Politics

Bloomberg UK Prime Minister Theresa May faces calls to crack down on Russian influence in Britain amid reports that investigators have linked Vladimir Putin’s regime to last week’s poisoning of a former spy in a city southwest of London. The Times and Telegraph newspapers reported that May could blame Russia publicly for the attempted nerve-gas murder of Sergei Skripal and ...

Bloomberg US arms exports surged 25 percent over the five years to 2017, according to data released on Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Extending its lead as the world’s biggest arms exporter, the US accounted for 34 percent of total arms exports. Russia, the next biggest exporter, saw its arms sales fall 7.1 percent to 22 percent ...

Bloomberg US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson cut short his trip to Africa by about a day to deal with pressing matters in the US. Tillerson is ending his trip early to deal with work that needs to be attended to in Washington, D.C., Undersecretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Steve Goldstein told reporters Monday in the ...

Bloomberg The US will make no concessions to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in discussions leading to potential talks between the reclusive leader and President Donald Trump, and during any subsequent negotiations, CIA Director Mike Pompeo said. Kim, on the other hand, must stand by the concessions he’s offered, including ceasing nuclear and missile testing, continuing to allow US-South ...

Bloomberg Slovakia’s interior minister will resign to prevent the collapse of Prime Minister Robert Fico’s government, which is trying to fend off calls for early elections following the murder of an investigative journalist. Interior Minister Robert Kalinak told reporters on Monday he hopes his resignation, sought by the opposition and the junior coalition Most party, will help to stabilise the ...

Bloomberg Japan’s government said on Monday that the names of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, his wife and his finance minister were deleted from documents at the heart of a land scandal that erupted last year, a revelation that threatens to derail his administration and its economic strategy. Finance Minister Taro Aso apologised and said an internal investigation was ongoing as ...

Bloomberg China’s parliament voted to repeal presidential term limits, allowing President Xi Jinping to keep power indefinitely in a formal break from succession rules set up after Mao Zedong’s turbulent rule. All but five of the almost 3,000 National People’s Congress dep-uties present on Sunday supported the measure to strike a constitutional provision barring the president from serving more than ...

Bloomberg Italy’s ruling party will discuss whether it should play the role of potential kingmaker following its defeat in inconclusive elections a week ago as it plots a course forward without former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. The Democratic Party’s leadership will meet in Rome on Monday to acknowledge the resignation of Renzi, its general secretary. It will also begin discussion ...

Bloomberg US President Donald Trump’s apparently impromptu decision to begin setting up talks contrasts with Kim’s situation — North Korea has prepared deliberately for decades for a meeting with the sitting US president as a major step towards gaining international legitimacy. Leaving the White House for a rally in Pennsylvania, Trump told reporters that “We’re doing something very special. We ...

Bloomberg Romania’s de facto leader strengthened his grip on power by helping elevate an ally to a pivotal post within the ruling party. Social Democrat boss Liviu Dragnea’s proposal to make Prime Minister Viorica Dancila executive president was approved by the party’s congress, which is usually convened every four years, after two other candidates withdrew before the vote. The move ...