Pentagon mulls National Guard force for rapid city deployments
They would be tasked with rapidly deploying into American cities facing protests or other unrest, according to internal Pentagon documents reviewed by the Washington Post.
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NZ Herald
4 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Pentagon mulls National Guard force for rapid city deployments
The Trump Administration is evaluating plans that would establish a 'Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force' composed of hundreds of National Guard troops. They would be tasked with rapidly deploying into American cities facing protests or other unrest, according to internal Pentagon documents reviewed by the Washington Post. The
RNZ News
4 hours ago
- RNZ News
Trump claims Washington's murder rate is higher than Bogotá or Mexico City. Here's what the stats from those countries say
President Donald Trump has intensified his criticism of the security situation in Washington, DC. Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images via CNN Newsource By Rocío Muñoz-Ledo , Germán Padinger , CNN US President Donald Trump has stepped up his criticism of the security situation in Washington, DC, now claiming that the US capital has a homicide rate higher than some Latin American capitals such as Bogotá, Mexico City and Lima. During a press conference on Monday, Trump announced that he would place the Metropolitan Police Department "under direct federal control" and deploy 800 National Guard troops in an effort to "take back the city." "The murder rate in Washington today is higher than that of Bogotá, Colombia; Mexico City, or some of the places that you hear about as being the worst places on Earth. It's much higher," Trump said. Trump said the move to "liberate" Washington was part of a broader initiative to "take back control" of cities he said were threatened by violence . "All is double or triple, so you want to live in places like that? I don't think so," the president said, referring to the fact that Washington surpasses Latin American cities like Brasilia, Panama City, and San José in homicide rates. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser called Trump's decision to place the Metropolitan Police Department under federal control and deploy the National Guard "alarming and unprecedented." While she said she wasn't entirely surprised, she warned in a press conference that she would not "minimize the intrusion on the autonomy" of the city. Bowser also assured residents that the local government continues to operate "in a way that makes citizens proud" and has since met with Attorney General Pam Bondi, who, according to the executive order, will have the authority delegated by Trump to coordinate actions with the city. The mayor also clarified that "nothing has changed" in the Metropolitan Police Department's organizational chart. Trump said the move to "liberate" Washington was part of a broader initiative to "take back control" of cities he said were threatened by violence. Photo: AFP Trump based his statements on a graph corresponding to 2024, which shows a homicide rate of 27.5 per 100,000 inhabitants in Washington, a figure that - according to him - would place it above Bogotá, Colombia (15), Panama City, Panama (15), San José, Costa Rica (13), Mexico City, Mexico (10), Lima, Peru (7.7), and Brasilia, Brazil (6.8). Official statistics for all these cities, obtained from organizations such as Mexico's INEGI, the Public Prosecutor's Office of Panama, and the goverment of the capital of Brazil, Brasilia, among others, seem to confirm Trump's statement: Washington did surpass several Latin American capitals in the murder rate per 100,000 inhabitants in recent years, although this is only one of many other crime rates. However, the most recent official data reflect a more nuanced picture. According to an analysis by CNN journalist Daniel Dale, crime in Washington has declined significantly since a spike in 2023, when 274 homicides were recorded, the highest number in more than two decades. In 2024, murders dropped to 187, and so far in 2025, they continue to decline. Data from crime expert Jeff Asher, cited by Dale, indicates that homicides in Washington fell 34% compared with 2023 through July of this year. Furthermore, the violent crime rate in 2024 was the second lowest since 1966. A preliminary analysis by the Washington Metropolitan Police Department confirms this trend: Overall crime has also decreased so far in 2025, in line with the sustained decline seen in other major US cities, such as New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. - CNN
NZ Herald
7 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Trump sets a low bar for high-stakes summit and avoids key issues for Kyiv
He added, 'I may leave and say good luck, and that'll be the end.' Trump's own description of his goals for the negotiation, the most high-stakes international meeting yet in his second term, were telling — as much for what he omitted as for what he included. And that is what worries both the Ukrainians and Washington's European allies, who have committed to keep arming Ukraine no matter the outcome in Anchorage. What wasn't mentioned Ceasefire Zelenskyy, who has not been invited to join the talks in Alaska, has said that any agreement must start with a some kind of truce or ceasefire so that negotiations were not being conducted amid continued air attacks and territorial grabs. Trump has not stipulated that a truce must come first. Guarantees During his hour-long news conference, he never once mentioned security guarantees for Ukraine, intended to assure that Putin does not exploit a break in the fighting or new territorial gains as his moment to regroup, rearm and resume his effort to seize the whole country. Support Nor did Trump commit to making sure that Ukraine has the arms, intelligence and co-operation it needs to defend its territory and deter Russia from future attacks. His Vice-President, JD Vance, a longtime critic of American aid to Ukraine, was quite explicit during an appearance on Fox News. 'We're done with the funding of the Ukraine war business,' he said, insisting that the only way American arms would make it into Ukrainian hands would be if European allies bought and transferred them. A sense of haste Trump's comments came as the White House scrambled to make arrangements for one of the most hastily assembled summits of recent times. Usually, such sessions are preceded by detailed advance negotiations, with prearranged agreements and communiqués. Trump seemed to suggest that he was walking into this discussion with none of those, though European officials say they have seen evidence that, at lower levels, Russian and American officials are talking. Adding to the sense of haste, the White House has still not said where, exactly, the meeting will be held, how long it is expected to last or whether at the end Trump will preside over a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy, two avowed enemies. Influencing Trump The risk now, as even some of Trump's Republican allies have conceded, is that Putin will see an opportunity to flatter Trump, play for time, and perhaps win him over to the Russian leader's own interpretation of events. Recent history suggests that Trump is inclined to accept Putin's version of reality. This year he suggested that Ukraine was responsible for the invasion of its own territory, and he refused to join America's traditional Western allies in voting for a United Nations resolution condemning Russia's aggression. Earlier this week, Zelenskyy worried aloud that Trump could be easily 'deceived'. For that reason, European and Nato officials — who mollified Trump at the alliance's summit in the Netherlands in June by pledging to spend 3.5% of their gross domestic product on defence over the next decade — are now carefully trying to hedge him in. They arranged a video call for tomorrow with Trump, aware that they will not be in the room in Alaska, so their power is limited to persuading him beforehand and risking his wrath by dissenting later. One of the most explicit warnings to Trump came from the Secretary-General of Nato, Mark Rutte, a former Netherlands Prime Minister who has invested heavily in developing a relationship with the President and devised the Nato summit to minimise the chances he would disrupt it. His bet paid off, and Trump sang the alliance's praises, rather than declare that it was 'obsolete', as he did in his first term. Rutte's guardrails But this week, Rutte was clearly drawing some guardrails for the coming negotiation. 'Next Friday will be important because it will be about testing Putin, how serious he is on bringing this terrible war to an end,' Rutte said on ABC. 'When it comes to full-scale negotiations, and let's hope that Friday will be an important step in that process', territory will be only one issue, he said. 'It will be, of course, about security guarantees, but also about the absolute need to acknowledge that Ukraine decides on its own future, that Ukraine has to be a sovereign nation, deciding on its own geopolitical future — of course having no limitations to its own military troop levels,' Rutte said. 'And for Nato, to have no limitations on our presence on the eastern flank.' The dealmaker Trump said none of that in his comments in the White House briefing room yesterday. But he made it clear that striking an agreement was the key. 'I make deals,' he said. Trump has made no secret of his desire to win a Nobel Peace Prize, and has claimed that he was the driving force in recent ceasefires or peace accords in disputes between India and Pakistan, Azerbaijan and Armenia, and other regional conflicts. 'What's the definition of a good deal?' Trump asked reporters. 'I'll tell you after I hear what the deal is, because there could be many definitions.' This article originally appeared in The New York Times. Written by: David E. Sanger Photograph by: David Guttenfelder ©2025 THE NEW YORK TIMES
