<p>President Donald Trump warned North Korea on Tuesday that any US&nbsp;military option would be &quot;devastating&quot; for Pyongyang, but said the use of force was not Washington&#39;s first option to deal with the country&#39;s ballistic and nuclear weapons programme.<br />
<br />
&quot;We are totally prepared for the second option, not a preferred option,&quot; Trump said at a White House news conference, referring to military force. &quot;But if we take that option, it will be devastating, I can tell you that, devastating for North Korea. That&#39;s called the military option. If we have to take it, we will.&quot;<br />
<br />
Bellicose statements by Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in recent weeks have created fears that a miscalculation could lead to action with untold ramifications, particularly since Pyongyang conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test on September 3.</p>

<p>Despite the increased tension, the United States has not detected any change in North Korea&#39;s military posture reflecting an increased threat, the top US&nbsp;military officer said on Tuesday.</p>

<p>The assessment by Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the US&nbsp;Joint Chiefs of Staff, about Pyongyang&#39;s military stance was in contrast to a South Korean lawmaker who said Pyongyang had boosted defences on its east coast.</p>

<p>&quot;While the political space is clearly very charged right now, we haven&#39;t seen a change in the posture of North Korean forces, and we watch that very closely,&quot; Dunford told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on his reappointment to his post.</p>

<p>In terms of a sense of urgency, &quot;North Korea certainly poses the greatest threat today,&quot; Dunford testified.</p>

<p>A US&nbsp;official speaking on the condition of anonymity said satellite imagery had detected a small number of North Korean military aircraft moving to the North&#39;s east coast. However, the official said the activity did not change their assessment of Pyongyang&#39;s military posture.</p>

<p>North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on Monday accused Trump of declaring war on the North and threatened that Pyongyang would shoot down US&nbsp;warplanes flying near the Korean Peninsula after American bombers flew close to it last Saturday. Ri was reacting to Trump`s Twitter comments that Kim and Ri &quot;won`t be around much longer&quot; if they acted on their threats towards the United States.</p>

<p>North Korea has been working to develop nuclear-tipped missiles capable of hitting the US&nbsp;mainland, which Trump has said he will never allow. Dunford said Pyongyang will have a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile &quot;soon,&quot; and it was only a matter of a &quot;very short time&quot;.</p>

<p>&quot;We clearly have postured our forces to respond in the event of a provocation or a conflict,&quot; the general said, adding that the United States has taken &quot;all proper measures to protect our allies&quot; including South Korean and Japan.</p>

<p>&quot;It would be an incredibly provocative thing for them to conduct a nuclear test in the Pacific as they have suggested, and I think the North Korean people would have to realise how serious that would be, not only for the United States but for the international community,&quot; Dunford said.</p>

<p>South Korean lawmaker Lee Cheol-uoo, briefed by the country&#39;s spy agency, said North Korea was bolstering its defences by moving aircraft to its east coast and taking other measures after the flight by US&nbsp;bombers. Lee said the United States appeared to have disclosed the flight route intentionally because North Korea seemed to be unaware.</p>

<p>US Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers, escorted by fighter jets, flew east of North Korea in a show of force after the heated exchange of rhetoric between Trump and Kim.</p>

<p>The United States has imposed sanctions on 26 people as part of its non-proliferation designations for North Korea and nine banks, including some with ties to China, the US&nbsp;Treasury Department&#39;s Office Of Foreign Assets Control Sanctions said on Tuesday.</p>

<p>The US&nbsp;sanctions target people in North Korea and some North Korean nationals in China, Russia, Libya and Dubai, according to a list posted on the agency&#39;s website.</p>

<p><strong>Capability to deter</strong><br />
<br />
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit China from Thursday to Saturday for talks with senior officials that will include the crisis over North Korea and trade, the State Department said on Tuesday.</p>

<p>Evans Revere, a former senior diplomat who met with a North Korean delegation in Switzerland this month, said that Pyongyang had been reaching out to &quot;organizations and individuals&quot; to encourage talks with former U.S. officials to get a sense of the Trump administration`s thinking.</p>

<p>&quot;They`ve also been accepting invitations to attend dialogues hosted by others, including the Swiss and the Russians,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>Revere said his best guess for why the North Koreans were doing this was because they were &quot;puzzled by the unconventional way that President Trump has been handling the North Korea issue&quot; and were eager to use &quot;informal and unofficial meetings to gain a better understanding of what is motivating Trump and his administration&quot;.</p>

<p>During a visit to India, US&nbsp;Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said diplomatic efforts continued.</p>

<p>Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said war on the Korean Peninsula would have no winner.</p>

<p>&quot;We hope the US and North Korean politicians have sufficient political judgement to realise that resorting to military force will never be a viable way to resolve the peninsula issue and their own concerns,&quot; Lu said.</p>

<p>South Korean President Moon Jae-in urged Kim Jong Un to resume military talks and reunions of families split by the 1950-53 Korean War to ease tension.</p>

<p>&quot;Like I&#39;ve said multiple times before, if North Korea stops its reckless choices, the table for talks and negotiations always remains open,&quot; Moon said.</p>

<p>In Moscow, Russia`s Foreign Ministry said it was working behind the scenes to find a political solution and that it plans to hold talks with a representative of North Korea`s foreign ministry who is due to arrive in Moscow on Tuesday, the RIA news agency cited the North`s embassy to Russia as saying.</p>

<p>The United States and South Korea are technically still at war with North Korea after the 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce and not a peace treaty.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


President Trump said the use of force was not Washington's first option to deal with the country's ballistic and nuclear weapons programme

President Donald Trump warned North Korea on Tuesday that any US military option would be "devastating" for Pyongyang, but said the use of force was not Washington's first option to deal with the country's ballistic and nuclear weapons programme. "We are totally prepared for the second option, not a preferred option," Trump said at a White House news conference, referring to military force. "But if we take that option, it will be devastating, I can tell you that, devastating for North Korea. That's called the military option. If we have to take it, we will." Bellicose statements by Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in recent weeks have created fears that a miscalculation could lead to action with untold ramifications, particularly since Pyongyang conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test on September 3. Despite the increased tension, the United States has not detected any change in North Korea's military posture reflecting an increased threat, the top US military officer said on Tuesday. The assessment by Marine Corps General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, about Pyongyang's military stance was in contrast to a South Korean lawmaker who said Pyongyang had boosted defences on its east coast. "While the political space is clearly very charged right now, we haven't seen a change in the posture of North Korean forces, and we watch that very closely," Dunford told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on his reappointment to his post. In terms of a sense of urgency, "North Korea certainly poses the greatest threat today," Dunford testified. A US official speaking on the condition of anonymity said satellite imagery had detected a small number of North Korean military aircraft moving to the North's east coast. However, the official said the activity did not change their assessment of Pyongyang's military posture. North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on Monday accused Trump of declaring war on the North and threatened that Pyongyang would shoot down US warplanes flying near the Korean Peninsula after American bombers flew close to it last Saturday. Ri was reacting to Trump`s Twitter comments that Kim and Ri "won`t be around much longer" if they acted on their threats towards the United States. North Korea has been working to develop nuclear-tipped missiles capable of hitting the US mainland, which Trump has said he will never allow. Dunford said Pyongyang will have a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile "soon," and it was only a matter of a "very short time". "We clearly have postured our forces to respond in the event of a provocation or a conflict," the general said, adding that the United States has taken "all proper measures to protect our allies" including South Korean and Japan. "It would be an incredibly provocative thing for them to conduct a nuclear test in the Pacific as they have suggested, and I think the North Korean people would have to realise how serious that would be, not only for the United States but for the international community," Dunford said. South Korean lawmaker Lee Cheol-uoo, briefed by the country's spy agency, said North Korea was bolstering its defences by moving aircraft to its east coast and taking other measures after the flight by US bombers. Lee said the United States appeared to have disclosed the flight route intentionally because North Korea seemed to be unaware. US Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers, escorted by fighter jets, flew east of North Korea in a show of force after the heated exchange of rhetoric between Trump and Kim. The United States has imposed sanctions on 26 people as part of its non-proliferation designations for North Korea and nine banks, including some with ties to China, the US Treasury Department's Office Of Foreign Assets Control Sanctions said on Tuesday. The US sanctions target people in North Korea and some North Korean nationals in China, Russia, Libya and Dubai, according to a list posted on the agency's website. Capability to deter US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit China from Thursday to Saturday for talks with senior officials that will include the crisis over North Korea and trade, the State Department said on Tuesday. Evans Revere, a former senior diplomat who met with a North Korean delegation in Switzerland this month, said that Pyongyang had been reaching out to "organizations and individuals" to encourage talks with former U.S. officials to get a sense of the Trump administration`s thinking. "They`ve also been accepting invitations to attend dialogues hosted by others, including the Swiss and the Russians," he said. Revere said his best guess for why the North Koreans were doing this was because they were "puzzled by the unconventional way that President Trump has been handling the North Korea issue" and were eager to use "informal and unofficial meetings to gain a better understanding of what is motivating Trump and his administration". During a visit to India, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said diplomatic efforts continued. Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said war on the Korean Peninsula would have no winner. "We hope the US and North Korean politicians have sufficient political judgement to realise that resorting to military force will never be a viable way to resolve the peninsula issue and their own concerns," Lu said. South Korean President Moon Jae-in urged Kim Jong Un to resume military talks and reunions of families split by the 1950-53 Korean War to ease tension. "Like I've said multiple times before, if North Korea stops its reckless choices, the table for talks and negotiations always remains open," Moon said. In Moscow, Russia`s Foreign Ministry said it was working behind the scenes to find a political solution and that it plans to hold talks with a representative of North Korea`s foreign ministry who is due to arrive in Moscow on Tuesday, the RIA news agency cited the North`s embassy to Russia as saying. The United States and South Korea are technically still at war with North Korea after the 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce and not a peace treaty.

Military option for North Korea not preferred, but would be 'devastating': President Trump

<p>Senate Republican leaders released on Thursday a revised plan to dismantle the Obamacare law, but it drew criticism from senators on both sides of the political divide within the Republican party, indicating a treacherous path for the bill.</p>

<p>The bill played to the party&#39;s disparate factions by letting insurers sell cheap, bare-bones policies while retaining taxes on the wealthy.</p>

<p>But the immediate outcry illustrated the difficult political terrain that US&nbsp;Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell must navigate. He is under pressure by President Donald Trump to pass a healthcare bill and make good on Republicans&#39; seven-year mission to gut Democratic former President Barack Obama&#39;s signature legislative achievement.</p>

<p>In addition to the criticism from some senators, a major hospital association and one large insurer said the measure falls short in critical areas.</p>

<p>With Democrats united against it, McConnell cannot afford to lose more than two Republican senators to win passage. But moderate Susan Collins and conservative Rand Paul voiced opposition to even bringing the new plan up for debate.</p>

<p>Several senators said they had concerns about the legislation, particularly its Medicaid cuts, including Shelley Moore Capito, Rob Portman and John McCain. And two other Republican senators, Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy, complicated matters by announcing an alternative plan.</p>

<p>McConnell, a skilful tactician who was forced two weeks ago to scrub a planned vote on an earlier version opposed by both moderates and hard-line conservatives in his party, has planned for a vote on the retooled bill next week.</p>

<p>The continuing lack of consensus among Republicans on what to do with Obamacare after calling for its demise since 2010 shows that it is no sure thing that Trump&#39;s party will be able to get the job done.</p>

<p>Healthcare is Trump&#39;s first major legislative initiative. Failure would call into question his party&#39;s ability to govern despite controlling both chambers of Congress and the White House.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>&quot;SKINNY PLANS&quot;</strong></p>

<p>The measure represents a retreat from long-standing Republican aspirations to dump Obamacare-related taxes.</p>

<p>It retains two taxes on the wealthy that helped pay for the Obamacare law that the previous version would have repealed, and also keeps Obamacare&#39;s limits on corporate tax deductions for executive pay in the health insurance industry.</p>

<p>The bill included a provision allowing insurers to offer stripped-down, low-cost healthcare plans - a measure proposed by Senator Ted Cruz to try to win over holdout conservatives.</p>

<p>These &quot;skinny plans&quot; would not have to cover the broad benefits mandated under Obamacare like maternity and newborn care, mental health services and addiction treatment, outpatient care, hospitalisation, emergency room visits and prescription drugs.</p>

<p>Insurer groups, including the national Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, have derided the skinny plans, saying they would raise insurance premiums, destabilise the individual insurance market and undermine protections for pre-existing medical conditions. Moderate senators could balk at the provision for the same reasons.</p>

<p>The new bill provides an additional $70 billion to help stabilise the individual insurance market on top of the $112 billion in the original bill to help insurers slow growth in premium costs and help lower-income insurance holders cover out-of-pocket medical expenses.</p>

<p>The bill would phase out the Obamacare expansion of the Medicaid government health insurance programme for the poor and disabled, and includes sharp cuts to federal Medicaid spending beginning in 2025.</p>

<p>Moderate Republicans were spurned in their desire to see a reduction in Medicaid cuts in the revised version.</p>

<p>Critics said despite some changes to coax wavering senators, the revised bill&#39;s core remains unchanged: restructuring and cutting the critical Medicaid social safety-net programme, taking away insurance from millions of Americans and driving up healthcare costs for millions of the most vulnerable Americans, especially older people and the sick.</p>

<p>The revamped bill contains a provision that appears to be aimed at winning over Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a moderate who had opposed the original bill. It would funnel additional money to states that have higher insurance premiums &ndash; at least 75 percent above the national average. Alaska is the only state with premiums that high, Senate aides said.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>&quot;UNACCEPTABLE FLAWS&quot;</strong></p>

<p>Hospital and insurer groups have spoken out against the Senate Republican approach, particularly proposed Medicaid cuts. The cuts would result in lower revenues for hospital companies like Community Health Systems Inc&nbsp;and Medicaid insurance specialists like Molina Healthcare&nbsp;and Centene Corp.</p>

<p>Molina Healthcare, which has more than one&nbsp;million customers on the Obamacare individual exchanges and manages Medicaid health programs, said the changes would leave insurers competing for the least risky customers and would make plans for sick people unaffordable.</p>

<p>The American Hospital Association said the new version of the bill retained the &quot;unacceptable flaws&quot; of the previous version.</p>

<p>&quot;Instead of merely putting forth an update, we again call on the Senate to put forth an upgrade,&quot; Rick Pollack, president of the association, said in a statement.</p>

<p>Healthcare stocks were mostly unmoved by the announcement, as Wall Street analysts described the core of the revised bill as largely unchanged from the earlier one.</p>

<p>The new bill includes another $45 billion for fighting the opioid addiction epidemic, on top of the $2 billion in the earlier version.</p>

<p>The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which forecast that the previous version would have increased the number of Americans without health insurance by 22 million by 2026, is due to evaluate the new bill in coming days.</p>

<p>The Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare, expanded health insurance coverage to some 20 million people, in large part by expanding Medicaid. The House of Representatives on May 4 passed its own version of healthcare legislation.</p>

<p>Republicans have a 52-48 Senate majority, with Vice President Mike Pence able to cast a potential tie-breaking vote. Any bill passed by the Senate would have to go back to the House for approval.</p>

<p>Repealing and replacing Obamacare, which Republicans fault as a costly government intrusion into the healthcare system, was a top campaign promise for Trump, who was monitoring the Senate developments during his visit to Paris.</p>

<p>&quot;I&#39;d say the only thing more difficult than peace between Israel and the Palestinians is healthcare,&quot; Trump told reporters on his flight to Paris.</p>


Trump's effort to replace Obamacare hit yet another setback

Senate Republican leaders released on Thursday a revised plan to dismantle the Obamacare law, but it drew criticism from senators on both sides of the political divide within the Republican party, indicating a treacherous path for the bill. The bill played to the party's disparate factions by letting insurers sell cheap, bare-bones policies while retaining taxes on the wealthy. But the immediate outcry illustrated the difficult political terrain that US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell must navigate. He is under pressure by President Donald Trump to pass a healthcare bill and make good on Republicans' seven-year mission to gut Democratic former President Barack Obama's signature legislative achievement. In addition to the criticism from some senators, a major hospital association and one large insurer said the measure falls short in critical areas. With Democrats united against it, McConnell cannot afford to lose more than two Republican senators to win passage. But moderate Susan Collins and conservative Rand Paul voiced opposition to even bringing the new plan up for debate. Several senators said they had concerns about the legislation, particularly its Medicaid cuts, including Shelley Moore Capito, Rob Portman and John McCain. And two other Republican senators, Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy, complicated matters by announcing an alternative plan. McConnell, a skilful tactician who was forced two weeks ago to scrub a planned vote on an earlier version opposed by both moderates and hard-line conservatives in his party, has planned for a vote on the retooled bill next week. The continuing lack of consensus among Republicans on what to do with Obamacare after calling for its demise since 2010 shows that it is no sure thing that Trump's party will be able to get the job done. Healthcare is Trump's first major legislative initiative. Failure would call into question his party's ability to govern despite controlling both chambers of Congress and the White House. "SKINNY PLANS" The measure represents a retreat from long-standing Republican aspirations to dump Obamacare-related taxes. It retains two taxes on the wealthy that helped pay for the Obamacare law that the previous version would have repealed, and also keeps Obamacare's limits on corporate tax deductions for executive pay in the health insurance industry. The bill included a provision allowing insurers to offer stripped-down, low-cost healthcare plans - a measure proposed by Senator Ted Cruz to try to win over holdout conservatives. These "skinny plans" would not have to cover the broad benefits mandated under Obamacare like maternity and newborn care, mental health services and addiction treatment, outpatient care, hospitalisation, emergency room visits and prescription drugs. Insurer groups, including the national Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, have derided the skinny plans, saying they would raise insurance premiums, destabilise the individual insurance market and undermine protections for pre-existing medical conditions. Moderate senators could balk at the provision for the same reasons. The new bill provides an additional $70 billion to help stabilise the individual insurance market on top of the $112 billion in the original bill to help insurers slow growth in premium costs and help lower-income insurance holders cover out-of-pocket medical expenses. The bill would phase out the Obamacare expansion of the Medicaid government health insurance programme for the poor and disabled, and includes sharp cuts to federal Medicaid spending beginning in 2025. Moderate Republicans were spurned in their desire to see a reduction in Medicaid cuts in the revised version. Critics said despite some changes to coax wavering senators, the revised bill's core remains unchanged: restructuring and cutting the critical Medicaid social safety-net programme, taking away insurance from millions of Americans and driving up healthcare costs for millions of the most vulnerable Americans, especially older people and the sick. The revamped bill contains a provision that appears to be aimed at winning over Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a moderate who had opposed the original bill. It would funnel additional money to states that have higher insurance premiums – at least 75 percent above the national average. Alaska is the only state with premiums that high, Senate aides said. "UNACCEPTABLE FLAWS" Hospital and insurer groups have spoken out against the Senate Republican approach, particularly proposed Medicaid cuts. The cuts would result in lower revenues for hospital companies like Community Health Systems Inc and Medicaid insurance specialists like Molina Healthcare and Centene Corp. Molina Healthcare, which has more than one million customers on the Obamacare individual exchanges and manages Medicaid health programs, said the changes would leave insurers competing for the least risky customers and would make plans for sick people unaffordable. The American Hospital Association said the new version of the bill retained the "unacceptable flaws" of the previous version. "Instead of merely putting forth an update, we again call on the Senate to put forth an upgrade," Rick Pollack, president of the association, said in a statement. Healthcare stocks were mostly unmoved by the announcement, as Wall Street analysts described the core of the revised bill as largely unchanged from the earlier one. The new bill includes another $45 billion for fighting the opioid addiction epidemic, on top of the $2 billion in the earlier version. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which forecast that the previous version would have increased the number of Americans without health insurance by 22 million by 2026, is due to evaluate the new bill in coming days. The Affordable Care Act, dubbed Obamacare, expanded health insurance coverage to some 20 million people, in large part by expanding Medicaid. The House of Representatives on May 4 passed its own version of healthcare legislation. Republicans have a 52-48 Senate majority, with Vice President Mike Pence able to cast a potential tie-breaking vote. Any bill passed by the Senate would have to go back to the House for approval. Repealing and replacing Obamacare, which Republicans fault as a costly government intrusion into the healthcare system, was a top campaign promise for Trump, who was monitoring the Senate developments during his visit to Paris. "I'd say the only thing more difficult than peace between Israel and the Palestinians is healthcare," Trump told reporters on his flight to Paris.

New US Senate Republicans healthcare bill in trouble already

<p>It happens to be one of the most successful trips made by an Indian prime minister to the US. Evidently, Modi and Trump have found a &quot;true friend&quot; in each other. The &quot;bear hug&quot; and the &quot;handshake&quot;, as well as the joint declaration, indicate that the Modi-Trump summit is far from the cold meeting that happened between Nehru and Kennedy in the 1960s. While India&#39;s first prime minister in his disdainful attitude could find little common ground with a rich and arrogant Kennedy, Trump and Modi have agreed on a number of mutually shared interest areas.&nbsp;</p>

<p>There was little doubt that Modi would find anything less than a sympathetic ear in Trump on matters relating to Islamic terror. However, it came as a surprise to many that, the two leaders would find a common ground of interest in matters related to trade and technology. But Modi&#39;s opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal clearly brings out how keen the Indian prime minister is to project the bilateral business partnership as the sign of shared commitment to a similar set of political system. Ever since independence, India has done business with the US but never has it been so forthright in claiming that the both countries belong to the same political camp.&nbsp;</p>

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<p>The success of the Modi-Trump meeting effectively displays how political-economic imperatives can overturn the historical trajectory of a bilateral relationship. A close analysis of Modi and Trump&#39;s joint declaration at the conclusion of the meeting reveals that in spite of all the rhetoric surrounding &quot;Make in India&quot; and &quot;Make America Great&quot;, both the leaders, in the name of &quot;unleashing amazing prosperity and growth&quot; are willing to find common areas&nbsp;of economic cooperation.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Just before leaving for his US trip, Modi wrote that India sees the US as the country&#39;s &quot;natural partner&quot;. Diplomatically speaking, this is a clear departure from the Cold War days when India refused to side with the US and insisted on a non-aligned posture. The global fawning of terrorist networks and the two country&#39;s bitter experience with terrorism not only brought the countries together on defense and strategy related matters, it also ensured that the two countries would now collaborate on the technological frontier to make, as Modi said, &quot;our seas, cyberspace and outer space&quot; more secure.</p>

<p>As the imperatives of a globalised economy press hard on both India and the US, both countries are now actively seizing all opportunities to build a partnership based on common trade and technological interest. Thus, while US companies, such as Amazon, Apple, Google seek markets in India, the latter hopes that the &quot;thriving&quot; Indian-American community in the US will help in furthering India&#39;s economic interest abroad. Modi&#39;s diplomatic visits are, therefore, closely coupled with events, such as meetings with Indian CEOs of multi-national corporations, building bridges with prospering start-ups, while the prime minister constantly emphasised on how the Indian-American community can act as a metaphor for what the two countries are capable of achieving if they decide to nurture enterprise and reward hard work.&nbsp;</p>

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<p>Through the celebratory reference to enterprising Indians, Modi is understandably trying to press a case against the recent Trump administration&#39;s announcements over H1B visas. Indians constitute the highest number of H1B visa holder in the USA, numbering somewhere around 1,26,692 in 2016. A significant majority of these visa holders are engineers, more particularly IT professionals. Companies in the US need their expertise which is available at a much cheaper rate than an American or European professional. The sheer number of Indian tech professionals in the US&nbsp;make them crucial in a bilateral relationship. This is evident from the eagerness Modi has shown showcasing&nbsp;India&#39;s strength in information technology to claim a position of leadership in what he sees to be the digital age.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The future of the bilateral relationship between the two countries now seems to be grounded on the power of emerging technologies, new infrastructure, and the &quot;enthusiasm and excitement of very hardworking and very dynamic people.&quot; What we are witnessing in the international arena is actually reflective of how India is changing domestically. The Modi government&#39;s mantra has become better governance that balances political openness with goal-oriented technocracy. While the level of&nbsp;political openness in India is still a debatable issue, the present regime has shown unwavering commitment to develop India along the technocratic path where the quality of governance matters more than regime type.</p>

<p>&quot;There is a high tide of hope for change in India&quot; Prime Minister Narendra Modi boldly proclaimed to the world on the eve of his meeting with President Donald Trump. Clearly, as India emerges as a leading economic power in the global circuit, much in India is changing. The process of democratisation, howsoever fraught, is giving away to a pursuit to build an effective technocratic government in India. Such a government is interested more in &quot;good governance&quot; and less in politics. Instead of carrying forward the Nehruvian ideal of a democratic socialist state as India&#39;s answer to underdevelopment, Narendra Modi believes in the endless &quot;possibilities of technology and innovation&quot; to solve the national problems.</p>

<p>Technocratic regimes, like the one PM Modi, is trying to build, carry an assurance of certainty. It promises to deliver what the citizens universally proclaim they want: world-class infrastructure, affordable health care, sanitation, electricity, connectivity, and housing. Modi&#39;s mantra of &quot;minimum government, maximum governance&quot; seeks to achieve its promised goals of transparent governance and economic development without politicising the agendas. The American citizens, including a large number of Indian professionals and business personnel who are tired of red-tapeism of the previous regimes, are wholeheartedly embracing these new shifts in outlook.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The business community in India and foreign investors are cosying up to the idea of India developing as a smart technocracy. They want national infrastructure in roads, railways and power, to which Modi has pledged nearly $200 billion in long-term funding. They need these to expand their business and don&#39;t care much that in the global South often this infrastructure building comes with serious problems of population displacement. For the level of technocratic governance India is hoping to achieve, such a regime will increasingly find mass politics disruptive. The very nature of mass politics is messy;&nbsp;it is incompatible with the technocratic mindset which prioritises rigour over haphazard democratic cycles.</p>

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<p>If democracy is messy and can, on occasions, act as a hindrance to developmental goals, bilateral relation often takes an unpredictable course. For instance, all the hopes pinned on making information technology an important component of bilateral relation can go unrealised&nbsp;if more Indian engineers, such as Srinivas Kuchibhotlas get killed in the US. Similarly, if the Trump administration does get away with imposing stricter control over the issuance of H1B visas, all the praise about&nbsp;hardworking Indian-American community may remain only as a rhetoric.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Similarly, the high hopes of building a partnership in the energy sector can also encounter stumbling blocks, particularly because Trump in the recent past has taken&nbsp;a swing at India for taking boatloads of money in the name of climate change. With Qatar in crisis, India needs liquid natural gas (LNG) supply from the US. In the declaration after the summit, Trump did say that the US is &quot;looking forward to exporting more American energy to India&quot; but this will come with a price tag. The President has admitted that his government is &quot;trying to get the price up a little bit.&quot; Trump&#39;s commitment to delivering LNG to India does not come from a commitment to build a clean environment. For him, it is a business proposition: more gas for more money and more jobs. The moment Trump feels any of this business deal is not what he calls to be &quot;fair&quot; and &quot;reciprocal&quot;, the promises of working together will go unrealised.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Thus, it is for time to tell if the friendship between the leaders will last the shifting dynamics of international relations and, more importantly, if at the implementation level, the two countries can find a compromise between &quot;Make in India&quot; and &quot;Make America great&quot;. At the end of the day, no matter how hard a technocratic regime tries to deliver in the name of development, it always flounders in the treacherous rocks of democratic politics.&nbsp;</p>

<p>(WION)</p>


The business community in India and foreign investors are cosying up to the idea of India developing as a smart technocracy

It happens to be one of the most successful trips made by an Indian prime minister to the US. Evidently, Modi and Trump have found a "true friend" in each other. The "bear hug" and the "handshake", as well as the joint declaration, indicate that the Modi-Trump summit is far from the cold meeting that happened between Nehru and Kennedy in the 1960s. While India's first prime minister in his disdainful attitude could find little common ground with a rich and arrogant Kennedy, Trump and Modi have agreed on a number of mutually shared interest areas. There was little doubt that Modi would find anything less than a sympathetic ear in Trump on matters relating to Islamic terror. However, it came as a surprise to many that, the two leaders would find a common ground of interest in matters related to trade and technology. But Modi's opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal clearly brings out how keen the Indian prime minister is to project the bilateral business partnership as the sign of shared commitment to a similar set of political system. Ever since independence, India has done business with the US but never has it been so forthright in claiming that the both countries belong to the same political camp. The success of the Modi-Trump meeting effectively displays how political-economic imperatives can overturn the historical trajectory of a bilateral relationship × The success of the Modi-Trump meeting effectively displays how political-economic imperatives can overturn the historical trajectory of a bilateral relationship. A close analysis of Modi and Trump's joint declaration at the conclusion of the meeting reveals that in spite of all the rhetoric surrounding "Make in India" and "Make America Great", both the leaders, in the name of "unleashing amazing prosperity and growth" are willing to find common areas of economic cooperation. Just before leaving for his US trip, Modi wrote that India sees the US as the country's "natural partner". Diplomatically speaking, this is a clear departure from the Cold War days when India refused to side with the US and insisted on a non-aligned posture. The global fawning of terrorist networks and the two country's bitter experience with terrorism not only brought the countries together on defense and strategy related matters, it also ensured that the two countries would now collaborate on the technological frontier to make, as Modi said, "our seas, cyberspace and outer space" more secure. As the imperatives of a globalised economy press hard on both India and the US, both countries are now actively seizing all opportunities to build a partnership based on common trade and technological interest. Thus, while US companies, such as Amazon, Apple, Google seek markets in India, the latter hopes that the "thriving" Indian-American community in the US will help in furthering India's economic interest abroad. Modi's diplomatic visits are, therefore, closely coupled with events, such as meetings with Indian CEOs of multi-national corporations, building bridges with prospering start-ups, while the prime minister constantly emphasised on how the Indian-American community can act as a metaphor for what the two countries are capable of achieving if they decide to nurture enterprise and reward hard work. The sheer number of Indian tech professionals in the US make them crucial in a bilateral relationship × Through the celebratory reference to enterprising Indians, Modi is understandably trying to press a case against the recent Trump administration's announcements over H1B visas. Indians constitute the highest number of H1B visa holder in the USA, numbering somewhere around 1,26,692 in 2016. A significant majority of these visa holders are engineers, more particularly IT professionals. Companies in the US need their expertise which is available at a much cheaper rate than an American or European professional. The sheer number of Indian tech professionals in the US make them crucial in a bilateral relationship. This is evident from the eagerness Modi has shown showcasing India's strength in information technology to claim a position of leadership in what he sees to be the digital age. The future of the bilateral relationship between the two countries now seems to be grounded on the power of emerging technologies, new infrastructure, and the "enthusiasm and excitement of very hardworking and very dynamic people." What we are witnessing in the international arena is actually reflective of how India is changing domestically. The Modi government's mantra has become better governance that balances political openness with goal-oriented technocracy. While the level of political openness in India is still a debatable issue, the present regime has shown unwavering commitment to develop India along the technocratic path where the quality of governance matters more than regime type. "There is a high tide of hope for change in India" Prime Minister Narendra Modi boldly proclaimed to the world on the eve of his meeting with President Donald Trump. Clearly, as India emerges as a leading economic power in the global circuit, much in India is changing. The process of democratisation, howsoever fraught, is giving away to a pursuit to build an effective technocratic government in India. Such a government is interested more in "good governance" and less in politics. Instead of carrying forward the Nehruvian ideal of a democratic socialist state as India's answer to underdevelopment, Narendra Modi believes in the endless "possibilities of technology and innovation" to solve the national problems. Technocratic regimes, like the one PM Modi, is trying to build, carry an assurance of certainty. It promises to deliver what the citizens universally proclaim they want: world-class infrastructure, affordable health care, sanitation, electricity, connectivity, and housing. Modi's mantra of "minimum government, maximum governance" seeks to achieve its promised goals of transparent governance and economic development without politicising the agendas. The American citizens, including a large number of Indian professionals and business personnel who are tired of red-tapeism of the previous regimes, are wholeheartedly embracing these new shifts in outlook. The business community in India and foreign investors are cosying up to the idea of India developing as a smart technocracy. They want national infrastructure in roads, railways and power, to which Modi has pledged nearly $200 billion in long-term funding. They need these to expand their business and don't care much that in the global South often this infrastructure building comes with serious problems of population displacement. For the level of technocratic governance India is hoping to achieve, such a regime will increasingly find mass politics disruptive. The very nature of mass politics is messy; it is incompatible with the technocratic mindset which prioritises rigour over haphazard democratic cycles. The business community in India and foreign investors are cosying up to the idea of India developing as a smart technocracy × If democracy is messy and can, on occasions, act as a hindrance to developmental goals, bilateral relation often takes an unpredictable course. For instance, all the hopes pinned on making information technology an important component of bilateral relation can go unrealised if more Indian engineers, such as Srinivas Kuchibhotlas get killed in the US. Similarly, if the Trump administration does get away with imposing stricter control over the issuance of H1B visas, all the praise about hardworking Indian-American community may remain only as a rhetoric. Similarly, the high hopes of building a partnership in the energy sector can also encounter stumbling blocks, particularly because Trump in the recent past has taken a swing at India for taking boatloads of money in the name of climate change. With Qatar in crisis, India needs liquid natural gas (LNG) supply from the US. In the declaration after the summit, Trump did say that the US is "looking forward to exporting more American energy to India" but this will come with a price tag. The President has admitted that his government is "trying to get the price up a little bit." Trump's commitment to delivering LNG to India does not come from a commitment to build a clean environment. For him, it is a business proposition: more gas for more money and more jobs. The moment Trump feels any of this business deal is not what he calls to be "fair" and "reciprocal", the promises of working together will go unrealised. Thus, it is for time to tell if the friendship between the leaders will last the shifting dynamics of international relations and, more importantly, if at the implementation level, the two countries can find a compromise between "Make in India" and "Make America great". At the end of the day, no matter how hard a technocratic regime tries to deliver in the name of development, it always flounders in the treacherous rocks of democratic politics. (WION)

Why did President Trump find a true friend in Prime Minister Modi?

<p>US first lady Melania Trump looked stunning as she welcomed Narendra Modi&nbsp;to the White House on the&nbsp;Indian Prime Minister&#39;s first visit to the White House after Donald Trump&#39;s election to the presidency.</p>

<p>Melania Trump chose a floor-length yellow Emilio Pucci floral-print crepe gown&nbsp;for the occasion.</p>

<p>The first lady, who greeted PM Modi with a smile soon after his arrival, seemed to get along well with him, it appeared from the pictures.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Welcome to the <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse">@WhiteHouse</a> Prime Minister Modi! <a href="https://t.co/JEAgtlUQcw">pic.twitter.com/JEAgtlUQcw</a></p>
&mdash; Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) <a href="https://twitter.com/FLOTUS/status/879440512234770432">June 26, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Melania and Donald Trump receive PM Modi at the White House. (Reuters)</p>
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<p>Melania Trump smiles as President Trump and PM Modi speak, shortly before the Indian PM&#39;s departure from the White House. (Reuters)</p>
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<p>The camaraderie between the Trumps and PM Modi was clearly evident.</p>

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<p>The camaraderie between the Trumps and PM Modi was evident. (Reuters)</p>
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<p>Melania, former Slovenian model and mother of a child,&nbsp;has often received rave reviews for her choice of outfits while hosting White House events.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


Melania Trump was stunning as she stepped out in a floor-length yellow Emilio Pucci dress to greet PM Modi

US first lady Melania Trump looked stunning as she welcomed Narendra Modi to the White House on the Indian Prime Minister's first visit to the White House after Donald Trump's election to the presidency. Melania Trump chose a floor-length yellow Emilio Pucci floral-print crepe gown for the occasion. The first lady, who greeted PM Modi with a smile soon after his arrival, seemed to get along well with him, it appeared from the pictures. Welcome to the @WhiteHouse Prime Minister Modi! pic.twitter.com/JEAgtlUQcw — Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) June 26, 2017 × Melania and Donald Trump receive PM Modi at the White House. (Reuters) × Melania Trump smiles as President Trump and PM Modi speak, shortly before the Indian PM's departure from the White House. (Reuters) × The camaraderie between the Trumps and PM Modi was clearly evident. The camaraderie between the Trumps and PM Modi was evident. (Reuters) × Melania, former Slovenian model and mother of a child, has often received rave reviews for her choice of outfits while hosting White House events.

At Trump-Modi meet, it was Melania who made heads turn

<p>More than 190 Democratic lawmakers sued President Donald Trump in federal court on Wednesday, saying he had accepted funds from foreign governments through his businesses without congressional consent in violation of the US&nbsp;Constitution.</p>

<p>The complaint said Trump had not sought congressional approval for any of the payments his hundreds of businesses had received from foreign governments since he took office in January, even though the Constitution requires him to do so.</p>

<p>The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment but has said Trump&#39;s business interests do not violate the Constitution. The Trump Organization has said it will donate profits from customers representing foreign governments to the US Treasury&nbsp;but will not require such customers to identify themselves.</p>

<p>At least 30 US&nbsp;senators and 166 representatives are plaintiffs in Wednesday&#39;s lawsuit, representing the largest number of legislators ever to sue a US&nbsp;president, according to two lawmakers who are among the plaintiffs.</p>

<p>The Constitution&#39;s &quot;foreign emoluments&quot; clause bars US&nbsp;officeholders from accepting payments and various other gifts from foreign governments without congressional approval.</p>

<p>&quot;The president&rsquo;s failure to tell us about these emoluments, to disclose the payments and benefits that he is receiving, mean that we cannot do our job. We cannot consent to what we don&rsquo;t know,&quot; said Senator Richard Blumenthal, one of the lawmakers bringing the lawsuit, in a conference call on Tuesday.</p>

<p>Representative John Conyers, another plaintiff, added: &ldquo;President Trump has conflicts of interest in at least 25 countries, and it appears he&rsquo;s using his presidency to maximize his profits.&quot;</p>

<p>The Justice Department declined to comment.</p>

<p>Similar lawsuits have been filed in recent months by parties including a nonprofit ethics group, a restaurant trade group, and the attorneys general of Maryland and the District of Columbia.</p>

<p>They allege that Trump&#39;s acceptance of payments from foreign and US&nbsp;governments through his hospitality empire puts other hotel and restaurant owners at an unfair disadvantage and provides governments an incentive to give Trump-owned businesses special treatment.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>RARE TO SUE PRESIDENT</strong></p>

<p>In a motion to dismiss one such lawsuit on Friday, the Justice Department argued that the plaintiffs had not shown any specific harm to their businesses, and that Trump was only banned from receiving foreign government gifts if they arose from his service as president.</p>

<p>On Monday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said &quot;partisan politics&quot; was behind the lawsuit by the Maryland and District of Columbia officials.</p>

<p>Lawmakers rarely sue the president, so there are few federal court decisions the legislators can cite to prove their legal standing to bring Wednesday&#39;s case, said Leah Litman, an assistant professor specializing in constitutional law at the University of California, Irvine.</p>

<p>&quot;But the constitutional provision they&#39;re suing to enforce gives them a role in how it&#39;s carried out, and that gives them a powerful standing argument,&quot; Litman said.</p>

<p>The lawmakers in Wednesday&#39;s lawsuit will be represented in court by the Constitutional Accountability Center, a public interest law firm in Washington. Each lawmaker is paying a share of the legal fees from personal or campaign accounts.</p>


'President Trump has conflicts of interest in at least 25 countries, and it appears he?s using his presidency to maximize his profits,' said one representative

More than 190 Democratic lawmakers sued President Donald Trump in federal court on Wednesday, saying he had accepted funds from foreign governments through his businesses without congressional consent in violation of the US Constitution. The complaint said Trump had not sought congressional approval for any of the payments his hundreds of businesses had received from foreign governments since he took office in January, even though the Constitution requires him to do so. The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment but has said Trump's business interests do not violate the Constitution. The Trump Organization has said it will donate profits from customers representing foreign governments to the US Treasury but will not require such customers to identify themselves. At least 30 US senators and 166 representatives are plaintiffs in Wednesday's lawsuit, representing the largest number of legislators ever to sue a US president, according to two lawmakers who are among the plaintiffs. The Constitution's "foreign emoluments" clause bars US officeholders from accepting payments and various other gifts from foreign governments without congressional approval. "The president’s failure to tell us about these emoluments, to disclose the payments and benefits that he is receiving, mean that we cannot do our job. We cannot consent to what we don’t know," said Senator Richard Blumenthal, one of the lawmakers bringing the lawsuit, in a conference call on Tuesday. Representative John Conyers, another plaintiff, added: “President Trump has conflicts of interest in at least 25 countries, and it appears he’s using his presidency to maximize his profits." The Justice Department declined to comment. Similar lawsuits have been filed in recent months by parties including a nonprofit ethics group, a restaurant trade group, and the attorneys general of Maryland and the District of Columbia. They allege that Trump's acceptance of payments from foreign and US governments through his hospitality empire puts other hotel and restaurant owners at an unfair disadvantage and provides governments an incentive to give Trump-owned businesses special treatment. RARE TO SUE PRESIDENT In a motion to dismiss one such lawsuit on Friday, the Justice Department argued that the plaintiffs had not shown any specific harm to their businesses, and that Trump was only banned from receiving foreign government gifts if they arose from his service as president. On Monday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said "partisan politics" was behind the lawsuit by the Maryland and District of Columbia officials. Lawmakers rarely sue the president, so there are few federal court decisions the legislators can cite to prove their legal standing to bring Wednesday's case, said Leah Litman, an assistant professor specializing in constitutional law at the University of California, Irvine. "But the constitutional provision they're suing to enforce gives them a role in how it's carried out, and that gives them a powerful standing argument," Litman said. The lawmakers in Wednesday's lawsuit will be represented in court by the Constitutional Accountability Center, a public interest law firm in Washington. Each lawmaker is paying a share of the legal fees from personal or campaign accounts.

Donald Trump sued over foreign state payments to businesses by Democratic lawmakers

<p>India&#39;s Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold talks with US President Donald Trump in Washington on June 26, the Indian foreign ministry said on Monday,&nbsp;the first meeting between the leaders.</p>

<p>Ties between the two big democracies grew rapidly under the Obama administration which saw India as a partner to balance China&#39;s growing weight in Asia.&nbsp;</p>

<p>But Trump has focused on building ties with China,&nbsp;seeing it as key to tackling regional problems such as North Korea&#39;s nuclear programme.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Indian ministry said Modi&#39;s talks with Trump would lay the ground for a further expansion in ties, allaying some of the anxiety that had crept in about a drift in relations.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Their discussions will provide a new direction for deeper bilateral engagement on issues of mutual interest and consolidation of multi-dimensional strategic partnership between India and the US,&quot; the ministry said in a statement.</p>

<p>The United States has emerged as a top arms supplier to India and the two sides will be looking to move forward with deals such as unarmed drones that India wants for its navy, sources said.&nbsp;</p>

<p>One issue that the two leaders face is resolving conflict arising out of the push they are both making at home to boost industry and create jobs.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Modi has been driving a Make-in-India campaign to press foreign arms suppliers to set up factories in India and transfer technology instead of selling off-the-shelf, which has made India one of the world`s biggest arms importers without any domestic production base.</p>

<p>Trump, on the other hand, has railed against firms moving factories outside the United States and has demanded US companies invest at home as part of his &quot;America First&quot; campaign.</p>

<p>Trump&#39;s review of a visa programme under which thousands of skilled Indian workers go to the United States is also a top concern for India.&nbsp;</p>

<p>(Reuters)</p>


Ties between the two democracies grew rapidly under the Obama administration

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold talks with US President Donald Trump in Washington on June 26, the Indian foreign ministry said on Monday, the first meeting between the leaders. Ties between the two big democracies grew rapidly under the Obama administration which saw India as a partner to balance China's growing weight in Asia. But Trump has focused on building ties with China, seeing it as key to tackling regional problems such as North Korea's nuclear programme. The Indian ministry said Modi's talks with Trump would lay the ground for a further expansion in ties, allaying some of the anxiety that had crept in about a drift in relations. "Their discussions will provide a new direction for deeper bilateral engagement on issues of mutual interest and consolidation of multi-dimensional strategic partnership between India and the US," the ministry said in a statement. The United States has emerged as a top arms supplier to India and the two sides will be looking to move forward with deals such as unarmed drones that India wants for its navy, sources said. One issue that the two leaders face is resolving conflict arising out of the push they are both making at home to boost industry and create jobs. Modi has been driving a Make-in-India campaign to press foreign arms suppliers to set up factories in India and transfer technology instead of selling off-the-shelf, which has made India one of the world`s biggest arms importers without any domestic production base. Trump, on the other hand, has railed against firms moving factories outside the United States and has demanded US companies invest at home as part of his "America First" campaign. Trump's review of a visa programme under which thousands of skilled Indian workers go to the United States is also a top concern for India. (Reuters)

PM Modi to hold first talks with Trump on June 26 in Washington

<p>US President Donald Trump&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/omb/budget/fy2018/msar.pdf">first budget request for fiscal year 2018</a> includes drastic cuts for diplomacy and overseas aid (-32%), and slashes US$4.6 billion from humanitarian assistance and global health spending. <img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/74975/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1" /></p>

<p>In the last decade, the United States has been the leading funder for preparing and responding to global infectious disease outbreaks, and the delivery of basic health care to low-income countries.</p>

<p>The cut diminishes the world&rsquo;s capacity to prevent and coordinate interventions to tackle human health security issues.</p>

<p>Reducing funding to national disease surveillance systems, training and infrastructure in the developing world will hamper the ability to deliver rapid, coordinated and consistent responses to borderless infectious disease outbreaks.</p>

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<p><strong>Before the Trump era</strong></p>

<p>In 2015, <a href="https://data.oecd.org/chart/4M7f">OECD statistics</a> showed a US aid contribution of over US$29 billion. This was delivered through bilateral agreements (country to country), multilateral commitments (United Nations, World Bank and others) and international and local non-governmental organisations (NGO).</p>

<p>A third of these financial resources (US$11 billion) was used to fund basic health-care services: diagnostic tests for malaria and HIV/AIDS, drugs, bed nets, infrastructure and biomedical research centres.</p>

<p>US funding and leadership strengthen disease surveillance systems and global coordination of epidemic outbreaks by funding professional training and research centres, and working closely with developing countries. The activity of the slated-to-be-decommissioned <a href="https://www.fic.nih.gov">Fogarty International Centre</a> is a good example.</p>

<p>The country&rsquo;s leading role in pushing the agenda to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis is also noteworthy. The US has done so with the creation of the <a href="https://www.pepfar.gov/">President&rsquo;s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief</a> (PEPFAR) in 2002, and of the <a href="https://www.pmi.gov/">President&rsquo;s Malaria Initiative</a> (PMI) in 2005. It has also made substantial contributions to <a href="https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/">The Global Fund</a> (US$10 billion in 2015), which attracts and disburses funds to prevent and treat malaria, HIV and AIDS and tuberculosis.</p>

<p>The US had also made major financial contributions to the <a href="http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/sdgoverview/mdg_goals.html">Millennium Development Goals</a> (MDG) (the precursor of the Sustainable Development Goals), resulting in significant achievements in the last 15 years. AIDS-related deaths have dropped by almost half from the epidemic&rsquo;s peak in 2005; tuberculosis deaths declined by 3.7% between 2000 and 2013; child deaths from malaria in Saharan Africa dropped by 31.5%; and maternal mortality fell by 45% worldwide.</p>

<p>The proposed US aid cuts arguably represent, at the very least, a serious setback to achieving the <a href="http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/sustainable-development-goals.html">Sustainable Development Goals</a> (SDG).</p>

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<p><strong>America First and global health security</strong></p>

<p>The budget &ndash; <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/omb/budget/fy2018/budget.pdf">A New Foundation For American Greatness</a> &ndash; retains funding for important programs such as PEPFAR and PMI. But the resources to be channelled through the UN, development banks and NGOs will be reduced as a whole.</p>

<p>Jeffrey Sachs, in warning that &ldquo;the cuts could lead to millions of deaths&rdquo;, stresses that global epidemics are an unpredictable threat with unforeseen consequences.</p>

<p>Tackling these outbreaks requires continuing funding, coordination and local capacity-building; one-off disbursements are not a sustainable strategy.</p>

<p>The <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/">2014-2016 Ebola outbreak</a> highlighted the lack of robust and timely surveillance systems and local preparedness to tackle highly transmissible diseases. The outbreak killed 11,000 people. Around 21,000 additional deaths were due to the reduction in access to health-care services. The international community&rsquo;s response was estimated at US$3.6 billion, which included US$2.3 billion from the US government.</p>

<p>A week ago, the World Health Organisation <a href="http://www.who.int/csr/don/13-may-2017-ebola-drc/en/">confirmed an Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo</a> with a death toll so far of four, 32 suspected cases and 400 people under monitoring. Only resources to prevent and control infectious disease outbreaks will ensure the human and economic impacts of these outbreaks are reduced.</p>

<p><strong>A fair share?</strong></p>

<p>Trump has justified the aid budget cuts by stating that it&rsquo;s time for &ldquo;<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/omb/budget/fy2018/2018_blueprint.pdf">the world to pay their fair share</a>&rdquo; and increase their contributions to overseas aid.<span class="caption">In developing countries, community health is provided mainly by international and national, not-for-profit organisations.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ana Rita Sequeira</span></span></p>

<p>But looking at the countries&rsquo; spending, as a percentage of the gross national income (GNI), shows a different picture. In 2015, the <a href="https://data.oecd.org/chart/4M7f">top donors</a> promoting the economic development and welfare of developing countries were Sweden (1.4%), United Arabs Emirates (1.1%), Norway (1%), Luxembourg (0.95%) and Denmark (0.8%). The US is 23rd in the list (0.16%).</p>

<p>The interdependency of human health security issues means global health is the concern of the entire international community. A combined effort is also necessary to disentangle historical inequalities and injustices that lead to <a href="http://www.8020.ie/">80% of the world&rsquo;s population living in the Global South, with access to an unequal share (20%)</a> of the world&rsquo;s resources and human welfare.</p>

<p><strong>What next?</strong></p>

<p>When the budget proposal was published in March, there was a strong response from both <a href="http://www.usglc.org/2017/03/15/republicans-and-democrats-agree-foreign-aid-cuts-would-hurt-u-s-national-security/">Democrats and Republicans</a> speaking out about the importance of investing in foreign aid.</p>

<p>Groups of <a href="http://www.usglc.org/downloads/2017/02/FY18_International_Affairs_Budget_House_Senate.pdf">retired military</a> and <a href="http://www.usglc.org/downloads/2017/05/Business-Letter-Tillerson-May-22.pdf">business leaders</a> signed letters to support resource allocation for the International Affairs Budget, as US economic and national security interests are at stake. Advocates from <a href="https://www.savethechildrenactionnetwork.org/articles/presidents-proposed-budget-cuts-will-catastrophic-future-mothers-children-u-s-abroad/">development agencies</a> also warned about the impact of these cuts in low and middle-income countries&rsquo; populations.</p>

<p>Some believe that this budget is &ldquo;<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/23/republicans-opposition-trump-budget-medicaid-spending">dead on arrival</a>&rdquo; once it gets to Congress. But if it is approved, the budget will be a game-changer for global health. It will lower financing of basic health care in the developing world, and reduce global disease surveillance systems.</p>

<p>The change will need a new architecture and leadership in international aid. And it will require remedial action from a bloc of countries (leading EU countries and cooperation between middle-income and emerging countries), or from charities and foundations such as Bill and Melinda Gates, or public and private partnerships &ndash; or all of them.</p>

<p>The world needs to take a coordinated action to ensure that global health is not neglected &ndash; we are all responsible for this.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>(This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/trump-budgets-cuts-to-international-aid-put-global-health-security-at-risk-74975">original article</a>.)</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


The cuts proposed by President Trump diminishes the world?s capacity to prevent and coordinate interventions to tackle human health security issues

US President Donald Trump’s first budget request for fiscal year 2018 includes drastic cuts for diplomacy and overseas aid (-32%), and slashes US$4.6 billion from humanitarian assistance and global health spending. In the last decade, the United States has been the leading funder for preparing and responding to global infectious disease outbreaks, and the delivery of basic health care to low-income countries. The cut diminishes the world’s capacity to prevent and coordinate interventions to tackle human health security issues. Reducing funding to national disease surveillance systems, training and infrastructure in the developing world will hamper the ability to deliver rapid, coordinated and consistent responses to borderless infectious disease outbreaks. US funding and leadership strengthen disease surveillance systems and global coordination of epidemic outbreaks by funding professional training and research centres, and working closely with developing countries × Before the Trump era In 2015, OECD statistics showed a US aid contribution of over US$29 billion. This was delivered through bilateral agreements (country to country), multilateral commitments (United Nations, World Bank and others) and international and local non-governmental organisations (NGO). A third of these financial resources (US$11 billion) was used to fund basic health-care services: diagnostic tests for malaria and HIV/AIDS, drugs, bed nets, infrastructure and biomedical research centres. US funding and leadership strengthen disease surveillance systems and global coordination of epidemic outbreaks by funding professional training and research centres, and working closely with developing countries. The activity of the slated-to-be-decommissioned Fogarty International Centre is a good example. The country’s leading role in pushing the agenda to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis is also noteworthy. The US has done so with the creation of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2002, and of the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) in 2005. It has also made substantial contributions to The Global Fund (US$10 billion in 2015), which attracts and disburses funds to prevent and treat malaria, HIV and AIDS and tuberculosis. The US had also made major financial contributions to the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) (the precursor of the Sustainable Development Goals), resulting in significant achievements in the last 15 years. AIDS-related deaths have dropped by almost half from the epidemic’s peak in 2005; tuberculosis deaths declined by 3.7% between 2000 and 2013; child deaths from malaria in Saharan Africa dropped by 31.5%; and maternal mortality fell by 45% worldwide. The proposed US aid cuts arguably represent, at the very least, a serious setback to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The proposed US aid cuts arguably represent, at the very least, a serious setback to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals × America First and global health security The budget – A New Foundation For American Greatness – retains funding for important programs such as PEPFAR and PMI. But the resources to be channelled through the UN, development banks and NGOs will be reduced as a whole. Jeffrey Sachs, in warning that “the cuts could lead to millions of deaths”, stresses that global epidemics are an unpredictable threat with unforeseen consequences. Tackling these outbreaks requires continuing funding, coordination and local capacity-building; one-off disbursements are not a sustainable strategy. The 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak highlighted the lack of robust and timely surveillance systems and local preparedness to tackle highly transmissible diseases. The outbreak killed 11,000 people. Around 21,000 additional deaths were due to the reduction in access to health-care services. The international community’s response was estimated at US$3.6 billion, which included US$2.3 billion from the US government. A week ago, the World Health Organisation confirmed an Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo with a death toll so far of four, 32 suspected cases and 400 people under monitoring. Only resources to prevent and control infectious disease outbreaks will ensure the human and economic impacts of these outbreaks are reduced. A fair share? Trump has justified the aid budget cuts by stating that it’s time for “the world to pay their fair share” and increase their contributions to overseas aid.In developing countries, community health is provided mainly by international and national, not-for-profit organisations. Ana Rita Sequeira But looking at the countries’ spending, as a percentage of the gross national income (GNI), shows a different picture. In 2015, the top donors promoting the economic development and welfare of developing countries were Sweden (1.4%), United Arabs Emirates (1.1%), Norway (1%), Luxembourg (0.95%) and Denmark (0.8%). The US is 23rd in the list (0.16%). The interdependency of human health security issues means global health is the concern of the entire international community. A combined effort is also necessary to disentangle historical inequalities and injustices that lead to 80% of the world’s population living in the Global South, with access to an unequal share (20%) of the world’s resources and human welfare. What next? When the budget proposal was published in March, there was a strong response from both Democrats and Republicans speaking out about the importance of investing in foreign aid. Groups of retired military and business leaders signed letters to support resource allocation for the International Affairs Budget, as US economic and national security interests are at stake. Advocates from development agencies also warned about the impact of these cuts in low and middle-income countries’ populations. Some believe that this budget is “dead on arrival” once it gets to Congress. But if it is approved, the budget will be a game-changer for global health. It will lower financing of basic health care in the developing world, and reduce global disease surveillance systems. The change will need a new architecture and leadership in international aid. And it will require remedial action from a bloc of countries (leading EU countries and cooperation between middle-income and emerging countries), or from charities and foundations such as Bill and Melinda Gates, or public and private partnerships – or all of them. The world needs to take a coordinated action to ensure that global health is not neglected – we are all responsible for this. (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.)

Trump's cuts to international aid put global health security at risk

<p>Three Yemeni civilians were killed when a drone attacked four suspected al Qaeda militants traveling in a vehicle in the southern part of the country, residents and a local official said on Monday.</p>

<p>Residents said the attack in al-Saeed area of Shabwa province on Sunday afternoon was by a United States drone, part of a campaign by President Donald Trump&#39;s administration against Yemen&#39;s al Qaeda branch.</p>

<p>They said Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) was known to operate in the area and had been targeted by US&nbsp;forces in recent months.</p>

<p>The vehicle was completely destroyed in the drone strike, which also hit three civilians who happened to be passing nearby, the residents and local officials said.</p>

<p>AQAP has exploited two years of civil war to recruit followers and cement its dominance in the central and southern part of Yemen, where a Saudi-led coalition has been fighting the Iran-aligned Houthis to try to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power.</p>

<p>The Houthis seized much of northern Yemen including Sanaa in a series of lightning military operations that began in 2014, eventually forcing Hadi to flee. The Houthis regard their move on Sanaa as a revolution against corruption.</p>

<p>The United States has repeatedly attacked AQAP with aircraft and unmanned drones in what US&nbsp;officials say is a campaign to degrade the group&#39;s ability to coordinate attacks abroad.</p>

<p>The new US&nbsp;administration has not yet laid out a clear policy on drone strikes, but Trump has said he would support an escalation of the fight against Islamist militant groups.</p>

<p>US&nbsp;drone strikes have become more frequent in recent weeks, with at least six reported by Reuters last month.</p>

<p>In late January, at least 30 people were killed in a US&nbsp;commando dawn raid in southern Yemen, including at least 10 women and children, in the first such military operation authorised by President Donald Trump.</p>

<p>The previous administration regularly used drones to attack Islamic State, al Qaeda and other militant groups in Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Human rights groups criticise the tactic because of civilian casualties.</p>

<p>(Reuters)</p>


The civilians who died just happened to be passing by when the drone destroyed the car in which the suspected militants were traveling

Three Yemeni civilians were killed when a drone attacked four suspected al Qaeda militants traveling in a vehicle in the southern part of the country, residents and a local official said on Monday. Residents said the attack in al-Saeed area of Shabwa province on Sunday afternoon was by a United States drone, part of a campaign by President Donald Trump's administration against Yemen's al Qaeda branch. They said Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) was known to operate in the area and had been targeted by US forces in recent months. The vehicle was completely destroyed in the drone strike, which also hit three civilians who happened to be passing nearby, the residents and local officials said. AQAP has exploited two years of civil war to recruit followers and cement its dominance in the central and southern part of Yemen, where a Saudi-led coalition has been fighting the Iran-aligned Houthis to try to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power. The Houthis seized much of northern Yemen including Sanaa in a series of lightning military operations that began in 2014, eventually forcing Hadi to flee. The Houthis regard their move on Sanaa as a revolution against corruption. The United States has repeatedly attacked AQAP with aircraft and unmanned drones in what US officials say is a campaign to degrade the group's ability to coordinate attacks abroad. The new US administration has not yet laid out a clear policy on drone strikes, but Trump has said he would support an escalation of the fight against Islamist militant groups. US drone strikes have become more frequent in recent weeks, with at least six reported by Reuters last month. In late January, at least 30 people were killed in a US commando dawn raid in southern Yemen, including at least 10 women and children, in the first such military operation authorised by President Donald Trump. The previous administration regularly used drones to attack Islamic State, al Qaeda and other militant groups in Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Human rights groups criticise the tactic because of civilian casualties. (Reuters)

US drone strike kills 3 civilians, 4 militants in Yemen: Residents

<p>Tens of thousands of people turned out in cities across the United States and beyond on Saturday for Earth Day events billed as a &quot;celebration of science&quot; to counter what organisers say is a growing disregard for evidence-based knowledge in Washington.</p>

<p>In hundreds of &quot;March for Science&quot; events from Boston to Sydney, Australia, engineers, researchers and teachers took a break from the lab to apply their ingenuity to colourful protest placards.</p>

<p>Demonstrators carried signs like &quot;There Is No Planet B,&quot; &quot;No One Is Above Peer Review,&quot; &quot;Revenge of the Nerds&quot; and &quot;Make Science Great Again,&quot; a play on US&nbsp;President Donald Trump&#39;s campaign promise to &quot;Make America Great Again.&quot; Other signs featured mathematical formulas in a display of geek humour.</p>

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<p>PhD in Organic Chemistry, Roxanne Kunz of Santa Monica, waits in Pershing Square before the March for Science Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California April 22, 2017. (Reuters)</p>
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<p>While the events were non-partisan according to organisers, many marchers were in effect protesting Trump&#39;s proposal to sharply cut federal science and research budgets and his administration&#39;s skepticism about climate change and the need to slow global warming.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">SO proud of the MASSIVE TURNOUT of our science community repping <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheResistance?src=hash">#TheResistance</a> at <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/sciencemarchdc?src=hash">#sciencemarchdc</a> today, on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EarthDay?src=hash">#EarthDay</a>.<br />
Take THAT, trump. <a href="https://t.co/J6yvNZmJgU">pic.twitter.com/J6yvNZmJgU</a></p>
&mdash; BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@mmpadellan) <a href="https://twitter.com/mmpadellan/status/855947345275629574">April 23, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>The marches put a new twist on the traditional Earth Day activities, the aim of which was to reaffirm &quot;the vital role science plays in our democracy,&quot; according to the march&#39;s website.</p>

<p>Festivities at one of the largest events on Washington&#39;s National Mall included scientific &quot;teach-ins&quot; and musical performances.</p>

<p>&quot;It&#39;s important to show this administration that we care about facts,&quot; said Chris Taylor, 24, who was part of an early crowd of about 15,000 who gathered on Washington&#39;s Mall for teach-ins on topics like climate change, water quality and sustainable food.</p>

<p>&quot;It just seems like they&#39;re not really concerned about economic growth or creating new technologies, just catering to massive corporations,&quot; said Taylor, who is earning a PhD in robotics at George Mason University in Virginia.</p>

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<p>Protesters hold placards and banners as they participate in the March for Science rally on Earth Day, in central Sydney, Australia April 22, 2017. (Reuters)</p>
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<p>In Los Angeles, at least 12,000 people joined the March for Science, police said. Some demonstrators walked in lab coats while others shaded themselves under umbrellas and signs as temperatures neared 90 Fahrenheit (32 Celsius).</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">TRUMP: The protesters are paid. These marches are small.<br />
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Well, here&#39;s Chicago today: <a href="https://t.co/iyfVfmFy8O">pic.twitter.com/iyfVfmFy8O</a></p>
&mdash; Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mikel_Jollett/status/855888338535948288">April 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>TRUMP SUPPORTS &#39;RIGOROUS SCIENCE&#39;</strong></p>

<p>A fervent but good-natured anti-Trump tone was evident on San Francisco&#39;s waterfront, where thousands gathered near The Exploratorium science museum ahead of a march to city hall.</p>

<p>Many carried signs emblazoned with slogans such as &quot;Pruitt Plus Trump Equals Bad Chemistry,&quot; a reference to Scott Pruitt, the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency, who has questioned the scientific consensus on global warming.</p>

<p>March for Science is the latest in a series of national demonstrations staged since Trump&#39;s inauguration nearly 100 days ago. Previous marches and protests have focused on a range of partisan issues, from abortion rights to immigration policy.</p>

<p>The White House did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday&#39;s marches, but Trump released a statement on his approach to environmental issues.</p>

<p>&quot;My administration is reducing unnecessary burdens on American workers and American companies, while being mindful that our actions must also protect the environment,&quot; Trump said.</p>

<p>&quot;Rigorous science is critical to my administration&#39;s efforts to achieve the twin goals of economic growth and environmental protection,&quot; said the president, who passed dozens of protesters as his motorcade made its way to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington.</p>

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<p>Demonstrators march to the US Capitol during the March for Science in Washington, US, April 22, 2017. (Reuters)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>TUSSLE OVER CLIMATE CHANGE</strong></p>

<p>In the past, Trump has said climate change was a hoax that was stifling policies to foster economic growth.</p>

<p>His administration is considering withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, a global accord aimed at reducing global emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Last year the United States, under President Barack Obama, joined more than 190 other countries in signing the pact.</p>

<p>Trump&#39;s proposed 2018 budget calls for deep spending cuts by government science agencies, including a 31 per cent reduction for the Environmental Protection Agency.</p>

<p>The scientific community&#39;s direct involvement in a national policy debate has stirred some criticism about whether scientists should get involved in politics. But organisers have defended the march as crucial because of the threat posed by discrediting scientific consensus and restricting research.</p>

<p>&quot;As scientists, as human beings, our mandate is clear - it&#39;s to stand up for what we know to be true,&quot; said Kellan Baker, a senior fellow at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and one of the speakers on the National Mall.</p>

<p>That theme was echoed by many who showed up in Washington for teach-ins, which organisers said were a centerpiece of the initial Earth Day held in 1970 to call attention to the environment.</p>

<p>&quot;Science isn&#39;t respected and it needs to be,&quot; said Sarah Binkow, 22, a civil engineer who traveled from Michigan to attend the Washington rally.</p>

<p>&quot;Being here definitely gives me hope that there&#39;s this overwhelming population that supports science and supports scientific theory,&quot; she said.</p>

<p>In Washington, speakers included Bill Nye, an educator and television personality known as &quot;the Science Guy,&quot; and Mona Hanna-Attisha, a pediatrician and public health advocate who first called attention to the high levels of lead in the drinking water of Flint, Michigan.</p>

<p>&quot;Flint is what happens when we dismiss science,&quot; she said, referring to the ongoing water&nbsp;crisis in Flint, Michigan that began in 2014.</p>

<p>(Reuters)<br />
&nbsp;</p>


The demonstrations countered what organisers say is a growing disregard for evidence-based knowledge in Washington under President Trump

Tens of thousands of people turned out in cities across the United States and beyond on Saturday for Earth Day events billed as a "celebration of science" to counter what organisers say is a growing disregard for evidence-based knowledge in Washington. In hundreds of "March for Science" events from Boston to Sydney, Australia, engineers, researchers and teachers took a break from the lab to apply their ingenuity to colourful protest placards. Demonstrators carried signs like "There Is No Planet B," "No One Is Above Peer Review," "Revenge of the Nerds" and "Make Science Great Again," a play on US President Donald Trump's campaign promise to "Make America Great Again." Other signs featured mathematical formulas in a display of geek humour. PhD in Organic Chemistry, Roxanne Kunz of Santa Monica, waits in Pershing Square before the March for Science Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California April 22, 2017. (Reuters) × While the events were non-partisan according to organisers, many marchers were in effect protesting Trump's proposal to sharply cut federal science and research budgets and his administration's skepticism about climate change and the need to slow global warming. SO proud of the MASSIVE TURNOUT of our science community repping #TheResistance at #sciencemarchdc today, on #EarthDay. Take THAT, trump. pic.twitter.com/J6yvNZmJgU — BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@mmpadellan) April 23, 2017 × The marches put a new twist on the traditional Earth Day activities, the aim of which was to reaffirm "the vital role science plays in our democracy," according to the march's website. Festivities at one of the largest events on Washington's National Mall included scientific "teach-ins" and musical performances. "It's important to show this administration that we care about facts," said Chris Taylor, 24, who was part of an early crowd of about 15,000 who gathered on Washington's Mall for teach-ins on topics like climate change, water quality and sustainable food. "It just seems like they're not really concerned about economic growth or creating new technologies, just catering to massive corporations," said Taylor, who is earning a PhD in robotics at George Mason University in Virginia. Protesters hold placards and banners as they participate in the March for Science rally on Earth Day, in central Sydney, Australia April 22, 2017. (Reuters) × In Los Angeles, at least 12,000 people joined the March for Science, police said. Some demonstrators walked in lab coats while others shaded themselves under umbrellas and signs as temperatures neared 90 Fahrenheit (32 Celsius). TRUMP: The protesters are paid. These marches are small. Well, here's Chicago today: pic.twitter.com/iyfVfmFy8O — Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) April 22, 2017 × TRUMP SUPPORTS 'RIGOROUS SCIENCE' A fervent but good-natured anti-Trump tone was evident on San Francisco's waterfront, where thousands gathered near The Exploratorium science museum ahead of a march to city hall. Many carried signs emblazoned with slogans such as "Pruitt Plus Trump Equals Bad Chemistry," a reference to Scott Pruitt, the new head of the Environmental Protection Agency, who has questioned the scientific consensus on global warming. March for Science is the latest in a series of national demonstrations staged since Trump's inauguration nearly 100 days ago. Previous marches and protests have focused on a range of partisan issues, from abortion rights to immigration policy. The White House did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday's marches, but Trump released a statement on his approach to environmental issues. "My administration is reducing unnecessary burdens on American workers and American companies, while being mindful that our actions must also protect the environment," Trump said. "Rigorous science is critical to my administration's efforts to achieve the twin goals of economic growth and environmental protection," said the president, who passed dozens of protesters as his motorcade made its way to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington. Demonstrators march to the US Capitol during the March for Science in Washington, US, April 22, 2017. (Reuters) × TUSSLE OVER CLIMATE CHANGE In the past, Trump has said climate change was a hoax that was stifling policies to foster economic growth. His administration is considering withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, a global accord aimed at reducing global emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Last year the United States, under President Barack Obama, joined more than 190 other countries in signing the pact. Trump's proposed 2018 budget calls for deep spending cuts by government science agencies, including a 31 per cent reduction for the Environmental Protection Agency. The scientific community's direct involvement in a national policy debate has stirred some criticism about whether scientists should get involved in politics. But organisers have defended the march as crucial because of the threat posed by discrediting scientific consensus and restricting research. "As scientists, as human beings, our mandate is clear - it's to stand up for what we know to be true," said Kellan Baker, a senior fellow at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and one of the speakers on the National Mall. That theme was echoed by many who showed up in Washington for teach-ins, which organisers said were a centerpiece of the initial Earth Day held in 1970 to call attention to the environment. "Science isn't respected and it needs to be," said Sarah Binkow, 22, a civil engineer who traveled from Michigan to attend the Washington rally. "Being here definitely gives me hope that there's this overwhelming population that supports science and supports scientific theory," she said. In Washington, speakers included Bill Nye, an educator and television personality known as "the Science Guy," and Mona Hanna-Attisha, a pediatrician and public health advocate who first called attention to the high levels of lead in the drinking water of Flint, Michigan. "Flint is what happens when we dismiss science," she said, referring to the ongoing water crisis in Flint, Michigan that began in 2014. (Reuters)

Earth Day: March for Science draws big crowds across US and beyond

<p>President Donald Trump will ask the US&nbsp;Congress for dramatic cuts to many federal programs as he seeks to bulk up defence spending, start building a wall on the border with Mexico and spend more money deporting illegal immigrants.</p>

<p>In a federal budget proposal with many losers, the Environmental Protection Agency and State Department stand out as targets for the biggest spending reductions. Funding would disappear altogether for 19 independent bodies that count on federal money for public broadcasting, the arts and regional issues from Alaska to Appalachia.</p>

<p>Trump&#39;s budget outline is a bare-bones plan covering just &quot;discretionary&quot; spending for the 2018 fiscal year starting on October 1. It is the first volley in what is expected to be an intense battle over spending in coming months in Congress, which holds the federal purse strings and seldom approves presidents&#39; budget plans.</p>

<p>Congress, controlled by Trump&#39;s fellow Republicans, may reject some or many of his proposed cuts. Some of the proposed changes, which Democrats will broadly oppose, have been targeted for decades by conservative Republicans.</p>

<p>Moderate Republicans have already expressed unease with potential cuts to popular domestic programs such as home-heating subsidies, clean-water projects and job training.</p>

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<h5>The defence increases are matched by cuts to other programs so as to not increase the $488 billion federal deficit</h5>
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<p>Trump is willing to discuss priorities, said White House budget director Mick Mulvaney, a former South Carolina congressman who made a name for himself as a spending hawk before Trump plucked him for his Cabinet.</p>

<p>&quot;The president wants to spend more money on defence, more money securing the border, more money enforcing the laws, and more money on school choice, without adding to the deficit,&quot; Mulvaney told a small group of reporters during a preview on Wednesday.</p>

<p>&quot;If they have a different way to accomplish that, we are more than interested in talking to them,&quot; Mulvaney said.</p>

<p>Trump wants to spend $54 billion more on defence, put a down payment on his border wall, and breathe life into a few other campaign promises. His initial budget outline does not incorporate his promise to pour $1 trillion into roads, bridges, airports and other infrastructure projects. The White House has said the infrastructure plan is still to come.</p>

<p>The defence increases are matched by cuts to other programs so as to not increase the $488 billion federal deficit. Mulvaney acknowledged the proposal would likely result in significant cuts to the federal workforce.</p>

<p>&quot;You can&rsquo;t drain the swamp and leave all the people in it,&quot; Mulvaney said.</p>

<p><strong>&#39;America first&#39;</strong></p>

<p>White House officials looked at Trump&#39;s campaign speeches and &quot;America First&quot; pledges as they crunched the numbers, Mulvaney said.</p>

<p>&quot;We turned those policies into numbers,&quot; he said, explaining how the document mirrored pledges to spend more on the US&nbsp;nuclear weapons arsenal, veterans&#39; health care, the FBI, and Justice Department efforts to fight drug dealers and violent crime.</p>

<p>The Department of Homeland Security would get a 6.8 per cent increase, with more money for extra staff needed to catch, detain and deport illegal immigrants.</p>

<p>Trump wants Congress to shell out $1.5 billion for the border wall with Mexico in the current fiscal year -- enough for pilot projects to determine the best way to build it -- and a further $2.6 billion in fiscal 2018, Mulvaney said.</p>

<p>The estimate of the full cost of the wall will be included in the full budget, expected in mid-May, which will project spending and revenues over 10 years.</p>

<p>Trump has vowed Mexico will pay for the border wall, which the Mexican government has flatly said it will not do. The White House has said recently that funding would be kick-started in the United States.</p>

<p>The voluminous budget document will include economic forecasts and Trump&#39;s views on &quot;mandatory entitlements&quot; -- big-ticket programs like Social Security and Medicare, which Trump vowed to protect on the campaign trail.</p>

<p><strong>Biggest losers</strong></p>

<p>Trump asked Congress to slash the EPA by $2.6 billion or more than 31 per cent, and the State Department by more than 28 per cent or $10.9 billion.</p>

<p>Mulvaney said the &quot;core functions&quot; of those agencies would be preserved. Hit hard would be foreign aid, grants to multilateral development agencies like the World Bank and climate change programs at the United Nations.</p>

<p>Trump wants to get rid of more than 50 EPA programs, end funding for former Democratic President Barack Obama&#39;s signature Clean Power Plan aimed at reducing carbon dioxide emissions, and cut renewable energy research programs at the Energy Department.</p>

<p>Regional programs to clean up the Great Lakes and the Chesapeake Bay would be sent to the chopping block.</p>

<p>Community development grants at the Housing Department - around since 1974 - were cut in Trump&#39;s budget, along with more than 20 Education Department programs, including some funding program for before- and after- school programs.</p>

<p>Anti-poverty grants and a program that helps poor people pay their energy bills would be slashed, as well as a Labor Department program that helps low-income seniors find work.</p>

<p>Trump&#39;s rural base did not escape cuts. The White House proposed a 21 per cent reduction to the Agriculture Department, cutting loans and grants for wastewater, reducing staff in county offices and ending a popular program that helps US&nbsp;farmers donate crops for overseas food aid.</p>

<p>(Reuters)</p>


Trump wants to slash the EPA's budget by 31%, the State Department's by more than 28%

President Donald Trump will ask the US Congress for dramatic cuts to many federal programs as he seeks to bulk up defence spending, start building a wall on the border with Mexico and spend more money deporting illegal immigrants. In a federal budget proposal with many losers, the Environmental Protection Agency and State Department stand out as targets for the biggest spending reductions. Funding would disappear altogether for 19 independent bodies that count on federal money for public broadcasting, the arts and regional issues from Alaska to Appalachia. Trump's budget outline is a bare-bones plan covering just "discretionary" spending for the 2018 fiscal year starting on October 1. It is the first volley in what is expected to be an intense battle over spending in coming months in Congress, which holds the federal purse strings and seldom approves presidents' budget plans. Congress, controlled by Trump's fellow Republicans, may reject some or many of his proposed cuts. Some of the proposed changes, which Democrats will broadly oppose, have been targeted for decades by conservative Republicans. Moderate Republicans have already expressed unease with potential cuts to popular domestic programs such as home-heating subsidies, clean-water projects and job training. The defence increases are matched by cuts to other programs so as to not increase the $488 billion federal deficit × Trump is willing to discuss priorities, said White House budget director Mick Mulvaney, a former South Carolina congressman who made a name for himself as a spending hawk before Trump plucked him for his Cabinet. "The president wants to spend more money on defence, more money securing the border, more money enforcing the laws, and more money on school choice, without adding to the deficit," Mulvaney told a small group of reporters during a preview on Wednesday. "If they have a different way to accomplish that, we are more than interested in talking to them," Mulvaney said. Trump wants to spend $54 billion more on defence, put a down payment on his border wall, and breathe life into a few other campaign promises. His initial budget outline does not incorporate his promise to pour $1 trillion into roads, bridges, airports and other infrastructure projects. The White House has said the infrastructure plan is still to come. The defence increases are matched by cuts to other programs so as to not increase the $488 billion federal deficit. Mulvaney acknowledged the proposal would likely result in significant cuts to the federal workforce. "You can’t drain the swamp and leave all the people in it," Mulvaney said. 'America first' White House officials looked at Trump's campaign speeches and "America First" pledges as they crunched the numbers, Mulvaney said. "We turned those policies into numbers," he said, explaining how the document mirrored pledges to spend more on the US nuclear weapons arsenal, veterans' health care, the FBI, and Justice Department efforts to fight drug dealers and violent crime. The Department of Homeland Security would get a 6.8 per cent increase, with more money for extra staff needed to catch, detain and deport illegal immigrants. Trump wants Congress to shell out $1.5 billion for the border wall with Mexico in the current fiscal year -- enough for pilot projects to determine the best way to build it -- and a further $2.6 billion in fiscal 2018, Mulvaney said. The estimate of the full cost of the wall will be included in the full budget, expected in mid-May, which will project spending and revenues over 10 years. Trump has vowed Mexico will pay for the border wall, which the Mexican government has flatly said it will not do. The White House has said recently that funding would be kick-started in the United States. The voluminous budget document will include economic forecasts and Trump's views on "mandatory entitlements" -- big-ticket programs like Social Security and Medicare, which Trump vowed to protect on the campaign trail. Biggest losers Trump asked Congress to slash the EPA by $2.6 billion or more than 31 per cent, and the State Department by more than 28 per cent or $10.9 billion. Mulvaney said the "core functions" of those agencies would be preserved. Hit hard would be foreign aid, grants to multilateral development agencies like the World Bank and climate change programs at the United Nations. Trump wants to get rid of more than 50 EPA programs, end funding for former Democratic President Barack Obama's signature Clean Power Plan aimed at reducing carbon dioxide emissions, and cut renewable energy research programs at the Energy Department. Regional programs to clean up the Great Lakes and the Chesapeake Bay would be sent to the chopping block. Community development grants at the Housing Department - around since 1974 - were cut in Trump's budget, along with more than 20 Education Department programs, including some funding program for before- and after- school programs. Anti-poverty grants and a program that helps poor people pay their energy bills would be slashed, as well as a Labor Department program that helps low-income seniors find work. Trump's rural base did not escape cuts. The White House proposed a 21 per cent reduction to the Agriculture Department, cutting loans and grants for wastewater, reducing staff in county offices and ending a popular program that helps US farmers donate crops for overseas food aid. (Reuters)

In Trump's first budget proposal, military wins, environment & aid lose big

<p>US President Donald Trump called on &quot;Israel to be reasonable with respect to peace&quot;, spelling out in his own words his administration&#39;s stance that new settlements on Palestinian land may not be helpful in an interview to an Israeli newspaper.</p>

<p>Trump&#39;s comments to newspaper Israel Today come as he tones down his pro-Israel bravado ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu&#39;s trip to the White House on February 15.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;I want Israel to be reasonable with respect to peace. I want to see peace happen,&quot; Trump said in the interview published on Friday. &quot;I would like to see a level of reasonableness of both parties, and I think we have a good chance of doing that.&quot;</p>

<p>During his 2016 election campaign, Trump signalled his presidency would be a boon for Israel and tough on Palestinians. He talked of moving the US embassy to Jerusalem, naming an ambassador who backs Israel&#39;s settlement programme and exerting no pressure on Israel for peace talks.</p>

<p>Now Trump is adopting a more measured stance. Even though the White House did not join the widespread criticism this week of a new Israeli law which retroactively legalises about 4,000 existing settler homes, its pro-Israel approach shows signs of being more nuanced.</p>

<p>&quot;They [settlements] don&#39;t help the process. I can say that,&quot; Trump told the Israeli daily owned by US casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, a Netanyahu supporter and Republican party donor.</p>

<p>&quot;Every time you take land for settlements, there is less land left,&quot; Trump said. &quot;I am not somebody that believes that going forward with these settlements is a good thing for peace.&quot;</p>

<p>The president said his administration was &quot;looking at some other options&quot; regarding the settlements.</p>

<p>He also said he was still studying the case for relocating the US embassy to Jerusalem, a move that could anger the Arab world.</p>

<p>&quot;The embassy is not an easy decision. It has obviously been out there for many, many years, and nobody has wanted to make that decision. I&#39;m thinking about it very seriously, and we will see what happens,&quot; Trump said.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, Trump continued his tirade to bring back the travel ban denouncing&nbsp;as &quot;disgraceful&quot; an appellate court&#39;s decision blocking his controversial ban on refugees and nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Referring to a portion of an article written on the national security blog Lawfare, which highlights a statute that the author says the judges failed to cite, Trump tweeted: &quot;LAWFARE: &#39;Remarkably, in the entire opinion, the panel did not bother even to cite this (the) statute.&#39; A disgraceful decision!&quot;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">LAWFARE: &quot;Remarkably, in the entire opinion, the panel did not bother even to cite this (the) statute.&quot; A disgraceful decision!</p>
&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/830042498806460417">February 10, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Lawfare is a legal blog that covers the intersection of national security and the legal world. Its website reads that it is published in cooperation with the Brookings Institution, a well-known Washington think tank, Politico reported.<br />
The post Trump referred to breaks down the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals&#39; ruling upholding a stay on the president&#39;s executive order temporarily banning individuals from certain majority-Muslim nations from entering the US.</p>

<p>The White House has vowed to continue to fight for the orders and has expressed confidence that they will ultimately be upheld in court.</p>

<p>(WION with Reuters, PTI inputs)</p>


President Trump has adopted a more measured stance towards the contentious Israeli settlement on Palestinian land

US President Donald Trump called on "Israel to be reasonable with respect to peace", spelling out in his own words his administration's stance that new settlements on Palestinian land may not be helpful in an interview to an Israeli newspaper. Trump's comments to newspaper Israel Today come as he tones down his pro-Israel bravado ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's trip to the White House on February 15. "I want Israel to be reasonable with respect to peace. I want to see peace happen," Trump said in the interview published on Friday. "I would like to see a level of reasonableness of both parties, and I think we have a good chance of doing that." During his 2016 election campaign, Trump signalled his presidency would be a boon for Israel and tough on Palestinians. He talked of moving the US embassy to Jerusalem, naming an ambassador who backs Israel's settlement programme and exerting no pressure on Israel for peace talks. Now Trump is adopting a more measured stance. Even though the White House did not join the widespread criticism this week of a new Israeli law which retroactively legalises about 4,000 existing settler homes, its pro-Israel approach shows signs of being more nuanced. "They [settlements] don't help the process. I can say that," Trump told the Israeli daily owned by US casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, a Netanyahu supporter and Republican party donor. "Every time you take land for settlements, there is less land left," Trump said. "I am not somebody that believes that going forward with these settlements is a good thing for peace." The president said his administration was "looking at some other options" regarding the settlements. He also said he was still studying the case for relocating the US embassy to Jerusalem, a move that could anger the Arab world. "The embassy is not an easy decision. It has obviously been out there for many, many years, and nobody has wanted to make that decision. I'm thinking about it very seriously, and we will see what happens," Trump said. Meanwhile, Trump continued his tirade to bring back the travel ban denouncing as "disgraceful" an appellate court's decision blocking his controversial ban on refugees and nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries. Referring to a portion of an article written on the national security blog Lawfare, which highlights a statute that the author says the judges failed to cite, Trump tweeted: "LAWFARE: 'Remarkably, in the entire opinion, the panel did not bother even to cite this (the) statute.' A disgraceful decision!" LAWFARE: "Remarkably, in the entire opinion, the panel did not bother even to cite this (the) statute." A disgraceful decision! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 10, 2017 × Lawfare is a legal blog that covers the intersection of national security and the legal world. Its website reads that it is published in cooperation with the Brookings Institution, a well-known Washington think tank, Politico reported. The post Trump referred to breaks down the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling upholding a stay on the president's executive order temporarily banning individuals from certain majority-Muslim nations from entering the US. The White House has vowed to continue to fight for the orders and has expressed confidence that they will ultimately be upheld in court. (WION with Reuters, PTI inputs)

Israeli settlements does not help the peace process: Trump

<p>US president Donald Trump&rsquo;s executive&nbsp;order has sparked widespread protests in not only in the&nbsp;United States, but around the world. So what is the Trump order all about?</p>

<h1 style="text-align: left;">Trump&rsquo;s executive order explained</h1>

<p>On Friday, Trump signed <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/27/us/politics/refugee-muslim-executive-order-trump.html">an executive order</a> imposing an indefinite ban on Syrian refugees from entering the United States.</p>

<p>The executive order also suspended all refugee admissions for 120 days. Suspension from entry was also imposed on citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the United States for 90 days.</p>

<p>White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus has said border patrol agents could question US citizens coming from the seven banned countries. Similarly, cases of green card holders will be considered on a case-by-case basis.</p>

<p>This order has left several travellers around the world stranded, as protests continue to swell across the United States.The executive order was challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union, <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/us-federal-court-halts-part-of-trumps-immigration-ban-world-leaders-condemn-restrictions-11813">leading to a halt</a> on a part of Trump&rsquo;s immigration ban.</p>

<p>President Trump, since then, has come out in defence of his order.</p>

<p><iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="287" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FDonaldTrump%2Fposts%2F10158567643610725&amp;width=500" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="500"></iframe></p>

<p>But, the Trump administration is showing no signs of slowing down. White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus has hinted that <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/pakistan-could-be-next-on-the-immigration-ban-list-hints-white-house-chief-of-staff-11839">more countries could be added</a> to the immigration ban.</p>

<h1 style="text-align: left;">The situation on the ground</h1>

<h3>Atlanta</h3>

<p>Massive crowds have been gathering outside the Atlanta airport protesting the ban on entry of immigrants.Protest rallies were also carried out inside the airport premises. Reports say some protesters tried to enter the baggage claim area&nbsp;but&nbsp;were stopped.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">People currently protesting Donald Trump&#39;s <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MuslimBan?src=hash">#MuslimBan</a> at Atlanta airport. <a href="https://t.co/zFldoXFtgF">pic.twitter.com/zFldoXFtgF</a></p>
&mdash; Everything Georgia (@GAFollowers) <a href="https://twitter.com/GAFollowers/status/825862443494674433">January 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<h3>New York</h3>

<p>Citizens continue to protest the streets of New York. The First Lady of New York City took to twitter to express her support.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">This is New York City. We will always fight to protect our people. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NoBanNoWall?src=hash">#NoBanNoWall</a> <a href="https://t.co/AKaYB3jgRZ">pic.twitter.com/AKaYB3jgRZ</a></p>
&mdash; Chirlane McCray (@NYCFirstLady) <a href="https://twitter.com/NYCFirstLady/status/825816795093286912">January 29, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>The John F. Kennedy International Airport continues to remain at the center of the action. Lawyers continued to work pro-bono to free remaining detainees.They even have opened up a social media bureau to reach out to more people to offer help and legal assistance to travelers.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Uh oh... the pro bono lawyer army at JFK Terminal 4 just opened a social media bureau. <a href="https://twitter.com/nobanjfk">@nobanjfk</a> <a href="https://t.co/HSkjHtNGNw">pic.twitter.com/HSkjHtNGNw</a></p>
&mdash; Simone Wilson (@simone_electra) <a href="https://twitter.com/simone_electra/status/825903661385711616">January 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<h3>Seattle</h3>

<p>Seattle saw massive protests against the immigration ban. Citizens took to the streets in large numbers.&nbsp;Reports say at least 13 detainees were released, as protests continued in the West Lake Part area.&nbsp;</p>

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<p>RT @UberFacts: A glimpse of the immigration ban protest in Seattle (via @KING5Seattle) https://twitter.com/KING5Seattle/status/825890830988648448/video/1</p>
&mdash; (@Zoraida12098036) <a data-datetime="2017-01-30T08:22:00+00:00" href="https://twitter.com/Zoraida12098036/status/825982405722963968">Jan 30 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h3>Los Angeles</h3>

<p>Local traffic was blocked in Los Angeles, as the protesters faced off with the police forces. The Los Angeles airport remained under heavy security. But that did not stop the protesters or baggage handlers from joining the protests.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">LAX Baggage handlers at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/laxprotest?src=hash">#laxprotest</a>..the turn up is REAL! ?????? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/lit?src=hash">#lit</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NoBanNoWall?src=hash">#NoBanNoWall</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RefugeesWelcome?src=hash">#RefugeesWelcome</a> <a href="https://t.co/BLCEakYiRJ">pic.twitter.com/BLCEakYiRJ</a></p>
&mdash; Desiree Rollins (@deltaeq) <a href="https://twitter.com/deltaeq/status/825902557511815168">January 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<h3>San Francisco</h3>

<p>In San Francisco, crowds&nbsp;gathered at the arrivals to make their voices heard against the immigration ban order by the Trump administration.&nbsp;But the protests took a brutal turn,&nbsp;and locals recorded policemen using force.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Situation Escalating at San Francisco Airport <a href="https://t.co/WZtgXAhWpw">pic.twitter.com/WZtgXAhWpw</a></p>
&mdash; Breaking911 (@Breaking911) <a href="https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/825837932468719616">January 29, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<h1 style="text-align: left;">What the law says</h1>

<p>An executive order is a statement by the President of the United States, declaring the policy of a government. They derive their power from Article II of the American constitution.</p>

<p>The executive order is a legally binding document, recorded into the official journal of the government and federal register.</p>

<p>A president can use an executive order to overturn any previous orders issued by the previous president. But they cannot reverse laws passed by the United States Congress.</p>

<p>So how can one overturn Trump&rsquo;s executive order on immigration? By challenging it in court. And this one is clearly headed for a Supreme Court battle.</p>

<p>Executive orders have been overturned by courts before. In recent times, Obama&#39;s executive action to block deportation of five million immigrants was blocked by the Supreme Court.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Opponents argue Trump&rsquo;s order violates the Fifth Amendment right of due process. Further, the order gives preference to Christians, which could mean a violation of the First Amendment on freedom of religion.</p>

<p>But for now, the public outcry is good enough to express the sentiment against the immigration ban.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


Breaking down Trump's executive order banning entry of citizens from seven countries into the United States

US president Donald Trump’s executive order has sparked widespread protests in not only in the United States, but around the world. So what is the Trump order all about? Trump’s executive order explained On Friday, Trump signed an executive order imposing an indefinite ban on Syrian refugees from entering the United States. The executive order also suspended all refugee admissions for 120 days. Suspension from entry was also imposed on citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the United States for 90 days. White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus has said border patrol agents could question US citizens coming from the seven banned countries. Similarly, cases of green card holders will be considered on a case-by-case basis. This order has left several travellers around the world stranded, as protests continue to swell across the United States.The executive order was challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union, leading to a halt on a part of Trump’s immigration ban. President Trump, since then, has come out in defence of his order. But, the Trump administration is showing no signs of slowing down. White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus has hinted that more countries could be added to the immigration ban. The situation on the ground Atlanta Massive crowds have been gathering outside the Atlanta airport protesting the ban on entry of immigrants.Protest rallies were also carried out inside the airport premises. Reports say some protesters tried to enter the baggage claim area but were stopped. People currently protesting Donald Trump's #MuslimBan at Atlanta airport. pic.twitter.com/zFldoXFtgF — Everything Georgia (@GAFollowers) January 30, 2017 × New York Citizens continue to protest the streets of New York. The First Lady of New York City took to twitter to express her support. This is New York City. We will always fight to protect our people. #NoBanNoWall pic.twitter.com/AKaYB3jgRZ — Chirlane McCray (@NYCFirstLady) January 29, 2017 × The John F. Kennedy International Airport continues to remain at the center of the action. Lawyers continued to work pro-bono to free remaining detainees.They even have opened up a social media bureau to reach out to more people to offer help and legal assistance to travelers. Uh oh... the pro bono lawyer army at JFK Terminal 4 just opened a social media bureau. @nobanjfk pic.twitter.com/HSkjHtNGNw — Simone Wilson (@simone_electra) January 30, 2017 × Seattle Seattle saw massive protests against the immigration ban. Citizens took to the streets in large numbers. Reports say at least 13 detainees were released, as protests continued in the West Lake Part area. RT @UberFacts: A glimpse of the immigration ban protest in Seattle (via @KING5Seattle) https://twitter.com/KING5Seattle/status/825890830988648448/video/1 — (@Zoraida12098036) Jan 30 2017 × Los Angeles Local traffic was blocked in Los Angeles, as the protesters faced off with the police forces. The Los Angeles airport remained under heavy security. But that did not stop the protesters or baggage handlers from joining the protests. LAX Baggage handlers at the #laxprotest..the turn up is REAL! ?????? #lit #NoBanNoWall #RefugeesWelcome pic.twitter.com/BLCEakYiRJ — Desiree Rollins (@deltaeq) January 30, 2017 × San Francisco In San Francisco, crowds gathered at the arrivals to make their voices heard against the immigration ban order by the Trump administration. But the protests took a brutal turn, and locals recorded policemen using force. Situation Escalating at San Francisco Airport pic.twitter.com/WZtgXAhWpw — Breaking911 (@Breaking911) January 29, 2017 × What the law says An executive order is a statement by the President of the United States, declaring the policy of a government. They derive their power from Article II of the American constitution. The executive order is a legally binding document, recorded into the official journal of the government and federal register. A president can use an executive order to overturn any previous orders issued by the previous president. But they cannot reverse laws passed by the United States Congress. So how can one overturn Trump’s executive order on immigration? By challenging it in court. And this one is clearly headed for a Supreme Court battle. Executive orders have been overturned by courts before. In recent times, Obama's executive action to block deportation of five million immigrants was blocked by the Supreme Court. Opponents argue Trump’s order violates the Fifth Amendment right of due process. Further, the order gives preference to Christians, which could mean a violation of the First Amendment on freedom of religion. But for now, the public outcry is good enough to express the sentiment against the immigration ban.

Trump's executive order on travel ban explained

<p>Former US president Barack Obama&#39;s eldest daughter Malia Obama joined the protest against the&nbsp;Dakota Access Pipeline&nbsp;in Utah on Monday. &nbsp;</p>

<p>Police have used aggressive tactics against protesters including water cannons in sub-zero temperatures, rubber bullets and attack dogs. But Malia has a White House security detail.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Malia flew down from the family holiday at Palm Springs to attend screenings at the festival. It was not clear if she was there as part of her internship with Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Divergent&quot;&nbsp;actress Shailene Woodley told Democracy Now,&nbsp;&ldquo;It was amazing to see Malia. I saw her last night when we did the event with [Standing Rock] chairman Dave Archambault. And it was incredible to see her there.&rdquo;</p>

<p>&ldquo;To witness a human being and a woman coming into her own outside of her family and outside of the attachments that this country has on her, but someone who&rsquo;s willing to participate in democracy because she chooses to, because she recognises, regardless of her last name, that if she doesn&rsquo;t participate in democracy, there will be no world for her future children,&quot; she added.&nbsp;</p>

<p>After large-scale protests, Obama had decreed that the construction of the pipeline will be stopped. However, Trump reversed the order after taking office. According to his federal disclosures form, Trump holds stock in the company building the Dakota Access oil pipeline, CBS reports. While the amount of stock in Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners is modest compared to the rest of his portfolio, estimated at between $15,000 and $50,000, he also owns between $100,000 and $250,000 in Phillips 66, which has a one-quarter share of Dakota Access, CBS reports.</p>

<p>Protesters are planning to challenge the executive order and &quot;mobilise&quot; after the setback.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&ldquo;What we could do now as a population, as a society, is to hold our corporations accountable and hold our banks accountable, because there are a lot of banks that are invested in this pipeline,&rdquo; Woodley told MSNBC. &ldquo;Regardless of any executive order or what our politicians want to do, if there&rsquo;s no money invested in the pipelines, then they can&rsquo;t be built.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Woodley has been a staunch critic of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which would transport crude oil through the sacred lands of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, polluting the tribe&#39;s water source. &nbsp;Woodley was arrested with 26 others&nbsp;for criminal trespassing in October while protesting.&nbsp;</p>

<p>(WION)</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


After large-scale protests Obama decreed construction of the pipeline be halted, but Trump reversed the order soon after coming into office

Former US president Barack Obama's eldest daughter Malia Obama joined the protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline in Utah on Monday. Police have used aggressive tactics against protesters including water cannons in sub-zero temperatures, rubber bullets and attack dogs. But Malia has a White House security detail. Malia flew down from the family holiday at Palm Springs to attend screenings at the festival. It was not clear if she was there as part of her internship with Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. "Divergent" actress Shailene Woodley told Democracy Now, “It was amazing to see Malia. I saw her last night when we did the event with [Standing Rock] chairman Dave Archambault. And it was incredible to see her there.” “To witness a human being and a woman coming into her own outside of her family and outside of the attachments that this country has on her, but someone who’s willing to participate in democracy because she chooses to, because she recognises, regardless of her last name, that if she doesn’t participate in democracy, there will be no world for her future children," she added. After large-scale protests, Obama had decreed that the construction of the pipeline will be stopped. However, Trump reversed the order after taking office. According to his federal disclosures form, Trump holds stock in the company building the Dakota Access oil pipeline, CBS reports. While the amount of stock in Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners is modest compared to the rest of his portfolio, estimated at between $15,000 and $50,000, he also owns between $100,000 and $250,000 in Phillips 66, which has a one-quarter share of Dakota Access, CBS reports. Protesters are planning to challenge the executive order and "mobilise" after the setback. “What we could do now as a population, as a society, is to hold our corporations accountable and hold our banks accountable, because there are a lot of banks that are invested in this pipeline,” Woodley told MSNBC. “Regardless of any executive order or what our politicians want to do, if there’s no money invested in the pipelines, then they can’t be built.” Woodley has been a staunch critic of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which would transport crude oil through the sacred lands of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, polluting the tribe's water source. Woodley was arrested with 26 others for criminal trespassing in October while protesting. (WION)

Malia Obama seen protesting against Dakota Access Pipeline

<p>Qatar Airways has published on its the website stating that nationals from Sudan, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Iran, Iraq, and Yemen may travel to the US only if they are in possession of a permanent resident card (Green card) or a diplomatic visa. The move by Qatar Airways comes after President Trump signed a sweeping executive order on Friday to suspend refugee arrivals and impose tough controls on travellers from the seven countries.</p>

<p>The documents required from travellers include:</p>

<p>A1 &amp; A2 (Government Officials and immediate family)<br />
C2 (Travel to UN)<br />
G1 &amp; G2 (Representative &amp; employees of international organisations)<br />
G3 &amp; G4 (Representatives to and employees of international organisations)<br />
NATO</p>

<p>The airline, which flies to at least 15 American cities, also posted a &quot;travel alert&quot; online on Saturday, listing the paperwork required by citizens of the seven countries.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Qatar Airways said on Saturday it would &quot;enforce&quot; the new rules governing entry to the United States following President Donald Trump&#39;s temporary order restricting arrivals from seven Muslim countries, AFP reported.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
A spokesperson for the Gulf carrier said it would only carry passengers to the US who had the correct documentation.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;We are enforcing the new rules,&quot; said the official. &quot;If travellers to the US don&#39;t have the proper documentation, we are not going to take them to the US,&quot; the airways added.</p>

<p>Qatar Airways destinations in the US include New York, Atlanta and Chicago.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Update on entry requirements to the United States. Please visit <a href="https://t.co/PVfW0x7kvH">https://t.co/PVfW0x7kvH</a></p>
&mdash; Qatar Airways (@qatarairways) <a href="https://twitter.com/qatarairways/status/825308637883166720">January 28, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>Meanwhile, five Iraqi passengers and one Yemeni were barred from boarding an Egypt Air flight from Cairo to New York on Saturday after President Donald Trump halted the entry of citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries, sources told Reuters at Cairo airport.</p>

<p>The passengers, arriving in transit to Cairo airport, were stopped and redirected to flights headed to their home countries despite holding valid visas, the sources said.</p>

<p>Trump on Friday put a four-month hold on allowing refugees into the United States and temporarily barred travellers from Syria and six other Muslim-majority countries, saying the moves would help protect Americans from terrorist attacks.</p>

<p>He said his most sweeping use of his presidential powers since taking office a week ago, barring travellers from the seven nations for at least 90 days, would give his administration time to develop more stringent screening procedures for refugees, immigrants and visitors.</p>

<p>&quot;I&#39;m establishing new vetting measures to keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America. Don&#39;t want them here,&quot; Trump said earlier at the Pentagon. &quot;We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country and love deeply our people,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>The bans, though temporary, took effect immediately, causing havoc and confusion for would-be travellers with passports from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Besides Cairo, it was not immediately clear whether other airports of countries listed by Trump had swiftly implemented the ban. Arab officials of the listed countries would not comment on the matter.</p>

<p>The order seeks to prioritise refugees fleeing religious persecution, a move Trump separately said was aimed at helping Christians in Syria. That led some legal experts to question whether the order was constitutional. One group said it would announce a court challenge on Monday. The Council on American-Islamic Relations said the order targets Muslims because of their faith, contravening the US Constitutional right to freedom of religion.</p>

<p>&quot;President Trump has cloaked what is a discriminatory ban against nationals of Muslim countries under the banner of national security,&quot; Greg Chen of the American Immigration Lawyers Association told Reuters.</p>

<p>The newly inaugurated US president signed a sweeping executive order on Friday to suspend refugee arrivals and impose tough controls on travellers from the seven countries.</p>

<p>Trump has long pledged to take this kind of action, making it a prominent feature of his campaign for the November&nbsp;8 election. But people who work with Muslim immigrants and refugees were scrambling to determine the scope of the order.</p>

<p>Even legal permanent residents - people with &quot;green cards&quot; allowing them to live and work in the United States - were being advised to consult immigration lawyers before travelling outside the country, or trying to return, according to Muslim Advocates, a civil rights group in Washington.</p>

<p>On Friday evening, Abed Ayoub of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee said he had fielded about 100 queries from people anxious about the order, which he said he believed could affect travelling green card holders, students, people coming to the United States for medical care and others.</p>

<p>&quot;It&#39;s chaos,&quot; Ayoub told Reuters.</p>

<p>During his campaign, Trump tapped into American fears about Islamic State militants and the flood of migrants into Europe from Syria&#39;s civil war, saying refugees could be a &quot;Trojan horse&quot; that allowed attackers to enter the United States. In December 2015, he called for a ban on all Muslims entering the United States, drawing fire for suggesting a religious test for immigrants that critics said would violate the U.S. Constitution.</p>

<p>His idea later evolved into a proposal for &quot;extreme vetting.&quot; Trump&#39;s order also suspends the Syrian refugee program until further notice, and will eventually give priority to minority religious groups fleeing persecution. Trump said in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network that the exception would help Syrian Christians fleeing the civil war there.</p>

<p>Legal experts were divided on whether this order would be constitutional. &quot;If they are thinking about an exception for Christians, in almost any other legal context discriminating in favour of one religion and against another religion could violate the constitution,&quot; said Stephen Legomsky, a former chief counsel at US&nbsp;Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Obama administration.</p>

<p>Democrats were quick to condemn Trump&#39;s order as un-American, saying it would tarnish the reputation of the United States as a land that welcomes immigrants. &quot;Today&#39;s executive order from President Trump is more about extreme xenophobia than extreme vetting,&quot; said Democratic Senator Edward Markey in a statement.</p>

<p>Some Republicans praised the move. Representative Bob Goodlatte, chairman of the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, said Islamic State has threatened to use the US immigration system, making it important to do more screening.</p>

<p>&quot;I am pleased that President Trump is using the tools granted to him by Congress and the power granted by the Constitution to help keep America safe and ensure we know who is entering the United States,&quot; Goodlatte said in a statement.</p>

<p>Without naming Trump, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday it was no time to build walls between nations and criticised steps towards cancelling world trade agreements. Trump had ordered the construction of a US-Mexican border wall, a major promise during his election campaign, as part of a package of measures to curb illegal immigration.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from agencies)<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Qatar Airways said that nationals from Sudan, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Iran, Iraq and Yemen may travel to the US with a resident card only.

Qatar Airways has published on its the website stating that nationals from Sudan, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Iran, Iraq, and Yemen may travel to the US only if they are in possession of a permanent resident card (Green card) or a diplomatic visa. The move by Qatar Airways comes after President Trump signed a sweeping executive order on Friday to suspend refugee arrivals and impose tough controls on travellers from the seven countries. The documents required from travellers include: A1 & A2 (Government Officials and immediate family) C2 (Travel to UN) G1 & G2 (Representative & employees of international organisations) G3 & G4 (Representatives to and employees of international organisations) NATO The airline, which flies to at least 15 American cities, also posted a "travel alert" online on Saturday, listing the paperwork required by citizens of the seven countries. Qatar Airways said on Saturday it would "enforce" the new rules governing entry to the United States following President Donald Trump's temporary order restricting arrivals from seven Muslim countries, AFP reported. A spokesperson for the Gulf carrier said it would only carry passengers to the US who had the correct documentation. "We are enforcing the new rules," said the official. "If travellers to the US don't have the proper documentation, we are not going to take them to the US," the airways added. Qatar Airways destinations in the US include New York, Atlanta and Chicago. Update on entry requirements to the United States. Please visit https://t.co/PVfW0x7kvH — Qatar Airways (@qatarairways) January 28, 2017 × Meanwhile, five Iraqi passengers and one Yemeni were barred from boarding an Egypt Air flight from Cairo to New York on Saturday after President Donald Trump halted the entry of citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries, sources told Reuters at Cairo airport. The passengers, arriving in transit to Cairo airport, were stopped and redirected to flights headed to their home countries despite holding valid visas, the sources said. Trump on Friday put a four-month hold on allowing refugees into the United States and temporarily barred travellers from Syria and six other Muslim-majority countries, saying the moves would help protect Americans from terrorist attacks. He said his most sweeping use of his presidential powers since taking office a week ago, barring travellers from the seven nations for at least 90 days, would give his administration time to develop more stringent screening procedures for refugees, immigrants and visitors. "I'm establishing new vetting measures to keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America. Don't want them here," Trump said earlier at the Pentagon. "We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country and love deeply our people," he said. The bans, though temporary, took effect immediately, causing havoc and confusion for would-be travellers with passports from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Besides Cairo, it was not immediately clear whether other airports of countries listed by Trump had swiftly implemented the ban. Arab officials of the listed countries would not comment on the matter. The order seeks to prioritise refugees fleeing religious persecution, a move Trump separately said was aimed at helping Christians in Syria. That led some legal experts to question whether the order was constitutional. One group said it would announce a court challenge on Monday. The Council on American-Islamic Relations said the order targets Muslims because of their faith, contravening the US Constitutional right to freedom of religion. "President Trump has cloaked what is a discriminatory ban against nationals of Muslim countries under the banner of national security," Greg Chen of the American Immigration Lawyers Association told Reuters. The newly inaugurated US president signed a sweeping executive order on Friday to suspend refugee arrivals and impose tough controls on travellers from the seven countries. Trump has long pledged to take this kind of action, making it a prominent feature of his campaign for the November 8 election. But people who work with Muslim immigrants and refugees were scrambling to determine the scope of the order. Even legal permanent residents - people with "green cards" allowing them to live and work in the United States - were being advised to consult immigration lawyers before travelling outside the country, or trying to return, according to Muslim Advocates, a civil rights group in Washington. On Friday evening, Abed Ayoub of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee said he had fielded about 100 queries from people anxious about the order, which he said he believed could affect travelling green card holders, students, people coming to the United States for medical care and others. "It's chaos," Ayoub told Reuters. During his campaign, Trump tapped into American fears about Islamic State militants and the flood of migrants into Europe from Syria's civil war, saying refugees could be a "Trojan horse" that allowed attackers to enter the United States. In December 2015, he called for a ban on all Muslims entering the United States, drawing fire for suggesting a religious test for immigrants that critics said would violate the U.S. Constitution. His idea later evolved into a proposal for "extreme vetting." Trump's order also suspends the Syrian refugee program until further notice, and will eventually give priority to minority religious groups fleeing persecution. Trump said in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network that the exception would help Syrian Christians fleeing the civil war there. Legal experts were divided on whether this order would be constitutional. "If they are thinking about an exception for Christians, in almost any other legal context discriminating in favour of one religion and against another religion could violate the constitution," said Stephen Legomsky, a former chief counsel at US Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Obama administration. Democrats were quick to condemn Trump's order as un-American, saying it would tarnish the reputation of the United States as a land that welcomes immigrants. "Today's executive order from President Trump is more about extreme xenophobia than extreme vetting," said Democratic Senator Edward Markey in a statement. Some Republicans praised the move. Representative Bob Goodlatte, chairman of the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, said Islamic State has threatened to use the US immigration system, making it important to do more screening. "I am pleased that President Trump is using the tools granted to him by Congress and the power granted by the Constitution to help keep America safe and ensure we know who is entering the United States," Goodlatte said in a statement. Without naming Trump, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday it was no time to build walls between nations and criticised steps towards cancelling world trade agreements. Trump had ordered the construction of a US-Mexican border wall, a major promise during his election campaign, as part of a package of measures to curb illegal immigration. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Trump's immigration ban: Qatar Airways issues travel advisory for US-bound travellers

<p>US President Donald Trump has said that he had an hour-long phone conversation with his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto on bilateral trade and the contentious wall issue, a day after the two had a blowup over who would foot the&nbsp;bill for the proposed border.</p>

<p>&quot;I will say that we had a very good call. I have been very strong on Mexico. I have great respect for Mexico. I love the Mexican people. I work with the Mexican people all the time. Great relationships. But Mexico has out negotiated us and beat us to a pulp through our past leaders,&quot; Trump told reporters at a joint news conference with visiting British Prime Minister Theresa May.</p>

<p>&quot;They&#39;ve made us look foolish. We have a trade deficit of $60 billion with Mexico. On top of that, the border is soft and weak, drugs are pouring in, and I&#39;m not going to let that happen,&quot; he said, adding that he talked with his Mexican counterpart for about an hour this morning.</p>

<p>&quot;We are going to be working on a fair relationship and a new relationship. But the United States cannot continue to lose vast amounts of business, vast amounts of companies, and millions and millions of people losing their jobs. That won&#39;t happen with me. We&#39;re no longer going to be the country that doesn&#39;t know what it&#39;s doing,&quot; Trump said in response to a question.</p>

<p>&quot;We are going to renegotiate our trade deals and we are going to renegotiate other aspects of our relationship with Mexico, and in the end, I think it&#39;ll be good for both countries,&quot; he asserted.<br />
Trump described the call as &quot;very, very friendly&quot;, and said he looks forward to the negotiations over the coming months.</p>

<p>&quot;But I&#39;m representing the people of the United States and I&#39;m going to represent them as somebody should represent them, not how they&#39;ve been represented in the past where we lose to every single country,&quot; Trump said. Meanwhile, the Mexican government said that President Pena Nieto and Trump had agreed to stop making public statements about the US leader&#39;s border wall plan and will seek to resolve differences as part of bilateral talks.</p>

<p>&quot;With regard to the payment of the border wall, both presidents acknowledged their clear and very public differences in position on this sensitive issue,&quot; the Mexican statement said.</p>

<p>&quot;The presidents also agreed at this point not to speak publicly about this controversial issue,&quot; it added.</p>

<p>The White House statement included near identical language on the border wall, but didn&#39;t mention a pledge not to speak publicly about the issue. On Thursday, Trump had tweeted that If Mexico is unwilling to pay for the badly needed&nbsp;<br />
wall, then it would be better to cancel the upcoming meeting between him and Pena Nieto.</p>

<p>The Mexican President reacted, saying, &quot;I&#39;ve said time and again: Mexico won&#39;t pay for any wall.&quot; He later cancelled his trip to Washington planned for January 31.</p>

<p>(PTI)</p>


President Trump said that he had an hour-long phone conversation with his Mexican President Nieto on the contentious wall issue

US President Donald Trump has said that he had an hour-long phone conversation with his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto on bilateral trade and the contentious wall issue, a day after the two had a blowup over who would foot the bill for the proposed border. "I will say that we had a very good call. I have been very strong on Mexico. I have great respect for Mexico. I love the Mexican people. I work with the Mexican people all the time. Great relationships. But Mexico has out negotiated us and beat us to a pulp through our past leaders," Trump told reporters at a joint news conference with visiting British Prime Minister Theresa May. "They've made us look foolish. We have a trade deficit of $60 billion with Mexico. On top of that, the border is soft and weak, drugs are pouring in, and I'm not going to let that happen," he said, adding that he talked with his Mexican counterpart for about an hour this morning. "We are going to be working on a fair relationship and a new relationship. But the United States cannot continue to lose vast amounts of business, vast amounts of companies, and millions and millions of people losing their jobs. That won't happen with me. We're no longer going to be the country that doesn't know what it's doing," Trump said in response to a question. "We are going to renegotiate our trade deals and we are going to renegotiate other aspects of our relationship with Mexico, and in the end, I think it'll be good for both countries," he asserted. Trump described the call as "very, very friendly", and said he looks forward to the negotiations over the coming months. "But I'm representing the people of the United States and I'm going to represent them as somebody should represent them, not how they've been represented in the past where we lose to every single country," Trump said. Meanwhile, the Mexican government said that President Pena Nieto and Trump had agreed to stop making public statements about the US leader's border wall plan and will seek to resolve differences as part of bilateral talks. "With regard to the payment of the border wall, both presidents acknowledged their clear and very public differences in position on this sensitive issue," the Mexican statement said. "The presidents also agreed at this point not to speak publicly about this controversial issue," it added. The White House statement included near identical language on the border wall, but didn't mention a pledge not to speak publicly about the issue. On Thursday, Trump had tweeted that If Mexico is unwilling to pay for the badly needed wall, then it would be better to cancel the upcoming meeting between him and Pena Nieto. The Mexican President reacted, saying, "I've said time and again: Mexico won't pay for any wall." He later cancelled his trip to Washington planned for January 31. (PTI)

Trump, Mexican president engage in ' friendly talk' over phone to end wall row

<p>US President Donald Trump signaled a sharp break on energy and the environment policy Friday, announcing plans to undo climate policies and promote domestic energy development as part of his &quot;America First&quot; agenda.</p>

<p>A statement on the White House website, posted shortly after Trump took the oath of office, said he was &quot;committed to eliminating harmful and unnecessary policies such as the Climate Action Plan&quot; advocated by his predecessor Barack Obama.</p>

<p>Trump also will focus on removing hurdles to domestic energy development that he argues will make the US independent of foreign oil.</p>

<p>&quot;The Trump Administration will embrace the shale oil and gas revolution to bring jobs and prosperity to millions of Americans,&quot; the statement said.</p>

<p>&quot;President Trump is committed to achieving energy independence from the OPEC cartel and any nations hostile to our interests. At the same time, we will work with our Gulf allies to develop a positive energy relationship as part of our anti-terrorism strategy.&quot;</p>

<p>Trump also aims to &quot;revive America&#39;s coal industry, which has been hurting for too long,&quot; the statement said.</p>

<p>The website makeover was part of the transition of power to the new administration.</p>

<p>During his two terms, Obama made the environment a cornerstone of his policies, including the landmark Paris climate agreement in December 2015 signed by nearly 200 countries, and policies to encourage renewable energy through actions to limit emissions and promote investment in new technology.</p>

<p>Trump during the campaign dismissed climate change as a &quot;hoax&quot; perpetrated by China. But since the election he and his cabinet designees have sent mixed signals on climate policies and the Paris accord.</p>

<p>The White House acknowledged that protecting the environment also was a priority and said the administration would &quot;refocus&quot; the Environmental Protection Agency on &quot;its essential mission of protecting our air and water.&quot;</p>

<p>The statement drew sharp criticism from the environmental group Friends of the Earth.</p>

<p>&quot;This is just the beginning. Trump has announced his intentions. If we let him get away with it, what&#39;s next? Gutting the EPA? Drilling for oil on our public lands in the Arctic?&quot;</p>

<p>(AFP)</p>


A statement on White House website said he was 'committed to eliminating harmful and unnecessary policies such as the Climate Action Plan'

US President Donald Trump signaled a sharp break on energy and the environment policy Friday, announcing plans to undo climate policies and promote domestic energy development as part of his "America First" agenda. A statement on the White House website, posted shortly after Trump took the oath of office, said he was "committed to eliminating harmful and unnecessary policies such as the Climate Action Plan" advocated by his predecessor Barack Obama. Trump also will focus on removing hurdles to domestic energy development that he argues will make the US independent of foreign oil. "The Trump Administration will embrace the shale oil and gas revolution to bring jobs and prosperity to millions of Americans," the statement said. "President Trump is committed to achieving energy independence from the OPEC cartel and any nations hostile to our interests. At the same time, we will work with our Gulf allies to develop a positive energy relationship as part of our anti-terrorism strategy." Trump also aims to "revive America's coal industry, which has been hurting for too long," the statement said. The website makeover was part of the transition of power to the new administration. During his two terms, Obama made the environment a cornerstone of his policies, including the landmark Paris climate agreement in December 2015 signed by nearly 200 countries, and policies to encourage renewable energy through actions to limit emissions and promote investment in new technology. Trump during the campaign dismissed climate change as a "hoax" perpetrated by China. But since the election he and his cabinet designees have sent mixed signals on climate policies and the Paris accord. The White House acknowledged that protecting the environment also was a priority and said the administration would "refocus" the Environmental Protection Agency on "its essential mission of protecting our air and water." The statement drew sharp criticism from the environmental group Friends of the Earth. "This is just the beginning. Trump has announced his intentions. If we let him get away with it, what's next? Gutting the EPA? Drilling for oil on our public lands in the Arctic?" (AFP)

Trump signals big shift on energy, climate policies

<p>Indian-American politician Nikki Haley will meet US President-elect Donald Trump today, the presidential transition team has said amid reports that the two-term Governor of South Carolina is being considered for a Cabinet position, particularly for the high-profile post of secretary of state.</p>

<p>In a conference call with reporters last night, the transition teams spokesman Sean Spicer listed 44-year-old Haley as one of the candidates Trump would be meeting today.</p>

<p>Among others the 70-year-old Trump would be meeting include former secretary of State Henry Kissinger, General Jack Keane, Admiral Mike Rogers and Ken Blackwell.</p>

<p>While some of these meetings are about potential cabinet members, others are about sharing ideas and advice.</p>

<p>Earlier in the day, a close aide of Trump from South Carolina said that Haley was being considered for a cabinet position, including that of the secretary of state.</p>

<p>&quot;It would be like how Mr Trump is bringing fresh eyes to running our government,&quot; South Carolina Lt Governor Henry McMaster told The Post and Courier. The daily did not provide any other details.</p>

<p>McMaster was one of the earliest&nbsp;to&nbsp;endorse&nbsp;Trump during the primaries and has been praised by the president-elect several times in the past.</p>

<p>Haley had endorsed Florida senator Marco Rubio during the primaries and was also critical of Trump in her Republican response to the State of the Union Address by US President Barack Obama in January.</p>

<p>However, before the general elections, Haley came out in support of Trump, saying that she would be voting for the billionaire tycoon from New York.</p>

<p>The Trump transition team has so far not given any indication of who all will be filling various cabinet positions. The president-elect himself has tweeted that only he knows the final list.</p>

<p>McMaster, who started speaking with the Trump team soon after their historic victory told the local South Carolina daily that the first women governor of the State, who is also the first Indian-American woman governor, is being considered for various cabinet position, including the secretary of state.</p>

<p>Neither the office of the South Carolina governor nor the Trump transition team have responded to this report so far.</p>

<p>While the news was welcomed in South Carolina, a political analyst appeared to be skeptical of such a proposal. &quot;Secretary of state is going to be a bit of a stretch for Haley&#39;s area of expertise. Haley has yet to be vetted about foreign policy, trade and protectionism,&quot; said College of Charleston political scientist Kendra Stewart.</p>

<p>Haley is the second Indian-American name being floated for a cabinet position in the Trump administration. Former Governor of Louisiana Bobby Jindal is also appearing in many short-lists of potential cabinet names.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Meanwhile, Trump is considering his trusted military advisor Lt Gen&nbsp;Michael Flynn as his national security advisor, the reports said.</p>

<p>Flynn, 56, was one of the top military leaders to have endorsed Trump and has been his closest military advisor for more than a year now.</p>

<p>&quot;Lieutenant General Michael Flynn has emerged as Donald Trump&#39;s leading candidate for national security adviser, according to people familiar with the president- elect&#39;s transition planning,&quot; National Review reported yesterday.</p>

<p>If selected, he would succeed Susan Rice as the National Security Advisor.</p>

<p>&quot;Like the president-elect, Flynn, a self-described &#39;maverick&#39;&nbsp;and longtime Democrat, shares a penchant for unvarnished straight talk that has earned him praise from some and condemnation from others,&quot; the National Review said.</p>

<p>(PTI)<br />
&nbsp;</p>


The two-term Governor of South Carolina will meet Donald Trump today, the presidential transition team said

Indian-American politician Nikki Haley will meet US President-elect Donald Trump today, the presidential transition team has said amid reports that the two-term Governor of South Carolina is being considered for a Cabinet position, particularly for the high-profile post of secretary of state. In a conference call with reporters last night, the transition teams spokesman Sean Spicer listed 44-year-old Haley as one of the candidates Trump would be meeting today. Among others the 70-year-old Trump would be meeting include former secretary of State Henry Kissinger, General Jack Keane, Admiral Mike Rogers and Ken Blackwell. While some of these meetings are about potential cabinet members, others are about sharing ideas and advice. Earlier in the day, a close aide of Trump from South Carolina said that Haley was being considered for a cabinet position, including that of the secretary of state. "It would be like how Mr Trump is bringing fresh eyes to running our government," South Carolina Lt Governor Henry McMaster told The Post and Courier. The daily did not provide any other details. McMaster was one of the earliest to endorse Trump during the primaries and has been praised by the president-elect several times in the past. Haley had endorsed Florida senator Marco Rubio during the primaries and was also critical of Trump in her Republican response to the State of the Union Address by US President Barack Obama in January. However, before the general elections, Haley came out in support of Trump, saying that she would be voting for the billionaire tycoon from New York. The Trump transition team has so far not given any indication of who all will be filling various cabinet positions. The president-elect himself has tweeted that only he knows the final list. McMaster, who started speaking with the Trump team soon after their historic victory told the local South Carolina daily that the first women governor of the State, who is also the first Indian-American woman governor, is being considered for various cabinet position, including the secretary of state. Neither the office of the South Carolina governor nor the Trump transition team have responded to this report so far. While the news was welcomed in South Carolina, a political analyst appeared to be skeptical of such a proposal. "Secretary of state is going to be a bit of a stretch for Haley's area of expertise. Haley has yet to be vetted about foreign policy, trade and protectionism," said College of Charleston political scientist Kendra Stewart. Haley is the second Indian-American name being floated for a cabinet position in the Trump administration. Former Governor of Louisiana Bobby Jindal is also appearing in many short-lists of potential cabinet names. Meanwhile, Trump is considering his trusted military advisor Lt Gen Michael Flynn as his national security advisor, the reports said. Flynn, 56, was one of the top military leaders to have endorsed Trump and has been his closest military advisor for more than a year now. "Lieutenant General Michael Flynn has emerged as Donald Trump's leading candidate for national security adviser, according to people familiar with the president- elect's transition planning," National Review reported yesterday. If selected, he would succeed Susan Rice as the National Security Advisor. "Like the president-elect, Flynn, a self-described 'maverick' and longtime Democrat, shares a penchant for unvarnished straight talk that has earned him praise from some and condemnation from others," the National Review said. (PTI)

Indian-American governor Nikki Haley considered for secretary of state: Report

<p>While the world comes to terms with Donald Trump winning the presidency, there&#39;s a lot of optimism in Russian circles about the surprise outcome of the US elections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Even as Russian president Vladimir Putin welcomed Trump&#39;s win, his closest political advisor and political analyst Sergei Markov told The Guardian Russia may have played a role in the WikiLeaks scandal. &quot;Maybe we helped a bit with WikiLeaks,&rdquo; the pro-Kremlin analyst was quoted as saying. Russia has been openly accused of interfering in the elections in favour of Donald Trump. Russian authorities were accused of hacking Democratic party emails that were leaked to WikiLeaks before the US elections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Russian government also revealed today that it maintained contact with representatives from Trump and Hillary Clinton&#39;s presidential campaigns. &quot;During this entire period, we not only sent some signals through some representatives, or private messages,&quot; Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was quoted as saying by CNN.</p>

<p>Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told The Associated Press that Russian experts had contacts with people in both the Trump and Clinton campaigns. He said such contacts are &quot;quite natural, quite normal.&quot;</p>

<p>The Clinton camp had repeatedly accused Trump of maintaining ties with Russia during the elections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Makrov, however, denied that Russia interfered in the elections.</p>

<p>And while he hoped that US and Russia would find common ground on Ukraine and in Syria, he warned about the &quot;macho&quot; personalities of the two world leaders.</p>

<p>&ldquo;Putin is a macho, Trump is also a macho. Maybe it could be a problem,&rdquo; Markov, the pro-Kremlin analyst said.</p>

<p>Another Trump fan was optimistic that the former businessman would bring his pragmatism to politics.&nbsp;</p>

<p>A source close to the Kremlin told The Guardian, &quot;The political space for every US president is quite narrow because a lot of the momentum is in the mentality of military people, secret services and politicians around the president. But it is obvious that Trump, as a former businessman, will be much more pragmatic and won&rsquo;t be a hostage of the mistakes previously and generously made by Bush, Clinton, Bush, Obama.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Alexei Venediktov, the editor-in-chief of Russia&rsquo;s liberal Echo of Moscow radio, told Guardian that while some in the Kremlin were probably celebrating, other &ldquo;more serious&rdquo; people realised there were unpredictable times ahead.</p>

<p>Relations between the US and Russia have reached a new low over the past two years, due to differences over Syria and Ukraine.&nbsp;</p>

<p>While his policy makers are cautiously optimistic, &nbsp;President Putin hopes for &ldquo;fully-fledged relations&rdquo; after the election results were announced.</p>

<p>&ldquo;Clearly the chances of sanctions being lifted on Russia have risen substantially,&rdquo; the Guardian quoted Renaissance Capital&rsquo;s global chief economist Charles Robertson as saying. &ldquo;That would improve the investment climate for Russia.&rdquo;</p>

<p>(WION)</p>


The Russian government has also revealed it maintained ties with representatives from Trump and Clinton's campaigns

While the world comes to terms with Donald Trump winning the presidency, there's a lot of optimism in Russian circles about the surprise outcome of the US elections. Even as Russian president Vladimir Putin welcomed Trump's win, his closest political advisor and political analyst Sergei Markov told The Guardian Russia may have played a role in the WikiLeaks scandal. "Maybe we helped a bit with WikiLeaks,” the pro-Kremlin analyst was quoted as saying. Russia has been openly accused of interfering in the elections in favour of Donald Trump. Russian authorities were accused of hacking Democratic party emails that were leaked to WikiLeaks before the US elections. The Russian government also revealed today that it maintained contact with representatives from Trump and Hillary Clinton's presidential campaigns. "During this entire period, we not only sent some signals through some representatives, or private messages," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was quoted as saying by CNN. Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told The Associated Press that Russian experts had contacts with people in both the Trump and Clinton campaigns. He said such contacts are "quite natural, quite normal." The Clinton camp had repeatedly accused Trump of maintaining ties with Russia during the elections. Makrov, however, denied that Russia interfered in the elections. And while he hoped that US and Russia would find common ground on Ukraine and in Syria, he warned about the "macho" personalities of the two world leaders. “Putin is a macho, Trump is also a macho. Maybe it could be a problem,” Markov, the pro-Kremlin analyst said. Another Trump fan was optimistic that the former businessman would bring his pragmatism to politics. A source close to the Kremlin told The Guardian, "The political space for every US president is quite narrow because a lot of the momentum is in the mentality of military people, secret services and politicians around the president. But it is obvious that Trump, as a former businessman, will be much more pragmatic and won’t be a hostage of the mistakes previously and generously made by Bush, Clinton, Bush, Obama.” Alexei Venediktov, the editor-in-chief of Russia’s liberal Echo of Moscow radio, told Guardian that while some in the Kremlin were probably celebrating, other “more serious” people realised there were unpredictable times ahead. Relations between the US and Russia have reached a new low over the past two years, due to differences over Syria and Ukraine. While his policy makers are cautiously optimistic, President Putin hopes for “fully-fledged relations” after the election results were announced. “Clearly the chances of sanctions being lifted on Russia have risen substantially,” the Guardian quoted Renaissance Capital’s global chief economist Charles Robertson as saying. “That would improve the investment climate for Russia.” (WION)

Putin's closest political advisor: 'Maybe we helped a bit with WikiLeaks'

<p><br />
President Barack Obama hosted president-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office Thursday for ensuring a smooth transition of power after the New York real estate tycoon&#39;s stunning victory in the presidential elections.</p>

<p>Obama described their meeting as &#39;excellent conversation&#39; and he looked forward to working with him. He also vowed to &quot;do everything we can&quot; to help Trump succeed.</p>

<p>Trump arrived at his soon-to-be home on Pennsylvania Avenue at roughly 11:00 am (1600 GMT), a US official told AFP.</p>

<p>The US president and his successor have shared an uneasy equation, with Trump questioning Obama&#39;s origins and Obama in turn describing the celebrity businessman as &quot;uniquely unqualified&quot; to be president.</p>

<p>After Trump&#39;s win, Obama asked Americans to back Trump and said they should now be &quot;rooting&quot; for his success.</p>

<p>The president elect&#39;s Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, urged the country to give Trump a chance. She also spoke about healing the deep divisions in American society.</p>

<p>&quot;We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead,&quot; Hillary Clinton said in her concession speech on Wednesday.</p>

<p>On Wednesday, Trump huddled at Trump Tower in New York with a group of advisers, planning a transition strategy to take over stewardship of the world&#39;s largest economy. His team unveiled a website that highlights the human resource challenge facing the incoming administration under the headline &quot;Help wanted: 4,000 presidential appointees.&quot;</p>

<p>The site also invites the public to share ideas on &quot;Making America Great Again.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p>In the course of his campaign, Trump has pledged to deport illegal immigrants, ban Muslims from the country and tear up free-trade deals.</p>

<p>His populist rhetoric has gone down well with a majority of Americans.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Not everyone is happy, however. Thousands of demonstrators carried out marches across the countries protesting Trump&#39;s surprise win, accusing the incoming leader of racism, sexism and xenophobia.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from AFP)</p>


Obama described his meeting with Trump as 'excellent conversation'

President Barack Obama hosted president-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office Thursday for ensuring a smooth transition of power after the New York real estate tycoon's stunning victory in the presidential elections. Obama described their meeting as 'excellent conversation' and he looked forward to working with him. He also vowed to "do everything we can" to help Trump succeed. Trump arrived at his soon-to-be home on Pennsylvania Avenue at roughly 11:00 am (1600 GMT), a US official told AFP. The US president and his successor have shared an uneasy equation, with Trump questioning Obama's origins and Obama in turn describing the celebrity businessman as "uniquely unqualified" to be president. After Trump's win, Obama asked Americans to back Trump and said they should now be "rooting" for his success. The president elect's Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, urged the country to give Trump a chance. She also spoke about healing the deep divisions in American society. "We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead," Hillary Clinton said in her concession speech on Wednesday. On Wednesday, Trump huddled at Trump Tower in New York with a group of advisers, planning a transition strategy to take over stewardship of the world's largest economy. His team unveiled a website that highlights the human resource challenge facing the incoming administration under the headline "Help wanted: 4,000 presidential appointees." The site also invites the public to share ideas on "Making America Great Again." In the course of his campaign, Trump has pledged to deport illegal immigrants, ban Muslims from the country and tear up free-trade deals. His populist rhetoric has gone down well with a majority of Americans. Not everyone is happy, however. Thousands of demonstrators carried out marches across the countries protesting Trump's surprise win, accusing the incoming leader of racism, sexism and xenophobia. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Obama hosts Trump at White House, vows to do 'everything we can' to help him

<p>Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated president-elect&nbsp;Donald Trump on his victory in the US presidential election in a telegram on Wednesday, the Kremlin said.</p>

<p>&quot;Putin expressed hope for joint work to restore Russian-American relations from their state of crisis, and also to address pressing international issues and search for effective responses to challenges concerning global security,&quot; the Kremlin said in a statement.</p>

<p>Putin also said he was sure a constructive dialogue between Moscow and Washington would serve the interests of both countries, the Kremlin said.<br />
&nbsp;</p>

<p>(Reuters)</p>


In a telegram to Trump, Putin hoped to restore Russian-American relations, address international issues and dealing with global security

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated president-elect Donald Trump on his victory in the US presidential election in a telegram on Wednesday, the Kremlin said. "Putin expressed hope for joint work to restore Russian-American relations from their state of crisis, and also to address pressing international issues and search for effective responses to challenges concerning global security," the Kremlin said in a statement. Putin also said he was sure a constructive dialogue between Moscow and Washington would serve the interests of both countries, the Kremlin said. (Reuters)

Russia's Putin congratulates Trump on election win

<p>The Mexican peso collapsed after Republican Donald Trump defied predictions and beat Democratic rival Hillary Clinton to take the US presidency in a maverick victory that wreaked havoc in global markets on Wednesday.</p>

<p>Trump&#39;s threats to rip up a free trade agreement with Mexico and tax money sent home by migrants to pay for building a wall on the southern US border once elected president have made the peso particularly reactive to events in the race for the White House.</p>

<p>The peso weakened by more than 13 per cent in after-market trading for Mexico and in Wednesday trading in Asia, breaking past 20 pesos per dollar - its biggest fall since the 1994 Tequila Crisis.</p>

<p>The peso pared losses to trade around 8.5 per cent weaker at 19.875 per dollar early on Wednesday, after Clinton conceded to Trump in a phone call. Mexico&#39;s central bank has called a joint press conference with the Finance ministry for 0700 local time (0800 EST/1300GMT).</p>

<p>&quot;There&#39;s a lot of panic in the market, it is definitely an outcome it was not expecting,&quot; said Juan Carlos Alderete, a strategist at Banorte-IXE. &quot;The movements are very strong, the market is showing higher risk aversion in search of safe-haven assets.&quot;</p>

<p>Three economists told Reuters they expected the central bank to raise its benchmark interest rate by an impromptu 75 to 150 basis points on Wednesday if Trump wins, while one of them said the bank could instead opt for a swap with the US Federal Reserve depending how the Peso evolves.</p>

<p>&quot;I don&#39;t think a Trump scenario was taken seriously in the last days by the market. Hopefully there are some contingency plans by authorities and they can take measures to protect the Mexican economy,&quot; said Ernesto Revilla, an economist at Banamex and the government&#39;s former chief economist.</p>

<p>Mexican central bank head Agustin Carstens last week said the country was ready in case of an &quot;adverse&quot; result in the US election, which he has said could hit Mexico like a &quot;hurricane.&quot;</p>

<p>Mexico has foreign reserves of $175.3 billion, and Carstens said last month he would consider using a $90 billion International Monetary Fund flexible credit line &quot;in the event of an external shock.&quot;</p>

<p>The central bank has already hiked its rate three times this year, lifting it to 4.75 per cent to anchor inflation expectations following a sharp depreciation of the Peso.</p>

<p>Earlier on Tuesday, the Mexican currency had rallied nearly 1.4 per cent before official election results began to be released, as final polls showed a Clinton advantage.</p>

<p>Volatility in the Mexican peso surged to its highest level since the global financial crisis in 2008. One-month implied volatility, which measures the currency&#39;s anticipated trading range over the period, jumped to 40 per cent from 27 per cent late Tuesday.</p>

<p>&quot;This is truly a historic moment. I don&#39;t recall such an extreme outlook on the US economy that could be so negative to the Mexican economy,&quot; said Benito Berber, an analyst at Nomura in New York.</p>

<p>Berber said a Trump win could drive the peso to between 23 and 26 per dollar.</p>

<p>(Reuters)</p>


The peso weakened by more than 13 per cent in after-market trading for Mexico

The Mexican peso collapsed after Republican Donald Trump defied predictions and beat Democratic rival Hillary Clinton to take the US presidency in a maverick victory that wreaked havoc in global markets on Wednesday. Trump's threats to rip up a free trade agreement with Mexico and tax money sent home by migrants to pay for building a wall on the southern US border once elected president have made the peso particularly reactive to events in the race for the White House. The peso weakened by more than 13 per cent in after-market trading for Mexico and in Wednesday trading in Asia, breaking past 20 pesos per dollar - its biggest fall since the 1994 Tequila Crisis. The peso pared losses to trade around 8.5 per cent weaker at 19.875 per dollar early on Wednesday, after Clinton conceded to Trump in a phone call. Mexico's central bank has called a joint press conference with the Finance ministry for 0700 local time (0800 EST/1300GMT). "There's a lot of panic in the market, it is definitely an outcome it was not expecting," said Juan Carlos Alderete, a strategist at Banorte-IXE. "The movements are very strong, the market is showing higher risk aversion in search of safe-haven assets." Three economists told Reuters they expected the central bank to raise its benchmark interest rate by an impromptu 75 to 150 basis points on Wednesday if Trump wins, while one of them said the bank could instead opt for a swap with the US Federal Reserve depending how the Peso evolves. "I don't think a Trump scenario was taken seriously in the last days by the market. Hopefully there are some contingency plans by authorities and they can take measures to protect the Mexican economy," said Ernesto Revilla, an economist at Banamex and the government's former chief economist. Mexican central bank head Agustin Carstens last week said the country was ready in case of an "adverse" result in the US election, which he has said could hit Mexico like a "hurricane." Mexico has foreign reserves of $175.3 billion, and Carstens said last month he would consider using a $90 billion International Monetary Fund flexible credit line "in the event of an external shock." The central bank has already hiked its rate three times this year, lifting it to 4.75 per cent to anchor inflation expectations following a sharp depreciation of the Peso. Earlier on Tuesday, the Mexican currency had rallied nearly 1.4 per cent before official election results began to be released, as final polls showed a Clinton advantage. Volatility in the Mexican peso surged to its highest level since the global financial crisis in 2008. One-month implied volatility, which measures the currency's anticipated trading range over the period, jumped to 40 per cent from 27 per cent late Tuesday. "This is truly a historic moment. I don't recall such an extreme outlook on the US economy that could be so negative to the Mexican economy," said Benito Berber, an analyst at Nomura in New York. Berber said a Trump win could drive the peso to between 23 and 26 per dollar. (Reuters)

US election 2016: Mexican peso tumbles as Trump wins US presidency

<p><br />
Catastrophe, tragedy, humiliation. The world&#39;s press reacted with shock at the astonishing election victory of Donald Trump, describing the US president-elect as &quot;dangerous&quot; and unpredictable.</p>

<p>Here is a round-up of some of the media reaction:</p>

<p>&quot;The US has elected its most dangerous leader. We have plenty to fear. The people of America have stepped into the abyss. The new president-elect is an unstable bigot, sexual predator and compulsive liar. He is capable of anything.&quot; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>The Guardian, Britain</strong></p>

<p>&quot;That wasn&#39;t a campaign. That was a national crisis. And at the end was the worst possible catastrophe: Donald Trump is president of the United States. The unimaginable has become reality.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany</strong></p>

<p>&quot;The news coming from the north is bad for Mexico and bad for the world.&quot;</p>

<p><strong>Cronica del Hoy, Mexico</strong></p>

<p>&quot;Trumpocalypse... Shock. A thunder bolt. And dizziness at the thought that Donald Trump will be unpacking his bags in the White House in scarcely two and a half months. The world&#39;s leading power is from now on in the hands of the far-right. Fifty percent of Americans voted in all conscience for a racist, lying, sexist, vulgar, hateful candidate.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Liberation, France</strong></p>

<p>Revenge of the deplorables. The most extraordinary presidential campaign in modern history ends in humiliation for Hillary, the pollsters and the elites of business and show business as the voters America forgot sweep Donald to victory.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Daily Mail, Britain</strong></p>

<p>&quot;Trump&#39;s victory confirms the vitality of American democracy, which has the ability to transform itself continuously, but the victory also produces both inside and outside the United States a deluge of uncertainty due to the winner&#39;s unpredictability. Trump has to explain what he wants to do. In the meantime, the rest of the world has to digest what has happened tonight: the people of the revolution are knocking at our doors.&quot; La Stampa, Italy</p>

<p>&quot;President Donald Trump will declare economic war on our biggest customer (China), wipe unprecedented amounts off global stock markets, usher in extraordinary financial instability, and risk turning the world&#39;s biggest economy into a basket case by pushing its national debt past 100 per cent of GDP.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>The Age, Australia</strong></p>

<p>&quot;Seen from Paris, Trump&#39;s victory, coming after Brexit, is an additional warning. In the world that has opened up with this election, anything is possible --- even that which we have difficulty facing up to --- an extremist party taking power.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Le Monde, France</strong></p>

<p>Left-leaning TAZ in Germany calls Trump&#39;s win: &quot;A victory of the horror-clowns&quot;, adding: &quot;Donald Trump said in his victory speech --- as all victory speeches on election nights --- that the country must now unite. From his mouth, it&#39;s a call for the underlings to submit to him unconditionally. The horror clown has now obtained the chance to actually get serious about this.&quot;</p>

<p>&quot;Coarse populism has triumphed over good sense ... America&#39;s democracy stands before a major test: it is to be feared that Trump will do everything to outwit his political opponents. He threatened critical journalists during the election campaign. His supporters have shouted &#39;lock her up&#39; -&ndash; in reference to his opponent Hillary Clinton ... &nbsp;Of course there is hope that the political system is strong enough to limit a president&#39;s fantasies of omnipotence. But there is no guarantee.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Spiegel online, Germany</strong></p>

<p>&quot;An American tragedy.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>New Yorker, US</strong><br />
&nbsp;</p>


The world's press reacted with shock at Trump's unexpected win. A round up of reactions from popular dailies

Catastrophe, tragedy, humiliation. The world's press reacted with shock at the astonishing election victory of Donald Trump, describing the US president-elect as "dangerous" and unpredictable. Here is a round-up of some of the media reaction: "The US has elected its most dangerous leader. We have plenty to fear. The people of America have stepped into the abyss. The new president-elect is an unstable bigot, sexual predator and compulsive liar. He is capable of anything." The Guardian, Britain "That wasn't a campaign. That was a national crisis. And at the end was the worst possible catastrophe: Donald Trump is president of the United States. The unimaginable has become reality." Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany "The news coming from the north is bad for Mexico and bad for the world." Cronica del Hoy, Mexico "Trumpocalypse... Shock. A thunder bolt. And dizziness at the thought that Donald Trump will be unpacking his bags in the White House in scarcely two and a half months. The world's leading power is from now on in the hands of the far-right. Fifty percent of Americans voted in all conscience for a racist, lying, sexist, vulgar, hateful candidate." Liberation, France Revenge of the deplorables. The most extraordinary presidential campaign in modern history ends in humiliation for Hillary, the pollsters and the elites of business and show business as the voters America forgot sweep Donald to victory." Daily Mail, Britain "Trump's victory confirms the vitality of American democracy, which has the ability to transform itself continuously, but the victory also produces both inside and outside the United States a deluge of uncertainty due to the winner's unpredictability. Trump has to explain what he wants to do. In the meantime, the rest of the world has to digest what has happened tonight: the people of the revolution are knocking at our doors." La Stampa, Italy "President Donald Trump will declare economic war on our biggest customer (China), wipe unprecedented amounts off global stock markets, usher in extraordinary financial instability, and risk turning the world's biggest economy into a basket case by pushing its national debt past 100 per cent of GDP." The Age, Australia "Seen from Paris, Trump's victory, coming after Brexit, is an additional warning. In the world that has opened up with this election, anything is possible --- even that which we have difficulty facing up to --- an extremist party taking power. Le Monde, France Left-leaning TAZ in Germany calls Trump's win: "A victory of the horror-clowns", adding: "Donald Trump said in his victory speech --- as all victory speeches on election nights --- that the country must now unite. From his mouth, it's a call for the underlings to submit to him unconditionally. The horror clown has now obtained the chance to actually get serious about this." "Coarse populism has triumphed over good sense ... America's democracy stands before a major test: it is to be feared that Trump will do everything to outwit his political opponents. He threatened critical journalists during the election campaign. His supporters have shouted 'lock her up' -– in reference to his opponent Hillary Clinton ... Of course there is hope that the political system is strong enough to limit a president's fantasies of omnipotence. But there is no guarantee." Spiegel online, Germany "An American tragedy." New Yorker, US

Why Donald Trump's win is making world media 'dizzy'

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