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Egypt Independent
6 days ago
- General
- Egypt Independent
Cologne evacuates 20,000 people after three World War II bombs discovered
CNN — The German city of Cologne is moving 20,500 people in its largest evacuation since World War II, after officials discovered three massive, unexploded bombs. The American bombs – two 20-ton weapons and another that weighs 10 tons – were found in a shipyard on Monday, the city said, causing a huge 'danger zone' to be sealed off on Wednesday morning. A hospital, two retirement centers and the city's second largest train station were among the facilities emptied out. Schools, churches, museums and two of the city's cultural landmarks – the Musical Dome theater and the Philharmonic Hall – also fell within the evacuation zone. The discovery of unexploded weapons is a frequent phenomenon in Cologne, which was decimated by Allied bombing during World War II, but no operation of this size has been carried out since the end of the war, the city said. Most of central Cologne was destroyed by Allied bombing raids during World War II.'Everyone involved hopes that the defusing can be completed by Wednesday,' city authorities said in a statement. 'This will only be possible if all those affected leave their homes or workplaces early and stay outside the evacuation area from the outset.' The city told residents to 'stay calm (and) prepare yourselves' for the evacuation, recommending they visit friends or family and avoid workplaces in the sealed-off area. Officials said they 'cannot make any reliable predictions' about how long the operation will take, adding that specialists cannot begin to defuse the bombs until the entire area has been evacuated. 'If you refuse, we will escort you from your home – if necessary by force – along with the police,' the city's statement said. Allied nations conducted 262 air raids of Cologne during World War II, killing approximately 20,000 residents and leaving the city in ruins. Nearly all of the buildings in the Old Town were destroyed, as were 91 of the city's 150 churches. A massive reconstruction effort took place after the war, with the Old Town rebuilt and major landmarks restored. But small evacuations still take place on a regular basis when unexploded ordnances are found. Around 10,000 residents had to leave their homes in October when another American bomb was found, and in December, 3,000 people were asked to evacuate.
Time of India
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Donald Trump's first 100 days: America First president is overturning world order
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads He has launched an unprecedented global tariff war and slashed U.S. foreign aid. He has disparaged NATO allies and embraced Russia's narrative about its invasion of Ukraine. And he has spoken about annexing Greenland, retaking the Panama Canal and making Canada the 51st the chaotic first 100 days since President Donald Trump returned to office, he has waged an often unpredictable campaign that has upended parts of the rules-based world order that Washington helped build from the ashes of World War II."Trump is much more radical now than he was eight years ago," said Elliott Abrams, a conservative who served under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush before being appointed U.S. special envoy on Iran and Venezuela in Trump's first term. "I have been surprised."Trump's second-term "America First" agenda has alienated friends and emboldened adversaries while raising questions about how far he is prepared to go. His actions, coupled with that uncertainty, have so unnerved some governments that they are responding in ways that could be difficult to undo, even if a more traditional U.S. president is elected in this comes amid what the Republican president's critics see as signs of democratic backsliding at home that have raised concerns abroad. These include verbal attacks on judges, a pressure campaign against universities and the transfer of migrants to a notorious El Salvador prison as part of a broader deportation drive."What we're seeing is a huge disruption in world affairs," said Dennis Ross, a former Middle East negotiator for Democratic and Republican administrations. "No one is certain at this point what to make of what's happening or what will come next."This assessment of Trump's shakeup of the global system comes from Reuters interviews with more than a dozen current and former government officials, foreign diplomats and independent analysts in Washington and capitals around the say that while some of the damage already done could be long-lasting, the situation may not be beyond repair if Trump softens his approach. He has already backtracked on some issues, including the timing and severity of his they see little chance of a dramatic shift by Trump and instead expect many countries to make lasting changes in their relationships with the U.S. to safeguard against his erratic fallout has already European allies, for instance, are looking to boost their own defense industries to reduce reliance on U.S. weapons. Debate has intensified in South Korea about developing its own nuclear arsenal. And speculation has grown that deteriorating relations could prompt U.S. partners to move closer to China, at least White House rejects the notion that Trump has hurt U.S. credibility, citing instead the need to clean up after what it calls former President Joe Biden's "feckless leadership" on the world stage."President Trump is taking swift action to address challenges by bringing both Ukraine and Russia to the negotiating table to end their war, stemming the flow of fentanyl and protecting American workers by holding China accountable, getting Iran to the negotiating table by reimposing Maximum Pressure," White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said in a said Trump was also "making the Houthis pay for their terrorism ... and securing our southern border that was open to invasion for four years."More than half of Americans, including one in four Republicans, think Trump is "too closely aligned" with Russia, and the American public has little appetite for the expansionist agenda he has laid out, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on March STAKESAt stake, say experts, is the future of a global system that has taken shape over the past eight decades largely under U.S. primacy. It has come to be based on free trade, rule of law and respect for territorial under Trump, who has been scornful of multilateral organizations and often views global affairs through the transactional lens of a former real estate developer, that world order is being shaken trading partners of "ripping off" the U.S. for decades, Trump has set in motion a sweeping tariffs policy that has roiled financial markets, weakened the dollar and triggered warnings of a slowdown in worldwide economic output and increased risk of has called the tariffs necessary "medicine" but his objectives remain unclear even as his administration works to negotiate separate deals with dozens of the same time, he has all but reversed U.S. policy on Russia's three-year-old war in Ukraine and engaged in an Oval Office shouting match with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in late February. He has warmed to Moscow and stirred fears that he will force NATO-backed Kyiv to accept the loss of territory while he prioritizes improved relations with Russian President Vladimir administration's belittling of Europe and NATO, long the central pillar of transatlantic security but accused by Trump and his aides of freeloading off the U.S., has caused deep Chancellor Friedrich Merz, after winning February's election, expressed concern about European relations with the United States, saying it would be difficult if those who put "America First" actually made their motto "America Alone"."This really is five minutes to midnight for Europe," Merz a further blow to Washington's global image, Trump has employed expansionist rhetoric long avoided by modern-day presidents, which some analysts say could be used by China as justification if it decides to invade self-governed his blustery style, he has insisted that the U.S. will "get" Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish island. He has angered Canada by saying it has little reason to exist and should become part of the U.S. He has threatened to seize the Panama Canal, which was handed over to Panama in 1999. And he has proposed that Washington take over war-ravaged Gaza and transform the Palestinian enclave into a Riviera-style analysts say Trump may be seeking to resurrect a Cold War-style global structure in which big powers carve up geographic spheres of so, he has offered no details on how the U.S. could acquire more territory, and some experts suggest he may be assuming extreme and even over-the-top positions as bargaining some countries are taking him seriously."When you demand to take over a part of the Kingdom of Denmark's territory, when we are met by pressure and by threats from our closest ally, what are we to believe in about the country that we have admired for so many years?" Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told a news conference in Greenland in early April. "This is about the world order that we have built together across the Atlantic over generations."COPING WITH TRUMP 2.0Other governments are also beginning to European Union -- which Trump has claimed, without evidence, was formed to "screw" the U.S -- has prepared a range of retaliatory tariffs if negotiations countries such as Germany and France are looking at spending more on their militaries, something Trump has demanded but which could also mean investing more in their own defense industries and buying fewer arms from the its historic friendship with the U.S. now strained, Canada is seeking to strengthen economic and security links to Europe. This comes against the backdrop of Canada's national elections on Monday dominated by voter resentment of Trump's actions, which have triggered a nationalist wave and fueled perceptions that the U.S. is no longer a reliable Korea too has been rattled by Trump's policies, including his threats to withdraw U.S. troops. But Seoul has vowed to try to work with Trump and preserve the alliance it regards as critical against the threat of nuclear-armed North Korea.U.S. ally Japan is also on edge. It was taken by surprise by the magnitude of Trump's tariffs and "is now scrambling to respond," said a senior Japanese government official close to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.A key question is whether some governments will quietly hedge their bets by forging closer trade ties to China, Trump's number one tariff Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez met with President Xi Jinping in Beijing in early April, and China said recently it exchanged views with the EU on bolstering economic has cast itself as a solution for nations that feel bullied by Trump's trade approach, despite its own record of sometimes predatory practices internationally, and is also trying to fill the vacuum left by his cuts in humanitarian David Miller, a former veteran U.S. diplomat in Republican and Democratic administrations, said it's not too late for Trump to shift course on foreign policy, especially if he begins to feel pressure from fellow Republicans uneasy over economic risks as they seek to retain control of Congress in next year's mid-term Trump holds firm, the next president could try to re-establish Washington's role as guarantor of the world order, but the obstacles could be steep."What's happening is not yet beyond the point of no return," said Miller, now a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington. "But how much damage is being done now to our relations with friends and how much adversaries will benefit is probably incalculable."
Associated Press
09-04-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Trump disrupts global economic order even though the US is dominant
WASHINGTON (AP) — By declaring a trade war on the rest of the world, President Donald Trump has panicked global financial markets, raised the risk of a recession and broken the political and economic alliances that made much of the world stable for business after World War II. Trump's latest round of tariffs went into full effect at midnight Wednesday, with higher import tax rates on dozens of countries and territories taking hold. Economists are puzzled to see Trump trying to overhaul the existing economic order and doing it so soon after inheriting the strongest economy in the world. Many of the trading partners he accuses of ripping off U.S. businesses and workers were already floundering. 'There is a deep irony in Trump claiming unfair treatment of the American economy at a time when it was growing robustly while every other major economy had stalled or was losing growth momentum,' said Eswar Prasad, professor of trade policy at Cornell University. 'In an even greater irony, the Trump tariffs are likely to end America's remarkable run of success and crash the economy, job growth and financial markets.'' Trump and his trade advisers insist that the rules governing global commerce put the United States at a distinct disadvantage. But mainstream economists — whose views Trump and his advisers disdain — say the president has a warped idea of world trade, especially a preoccupation with trade deficits, which they say do nothing to impede growth. The administration accuses other countries of erecting unfair trade barriers to keep out American exports and using underhanded tactics to promote their own. In Trump's telling, his tariffs are a long-overdue reckoning: The U.S. is the victim of an economic mugging by Europe, China, Mexico, Japan and even Canada. It's true that some countries charge higher taxes on imports than the United States does. Some manipulate their currencies lower to ensure that their goods are price-competitive in international markets. Some governments lavish their industries with subsidies to give them an edge. However, the United States is still the second-largest exporter in the world, after China. The U.S. exported $3.1 trillion of goods and services in 2023, far ahead of third-place Germany at $2 trillion. The fear that Trump's remedies are deadlier than the maladies he's trying to cure has sent investors fleeing American stocks. Since Trump announced sweeping import taxes on April 2, the S&P 500 has cratered 12%. Despite high trade deficits, the US economy is strong Trump and his advisers point to America's lopsided trade numbers — year after year of huge deficits — as proof of foreigners' perfidy. He's seeking to restore justice and millions of long-gone U.S. factory jobs by taxing imports at rates not seen in America since the days of the horse and buggy. 'They've taken so much of our wealth away from us,' the president declared last week at a White House Rose Garden ceremony to celebrate the tariffs announcement. 'We're not going to let that happen. We truly can be very wealthy. We can be so much wealthier than any country.'' But the U.S. is already the wealthiest major economy in the world. And the International Monetary Fund in January forecast that the United States would outgrow every other major advanced economy this year. China and India did grow faster than the United States over the past decade, but their living standards still don't come close to those in the U.S. Manufacturing in the U.S. has been fading for decades. There is widespread agreement that many American manufacturers couldn't compete with an influx of cheap imports after China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001. Factories closed, workers were laid off and heartland communities withered. Four years later, nearly 3 million manufacturing jobs had been lost, though robots and other forms of automation probably did at least as much to reduce factory jobs as the 'China shock.'' Tariffs are Trump's all-purpose weapon To turn around this long decline, Trump has repeatedly unsheathed the tariffs that are his weapon of choice. Since returning to the White House in January, he's plastered 25% taxes on foreign cars, steel and aluminum. He's hit Chinese imports with 20% levies, on top of hefty tariffs he imposed on China during his first term. On Wednesday, he blasted his big bazooka: 10% 'baseline'' tariffs on just about everybody and 'reciprocal'' tariffs on everyone else that the Trump team identified as bad actors, including tiny Lesotho (a 50% import tax) and China (34% before adding earlier levies). Trump views tariffs as an all-purpose economic fix that will protect American industries, encourage companies to open factories in America, raise money for the U.S. Treasury and give him leverage to bend other countries to his will, even on issues that have nothing to do with trade, such as drug trafficking and immigration. The president also sees a smoking gun: The United States has bought more from other countries than it has sold them every year for the past half-century. In 2024, the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services came to a whopping $918 billion, the second-highest amount on record. Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro calls America's trade deficits 'the sum of all cheating'' by other countries. However, economists say trade deficits aren't a sign of national weakness. The U.S. economy has nearly quadrupled in size, adjusted for inflation, during that half-century of trade deficits. 'There is no reason to think that a bigger trade deficit means lower growth,' said former IMF chief economist Maurice Obstfeld, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics and an economist at the University of California, Berkeley. 'In fact, the opposite is closer to the truth in many countries.' A trade deficit, Obstfeld said, does not mean a country is losing through trade or being 'ripped off.' Spend a lot, save a little and see trade deficits swell The faster the U.S. economy grows, in fact, the more imports Americans tend to buy and the wider the trade deficit tends to get. The U.S. trade deficit — the gap between what it sells and what it buys from foreign countries — hit a record $945 billion in 2022 as the American economy roared back from COVID-19 lockdowns. Trade deficits typically fall sharply in recessions. Nor are trade deficits primarily inflicted on America by other countries' unfair trading practices. To economists, they're a homegrown product, the result of Americans' propensity to save little and consume more than they produce. American shoppers' famous appetite for spending more than the country makes means that a chunk of the spending is used for imports. If the United States boosted its saving — for example, by reducing its budget deficits — then that would reduce its trade deficit as well, economists say. 'It's not like the rest of the world has been ripping us off for decades,' said Jay Bryson, chief economist at Wells Fargo. 'It's because we don't save enough.' The flip side of America's low savings and big trade deficits is a steady inflow of foreign investment as other countries sink their export earnings into the United States. Direct foreign investment into the U.S. came to $349 billion in 2023, the World Bank reported, nearly double No. 2 Singapore's inflows. The only scenario in which tariffs reduce the U.S. deficit is if they cause investment in the U.S. to crash, said Barry Eichengreen, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley. That 'would be a disaster.'' Harvard University economist Dani Rodrik said a 'well-designed industrial policy' supported by select tariffs 'might have fostered increased investment and capacity in manufacturing.' Instead, Rodrik said, Trump's actions just 'throw up a lot of uncertainty' and alienate America's best allies, making for 'a terrible policy all in all.''
Euronews
04-03-2025
- Business
- Euronews
Trudeau slams Trump tariffs on Canada as ‘a very dumb thing to do'
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau slammed tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump - describing them as a "very dumb thing to do." 'Today the United States launched a trade war against Canada, their closest partner and ally, their closest friend. At the same, they are talking about working positively with Russia, appeasing Vladimir Putin, a lying, murderous dictator. Make that make sense,' Trudeau said. "Now, it's not in my habit to agree with the Wall Street Journal, but Donald, they point out that even though you're a smart guy, this is a very dumb thing to do. We two friends fighting is exactly what our opponents around the world to see." Trudeau's comments come after Trump launched a trade war against America's three biggest trading partners in Canada, China and Mexico. Canada and Mexico face 25% tariffs on their goods, while China will be levied 20% on imports. The move sparked immediate retaliation and sent global stock markets into a tailspin as the US faces inflation and financial uncertainty for business. Trudeau announced that his nation would impose 25% tariffs on C$155 billion (€102.1 billion) worth of US goods, with tariffs on C$30 billion (€19.8 billion) of imports coming into effect on Tuesday and the remainder in 21 days. 'Our tariffs will remain in place until the US trade action is withdrawn, and should US tariffs not cease, we are in active and ongoing discussions with provinces and territories to pursue several non-tariff measures,' Trudeau said in a statement. In a post on social media app Truth Social, Trump warned that "when (Trudeau) puts on a retaliatory tariff on the US, our reciprocal tariff will immediately increase by a like amount." Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said her nation would respond to the new taxes with its own retaliatory tariffs. Sheinbaum said she will announce the products Mexico will target on Sunday in a public event in Mexico City's central plaza, with the delay potentially signalling hopes to de-escalate the trade war set off by Trump. China signalled it would impose additional tariffs of up to 15% on imports of key US farm products, including chicken, pork, soy and beef, and would further restrict business with US companies. Beijing is "strongly dissatisfied" with US tariffs, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a statement, warning it would "take countermeasures to safeguards its rights and interests." As he promised voters, the US president is abandoning the free trade policies the United States pursued for decades after World War II. Trump argues that open trade cost America millions of factory jobs and that tariffs are the path to national prosperity. He rejects mainstream economists who contend that such protectionism is costly and inefficient. Import taxes are 'a very powerful weapon that politicians haven't used because they were either dishonest, stupid or paid off in some other form,' Trump said Monday at the White House. 'And now we're using them.'
