BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay a total of $7.2 billion to settle a case with the US Department of Justice over its role in the subprime mortgage crisis, the lender said in a statement Friday. The payment includes a $3.1 billion dollar fine and $4.1 billion in relief to consumers as part of an agreement in principle with US authorities, it said. Deutsche has been negotiating the terms of the […]
Tag: US
Trump Whisperer’ Conway named White House counselor
by Stephanie Griffith Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — More than just a trusted adviser, Kellyanne Conway earned the nickname “Trump Whisperer” on the US presidential campaign trail for an uncanny ability to soothe and soften the brash real estate magnate. Conway on Thursday was rewarded for her gifts — and her political acumen as driver of Donald Trump’s successful campaign strategy — with an influential White House post as counselor to the […]
Trump calls for increased US nuclear capabilities
by Thomas Watkins Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — America must massively boost its nuclear capability until the “world comes to its senses,” President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday, hours after a similar vow by Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Trump made the statement on Twitter, without providing details or context, a day after meeting a group of Pentagon top brass, and shortly after Putin called for Russia to reinforce its own nuclear capabilities. “The United […]
Taiwan president to make CentrAm visit amid US-China tensions
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala (AFP) — Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen, is to visit Guatemala next month amid US-China tensions spurred by US president-elect Donald’s Trump speaking by telephone with the Asian leader and threating to snub Beijing’s “One China” policy. Guatemala’s foreign ministry confirmed the visit, to take place January 11-12, just a week before Trump takes office on January 20. The Central American country is among just 21 nations in the world that defy China’s […]
US condemns apparent ‘terrorist attack’ in Berlin
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States labeled as an apparent “terrorist attack” a driver’s move to plow his truck into a busy Holiday market in Berlin on Monday, killing at least nine people and hurting 50 more. “Germany is one of our closest partners and strongest allies, and we stand together with Berlin in the fight against all those who target our way of life and threaten our societies,” White House National Security spokesman […]
China to return seized US naval probe
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China said Saturday it would return a US naval probe seized in international waters, as it slammed the “hyping” of the incident as “inappropriate and unhelpful”. The unmanned underwater vehicle was taken around 50 nautical miles northwest of Subic Bay in the Philippines late on Thursday, according to the Pentagon, which called the capture unlawful and demanded its immediate return. The incident comes amid escalating tensions between China and the […]
Duterte lashes at US “hypocrites” on aid cut threat; directs repeal of VFA, EDCA
(Eagle News) — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte announced on Saturday (December 17) that the United States military troops should be “prepared to leave” as previous military deals with the US would soon be abrogated following the US threat to defer millions of dollars in foreign aid to the country. In a speech past midnight Saturday (December 17) shortly after arriving from his four-day state visits in Cambodia and Singapore, a visibly tired but angry […]
U.S. military officials prepare for presidential inauguration
WASHINGTON, United States (Reuters) — Military officials on Wednesday (December 14) briefed reporters on the planning underway ahead of next month’s presidential inauguration on January 20, 2017 Members of the Joint Task Force for the National Capitol Region displayed a large map with scale models of key points of interest for the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump as the 45th Commander in Chief. Mock-ups of the U.S. Capitol, the White House, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial […]
McDonald’s moves non-US tax HQ to Britain from Luxembourg
by Dario THUBURN LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — McDonald’s will move fiscal headquarters for the majority of its non-US operations to Britain, it said Thursday, following an EU crackdown on tax deals struck by multinationals including the fast-food giant. McDonald’s is establishing a new Britain-based holding company to cover royalties from most licensing agreements outside the United States, shifting its tax base from Luxembourg. The profits will be subject to British tax, McDonald’s said in […]
E-cigarettes a ‘major public health concern’: US surgeon general
by Kerry SHERIDAN MIAMI, United States (AFP) — E-cigarette use is exploding among young people and is now “a major public health concern,” the US Surgeon General warned Thursday, sparking disagreement from experts in Britain where the devices are seen more favorably. The battery-powered devices heat a liquid containing nicotine into a vapor that is inhaled, and some experts worry that a new generation of smokers is becoming addicted. About one in six US high […]
American space legend John Glenn dead at 95
by Tim Clary COLUMBUS, United States (AFP) — John Glenn, who made history twice as the first American to orbit the Earth and the first senior citizen to venture into space, died Thursday at the age of 95. The US space agency NASA was among the first to pay tribute to the legendary astronaut who went on to serve in the Senate for more than two decades, calling him “a true American hero.” “Godspeed, John […]
China calls on US to bar transit of Taiwan president
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China has urged Washington to block the president of Taiwan from passing through the US, after reports saying she may stop in New York next month on her way to Central America. Taiwan has diplomatic relations with 22 states and the island’s leaders make regular visits to its small group of allies in Central America and the Caribbean, often stopping in the US for meetings with sympathetic lawmakers. Taiwan’s Liberty Times […]





