Author: Matthew Lee
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Trump to welcome freed Korean Americans’ return to US
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is promising “quite a scene” when three Korean Americans detained in North Korea return to the mainland U.S. after more than a year in prison, their freedom a bonus from the warming of relations between the longtime adversaries. Despite a middle-of-the-night landing Thursday at the Washington-area Joint Base Andrews, Trump…
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Trump threatens Syria strike, cancels summit travel
WASHINGTON — After threatening a military strike against Syria, President Donald Trump on Tuesday cancelled plans to travel to South America later this week, choosing to stay in the United States to manage the response to an apparent chemical weapons attack. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Tuesday that Trump will not attend the…
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US accuses Russia of ongoing operation to hack energy grid
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration accused Russia on Thursday of a concerted, ongoing operation to hack and spy on the U.S. energy grid and other critical infrastructure, and separately imposed sanctions on Russian officials for alleged high-tech interference in the 2016 American presidential election. U.S. national security officials said the FBI, the Homeland Security Department…
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Trump hands nuke deal ‘last chance,’ waives Iran sanctions
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday delivered an ultimatum to America’s European allies to fix the “terrible flaws” in the Iran nuclear deal, or he’ll pull the U.S. out in a few months’ time. Trump made the threat as he extended waivers of key economic sanctions on Iran, keeping the accord alive at least…
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Trump declares Jerusalem Israeli capital, smashing US policy
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump shattered decades of unwavering U.S. neutrality on Jerusalem Wednesday, declaring the sorely divided holy city as Israel’s capital and sparking frustrated Palestinians to cry out that he had destroyed already-fragile Mideast hopes for peace. Defying dire, worldwide warnings, Trump insisted that after repeated peace failures it was past time for…
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Trump forges ahead on Jerusalem-as-capital despite warnings
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital on Wednesday despite intense Arab, Muslim and European opposition to a move that would upend decades of U.S. policy and risk potentially violent protests. Trump will instruct the State Department to begin the multi-year process of moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to…
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Officials: U.S. captures key militant in Benghazi attack
WASHINGTON — U.S. officials say special operations forces have captured a militant who was instrumental in the attack on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya. The attack resulted in the death of the American ambassador to the country. The officials say U.S. commandos captured the man in Libya and are transporting him back to…
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Trump keeps US in Iran nuke deal, tells Congress to fix it
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump angrily accused Iran of violating the landmark 2015 international nuclear accord, blaming the Iranians for a litany of sinister behavior and hitting their main military wing with anti-terror penalties. But Trump, breaking his campaign pledge to rip up the agreement, did not pull the U.S. out or re-impose nuclear sanctions.…
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Tillerson denies he weighed resigning or called boss ‘moron’
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Rex Tillerson declared Wednesday he never considered resigning as President Donald Trump’s top diplomat, disputing what he called “erroneous” reports that he wanted to step down earlier this year. After pointedly refusing to answer if he called the president a “moron,” Tillerson had a spokeswoman deny he used such language.…
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AP sources: US cuts embassy staff as mysterious attacks resume, urges no travel to Cuba
WASHINGTON — The United States is warning Americans against visiting Cuba and ordering more than half of U.S. personnel to leave the island, senior officials said Friday, in a dramatic response to what they described as “specific attacks” on diplomats. The decision deals a blow to already delicate ties between the U.S. and Cuba, longtime…