Статті

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 268-161 Thursday to repeal a nearly two-decades-old bill giving American presidents sweeping powers to conduct the war on terror. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson explains why many  U.S. lawmakers believe curbing these powers was long overdue.  Produced by: Katherine Gypson, Bakhtiyar Zamanov 
…

A string of notable American women will appear on the U.S. quarter under a four-year program that begins in 2022. The U.S. Mint says its American Women Quarters Program will celebrate women’s accomplishments and contributions to U.S. history. Under the program, the mint will issue up to five new designs each year from 2022 to 2025. Honorees will be from a variety of fields and from ethnically, racially and geographically diverse backgrounds, the mint says. Honorees chosen for the first year are Maya Angelou, poet and author; Sally Ride, America’s first woman in space; Wilma Mankiller, the Cherokee Nation’s first female principal chief; Anna May Wong, the first Chinese American Hollywood film star; and Adelina Otero-Warren, a leader in New Mexico’s suffrage movement.  Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Mankiller’s husband, Charlie Soap, expressed gratitude for Mankiller’s inclusion in the program, saying her influence and leadership made her a fitting choice.  Mankiller became one of the United States’ most visible Native American leaders during her 10 years as chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, from 1985 to 1995. She died in 2010. “We thank the U.S. Mint for recognizing Wilma and the other recipients for such an honor,” Soap told Indian Country Today. “Wilma was a humble, spiritual, great leader whose leadership was not only for Cherokee people but for all women and races. The real value of this coin is the inspiration it brings to Indian people and women everywhere.” 
…

U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have begun their highly anticipated summit in Geneva, the Swiss capital chosen as a location for the summit for its history of political neutrality.   Both sides have been underscoring opportunities for cooperation but are downplaying expectations for any improvement in tense relations between Moscow and Washington. The meeting is expected to be more of an airing of grievances than a platform to reach significant agreements.“We’re not expecting a big set of deliverables out of this meeting,” said a senior administration official, briefing VOA and other reporters on board Air Force One during Biden’s flight to Switzerland.  Russian President Vladimir Putin, third left, arrives for the US – Russia summit with US President Joe Biden in Switzerland, June 16, 2021.Putin landed in Geneva shortly before his arrival at Villa La Grange, the summit location, around 1 pm local time. Biden arrived at the venue shortly afterward – a diplomatic dance the White House choreographed to avoid a repeat of the Helsinki Summit in 2018 where Putin’s late arrival kept then President Donald Trump waiting for over 30 minutes.  The two shook hands before going into talks.P+1 followed by P+5 After the initial greeting and meeting with the host, President of the Swiss Confederation Guy Parmelin, the two leaders conduct their first session in a “P+1” format. Biden is accompanied by Secretary of State Antony Blinken while Putin has Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at his side. There is an interpreter for each side. Following the smaller format, the American and Russian delegations hold a wider “P+5” meeting. That meeting is expected to last at least four hours according to the senior administration official. The official said the U.S. and Russians agreed to build in flexibility to allow the leaders to “make determinations about the best way to conduct their business,” but added there will be “no breaking of bread” between the leaders.  The official said Biden’s goals include seeking areas where the United States and Russia can work together while clearly stating U.S. vital national interests and making it clear that “Russian activities that run counter to those interests will be met with a response.” He also aims to lay out his “vision for American values and our national priorities.”    One possible outcome from the summit is the reversal of the recall of each country’s ambassador. U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan and Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov returned home earlier this year amid worsening U.S.-Russia relations. Both are in Geneva and will participate in the P+5 part of the summit. The meeting concludes Biden’s first trip abroad as president. During the past week, he has attended the G-7 summit and held talks with NATO and European Union leaders, seeking to boost relations with allies and consult with them about the U.S.-Russia talks.  European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, left, U.S. President Joe Biden, center and European Council President Charles Michel arrive for the EU-US summit at the European Council building in Brussels, June 15, 2021.In an interview with NBC News, Putin said U.S.-Russia ties had deteriorated to their “lowest point in recent years.”   Asked by a reporter shortly after his arrival Tuesday in Geneva if he was ready for his meeting with Putin, the U.S. leader said, “I’m always ready.”  The administration official told reporters Tuesday that cybersecurity, in particular ransomware attacks, “will be a significant topic of conversation” between Biden and Putin.In April, Biden expelled 10 Russian diplomats and imposed new sanctions on six Russian technology companies that provide support to the cyber program run by Putin’s intelligence services linked to the hacking of the SolarWinds information technology company.    In May, two key U.S. businesses — Colonial Pipeline, which transports fuel in the southeastern United States, and the JBS meat production company — were targeted in cyberattacks believed to have originated in Russia. Both Colonial and JBS paid millions of dollars in ransom to restore their business operations, although U.S. law enforcement officials have recovered most of the money Colonial paid.   Putin has rejected U.S. claims that Moscow and Russian hackers are carrying out debilitating cyberattacks on American companies and government agencies.  
…

The United Nations humanitarian chief warned Tuesday that the 1984 famine that killed more than 1 million Ethiopians could occur again if aid access to that country’s northern Tigray region is not quickly improved, scaled up and properly funded. “There is now famine in Tigray,” aid chief Mark Lowcock told a private, informal meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday, according to a copy of his written remarks seen by VOA. He said the Tigray administration has reported deaths from starvation. “The situation is set to get worse in the coming months, not only in Tigray, but in Afar and Amhara, as well.” Last week, urgent calls went out from the U.N. and partner aid agencies for a humanitarian cease-fire. It came on the heels of a report warning that 350,000 people were already in famine conditions in Tigray and that 2 million more were just a step away. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC as it is known, reported that more than 5.5 million people overall were in crisis levels of food insecurity in Tigray and the neighboring zones of Amhara and Afar. The U.N. children’s agency UNICEF has also warned that 33,000 severely malnourished children in currently unreachable areas of Tigray are also at high risk of death. The scope of the problem is massive. Lowcock said there were 123 humanitarian agencies operating in the area and 10 times as many aid workers in Tigray today than at the start of the crisis in November. “But substantial further scale-up is urgently required if we are to make a significant impact on growing needs,” Lowcock said. FILE – U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock in Geneva, Switzerland, Dec. 4, 2018.The United Nations has appealed for $853 million to assist 5.2 million people until the end of the year, with almost $200 million needed before the end of July. Access to people in remote and hard-to-reach areas has been an ongoing problem since the conflict erupted in November between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the government of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. Ethiopia’s U.N. ambassador, Taye Atske Selassie Amde, said the situation did not warrant security council attention. He added that his government “vehemently disagreed” with the humanitarian assessment, saying data was collected in a “very botched” way. “Having said that, using humanitarian issues, particularly famine and starvation, in order to exert undue pressure on Ethiopia is completely unacceptable,” he told reporters after the meeting. “It’s not a drought or locusts that are causing this hunger, but the decisions of those in power,” British Ambassador Barbara Woodward said. “That means those in power could also end the suffering.” She added that Eritrean forces need to leave Ethiopia. “We were told in March that Eritrean forces would be withdrawing. It’s now June. There can be no further delay,” she told reporters. The Ethiopian envoy said the delay was due to “sorting some technical and procedural issues.” “Our expectation is that they will definitely leave soon,” he said.  U.S. envoy Jeffrey DeLaurentis told council members that “we have to act now” to prevent a famine, according to a diplomat familiar with the council’s discussion. DeLaurentis also called for an urgent end to hostilities, unhindered aid access and a political dialogue to resolve the crisis, as well as accountability for those responsible for human rights abuses.  The U.N. Security Council has held a handful of private meetings on the growing crisis but has failed to take any serious action to pressure the parties to stop the fighting, allow aid workers safely in and get Eritrea’s troops to leave. In April, the council issued a statement calling for better humanitarian access, but it has taken no action to pressure spoilers to comply. 
…

The Biden administration’s suspension of new oil and gas leases on federal land and water was blocked Tuesday by a federal judge in Louisiana, who ordered plans be resumed for lease sales that were delayed for the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska.U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty’s ruling came in a lawsuit filed in March by Louisiana’s Republican attorney general Jeff Landry and officials in 12 other states. Doughty’s ruling granting a preliminary injunction to those states said his order applies nationwide.The 13 states said the administration bypassed comment periods and other bureaucratic steps required before such delays can be undertaken. Doughty heard arguments in the case last week in Lafayette.The moratorium was imposed after Democratic President Joe Biden on January 27 signed executive orders to fight climate change. The suit was filed in March. The states opposing the suspension said it was undertaken without the required comment periods and other bureaucratic steps.Federal lawyers also argued that the public notice and comment period doesn’t apply to the suspension, that the lease sales aren’t required by law and that the secretary of the Interior has broad discretion in leasing decisions.Although Landry and the lawsuit’s supporters said the moratorium has already driven up prices and endangered energy jobs, Biden’s suspension didn’t stop companies from drilling on existing leases.”No existing lease has been canceled as a result of any of the actions challenged here, and development activity from exploration through drilling and production has continued at similar levels as the preceding four years,” lawyers for the administration argued in briefs.A long-term halt to oil and gas sales would curb future production and could hurt states like Louisiana that are heavily dependent on the industry that has contributed to global warming.The lawsuit notes that coastal states receive significant revenue from onshore and offshore oil and gas activity. Stopping leases, the lawsuit argues, would diminish revenue that pays for Louisiana efforts to restore coastal wetlands, raise energy costs and lead to major job losses in oil-producing states.
…

U.S. President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described their first face-to-face talks as heads of state as “productive” but did not announce any major breakthroughs in the relationship between the two countries. Biden told reporters after the meeting Monday on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Brussels that the talks were “positive and productive” and he was “confident we’ll make real progress with Turkey.”  Erdogan characterized the talks as “productive and sincere.” “We think that there are no issues between U.S. and Turkey relationship that are unsolvable and that areas of cooperation for us are richer and larger than problems,” he said. The talks come at a time when the two NATO allies are at odds over a number of issues including Syria, Libya and the sale of Russian weapons to Turkey.  FILE – First parts of a Russian S-400 missile defense system are unloaded from a Russian plane near Ankara, Turkey, July 12, 2019.The United States sanctioned Turkey in December over its purchase of a Russian weapons system and recently criticized human rights abuses in Turkey. Turkey has called for the United States to end its support for Syrian Kurdish fighters, which Turkey says are linked to the Kurdish insurgency in Turkey. In April, Biden angered Turkey by recognizing the Ottoman Empire’s massacre of 1.5 million Armenians from roughly 1915 to 1917 as genocide. Turkey denies the killings amounted to genocide. Erdogan said the Armenian issue was not discussed during Monday’s 45-minute meeting. On the topic of Turkey’s purchase of a Russian S-400 missile defense system, Erdogan indicated no progress had been made.  “On the issue of S-400s, I told (Biden) the same thing I had in the past,” Erdogan said. Erdogan said he and Biden also discussed Afghanistan following reports that Turkey could take on a role to secure the international airport in Kabul after the United States withdraws its troops from the country.  He said Turkey would need “diplomatic, logistic and financial assistance” from the United States if it were to maintain troops in Afghanistan.  Henri Barkey, with the Council on Foreign Relations, told VOA that Turkey was using the Afghanistan offer to win favor from the United States and NATO and hoping to cash in on the goodwill later. He noted that the meeting did not give the leaders much time “given the complexities of the issues.” Other meetingsAlso on Monday, Erdogan met separately with French President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.  Turkey and Greece have been at odds over boundary disputes and rights to natural resources.  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the sidelines of the NATO summit, in Brussels, Belgium, June 14, 2021. (Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Presidential Press Office/Handout via Reuters)Erdogan said he and Mitsotakis agreed to call each other over a “direct line” when future problems arise. Macron said after his meeting with Erdogan that the two countries agreed to work on preserving the cease-fire in Libya and the departure of foreign fighters in the country.  Macron tweeted after the meeting that he wants to “move forward” with Turkey. Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this report. 
 
…

Leaders of the G-7 ended their three-day summit Sunday, committing to a series of actions to end the coronavirus pandemic, mitigate climate change and rebuild the global economy. The group named China and Russia as sources of global security and economic threats. White House correspondent Patsy Widakuswara has this report from Brussels, the next leg of U.S. President Joe Biden’s European tour.
…

British foreign minister Dominic Raab criticized the European Union on Sunday for treating Northern Ireland as if it were a separate country rather than part of the United Kingdom, and said that approach was causing damage to the British province.”Various EU figures here in Carbis Bay, but frankly for months now and years, have characterized Northern Ireland as somehow a separate country and that is wrong. It is a failure to understand the facts,” he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr program.Raab made his comments amid a dispute between Britain and the European Union over the interpretation of the Northern Ireland protocol, the element of the Brexit divorce deal that relates to trade in the province.Britain’s Telegraph newspaper reported that French President Emmanuel Macron had suggested Northern Ireland was not part of the United Kingdom during his meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at Group of Seven summit in Carbis Bay in southwest England.”It is a failure to understand the facts. It is a failure to appreciate what speaking around Northern Ireland in those terms and approaching the issue of the Northern Ireland protocol in those terms does, causes damage to businesses from both communities and that creates deep consternation,” Raab said.”We wouldn’t talk about Catalonia and Barcelona or Corsica in France, in those ways,” he added.Asked if Britain and the EU were heading for a trade war, Raab said the bloc needed to allow the free flow of trade between Britain and Northern Ireland. “If the Commission and the EU stick to that, indeed mark the words of President Macron, we can find a pragmatic way through,” he said.”What we cannot have is a lopsided approach, built on some of the flawed assumptions … and which have very real effects for the communities on all sides in Northern Ireland.” 
…

An auction for a ride into space next month alongside Jeff Bezos and his brother ended Saturday with a winning $28 million bid.The Amazon founder’s rocket company, Blue Origin, did not disclose the winner’s name following the live online auction. The identity will be revealed in a couple weeks — closer to the brief up-and-down flight from West Texas on July 20, the 52nd anniversary of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s moon landing.It will be the first launch of Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket with people on board, kicking off the company’s space tourism business. Fifteen previous test flights of the reusable rocket and capsule since 2015 — short hops lasting about 10 minutes — were all successful.Saturday’s auction followed more than a month of online bidding that had reached $4.8 million by Friday. More than 7,500 people from 159 countries registered to bid, according to Blue Origin. More than 20 bidders — the high rollers — took part in Saturday’s auction.Bezos announced Monday that he and his younger brother, Mark, would be on board New Shepard’s first crew flight; the news quickly boosted bidding. The winning amount is being donated to Blue Origin’s Club for the Future, an educational effort to promote science and tech among young people.The completely automated capsule can carry up to six passengers, each of whom gets a big window. Blue Origin’s top sales director, Ariane Cornell, said following the auction that the fourth and final seat on the debut crew flight would be announced soon.Blue Origin has yet to open ticket sales to the public or divulge prices.
…

SALEM, OREGON — Kip Kinkel, who killed his parents before going on a shooting rampage at his Oregon high school in 1998, killing two classmates and injuring 25 more, has given his first news interview, telling HuffPost he feels “tremendous, tremendous shame and guilt.”Kinkel, now 38, is serving a de facto life sentence at the Oregon State Correctional Institution. He spoke with the news site by phone for about 20 hours over 10 months.He said he felt guilty not just for what he did as a 15-year-old suffering from then-undiagnosed paranoid schizophrenia, but the effect his crime has had on other juvenile offenders sentenced to life terms: His case has been held up by some of his victims and by others as a reason to oppose juvenile justice reform in the state.While he has not previously given interviews because he did not want to further traumatize his victims, he said, he also began to feel that his silence was preventing those offenders from getting a second chance.“I have responsibility for the harm that I caused when I was 15,” Kinkel said. “But I also have responsibility for the harm that I am causing now as I’m 38 because of what I did at 15.”FILE – This undated file photo provided by the Oregon Department of Corrections shows Kipland Kinkel.Kinkel described how he had been hearing voices since age 12 and how he became obsessed with knives, guns and explosives, believing China was going to invade the U.S. and that the government and the Walt Disney Co. had implanted a microchip in his head.When he was caught at Thurston High School in Springfield with a stolen handgun he bought from another student on May 19, 1998, “My whole world blew up,” he said. “All the feelings of safety and security — of being able to take control over a threat — disappeared.”Facing expulsion, a possible felony charge and an enormous sense of shame, he said, the voices in his head made him believe he had to kill his parents and then return to school to “kill everybody.”He killed his parents the next day, and the day after that he opened fire in the school cafeteria, killing 16-year-old Ben Walker and 17-year-old Mikael Nickolauson and injuring 25 before being subdued by other students.He pleaded guilty — at the time, he did not want to accept his diagnosis and felt community pressure to resolve the case rather than plead not guilty by reason of insanity. He was sentenced to nearly 112 years after apologizing profusely.“I feel tremendous, tremendous shame and guilt for what I did,” he told HuffPost. “I hate the violence that I’m guilty of.”Kinkel shot Betina Lynn in the back and foot. She told HuffPost the idea of him ever getting out is “literally terrifying.” She has permanent nerve damage, a constant reminder of what happened.“Even now, more than 23 years later, I and many other survivors are still dealing with the fallout,” Lynn said. “We are all serving life sentences right alongside him.”Kinkel described how he underwent mental health treatment at the youth prison where he began his sentence and recognized he harmed innocent people, including his parents, whom he loved. He also said he cried when he learned about the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School in Colorado, afraid that he had inspired it.Fighting his sentenceKinkel, who has obtained a college degree behind bars, continues to challenge his sentence, which was upheld by the state Supreme Court. In March, his attorneys filed a petition in federal court, arguing that his plea was not voluntary — he had been off his meds for several weeks beforehand — and that his sentence was unconstitutional.“Sentencing a juvenile to die in prison because they suffer from a mental illness is a violation of the Eighth Amendment,” his lawyers wrote.In 2019, as part of a national effort to reevaluate tough-on-crime sentences for juveniles, the Oregon Legislature passed a measure to stop automatically referring 15- to 17-year-olds to adult court for certain offenses and to ensure that they weren’t sentenced to life in prison without a chance to seek parole. At the time, there were about a dozen people serving life or life-equivalent terms for crimes committed as juveniles.But critics warned that that the measure could lead to Kinkel’s release, and a month later, lawmakers passed another bill to make clear that the measure was not retroactive.“It doesn’t matter if he was 15,” Adam Walker, the brother of Kinkel’s victim Ben Walker, said in a video released at the time. “The victims don’t get second chances. Why should the offenders?”Kinkel said he watched the debate in the prison library.“It was like, there was hope,” Kinkel said. “And then the Legislature … came back and said, ‘No, we are specifically, intentionally, purposely with everything that we have, going to take this away from the kids already in the system.’”He said he doesn’t often consider the possibility of ever being released: “I don’t allow myself to spend too much time thinking about that because I think that can actually bring more suffering.”
…

Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen was taken to a hospital Saturday after collapsing on the field during a match at the European Championship, leading to the game being suspended for more than 90 minutes. The governing body of European soccer said Eriksen has been stabilized and the Danish soccer federation said he was awake. “Christian Eriksen is awake and is undergoing further examinations at Rigshospitalet,” the Danish federation wrote on Twitter. The Euro 2020 match between Denmark and Finland had been halted in the 43rd minute with the score 0-0 but was to resume at 8:30 p.m. local time. UEFA said both teams had held an emergency meeting before deciding to continue playing. The players came back out onto the field at around 7:15 p.m. to a huge ovation as they started warming up for a second time. Eriksen was given urgent medical attention on the field for about 10 minutes after collapsing near the end of the first half. He was then carried off on a stretcher. UEFA then announced the game had been suspended “due to a medical emergency.” Eriksen had just played a short pass when he fell face-forward onto the ground. His teammates immediately gestured for help and medics rushed onto the field. Eriksen was given chest compressions as his Denmark teammates stood around him in a shielding wall for privacy. Eriksen’s partner, Sabrina Kvist Jensen, went onto the field and was comforted by Denmark captain Simon Kjaer and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel. The Finland players huddled by their bench and eventually walked off the field while the Inter Milan midfielder was still getting treatment, as did the referees. Eriksen was eventually carried off to a loud ovation, with his teammates walking next to the stretcher. Inter Milan team physician Piero Volpi told The Associated Press that the Italian club was in contact with the Danish soccer federation. “We’re in contact with the Danish federation, the team manager, the team physician. But we still don’t know anything yet,” Volpi said. “We heard what UEFA said and we’re all happy that he’s been stabilized. But that’s all we know.” Volpi added that Eriksen never contracted COVID-19, has no medical conditions that he’s aware of and has passed every medical exam without problem since joining Inter in January 2020 from Tottenham. “But we’ll talk about that when the time is right,” Volpi added of Eriksen’s medical history. “Right now, the important thing is that he recovers.” Eriksen is one of Denmark’s biggest stars and the incident brought an instant sense of shock to the Parken Stadium, where about 15,000 fans fell into hushed silence. Some supporters could be seen crying and hugging in the stands. As the fans in the stadium were waiting for updates, Finland supporters started chanting “Christian,” which was then answered by the Danish fans shouting “Eriksen.” A huge roar then went up from all supporters when the stadium announcer said Eriksen was “stable and awake.” 
…

Malawi’s government said Saturday that it had received news of its diplomats’ alleged misconduct in South Africa with regret and that it would punish those involved when they returned home.South Africa on Friday declared all Malawian diplomats persona non grata for abusing diplomatic privileges and gave them 72 hours to leave the country. South Africa’s Ministry of International Relations said in a statement that the action followed an investigation that found the diplomats had been buying duty-free alcohol with cash and then reselling it to retailers.A Malawi government spokesperson, Gospel Kazako, told local media Saturday that the government had already talked with some of its South Africa-based diplomats.“What they are saying is that they are being accused of abusing the tax privileges that they had,” Kazako said. “You know, according to the Vienna Convention of 1961, diplomats have certain privileges, and one of the privileges is that of not paying tax in the hosting country on certain items and certain services. Alcohol is one of those items, so there was abuse, according to South African government.”The South African Revenue Service said the scandal, which also involved diplomats from other countries including Rwanda, Burundi and Lesotho, had led to the estimated loss of millions of dollars in unpaid taxes every month. It has not yet been determined how long the illegal enterprise was operating.Not ‘normal consumption’John Chikago, Malawi’s former high commissioner to South Africa, told VOA the matter was strange and surprising.“We buy with the diplomatic card, and you can’t just buy any amount, unless you have a party at your house or there is national day [celebration] for your country,” he said. “But if it is normal consumption, you should buy only one bottle or two bottles. But they were buying cartons. How? So, it appears there was a syndicate.”Chikago said the issue could tarnish the image of Malawian diplomats in other embassies.“That is the image we are giving to South Africa — that we are corrupt people, because embassies are the image of Malawi — so it must stop,” he said.Sheriff Kaisi, a political science lecturer at Blantyre International University, dismissed fears that the incident would affect diplomatic relations between Malawi and South Africa. But he said the image of ordinary Malawians living in South Africa could be affected.“We have quite a number of citizens living in South Africa,” he said. “They will be seen as people who are not trustworthy, people who cannot follow rules of the game.”However, Malawi’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Friday evening that the Malawi government had conveyed regret to the South African government about the conduct of the diplomats involved, and that it would take appropriate action when the diplomats returned to Malawi.
…

Dash camera video shows the moment an elephant charges at a truck with a man inside in South Africa, Tuesday, June 1. Norman Nukeri, a fuel supply driver in Hoedspruit, was on his way to a client’s lodge on June 1 when he stopped for elephant crossing the path. One elephant started coming toward the vehicle then left its path but returned and charged toward the truck and driver. The animal made contact and crumpled the vehicle’s hood, leaving Nukeri stunned but unharmed. (REUTERS) 
…

The top U.S. diplomat in Hong Kong said the imposition of a new national security law had created an “atmosphere of coercion” that threatens both the city’s freedoms and its standing as an international business hub. In unusually strident remarks to Reuters this week, U.S. Consul-General Hanscom Smith called it “appalling” that Beijing’s influence had “vilified” routine diplomatic activities, such as meeting local activists, part of a government crackdown on foreign forces that was “casting a pall over the city.” Smith’s remarks highlight deepening concerns over Hong Kong’s sharply deteriorating freedoms among many officials in the administration of President Joe Biden one year after China’s parliament imposed the law. Critics of the legislation say the law has crushed the city’s democratic opposition, civil society and Western-style freedoms. FILE – Hanscom Smith, the U.S. Consul General in Hong Kong and Macau, attends a meeting in Hong Kong, China, May 17, 2021.The foreign forces issue is at the heart of the crimes of “collusion” with foreign countries or “external elements” detailed in Article 29 of the security law, scholars say. Article 29 outlaws a range of direct or indirect links with a “foreign country or an institution, organization or individual” outside greater China, covering offenses from the stealing of secrets and waging war to engaging in “hostile activities” and “provoking hatred.” They can be punished by up to life in prison. “People … don’t know where the red lines are, and it creates an atmosphere that’s not just bad for fundamental freedoms, it’s bad for business,” Smith said. “You can’t have it both ways,” he added. “You can’t purport to be this global hub and at the same time invoke this kind of propaganda language criticizing foreigners.” Smith is a career U.S. foreign service officer who has deep experience in China and the wider region, serving in Shanghai, Beijing and Taiwan before arriving in Hong Kong in July 2019. He made his comments in an interview Wednesday at the U.S. diplomatic mission in Hong Kong after Reuters sought the consulate’s views on the impact of the national security law. In a response to Reuters, Hong Kong’s Security Bureau said that “normal interactions and activities” were protected, and it blamed external elements for interfering in the city during the protests that engulfed Hong Kong in 2019. “There are indications in investigations and intelligence that foreign intervention was rampant with money, supplies and other forms of support,” a representative said. He did not identify specific individuals or groups. Government adviser and former security chief Regina Ip told Reuters it was only “China haters” who had reason to worry about falling afoul of the law. “There must be criminal intent, not just casual chat,” she said. Smith’s comments come as other envoys, businesspeople and activists have told Reuters of the chilling effect on their relationships and connections across China’s most international city. Private investigators say demand is surging among law firms, hedge funds and other businesses for security sweeps of offices and communications for surveillance tools, while diplomats describe discreet meetings with opposition figures, academics and clergy. Fourteen Asian and Western diplomats who spoke to Reuters for this story said they were alarmed at attempts by Hong Kong prosecutors to treat links between local politicians and foreign envoys as potential national security threats. In April, a judge cited emails from the U.S. mission to former democratic legislator Jeremy Tam as a reason to deny him bail on a charge of conspiracy to commit subversion. Tam, one of 47 pro-democracy politicians charged, is in jail awaiting trial; his lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. FILE – Lawmakers Jeremy Tam and Alvin Yeung of the Hong Kong Civic Party speak in front of a row of riot police officers during a demonstration against a proposed extradition bill in Hong Kong, China, June 12, 2019.”It’s appalling that people would take a routine interaction with a foreign government representative and attribute something sinister to it,” Smith said, adding that the consulate did not want to put anyone in an “awkward situation.” In the latest ratcheting up of tensions with Western nations, Hong Kong on Friday slammed a U.K. government report that said Beijing was using the security law to “drastically curtail freedoms” in the city. Hong Kong authorities also this week lambasted the European Union for denouncing Hong Kong’s recent overhaul of its political system. ‘Tough cases’ loomAlthough local officials said last year that the security law would affect only a “tiny minority” of people, more than 100 have been arrested under the law, which has affected education, media, civil society and religious freedoms among other areas, according to those interviewed for this story.Some have raised concerns that the provisions would hurt the business community, a suggestion Ip dismissed.”I think they have nothing to worry about unless they are bent on using external forces to harm Hong Kong,” Ip said. “I speak to a lot of businessmen who are very bullish about the economic situation.” Retired judges familiar with cases such as Tam’s said they were shocked at the broad use of foreign connections by prosecutors. One told Reuters he did not see how that approach would be sustainable, as the government accredits diplomats, whose job is to meet people, including politicians. Hong Kong’s judiciary said it would not comment on individual cases. Smith said Hong Kong’s growing atmosphere of “fear, coercion and uncertainty” put the special administrative region’s future in jeopardy. “It’s been very distressing to see this relentless onslaught on Hong Kong’s freedoms and backtracking on the commitment that was made to preserve Hong Kong’s autonomy,” he said. 
…

The United Nations high commissioner for human rights said Friday that violence in Myanmar is rising, deepening the crisis that began with the February 1 coup that toppled the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.”In just over four months, Myanmar has gone from being a fragile democracy to a human rights catastrophe,” Michelle Bachelet said in a statement in Geneva, Switzerland. Bachelet put the blame on the military leadership, known as the Tatmadaw, saying it was “singularly responsible” for the crisis and “must be held to account.”“State security forces have continued to use heavy weaponry, including air strikes, against armed groups and against civilians and civilian objects, including Christian churches,” she said. “The international community needs to unify in its demand that the Tatmadaw cease the outrageous use of heavy artillery against civilians and civilian objects,” Bachelet said.Bachelet’s office said there are credible reports that at least 860 people have been killed by security forces since February 1, and more than 4,800 people, including opponents of the junta, activists of civil society and journalists, have been arbitrarily detained.The U.N. human rights chief will brief the Human Rights Council on the situation in Myanmar during its next session in July, the office said. 
…

People in Taiwan, which had held off COVID-19 throughout most the global pandemic, are panicking about their health and income this month as the island grapples with its first major outbreak and shutters businesses amid limited vaccine supplies.Taiwan’s coronavirus total since the start of the global pandemic stood at 12,500 on Friday, with 385 deaths. More than 90% of the cases were recorded since May 15.   Officials in Taipei say their political rival China intervened in a vaccine import deal earlier in the year. Japan and the United States have announced vaccine donations this month to help compensate for the shortage as officials scramble to order imports and fast-track trials of a domestically produced vaccine.  People have become “really concerned” since mid-May and have begun looking for vaccines despite possible side effects, said Joanna Lei, CEO of Chunghua 21st Century Think Tank in Taiwan. Many Taiwanese with dual citizenship in the United States have hopped on U.S.-bound flights this month to get vaccines.   Taiwan is “far” from the double-digit vaccine rate that might offer “herd immunity”, she said. An estimated 1% of Taiwan’s nearly 24 million people were vaccinated as of mid-May.  “I think the really scary part is the government has no plan,” Lei said. “And they don’t have a real survey of the land because they did not do broad testing, so they actually have no clue about where things are happening.”  People line up to get their coronavirus disease (COVID-19) test at Songshan airport following an increasing number of locally transmitted cases in Taipei, Taiwan, June 2, 2021.More than 84% of Taiwanese worry about relatives getting the coronavirus and about 65% say their income will be “hit”, according to a Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation survey released May 25. More than half of respondents called the current COVID-19 wave a “disaster” caused by humans rather than by nature.   “I see people are all quite nervous about whether their family members are going to get infected by this virus,” foundation Chairman You Ying-lung said. “You’ll find that a high proportion are very worried.”   Without vaccines, Taiwan is looking at an unknown period of forced business closures and income losses, particularly in events, recreation and restaurants. Those businesses have been shuttered or scaled back since May 15. Operators are expecting government stimulus aid if business dips far enough below pre-May 15 levels.   “For us in food and beverage, we should be optimistic about aid, because if it’s not enough, I can’t sustain the business,” said Chien Chia-hsing, owner of the 6-year-old Aussie Café in Taipei. His normal daily customer load of 50 has dropped to just a handful who get takeout. “I hope that the government can do its utmost to allocate money.” People wait to be vaccinated against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during a vaccination session organized by the local Taiwan Affairs Office in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, China June 4, 2021.Vaccine diplomacy Japan sent 1.24 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine last week despite a protest from China, Tokyo-based Kyodo News Service reported. Washington will donate 750,000 doses, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth announced Sunday as she visited Taiwan with two other lawmakers.   “For over a year, we’ve seen that COVID-19 strikes without regard to national borders – and we know we won’t be able to truly end the COVID-19 pandemic at home without ending it everywhere,” the senator said on her website.  Washington and Tokyo are long-standing friends of Taiwan, as all three fret over territorial disputes or deeper political issues with China.     “You always want to help friends,” said Alex Chiang, associate professor of international politics at National Chengchi University in Taipei. “They have to show friendship and that they care about the people of Taiwan.”   Taiwanese officials blame China for standing in the way of foreign-made vaccines.   “Taiwan access to vaccines continues to be slowed down by Chinese interference, while they insist we buy Chinese made ones,” presidential spokesperson Kolas Yotaka said May 19 on Twitter.     Taiwan was approaching a deal with German pharmaceutical firm BioNTech in January for millions of vaccine doses, but interference by “external forces” threw off the agreement, health minister Chen Shih-chung told local media a month later without naming China directly.    Taiwan bars Chinese-made vaccines because of their poor record before COVID-19, Chen said in an interview in January. The government’s Central Epidemic Command Center would not say for this report how many vaccines it expects from foreign sources by year’s end but pointed to “insufficient” capacity to make them worldwide.     China has claimed self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory since the Chinese civil war of the 1940s, when Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalists lost to the Communists and rebased in Taipei. Beijing has threatened use of force, if needed, to take Taiwan and resents foreign assistance to the island.  
…

U.S. President Joe Biden begins his first overseas trip in London; what are the expectations? Plus, who was behind a deadly attack in Afghanistan that killed at least 10 at an international charity clearing land mines? And, what countries are more likely to carry out state-sponsored cyber attacks?
 
…