Geopolitical News from the modern world

Monthly archive

Maggio 2018

Trump claims North Korea summit could be delayed

in ASIA/POLITICS by

After days of touting success in managing to bring the leader of the rogue nuclear regime to the table for negotiations over the end of his nuclear weapons program, now the U.S. President Donald Trump has hinted at the possibility that the planned summit may fall through. The historic summit between the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the U.S. President was scheduled to take place in Singapore on June 12. However, in recent weeks, the diplomatic overture took a turn for the worse after North Korea cancelled planned talks with South Korea and even threatened to cancel the meeting with Trump over Seoul’s military drills with the U.S. North Korea officially criticized the joint war games by U.S. and South Korean forces, throwing the Singapore summit in doubt.

U.S. meanwhile insisted that the summit would lead to unilateral North Korean surrender of its nuclear weapons programme. Trump earlier warned Kim Jong Un that if he refuses to make a deal he could face the same fate as the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, who was toppled and killed after a NATO-backed insurrection. North Korea said that it supports the “complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula” but interprets it as a gradual, phased and mutual disarmament process.

You might be interested in

China to launch 11 more BeiDou-3 satellites in 2018

in ASIA/TECHNOLOGY by

China will launch another 11 BeiDou-3 satellites by the end of 2018, adding to its domestic BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), an official said at an academic conference Wednesday. The satellites will provide initial services for countries and regions along the Belt and Road by the end of the year, said Wang Li, chairman of China Satellite Navigation System Committee.  China has already launched eight BeiDou-3 satellites. Addressing the Ninth China Satellite Navigation Conference in Harbin, capital of northeast China’s Heilongjiang province, Wang said the BeiDou system is moving to become a global service provider after offering stable and reliable time and space information for clients in the Asia-Pacific region.

Compared to earlier generation satellites, the BeiDou-3 is able to send signals that are more compatible with other satellite navigation systems and provide satellite-based augmentation, as well as search and rescue services in accordance with international standards. Its positioning accuracy has reached 2.5 to 5 meters.  The BeiDou system will coordinate with other technology, such as remote sensing, Internet, big data and cloud computing, in the future, said Wang.

You might be interested in

Spain: unaccompanied minor arrivals record, + 60%

in EUROPE/POLITICS by

The flow of unaccompanied migrant minors in Spain has increased by more than 60% in 2017. With the increase in landings along the Western Mediterranean route, 6,414 foreign minors arrived in Spain last year, 2,417 more than last year. According to government data, referring only to children housed in structures and reception centers in the various regions, one third of the total recorded in the last four years was hosted in Andalusia. The report ‘Los mas solos’, (The loneliest), by the NGO Save The Children, denounces the flaws in the system of reception, protection and integration of migrant children and adolescents who arrive alone in the country. The figures for unaccompanied minors include only those who have come into contact with public authorities and for whom the minority has been certified. It remains outside the statistics who, instead, decides to be passed as adults, not to end up in reception centers, and those who voluntarily abandoned the structures.

Despite the significant increase in landings in the last 4 years, only a hundred migrant minors have asked asylum and only 31 have obtained it, according to data from the Ministry of the Interior mentioned in the report. Which means that one in 3 requests is rejected. Originally, the Moroccans have always been the most numerous, followed by the Algerians, the Syrians only in 2014 were the second largest community. Without educational and employment policies, these very young are condemned to precariousness and social exclusion. And from the day they turn 18 and remain unprotected and no support from the administration, as stated by Save The Children.

You might be interested in

Germans prosecutors push for Puigdemont extradition

in EUROPE/POLITICS by

German prosecutors are preparing the paperwork to extradite former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont back to Spain on charges of rebellion and disturbance of the peace. A German court ruled on 22.5.2018 that Puigdemont, who was detained by German police in March, cannot be rearrested because he does not pose a flight risk. However, the state’s prosecutors want to send the former regional president back to Spain in the light of new video evidence which they say shows “violence perpetrated against the Spanish police forces.”

 

You might be interested in

Wang Yi champions multilateralism at G20 meeting

in ASIA/POLITICS by

Upholding multilateralism, improving global governance and creating a community of shared interests are in line with the trend of the times and the common interests of all nations, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here Monday.  Wang made the remarks while addressing the 2018 G20 Meeting of Foreign Affairs Ministers scheduled for Sunday through Monday. Welcoming the creation and development of the G20 as a new manifestation of multilateralism and an important advancement in the reform of global governance, Wang said that discussing issues concerning multilateralism and global governance is of great importance at a time when the G20 summit enters its 10th year. The G20 members, Wang added, should jointly build a community of shared future for mankind, and improve the global governance system under the guidance of reform.

You might be interested in

U.S., South Korea hold talks to soothe North Korea tensions

in ASIA/POLITICS by

After North Korea threatened to pull out of the high-level talks between Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, which are scheduled to be held on June 12 in Singapore – U.S. and South Korea huddled up to discuss the future course of action. Today, the South Korean President Moon Jae In and Trump reportedly held discussions to ensure that the North Korea-U.S. summit remains on track. South Korea’s presidential office said in a statement that Jae In and Trump spoke over the phone for about 20 minutes, reportedly exchanging their views on North Korea’s recent reactions. The presidential official said, “The two leaders will work closely and unwaveringly for the successful hosting of the North Korea-U.S. summit set on June 12, including the upcoming South Korea-U.S. summit.” On Tuesday, Jae In and Trump are set to meet in Washington – in a meeting that was planned to be a prelude to the historic summit that is scheduled to be held between North Korea and the U.S.North Korea has showed a dramatic change in tone. Putting weeks of Korean diplomacy in jeopardy, North Korea thrashed Seoul, calling it “ignorant and incompetent.”

You might be interested in

Germany to roll out mass golding centres for asylum seekers

in EUROPE/POLITICS by

Germany’s policy to embed new arrivals in communities across the country is being reversed as a populist backlash builds against the chancellor’s handling of the refugee crisis. But the transit centre in Manching  has experienced high crime rates, mass protests and rising tensions between asylum seekers and security forces, the Guardian found during a visit.The converted army compound is part of a complex in Upper Bavaria and holds about 1,100 people, mainly from the west Balkans, Ukraine, Nigeria and Afghanistan.  Critics say the new centres create a double-bind on those inmates at the transit centres who have realistic chances of being granted asylum: while they are actively hindered from integrating into German society while their application is pending, they are expected to immediately integrate as soon as they get the all-clear.

Protests about seemingly small issues like food are often actually protests about the conditions in these centres as a whole. The main source of troubles is that the people inside have no perspective and aren’t allowed to work. The inability of the migrants inside the centre to engage themselves in the community was also stoking resentment and prejudice among the local population.

You might be interested in

China launches relay satellite to explore Moon’s far side

in ASIA/TECHNOLOGY by

China launched a relay satellite to set up a communication link between Earth and the planned Chang’e-4 lunar probe that will explore the Moon’s mysterious far side. The satellite was carried by a Long March-4C rocket that blasted off at 5:28 am (2128 GMT) from southwest China’s Xichang Satellite Launch Center, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The satellite, named Queqiao, or Magpie Bridge, was developed by China Spacesat Co., Ltd. under the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST).  “The launch is a key step for China to realize its goal of being the first country to send a probe to soft-land on and rove the far side of the Moon,” said Zhang Lihua, manager of the relay satellite project.

About 25 minutes after lift-off, the satellite separated from the rocket and entered an Earth-Moon transfer orbit with the perigee at 200 km and the apogee at about 400,000 km. Meanwhile, the solar panels and the communication antennas were unfolded. China has outlined an ambitious blueprint for deep space exploration, including the Chang’e-5 lunar probe in 2019.  After fulfilling the three steps of its lunar probe program — orbiting, landing and returning — China will further explore the Moon, including landing and probing the polar regions, said Tian Yulong, CNSA secretary general.  China will launch its first Mars probe in 2020, and it is expected to orbit, land and put a rover on the Red Planet.

You might be interested in

Two Koreas to hold talks as North prepares to shut test site

in ASIA/POLITICS by

The South and North will hold a high-level inter-Korea meeting on May 16 in the Peace House in Panmunjom, to discuss the implementation of ‘Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity, and Unification of the Korean Peninsula,” several media reports quoted the Unification Ministry, as saying, in a statement. The two sides are likely to discuss measures related to the implementation of agreements reached at the intra-Korean summit in April. The meet is scheduled at the border village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ), the world’s most heavily guarded border, separating the two countries. According to several media reports, Wednesday’s inter-Korea talks will see North Korea send a 29-member delegation led by Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the ‘Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the country’. From South Korea, Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon will lead a team of five.

This comes ahead of North Korea’s scheduled dismantlement of its nuclear test site later this month in a bid to uphold its previous pledge to discontinue nuclear tests. A ceremony for the dismantling of the facility reportedly has been scheduled between May 23-25. It is pertinent to mention that the announcement of the dismantlement of the nuclear test site came after US President Donald Trump announced that he will hold a meet with Kim Jong-un in Singapore on June 12.

You might be interested in

Merkel defends the increase of military spending in Germany to 2% of GDP

in ECONOMY/EUROPE by

Germany will increase its military spending to 2% of the GDP. Germany will adapt in this way to what Donad Trump has asked for in NATO since he arrived at the White House, despite the fact that the Berlin government continues to describe as “errors” several of the US military decisions, such as the abandonment of the nuclear pact agreement with Iran. Merkel, who did not advance specific deadlines for these increases in defense spending, reassured with these statements certain concerns arising from the German general budgets for 2018.

After the presentation of the budgets of 2018, the Minister of Defense Ursula von der Leyen did not hide her disappointment and had requested by letter to the heads of Finance of her Government an increase of the budgetary allocation of her department. The Minister of Finance, the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz, seems to have imposed his discretion on military spending and the conservative von der Leyen has acknowledged that, in that case, Germany will have to put an end to the missions abroad that it has carried out in recent years and focus on defense inside the country.

You might be interested in

1 2 3 … 5
pressrelease
0 £0.00
Go to Top