Top Stories Today – May 17, 2019
Top Stories Today – May 17, 2019
Taiwan approves same-sex marriage in first for Asia
Taiwan’s legislature voted Friday to legalize same-sex marriage, a first in Asia and a boost for LGBT rights activists who had championed the cause for two decades. Lawmakers pressured by LGBT groups as well as by church organizations opposed to the move approved most of a government-sponsored bill that recognizes same-sex marriages and gives couples many of the tax, insurance and child custody benefits available to male-female married couples.
That makes Taiwan the first place in Asia with a comprehensive law both allowing and laying out the terms of same-sex marriage. Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, a supporter of the law, tweeted: “On May 17th, 2019 in Taiwan, LoveWon. We took a big step toward true equality, and made Taiwan a better country.” The Associated Press
Brexit talks end without deal
Talks between Labour and the government aimed at breaking the Brexit impasse have ended without an agreement. Jeremy Corbyn said the discussions had “gone as far as they can”, blaming what he called the government’s “increasing weakness and instability”. Theresa May said the lack of a “common position” over a further referendum in Labour had made talks “difficult”.
The PM said the government would now consider putting votes to MPs on Brexit options that may “command a majority”. May has promised to set a timetable for leaving Downing Street following a Brexit vote next month. She will try once again to win the support of MPs in the week beginning 3 June, when the Commons votes for the first time on the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill – the legislation needed to implement her deal with the EU. Brexit had been due to take place on 29 March – but after MPs voted down the deal May had negotiated with the bloc three times, the EU gave the UK an extension until 31 October. BBC
Trump does not want war with Iran
President Trump has sought to put the brakes on a brewing confrontation with Iran in recent days, telling the acting defense secretary, Patrick Shanahan, that he does not want to go to war with Iran, administration officials said, while his senior diplomats began searching for ways to defuse the tensions.
That comes in contrast to implications from Trump’s hawkish National Security Adviser John Bolton, and it has Trump calling out to other advisers to complain about Bolton, CNN reports. The reported infighting follows reports of the administration reviewing a plan to send up to 120,000 troops to the Middle East amid what military officials characterize as “credible” threats to US interests. The New York Times and CNN
Trump announces new immigration plan
A proposed “fair, modern and legal” overhaul of the American immigration system, which lawmakers from both major US parties contend has little chance of winning congressional approval, was announced Thursday by US President Donald Trump. The president explained his immigration system, which aims to shift the immigration approval process away from one that prioritizes family ties and humanitarian needs, to one that would attract “the best and the brightest from all around the world.”
According to Trump, the opposition “Democrats are proposing open borders, lower wages and, frankly, lawless chaos. We are proposing an immigration plan that puts the jobs, wages and safety of American workers first. Our proposal is pro-American, pro-immigrant and pro-worker. It’s just common sense.” The proposed plan does not address the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for the so-called Dreamers. The Voice of America
Coalition airstrike kills 17 Afghan policemen
A foreign military airstrike in Afghanistan’s embattled southern Helmand province has mistakenly killed at least 17 government forces and wounded 14 others. A local security official requesting anonymity Friday confirmed to VOA the casualties, saying the deadly strike occurred just outside the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah where police forces were battling Taliban insurgents.
Afghan Interior Ministry said the US-led Resolute Support military coalition carried out the air raid at the request of Afghan partners to assist in fighting off a large-scale Taliban attack in Nahr-e-Saraj district and noted Afghan forces had also inflicted heavy casualties on the insurgents. The coalition has not yet replied to a VOA request for comment. The Voice of America
Iran’s top diplomat presses efforts to save nuclear deal
Iran’s foreign minister Zarif traveled Friday to China on his Asian tour aimed at keeping world markets open to Tehran amid an intense sanctions campaign from the US as tensions across the Persian Gulf remain high. China was one of the signatories on Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which saw it limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of crushing economic sanctions.
“So far, the international community has mainly made statements instead of saving the deal,” Zarif said, according to a report by the state-run IRNA news agency. “The practical step is quite clear: economic relations with Iran should be normalized. This is what the deal clearly addresses.” Zarif earlier visited Japan, a major importer of crude oil from the Persian Gulf. Iran recently said it would resume enriching uranium at higher levels if a new nuclear deal is not reached with Europe by July 7. That would potentially bring it closer to being able to develop a nuclear weapon, something Iran insists it has never sought. The Associated Press