Politics

Bloomberg The US is preparing to sanction at least a dozen more Chinese officials over their role in the recent disqualification of Hong Kong legislators, according to two people familiar with the plans. The latest round of sanctions over Hong Kong was expected to be rolled out on Monday, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the ...

Bloomberg Romania’s ruling party remains confident of leading the next government, despite coming a surprise second in elections that were dominated by the Covid-19 pandemic. With the coronavirus pulling turnout down to the lowest since communism collapsed, it was the opposition Social Democrats who proved most effective at mobilising their supporters, garnering 30% of the votes with almost 100% counted. ...

Bloomberg Poland’s coalition government is showing fissures over its decision to block the European Union’s $2.2 trillion spending plan, with a junior coalition partner repeating a stance that puts him at odds with the shot-calling ruling party. The stakes are high for Poland and fellow eastern EU member Hungary. Their opposition to tying the bloc’s budget and coronavirus rescue plan ...

Bloomberg President Donald Trump blasted Georgia’s elections as corrupt but urged his supporters to vote for two GOP senators facing re-election anyway, keeping up attacks that party leaders worry could backfire and end their control of the Senate. At a rally in Valdosta, Georgia, Trump took aim at GOP Governor Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger after complaining ...

Bloomberg Former Hong Kong pro-democracy lawmaker Ted Hui said he and his family no longer have access to their bank accounts in the city after he fled to self-imposed exile in the UK, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported. Five accounts belonging to Hui, his wife and parents have been inaccessible since Saturday, he said in an interview with ...

Bloomberg Australia lacks an overarching approach to handling a “much more assertive” China, and needs a plan for economic diversification and liaising with Asian allies to handle the emerging superpower, opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong said. “The strategy should be working out how we deal with the effects for Australia and the region of a China which demonstrably is ...

Bloomberg Mexico wants to restrict the activities of foreign agents after the arrest of a former top general in Los Angeles sparked diplomatic tension with the US. The proposed measures may put at risk the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) operations with Mexican informants. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador sent a bill to senators to tweak the national security law to ...

Bloomberg Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga saw his cabinet’s approval rating fall more than 12 percentage points from the previous month as his government struggled to handle another wave of coronavirus infections, according to a Kyodo poll. Support for Suga’s cabinet fell to 50.3% from 63% the previous month, according to the survey conducted between December 5 and 6 and ...

Bloomberg As India’s virus numbers swell and the economy stumbles, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has another crisis to deal with: Tens of thousands of angry farmers vowing to camp outside the capital for months. The farmers — mostly from Punjab, often called India’s bread-basket — want him to repeal three laws passed in September that allow them to sell crops ...

Bloomberg Joe Biden now officially has more than the 270 Electoral College votes he needs to claim the presidency after California certified its election results. Secretary of State Alex Padilla approved the results of Biden’s victory, according to his office, which Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom will use to prepare the Certificate of Ascertainment appointing the state’s 55 electors for Biden. ...