Trump says Kim’s weapons are endangering North Korea

US President Donald Trump (C) addresses the National Assembly in Seoul on November 8, 2017. Trump's marathon Asia tour moves to South Korea, another key ally in the struggle with nuclear-armed North Korea, but one with deep reservations about the US president's strategy for dealing with the crisis. / AFP / Lee Jin-man
Updated 08 November 2017
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Trump says Kim’s weapons are endangering North Korea

SEOUL, South Korea: President Donald Trump is telling North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that the weapons he’s acquiring are putting his nation in “great danger.”
Trump delivered that message during a speech Wednesday to South Korean lawmakers in Seoul.
Trump says to Kim that the nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles he’s acquiring “are not making you safer” but “are putting your regime in great danger.”
Kim has threatened the US and its regional allies, including Japan and South Korea, with multiple weapons tests this year.
Trump recently vowed to “totally destroy” North Korea if its threats continue.

President Donald Trump is using a speech in front of the South Korean National Assembly to talk about one of his golf courses.
Trump is reminding lawmakers in the National Assembly hall on Wednesday that when the US Women’s Open was held at his Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, earlier this year, many South Korean players did well.
The winner, Park Sung-hyun, was South Korean — as were a number of other top finishers.
Trump has been criticized by ethics experts for failing to completely divest his assets and using the presidency to promote his hotels and golf clubs and enrich himself.

President Donald Trump is delivering a blunt warning to North Korea: “Do not underestimate us. And do not try us.”
Trump is sending the message during a speech Wednesday in Seoul to South Korea’s National Assembly.
The president says the US will not allow its cities to be threatened with destruction. He says it also won’t be intimidated by threats from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Trump says the world cannot tolerate the “menace” of a rogue regime that threatens it with nuclear devastation. He’s urging all “responsible nations” to unite to deny North Korea any form of support or acceptance.
A day earlier, Trump signaled a willingness to negotiate. He urged North Korea to “come to the table” and “make a deal” over its nuclear weapons program.

President Donald Trump is painting a bleak portrait of North Korea in a keynote speech to South Korean lawmakers.
Trump says life under the leadership of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is “so bleak” that North Koreans bribe government officials to leave the country so they can work as slaves.
Says Trump: “They would rather be slaves than live in North Korea.”
Trump is contrasting life in the two Koreas — the democratic South and the communist North. He notes that South Korea’s economy is booming while in North Korea families live in homes without plumbing and that fewer than half of the population has electricity.
South Korea is the second stop on Trump’s five-country tour of Asia.

President Donald Trump is telling South Korea’s National Assembly that he wants “peace through strength.”
The US president is addressing South Korean lawmakers on the second day of his visit. He is noting that the US is rebuilding its military and spending heavily on the newest and finest military equipment.
Trump is calling for an international response to North Korea’s nuclear threat.

South Korean police have separated pro- and anti-Trump protesters who scuffled outside Seoul’s National Assembly shortly before the visiting US president made a speech to the country’s lawmakers.
South Korean police couldn’t immediately confirm on Wednesday whether there were any injuries. Thousands of officers were deployed at the National Assembly in Seoul to provide security and monitor the protesters.
A small American flag was seen burning on the ground beside a sign that read “No Trump No War” near the scene.
Anti-Trump demonstrators have accused Trump of raising animosity with North Korea with his fiery rhetoric. Trump’s supporters have embraced his tough stance against Pyongyang.

The White House says President Donald Trump is disappointed that his surprise trip to the DMZ was thwarted by bad weather.
Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tells reporters, “I think he’s pretty frustrated” that he had to change his plans.
Marine One had flown most of the way from Seoul to the DMZ before turning due to poor weather conditions. Weather reports from near the DMZ showed misting conditions and visibility below one mile.
Trump had been scheduled to visit the border that for 64 years has separated the North and South with Korean President Moon Jae-in.
The White House says Trump’s trip to the DMZ had been planned well before he left for Asia, but it was kept secret due to security concerns.

President Donald Trump has scrapped a surprise visit to the Korean demilitarized zone due to poor weather.
Marine One flew most of the way from Seoul to the DMZ before turning back due to poor weather conditions.
Back at the US Army’s Yongsan Garrison, Trump prepared for his speech to South Korea’s National Assembly while awaiting a potential clearing in the weather.
Weather reports from near the DMZ showed misting conditions and visibility below one mile.
Every American president since Ronald Reagan has made a trip to the DMZ — except for George H.W. Bush, who made the trek when he served as vice president. Before Trump’s trip, a White House official had said the DMZ visits have become “a little bit of a cliché.”

President Donald Trump is hinting at a surprise announcement as he prepares to depart South Korea.
Trump says during a toast at a state dinner being held in his honor in Seoul Tuesday that, “we’re going to have an exciting day tomorrow for many reasons” that “people will find out.”
Trump is also telling attendees that the partnership between the US and South Korea has never been stronger, as the threat of the North and its nuclear program looms.
Trump says: “we’ve been proud to stand by your side for many decades as an unwavering friend and a loyal ally.” And he says South Korea has “never had a time where this ally has been more loyal or stood by your side more than right now.”

South Korea’s presidential office says US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have agreed to open “working-level” discussions between the countries over South Korea’s potential acquisition of nuclear-propelled submarines.
Moon’s office says Trump and Moon also discussed South Korea’s possible acquisition of unspecified reconnaissance assets to better cope against North Korean threats.
Moon said after his meeting with Trump that the two leaders agreed to cooperate on strengthening South Korea’s defense capabilities through the acquisition or development of advanced weapons systems.
South Korean government officials have been endorsing the nation getting nuclear-powered submarines amid calls for more military strength. There’s a growing concern among the South Korean public that North Korea’s expanding nuclear weapons arsenal, which may soon include an intercontinental ballistic missile that could target the US mainland, would undermine Seoul’s decadeslong alliance with Washington.

President Donald Trump says North Korea’s leader is “threatening millions and millions of lives so needlessly.”
Trump is speaking at a joint press conference in Seoul on Tuesday with South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in.
Trump says North Korea’s missile launches “are a threat, not only to the people of South Korea, but to the people all across the globe.”
The US president is calling for “worldwide action” in response to North Korea. He says that “every responsible nation, including China and Russia” should push for an end to North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

South Korea’s president says he and President Donald Trump are “strongly urging” North Korea to return to a negotiating table on its nuclear and missile programs.
President Moon Jae-in says at a joint news conference with Trump on Tuesday that he and Trump agreed to apply maximized pressures and sanctions on North Korea until it returns to “sincere” talks on disarming its nuclear and missile programs.

South Korea’s president says he and President Donald Trump have finalized an earlier agreement to allow South Korea to possess more powerful missiles in the face of growing North Korean threats.
President Moon Jae-in said Tuesday the two have agreed on lifting the warhead payload limits on South Korean ballistic missiles. He says they’re also cooperating on strengthening South Korea’s defense capabilities through the acquisition or development of advanced weapons systems.
Moon says Trump also reaffirmed the “iron-clad” US security commitment for South Korea during a joint news conference with the American leader on Wednesday.
Trump is in South Korea as the second leg of his first visit to Asia.

South Korea’s leader says he and President Donald Trump have agreed to place maximized pressures and sanctions on North Korea to peacefully defuse a standoff caused by the North’s weapons programs.
But President Moon Jae-in says Tuesday that he and Trump also reaffirmed they are ready to provide North Korea with a “bright future” if the country gives ups its nuclear and missile programs.
Moon made the comments after summit talks with Trump at the South Korean presidential office of Blue House on Tuesday. Trump arrived in South Korea earlier Tuesday as the second leg of his first Asian tour.

President Donald Trump says “good progress” is happening on North Korea as he urges Pyongyang to “come to the table” and “make a deal.”
Trump is speaking at a joint news conference in Seoul with South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in. Amid rising tensions with North Korea, he says: “it makes sense for North Korea to do the right thing.”
The president is not offering specifics on the type of progress being made. But Trump says it “really makes sense for North Korea to come to the table and make a deal.” He added that “I do see certain movement,” but did not offer specifics.

President Donald Trump is beginning his two-day Korean peninsula visit walking amid weapons of war but voicing optimism for peace.
His every move will be closely watched from both sides of Korea’s demilitarized zone.
Trump has repeatedly delivered combative warnings to Pyongyang as he urged it to abandon its nuclear program.
But as he began his two-day South Korean visit just three dozen miles from the heavily-fortified DMZ, he initially struck a different, more hopeful tone.
He declared that “it always works out. Has to work out.”
That echoed the sentiment of his tweet hours earlier, when he left Japan for South Korea, the second stop of his lengthy Asian trip. It is centered on pressuring North Korean dictator Kim Jong to abandon his weapons program.

President Donald Trump is beginning his two-day Korean peninsula visit walking amid weapons of war but voicing optimism for peace.
His every move will be closely watched from both sides of Korea’s demilitarized zone.
Trump has repeatedly delivered combative warnings to Pyongyang as he urged it to abandon its nuclear program.
But as he began his two-day South Korean visit just three dozen miles from the heavily-fortified DMZ, he initially struck a different, more hopeful tone.
He declared that “it always works out. Has to work out.”
That echoed the sentiment of his tweet hours earlier, when he left Japan for South Korea, the second stop of his lengthy Asian trip. It is centered on pressuring North Korean dictator Kim Jong to abandon his weapons program.


India BJP’s election videos targeting Muslims and opposition spark outrage

Updated 06 May 2024
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India BJP’s election videos targeting Muslims and opposition spark outrage

  • Videos shared by BJP depict Congress giving disproportionate benefits to Muslims over tribal and Hindu groups
  • Manipulated videos have become contentious issue in polls, such as fake videos of top Bollywood stars criticizing Modi

NEW DELHI, May 6 : Animated videos shared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party targeting opposition Congress and the Muslim community have evoked complaints and outrage, as the political climate in India heats up midway through its six-week long election.
The videos, shared by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on social media platforms Instagram and X over the last ten days, depict the Congress giving disproportionate benefits to India’s minority Muslim community, at the cost of certain disadvantaged tribal and Hindu caste groups.
The Congress, in a complaint to the poll watchdog Election Commission, said on Sunday that the video has been shared “clearly with an intention to wantonly provocate rioting and promote enmity between different religions.”
A set of guidelines mutually adopted by political parties for how they should conduct themselves during the election period prohibit them from creating “mutual hatred” between caste, religious or linguistic groups.
Manipulated videos on social media have also become a contentious issue in this election, such as fake videos showing top Bollywood stars criticizing the prime minister.
On Monday, the commission warned parties against the misuse of AI tools to create deep fakes and told them not to publish and circulate such videos. It also said parties had been directed to remove such content within three hours of it being brought to their notice.
Modi, the face of the Hindu-nationalist BJP, seeking a rare third consecutive term, had focused his campaign largely on his government’s performance on economic growth and welfare benefits.
But he changed tack after the first phase of voting on April 19 and his campaign speeches have since become more polarizing on religious lines, accusing Congress of planning to redistribute the wealth of the majority Hindus among minority Muslims, who he called “infiltrators” who have “more children.”
The videos shared by the BJP over the last ten days, one of which has since been taken down, illustrated the same message.
A 17-second video shared by a state unit of BJP on May 4, with over 8.5 million views, shows a character resembling Congress leader Rahul Gandhi feeding “funds” to a bird in a skullcap, which eventually pushes out from their common nest three other birds representing other disadvantaged groups.
The Congress has filed a police complaint against BJP leaders for the video, BJP’s head of information and technology Amit Malviya said on X.
“The Congress should in fact thank the BJP for taking their manifesto to the people in a manner that even they couldn’t,” he wrote.
The video has elicited outrage. Nitasha Kaul, a politics professor at London’s Westminster University said on X that the video was a “straightforward 1930s Germany style cartoon.”
In its manifesto for the elections, the Congress has promised to tackle India’s economic inequality by conducting a socio-economic caste census and extending affirmative action. It said it will ensure that minorities receive “their fair share” of education, economic and health care opportunities.
An Election Commission spokesperson, the BJP’s Malviya and Congress spokespersons did not respond to requests seeking comment.


Bangladeshi students rally in solidarity with global student movement against Israel

Students gather at Dhaka University in a solidarity protest with Palestine and the global student movement against Israel.
Updated 06 May 2024
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Bangladeshi students rally in solidarity with global student movement against Israel

  • US student protests have sparked more around the world, including in India, France, Australia
  • Dhaka’s thousands-strong rally took place at Bangladesh’s largest, oldest tertiary institution

DHAKA: Thousands of people protesting Israel’s war on Gaza rallied at one of Bangladesh’s top universities on Monday in solidarity with the student-led protests and occupations sweeping the globe. 

Pro-Palestinian student leaders and activists from different universities marched and carried flags of Bangladesh and Palestine, chanting slogans in solidarity with Gaza as they made their way to Dhaka University, Bangladesh’s largest and oldest tertiary institution. 

Their protest culminated at the symbolic Aparajeyo Bangla sculpture, one of the most well-known landmarks dedicated to the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971.

“Our stance is very clear: We express solidarity in support of a free Palestine state, in favor of a world free from war. And we support the demands made by US students, like divestment from Israel and other organizations that support the Israeli aggression,” Saddam Hussain, president of the organizing student group Bangladesh Students’ League, told Arab News. 

They are also rallying in solidarity with the global student movement, he added. 

“We believe all protests hold the same spirit of the youth, be it on the banks of the Atlantic or here on the bank of River Padma,” he said. 

“The youths around the world have a common dream, and I urge all of them to move forward to make this dream come true. I hope all the youths of the world will join in this protest to build a world free from war, free and guided with humanitarian spirit.”

The Israeli strikes on Gaza that began in October have killed nearly 35,000 people in the Palestinian territory, mostly women and children. The leader of the World Food Program said over the weekend that parts of the Gaza strip were experiencing a “full-blown famine” that was spreading across the besieged enclave. 

Students started to rally or set up tents at various universities around the US last month to protest Israel’s war on Gaza, sparking a global solidarity movement among the youth in India, Australia, France and elsewhere, with many putting pressure on their administrators and governments to cut ties with Tel Aviv. 

While US colleges have seen protests since October, the unrest has escalated in recent weeks after police arrested pro-Palestine demonstrators at an encampment in Columbia University, sparking even more campsites at other campuses, as well as more crackdowns and arrests.

Unlike in the US, students in Dhaka were able to protest peacefully with scant police presence.

“The US and some other big players always speak in favor of freedom of speech. But what we have seen in the university campuses in the US is a shame for world leaders,” Solaiman Khan, a 23-year-old Dhaka University student, told Arab News. 

“It’s a double standard. We, the youth (of Bangladesh), came out to the streets against this sort of hypocrisy from the superpowers of the world.” 

Khan said the violence against Palestinians must be “stopped now and forever.” 

“We have seen enough atrocities done by the Israeli forces. How many more lives must the world lose? Is it not enough?” he said. 

“I think world leaders should come to their senses and act more rationally in stopping the atrocities in Gaza orchestrated by the occupying Israeli forces. Now is the time to play a decisive role. Otherwise, the next generation will not forgive us.”


Pro-Palestine Oxbridge students set up encampments

Updated 06 May 2024
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Pro-Palestine Oxbridge students set up encampments

  • They are demanding transparency about the universities’ financial links to Israel
  • ‘We will not move until our demands are met’

LONDON: Students at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge have set up encampments in support of Palestine, The Times reported on Monday.

Around 50 have refused to leave the lawn of King’s College, Cambridge, while students have also declared a “liberated zone” outside Oxford’s Pitt Rivers Museum.

A banner hung outside King’s College read: “Welcome to the people’s university for Palestine.” Chants of “stop the bombing now” have also been heard on the campus.

The protests have been organized by Oxford Action for Palestine and Cambridge for Palestine.

They are demanding transparency about the universities’ financial links to Israel, which they have described as a “settler colonial state,” and are calling for the end of all investments and endowments from Israeli and Israel-linked companies.

“We have set up camp in university grounds, and we will not move until our demands are met,” the groups said in a statement, adding that the universities are legitimate targets for protests because of their “role in the British empire and its disastrous colonial legacies.”

The Times reported that protesters had been given an itinerary for their involvement including “de-escalation training” and “banner-making.”

A spokesperson for Cambridge University said it is for the college to decide whether to call the police, adding: “The university is fully committed to academic freedom and freedom of speech within the law and we acknowledge the right to protest.

“We ask everyone in our community to treat each other with understanding and empathy. Our priority is the safety of all staff and students.

“We will not tolerate antisemitism, Islamophobia and any other form of racial or religious hatred, or other unlawful activity.”

The relatively small UK protests come after nearly 2,000 people were arrested across the US after widespread demonstrations on over 130 American university campuses about Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza.


Muslim group issues UK Labour Party leader with demands over Gaza

Britain’s main opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer speaks during a post local election rally in central England.
Updated 06 May 2024
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Muslim group issues UK Labour Party leader with demands over Gaza

  • Muslim Vote group calls for ‘real action’ to regain trust
  • Support for Labour in recent local elections fell in areas with high Muslim populations

LONDON: Pro-Palestinian activists have presented a list of 18 demands to the leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party and said they will not vote for the party at the next general election if he does not fulfill them.

The Muslim Vote, a campaign to get Muslim voters to back pro-Palestine candidates, has called for Sir Keir Starmer to promise to cut military ties with Israel, implement a travel ban on Israeli politicians involved in the war in Gaza and impose sanctions on companies operating in occupied territories. 

The group told Starmer he must commit to “real action” and deliver on its requests if he was “serious” about his pledge to rebuild trust with those angered by his stance on the conflict in Gaza, The Telegraph reported.

Supporters would vote for the Green Party or Liberal Democrats if he could not commit to their demands, it said.

Labour’s campaign chief Pat McFadden acknowledged that Starmer’s approach to the conflict had cost the party votes at last week’s local elections. Support for Labour dropped dramatically in areas with a high Muslim populations, including Oldham in Greater Manchester, where the party lost overall control of the council in a shock defeat.

After the result, Starmer said he was determined to regain the trust of those who abandoned Labour as a result of his stance on the Gaza war but did not make any concrete pledges on the matter.

The Muslim Vote challenged Starmer with committing to the 18 demands and implementing them should he become the next prime minister.

They include removing the definition of extremism introduced by Secretary of State for Leveling Up, Housing and Communities Michael Gove and issuing guidance that allows Muslims to pray at school.


Philippines rules out use of water cannon in disputed South China Sea

Updated 06 May 2024
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Philippines rules out use of water cannon in disputed South China Sea

  • Philippines and China have clashed several times in disputed, resource-rich waterway
  • Latest skirmish took place late last month, in an incident Manila describes as dangerous

MANILA: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Monday that Manila will not use offensive equipment in the disputed South China Sea, after China’s coast guard used high-pressure water cannon on Philippine vessels last week.

The Philippines and China have had several confrontations in the resource-rich area, where Beijing has used water cannon against Filipino vessels in incidents Manila has described as harassment and dangerous.

The latest in a string of maritime clashes occurred on April 30 as tensions continued to rise in the vital waterway that Beijing claims almost in its entirety despite a 2016 international arbitration ruling that rejected its assertion.

“What we are doing is defending our sovereign rights and our sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea. And we have no intention of attacking anyone with water cannons or any other such offensive (weapons),” Marcos said Monday.

“We will not follow the Chinese coast guard and the Chinese vessels down that road because it is not the mission of the navy (or) our coast guard to start or to increase tensions … Their mission is precisely the opposite, it’s to lower tensions.”

Philippine vessels have been regularly targeted by Chinese ships in areas of the South China Sea that are internationally recognized as belonging to the Philippines, which Manila calls the West Philippine Sea.

The Philippines’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs last Thursday summoned Zhou Zhiyong, China’s deputy chief of mission, after the incident left a Philippine coast guard vessel and another government boat damaged.

It was the 20th protest Manila has made against Beijing’s conduct in the South China Sea this year alone, while more than 150 diplomatic complaints have been made over the past two years.

Marcos said the Philippines will continue to respond to South China Sea incidents through diplomatic means.

Marcos’s statement comes days after the defense ministers of the Philippines, the US, Japan and Australia met in Hawaii and issued a joint statement on their strong objections to the “dangerous and destabilizing conduct” of China in the South China Sea.