Politics

Bloomberg Pakistan will add 60,000 troops to boost its patrols along its disputed border with Afghanistan in an effort to curb the flow of insurgents passing between the two nations, according to military officials familiar with the matter. Forty percent of the troops have already been recruited in the exercise, which is expected to take two years, the officials said, ...

Bloomberg Pressure is building on UK opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn to switch course and back a referendum on whatever Brexit deal the government reaches with the European Union. Labour Party activists are trying to force a debate on the issue at its annual conference in Liverpool next month. If they succeed—and there are still some hurdles—a second plebiscite that could ...

Bloomberg The first round of renewed US sanctions on Iran took effect as President Hassan Rouhani—under increasing economic and political pressure—spurned President Donald Trump’s suggestion for talks with “no preconditions.” Following an executive order signed by Trump, the US imposed new restrictions intended to stop the purchase of dollar banknotes by Iran, prevent the government from trading gold and other ...

Bloomberg North Korea appears to have a Pompeo problem. The widening gulf between Secretary of State Michael Pompeo’s description of nuclear talks with North Korea and Pyongyang’s criticism of his efforts is adding further confusion to the status of negotiations intended to achieve the “complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.” North Korean officials and state media have in recent weeks ...

Bloomberg Former PM Najib Razak will be charged under the anti-money laundering act on Wednesday, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission said. The anti-graft agency confirmed that Najib was summoned to give his statement on the case relating to SRC International Sdn, a former unit of troubled state fund 1MDB, on Tuesday, it said in an emailed statement. Najib has pleaded not ...

Bloomberg Armed Nigerian security agents temporarily blocked the entrance to the National Assembly in the capital, Abuja, amid heightening political tensions ahead of general elections in February. Legislators, reporters and staff were turned away by secret police officers wearing masks and their standard black uniforms as they tried to enter the complex on Tuesday. After a couple of hours, lawmakers ...

Bloomberg As Zimbabwean opposition leader Nelson Chamisa considers mounting a legal challenge to last week’s election results, he’s also counting the cost of fissures within his alliance and campaign pledges that made him appear out of touch with voters. Emmerson Mnangagwa’s victory in the parliamentary and presidential ballots has left Chamisa’s Movement for Democratic Change without enough seats to prevent ...

Bloomberg South Sudan’s warring parties signed a peace deal granting rebels key positions in a transitional government, the latest bid to end an almost five-year conflict that’s claimed tens of thousands of lives. The accord will restore rebel leader Riek Machar as President Salva Kiir’s deputy, while appointing four other vice presidents and adding new posts for ministers and lawmakers. ...

JEDDAH / WAM The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has suspended diplomatic ties and halted new trade and investment dealings with Canada. The move comes following a statement released by the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the arrest of a women’s rights activist. According to the Saudi Press Agency, SPA, the Kingdom’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its “disbelief” by ...

Bloomberg The Senate Intelligence Committee’s bipartisan Russia probe is increasingly likely to stretch past the midterm elections, as the panel plans to interview more witnesses for a final report detailing its findings, including on the actions of Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. Panel chairman Richard Burr of North Carolina had wanted to wrap up his probe well before the November congressional ...