US-China trade war continues to intensify; Russia ready to withdraw from START-3

Russia ready to withdraw from Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty

President Vladimir Putin answers reporters on the sidelines of the Saint Petersburg economic forum. Photo: AFP

President Vladimir Putin announced on June 6 that Russia is ready to withdraw from the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START-3) with the United States. "If no one feels the need to extend START-3 (or New START), we will withdraw from the agreement," President Putin said at the Saint Petersburg economic forum, according to AFP.

“We have stressed a hundred times that we are ready to extend START-3, but the United States does not want to negotiate this issue with Russia. There is no official negotiation process. And by 2021 everything will be over,” the Kremlin chief noted.

The US-China trade war continues to escalate tensions

Chinese goods are loaded at a port in Long Beach, California, US on May 10, 2019. Photo: AFP/TTXVN

The US-China trade war has escalated to a new level after US President Donald Trump warned on June 6 that he would impose additional tariffs on at least $300 billion worth of Chinese goods. In response, China also declared that it would fight to the end if the US continued to escalate tensions.

Speaking at a press conference the same afternoon, Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng announced that China will take necessary retaliatory measures if the US decides to unilaterally escalate trade tensions.

Huawei reaches agreement to develop 5G in Russia on the sidelines of Putin-Xi Jinping summit

Representatives of Huawei and MTS at the signing ceremony of the 5G development agreement witnessed by President Xi Jinping and President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on June 5. Photo: Reuters

China's Huawei Technologies, seen as a security threat in the US, has signed a deal with Russian telecoms company MTS to develop a 5G network.

The agreement was signed on the sidelines of a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Moscow on June 5 (local time), according to AFP. The new agreement aims to “develop 5G technology and test fifth-generation networks in 2019-2020,” MTS said in a statement.

Israel again narrows fishing zone off Gaza Strip

Palestinian fishermen's fishing boat at the port of Gaza City on the Mediterranean Sea on May 10, 2019. Photo: AFP/VNA

Two days after easing restrictions on the fishing zone off the coast of the Gaza Strip, Israel on June 6 narrowed the scope of the zone in response to continued incendiary balloons being launched from the Palestinian territory into Israel.

The fishing zone off the Gaza Strip has been reduced from a maximum of 15 nautical miles to 10 nautical miles, according to an unnamed Israeli official. Meanwhile, an Israeli fire department spokesman said incendiary balloons flying from the Gaza Strip into Israel caused three fires on June 4.

African Union suspends Sudan's membership

Sudanese protesters gather in the capital Khartoum on May 19, 2019. Photo: AFP/TTXVN

On June 6, the African Union (AU) voted to suspend Sudan from all activities of the bloc until a civilian government is formed. The AU Peace and Security Council made the announcement after a meeting at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The decision comes after increased violence this week between Transitional Military Council (TMC) forces and protest groups demanding a transfer of the country's leadership.

On the same day, June 6, the Sudanese Ministry of Health confirmed that the number of people killed in violence against protesters was less than 100 as reported by protest groups and did not exceed 46 people.

Previously, protest groups accused the TMC of using violence to disperse a sit-in outside the Ministry of Defense headquarters on June 3, but the TMC denied the accusation.