Tag: sanction

US cautious on whether Russian troops to Donbass equals invasion

  The United States took a wait-and-see attitude Monday to President Vladimir Putin’s order for Russian troops to deploy in separatist areas of Ukraine, saying that talks remain possible “until the tanks roll.” President Joe Biden imposed sanctions on the two Russian-backed areas in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region. But a senior US official declined to characterize whether Putin’s order for Russian armed forces to conduct “peacekeeping” there counts as an invasion, thereby triggering much wider […]

China, Russia block US push for UN sanctions on N.Koreans: diplomats

UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — China and Russia on Thursday blocked a US push to impose United Nations sanctions on five North Koreans in response to recent missile launches by Pyongyang, diplomats told AFP. China’s block came before a new closed-door Security Council meeting on North Korea, also requested by Washington, and was followed by Russia’s decision to similarly oppose the American proposal. Along with Beijing, Moscow has long held a line against increasing […]

US sanctions five North Koreans after missile launch

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States imposed sanctions Wednesday on five North Koreans linked to the country’s ballistic missile program, a day after Pyongyang carried out what it said was the launch of a hypersonic missile. The Treasury Department said the five North Koreans being sanctioned were “responsible for procuring goods for the DPRK’s (North Korea’s) weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile-related programs.” “Today’s actions, part of the United States’ ongoing efforts […]

Iraq warns of ‘collapse’ if Trump blocks oil cash

by Maya Gebeily BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Iraqi officials fear economic “collapse” if Washington imposes threatened sanctions, including blocking access to a US-based account where Baghdad keeps oil revenues that feed 90 percent of the national budget. US President Donald Trump was outraged by the Iraqi parliament voting on January 5 to oust foreign forces, including some 5,200 American troops, who have helped local soldiers beat back jihadists since 2014. If troops were asked to […]

Maduro supporters demonstrate against US sanctions

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Thousands of supporters of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro marched through the capital Caracas on Wednesday in protest against attempts by US President Donald Trump to asphyxiate the ruling regime. Dressed in red and carrying the tricolor Venezuelan flag, the protesters gathered at a stage in the center of the capital to listen to some of the ruling regime’s top officials. The demonstration followed 48 hours during which Washington threatened to “use […]

Iran condemns detention of oil supertanker in Gibraltar

by Jorge GUERRERO GIBRALTAR, United Kingdom (AFP) — Iran on Thursday condemned the “illegal interception” of one of its oil tankers in Gibraltar where authorities said they suspected it was carrying crude to Syria in violation of EU sanctions. The detention of the 330 metre (1,000 feet) Grace 1 vessel comes at a sensitive time in Iran-EU ties as the bloc mulls how to respond to Tehran announcing it will breach the maximum uranium enrichment […]

US hits Iran’s supreme leader Khamenei with sanctions

by Sebastian Smith WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States imposed sanctions Monday against Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and top military chiefs, tightening the screws on a country that President Donald Trump threatened with “obliteration” if it seeks war. Signing the punitive financial measures in the Oval Office, Trump called them a “strong and proportionate response to Iran’s increasingly provocative actions.” Repeating that “never can Iran have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said […]

MWSS imposes P1-billion sanction on Manila Water over water shortage

(Eagle News)—The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System has imposed a sanction of more than P1 billion on Manila Water over the water shortage that grappled its customers in March. MWSS administrator Reynaldo Velasco said in a radio interview of the P1.134 billion sanction, P534 million represents a fine, and P600 million the fund for a new water source. Manila Water president and CEO Ferdinand dela Cruz said the company would comply with the MWSS decision, […]

N. Korea urges ‘telling blow’ to forces imposing sanctions: KCNA

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has struck a defiant note over his failed summit with US President Donald Trump in Hanoi and insisted Pyongyang would overcome the effect of sanctions, state media reported Thursday. The remarks were Kim’s first official comment on the North’s position since talks on denuclearisation with Washington broke down in Vietnam in February, in part over Pyongyang’s demands for immediate sanctions relief. Trump is set […]

South Korean ship detained over sanctions on North: Seoul

  SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — A South Korean ship has been detained for more than six months on suspicion of violating UN sanctions against the nuclear-armed North, Seoul’s foreign ministry said Wednesday. Pyongyang is sanctioned over its weapons programme under multiple UN Security Council resolutions, which include curbs on shipments of oil and fuel to the isolated regime. But the North has been seeking to get around the measures, with a recent UN report […]

US sanctions Chinese ships over N.Korea sanctions

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on two Chinese shipping companies for doing business with North Korea, vowing to keep strictly enforcing sanctions on Pyongyang even amid top-level diplomacy. “The maritime industry must do more to stop North Korea’s illicit shipping practices,” national security adviser John Bolton tweeted after the Treasury Department’s announcement. “Everyone should take notice and review their own activities to ensure they are not involved in […]

Senators ask US to sanction Myanmar army chief

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Senators called Wednesday for the United States to slap sanctions on Myanmar’s army chief, saying more needed to be done to bring accountability over the campaign against the Rohingya. In a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the four senators said Myanmar has shown “no credible signs of progress” despite widespread international condemnation of the killings and sexual violence against members of the mostly […]