US-China talks end; Former Israeli minister pleads guilty to spying for Iran
(Baonghean.vn) - Former Israeli minister pleads guilty to spying for Iran; US - China end negotiations; Russian military police patrol strategic Syrian city bordering Türkiye; Taliban gunmen control more than 30 villages in western Afghanistan... are the world's outstanding news in the past 24 hours.
Russian military police patrol strategic Syrian city bordering Türkiye
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| Russian military police convoy patrols along the streets of Manbij. Photo taken from video |
A Russian military police convoy entered Manbij at the request of Kurdish militia to support the group in the face of threats from Türkiye. Images released by Russian media showed several Tigr armored vehicles and military trucks with Russian flags, MP (military police) painted on them and flashing lights patrolling along the streets of Manbij.
Manbij is a strategic city on Syria’s northeastern border with Türkiye. The area has been controlled by the Kurdish militia of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) for years. However, after US President Donald Trump announced that he would withdraw all 2,000 troops from Syria, the Kurds asked Russia and the Syrian government to send troops there to help them counter the threat from Türkiye.
The SDF has been the US’s main partner in the fight against IS, but Türkiye sees the Kurdish militia as a threat and is determined to wipe them out. Türkiye is amassing troops and equipment along Syria’s northern border, ready to take over if the US withdraws its forces from the area.
US military could help Trump build border wall
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US soldiers erect barbed wire fences to stop migrants at the Mexican border in November 2018. Photo:Reuters. |
US President Donald Trump said on January 4 that he could use emergency powers to build a wall to stop immigration from the Mexican border without congressional approval, according to a report.Reuters.
Experts ofAFPPresident Trump, when using emergency powers, can mobilize financial and human resources from the US military to achieve the goal of building a wall along the border with Mexico.
However, experts also warn that using financial and human resources from the military to build a border wall could expose Trump to major legal challenges, especially from federal court judges who could rule to block the President's actions.
Former Israeli minister pleads guilty to spying for Iran
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| Former Israeli Energy Minister Gonen Segev is escorted to court in Jerusalem. Photo: Reuters |
Former Israeli Energy Minister Gonen Segev has admitted to spying for Iran for years and accepted an 11-year prison sentence. The Israeli Justice Ministry announced that Gonen Segev, who headed the Energy Ministry from 1995 to 1996, had signed a plea agreement in exchange for a reduced sentence.
SheetThe Times of IsraelAccording to the investigation agency, Mr. Segev contacted officials at the Iranian embassy in Nigeria in 2012 and began spying for Iran from then on. The Israeli domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet said the defendant met with Iranian intelligence officials many times and traveled to Tehran twice. Mr. Segev was provided with encrypted communication equipment by the Iranian side, then passed on a lot of information related to the energy sector, security locations in Israel and information about Israeli officials to Iran.
US-China trade negotiations end
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| US Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Ted McKinney (second from right) leaves a hotel in Beijing with members of the US negotiating team on January 7 - Photo: Reuters |
China's Foreign Ministry confirmed that trade talks with the US delegation in Beijing have concluded and will announce the results soon. The observed attitude of US negotiators suggests that it could be a favorable outcome for Washington. The first vice-ministerial-level talks between the two countries since the "ceasefire" were extended by a day longer than expected.
Although originally scheduled to take place only on January 7 and 8, the talks were extended to today, January 9, amid signs of progress on issues such as purchases of US agricultural products, energy commodities and increased access to the Chinese market.
Taliban gunmen control more than 30 villages in western Afghanistan
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| Afghan army soldiers in Badghis province. Photo: AFP/VNA |
Taliban militants have driven government forces out of 30 villages and strategic areas after a large-scale attack in the western province of Badghis, local officials said on January 9.
Both the Afghan Local Police (ALP) and pro-government militias have abandoned security checkpoints and more than 30 villages to Taliban fighters in Ab Kamari district of Badghis province, said Abdul Aziz Baik, a provincial council official.
8 European countries accept migrants rescued in the Mediterranean
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| Source: ansamed.info |
According to Italy's ANSA news agency, Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said the European Union (EU) has reached an agreement to take in 49 migrants who were rescued in the Mediterranean Sea in recent weeks and are still on two ships, the Sea Watch and the Sea Eye.
The migrants will be transferred to Maltese armed forces ships, which will then take them to eight European countries that have agreed to take them. “This will be done as soon as possible,” the Maltese prime minister said.
Eight European countries will receive these migrants, including Germany, France, Portugal, Ireland, Romania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Italy.
