible further unconfirmed fatalities".
Richard Muyej, governor of the Lualaba province, on Friday told a press conference that 43 miners had died in the accident. A day earlier he had put the toll at 36.
But the Red Cross and some civil groups put the number of fatalities even higher, at between 60 and 80 dead.
Muyej was quoted as saying Friday, "After the burials we will hold a big meeting with leaders of the illegal miners to agree once and for all on the rules." The region is rich in copper and cobalt.
Glencore had said KCC had observed a "growing presence" of 

At least 43 killed in DR Congo mine collapse

The number of migrants taken into custody at the US-Mexico border is expected to drop by 25 per cent in June, in part due to Mexican efforts to stem the flow, the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security said Friday.
More than 1,44,000 undocumented migrants were seized at the southwestern US border in May, part of a surge in recent months.
But Kevin McAleenan, the acting DHS secretary, said steps taken by Mexico -- under pressure from President Donald Trump -- to reduce the number of border-crossers appeared to be having an impact.
"These three weeks have demonstrated that they are, already," McAleenan told reporters. "That 25 per cent decrease in June is more than we've seen in past years."
McAleenan said the upcoming weeks will show exactly how effective the Mexican efforts have been.
"I think we're going to know, basically, by mid-July and certainly in the end of July if these efforts are sustained and having a significant impact," he said.
The acting DHS secretary ..

US expects 25 pc drop in arrests on Mexico border in June

Temperatures in France surpassed 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) Friday for the first time on record as Europe sweltered in an early summer heatwave that has caused several deaths.
With France, Spain, Italy and parts of central Europe hard hit by the record-breaking temperatures, officials pleaded with people to take common sense precautions.
France's new record temperature of 45.9 degrees C was registered in Gallargues-le-Montueux, a village in the southern department of Gard near Montpellier, breaking successive records set earlier in the day, the Meteo-France weather service told AFP.
This is the same area where the previous high of 44.1 degrees Celsius was set in August 2003. Records began at the turn of the 20th century.
Earlier Friday, the mercury rose above 44 degrees C in the southeastern town of Carpentras. The town was deserted, with cafe owners contemplating empty terraces which would normally be packed.
"We have never seen this!" one exclaimed.
The new record ..

Mercury tops 45C in France as deadly heatwave roasts Europe

The European Union and South American trade bloc Mercosur agreed Friday on a vast trade deal to end 20 years of talks over one of the world's largest regional commercial accords, negotiators said.
The agreement comes after two decades of often tough EU negotiations with the countries of Mercosur -- Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay -- that repeatedly stalled because of European farmer sensitivities over the beef market.
The deal comes with the US administration of President Donald Trump caught up in several trade disputes including tensions with China and disagreements with EU countries.
"This is a historic moment. In the middle of international trade tensions, we are today sending a strong signal to our Mercosur partners," European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said in a statement.
Brazil also welcomed a "historic" agreement while Argentina called the deal "unprecedented".
The announcement of the deal, which must be approved by the 28 EU member states, comes as ...

EU, S.America bloc reach trade deal after 20 years of talks

The French government on Friday warned the two candidates vying to become Britain's next prime minister that the Brexit divorce deal was not up for renegotiation, echoing warnings from Brussels.
Former London mayor Boris Johnson, a Brexit figurehead, faces Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt in a run-off vote to decide who takes on the tricky task of piloting the country's departure from the EU.
Johnson is the runaway favourite.
Both men have said they want to renegotiate the deal that outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May spent two years brokering with Brussels but which was rejected three times by the British parliament.
The EU insists there is no alternative to May's deal.
"If the United Kingdom wants to leave the union and to leave in an orderly fashion, the deal on the table is the deal we negotiated over two years," France's European Affairs minister Amelie de Montchalin told members of the Anglo-American Press Association of Paris.
De Montchalin said Johnson, Hunt "and all the others", .

'It's no', France tells British PM hopefuls on renegotiating Brexit

The Chinese military received official ownership of a piece of prime Hong Kong waterfront land on Saturday, even as the city is rocked by anti-Beijing protests just days before the anniversary of its return to China.
Huge rallies have shaken the semi-autonomous territory this month, with demonstrators calling for the withdrawal of a bill that would allow extraditions to the Chinese mainland.
More pro-democracy protests are expected in the coming days, as residents mark the anniversary of Hong Kong's 1997 handover to Beijing's rule.
At midnight on Saturday, China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) was automatically granted control of the Victoria Harbour pier under a 1994 British and Chinese agreement.
The move will mean PLA ships can one day berth in the harbour, whose backdrop is the city's famous skyline.
The PLA already has a garrison in Hong Kong, but its troops generally keep a low profile and are rarely seen in uniform in public.
A debate over the controversial transfer deal was ..

Chinese military gets Hong Kong harbour dock, despite tensions

Russian President Vladimir Putin brought and drank from his own mug during an official dinner at the G20 summit in Japan, prompting social media jokes and speculation that the longtime leader suffered from paranoia.
Videos showed Putin, in power for almost twenty years, drinking from a white thermos mug while other leaders drank from regular wine glasses.
"This is because he is constantly drinking tea from that thermos," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov explained to the RIA Novosti news agency.
The Russian president was seen toasting US President Donald Trump with the mug.
Trump drank a dark liquid that appeared to be cola from a wine glass.  Putin bringing his own cup to the international event prompted speculation online that the 66-year-old did not trust anyone.
"If you've seen what I've seen, you'd bring your own cup too," a parody account of the Russian leader, @DarthPutinKGB, wrote on Twitter.
The mug resembled one that Putin has drunk from during his annual hours-long press ...

Putin brings own mug to G20 summit

Former US president Jimmy Carter said Friday that Donald Trump only won the 2016 White House race because of Russian interference.
"There's no doubt that the Russians did interfere in the election," Carter said during a Carter Center panel discussion in Leesburg, Virginia.
"And I think the interference, although not yet quantified, if fully investigated would show that Trump did not actually win the election in 2016," the 94-year-old former president said.
"He lost the election and he was put into office because the Russians interfered on his behalf," Carter said.
Carter, a Democrat who was elected president in 1976 and was defeated by Republican Ronald Reagan four years later, was asked by the moderator whether he believes Trump is an illegitimate president.
"Based on what I just said which I can't retract I would say yes," Carter replied, laughing.
Carter's former vice president, Walter Mondale, also took part in the discussion and had harsh words for Trump.
"We've never had a ...

Trump only won because of Russian interference: Jimmy Carter

Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib has reminded Pakistan of the threat posed by leg-spinner Rashid Khan ahead of their World Cup meeting on Saturday.
Rashid, third in the one-day international bowling rankings, has taken just four wickets at the tournament so far.
He returned humiliating figures of 0-110 in his nine overs against England -- the worst in the competition's history.
But Naib gave a reminder of the threat posed by the 20-year-old, whose tally of 129 ODI wickets since the end of the 2015 World Cup is bettered only by England's Adil Rashid.
"Pakistan are a strong team and played spin very well in their last two games," Naib said.
"But Rashid is a different spinner, he's very different to other leg-spinners. It's very difficult to pick him.
"In this World Cup I don't think he's been at his best but he's given everything in terms of effort. On his day, it's very difficult for any team to deal with him."
"If it is a Rashid day, it's very difficult for anyone," added the ...

Struggling Rashid will show class against Pakistan, says Afghanistan captain

Lawmakers from Germany's far-right AfD party said they had to cancel plans to gather in neighbouring Poland Friday after their hotel cancelled their reservation hours before the meeting.
The anti-immigration, anti-Islam Alternative for Germany had already had difficulty finding a venue after German hotels objected to hosting the group, the party and media sources said.
Around 70 of the party's 91 members of parliament were to gather instead on Friday evening in the Polish city of Szczecin, near the border with Germany.
But the spokesman for the party's parliamentary group, Christian Lueth, told AFP that the Szczecin hotel set to host them had suddenly told them its rooms were unavailable.
"The hotel cancelled the reservation for the conference rooms two hours before the gathering, and the hotel rooms as well, saying there had been a power cut," Lueth said.
He said he suspected "political reasons" for the decision.
"We had repeatedly confirmed the reservation -- there will be legal ...

Polish hotel cancels rooms for German far-right MPs

After furiously attacking some of America's closest allies before the G20, the world saw a more jovial side of Donald Trump in Osaka as he lavished praise liberally and joked about fake news and election meddling with Vladimir Putin.
As if fundamental differences between the world's top powers over trade, foreign policy and the environment were not enough, Trump raised fears of an explosive summit by taking aim at all and sundry ahead of the trip.
But it was all smiles, jokes, praise and positive body language in person in Osaka as world leaders heeded Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's call for "beautiful harmony" -- a reference to Japan's new era name.
As leaders gathered for a group photo, Trump chatted warmly with Russian President Vladimir Putin, patting him gently on the back as they parted ways.
The long-awaited head-to-head between the pair, the first since a controversial meeting in Helsinki in July, raised eyebrows as Trump made gags about the sensitive topic of alleged ...

Oh-saka: Fist-bumps, gags and love-ins for Trump at G20

China said Friday it would import Iranian oil in defiance of US sanctions on Tehran, a day before US and Chinese leaders are to meet to try to resolve thorny trade disputes.
"We reject the unilateral imposition of sanctions," said Fu Cong, Director General of the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Department of Arms Control.
The United States, which is trying to force Iran to renegotiate an agreement limiting its nuclear programme, at the end of May tightened sanctions to include a full ban on Iran's exports of oil and has threatened to punish nations which refuse to go along.
"For us energy security is important and the importation of oil is important to Chinese energy security and also to the livelihood of the people," said Cong.
The sanctions have led to a plunge in Iranian oil exports, a key source of revenue for the government.
But according to an International Energy Agency report earlier this month Iran was continuing to export some oil, although it was difficult to say to which ...

China snubs US sanctions on Iranian oil exports

Switzerland said Friday it had summoned Cameroon's ambassador over an "unacceptable" attack on a journalist in Geneva by men believed to be part of Cameroonian President Paul Biya's security detail.
"Diplomatic procedures have been launched... Cameroon's ambassador was summoned in Bern and the foreign ministry informed him that such incidents are unacceptable," foreign ministry spokesman Georg Farago told AFP in an email.
"Freedom of the press is protected and must be respected," he added.
The ambassador was summoned on Thursday, a day after a journalist with the RTS broadcaster, Adrien Krause, was reportedly assaulted by a group of men outside Geneva's luxury Intercontinental hotel on Wednesday.
He had been filming a clash between around a dozen demonstrators against Cameroon's 86-year-old president Paul Biya, who has reportedly been staying at the hotel since Sunday, and men believed to be the president's security detail, RTS reported.
The likely Cameroonian security agents suddenly 

Swiss summon Cameroon ambassador over 'unacceptable' journalist attack

Iran said on Friday it had formally lodged a complaint to the UN Security Council against the United States over a drone violating its airspace, Tasnim news agency reported.
Iran "filed a complaint to the UN Security Council and the organisation's Secretary General after a US spy drone violated Iran's airspace and was shot down," Tasnim quoted deputy foreign minister Gholamhossein Dehghani as saying.
"The complaint states that Iran reserves the right to defend its airspace and confront any violation," he added.
Tensions between Tehran and Washington have spiked ever since US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and reimposed sanctions on the Islamic republic.
Hostilities grew last week when Iran shot down a US drone over sensitive Gulf waters following a series of tanker attacks that Washington blamed Tehran for despite its denials.
Since then the arch-foes have been locked in a war of words, which escalated this week when Trump announced ..

Iran files complaint to UN over US spy drone

Diplomats meeting in Vienna made "one step forward" in efforts to save the 2015 Iran nuclear deal but the outcome "was still not enough", Iran's deputy foreign minister said Friday.
Speaking after talks with European, Russian and Chinese officials in Vienna, Abbas Araghchi said that what had been agreed was "good progress" but added: "It is still not meeting Iran's expectations."
Referring to Iran's decision to stop abiding by certain limits on nuclear materials under the deal, Araghchi said: "The decision to reduce our commitments has already been made in Iran and we continue on that process unless our expectations are met."
However, he stressed that the final decision would be with his superiors in Tehran.
"I don't think that the progress we made today would be considered enough to stop our process but the decision is not mine," he added.
Araghchi said that the Europeans had confirmed that INSTEX, a mechanism set up to facilitate trade with Iran and avoid US sanctions, was "now ...

'Progress' at nuclear meeting but 'still not enough': Iran

The UK on Friday pledged to boost defence of the Baltic states to deter a "more assertive" Russia as the British navy held its largest drills in the Baltic region, which includes a Russian territory, in more than a century.
Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt said the British-led Joint Expeditionary Force, a rapid response unit, has reached a "new scale" in the exercise that included nearly 4,000 people and 44 vessels from nine nations.
Mordaunt called the exercise "the largest Royal Navy deployment in the Baltic for more than a hundred years", speaking to reporters aboard a British warship in the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda, which is just a stone's throw from the militarised Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
The exercise was meant to reassure eastern flank NATO allies and to demonstrate that they are "aligned and ready".
"Russia is becoming more assertive, we see her deploying more forces and new weapons, and we can imagine scenarios that may play out in the future," Mordaunt said.
"So it 

UK holds largest Baltic naval drills in century to deter Russia

The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on the son of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for serving in his father's "illegitimate regime."
"Maduro relies on his son Nicolasito and others close to his authoritarian regime to maintain a stranglehold on the economy and suppress the people of Venezuela," US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in announcing the action.
"Treasury will continue to target complicit relatives of illegitimate regime insiders profiting off of Maduro's corruption," he said.
The action freezes any assets Nicolas Ernesto Maduro Guerra has in the United States and bars American individuals or institutions from doing business with him.
The latest US action comes as Maduro moves to consolidate his hold on power after a failed coup attempt by opposition leader Juan Guaido.
Guaido, the leader of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, is recognized by the United States and more than 50 other countries as Venezuela's acting president.
In targeting ...

US slaps sanctions on son of Venezuelan leader Maduro

Nearly 100 combatants were killed on Friday in clashes between fighters loyal to Syria's government, rebels and jihadists in northwestern Syria, a war monitor said.
Starting at dawn on Friday morning -- and after bombing by the regime -- fighting in northern Hama province killed 51 government loyalists and allied militiamen, and 45 among the rebels and jihadists, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The clashes continued in the afternoon, the Britain-based Observatory said.
Backed by its ally Moscow, Damascus has since late April intensified bombardment of much of Idlib province and the parts of neighbouring Hama, Aleppo and Latakia where Syria's former Al-Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) holds sway.
Fighting has meanwhile taken place on the ground in parts of these anti-regime areas, particularly in northern Hama.
Syria's official SANA news agency also reported bombardment on Friday.
"Units of the army today carried out massive bombing at dawn.... on positions of ..

AFP

AFP

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