Page 1886 - Politics
Location of next summit with Kim chosen, says Trump
US President Donald Trump said Saturday that the location has been decided for his next summit with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, around the end of February. "We picked a country," Trump told reporters, without giving more details. A Vietnamese government source earlier told AFP that "logistical preparations" were under way to host the encounter, most likely in the capital Hanoi or coastal city of Danang. The White House on Friday confirmed that the second Trump-Kim meeting would occur next month, following a rare visit to Washington by a senior North Korean general. Vice Chairman Kim Yong Chol, a right-hand man to the North Korean strongman, met Trump at the White House on Friday for an unusually long 90 minutes as the countries seek a denuclearization accord that could ease decades of hostility. On Saturday, Trump said a "lot of progress" has been made on the issue. Kim Jong Un and Trump first met in June in Singapore, where they signed a vaguely worded document in which Kim ...
Rafale deal: Sitharaman asks whether opposition is being used as pawns in corporate rivalry
Accusing the opposition of spreading misinformation in the Rafale deal, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Saturday wondered whether these parties were becoming pawns in corporate rivalry and whether the procurement of 36 fighter jets was being "sabotaged". During her address at an event here, Sitharaman said ever since the Modi government assumed office, there has been a conscious effort to keep middlemen at bay from the corridors of the Defence Ministry. "I want every strand of this debate to be explained, as much as it can be, without any of us playing into the hands of international corporate warfare. None of us should play party to any corporate warfare. "We cannot become pawns in the hands of the corporate giants to constantly bully the government, to constantly throw misinformation at the public, to misinform the public," she said. Her attack on the opposition parties comes a day after a newspaper report claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to buy 36 Rafale jets, ...
No breakthrough in US-China trade talks: Trump adviser
White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow has played down reports of a breakthrough in US-China trade talks, but said progress had been made. "We've made some progress with China in the deputy's meeting in Beijing," Larry Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, told Fox Business. But he added: "Nothing has been resolved, nothing on paper, no contracts." Recent news reports of a deal being imminent were not accurate, he said. Bloomberg had reported earlier Friday that Beijing had offered to eliminate its soaring trade surplus with the United States in five years. The US sent a delegation led by Deputy Trade Representative Jeffrey Gerrish to Beijing earlier this month, where they held talks with China's foreign ministry to seek ways to end their trade war. China's chief negotiator on trade disputes with the United States, Vice Premier Liu He, is due in Washington on January 30 and 31 for the next round talks. In December, President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed .
Macron's debate put to test as 'yellow vests' stage 10th protest
France's "yellow vests" took to the streets on Saturday for a 10th straight weekend of anti-government protests, despite attempts by President Emmanuel Macron to channel their anger into a series of town hall debates. In Paris, several thousand people, many waving placards calling for Macron to resign or condemning police violence, marched peacefully through the Left Bank in freezing temperatures. "Parisians, rise up!" they chanted, urging residents of the capital to join the movement which has been driven from the start by rural and small town France. Demonstrations also took place in Toulouse, Lyon, Rouen and other cities. Some 80,000 police were deployed to keep the peace. Turnout was being closely watched for signs of possible fatigue in the movement as it enters its third month and Macron's "great national debate" gains momentum. Last week, an estimated 80,000 people took part in protests that were markedly less violent than several previous editions, which ended in clashes with .
Iraqi air strikes hit IS in east Syria: Monitor
At least 20 Islamic State group jihadists were killed Saturday in Iraqi air raids on their embattled enclave in eastern Syria, a war monitor reported. The raids come a day after a US-led air strike on the Euphrates Valley village of Baghouz killed six civilians, including four children, and 10 IS fighters, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. There were no immediate comments from the Iraqi army or from the US-led coalition. Baghouz is part of an enclave of less than 15 square kilometres (less than six square miles) that is all that is left of IS territory in eastern Syria after a gruelling Kurdish-led offensive launched with coalition support. Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP that Saturday's air strikes "carried out by Iraqi aircraft killed at least 20 IS fighters in Baghouz". He said at the same time the Iraqi army units stationed nearby on the border with Syria fired artillery. Abdel Rahman said the US-led coalition had stepped up its air ..
Opposition parties trying to sabotage Rafale deal, says Nirmala Sitharaman
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday attacked the opposition parties for allegedly trying to sabotage the high profile Rafale combat aircraft deal questioning whether these parties were becoming pawns in the hands of international corporate rivals.Addressing a seminar on 'India's strategic interest in the context of the Rafale deal," the Defence Minister said the aim of the opposition seems to be to stop the deal from happening which would be a big disservice to the nation."I want this debate on Rafale deal without any of us playing in the hands of international corporate warfare. None of us should become a party to any corporate warfare. We cannot become pawns in the hands of the corporate giants' warfare to question the government and throw misinformation to the public," she said.The Defence Minister attacked the opposition for abusing the Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa for defending the capabilities of the Rafale combat aircraft."The Air Force Chief had ..
4-member opposition committee on EVMs
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday said that a four-member committee has been formed to take a call on the stand the opposition parties would have about the electronic voting machines (EVMs) in view of the coming Lok Sabha elections."We have decided to form a committee. Its members are Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, SP president Akhilesh Yadav, BSP leader Satish Mishra, and Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi," she said."Whatever the committee members decide, accordingly we will decide our course of action on the EVM in view of the coming Lok Sabha elections," Banerjee said.Mishra said: "There can be rigging of polls through EVMs. We will soon meet the Election Commission of India (ECI) to register our concern about EVMs."Manu Singhvi, Congress leader, said: "In most of the countries, the EVMs are not in use for conducting polls. Why shouldn't we return to the ballot paper?"Said Farooq Abdullah, former J&K chief minister, "We want a free and fair poll.
Kolkata rally an important attempt to fight against divisive Modi government, says Sonia Gandhi
UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said that Kolkata rally called by TMC chief and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was an important attempt to galvanise leaders across the political spectrum to fight against the divisive government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Gandhi, who could not attend the rally, said: "This rally marks an important attempt to galvanise leaders across the political spectrum to fight the arrogant and divisive Modi government."Referring to the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Gandhi said: "This will be an election to restore the nation's faith in democracy, defend our secular ethos and our heritage and defeat forces that are trying to sabotage the Constitution of India."She also said that the citizens have been squeezed economically. "The institutions have been undermined politically and socially the pluralistic fabric stands are vitiated. The upcoming Lok Sabha elections will not be an ordinary one," Gandhi said in a written statement."An envelope ..
Trump to make 'major announcement' on shutdown, border (Roundup)
President Donald Trump has promised a "major announcement" about the shutdown as it enters its 29th day on Saturday, while his opposition received a blow when the special investigator looking into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election refuted a widely reported story that his lawyer had claimed Trump asked him to lie to Congress.
We failed in our protest over Sabarimala issue, says BJP
: The BJP Saturday admitted that its fight to protect the faith of devotees on the Sabarimala issue was 'not entirely successful.' The party has been spearheading the nearly two-month-long agitation against the decision of the Kerala government to implement the Supreme Court order allowing entry of women of all age groups into the shrine of Lord Ayyappa. Speaking at the venue of the protest, state BJP president P S Sreedharan Pillai said the party would end the indefinite fast on Sunday. "There were notable achievements during certain phases of the agitation, but, our fight to protect the faith was not entirely successful," he said. "Even though we were unable to achieve 100 per cent success, we were able to garner more public support due to the blessings of Lord Ayyappa," Pillai said at the protest venue in front of the Secretariat here. The protest lost steam at a point of time when the saffron party was unable to field known leaders to take part in the indefinite ...
Cong to highlight achievements of Sheila Dikshit govt to win back votes in Delhi
Ahead of the parliamentary election, the Congress will launch a door-to-door campaign to highlight the achievements of its erstwhile government in the national capital led by Sheila Dikshit as compared to the works done by the Arvind Kejriwal dispensation in the past four years. Dikshit, who led the Congress government for 15 years before being defeated by Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), was appointed the party's Delhi unit chief earlier this month. In a meeting on Saturday, presidents of District and Block Congress Committees were directed by the former chief minister to visit every households and interact with the people to make them aware of the Congress party's achievements in Delhi and the failures of the BJP government at the Centre and the AAP government in the national capital. Dikshit alleged that the AAP government has not done anything for the development of Delhi in the past four years. "The AAP government has been misleading the people in matters such as mohalla clinics
China, Singapore have it easy; no Jantar-Mantar, no protests:
China and Singapore do not face obstacles to growth because they do not have to deal with 'Jantar-Mantar' kind of protests against government policies, Union minister Giriraj Singh said here Saturday. The street near Jantar-Mantar in New Delhi is known as a venue for protests and demonstrations. Singh, the minister of state for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), was speaking at 'MSME Convention' during the ongoing Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit here. Speaking before him, Vice Chairman of the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Prasoon Mukherjee said that despite being a small country, Singapore has achieved excellent economic development. "He (Mukherjee) was talking about Singapore's GDP. I said to myself, Mukherjee sahab, Singapore does not have Delhi and Jantar Mantar where people gather to protest against the policies announced by the government," Singh quipped. "Neither you nor China have a Jantar Mantar," the Union minister said. Despite facing
India, Czech Republic should mutually develop defence equipment: President
President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday said defence was a "key pillar" of relationship between India and Czech Republic as he called for mutual development and production of defence equipment by the two nations. Kovind said this during a meeting with Czech Republic's Prime Minister Andrej Babis at Rashtrapati Bhavan, a spokesperson said. He said Kovind welcomed the visiting dignitary and said that along with an economic partnership, defence is a key pillar of India-Czech bilateral relations. The President expressed hope that the two countries will move forward from a traditional buyer-seller relationship to one where the two can co-develop and co-produce defence equipments, the spokesperson said. Kovind also fondly remembered his own visit to the Czech Republic in September 2018 as he said that India counts the country as a key partner in its growth story. He thanked the Czech Republic government for hosting the 'Czech Make in India' pavilion at the Vibrant Gujarat Summit in ...
Trump says deal 'could very well happen' with China
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday there has been progress toward a trade deal with China, but denied that he was considering lifting tariffs on Chinese imports.
NC says no to alliance in J&K, to fight polls alone
Expressing confidence that it will come to power on its own in Jammu and Kashmir, the National Conference Saturday ruled out any alliance in the upcoming assembly polls. "Coalition culture does not suit a state like Jammu and Kashmir, which is confronted with numerous challenges with the people essentially craving for peace and normalcy, development and progress," NC's Provincial President Devender Singh Rana said. He was addressing a meeting of the provincial body and senior leaders convened to chalk out strategies and draw a road map for the assembly elections, a party spokesperson said. Rana said the NC would reach out to the people with its plank of development, peace, progress, employment and the agenda of preserving the special identity of the state and satiating the urges and aspirations of all the regions. "Regional autonomy is a way forward to fulfil the urges of the people and empowering them at all levels with opportunities to all," he said. The party has made it clear that
SP-BSP, AAP share stage with Cong, Kharge says 'even if hearts don't meet, hands should'
As the Congress' Mallikarjun Kharge shared the stage here with the SP, BSP and AAP, which have been cold to a tie-up with his party, the veteran leader asserted that "even if hearts don't meet, hands should". At the rally by Trinamool Congress which was projected as a show of opposition unity, Kharge appealed for a common meeting ground in pursuance of a bigger goal of removing the BJP from power at the centre. At the end of his speech, the Congress leader said in Hindi, "Manzil door hain, rasta kathin hain, phir bhi pahuchna hain. Dil mile na mile, kamse kam haath mila kar chalo (The destination is far and the road is difficult, but still we have to reach there. Whether our hearts meet or not, we should walk holding hands)." Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party senior leader Satish Chandra Mishra, fresh from entering into alliance in Uttar Pradesh, were all smiles sitting next to each other. The Aam Admi Party and the Congress, which have never lost an ...
Mamata, Naidu slam Modi for mocking opposition rally
Slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his "the 'Mahagathbandhan' (grand opposition alliance) is against the people" remark, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu Saturday said the opposition leaders were not "bonded labourers" who would dance to the PM's tune. Asked to comment on Modi's criticism of the opposition alliance at a meeting in Silvassa on Saturday, Banerjee said, "He (Modi) is not the 'Nawab' and we are not his slaves that we will dance to his tunes. "We are free citizens of this country. He wants us to be his servants, but we are not." Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who was present at the tea party hosted by Banerjee after the united opposition rally at Brigade Parade Ground, said, "We are only the servants of people of this country". Asked to comment on Modi's remark that the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal was afraid of the BJP, Banerjee said, "The BJP is scared to face people of the state. Modi will get a ...
AAP, BJP in war of words over new electoral roll in Delhi
The AAP and the BJP engaged in a war of words on Saturday over the recently-released electoral roll. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleged "mass" deletion of names to favour the BJP and demanded the Election Commission explain "net decrease" in the electoral roll of 2019. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hit back, saying the list showing an increase of 9.8 lakh voters as compared to 2014 exposed the "lies" of the AAP and its chief Arvind Kejriwal. The AAP accused the BJP of being involved in "mass deletion" of names of voters of specific communities fearing defeat in the coming Lok Sabha election. "There is a decrease of about 1.2 lakh voters since January, 2018. This clearly vindicates the AAP's claim that the BJP has orchestrated and engineered the biggest ever voter deletion fraud against the people of Delhi," said party spokesperson and South Delhi Lok Sabha seat in-charge Raghav Chadha. The BJP is "completely rattled" sensing a "humiliating defeat" in the upcoming Lok Sabha ...
US-Turkey ties can't grow until MSB is "dealt with": Lindsey Graham
The United States cannot enhance its diplomatic relationship with Turkey until Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MSB) is "dealt with", US Senator Lindsey Graham said here on Saturday.Al Jazeera quoted Graham at a press conference here on Saturday that the US will reintroduce sanctions against those involved in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate building in the Turkish capital on October 2, last year.The statement from the US Senator came after his meet with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday over the process of US troops' withdrawal from Syria.Last year in November, after the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the US confirmed that Khashoggi's murder was ordered by MSB, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on the 17 Saudi individuals who were allegedly involved in Khashoggi's murder, while the Senate adopted a resolution blaming the Saudi Crown Prince.In addition, at least 21 Saudis nationals have reportedly been ...
Pakistan should stop meddling in Kashmir affairs: Owaisi
AIMIM chief and Member of Parliament Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday lashed out at Pakistan, saying that Islamabad should stop meddling in the affairs of Kashmir as the state will always remain an integral part of India."Pakistan should also stop meddling in Kashmir affairs. Kashmir is and will always be an integral part of India. Even Kashmir youth is an integral part and I hope IAS officer Faisal Shah won't join those two parties. Let him sought out his own political journey that is what Kashmir requires. You don't want Kashmir political journey to be controlled by Babus or IB officers sitting in Delhi," he said.Owaisi was replying to a question from the audience during a panel discussion where he said that irrespective of whether the BJP or the Congress is in power at the Centre, none has a policy or vision to bring back normalcy in Kashmir."What we do is that we wait for normalcy and then forget about Kashmir, and whenever there is trouble in Kashmir, we immediately react. I feel ...