Washington, United States | AFP | “The economy, stupid” goes one of the most famous mantras of US presidential campaign history. Donald Trump is hitting the 2020 trail with his own twist: brand your opponents stupid (or worse). Name calling and character smearing is an integral part of Trump’s reelection campaign. …
Read More »Democrats to send Trump impeachment articles to Senate next week
Washington, United States | AFP | US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday she intends to transmit articles of impeachment against Donald Trump to the Senate next week, moving to end a taut standoff with Republicans over terms of the president’s trial. The top Democrat’s announcement virtually assures that a historic …
Read More »Trump, US lawmakers battle over war powers amid Iran tensions
Washington, United States | AFP | A defiant US President Donald Trump clashed with congressional Democrats Thursday before lawmakers hold a largely symbolic but politically charged vote to rein in his ability to take military action against Iran. With the resolution triggering a scalding debate about presidential war powers amid heightened …
Read More »Has Trump deterred Iran? Experts not so sure.
Washington, United States | AFP | US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Wednesday that the US strike that killed a top Iranian general had restored credibility to the US threat to Tehran to restrain itself militarily. “I believe that we’ve restored a level of deterrence with them,” he said. But Washington …
Read More »America’s foreign oil dependence wanes but independence proves elusive
New York, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Wednesday touted America’s newfound “energy independence” which means the country is no longer at the mercy of geopolitical upheaval in the region. “We are independent and we do not need Middle East oil,” Trump said as he reacted to …
Read More »Unswayed by Iran briefings, Democrats seek to check Trump war power
Washington, United States | AFP | US Democratic lawmakers pressed ahead Wednesday with plans to check President Donald Trump’s ability to take military action against Iran, despite Congress breathing a collective sigh of relief at the de-escalation of conflict with the Islamic republic. Republicans and Democrats alike expressed broad support for …
Read More »Iran’s anti-US strikes: measured, but not final response
Paris, France | AFP | Iran’s missile strikes on US troop bases in Iraq were a measured first response to Washington’s assassination of a top commander, but are unlikely to be the last act in what could be a long and asymmetrical revenge campaign, experts say. With an outpouring of emotion …
Read More »France urges US to ‘come to its senses’ on digital tax
Paris, France | AFP | Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire called Monday on the United States to not follow through on threats to impose sanctions on France in a dispute over taxation of tech giants and warned of retaliation. “This trade war is in no one’s interest and I call on …
Read More »Trump’s Iraq sanctions threat ‘not very helpful’: Germany
Berlin, Germany | AFP | US President Donald Trump’s threat to slap sanctions on Iraq should Baghdad expel US troops based there “is not very helpful”, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Monday. “I don’t think you can convince Iraq with threats, but with arguments,” Maas told Deutschlandfunk radio, warning that …
Read More »Oil surges after US kills top Iranian general, fuels war fears
London, United Kingdom | AFP | World oil prices soared more than four percent on Friday after the US killed a top Iranian general, fanning fresh fears of a conflict in the crude-rich Middle East, with Tehran warning of retaliation. The head of Iran’s Quds Force, Qasem Soleimani, was hit in …
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