Tag: All Regions

China accuses US of ‘weaponization’ of tech issues

The US is attacking Chinese companies and scientists as part of its efforts to foil the technological development of other countries, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin claimed on Wednesday.  During his regular press conference, Wang argued that the Disruptive Technology Strike Force set up by the US Justice Department (DOJ) in February was designed to “abuse export control regimes.” …

Binance crypto exchange halts withdrawals for Australian users

The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange has been kicked off a major Australian payments service and banned by big four bank Westpac, with customers suddenly unable to deposit or withdraw funds from the platform. Binance Australia – the local arm of the $6.7 billion crypto exchange Binance – told customers on Thursday afternoon they would no longer be able to deposit…

Loud explosions heard in Kyiv, debris causes building fire

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched cruise missiles at Ukraine’s capital and the Odesa region early Thursday, officials said, in an escalation ahead of a much-anticipated counteroffensive. Most of the missiles were shot down, and one death was reported from the attacks. Loud explosions were heard in Kyiv, and falling debris caused a fire in a non-residential building. It was…

US seeks to manipulate Turkish elections: Ankara

Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu accused the US of using the western media to manipulate the outcome of the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkiye. “The plan by the US intensifies actively. The reason of [the] Western media’s interference is the realization of the US’s plan,” Soylu told reporters. In the months leading up to the14 May elections, several…

Overcompliance: Sanctions leave Cyprus’ economy reeling

As Cyprus braces for an almost inevitable new wave of sanctions to hit soon, the government conceded on Wednesday the effect on Cyprus’ services sector has been detrimental. The impact goes beyond just the service sectors. Scores of people have lost their jobs, and companies shut down, but more controversially – clients of sanctioned entities have also seen their bank…

Deutsche Bank to pay $100.7m to settle Jeffrey Epstein accusers’ suit: WSJ

BENGALURU – Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay US$75 million (S$100.6 million) to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging the lender facilitated the late Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring, The Wall Street Journal reported late on Wednesday, citing lawyers who sued the bank on behalf of alleged victims.

The suit was filed in 2022 in New York by an anonymous woman on behalf of herself and other accusers, alleging Deutsche Bank did business with Epstein for five years knowing he was engaged in sex-trafficking activity, the report said.

Deutsche Bank did not immediately reply to a Reuters’ request for comment. REUTERS

Air China swamps Australian flight school in urgent pilot hunt

SYDNEY – Air China has swamped an Australian flight school with a request for commercial pilots, a sudden demand that points to a looming rebound as the vast Chinese market resumes international travel. Air China had stopped sending its trainees to the Australian Airline Pilot Academy campus in regional Victoria state after the pandemic halted overseas travel in early 2020….

French court upholds home detention for Former French President Sarkozy in wiretap graft case

PARIS – A French appeals court on Wed nesday upheld a prison sentence of three years, including two suspended, against former president Nicolas Sarkozy for corruption and influence peddling. The court ruled he should serve one year in detention at home with an electronic bracelet and banned him from public office for three years. He had been found guilty over his…

Reports: Defense News correspondent arrested in India

WASHINGTON —Indian authorities have arrested Vivek Raghuvanshi, a defense journalist and longtime correspondent for Defense News, and accused him of espionage, according to reports in the Indian press. Raghuvanshi’s arrest drew a condemnation from Sightline Media Group, the publisher of Defense News and Military Times. “We call for the immediate release of freelance reporter Vivek Raghuvanshi following his arrest in…

Pentagon seeks authority to transfer nuclear submarines to Australia

  WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Defense asked Congress to authorize the transfer of nuclear-powered submarines to Australia as part of the trilateral AUKUS agreement with the U.K. Three legislative proposals, submitted on May 2 and first posted online Tuesday, would greenlight the sale of two Virginia-class submarines to Australia, permit the training of Australian nationals for submarine work…

Russia freezes bank accounts of Finland’s diplomatic missions, prompting cash payments

Russia has frozen the bank accounts of Finland’s diplomatic representations in Moscow and St. Petersburg, disrupting money flow and forcing the Nordic country’s missions to resort to cash payments, the Finnish foreign minister said Wednesday. Pekka Haavisto said Moscow’s move at the end of April breached the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and Helsinki had delivered a diplomatic note on…

Important Things At Twitter Keep Breaking, And Making The Site More Dangerous

  It turns out that if you fire basically all of the competent trust & safety people at your website, you end up with a site that is neither trustworthy, nor safe. We’ve spent months covering ways in which you cannot trust anything from Twitter or Elon Musk, and there have been some indications of real safety problems on the…

Theranos founder Holmes ordered to prison, pay victims

SAN FRANCISCO – Fallen US biotech star Elizabeth Holmes must begin serving prison time after a judge denied her latest request to remain free while appealing her fraud conviction. Holmes was sentenced to just over 11 years in prison for defrauding investors with her Silicon Valley start-up Theranos. She was scheduled to begin serving prison time on April 27, but…

EU to facilitate exit from Russian markets for European companies by easing sanctions

  EU member countries are preparing to help their companies to exit Russia, amid a growing risk they will be taxed to fund Russian president Vladimir Putin’s war. Source: This is stated in the proposals for the 11th package of sanctions against the Russian Federation, referenced by EUobserver, as reported by European Pravda Details: The proposals include new special permits…

Lebanon’s central bank governor calls French arrest warrant violation of law, vows to appeal

Iran Press TV Lebanon’s Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh has slammed French prosecutors for issuing an arrest warrant against him, saying he would appeal against the decision. Salameh made the remarks in a statement on Tuesday, after an international arrest warrant was issued earlier in the day following his failure to appear before French prosecutors to be questioned on corruption…

Biden Cancels PNG, Australia Trips for Talks Over US Debt Ceiling

President Joe Biden canceled his trips to Papua New Guinea and Australia next week to continue debt ceiling talks with congressional leaders that he held Tuesday at the White House. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that the president would to return to Washington on Sunday, following the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, Japan, “in…