Politics

Bloomberg Mexico Finance Minister Jose Antonio Meade resigned, stoking speculation that he will become the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party’s candidate for president in 2018 elections. Meade’s resignation was announced during a speech by President Enrique Pena Nieto at the Los Pinos residence in Mexico City. The president also said Pemex CEO, Jose Antonio Gonzalez Anaya, will leave his post to ...

BEIRUT / GENEVA / Reuters A Syrian government delegation will arrive in Geneva on Wednesday, a day later than expected, to attend peace talks being held there this week, Syrian state news agency SANA said. The delegation had delayed its plan- ned departure for the talks, which began on Tuesday, because of the opposition’s insistence that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad ...

BAGHDAD / Reuters Two attackers shot several civilians in the Nahrawan area southeast of Baghdad before one blew himself up and the other was killed by security forces, the Iraqi Interior Ministry said, without providing official casualty figures. Local media reported at least 17 people were killed and 28 wounded. IS claimed responsibility for the att- ack, described by an ...

Bloomberg Japan received radio signals suggesting that North Korea may be preparing for a missile launch test, Kyodo News reported, citing multiple government officials. Japan didn’t specify the type of possible missile, according to the news service. Any radio signals could be from winter training by North Korea’s military, Kyodo said. Separately, Yonhap reported that the US continues to watch ...

Bloomberg The controversy engulfing the Irish government and threatening Brexit talks escalated, as the release of a cache of emails threatened to further undermine the nation’s deputy leader and bring an election closer. Deputy Prime Minister Frances Fitzgerald faces a no-confidence vote in Dublin over her handling of a whistle blower controversy that could pull down the minority government. In ...

Bloomberg UK Trade Secretary Liam Fox called on the European Union to allow Brexit negotiations to move on to future trade links, saying his government has done enough to satisfy the bloc’s demands for money. Fox said that while the UK wants a deal with the EU, it’s “not afraid” of talks breaking down and could trade with the 27 ...

Bloomberg Germany’s political stalemate showed signs of easing as the Social Democrats started haggling over terms of a renewed coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc rather than outright blocking an alliance between Germany’s two biggest parties. The possibility of the SPD again joining a Merkel-led government in a “Grand Coalition” has unfolded quickly, with the party opening the door ...

Bloomberg Russia’s deputy foreign minister said North Korea’s current pause in provocations — the longest since last winter — indicates a step toward denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula. “I think North Korea’s restraint for the past two months is within the simultaneous freeze road map” suggested by China and Russia, Igor Morgulov told reporters in Seoul on Monday. Russian and ...

Bloomberg Prime Minister Theresa May has a week to find a compromise on the conflicting Brexit demands from the north and south of Ireland, and a political scandal threatening the Irish government could further undermine her chances of success. Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar wants written assurances that Brexit won’t mean a return to checkpoints and towers along what will ...

Bloomberg The Catalan independence movement is divided over how to move forward as opinion polls suggest the December regional election is too close to call. While ousted President Carles Puigdemont doubled down this weekend on his pledge to make the wealthy region an independent state, his former ally Esquerra Republicana suggested the party should focus on policy instead. The clash ...