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☆ Russia Voices Annoyance With Both Armenia and Azerbaijan
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Russia has protested to Azerbaijan over comments it made about weekend regional elections in areas of Ukraine claimed by Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday. She also accused Armenia of making "unacceptable and harmful" statements that were damaging to the prospects for a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan have risen in the past week, with each side accusing the other of building up troop concentrations near their borders. Armenia has accused Russia, which has maintained a peacekeeping force in the region since the last war in 2020, of failing to protect it against what it calls Azerbaijani aggression. The territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but is mostly populated by ethnic Armenians who broke away from Baku in a war in the 1990s.

Persons: Maria Zakharova, Zakharova, Filipp Lebedev, Mark Trevelyan, Gareth Jones Organizations: Reuters, Foreign, Russia Locations: Russia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Moscow, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Soviet Union, Baku

☆ Mel Tucker denies sexual harassment allegations in detailed statement
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nov 27, 2021; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Mel Tucker looks down during the second quarter against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Spartan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSeptember 12 - Suspended Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker released a lengthy statement through his lawyer Monday afternoon defending himself against allegations that he sexually harassed a rape survivor. Tucker, 51, is in his fourth season as head coach of the Spartans. His overall record at Michigan State is 20-14 after a 5-7 season in 2022. Defensive backs coach Harlon Barnett will serve as Michigan State's interim head coach in Tucker's absence, with former coach Mark Dantonio assisting as an associate head coach.

Persons: Mel Tucker, Raj Mehta, Tucker, Brenda Tracy, Tracy, Ms, Gretchen Whitmer, Whitmer, Harlon Barnett, Mark Dantonio Organizations: Michigan State Spartans, Penn State Nittany Lions, Spartan, USA, Michigan State, USA Today, University, Michigan, MSU, Spartans, Thomson Locations: East Lansing , Michigan, USA, Michigan

☆ Russians opened fire on a Ukrainian flag tied to balloons, revealing their position for a counterattack, Ukraine says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Ukrainian flag attached to helium balloons flew into occupied territory, Kyiv's military said. Russian soldiers tried to shoot it down but revealed their firing positions, an official said. "For several hours, the Ukrainian flag was flying over occupied Donetsk. I had a lot of messages from people living in the occupied territory, who told me they are waiting for the liberation of Donetsk." Donetsk City has been occupied by Russia since 2014 when fighting in eastern Ukraine began.

Persons: Vitalii Barabash, Barabash Organizations: Service, Ukrainian, Kyiv Independent, Euromaidan Press, Telegram, Donetsk, Guardian Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Ukrainian, Avdiyivka, Avdiivka, Russian, Donetsk City, Donetsk, Russia, Moscow, Luhansk, Kherson, Kyiv

☆ The Great College Pricing Sham
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( James S. Murphy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

I use quotation marks, because merit aid is granted to half the students at public colleges and 84% at private colleges. Today the average merit-aid discount at private colleges is $23,000 — leaving the student to cover the remaining $30,000 or $40,000. At four-year public colleges, tuition now accounts for 52% of operational revenue, versus 48% from state funding. To make college more accessible, we need to make greater public investments — at both the state and federal levels — in higher education. James S. Murphy is a higher education policy analyst at Education Reform Now.

Persons: Joe Biden, YouGov, Gen, Gen Zers, You'll, Pell Grant, Dominique Baker, —, Getty, Ben Sasse, who's, Sasse, David Feldman, William & Mary, Ford, Feldman, they're, Sandy Baum, It's, There's, Baum, They're, Josh Shapiro, Spencer Cox, shouldn't, James S, Murphy Organizations: Insider, Harvard, of California, Southern Methodist University, Ivy League, U.S . News, Honda, Porsche, University of Florida, McKinsey & Company, University of Oklahoma, University of Kentucky, Ford, Apple, Fordham, Appalachian, William &, Technology, West Virginia University, WVU, Urban Institute, Google, Reform, Twitter Locations: United States, Italian, Appalachian State, America, Pennsylvania, Utah

☆ Ukraine's drones rain leaflets on occupied territory telling its citizens to boycott Putin's 'election farce'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-10 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Resistance efforts have included blowing up a polling station and mass distributing leaflets via drones calling on people to ignore the elections. Russia is holding elections this weekend in occupied Ukrainian territories, including Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and Crimea, The Guardian reports. Interventions to sabotage the elections have included Ukraine's Security Service blowing up a polling station in Zaporizhzhia with drones. AdvertisementAdvertisement"Elections here ended prematurely," a Security Service of Ukraine source told the Kyiv Post. AdvertisementAdvertisementAt least 3,000 Ukrainians in the Zaporizhzhia region are said to be implicated in helping Russians with the pseudo-elections, The Kyiv Post cites from authorities.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Andriy Yusov Organizations: of Europe, Service, Kyiv, Guardian, Kyiv Independent, Ukraine's Security Service, Security Service, Armed Forces, National Resistance Center of, of, Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UN Charter, National Resistance Center, Main Intelligence Locations: Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Russia, Ukrainian, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Crimea, Russian, Kyiv, National Resistance Center of Ukraine, Tokmak, of Europe

☆ Ukraine war live updates: U.S. slams Russia’s ‘sham elections’ in occupied areas; Kyiv hits out at Elon Musk
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

The West has sharply criticized elections taking place in occupied areas of Ukraine over the weekend, with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken describing them as "nothing more than a propaganda exercise." Russian-installed authorities are holding elections in the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. The Kremlin is thought to be seeking to tighten its grip on the partly controlled territories it illegally annexed a year ago. The Russian embassy in the U.S. has reportedly defended the regional elections in occupied areas of Ukraine and accused Washington of meddling in its internal affairs. A Ukrainian official, meanwhile, slammed Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk for ordering his Starlink satellite communications network to be turned off near Crimea last year to thwart a Ukrainian attack on Russian warships.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Tesla, Elon Musk Organizations: U.S, SpaceX Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Russian, U.S, Washington, Crimea

“They just come and say ‘vote.’ So people vote,” Baska told CNN. “Here, when you buy a SIM card for your phone, you immediately get an SMS from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and United Russia Party,” Baska said. The text messages carry pro-Kremlin messaging, informing voters that “about 90% of voters are ready to vote for Yedianaya Rossiya (United Russia),” or that “United Russia is helping Zaporizhzhia region,” she added. Guerrilla activity by Ukrainian partisans has taken place but is more difficult to achieve now, Baska told CNN. ‘Nothing to do with democracy’Few residents in Melitopol are interested in the bogus elections taking place, Baska told CNN.

Persons: ”, Alexander Ermochenko, ” Baska, Yedianaya Rossiya, ’, Vladimir Putin’s, “, Jens Stoltenberg, Baska, Melitopol, …, Republic Denis Pushilin, Yuriy Sobolevskyi, ” Sobolevskyi Organizations: CNN, Communist, National Resistance Center, Ministry of Internal Affairs, United Russia Party, Kremlin, “, NRC, Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, of, NATO, Yale Humanitarian Research, United Russia, Russian, Russian Guard Locations: Melitopol, Ukrainian, Russian, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, United Russia, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Luhansk, Kyiv, of Europe, ”, Mariupol, Crimea, Republic

Political Cartoons View All 1148 Images“The Russian authorities are trying hard to pretend that everything is going according to plan, everything is fine. In the occupied regions, early voting kicked off last week as election officials went door to door or set up makeshift polling stations in public places to attract passersby. As a result, Moscow has maintained control of about 70% of the Kherson region. “It looks like the Russian authorities know the result (of the election) already,” Fyodorov said. In the end, said Gallyamov, the Russian analyst, Russian authorities will not get “anything good in terms of boosting their legitimacy” in the occupied regions.

Persons: Russia “, Abbas Gallyamov, ”, Gallyamov, Vladimir Putin, Putin, we’ve, ” Sergei, we’re, Konstantin, ” Kostantin, Weeks, Yevgeny Balitsky, “, Ivan Fyodorov, Fyodorov, ” Fyodorov, —, Pavlo Lysianskyi Organizations: Russian, Kyiv, of Europe, Kremlin, United, Communist Party, Liberal Democratic, Associated Press, AP, Eastern Human Rights Locations: TALLINN, Estonia, Ukraine, Moscow, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, “, Russia, United Russia, Russian, Zaporizhzhia, Siberia, Melitopol, Ukrainian

Sept 6 (Reuters) - Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY.N) has been accused in a new lawsuit of using fraudulent patents and other illegal tactics to maintain its monopoly on blockbuster blood cancer drug Pomalyst for years after it should have faced generic competition. A spokesperson for Bristol Myers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pomalyst is a top seller for Bristol Myers, bringing in nearly $3.5 billion out of $46.16 billion of its total revenue last year. The drug was developed by Celgene, a company acquired by Bristol Myers in 2019. The generic companies, which are also named as defendants in the lawsuit, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Persons: Pomalyst, Bristol Myers, Celgene, Brendan Pierson, Alexia Garamfalvi, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Bristol Myers Squibb, Louisiana, Pomalyst, Bristol, Celgene, U.S . Patent, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Aurobindo Pharma, Breckeridge Pharmaceutical, Natco Pharma, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, New York

☆ Putin taught a lesson for Russia's new school curriculum, which includes instructions on how to handle a Kalashnikov
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Putin held a Q&A with hand-picked Russian students at the start of the new school semester. The session didn't mention the Ukraine war, but included several pupils from the occupied territories. It comes as Russia overhauls its curriculum to include rifle training and the history of the conflict. The showcase lesson appears to be part of another effort to naturalize Russia's claims to Ukrainian territories, and the war more broadly, to Russians. AdvertisementAdvertisementRussia has placed an effective ban on maps that mark the occupied territories as Ukrainian and launched a brand new school curriculum.

Persons: Putin, Vladimir Putin, naturalize Russia's Organizations: Service, Russian, Kremlin, UN Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Russia's, Crimea, Russian, Luhansk, Melitopol, Donetsk, Kherson, Ukrainian, Kyiv

☆ Hong Kong Must Have Framework to Recognize Same-Sex Unions, Court Rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Derrick Bryson Taylor | More About Derrick Bryson Taylor | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Mr. Sham, who is gay, married his partner in New York in 2013, court documents showed. As part of Tuesday’s ruling, the court also unanimously dismissed appeals on the constitutional right to same-sex marriage and whether the lack of recognition of foreign same-sex marriages violated rights. “This time, the court case is about the so-called wholesale recognition of same sex relationships,” he said by phone. Kelley Loper, the director of the Human Rights Program at the University of Hong Kong, said that the ruling was a “step forward” for L.G.B.T.Q. “I’d say it’s more than a small victory in Hong Kong,” Ms. Loper said.

Persons: Jimmy Sham, Sham, Yiu, ”, Kelley Loper, “, Ms, Loper Organizations: Associated Press, Mr, Chinese University of Hong, Human, University of Hong Locations: New York, Hong Kong, Chinese University of Hong Kong, University of Hong Kong, L.G.B.T.Q

☆ Texas Senate declines to toss impeachment charges against Republican Paxton
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Brad Brooks | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks ahead of a rally held by former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Robstown, Texas, U.S., October 22, 2022. His fate rests with the 31-member state Senate, which has the power to remove him after a trial that opened on Tuesday on 16 of those articles of impeachment. Senators rejected a motion to dismiss all the charges by a vote of 24-6 and voted against additional motions to throw out individual charges. The state Senate's impeachment rules committee set aside four charges involving Paxton's private business dealings that House charges said were obstruction of justice and false statements in official records. At the end of the trial on the 16 remaining charges, the Senate could dismiss those four charges or hold a separate trial on them.

Persons: Ken Paxton, Donald Trump, Go Nakamura, Paxton, Trump's, Nate Paul, Paxton's, Angela, Joe Biden, Jonathan Stickland, Bob Stein, Stein, Cal Jillson, Jillson, Brad Brooks, Will Dunham, Donna Bryson, Andy Sullivan Organizations: U.S, REUTERS, The Texas Senate, Texas, Republicans, FBI, Democratic, Senate, Republican, Trump, Rice University, Congress, Southern Methodist University, Thomson Locations: Texas, Robstown , Texas, U.S, Paxton, Longmont , Colorado

☆ Prosecution urges conviction in impeachment trial of Texas Republican Paxton
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Brad Brooks | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks ahead of a rally held by former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Robstown, Texas, U.S., October 22, 2022. Paxton entered pleas of not guilty as an impeachment trial spearheaded by his fellow Republicans got underway. Republican state Representative Andrew Murr, delivering the opening statement for the prosecution, urged senators to remove Paxton from a post he has held since 2015. The last impeachment trial of a statewide office-holder in Texas was held in 1917. At the end of the trial, the Senate could dismiss those four charges or hold a separate trial on them.

Persons: Ken Paxton, Donald Trump, Go Nakamura, Ken Paxton's, Paxton, Tony Buzbee, Paxton's, Andrew Murr, Mr, he's, Murr, Trump's, I've, Buzbee, Angela, Trump, Joe Biden, Nate Paul, Brad Brooks, Will Dunham, Donna Bryson, Andy Sullivan Organizations: U.S, REUTERS, Republicans, Republican, Democratic, Senators, FBI, Senate, Thomson Locations: Texas, Robstown , Texas, U.S, Longmont , Colorado

Five judges from Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal handed down their decision on Tuesday, following years of legal battles challenging the government’s refusal to let gay people get married or form a civil union partnership. Hong Kong does not allow or grant same-sex marriage or unions, even though homosexuality has been decriminalized in the city since 1991. Jerome Yau, co-founder of Hong Kong Marriage Equality, said he is “cautiously optimistic” as he awaits further details to be hammered out. Polls in Hong Kong have shown growing support for same-sex equality among the public, especially younger people. Raymond Chan Chi-chuen, the first member of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council to come out as gay, is a co-defendant in Sham’s case.

Persons: ”, Kin Cheung, Hong, Jerome Yau, “, Jimmy Sham, Felix Wong, Sham, ” Sham, Hong Kong –, Raymond Chan Chi, Xi Jinping Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Hong, Appeal, CNN, Parade, Civil, Prosecutors, Hong Kong’s Legislative Council Locations: Hong Kong, Hong Kong’s, Asia, Taiwan, Nepal, Beijing, New York, China, Shanghai

☆ Live updates: Moscow holds elections in illegally occupied parts of Ukraine; Drone strikes near Russian nuclear power plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Regional elections began in Russian-occupied began parts of Ukraine Thursday as authorities seek to cement Moscow's control of what it calls its "new territories." The voting, which runs until Sept. 10, is being held in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, four Ukrainian regions claimed by Russia since its full-scale invasion. A Ukrainian official described the polling as a "sham." British defense company BAE Systems is establishing a local entity in Ukraine and has penned deals with its government to help ramp up supplies of weapons and equipment. Elsewhere, a Ukrainian drone attacked a town in western Russia, close to one of the country's biggest nuclear power stations, a Russian official said Friday.

Organizations: BAE Systems Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Russia, Ukrainian

☆ Fortescue founder toys with reverse greenwashing
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Antony Currie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

First the $43 billion iron ore miner’s CEO, Fiona Hick, left abruptly on Sunday, barely six months after joining. But in trying to shrug off the mounting exodus, founder and Executive Chair Andrew Forrest, also known as Twiggy, introduces a new risk: reverse greenwashing. His approach to the energy transition is forcing a lot of change on the company in short order. That process surely would have involved rigorous discussions to ensure they were on board with Forrest’s goals and methods. That makes his absolutist twist to climate spin as unhelpful as the more traditional form of greenwashing.

Persons: Oscar Wilde, Fortescue, Fiona Hick, Christine Morris, Guy Debelle, Andrew Forrest, Twiggy, Forrest, Hick, Morris, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Fortescue Metals, Reserve Bank of Australia, Fortescue Future Industries, Australian, Thomson Locations: MELBOURNE, Tivan

Participants march with a banner with rainbow colours during the annual pride parade in Hong Kong, China, November 7, 2015. "Hong Kong has a real opportunity to take the lead here and give a clear message," said Gigi Chao, the vice chair of listed Hong Kong property firm Cheuk Nang Holdings and a prominent gay rights advocate in Asia. "WAKE UP"Business groups in Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan have become increasingly vocal in making the case that Asia's leading economies must do more to encourage diversity. A poll this year by Kyodo news agency of just over 1,500 people showed that nearly 70 percent supported same-sex marriage. While corporates rarely lobby Asian governments directly on LGBTQ rights, activists say they show their support through sponsorship of LGBTQ events and Pride-themed marketing.

Persons: Bobby Yip, Janet Ledger, Jimmy Sham, Asia's, Gigi Chao, Chao, Kida, Kiyong Shim, Dyson, Nomura, Kathy Teo, Singapore's, they're, Teo, Revolut, Jessie Pang, Justin Fung, Xinghui, Hyonhee Shin, Hyunsu Yim, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, Kong's, Community Business, Gay Games, Nang Holdings, Reuters, American Chamber of Commerce, Fortune, Kyodo, Liberal Democratic Party, EY, FINANCE, Rights Watch, Gallup, WeWork, Standard Chartered Bank ., Google, IBM, Thomson Locations: Hong Kong, China, HONG KONG, TOKYO, Tokyo, Singapore, Asia, Taiwan, Nepal, India, South Korea, York, Japan, EY Japan, Korea, Seoul, Standard Chartered Bank . Singapore, Xinghui Kok

☆ African leaders work on response to Gabon military coup ousting President Bongo
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, the current chair of West African bloc ECOWAS, said on Wednesday he was working closely with other African leaders to contain what he called a "contagion of autocracy" spreading across Africa. Senior officers in Gabon announced their coup before dawn on Wednesday, shortly after an election body declared that Bongo had comfortably won a third term after Saturday's vote. The coups also showed the limited leverage of African powers once the military takes over. Military leaders elsewhere have also resisted international pressure, such as in Mali. The African Union, former colonial power France, the United States, Canada and Britain have all expressed concern about the coup.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Bongo, Bola Tinubu, General Brice Oligui Nguema, Omar, Josep Borrell Organizations: Economic, Central African States, West, ECOWAS, Military, African Union Locations: Gabon, West, Central Africa, Nigerian, Africa, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Libreville, France, United States, Canada, Britain, European

installed for the upcoming regional elections planned by the Russian-installed authorities, in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in Donetsk, Russian-controlled Ukraine, August 12, 2023. Russia does not fully control any of the four regions where the votes are being held - Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson. Ukrainian officials say the elections are also illegal and show why it is impossible to hold any peace talks with Moscow until Russia withdraws all its troops from Ukrainian territory. The governors are all running with Russian President Vladimir Putin's endorsement having joined the Kremlin's United Russia bloc with fanfare in recent months and they face only nominal opposition. "They (Russian-installed officials) are going to walk from apartment to apartment, as they did before, talking to people.

Persons: Donbas, Alexander, Moscow's, Vladimir Putin's, Vadym Boichenko, Yevgeny Balitsky, Putin, Felix Light, Felix Hoske, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: REUTERS, Ukraine, United Nations, Assembly, Kremlin's United, Reuters, Kremlin, United, Thomson Locations: Russian, Russia, Ukraine, Donetsk, Ukraine Russia, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Crimea, Moscow, Kremlin's United Russia, Mariupol, Ukrainian, Kyiv, MOSCOW, United Russia

☆ Gabon awaits next move from junta after coup ousts President Bongo
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Gaetan M-Antchouwet Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreDAKAR, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Gabon on Thursday awaited the next move by its new military junta one day after it overthrew the government, named a new leader and detained long-standing President Ali Bongo in his residence. The coup is the eighth in West and Central Africa since 2020, and the second - after Niger - in as many months. Gabon, an OPEC member, is a major oil and manganese producer whose ousted president also made strides to protect vast Gabon's pristine forests and endangered elephants. But Bongo's popularity had worn thin amid claims of corruption, sham elections, and a failure to spend more of Gabon's oil revenues on the country's poor. Bongo took over in 2009 on the death of his father Omar, who had ruled since 1967.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Gaetan M, Bongo, Omar, Edward McAllister, Anait Miridzhanian, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Military, United Nations, African, African Union and France, Thomson Locations: Port Gentil, Gabon, DAKAR, West, Central Africa, Niger, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, Libreville, African Union

☆ US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo urges American businesses to keep investing in China (Analysis)
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Michelle Toh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Hong Kong CNN —US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo urged American businesses to keep investing in China on Wednesday, even after saying some US firms had called the world’s second biggest economy “uninvestable.”Speaking at an American Chamber of Commerce event in Shanghai, the secretary encouraged companies to continue expanding in the country. “The message is to continue to do what you’re doing,” Raimondo told executives. Eric Zheng, president of AmCham Shanghai, told CNN after Raimondo’s appearance that he had not been hearing the term “uninvestable” from businesses on the ground. “In order to be globally competitive, they have to be in this market despite all the challenges.”Warm wordsRaimondo is the first US commerce secretary to visit China in five years. Andy Wong/APThe issue highlights the tightrope the commerce secretary is walking.

Persons: Gina Raimondo, ” Raimondo, Raimondo, Aly Song, ”, Wang Wenbin, Li Qiang, Antony Blinken, Janet Yellen, John Kerry, Eric Zheng, Andy Wong, Wang Wentao, Lifeng, Yellen, Foreign busineses, Chen Jining, Nazak Nikakhtar, Trump, Zheng, “, —, Jadyn Sham, Alex Stambaugh Organizations: Hong Kong CNN — US, American, of, Reuters, Shanghai, Biden, CNN, Covid, US Commerce Department, US Department of Commerce, Foreign, Department, Department of Commerce Locations: Hong Kong, China, Shanghai, Beijing, United States, decouple, “

☆ Analysis: With Gabon, Africa's coup wave shows little sign of stopping
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Edward Mcallister | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

If successful, Wednesday's coup in Gabon would be the eighth in West and Central Africa in three years. Widespread condemnation, or the threat of military intervention, have done little to unseat coup leaders in Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Niger and Chad since 2020. Minutes before the coup announcement, Gabon's election authority declared him the emphatic victor of Saturday's election. I am calling on you to make noise, to make noise, to make noise. The triggers for the Gabon coup were different to those in the Sahel countries further north, where insecurity caused by Islamist militants has done much to sway public opinion.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Bongo, Gabon's, Maja Bovcon, Verisk, Omar, Mohamed Bazoum, Paul Biya, Denis Sassou Nguesso, Ryan Cummings, Edward McAllister, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, REUTERS Acquire, London, African Union, Thomson Locations: Gabon, DAKAR, West, Central Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Niger, Chad, Africa, United States, France, Cameroon, Congo Republic, South Africa

☆ Jamshid Sharmahd: US envoy meets family of German-Iranian sentenced to death in Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( Alex Stambaugh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A US envoy for Iran met on Friday with the family of Iranian-German national Jamshid Sharmahd, who has been imprisoned and sentenced to death in Iran. He was sentenced to death last February for “corruption on Earth”, which sparked widespread condemnation from human rights groups and Western governments. Iranian-German national and US resident Jamshid Sharmahd attends his trial at the Revolutionary Court in Tehran on Feb. 6, 2022. Koosha Mahshid Falahi/Mizan News Agency/APIn a statement following the decision, the European Union said Iranian authorities denied consular access to Sharmahd, despite his German nationality. In response to Paley’s statement, Gazelle Sharmahd urged the US government to help free her father.

Persons: Jamshid Sharmahd, “, Jamshid Sharmahd’s, Abram Paley, Sharmahd’s, Shayan, Gazelle, ”, Koosha Mahshid, Vedant Patel, Gazelle Sharmahd Organizations: CNN, Amnesty International, Iranian, European Union, Revolutionary, Mizan News Agency, AP, US State Department, State, Biden Administration Locations: Iran, German, Shiraz, Western, United States, Tehran

Washington has been trying to encourage negotiations between President Nicolas Maduro and the political opposition over elections in Venezuela and other demands. U.S. President Joe Biden's government is prepared to provide Venezuela sanctions relief if the country moves to restore democracy, the White House said on Wednesday. A new round of talks began last November in Mexico including Maduro's representatives, the opposition and U.S. officials, but have shown little progress. The White House declined to comment on the oil sanctions reframing proposal. MORE OIL FOR MORE PEOPLEThe U.S. is this time considering a specific offer to reframe oil sanctions on the country so crude buyers in Europe and other regions also can resume imports of Venezuelan oil in a structured, organized way, the people said.

Persons: Nicolas Maduro, Joe Biden's, Jorge Rodriguez, Biden, Donald Trump, Dinorah Figuera, Rodriguez, Marianna Parraga, Vivian Sequera, Mayela, Timothy Gardner, Diane Craft, Berkrot Organizations: Chevron Corp, U.S, White, National Security Council, U.S . State Department, National Assembly, Mayela Armas, Thomson Locations: CARACAS, WASHINGTON, American, Washington, Venezuela, U.S, United States, Mexico, Europe, China, Iran, Russia, Houston, Caracas

☆ US FDA panel votes against use of Medtronic's blood pressure treatment device
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The same panel on Tuesday voted in favor of rival ReCor's device for use in a surgery called renal denervation in patients whose high blood pressure cannot be controlled by drugs. Separately, while all panel members voted the device was safe to use, 6 of 13 voted against its effectiveness. Japan-based Otsuka Holdings' (4578.T) unit ReCor's device was shown to provide a benefit in lowering blood pressure in clinical trials. Medtronic's device helped to lower blood pressure at the doctor's clinic but not at home, which is considered a more accurate measure of blood pressure monitoring. The company was seeking the health regulator's nod for the device indicated for patients whose hypertension, or high blood pressure, cannot be controlled with drugs.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Jason Weidman, Sriparna Roy, Krishna Chandra Eluri Organizations: Food and Drug Administration, FDA, REUTERS, U.S . Food, Wednesday, Otsuka Holdings, Thomson Locations: White Oak , Maryland, U.S, Japan, Europe, Bengaluru

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