Munich, Germany | AFP | Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Saturday dismissed as “blabber” accusations that Moscow had interfered in the US election that brought President Donald Trump to power. “So as long as we don’t see facts, everything else is blabber,” Lavrov said at the Munich Security Conference, …
Read More »S. Korea’s Moon says ‘too early’ for Pyongyang summit
Pyeongchang, South Korea | AFP | South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in on Saturday said it was too early to think about a summit with North Korea despite the Olympic-driven rapprochement with its nuclear-armed neighbour. Moon last week received an invitation from the North’s leader Kim Jong Un for a summit …
Read More »IMF’s Lagarde warns on rate risk from US tax reform
Paris, France | AFP | IMF chief Christine Lagarde warned Saturday that economic stimulus from US tax cuts may lead to a rapid rise in interest rates which would weigh on countries with high debt levels. The International Monetary Fund was going to be “attentive” to the consequences of the …
Read More »Trump visits Florida shooting survivors, FBI admits it missed tip
Pompano Beach, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Friday visited a Florida hospital to offer comfort to those wounded in a mass school shooting, after the FBI admitted it mishandled a tip about the troubled teen behind the massacre that left 17 dead. The arrival of …
Read More »Cyberattacks are costly, and things could get worse: US report
Washington, United States | AFP | Cyberattacks cost the United States between $57 billion and $109 billion in 2016, a White House report said Friday, warning of a “spillover” effect for the broader economy if the situation worsens. A report by the White House Council of Economic Advisers sought to …
Read More »Second woman alleges Trump affair — and cover-up
Washington, United States | AFP | A second woman has made allegations of an affair with Donald Trump, describing complex legal and financial agreements in an alleged bid to cover it up. Former Playboy model Karen McDougal claims that she and Trump had a sexual relationship in 2006, which began …
Read More »Trump says ‘no collusion’ after Russians indicted for election meddling
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Friday held up the indictment of 13 Russians — and no Americans — for meddling in the 2016 election as vindication that his campaign team did not collude with Moscow. “Russia started their anti-US campaign in 2014, long before …
Read More »FBI warned about Florida gunman but failed to act
Washington, United States | AFP | The FBI said Friday that it received a detailed warning last month that Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz was a danger but that it failed to act. “On January 5, 2018, a person close to Nikolas Cruz contacted the FBI’s Public Access Line tipline …
Read More »Google begins blocking annoying ads on its browser
Washington, United States | AFP | Google has begun a new effort to block annoying ads on its Chrome browser, as part of an initiative aimed at improving the online advertising ecosystem that provides the bulk of its revenues. The new ad filtering system rolled out this week aims to …
Read More »US officials conduct vast immigration sweep in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, United States | AFP | US federal agents said Friday they arrested 212 people in Los Angeles for violating federal immigration laws. The vast majority — 88 percent — of those arrested “were convicted criminals,” the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said in a statement. The arrests were …
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