SEOUL North Korea has conducted a test of a new high-thrust engine at its Tongchang-ri rocket launch station and leader Kim Jong Un said the successful test was “a new birth” of its rocket industry, the reclusive North’s official media said on Sunday. The engine would help North Korea achieve world-class satellite launch capability, KCNA said, indicating the test was of a new type of rocket engine […]
Authored by Daniel Lang via SHTFplan.com, For most of its recent history, China has largely been a land power with no significant naval capabilities. They haven’t been able to exert much military influence beyond their coastline for hundreds of years. In fact, one of the reasons why Western powers had no trouble bullying China during the 19th and 20th centuries, was because the Imperial Navy under the […]
One person was in custody after a suspicious vehicle drove up to a White House checkpoint on Saturday night, the Secret Service said, after CNN reported that the driver claimed to have a bomb. CNN, citing two law enforcement sources, said there was no confirmation of any device in the vehicle but that security at the White House had been upgraded. The Secret Service said an unidentified […]
BEIJING U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday that President Donald Trump looks forward to enhancing understanding with China and the opportunity for a visit in the future. Xi said he was glad to see good progress from Tillerson’s meetings in China so far and that he and Trump expect a new stage of constructive development in bilateral relations. Tillerson said […]
18 March 2017 Dubai, UAE – The UAE’s wise leadership has worked tirelessly to anticipate the future, as a fundamental element of its strategies and plans. The vision of the UAE’s leadership, led by HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE; HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai; and HH Sheikh […]
German container shipper Hapag-Lloyd on Friday postponed the completion date for its takeover of United Arab Shipping Company (UASC) to May 31 from March 31, but said the deal, worth 7 to 8 billion euros ($7.52-8.60 billion), was not at risk. All merger clearances and regulatory approvals and all necessary banking approvals from Hapag’s side have been obtained as have most banking approvals from Dubai-based UASC’s side, […]
SHANGHAI The head of one of China’s top graft-busting agencies has said Beijing’s anti-corruption drive will clean up the relationship between government officials and enterprises, the official Xinhua news agency reported. President Xi Jinping has waged war on corruption since assuming office more than four years ago, leading to a one-third jump in graft court cases in 2016. The head of the Ministry of Supervision, Yang Xiaodu, […]
Scientists have discovered the world’s first fluorescent frog by accident while studying the pigment of polka-dot tree frogs found in the forests of Amazon basin. The South American polka dotted tree frog (Hypsiboas punctatus) appears to have dull browny-green skin dotted with red spots under normal light but herpetologist Carlos Taboada, from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina, and colleagues found that it gives off a greenish-blue […]
DUBAI // Cheating has been around as long as universities themselves – from the age-old habit of sneaking notes into exams to more modern methods of deception. But technological advances are helping to keep students on the straight and narrow rather than aiding their deceit. Academics in the country’s universities are noticing a gradual decline in the practice. A realisation of how easy it is to be […]
Brazil’s coffee farmers, struggling with the effect of last year’s drought, have turned to another black commodity — pepper. In a desperate search for an alternative source of income, an increasing number of growers in the state of Espirito Santo, the key producer of the lower-quality coffee robusta beans, have switched to black pepper, whose price more than tripled between 2009 and 2015. “Four years ago, we […]
PARIS Eleven people have received the 500 endorsements from elected officials needed in order to run in the first round of the French presidential elections on April 23. The top two will qualify for a run-off on May 7. The Constitutional Council announced the final list on Saturday. NATALIE ARTHAUD, 46, WORKERS’ STRUGGLE Economics professor who runs for the far-left Trotskyist party. Wants the voice of the […]
Jumeirah Central, Dubai’s upcoming new urban mixed-use district, is already attracting “significant interest” from international investors, according to a senior executive. The mega project, which has no deadline for completion yet, will make its international debut at MIPIM 2017, the annual gathering of the world’s most influential international property players being held in Paris. Master planned by Dubai Holding, Jumeirah Central is already attracting significant interest from […]
By Elisabeth O’Leary | ABERDEEN, Scotland ABERDEEN, Scotland Refusal by Britain’s prime minister to discuss an independence referendum would “shatter beyond repair” the United Kingdom’s constitutional structure, Nicola Sturgeon told her Scottish National Party on Saturday. Sturgeon pledged to press on with plans to hold a new Scottish referendum as announced earlier this week, deepening a standoff with the UK government. Party faithful gave her a rapturous […]
WASHINGTON The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has issued requests for proposals for prototypes for a wall along the Mexican border, saying ideally it should be 30 feet (9 meters) high and the wall facing the U.S. side should be “aesthetically pleasing in color.” A wall to stem illegal immigration was one of Donald Trump’s main campaign promises and has been highly controversial. The president has vowed […]
WASHINGTON A person jumped over a bike rack in a buffer zone in front of the White House on Saturday while President Trump was in Florida, but was not able to make it over the fence into the grounds, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said on Twitter. CNN reported that two Secret Service agents tackled the individual. The area is the start of a buffer zone between […]
The world created by Dr. Seuss appears to be leaping out of the children’s book and into Texas as objects that look like one of the Truffula trees in The Lorax were spotted at the Atlanta State Park. The Truffula Tree The children’s book The Lorax described the Truffula tree as a slow-growing tree which takes ten years to sprout into a sapling and another 10 years to […]
British documentary filmmaker Adam Curtis is scheduled to speak about western perceptions of the Arab world at the launch of the BBC Arabic Film Festival in London on Friday. Curtis uses his films to discuss the cultural and political subconscious of the world through a mix of sociology, psychology, philosophy and political history. A recent New York Times profile on the 61-year-old British BBC journalist described his […]
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis will travel to Egypt next month, the Vatican said Saturday, giving him another opportunity to promote better relations between Catholics and Muslims. Francis has accepted an invitation to visit Cairo on April 28 and 29 from President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Roman Catholic bishops, the leader of the Coptic Orthodox church of Alexandria and the grand imam of Al Azhar mosque, the Vatican […]
Forced applause usually follows a regulator’s remarks to the regulated. Not so inside the pink stucco walls of the Boca Raton Resort and Club in Florida this week. Chris Giancarlo of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission received a standing ovation when he spoke to hundreds of traders, brokers and exchange executives. The enthusiastic response reflects hopes in the derivatives industry for a better relationship with the CFTC, its principal […]
Saudi Arabia said on Friday it had completed all necessary arrangements for Iranian pilgrims to attend the annual haj pilgrimage, the official SPA news agency said, an issue that has created tensions between the two regional powers in the past. The news agency said the arrangements were completed after a meeting took place with an Iranian delegation on February 23. Iran’s Tasnim news agency said on March […]
Via Stratfor, In his joint address to Congress, U.S. President Donald Trump touted a $1 trillion infrastructure investment plan as a means to stimulate the economy while constructing, if not rebuilding outright, crucial projects around the country. Trump later met with U.S. business leaders on March 8 seeking support from the private sector for the plan. It is key to implementing the administration’s infrastructure goals, primarily as a way […]
BEIRUT The leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah movement denounced the United Nations on Saturday as weak after the withdrawal of a report accusing Israel of imposing an “apartheid regime” on Palestinians. A senior U.N. official resigned on Friday after the secretary general asked her to remove the report, published by the United Nation’s Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), from the internet. U.N. Under-Secretary General […]
Apple, Huawei, LG, Samsung, Sony lead the way as retail extravaganza prepares to open its doors to thousands of visitors in Dubai Global smartphone revenues continue to grow; 97% of UAE users reliant on WhatsApp for communication 18 March 2017 Dubai, United Arab Emirates – Thinner, faster and even more intelligent than we could have imagined, smartphones are back with a bang this year and leading […]
By Abdelaziz Boumzar | MOSUL, Iraq MOSUL, Iraq Thousands of Iraqis surged out of western Mosul on Saturday during a lull in heavy fighting in districts around the densely populated Old City where Iraqi forces are facing fierce resistance from Islamic State militants. Five months into the battle to take Islamic State’s last bastion in Iraq, government forces have cleared the east and half of western Mosul, […]
