Russian official suspected of spying for the US; UK House of Commons 'explodes' before closing time
(Baonghean.vn) - Russia finds out an official suspected of spying for the US; The US military will take strong action against the Taliban in Afghanistan; The British House of Commons "explodes" before closing time; Japan may have to dump radioactive water into the sea... are the world's top news in the past 24 hours.
Russia finds official suspected of spying for the US
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There are currently many different assessments about the level of information that the spy in the Russian government provided to the US. Photo: Reuters |
After a leaked report by CNN, it was determined that the American spy in the Russian government could be Oleg Smolenkov - a high-ranking official in the Russian President's Office. Accordingly, Oleg Smolenkov disappeared with his wife and 3 children on June 14, 2017, on the pretext of going on vacation in Montenegro. After that, no one saw them return to Russia.
The Washington Post real estate section also reported a $925,000 home purchase in Smolenkov's name in Stafford, Virginia. There are varying estimates of how much information Smolenkov possessed. One source said he only did logistics work related to shopping, organizing business trips, and other miscellaneous tasks assigned by his superiors.
North Korea launched two projectiles toward the Sea of Japan
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A test launch of the Pukkuksong-2 missile. Photo: KCNA |
North Korea fired two unidentified projectiles into the sea off its east coast early on September 10, the South Korean military said, just hours after North Korea proposed resuming nuclear talks with the United States.
The projectiles were launched from South Pyongan Province, north of Pyongyang, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said, without providing further details on their flight range or maximum altitude. South Korea is closely monitoring the situation and maintaining a state of readiness.
British House of Commons "explodes" before closing time
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| Opposition lawmakers hold protest papers in the conference room in the early morning of September 10. Photo: Twitter |
In the final minutes before the British parliament closed, a group of opposition lawmakers present in the conference room held up pieces of paper with the word “Gagged,” an act of protest against Prime Minister Johnson’s decision to close parliament, according to the newspaper.The GuardianBy the time parliament returns, the British government will have just two weeks to complete Brexit. Prime Minister Johnson has affirmed that he will not continue to delay but will find every way to reach a new agreement with the EU in the coming days.
The US military will take strong action against the Taliban in Afghanistan.
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| US military forces in Afghanistan. Photo: Reuters |
President Donald Trump announced the end of peace talks with the Taliban while the US military is likely to intensify its campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan. Previously, the White House boss canceled secret peace talks with the Taliban on September 8 at Camp David, Maryland because an American soldier and 11 others were killed in a suicide bombing by the Taliban in the capital Kabul on September 5, according to Reuters.
On the same day, the head of the US Central Command, General Kenneth McKenzie, announced that the military was likely to intensify its military campaign against the Taliban, but did not give details. Mr. McKenzie also condemned the Taliban for negotiating with the US while simultaneously carrying out a series of attacks in Afghanistan. "We certainly will not sit idly by while the Taliban continue to attack," General McKenzie warned during a visit to Bagram Air Base in northeastern Afghanistan.
Japan may have to dump radioactive water into the sea
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| Tanks containing radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Photo: Reuters |
Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) is facing the possibility of having to dump radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean because it has run out of space. Japanese Environment Minister Yoshiaki Harada said on September 10: "The only option is to pump it into the sea to dilute it. The government will discuss this issue, but I would like to express my personal opinion."
In a separate press conference, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the remarks were Harada's own opinion. Tokyo officials are still waiting for a report from a panel of experts before making a final decision on how to handle the contaminated water.
Tepco has collected more than 1 million tons of water used to cool nuclear fuel cores since the Fukushima plant was destroyed by an earthquake and tsunami in 2011. The company said it will run out of storage space by 2022, but Harada did not specify how much water would be released into the Pacific Ocean.
