SEOUL: The threat of nuclear missile attack by North Korea is accelerating, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Saturday, accusing the North of illegal and unnecessary missile and nuclear programs and pledging to repel any strike.
In remarks in Seoul with South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo at his side, Mattis said North Korea engages in “outlaw” behavior and that the US will never accept a nuclear North.
The Pentagon chief added that regardless of what the North might try, it is overmatched by the firepower and cohesiveness of the decades-old US-South Korean alliance.
“North Korea has accelerated the threat that it poses to its neighbors and the world through its illegal and unnecessary missile and nuclear weapons programs,” he said, adding that US-South Korean military and diplomatic collaboration thus has taken on “a new urgency.”
“I cannot imagine a condition under which the United States would accept North Korea as a nuclear power,” Mattis said.
As he emphasized throughout his weeklong Asia trip, which included stops in Thailand and the Philippines, Mattis said diplomacy remains the preferred way to deal with the North.
“With that said,” he added, “make no mistake — any attack on the United States or our allies will be defeated, and any use of nuclear weapons by the North will be met with a massive military response that is effective and overwhelming.”
Mattis’ comments did not go beyond his recent statements of concern about North Korea, although he appeared to inject a stronger note about the urgency of resolving the crisis.
While he accused the North of “outlaw” behavior, he did not mention that President Donald Trump has ratcheted up his own rhetoric. In August, Trump warned the North not to make any more threats against the US, and said that if it did, it would be met with “fire and fury like the world has never seen.”
Song said at the news conference that he and Mattis agreed to further cooperation on strengthening Seoul’s defense capabilities, including lifting warhead payload limits on South Korean conventional missiles and supporting the country’s acquisition of “most advanced military assets.” He offered no specifics and refused to answer when asked whether the discussions included nuclear-powered submarines.
Some South Korean government officials have endorsed the nation getting nuclear-powered submarines amid calls for more military strength. There is a growing concern among the South Korean public that North Korea’s expanding nuclear weapons arsenal, which may soon include an intercontinental ballistic missile that could target the US mainland, would undermine Seoul’s long alliance with Washington.
South Korea’s conservative politicians have also called for the United States to bring back tactical nuclear weapons that were withdrawn from the Korean Peninsula in the 1990s. But Mattis and Song were strongly dismissive of the idea.
“When considering national interest, it’s much better not to deploy them,” said Song, adding that the allies would have “sufficient means” to respond to a North Korean nuclear attack even without placing tactical nuclear weapons in the South. Mattis said current US strategic assets are already providing nuclear deterrence and that the South Korean government has never approached him with the subject of tactical nuclear weapons.
Trump entered office declaring his commitment to solving the North Korea problem, asserting that he would succeed where his predecessors had failed. His administration has sought to increase pressure on Pyongyang through UN Security Council sanctions and other diplomatic efforts, but the North has not budged from its goal of building a full-fledged nuclear arsenal, including missiles capable of striking the US mainland.
If Trump sticks to his pledge to stop the North from being able to threaten the US with a nuclear attack, something will have to give — either a negotiated tempering of the North’s ambitions or a US acceptance of the North as a nuclear power.
The other alternative would be US military action to attempt to neutralize or eliminate the North’s nuclear assets — a move fraught with risk for South Korea, Japan and the US.
Mattis touched off unease in South Korea last month when he told reporters at the Pentagon that the US has military options for North Korea that does not put Seoul at risk. At Saturday’s briefing, Mattis did not offer a direct answer to what those options are or how and when they would be used.
“Our military options as I mentioned are designed to buttress the diplomats’ efforts to maintain a deterrence stance and denuclearize the Korean Peninsula,” he said. While the allies are committed to deterring North Korea, they also need “many different military options that would realistically reduce that threat as low as possible,” Mattis said.
“And yes, we do have those options,” he said.
Pentagon chief says North Korea engages in ‘outlaw’ behavior
Pentagon chief says North Korea engages in ‘outlaw’ behavior
Arab American mayors in Michigan nominated by Trump as ambassador to Kuwait and Tunisia
- Amer Ghalib and Bill Bazzi were among a number of Muslim leaders from the state who publicly endorsed Trump for the presidency last year
- ‘It’s a great honor to have the trust of the president,’ Ghalib tells Arab News. ‘I will utilize my skills … to strengthen the relationship between’ the US and Kuwait
CHICAGO: Amer Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Michigan, said on Friday he was “honored” to be nominated by President Donald Trump for the post of US ambassador to Kuwait.
Meanwhile, Bill Bazzi, the mayor of Dearborn Heights, also in Michigan, was nominated by Trump this week to serve as the US envoy to Tunisia.
Arab American Muslims Ghalib and Bazzi were among the Michigan officials who publicly endorsed Trump for the presidency last year over Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
“It’s a great honor to have the trust of the president placed in me to represent our great county and serve as the next ambassador to the State of Kuwait,” Ghalib told Arab News on Friday.
“I will utilize my skills, Arabic language, cultural understanding and diverse background to strengthen the relationship between the two countries. I’m excited about my next chapter in my journey and I’ll make the American people proud of me.”
Ghalib, who became mayor of Hamtramck in November 2021, is the first Arab American and Muslim to hold the office in the city, which has a Muslim-majority population.
Trump was officially endorsed during his run for president by Ghalib and Bazzi, and several other Arab and Muslim leaders and imams from Michigan, on Oct. 26 last year during a press conference in the city of Novi.
Bazzi did not respond to Arab News when asked to comment on his nomination, but in a message posted on Facebook, he wrote: “I am honored and appreciate President Donald Trump’s appointment to serve as US Ambassador to Tunisia.
“Among the distinct countries I have visited over the years, I hold a great affinity to Tunisia and its honorable parliament, elected officials, educators, and other industry leaders — along with the people I met while touring orphanages, women’s career institutions, schools, and a multitude of companies which distinguish the country’s rising presence in the region.
“With my visits overseas, the cohort’s visits to the US, and the relations we have established over the years, I am excited to return and honorably represent our Country in Tunisia as its US Ambassador. My purpose is to continue serving in capacities which make an impact, promote peace and diplomatic partnerships, which benefit our Country and enhance global relations.”
Trump wrote on social media platform X: “Bazzi is a decorated US Marine, who honorably served our Country for 21 years, collaborating with US Embassy Ambassadors, Diplomats, and Leaders throughout the world.”
Bazzi, who was born in Bint Jbeil, Lebanon, was appointed mayor of Dearborn Heights in January 2021 following the death of the incumbent and won the election for the office in November that year. He had previously served as the temporary chairperson of Dearborn Heights City Council since 2017.
Bishara Bahbah, the founder of Arab Americans for Trump, an organization that worked in several states to rally Arab and Muslim American elected officials and leaders in support of Trump’s presidential campaign, praised the appointments of Ghalib and Bazzi as “a demonstration of the president’s commitment to the Arab and Muslim community.”
He told Arab News: “Arab Americans for Peace, formerly Arab Americans for Trump, is delighted with President Trump’s nomination of two distinguished Arab American mayors from Michigan as the new ambassadors to Kuwait and Tunisia.
“Both men risked their political careers, having been elected as Democrats to their posts. Mayor Bazzi and Mayor Ghalib are outstanding individuals who wanted to see the end of the wars in both Gaza and Lebanon.”
The nominations reflect the growing influence of Arab Americans in US politics, Bahbah said, and are “a testament to the newfound power of Arab Americans in this past US presidential election and future presidential elections.
“We are confident that both mayors will be effective ambassadors representing the best interests of the United States. Their Arab backgrounds will undoubtedly help foster better US-Kuwaiti and US-Tunisian diplomatic relations.”
The nominations must now be considered and approved by a majority vote in the US Senate.
S&P lifts Saudi Arabia’s rating on sustained economic shift away from oil
RIYADH: Global ratings agency S&P raised Saudi Arabia’s rating to ‘A+’ from ‘A’ with a stable outlook on Friday, underpinned by the ongoing social and economic transformation in the country.
Fitch said the country’s Vision 2030 project provides some flexibility in managing capital expenditure and debt issuance.
The sustained momentum in this project can help boost activity in construction, logistics, manufacturing and mining sectors, prompting GDP growth over 2025-28, the report said.
Earlier this week, the ratings agency had said it expects Saudi government to cut capex and associated current spending in 2025.
With Saudi’s main aim to diversify its economy away from its reliance on the hydrocarbon sector, Fitch said the current investments should boost consumption by Saudi Arabia’s young population and increase the productive capacity of the economy.
Last week, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund had signed a new memorandum of understanding worth $3 billion with Italy’s state export credit agency SACE. The ratings agency said this will help maintain the country’s debt.
Fitch also anticipates that current sensitivity to oil prices will weaken fiscal and external imbalances through 2028.
It expects that Saudi’s giant Aramco’s decline in dividend will further dampen oil revenue.
"Large hydrocarbon reserves and low cost of production provide Saudi Arabia some resilience to a global energy transition to low-carbon alternatives, especially in a future scenario where fossil fuel demand will largely be met by a smaller number of the most efficient producers," S&P said.
It added that the Kingdom also "maintains its unique position as the world's largest swing oil producer (with spare installed production capacity permitting it to cut or raise production levels relatively quickly), as well as its leadership role in OPEC+ and its consequent ability to influence global oil price trends,"
Trump pledges to ‘expose’ his enemies in political speech at Justice Department
- He promised to target his perceived enemies even as he claimed to be ending what he called the weaponization of the department
- Trump’s address amounted to an extraordinary display of partisan politics and personal grievance inside an institution that is meant to be blind to both
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump pledged to “expose” his enemies during a norm-breaking political speech Friday at the Justice Department in which he aired a litany of grievances about the criminal cases he faced and vowed retribution for what he described as the “lies and abuses that have occurred within these walls.”
The speech was meant to rally support for Trump administration policies on violent crime, drugs and illegal immigration. But it also functioned as a triumphant forum for the president to boast about having emerged legally and politically unscathed from two federal prosecutions that one year ago had threatened to torpedo his presidential prospects but were dismissed after his election win last fall.
Though other presidents have spoken from the Justice Department’s ceremonial Great Hall, Trump’s address amounted to an extraordinary display of partisan politics and personal grievance inside an institution that is meant to be blind to both. Casting himself as the country’s “chief law enforcement officer,” a title ordinarily reserved for the attorney general, he promised to target his perceived enemies even as he claimed to be ending what he called the weaponization of the department.
The speech marked the latest manifestation of Trump’s unparalleled takeover of the department and came amid a brazen campaign of retribution already undertaken under his watch, including the firing of prosecutors who investigated him during the Biden administration and the scrutiny of thousands of FBI agents who investigated the president’s supporters who stormed the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
“Our predecessors turned this Department of Justice into the Department of Injustice. But I stand before you today to declare that those days are over, and they are never going to come back and never coming back,” Trump said to cheers from a crowd that included local law enforcement officials, political allies and FBI
Director Kash Patel. “So now, as the chief law enforcement officer in our country, I will insist upon and demand full and complete accountability for the wrongs and abuses that have occurred.”
The visit to the Justice Department, the first by Trump and the first by any president in a decade, brought him into the belly of an institution he has disparaged in searing terms for years but one that he has sought to reshape by installing loyalists and members of his personal defense team in top leadership positions.
The event was reminiscent of a campaign rally, with upbeat music blaring from loudspeakers before Trump entered the Great Hall. Justice Department and White House officials mingled while members of the crowd posed for selfies. The podium was flanked by large signs that read “Fighting Fentanyl in America.” Also on the stage was a cardboard box that read “DEA evidence.”
Trump’s unique status as a onetime criminal defendant indicted by the department he was now addressing hung over the speech as he vented, in profane and personal terms, about investigations as far back as the Russian election interference investigation to the more recent inquiries into his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and the hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
He mentioned by name prosecutors who investigated him, calling them “scum,” and called the classified documents case against him “bulls— -.” He claimed that “a corrupt group of hacks and radicals within the ranks of the American government obliterated the trust and goodwill built up over generations,” and said that before the department could turn the page, “we must be honest about the lies and abuses that have occurred within these walls,“
“We will expel the rogue actors and corrupt forces from our government. We will expose, very much expose their egregious crimes and severe misconduct,” Trump said in a wide-ranging speech that touched on everything from Russia’s war against Ukraine, the 2020 election to the price of eggs.
“It’s going to be legendary. And going to also be legendary for the people that are able to seek it out and bring justice. We will restore the scales of justice in America, and we will ensure that such abuses never happen again in our country.”
His claim that the Justice Department had been weaponized during the Biden administration overlooked that there were investigations during that time into Biden’s mishandling of classified information and into the firearms and tax affairs of his son Hunter. And his recounting of the recent investigations into him did not mention that prosecutors had amassed what they said was substantial evidence, including that he had sought to obstruct the classified documents inquiry.
When it comes to setting its agenda, the Justice Department historically takes a cue from the White House but looks to maintain its independence on individual criminal investigations.
Trump has upended such norms.
He encouraged specific investigations during his first term and tried to engineer the firing of Robert Mueller, the special counsel assigned to investigate ties between Russia and Trump’s 2016 campaign. He also endured difficult relationships with his first two handpicked attorneys general — Jeff Sessions was fired immediately after the 2018 midterm election, and William Barr resigned weeks after publicly disputing Trump’s bogus claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.
Arriving for a second term in January fresh off a landmark Supreme Court opinion that reaffirmed a president’s unshakable control of the Justice Department, Trump has appeared determined to clear from his path any potential obstacles, including by appointing Pam Bondi — a former Florida attorney general who was part of Trump’s defense team at his first impeachment trial — and Patel, another close ally, to serve as FBI director.
“We all work for the greatest president in the history of our country,” Bondi said Friday in introducing Trump. “We are so proud to work at the directive of Donald Trump. He will never stop fighting for us and we will never stop fighting for him and for our country.”
Even before Bondi had been confirmed, the Justice Department fired department employees who served on special counsel Jack Smith’s team, which brought the election interference and classified documents cases against Trump. Both cases were dismissed last November in line with longstanding Justice Department policy against indicting sitting presidents.
Senior Justice Department officials also demanded from the FBI lists of thousands of employees who worked on investigations into the Jan 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol, when a mob of Trump’s supporters stormed the building in an effort to halt the certification of the electoral vote, and fired prosecutors who had participated in the cases. And they’ve ordered the dismissal of a criminal case against New York Mayor Eric Adams by saying the charges had handicapped the Democrat’s ability to partner in the Republican administration’s fight against illegal immigration.
Trump administration weighs travel ban on dozens of countries, memo says
- The first group of 10 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Cuba and North Korea among others, would be set for a full visa suspension
- In the third group, a total of 26 countries would be considered for a partial suspension of US visa issuance if their governments “do not make efforts to address deficiencies within 60 days,” the memo said
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration is considering issuing sweeping travel restrictions for the citizens of dozens of countries as part of a new ban, according to sources familiar with the matter and an internal memo seen by Reuters.
The memo lists a total of 41 countries divided into three separate groups. The first group of 10 countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Cuba and North Korea among others, would be set for a full visa suspension.
In the second group, five countries would face partial suspensions that would impact tourist and student visas as well as other immigrant visas, with some exceptions.
In the third group, a total of 26 countries would be considered for a partial suspension of US visa issuance if their governments “do not make efforts to address deficiencies within 60 days,” the memo said.
A US official speaking on the condition of anonymity cautioned there could be changes on the list and that it was yet to be approved by the administration, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The New York Times first reported on the list of countries.
The move harkens back to President Donald Trump’s first term ban on travelers from seven majority-Muslim nations, a policy that went through several iterations before it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018.
Trump issued an executive order on January 20 requiring intensified security vetting of any foreigners seeking admission to the US to detect national security threats.
That order directed several cabinet members to submit by March 21 a list of countries from which travel should be partly or fully suspended because their “vetting and screening information is so deficient.”
Trump’s directive is part of an immigration crackdown that he launched at the start of his second term.
He previewed his plan in an October 2023 speech, pledging to restrict people from the Gaza Strip, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and “anywhere else that threatens our security.”
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
The memo lists a total of 41 countries divided into three separate groups.
Full visa suspension:
- Afghanistan
- Cuba
- Iran
- Libya
- North Korea
- Somalia
- Sudan
- Syria
- Venezuela
- Yemen
Partial visa suspension (tourist, student and some other visas affected):
- Eritrea
- Haiti
- Laos
- Myanmar
- South Sudan
Countries recommended for a partial suspension if they do not address deficiencies:
- Angola
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Belarus
- Benin
- Bhutan
- Burkina Faso
- Cabo Verde
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Chad
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Dominica
- Equatorial Guinea
- Gambia
- Liberia
- Malawi
- Mauritania
- Pakistan
- Republic of the Congo
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Sierra Leone
- East Timor
- Turkmenistan
- Vanuatu
Philippine ex-President Duterte appears by video link at initial ICC hearing
- In the short hearing, Duterte was informed of the crimes he is alleged to have committed, as well as his rights as a defendant
- Duterte appeared sleepy during the proceedings, closing his eyes frequently for long periods
THE HAGUE: Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte failed to attend in person an initial hearing at the International Criminal Court on Friday, as he faces crimes against humanity charges over his deadly crackdown on narcotics.
The 79-year-old, the first ex-Asian head of state charged by the ICC, followed by videolink during a short hearing to inform him of the crimes he is alleged to have committed, as well as his rights as a defendant.
Sounding frail and wearing a blue suit and tie, he spoke briefly to confirm his name and date of birth. Presiding Judge Iulia Motoc allowed him to follow proceedings in absentia due to his long flight to The Hague.
His lawyer Salvador Medialdea told the court that his client had been “abducted from his country.”
“He was summarily transported to The Hague. To lawyers it’s extrajudicial rendition. For less legal minds, it’s pure and simple kidnapping,” said Medialdea.
The lawyer also said that Duterte was suffering “debilitating medical issue,” adding: “Other than to identify himself, he is not able to contribute to this hearing.”
Duterte appeared sleepy during the proceedings, closing his eyes frequently for long periods.
But Motoc told Duterte: “The court doctor was of the opinion that you were fully mentally aware and fit.”
She set a date of September 23 for the next stage of the process: a hearing to confirm the charges.
Duterte stands accused of the crime against humanity of murder over his years-long campaign against drug users and dealers that rights groups said killed thousands.
In the prosecutor’s application for his arrest, he said Duterte’s alleged crimes were “part of a widespread and systematic attack directed against the civilian population in the Philippines.”
“Potentially tens of thousands of killings were perpetrated,” the prosecutor alleged of the campaign that targeted mostly poor men, often without proof they were linked to drugs.
Victims’ families have welcomed the trial as a chance for justice, while Duterte supporters believe he was “kidnapped” and sent to The Hague amid a spectacular fall-out with the ruling Marcos family.
In Manila, Jane Lee, whose husband was killed in the drug war, said she was barely able to contain her rage at the sight of the former president.
“When I saw him, I was so angry I could barely control myself,” the 42-year-old said at a public viewing of the ICC proceedings.
According to international law experts, his whirlwind arrest and surrender offers a welcome boon to the embattled ICC, which is being attacked from all sides and sanctioned by the United States.
“I see the arrest and handing over of Duterte as a gift at an important moment in time,” Willem van Genugten, Professor of International Law at Tilburg University in The Netherlands, told AFP.
Earlier on Friday, the former leader’s daughter Sara Duterte, vice president of the Philippines, told AFP she had submitted a last-minute bid to have the hearing moved.
She later revealed that she had visited her father for an hour in the detention center and that he was “in good spirits, well looked-after” and “well rested,” his main complaint being about the food.
“He told me that all he does is sleep and watch TV... (he said that) my only complaint is that I really miss Philippine food,” Sara Duterte told reporters at a chaotic press conference surrounded by dozens of baying supporters.
Duterte backers had gathered outside the hulking glass building in the Hague shouting “bring him home.”
But Ecel Sandalo, an anti-Duterte demonstrator, told AFP the fact that the former president was on trial had given him “hope that despite all the injustices in the world, there are still small victories that we can celebrate.”
As he landed in The Hague, the former leader appeared to accept responsibility for his actions, saying in a Facebook video: “I have been telling the police, the military, that it was my job and I am responsible.”
In his application for arrest, the prosecutor quoted from some of Duterte’s pronouncements when he was running for president.
He is cited as saying the number of criminal suspects killed “will become 100,000... I will kill all of you” and the fish in Manila Bay “will become fat because that’s where I will throw you.”
At the confirming of charges hearing, a suspect can challenge the prosecutor’s evidence.
Only after that will the court decide whether to press ahead with a trial, a process that could take several months or even years.
