#U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council

[minnesotafollower]

U.S. House Hearing on Cuban Private Enterprise  

On January 18, the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere Affairs held a hearing that opened with its chair, Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (Rep., FL), delivering a speech entitled “The Myth of the New Cuban Entrepreneurs: An Analysis of the Biden Administration’s Cuba Policy.”[1] Salazar said, “according to information she has, the growth of private enterprises in Cuba is a…

[warningsine]

https://www.reuters.com/world/nicaragua-upgrades-ties-with-china-seeks-financial-support-amid-western-2023-12-20/

BEIJING, Dec 20 (Reuters) - China and Nicaragua upgraded their bilateral ties on Wednesday, setting the stage for the Asian giant to provide more economic support to the sanctioned Central American state and furthering Beijing's strategic ambitions in the United States' backyard.

Beijing and Managua re-established diplomatic ties in 2021 after Nicaragua broke off relations with Chinese-claimed Taiwan, which U.S. officials attributed to the allure of the prospect of fresh investment from China after Western countries sanctioned President Daniel Ortega's government over human rights abuses.

"I am willing to work with President Ortega to take today's announcement of a China-Nicaragua strategic partnership as a new start, to push relations between our two countries forward to build a model of solidarity, cooperation and mutual benefit," Chinese President Xi Jinping told Ortega during a call to mark the second anniversary of the resumption of diplomatic ties, Chinese state media reported.

Xi said the China-Nicaragua Free Trade Agreement would take effect on Jan. 1.

China, the world's second-largest economy, is already a major investor in Central and Latin America and could provide Nicaragua with welcome financial support as the United States ratchets up economic pressure on Ortega's administration.

"China is also willing to strengthen its solidarity and cooperation with Nicaragua in international affairs and opposing hegemony and power politics," state media reported Xi as saying.

Nicaragua also faces sanctions from Canada, the United Kingdom and European states, while a United Nations Human Rights Council report in March concluded the Nicaraguan government had committed "widespread and systematic human rights violations that amount to crimes against humanity."

In 2018, Ortega's government waged a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests - which it has made illegal - and has jailed dozens of opposition figures that officials have accused of fomenting a coup. Rights groups have denounced the actions as a descent into dictatorship.

In an earlier statement, China's foreign ministry said it "firmly supports Nicaragua in steadily moving forward with its domestic political agenda and resolutely opposes interference in Nicaragua's internal affairs by external forces".

Nicaragua reiterated that it would not have any form of official exchange with Taiwan, the ministry said.

Taiwan's Foreign Ministry criticized the comments, saying Ortega had switched to China for his own personal gain and has "willingly become an accomplice in China's destruction of democracy and peace, which is despicable".

Nicaragua has strategic importance for China given its proximity to the United States. In recent years, Beijing has steadily stepped up its diplomatic engagement across the region, establishing diplomatic ties with neighbouring Honduras in May and offering support to nearby, diplomatically isolated Cuba and Venezuela.

"China is ready to be a reliable friend of Nicaragua and will continue to firmly support Nicaragua in safeguarding its national independence, dignity and in opposing foreign interference," Xi said.

[newstfionline]

Sunday, November 15, 2020

Trump Suffers Key Setbacks in Bid to Overturn Biden Victory (Bloomberg) President Donald Trump’s long-shot bid to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s victory suffered major setbacks on Friday, with news networks calling Georgia for the Democrat and legal challenges crumbling in three other key states. North Carolina was called for Trump by four networks. ABC and CNN projected a Biden win in Georgia, which would give him 306 electoral votes, far above the 270 needed to win, leaving Trump with 232 electoral votes. All 50 states’ presidential races have been called. The networks called Georgia for Biden and North Carolina for Trump with an estimated 99% of the vote counted, meaning that they believe there are not enough votes left that would change the projected outcome of the race. The Electoral College will meet on Dec. 14 to officially cast their votes for Biden, and Congress is scheduled to accept the results on Jan. 6.

Democrats keep winning the popular vote. That worries them. (AP) Democrats won the popular vote in this year’s presidential election yet again, marking seven out of eight straight presidential elections that the party has reached that milestone. And, for some Democrats, that’s worrisome. President-elect Joe Biden has so far won 50.8% of the vote compared to the 47.4% who voted for President Donald Trump, a 5 million vote advantage that is likely to grow as Democratic bastions like California and New York continue to count ballots. Biden’s 77.5 million votes to date are the most for any winning candidate, and Trump’s 72.3 million also set a high water mark for a losing one. But what alarms many Democrats is a growing gap between their popular vote tallies and their political power. Democrats may be winning over more supporters, but as long as those votes are clustered on the coasts or in cities and suburbs, they won’t deliver the congressional victories the party needs to enact its policies. That power gap is especially clear this year. While Biden was racking up those historic margins, Democrats lost at least eight seats in the House of Representatives and failed to gain a single statehouse—in fact, they lost control of New Hampshire’s legislature. They also fell short of taking back control of the U.S. Senate, with their hopes now resting on winning two run-off elections in Georgia that are considered an uphill climb for the party. Whether it’s a problem—or a necessary check on power—is a point of debate. The founders created a U.S. system of government based partially on geography. Wyoming, with its population of 500,000, has as many senators as California, home to 39 million people. The presidency is a won by amassing a majority of electors allocated to states.

Progressives look to make early mark on Biden White House (AP) Leading progressives are pressuring President-elect Joe Biden to embrace their policy agenda even as more centrist Democrats argue such proposals prevented the party from retaking full control of Congress. The jockeying amounts to the opening round of what is likely to be a lengthy debate over the future of the Democratic Party. Some centrists have blamed losses in the House and a disappointing performance in the Senate on Republicans’ ability to paint Democrats as having moved too far to the left. That’s creating tension for a party that should be basking in the glow of defeating an incumbent president for the first time in nearly 30 years.

In Rural ‘Dead Zones,’ School Comes on a Flash Drive (NYT) Shekinah and Orlandria Lennon were sitting at their kitchen table this fall, taking online classes, when video of their teachers and fellow students suddenly froze on their laptop screens. The wireless antenna on the roof had stopped working, and it could not be fixed. Desperate for a solution, their mother called five broadband companies, trying to get connections for their home in Orrum, N.C., a rural community of fewer than 100 people with no grocery store or traffic lights. All the companies gave the same answer: Service is not available in your area. The response is the same across broad stretches of Robeson County, N.C., a swath of small towns and rural places like Orrum dotted among soybean fields and hog farms on the South Carolina border. About 20,000 of the county’s homes, or 43 percent of all households, have no internet connection. The technology gap has prompted teachers to upload lessons on flash drives and send them home to dozens of students every other week. Some children spend school nights crashing at more-connected relatives’ homes so they can get online for classes the next day. Millions of American students are grappling with the same challenges, learning remotely without adequate home internet service. “It’s not fair,” said Shekinah, 17, who, after weeks trying to stay connected to classes through her cellphone, was finally able to get online regularly again last month through a Wi-Fi hot spot provided by the school. “I don’t think just the people who live in the city should have internet. We need it in the country, too.” Even as school districts like the one in Robeson County have scrambled to provide students with laptops, many who live in low-income and rural communities continue to have difficulty logging on.

Oregon, New Mexico order lockdowns (AP) The governors of Oregon and New Mexico ordered near-lockdowns Friday in the most aggressive response yet to the latest wave of coronavirus infections shattering records across the U.S. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown ordered a two-week “freeze” starting Wednesday, under which all businesses will be required to close their offices to the public and mandate work-from-home “to the greatest extent possible.” While most Oregon stores will remain open, gyms, museums, pools, movie theaters and zoos will be forced to close, and restaurants and bars will be limited to takeout. Social gatherings will be restricted to six people. The Democratic governor warned that violators could face fines or arrest. “For the last eight months, I have been asking Oregonians to follow to the letter and the spirit of the law, and we have not chosen to engage law enforcement,” Brown said. “At this point in time, unfortunately, we have no other option.”

Minneapolis violence surges as police officers leave department in droves (Washington Post) The sound of gunfire has become so familiar across North Minneapolis that Cathy Spann worries she has grown numb to it. Day and night the bullets zip through this predominantly Black neighborhood, hitting cars and homes and people. The scores of victims have included a 7-year-old boy, wounded in a drive-by shooting; a woman who took a bullet that came through her living room wall while she was watching television with her family; and a 17-year-old girl shot in the head and killed. Spann, a longtime community activist who works for the Jordan Area Community Council, cannot recall another time when things were this bad—not even when the city was branded “Murderapolis,” during a spike in violence in the mid-1990s. “If you want to talk about pandemics, we’re dealing with a pandemic of violence,” Spann said on a recent afternoon, just as word came of two more nearby shootings. “We’re under siege. You wake up and go to bed in fear, because you don’t know what’s going to happen next. . . . And our city has failed to protect us.” Nearly six months after George Floyd’s death here sparked massive protests and left a wide swath of the city burned and destroyed, Minneapolis is grappling with dueling crises: an unprecedented wave of violence and droves of officer departures that the Minneapolis Police Department warns could soon leave the force unable to respond to emergencies. In June, a city council majority vowed to defund and dismantle the police department and replace it with a new agency focused on a mix of public safety and violence prevention—a move that could go before voters in 2021. Police Chief Medaria Arradondo said more than 100 officers have left the force—more than double the number in a typical year, and more are considering departing.

Western Union says suspending U.S. transfers to Cuba (Reuters) Western Union said on Friday it was suspending U.S. money transfers to Cuba in 10 days due to the Trump administration’s latest sanction on the Communist-run island, in a blow to the many Cubans who rely on remittances from family abroad. Its customers will now have to find new ways to send transfers against the backdrop of Cuba’s deepest economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. Remittances have become one of the top sources of hard currency in an inefficient state-run economy laboring under a crippling U.S. trade embargo.

Armenians torch their homes on land ceded to Azerbaijan (AP) In a bitter farewell to his home of 21 years, Garo Dadevusyan wrenched off its metal roof and prepared to set the stone house on fire. Thick smoke poured from houses that his neighbors had already torched before fleeing this ethnic Armenian village about to come under Azerbaijani control. The village is to be turned over to Azerbaijan on Sunday as part of territorial concessions in an agreement to end six weeks of intense fighting with Armenian forces. The move gripped its 600 people with anger so deep that they destroyed the homes they once loved. The settlement—called Karvachar in Armenian—is legally part of Azerbaijan, but it has been under the control of ethnic Armenians since the 1994 end of a war over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. That war left not only Nagorno-Karabakh itself but substantial surrounding territory in Armenian hands. Muslim Azeris and Christian Armenians once lived together in these regions, however uneasily. Although the cease-fire ends the fighting, it aggravates ethnic animosity. “In the end, we will blow it up or set it on fire, in order not to leave anything to Muslims,” Dadevusyan said of his house.

India virus surge continues in New Delhi (AP) India’s overall tally of new coronavirus cases remained steady on Saturday, but officials were watching a surge of cases in the capital that comes as people socialize during the festival season. India’s Health Ministry reported 44,684 new positive cases in the past 24 hours and 520 deaths. Of those, 7,802 new cases were reported in New Delhi, with 91 deaths. New Delhi has seen a spike in recent weeks, recording more new cases than any other Indian state. The rising numbers coincide with a busy festival season nationwide, with millions celebrating Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, on Saturday. COVID-19 beds in government-run hospitals are nearly full and the availability of intensive care unit beds with ventilator support in the city has reached an all-time low, according to the government data. The New Delhi government has said that cases are projected to rise to nearly 12,000 daily by the end of November.

With protests muzzled, Hong Kong takes aim at the press (Washington Post) Choy Yuk-ling, better known as Bao Choy, is among this city’s most dogged journalists. Her work for public broadcaster Radio Television Hong Kong has tackled police misconduct, election-rigging, and flaws in personal protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, nearly a dozen officers arrested Choy at her home for a routine journalistic practice: accessing a public database of car registrations. She was investigating the failure of police to keep a mob from attacking anti-government protesters and others at a subway station last year. Two other journalists were charged that same week, one for resisting the police while filming and another for obstructing officers. The moves sent a chill through the city’s once-freewheeling media, already shaken by a new Chinese security law that ended free-speech protections long available in Hong Kong but not elsewhere in China. Combined with newsroom censorship, managerial shake-ups and visa denials, the arrests underscored officials’ intensifying drive to tighten control over what is said, written and heard in Hong Kong. “What state power has been doing is to try and subdue the few organizations that remain independent, daring and professional,” said Francis Lee, a professor of journalism and communications at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. “They really want to close down this environment of open information.”

Vietnam braces for Typhoon Vamco, 53 dead in Philippines (Reuters) Vietnam was bracing for Typhoon Vamco to make landfall in the country’s central coast early on Sunday, as the death toll in the Philippines rose to 53 from that country’s deadliest storm this year. Packing winds of up to 165 kph (103 mph), Vamco is forecast to hit a swathe of Vietnam’s coast from Ha Tinh to Quang Ngai province, the government’s weather agency said on Saturday. Vietnam is prone to destructive storms and flooding due to its long coastline. Vamco will be the 13th storm that affects the Southeast Asian country this year, where more than 160 people have been killed in natural disasters triggered by a series of storms since early October. “There has been no respite for more than eight million people living in central Vietnam,” said Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu, Vietnam Red Cross Society President. “Each time they start rebuilding their lives and livelihoods, they are pummelled by yet another storm.”

Polisario leader says Western Sahara ceasefire with Morocco is over (Reuters) The leader of the Polisario Front, Western Sahara’s independence movement, said on Saturday the group had ended a 29-year ceasefire with Morocco to resume its armed struggle following a border confrontation. A collapse of the truce could reignite a long-dormant guerrilla war in the remote desert region and aggravate decades of friction between Morocco and neighbouring Algeria, which hosts the Polisario. Polisario leader Ibrahim Ghali said he had signed a decree announcing the end of the group’s commitment to abide by the truce, and blamed Morocco for breaking it. His statement was carried by the group’s official news agency, which also said Polisario fighters had attacked Moroccan positions along different parts of the frontline, which stretches hundreds of miles across the desert. A diplomat familiar with the situation said on Friday that heavy weapons fire was audible near the buffer zone from the direction of a Moroccan military build-up.

Nigeria Goes on Offensive Against Youth Protesting Police Brutality (NYT) Nigeria—Africa’s most populous nation—was turned upside down last month by an uprising that grew into the largest popular resistance the government has faced in years. The demonstrations began as an outcry against the SARS police unit, but evolved into a larger protest over bad governance. The government has adopted a two-pronged strategy to try to put a stop to the uproar. It has tried to persuade people that it is listening to the protesters—commissioning panels of inquiry and announcing that SARS is being disbanded. But it is simultaneously using its power to repress and intimidate activists by throwing many people in jail, and harassing others in ways large and small. Protesters say that the government is conducting a targeted campaign against people associated with the uprising in order to harass, impede and break up the movement—destroying any good faith the government had hoped to build.

[alwaysfirst]

US wary of China's expanding footprints in Latin America

Aug 29, 2022 16:44 IST Beijing , August 29 (AF): US policymakers and military officials have raised concerns about China's growing presence in Latin America while Washington shifted its focus toward the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, a think tank Council on Foreign Relations said. Over the past two decades, China has developed close economic and security ties with many Latin American countries, including Brazil and Venezuela. But Beijing's growing sway in the region has raised concerns in Washington and beyond. China is South America's top trading partner and a major source of both foreign direct investment and lending in energy and infrastructure, including through its Belt and Road Initiative. It has invested heavily in Latin America's space sector and has strengthened its military ties with several countries, particularly Venezuela. Washington is wary of all these developments, and critics say Beijing is leveraging its economic might to further its strategic goals. "We are losing our positional advantage in this Hemisphere and immediate action is needed to reverse this trend," argued Admiral Craig S. Faller, the former head of U.S. Southern Command, in 2021. China's role in Latin America has grown rapidly since 2000, promising economic opportunity even while raising concerns over Beijing's influence. China's state firms are major investors in the region's energy, infrastructure, and space industries, and the country has surpassed the United States as South America's largest trading partner, as per the think tank. Beijing has also expanded its diplomatic, cultural, and military presence. Most recently, it has leveraged its support in the fight against COVID-19, supplying the region with medical equipment, loans, and hundreds of millions of vaccine doses. But the United States and its allies fear that Beijing is using these relationships to pursue its geopolitical goals, including the further isolation of Taiwan, and to bolster authoritarian regimes. U.S. President Joe Biden, who sees China as a "strategic competitor" in the region, is seeking ways to counter its growing sway. In 2000, the Chinese market accounted for less than 2 per cent of Latin America's exports, but China's rapid growth and resulting demand drove the region's subsequent commodities boom. Over the next eight years, trade grew at an average annual rate of 31 per cent, reaching a value of USD 180 billion in 2010. By 2021, trade totalled USD 450 billion, and economists predict that it could exceed USD 700 billion by 2035. China is currently South America's top trading partner and the second-largest for Latin America as a whole, after the United States. Latin American exports to China are mainly soybeans, copper, petroleum, oil, and other raw materials that the country needs to drive its industrial development. In return, the region mostly imports higher-value-added manufactured products, a trade some experts say has undercut local industries with cheaper Chinese goods. Beijing has free trade agreements in place with Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru, and 20 Latin American countries have so far signed on to China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Talks on a free trade agreement with Ecuador began in February 2022. China's focus on soft power--including strengthening cultural and educational ties--has helped Beijing build political goodwill with local governments and present itself as a viable alternative partner to the United States and European states. Venezuela became the region's top purchaser of Chinese military hardware after the U.S. government prohibited all commercial arms sales to the country beginning in 2006. Between 2009 and 2019, Beijing reportedly sold more than USD 615 million worth of weapons to Venezuela. Bolivia and Ecuador have also purchased millions of dollars worth of Chinese military aircraft, ground vehicles, air defense radars, and assault rifles. Cuba has sought to strengthen military ties with China, hosting the Chinese People's Liberation Army for several port visits. Despite U.S. warnings against using Huawei equipment, which policymakers say leaves countries vulnerable to Chinese cyber threats, Argentina and Brazil, among others, depend on it for their cellular networks. (AF) Read the full article

[opedguy]

Mexico Ships Diesel Fuel to Havana

LOS ANGELES (OnlineColumnist.com), July 27, 2021.--Mexico’s 67-year-old president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador called the U.S. embargo against Cuba “cruel,” announcing today he was shipping 126,000 barrels or 5,292,000 gallons of diesel fuel to the economically embattled island.  Mexico’s state run oil company Peroleos Mexicanos shipped the diesel fuel from its port of Coatzecoalcos in the Yucatan, Peninsula destined for the port of Havana.  Havana has grown more dependent on diesel-fired electric power generators as natural gas supplies dwindled.  Lopez Obrador just finished commemorating the 238 birthday of Simon Bolivar, the heroic liberators of Spanish colonial rule in Latin America.  Lopez Obrador praised Cuba’s 61-year-old President Miguel Diaz-Canel for his “resistance” to capitalistic influence over the last 62-years since the 1959 Cuban Revolution.  Whether admitted to or not, there’s little to celebrate in Cuba.       

      Cuba lives as a testament to the failure of Marxist-Leninsim in the Western hemisphere, having failed in Central and South America and all over the nations of the Caribbean.  Left-leaning Lopez Obrador called the U.S. embargo “inhumane,” saying that Mexico was under no obligation as and independent state to follow U.S. foreign policy.  Lopez Obrador encouraged 78-year-old President Joe Biden to end the embargo, despite opposition from Miami’s large Cuban exile community.  “We are an independent nation,” Lopez Obrador said at a press conference, concerned whether or not the diesel fuel shipment violated the U.S. embargo.  Former President Barack Obama tried to normalize U.S.-Cuban relations, only to see dangerous microwave weapons attacks on U.S. diplomatic personnel at the U.S. Cuban embassy.  Since State Department officials fell ill, normalizing relations stalled.    

         Lopez Obrador mentioned nothing about the street demonstrating in Havana protesting communist rule.  With food and medicine shortages, Cuba meets the definition of a failed state, never really prospering in the 63-year-old since the Cuban Revolution. Like most communist dictatorships, they’re good at the propaganda needed sell the public on revolution.  What revolutionary dictatorship are bad about is encouraging the kind of economic development that can improve the lives of ordinary citizens.  Fidel Castro and his brother Raul were good at implementing a paranoid police state, cracking down on dissent but not establishing a thriving economy necessary to give Cuban citizens a future.  Lopez Obrador’s decision to ship diesel fuel to Cuba mirrors the desperation seen in Cuba due to colossal economic mismanagement and political failure.  Diaz-Canel shows no sign of changing Castro’s policy.   

          U.S. officials most recently under Obama tried to work toward normalizing relations but wound up getting U.S. diplomatic personnel hit with mysterious microwave attacks in 2018.  Since Covid-19 decimated Cuba for much of 2020, Cuba’s tourism industry has fallen off a cliff. Without any real export industry with the exception of Cuban cigars, Cuba finds itself economically depressed, unable to provide for its own citizens.  Lopez Obrador’s decision to supply Cuba with diesel fuel was welcomed relief for the economically deprived island.  “The U.S. embargo on Cuba is not focused on Cuba’s imports but on U.S. exports to Cuba,” said John S. Kavulich, president of New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, noting that Biden, so far, has showed little interest in normalizing U.S. relations.  Cuban exiles want their property and wealth restored by the Cuban government.     

        Cuba’s economic woes started to intensify in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union, leading the Russian Federation to spend less money on foreign aid, including Cuba.  When you compound that with the 2010 economic collapse in oil-rich Venezuela, it all took a toll on Cuba.  Since Venezuela Dictator Hugo Chavez’s death March 5, 2013, Cuba has lacked a reliable trading partner, especially when it came to petroleum sales.  Lopez Obrador called on Biden to change U.S. foreign policy on the embargo, helping Cuba with economic development.  Cuba’s government has reached out to other trading partners but find itself in the worst recession since the 2008 financial collapse, rippling to many developing nations.  Under former President Donald Trump, the U.S. Treasury applied black-listed Venezuelan tanker companies delivering petroleum products from Venezuela.   

          Whatever the reasons for Cuba’s economic collapse, you’d think that President Miguel Diaz-Canel would do everything possible to restore diplomatic relations with the U.S. at the earliest possible time.  Cuba’s refusal to open up markets for the benefit of the Cuban people mirrors the kind of paranoia seen in communist dictatorships, like Cuba and North Korea, where any outside influence is seen as a conspiracy to overthrow the ruling government.  Biden wants to improve relations with Cuba but not at the expense of State Department employees subjected to microwave attacks. Cuba’s communist dictatorship needs to step up protecting U.S. diplomatic personnel if it wants to join the modern, technological world.  Instead of blocking the Internet, the Cuban government should figure out what it takes to improve Havana’s business climate to create jobs and provide Cubans with a future.

 About the Author  

 John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma. 

[alegriaspain]

Who Will Sanction the United States?

Who Will Sanction the United States?

War by Other Means According to the Council on Foreign Relations website (cfr.org) “economic sanctions” are the withdrawal of customary trade and financial relations for foreign- and security-policy purposes.” Sanctions may prohibit commercial activity with an entire country, like the U.S. embargo of Cuba, or they may be targeted, blocking transactions by and with particular businesses, groups,…

[go-redgirl]

President Donald Trump, joined on stage by supporters and members of congress including Vice President Mike Pence, Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, and Rep. Tim Scott, R-S.C., speaks during an event on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, to acknowledge the final passage of tax overhaul legislation by Congress. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)          

With the passage of the GOP tax bill this week, the Trump administration has scored 81 major achievements in its first year, making good on campaign promises to provide significant tax cuts, boost U.S. energy production, and restore respect to the United States, according to the White House.

And along the way, President Trump even outdid his own expectations and slashed at least 11 major legacy items of former President Barack Obama, including cracking down on the open border, slowing recognition of communist Cuba and effectively killing Obamacare by ending the mandate that everyone have health insurance or face a tax.

According to the White House, the 81 accomplishments are in 12 major categories and include well over 100 other minor achievements.

The unofficial list helps to counter the impression in the mainstream media and among congressional Democrats that outside the approval of Supreme Court Neil Gorsuch and passage of the tax reform bill little was done.

Administrations typically tout their achievements broadly at the end of each year, but Trump plans to list jobs added, regulations killed, foreign policy victories won, and moves to help veterans and even drug addicts.

And in a sign of support for conservatives, the White House also is highlighting achievements for the pro-life community.

Below are the 12 categories and 81 wins cited by the White House.

Jobs and the economy

Passage of the tax reform bill providing $5.5 billion in cuts and repealing the Obamacare mandate.

Increase of the GDP above 3 percent.

Creation of 1.7 million new jobs, cutting unemployment to 4.1 percent.

Saw the Dow Jones reach record highs.

A rebound in economic confidence to a 17-year high.

A new executive order to boost apprenticeships.

A move to boost computer sciences in Education Department programs.

Prioritizing women-owned businesses for some $500 million in SBA loans.

Killing job-stifling regulations

Signed an Executive Order demanding that two regulations be killed for every new one creates. He beat that big and cut 16 rules and regulations for every one created, saving $8.1 billion.

Signed 15 congressional regulatory cuts.

Withdrew from the Obama-era Paris Climate Agreement, ending the threat of environmental regulations.

Signed an Executive Order cutting the time for infrastructure permit approvals.

Eliminated an Obama rule on streams that Trump felt unfairly targeted the coal industry.

Fair trade

Made good on his campaign promise to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Opened up the North American Free Trade Agreement for talks to better the deal for the U.S.

Worked to bring companies back to the U.S., and companies like Toyota, Mazda, Broadcom Limited, and Foxconn announced plans to open U.S. plants.

Worked to promote the sale of U.S products abroad.

Made enforcement of U.S. trade laws, especially those that involve national security, a priority.

Ended Obama’s deal with Cuba.

Boosting U.S. energy dominance

The Department of Interior, which has led the way in cutting regulations, opened plans to lease 77 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico for oil and gas drilling.

Trump traveled the world to promote the sale and use of U.S. energy.

Expanded energy infrastructure projects like the Keystone XL Pipeline snubbed by Obama.

Ordered the Environmental Protection Agency to kill Obama’s Clean Power Plan.

EPA is reconsidering Obama rules on methane emissions.

Protecting the U.S. homeland

Laid out new principles for reforming immigration and announced plan to end "chain migration," which lets one legal immigrant to bring in dozens of family members.

Made progress to build the border wall with Mexico.

Ended the Obama-era “catch and release” of illegal immigrants.

Boosted the arrests of illegals inside the U.S.

Doubled the number of counties participating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement charged with deporting illegals.

Removed 36 percent more criminal gang members than in fiscal 2016.

Started the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program.

Ditto for other amnesty programs like Deferred Action for Parents of Americans.

Cracking down on some 300 sanctuary cities that defy ICE but still get federal dollars.

Added some 100 new immigration judges.

Protecting communities

Justice announced grants of $98 million to fund 802 new cops.

Justice worked with Central American nations to arrest and charge 4,000 MS-13 members.

Homeland rounded up nearly 800 MS-13 members, an 83 percent one-year increase.

Signed three executive orders aimed at cracking down on international criminal organizations.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions created new National Public Safety Partnership, a cooperative initiative with cities to reduce violent crimes.

Accountability

Trump has nominated 73 federal judges and won his nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.

Ordered ethical standards including a lobbying ban.

Called for a comprehensive plan to reorganize the executive branch.

Ordered an overhaul to modernize the digital government.

Called for a full audit of the Pentagon and its spending.

Combatting opioids

First, the president declared a Nationwide Public Health Emergency on opioids.

His Council of Economic Advisors played a role in determining that overdoses are underreported by as much as 24 percent.

The Department of Health and Human Services laid out a new five-point strategy to fight the crisis.

Justice announced it was scheduling fentanyl substances as a drug class under the Controlled Substances Act.

Justice started a fraud crackdown, arresting more than 400.

The administration added $500 million to fight the crisis.

On National Drug Take Back Day, the Drug Enforcement Agency collected 456 tons.

Protecting life

In his first week, Trump reinstated and expanded the Mexico City Policy that blocks some $9 billion in foreign aid being used for abortions.

Worked with Congress on a bill overturning an Obama regulation that blocked states from defunding abortion providers.

Published guidance to block Obamacare money from supporting abortion.

Helping veterans

Signed the Veterans Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act to allow senior officials in the Department of Veterans Affairs to fire failing employees and establish safeguards to protect whistleblowers.

Signed the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act.

Signed the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act, to provide support.

Signed the VA Choice and Quality Employment Act of 2017 to authorize $2.1 billion in additional funds for the Veterans Choice Program.

Created a VA hotline.

Had the VA launch an online “Access and Quality Tool,” providing veterans with a way to access wait time and quality of care data.

With VA Secretary Dr. David Shulkin, announced three initiatives to expand access to healthcare for veterans using telehealth technology.

Promoting peace through strength

Directed the rebuilding of the military and ordered a new national strategy and nuclear posture review.

Worked to increase defense spending.

Empowered military leaders to “seize the initiative and win,” reducing the need for a White House sign off on every mission.

Directed the revival of the National Space Council to develop space war strategies.

Elevated U.S. Cyber Command into a major warfighting command.

Withdrew from the U.N. Global Compact on Migration, which Trump saw as a threat to borders.

Imposed a travel ban on nations that lack border and anti-terrorism security.

Saw ISIS lose virtually all of its territory.

Pushed for strong action against global outlaw North Korea and its development of nuclear weapons.

Announced a new Afghanistan strategy that strengthens support for U.S. forces at war with terrorism.

NATO increased support for the war in Afghanistan.

Approved a new Iran strategy plan focused on neutralizing the country’s influence in the region.

Ordered missile strikes against a Syrian airbase used in a chemical weapons attack.

Prevented subsequent chemical attacks by announcing a plan to detect them better and warned of future strikes if they were used.

Ordered new sanctions on the dictatorship in Venezuela.

Restoring confidence in and respect for America

Trump won the release of Americans held abroad, often using his personal relationships with world leaders.

Made good on a campaign promise to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Conducted a historic 12-day trip through Asia, winning new cooperative deals. On the trip, he attended three regional summits to promote American interests.

He traveled to the Middle East and Europe to build new relationships with leaders.

Traveled to Poland and on to Germany for the G-20 meeting where he pushed again for funding of women entrepreneurs.

Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner's "Washington Secrets" columnist, can be contacted at pbedard@washingtonexaminer.com

[minnesotafollower]

Analysis of Cuba’s Current Economic Crisis 

“Cuba is going through the worst crisis it has experienced in decades, with widespread shortages of food and medicines, rolling blackouts and a sky-high 400% annual inflation rate. The calls on the communist leadership to open up the economy to the market are getting loud, even from close political allies.”[1] “But deep divisions at the top of the regime regarding how much freedom to give the new…

[thecryinguniverse]

The Third World was not a place. It was a project. During the seem­ ingly interminable battles against colonialism, the peoples of Africa, Asia, and Latin America dreamed of a new world. They longed for dig­ nity above all else, but also the basic necessities of life (land, peace, and freedom). They assembled their grievances and aspirations into various kinds of organizations, where their leadership then formulated a plat­ form of demands. These leaders, whether India’s Jawaharlal Nehru, Egypt’s Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah, or Cuba’s Fi­ del Castro, met at a series of gatherings during the middle decades of the twentieth century. In Bandung (1955), Havana (1966), and else­ where, these leaders crafted an ideology and a set of institutions to bear the hopes of their populations. The “Third World” comprised these hopes and the institutions produced to carry them forward. From the rubble of World War II rose a bipolar Cold War that threatened the existence of humanity. Hair-triggers on nuclear weapons alongside heated debates about poverty, inequality, and freedom threat­ ened even those who did not live under the u.s. or Soviet umbrellas. Both sides, as Nehru noted, pelted each other with arguments about peace. Almost unmolested by the devastation of the war, the United States used its advantages to rebuild the two sides of Eurasia and cage m a battered Soviet Union. phrases like “massive retaliation” and “brinkmanship” provided no comfort to the two-thirds of the world’s people who had only recently won or were on the threshold of winning their independence from colonial rulers. Thrown between these two major formations, the darker nations amassed as the Third World. Determined people struck out against colonialism to win their freedom. They demanded political equality on the world level. The main institution for this expression was the United Nations. From its inception in 1 948, the United Nations played an enor­ mous role for the bulk of the planet. Even if they did not earn perma­ nent seats on the UN Security Council, the new states took advantage of the UN General Assembly to put forward their demands. The Afro­ Asian meetings in Bandung and Cairo ( 1 955 and 1 96 1 , respectively), the creation of the Non-Aligned Movement in Belgrade ( 1 96 1 ), and the Tri­ continental Conference in Havana rehearsed the major arguments within the Third World project so that they could take them in a con­ certed way to the main stage, the United Nations. In addition, the new states pushed the United Nations to create institutional platforms for their Third World agenda: the UN Conference on Trade and Develop­ ment (UNCTAD) was the most important of these institutions, but it was not the only one. Through these institutions, aspects other than political equality came to the fore: the Third World project included a demand for the redistribution of the world’s resources, a more digni­ ed rate of return for the labor power of their people, and a shared ac­ knowledgment of the heritage of science, technology, and culture. In Bandung, the host Ahmed Sukarno offered this catechism for the Third World: “Let us not be bitter about the past, but let us keep our eyes firmly on the future. Let us remember that no blessing of God is so sweet as life and liberty. Let us remember that the stature of all mankind is diminished so long as nations or parts of nations are still unfree. Let us remember that the highest purpose of man is the liberation of man from his bonds of fear, his bonds of poverty, the libera­tion of man from the physical, spiritual and intellectual bonds which have for long stunted the development of humanity’s ma­jority. And let us remember, Sisters and Brothers, that for the sake of all that, we Asians and Africans must be united.” The idea of the Third World moved millions and created heroes. Some of these were political gures like the three titans (Nasser, Nehru, Sukarno), but also Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Binh and Ho chi Minh, Al­ geria’s Ben Bella, and South Africa’s Nelson Mandela. The project also provided the elements of a new imagination for its cultural workers­ people such as the poet Pablo Neruda, the singer Umm Kulthum, and the painter Sudjana Kerton. The horizon produced by the Third World enthused them, along with those who made history in their everyday lives. The Third World project united these discordant comrades. The Third World project came with a built-in flaw. The fight against the colonial and imperial forces enforced a unity among various politi­cal parties and across social classes. Widely popular social movements and political formations won freedom for the new nations, and then took power. Once in power, the unity that had been preserved at all costs be­ came a liability. The working class and the peasantry in many of these movements had acceded to an alliance with the landlords and emergent industrial elites. Once the new nation came into their hands, the people believed, the new state would promote a socialist program. What they got instead was a compromise ideology called Arab Socialism, African Socialism, Sarvodaya, or NASAKOM that combined the promise of equality with the maintenance of social hierarchy. Rather than provide the means to create an entirely new society, these regimes protected the elites among the old social classes while producing the elements of so­cial welfare for the people. Once in power, the old social classes exerted themselves, either through the offices of the military or the victorious people’s party. In many places, the Communists were domesticated, outlawed, or massacred to maintain this discordant unity. In the first few decades of state construction, from the 1940s to the 1970s, consistent pressure from working people, the prestige of the national liberation party, and the planetary consensus over the use of the state to create de­mand constrained these dominant classes to some extent. They still took charge of the new states, but their desire for untrammeled profit was hampered by lingering patriotism or the type of political and economic regimes established by national liberation. By the 1970s, the new nations were no longer new. Their failures were legion. Popular demands for land, bread, and peace had been ig­nored on behalf of the needs of the dominant classes. Internecine war­fare, a failure to control the prices of primary commodities, an inability to overcome the suffocation of nance capital, and more led to a crisis in the budgets of much of the Third World. Borrowings from commercial banks could only come if the states agreed to “structural adjustment” packages from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the world Bank. The assassination of the Third World led to the desiccation of the capacity of the state to act on behalf of the population, an end to making the case for a new international economic order, and a disavowal of the goals of socialism. Dominant classes that had once been tethered to the Third World agenda now cut loose. They began to see themselves as elites, and not as part of a project-the patriotism of the bottom line overcame obligatory social solidarity. An upshot of this demise of the Third World agenda was the growth of forms of cultural nationalism in the darker nations. Atavisms of all kinds emerged to fill the space once taken up by various forms of socialism. Fundamentalist religion, race, and unreconstructed forms of class power emerged from under the wreckage of the Third World project.

Vijay Prashad, The Darker Nations: A People’s History of the Third World

[newstfionline]

A North Korean ship was seized off Egypt with a huge cache of weapons destined for a surprising buyer

By Joby Warrick, Washington Post, October 1, 2017

Last August, a secret message was passed from Washington to Cairo warning about a mysterious vessel steaming toward the Suez Canal. The bulk freighter named Jie Shun was flying Cambodian colors but had sailed from North Korea, the warning said, with a North Korean crew and an unknown cargo shrouded by heavy tarps.

Armed with this tip, customs agents were waiting when the ship entered Egyptian waters. They swarmed the vessel and discovered, concealed under bins of iron ore, a cache of more than 30,000 rocket-propelled grenades. It was, as a United Nations report later concluded, the “largest seizure of ammunition in the history of sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”

But who were the rockets for? The Jie Shun’s final secret would take months to resolve and would yield perhaps the biggest surprise of all: The buyers were the Egyptians themselves.

A U.N. investigation uncovered a complex arrangement in which Egyptian business executives ordered millions of dollars worth of North Korean rockets for the country’s military while also taking pains to keep the transaction hidden, according to U.S. officials and Western diplomats familiar with the findings. The incident, many details of which were never publicly revealed, prompted the latest in a series of intense, if private, U.S. complaints over Egyptian efforts to obtain banned military hardware from Pyongyang, the officials said.

It also shed light on a little-understood global arms trade that has become an increasingly vital financial lifeline for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the wake of unprecedented economic sanctions.

A statement from the Egyptian Embassy in Washington pointed to Egypt’s “transparency” and cooperation with U.N. officials in finding and destroying the contraband.

“Egypt will continue to abide by all Security Council resolutions and will always be in conformity with these resolutions as they restrain military purchases from North Korea,” the statement said.

But U.S. officials confirmed that delivery of the rockets was foiled only when U.S. intelligence agencies spotted the vessel and alerted Egyptian authorities through diplomatic channels--essentially forcing them to take action--said current and former U.S. officials and diplomats briefed on the events. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss U.S. and U.N. findings, said the Jie Shun episode was one of a series of clandestine deals that led the Trump administration to freeze or delay nearly $300 million in military aid to Egypt over the summer.

Whether North Korea was ever paid for the estimated $23 million rocket shipment is unclear. But the episode illustrates one of the key challenges faced by world leaders in seeking to change North Korea’s behavior through economic pressure. Even as the United States and its allies pile on the sanctions, Kim continues to quietly reap profits from selling cheap conventional weapons and military hardware to a list of customers and beneficiaries that has at times included Iran, Burma, Cuba, Syria, Eritrea and at least two terrorist groups, as well as key U.S. allies such as Egypt, analysts said.

Some customers have long-standing military ties with Pyongyang, while others have sought to take advantage of the unique market niche created by North Korea: a kind of global eBay for vintage and refurbished Cold War-era weapons, often at prices far lower than the prevailing rates.

Over time, the small-arms trade has emerged as a reliable source of cash for a regime with considerable expertise in the tactics of running contraband, including the use of “false flag” shipping and the clever concealment of illegal cargo in bulk shipments of legitimate goods such as sugar or--as in the case of the Jie Shun--a giant mound of loose iron ore.

“These cover materials not only act to obfuscate shipments, but really highlights the way that licit North Korean businesses are being used to facilitate North Korean illicit activity,” said David Thompson, a senior analyst and investigator of North Korean financial schemes for the Center for Advanced Defense Studies, a nonprofit research organization based in Washington. “It is this nesting which makes this illicit activity so hard to identify.”

With North Korea’s other profitable enterprises being hurt by international sanctions, Thompson said, such exports are now “likely more important than ever.”

North Korea’s booming illicit arms trade is an outgrowth of a legitimate business that began decades ago. In the 1960s and ‘70s, the Soviet Union gave away conventional weapons--and, in some cases, entire factories for producing them--to developing countries as a way of winning allies and creating markets for Soviet military technology. Many of these client states would standardize the use of communist-bloc munitions and weapons systems in their armies, thus ensuring a steady demand for replacement parts and ammunition that would continue well into the future.

Sensing an opportunity, North Korea obtained licenses to manufacture replicas of Soviet and Chinese weapons, ranging from assault rifles and artillery rockets to naval frigates and battle tanks. Arms factories sprouted in the 1960s that soon produced enough weapons to supply North Korea’s vast military, as well as a surplus that could be sold for cash.

By the end of the Cold War, North Korea’s customer base spanned four continents and included dozens of countries, as well as armed insurgencies. The demand for discount North Korean weapons would continue long after the Soviet Union collapsed, and even after North Korea came under international censure and economic isolation because of its nuclear weapons program, said Andrea Berger, a North Korea specialist and senior research associate at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, Calif.

“North Korea’s assistance created a legacy of dependency,” said Berger, author of “Target Markets,” a 2015 monograph on the history of Pyongyang’s arms exports. “The type of weaponry that these [client] countries still have in service is largely based on communist-bloc designs from the Cold War era. North Korea has started to innovate and move beyond those designs, but it is still willing to provide spare parts and maintenance. As the Russians and Chinese have moved away from this market, the North Koreans have stuck around.”

As a succession of harsh U.N. sanctions threatened to chase away customers, North Korea simply changed tactics. Ships that ferried artillery rockets and tank parts to distant ports changed their names and registry papers so they could sail under a foreign flag. New front companies sprang up in China and Malaysia to handle transactions free of any visible connection to Pyongyang. A mysterious online weapons vendor called Glocom--jokingly dubbed the “Samsung of North Korean proliferators” by some Western investigators--began posting slick videos hawking a variety of wares ranging from military radios to guidance systems for drones, never mentioning North Korea as the source.

The sanctions stigma inevitably scared away some potential buyers, but the trading in the shadows remains brisk, intelligence officials and Western diplomats say.

The list also includes Egypt, a major U.S. aid recipient that still maintains diplomatic ties and has a history of military-to-military ties dating back to the 1970s with Pyongyang, said Berger, the Middlebury researcher. Although Cairo has publicly sworn off dealing with North Korea, she said, incidents such as the Jie Shun show how hard it is to break old habits, especially for military managers seeking to extend the life of costly weapons systems.

Egypt’s army today still has dozens of weapons systems that were originally of Soviet design. Among them are at least six types of antitank weapons, including the RPG-7, the 1960s-era grenade-launcher that uses the same PG-7 warhead as those discovered on the Jie Shun. The number of Egyptian RPG-7 tubes in active service has been estimated at nearly 180,000.

“Egypt was a consistent North Korean customer in the past,” Berger said. “I would call them a ‘resilient’ customer today.”

While U.S. officials have declined to publicly criticize Egypt, the Jie Shun incident--coming on top of other reported weapons deals with North Korea in recent years--contributed to the diplomatic turbulence that defined relations between Cairo and the Obama and Trump administrations. U.S. officials confirmed that the rockets were among the factors leading to the Trump administration’s decision in July to freeze or delay $290 million in military aid to Egypt.

During Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi’s visit to Washington that month, President Trump praised the military strongman before TV cameras for “doing a fantastic job.” But a White House statement released afterward made clear that a warning had been delivered in private.

“President Trump stressed the need for all countries to fully implement U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea,” said the official statement, including the need to “stop providing economic or military benefits to North Korea.”

[omgstupendousbouquetbasement]

Cuban Officials Attend Funeral Services for Cardinal Ortega

Cuban government and Communist Party officials attended funeral services for Roman Catholic Cardinal Jaime Ortega on Sunday in  a testament to his success in elevating the Church's position on the Caribbean island after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Cuban First Vice President Salvador Mesa and two other top leaders on the Communist Party Politburo attended the Requiem Mass along with other officials.

Religious leaders from other countries including Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski, Puerto Rico Archbishop Roberto Gonzalez Nieves and Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley of Boston also attended the event in the colonial district's Havana Cathedral.

Ortega, who died on Friday aged 82, was buried afterwards in the city's Colon cemetery.

A labor camp inmate in the 1960s when Fidel Castro’s revolutionary government was rounding up religious figures and other perceived enemies, Ortega became archbishop of Havana in 1981 at a time when Cuba was still officially atheist.

For the more than three decades that followed, as Castro’s stance on the Church softened, Ortega raised its visibility and power, building a working relationship with the government thanks to his nonconfrontational style and opposition to U.S. sanctions.

Ortega earned the wrath of hardline exiles and some dissidents on the Caribbean island with his stance.

"His work helped a lot to bring closer the ideas of the Cuban government and the Catholic church," retiree Maria Green, said, standing outside the Cathedral.

"He managed to solve many things and opened the way for many, many Cubans," she added.

Ortega hosted three popes and negotiated the release of dozens of political prisoners in 2010 and 2011.

When Raul Castro became president in 2010, Ortega backed his attempts to open up the country and restore relations with Western nations.

At a critical moment in secret talks between Cuba and the United States that led to a detente in December 2014, it was Ortega who relayed messages among Pope Francis, Castro and then-President Barack Obama.

Ortega met with hundreds of U.S. lawmakers, religious figures and businessmen over the years.

John Kavulich, president of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, worked with Ortega in the 1990s to channel medical aid to the country and said members of his organization provided some logistics for Pope John Paul II's historic visit in 1998.

"With Cardinal Ortega, there was never a “can’t do it,' or 'we must wait,' or 'no'," Kavulich said.

  from Blogger https://ift.tt/2Ybq5mI via IFTTT

[shooktim-blog]

JetBlue Expands Service in South America With New Route to Ecuador Travel Pulse

JetBlue announced that its new and expanded Guayaquil service, with daily nonstop flights between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Guayaquil, Ecuador’s José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport (GYE), is now out for sale.

JetBlue will launch the new service on December 5, 2019. Flights will operate daily and the new route will become the longest in the JetBlue network, stretching beyond today’s longest route by more than 200 nautical miles.

  Airlines will wait and see in Cuba Travel Weekly

The new restrictions imposed by the Trump administration this week on travel from the U.S. to Cuba could end up compelling airlines to recalibrate service to the island.

“Overall there are simply going to be fewer people traveling to Cuba, and there will be fewer seats needed, fewer aircraft needed, so you’re going to see continuing adjustments of aircraft size and scheduling,” said John Kavulich, president of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council.

  Hotels begin sprouting in Milwaukee ahead of 2020 Democratic National Convention Milwaukee Independent

Preparations are picking up steam as Milwaukee gets ready for the Democratic National Convention next summer.

A cherry picker has been parked at the corner of Water and Wisconsin. Worker are using it to drilling holes into the side of a tall brick building, three stories up. The former office complex is going to be the new home of a Drury Hotel.

The tourism group VISIT Milwaukee estimates 50,000 people will pour into the city for the Democratic National Convention, which runs from July 13 to 16 of next year. The Democratic National Committee sought a guarantee of 16,000 hotel rooms within a 40-minute drive of downtown Milwaukee. VISIT Milwaukee President Paul Upchurch said he was confident the Milwaukee area has the space to house all the delegates.

  The latest travel trend is the microbreak CNBC

There’s a new trend in travel: the microbreak.

It is exactly as the name implies: a short, one- or two-night getaway — and it could be a good alternative to a more expensive, extended vacation.

“Microbreaks are super, super quick and easy trips for people to take not only in between longer vacations, but also just to scratch that wanderlust itch if maybe you can’t get away or afford a trip to Hawaii,” Expedia spokesperson Alexis Tiacoh said.

The post Travel News: June 7, 2019 appeared first on LandLopers.

[ebenpink]

World News Briefs -- May 3, 2019 (Evening Edition) http://bit.ly/2PKxfGX

Reuters: Trump says he, Putin discussed new nuclear pact possibly including China WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed on Friday the possibility of a new accord limiting nuclear arms that could eventually include China in what would be a major deal between the globe’s top three atomic powers. Trump, speaking to reporters as he met in the Oval Office with Peter Pellegrini, prime minister of the Slovak Republic, also said he and Putin discussed efforts to persuade North Korea to give up nuclear weapons, the political discord in Venezuela, and Ukraine during a call that stretched over an hour. Read more ....

MIDDLE EAST

Intensifying fighting in Syria's Idlib threatens fragile ceasefire. Syria's Kurds reject regime-imposed 'reconciliation'. Syrian government has few options to battle fuel sanctions. Trump administration renews waivers for Iranian civil nuclear work. US targets Iran uranium but lets nuclear deal stay alive. Iran: OPEC may 'collapse' if Saudis boost production to cover U.S. sanctions. Three Palestinians killed in Gaza after army says soldiers wounded. As Israeli group expands, Palestinian houses face demolition.

ASIA

Afghan leaders call for a cease-fire but Taliban wants U.S. troops gone first. Afghan grand council demands 'immediate and permanent' ceasefire. Taliban rejects calls for Ramadan truce in Afghanistan. India evacuates 1.2 million people as Cyclone Fani hits land with winds gusting up to 205 kph. U.N. food agencies say North Korea food rations at new low. Myanmar troops kill six in Rakhine for suspected rebel links. China’s African swine fever outbreak and US trade war combine to create perfect storm for Chinese economy. Woman accused of using chemical weapon to kill Kim Jong-un's half-brother released from Malaysian jail. Christchurch mosque attack death toll rises to 51 after man dies in hospital.

AFRICA

UN says nearly 400 killed by Libya fighting, 50,000 displaced. Militants kill 18 Mali civilians in double ambush: officials. South Sudan rivals agree to delay forming government. Dozens killed in ethnic clashes in Ethiopia: regional official. Algeria: Protesters keep up demand for political rehaul. Benin divided after troops crush post-poll protests. DRC's Felix Tshisekedi still a president without a cabinet. DR Congo: Ebola deaths in latest outbreak pass 1,000. South Africa elections: Land ownership dominates debate.

EUROPE

Putin, Trump discuss nuclear disarmament, Venezuela, Mueller report during phone call. Conservatives, Labor suffer big losses in local British elections. Tories lose over 1,300 seats in local elections as major parties suffer. Over 1,000 Ukrainian servicemen killed or injured in Donbass over last year — DPR. New law allows Russia to build separate Internet, unplug from WWW. Secretive anti-Kremlin blogger with 1.5million online followers reveals his identity as a wheelchair-bound Russian trader after police raid his parents' home. Spain will not remove Venezuelan opposition figure from its embassy. Paris May Day protests: Riot police probed over 'assault' videos. Northern Ireland's young candidates to make an impact. Police seize 120 sports cars during Eurorally 'race' through Germany. European countries among gloomiest in developed world – poll.

AMERICAS

Trump, Putin discuss Mueller report in hourlong phone call. Nadler gives Barr Monday deadline to produce full Mueller report. Poll: Two-thirds of voters oppose impeachment proceedings. Poll: Biden leads Dem primary field by 30 points. Trump says he'll decide in coming days about using executive privilege to block McGahn testimony. 'Express deportations' surge on Mexico's southern border. Cuba lawsuits: Claimants seek damages in US courts. Corruption concerns cast shadow over Panama's elections. Rio de Janeiro: killings by police hit a record high in Brazilian state.

TERRORISM/THE LONG WAR

Pakistan uses 'terrorism as tool' against India: Former CIA director. Foiled New York bomber gets lighter term after helping U.S. prosecute terrorists. European security chiefs alarmed at threat from far-right terrorism.

ECONOMY/FINANCE/BUSINESS

Wall St. climbs as jobs data supports upbeat economic outlook. OPEC chief visits Iran as US sanctions waivers expire. How Avengers put Disney at the top of the charts. from War News Updates http://bit.ly/2JkdFjA via IFTTT

[toldnews-blog]

New Post has been published on https://toldnews.com/world/united-states-of-america/in-cuba-carnival-cruise-ships-have-been-using-stolen-ports-original-owners-say/

In Cuba, Carnival Cruise Ships Have Been Using Stolen Ports, Original Owners Say

“The law is clear: If the trip was allowed, the Helms-Burton does not apply,” Mr. Fowler, who worked on the 1996 legislation, told the paper. “It was not the intention of the Helms-Burton law to go after American companies with legal business in Cuba. They can try it, but I’ve been here for 40 years, and I tell them: Good luck.”

John S. Kavulich, head of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, said the key to the lawsuits will be proving that when the Obama administration expanded the ways Americans would be allowed to travel to Cuba, it broke the law. He said a court could decide that sailing aboard a luxury cruise liner does not qualify for any of the categories permitted under the law, like educational travel.

“If it’s tourism, it wasn’t legal,” Mr. Kavulich said. “If it was legal, then the cruise companies are off the hook.”

Both of the lawsuits against Carnival were filed by Roberto Martínez, a former United States attorney in Miami who has won enormous verdicts against the Cuban government in a variety of cases, including a $188 million wrongful death suit over the four people who were killed when the Brothers to the Rescue planes were downed. Frozen Cuban assets in the United States were used to pay some of those awards.

Mr. Martínez said his clients had been preparing for years and were more than ready to file suit on the first day they could.

“Their family businesses were destroyed, stolen by the Castro government, and these American companies were put on notice for many years that they were using properties that were stolen, and they did nothing about it,” he said. “They miscalculated the decision that it was worth doing business and ignoring the pleas not to use stolen properties, and now they are basically going to court and having to deal with the consequences of that risk.”

He said the law stipulates that former property owners can seek triple the value of the property as compensation, and the property can be valued several different ways. The Havana Dock Company has a claim certified by a United States commission saying that its property was worth $9.1 million in 1960; under the law, it could be awarded three times that amount, plus interest, or three times the current fair market value.

[minnesotafollower]

Other Reactions to New Treasury Department Regulations on Cuba Private Enterprise   

A senior official of the Biden Administration said that it is “essential” for the Biden administration to make sure the private sector continues to expand on the island to encourage Cubans to become self-sufficient and more independent from the government. The official also said the policy would help to stem migration from the island and counter actions by other nations, hinting at Russia, which…

[sabrinawhill]

U.S. Food Exports to Cuba Rising

The hard-line rhetoric against Cuba in Washington, D.C., has led to a chink in the diplomatic ties formed in the Obama-era. However, the amount of food exports going from the U.S. to Cuba paints a very different picture. The U.S-Cuba Trade Economic Council released numbers showing that agricultural exports to Cuba totaled up over $250 million in 2017. Those numbers stretch from January to…