President Donald Trump told reporters on Air Force One that the “media witch hunt” linking his 2016 presidential campaign to Russia was “bad for the country,” because “there’s no collusion, there’s no obstruction, there’s no nothing.” Trump accused Democrats of playing “their card too hard on the Russia thing, because people aren’t believing it,”…
read moreThe electricity supply to Gaza’s 2 million residents has dropped to unprecedented lows, with blackouts lasting for more than 24 hours, the territory’s power distribution company said Thursday, prompting fears of a humanitarian and environmental crisis. The Palestinian enclave needs at least 400 megawatts of power a day, but only 70 megawatts were available as…
read moreA House of Representatives Appropriations subcommittee has advanced a spending bill that would cut the State Department’s 2018 fiscal budget by 14 percent compared to this year’s budget. The proposed cuts are less than the 37 percent cut over several years proposed in the Trump administration’s budget. Ahead of Tuesday’s mark-up, Appropriations Committee Chairman Rodney…
read moreVenezuela’s crude and fuel deliveries to Cuba have slid almost 13 percent in the first half this year, according to documents from state-run oil company PDVSA viewed by Reuters, threatening to worsen gasoline and power shortages in the communist-run island. Cuba’s government since 2016 has reduced fuel allocations 28 percent to most state-run companies, and…
read moreCorruption is undermining all efforts to rebuild Ukraine in line with European Union norms, European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker said on Thursday, as President Petro Poroshenko vowed to pursue ever-closer integration with the bloc. Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk were in Kyiv for a 24-hour summit with Poroshenko following the final ratification of…
read moreU.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell plans to unveil a revised health care bill to Republican colleagues Thursday, as he makes a push to achieve one of the top legislative goals for the party and President Donald Trump. McConnell last month withdrew an earlier plan after it became clear there was not enough support for…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump says “something could happen” regarding the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate accord, and he also dismissed the significance of a meeting last year between his son and a Russian lawyer. “Zero happened from the meeting,” Trump told reporters after talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in Paris.…
read morePresident Donald Trump defended his outreach to Russia in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network on Wednesday. Trump also defended his son, Donald Jr., a day after the release of emails that rocked official Washington. The emails revealed a meeting last year between Trump campaign officials and a Russian lawyer who offered damaging information…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump arrives in France Thursday for Bastille Day celebrations that will see American and French troops marching together on Paris’ famed Champs Élysées. Ahead of the pageantry, the U.S. president will try to find common ground on issues of Syria and counterterrorism, in otherwise strained relations with France’s president, Emmanuel Macron. VOA…
read moreMcDonald’s is hoping to make a difference in its future seven seconds at a time. The company that helped define fast food is making supersized efforts to reverse its fading popularity and catch up to a landscape that has evolved around it. That includes expanding delivery, digital ordering kiosks in restaurants, and rolling out…
read moreWorking 50 meters (164 feet) under ground with minimal air supply, Uuganbaatar is one of thousands of Mongolians trying to make a living digging for coal. Although the mining season does not begin until autumn, when the ground freezes and work is safer, the 31-year-old and his colleagues are seeking to gain a head start…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump, who in the past has disparaged Paris as an unsafe city because of terrorism, has arrived in the French capital. He will mark the French national holiday, Bastille Day, on Friday after holding counterterrorism talks with President Emmanuel Macron and marking the 100th anniversary of U.S. troops entering World War I. Air…
read moreU.S. President Donald Trump, who in the past has disparaged Paris as an unsafe city because of terrorism, heading to the French capital. He will mark the French national holiday, Bastille Day, on Friday after holding counterterrorism talks with President Emmanuel Macron and marking the 100th anniversary of U.S. troops entering World War I. Air…
read moreSpanish companies will commit millions of pounds of investment to Britain on Thursday, the British government said, as it seeks to limit the economic impact of leaving the European Union. The investment plans, which include building trains and trams in Britain, coincide with a three-day state visit to Britain by Spain’s King Felipe and Queen…
read moreSilicon Valley is reeling over a decision this week by the Trump administration to delay and most likely kill a new avenue for entrepreneurs to come to the U.S. The International Entrepreneurship Rule, which the Obama administration set in motion, was supposed to go into effect this month. It would have allowed entry into the…
read moreRecording star Kid Rock, an outspoken supporter of Republican President Donald Trump, hinted in website and social media messages on Wednesday that he intends to run for the U.S. Senate in 2018. The 46-year-old Michigan native drew attention on Twitter and his Facebook page to a “Kid Rock ’18 for U.S. Senate” website, featuring a…
read moreIt’s nearly midday at the bustling Tegeta bus terminal in Tanzania’s biggest city and Olivia Mbiku is busy preparing ugali – a popular maize meal – beef stew and vegetables for her customers. “I wake up early, light up the fire and rush to the market to buy meat, cooking oil, tomatoes and everything I…
read moreThe speaker of Brazil’s lower house vowed Wednesday to fight any changes President Michel Temer makes to a labor reform bill passed by the Senate, highlighting new tension between longtime political allies. The speaker, Rodrigo Maia, would replace Temer if Congress allows the Supreme Court to move ahead with a corruption charge against the president,…
read moreA coalition of 14 conservative groups urged U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday to support an amendment to the House of Representatives’ annual defense bill that would prevent the Pentagon from implementing climate change and green energy policies meant to save taxpayers money and protect the planet. In a letter to the lawmakers, the groups said many…
read moreA French court annulled a 1.1 billion-euro ($1.27 billion) tax adjustment imposed on Google by France’s tax authorities, saying Wednesday that the way the California firm operates in France allows it to be exempt from most taxes. The French tax administration had argued that Google was required to pay taxes in France for 2005-2010 because…
read moreThe United States notified South Korea on Wednesday it plans to start negotiating amendments to a five-year-old free trade agreement with Seoul and called a meeting to kick off the talks for next month. The announcement came months after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would either renegotiate or terminate what he called a “horrible”…
read moreJapanese car parts company Takata on Tuesday recalled another 2.7 million air bags that it previously thought were safe. The recall affects certain Ford, Mazda and Nissan cars from the 2005 through 2012 model years. Takata’s air bags are inflated by a chemical — ammonium nitrate — in emergency situations, but it can deteriorate in…
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