January 26, 2017
Washington - US Defense Secretary James Mattis (click here) will travel to Japan and South Korea next week for his first overseas visit since taking office, the Pentagon said Wednesday.
Departing on Feb 1, Mattis will begin his trip in South Korea, where he will meet with his South Korean counterpart Han Min Koo and other senior officials. On Feb 3, Mattis will travel to Tokyo to meet with his Japanese counterpart Tomomi Inada.
"The trip will underscore the commitment of the United States to our enduring alliances with Japan and the Republic of Korea, and further strengthen US-Japan-Republic of Korea security cooperation," the Pentagon said in a statement.
On Friday, Mattis was confirmed by the US Senate as the new Pentagon chief in an overwhelming vote.
At the hearing earlier this month, Mattis took a clear anti-Russia stance, describing Moscow as a "principle threat" to US security, a position notably different from Trump.
The United States should also check Russia's growing influence in the Arctic region, Mattis said.
Mattis also chose to distance from Trump on other key issues, including the role of NATO, which Trump said should shrink, and on the Iranian nuclear agreement, which Trump threatened to scrap.
Reince looks like he is having fun. After all, Trump will never fire him. It is all just one big fun bash everyday.
January 30, 2017By Taylor Link
Facing mounting criticism (click here) for omitting a reference to Jews and anti-semitism in a statement honoring Holocaust Remembrance Day, Reince Priebus, the White House chief of staff, doubled down on the language over the weekend.
“I don’t regret the words,” Priebus said Sunday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.”
“I mean, everyone’s suffering in the Holocaust including, obviously, all of the Jewish people affected and miserable genocide that occurs — it’s something that we consider to be extraordinarily sad,” Priebus said. “If we could wipe it off of the history books, we would. But we can’t.”
The White House saw swift condemnation for the 117-word statement. Even Jewish groups that backed Trump during his presidential campaign expressed disappointment....
Talking? Really? Well, let's get China to end it's invasion into natural and manmade islands, shall we?
February 1, 2017
By Jing Shuiyu Zhong Nan
China, US can solve any disputes by talking, Commerce Ministry says (click here)
China and the United States can resolve any trade disputes through talks, since bilateral trade and economic cooperation have made the two countries inseparable, the Ministry of Commerce said ahead of US president-elect Donald Trump's taking office on Friday.
Even though there are voices in the United States calling for protectionist trade measures or having a trade war with China, the two sides can work out new solutions, and bilateral ties won't be shaken by such opinions, said Ministry of Commerce spokesman Sun Jiwen.
Bilateral trade volume amounted to $519.6 billion in 2016 — 211 times higher than in 1979. Two-way investment also notably surged, exceeding $170 billion by the end of last year, data from the ministry shows.
"The Chinese government is willing to work with the new US administration to generate more benefits for businesses and consumers on both sides," said Sun....
6 August 2016Japan says China (click here) has sailed a fleet of 230 vessels near Japanese-controlled waters in the East China Sea.
The fleet included fishing boats and coastguard ships, Japan says, and three vessels appeared to be armed. Officials have protested to Chinese diplomats.
The reported incident occurred near the Japan-controlled disputed islands, known as the Senkaku islands in Japan and the Diaoyu islands in China.
Beijing has been increasingly assertive about waters it believes are Chinese.
In a separate incident on Saturday, Chinese state media said fighter jets and bombers had completed a patrol of airspace above islands in the South China Sea, as part of combat training.
These islands are also disputed, but last month an international tribunal dismissed most of Beijing's claims in that sea.
China said it would ignore the decision....
