Both the United States and Britain issued advisories Saturday to their citizens, urging them to leave Afghanistan immediately using commercial flight options.“Given the security conditions and reduced staffing, the Embassy’s ability to assist U.S. citizens in Afghanistan is extremely limited even within Kabul,” a statement issued by the U.S. Embassy in Kabul said.The advisories are consistent with past positions of both countries.In April, the U.S. ordered all embassy staff that can work from elsewhere out of the country.“We have been consistently clear that the security situation is uncertain,” a British Embassy spokesman said. Violence in Afghanistan has steadily increased since the announcement that foreign forces were going to withdraw from the country.UN Envoy: Afghanistan War in ‘Deadlier, More Destructive Phase’Calls for Security Council action come as Taliban make military gains around countryThe Taliban has attacked several parts of the country and nearly doubled the territory under its control, including overrunning several key border crossings.Targeted killings of journalists, human rights activists, and government officials also have skyrocketed. Dawa Khan Menapal, the director of the Government Media and Information Center (GMIC), was assassinated during Friday prayers in Kabul.Fighting continues to rage in several Afghan cities. On Friday, the Taliban took over Zaranj, the first provincial capital to fall to the militants since the withdrawal of foreign forces.On Saturday Taliban militants overran a second provincial capital, Sheberghan, in Jawzjan province, after weeks of clashes and heavy fighting. The city is home to Afghanistan’s highest ranking military officer, former warlord Marshall Abdul Rashid Dostum. Social media videos showed prisoners escaping Jawzjan prison as heavy fighting raged around the city.Meanwhile, in Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province, Afghan security forces have wrested control of the city center from the Taliban after intense fighting and heavy airstrikes that killed many civilians and damaged the city’s infrastructure.The U.S. Embassy in Kabul issued a press release Saturday afternoon, condemning the Taliban offensive against cities and calling on the militants to agree to cease-fire and engage in peace negotiations. “These Taliban actions to forcibly impose its rule are unacceptable and contradict its claim to support a negotiated settlement in the Doha peace process. They demonstrate wanton disregard for the welfare and rights of civilians and will worsen this country’s humanitarian crisis,” the release said. In a statement Friday to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the head of the U.N. Mission on Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, said at least 104 civilians were killed in the Lashkar Gah fighting in the last 10 days alone, as recorded by the city’s two main hospitals. “In the past weeks, the war in Afghanistan has entered a new, deadlier and more destructive phase,” she said. Videos shared on social media showed the city’s market in flames.The Taliban issued a statement reassuring former civil servants and government employees, “including those who worked in the security sector in Nimruz and other provinces,” that they were safe and should not try to flee.News of alleged Taliban atrocities in other parts of the country, however, have forced many to try to escape. A large number of people from Nimruz tried to cross over into Iran, which borders the province, but they were turned back by Iranian border guards.Lyons warned that the war was “reminiscent of Syria recently or Sarajevo in the not-so-distant past,” and she said that without the UNSC’s support, the country could descend “into a situation of catastrophe so serious that it would have few, if any, parallels in this century.”
…
Month: August 2021
Vietnamese Laud Improved Relations with US, Tentative on Biden
A handful of Vietnamese interviewed during U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s recent visit here expressed support for the apparently warming relations between the two countries.Austin met with Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc during his visit, and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will be in Vietnam and Singapore this month on a trip, the White House said, during which she “will engage the leaders of both governments on issues of mutual interest, including regional security, the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and our joint efforts to promote a rules-based international order.”Thanh Thanh, who studies international relations in Hanoi, said that in the 25 years since normalization, Vietnam-U.S. relations have generally been stable and developed, and said she expected that to continue.“In the context of Vietnam and Southeast Asia in general playing an important role in the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy, I think, looking forward, the two countries will continue to try to maintain peace to ensure the interests of both sides,” she told VOA on July 29.For those who benefit from the bilateral ties, a good relationship between Vietnam and the U.S. makes sense.Duong Thi Thu Thuy, a Vietnamese who was born in the 1970s and now works with a U.S. medical technology firm that is developing a laser therapy clinic system in Vietnam, looked forward to Austin’s visit with anticipation.“Through social media and my friends, I knew that the U.S. secretary of defense, Mr. Lloyd Austin, would visit Vietnam. I was very excited waiting for the day he was to come because this would be a good sign of expanding and deepening the Vietnam-U.S. relationship. Surely this is a good sign because it has been so long since the visits of former U.S. presidents,” she said.Thuy, formerly an English teacher during the 1990s and now based in Ho Chi Minh City, has reasons to support a good relationship between Vietnam and the U.S.“I have cooperated and developed products for an American factory in Vietnam. The Vietnam-U.S. relationship therefore has a good impact on our business environment. For example, it facilitates my trips to visit manufacturing factories in America, and easily learn about the American market,” she said.Many here are confident about the future of bilateral relations.“I think the relationship will develop more and more, and benefit the two countries and the people of the two in economy, culture, education and training, science and technology, etc.,” said a medical staff member, who asked not to be further identified. In addition, she said she expects her children would benefit from improved U.S.-Vietnam relations, enjoying the results of Vietnam’s international integration, such as studying in the United States or elsewhere, making friends and traveling abroad more easily.“The relationship between Vietnam and the U.S. in the past years has had a positive impact on both countries, especially when the U.S. has supported Vietnam in training high-quality health workers and providing aid to the health sector in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic,” she said.A retired worker in publishing industry also lauded the benefits of cooperation with the U.S.“U.S. technology companies such as Microsoft, Facebook, and Google have come to Vietnam. They helped the citizens, especially the youth, even in remote areas, access world civilization,” he said.In addition, he said, the presence of a Vietnamese community in the U.S. would be a reason for him to support a stronger relationship between Hanoi and Washington.“Remittances sent by Vietnamese people in the U.S. every year are significant, helping the domestic economy. We also have relatives living in the U.S., so I have realistic feelings and a deep understanding of this,” he said.Most of those people who spoke to VOA also spoke favorably about U.S. presidents, especially those who visited Vietnam, or took a specific role in important milestones in Vietnam-U.S. relations, such as former Presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump.Asked about President Joe Biden, interviewees credited him with COVID-19 vaccine donations and the recent move to resolve currency disputes with Vietnam.However, they also agreed that it is hard to comment about Vietnam-U.S. relations this early in his administration.“The relationship is stable, and there are not many significant developments,” Thanh Thanh said.Some others even see the relationship as “not much changed,” or say they are “not impressed yet.”
…
No End to Greek Inferno as Wildfires Rage Into Night
Wildfires in Greece raged into the night burning more forest and homes in the northern outskirts of Athens and other parts of the country and forcing more evacuations as more international aid was on the way.Authorities struggled with 154 wildfires across the country on Friday with the biggest fronts still burning in the north of Athens, the island of Evia and areas in the Peloponnese including Mani, Messinia and ancient Olympia, the site of the first Olympic Games.”We are facing another, more difficult night,” Deputy Civil Protection Minister Nikos Hardalias told reporters. “Wildfires of unprecedented intensity and spread, all our forces are fighting the battle day and night to save lives, together with volunteers.”In the northern part of the island of Evia near Athens, the coast guard evacuated 650 people by boat as wildfires burned through forestland all the way to the shore for the fourth day.As night approached, firefighters kept battling a continuous resurgence of blazes in the north of Athens which, fanned by strong winds, threatened to engulf the lake of Marathon and go up Mount Parnitha.Greece, like much of the rest of Europe, has been grappling with extreme weather this summer. A weeklong heatwave — its worst in 30 years — has sparked simultaneous wildfires in many parts of the country, burning homes and killing animals as flames tear through thousands of acres of land.The fire, which broke out on Tuesday, burned around the main highway linking Athens to northern Greece and hundreds of firefighters with water-bombing aircraft battled to contain it.A 38-year-old man was killed on Friday by a falling electricity pylon in a suburb north of Athens, the hospital where he was treated said.In neighboring Turkey, authorities are battling the country’s worst-ever wildfires. Flames sweeping through its southwestern coastal regions forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. In Italy, hot winds fanned flames on the island of Sicily this week.Police went door to door on Friday urging people to leave their homes north of Athens. Authorities ordered the evacuation of more suburbs in the north of Athens as the blaze advanced, burning more homes, cars and businesses.”We are witnessing a catastrophe of historic proportions and climate change is the basic cause,” said Alexis Tsipras, leader of Greece’s main political opposition. “We must support our frontline fighters and all who lost the efforts of a lifetime in a few minutes.”Fiery disasterTemperatures have been over 40 degrees Celsius all week and little let up came on Friday with high winds spreading the flames further.The Athens power grid operator announced staggered power cuts in the surrounding region to ensure there were no major outages in mainland Greece.In Gytheio in the southern Peloponnese, a coast guard vessel rescued 10 people from a beach as a blaze there flared. Locals made desperate calls for firefighting aircraft.More foreign help was on the way with Switzerland sending three helicopters, joining other countries, including France, Cyprus, Israel, Sweden and the Ukraine who sent firefighters and water-bombing aircraft, the civil protection minister said.The U.S. Navy was sending a P-8 aerial reconnaissance aircraft to support firefighting efforts.In the Peloponnese, where firefighters saved Ancient Olympia from a fire this week, the flames left behind scorched earth and dead animals.”A catastrophe,” said farmer Marinos Anastopoulos. “The fire came around midday with swirling winds and homes were burned, a lot of animals burned to death. Rabbits, sheep, dogs, everything.”
…
California Firefighters Use Break in Weather to Attack Wildfires
California firefighting crews sought to take advantage of cooler, moister air and diminished winds on Friday to make headway against a massive wildfire that has already destroyed a historic gold-rush town.The so-called Dixie Fire, which broke out on July 14 in the Sierra Nevada mountains some 257.5 kilometers north of Sacramento, had burned across 175,153 hectares as of Friday afternoon, becoming one of the largest wildfires in state history.The flames roared through the historic mining town of Greenville in on Wednesday, leaving its main street in smoldering ruins.Greenville, with a population 800, was founded more than 150 years ago when nearby gold mines attracted settlers and merchants to the picturesque town in the Indian Valley.”My defiantly quirky, beautiful adopted hometown turned into a ghost town last night,” wrote Meg Upton, a reporter for the Plumas News, in an online article.California, which typically experiences peak fire season later in the year, was on pace to suffer more burnt acreage this year than last, the worst fire season on record. Roughly 16,000 people were evacuated this week from blazes burning across five counties in the northern part of the state.California’s five largest wildfires in history have all occurred in the last three seasons, burning more than 2.5 million acres and destroying 3,700 structures.Firefighters, aided by a thick inversion layer blowing inland from the Pacific Ocean, were working to stop the advance of the flames as they moved toward the community of Quincy in Plumas County.The Dixie Fire is the largest of more than a dozen major conflagrations burning across California this week, spurred by high temperatures and brush left bone dry by years of drought.The River Fire — which started on Wednesday and has charred 1,050 hectares in Nevada and Placer Counties, destroyed 88 homes or other structures — was 30% contained on Friday morning, said Captain Robert Foxworthy of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.He said three people had been injured, including two civilians and one firefighter.
…
US Senate to Hold Key Vote on Infrastructure Bill
The U.S. Senate plans to hold a procedural vote Saturday on a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package, after a late-night session Thursday ended with no compromises.“We’ve worked long, hard and collaboratively to finish this important bipartisan bill,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said just before midnight Thursday, according to The Associated Press.”We very much want to finish,” he said in announcing a cloture vote set for Saturday at noon EDT.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks to reporters about the bipartisan infrastructure bill at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, July 28, 2021.A vote to invoke cloture would end debate on the massive bill and allow for a final vote by the Senate later Saturday or Sunday. Three-fifths of the chamber’s senators — 60 of the 100 — would need to vote to invoke cloture to advance the bill.The package, one of President Joe Biden’s top legislative priorities, would provide tens of billions of dollars to repair the country’s deteriorating roads and bridges, advance broadband internet service throughout the country, expand rail and transit services and replace lead-piped drinking water systems.Schumer, however, admonished Republicans for their actions on Thursday.”We have been trying to vote on amendments all day but have encountered numerous objections from the other side,” he said, referring to Republicans.FILE – A man holds a token featuring the symbol of a cryptocurrency at his shop in Sandy, Utah.Among the amendments discussed were a provision to tax cryptocurrency and a demand for billions of dollars in new Defense Department improvements, according to a Reuters report.For the bill to make it to the Senate floor for a final vote, at least 10 Republicans must join the 50 Democratic senators to invoke cloture, ending debate.The infrastructure bill would then be submitted to a final vote by simple majority in the Senate, likely Saturday or Sunday.If the Senate approves the measure, the House of Representatives would then consider it. Passage appears less certain in the House, where some progressive Democratic lawmakers are complaining that the spending package is too small.U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the White House in Washington, August 3, 2021.Biden has been vocal in his support for the infrastructure bill, aiming not only to describe the improvements that would be made across the U.S. but also to convince voters that major legislation can still be approved in politically fractious Washington.It includes $550 million in new spending, along with $450 billion in previously approved funds.The package includes $110 billion for roads and bridges, $39 billion for public transit, $66 billion for rail, and $55 billion for drinking water and wastewater infrastructure, as well as billions for airports, ports, broadband internet and electric vehicle charging stations.Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
…
Some Experts Concerned About Closer Ukraine-China Ties
While Ukraine’s president prepares for a visit to Washington, Kyiv is accepting COVID-19 vaccines from China and has signed a major infrastructure agreement with Beijing to cooperate on roads, bridges and railway projects. Some experts worry China is attaching strings to the ventures, as VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports.
…
About 40 Migrants Feared Dead After Boat Capsizes off Western Sahara
About 40 migrants were feared dead after a boat carrying about 50 people traveling from Western Sahara to Spain’s Canary Islands capsized, a Spanish nongovernmental organization said on Friday.”Tragedy: forty-two people, among those thirty women, eight children and four men, died when a boat capsized off the coast of Dakhla,” tweeted Helena Maleno of Caminando Fronteras, which monitors migratory flows.Official sources, quoted by the Spanish newspaper El Pais, said the number of people feared dead was 30.Maleno said 10 people survived and were picked up by fishermen.The accident happened when the migrant boat set out in bad weather on Tuesday, but details had only emerged on Friday.From Jan. 1-July 31, at least 7,531 people reached Spain’s Canary Islands from Western Africa, according to Spanish government figures, a 136% rise compared with the same period in 2020.Caminando Fronteras claims that during the first six months of 2021, 2,087 migrants died or disappeared as they tried to make the perilous voyage by sea to Spain from Western Africa.
…
Two Arrested in Alleged Plot to Injure or Kill Myanmar’s UN Ambassador
Authorities in the U.S. have arrested two Myanmar citizens residing in New York in connection with an alleged plot to kill their country’s ambassador to the United Nations, Kyaw Moe Tun, federal prosecutors say.According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York, Phyo Hein Htut concocted a plan with an arms dealer in Thailand who sells weapons to the Myanmar military. Under the plan, Phyo Hein Htut would “hire attackers to hurt the Ambassador in an attempt to force the Ambassador to step down from his post. If the Ambassador did not step down, then the Arms Dealer proposed that the attackers hired by Htut would kill the Ambassador.”The second defendant, Ye Hein Zaw, allegedly was going to send money to Phyo Hein Htut to finance the attack, which was to take place near New York City.Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to assault and make a violent attack upon a foreign official, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.Myanmar’s military, which overthrew the government of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, has been trying to remove Kyaw Moe Tun, who opposes the military junta, from his post at the U.N. and replace him. Kyaw Moe Tun told Agence France-Presse on Wednesday that his life had been threatened and that he was given additional security.In late February, Kyaw Moe Tun spoke passionately before the U.N.”We will continue to fight for a government which is of the people, by the people, for the people,” Kyaw Moe Tun said, his voice cracking. He then spoke briefly in his native Burmese to address his fellow citizens listening in Myanmar, which is also known as Burma.”I would like to request to all of you to keep on fighting,” he urged his countrymen, according to a translation of his remarks. “The revolution must succeed.”Messages seeking comment from the suspects’ lawyers were not immediately returned, The Associated Press said, and a message and phone call seeking comment were sent to the Myanmar mission to the U.N.Nearly 950 people have been killed, more than 7,000 have been arrested and 5,502 are still detained since the coup began on February 1, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), a human rights organization based in Thailand and Myanmar.Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and AFP.
…
Pause on US Student Loan Payments Extended Through January
The Biden administration on Friday announced that federal student loan payments will remain suspended through January 2022, extending a pause that began at the start of the pandemic and was scheduled to expire next month.The Education Department said this will be the final extension.Borrowers will not have to make payments on federal student loans during the moratorium, interest rates will be set at 0% and debt collection efforts will remain on pause. The suspension will expire on January 31, 2022.Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said it’s meant to give borrowers enough time to prepare for their payments to resume.”As our nation’s economy continues to recover from a deep hole, this final extension will give students and borrowers the time they need to plan for restart and ensure a smooth pathway back to repayment,” Cardona said in a statement.The Trump administration suspended federal student loan payments in March 2020 and later extended them through January 2021. President Joe Biden, soon after taking office, extended the pause through September 30.But even as the economy rebounds, there have been concerns that borrowers would not be ready to continue payments so soon. Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, N.Y., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Mass., recently pressed Biden to extend the moratorium through at least March 2022.FILE – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer attends a news conferenceat the U.S. Capitol in Washington, July 20, 2021.Schumer, Warren and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., applauded the extension in a joint statement Friday, saying it provides relief to millions of borrowers facing a “disastrous financial cliff.””The payment pause has saved the average borrower hundreds of dollars per month, allowing them to invest in their futures and support their families’ needs,” the Democrats said.The Education Department itself has raised concerns about the administrative hurdles around suddenly restarting loan payments. In a November 2020 report, the department said it would be a “heavy burden” for the government and loan servicers.In its Friday announcement, the Education Department said the final extension provides enough time to restart payments smoothly.The extension drew criticism from conservatives including Rep. Virginia Foxx, the top Republican on the House Education and Labor Committee.”I regret that Secretary Cardona did not show real leadership by working with Congress to transition responsibly the portfolio back into repayment by Oct. 1 of this year,” Foxx said in a statement. “It is nothing less than a dereliction of duty.”The Biden administration announced the relief as it faces mounting pressure from some Democrats to erase huge swaths of student debt. Schumer and Warren have urged Biden to use his authority to cancel $50,000 in student debt for all borrowers, saying it would jumpstart the economy and help families hit hard by the pandemic.But Biden has questioned whether he has the authority for that kind of mass cancellation and has asked the Education and Justice departments to study the issue. The president has supported canceling up to $10,000 in student loans, but Biden says that should be done by Congress.
…
North Korea Developing Nuclear, Missile Programs in 2021, UN Says
North Korea continued developing its nuclear and ballistic missile programs during the first half of 2021 in violation of international sanctions and despite the country’s worsening economic situation, according to an excerpt of a confidential U.N. report seen Friday by Reuters.The report by a panel of independent sanctions monitors to the U.N. Security Council’s North Korea sanctions committee said Pyongyang “continued to seek material and technology for these programs overseas.””Despite the country’s focus on its worsening economic travails, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea continued to maintain and develop its nuclear and ballistic missile programs,” the sanctions monitors concluded.North Korea is formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).North Korea’s mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the U.N. report.FILE – A student has her temperature taken as part of anti-COVID-19 procedures before entering the Pyongyang Secondary School No. 1 in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 22, 2021.The isolated Asian nation imposed a strict lockdown last year amid the coronavirus pandemic that has slashed its trade and aid access, hurting an economy already burdened by international sanctions.’Tense’ food situationIn June, leader Kim Jong Un said the country faced a “tense” food situation and much would depend on this year’s harvests.”Statements made by DPRK suggested a deepening humanitarian crisis in the country, although the COVID-19 blockade means that the relative impact of sanctions on the humanitarian situation has probably decreased,” the U.N. monitors wrote.”With trade all but stopped by the blockade, and last year’s harvest badly affected by floods, the current prospects of the wider DPRK population are poor,” they said.North Korea has been subjected to U.N. sanctions since 2006 over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The Security Council has steadily strengthened sanctions in a bid to cut off funding for the programs.Among the sanctions imposed are a ban on the export of coal and other commodities and the import of oil.”Maritime exports from DPRK of coal and other sanctioned commodities continued, but at a much-reduced level. The import of oil products reported to the panel fell substantially in the first half of the year,” according to the U.N. report.Overseas earningsPyongyang also continued to access international financial institutions, and North Korean workers continued to earn money overseas for use in state programs, said the U.N. sanctions monitors, adding: “Officials overseas continued to feel pressure to develop revenue streams.”The monitors said they were continuing to investigate North Korea’s involvement in global cyber activity and collaboration by North Korean academics and universities with scientific institutes abroad, “focusing on studies with potential applications in WMD [weapons of mass destruction] programs.”The U.N. sanctions monitors have previously reported that North Korea has stolen hundreds of millions of dollars using cyberattacks.
…
2 Capitol Rioters Enter First Guilty Pleas to Assaulting Charges
A New Jersey gym owner and a Washington state man on Friday became the first people charged in the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol to plead guilty of assaulting a law enforcement officer during the deadly siege.There are dozens of other cases in which Capitol rioters are charged with attacking police as part of an effort to halt the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election. An attorney for Scott Kevin Fairlamb, 44, a former mixed martial arts fighter who owned Fairlamb Fit gym in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, said prosecutors are seeking a sentencing guideline range of about 3½ to 4¼ years in prison. But the judge isn’t bound by that recommendation.Later Friday, the same judge in Washington, D.C., ordered Devlyn Thompson to be jailed in Seattle after he pleaded guilty of assaulting a police officer with a dangerous weapon, a baton. Thompson, 28, of Puyallup, Washington, had been free since his participation in the Capitol riot.Officers’ testimonyThe pleas came less than two weeks after a group of police officers testified at a congressional hearing about their harrowing confrontations with the mob of insurrectionists. Five officers who were at the Capitol that day have died, four of them by suicide. The Justice Department has said that rioters assaulted about 140 police officers on January 6. About 80 of them were U.S. Capitol Police officers and about 60 were from the Washington Metropolitan Police Department.Fairlamb, whose brother is a U.S. Secret Service agent, was one of the first people to breach the Capitol after other rioters smashed windows using riot shields and kicked out a locked door, according to federal prosecutors. After leaving the building, Fairlamb harassed a line of police officers, shouting in their faces and blocking their progress through the mob, prosecutors wrote in a court filing.U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth set a sentencing date of September 27 for both Thompson and Fairlamb, who has been jailed since he was arrested on January 22 at his home in Stockholm, New Jersey.Thompson wasn’t arrested after he was charged last month with one count of assaulting a Metropolitan Police officer. His attorneys said in a court filing that he has autism spectrum disorder. They cited that as a reason for keeping him out of jail while awaiting sentencing.FILE – In this Jan. 6, 2021, photo, rioters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington.It wasn’t immediately clear what prosecutors estimate the sentencing guidelines should be for Thompson’s case. Fairlamb’s lawyer, Harley Breite, said he will ask the judge for a sentence below the government’s recommended guidelines.Fairlamb’s involvement in the riot has “eviscerated large parts of his life,” his attorney said during an interview after Friday’s remote hearing. “He has lost his business. The mortgage on his home where he lives with his wife is in peril. And he has been publicly disgraced.”Breite said his client wanted to “pay the price for what he had done and then move on with his life.”‘Specific intent to obstruct’Fairlamb pleaded guilty to two counts, obstruction of an official proceeding and assaulting a Metropolitan Police officer. The counts carry a maximum of more than 20 years in prison.”As a former MMA fighter, the defendant was well aware of the injury he could have inflicted on [the officer],” prosecutors wrote. “His actions and words on that day all indicate a specific intent to obstruct a congressional proceeding through fear, intimidation and violence, including violence against uniformed police officers.”Fairlamb’s brother was one of the Secret Service agents assigned to protect first lady Michelle Obama, Breite said.Fairlamb’s social media accounts indicated that he subscribed to the QAnon conspiracy theory and promoted a bogus claim that former President Donald Trump would become the first president of “the new Republic” on March 4, prosecutors wrote.More than 560 people have been charged with federal crimes in connection with the insurrection, and authorities are still searching for hundreds more. At least 165 defendants have been charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding officers or Capitol employees, including more than 50 people charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer, the Justice Department said in July.Fairlamb and Thompson were at least the 32nd and 33rd defendants to plead guilty. Most of the others have pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges, including parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
…
Official: Offensive Coming Against Tigray Forces in Ethiopia
Ethiopia’s spreading Tigray conflict faces a fresh wave of fighting as an Amhara regional official says Amhara forces will launch an offensive on Saturday against Tigray forces who have entered the region and taken control of a town hosting a UNESCO World Heritage Site.”This is the time for the Amhara people to crush the terrorist group,” Sema Tiruneh, the Amhara region’s head of peace and security, told the regional state-affiliated Amhara Media Corporation on Friday.”Preparations have been underway to reverse these moves and an offensive will start tomorrow. Freedom doesn’t come cheap. Everyone should come forward and defend themselves.”Separately, Ethiopia’s foreign ministry warned Friday that the Tigray forces’ incursion into the Amhara and Afar regions in recent weeks “is testing the federal government’s patience and pushing it to change its defensive mood which has been taken for the sake of the unilateral humanitarian cease-fire.” The incursions have displaced some 300,000 people, it said, accusing the Tigray forces of trying to destabilize Africa’s second most populous country.FILE – A destroyed tank is seen by the side of the road south of Humera, in an area of western Tigray annexed by the Amhara region during the ongoing conflict, in Ethiopia, May 1, 2021.Ethiopia’s government is “being pushed to mobilize and deploy the entire defensive capability of the state” if overtures for a peaceful resolution to the conflict are not reciprocated, the statement said.A spokesman for the Tigray forces, Getachew Reda, could not immediately be reached for comment.Ethiopia’s government declared the cease-fire in late June during a stunning turn in the war, as its military retreated from Tigray and the resurgent Tigray forces retook key towns and walked into the regional capital, Mekele, to cheers.The conflict erupted in Tigray in November after a falling-out between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the Tigray ruling party that had dominated Ethiopia’s government for nearly three decades. Since then, thousands of people have been killed.A new offensive by the Amhara regional forces would go against the federal government’s command: “All federal and regional, civil and military institutions are ordered to respect the cease-fire,” Ethiopia said in its declaration in June.While the United Nations and United States raise the alarm about the Ethiopian government’s continuing near-complete blockade of the Tigray region and its 6 million people, the Tigray forces have vowed to secure the region and chase its “enemies” even to the capital, Addis Ababa, if needed. They have said the prime minister needs to go as one of several preconditions for talks.On Thursday the Tigray forces entered the Amhara town of Lalibela, a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its rock-hewn churches. While one resident told The Associated Press they arrived peacefully, Amhara regional spokesman Gizachew Muluneh said Friday the “terror group” that entered the town is being “routed” by the public and the Ethiopian army.FILE – Ethiopian Orthodox devotees walk between the rock-hewn churches of Saint Gabriel and Saint Raphael in Lalibela, Ethiopia, March 7, 2019. Rebels from Ethiopia’s war-hit region of Tigray swept into Lalibela on August 5, 2021.”Several of them have now surrendered,” he added. Ethiopia’s government earlier this year declared the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, a terrorist group instead of a political party.UNESCO on Friday expressed concern about the expansion of the conflict into Lalibela. “We don’t have firsthand information on any actual damage being done,” U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters.The conflict has strained living conditions for millions of Ethiopians, and more across the country now fear it will affect them.”There’s serious suffering in Tigray. [The Tigray forces] had an opportunity to stop the military offensive,” Tewodrose Tirfe with the Amhara Association of America told the AP. “Instead, they kept on pushing.” He asserted that the Tigray forces aim to create a “favorable outcome in a negotiation by creating a humanitarian crisis and holding Amhara civilians and cities hostage.”Ethiopia’s prime minister repeated his commitment to the unilateral cease-fire just days ago.U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths told reporters Friday, “I have no reason to doubt that at all,” after meeting with Abiy during an Ethiopia visit earlier this week.But regional forces vowing a new offensive could be another matter.As the Tigray forces push on, they have become the focus of increasing warnings from the U.N. and U.S. amid pleas for an immediate cease-fire and talks without conditions.The civilians in Tigray would benefit, the U.N. humanitarian chief said: “It’s going to be easier for the Tigrayan people if the war is stopped.”
…
Suspect Detained After 10 Subway Passengers Stabbed in Tokyo
A man with a knife stabbed at least 10 passengers on a commuter train Friday in Tokyo, and a suspect was detained by police a short time later, according to NHK public television.A man turned himself in at a nearby convenience store after identifying himself as the suspect and saying he was tired of running away, according to NHK. The manager of the store called authorities, who question the suspect and prepared to arrest him.According to the Tokyo fire department, nine of the victims were taken to nearby hospitals, while the 10th was able to safely leave the location. All injured passengers were conscious, but one of the wounded had serious injuries.Police declined to comment and no other details were immediately available.An Odakyu Electric Railway Company worker said that the stabbing occurred near Seijogakuen station.A witness saw passengers smeared in blood run out of the train after the incident, according to NHK.Tokyo is currently hosting the Olympics, which end on Sunday.Japan has enacted stringent gun measures, such as limits on the sale and purchase of guns, and strict requirements, such as gun education and mental health checks. This has resulted in very few gun-related deaths, but the country has seen several high-profile stabbings in recent years.In 2019, a man killed two people and injured 17 when he targeted schoolchildren at a bus stop in Kawasaki. And in 2018, one passenger was killed and two others injured during a stabbing aboard a bullet train.
…
3 Generals Fired in South Sudan for Declaring Machar Is Not Party Leader
Leaders of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) fired three generals in the command of Upper Nile state this week, shortly after the generals declared First Vice President Riek Machar had been ousted as head of the SPLM-IO and as commander in chief of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in Opposition (SPLA-IO).Machar’s spokesperson said the decision to fire the generals was made Wednesday during an SPLM/A-IO leadership meeting in Juba.Those fired were former chief of staff General Simon Gatwech, General Johnson Olony of Sector One Command and General Thomas Mabor Dhoal of Sector Three Command.The meeting of the party’s political bureau and military leaders was called after the declaration Tuesday by Gatwech and some party commanders in Upper Nile state to oust Machar, according to Machar spokesperson Puok Both Baluang.“We believe the military command does not make any decision of the movement, but the political bureau or the national liberation council in the absence of the national convention,” Baluang told South Sudan in Focus.Baluang said the declaration, which he called illegal, was intended to obstruct activities leading to the formation of unified forces.”We are demolishing the moves of these three generals. Therefore, I would like to assure that the situation is in control,” Baluang told VOA. “The other two generals, Thomas Mabor and Johnson Olony, are to leave their positions and be replaced by other commanders” in Sector One and Sector Three.Machar is still in control of SPLA-IO forces in Upper Nile that were being led by the three generals, said Baluang.A letter seen by South Sudan In Focus and dated Tuesday indicates Gatwech met with several Upper Nile state party commanders in Maganis, where he declared Machar’s ouster. He also declared himself the party’s new leader and commander in chief.Cheers for GatwechUnconfirmed videos and photos circulating on social media show Gatwech being cheered by senior military officers of the SPLM/A-IO during the declaration. Hundreds of officers and some top military officers can be seen in the photos and videos attending the meeting.South Sudan policy analyst James Okuk said he was not surprised to hear about the party split, calling it confirmation of a long overdue move and defiance by the Gatwech group. He also said the SPLM-IO split highlighted the growing frustration over the slow implementation of the peace agreement among the signatories to the peace deal.“The generals who are claiming to replace the chairman of the SPLM-IO, Dr. Riek Machar, have not been on good terms with him for almost two years and they have not reported to Juba since the signing of the revitalized peace agreement,” Okuk told South Sudan in Focus. “They have been appointed to the government and they have declined the appointment. For example, Gatwech Dual was recently appointed as presidential adviser, but he declined that position. Before, Johnson Olony was a nominee of the SPLM-IO for the governor of Upper Nile, but he also declined to come to Juba.”The split within SPLM/A-IO would only weaken further implementation of the peace deal, said Okuk.“The SPLM-IO is a strong partner in the implementation of the peace agreement, so if it becomes weak by [a] split within itself, it means they become a weak partner and [a] weak partner is not good in the implementation of the peace agreement. So already, both the generals are weakening themselves and they are weakening the political wing, and this will give the ITGoNU [Incumbent Transitional Government of National Unity], which is led by the SPLM, an upper hand now,” Okuk told VOA.This marked the second time that some SPLM/A-IO members have attempted to oust Machar as leader of the party. In 2016, then-Vice President Taban Deng Gai failed to remove Machar as party leader, following renewed conflict in Juba.
…
EU Reportedly to Hold Emergency Talks on Belarusian Migration Practices
European Union ministers will hold emergency talks on what they view as a Belarusian pressure campaign of illegal migration against EU nations, according to Agence France-Presse.The bloc has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of encouraging new migrants to cross the border in reaction to Poland’s decision to provide refuge to Belarusian athlete Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, who refused to return home from the Tokyo Olympics.Slovenia, which currently serves as rotating president of the EU, said the talks would take place virtually on August 18, AFP reported.In addition to the EU’s 27 member states, representatives of the Frontex border guard agency, the European Asylum Support Office and Europol were also invited.The EU meeting was announced as Poland and Lithuania reportedly called on European institutions to help them deal with the surge in illegal migration from Belarus.In the statement Friday, Poland and Lithuania called on the European Commission, Frontex, EASO, other EU member states and non-EU partners to explore solutions to EU migration and asylum issues, according to the Associated Press.In the past two days, 133 illegal migrants were stopped at the Belarusian-Polish border, compared to 122 in all of 2020, a spokesperson for the Poland Border Guard said, according to AP.Some information for this report came from the Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
…
UN Envoy: Afghanistan War in ‘Deadlier, More Destructive Phase’
The U.N. special envoy for Afghanistan told the U.N. Security Council on Friday that the war in the country had entered a “deadlier and more destructive phase.”Deborah Lyons also questioned the Taliban’s commitment to a political solution.”A party that was genuinely committed to a negotiated settlement would not risk so many civilian casualties, because it would understand that the process of reconciliation will be more challenging, the more blood is shed,” she said.The Taliban have intensified attacks on Afghan government forces in recent months as U.S. and NATO forces have left the country. On Friday, the group captured a provincial capital and killed the government’s top media spokesmen in Kabul. Recently, it seized key border crossings.”To attack urban areas is to knowingly inflict enormous harm and cause massive civilian casualties. Nonetheless, the threatening of large urban areas appears to be a strategic decision by the Taliban, who have accepted the likely carnage that will ensue,” Lyons said.Hopes for a solution through the Doha peace talks, which started last year, appear to be fading in the face of Taliban successes.No military takeoverSenior U.S. diplomat Jeffrey DeLaurentis appealed to the Taliban to stop their attacks and seek a political settlement.”The Taliban must hear from the international community that we will not accept a military takeover of Afghanistan or a return of the Taliban’s Islamic Emirate,” he said.Afghanistan’s U.N. Ambassador Ghulam Isaczai urged the Security Council to act in order to “prevent a catastrophic situation.””We’re alarmed by reports and incidents of gross human rights violations by the Taliban and their foreign terrorist associates in almost half of our country, and we are extremely concerned about the safety and security of people in cities under Taliban attacks,” he said.Some information for this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
…
Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine Proves Successful in South Africa
Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 has had positive results in South Africa, the co-head of a trial, Glenda Gray, told reporters Friday.A research study conducted from mid-February to May with upwards of 470,000 health workers showed positive results in those inoculated, and the country’s health regulator approved the single-shot J&J vaccine in Apri. It is being used in addition to Pfizer’s.The study showed 91% to 96.2% protection against death, Gray said, and 67% efficacy against infection when the beta coronavirus dominated and 71% when the delta variant did.As of Thursday, more than 8.3 million people had been vaccinated in South Africa.Worldwide, about 4.3 billion people have been vaccinated.Despite the introduction of new COVID-19 vaccines in recent months, however, the virus continues to spread across all parts of the world, primarily the highly contagious Delta variant, infecting a growing number of people and triggering a new round of strict social restrictions and lockdowns. More than 20 months after the first cases were detected in Wuhan, China, the COVID-19 global pandemic has far surpassed 200 million total confirmed infections, including 4.2 million fatalities, according to Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center data released Friday.The United States tops the list with more than 35 million cases, including at least 600,000 deaths, followed by India, Brazil, France and Russia.Meanwhile, in Tokyo, Olympics organizers report 29 new Games-related coronavirus cases.
Information from the Associated Press and Reuters was used in this report.
…
Woman Who Accused New York Governor Cuomo of Groping Her Files Criminal Complaint – New York Post
A woman who accused New York Governor Andrew Cuomo of groping her in the Executive Mansion in Albany has filed a criminal complaint with the Albany County sheriff’s department, the New York Post reported Friday.
The woman, whose name has not been made public, was an executive assistant who told state investigators that in one incident Cuomo groped her breast.
She was one of at least 11 women who state investigators this week said were sexually harassed by Cuomo, a Democrat, who is resisting widespread calls, including from U.S. President Joe Biden, to resign, and faces impeachment by state lawmakers.
The executive assistant told investigators that Cuomo called her to the mansion in November 2020, led her into a room, closed the door, slid his hand under her blouse and cupped her breast over her bra, according to the investigators’ report, released on Tuesday by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
There was no immediate response for a request for comment from the sheriff’s office. Cuomo, who has been holed up with advisers at the governor’s mansion since the report’s release, could not be immediately reached for comment.
…
UN Emergency Chief Calls for Humanitarian Cease-fire to Allow Aid to Reach People in Tigray
A senior United Nations official is calling for a humanitarian cease-fire in northern Ethiopia to allow trucks carrying food and other relief supplies to reach millions of civilians in Tigray suffering from acute hunger and a lack of essential care. The United Nations’ under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Martin Griffiths, has just returned from a six-day mission to Ethiopia. He says U.N. relief trucks finally are rolling into Tigray. He says 178 trucks, which have been stuck in the neighboring Afar region for the past two weeks, have been given the go-ahead to move toward the beleaguered province. While he welcomes this, Griffiths says 100 trucks every day need to get into Tigray to meet the overwhelming needs of the civilian population.The Ethiopian government declared a unilateral cease-fire in Tigray on May 8. Since then, he notes the shooting war in the conflict-ridden province has diminished. Consequently, he says aid agencies can proceed into areas that previously were out of bounds.”Once the supplies arrive at the moment in Tigray, the access for the agencies in Tigray is relatively good … They have access,” Griffiths said. “But they have not had the supplies needed to actually exploit the access. So, a lot, a lot still to be done in an environment in Ethiopia, which I would say is very, very fragile.” USAID Head Pushes for Humanitarian Aid Access in TigraySamantha Power says the conflict that began in November in Ethiopia needs to endThe World Food Program reports 4 million people in Tigray are suffering from acute hunger, with more than 400,000 on the brink of famine. Griffiths says WFP, which leads the humanitarian effort, has assured him that it can keep the pipeline of 100 trucks of supplies going into Tigray every day, if allowed to do so. The U.N. official says offensive military action must stop and a humanitarian cease-fire is a glaring necessity.”I welcomed the [Ethiopian] prime minister’s declaration of some weeks ago of a unilateral cease-fire,” Griffiths said. “We need to build on that. Make it reciprocal and give people of Tigray, and their neighbors now, half a chance of survival in these next months of desperate needs.” Griffiths has expressed concern about the Tigray conflict spilling over into neighboring regions. He notes some 100,000 people have been displaced in the Amhara region and another 70,000 people in the Afar region.
…
New Yorker Turns Farm into Amusement Park Amid Pandemic
Marc Weiss, a farmer in Long Island, New York, was on the verge of bankruptcy because of the coronavirus pandemic. But instead of shutting his farm down, Weiss turned his land into something amazing. Maxim Avloshenko has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. Camera: Max Avloshenko
…
Vatican Begins Requiring COVID-19 ‘Green Pass’ for Visitors
The Vatican Museums began requiring visitors Friday to present a so-called Green Pass, a digital certificate proving they have been vaccinated, tested negative or recovered from COVID-19 using a digital or paper certificate.The Green Pass is an extension of the European Union’s COVID-19 certificate, designed to make travel, as well as entry into certain venues, easier.Early Friday, tourists could be seen waiting to enter the museums to have QR codes scanned. The pass can be downloaded as a smartphone app, and is available in a paper version.The Vatican implemented its rules the same day the surrounding country of Italy implemented mandatory use of the pass to access places like bars and restaurants, gyms, theaters, museums, sporting events, and concerts.France was the first EU nation to make proof of immunity mandatory to access a range of services and venues.The Italian government announced Thursday it will widen the Green Pass requirement to all teachers, university students and long-distance transport beginning September 1. Some information in this report was provided by the Associated Press, Reuters and the French news agency, AFP.
…
US Employers Add 943,000 Jobs in July, Beating Expectations
U.S. employers added more than 940,000 jobs in July, the U.S. Labor Department reported Friday, beating analyst expectations and the latest sign the job market may be recovering from steep losses sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The 943,000 jobs added last month topped the 850,000 from the previous month, despite a shortage of available workers. July’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.4% from 5.9% the month before. The rollout of coronavirus vaccine encouraged restaurants and other businesses to reopen after being forced to close for months after the pandemic began. The prospects of a strong monthly jobs report were bolstered Thursday when the Labor Department reported that 385,000 jobless workers filed for compensation, down 14,000 from the revised figure of the week before. The U.S. said a week ago that its economy advanced 6.5% in the April-to-June period, a slightly faster annualized pace than in the first three months of the year as the country steadily regains its footing from the economic devastation of the coronavirus. The size of the U.S. economy — nearly $23 trillion — now exceeds its pre-pandemic level as it recovers faster than many economists had predicted during the worst of the business closings more than a year ago. But the surging delta variant of the coronavirus is now threatening to impair business activity in some regions of the U.S. and, as a result, analysts say the economy could cool somewhat in coming months. FILE – Food is served to guests at a restaurant in Manhattan, New York, August 3, 2021.The second quarter growth was fueled by widespread business reopenings, vaccinations for millions of people and trillions of dollars of government pandemic aid that was sent to all but the wealthiest American families. The weekly unemployment benefit claims total has tracked unevenly in recent weeks, but overall has fallen by more than 40% since early April, while remaining well above the pre-pandemic levels. About 9.5 million people remain unemployed in the U.S. and are looking for work. There also are 9.2 million job openings, the government says, although the skill sets of the jobless do not necessarily match the needs of employers. Some employers are offering new hires cash bonuses to take jobs as the economy rebounds and consumers are willing to spend. State governors and municipal officials across the U.S. have been ending coronavirus restrictions, in many cases allowing businesses for the first time in a year to completely reopen to customers. That could lead to more hiring of workers. But the surging delta variant of the coronavirus is posing new problems that could inhibit economic growth. The number of new infections recorded each day has increased by tens of thousands in recent weeks and is still growing, especially in parts of the U.S. where millions of people had, for one reason or another, resisted getting vaccination shots. The number of new vaccinations had been falling in the U.S. but now is increasing again as more people see others in their communities hospitalized from the virus and their lives endangered. More than 60% of U.S. adults have now been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, boosting the economic recovery.
…
Tunisia Puts Ennahda Official Under House Arrest, Colleague Says
Tunisia’s interior ministry has put under house arrest a senior official of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party which opposes the president’s seizure of governing powers, one of his colleagues said on Friday.Anouar Maarouf is the most prominent member of the party to be targeted since President Kais Saied dismissed the prime minister and suspended parliament on July 25 in moves Ennahda branded a coup.Maarouf was from 2016-20 minister of communications and technology, a government department which Saied has suggested parties tried to manipulate for their own advantage.”Anouar Maarouf was informed by official authorities that he is under house arrest,” an Ennahda official told Reuters, asking not to be named.The Interior Ministry was not immediately available for comment.Though Saied’s moves appear to have popular support, they have raised questions over Tunisia’s democratic transition a decade after it threw off autocratic rule in a revolution that triggered the 2011 Arab Spring. Several politicians and officials have been detained or put under investigation, including on old warrants that were implemented after the president lifted parliamentary immunity.Saied has moved to gain direct control over the Interior Ministry and Communications and Technology Ministry, replacing the ministers in charge of both.This week, he said he would not accept future communications and technology ministers being linked to political parties that might want control over citizens’ data.Ennahda is one of four political parties that the judiciary said last week it was investigating over foreign financing.It says it has not broken any rules.The judiciary also briefly investigated four party members, including some close to the leader, parliament speaker Rached Ghannouchi, over slight scuffles with Saied supporters on July 26. The cases were quickly dropped, however.
…
Japan Marks Hiroshima Bomb Anniversary with Low-key Ceremonies
Japan on Friday marked 76 years since the world’s first atomic bomb attack, with low-key ceremonies and disappointment over a refusal by Olympics organizers to hold a minute’s silence.Survivors, relatives and a handful of foreign dignitaries attended this year’s main event in Hiroshima to pray for those killed or wounded in the bombing and call for world peace.Virus concerns meant the general public were once again kept away, with the ceremony instead broadcast online.Participants, many dressed in black and wearing face masks, offered a silent prayer at 8:15 am (2315 GMT Thursday), when the first nuclear weapon used in wartime was dropped.An estimated 140,000 people were killed in the bombing of Hiroshima, which was followed three days later by the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.On Friday, Hiroshima’s mayor called for leaders to visit the cities, and warned “experience has taught humanity that threatening others for self-defense benefits no one”.Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga also delivered a speech in the city, but was later forced to apologize for skipping part of the text — reportedly on Japan’s support of international nuclear disarmament — apparently by accident.International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach made a trip to Hiroshima before the Games began, to mark the start of an Olympic truce that urges a halt to fighting worldwide to allow the safe passage of athletes.But organizers stopped short of granting a request from bomb survivors and the city for a minute of silent prayer on Friday morning.In a letter, Bach said the Olympic closing ceremony would include time to honor victims of tragedy throughout history.”His letter didn’t say anything about our request,” Tomohiro Higaki from Hiroshima’s peace promotion division told AFP.”It is disappointing, even though we appreciate that Bach visited Hiroshima to learn the reality of bomb victims,” he said.Bach’s controversial visit saw more than 70,000 people signing a petition opposing the trip and accusing him of seeking to “promote the Olympics” despite opposition to the Games.Yoko Sado, 43, strolling through the peace memorial park with her seven-year-old son, said the lack of visitors because of the pandemic had robbed Hiroshima of a chance to spread a message of peace.”I’m a bit disappointed,” she told AFP. “It would have been a great opportunity.”This year’s ceremony is the first since an international treaty banning nuclear weapons entered into force last year when a 50th country ratified the text.Japan Marks 75th Anniversary of Hiroshima Atomic BombingCeremony to observe world’s first atomic attack scaled down from years past due to coronavirus pandemicThe treaty has not been signed by nuclear-armed states, but activists believe it will have a gradual deterrent effect.Japan has also declined to sign it, saying the accord will carry no weight without buy-in from nuclear-armed states.But the country is also in a delicate position as it is under the US nuclear umbrella, with US forces responsible for its defense.
…