Alice Weidel, the unlikely queen of German's far-right AfD
Berlin –
As an openly gay politician who lives with her Sri Lanka-born partner in Switzerland, Alice Weidel was an unusual choice to many to lead Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) into Sunday's elections, where it scored its best-ever result.
To her legions of political foes, Weidel serves as a "fig leaf" for a party that has railed against asylum seekers, Islam and multiculturalism and some of whose top figures have voiced revisionist views on Germany's Nazi past.
On Sunday, the 46-year-old, who says Margaret Thatcher is her political idol, led the Moscow-friendly AfD to a record result of around 20%.
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Japan Today
2 days ago
- Japan Today
Putin's tough stance on a Ukraine peace plan shows his resolve on Russia's demands
By making harsh, uncompromising demands in peace talks with Ukraine while continuing to pummel it with waves of missiles and drones, Russian President Vladimir Putin is sending a clear message: He will only accept a settlement on his terms and will keep fighting until they're met. At the same time, he has sought to avoid angering U.S. President Donald Trump by praising his diplomacy and declaring Moscow's openness to peace talks — even as he set maximalist conditions that are rejected by Kyiv and the West. Trump, who once promised to end the 3-year-old war in 24 hours, has upended the U.S. policy of isolating Russia by holding calls with Putin and denigrating Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. At the same time, however, Trump warned Putin against 'tapping me along' and threatened Moscow with sanctions if it fails to back his peace proposals. In recent days, Trump signaled he was losing patience with Putin, declaring the Russian leader had gone 'crazy' by stepping up aerial attacks on Ukraine. He also said: 'What Vladimir Putin doesn't realize is that if it weren't for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD. He's playing with fire!' Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president who serves as deputy head of Putin's Security Council, fired back: 'I only know of one REALLY BAD thing — WWIII. I hope Trump understands this!' Fyodor Lukyanov, a Moscow-based analyst familiar with Kremlin thinking, said Putin is engaged in a 'psychological game' with Trump, with both men thinking they understand each other well. 'Putin's tactics is apparently based on an assumption that the issue has a lesser priority for his interlocutor, who wants to get rid of it one way or another, while for the Russian side, nothing compares to it in importance,' Lukyanov wrote a commentary. 'In this logic, the one who sees it as something of lesser importance will eventually make concessions.' While Ukraine's European allies urge Trump to ramp up sanctions against Moscow to force it to accept a ceasefire, some fear that Trump may end up distancing the U.S. from the conflict. If the U.S. halts or reduces military aid to Kyiv, it would badly erode Ukraine's fighting capability. Kyiv already is experiencing a weapons shortage, particularly air defense systems, leaving it increasingly vulnerable to Russian missile and drone attacks. Across the over 1,000-kilometer front line, the exhausted and outgunned Ukrainian troops are facing increasing Russian pressure. This month, Russian forces accelerated their slow push across the Donetsk region, the focus of Moscow's offensive, grinding through Ukrainian defenses at the quickest pace since last fall. Russia also expanded its attacks in the northeastern Sumy and Kharkiv regions following Putin's promise to create a buffer zone along the border. Many observers expect Russia to expand its offensive over the summer to try to capture more land and set even tougher conditions for peace. 'Moscow thinks its leverage over Ukraine will build over time, and since Trump has strongly implied that he will withdraw from negotiations the Russian military is set to intensify its operations,' said Jack Watling of the Royal United Services Institute in London. He predicted Russia would intensify efforts to take all of the Donetsk region while also pressing a bombing campaign. 'The Kremlin will want to suggest a deteriorating situation as negotiations continue and to signal to Europe that the rear is not safe, to discourage European militaries from putting forces in country,' Watling said in an analysis. Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin, Moscow-based analyst, said the long-expected offensive hasn't yet begun in earnest as Russia is cautious not to anger Trump. 'If Kyiv derails peace talks, the Russian army will start a big offensive,' he said. Putin has demanded that Ukraine withdraw its forces from Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson — the four regions that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 but never fully controlled. That demand had been rejected by Kyiv and its allies, but the Russian delegation reportedly repeated it during talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on May 16. Those talks, the first since botched negotiations in the opening weeks of the war, came after Putin effectively rejected a 30-day truce proposed by Trump that was accepted by Kyiv. Russia had linked such a ceasefire to a halt in Ukraine's mobilization effort and a freeze on Western arms supplies. Putin proposed talks to discuss conditions for a possible truce. Trump quickly prodded Kyiv to accept the offer, but the negotiations yielded no immediate progress except an agreement to exchange 1,000 prisoners each. Russia offered to hold another round of talks Monday in Istanbul, where it said it will present a memorandum setting conditions for ending hostilities. It refused to share the document before the negotiations. Some observers see the talks as an attempt by Putin to assuage Trump's growing impatience. 'Putin has devised a way to offer Trump an interim, tangible outcome from Washington's peace efforts without making any real concessions,' said Tatiana Stanovaya of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Facing Western accusations of stalling, the Kremlin responded that the conflict can't be resolved quickly and emphasized the need to address its 'root causes.' When Putin invaded Ukraine, he said the move was needed to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO and protect Russian speakers in the country -– arguments strongly rejected by Kyiv and its Western allies as a cover for an unprovoked act of aggression. Along with those demands, Putin also wants limits on Ukraine's sovereignty, including the size of Ukraine's military, and for Kyiv to end what Moscow sees as glorification of Ukraine's World War II-era nationalist leaders, some of whom sided with the invading forces of Nazi Germany over the Soviet leadership in the Kremlin. Seeking to underline that Moscow will press home its initial demands, Putin appointed his aide Vladimir Medinsky to lead the Russian delegation in Istanbul. He also led the Russian side in the 2022 talks. Kyiv reportedly has asked the U.S. to encourage Putin to replace him. The soft-spoken, 54-year-old career bureaucrat, who was born in Ukraine, ascended through the Kremlin ranks after writing a series of books exposing purported Western plots against Russia. In an interview with Russian state television after the May 16 talks, Medinsky pointed to Russia's 18th century war with Sweden that lasted 21 years, a signal that Moscow is prepared to fight for a long time until its demands are met. 'History repeats itself in a remarkable way,' he said. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
Saudi Arabia cracks down on unauthorized Hajj pilgrims, aiming to save lives
Saudi Arabia is readying a crackdown on unregistered worshippers at next week's Hajj pilgrimage, a year after hundreds perished in scorching conditions. Regular raids, drone surveillance and a barrage of text alerts are aimed at rooting out unauthorized visitors hoping to mingle among the crowds in and around the holy city of Mecca. The simple message, "No hajj without a permit," is being blared out in a relentless campaign promoted nationwide at shopping centers, on billboards and across media platforms. Last year, 1,301 pilgrims, most of them unregistered and lacking access to air-conditioned tents and buses, died as temperatures soared to 51.8 degrees Celsius. "Since the end of last season, we realized the biggest challenge is preventing unauthorized pilgrims from undermining the success of the Hajj season," said one official helping organize the Hajj, requesting anonymity. The Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, must be completed by all Muslims with the means at least once. Yet official permits are allocated to countries through a quota system and distributed to individuals via a lottery. Even for those who can obtain them, the steep costs make the irregular route — which costs thousands of dollars less — more attractive. Saudi officials said 83% of those who died last year did not have official Hajj permits. Temperatures of up to 44 C are forecast next week. 'Unprecedented' security To seek out unregistered pilgrims, Saudi authorities have rolled out a new fleet of drones to monitor entrances into Mecca. Security forces have also raided hundreds of apartments in search of people hiding out in the area. An Egyptian engineer living in Mecca, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said his building was raided multiple times in recent weeks. "Police officers in uniform came to my home twice and asked to see my and my wife's residency permits," he said. "Almost everywhere, we're being asked to show residency or work permits in Mecca. The security presence is unprecedented." The problem of illicit pilgrims has become acute since Saudi Arabia loosened visa restrictions in line with economic reforms, trying to attract more tourism and business. Hundreds of thousands of people are believed to have used family and tourist visas, instead of the designated Hajj visa, to enter the country each year. Fines and bans Saudi Arabia is now trying to cut off the problem at source, restricting multiple-entry visas for citizens of several countries since January. Family and tourist visas were also barred to nationals of more than 10 countries, including Egypt, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Jordan. Umar Karim, an expert on Saudi affairs at the University of Birmingham, said officials previously focused on "deterring people but not stopping them" from coming before Hajj. "Saudi authorities have seen that once these people are inside the kingdom, stopping them from physically entering Mecca is a difficult task even if a huge number of security officials are deployed," he added. For the past month, entry into Mecca has been restricted to individuals with work and residency permits. Many people in Mecca have been forced to send their wives and children, who lack the proper visas, out of the city. Pilgrims coming for umrah — similar rites that can be performed year-round — have also been required to leave. Meanwhile, fines for an illicit Hajj have doubled to 20,000 Saudi riyals ($5,333), with violators facing a 10-year ban from the country. Those found to be harboring and helping unauthorized pilgrims can be fined up to 100,000 riyals. "All of this is aimed at ensuring that Mecca is reserved exclusively for authorized pilgrims during the Hajj season," the official added. Residents of Mecca said the crowds there have noticeably thinned compared to previous years. However, officials said Tuesday that more than a million pilgrims had already arrived in Saudi Arabia for the Hajj. Last year's Hajj deaths were a high-profile example of the havoc wrought by heat in 2024, which the Copernicus Climate Change Service said was the hottest year ever recorded. While the pilgrimage, which follows a lunar calendar, will eventually shift to the cooler winter season, relief will be temporary. A 2019 study published by the journal Geophysical Research Letters said that because of climate change and the timing of the Hajj, heat stress for pilgrims will exceed the "extreme danger threshold" from 2047 to 2052, and from 2079 to 2086.
Kyodo News
2 days ago
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: June 2, 2025
KYODO NEWS - 2 hours ago - 15:15 | All, Japan, World The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- Japan's top negotiator arranging more tariff talks in U.S. this week TOKYO - Japan's top tariff negotiator is arranging to visit the United States later this week for a fifth round of ministerial-level talks, aiming to reach common ground ahead of a summit between the two countries' leaders eyed for mid-June, a government source said Monday. Ryosei Akazawa, the minister in charge of economic policy, seeks to win concessions over new tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump if he makes the trip to Washington from Thursday. It would be his third visit in as many weeks. ---------- Japan capital spending up 6.4% in Jan.-March on output, digital push TOKYO - Capital spending by Japanese companies in the three months through March rose 6.4 percent from a year earlier, rising for the first time in two quarters, reflecting robust investment to boost production capacity and advance digitalization, the Finance Ministry said Monday. Investment by all nonfinancial sectors for purposes such as building factories and adding equipment reached 18.80 trillion yen ($131 billion), marking the highest level since comparable data became available in 2001. ---------- Sumo: Ex-yokozuna Hakuho set to announce JSA retirement next week TOKYO - Former yokozuna Hakuho is expected to hold a press conference on June 9 to announce his retirement from the Japan Sumo Association. Multiple association sources said Monday the Mongolian-born 40-year-old, now known as elder Miyagino, will leave the ancient sport's governing body amid uncertainty about the future of his scandal-hit Miyagino stable. ---------- Defense tech subsidies for Japan universities totaled 2.7 bil. yen TOKYO - Japanese universities have obtained a total of around 2.7 billion yen ($19 million) over nine years since the Defense Ministry started subsidizing security-related technology in fiscal 2015, a Kyodo News tally showed Sunday. The result suggests that domestic universities, particularly those outside Tokyo, are seeking research funds amid budget constraints, despite growing criticism of the government's eagerness to expand defense spending to strengthen its capabilities. ---------- Japan whaling ship returns after taking 25 fin whales in Okhotsk SENDAI - A commercial whaling ship returned to a port in northeastern Japan on Monday carrying 25 fin whales taken in the Sea of Okhotsk. The fin whale hunt in Japan's exclusive economic zone, north of the northern island of Hokkaido, was conducted for the first time since Japan formally withdrew from the International Whaling Commission in 2019. ---------- North Korea no longer bans military use of space for defense purposes TOKYO - North Korea lifted a ban on the military use of space for national defense purposes by amending its space development law in 2022, analysis by 38 North, a U.S.-based organization monitoring the nuclear-armed nation revealed Sunday. Language opposing the militarization of space and limiting its use to peaceful purposes was removed, while the revised law includes a warning that countermeasures will be taken against any country attempting unfriendly acts, the analysis said. ---------- Football: Gustafson brace give Urawa win before Club World Cup SAITAMA, Japan - Samuel Gustafson hit a fortuitous brace as Urawa Reds claimed a 2-1 comeback home win over Yokohama FC on Sunday, ending a three-game winless run in the J-League first division before heading to the FIFA Club World Cup. The win moved Urawa up to third on 34 points in J1, six points behind leaders Kashima Antlers having played two games more. Yokohama FC remain on 19 points and a point above the relegation zone in 17th. Video: Ceremony held to celebrate opening of Nagoya's IG Arena
