Top News Stories for Today – Feb 26, 2019
Top News Stories for Today – Feb 26, 2019
Kim arrives Vietnam for summit with Trump
After a nearly three-day journey across China via armored train, Kim Jong Un has arrived in Vietnam for his second summit with US President Donald Trump. The North Korean leader’s yellow and green bulletproof train arrived in the Vietnamese border city of Dong Dang early Tuesday. There Kim disembarked, smiling and waving to cheering crowds as he walked down a red carpet and got into a black limousine. The Mercedes-Benz limo was flanked by Kim’s jogging team of black-suited bodyguards as it took off from the train station.
Kim, who departed from Pyongyang on Saturday, will now make the several hours car journey from the mountains of northern Vietnam to the capital, Hanoi. VOA
Trump heads to Hanoi for summit with Kim
US President Donald Trump is heading to Hanoi for his second summit with Kim Jong Un amid hopes for a deal that would lead to the North Korean leader to give up his nuclear weapons.
On Wednesday evening, Trump will have a brief one-on-one conversation with Kim followed by a dinner that will include US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney. Kim will also have two aides present and both men will have translators. Trump and Kim will then hold a series of official meetings Thursday. VOA
Cardinal Pell guilty of child sexual abuse
The most senior Catholic cleric ever charged with child sex abuse has been convicted of molesting two choirboys moments after celebrating Mass, dealing a new blow to the Catholic hierarchy’s credibility after a year of global revelations of abuse and cover-up.
Cardinal George Pell, Pope Francis’ top financial adviser and the Vatican’s economy minister, bowed his head but then regained his composure as the 12-member jury delivered unanimous verdicts in the Victoria state County Court on Dec. 11 after more than two days of deliberation. The court had until Tuesday forbidden publication of any details about the trial. The Associated Press
Cohen testimony in Congress
President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen will start a three-day gauntlet of congressional appearances by giving a closed-door interview to the Senate intelligence committee, where he is expected to detail what he claims to know about Trump’s contacts with Russians and other sensitive matters related to the president. Senators on the panel are expected to attend Tuesday’s meeting with Cohen, a departure from the committee’s usual practice, where witness interviews are conducted by staff only.
As a close confidant of Trump for many years, Cohen’s testimony is among the most anticipated since the House and Senate started investigating the Trump campaign’s Russia ties two years ago. In addition to lying to Congress, Cohen pleaded guilty last year to campaign finance violations for his involvement in payments to two women who allege they had affairs with Trump. The Associated Press
Indian strikes militants in Pakistan
India says it launched air strikes against militants in Pakistani territory, in a major escalation of tensions between the two countries. The government said strikes targeted a training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) group in Balakot. Pakistan said the strikes hit an empty area but vowed to respond.
Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours have been strained since a suicide attack earlier this month that killed more than 40 Indian troops.
India accuses Pakistan of allowing militant groups to operate on its territory and says Pakistani security agencies played a role in the 14 February attack – claimed by JeM. Pakistan denies any role and says it does not provide safe haven to militants. This air strikes are the first launched across the line of control – the de facto border that divides India-administered Kashmir from Pakistan-administered Kashmir – since a war between the two countries in 1971. BBC
May to offer MPs no-deal Brexit vote
Theresa May has promised MPs a vote on ruling out a no-deal Brexit or delaying the UK’s departure, if they reject her deal next month. Theresa May is making a statement to MPs on Brexit, amid the threat of a revolt by Remain-supporting ministers.
The prime minister promised MPs a meaningful vote on her Brexit deal by 12 March. If they reject her deal she will allow votes on delaying Brexit and ruling out no deal, she said. BBC
Border rebuke looms for Trump
The House is expected to pass a resolution terminating President Trump’s border emergency declaration on Tuesday, giving the Senate 18 days to vote on the one-page bill. On Monday night, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) announced in a Washington Post op-ed that he will support the resolution, joining Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).
Assuming all Democrats vote for the measure, it needs just one more Republican to pass in the Senate. Numerous Republicans have said they despise Trump’s end-run around Congress to build his border wall, but most aren’t prepared to say they will vote for the termination bill. Trump has promised to veto the resolution if it passes, and GOP leaders are scrambling to avoid that embarrassing rebuke. Politico, The New York Times via The Week