Tag: TRUMP

Trump, Erdogan stress need for Syria, Libya ceasefires: W.House

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan underlined Tuesday the need for ceasefires in Syria and Libya during the coronavirus pandemic, the White House said. The two spoke by phone on efforts to “defeat the virus and bolster the global economy,” the White House said in a statement. And they “agreed it is more important now than ever for countries in conflict, particularly Syria and Libya, […]

Trump warns US headed for ‘very, very painful two weeks’

Washington, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned of a “very painful” two weeks as the United States wrestles with a coronavirus surge that the White House warns could kill as many as 240,000 Americans. “This is going to be a very painful, a very, very painful two weeks,” Trump told a press conference at the White House. Trump described the pandemic as “a plague.” “I want every American to be prepared […]

US President Trump ditches hopes of quick virus bounce-back for US, extends restrictions for another month

  by Ben Sheppard and AFP bureaus Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday abandoned his timetable for life returning to normal in the United States, extending emergency coronavirus restrictions for another month, while Spain suffered its deadliest day. Trump, who had hoped to shortly re-open much of the US, said the death rate in the country was likely to increase for two weeks and announced “social distancing” guidelines […]

Trump decides against quarantine of New York region

  by Paul HANDLEY Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump decided late Saturday against imposing a broad two-week lockdown on New York and its neighbors after a strong pushback from local political leaders and warnings of the panic it could spark. “A quarantine will not be necessary,” Trump tweeted, some eight hours after he stunned the New York metropolitan region, the epicenter of the US coronavirus outbreak, with a […]

South Korea virus test-kit makers approved to export to US

  SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Three South Korean coronavirus test-kit makers have been given the green light to export their devices to the United States, officials said Saturday. The companies won pre-approval under emergency use authorisation from the US Food and Drug Administration that allows for the products to be sold in America, South Korea’s foreign ministry said, without naming the firms. The US has more confirmed cases of the coronavirus than anywhere else […]

Why the US is leading the world in confirmed coronavirus cases

  by Issam AHMED Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — From the first known patient in late January to now almost 100,000 infected, the United States has earned the unwanted distinction of leading the world in confirmed coronavirus cases. More than 1,500 people have succumbed to the COVID-19 illness — though for now the death rate remains far lower than Italy and several European countries. How did we get here? And what happens […]

Trump signs $2 trillion recovery plan as US virus cases skyrocket

  by Michael Mathes Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump signed into law Friday the $2 trillion rescue plan to salvage a US economy crippled by the novel coronavirus, on a day the nation recorded more than 100,000 confirmed cases of virus infections. Hours earlier, the House of Representatives passed the package, with lawmakers uniting to greenlight the mega-plan as the world-topping number of US COVID-19 infections surged past 104,000, […]

China’s President Xi tells US President Trump: China and US must ‘unite to fight virus’

  China and the United States should “unite to fight” the deadly coronavirus pandemic, President Xi Jinping said in a call with Donald Trump on Friday, as he called for the US to improve relations. The two countries have clashed in recent weeks over the virus, and Chinese state media said Xi told Trump he hoped the “US will take substantive actions to improve Sino-US relations.” He also called for the two countries to work […]

Trump to discuss coronavirus with China’s Xi later Thursday

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump said he will speak by phone with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping later Thursday as the United States overtook China as the country with the most coronavirus cases. Trump told a press conference he would be speaking to Xi at 9:00 pm (0100 GMT Friday). With 82,404 cases of infection, the United States has now surpassed virus hotspots China and Italy, according to a tracker run by […]

Fear in New York, but Trump says coronavirus restrictions could ease soon

by Peter HUTCHISON / Sebastian Smith NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Anxiety ratcheted up Monday across an eerily deserted New York, America’s coronavirus epicenter, but President Donald Trump said he’d soon call for lifting the lockdown in some parts of the country. Trump — who faces reelection in November and is keen to avoid extended economic damage — told reporters he would be “opening up our country to business because our country was meant […]

Trump orders emergency medical stations for coronavirus hotspots

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday said he had ordered the deployment of emergency medical stations with a capacity of 4,000 hospital beds to coronavirus hotspots around the United States. Trump told a news conference that he had told the FEMA emergency management agency to set up the medical stations in New York, California and Washington state. He said eight stations in California would have 2,000 beds and that four stations […]

US President Trump orders emergency medical stations for coronavirus hotspots

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Sunday said he had ordered the deployment of emergency medical stations with capacity of 4,000 hospital beds to coronavirus hotspots around the United States. Trump told a news conference that he had told the FEMA emergency management agency to set up the medical stations in New York, California and Washington state. He said eight stations in California would have 2,000 beds and that four stations […]