Global Pulse

分类： politics

  • Flattery and fanfare as Trump welcomed to China – but thorny issues remain

    Flattery and fanfare as Trump welcomed to China – but thorny issues remain

    Nine years after his last trip to China during his first presidential term, former and returning U.S. President Donald Trump touched down in Beijing for a landmark summit that could redefine the trajectory of relations between the world’s two most powerful rival nations. Chinese President Xi Jinping rolled out a meticulously orchestrated, grand ceremonial welcome for Trump outside the Great Hall of the People, complete with a military honor guard, 21-gun salute, and a military band playing the U.S. national anthem. As Trump walked the receiving line, he twice paused to greet crowds of waving schoolchildren holding both Chinese and American flags, before sharing a warm, informal greeting with Xi, patting Xi’s arm in a gesture of goodwill that drew attention from observers.

    In unscripted remarks after their initial handshake, Trump offered effusive praise for his host, telling Xi, “You’re a great leader. I say it to everybody.” During a later cultural tour of the 600-year-old Temple of Heaven, he commented to reporters that China is a beautiful country, and opened his remarks at that evening’s state banquet by calling the high-level talks a “cherished” opportunity to connect. This warm reception marks a striking departure from Trump’s long-held rhetorical posture toward China, which he built his 2016 political brand around by taking a hardline stance. During his first campaign, he infamously claimed China was “raping” the United States economically; in 2020, he doubled down, saying China had “ripped off the United States like no one has ever done before” and labeled the COVID-19 pandemic the “Chinese virus”. Ahead of his return to office, he pledged to force China to “pay” for what he framed as unfair trade practices.

    At the peak of the U.S.-China trade war in the preceding year, the two powers imposed reciprocal tariffs totaling over 100% on each other’s goods. A fragile truce followed the escalation, and this summit was framed around three core unanswered questions: whether the truce will hold, what long-term trade deal will replace it, whether Beijing can help broker a diplomatic resolution to the ongoing Iran crisis that has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, and how the two powers will navigate the long-simmering tensions over Taiwan – the self-governing island that China claims as its sovereign territory, and which the U.S. maintains unofficial diplomatic and defense ties with.

    Beijing’s elaborate welcome was not just a gesture of hospitality to Trump and the 30 top American CEOs accompanying him on the trip; it was a deliberate display of geopolitical strength broadcast to audiences across the United States and the entire globe. Almost immediately after talks got underway, Chinese state media released comments from Xi that made clear Taiwan remains a major flashpoint that could derail progress between the two sides. When reporters pressed both leaders on whether they had discussed Taiwan during their Temple of Heaven visit, neither leader responded to the question.

    John Delury, senior fellow at the Asia Society’s Center on US-China Relations, framed the summit as a visible marker of shifting global power dynamics. “We are witnessing a historical change,” Delury explained. “I hesitate to put too much on this specific summit, but the inexorable rise of China to a place where it is legitimately rivaling the U.S. – that is now happening before our eyes. Beijing is now the second world capital.”

    Xi has positioned himself as a steady, predictable global leader in contrast to what many global observers frame as Trump’s mercurial policy style. In the years since Trump’s first term, China has expanded its global trade reach dramatically, pre-emptively building new economic partnerships to offset the risk of renewed U.S. tariffs. Over the past year, China demonstrated its economic leverage during the trade war: it matched Trump’s tariffs tit-for-tat, and restricted exports of rare earth minerals – critical inputs for advanced global manufacturing – forcing Washington to return to negotiations and agree to lower tariff rates.

    Today, China controls 30% of global manufacturing output, processes over 90% of the world’s rare earth minerals, and produces between 60% and 80% of global supplies of solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicles. Xi has indicated he believes this summit has already made clear to the U.S. and the world just how deeply dependent global economies are on Chinese manufacturing and technology. While ongoing international concerns over China’s human rights record and its close diplomatic ties to Russia and North Korea persist, those issues have been pushed to the background amid Trump’s broader reshaping of the global world order. Many global analysts now see the trajectory of global power shifting in China’s favor.

    China enters these talks with a clear upper hand, as Trump faces domestic political headwinds of his own, including sinking approval ratings, and international pressure over the ongoing Iran crisis that has shut down the Strait of Hormuz – a critical global energy shipping lane whose closure has sent shockwaves through the global economy. Trump has publicly said he is counting on Beijing’s help to reopen the corridor. As Iran’s largest trading partner with decades of close diplomatic ties to Tehran, Beijing holds significant influence over the Iranian government. If Xi can help push Tehran toward negotiations to de-escalate the crisis, that would give China even greater leverage in talks with the U.S.

    U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio framed the U.S. position ahead of the trip, telling Fox News, “It’s in their interest to resolve this. And we hope to convince them to play a more active role.” But analysts widely agree China will demand major concessions in exchange for cooperation on Iran. According to Chinese state media, Xi has already made clear to Trump during closed-door talks that the Taiwan issue has the potential to spark direct conflict between the two powers. Analysts expect Xi will pressure the U.S. to delay or halt arms sales to Taiwan – a requirement that would put Washington in a difficult position, as it is legally bound to provide the island with defensive military capabilities. Officials in Taipei are closely watching the summit’s outcome with significant anxiety.

    This visit differs from Trump’s first trip to China in key ways: unlike his first visit, when former First Lady Melania Trump accompanied him, this trip centers heavily on the high-powered U.S. business delegation, which includes some of the biggest names in American tech and industry: Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, all of whom attended the opening state banquet.

    Trump has centered his trade demands around pushing China to further open its domestic markets to increased access for U.S. companies. As of the end of the first day of talks, few concrete details of any potential deal have been released to the public. A preliminary White House statement only confirmed that the two sides “discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation”, including expanding U.S. firms’ access to the Chinese market and facilitating Chinese investment in U.S. domestic industries. On the Iran issue, the statement added that “both countries agreed that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon” and “the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to support the free flow of energy”.

    Additional talks between the two leaders are scheduled for the following day, which are expected to yield more concrete details on potential agreements. For Trump, a tangible diplomatic win from the summit is critical to boost his sinking domestic approval ratings back home. Xi, for his part, has signaled China is open to expanding cooperation in trade and agriculture, a move widely interpreted as a signal Beijing is prepared to increase purchases of U.S. soybeans, beef, and Boeing commercial aircraft.

    The two leaders have agreed to a new framing of the bilateral relationship as “constructive, strategic and stable”, a positioning that will guide U.S.-China ties for the next three years. At the same time, China is grappling with its own serious domestic economic challenges, including rising youth unemployment, uneven post-pandemic growth, a persistent real estate sector crisis, and record high levels of local government debt. While Beijing seeks a global order less centered on U.S. hegemony, it still has a critical strategic interest in maintaining stable, functional relations with Washington.

    At the close of the opening day’s state banquet, after remarking that he had received a “magnificent welcome like no other” in Beijing, Trump formally invited Xi to visit Washington D.C. for a return summit in September. Xi struck a unifying tone in response, saying that the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” and Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America great again” can progress hand in hand. He closed his remarks with a toast to the future of both nations, ending the evening with a single word: “Cheers.”

  • US federal judge blocks US sanctions against UN’s Francesca Albanese

    US federal judge blocks US sanctions against UN’s Francesca Albanese

    In a landmark ruling that upholds core free speech principles, a US federal judge issued a temporary preliminary injunction on Wednesday halting the Trump administration’s sanctions against Francesca Albanese, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Palestine, finding the punitive measures likely violated her constitutional right to free expression.

    Albanese was targeted with US sanctions in July 2025, just weeks after she published a sweeping, critical report on June 30 that condemned Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. In that document, she identified over 60 major global firms — including tech giants Google, Amazon, and Microsoft — alleging the companies were complicit in shifting Israel’s occupation-based economy into what she framed as an economy of genocide. The report called on the International Criminal Court (ICC), national judicial bodies worldwide to launch investigations and prosecute implicated corporate leaders and companies, and urged UN member states to impose targeted sanctions and asset freezes on the entities named.

    The sanctions imposed on Albanese carried severe practical consequences: she was barred from entering the United States, and was shut out of the US banking system, cutting off access to basic financial services. The legal challenge to the sanctions was brought by Albanese’s husband Massimiliano Cali, a senior World Bank economist based in Tunisia, who filed the civil suit on behalf of himself, Albanese, and the couple’s US citizen daughter. The complaint argued that the Trump administration had unlawfully seized Albanese’s accessible assets without adhering to due process, violated existing US sanctions legislation, and effectively de-banked her, leaving her unable to meet routine daily needs.

    In his opinion accompanying the injunction order, US District Judge Richard Leon emphasized that safeguarding free speech is always aligned with the public interest. The judge further ruled that Albanese’s status as a non-US resident does not strip her of protections under the First Amendment to the US Constitution, noting that the administration targeted her specifically because of the content and message of her public criticism.

    Albanese celebrated the court’s decision in a public post on X, writing, “BREAKING! US court has suspended the US sanctions against me! As the judge says: ‘Protecting the Freedom of speech is always just the public interest’. Thanks to my daughter and my husband for stepping up to defend me, and everyone who has helped so far. Together we are One.”

    The ruling comes amid growing international solidarity with Albanese. Earlier that month, on May 7, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez awarded the UN expert the Order of Civil Merit in a clear show of support. A day before that honor, Sanchez formally asked the European Commission to activate the EU’s Blocking Statute, a regulation designed to protect EU individuals and institutions from extraterritorial US sanctions, to shield both the ICC and the United Nations from US punitive measures.

  • Germany’s Merz calls for more investment, less subsidies in EU budget

    Germany’s Merz calls for more investment, less subsidies in EU budget

    A pivotal debate over the future of the European Union’s long-term budget has taken center stage at the 2026 Charlemagne Prize ceremony in Aachen, Germany, where Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for sweeping structural reform to align the bloc’s spending with 21st-century challenges. The event, which honored former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi for his decades of work advancing European integration, became a platform for confronting longstanding frictions over EU fiscal policy and competitiveness.

    The 27 EU member states are currently locked in tense negotiations over the 2028-2034 multiannual budget. A bloc of so-called frugal nations, led by Germany and the Netherlands, has already pushed back against a substantial spending increase proposed by the European Commission, the EU’s executive body. Speaking at the award ceremony Thursday, Merz, a conservative leader, argued that the EU’s current budget framework is hopelessly outdated. “We cannot meet the challenges of the 21st century with a 20th-century budget,” he declared, echoing growing frustration across the bloc over stagnant budget structures that have not shifted in decades.

    Merz backed a landmark 2024 competitiveness report from Draghi, which warned that the EU risks falling behind global rivals the United States and China without a fundamental shift in policy. He criticized that the EU budget’s core content and structure has remained virtually unchanged for generations, with more than two-thirds of all EU funding still allocated to redistribution programs and direct subsidies. For decades, the EU has leaned heavily on these subsidies and redistribution mechanisms to offset economic disruptions from internal trade integration and support less wealthy eastern European member states as the bloc expanded. But Merz argued this model is no longer fit for purpose, calling for an overall reduction in unnecessary budget spending and a major reallocation toward investments that boost EU competitiveness and collective defense.

    Despite backing Draghi’s call for increased joint investment, Merz drew a firm line against the funding mechanism Draghi proposed: collective debt issuance by all EU member states. “Excessive indebtedness threatens sovereignty and limits the capacity to act,” Merz stated. Analysts widely note the comment also carries weight for domestic German politics, where the country relaxed its long-standing strict constitutional “debt brake” rules only last year, after years of adhering to rigid fiscal limits, to fund increased defense and infrastructure investment.

    In his acceptance speech for the Charlemagne Prize, which recognizes individuals who work to advance European unity, Draghi offered a sharp critique of the bloc’s overreliance on external free trade deals as a growth driver — a long-standing priority for German economic policy. Draghi argued that pursuing new trade agreements is far easier than tackling “unfinished work at home,” a reference to the EU’s incomplete single market. He noted that reform requires confronting entrenched vested interests that benefit from fragmented energy markets and an incomplete single market, choices European leaders have long avoided.

    Draghi, who also served as Italian prime minister from 2021 to 2022 and led the ECB from 2011 to 2019, is widely credited with preventing the collapse of the euro during the 2010s eurozone debt crisis. His successor at the head of the ECB, Christine Lagarde, reinforced his calls for urgent action in a speech delivered the night before the ceremony, noting that global competition has shifted dramatically. “The United States and China have entered a new age of industrial strategy and geopolitical competition — intensified by tariff wars and rare-earth battles — and all this amid the worst energy crisis on record,” Lagarde said, echoing Draghi’s warning that the EU must act fast to avoid falling behind in global competitiveness.

  • Former Nigerian minister sentenced to 75 years in rare corruption verdict

    Former Nigerian minister sentenced to 75 years in rare corruption verdict

    In a landmark conviction that has sent shockwaves through Nigeria’s political landscape, former Nigerian Power Minister Saleh Mamman has been handed a 75-year prison sentence for laundering 33.8 billion naira (equivalent to roughly $24.7 million), marking one of the rare high-profile convictions of corrupt senior officials in the West African nation.

    The 68-year-old ex-minister, who led Nigeria’s power sector from 2015 to 2021 under former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, was found guilty last week on 12 separate corruption charges. Prosecutors proved that Mamman used privately owned front companies to siphon and launder public funds allocated for government-backed power infrastructure projects.

    In an unusual turn of proceedings, the Abuja High Court handed down the sentence on Wednesday in absentia. Nigeria’s lead anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), confirmed that Mamman has gone missing, and has been untraceable since the guilty verdict was issued. Just days after his conviction, the court issued a formal arrest warrant for the former minister on Monday. Mamman has not issued any public response to the charges or conviction.

    What makes the case even more remarkable is the timing: just weeks before his sentencing, Mamman officially announced his intention to run for governor of Taraba State in Nigeria’s 2027 general election, running on the ticket of the country’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). He made the announcement in a social media post, writing that he had picked up his Expression of Interest and Nomination Forms “with a deep sense of responsibility and unwavering commitment” to serve the state.

    Buhari, whose administration campaigned on a promise to crack down on endemic public sector corruption, ultimately removed Mamman from his cabinet in a 2021 reshuffle following what the presidency described as an “independent and critical self-review” of government performance.

    Along with the prison sentence, the high court ordered Mamman to repay 22 billion naira ($16 million) of the laundered funds to the Nigerian government. His conviction is part of a broader ongoing anti-corruption crackdown by the EFCC targeting former senior government officials. The agency is currently pursuing investigations into other high-profile figures, including former Justice Minister Abubakar Malami and former Humanitarian Affairs Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq, who was recently declared a wanted person by the EFCC. Both officials have denied all allegations against them.

    The verdict has also reignited long-simmering public anger over Nigeria’s ongoing national electricity crisis, a problem Mamman was tasked with solving during his tenure as power minister. Despite being one of Africa’s largest energy producers, Nigeria suffers from chronic, nationwide power shortages that bring frequent, extended blackouts to residential and commercial areas across the country. Millions of households and businesses are forced to rely on expensive private fuel-powered generators, and soaring global fuel prices have left countless Nigerians unable to afford the cost of backup power, deepening economic hardship across the country.

  • Latvian PM resigns after row over stray Ukrainian drones

    Latvian PM resigns after row over stray Ukrainian drones

    A sudden political upheaval has shaken the Baltic nation of Latvia, where Prime Minister Evika Silina has formally stepped down after her ruling four-party coalition collapsed earlier this week, triggered by a controversy over stray Ukrainian drones bound for Russia that entered Latvian airspace.

    The chain of events that ended Silina’s premiership began on May 7, when three unmanned aerial vehicles crossed into Latvia’s eastern territory. This marked the second unintended drone incursion recorded in the country since the start of 2026. Both Latvian and Ukrainian officials have confirmed the drones were originally launched by Ukrainian forces targeting Russian positions, but signal jamming interference knocked them off course, leading them to stray across the border.

    Of the three errant drones, one crashed onto undamaged ground, a second hit an unoccupied oil storage facility near the eastern Latvian town of Rezekne, and the third transited Latvian airspace before exiting. No casualties or injuries were reported in the incidents, but public anger quickly grew over what local residents described as a delayed and inadequate official response. Residents told reporters that Latvia’s emergency cell broadcast alert system was not activated until a full hour after the first crash near Rezekne, leaving local communities unaware of potential risk.

    Last week, Silina moved to take decisive action: she dismissed Defence Minister Andris Spruds over his handling of the incursion, criticizing his response as insufficient and naming an immediate replacement for the post. In response, Spruds’ party, the Progressives, withdrew all its legislative and governing support from Silina’s ruling coalition, effectively collapsing the government just five months ahead of the scheduled October 2026 general election.

    Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Silina hit back at what she described as political posturing from her former coalition partners. “Seeing a strong candidate for the post of defence minister… political windbags have chosen a crisis,” she said, adding: “I am resigning but I am not giving up.” Silina also justified her dismissal of Spruds by pointing to broader performance issues across Latvia’s defence sector. Noting that Latvia currently allocates 5% of its gross domestic product to national defence — one of the highest shares among NATO members — she argued that this level of investment demands far greater accountability and tangible results for the Latvian public.

    First appointed prime minister in September 2023, Silina led a centrist four-party coalition that maintained unwavering support for Ukraine in its war against Russian invasion. Like its Baltic neighbors Estonia and Lithuania, Latvia has grown increasingly concerned about potential Russian territorial aggression since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In response, the country has sharply expanded its defence spending and procurement, and reintroduced compulsory military service in 2023, just one year after the full-scale invasion began.

    Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics has announced he will make a formal decision on the fastest possible pathway to forming a new caretaker government on May 15, as the country prepares for its upcoming general election this autumn.

  • Malaysia slams Norway for revoking export license for a naval missile system

    Malaysia slams Norway for revoking export license for a naval missile system

    In a sharp rebuke that has highlighted growing friction over international defense contracts, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has publicly condemned Norway’s decision to revoke an export license for a key naval missile system earmarked for the Royal Malaysian Navy, warning the unilateral move risks eroding long-term trust in European defense contractors. The dispute centers on the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) system and related launcher components, which were contracted to equip Malaysia’s upcoming fleet of littoral combat ships as a core part of the Southeast Asian nation’s ongoing military modernization drive.

    Speaking Thursday, Anwar confirmed he conveyed Malaysia’s “vehement objection” to the cancellation directly during a phone conversation with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. In an official statement released after the call, the Malaysian leader emphasized that Kuala Lumpur has met every contractual obligation for the deal, which was first signed in 2018, with unwavering consistency and good faith. “Malaysia has honored every obligation under this contract since 2018: scrupulously, faithfully and without equivocation,” Anwar said. “Norway, it appears, has not felt compelled to extend us the same courtesy and demonstration of good faith.”

    Per Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama, Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace AS, the Norwegian manufacturer of the NSM anti-ship missile system, has distanced itself from the policy move, stating that all export licensing decisions fall exclusively under the jurisdiction of the Norwegian government. As of Thursday, Oslo has not issued any public statement addressing the license revocation or Anwar’s criticisms.

    Malaysian Defense Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin revealed to local media outlets that the Malaysian government had already completed payments for nearly 95% of the total contract value before Norwegian authorities blocked the shipment in March. Without the NSM systems, Malaysia’s littoral combat ship modernization program faces significant delays, which Anwar says will undermine the navy’s operational readiness and carry unforeseen consequences for the regional military balance.

    The Malaysian prime minister stressed that signed international defense contracts are binding, formal agreements, not disposable arrangements to be changed at random. “Signed contracts are solemn instruments. They are not confetti to be scattered in so capricious a manner,” Anwar said. “If European defense suppliers reserve the right to renege with impunity, their value as strategic partners flies out the window.”

    In response to the cancellation, Khaled confirmed that Malaysian officials are currently reviewing all available legal pathways, including potential claims for financial compensation from the Norwegian side, to resolve the breach of contract.

  • Philippine senator wanted by the International Criminal Court flees from Senate

    Philippine senator wanted by the International Criminal Court flees from Senate

    MANILA, Philippines — A high-stakes political crisis has gripped the Philippines this week, after a sitting Philippine senator facing International Criminal Court (ICC) charges of crimes against humanity slipped out of the heavily guarded Senate compound amid chaotic gunfire between security personnel and government law enforcement agents, senior government officials confirmed Thursday.

    Ronald dela Rosa, 64, a former national police chief under ex-President Rodrigo Duterte, had taken shelter inside the Senate compound Wednesday to avoid execution of an ICC arrest warrant unsealed just days earlier. The chaos that cleared his escape path began Wednesday night, when Senate security personnel opened multiple volleys of gunfire during a heated confrontation with a National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agent assigned to serve the warrant. In the confusion that followed the shootout, dela Rosa managed to slip past security and leave the compound undetected.

    Shortly after the incident, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. addressed the nation in a late-night televised broadcast, urging the public to avoid panic and stressing that authorities would conduct a full, transparent investigation into the escape. Law enforcement sources confirmed that one line of active inquiry centers on suspicions the gunfight was deliberately orchestrated to create a diversion and cover for dela Rosa’s exit.

    In a public press briefing Thursday, Senate President Alan Cayetano — a close political ally of the Duterte family — pushed back against claims of foul play, insisting “there is no obstruction of justice” in the incident. Cayetano argued that because no ICC arrest warrant had been officially presented to the Senate leadership, dela Rosa was under no legal obligation to remain on the premises and was free to leave at his own discretion. Political critics have rejected this explanation, however, and are calling for Cayetano and the Senate’s top security official to be held legally and politically accountable for facilitating the fugitive senator’s escape.

    Dela Rosa’s legal troubles are directly tied to the deadly national anti-drug crackdown launched by Duterte when he held the presidency from 2016 to 2022. Duterte himself was taken into ICC custody last March to face trial in The Hague on separate charges of crimes against humanity stemming from the same campaign. The unsealed ICC warrant against dela Rosa, made public Monday, accuses him of direct responsibility for the crime against humanity of murder, linked to the killings of no fewer than 32 people between July 2016 and April 2018 — the period when dela Rosa led the Philippine National Police and oversaw implementation of Duterte’s anti-drug initiative.

    Both Duterte and dela Rosa have repeatedly denied authorizing extrajudicial killings, though Duterte openly publicly threatened drug suspects with death throughout his time in office.

    The escape comes amid escalating open political conflict between the Duterte political bloc and the Marcos administration, a rift that lays bare deep enduring divisions within Philippine politics. The tension has escalated rapidly in recent days: Vice President Sara Duterte, Rodrigo Duterte’s daughter and current second-in-command of the country, has openly accused Marcos of orchestrating the “kidnapping” of her father and his illegal transfer to the international court. On Monday, the Marcos-allied majority in the House of Representatives voted to impeach Sara Duterte over allegations of unexplained illicit wealth, misuse of public funds, and a public threat to assassinate President Marcos, his wife, and the House speaker if she were killed amid the deepening political feud. Sara Duterte has denied all wrongdoing, but has declined to respond to the specific allegations against her in detail. Cayetano announced Thursday that the Senate will convene as an impeachment trial court as early as next Monday to begin preparations for the vice president’s trial.

    The current Senate leadership shakeup that set this chain of events in motion also ties directly to the dela Rosa case. Just this Monday, Cayetano reclaimed the Senate presidency after securing the support of 13 out of the body’s 24 senators. His razor-thin majority was secured after dela Rosa — who had been absent from Senate proceedings for months over fears of imminent arrest — made a surprise appearance at Monday’s leadership vote, arriving at the compound in Cayetano’s own vehicle. After the vote concluded, NBI agents moved to serve the ICC arrest warrant on the senator, who immediately fled to the Senate plenary hall and was taken into protective custody by his allied senators before the Wednesday night escape.

  • In pictures: Trump hosted by Xi Jinping in Beijing on two-day summit

    In pictures: Trump hosted by Xi Jinping in Beijing on two-day summit

    On a landmark diplomatic visit to China’s capital Beijing, former U.S. President Donald Trump held a series of formal talks and scheduled engagements with Chinese President Xi Jinping across Thursday and Friday, marking a high-profile gathering that drew global attention to the trajectory of U.S.-China relations.

    Trump touched down in Beijing Wednesday evening aboard Air Force One, where he was received on the red carpet by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, alongside local youth waving both U.S. and Chinese national flags in a display of ceremonial welcome. The following day, a formal arrival ceremony was co-hosted by Xi and Trump at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, where the two leaders exchanged an opening handshake before walking the red carpet together and conducting a formal inspection of impeccably drilled Chinese honor guard troops. Rows of cheering children lined the route, waving small national flags and carrying floral bouquets to greet the visiting delegation. Following the ceremony, the U.S. leader was treated to a guided tour of the 15th-century Temple of Heaven, one of China’s most iconic historic landmarks, alongside Xi.

    A standout detail of Trump’s delegation is the roster of top American technology and finance leaders joining the trip, signaling a focus on commercial and technological ties between the two global powers. Attendees include Apple CEO Tim Cook, Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, and Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang, who was confirmed as a last-minute addition to the delegation. Huang’s presence carries particular weight, as Nvidia has been at the center of ongoing U.S.-China technology trade tensions in recent years. Trump’s son Eric Trump also accompanied the delegation.

    In his opening remarks to kick off the highly anticipated bilateral talks, Xi emphasized that the entire world was closely monitoring the outcomes of their meeting, noting that “currently transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the globe and the international situation is fluid and turbulent.” Responding in his own opening comments, Trump called the opportunity to meet with Xi “an honor,” reflecting on the productive working relationship the two leaders built in the past. “We’ve gotten along, when there were difficulties we worked it out. I would call you and you would call me,” Trump said. “People don’t know, whenever we had a problem we worked it out very quickly.”

    After two hours of closed-door discussions, the two leaders traveled together to the Temple of Heaven, a 600-year-old imperial religious complex that once served as the site where Ming and Qing dynasty emperors held annual rituals to offer sacrifices and pray for abundant harvests. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and top international tourist destination, the ancient landmark provided a symbolic backdrop for the diplomatic meeting. Posing for photos in front of the complex’s iconic main prayer hall, Trump praised the site and the country, telling Xi “Great place, incredible. China’s beautiful.”

  • Angus Taylor eyes ‘generational’ change, but Pauline claims he’s seeing orange

    Angus Taylor eyes ‘generational’ change, but Pauline claims he’s seeing orange

    In a high-stakes address to Australia’s House of Representatives delivered shortly after 7:30 pm Thursday, Opposition Leader Angus Taylor laid out the Coalition’s far-reaching policy blueprint for tackling the country’s soaring cost of living, locking in a series of contentious pledges that have already divided political circles across the nation.

    Against a backdrop of a federal budget shaped by global volatility stemming from the Middle East conflict – one where the ruling Labor government has pushed forward sweeping reforms to housing investor tax breaks including changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing, policies the Coalition has already promised to reverse if elected – Taylor’s reply positioned the opposition as a sharp alternative to Labor’s agenda. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has framed Labor’s tax changes as a critical step to rebalance Australia’s increasingly unaffordable housing market and improve equity for first-time buyers, but Taylor rejected that framing outright, labeling the new levies on housing and small business a “stealth raid” on hardworking Australians striving to improve their financial standing, an unfair assault on personal aspiration.

    The most eye-catching proposal in the Coalition’s plan is a hard cap on net overseas migration, tied directly to the annual number of new housing completions across the country. Taylor stressed that under a future Coalition government, “Never again will a government be able to bring in more people than our housing can support. That’s our commitment.” To address the current national housing shortfall, Taylor confirmed migration levels would be held “significantly below” the cap for the first several years of a Coalition term, delivering what he called “one of the biggest cuts to immigration in Australian history.” He declined to release a precise numerical target ahead of the next election, arguing that setting a fixed figure now would be reckless, and hit out at Labor for consistently overshooting its own migration targets, drawing jeers from government benches in response.

    Beyond the migration cap, the Coalition laid out a suite of further border and visa policy changes: the existing Australian Values Statement will become an enforceable condition for visa approval, permanent visa holders will be legally required to learn English, enhanced border screening will be implemented to block radical extremists, Temporary Protection Visas will be reinstated to crack down on what Taylor called “frivolous protection claims” via a formal list of safe countries deemed free of persecution, and the government will move to process and deport 70,000 visa overstayers who have no legal right to remain in the country. “Those who criticise the law being enforced must explain why their sympathies lie with illegal overstayers instead of with migrants and Australians who abide by the law,” Taylor said.

    On housing, the Coalition plans to unblock stalled residential construction projects and inject $5 billion into supporting core infrastructure including new roads, water networks and sewage systems. Taylor said these investments, paired with deep cuts to burdensome regulatory red tape, will unlock 400,000 new homes and reduce the cost of a newly built home by as much as $70,000. Taylor also targeted the 2,000-page National Construction Code introduced under Labor, arguing its thousands of overlapping rules add tens of thousands of dollars to new build costs, with the Coalition aiming to shrink the code to roughly 200 pages. Additional deregulation is planned for the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act as well.

    On tax policy, the Coalition introduced its Tax Back Guarantee, which will index the two lowest income tax thresholds to inflation starting in the 2028-29 financial year. Taylor explained this reform will fully protect 85% of Australian income earners, delivering an estimated $250 in relief in the first year of the policy, growing to more than $1,000 annually by the fourth year. Starting in 2031-32, the two highest tax thresholds will also be indexed to inflation, extending full protection from bracket creep to all Australian taxpayers, a change Taylor described as once-in-a-generation tax reform. For small businesses with annual turnover under $10 million, the policy makes the immediate asset deduction of up to $50,000 a permanent measure, to encourage ongoing business investment.

    In a further contentious shift, Taylor confirmed the Coalition will restrict access to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and 17 other welfare programs exclusively to Australian citizens, excluding permanent residents from accessing these benefits. “My message is this: If you commit to Australia, then Australia will commit to you,” Taylor said. “After all, the taxes paid by hard working Australians should support Australians.” The policy drew immediate mixed reactions even across the political sphere: One Nation leader Pauline Hanson quickly claimed the entire budget reply was “replete with One Nation policies,” arguing the Coalition had stolen longstanding One Nation proposals after previously dismissing the minor party as having no workable ideas. But senior Coalition figures defended the plan, with Shadow Treasurer Tim Wilson telling the ABC the policy aligns with a growing global shift among European nations, arguing “it has to be on the basis of they come, commit and contribute” to access public benefits. Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson told Sky News the policy of restricting welfare to citizens is “right and proper,” though she declined to specify how much taxpayer money the change would save.

    On economic and fiscal policy, Taylor announced that a future Coalition government would deposit 80 cents of every dollar in resource revenue that exceeds forecast projections into a new Future Generations Fund. The fund will be used to pay down Labor’s projected $1 trillion in national debt and fund new nation-building infrastructure projects, with 25% of fund allocations directed to regional communities that Taylor said have been neglected by the current Labor government. Taylor also rejected Labor’s tax breaks for electric vehicles, noting the majority of benefits flow disproportionately to high-income households, and confirmed the Coalition would collaborate with the Albanese government on NDIS reform, an unusual point of bipartisan agreement in an otherwise combative address.

    On national security, Taylor argued that in an era of global “coercion, crisis, and conflict,” Australia must prioritize greater self-reliance. A Coalition government will develop a formal National Security Strategy and appoint a dedicated National Security Adviser, with defense as the central pillar of the strategy. Unlike Labor, which projects to hit the 3% of GDP defense spending target by 2033 via a planned $53 billion spending increase over 10 years, Taylor committed the Coalition would meet the 3% of GDP target immediately, accusing Labor of accounting trickery to delay the investment.

    Overall, Taylor’s address stayed largely aligned with the Coalition’s longstanding policy priorities: pushing back against high mass migration levels, criticizing big government overspending, and highlighting the growing cost of living crisis that has made the traditional Australian dream of a single-income earner saving for a home deposit increasingly out of reach for many. Taylor closed by outlining his core vision for the country: “to revive the freedom that Australians have lost under Labor. Not a government-directed economy – a free-enterprise economy. Not bigger government – better government.”

  • British PM battles to stay in power amid rebellion

    British PM battles to stay in power amid rebellion

    Just months after ending 14 years of Conservative Party rule with a historic 2024 general election victory, Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer finds himself locked in a desperate battle to retain his job, as internal party unrest triggered by disastrous local election results paves the way for a potential leadership challenge from his former deputy, Angela Rayner.

    The crisis erupted last week when Labour suffered catastrophic losses across regional and local polls. Voter backlash stripped the party of its decades-long control of the devolved Welsh Parliament for the first time in history, while it failed to close the gap with the pro-independence Scottish National Party at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. Far-right Reform UK and left-wing Green Party made massive gains at Labour’s expense, reflecting widespread public discontent with Starmer’s performance over his 22 months in office. To date, four junior government ministers have resigned, more than 80 Labour members of Parliament have publicly called for his departure, and yet Starmer has remained defiant, vowing to hold onto power despite the growing mutiny within his own party. “I know I have my doubters, and I know I need to prove them wrong, and I will,” he stated during a defiant appearance earlier this week.

    A major new development upended the crisis on Thursday, when Rayner announced that UK tax authority HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) had cleared her of allegations of deliberate wrongdoing connected to a past tax affair. The 46-year-old left-wing working-class champion was forced to step down from her posts as deputy prime minister and housing secretary in September over an underpayment of property duty on a southern England flat purchase, which also found her in breach of the ministerial code. On Thursday, she confirmed that HMRC had exonerated her of claims she intentionally sought to evade tax, after she settled £40,000 ($54,000) in outstanding tax obligations. “I welcome HMRC’s conclusion, which has cleared me of any wrongdoing,” Rayner said in an official statement. “I set out to pay the correct amount of tax. I took reasonable care and acted in good faith, based on the expert advice I received, and HMRC has accepted this.”

    The clearance removes a major barrier to Rayner entering a leadership contest, prompting widespread speculation that she could soon throw her hat into the ring. While she has stopped short of directly calling for Starmer’s resignation and told media she would not be the one to trigger a leadership race, she told *The Guardian* that she would step into “whatever role I can” to deliver the change party members and voters demand. Earlier this week, she issued a blunt assessment of Labour’s electoral collapse, writing “What we are doing isn’t working, and it needs to change.”

    Beyond Rayner, other potential challengers are also positioning for a run. Multiple UK media outlets reported Thursday that Health Secretary Wes Streeting, a 43-year-old figure popular with Labour’s centrist and right-wing factions, was preparing to resign imminently to launch a leadership bid. Streeting is unpopular with the party’s left-wing base, which broadly favors Rayner or Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham for the top job. However, Burnham is currently ineligible to run, as he does not hold a seat in the Westminster Parliament.

    Under Labour Party rules, any candidate seeking to challenge Starmer must secure the backing of 81 Labour MPs – equal to 20% of the party’s parliamentary cohort – to trigger a formal leadership contest. With more than 80 MPs already having called for Starmer to step down, the threshold is within reach for a coordinated challenge, leaving Britain’s government facing a period of unprecedented political instability just six months into its first term after ousting the Conservatives.