#JAPAN: New US Military Command Center Announced

[world politics news]

The U.S. will establish a new military command in Japan to bolster security ties as Washington moves to strengthen its Asia allies in the face of China’s military buildup, top American and Japanese officials said Sunday.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#ANTIGUAANDBARBUDA: China Building Caribbean Outpost

[world politics news]

On a natural paradise on the island of Antigua, a large swath of land that's about to be razed for a Chinese-run special economic zone. According to documents reviewed by Newsweek, it will have its own customs and immigration formalities, a shipping port and a dedicated airline and will be able to issue passports. 

China's growing regional presence is potentially the greatest external challenge to the United States in the Americas since the Soviet Union set up in Cuba in the 1960s—and the U.S. military is concerned.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#AUSTRALIA: Labor PM Opposes US Prosecution Of Assange

[world politics news]

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Tuesday his government stands firm against the United States over the prosecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, an Australian citizen fighting extradition from Britain on U.S. espionage charges.

Albanese’s center-left Labor Party government has been arguing since winning the 2022 elections that the United States should end its pursuit of the 52-year-old, who has spent four years in a London prison fighting extradition.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#CANADA: High Court Says Canada-US immigration Agreement Constitutional

[world politics news]

The Supreme Court of Canada on Friday ruled that  the Safe Third Country Agreement between Canada and the United States is constitutional.

The Court in its decision noted that the agreement does not violate Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom – the right to life, liberty and security of a person.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

China Seeks Free Trade Deal In "America's Backyard"

[world politics news]

A proposed free-trade agreement between China and a group of South American nations, which includes Argentina and Brazil, will benefit all sides economically, but will further increase competition between Washington and Beijing in the so-called backyard of the United States, according to analysts.

New leftist Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that the proposed deal between China and the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), which also includes Uruguay and Paraguay as full members, will modernise and open up the South American trade bloc to other regions.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: House overrules DC Council Bills On Crime, Voting

[world politics news]

The House of Representatives on Feb. 9 approved two measures that overturn bills passed by the Council of the District of Columbia.

Specifically, the legislation would block a pair of laws recently approved by the D.C. City Council. The US House has constitutional oversight of DC, which is not a state.

One of these measures, the Revised Criminal Code Act, would lessen penalties for violent crimes even as Washington is experiencing a record-breaking crime wave. That proposal was vetoed by Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser; the D.C. City Council later overruled Bowser’s veto in a 12–1 vote.

The other measure, the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act, would allow noncitizens in Washington to vote.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#IRAQ: Prime Minister Defends Indefinite US Military Presence

[world politics news]

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani defended the presence of U.S. troops in his country and set no timetable for their withdrawal, signaling a less confrontational posture toward Washington early in his term than his Iran-backed political allies have taken.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: Senate Bill Seeks Transparency of Social Media Giants

[world politics news]

A bipartisan group of senators introduced a bill Wednesday aimed at increasing transparency for Twitter, Facebook and other social media companies as lawmakers debate whether to ban TikTok.

The Platform Accountability and Transparency Act is intended to make the companies' internal data more accessible to the public by requiring the submission of necessary data to independent researchers. The bill is sponsored by Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law; Rob Portman, R-Ohio, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn.; and Bill Cassidy, R-LA.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: Philly Appoints A "Night Mayor"

[world politics news]

Investing in nightlife — in this economy? Yes, actually. With an eye on arts and culture as a job creator and magnet for young people moving to the area, Philly is on a quest to become a 24-hour city.

Enter the night mayor.

OK, that’s not Raheem Manning’s actual title. Officially, he’s Philadelphia’s night time economy director, working under the Department of Commerce. But “night mayor” is what the position is called in a lot of other cities around the country, and the world.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: New York Passes Gun Law Requiring Disclosing Social Handles

[world politics news]

 

The same week the US Supreme Court struck down the state's overly restrictive gun regulations, New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a new gun control bill.

The new law, the result of a special session called by Hochul, will require people trying to purchase a handgun license to hand over a list of social media accounts they have maintained over the last three years, so officials can verify their "character and conduct."

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: OK State Rep. Proposes Mandatory Vasectomies For Boys

[world politics news]

An Oklahoma state rep proposed an idea for legislation that would make vasectomies mandatory for young men in the state. 

Speaking before a floor of legislators, state Rep. Mickey Dollens said on Thursday that he is thinking about introducing the legislation next year. 

"I would invite you to co-author a bill that I'm considering next year that would mandate that each male, when they reach puberty, get a mandatory vasectomy that's only reversible when they reach the point of financial and emotional stability," he told GOP lawmakers.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#SOUTHAFRICA: Pres. Ramaphosa Condemns US Travel Restrictions

[world politics news]

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has denounced travel bans on Southern African nations linked to the new COVID-19 variant and has called for an end to the “discriminatory” and “unscientific” restrictions.

South African scientists revealed on Nov. 25 that they had detected a new, potentially more infectious variant now known as “Omicron.” 

They tracked the first case to neighboring Botswana and now suspect that Omicron is driving a new wave of infections in South Africa’s Gauteng province, which includes the country’s most populous city, Johannesburg.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#TAIWAN: US Diplomat Says Defense Ties With Island "Rock Solid"

[world politics news]

Washington’s defence ties with Taiwan are rock solid, the top US diplomat in Taipei said, as Beijing denounced as a political gesture this week’s confirmation that a few  American troops were present on the island nation.

“The United States has a commitment to help Taiwan provide for its self-defence,” said Sandra Oudkirk, the new head of the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto US embassy in the absence of formal diplomatic ties. “The value of our partnership and our support for Taiwan is rock solid.”

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#IRAQ: Shi'ite Party Wins Majority In Parliamentary Election

[world politics news]

Turnout in Iraq's parliamentary election earlier this month reached 43%, the nation's electoral commission said, a small increase from preliminary results but lower than that in the last election in 2018.

More than 9.6 million people cast their ballots in the Oct. 10 vote, the commission said.

Populist Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said his movement secured the biggest number of seats in the parliament adding that he would not challenge the results.

He led an insurgency against American forces after the war that deposed Saddam Hussein.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: Biden Announces Partnership With UK, Australia, To Share Tech, Counter China

[world politics news]

 

Pres. Joe Biden has announced a new working group with Britain and Australia to share advanced technologies — including the acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines by Canberra — in a thinly veiled bid to counter China, four U.S. officials said.

The trio, which will be known by the acronym AUKUS, will make it easier for the three countries to share information and know-how in key technological areas like artificial intelligence, cyber, quantum, underwater systems, and long-range strike capabilities.

Missing from the group are Canada and New Zealand, team members with the others in the "Five Eyes" technology organization designed to keep an eye on China and its expansionist agenda.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#CHINA: US Senators Want Chinese Tech Firm Sanctioned

[world politics news]

Three US senators are calling for a Chinese "Internet of Things" platform operator to be added to a list of sanctioned Chinese companies, citing national security concerns. 

US senators want Tencent-backed Internet of Things firm Tuya sanctioned, calling the Chinese platform a security threat.

Three Republican senators say Tuya is required by law to turn Americans’ data over to Beijing, a frequently cited concern in the US.

Tuya denied the claims, saying its user data is regionally isolated and has never been requested by foreign governments.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#CHINA: Xi Unveils Plans To Restructure The World Order

[world politics news]

 

The White House has confirmed that U.S. President Joe Biden plans to meet later this year with his Japanese, Australian and Indian counterparts — a four-country grouping dubbed the “Quadrilateral Security Dialogue” or QUAD.

The announcement came just days after Chinese Communist Party General-Secretary Xi Jinping marked the centenary of the party with an incendiary oratory that was short on Marxism but long on nationalist promises “to build a new type of international relations.”

This is Xi’s doctrine of “the community of the common destiny of mankind” under future People’s Republic of China (PRC) global domination, which includes making irrelevant the current institutions that promote peace, prosperity and justice, such as the United Nations, World Trade Organization, G-20 and G-7.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#CHINA: Factories Cutting Ties With Suppliers Using Forced Labor

[world politics news]

Chinese factories that supply Apple Inc. and Nike Inc. and make other products sold in the U.S. are shunning workers from Xinjiang, as Western countries increase scrutiny of forced labor from the remote northwestern region where Beijing has been accused of committing genocide against local ethnic minorities.

Lens Technology Co. Ltd, a Chinese maker of smartphone touch screens and supplier to Apple and other companies, phased out Uyghur factory workers transferred from Xinjiang through a state-backed labor program last year, according to former staff and shop owners near one of its factories. The company has also ceased hiring Uyghur workers, according to current staff.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#USA: Plans To Combat Covid Vax "Misinformation" Include "Fact-Checking" Text Messages

[world politics news]

The White House is preparing to characterize “conservative opponents of its Covid-19 vaccine campaign as dangerous and extreme," reports Politico. The plan includes the possibility of "fact checking" personal text messages the government deem to be "misinformation.,"

The decision to ramp up the information war against vaccine skeptics was made after conservatives showed resistance to the Biden administration’s plan to go “door-to-door” to increase vaccination rates.

“Biden allied groups, including the Democratic National Committee, are also planning to engage fact-checkers more aggressively and work with SMS carriers to dispel misinformation about vaccines that is sent over social media and text messages,” states the report.

The report will be seen as a chilling and dystopian government response by civil rights groups and conservatives alike.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#CANADA: US/Canada Border Closure Extended To July 21, Says Public Safety Minister

[world politics news]

The Canadian government has confirmed it is extending restrictions on non-essential travel from around the world and the United States until July 21.

Bill Blair, Canada’s minister of public safety confirmed the news Friday morning via Twitter.

:

"Our number one priority as we fight #COVID19 is keeping Canadians safe. In coordination with the U.S., we are extending restrictions on non-essential international travel and with the United States until July 21st, 2021."

Blair also tweeted that more information will become available this Monday: “As we have said, the government is planning measures for fully vaccinated Canadians, Permanent Residents, and others who are currently permitted to enter Canada and will provide further details on Monday, June 21."

Canada has greatly lagged behind the United States in vaccinations, with those having recieved both shots against the Coronavirus remaining in the single digits.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.