Politics

Bloomberg Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison said a Chinese military base in the Solomon Islands would be a “red line” for his government, while fellow US ally Japan became the latest to dispatch an envoy to the country over the issue. Morrison is attempting to deflect criticism he did not move quickly enough to avoid a security agreement between Honiara ...

Bloomberg Emmanuel Macron won another crack at convincing the French public that his pro-business, pro-European vision can work for them, after beating nationalist rival Marine Le Pen in the election. While voters rallied around to give the 44-year-old centrist a second term, many backed him to keep Le Pen out rather than because of their enthusiasm for his project. His ...

Bloomberg French voters headed to the polls for the second time in two weeks to conclude a presidential election in which incumbent centrist Emmanuel Macron has the advantage in surveys over nationalist Marine Le Pen. The candidates’ plans are diametrically opposed. At home, Macron, is sticking to his credo of pro-business overhauls — including an increase in the retirement age ...

Bloomberg North Korea was expected to show signs of holding a huge military parade on April 24 where it would showcase its latest strategic weapons and celebrate the anniversary of its army, Yonhap News reported. The parade at Kim Il Sung Square may involve 20,000 troops, while rehearsals had more than 250 pieces of military equipment on display, the report ...

Bloomberg As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its third month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are preparing to visit Kyiv. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed accelerated weapons supplies that he said could help Ukraine step up its counteroffensive, and said the Americans “should not come here with empty hands.” Russia said it struck a “large ...

  Bloomberg The Solomon Islands should be “really careful” in its security pact with China, Australian Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said, warning the Pacific nation could become beholden to the Asian nation. Joyce said on Australia’s national broadcaster that while he accepted the Solomon Islands’ pledge that there would not be a permanent Chinese military presence on the territory, ...

Bloomberg Changing UK leader now would be “seriously damaging to the country,” the chairman of the ruling Conservative Party said as calls continue for PM Boris Johnson to resign. Oliver Dowden told Sky News he expects Johnson to lead the party into the next general election, expected in about two years. Johnson will face a parliamentary ethics inquiry into his past ...

Bloomberg Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa is fighting an uphill battle in elections that may rid the European Union of a leader who has challenged its democratic values. Against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine, and as fellow EU member France votes over whether to give President Emmanuel Macron a new term or replace him with right-wing standard bearer ...

Bloomberg Japan and South Korea look set to try to revive a relationship that has hit new depths in recent years, with President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol offering an olive branch to Tokyo weeks before US President Joe Biden is likely to visit both countries. Yoon, who takes office on May 10, is sending a group of South Korean lawmakers and ...

Bloomberg A senior US diplomat again warned China of sanctions if it offers “material support” for Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, while also pledging to help India end its dependence on Russian weapons. China wasn’t helping the situation in Ukraine by doing things like amplifying Russian disinformation campaigns, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said at an event in ...