The Financial Times announced on Friday that the government of Hong Kong decided not to renew Asian news editor Victor Mallet’s work visa, effectively beginning the process of expelling him from the island. The decision stunned the international financial community and deeply alarmed press freedom advocates.
China’s Foreign Ministry on Friday lashed out against U.S. Vice President Mike Pence for a speech on Thursday evening in which he accused the Chinese of stealing technology, co-opting U.S. tech companies into censorship campaigns, and interfering in American politics.
Japan withdrew on Friday from an international naval review scheduled for next week because South Korea asked that Japan not fly the “Rising Sun” flag on its ships. The Koreans see the flag as symbolic of Imperial Japan’s atrocities in World War II, but Japan said its ships are required by law to fly it.
The strange case of Jamal Khashoggi grew stranger on Thursday, as the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul insisted the missing Washington Post contributor is not detained within its walls, as Turkey has alleged.
A security report released Wednesday accused a unit of hackers linked to the North Korean government of stealing hundreds of millions of dollars from banks across the world over the past four years.
An explosive report published by Bloomberg Businessweek on Thursday claimed the Chinese military sabotaged circuit boards used by dozens of major American companies and government contractors by implanting a tiny chip that gave the People’s Liberation Army backdoor access to supposedly secure systems.
A survey from Seoul National University published on Tuesday found South Koreans view China as a greater threat to peace on the peninsula than North Korea. It was the first time in the 11-year history of the survey that China passed North Korea as the biggest obstacle to peace.
Pennsylvania State Police were called to the property owned by exiled Turkish imam Fethullah Gulen on Wednesday because an “armed intruder” was reportedly spotted on the grounds and fired upon by a security guard.
National Security Adviser John Bolton on Wednesday strongly denounced the International Court for Justice (ICJ) ruling in favor of Iran against U.S. sanctions. Speaking from the White House, Bolton said Iranian support for terrorism “made a mockery” of the 1955 treaty cited as the basis for
U.S. defense officials have confirmed a Chinese warship performed “unsafe and unprofessional” maneuvers in the South China Sea on Sunday, coming perilously close to an American destroyer and forcing the U.S. Navy ship to change course in order to avoid a collision.
The mystery surrounding the disappearance of Chinese movie star Fan Bingbing has been at least partly resolved, as the actress returned to social media on Wednesday after three months of complete silence to announce she would pay a $70 million fine for tax evasion.
Iran celebrated a victory at the International Court of Justice on Wednesday as the court ordered the United States to weaken sanctions because they supposedly violate the 1955 Treaty of Amity between the U.S. and Iran and would cause undue hardship for Iranian civilians.
One of China’s many double standards involves the behavior of reporters. Foreign reporters are expected to conduct themselves with humility and exquisite good manners in China, while Chinese reporters abroad can become rather energetic at press conferences.
North Korea’s state-run KCNA news service declared on Tuesday that a peace treaty to formally conclude the Korean War “can never be a bargaining chip” for ending Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program and suggested the United States must decide if it truly wants a treaty.
The American ambassador to NATO, Kay Bailey Hutchison, said on Tuesday the U.S. military is prepared to “take out” banned Russian cruise missiles if they are deployed against Europe in defiance of a treaty dating back to the Cold War.
Officials in Pakistan announced on Monday that China’s massive Belt and Road railway project will see its $8.2 billion budget slashed by $2 billion as concerns over Pakistan’s debts to China mount under new Prime Minister Imran Khan.
South Korea’s Yonhap News on Monday noticed North Korea’s state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun lavishing extraordinary praise on China’s ‘Belt and Road’ initiative, an international infrastructure program China has invested a great deal of pride and money in.
October 1 is National Day in China, kicking off a week-long holiday marking the foundation of the People’s Republic of China in 1949.
China on Sunday canceled a planned security meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis. Mattis responded by canceling his October trip to Beijing.
The Japanese helicopter carrier Kaga visited Sri Lanka over the weekend, calling on a port that was developed with Japanese financial assistance while the people and government of Sri Lanka are questioning the wisdom of becoming more deeply indebted to China.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told the U.N. General Assembly on Friday that Russia desires a multilateral world of peace and respectful negotiation, but its aspirations are thwarted by the heavy-handed tactics of the United States, which is clinging to its global hyperpower status with a white-knuckled grip.
Russia and China spent this week’s U.N. General Assembly working to undermine international sanctions against North Korea’s nuclear program, to the exasperation of U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who seeks to rally the world community and show firm resolve to North Korea at a crucial moment in the denuclearization drama.
The South Korean destroyer ROKS Munmu the Great sailed close to the disputed Paracel Islands in mid-September, irritating the Chinese even though South Korean officials say the ship was merely seeking refuge from a typhoon.
ranian officials took their belligerent rhetoric up another notch on Friday, as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) told U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates they will face a “storm” of retaliation if they don’t heed the IRGC’s warnings, while a senior cleric directly threatened U.S. military bases in the region.
Assistant Defense Secretary Robert Karem told the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday that American troops in Syria are tasked not only with smashing the Islamic State and al-Qaeda but deterring Iranian ambitions.
The U.S. Air Force flew two long-range nuclear-capable B-52H Stratofortress bombers over the South China Sea this week. China branded the flight “provocative” on Thursday and blamed the United States for deteriorating relations between the two countries.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, as world leaders often do. The encounter began on a high note but turned sour with an argument over the “comfort women” issue that has divided South Korea and Japan for many years.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday, eager to promote the most urgent theme of the first administration after the fall of dictator Robert Mugabe: “Zimbabwe is open for business.” He also addressed allegations of skulduggery in the recent election that secured his full term in office.
President Donald Trump claimed at the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday that China is attempting to interfere in the 2018 U.S. election. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi denied the allegation, insisting the Chinese “do not and will not” interfere in the domestic politics of other countries.
China’s state-run Global Times naturally disputed President Donald Trump’s allegations of predatory Chinese behavior at the U.N. General Assembly. The Chinese also think Trump swiped some of their rhetoric about national sovereignty and the “doctrine of patriotism.”
South Korean President Moon Jae-in addressed the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday, expressing thanks to the United States, United Nations, and various international organizations for helping to create an opportunity for lasting peace between North and South Korea.
The State Department announced on Wednesday that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit North Korea in October to meet with senior officials and set up a second summit meeting between North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe spoke to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, his first major performance on the world stage after securing a third term and all but ensuring he will become the longest-serving prime minister in Japanese history.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the emir of Qatar, denounced the Saudi-led blockade of his country as a “flagrant violation” of international law in his remarks to the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday.
The 2018 United Nations General Assembly has to make do without an appearance by Chinese President Xi Jinping, but there is a heavy Chinese presence at the event, which Beijing – and critics of the Trump administration’s foreign policy – see as a golden opportunity for China to assume the mantle of globalist champion and displace the United States as the world’s most influential nation.
The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday announced sanctions against four current and former Venezuelan government officials, plus several other individuals and entities connected with Rafael Alfredo Sarria Diaz, a businessman accused of operating as the front man for Socialist Party official Diosdado Cabello.
Both U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Monday they have no plans to meet at the U.N. General Assembly, refuting speculation that a summit meeting between the two might occur.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in arrived in New York on Sunday to attend the U.N. General Assembly and hold a bilateral summit meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. Moon is eager to set up a second meeting between Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. President Trump indicated on Monday such a meeting could occur “quite soon.”
The Islamic State is circulating a video that claims to show the perpetrators of the Saturday attack on a military parade in Ahvaz, Iran, that killed 25 military personnel and civilians. Iran does not seem to believe ISIS was behind the attack, instead blaming Arab separatists it claims were funded, trained, and equipped by the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with Lester Holt of NBC Nightly News to be aired on Monday night, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani predicted U.S. sanctions would be unable to paralyze Iran’s oil industry or inflict enough economic damage to jeopardize the survival of his government.
