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Trump not alone in US presidential pantheon of controversies, scandals

Donald Trump will go down in history as the first US President to be indicted on criminal charges but he is far from alone in the pantheon of presidential predecessors whose tenures have been marred by scandals and controversies. A grand jury in Manhattan on Thursday afternoon voted to indict the real estate tycoon, former reality TV host and America's Commander-in-Chief in connection with hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels, making Trump the first former US President to face criminal charges. But Trump, the 45th US president, does not stand alone among current or former US Presidents when it comes to controversy plaguing the White House occupants. Bill Clinton was the 42nd president of the United States and sat in the Oval Office from 1993 to 2001. In December 1998, Clinton was impeached by the US House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. Clinton had become only the second US President in history, after Andrew Johnson, to be ...

NATO, US forces join Romania-led Black Sea multinational military drills

Romania's navy led multinational military drills in the Black Sea region Thursday that brought together U.S. and NATO troops as the 30-nation alliance looks to boost security on its southeastern flank amid Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine. The sea and air exercises are part of a series of drills known as Sea Shield 2023 that involve some 3,400 military personnel from 12 NATO member countries and some partner nations. Romania's navy said Thursday's drills in the Mahmudia region of the Danube Delta, which flows into the Black Sea, would demonstrate how the combined forces would neutralise an enemy air landing in an area adjacent to such a waterway. More than 30 naval ships, 14 aircraft and 15 fast intervention boats and other patrol vessels are taking part in Sea Shield 2023, which started March 20 and runs until April 2. Anti-explosive divers have participated in drills, as have chemical, biological, and nuclear defence specialists. In response to Russia's February 2022 invasion of

Kevin McCarthy presses Joe Biden to negotiate debt ceiling impasse

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said on Tuesday he's increasingly concerned about President Joe Biden's unwillingness to negotiate on lifting the nation's borrowing authority, saying in a letter to the president that the White House position could "hold dire ramifications for the entire nation. Rather than open direct talks on the debt ceiling, which the Democrats agree must be raised, Biden and his party's lawmakers are challenging Republicans to publicly present their own budget proposals something McCarthy has so far declined to do. For now, the Treasury Department has resorted to extraordinary measures to avoid default on the nation's USD 31.4 trillion borrowing authority. But those measures will run out and put the US at risk of being unable to pay all of its bills possibly as early as June. The White House has emphasised that Biden is not willing to entertain proposed cuts in programmes simply in exchange for lifting the debt limit. But McCarthy and Republicans are

US, Japan reach agreement on vital minerals for electric vehicle batteries

Japan and the United States have reached an agreement on trade in critical minerals for electric vehicle batteries, part of an effort to diversify supply chains and reduce reliance on China for strategically important resources. The deal struck Tuesday is expected to help electric vehicles using metals processed in Japan qualify for tax incentives under President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act. This announcement is proof of President Biden's commitment to building resilient and secure supply chains, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement. The Inflation Reduction Act, enacted in August, requires a portion of the critical minerals used in EV batteries to be mined in or processed domestically or from countries with which the US has free trade agreements. Japan and the US have no such FTA, but the deal will grant Japan the same treatment as an FTA partner regarding such minerals, Japanese officials said. As a result, the two sides said they agreed to not impose

US government to adopt new restrictions on using commercial spyware

The US government will restrict its use of commercial spyware tools that have been used to surveil human rights activists, journalists and dissidents around the world, under an executive order issued on Monday by President Joe Biden. The order responds to growing US and global concerns about programs that can capture text messages and other cellphone data. Some programs so-called zero-click exploits can infect a phone without the user clicking on a malicious link. Governments around the world including the US are known to collect large amounts of data for intelligence and law enforcement purposes, including communications from their own citizens. The proliferation of commercial spyware has made powerful tools newly available to smaller countries, but also created what researchers and human-rights activists warn are opportunities for abuse and repression. The White House released the executive order in advance of its second summit for democracy this week. The order demonstrates t

Ex-President Trump little fazed by possible indictment on tax evasion case

Former US President Donald Trump seemed little fazed by the possible indictment on the lower Manhattan Tax Evasion case following Attorney General Letitia James prosecution

Mississippi tornadoes kill 23 people, destroy buildings overnight

Emergency officials in Mississippi said 23 people have been killed by tornadoes that tore through the state on Friday night, destroying buildings and knocking out power as severe weather that produced hail the size of golf balls moved through several southern states. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency confirmed there had been 23 deaths as of 6:20 a.m. Saturday with dozens of injuries and four people missing throughout the state. The agency said in a Twitter post that search and rescue teams from numerous local and state agencies were deployed along with personnel to assist those impacted by the tornadoes. The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado caused damage about 60 miles (96 kilometers) northeast of Jackson, Mississippi. The rural towns of Silver City and Rolling Fork reported destruction as the tornado swept northeast at 70 mph (113 kph) without weakening, racing towards Alabama through towns including Winona and Amory into the night. The National Weather Servi

Ajay Banga tests Covid positive; meetings with PM Modi, others cancelled

US nominee for World Bank president Ajay Banga has tested COVID-19 following which the meetings scheduled during his two-day visit to India have been cancelled. According to a Finance Ministry statement, Banga's meeting with Nirmala Sitharaman would not happen as he is in quarantine. "During routine testing, Ajay Banga tested positive for COVID-19 but remains asymptomatic. In adherence with local guidelines, he is quarantining in isolation," the statement said. Besides meeting with the Union finance minister, Banga was scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar and top officials during his two-day visit from March 23 to 24. Banga's New Delhi visit is the final stop on his three-week global tour that began in Africa before progressing to Europe, Latin America, and Asia to drum up support for his candidature for the World Bank's top position. In a statement on Wednesday, the US Treasury Department had said, "While in India, Banga will m

Donald Trump predicts 'death and destruction,' attacks Manhattan DA

New York City police officers put up security barricades outside Manhattan Criminal Court and Bragg's office earlier this week, but so far, protests have been minimal

How China, US and others watered down a key UN climate document

The US State Department declined to comment. A senior administration official defended the final IPCC summary for policymakers, saying it was clear about the critical message

Tech job still pays $120 an hour despite mass layoffs in US tech industry

In the past two weeks Meta Platforms Inc. announced it was cutting another 10,000 jobs and eliminating 5,000 open roles, Amazon.com Inc. laid off an additional 9,000 workers and job-hunting website

Why does US lawmakers see Chinese-owned TikTok as a security threat?

US lawmakers have grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew about data security and harmful content, with some pushing to ban the popular short-video app nationwide. A Singaporean native, Chew told the lawmakers that TikTok prioritises user safety and as he sought to avert a ban by downplaying the app's ties to China. Both Republican and Democratic representatives aggressively questioned Chew on topics including TikTok's content moderation practices, its data security plans, and past spying on journalists. Here's a look at some of the concerns about TikTok and its ownership. WHY DOES WASHINGTON SAY TIKTOK IS A THREAT? TikTok, which has over 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd., which appoints its executives. ByteDance is based in Beijing but registered in the Cayman Islands, as is common for privately owned Chinese companies. Its headquarters is in Beijing's northwestern Haidian district, home to key universities and a hub for t

TikTok CEO grilled, calls India's ban 'hypothetical' and theoretical

Chew faced hostile questioning from the House Energy and Commerce Committee as he verbally danced to make the case that the social media giant is taking real action

US not considering 'blanket' bank deposit insurance: Treasury Secy Yellen

Yellen has earlier said that the US is prepared to take further actions to protect depositors if smaller lenders are threatened

TikTok sends influencers to Washington as troubles grow amid possible ban

TikTok is ramping up a public relations campaign to fend off the possibility of a nationwide ban by the Biden administration, and it's bringing some unconventional advocates to help: online influencers. Dozens of TikTok creators some with millions of followers on the video-sharing app came to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to lobby in favour of the platform, one day before lawmakers are slated to grill the company's chief executive about concerns over user data falling into the hands of the Chinese government. Shou Zi Chew plans to tell Congress on Thursday that TikTok, which was founded by Chinese entrepreneurs, is committed to user safety, data protection and security, and keeping the platform free from Chinese government influence. He will also answer questions from U.S. lawmakers worried about the social media platform's effects on its young user base. At the heart of TikTok's trouble is a Chinese national intelligence law that would compel Chinese companies to fork over data to th

Significant human rights issues like arbitrary killings in India: US report

India experienced significant human rights issues in 2022, including unlawful and arbitrary killings, freedom of press and violence targeting religious and ethnic minorities, a US report claimed on Monday. Released by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the annual human rights reports of the State Department is a mandatory requirement of the US Congress giving details of human rights status in countries across the world. The latest edition of the annual report slams Russia and China for the massive violation of human rights in these two countries along with some other nations like Iran, North Korea and Myanmar. Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine beginning in February 2022 has resulted in massive death and destruction, with reports of members of Russia's forces committing war crimes and other atrocities, including summary executions of civilians and horrific accounts of gender-based violence, including sexual violence against women and children, Blinken said in the report. In ..

India conveys strong protest to US over vandalism at Indian Consulate

India on Monday lodged a strong protest with the US Charge d'Affaires here over vandalism at the Indian consulate general in San Francisco by some pro-Khalistan elements. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the US Government was asked to take appropriate measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents. India conveyed its strong protest at the vandalisation of the property of the Consulate General of India in San Francisco, it said. "The US government was reminded of its basic obligation to protect and secure diplomatic representation. It was asked to take appropriate measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents," the MEA said. "Our Embassy in Washington D.C. also conveyed our concerns to the US State Department along similar lines," it said in a brief statement.

Layoffs in US will bring lot of work to India: GlobalLogic CEO Nitesh Banga

Layoffs by Big Tech in the US are expected to bring a lot of work to India and the country's IT sector is poised to gain significantly during the slowdown, a top official of the US-based firm GlobalLogic said. In an interview to PTI, GlobalLogic President and CEO Nitesh Banga said the company is looking to acquire talents in India and plans to grow its employee base by 25-35 per cent every year. He said India is not going to see much of a slowdown even as there are a lot of layoffs happening in the US. "If Google, Twitter or Facebook or any of these customers actually lay off people in the US, it's not that they don't need to build products. They still need to continue to do their work and I believe that a lot of that work will come to India, because they will still need the talent to keep doing the work, although they will look for cost efficiencies," Banga said. The Hitachi group IT company has close to 15,000 or approximately 50 per cent of its global employee base, in India. "

US B-1B strategic bomber returns to S.Korea as N.Korea fires missile

A B-1B bomber was previously deployed to the peninsula on March 3, Yonhap news agency reported

West puts spotlight on North Korea rights abuses; China, Russia oppose

The United States, its Western allies and experts shone a spotlight on the dire human rights situation and increasing repression in North Korea at a UN meeting on Friday that China and Russia denounced as a politicised move likely to further escalate tensions on the Korean peninsula. China blocked the US from broadcasting the informal Security Council meeting globally on the internet, a decision criticised by US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield as an attempt to hide North Korea's atrocities from the world. Webcasting requires agreement by all 15 council members. But the US envoy said Beijing's effort was in vain because the meeting will be made public, and the US and many others will continue to speak out against Pyongyang's human rights abuses and threats to international peace. James Turpin, a senior official in the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the ongoing tensions on the Korean peninsula pose a threat to regional and international peace and security