India, China ‘Face-Off’ In SCS! Chinese Coast Guard...
Generally, the Southeast Asian countries are at the receiving end of the Chinese Coast Guard’s aggressive tactics. But an Indian Coast Guard Ship returning from a goodwill visit from Japan was shadowed by a Chinese Coast Guard vessel as it passed west of the disputed Scarborough Shoal....
https://afriprime.net/posts/87887
China ‘Plans’ $60 Billion To Upgrade Turkish Railway;...
A Turkish investment official has revealed that China is interested in helping Ankara modernize its railway network with an investment of around US$60 billion. The project could provide European freight shippers with an alternative route to bypass Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. Burak...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87881
Designed Specifically For F-35 Fighters, Australia Acquires APEX...
Australia has inked a major deal to arm its fleet of F-35A Lightning II jets with 25mm PGU-47/U APEX ammunition sourced from Norwegian-Finnish defense manufacturer Nammo. The contract, valued at AUD 22.9 million (US $14.2 million), is the first major sale of advanced ammunition, which is...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87877
Rafale, F-16V & F-35! U.S. Delivers 30th ‘Upgraded’...
After successfully completing the acquisition of French Rafale fighter jets, the Hellenic Air Force has now received its 30th upgraded F-16. On January 15, US-based Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the F-16, announced the delivery of the 30th F-16 “Viper” to the...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87874
C-17 Globemaster: Cutting-Edge, Drag-Reducing ‘Microvane...
After years of testing and research, the US Air Force’s microvane program is entering the final stage of evaluation before being employed across the C-17 Globemaster III fleet. The program is aimed at reducing fuel consumption and increasing payload capabilities. On January 14, the...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87869
First 6th-Gen Fighter By 2035! UK Eyes GCAP Debut In 10 Years As...
With the future of the US Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) uncertain and China zooming ahead with flight testing its sixth-generation aircraft, British lawmakers are urging more scrutiny on the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) to deliver next-generation fighters by 2035. The Global Combat...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87867
JF-17 Thunder: Bangladesh “Officially” Shows Interest...
Looking to modernize its aging Air Force, Bangladesh has shown interest in the JF-17 Thunder fighter jets jointly developed by Pakistan and China. During a visit to Pakistan on January 15, a high-level defense delegation from Bangladesh showed a great deal of interest in...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87864
Japan launches independent mission to NATO as tensions with Russia,...
Japan on Thursday formally inaugurated an independent mission to the NATO military alliance as Tokyo and NATO seek to bolster cooperation amid escalating tension from Russia, China and North Korea. Previously, the Japanese embassy in Belgium also covered NATO. The new mission is led by...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87762
Israel accused of planting explosives inside Iran’s nuclear...
Israeli intelligence agencies planted explosives inside equipment destined for Iran’s nuclear programme, the Islamic Republic’s vice president has said. Javad Zarif disclosed that Iranian officials discovered explosives embedded within a centrifuge platform....
https://afriprime.net/posts/87737
Chinese buyers interested in unwanted German Volkswagen factories,...
Chinese officials and automakers are eyeing German factories slated for closure and are particularly interested in Volkswagen's sites, a person with knowledge of Chinese government thinking told Reuters. Buying a factory would allow China to build influence in Germany's prized auto industry,...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87725
Norwegian F-35s Scrambled In Poland During Russian Missile Strikes...
Norwegian F-35s are in Poznań, Poland, as part of Norway's contribution to NATO's integrated air and missile defense. Norway has confirmed that it scrambled two of its F-35A stealth fighters, currently deployed in Poland, overnight, coincident with large-scale Russian missile strikes...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87719
Opinion - Biden is using his remaining time in office to give the...
You may have heard that President Biden and his team have been focused during their last days in office on building his “legacy.” That word used to mean using the last days in office to cement an administration’s successes, while maybe adding a bow on top with a few small...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87712
This Is The Type Of Russian Decoy Drone Shot Down Over Kyiv As...
A Russian decoy drone was engaged by Ukrainian air defenses over Kyiv today, close to where President Volodymyr Zelensky was meeting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, leader of one of Ukraine’s staunchest allies. The drone’s presence further underscores the threat posed...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87698
The push comes with a backdrop of seismic shifts in the Middle East that have seen Iran's armed allies in Gaza and Lebanon heavily degraded and Syria's government overthrown by rebels.
The incoming U.S. Trump administration promises to pile more pressure on Tehran, which has long backed a number of political parties and an array of armed factions in Iraq.
Some Baghdad officials are concerned the status quo there may be upended next, but Hussein played this down in an interview with Reuters during an official visit to London.
"We don't think that Iraq is the next," Hussein said.
"Two or three years ago it was impossible to discuss this topic in our society," he said.
Preparatory discussions are underway in Xiamen while the meeting between vice ministers is scheduled for Thursday, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said after a briefing with his Japanese counterpart Takeshi Iwaya.
The routine diplomatic talks come after Manila protested the “illegal” actions of Chinese vessels and aircraft in the disputed South China Sea, a vast swathe of which is claimed by Beijing.
The Philippines has told China to immediately withdraw its 12,000-ton coast guard ship known as “The Monster” which was spotted 77 nautical miles (143 kilometers) off the Southeast Asian nation’s shores. Beijing has said its coast guard’s “law enforcement activities in relevant waters in accordance with the law is beyond reproach.”
Iwaya expressed grave concern over China’s actions
James Howells has described his lost legal bid to recover the fortune as ‘gut-wrenching’ and said he will spend the rest of his life.
The 39-year-old had launched court action against a council that refused to let him excavate computer equipment needed to unlock his 8,000 bitcoins — currently worth around $750 million.
The costly error a decade ago saw his then-partner throw away a black trash bag containing the drive he needed to gain access to his stash.
It has since lain in a rubbish site run by Newport Council in Wales and he has spent years fighting for the right to retrieve it.
Last week a judge at Cardiff High Court threw out his legal bid.
He said: “I am honestly so disappointed — I thought at the very least I deserved to have my full say in court with a full trial with all details put onto the centre stage
Trump said in a social media post he would create the department on Jan. 20, the day he takes office as president for a second term, adding that Americans have been taxed for too long by the Internal Revenue Service.
"Through soft and pathetically weak Trade agreements, the American Economy has delivered growth and prosperity to the World, while taxing ourselves. It is time for that to change," the Republican said in a post on Truth Social.
"We will begin charging those that make money off of us with Trade, and they will start paying, FINALLY, their fair share."
Han's participation in the Washington, D.C. event comes at the invitation of the U.S. side, China's national television broadcaster reported.
"We are ready to strengthen dialogue and communication with the new U.S. government, properly manage differences, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, and jointly promote the stable, healthy and sustainable development of China-U.S. relations," CCTV..
"China has always viewed and developed China-U.S. relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation."
China is prepared "to find a correct way for China and the United States to get along in the new era," Trump said on Jan. 6 that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping have been communicating through representatives
Hoshyar Zebari, a senior Kurdistan Democratic Party official, described the meeting between KDP leader Masoud Barzani and Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, as a “significant achievement to strengthen Kurdish unity and position” during Syria’s transitional phase.
The meeting in Irbil, the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, came weeks after the fall of the government of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in a lightning offensive by insurgent groups and amid an intensified campaign by Turkey-backed armed groups against Kurdish forces in northeast Syria.
There was no official statement from the KDP or SDF regarding the meeting.
Netanyahu said he would convene his security Cabinet later Friday, and then the government to approve the long-awaited hostage deal.
Netanyahu's pre-dawn statement appeared to clear the way for Israeli approval of the deal, which would pause the fighting in the Gaza Strip and see dozens of hostages held by militants in Gaza released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. The deal would also allow hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to the remains of their homes in Gaza.
Israeli airstrikes, meanwhile, killed at least 72 people in the war-ravaged territory on Thursday.
Netanyahu said he had instructed a special task force to prepare to receive the hostages returning from Gaza, and that their families were informed...
Crawford has maintained a low profile during his 14 years on Capitol Hill. In the last Congress, Crawford, a retired Army sergeant, was chairman of the Intelligence subcommittee that oversaw the Central Intelligence Agency. He was first elected in the Tea Party wave that swept Republicans into power
"Our intelligence community and its oversight must maintain the highest levels of trust. The House Intel Committee will play a pivotal role in this work in the new Congress, and Rick Crawford will provide principled leadership as its chairman," Johnson said in a statement. "He has earned the respect of his colleagues through his years of faithful service on the committee and his steady approach to the challenges facing our country."
Telemetry from the Starship froze eight minutes and 27 seconds after launch following unexpected engine shutdowns or failures. SpaceX later confirmed the ship's destruction in a posting on X, using a tongue-in-cheek description:
"Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly during its ascent burn. Teams will continue to review data from today's flight test to better understand root cause. With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's flight will help us improve Starship's reliability."
More Controls and Ban against China-US imposing new export controls...
The U.S. Commerce Department said Wednesday it is imposing new export controls on biotechnology equipment and related technology because of national security concerns tied to artificial intelligence and data science. Washington has raised concerns that China could use U.S. technology to...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87624
Xi Jinping, in first talk with new European Council president,...
Chinese President Xi Jinping urged Europe to pursue closer cooperation in the face of a
https://afriprime.net/posts/87621
Netanyahu says 'last-minute crisis' with Hamas holding up...
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a last-minute dispute with Hamas was holding up Israeli approval of a long-awaited ceasefire that would pause the fighting in the Gaza Strip and release dozens of hostages. Israeli airstrikes, meanwhile, killed at least 72 people in...
https://afriprime.net/posts/87618
The operation early on Tuesday targeted military and energy sites across Russia.
It marks Ukraine's latest effort to degrade the Kremlin's war machine.
Ukraine said its forces carried out what it described as their "largest attack" of the war against Russia's military facilities on Tuesday, hitting targets — including a key airbase — hundreds of miles across the border.
A Ukrainian military drone unit, the 14th Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Regiment, said it attacked infrastructure at the Engels-2 airbase, home to Russia's Tu-95 and Tu-160 bomber aircraft.
The strikes targeted an oil storage facility that supplied fuel for the bombers at Engels, a strategic base located nearly 400 miles into Russia in the Saratov region. It marked the second time in less than a week that Ukraine attacked the site, causing a fire.
The agreement follows a lengthy dispute over the need for Polish families to bury their relatives with dignity. It had become a sticking point between the two neighbours amid Warsaw's support for Kiev in its now three-year war with Russia.
During massacres in what is now western Ukraine between 1943 and 1945, Ukrainian nationalists murdered around 100,000 Poles.
They aimed to reinforce claims to the territory through an uprising against the German Nazi occupiers and the elimination of the Polish population.
Estimates suggest up to 20,000 Ukrainians were killed in retaliatory actions.
"We will solve the problem of commemorating, I do not want anyone in Poland or Europe to make this a political condition for supporting Ukraine in its confrontation with Russi
The potential executive order, which was first reported by The Washington Post, would strive to allow TikTok’s 170 million American users to continue to use the app for a certain period of time as the administration sorts out who could potentially buy it.
Trump, who supported a TikTok ban as president, has recently said he wants to keep the app alive – even posting a TikTok video in June in which he said he wanted to “save TikTok.” Last month, he asked the Supreme Court to stay the law so his incoming administration could work out a deal to keep TikTok available to Americans.
Still, Trump may ultimately decline to act. As the deadline draws closer, Trump – who’s never shied away from overt suggestions for the executive and judicial branches – has otherwise sat this one out.
“The EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November,” President-elect Trump insisted on social media shortly after noon Wednesday. “We have achieved so much without even being in the White House.”
President Biden, first in a written statement and soon afterward in brief remarks at the White House, said the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas was based around a framework he proposed last May.
The most striking moment of Biden’s appearance came at its conclusion. A reporter asked whether the “history books” would credit the current president or Trump for the deal.
“Is that a joke?” Biden snapped back.
“I will not go into details, I can only confirm the validity of fears that Russia was planning acts of air terror, not only against Poland, but against airlines around the world,” Tusk said.
Western security officials suspect Russian intelligence was behind a plot to put incendiary devices in packages on cargo planes headed to North America, including one that caught fire at a courier hub in Germany and another that ignited in a warehouse in England last year.
Azerbaijan accused Russia of unintentionally shooting down an Azerbaijani airliner that crashed in Kazakhstan on Dec. 25, killing 38 people. Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to his Azerbaijani counterpart for what he called a “tragic incident” following the crash, but stopped short of acknowledging that Moscow was responsible.
