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Europe
Germany
(Sunday), 10/11/2024 - 23:07 German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose coalition collapsed on Wednesday, said today that he would be ready to call a vote of confidence in parliament before Christmas, a move that would pave the way for snap elections. Scholz’s political rivals have threatened to block his minority government from passing laws unless he immediately seeks a confidence vote. (Source: France 24 / AFP - France)
Spain
10 November 2024 “Solo el pueblo salva el pueblo!” (Only the people save the people). Yesterday. thousands marched in Spanish cities, including Madrid and Alicante. The Valencia regional authorities put the turnout in the regional capital at 130,000. There is anger over what critics say was the slow response of the authorities in the aftermath of the deadly flash floods that affected around 80 towns and cities in the region. Last month’s floods killed at least 220 people, 212 of them were killed in the Valencia region. As beleaguered residents waited for official help to arrive, many local people took matters into their own hands, turning out in large numbers to start the clean-up themselves. Some protesters had harsh words for regional president Mazon, 50, a lawyer who is a member of the right-wing opposition Popular Party. Mazon was among the senior figures pelted with mud by angry protesters last Sunday - along with Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain - as they visited the flood-hit region. There is anger too over what critics say was the slow response of the authorities in the aftermath of the deadly flash floods. The central government shared the blame - some protesters shouted 'Murderers! Murderers!' and some carried placards denouncing Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Local people are furious about the lack of warning, official alerts for the floods landed on people’s phones when cars were already being washed away. (Source: Malay Mail - Malaysia / AFP - France)
Russia
10 November 2024 Russia's defence ministry said it intercepted 84 Ukrainian drones over six regions, including some approaching Moscow, which forced flights to be diverted from three of the capital's major airports. The Ukrainian air force said 62 of Russia's Iranian-made drones were shot down, while 67 were "lost". (Source: BBC - United Kingdom)
10.11.2024 Russian President Putin signed a law on the ratification of the comprehensive strategic partnership treaty between Russia and North Korea, signed in Pyongyang on June 19, state news agency TASS said yesterday. The treaty pledges mutual defense assistance, commits to immediate military assistance should either nation face armed attack, in line with Article 51 of UN Charter, which recognizes the right to individual and collective self-defense. (Source: Anadolu Agency - Turkey)
Asia
Yemen
(Sunday) 06:27-10 November 2024 The United States and Britain launched raids on the Yemeni capital Sanaa, the Amran governorate and other areas, Al Masirah TV, the main television news outlet run by the Houthi movement, reported today. Iran-aligned Houthi militants have launched attacks on international shipping near Yemen since November last year, 'in solidarity with the Palestinians in Israel's war with Hamas'. (Source: Asharq Al-Awsat - Headquarters London)
Taiwan
Nov 10, 2024 The U.S. Department of Commerce sent a letter to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) imposing export restrictions - to halt shipments - on certain sophisticated chips, of 7 nanometer or more advanced designs, destined for China that power AI accelerator and graphics processing units (GPU) starting tomorrow. The U.S. order, which is being reported for the first time, comes just weeks after TSMC notified the Commerce Department that one of its chips had been found in a Huawei AI processor. Research firm Tech Insights had taken the product apart, revealing the TSMC chip, an apparent violation of export controls. Huawei, at the center of the U.S. action, is on a restricted trade list, which requires suppliers to obtain licenses to ship any goods or technology to the company. Any license that could aid Huawei's AI efforts would likely be denied. TSMC suspended shipments to China-based chip designer Sophgo after its chip matched the one found on the Huawei AI processor, sources said last month. The Commerce Department communication - known as an "is informed" letter - allows the U.S. to bypass lengthy rule-writing processes to quickly impose new licensing requirements on specific companies. The action comes as both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns about the inadequacy of export controls on China and the Commerce Department's enforcement of them. In 2022, the Commerce Department sent is-informed letters to Nvidia and AMD restricting their ability to export top AI-related chips to China, and to chip equipment makers like Lam Research, Applied Materials and KLA to restrict tools to make advanced chips to China. The restrictions in those letters were later turned into rules that apply to companies beyond them. The U.S. has been delayed in updating rules on tech exports to China. As Reuters reported in July, the Biden administration drafted new rules on some foreign exports of chipmaking equipment and planned to add about 120 Chinese companies to the Commerce Department's restricted entity list, including chipmaking factories, toolmakers, and related companies. But despite plans for an August release, and later tentative target dates for publication, the rules still have not been issued. (Source: The Japan Times - Japan)
North America
United States
November 10, 2024 4:02 pm CET The United States president-elect's eldest son shared on Instagram a clip posted by former Republican vice presidential candidate Palin which read "POV [point of view]: You're 38 days from losing your allowance" over a video of President Zelenskyy. (Source: Politico - U.S.)
(10 November 2024) Former UN ambassador Haley, ex-Secretary of State Pompeo will not join Cabinet which is currently in formation, said Trump on his Truth Social media platform yesterday, before adding his appreciation for their service to the country. Haley announced her support for Trump after she withdrew from the presidential race. She served as UN envoy from 2017 to 2018. Pompeo was the head of the CIA from 2017 to 2018 before he served as Secretary of State until 2021. (Source: TRT World - Turkey)
10.11.24, 09:30 AM US President-elect has won Arizona, defeating Harris in all seven battleground states: Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia. The victory in Arizona took Trump's electoral college tally to 312 against 226 of Vice President Harris. Arizona holds 11 electoral college votes. The Republican Party has regained control of the Senate and is all set to retain a majority in the House of Representatives. Currently, the party has 52 seats in the Senate and the Democrats have 47. In the House, Republicans have so far won 216 seats against 209 of the Democrats. The majority mark is 218. (Source: The Telegraph - India)
10/11/2024 Retaliatory tariffs on the United States caused more than $27 billion in US agricultural export losses from mid-2018 to late-2019, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) found. China accounted for around 95 percent of value lost. Since 2018 China has reduced its reliance on American agriculture products. Soybeans and corn will again be 'prime targets for tariffs' in a potential trade dispute. Both commodities account for about one-fourth of the country's agriculture export value. The USDA estimates agriculture and related industries contributed a 5.6 percent share to GDP in 2023, while direct on-farm employment made up 2.6 million jobs as of recent years. On the campaign trail, Trump warned that the United States should be careful with trade policy, especially when it comes to countries that are major buyers of US agriculture. There is no replacing the size of the Chinese market. Without foreign buyers like China to absorb excess farm production, the market becomes oversaturated, in turn driving down prices and farmer incomes. Brazil and Argentina, meanwhile, are expected to gain global market share with higher exports. (Source: France 24 / AFP - France)
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