WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigned under pressure from President Donald Trump on Friday in an uproar over Price’s use of costly private charter planes for government business. His abrupt departure was announced an hour after Trump told reporters he was disappointed in Price’s use of private aircraft and did not like the way it reflected on his administration. “Secretary of Health and Human Services Thomas Price offered his resignation earlier today and the president accepted,” the White House said in a statement. Trump named Don Wright to serve as acting secretary. Wright is currently the deputy assistant secretary for health and director of the office of disease prevention and health promotion. “I’m not happy. OK? I’m not happy,” Trump told reporters on the White House South Lawn. Candidates to succeed Price included Seema Verma, who is administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and who is close to Vice President Mike Pence, and Scott Gottlieb, a physician who serves as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, according to industry analysts. Several sources saw Gottlieb as a clear front runner. They said he got along well with the White House and is viewed favorably there. Price’s resignation leaves Trump with a second Cabinet position to fill. He has yet to pick a secretary for homeland security after hiring former Secretary John Kelly as his White House chief of staff.     It was the latest blow to the Trump White House, which has struggled to get major legislative achievements passed by Congress and has been embroiled in one controversy after another since Trump took office in January. Price, a former congressman, was instrumental in the Trump administration’s policies aimed at undercutting Obamacare, as well as working with governors across the country to slowly begin unraveling parts of the law. In a resignation letter, Price offered little in the way of contrition. He said he had been working to reform the U.S. healthcare system and reduce regulatory burdens, among other goals. “I have spent forty years both as a doctor and public servant putting people first. I regret that the recent events have created a distraction from these important objectives,” he said. Trump, currently trying to sell his tax cut plan and oversee the federal response to devastation wreaked by three hurricanes, saw the Price drama as an unnecessary distraction and behind the scenes was telling aides “what was he thinking?,” a source close to the president said. Price promised on Thursday to repay the nearly $52,000 cost of his seats on private charter flights. “The taxpayers won’t pay a dime for my seat on those planes,” Price said. But that was not enough to satisfy Trump. Trump told reporters that the “optics” of Price’s travel were not good, since, as president he was trying to renegotiate U.S. contracts to get a better deal for taxpayers. “Look, I think he’s a very fine person. I certainly don’t like the optics,” Trump said. Price had also been seen in the White House as having been ineffective in getting Congress to pass healthcare reform legislation, an effort that has fizzled on Capitol Hill. Price was one of a handful of senior officials in Trump’s administration put on the defensive over reports about their use of charter flights and government aircraft, sometimes for personal travel, when they could have flown commercial for less money. The White House issued an order late on Friday saying use of private planes required approval from White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and that the commercial air system was appropriate even for very senior officials with few exceptions. The Washington Post on Friday reported that Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin attended a Wimbledon tennis match, toured Westminster Abbey and took a cruise on the Thames this summer during a 10-day trip to discuss veterans’ health issues in Britain and Denmark. Shulkin, who traveled on a commercial airline, was accompanied on the trip by his wife, whose airfare was paid for by the government and who received a per diem for meals, the Post said, noting that the Department of Veterans Affairs said she was traveling on “approved invitational orders.” His six-person traveling party included an acting undersecretary of health and her husband as well as two aides. They were accompanied by a security detail of as many as six people, the Post said.  Washington news media outlet Politico has reported that Price had taken at least two dozen private charter flights since May at a cost to U.S. taxpayers of more than $400,000. Politico also reported he took approved military flights to Africa and Europe costing $500,000. Senior U.S. government officials travel frequently, but are generally expected to keep costs down by taking commercial flights or the train when possible. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin have also been in the spotlight for their travel habits.

Summary: निजी विमान के हंगामे को लेकर ट्रम्प के दबाव में प्राइस ने स्वास्थ्य सचिव के पद से दिया इस्तीफा


LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Comedian Kathy Griffin tearfully apologized in a Friday press conference for posing with a fake bloodied and severed head depicting U.S. President Donald Trump, saying that she felt her career was now over and that Trump “broke” her.  Griffin has lost sponsorships and jobs, including her role as co-host of CNN’s New Year’s Eve coverage with journalist Anderson Cooper, since a photograph and video from the shoot appeared on social media on Tuesday. President Trump said the image of Griffin with the gory mask resembling him was “sick” and that it had traumatized his family, especially his youngest son, 11-year-old Barron. Trump’s oldest son, Donald Jr., called for employers to drop the comedian. “I don’t think I will have a career after this. I’m going to be honest, (Trump) broke me,” said Griffin, 56, a two-time Emmy-winning performer known for her deliberately provocative brand of humor. She added that she had received death threats. Griffin reiterated the apology she posted on social media late on Tuesday, but remained defiant, saying, “I’m not afraid of Donald Trump, he’s a bully,” adding that she intended to continue making jokes about the president.  She also described herself as a provocative woman who has often had to deal with older white men in positions of power. “What’s happening to me has never happened ever, in the history of this great country, which is that a sitting president of the United States and his grown children and the first lady are personally, I feel, trying to ruin my life - forever,” she said. Griffin said the photo was intended to mock Trump’s comments during the presidential campaign, when he told CNN that Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly had “blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her - wherever” when she moderated a 2015 presidential debate. Trump’s remark was widely interpreted as referring to menstrual blood, implying that Kelly was in an unfriendly mood because she was menstruating. At his daily briefing on Friday, White House spokesman Sean Spicer declined to respond to Griffin’s remarks, saying that the president, the first lady and the Secret Service had made clear their views on the photo. Katrina Pierson, a former Trump campaign spokeswoman, criticized Griffin on Twitter after her appearance on Friday, saying that Griffin had had a nervous breakdown about “misogyny & mean white men” at the press conference. The U.S. Secret Service, which is responsible for presidential security, has opened an inquiry into the photo of Griffin posing with the severed-head replica.

Summary: कॉमेडियन कैथी ग्रिफिन का कहना है कि ट्रम्प की अश्लील तस्वीर के बाद उनका करियर खत्म हो गया है


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump met with key business leaders on Monday and signed an executive order withdrawing the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, moving the country toward an era of bilateral trade and job creation at home, the White House said. White House spokesman Sean Spicer told a news briefing that Trump would move away from multilateral trade policies toward bilateral trade that puts America first. He said the meeting with top U.S. business leaders included a “really great” exchange of ideas and the group would reconvene again in a month.

Summary: ट्रम्प अमेरिका को द्विपक्षीय व्यापार के युग की ओर ले जा रहे हैंः व्हाइट हाउस


NEW YORK (Reuters) - A former New York City congressman who made national headlines for threatening to break a reporter “in half” before serving time in prison for tax fraud is expected this weekend to announce he will try to recapture his seat. Republican Michael Grimm will appear at a rally on Sunday in the city’s Staten Island borough, 16 months after he was released from prison having served an eight-month term. A Facebook page promoting the event - titled “Rally in Support of Michael Grimm, Our Congressman,” did not specifically confirm he would be running for reelection, but it said Grimm “is ready to fight for us once again.” On Twitter, Grimm posted a story from the Staten Island Advance newspaper reporting that he would announce a congressional campaign and wrote, “Exciting headline from @siadvance - see you all Sunday at 11:30!” Grimm’s representatives could not immediately be reached for comment. His entry into the race sets up what will likely be a closely watched primary battle with Dan Donovan, the Republican and former Staten Island district attorney who was elected to Grimm’s seat after Grimm resigned and won reelection last November. Donovan, New York City’s only Republican congressman, is on the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s list of targets for 2018. His spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Grimm, a 47-year-old Marine veteran once seen as a rising star in the Republican Party, drew widespread denunciation in January 2014 when he was caught on camera saying he would throw a New York television reporter off the balcony inside the Capitol building in Washington. “I’ll break you in half - like a boy,” Grimm warned the reporter, who had asked him about a federal probe into his campaign finances. He later apologized. Three months later, he was indicted for tax fraud and other charges in connection with a health food restaurant he owned before turning to politics. He still managed to win reelection in November 2014. Six weeks after Election Day, Grimm pleaded guilty to one count of tax fraud. After initially vowing to keep his seat, he resigned under pressure from Republican leadership. The Facebook page on Sunday’s event, which was created by “Friends of Michael Grimm,” said Grimm was “driven from office in a politicized abuse of the justice system.”

Summary: जेल के बाद, एन. वाई. में रिपब्लिकन पूर्व कांग्रेसी के फिर से चुनाव लड़ने की उम्मीद है


PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Cambodia s detained opposition leader, who is accused of treason by the government of strongman Prime Minister Hun Sen, denied the charges against him on Monday in his first comments since his arrest last month.  Kem Sokha, head of the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) is accused of trying to overthrow the government with help from the United States and of espionage - charges he denies and says are politically motivated. His arrest last month is part of ongoing efforts by the government to silence political opponents and independent media ahead of a general election next year. Earlier on Monday Hun Sen, a former Khmer Rouge officer who defected and has ruled Cambodia for more than three decades,  attacked opposition figures as  rebels in the city  bent on staging a revolution. In a three-page letter posted on his Facebook page on Monday Kem Sokha said that he was seeking positive change in Cambodia through the ballot box and not through revolution as charged.     As the leader of the CNRP and a representative of more than half of the country s population, I always choose changes through elections without violence,  he said in the letter. Rights groups say Hun Sen, 65, is determined to extend his rule and dismantle the burgeoning popularity of the CNRP, who have gained from public anger over inequality and cronyism in the country under Hun Sen s rule.     The U.S. embassy has rejected any suggestion of interference in politics.  Kem Sokha s Sept. 3 arrest sparked condemnation from Western countries, and the CNRP has said about half its members of parliament have fled Cambodia fearing a crackdown.    In his letter, Kem Sokha called his arrest unconstitutional and urged supporters not to be intimidated.     Please, the Cambodian people, remember that I am with you. Even though my body is in prison, but nobody can detain my conscience,  he said. He called on the international community for help.   Democracy in Cambodia is already at its last breathe,  he said.    A spokesman from Hun Sen s Cambodian People s Party (CPP) said that Kem Sokha had confessed to the charges against him.

Summary: कंबोडिया के हिरासत में लिए गए विपक्षी नेता ने राजद्रोह के आरोपों से इनकार किया


(Reuters) - President Donald Trump has appointed Eric Hargan as acting Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), the White House said on Tuesday. Hargan, the deputy secretary of HHS, formerly served on Trump’s transition team for HHS. The appointment follows Tom Price’s resignation as HHS Secretary late in September over his use of costly private charter planes for government business. U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, considered a potential successor to Price, said on Tuesday he believed he could best serve the Trump administration in his current role. (This story has been refiled to correct paragraph 3 reference to late September, instead of last week.)

Summary: ट्रंप ने एरिक हार्गन को कार्यवाहक स्वास्थ्य मंत्री के रूप में नामित किया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he will announce his decision “very soon” on whether he will withdraw the United States from the Paris climate deal. Responding to shouted questions from reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he had been hearing from people on both sides of the issue, but he declined to indicate whether he had made up his mind. “I’m hearing from a lot of people, both ways. Both ways,” Trump said.

Summary: पेरिस जलवायु समझौते पर जल्द ही निर्णय की घोषणा करेंगेः ट्रंप


KING CITY, Calif. (Reuters) - On an overcast spring morning, about 40 Mexican men turned out in the pre-dawn hours to board a bus for California’s Salinas Valley where they would harvest 16 acres (6.47 hectares) of lettuce over the next three days.  Hector Manuel Morales, 20, came north from Mexico to work the fields with his three cousins. He said his family worried about his journey, spooked by President Donald Trump’s talk of a crackdown on illegal immigrants. But he does not anticipate problems.  While about half of U.S. crop workers are in the country illegally, Morales and the other men have H-2A visas, which allow them to work temporarily as seasonal agricultural laborers on American farms.  “We are not violating any law here in the U.S.,” he said. “We come to work.”  His co-worker Rafael Gonzalez Arredondo, 23, said listening to Trump’s statements about Mexico was “difficult, but we are going to show him that Mexicans are hard working people, that we are not what he says.” The men came to the country through a labor brokerage company, Fresh Harvest, which brings in H-2A laborers to work on farms in need of temporary workers. This year, the company’s owner, Steve Scaroni, says he expects to bring in about 4,000 workers.  Companies like Fresh Harvest are attractive for farmers who want to employ legal workers but do not want to deal with the considerable government red tape and regulations associated with the H-2A program. Employers who bring in workers on the visas must provide them with free transportation to and from the United States as well as housing and food once they arrive. Wage minimums are set by the government and are often higher than farmers are used to paying.  Still, Scaroni says he could find work for even more people if he had enough housing. While use of the H-2A program has steadily increased over the past decade, it still accounts for only about 10 percent of the estimated 1.3 million farmworkers in the United States, according to government data. In 2016, the government granted 134,000 H-2A visas. Alfredo Lopez Granados, 27, from Michoacan, Mexico has come north to work on an H-2A visa five times. He misses his family back home, he says, but the decision is not difficult.  “Once you are here,” he said, “in one day you make more than you make in a week in Mexico.” (To see a related photo essay, click here: reut.rs/2qdtfnb)

Summary: खेत में काम करना, जबकि ट्रम्प आप्रवासन पर कड़ी बात करते हैं


BERLIN (Reuters) - The number of foreigners who qualify to join loved ones granted asylum in Germany is much smaller than government estimates, a study showed on Thursday, potentially removing an obstacle in  coalition talks. Family reunification is one of the most contentious issues in exploratory talks between Chancellor Angela Merkel s conservatives and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) with the Greens, who back a more liberal immigration approach. All the parties are eager to show the public they are taking measures to prevent a repeat of 2015 when Merkel s decision to welcome people fleeing wars and persecution led to the largest influx of asylum seekers in the post-war years. But a conservative plan to suspend the right to family reunions for asylum seekers with only subsidiary protection from March 2018 could be unacceptable to the Greens, who say that would hamper integration. Those given subsidiary protection are given one year visas that can be renewed, because it is deemed their home country is not safe, but do not have full refugee status that would give them the right to stay. The study by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) found that by the end of this year 150,000 to 180,000 spouses and children of individuals granted either full refugee status or subsidiary protection would qualify to come to Germany. This is far lower than an estimate by Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere who has said that for every refugee, one person living abroad is entitled to come to Germany.  The refugees are a young group and mainly single,  IAB said.  Only 46 percent of adult refugees are married and only 43 percent have children.  More than 1 million people seeking asylum entered Germany in the past two years and the IAB estimates that by the end of this year some 600,000 will have been allowed to stay. After election losses, Merkel bowed to demands by her Christian Social Union (CSU) Bavarian allies for a limit on the number of asylum seekers Germany accepts. In doing so, Merkel healed a rift between her Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian partners after both lost voters to the far right in the Sept. 24 vote - but set up the potential stumbling block to the Greens joining a coalition.  The issue of family reunification may not primarily be one of numbers, but rather one of the associated signals that one wants to give both to the domestic population, and to potential migrants,  said Thomas Liebig of the OECD, a Paris-based grouping of industrialized countries.  The IAB found that 50,000 to 60,000 spouses and children of asylum seekers granted subsidiary protection were entitled to residency in Germany. The study is based on a survey of more than 4,800 adult refugees. It did not include more than 65,000 unaccompanied minors who have arrived in the last three years and are also entitled to bring in close family such as parents, siblings or children.

Summary: जर्मनी में परिवार में शामिल होने के हकदार कम प्रवासीः अध्ययन


UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Remnants of four ballistic missiles fired into Saudi Arabia by Yemen s Houthi rebels this year appear to have been designed and manufactured by Riyadh s regional rival Iran, a confidential report by United Nations sanctions monitors said, bolstering a push by the United States to punish the Tehran government. The independent panel of U.N. monitors, in a Nov. 24 report to the Security Council seen by Reuters on Thursday, said it  as yet has no evidence as to the identity of the broker or supplier  of the missiles, which were likely shipped to the Houthis in violation of a targeted U.N. arms embargo imposed in April 2015. Earlier this month, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley accused Iran of supplying Houthi rebels with a missile that was fired into Saudi Arabia in July and called for the United Nations to hold Tehran accountable for violating two U.N. Security Council resolutions. The report said that monitors had visited two Saudi Arabian military bases to see remnants gathered by authorities from missile attacks on Saudi Arabia on May 19, July 22, July 26 and Nov. 4.  They also visited four  impact points  from the Nov. 4 attack where other remnants of the missiles were identified.  Design characteristics and dimensions of the components inspected by the panel are consistent with those reported for the Iranian designed and manufactured Qiam-1 missile,  the monitors wrote. The Qiam-1 has a range of almost 500 miles and can carry a 1,400-pound warhead, according to GlobalSecurity.org public policy organization. Saudi-led forces, which back the Yemeni government, have fought the Iran-allied Houthis in Yemen s more than two-year-long civil war. Saudi Arabia s crown prince has described Iran s supply of rockets to the Houthis as  direct military aggression  that could be an act of war. Iran has denied supplying the Houthis with weapons, saying the U.S. and Saudi allegations are  baseless and unfounded.  Iran s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the U.N. monitors report.  Another ballistic missile was shot down on Thursday near the southwestern Saudi city of Khamis Mushait, the Saudi-owned al-Arabiya channel reported. The U.N. monitors said they gathered evidence that the missiles were transferred to Yemen in pieces and assembled there by missile engineers with the Houthis and allied forces loyal to Yemen s former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.  The panel has not yet seen any evidence of external missile specialists working in Yemen in support of the Houthi-Saleh engineers,  the monitors wrote.     They visited Saudi Arabia after the monitors called on the coalition to provide evidence backing Riyadh s claim that Iran was supplying missiles to the Houthis, warning that a failure to do so would violate a U.N. resolution. They said the missiles most likely were smuggled into Yemen along  the land routes from Oman or Ghaydah and Nishtun in al Mahrah governorate (in Yemen) after ship-to-shore transshipment to small dhows, a route that has already seen limited seizures of anti-tank guided weapons.  The monitors also said that while  concealment in cargo of vessels offloading in the Red Sea ports is unlikely, it cannot be excluded as an option.  The Saudi-led coalition used the Nov. 4 missile attack to justify a blockade of Yemen for several weeks, saying it was needed to stem the flow of arms to the Houthis from Iran. The United Nations had said the blockade could spark the largest famine the world has seen in decades. Some 7 million people in Yemen are on the brink of famine, and nearly 900,000 have been infected with cholera.

Summary: एक्सक्लूसिवः सऊदी अरब पर दागी गई यमन विद्रोही मिसाइलें ईरानी प्रतीत होती हैं-संयुक्त राष्ट्र


STRASBOURG (Reuters) - The president of the European Commission said on Wednesday he saw no prospect of Turkey joining the EU in  the foreseeable future  but he had a more optimistic message for six Western Balkan nations also seeking membership. The European Union has become increasingly critical of Turkey s decades-long membership drive after President Tayyip Erdogan launched a major crackdown on critics - including journalists and academics - after a failed 2016 coup.  Turkey has been taking giant strides away from the European Union for some time,  Jean-Claude Juncker, head of the executive Commission, said in his annual keynote speech to the European Parliament on the state of the bloc.  Accession candidates must give the rule of law, justice and fundamental rights utmost priority. This rules out EU membership for Turkey for the foreseeable future.  Juncker referred to a war of words between Berlin and Ankara, in which Erdogan accused Berlin of  Nazi-like  tactics, prompting Chancellor Angela Merkel to call for an end to Turkey s membership talks, despite it being a crucial NATO ally.  Journalists belong in newsrooms not in prisons. They belong where freedom of expression reigns,  Juncker said.  Stop insulting our member states by comparing their leaders to fascists and Nazis.  Formally ending Turkey s accession negotiations would require unanimity among EU states, which is lacking, though majority backing is enough to suspend them.  EU leaders will discuss Turkey at a summit in Brussels in October, though any formal decision may not come before next spring.  Juncker put a final stamp on the EU s recently-revived engagement in the Balkans, where Serbia, Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Kosovo all want to join the EU one day.   If we want more stability in our neighborhood, then we must maintain a credible enlargement perspective for the Western Balkans,  Juncker said.  The region on the EU s south-eastern edge, still scarred by the wars fought along political, ethnic and religious lines in the 1990s, is important for the bloc for issues from controlling immigration to countering security threats. Earlier this year, the EU accused Russia of seeking to destabilize the Western Balkans - which Moscow denied - and its concerns have led to a renewed engagement in the region. With Britain now scheduled to exit the EU in 2019, Juncker said he saw no new enlargement of the bloc before 2020.  But thereafter the European Union will be greater than 27 in number,  he added. EU officials say Serbia, Albania and Macedonia could be closest to joining, possibly allowing for an EU of 30 states by around 2025, though they avoid setting any firm deadlines. Juncker s comments came in a speech in which he urged the EU to  catch the wind  in its sails after years of battling crises from the euro zone to migration to Brexit.

Summary: जंकर ने यूरोपीय संघ के उम्मीदवार तुर्की को लताड़ा, पश्चिमी बाल्कन पर उत्साहित


BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel s conservatives are rallying around her despite the failure of talks to form a three-way ruling coalition, buying her time in office and putting the onus on her Social Democrat rivals to break Germany s political impasse. Resolute conservative support for Merkel is significant, as some members of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) have said privately their price for a re-run of its  grand coalition  with the conservatives would be Merkel s head. The collapse late on Sunday of the coalition talks, which followed an inconclusive Sept. 24 election, has plunged Germany into the worst political crisis since the end of World War Two. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who is trying to broker a deal, is keenly aware the source of Germany s international clout is its economic power and that businesses want a stable coalition soon to end the uncertainty and avoid another poll. SPD leader Martin Schulz, whose party is the second biggest in Germany and was the junior coalition partner to Merkel s conservative bloc in the last parliament, has insisted the SPD should rebuild in opposition after heavy losses in September. But with Merkel secure for now at the helm of her Christian Democrats (CDU), the pressure shifts to the SPD to help form a coalition after the failure of the chancellor s three-way talks with the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) and Greens. Surveys suggest going to the polls again would deliver a similar outcome to September s result. Furthermore, 58 percent of voters want Merkel to remain chancellor, an Infratest Dimap poll for broadcaster ARD showed this week. While the SPD prevaricates, Merkel looks reasonable for trying to resolve the impasse.  One thing is clear: Angela Merkel s position in the CDU is very strong. She is our Number One,  David McAllister, a CDU executive committee member, told Reuters. Her party believes she did all she could to forge a three-way coalition. Merkel s efforts also improved ties with the CDU s Bavarian allies in the conservative bloc, the Christian Social Union (CSU), which had been strained over immigration. Another senior CDU official said there was no question of sacrificing Merkel as the party had no credible alternative. A third senior CDU official, Volker Kauder, leader of the conservative parliamentary group in the lower house of parliament, said he hoped the Social Democrats would change their minds about rejecting another grand coalition.[nL8N1NT1PP] Steinmeier is due to meet Schulz on Thursday at 1400 GMT as part of his efforts to help facilitate a coalition government and avoid more elections. Asked about the possibility of the SPD supporting a Merkel-led minority government or entering a new grand coalition, an SPD spokesman pointed to Schulz s meeting with Steinmeier and said,  then we will see what comes afterwards . A former SPD leader, Steinmeier is meeting leaders from all parties in parliament this week and wants them to make agreement on a new government possible  in the near future . Only after a new government has formed is Merkel s position likely to come under pressure - and even then, not immediately. Her mentor, Helmut Kohl, and Konrad Adenauer, who led Germany s rebirth after World War Two, are the only post-war chancellors to have ruled Germany longer than her. Merkel, 63, only decided to run again last November after thinking long and hard. She said then she was seeking to stay on  if health allows . In 1998, she was quoted as saying:  I don t want to be a half-dead wreck when I leave politics.  She appears in robust health, but given she has already held power for 12 years, questions will inevitably arise about who will succeed her before she is half way through any new four-year term. Potential successors are not circling just yet.  She will have probably a year or so after a government is formed before the question of her succession becomes an overwhelming issue in German domestic politics,  said Jan Techau at the American Academy in Berlin.   The moment that starts, her power will be greatly diminished.  But first, Merkel must form a new government. If Steinmeier fails to convince the SPD to enter a new grand coalition, other options include a three-way coalition after all, a Merkel-led minority government, or new elections.  Since snap elections won t change relative strengths, my prediction is ... another grand coalition between the only two parties that have learned to compromise,  said Josef Joffe, publisher-editor of weekly Die Zeit. Bild newspaper reported on Wednesday that some SPD deputies were now questioning their party s rejection of a renewed grand coalition. [nL8N1NS1PN] Changing course and teaming up with Merkel again may require a change of leadership at the SPD and there could yet be a shake out at a party conference in early December.  The pressure needs to build up within the Social Democratic party,  said Techau.  He said Merkel should focus on being a responsible caretaker chancellor until a new government forms.  She just needs to play her own game well and then she can survive.

Summary: गठबंधन में उथल-पुथल के बावजूद मर्केल अभी सुरक्षित दिख रही हैं।


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday spurned the Taiwanese president’s suggestion that the two leaders hold another phone call, saying he did not want to create problems for Chinese President Xi Jinping when Beijing appears to be helping efforts to rein in North Korea.  In a White House interview, Trump brushed aside the idea after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen told Reuters on Thursday she would not rule out talking directly again to the U.S. president, an act certain to incense China. The status of self-ruled Taiwan is possibly the most sensitive issue between Washington and Beijing.  “Look, my problem is I have established a very good personal relationship with President Xi. I really feel that he is doing everything in his power to help us with a big situation,” Trump told Reuters, referring to signs that China may be working to head off any new missile or nuclear test by Pyongyang, Beijing’s neighbor and ally.  “So I wouldn’t want to be causing difficulty right now for him,” Trump added. “I think he’s doing an amazing job as a leader and I wouldn’t want to do anything that comes in the way of that. So I would certainly want to speak to him first.”  REUTERS RECOMMENDS Racism on the rise: Reuters poll How North Korea gets its oil from China As president-elect in early December, Trump took a congratulatory phone call from Tsai. It was the first contact between a leader of Taiwan and an incumbent or incoming U.S. president in nearly four decades, and Trump cast doubt on Washington’s longstanding policy of acknowledging Beijing’s “one China” policy, which asserts that Taiwan is a part of China.  The call angered Beijing because it fears contacts between Taiwan and leaders of other countries would confer sovereignty on the island. Democratic Taiwan, self-ruled since 1949, has no interest in being ruled by autocratic China.  Trump agreed to honor the “one China” policy in February and then hosted Xi at his Florida resort earlier this month.  Trump’s dismissal of Tsai’s suggestion underscored the importance he is placing on enlisting China’s help in defusing tension with North Korea, which has become his biggest national security challenge since taking office in January, 100 days ago come Saturday.  On Friday, in response to Trump’s remarks, Taiwan’s presidential office said it had no plans “at this stage” to hold a call, and that it understood the United States had priorities in handling regional affairs.  In a statement, Tsai’s spokesman, Alex Huang, said the government would not “overly limit” itself, but would pursue the island’s best interest.  In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang urged Taiwan to pay attention to the United States’ reaction.  “We consistently oppose countries which have diplomatic relations with China having any form of official exchanges with Taiwan,” Geng told a daily news briefing on Friday.  “This position is very clear and very firm.”  F-35 REQUEST  Tsai told Reuters on Thursday Taiwan’s ties with the United States have been improving. She said Taiwan may need to buy from its sole arms supplier the F-35 fighter jet, the most advanced stealth warplane in the U.S. arsenal.  “We have the opportunity to communicate more directly with the U.S. government,” Tsai said. “We don’t exclude the opportunity to call President Trump himself, but it depends on the needs of the situation and the U.S. government’s consideration of regional affairs.”  Tsai said, “We don’t rule out any items that would be meaningful to our defense and our defense strategy and the F-35 is one such item.”  But when told Taiwan’s president had said the island might want to buy F-35 aircraft, Trump said: “Oh, I haven’t been informed. I’d have to think about that. I’d have to speak to my people about that. They (the Taiwanese government) do buy a lot of equipment from us.”  China’s Defence Ministry said on Thursday it was resolutely opposed to any country selling arms to Taiwan.  U.S. officials told Reuters last month that the Trump administration was crafting a big arms package for Taiwan that could include advanced rocket systems and anti-ship missiles to defend against China, a deal sure to anger Beijing.  But one of the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said at the time the administration was not considering selling the F-35 to Taiwan.  The package is expected to be significantly larger than one that was shelved at the end of the Obama administration – valued at around $1 billion – but completion of a new deal could take months and possibly into next year, the official said.  The Global Times, an influential Chinese Communist Party-backed tabloid, called Tsai’s government “a naughty child” in an editorial on Friday and said it would “strongly counter” any move to sell Taiwan advanced fighter jets.  “Each time the Tsai Ing-wen authorities step out of line they will pay the price, like a naughty child in class getting a stern reprimand for shouting out or smashing the glass at school,” it said.

Summary: एक्सक्लूसिवः ट्रंप ने ताइवान के राष्ट्रपति के एक और फोन कॉल के सुझाव को ठुकराया


SEOUL/TOKYO (Reuters) - South Korean and Japanese jets joined exercises with two  supersonic U.S. B-1B bombers above and near the Korean peninsula on Thursday, two days after North Korea sharply raised tension by firing a missile over Japan. The drills, involving four U.S. stealth F-35B jets as well as South Korean and Japanese fighter jets, came at the end of annual U.S.-South Korea military exercises focused mainly on computer simulations.  North Korea s actions are a threat to our allies, partners and homeland, and their destabilizing actions will be met accordingly,  said General Terrence J. O Shaughnessy, Pacific Air Forces Commander, who made an unscheduled visit to Japan.  This complex mission clearly demonstrates our solidarity with our allies and underscores the broadening cooperation to defend against this common regional threat.  North Korea has been working to develop a nuclear-tipped missile capable of hitting the United States and has recently threatened to land missiles near the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam. On Monday, North Korea, which sees the exercises as preparations for invasion, raised the stakes in its stand-off with the United States and its allies by firing an intermediate-range missile over Japan. On Thursday, its official news agency, KCNA, denounced the military drills in traditionally robust fashion, calling them  the rash act of those taken aback  by the missile test, which it described as  the first military operation in the Pacific.  President Donald Trump, who has warned that the U.S. military is  locked and loaded  in case of North Korean provocation, reacted angrily to the latest missile test, declaring on Twitter that  talking is not the answer  to resolving the crisis over North Korea s weapons programs. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis was quick on Wednesday to stress that a diplomatic solution remained possible, but on Thursday he told reporters he agreed with Trump that Washington  should not be talking right now to a nation that is firing missiles over the top of Japan, an ally.  White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders reiterated at a regular briefing on Thursday that all options - diplomatic, economic and military - remained on the table. Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera spoke to Mattis by telephone and agreed to keep putting pressure on North Korea in a  visible  form, Japan s defense ministry said. Japanese Prime Shinzo Abe said he and visiting British Prime Minister Theresa May agreed to urge China, North Korea s lone major ally,  to do more to rein in North Korea. May and Abe also discussed the possibility of adopting a new U.N. Security Council resolution on North Korea, a British government source said. The 15-member U.N. Security Council on Tuesday condemned the firing of the missile over Japan as  outrageous  and demanded that North Korea halt its weapons programs. But the U.S.-drafted statement did not threaten new sanctions. Japan has been urging Washington to propose new Security Council sanctions, which diplomats said could target North Korean laborers working abroad, oil supplies and textile exports. However, diplomats expect resistance from Russia and fellow veto-wielding power China, particularly given that new measures were only announced on Aug. 5 after North Korea tested its first two intercontinental ballistic missiles in July.  A U.S. ban on travel by Americans to North Korea comes into effect on Friday, a step announced after the death of a U.S. student shortly after his release from a 15-year prison sentence in the country, where three other Americans are still detained. China repeated a call on Thursday for restraint by all parties. Defence ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang told a monthly briefing China would never allow war or chaos on the Korean peninsula, its doorstep, and military means were not an option.  China strongly demands all sides to exercise restraint and remain calm and not do anything to worsen tensions,  Ren said, adding that Chinese forces were maintaining a normal state of alert along the North Korean border. Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the situation on the peninsula was serious.  The current tense situation on the peninsula isn t a screenplay or a video game,  she told reporters.  It s real, and is an immense and serious issue that directly involves the safety of people from both the north and south of the peninsula, as well as peace and stability of the entire region.  For an interactive on North Korea's missile capabilities, click: here For a graphic on North Korean missile trajectories, ranges, click: here For a graphic on Kim's new act of defiance, click: here

Summary: उत्तर कोरिया के नवीनतम प्रक्षेपण के बाद कोरियाई प्रायद्वीप पर अमेरिकी बमवर्षक अभ्यास करते हैं


ZURICH (Reuters) - The Swiss government proposed on Friday allowing house arrest for people seen as posing a security threat even if they are not suspected of a specific crime. The step is part of an anti-terrorism package the country is drawing up to plug what it sees as gaps in its legal system when it comes to people it calls  potential threats .  At the moment police and justice officials have their hands tied in acting effectively against such people as long as no criminal investigation is under way,  Justice Minister Simonetta Sommargua told a news conference. She cited the example of three Iraqis convicted in 2016 of supporting banned jihadist group Islamic State who are now free after being released from prison even though authorities still view them as a security threat. Under the proposals, which are open for comment before they go to parliament, the state could require such people to report regularly to authorities as some soccer hooligans now do, and restrict their movements and contacts. House arrest would be the last resort and require a judge s approval.  Sommaruga said the government would carefully balance the need for security against protecting the rule of law.  If we would put whole groups under blanket suspicion, for instance via sweeping surveillance of mosques or demanding preventative custody for as many as possible, we would only be creating red tape and spinning our wheels, which costs a lot and in the end brings nothing,  she said. Switzerland on Monday released a national plan to prevent violent extremism, including training teachers and sports coaches to recognize warning signs. The Swiss so far have avoided the kind of attacks that have hit neighboring Germany and France, but the Swiss Intelligence Service said last month it was tracking 550 people deemed a potential risk as part of its  jihad monitoring program,  up from 497 at the end of 2016. Last month, Swiss and French police combined in a cross-border anti-terrorism swoop in which 10 people were arrested. Several high-profile criminal prosecutions have targeted people accused of supporting banned groups such al Qaeda or Islamic State. Neutral Switzerland has not fought in the conflicts in the Middle East, but some fear domestic policies could put it in the crosshairs of militants. Voters in 2009 banned the construction of new minarets, and the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino banned facial coverings. Bern is also tightening anti-terrorism laws, a push that could toughen sentences for people who support militancy and boost cooperation with foreign intelligence services.

Summary: स्विस ने सुरक्षा खतरों के रूप में देखे जाने वाले लोगों के लिए नजरबंदी का प्रस्ताव रखा


NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Des Moines Register, the largest newspaper in the state that will cast the first votes for U.S. presidential nominees in nine days, gave its coveted endorsement on Saturday to Republican Marco Rubio and Democrat Hillary Clinton, it announced on Saturday.    The newspaper’s board said it was impressed by Clinton’s “knowledge and experience” and that it had picked Rubio because the Florida senator represented the Republican party’s “best hope” in the November 2016 presidential race. While the endorsements from the newspaper have the potential to boost a candidate, they often do not predict success in Iowa’s distinctive, time-consuming caucus system of picking nominees, which involves voters meeting in public places to discuss their preferences. Since beginning the practice in 1988, only three of the nine candidates the newspaper has endorsed have left the state with the most votes. “It’s certainly not a prediction,” Amalie Nash, the paper’s executive editor, said in an interview before the announcement. “We normally we do talk about viability, but it’s certainly not a major factor.”  Nash and the board’s five other members had all the leading Democratic and Republican candidates in for interviews except for the current Republican front-runners, Senator Ted Cruz and the businessman Donald Trump, who declined their invitations, the paper said. The board put emphasis on whether the candidates had the potential to heal the partisan divide that has become a hallmark of Washington politics and their plans for defusing the threat to Americans from the militant Islamist group Islamic State, Nash said. Rubio, the paper said, held the “potential to chart a new direction for the party, and perhaps the nation, with his message of restoring the American dream.” Noting the presidency is “not an entry-level position,” the Register praised Clinton as an “outstanding candidate” deserving of the Democratic nomination. “No other candidate can match the depth or breadth of her knowledge and experience,” it said. The Register previously endorsed Clinton during her 2008 presidential run, saying she was distinguished by her “readiness to lead.” Barack Obama ultimately won the Iowa caucus and Clinton finished third behind John Edwards.  The paper endorsed Senator John McCain on the Republican side that year. He came in fourth in Iowa but went on to become the party’s nominee before losing the general election to Obama.  An endorsement for Trump had seemed unlikely after the paper published a withering editorial last July calling on him to end his “bloviating side show” and drop out of the election. Winners of the Iowa caucuses, due to be held on Feb. 1 this year, do not always go on to become their party’s standard bearer in the November general election. “Iowa’s role isn’t to pick the eventual nominee,” Nash, the Register’s executive editor, said. “It’s to winnow the field.”  (Reporting by Jonathan Allen and Dustin Volz; Editing by Sandra Maler) SAP is the sponsor of this coverage which is independently produced by the staff of Reuters News Agency.

Summary: डेस मोइन्स रजिस्टर ने अमेरिकी राष्ट्रपति पद की दौड़ में रूबियो और क्लिंटन का समर्थन किया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. immigration officials are planning a month-long series of raids in May and June to deport hundreds of Central American mothers and children found to have entered the country illegally, according to sources and an internal document seen by Reuters. The operation would likely be the largest deportation sweep targeting immigrant families by the administration of President Barack Obama this year after a similar drive over two days in January that focused on Georgia, Texas, and North Carolina. Those raids, which resulted in the detention of 121 people, mostly women and children, sparked an outcry from immigration advocates and criticism from some Democrats, including the party’s presidential election frontrunner Hillary Clinton. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has now told field offices nationwide to launch a 30-day “surge” of arrests focused on mothers and children who have already been told to leave the United States, the document seen by Reuters said. The operation would also cover minors who have entered the country without a guardian and since turned 18 years of age, the document said. Two sources confirmed the details of the plan.   The exact dates of the latest series of raids were not known and the details of the operation could change.  The operation in January marked a departure for ICE, part of the Department of Homeland Security, from one-off deportations to high-profile raids meant to deter migrants from coming to the United States.  An ICE spokeswoman said the agency does not “confirm or deny the existence of specific ongoing or future law enforcement actions.” The spokeswoman said immigrants who arrived illegally after Jan. 1, 2014 are priorities for removal. Federal resources were strained in 2014 under a wave of illegal migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, especially women and children fleeing violence in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala. The planned new raids are in response to a renewed surge of illegal entries by Central American women traveling with their children.  From October 2015 through March 2016, the U.S. Border Patrol apprehended more than 32,000 family “units”, defined as mothers and children traveling together, for crossing illegally into the United States. Over the same period in 2014-2015, there were about 14,000 such apprehensions; in 2013-2014, about 19,800. (Graphic on immigration patterns of Central American migrants: tmsnrt.rs/1qglGZG) Many of those apprehended for unlawful entry are put into deportation proceedings in court but do not show up for their scheduled appearance before a judge or ignore court orders to leave the country. The surge in illegal border crossings has put Obama in a tough spot in a presidential election year in which he wants to see a fellow Democrat elected as his successor.   Obama has said criminal immigrants and those who have recently entered the country are priorities for deportation. He is regularly hammered by Republicans over the presence of more than 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country.  But Hispanic-Americans tend to vote for Democrats, who are more sympathetic to the plight of the undocumented. Clinton raised concerns about the January raids at the time, saying they had “sown fear and division in immigrant communities.” The presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has pledged to build a wall along the Mexican border to prevent illegal immigration. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson told a U.S. Senate panel in March that the January raids had helped to deter Central Americans from migrating illegally. Border Patrol reported fewer illegal entries between January and March 2016 compared to October and December 2015, but there were more apprehended than over the same time period in early 2015. A separate document seen by Reuters said Johnson was concerned about the most recent uptick in border crossings.  Immigration advocates say they have asked Johnson to abandon plans for future raids. “Raids are not the answer,” said Marielena Hincapie, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, a legal aide and advocacy group for migrants. “This is a humanitarian challenge,” she said.

Summary: एक्सक्लूसिवः अमेरिका आप्रवासी निर्वासन छापों की नई लहर की योजना बना रहा है


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Shortly after his inauguration, U.S. President Donald Trump urged Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto to stop saying Mexico would not pay for a border wall, according to a transcript of a call between the two leaders published by the Washington Post on Thursday.  The Post also published a transcript of a contentious call between Trump and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, in which the two leaders tangled over an agreement for the United States to accept as many 1,250 refugees held in Australia. (For the transcripts, see: wapo.st/2v2KGrp) Here  are some highlights of Trump’s reported comments during the calls: Jan. 27 Trump call with Pena Nieto - Trump threatens to end talks with Mexico, if Pena Nieto continues to say Mexico will not pay for wall “We cannot say that anymore because if you are going to say that Mexico is not going to pay for the wall, then I do not want to meet with you guys anymore because I cannot live with that. I am willing to say that we will work it out, but that means it will come out in the wash and that is okay. But you cannot say anymore that the United States is going to pay for the wall,” Trump said. - Trump tells Pena Nieto that the United States has a very good trade relationship with Canada “Well, Canada is no problem – do not worry about Canada, do not even think about them. That is a separate thing and they are fine and we have had a very fair relationship with Canada. It has been much more balanced and much more fair. So we do not have to worry about Canada, we do not even think about them,” Trump said. - Trump tells Pena Nieto that Mexico has some “tough hombres” “You have some pretty tough hombres in Mexico that you may need help with, and we are willing to help you with that big-league. But they have to be knocked out and you have not done a good job of knocking them out,” Trump said. “So we have to work together to knock that out. And I know this is a tough group of people, and maybe your military is afraid of them, but our military is not afraid of them, and we will help you with that 100 percent because it is out of control – totally out of control,” he said. - Trump talks to Pena Nieto about the importance of the wall “Believe it or not, this is the least important thing that we are talking about, but politically this might be the most important talk about,” Trump said. - Trump on New Hampshire “And we have the drug lords in Mexico that are knocking the hell out of our country. They are sending drugs to Chicago, Los Angeles, and to New York. Up in New Hampshire – I won New Hampshire because New Hampshire is a drug-infested den – is coming from the southern border,” Trump said. Jan. 28 Trump call with Turnbull - Trump blasts refugee agreement “And I am saying, boy that will make us look awfully bad. Here I am calling for a ban where I am not letting anybody in and we take 2,000 people. Really it looks like 2,000 people that Australia does not want and I do not blame you by the way, but the United States has become like a dumping ground,” Trump said. “This is going to kill me. I am the world’s greatest person that does not want to let people into the country. And now I am agreeing to take 2,000 people and I agree I can vet them, but that puts me in a bad position. It makes me look so bad and I have only been here a week,” Trump said. “I will say I hate it. Look, I spoke to Putin, Merkel, Abe of Japan, to France today, and this was my most unpleasant call because I will be honest with you. I hate taking these people. I guarantee you they are bad. That is why they are in prison right now. They are not going to be wonderful people who go on to work for the local milk people,” Trump said. “I have had it. I have been making these calls all day and this is the most unpleasant call all day. Putin was a pleasant call. This is ridiculous,” Trump said.

Summary: फैक्टबॉक्सः मेक्सिको, ऑस्ट्रेलिया के नेताओं के साथ ट्रम्प की बातचीत की मुख्य बातें


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed former congressman Mark Green as President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the U.S. Agency for International Development at a time the administration is proposing cuts in foreign aid and a reorganization of the agency. Green was a Republican U.S. representative from Wisconsin from 1999 to 2007, ambassador to Tanzania under former President George W. Bush, and president of the International Republican Institute, where he sought to promote democracy and governance overseas. His term at the main U.S. aid agency starts amid Trump administration plans for a 31 percent cut in the budget of USAID and the State Department, a major refugee crisis spilling into Europe and the Middle East from wars in Syria and Iraq, and famine and drought in parts of Africa that have displaced tens of thousands of people. The agency announced on Thursday the second round of funding for more drought-stricken countries in Africa. Green’s appointment has been widely applauded by development experts and aid groups. “Green’s confirmation is a sign of hope that if we are entering a period of triage when it comes to many USAID programs, we will at least have a responsible actor overseeing this difficult and fraught process, and hopefully one who will stand firm on behalf of his agency’s critical mission,” said Scott Morris, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development and a former U.S. Treasury official. Abby Maxman, president of the Oxfam America development group, said Green had a long track record in international development that was needed at a time of “unprecedented global crisis from refugees to hunger and climate changes.”

Summary: सीनेट ने नए यू. एस. ए. आई. डी. प्रशासक मार्क ग्रीन की पुष्टि की


BAGHDAD/KIRKUK (Reuters) - The Baghdad government recaptured territory from Kurds across the breadth of northern Iraq on Tuesday, making startlingly rapid gains in a sudden campaign that has shifted the balance of power in the country almost overnight. In the second day of a lightning government advance to take back towns and countryside from forces of the Kurdish autonomous region, Kurdish troops known as Peshmerga pulled out of the long disputed Khanaqin area near the Iranian border. Government troops took control of the last two oilfields in the vicinity of Kirkuk, an oil city of 1 million people which the Peshmerga abandoned the previous day in the face of the government forces  advance. A Yazidi group allied to Baghdad also took control of the town of Sinjar. Baghdad s military operation has redrawn the map of northern Iraq, rolling back gains by the Kurds who infuriated Baghdad last month by holding a referendum on independence. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Tuesday the referendum  is finished and has become a thing of the past . Addressing a news conference in Baghdad, he called for a dialogue with Kurdish leaders  under the constitution . Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) President Masoud Barzani said the vote for independence  won t be in vain . He did not call for dialogue, but added,  Kurds have always been against waging wars and have worked in pursuit of peace.  The KRG governs three mountainous northern provinces making up the autonomous region. It has also held a wide crescent of additional territory in northern Iraq, much of which they seized after helping drive out Islamic State militants since 2014. Abadi ordered his troops on Monday to raise their flag over all Kurdish-held territory outside the autonomous region itself. They achieved a swift victory in Kirkuk, reaching the center of the city in less than a day. The fighting in one of Iraq s main oil-producing areas has helped return a risk premium to oil prices. After months of range-bound trading, benchmark Brent crude is now above $58 a barrel, up almost a third from its mid-year levels.  Oil officials in Baghdad said all the fields near Kirkuk were working normally on Tuesday after the last came under central government control. Kirkuk, situated just outside the KRG autonomous region, is the base of Iraq s Northern Oil Company, one of the two giant state energy firms that provide nearly all government revenue. Oil minister Jabar al-Luaibi said Baghdad would now try to nearly double the output of the Kirkuk oil fields to more than 1 million barrels per day. The Iraqi army advances create a dilemma for Washington, which has armed and trained both sides in its successful campaign to drive Islamic State insurgents out of Iraq.  We don t like the fact that they re clashing,  U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday.  We ve had for many years a very good relationship with the Kurds as you know, and we ve also been on the side of Iraq.  So far most of the advances appear to have come unopposed, with Kurds withdrawing before government forces move in. There have been reports of just one serious battle, in the early hours of Monday on the outskirts of Kirkuk. The U.S. military said on Tuesday it had received mixed accounts of the death toll in that clash, with between three and 11 combatants killed. The International Committee of the Red Cross said the transfer of control appeared to have taken place with a minimum of fighting, with the number of wounded no higher than in the dozens. ICRC regional deputy director Patrick Hamilton told Reuters that he was concerned roads were closed, especially access to Mosul, the former Islamic State urban battlefield where hundreds of thousands of people still depend on aid. In Kirkuk, one of Iraq s most diverse cities, members of the Turkmen ethnic group who opposed Kurdish rule celebrated on Monday, driving through the streets firing weapons in the air. By Tuesday, the once ubiquitous green, red and white Kurdish flag with a blazing yellow sun had vanished from the streets. U.S.-trained Iraqi special forces and local police patrolled to maintain order. Markets, shops and schools were open as normal. Some Kurdish families who had left the city on Monday were already returning home. They said thousands of Kurdish fighters in convoys formed a long queue in efforts to flee Kirkuk towards the Kurdish regional capital Erbil, clogging the road and making it difficult for civilians to leave. For the Kurds, the loss of territory, particularly Kirkuk, which Kurdish folklore views as the heart of their homeland, is a severe blow just three weeks after they voted to declare the independent state that had been their goal for decades.  Our leaders abandoned us in the middle of nowhere. Our future is dark,  said retired Kirkuk teacher Malla Bakhtiyar. He said he tried to escape on Monday but returned with his wife and sons after an Arab neighbor phoned, begging him not to leave and assuring him the city was safe. University lecturer Salar Othman Ameen blamed the Kurdish authorities for calling the independence referendum prematurely.  We feel broken now. The referendum was a catastrophic decision ... Our Kurdish leadership was supposed to think of the consequences before moving along with independence vote. Now we have lost what we have achieved over three decades.  The setbacks led to recriminations among the two main Kurdish political parties - the KDP and PUK, which each control separate units of Peshmerga. Barzani said political rivals had ordered the withdrawal of Kurdish forces from Kirkuk, and officials in his KDP accused the PUK of his long-time rival Jalal Talabani of  treason  for abandoning the city.  Talabani, who served as ceremonial Iraqi president in Baghdad from 2003 to 2014, died two weeks ago. His widow denied blame for the fall of Kirkuk and said her party had tried to avert the advance through contact with U.S. and Iraqi officials.   The advances were a second resounding triumph for Abadi, the soft-spoken Iraqi prime minister, months after his forces recaptured Mosul from Islamic State. Abadi had faced threats from Iran-backed Shi ite armed groups to take matters into their own hands if he did not act decisively to take on the Kurds.  If elections were held tomorrow, I would vote with 10 fingers for Abadi. He succeeded in keeping Iraq a single state,  said Adel Abdul Kareem, a Baghdad lawyer.  When Kurdish leaders were threatening Baghdad, Abadi was always smiling. We did not expect he was hiding a tornado behind this smile. He proved he was a smart leader, and with his wisdom he won against Masoud (Barzani) with a knockout in the second round.  For the Kurds, the loss of Kirkuk restores the status quo in place before they seized it in 2014, which saw their self-ruled region prosper under an Iraqi constitution that guaranteed them a fixed percentage of Iraq s total oil income. Control of Kirkuk and its oil had made it seem more plausible for them to break away; without it, independence is problematic, since they would be financially worse off than inside Iraq with a share of its overall oil income.

Summary: इराक सरकार के आगे बढ़ने के कारण कुर्दों ने अपना क्षेत्र छोड़ दिया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday the actions of his former national security adviser Michael Flynn after the 2016 election were “lawful”. Flynn on Friday pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and agreed to cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible collusion between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential election campaign. “I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI. He has pled guilty to those lies. It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!” Trump said in a tweet.

Summary: ट्रंप ने कहा, राष्ट्रपति बनने के दौरान फ्लिन की हरकतें 'वैध' थीं


CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela s doctors, fed up with what they called the World Health Organization s passive attitude toward the country s deep medical crisis, protested at the agency s Caracas office on Monday to demand more pressure on the government and additional assistance. Venezuela is suffering from a roughly 85 percent shortage of medicines, decrepit hospital infrastructure, and an exodus of doctors during a brutal recession. Once-controlled diseases like diphtheria and measles have returned due in part to insufficient vaccines and antibiotics, while Venezuelans suffering chronic illnesses like cancer or diabetes often have to forgo treatment. Malnutrition is also rising, doctors say. Rare government data published in May showed maternal mortality shot up 65 percent while malaria cases jumped 76 percent. The former health minister was fired shortly after the bulletin s publication, and it has not been issued since. In the latest protest by an umbrella group of health associations, dozens of doctors and activists gathered at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the WHO s regional office, urging the agency step up pressure on Nicolas Maduro s leftist government and provide more aid during its 29th Pan American Sanitary Conference this week.  There s been a complicit attitude because they haven t denounced things,  Dr. Rafael Muci said during the rally.  This is an unlivable country, and no one is paying attention,  he said, adding he earns about $8 a month at a state hospital. In a statement on Monday, PAHO stressed its main role was to provide  technical cooperation  and highlighted recent help in providing vaccines. The Venezuelan government, which accuses activists of whipping up panic and the business elite of hiding medicines, did not respond to a request for comment. Venezuelans seeking certain drugs often have to scour pharmacies, seek foreign donations or turn to social media.  Sociologist Maria Angelica Casanova, 51, has struggled to find psychiatric medicines for a year.  Sometimes they come, sometimes they don t. It s serious,  she said, as passers-by shouted  Down with Maduro!  Measles, which were controlled after a mass immunization in the 1990s, has returned to Venezuela s jungle state of Bolivar, PAHO data show. As the crisis stokes emigration, Venezuela s health problems could be exported, doctors warned.  We don t know how many people who are emigrating could have some of these pathogens in incubation period,  said Andres Barreto, an epidemiologist who had participated in the measles vaccination drive.

Summary: वेनेजुएला के डॉक्टरों ने विरोध में स्वास्थ्य संकट पर डब्ल्यूएचओ के मजबूत रुख का आग्रह किया


NAIROBI (Reuters) - The Kenyan parliament passed an amendment on Wednesday to the country s election laws, saying that if one candidate withdraws from a repeat presidential election, the other one would automatically win.  The amendment was heavily criticized by the opposition, whose legislators boycotted the vote. Opposition leader Raila Odinga withdrew from a repeat presidential vote scheduled for Oct. 26 on Tuesday, citing concerns over fairness and transparency. The law must now be signed by the president.

Summary: केन्या की संसद ने विवादास्पद चुनाव कानून संशोधन पारित किया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives introduced a new version of a Russia and Iran sanctions bill on Wednesday, hoping to send a message to President Donald Trump to maintain a strong line against Moscow. Seeking to force Republican House leaders to allow a vote, Democrats on the House Foreign Affairs Committee introduced legislation unchanged from what passed the Senate by 98-2 on June 15 but has been stalled ever since. While the new bill is identical to what the Senate passed, it will be labeled as House legislation to avoid a procedural issue that prompted House Republican leaders to send the measure back to the Senate. However, there was no sign of support from Trump’s fellow Republicans, who control majorities in both the House and the Senate and control what legislation comes up for a vote. AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan, dismissed the Democrats’ action as “grandstanding.” The measure was introduced by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Representatives Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 House Democrat, and Eliot Engel, the ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Democrats have accused House Republicans of stalling the sanctions package because of Trump administration concern about provisions setting up a process for Congress to approve any  effort by the president to ease sanctions on Russia. Trump’s attempts to mend relations with Russia have been hindered by allegations that Moscow interfered in the 2016 U.S. election and colluded with Trump’s campaign. Russia denies meddling and Trump says there was no collusion.     The issue has become even more heated since emails released Tuesday showed that Donald Trump Jr, the president’s eldest son, eagerly agreed last year to meet a woman he was told was a Russian government lawyer who might have damaging information about Hillary Clinton, the Democratic rival in the 2016 presidential election. Lawmakers and aides said news of that meeting, and the failure to disclose it, added new urgency to the push to pass the Russia package. “DILLY-DALLYING” House Republican leaders said they had not taken up the original Senate bill because it violated a constitutional requirement that all legislation affecting government revenues originate in the House, known as a “blue slip” issue. Democrats and some Republicans who backed the bill scoffed, saying the problem could have been quickly remedied. “Dilly-dallying around about the blue slip issue was just a ridiculous waste of time. We could have fixed it in five minutes,” Senator Bob Corker, the Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters. The Senate changed the bill to address that issue, but also tweaked it in a way that Democrats said weakened a provision requiring Congress to approve any effort by the president to ease sanctions on Russia. The new bill introduced on Wednesday would eliminate that change to allow House Democrats, as well as Republicans, to force a vote on a resolution of disapproval of any effort to ease Russia sanctions. “I don’t believe that having the president’s party in a position to protect him from any oversight is good policy for our country,” Hoyer told reporters. Ryan told a news conference he wants to move a strong bill regarding sanctions on Russia as quickly as possible but that the legislation still faced procedural and policy hurdles. The U.S. energy industry has been lobbying against the bill and some Republican House members, particularly from oil-producing states, have said they might want changes. The Russia sanctions legislation was written as an amendment to a bill imposing new sanctions on Iran over issues including its ballistic missile program. Besides establishing the review process, it puts into law sanctions previously imposed on Moscow via presidential executive order and introduces new sanctions.

Summary: डेमोक्रेट्स ने रूस और ईरान प्रतिबंधों पर नया विधेयक पेश किया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration is in the midst “of a full review of all U.S. policies towards Cuba,” with a focus on its human rights policies, as part of a commitment to such rights for citizens throughout the world, a White House spokesman said on Friday. White House spokesman Sean Spicer made the comment during a press conference in response to a question about whether the administration of President Donald Trump planned any policy changes toward Cuba.

Summary: ट्रम्प प्रशासन क्यूबा नीति की समीक्षा कर रहा हैः व्हाइट हाउस प्रवक्ता


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump plans to name John Rood, a senior executive at defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp and a 20-year veteran of various government roles, as undersecretary of defense for policy, the Pentagon’s No. 3 job, the White House said on Wednesday. Rood, an Arizona native, previously worked for arms maker Raytheon Inc and was a State Department and National Security Council official in the administration of former President George W. Bush. His appointment to the position, which has been vacant since the start of the Trump administration, is subject to Senate confirmation. Rood served at the Defense Department as deputy assistant secretary of defense for forces policy and spent 11 years as an analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency following missile programs in foreign countries. Rood was also a senior policy adviser to former Republican U.S. Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona. At Lockheed, he was senior vice president for Lockheed Martin International, where his responsibilities included managing marketing and government relationships. Army Secretary Mark Esper is a former lobbyist at Raytheon, as well as a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel.

Summary: ट्रम्प ने पेंटागन के शीर्ष नीति पद के लिए लॉकहीड के कार्यकारी रूड को चुना


BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army and its allies have taken Albu Kamal, Islamic State s last major stronghold in Syria, representing the end of Islamic State s project in the region, the army general command said on Thursday. The army said it is now fighting the last remaining IS pockets in the country s eastern desert, an army statement said.  The liberation of Albu Kamal city is very important because it signals the general fall of the terrorist Daesh organization s project in the region,  a statement from the general command said. Alongside Lebanon s Hezbollah and other Shi ite militias, and backed by Iran and Russia, the Syrian army has recently seized swathes of land from Islamic State. Albu Kamal, on the Euphrates River, is located in Syria s eastern Deir al-Zor province on the Iraqi border. On Wednesday, during the battle, Hezbollah forces entered Iraq and the Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces crossed into Syria to help capture the town, a commander in the pro-Damascus alliance told Reuters on Wednesday.

Summary: सीरियाई सेना ने सीरिया में इस्लामिक स्टेट के अंतिम गढ़ पर कब्जा कर लियाः सेना का बयान


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Public pension funds in at least seven U.S. states have invested millions of dollars in an investment fund that owns a New York hotel and pays one of President Donald Trump’s companies to run it, according to a Reuters review of public records. That arrangement could put Trump at risk of violating an obscure constitutional clause, some legal experts say.  The Trump SoHo Hotel and Condominium in Manhattan is an upscale 46-story property owned by a Los Angeles investment group, the CIM Group, through one of its real estate funds. (Read the most recent amendment to the Trump SoHo’s offering plan: tmsnrt.rs/2q3HJH8)  The possible problem for Trump lies in the fact that state- and city-run pension funds have invested in the CIM fund and pay it a few million dollars in quarterly fees to manage their investments in its portfolio, which includes the Trump SoHo, according to state investment records.  In return for marketing and managing the hotel-condo, CIM pays Trump International Hotels Management LLC 5.75 percent of the SoHo’s operating revenues annually.  That payment chain merits closer scrutiny because it could put Trump at risk of falling foul of a little-known constitutional rule prohibiting the flow of money from states to the pockets of a sitting president, five ethics and constitutional law experts interviewed by Reuters said. (Graphic on Trump SoHo payment chain: tmsnrt.rs/2pfkZ40)  No other public pension fund investments in Trump-affiliated businesses have been reported.  The White House referred comment to the Trump Organization, the parent conglomerate for Trump’s businesses, which did not respond to repeated calls and emails for comment.  While Trump turned over management of the Trump Organization in January to a trust controlled by his two elder sons, he still earns revenue from the SoHo. That’s because he still owns the businesses in the Trump Organization, including Trump International Hotels Management LLC.  Article II of the U.S. Constitution bars the president from receiving additional payments beyond his salary from state governments. This so-called “domestic emoluments clause” prohibits “any other emolument from the United States, or any of them.”  This clause and a “foreign emoluments clause” prohibiting similar payments from foreign governments have been thrust to the fore because of Trump’s vast, complicated network of businesses, which ethics experts say has created unprecedented conflicts of interest.  A group of constitutional and ethics experts have filed a lawsuit alleging Trump was violating both clauses by letting his hotels and other businesses accept payments from public officials. Trump said the suit was without merit. The lawsuit does not refer to the CIM fund.  The group’s April complaint cited dozens of violations, including foreign government leases and purchases at Trump’s properties in the United States, which have resulted in unknown amounts being paid to Trump since he was inaugurated.  The SoHo hotel-condo management contract is a significant revenue generator for Trump through his hotel management company. In 2015 and the first five months of 2016, Trump International Hotels Management LLC drew at least $3.1 million from the SoHo, and Trump received $3.3 million in income from the hotel management company, hotel records and campaign filings show. (Read the 2014 and 2015 financial statements for the Trump SoHo: tmsnrt.rs/2q3VNjP)  CIM said its policy is not to comment on its private funds, agreements, or the operations of its funds’ investments.  The state- or city-run pension funds are in California, New York, Texas, Arizona, Montana, Michigan and Missouri. They have more than 5 million members - from state lawmakers in California to teachers in Texas and police officers in New York. They include the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the nation’s largest public pension fund.  The pension funds’ money accounts for about half of the total capital CIM raised from its investors to invest in the properties in the fund, including the Trump SoHo, according to the pension funds’ financial records and SEC filings. CIM declined to disclose how many properties are in the fund.  Some of the 11 pension funds contacted by Reuters declined to comment on the payment chain between them and Trump. Others referred the question to CIM, saying their investment in the CIM fund does not give them control over its asset acquisitions.  Reuters presented its findings to six lawyers with expertise in constitutional law and emoluments issues.  One of the lawyers, David Rivkin Jr., associate White House counsel during the George H. W. Bush administration, said the public investments do not put Trump at risk of violating the Constitution.  Payments clearly related to non-official activities that “have nothing to do with the discharge of duties in office” are not emoluments, Rivkin said.  Three, however, said if Trump financially benefited from a business whose owner drew millions of dollars in fees from U.S. states - in this case CIM - this presented a serious argument for a domestic emoluments violation.  “If you take a step back and look at this transaction, it’s a payment chain from state pension funds to President Trump,” said Jed Shugerman, a law professor at Fordham University. “This looks like an emolument to me.”  Two other lawyers said the arrangement raised significant questions, but all depended on how broadly a court interpreted the constitutional clause.  “We’re in largely uncharted territory on that front given that past presidents have gone to great lengths to avoid the kinds of issues we’re now confronting,” said Brianne Gorod, chief counsel at the Constitutional Accountability Center, a Washington research organization and public advocacy law firm.  None of the 11 pension funds contacted by Reuters said they were prepared to divest from the CIM fund. For instance, the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, which has invested $225 million in the CIM fund, said it was “not our practice to comment on questions of this nature.”  One member of the Texas teachers’ pension fund, Byron Hildebrand, 61, state secretary for the Association of Texas Professional Educators, however, said he would alert teachers across his state to the pension fund’s exposure to the Trump hotel and call on the state to consider divesting.  Divesting from the CIM fund would likely force the public pension funds to sell their CIM shares at a loss, said Tom Lopez, the chief investment officer of the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pensions, one of the pension funds in the CIM fund, which is also known as a real estate partnership.  Even though the partnership’s returns on investment are overall quite strong, trying to sell interest in a 10-year-old partnership is like “trying to sell a used car,” he said.  Lopez noted that all the public funds invested in the CIM fund long before it acquired the SoHo – and long before anybody thought Trump would become president.

Summary: एक्सक्लूसिवः न्यूयॉर्क के एक होटल सौदे से पता चलता है कि कैसे कुछ सार्वजनिक पेंशन फंड ट्रम्प को समृद्ध करने में मदद करते हैं


MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia has started establishing a permanent military presence at naval and air bases in Syria, the defense minister said on Tuesday as parliament ratified a deal with Damascus to cement Russian presence in the country, the RIA news agency reported. The deal, signed on Jan. 18 will expand the Tartus naval facility, Russia s only naval foothold in the Mediterranean, and grant Russian warships access to Syrian waters and ports, Viktor Bondarev, head of the upper house security and defense committee, told RIA.  RIA news agency separately quoted Sergei Shoigu as saying:  Last week the Commander-in-Chief (President Vladimir Putin) approved the structure and the bases in Tartus and in Hmeimim (air base). We have begun forming a permanent presence there.  The Tartus naval facility, in use since the says of the Soviet Union, is too small to play host to larger warships. According to the RIA report, the agreement will allow Russia to keep 11 warships at Tartus, including nuclear vessels. The agreement will last for 49 years and could be prolonged further.  The Hmeimim air base, from which Russia has launched numerous air strikes in support of President Bashar al-Assad during his war with rebels, can now be used by Russia indefinitely, according to the deal.

Summary: रूस अपने सीरियाई ठिकानों पर स्थायी उपस्थिति स्थापित कर रहा हैः आर. आई. ए.


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration is working with Congress on amending the proposed Republican healthcare bill through talks with leaders in the House of Representatives, a White House spokesman said on Tuesday. Asked at a regular briefing if the White House was in discussions with House leadership over “shaping a major or significant managers’ amendment,” spokesman Sean Spicer said: “Yes.”  “We are obviously in talks with House leadership,” he said of the discussions.

Summary: रिपब्लिकन स्वास्थ्य विधेयक में संशोधन पर व्हाइट हाउस सांसदों के साथ काम कर रहा है


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senator John McCain suggested on Thursday that the Senate Armed Services Committee, the powerful congressional panel he chairs, may consider issuing a subpoena to make the White House’s top cyber security official testify. White House cyber security coordinator Rob Joyce did not appear before the committee on Thursday, as requested, to discuss cyber threats facing the United States. His vacant seat drew frustration from lawmakers in both parties. Senator Bill Nelson, a Democrat on the panel, urged McCain to consider a subpoena to compel Joyce to appear. “I think that needs to be discussed in committee,” McCain said. In a statement, a White House spokesman said it has been “longstanding practice” of presidents of both parties to not make White House advisers available for congressional testimony. “This practice is rooted in the separation of powers and in the confidentiality interests of the executive branch,” the spokesman said. “Officials from relevant departments and agencies are available to accommodate the committee’s legitimate oversight needs without violating the confidentiality interests that attach to White House staff.” McCain countered, however, that the absence was a “misinterpretation” of the president’s executive authority to have private counsel. Several other senators expressed frustration at Joyce’s absence.  “The empty chair is outrageous,” Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill said. “I am disgusted there is not a representative here.”

Summary: सीनेटर मैक्केन ने व्हाइट हाउस के साइबर सहायक को गवाही देने के लिए सम्मन देने का सुझाव दिया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration will make cost-sharing payments to insurance companies under Obamacare for August, a White House spokesman said on Wednesday, but the announcement did little to quell long-term concerns about the insurance market. President Donald Trump, a Republican, has repeatedly threatened to stop the payments, which are made directly to insurance companies to help cover out-of-pocket medical expenses for low-income Americans enrolled in individual healthcare plans under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The payments are estimated to amount to $7 billion in 2017.  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also said on Wednesday that two counties were projected to have no insurer in 2018 selling plans on the individual market created under former Democratic President Barack Obama’s healthcare policy, down from 40 earlier this year.  Both announcements could bring some short-term stability to insurance markets, but the long-term outlook is uncertain, said Cynthia Cox, policy researcher and associate director at the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation. Over the past several months, Trump and Republicans lawmakers who control both chambers of Congress, regularly pointed to the number of expected so-called bare counties in 2018 to argue for a bill repealing and replacing Obamacare. Insurers are still unsure whether Republicans will again try to repeal or replace the law when they return in September from a recess and whether the Trump administration will permanently make the insurer payments. They also do not know whether the administration will enforce a requirement of the ACA that all Americans buy health insurance or else pay a fine. It is unclear whether the federal government played a role in providing incentives to insurers to offer plans in bare counties, many of which were at risk because Anthem Inc, one of the largest remaining Obamacare insurers, pared back its offerings in several states, said Cox. State officials and insurance commissioners have worked to provide incentives and Centene Corp has filled in many of the gaps. “Health plans have been working hard with insurance commissioners and state leaders to ensure that Americans who buy their own coverage have options that are as affordable as possible,” said Kristine Grow, spokeswoman for insurer lobbying group, America’s Health Insurance Plans. “This is a demonstration of that commitment.” The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday estimated that health insurance premiums for many customers on the Obamacare individual insurance markets would be 20 percent higher in 2018 if Trump stopped the insurer payments.

Summary: स्वास्थ्य बीमाकर्ताओं को अगस्त में खर्च साझा करने का भुगतान करेंगे ट्रम्प


TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that Tehran and Moscow must step up cooperation to isolate the United States and help stabilize the Middle East, state TV reported. Iran and Russia are the main allies of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while the United States, Turkey and most Arab states support rebel groups fighting to overthrow him. Putin met Iranian political leaders in an effort to nurture a warming relationship strengthened since U.S. President Donald Trump threatened recently to abandon the international nuclear deal with Iran reached in 2015.  Our cooperation can isolate America ... The failure of U.S.-backed terrorists in Syria cannot be denied but Americans continue their plots,  Khamenei told Putin, according to Iranian state television. Since Russia s military intervention in Syria s war in 2015, and with stepped-up Iranian military assistance, Assad has taken back large amounts of territory from rebels as well as swathes of central and eastern Syria from Islamic State militants. Moscow is now trying to build on that success with a new diplomatic initiative, including a congress of Syria s rival parties it plans in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Nov. 18, though a major opposition bloc has refused to take part. Pragmatist Iranian President Hassan Rouhani echoed Khamenei, saying Iran and Russia together could tackle  regional terrorism  - an allusion to Sunni Muslim armed groups hostile to Iran, Assad and many other Arab states.  Our cooperation has helped the fight against terrorism in the region ... Together we can establish regional peace and security,  Rouhani said in a televised joint press conference with Putin and Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, who took part in a three-way summit in Tehran. The rapprochement between Iran and Russia is worrying for both Saudi Arabia, Shi ite Muslim Tehran s main Sunni rival for dominance in the Middle East, and the United States. Putin praised cooperation with Iran as  very productive .   We are managing to coordinate our positions on the Syrian issue,  Putin said. Moscow is also an important ally for Iran in its renewed confrontation with the United States, where Trump broke ranks with major allies on Oct. 13 by de-certifying Tehran s nuclear deal with six world powers including Washington under his predecessor Barack Obama.  Trump has called the agreement  the worst deal ever negotiated  and branded Iran a  terrorist nation  for involvement in conflicts in the Middle East.  We oppose any unilateral change in the multilateral nuclear deal,  Putin told Khamenei, Iranian state TV reported.  Russia has criticized Trump s disavowal of the nuclear agreement, which has opened a 60-day window for the U.S. Congress to act to reimpose economic sanctions on Iran. These were lifted under the 2015 accord in return for Tehran curbing nuclear activity of potential use in developing an atomic bomb.  This is a very important visit (by Putin) ... It shows the determination of Tehran and Moscow to deepen their strategic alliance ..., which will shape the future of the Middle East,  an Iranian official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.  Both Russia and Iran are under American pressure ... Tehran has no other choice but to rely on Moscow to ease the U.S. pressure,  said the official. Another Iranian official said Trump s hawkish Iran policy had united the Islamic Republic s often feuding leadership - split into hardline conservative, pragmatist and reformist factions - in alignment with Russia.  During Putin s visit, Russian oil producer Rosneft and the National Iranian Oil Company agreed an outline deal to work on a number of  strategic  projects in Iran together worth up to $30 billion. The deal appeared to dovetail with Putin s strategy to reassert Russian political and economic influence in the Middle East that faded after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

Summary: खामेनेई का कहना है कि ईरान, रूस को अमेरिका को अलग-थलग करने, मध्य पूर्व में स्थिरता को बढ़ावा देने के लिए सहयोग करना चाहिए


BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany s intelligence service has published the details of social network profiles which it says are fronts faked by Chinese intelligence to gather personal information about German officials and politicians. The BfV domestic intelligence service took the unusual step of naming individual profiles it says are fake and fake organizations to warn public officials about the risk of leaking valuable personal information via social media.  Chinese intelligence services are active on networks like LinkedIn and have been trying for a while to extract information and find intelligence sources in this way,  including seeking data on users  habits, hobbies and political interests, they said. Nine months of research had found that more than 10,000 German citizens had been contacted on the LinkedIn professional networking site by fake profiles disguised as headhunters, consultants, think-tankers or scholars, the BfV said.  There could be a large number of target individuals and fake profiles that have not yet been identified,  they added. Speaking in Beijing on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said the accusations were baseless.  We hope the relevant German organizations, particularly government departments, can speak and act more responsibly, and not do things that are not beneficial to the development of bilateral relations,  Lu said. Among the faked profiles whose details were published were that of  Rachel Li , identified as a  headhunter  at  RiseHR , and an  Alex Li , a  Project Manager at Center for Sino-Europe Development Studies . Many of the profile pictures show stylish and visually appealing young men and women. The picture of  Laeticia Chen , a manager at the  China Center of International Politics and Economy  was nicked from an online fashion catalogue, an official said. A Reuters review of the profiles showed that some were connected to senior diplomats and politicians from several European countries. There was no way to establish whether contacts had taken place beyond the initial social media  add . The warning reflects growing concern in European and western intelligence circles at Chinese covert activities in their countries and follows warnings from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency over attempts by the economic giant s security services to recruit U.S. citizens as agents. The BfV invited concerned users to contact them if they encountered social media profiles that seemed suspect.

Summary: जर्मन खुफिया ने कथित गुप्त चीनी सोशल मीडिया प्रोफाइल का खुलासा किया