The Nation Newspaper

Tag: President Donald Trump

  • Sanders slams Trump for insulting Germany

    Sanders slams Trump for insulting Germany

    U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders has slammed President Donald Trump for his disparaging remarks about Germany, saying that publicly attacking Chancellor Angela Merkel was “unacceptable.”

    “To insult Germany, a long-standing ally, is something that many of us feel very uncomfortable with,” Sanders said in a dpa interview conducted ahead of his German book launch in Berlin on Wednesday.

     

    He said: “when there are differences, they should be solved quietly.

    “It is not acceptable to my mind that the president publicly attacks the chancellor.”

    U.S.-German relations have come under strain by Trump’s repeated criticism of the country’s trade deficit and his threat to impose a hefty tax on German carmakers for selling vehicles in the U.S. market that were produced elsewhere.

     

    Trump also has demanded that Germany meet the NATO military alliance’s defence spending target of two per cent of gross domestic product and criticised Merkel’s open-door migration policy.

    Sanders, who lost the Democratic Party nomination in the 2016 presidential elections to Hillary Clinton, is in Berlin to present his book “Our Revolution: A Future to Believe in.”

  • China is behaving like a ‘bully’ in South China Sea: McCain

    China is behaving like a ‘bully’ in South China Sea: McCain

    Republican U.S. Senator John McCain said on Tuesday, China is behaving like a “bully” with its militarisation of islands in the South China Sea,an activity Washington must confront with its allies to find a peaceful solution.

    In a speech in Sydney, McCain said China was asserting itself globally, best illustrated by militarising artificial islands in the South China Sea, a claim repeatedly rejected by Beijing.

    “I think it is very clear that the Chinese by filling in these islands are militarizing them and that is in violation of international law,” the Arizona senator said.

    McCain’s comments are set to escalate tensions between the U.S. and China just days before delegates from both countries are scheduled to attend a regional security conference in Singapore.

    China claims most of the resource-rich South China Sea, through which about five trillion dollars in ship-borne trade passes every year.

    Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims on the strategic waterway.

    The U.S. estimates Beijing has added more than 1,300 hectares of land on seven features in the South China Sea over the past three years, building runways, ports, aircraft hangars and communications equipment.

    To counter the perceived Chinese aggression, the U.S. has conducted so-called freedom-of-navigation exercises, the most recent of which was conducted by a U.S navy warship near Mischief Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands.

    At the same time, U.S.  is seeking China’s cooperation to rein in ally North Korea’s nuclear and missile programmes.

    Allies such as Australia have so far refused to participate in freedom-of-navigation exercises in the fear of alienating Beijing

    .

    While McCain stopped short of calling on Australia to undertake the exercises, the former U.S. presidential nominee said allies must work together to find a peaceful solution.

  • ‘Terrorists do not worship God’

    ‘Terrorists do not worship God’

    U.S. President Donald Trump has said that it was imperative for young Muslim boys and girls to know that terrorists were not worshipping God, but worshipping death. Trump, who made the appeal at the Arab Islamic American Summit in Saudi Arabia, enjoined young Muslims to grow up free from fear, safe from violence, and innocent of hatred. The U.S. President admonished them that rather than allow themselves
    to become terrorists, they should build a new era of prosperity for themselves and their people. According to him, some estimates hold that more than 95 per cent of the victims of terrorism are themselves Muslim.

    “Every time a terrorist murders an innocent person, and falsely invokes the name of God, it should be an insult to every person of
    faith. “Terrorists do not worship God, they worship death. “Therefore, young Muslim boys and girls should be able to grow up
    free from fear, safe from violence, and innocent of hatred,’’ he said.

    The U.S. President said that there was currently a humanitarian and security disaster in the Middle East that was spreading across the planet. Trump, who disclosed that few nations were currently being spared of terrorism, said that America had suffered attacks of Sept. 11, the Boston Bombing and killings in San Bernardino and Orlando.

    He also said that nations of Europe, Africa, South America, India, Russia, China and Australia, had at one time or the
    other, experienced “unspeakable horror’’ from terrorist attacks. Trump described the spate of terrorist attacks across the globe, as “a
    battle between barbaric criminals who seek to obliterate human life,
    and decent people who seek to protect it’’.

    The U.S. President urged Muslim nations to close ranks in putting an
    end to activities of terrorists in their countries.

    “Terrorism has spread across the world. But the path to peace begins right here, on this ancient soil, in this sacred land. “America is prepared to stand with you, in pursuit of shared interests and common security. But the nations of the Middle East cannot wait for American power to crush this enemy for them.

    “The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves, for their countries, and for their
    children,’’ he added.

  • Trump seeks to ‘reboot’ U.S. relationship with Egypt

    Trump seeks to ‘reboot’ U.S. relationship with Egypt

    President Donald Trump will seek to rebuild the U.S. relationship with Egypt at a Monday meeting with Egyptian President Abdel al-Sisi.

    The meeting will focus on security issues and military aid, a White House official said on Friday.

    “He wants to use President al-Sisi’s visit to reboot the bilateral relationship and build on the strong connection the two presidents established when they first met in New York in September 2016,” the official told reporters.

  • New Trump travel ban order nears completion

    New Trump travel ban order nears completion

    The President Donald Trump led-administration is planning to roll out a revised executive order on immigration that the President says will “protect our people” while at the same time pass muster with courts that halted an earlier version.

    The President intends to make this known as early as this week.

    According to the CNN Politics, the new order will clarify a point that caused confusion the first time around: The executive order will not impact green card holders.

    “The President is contemplating releasing a tighter, more streamlined version of the first executive order,” Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said at the Munich Security Conference over the weekend.

    Acknowledging the rushed rollout of the previous order that caused chaos in airports across the country and widespread demonstrations, Kelly said that officials are working on a “phase-in” period for parts of the order to take effect.

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    The new order is also expected to address concerns of the 9th Circuit federal appeals court, which blocked the original order, that travellers’ due process rights were not being respected by giving detailed notice of restrictions for those with current or pending visas. Kelly said the goal was “to make sure that there’s no one, in a sense, caught in the system of moving from overseas to our airports, which happened on the first release” of the order.

    The Nation recalls that the original immigration ban order, issued the very first week into Trumps administration  affected seven countries, being: Somalia, Sudan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen — from entering the US for 90 days, all refugees for 120 days and refugees from Syria indefinitely.
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  • Travel ban: Court rejects Trump move to restore suspension

    Travel ban: Court rejects Trump move to restore suspension

    A San Francisco court has rejected a motion by the U.S. Justice Department to immediately reinstate U.S. President Donald Trump’s controversial travel ban.

    The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco posted the denial on its website early Sunday.

    This is coming hours after the Justice Department filed for an emergency stay of a suspension of Trump’s travel ban.

    The Justice Department argued in its appeal that a Seattle district court’s ruling on Friday suspending Trump’s travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries “harms the public,”

    “Second-guesses the president’s national security judgment,” and was “accompanied by virtually no legal analysis.”

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    Trump issued an executive order on Jan. 27 that temporarily suspended the U.S. refugee programme, banned travellers

    from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen for 90 days and indefinitely banned Syrian refugees.

    The appeals court said the states of Washington and Minnesota, are to issue their opposition to the Justice Department emergency motion by 11:59 pm PST (0759 GMT Monday).

    The two states had filed the initial challenge to the travel ban.

    Trump’s reply in support of the emergency motion is due by Monday at 3 pm

  • Iran lifts entry ban on American wrestlers

    Iran lifts entry ban on American wrestlers

    Iran has lifted a ban on American wrestlers from entering the country for a World Cup competition.

    The development was the sequel to a court ruling in the U.S. which suspended a travel ban imposed by President Donald Trump.

    Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Bahram Ghasemi, confirmed the new decision to the ISNA news agency on Sunday.

    Iran had on Friday said it would deny the American team visas, in response to Trump’s controversial order to ban citizens from seven Muslim-majority, including Iran, from entering the US.

    A Seattle district court had Friday suspended the ban after which Iran lifted its ban on the wrestlers.

    A U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco rejected a motion by the US Justice Department to immediately reinstate Trump’s ban.

    The prestigious freestyle World Cup event takes place Feb. 16 and Feb. 17 in the western Iranian city of Kermanshah.

     

  • U.S. says no discrimination against Nigeria

    U.S. says no discrimination against Nigeria

    The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Stuart Symington, on Friday said America would not discriminate against any Nigerian on the basis of religion or on the new visa regime.

    President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order that banned citizens from seven countries from travelling into the U.S. for 90 days.

    The countries are Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

    The restrictions were part of wide-ranging immigration controls that also suspended refugee arrivals.

    At a press conference in Abuja on President Trump’s executive order and its effects on Nigeria, the ambassador dispelled the rumour of reducing U.S. visa policy for Nigeria to one year.

    Symington said that the two-year visa for Nigeria was still valid.

    “The new order now is for the U.S. government to cross-check as many that are coming into the U.S. before issuing visas.

    “We will not discriminate on the basis of religion in issuing visas to Nigerians. The two-year visa is still valid contrary to reports we have heard in the media.

    “Nigeria’s leadership role is crucial in the world and Nigeria cannot be blacklisted. The importance of Nigeria in the world is legal,” he said.

    The envoy explained that Nigerians, particularly its Muslim community, would not be discriminated against by the order.

    He said that the aim of the executive order was not to be used as a weapon to deliberately deny anyone visa into the U.S.

    The ambassador explained that the executive order was designed to put in place a new and effective system.

    He said that the new system would ensure that people, who genuinely wanted to visit, live or work in the U.S., could do so and stop any that posed a threat from entering into the country.

    On the issue of the U.S. closing its doors against countries that were in crisis and refugees, Symington said that his country was not shutting its doors but putting in place measures to ensure safety for all.

    “We recognise that we are a nation of immigrants and a nation constantly seeking to bring diverse people together.

    “Our goal is to have in place a process that works. For everyone that applies for a visa, we should be able to find out the person’s background as to where he has been before.

    “The idea is to ensure that when we open the door to our house, people are going in to do good deeds, not to do harm,” he said.

    The Head of Consular Affairs, U.S. Embassy, Abuja, Mr Megan Moore also gave assurance that the executive order would not affect the validity of visas issued to Nigerians, saying that the only thing that had changed “is the renewal period’’.

    The Consular Chief said that though the U.S. visa policy was based on reciprocity, Nigerians would not be discriminated against.

    “It is important to note that there is not going to be any changes for Nigerians who have a valid U.S. visa.

    “The U.S. Government issues a multiple-entry two-year visa to Nigerians. The rumour that we are planning to change that to one year is not true.

    “The main difference for Nigerians will be; you can use the DHL Drop box renewal programme if your visa has expired within 12 months.

    “But if it expired more than 12 months ago, then you will need to schedule an appointment for interview.

    “Our goal is to ensure that Nigerians are able to travel to U. S.  so that they continue to participate in the fabrics of our lives,” Moore said.

  • Trump travel ban sparks protest in Rome

    Trump travel ban sparks protest in Rome

    Protesters chanted outside the U.S. Embassy in Rome on Thursday against President Donald Trump’s order to restrict entry into the United States for refugees and citizens of seven Muslim countries.

    Last week’s executive order blocked citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen and placed an indefinite hold on Syrian refugees.

    “I fear the worst is yet to come,’’ said Fouad Roueiha, 37, who was born in Syria and raised in Italy, he brought his son and daughter with him “to teach them about civic duty’’, and said the order prevented them from visiting family in Florida.

    The order sparked large protests across the United States and in other countries.

    In Rome, a few dozen protesters waved signs reading “No Ban, No Walls’’ and “Trump, ban torture not Muslims’’ in English.

    A candlelit protest was due to be held later in front of the embassy by a group of Americans who live in Italy.

    “If discriminatory policies take hold, it’s a danger for everyone everywhere,’’ said Michael Stiefel, 50, a lawyer and a U.S. citizen.

    Antonella Napolitano, 35, who works for an Italian rights group that helped organize the protest, said: “One hundred years ago Italian immigrants in America were treated badly, there can be change, and history does not have to repeat.’’