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Ronda Churchill | Afp | Getty ImagesEconomist Brian Deese has begun advising Vice President Kamala Harris as she develops her economic policy plan, according to three people familiar with the matter. Deese is a former director of President Joe Biden's National Economic Council and a fellow at MIT's Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research. Harris is also working with Mike Pyle, a former deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics in the Biden White House, these people said. Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese (L) and Vice President Kamala Harris (R) listen during the weekly economic briefing in the Oval Office at the White House on April 9, 2021 in Washington, DC. Along with Pyle and Deese, former senior Treasury official Brian Nelson is also advising Harris on policy.

Persons: Kamala Harris, Ronda Churchill, Brian Deese, Joe Biden's, Harris, Deese, Mike Pyle, Amr Alfiky, Pyle, Millison, Brian Nelson, Gene Sperling Organizations: Democratic, Thomas, Mack Center , University of Nevada, Afp, Getty, Economic Council, MIT's Center for Energy, Environmental, Research, National, International Economics, Biden White House, National Economic, White, BlackRock, CNBC, Ford Motor Co, Macro Advisory, Ford, Treasury, White House Locations: Las Vegas , Nevada, Ronda, Washington ,, BlackRock

☆ Trump's ex-national security advisor wants to restart US nuke testing. Nuclear experts warn that's not a good idea.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-18 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewDonald Trump's former White House national security advisor is arguing that a second term in office should involve restarting US nuclear testing for the first time in over 30 years. No one wins a nuclear arms race, he said. Kimball called out the difference between O'Brien's argument for the resumption of nuclear testing with the Biden administration's current policy, which remains dedicated to the status quo. "Resuming nuclear testing would reduce US technical superiority over Russia and China because they would immediately follow and have much more to learn," he said. O'Brien's push for resumed testing shouldn't necessarily come as a surprise.

Persons: —, Donald Trump's, That's, Robert O'Brien, Trump, O'Brien, Jon B, Obama, Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, Brendan Smialowski, Wolfsthal, Daryl Kimball, Strangelove, Kimball, Biden, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, We've, Maxim Zmeyev, Jeffrey Lewis, Hans Kristensen, John Bolton Organizations: Service, White House, Business, Foreign Affairs, United, Russian, Getty, US, Arms Control, Joe Biden's National, Middlebury Institute of International Studies, Federation of American, US State Department Locations: Russia, China, United States, Washington, US, AFP, PRC, People's Republic of China, Moscow, Monterey

WASHINGTON (AP) — John Kirby, President Joe Biden's national security spokesman, is getting an expanded role at the White House, according to a U.S. official. Kirby will have a new title, White House national security communications adviser, and will be named an assistant to the president, the official said Sunday. Kirby came to the White House in 2022 as the National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications, not long after Karine Jean-Pierre was named White House press secretary, after the departure of former press secretary Jen Psaki. He will run a separate team from the national security press team that will coordinate information across agencies, the official said. Under Biden, Kirby has been a regular fixture in the White House press briefing room.

Persons: — John Kirby, Joe Biden's, Kirby, Reuters . Kirby, Karine Jean, Pierre, Jen Psaki, Obama, Biden Organizations: WASHINGTON, White, U.S, White House, Associated Press, Reuters ., National Security, NSC, U.S . Navy, Pentagon, State Department Locations: U.S

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The Earth is heating up, as is conflict in the Middle East. They'll be among more than 2,800 attendees, which also include academics, artists and international organization leaders. OpenAI chief Sam Altman will be in Davos along with top executives from Microsoft, which helped bankroll his company's rise. TRYING AGAIN TO SAVE THE PLANETOf all the lofty hopes in Davos, the perennial one of late has been the search for creative and promising ways to fight climate change. “Davos is a powerful combination potentially, of a lot of concern about the environment, and a lot of high-powered finance present,” she said.

Persons: Isaac Herzog, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, They'll, Bronwen Maddox, Israel's, Herzog, Benjamin Netanyahu's, ”, Sam Altman, Vladimir Putin, Li Qiang, Ursula von der Leyen, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Emmanuel Macron, Antony Blinken, Javier Milei, Donald Trump —, Biden, John Kerry, Chatham House's Maddox Organizations: Young Swiss Socialists, Chatham House, Intelligence, Microsoft, European Commission, Chatham, “ Locations: DAVOS, Switzerland, Russia, Davos, Chatham, Gaza, Yemen, Qatar, Jordan, Lebanon, China, U.S, Dubai, “ Davos

☆ Oil prices could spike 20%, possibly double if Middle East conflict disrupts Strait of Hormuz
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-06 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Shipping can be rerouted away from the Red Sea, but crude would be essentially trapped if the strait is shut down, Struyven said. A prolonged disruption in the strait could eventually double oil prices, he said. McNally thinks the market should be factoring in a $12 geopolitical risk premium in oil prices right now. Wirth told CNBC's Sullivan that Chevron is currently working with the U.S. Navy to protect its vessels transiting the Red Sea. "Hopefully, if it doesn't escalate further, we'll be OK — even if there has to be a wholesale diversion of shipments around the Red Sea," Granholm said.

Persons: you've, Daan Struyven, Goldman Sachs, CNBC's Brian Sullivan, Struyven, Bob McNally, McNally, Bush, Antony Blinken, Daniel Yergin, Yergin, Michael Wirth, Tehran's, Wirth, CNBC's Sullivan, Joe Biden's, Jennifer Granholm, Granholm, Israel, Benny Gantz, Gantz, Biden's, Bob Yawger, Yawger, Brent Organizations: Shipping, Rapidan Energy Group, National Security Council, P Global, Brent, Chevron, U.S . Navy, NBC News . Energy, Mizuho, Energy Information Agency, Gulf Locations: Red, Iran, Hormuz, Persian, Israel, Strait, Yemen, Danish, U.S, Lebanon, Beirut, Lebanese, Islamic Republic, The U.S, Europe, South Africa, United States, East

WASHINGTON (AP) — Argentina's right-wing President-elect Javier Milei will meet with President Joe Biden's national security adviser on Tuesday in Washington, according to the White House. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday that Milei will meet with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and other administration officials. The Treasury Department said in a statement that Milei's economic policy advisers will also meet with senior Treasury Officials on Tuesday. That meeting is expected to focus on the incoming Milei administration's economic policy priorities. Argentina’s president-elect has said he wants to move Argentina’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, emulating a move made by Trump.

Persons: —, Javier Milei, Joe Biden's, John Kirby, Milei, Jake Sullivan, Biden, Rosalynn Carter, ” Kirby, Donald Trump, Trump, ” Milei, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Schneerson, he’s, hasn’t, “, Israel, ” ___ Politi, Fatima Hussein, Chris Megerian Organizations: WASHINGTON, House . National Security, White House, Milei, Treasury Department, International Monetary Fund, Lubavitch, Catholic, Israel, Trump, Associated Press Locations: Washington, Georgia, Colorado, Argentina, United States, New York City, Kirby, New York, Queens, Israel, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Buenos Aires

Blinken told the United Nations this week that he would work with Wang to prevent the conflict in the Middle East from spreading. “China and the United States need to have dialogue. But while the U.S. has publicly stood with Israel, China has called for a cease-fire between Israel and the Western-designated terrorist group Hamas stationed in Gaza. Gavin Newsom met with Xi – the first meeting between a U.S. governor and Xi in six years. While more routes of communication may be opening, China-U.S. relations shouldn’t be mistaken as entirely pleasant at the moment.

Persons: Wang Yi, Antony Blinken, Wang, Blinken, ” Wang, John Kirby, Kirby, ”, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Biden, Xi Jinping, Gavin Newsom, Xi –, Xi, Newsom, “ We’ve, We’ve, Wu Qian Organizations: Foreign, U.S, State Department, United, National Security, Economic Cooperation, California Gov, CNN, Pentagon Locations: Washington, China, Gaza, Ukraine, United Nations, United States, U.S, Israel, “, Tehran, Asia, San Francisco, California

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks at a press conference on the sidelines of the Third Belt and Road Forum (BRF), at the media centre in Beijing, China October 18, 2023. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - China's top diplomat Wang Yi will travel to the United States later this week, senior Biden administration officials said on Monday, in a long-anticipated visit that comes amid soaring tensions in the Middle East, which U.S. officials hope Beijing can help contain. It is also the long-awaited reciprocal visit after several top U.S. officials including Blinken visited Beijing this summer. The visit also comes as Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks and Israel's response dominate global headlines, even as Russia's war in Ukraine grinds on. Washington is sending military aid to Israel and Ukraine, while Beijing has grown closer to Russia since the Ukraine war began and has called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Persons: Wang Yi, Tingshu Wang, Wang, Antony Blinken, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Biden, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Blinken, ” Washington, Israel, Li Shangfu, Humeyra Pamuk, Simon Lewis, Deepa Babington Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Biden, U.S, Hamas, East China Seas, Defense, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, United States, Washington, San Francisco, Taiwan, South, Ukraine, Israel, Russia, U.S, Iran, Gaza, East, South China, Philippines

☆ Water in Southern Gaza remains 'limited' despite US urging Israel to end the shutoff
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Israel's officials told Jake Sullivan they 'they have in fact turned the water pipe back on in Southern Gaza.' In fact, the restoration of water service remains "limited," a US official told Insider the following day. "Israeli counterparts agreed to restore water in south Gaza," a US national security official told Insider on Monday. AdvertisementAdvertisementIsrael's energy minister reportedly confirmed that Israel would resume supplying water to Southern Gaza after a discussion with the Biden administration. Children fill boxes with clean water from a dispenser as water shortage happens following the suspension of water flow from Israel to Gaza, in Deir-Al Balah, Gaza on October 15, 2023.

Persons: Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden's, Israel, Sullivan, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Yoav Gallant, Al Balah, Ashraf Amra, Inas Hamdan, Hamdan, Israel hasn't Organizations: Service, Hamas, Israel's, Gaza's Interior Ministry, EU, Israeli Defense Forces, Ministry of Defense, UNICEF Locations: Southern Gaza, CNN's, Gaza, Israel, Deir, U.N, Egypt, Rafah

☆ Putin accepts invitation to visit China in October after meeting Chinese foreign minister in Moscow
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Russia's President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday he accepted an invitation from his Chinese counterpart to visit China in October during the Belt and Road Summit. Speaking after a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Moscow, Putin said Russia and China are "integrating our ideas of creating a large Eurasian space," noting that China's Belt and Road Initiative is a part of that. Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Putin has pivoted the country toward China, selling it more energy, and increasingly carrying out joint military exercises. The Kremlin has continuously expressed support for Beijing as Russia and China have grown closer as their relations with the West deteriorate. Putin's plan to visit China was initially announced in July.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Wang Yi, Putin, Nikolai Patrushev, Wang, Joe Biden's Organizations: Wednesday, Foreign, Initiative, Moscow, NATO, U.S Locations: China, Moscow, Russia, Beijing, Ukraine, United States, Malta

☆ Kremlin says Russia and China must edge closer to counter Western efforts to contain them
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with China's President Xi Jinping at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 21, 2023. A senior Kremlin official on Tuesday called for closer policy coordination between Moscow and Beijing to counter what he described as Western efforts to contain them as he hosted China's top diplomat for security talks. The Kremlin has continuously expressed support for Beijing as Russia and China have grown increasingly close while their relations with the West deteriorate. Last month, China helped engineer an expansion of the BRICS partnership, which invited six more countries to join what has been a five-nation bloc that includes China, Russia, Brazil, India and South Africa. China has denounced Western sanctions against Moscow, and accused NATO and the United States of provoking Putin's military action.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Nikolai Patrushev, Wang Yi, Patrushev, Putin, Wang, Joe Biden's, Sergey Lavrov, Lavrov Organizations: Kremlin, Security, Moscow, NATO, U.S, Russian Locations: Moscow, Beijing, Russian, Russia, China, Taiwan, Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Tibet, Brazil, India, South Africa, Ukraine, United States, Malta

(AP) — President Joe Biden's national security adviser met with China's foreign minister over the past two days on the Mediterranean island nation of Malta in an effort that the White House said Sunday was intended to “responsibly maintain the relationship” at a time of strained ties and mutual suspicion between the rival powers. The Biden administration shot down what was described as a Chinese spy balloon earlier this year. And after Chinese President Xi Jinping centralized his power, the Chinese economy has not rebounded as expected after ending its pandemic lockdowns. The White House said Sullivan and Wang discussed the relationship between the two countries, global and regional security issues, Russia's war in Ukraine and the Taiwan Strait. They talked about the Mediterranean region's role in helping to provide “global peace and security,” according to a statement by the Maltese government.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Wang Yi, Joe Biden, Premier Li Qiang, ” Biden, Biden, “ It’s, ”, Gina Raimondo, Xi Jinping, Sullivan, Wang, Robert Abela, ___ Madhani Organizations: White, Premier, Group Locations: WILMINGTON, Del, Malta, Washington, Beijing, India, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Hanoi, China, U.S, Ukraine, Taiwan Strait, United States, People’s Republic of China, Maltese

☆ Ukraine rips Elon Musk for disrupting sneak attack on Russian fleet with Starlink cutoff
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — A Ukrainian official slammed Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk for ordering engineers to shut off Starlink's satellite network over Crimea last year in order to thwart a Ukrainian attack on Russian warships. The book, titled "Elon Musk," will be released Tuesday. In Ukraine, Starlink has worked as the connective tissue for crucial battlefield communications. Musk, according to Isaacson, was also engaged in a texting conversation with Fedorov. The official pleaded with Musk to restore Starlink's connectivity so that Ukrainian submarine drones could carry out the attack on Russia's warship fleet.

Persons: Elon Musk, Porte, WASHINGTON, Musk, Walter Isaacson, Starlink, Isaacson, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mykhailo Podolyak, Mykhailo Fedorov, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Mark Milley, Fedorov Organizations: SpaceX, Tesla, Twitter, Viva Technology, Porte de, WASHINGTON —, Ukrainian, Netflix, Russian, CNN, Joint Chiefs, Staff U.S, Army Locations: Paris, France, Crimea, Russian, Ukraine, Russia, Ukrainian

☆ White House unveils plan to eliminate threat of fentanyl laced with xylazine
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Biden administration unveiled a plan Tuesday to eliminate the growing threat of fentanyl laced with xylazine, an illegal street drug cocktail that is fueling a wave of overdose deaths. It also aims to disrupt the illegal xylazine supply chain, among other efforts. Those agencies must develop and submit an implementation report to the White House in 60 days. The White House plan's long-term goal is a 15% reduction in xylazine-positive drug overdoses in at least three of four U.S. Census regions by 2025. Every one of these numbers is tragic," White House domestic policy advisor Neera Tanden said during a call with reporters.

Persons: Biden, Joe Biden's, Dr, Rahul Gupta, Xylazine, Neera Tanden Organizations: New York, Centers for Disease Control, and Drug Administration, White House, White, Office of National Drug Control, CDC, House

☆ Ukraine vows it won't use cluster bombs in Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Ukraine's Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov attends a session of the Ukrainian parliament dedicated the Constitution Day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine June 28, 2023. The U.S. announced on Friday it would supply Ukraine with widely banned cluster munitions for its counteroffensive against occupying Russian forces. Cluster munitions are prohibited by more than 100 countries. "We recognize that cluster munitions create a risk of civilian harm from unexploded ordnance," Sullivan told reporters. Russia, Ukraine, and the United States have not signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bans the production, stockpiling, use, and transfer of the weapons.

Persons: Oleksii Reznikov, Reznikov, Maria Zakharova, Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden's, Sullivan, Margarita Robles, Rishi Sunak, Olena Harmash, Vladimir Soldatkin, Ros Russell, Mark Potter Organizations: Ukraine's Defence, Presidential Press Service, REUTERS, The U.S, Twitter, Foreign, Cluster Munitions, Spanish, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, REUTERS KYIV, Russia, The, Russian, Moscow, U.S, Washington, United States, Spain, Madrid, Britain

Cluster munitions could boost Ukraine's counteroffensive to reclaim territory seized since Russia invaded in February 2022. Cluster munitions typically release large numbers of smaller bomblets that can kill indiscriminately over a wide area. Germany is one of 111 states party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, a pact that does not include the United States. Biden waived prohibitions around the munitions, just as his predecessor Donald Trump did in 2021 to allow the export of cluster munitions technology to South Korea. 'VERY SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION'Ukraine previously had urged U.S. lawmakers to press the Biden administration to approve sending cluster munitions.

Persons: Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden's, Sullivan, we've, Biden, Bradley, Antonio Guterres, Annalena Baerbock, Biden's, Donald Trump, Mykhailo Podolyak, Podolyak, Mike Stone, Nandita Bose, Steve Holland, Will Dunham, Grant McCool Organizations: United States, Pentagon, Russia, U.S . National Security, High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, Stryker, Human Rights Watch, Cluster Munitions, Republicans, U.S . House, Representatives Foreign, U.S, Army Tactical Missile, Munitions, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, U.S, Ukrainian, Germany, United States, Britain, South Korea, Russian

To help address that, Tokyo in April said it would offer like-minded countries military aid, including radars, that the officials said would help the Philippines plug defensive gaps. One, however, said the aid effort was a Japanese initiative and not anything the United States had pressed for. The Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs said it was not immediately able to comment on security aid from Japan or hosting Japanese troops. LOOSENING THE RULESThe scope of Japanese military aid is limited by a self-imposed ban on lethal equipment exports. But he said Japan and the United States are treading carefully in trilateral talks with the Philippines.

Persons: Read, Fumio, Katsutoshi Kawano, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Takeo Akiba, Eduardo Ano, Fumio Kishida, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Kishida, Kawano, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Marcos, Yusuke Ishihara, Tim Kelly, Sakura Murakami, Yukiko Toyoda, Neil Jerome Morales, Gerry Doyle Organizations: U.S, Marines, Warriors, Philippine Marine Corps, Japanese, Reuters, Washington, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs, Ukraine, Group, Seven, Self - Defence Forces, Staff, Japan's National Institute for Defense Studies, Thomson Locations: Philippine, Japan, South Korea, ”, Taguig City, Metro Manila, Philippines, TOKYO, Indonesia, Taiwan, Ukraine, East Asia, Tokyo, Pacific, China, Japanese, United States, Kyiv, Manila, Yonaguni, Britain, Australia

☆ North Korea fires two short-range missiles after warning of response to allied drills
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, June 15 (Reuters) - North Korea fired two short-range missiles off its east coast on Thursday, the South Korean military said, less than an hour after Pyongyang warned of an "inevitable" response to military drills staged earlier in the day by South Korean and U.S. troops. The latest action by North Korea came as U.S. President Joe Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, was in Tokyo for meetings with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts. The government was due to hold a National Security Council meeting, Kyodo news reported separately. North Korea's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions that have sanctioned the country. South Korea sued North Korea on Wednesday for $35 million in compensation for a liaison office that North Korea blew up in 2020, in a case highlighting the breakdown of ties between the neighbours as the North presses on with its weapons programmes.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Cho Tae, Takeo Akiba, Yoon Suk, Heekyong Yang, Josh Smith, Tim Kelly, John Stonestreet, Alex Richardson, Chizu Organizations: South Korean, Korean, South, National, National Security Council, Kyodo, North Korea's Ministry of National Defence, United Nations, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, Pyongyang, U.S, Tokyo, Japan, Hegura, Ishikawa prefecture, South Korea, Korea, Seoul

WASHINGTON, May 18 (Reuters) - China’s commerce minister will visit the United States next week for meetings with the commerce secretary and Washington’s top trade official, the spokesperson for China's embassy in Washington said on Thursday, as the U.S. seeks engagement with Beijing to salve damaged ties. A source familiar with planning for the meetings said that Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao will meet with Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in Washington next week before traveling to Detroit for a meeting of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) trade ministers. He will meet with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on the sidelines of that gathering, scheduled for May 25-26. Washington has expressed eagerness for high-level meetings with China in an effort to keep increasingly tense relations from veering toward conflict. Blinken, Raimondo, and U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have all expressed interest in visiting China.

☆ China unlikely to play peacemaker role in Ukraine war, Western officials and experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Dan De Luce | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A Ukrainian soldier controls a drone at a training camp during the Russia-Ukraine war in Donetsk, Ukraine, on May 11, 2023. The Biden administration and U.S. allies doubt China can play a decisive role in bringing an end to the war in Ukraine, given Beijing's tendency to play it safe in the diplomatic arena and its reluctance to alienate Russia, Western diplomats and former U.S. officials say. "I think they're appropriately skeptical of the role that China might actually play," Medeiros said. "And I have to say, until recently, it was very unclear whether China accepted that basic principle. China's position on the Ukraine conflict "is consistent and clear," said Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington.

☆ Sudan fighting resurges as UN envoy says ceasefire partly holding
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Khalid Abdelaziz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire beginning on Tuesday after negotiations mediated by the U.S. and Saudi Arabia. U.N. special envoy on Sudan Volker Perthes told the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday that the ceasefire "seems to be holding in some parts so far." The fighting has paralysed hospitals and other essential services, and left many people stranded in their homes with dwindling supplies of food and water. The U.N. humanitarian office (OCHA) said shortages of food, water, medicines and fuel were becoming "extremely acute", prices were surging and it had cut back operations for safety reasons. Since the fighting erupted, tens of thousands have left for neighbouring Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan.

The summit is the same week as major South Korea-U.S. military drills that routinely anger Pyongyang, and North Korea has already staged multiple missile launches - a backdrop for the message that Japan, South Korea and the United States need to close ranks. In November South Korea and Japan agreed to exchange real-time intelligence on North Korea's missile launches, which experts say will help both countries better track potential threats. "South Korea is already taking a side and entering the Cold War," said Kim Joon-hyung, a former chancellor of the Korean National Diplomatic Academy. Yoon said high-tech cooperation on supply chains between Japan and South Korea would contribute significantly to economic security. 'SHARED INTERESTS'Washington had pressed for reconciliation, but a State Department spokesperson said the recent arrangements were the result of bilateral discussions between Japan and South Korea.

☆ US must push China to be honest about COVID origins, US envoy says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns on Monday said Washington must push Beijing to be more honest about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. Burns' comments come after the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the U.S. Energy Department had concluded the pandemic likely arose from a Chinese laboratory leak, an assessment Beijing denies. The Energy Department did not respond to a request for comment. Four other U.S. agencies, along with a national intelligence panel, still judge that COVID-19 was likely the result of natural transmission, while two are undecided, the Wall Street Journal reported. "Certain parties should stop rehashing the 'lab leak' narrative, stop smearing China and stop politicizing the origins-tracing issue," foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.

WASHINGTON/BEIJING, Feb 27 (Reuters) - China must be more honest about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. ambassador to China said on Monday, after reports that the U.S. Energy Department concluded the pandemic likely arose from a Chinese laboratory leak. The Wall Street Journal first reported on Sunday that the U.S. Energy Department had concluded the pandemic likely arose from a Chinese laboratory leak, an assessment Beijing denies. The department made its judgment with "low confidence" in a classified intelligence report recently provided to the White House and key members of Congress, the Journal said, citing people who had read the intelligence report. President Joe Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said on Sunday there were a "variety of views in the intelligence community" on the pandemic's origins. "Certain parties should stop rehashing the 'lab leak' narrative, stop smearing China and stop politicizing the origins-tracing issue," foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.

The two-day meeting ended on Feb. 1 with the central bank raising its target interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, a return to a more standard rate hike size after a year of sequential three-quarter point and half-point increases. The Fed uses the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index in setting its 2% inflation target. Since the meeting, some Fed officials have acknowledged they had pushed to continue with larger half-point rate increases at the last meeting, while investors have boosted their own outlook for where the Fed may end up. Most do not see the Fed returning to larger half-point increases now that they have slowed. While the minutes released today are particularly dated, given the jobs and inflation numbers released since then, policymakers will update their views next month with new economic and interest rate projections issued after the Fed's March 21-22 meeting.

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