Global giants USA and China continue their trade war and Sweden spies on South Korea’s training at FIFA.
US-China trade dispute continues
In the continuing trade war with China, the US has said it is prepared to impose tariffs on another $200 billion worth of Chinese goods and even more if Beijing continues to fight back, reported The New York Times.
In response, China has said that it will take further countermeasures if Trump decides to go ahead with the tariff impositions.
#BREAKING If the US loses its mind and rolls out the tariff list, China has to adopt strong countermeasures that have a certain scale and quality, Chinese Ministry of Commerce said after Trump threatened $200 billion in new tariffs. pic.twitter.com/AQZNNajCRT
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) June 19, 2018
The two largest economies have been engaged in a bitter trade dispute with each imposing import tariffs on goods from the other. On Friday, the US placed steep tariffs on Chinese goods, and China released a retaliatory list just hours later.
Chinese state media has responded to threats of all-out trade war with the US
“Who is getting tired of Washington’s fires and shots?” begins an editorial in Global Times. Chinese state media, including Global Times, People’s Daily and Xinhua have called the White House “selfish”, “rude” and “mundane” amid their intensifying trade standoff.
People’s Daily ran an editorial that said the “trade provocations” allowed China to see the Trump administration clearly for what it is, which is “rude, unreasonable, selfish and headstrong”.
Xinhua wrote that “the wise man builds bridges, the fool builds walls. With economic globalisation there are no secluded and isolated islands”.
#FreeIran from compulsory hijab
The protests for women’s rights are continuing in Iran, with the movement against compulsory hijab gaining new momentum. Iranian women at the World Cup in Russia also protested against the ban on women’s entry at football stadiums in Iran.
#Iran: A brave Iranian woman takes off her compulsory #hijab & shouts to all other woman's "Why can't you remove your headscarves?
Why can't you speak up?
No to compulsory #hijab #NoHijabDay #FreeIran pic.twitter.com/mhluITn3N7
— Amir Baloch? (@IMAmirBaloch) June 18, 2018
The protest against compulsory hijabs went viral last month, five years after the initial movement was begun by Masih Alinejad.
Fighting resumes in Afghanistan
On the final day of the Eid ceasefire, The Taliban announced that it will resume fighting, reports Al Jazeera. The announcement came despite President Ashraf Ghani’s statement that the Afghan government is extending its own ceasefire by 10 days.
In their statement, the Taliban repeated that they would only negotiate directly with the United States for peace, and that all foreign forces should leave Afghanistan.
The brief ceasefire didn’t stop violence in the country: Two attacks in Afghanistan claimed the lives of nearly 50 people over the weekend. The Islamic State terror group claimed responsibility for one.
At FIFA World Cup, Sweden spies and South Korea switches jerseys
Sweden beat South Korea 1-0 at the FIFA World Cup Monday, but only after it was caught trying to spy on a training session at the South Korean camp in Austria.
A member of the coaching staff had been trying to “do his homework” on his opponents, and apologised for overstepping the mark. The South Korean coach went on to reveal that the team had been prepared for this, and had taken “diversionary measures” by switching their jerseys, reports RT.
Switching their jerseys would have confused the Swedish team, the coach said, because of the “Westerners’ difficulty to distinguish between Asians”.
Turkey President open thousands of religious schools to raise ‘pious generation’
In order to”raise a pious generation”, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has opened thousands of religious schools as he seeks re-election Sunday, The New York Times reported.
“Public schools are closing on little or no notice, and being replaced by religious schools. Exams are scrapped by presidential whim. Tens of thousands of public teachers have been fired. Outside religious groups are teaching in schools without parental consent,” the report adds.
Colombia has a new President
“Iván Duque, a populist young conservative who tapped into dissatisfaction with the economy and a contentious peace deal with rebels, won Colombia’s presidential vote on Sunday,” reports The New York Times.
After a polarising campaign, he called for the country to unite behind him, saying he will not “govern with hatred”.
Duque defeated Gustavo Petro, a former guerrilla. Duque has enjoyed a meteoric rise to power in just a year, and will now be Colombia’s youngest President. This election was the biggest electoral victory in the country’s history.
China wants foreign language media to ‘tell its stories well’
The China Global Television Network (CTGN) is a state-run foreign language television service, functioning in five languages — the goal of which is to “tell China’s stories well”, writes The Economist.
“To ensure its grip on the message put out by its domestic and international broadcasting services, including CGTN, the government consolidated them in March into a single media group known as Voice of China,” the report adds. Voice of China’s mission includes the planning of propaganda reports.
“Chinese officials have long complained that Western media dominate global discourse and harbour prejudice against China,” the report says.
Meanwhile, 70 million people visit the mall at the same time
Global Times reported that around 70 million people shopped in “physical strores” at Tmall Monday.
Around 70 million people shopped in physical stores during @AlibabaGroup's Tmall 618 online event as of 3pm Monday, in large part due to a new retail strategy by the platform, according to data from https://t.co/ydbXXW86zf. pic.twitter.com/3Nw2XZ2csW
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) June 18, 2018