Politics

Bloomberg Australia would open a defense school to train its Pacific Island neighbours, increase foreign aid and support climate mitigation projects across the region, under an election policy announced by the opposition Labor Party that aims to boost the country’s soft power. Labor has been critical of a new security pact between China and the Solomon Islands, accusing Prime Minister ...

Bloomberg The US announced additional military aid for Ukraine as Defense Secretary said that Washington wants to see Russian forces ground down so they can’t attempt a repeat of the war. Speaking to reporters in Kyiv during the highest-level US visit to Ukraine since Russia invaded two months ago, Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken committed a total of ...

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 ...