Politics

Bloomberg President Donald Trump’s appointment of Christopher Miller, a former Green Beret and White House counterterrorism coordinator, as acting defense secretary raises “two layers of fear,” the head of the House Armed Services panel said. The first is the “incredibly steep learning curve” on global military operations, options and controversies that Miller faces after Trump’s dismissal-by-tweet of Mark Esper as ...

Bloomberg President-elect Joe Biden shrugged off Donald Trump’s effort to challenge the election results, forging ahead with transition planning even as the president pursues a multi-state legal fight backed by Republican allies and the Justice Department. Trump’s campaign said it would file a federal lawsuit in Michigan that seeks to stop the state’s top election official from certifying Biden’s win. ...

Bloomberg Ethiopia’s government said its forces killed at least 550 fighters loyal to the ruling party of the northern Tigray region, as the African Union called for an immediate ceasefire. Fighting is continuing in Tigray a week after federal troops began an incursion into the region in retaliation for an attack on one of its army camps in the region. ...

Bloomberg Philippine authorities evacuated thousands of residents in eastern coastal communities ahead of a new typhoon, just weeks after Super Typhoon Goni barreled through the Southeast Asian nation. Typhoon Vamco, locally known as Ulysses, is forecast by the Philippine weather bureau to bring damaging winds and intense to torrential rains to provinces in the main Luzon island, including the capital ...

Bloomberg Hong Kong’s opposition bloc resigned en masse on Wednesday after China moved to disqualify lawmakers who aren’t deemed sufficiently loyal, one of Beijing’s strongest actions yet to quash dissent in the territory. Fifteen members of the pro-democracy camp in the 70-seat Legislative Council quit following the disqualification of four members under Beijing’s new rules. The announcement was made at ...

Bloomberg China indicated that it wants Australia to act to improve strained relations, saying Canberra should know what needs to be done to get ties back on track. “China has been pragmatic in growing its business relations with all partners. A healthy relationship needs the nurturing and care of both sides,” Assistant Minister of Commerce Li Chenggang said at a ...

Bloomberg Trade talks between the UK and European Union are set to be extended beyond this weekend’s informal deadline and continue in Brussels next week, according to two people familiar with the matter. Negotiators have been working round the clock in London, with both sides pinpointing the end of this week as the last moment they could strike a deal ...

Bloomberg Ethiopia’s prime minister said he expects conflict in the north of the country to end quickly, dismissing concerns that the fighting may escalate into a full-blown civil war. Federal soldiers continued to clash on Monday with fighters loyal to the Tigray region’s ruling party, six days after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered forces to respond to an alleged attack ...

Bloomberg President-elect Joe Biden announced a new coronavirus task force as his transition team seeks to fulfill a campaign promise to develop a dramatically different approach than President Donald Trump’s to contain the pandemic. The 13-member task force is composed largely of doctors and public health experts, who will work with Biden, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and the transition team ...

Bloomberg Myanmar’s ruling party led by Aung San Suu Kyi said it had won enough parliamentary seats to retain power in the country’s second election since the end of military rule almost a decade ago. Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) is on course to win about 390 seats to the national assembly, according to Myo Nyunt, a member ...