Day: September 17, 2023

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was headed home after making a final stop in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok, where he visited a university, an aquarium and an animal food plant, state media KCNA reported on Monday.

Kim spent two days in Vladivostok while inspecting various facilities in the fields of military, economy, science, education and culture, before bidding farewell at a send-off ceremony at the Artyom station, KCNA said.

It wrapped up Kim’s unusually lengthy, week-long trip to Russia, during which he pledged to step up military and economic cooperation with President Vladimir Putin.

The visit will serve as “an opportunity to further solidify the traditional bond of good-neighbourhood cooperation between the two countries, which are rooted in comradely friendship and military unity, and to open a new chapter in the development of relations,” KCNA said.

Kim toured Far Eastern Federal University, where he and Putin held their first talks in 2019, and was briefed by its president on the school’s educational system and future development plan.

He also met North Korean students studying science and technology at the university, KCNA said, learning about their lives there and taking a photo together.

At the Maritime Territorial Aquarium, Kim watched white dolphins and other sea animals performing “acrobatic feats,” before attending a reception hosted by Alexandr Kozlov, Russia’s minister of natural resources and ecology, and visiting the Arnika Bio-Feed Mill.

North Korea’s state radio, “Voice of Korea,” also reported on Kim’s visit to Vladivostok on Monday, saying it “opened a new period of rapid development and strengthening” of bilateral ties and he thanked Putin and other Russian officials for their hospitality.

The rare summit between Kim and Putin has prompted the United States and South Korea to warn against any weapons trade and other military cooperation as Russia presses its invasion of Ukraine and North Korea races to advance its nuclear programmes.

Washington and Seoul officials have expressed concern that Moscow could be seeking to acquire ammunition from the North to prop up its dwindling stocks, while Pyongyang gets technological aid over its spy satellite and missile programmes.

Kim inspected a Russian fighter jet factory that is under Western sanctions, nuclear-capable strategic bombers, hypersonic missiles and warships last week, though Putin has said Moscow would not “violate anything.”

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South Sudanese people are fleeing Sudan’s war for their home country, and the United Nations and analysts say the move could trigger intercommunal violence and endanger the country’s transition to democracy. From Renk, South Sudan, reporter Henry Wilkins talks to returnees about their uncertain futures and to analysts about potential effects.

For the past two and a half years I’ve been sounding the alarm about Donald Trump’s worsening senility. His public appearances in 2021 and 2022 were very rare, but when he did periodically surface, he increasingly came off as someone who didn’t know where he was and barely knew who he was. It seemed pretty clear that his own people were trying to hide him from public view.

Once Trump announced a faux-campaign to raise money for his legal problems, I wondered if he would continue to remain in hiding, or if he would insist on putting himself out there publicly over the objections of his babysitters. For the first half of 2023 it was mostly the former. But now that Trump’s indictments and trials are dominating the headlines, he’s indeed putting himself out there, in one speech and interview after another.

Sure enough, even though the interviewers are doing everything they can to go easy on him, Trump is falling apart. He accidentally confessed in an interview this past week that he knew he had a legal obligation to return the classified documents once a grand jury subpoenaed them. He also doesn’t appear to remember that he once gave a medal to Dr. Fauci. Now it’s gotten even worse.

Over the weekend Trump claimed that President Biden is going to get us into World War Two. And in case you’re tempted to write that off as Trump having randomly misspoken, he then turned around and claimed that he ran against Barack Obama – not Hillary Clinton – in 2016.

Now that Trump has come out of hiding and is putting himself out there again on a regular basis, the general public can finally see what those of us who have been paying close attention have been able to see for the past couple years: he’s gone senile. Trump was never exactly the most coherent speaker, even when he was in office. But he now comes off as a confused, overwhelmed, brain addled imitation of his former self.

It’s important that everyone is now seeing that Trump is senile. It’s forcing the media to save face by finally starting to dip its toe into admitting that there’s something wrong with Trump cognitively. And that’s important because once the media has to admit that Trump is senile, it’ll have to stop hyping the idea that he’s somehow going to be viable candidate when we get to 2024. The general public is going to laugh at the media if it keeps trying to sell the idea that a guy who’s senile and going to prison is somehow going to be a viable candidate.

Getting the general public to view Donald Trump as being senile is the quickest way to get rid of him. That can finish him off before his criminal trials and prison sentences can. Even as abhorrent as it is that the media keeps doing friendly softball interviews with Trump of late, the good news is that he’s in such bad cognitive shape that they can’t even prop him up.

So if Trump wants to keep putting himself out there like this, that’s fine. It’s merely allowing the general public to finally see what I’ve been shouting from the rooftops about for the past two and a half years: there’s just about nothing left of his withering brain.

The post Donald Trump’s worsening senility just came to a head appeared first on Palmer Report.

It’s extraordinary, simply extraordinary what Jack Smith just did. Smith has asked for an order – a narrowly tailored order that would seek to prevent Donald John Trump from trying to poison the Jury pool. This order was requested in Washington DC.

In the filing Smith argues that this order is necessary because Donald Trump’s constant poisonous chatter could present a “serious and substantial danger” of possibly poisoning the jury pool.

This is why we love Jack Smith. It’s because he’s got all his bases covered. He doesn’t stop working for Lady Justice. I certainly think he deserves Time Magazine’s person of the year which would no doubt infuriate Donald Trump even more.

Anyway, Trump did not like this request. Predictably melting down on his social network, screaming like an idiot, which he is, Trump began yelling they “won’t let me speak.”

Won’t let him speak? Nobody has spoken more, more loudly, more disgustingly, more insanely, and more stridently than the tiny-brained orange toad. Trump’s verbal vomit has foamed from his mouth every day all day while he was president for those horrible four years.

And it continues today! The verbal vomit still rushes fourth, infecting anybody with the bad luck of hearing it. He’s the last human being on earth who can claim that he is being muzzled.

Donald Trump has spoken. He has spoken with threats. He has spoken with temper tantrums, on and on and on he has spoken giving the American people possibly the biggest headache they’ve ever had and causing many to put their hands over their ears and just yell “stop!”

Trump has to understand that his life is not his own anymore. The court runs things now! I understand that baby-face doesn’t like that. I understand it’s not easy for him to accept. But at some point he has to accept that his power is gone. It left him and he doesn’t have anything else. He is just another indicted criminal one of many.

So, of course, he hates Jack Smith, because Jack Smith is everything Trump cannot, and never will be, the golden one, the incorruptible one, and the one who asks for orders like this, to protect the sanctity of the trials, to protect the American people, and to see to it that he puts Trump where he belongs — in a cell.

The post Donald Trump is feeding himself to the lions appeared first on Palmer Report.

Al-Shabab militants attacked convoys carrying Ethiopian soldiers in Somalia’s southwestern Bakool region early Sunday, Somali officials said.

The ambush targeted two convoys, one traveling from the Somali town of Yeed to Wajid and the second convoy as it traveled from El Barde to the town of Huddur. Ethiopian troops have bases in Wajid and Huddur.  

A Somali official said local forces were accompanying the convoy that was en route to Huddur from El Barde.

The mayor of Huddur, Omar Abdullahi Mohamud, told VOA Somali that the fighting started after the al-Shabab ambushes.

“The fighting started after the anti-peace elements attacked the Ethiopian and Somali military convoy moving towards Wajid and Huddur, starting off their attack with explosion,” Mohamud said. “The troops have repulsed, and the situation is calm.”

Mohamud claimed the militants lost as many as 50 fighters.

A senior Somali regional official who asked not to be identified told VOA Somali that the more intense ambush targeted Ethiopian troops escorting military supplies to Ethiopian soldiers in Wajid.

He said when that convoy left the town of Yeed on Saturday, it spent the night near the village of Booco, about 40 kilometers north of Wajid.

“At dawn the convoy resumed its journey towards Wajid but were ambushed by al-Shabab,” he said.

“We heard two vehicles were hit by explosions.”

He said the fighting lasted for hours.

Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the ambush. Al-Shabab in a statement claimed it killed 167 Ethiopian soldiers, destroyed military vehicles, and seized a cache of weapons and ammunition. Casualty figures given by both sides have not been independently verified. 

Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s ambassador to Somalia, Mukhtar Mohamed Ware told VOA he saw al-Shabab’s claim on social media and described it as “propaganda.”

“They may try [to attack Ethiopian forces] but they cannot even fire for more than 10 minutes against Ethiopian defenses’ forces,” he said. 

“This is a professional army; it’s a very well equipped, very well organized, it’s always hitting hard when it comes to al-Shabab, so this is a mere propaganda; it’s not more than a propaganda against Ethiopia and against Ethiopian defense forces.”

He rejected al-Shabab’s statement, which labeled Ethiopian troops as “crusaders.”

“We are not crusaders; we are there under the African Union and international community decisions to support legitimate government of Somalia in its effort to establish peace in this country. So, this is a mere propaganda blown by al-Shabab that is commonly known.”

Ethiopia has thousands of troops in Somalia serving as part of the African Union Transition Mission, or ATMIS, and other forces in Somalia that are there based on arrangements with the government in Mogadishu.

A security source told VOA the ambushed troops were not part of ATMIS. 

“The ambush is true, the incident was bad, but the numbers given by al-Shabab have been exaggerated,” the source said.

Meanwhile, Somali officials have reported that government troops have captured the main town of Ba’adweyne and the three smaller villages of Qodqod, Qay’ad, and Shabelow.

Local forces commander Mohamed Nur Ali Gadaar told VOA that al-Shabab fled Ba’adweyne and two of the villages after a brief firefight on Sunday. Government troops supported by local fighters are now heading toward a fourth town, Amaara, in Galmudug state, he said.

The Somali government also reported conducting an operation in collaboration with “international partners” near the village of Ali Foldhere in the Middle Shabelle region on Saturday and Sunday against al-Shabab militants who have been trying to cross a river.

The role of international partners in the ongoing operations has been limited to airstrikes against al-Shabab fighters and vehicles.

Abdiwahid Moalin Isak contributed to this report.

The United Auto Workers strike against the Detroit Three automakers entered its third day on Sunday with no immediate resolution on the horizon.

Union negotiators and representatives of General Motors (GM.N), Ford (F.N) and Stellantis (STLAM.MI) were set to resume talks starting Sunday, following the start of the most ambitious U.S. industrial labor action in decades. This is the first time the UAW has gone on strike against all three automakers simultaneously.

The coordinated strike comes at a time when Americans’ approval of labor unions is at its highest point in decades even as membership in unions remains largely unchanged.

UAW President Shawn Fain told MSNBC on Sunday that progress in the talks has been slow. The UAW is set to resume talks with GM on Sunday, and Stellantis and Ford on Monday.

“I don’t really want to say we’re closer,” he said. “It’s a shame that the companies didn’t take our advice and get down to business from the beginning of bargaining back in mid-July.”

Asked in a subsequent appearance on CBS Face the Nation whether workers would walk out at more plants this week, Fain said the union was “prepared to do whatever we have to do.”

About 12,700 UAW workers remain on strike as part of a coordinated labor action targeting three U.S. assembly plants – one at each of the Detroit Three automakers after the prior four-year labor agreements expired at 11:59 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Negotiators for the UAW and Ford had “reasonably productive discussions” toward a new contract on Saturday, the union said, while Chrysler-parent Stellantis said it hiked its offer, proposing raises of 20% over a four-and-a-half-year contract term, including an immediate 10% hike. That matched proposals from GM and Ford.

The proposals are about half the 40% wage hike the UAW is demanding through 2027, including an immediate 20% boost.

U.S. President Joe Biden, who has signaled support for the union’s efforts, has had acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and advisor Gene Sperling speaking to the UAW and the automakers during the talks.

An administration official said on Sunday that Biden believes new agreements with the automakers should ensure that auto jobs going forward are good middle class jobs.

Mark Stewart, the North American chief operating officer for Stellantis, told reporters Saturday the UAW rejected a proposal to resume operations at an assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, noting its offer had been contingent on reaching agreement before the contract expiration.

In late February, Stellantis indefinitely idled operations at the Belvidere plant, citing rising costs of electric vehicle production.

The UAW criticized the company position on the Illinois plant saying now “they are now taking it back. That’s how they see these workers. A bargaining chip.”

Stellantis said late Saturday it is willing to negotiate about the plant’s future. “The truth is UAW leadership ignored Belvidere in favor of a strike,” the company said.

The strikes have halted production at three plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri that produce the Ford Bronco, Jeep Wrangler and Chevrolet Colorado, along with other popular models. GM has been struggling to launch its new EVs and a prolonged UAW strike could hurt those efforts even if it has a chance of helping in the short term, analysts said.

Evercore ISI analyst Chris McNally said in a Sunday research note he expects plants that build more profitable pickup trucks like Ford’s F-150, GM’s Chevrolet Silverado and Stellantis’ Ram to be the next strike targets if the walkout continues.

On Friday, Ford said it was indefinitely laying off 600 workers at a Michigan plant because of the impact of the strike at the facility, which makes the Bronco, and GM told some 2,000 workers at a Kansas car plant that their factory likely would be shut down Monday or Tuesday due to a lack of parts stemming from the strike at a GM Missouri plant.

Besides higher wages, the UAW is demanding shorter work weeks, restoration of defined benefit pensions and stronger job security as automakers make the EV shift.

A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy has been shot and killed in what officials call an ambush while he was sitting in his patrol car outside a sheriff’s station in the California city of Palmdale, in uniform and on duty.

Sheriff Robert Luna called the incident that occurred on Saturday night “murder” and a “targeted attack” on Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer, 30, because he was a police officer, serving his community about 55 miles (90 km) northeast of Los Angeles.

Clinkunbroomer was found at the wheel of his patrol cruiser gravely wounded about 6 p.m. by a passerby who called for help, police said. Clinkunbroomer, who served for eight years on the force, died at the hospital.

During a late-night news conference, Luna asked the public to come forward with any video that may exist showing what happened.

Clinkunbroomer, who was just engaged to be married, was a third-generation member of law enforcement, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, the sheriff wrote on social media.

“It hurts, it hurts bad,” Luna said. “He was murdered (Saturday night). He didn’t deserve that. … From everything I know about Ryan, people loved and adored him.”

“We’re going to catch this person,” he added.

There have been 83 ambush-style attacks on police in the United States this year, resulting in 15 killed by gunfire, according to National Fraternal Order of Police.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Malta this weekend, Beijing and Washington said on Sunday, as the world’s two largest economies seek to stabilize troubled relations.

Both sides held “candid, substantive and constructive” talks during multiple meetings held Sept. 16-17, according to separate statements from the White House and the Chinese foreign ministry published Sunday.

Sullivan’s meeting with Wang was the latest in a series of high-level discussions between U.S. and Chinese officials that could lay the groundwork for a meeting of U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year.

Sullivan last met Wang in Vienna in May.

China’s foreign ministry said both sides agreed to maintain high-level exchanges and hold bilateral consultations on Asia-Pacific affairs, maritime affairs and foreign policy.

The White House added that both sides “committed to maintain this strategic channel of communication and to pursue additional high-level engagement and consultations in key areas … in the coming months”.

Washington said Sullivan “noted the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”, while Wang cautioned the United States that the Taiwan issue is the “first insurmountable red line of Sino-U.S. relations”, according to the Chinese foreign ministry statement.

Biden this month expressed disappointment that Xi skipped a summit of Group of 20 leaders in India, but said he would “get to see him.” The next likely opportunity for Biden to hold talks with Xi is an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco in November.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have traveled to China this year to ensure continued communication between the two countries amid tensions that flared after the U.S. military shot down a Chinese surveillance balloon that traveled over the United States.

Biden and Xi last met in 2022 on the sidelines of a G20 summit on Indonesia’s resort island of Bali.

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