China’s giant Huawei telecommunications company announced on Thursday it filed a lawsuit against the United States government over its ban on government agencies and contractors buying Huawei equipment. The ban was imposed over concerns that Huawei products may create security vulnerabilities that could be exploited by Chinese intelligence agents.
A security report from Microsoft detailed in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday described a cyber-espionage campaign of previously unsuspected scope conducted by Iranian hackers over the past two years. The hackers attacked over 200 companies around the world, inflicting hundreds of millions of dollars in damage.
In his annual speech to officers of Russia’s FSB security agency, President Vladimir Putin commended the service for thwarting almost 600 foreign attempts to spy on Russia, painting a picture of a world obsessed with stealing Russia’s amazing military technology.
Actress and former Miss Chinese International Michelle Ye Xuan, whose resume includes numerous films and television shows, has become the highest-profile “untrustworthy” citizen to be banned from travel by China’s social credit system, a massive surveillance and data-mining operation that grades Chinese for the quality of their citizenship and punishes those with poor scores.
American journalist Cody Weddle was released by the Maduro regime and expelled from Venezuela on Wednesday night after spending ten hours in captivity. Weddle said his captors seemed particularly upset about a report he filed about rank-and-file Venezuelan soldiers preparing to switch their allegiance to internationally-recognized interim president Juan Guaido.
Italian officials on Wednesday said their government will officially endorse China’s massive Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) later in March, becoming the first G-7 nation to sign on to Beijing’s plan for spreading its political and economic influence around the world.
Freelance reporter Cody Weddle was reportedly detained on Wednesday by forces loyal to Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro. Weddle’s home was allegedly raided and his Venezuelan colleague Carlos Camacho was arrested as well. U.S. officials noted the report and called on Maduro to release Weddle immediately.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said on Tuesday that North Korea is rebuilding the Sohae missile launch facility, a site it pledged to dismantle last year during the early stages of negotiations with the United States.
A Dutch cybersecurity analyst claimed on Monday to have discovered a database created by Chinese police that contains private information about 364 million social media users, revealing a government surveillance network of breathtaking scale and uncertain purpose.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers led by Reps. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Ted Yoho (R-FL) wrote an open letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday criticizing the Trump administration for taking “no meaningful action” to protect the Uighur Muslims from abuse by China.
China on Tuesday reduced its forecast for economic growth in the coming year, potentially heralding the slowest growth in 30 years, and announced $298 billion in tax cuts to stimulate the economy.
The government of Pakistan announced on Tuesday it has commenced a promised crackdown on Islamist militants, detaining dozens of suspects – including members of the group that attacked an Indian convoy last month – and implementing policies that should make it easier to seize the assets of banned organizations. Indian officials expressed skepticism that this crackdown will be more effective than any of Pakistan’s previous efforts to control terrorism after intense international pressure.
The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday quoted cybersecurity experts, including current and former U.S. officials, who said Chinese hackers have targeted almost 30 universities around the world since April 2017 in a bid to steal research associated with military naval technology.
Treasury Board President Jane Philpott, a member of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet, resigned her post on Monday because she “lost confidence” in the administration’s handling of the SNC-Lavalin scandal.
The UK Guardian reported on Friday that China’s “social credit system,” a vast surveillance network and database system designed to punish Chinese for poor citizenship, has blocked travelers from buying 17.5 million airplane tickets and 5.5 million train tickets.
Polls last month showing comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy as the leading candidate in Ukraine’s presidential race appear to have been no fluke, as the latest round of polling shows him widening his lead over incumbent Petro Poroshenko and opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko.
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, recognized by the United States and over 50 other countries as the legitimate interim president, returned to his country on Monday after ten days traveling through South America to meet with other national leaders. The United States sternly warned Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro not to arrest or harm Guaido when he returned.
China formally accused – but did not yet formally charge – Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig of espionage on Monday. The two were arrested soon after Canada detained Huawei executive and Communist royalty Meng Wanzhou for possible extradition to the United States. The accusation of espionage was made three days after Canada announced Meng’s extradition hearing would proceed.
China’s envoy to Turkey, Deng Li, on Thursday issued a very thinly-veiled threat against Turkish “commercial and economic” interests if the Turkish government does not mute its criticism of how China treats the Uighur Muslims of Xinjiang province.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Friday used the scandal engulfing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s administration to question the fairness and independence of the Canadian judiciary and once again challenge the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou.
Two U.S. defense officials told NBC News on Friday that Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, the two annual large-scale joint military exercises with South Korea, will no longer be held. President Donald Trump has complained about the high cost of the exercises and reportedly believes ending them will reduce tensions with North Korea.
The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions on Friday against six Venezuelan government officials loyal to dictator Nicolas Maduro for their role in blocking humanitarian aid shipments in February.
A suicide bombing attack on a hotel in Mogadishu, Somalia on Thursday evening quickly escalated into a massive gun battle between Somali security forces and jihadis loyal to al-Shabaab, the al-Qaeda ally that is becoming increasingly active across the region.
Canada has assembled a “Risk-Driven Tracking Database” (RTD) that collates a great deal of information about people who are vulnerable to crime and misfortune, making them known to social service agencies and law enforcement so they can benefit from proactive services.
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho gave a press conference from Hanoi, Vietnam, on Thursday in which he disputed U.S. President Donald Trump’s account of unsuccessful negotiations with dictator Kim Jong-un.
Opposition legislator Angel Alvarado told Reuters on Wednesday the Maduro regime has removed at least eight tons of gold from Venezuela’s central bank for unknown reasons. At current prices, the gold is worth over $300 million. Alvarado’s account was backed up by three sources within the Venezuelan government.
The South Korean government expressed regret on Thursday that President Donald Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un could not reach an agreement in Hanoi. South Korea applauded the progress made so far and said it remains committed to dialogue with North Korea.
Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer asked Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign on Wednesday following former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould’s testimony that she was improperly pressured to grant favorable treatment to engineering company SNC-Lavalin.
China’s effort to subjugate religion and firmly establish the primacy of Communist doctrine has already oppressed Christians and marched Muslims into concentration camps. The Party took aim at traditional Chinese superstition this week, strongly advising citizens to put their faith in Marxism and the writings of President Xi Jinping instead of spirits and hexes.
President Donald Trump seemed to be in very good humor following his meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.
A horror-themed videogame called Devotion from Taiwanese studio Red Candle Games was forced off the immensely popular Steam online marketplace this week because angry Chinese users bombed it with negative reviews for allegedly insulting Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The conflict between India and Pakistan in Kashmir apparently escalated significantly overnight, as Pakistan claims it shot down two Indian warplanes, captured two pilots, and conducted six airstrikes against ground targets on the Indian side of the Line of Control (LOC). As with Tuesday’s Indian airstrikes on Pakistani territory, both sides dispute many of the details of these aerial engagements.
Anchor Jorge Ramos of the U.S. Spanish-language network Univision and his team were deported from Venezuela on Tuesday after being held in detention Monday night and stripped of their equipment. The Univision crew was punished after Ramos asked dictator Nicolas Maduro a question he did not wish to answer.
Iraqi media reported on Sunday the capture of a veteran Islamic State commander known as the “Prince of Battles” due to the many engagements he fought against Iraqi forces.
Indian warplanes struck what India described as a “terror training camp” in Pakistani territory in the early hours of Tuesday morning, moving the nuclear nations closer to a military confrontation.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo responded to the resignation of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday with skepticism, describing Zarif and the secular Iranian government as a “moderate” pantomime covering for the real theocratic power in Tehran and wondering if Zarif will truly depart his post.
President Donald Trump on Monday announced the release of Danny Burch, an American citizen who has been held hostage in Yemen since 2017. Trump thanked the United Arab Emirates for assisting with Burch’s liberation and said his administration has now secured the freedom of 20 Americans held captive in various countries.
Judging by satellite images of the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center, North Korea’s primary reactor for creating weapons-grade nuclear material might be up and running. There is clearly activity at the plant, although skeptical analysts say it is difficult to ascertain precisely what the reactor is doing without a ground-level inspection.
Russia’s weekly news show Vesti Nedeli focused Sunday on presenting its viewers with a map of the United States that identified targets Russia would attack with ostensibly unstoppable hypersonic missiles in the event of a conflict with the United States. The target list included the Pentagon and the presidential retreat at Camp David.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told the U.N. Human Rights Council (UNHCR) in Geneva on Monday that his government is concerned over China’s treatment of the Uighur Muslims of Xinjiang province.
