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Jumat, 29 Mei 2020

Trump says terminating US relationship with World Health Organization over COVID-19 - CNA

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Friday (May 29) said he is terminating the US relationship with the World Health Organization over its handling of the coronavirus, saying the WHO had essentially become a puppet organization of China.

Appearing in the White House Rose Garden, Trump went ahead with repeated threats to eliminate American funding for the group, which amounts to several hundred million dollars a year.

Trump said the WHO had failed to make reforms to the organization that the president had demanded in a May 18 letter to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. That letter had given the WHO 30 days to commit to reforms.

At his Rose Garden appearance, Trump tied the WHO closely with China, where the coronavirus originated.

He said Chinese officials "ignored their reporting obligations" about the virus to the WHO and pressured the WHO to "mislead the world" when the virus was first discovered by Chinese authorities.

"China has total control over the World Health Organization despite only paying US$40 million per year compared to what the United States has been paying which is approximately US$450 million a year. We have detailed the reforms that it must make and engaged with them directly but they have refused to act," said Trump.

"Because they have failed to make the requested and greatly needed reforms, we will be today terminating our relationship with the World Health Organization and redirecting those funds to other worldwide and deserving urgent global public health needs," he said.

Cutting the US contribution could have global implications as the WHO is involved in responding to the pandemic, which has hit dozens of countries.

Trump has long questioned the value of the United Nations and scorned the importance of multilateralism as he focuses on an "America First" agenda. Since taking office, Trump has quit the UN Human Rights Council, the UN cultural agency UNESCO, a global accord to tackle climate change and the Iran nuclear deal.

The World Health Organization is a UN specialized agency - an independent international body that works with the United Nations. The WHO did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump's decision.

"We have consistently called for all states to support WHO," said a spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres when asked about Trump's decision.

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2020-05-29 20:23:50Z
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Trump strips Hong Kong privileges, curbs students in volley on China - CNA

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said on Friday (May 29) he would strip several of Hong Kong's special privileges with the United States and bar some Chinese students from US universities in anger over Beijing's bid to exert control in the financial hub.

In a day of concerted action, the United States and Britain also raised alarm at the UN Security Council over a controversial new law for Hong Kong, angering Beijing which said that the discussion had no place at the world body.

In an announcement at the White House that Trump had teased for a day, the US president attacked China over its treatment of Hong Kong, saying it was "diminishing the city's long-standing and proud status."

"This is a tragedy for the people of Hong Kong, the people of China and indeed the people of the world," Trump said.

Trump also said he was terminating the US relationship with the World Health Organization, which he has accused of pro-China bias in its management of the coronavirus crisis.

But Trump was light on specifics and notably avoided any personal criticism of President Xi Jinping, with whom he has boasted of having a friendship even as the two powers feud over a rising range of issues.

"I am directing my administration to begin the process of eliminating policy that gives Hong Kong different and special treatment," Trump said.

"This will affect the full range of agreements, from our extradition treaty to our export controls on dual-use technologies and more, with few exceptions," he said.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday told Congress that the Trump administration would no longer consider Hong Kong to be separate under US law, but it was up to Trump to spell out the consequences.

China this week pressed ahead on a law that would ban subversion and other perceived offences against Chinese rule in Hong Kong, which was rocked by months of massive pro-democracy protests last year.

US RESTRICTS STUDENTS

In one move that could have far-reaching consequences, Trump said he would issue a proclamation to block the entry into the United States of some Chinese graduate students "who we have identified as potential security risks."

"For years, the government of China has conducted elicit espionage to steal our industrial secrets, of which there are many," Trump said.

Pompeo earlier said that the measure was not aimed at all Chinese students but rather the students with links to the communist state.

The move will likely draw criticism not only from China but from universities, which rely increasingly on tuition from foreign students and have already been hit hard by the COVID-19 shutdown.

China has been the top source of foreign students to the United States for the past decade with nearly 370,000 Chinese at US universities, including at the undergraduate level, in the 2018/2019 academic year, according to a trade group.

Beijing earlier retaliated by expelling US journalists after the United States took its own measure to curb Chinese staff in the country from its state-run media.

Critics say Trump has been eager to fan anger at China over COVID-19 to deflect attention from his own handling of the pandemic that has killed more than 100,000 people in the United States, the highest death toll of any country.

CLASH AT UN

The United States and Britain earlier in the day raised the topic of Hong Kong at the Security Council, where China wields a veto - making any formal session, let alone action concerning the financial hub, impossible.

But the United States and Britain said the city's autonomy, guaranteed by Beijing in a handover agreement that was registered at the United Nations, was of "legitimate international concern" and raised it in an informal, closed-door videoconference where China cannot block the agenda.

"The United States is resolute, and calls upon all UN members states to join us in demanding that the PRC immediately reverse course and honour its international legal commitments to this institution and to the Hong Kong people," said US Ambassador Kelly Craft, referring to the People's Republic of China.

China denounced the move as interference, saying that the Hong Kong law did not fall under the mandate of the Council to maintain international security and peace.

China's ambassador to the United Nations, Zhang Jun, urged the United States and Britain "to immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs."

"Any attempt to use Hong Kong to interfere in China's internal matters is doomed to fail," warned a statement from China's UN mission.

"There was no consensus, no formal discussion in the Security Council, and the US and the UK's move came to nothing," it said.

Britain has separately promised to improve the rights of British National (Overseas) passport holders - a status offered to many Hong Kong residents - if China moves ahead on the security law

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2020-05-29 19:51:14Z
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White House dares Twitter in war over Trump tweets - Yahoo Singapore News

US President Donald Trump (pictured May 28, 2020) has more than 80 million followers and uses tweets daily to announce policies, attack opponents and comment on breaking news

The White House thumbed its nose at Twitter on Friday by reposting a President Donald Trump tweet that the social media giant had just taken the unprecedented step of hiding, because it violated the platform's rules against "glorifying violence."

The tit-for-tat marked a new escalation in the row between Twitter and Trump, who has more than 80 million followers and uses tweets daily to announce policies, attack opponents and comment on breaking news.

Twitter concluded that Trump fell afoul of its policies with a late-night tweet on violent anti-police protests in Minneapolis, when he called protesters "THUGS" and warned of military intervention.

"When the looting starts, the shooting starts," Trump tweeted.

Twitter said his words were "glorifying violence" and hid the post, although readers could still click through to get access.

In response, the official White House account called Twitter's bluff by retweeting the same post. This time, Twitter responded by saying that while it violated its rules, the company "determined that it may be in the public's interest for the Tweet to remain accessible."

The White House later defended Trump's tweet, saying, "The President did not glorify violence. He clearly condemned it."

And Trump's social media director and Twitter feed manager, Dan Scavino, had his own response.

"Twitter is full of shit -- more and more people are beginning to get it," he wrote on Twitter.

The latest spat came a day after Trump signed an executive order in the Oval Office seeking to transform the way social media companies are regulated. That followed Trump's fury over Twitter tagging two of his tweets with fact checks, which was also an unprecedented measure.

Trump claims that the platform, where he dwarfs the presence of his Democratic rival Joe Biden for the November presidential election, is biased against him.

One immediate result of the blow-up between the social media-savvy president and the high-profile company has been to knock the coronavirus pandemic and recently reached toll of 100,000 dead Americans out of the headlines.

It also ties in with one of Trump's major reelection themes: that despite being a billionaire White House incumbent with a Republican majority in the Senate, he is an outsider fighting a left-wing establishment.

- End to self-regulation? -

Trump's executive order seeks to remove social media platforms' decades-long freedom from liability for content posted. Instead of being allowed to self-regulate, this would treat the companies more like traditional publishers, open to government regulation and court challenges over false or harmful material.

Trump told reporters at the White House he acted because big tech firms "have had unchecked power to censor, restrict, edit, shape, hide, alter any form of communication between private citizens or large public audiences."

"We can't let this continue to happen," Trump said.

Ironically, his order could spur companies like Twitter to impose stricter lines for users, eventually curbing social media firebrands like Trump himself, who regularly goes online to insult people and support conspiracy theories.

How much will change in the near term is unclear, given the legal and political challenges facing Trump's move.

Critics say Trump has no authority to regulate private internet operators or change the law, known as Section 230, which backers say has allowed online platforms like Facebook and Twitter to flourish.

The American Civil Liberties Union called Trump's order "a blatant and unconstitutional threat to punish social media companies that displease the president."

Eric Goldman, director of the High-Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University, said the order was "more about political theater than about changing the law."

The order "is not legally supportable -- it flies in the face of more than 900 court decisions," Goldman said.

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2020-05-29 14:53:00Z
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China sanctions not solution to Hong Kong crisis: European Union - CNA

BRUSSELS: The European Union said on Friday (May 29) that China's imposition of a security law on Hong Kong had damaged ties with Beijing, but that imposing sanctions would not solve the crisis.

"The EU expresses its grave concern at the steps taken by China on May 28, which are not in conformity with its international commitments," EU top diplomat Josep Borrell said, on behalf of 27 member states.

"EU relations with China are based on mutual respect and trust. This decision further calls into question China's will to uphold its international commitments," he said, after talks with foreign ministers.

Asked whether Brussels might threaten sanctions after the new law was approved, Borrell said: "I don't think that sanctions are the way to solve problems in China."

READ: Hong Kong government warns removing US special status is 'double-edged sword'

Borrell said that only one of the member states - he did not say which - had raised the issue of possible sanctions, and added that plans to hold an EU-China summit in Germany later this year were not in question.

China's President Xi Jinping is due to meet the EU's 27 leaders in Leipzig in September. Borrell said the timetable of the meeting might yet change due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The cautious EU statement came after the US, Britain, Canada and Australia issued stern criticism of the planned law, which would punish secession and subversion of state power in Hong Kong.

Chinese security agencies will also be allowed to operate openly in Hong Kong, which has been an autonomous territory under its own basic law within China under the terms of its handover from Britain in 1997.

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the UK will improve the rights of British National (Overseas) passport holders - a status offered to many Hong Kong residents - if China goes ahead.

And the United States has revoked the special status conferred on Hong Kong under its own diplomatic rules, paving the way for the territory to be stripped of trading and economic privileges.

READ: China faces mounting pressure over Hong Kong security law

Brussels did not go so far, but Borrell nevertheless stressed that it could not be business as usual.

"We want also to stress that our relationship with China are based on mutual respect and trust ... but this decision calls this into question," Borrell said.

"And I think that we will have to raise the issue in our continued dialogue with China."

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2020-05-29 13:41:03Z
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China braces for global fallout over Hong Kong national security law - South China Morning Post

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China braces for global fallout over Hong Kong national security law South China Morning PostView Full coverage on Google News
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2020-05-29 13:00:17Z
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Twitter hides Donald Trump tweet about Minneapolis protests for 'glorifying violence' - CNA

WASHINGTON: Twitter hid a tweet from President Donald Trump on Friday (May 29), accusing him of breaking its rules by "glorifying violence" in a message that said looters at protests in Minneapolis would be shot.

Twitter's decision to step in, at a time of racially charged civil unrest in cities across the United States, escalates a feud between Trump and tech companies.

It came just hours after Trump signed an executive order threatening Silicon Valley social media firms with new regulations over free speech.

"...These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!" Trump's tweet read.

Trump's message can now be seen only after clicking on a notice which says: "This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible."

READ: Minnesota calls in National Guard to quell unrest over black man's death in police custody

Trump responded with another tweet about six hours later, saying: "Section 230 should be revoked by Congress. Until then, it will be regulated."

The US president said that he would introduce legislation that may scrap or weaken Section 230.

He signed an executive order on Thursday afternoon directing federal agencies to clarify the scope of Section 230, which protects Internet companies from liability for illegal content posted by users and allows them to remove lawful but objectionable posts.

Trump had attacked Twitter for tagging tweets of his this week about unsubstantiated claims of fraud in mail-in voting. Twitter added a warning prompting readers to fact-check the posts.

READ: Angry US protests, looting over police killing of black man in Minneapolis

A Twitter spokeswoman said CEO Jack Dorsey had been informed of the decision to tag Trump's tweet before the label was applied.

Trump issued his tweet after days of unrest in Minneapolis, where peaceful rallies gave way to a third night of arson, looting and vandalism as protesters vented their rage over the death of Floyd, a black man seen on video gasping for breath while a white police officer knelt on his neck.

Trump has condemned the killing of Floyd and promised justice.

People look on from a distance after protesters set fire to a liquor store as demonstrations continue in Minneapolis. (Photo: Reuters)

Four police officers involved in Floyd's death have been fired and the FBI is investigating.

The incident was one of several killings of black people in the United States in recent months that has provoked outrage. The Minneapolis night sky was lit up with flame from a police precinct that had been torched overnight.

Sympathy protests also took place in other US cities. In Louisville, Kentucky, police said seven people were shot and at least one was in critical condition.

Protesters there vented rage over another police killing, of Breonna Taylor, a black woman fatally shot during a raid in her apartment in March. Louisville's mayor has asked the FBI to review a police investigation into her death.

READ: Trump signs order targeting social media after tweets flagged

'PREVENTING VIOLENCE'

In a thread, Twitter said it had taken its action over the Trump tweet "in the interest of preventing others from being inspired to commit violent acts".

People will still "be able to retweet with comment, but will not be able to like, reply or retweet it".

Twitter's decision to intervene in Trump's messages is a contrast with Facebook, whose CEO Mark Zuckerberg told Fox News in an interview earlier this week: "I just believe strongly that Facebook shouldn't be the arbiter of truth of everything that people say online."

The death of Floyd has reignited protests that have flared up repeatedly in recent years over killings of black people. In the video circulated this week, Floyd can be heard gasping "I can't breathe" while an officer knelt on his neck, a phrase also spoken by Eric Garner, whose death while held in a police chokehold in New York in 2014 prompted nationwide outrage.

Demonstrators say the authorities have responded harshly to protests by African Americans, comparing that to the peaceful response to protests by mostly white, sometimes armed Trump supporters in recent weeks, calling for the lifting of lockdowns meant to halt the spread of the coronavirus.

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2020-05-29 11:58:54Z
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Twitter hides Trump tweet for 'glorifying violence' - CNA

REUTERS: Twitter hid a tweet from President Donald Trump on Friday, accusing him of breaking its rules by "glorifying violence" in a message that said looters at protests in Minneapolis would be shot.

Twitter's decision to step in, at a time of racially charged civil unrest in cities across the United States, escalates a feud between Trump and tech companies.

It came just hours after Trump signed an executive order threatening Silicon Valley social media firms with new regulations over free speech.

A Twitter spokeswoman said CEO Jack Dorsey had been informed of the decision to tag Trump's tweet before the label was applied.

Trump has condemned the killing of Floyd and promised justice.

Four police officers involved in Floyd's death have been fired and the FBI is investigating.

Sympathy protests also took place in other U.S. cities. In Louisville, Kentucky, police said seven people were shot and at least one was in critical condition.

'PREVENTING VIOLENCE'

In a thread, Twitter said it had taken its action over the Trump tweet "in the interest of preventing others from being inspired to commit violent acts".

People will still "be able to retweet with comment, but will not be able to like, reply or retweet it".

Twitter's action came after Trump said he would introduce legislation that may scrap or weaken a law that has protected internet companies, including Twitter and Facebook.

The proposed legislation is part of an executive order Trump signed on Thursday afternoon. Trump had attacked Twitter for tagging tweets of his this week about unsubstantiated claims of fraud in mail-in voting. Twitter added a warning prompting readers to fact-check the posts.

(Reporting by Shubham Kalia and Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Josephine Mason; Writing by Peter Graff; Editing by Jon Boyle)

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2020-05-29 10:18:45Z
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