Page 1814 - Politics
US lifts sanctions on blacklisted Russian tycoon's companies
The US Treasury Department lifted sanctions Sunday on Russian aluminum giant Rusal and two related companies after blacklisted billionaire Oleg Deripaska took action to sharply cut his stake in them. The tycoon is known to have friendly relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and had business ties with US President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who was convicted in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Deripaska is one of several oligarchs sanctioned last year in retaliation for what the US called "the Russian government's ongoing and increasingly brazen pattern of malign activity across the world", citing its interference in Syria and its seizure of Crimea. Rusal, EN+ Group Plc and EuroSibEnergo JSC have "reduced Oleg Deripaska's direct and indirect shareholding stake... and severed his control", the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said in a statement. "The companies have also ...
Voting begins for Jind assembly bypoll in Haryana
Voting began for the by-election in Jind assembly constituency on Monday morning.
Proud to be 1st Hindu-American to run for president: Tulsi Gabbard
Democratic presidential aspirant Tulsi Gabbard has alleged that she had become a victim of "religious bigotry" and some media outlets were targeting her and accusing her supporters, who have Hindu names, of being Hindu nationalists. Gabbard, the first Hindu elected to the US Congress, wrote an op-ed for the Religious News Services on Sunday, describing the campaign against her, supporters and donors as "profiling and targeting of Hindu Americans and ascribing to them motives without any basis". The 37-year-old had on January 11 announced that she would be running for the White House in 2020. In the hard-hitting piece, Gabbard pointed out to the accusation against her of being a Hindu nationalist. "Tomorrow will it be Muslim or Jewish Americans? Japanese, Hispanic or African Americans?" she asked. "My meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India's democratically elected leader, have been highlighted as 'proof' of this and portrayed as somehow being out of the ordinary or somehow ..
US democracy under attack like never before: Kamala Harris
Indian-origin Senator Kamala Harris launched her 2020 presidential bid on Sunday with a scathing rebuke of President Donald Trump's policies, alleging that the US democracy was under attack like never before. Recollecting the fighting spirit of her Indian mother, Shyamala Gopalan, who migrated to the US from Tamil Nadu for studies, Harris told a cheering crowd in her hometown of Oakland, California, that this was not going to be an easy election pitted against an incumbent like Trump. "My mother used to say don't sit around and complain about things. Do something," the 54-year-old, said rebuke in her impressive speech that lasted for more than 30 minutes. "With the fighting spirit I got from my mother, I stand before you today to announce my candidacy for president of the United States. And I will tell you, I'm running for president, because I love my country. I am running to be the president, of the people, by the people and for all people," Harris told the crowd estimated to be ...
London: Baloch activists hold awareness campaign to highlight issue of missing persons
Baloch Republican Party (BRP) workers held a seven-day awareness campaign outside the United Kingdom Prime Minister's office in London to highlight the unending killings, enforced disappearances, and alleged human rights violations in Balochistan.BRP central spokesman Sher Mohammad Bugti said in a statement that the campaign started on January 19 and came to an end with a protest demonstration on January 26. On the last day of the campaign, the demonstration was joined by the activists of Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) and Free Balochistan Movement (FBM).While addressing the protesters, BRP central leader Mansoor Baloch urged the UK government to take notice of human rights violations in Balochistan and pressurise the Pakistan government for releasing hundreds of Baloch missing persons reportedly lodged there.Meanwhile, FBM leader Faiz Mohammad Baloch said that the UK should halt any kind of funds or aid to Pakistan army, adding that the latter has created many religious groups that ..
Kamala Harris officially launches Presidential election campaign
Democratic Senator from California Kamala Harris on Sunday officially launched her campaign for the 2020 Presidential Elections.Speaking at the launch event in Oakland, California, Harris said, "People in power are trying to convince us that the villain in our American story is each other".She further attacked President Donald Trump over his proposed wall along the southern border with Mexico, terming it a "medieval vanity project".During Harris' address, a heckler in the crowd expressed his opposition to Harris' anti-wall stance and shouted, "You murdered Corporal Singh," in reference to the murder of Newman Police Department's Ronal Singh by an undocumented immigrant from Mexico.According to media reports, a suspected drunk driver shot Singh in December last year after the latter pulled him over. The Mexico native had reportedly crossed the border in Arizona several years ago and worked a number of jobs. He was also suspected to have had gang affiliations.While Harris' crowd drowned
Protests in Honduras against president heat up
Thousands of people took to the streets across Honduras on Sunday to protest against the president a year after his controversial inauguration. Police used tear gas against protesters rallying against conservative President Juan Orlando Hernandez as marchers set tires on fire and blocked two key highways heading north and south of the capital. "There are people who have been gassed and beaten" by police, ex-president Manuel Zelaya told UNE TV. Demonstrators waved red and black flags and some wore red vests, as shows of support for Zelaya's Freedom and Refounding Party, known as Libre for short. Some chanted "GET OUT J.O.H.," before setting bonfires out of police sight. "People need a fair government, not a dictatorship," Zelaya told reporters on a bus with supporters in the Colonia San Miguel neighbourhood of the capital Tegucigalpa. "Like wasps, we have launched a wave of escalating protests that will end in a national strike until this dictatorship falls." Police hurled tear gas to .
Australia recognises Venezuela opposition leader as president
Australia "recognises and supports" Venezuela's National Assembly head Juan Guaido as interim leader, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said Monday, following similar endorsements from the United States and Canada. "Australia recognises and supports the President of the National Assembly, Juan Guaido, in assuming the position of interim president... until elections are held," Payne said in a statement. She called for a "transition to democracy in Venezuela as soon as possible". "We now urge all parties to work constructively towards a peaceful resolution of the situation, including a return to democracy, respect for the rule of law and upholding of human rights of the Venezuelan people," Payne added. There have been mass protests in Venezuela against President Nicolas Maduro amid a severe economic and political crisis. Canberra's decision follows declarations on Saturday by Spain, Britain, France, the Netherlands and Germany that said they would recognise Guaido as interim president ...
Macron arrives in Cairo for three-day visit to Egypt
French President Emmanuel Macron has arrived in Cairo on a three-day visit to the North African country to discuss bilateral cooperation with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, the Egyptian state TV reported.
Bolton warns Venezuela of "significant response" if US diplomats, Guaido are threatened
National Security Advisor of the United States John Bolton said that any violence and intimidation against US diplomats, Venezuela's "democratic leader" Juan Guaido or the National Assembly will be met with "significant response" from the US."Any violence and intimidation against U.S. diplomatic personnel, Venezuela's democratic leader, Juan Guiado, or the National Assembly itself would represent a grave assault on the rule of law and will be met with a significant response," Bolton tweeted on Sunday (local time).He also said that Cuba's "support and control" over current Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's armed forces are "well known"."Cuba's support and control over Maduro's security and paramilitary forces are well known," he said in another tweet.Last week, the US and a few of its allies recognised Guaido as Venezuela's interim President. The move was met by Maduro severing all diplomatic ties with the US and ordering all American diplomats to leave the country. He also ...
Brazil's Bolsonaro admitted to hospital for surgery
Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro was in hospital in Sao Paulo on Sunday for surgery to remove a colostomy bag put in after he was attacked by a man with a knife during his election campaign. His spokesman, General Otavio Santana do Rego Barros, said Saturday that Bolsonaro would be operated on Monday, after which he would be on strict bed rest for two days. Vice President Hamilton Mourao will assume the president's duties during that time, he said. The 63-year-old president entered the Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein on Sunday morning for tests before the surgery. He was stabbed in the stomach on September 6 during a campaign rally in Juiz de Fora, in the state of Minas Gerais. Adelo Bispo de Oliveira was arrested and a police investigation concluded he acted out of political motivations, but that no one else was involved. Bolsonaro supporters have questioned that conclusion, and the president himself highlighted Bispo's past links to the leftist Socialism and Liberty Party. In a .
Rahul drops by Goa seafood restaurant for lunch with Sonia
Holidaying in Goa after a turbulent winter session of Parliament, Congress President Rahul Gandhi surprised patrons at the popular Fisherman's Wharf restaurant in South Goa, where he arrived for a Sunday lunch with his mother and former party President Sonia Gandhi.
Palestinian president decides to change his government
Palestinian officials say President Mahmoud Abbas has decided to shake up his government. The move is the latest sign of failure in more than a decade of attempts to reconcile with the rival Hamas movement. The officials say Abbas appointed a four-member committee from his Fatah movement on Sunday to consult with political factions about forming a new government. The three officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing internal deliberations. The official Wafa news agency said Fatah had decided to form a political government to replace the current Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah's Cabinet of technocrats. Hamdallah's government was formed in 2013 following a power sharing agreement with Hamas. But the government couldn't assume its responsibilities in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip ruled due to deep disputes.
Election not a beauty contest: Sushil Modi on Priyanka's entry into politics
Taking potshots on Priyanka Gandhi's entry into politics ahead of the coming Lok Sabha polls, Bihar Deputy chief minister and senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Sunday said an election is "not a beauty contest" and people will cast their vote on the basis of past performance.
Gandhi family didn't allow Pranab Mukherjee to become PM: Sushil Modi
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Sunday alleged that the Gandhi family did not allow former President Pranab Mukehrjee to become the country's Prime Minister.
German government unified on need to implement coal exit: Altmaier
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's ruling coalition is unified on the need to implement the recommendations of a government-appointed commission for exiting coal by 2038, Economy Minister Peter Altmaier told German broadcaster ARD on Sunday.
CBM between 5 eastern Indian states and Chinese provinces my top priority: Chinese diplomat
Chinese Consul General to Kolkata Zha Liyou on Sunday said that confidence building measures between five eastern Indian states, including West Bengal, and Chinese provinces was one of his topmost priorities. "Our leadership attaches great importance to state-province level ties, which is called sub-national level relationship," said Liyou, who became the new Chinese Consul to Kolkata this month. He said culture, education, sports, youth, media, academics and film are some of the areas the two sides can work on as part of the state-province relationship. The Chinese diplomat said, "We need to make Bengal and Yunnan sister states, and Kolkata and Kunming as twin cities to boost ties at various levels." "The West Bengal capital and Kunming, the capital of Yunnan province, can reach at consensus on many areas including culture and tourism," he said. On the upcoming Bengal Global Business Summit, to be held in February, Liyou said, "For many years we have tried to convince the Chinese ...
Goans need to shun negativity and be positive, says Parrikar
In his first speech in months, ailing Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar urged Goans to develop a "positive mentality", while also urging residents of the state to shed opposition to all and everything.
BJP believed in a hacker's false claims against me: Khadse
Senior BJP leader and former Maharashtra minister Eknath Khadse Sunday wondered over his party's stand of not believing in any EVM hacking claims, but taking seriously a computer hacker's allegations against him. In 2016, "ethical" hacker Manish Bhangale had accused Khadse of receiving calls from underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's Karachi residence. Khadse had stoutly denied the charge and Bhangale was arrested in March 2017 for allegedly creating a fake phone bill to establish his allegation. "How come my party trusted hacker Manish Bhangale's claims and without any substantial evidence let one's life get devastated. Who has given you right to affect one's life based on some news which had no substantial evidence," he said. Khadse was speaking at a public rally in Jalgaon, his home district in North Maharashtra. The former minister, in his speech, made a reference to the BJP's official stand of not relying on any claims made by a cyber expert based in London last week. The .
Ex-Trump advisor accuses Russia probe of 'Gestapo tactics'
Veteran Republican consultant Roger Stone said Sunday his predawn arrest by US federal agents as part of the Russia collusion probe amounted to "Gestapo tactics" intended to prejudice a potential jury in his prosecution. Stone was raided at his home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Friday, becoming the sixth campaign associate of President Donald Trump indicted in the investigation headed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into possible collusion with Moscow in the 2016 election. "I'm 66 years old. I don't own a firearm, I have no prior criminal record, my passport has expired," Stone told ABC's "This Week" news magazine program. He complained that it was "extraordinary" for a 29-member SWAT team with numerous cars, amphibious vehicles and a helicopter to make the arrest, adding that he was forced to look "down the barrel of assault weapons" as he opened his front door in bare feet. "They could have called my lawyers and I would have turned myself in," he said. "It was an expensive show