Category Archives: US foreign policy

The inside story of Trump’s alleged bribery of Ukraine

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Public testimony in the impeachment hearings has painted a vivid picture of a president fixated on one thing: his own political gain over the fortunes of an ally

Darkness had settled over Kyiv on the evening of 24 April when Marie Yovanovitch, then US ambassador to Ukraine, was summoned from an event she was hosting at her home to answer an urgent phone call from Washington.

The reception was to honor Kateryna Handzyuk, a young anti-corruption activist who died last year from an acid attack. Though the ambassador and the activist had never met, they shared a mission: trying to end a culture of corruption that has persisted for decades in the former Soviet republic.

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Afghanistan’s road to peace still full of obstacles

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Trump claims US-Taliban talks are back on but it is unclear if key disputes have been settled

Donald Trump says talks with the Taliban are back on but it is unclear if the disputes that hobbled the last attempt to reach a peace deal – cancelled by a presidential tweet in September – have been resolved.

The insurgent group responded to Trump by telling Agence France-Presse it was “way too early” to discuss resuming direct talks.

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Donald Trump says Taliban talks back on in surprise Afghanistan visit

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  • President makes Thanksgiving visit to airbase near Kabul
  • Confirms talks with extremists have resumed

Donald Trump made an unannounced visit to US troops in Afghanistan on Thursday, his first visit to the country where the US has been at war since late 2001.

Related: Fired navy secretary blasts Trump over 'shocking' handling of Navy seal case

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Mike Pence makes unannounced visit to Iraq

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  • Visit meant to reassure US allies in fight against Isis
  • Pence is highest-level American to travel there since withdrawal

Mike Pence made an unannounced visit to Iraq on Saturday, the highest-level American to visit since Donald Trump ordered a pullback of US forces in neighbouring Syria two months ago.

Related: Trump says FBI tried to 'overthrow the presidency'

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UK growth will dip to 1% even if no-deal Brexit avoided, warns OECD

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Prospect of crashing out of EU leaves UK more exposed to global financial risks, thinktank says

The UK’s GDP growth rate will slip to 1% next year even if a no-deal Brexit is avoided, according to the Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation.

The OECD said the economy would slow down from growth of 1.2% this year if parliament passes Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal before the 31 January deadline, before returning to 1.2% in 2021.

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Sondland points the finger at Trump – and damns others for good measure

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The EU envoy was emphatic that the shakedown scheme to hold back Ukrainian aid involved Trump and his top deputies

When Gordon Sondland walked into the congressional impeachment hearing shortly after 9am, reports were circulating that the Trump administration and the Republican party was going to throw him under the bus for his part the Ukraine scandal, painting him as a hotelier turned diplomat who went rogue.

Related: Impeachment hearings: Sondland says quid pro quo was pushed by Giuliani and ordered by Trump - live

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The Guardian view on Israeli settlements: still illegal | Editorial

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The Trump administration’s declaration cannot change international law. But it will be seen as a green light for expansion and annexation

The secretary of state’s announcement that the US no longer considers Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land to be illegal is appalling. It is also the dismal culmination of the Trump administration’s record.

Washington has done all it can to aid Israel’s rightwing government, punish Palestinians and bury the two-state solution: moving its embassy to Jerusalem, ending funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency, and recognising Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

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Vindman tells impeachment hearing he reported ‘improper’ Trump call immediately – live

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Key witness testifies publicly on Trump’s Ukraine call and says ‘vile’ character attacks on those testifying ‘reprehensible’ – follow the latest live

Republican representative Chris Stewart pressed Lt Col Alexander Vindman on why he corrected Devin Nunes after the GOP ranking member incorrectly called the Iraq war veteran “Mr Vindman.”

“You always insist on civilians calling you by your rank?” Stewart asked. Vindman, a Purple Heart recipient, replied that he considered the correction appropriate given that he is in his military uniform and because he has been the subject of attacks meant to “marginalize” his service.

Okay guys can we please stop making this a thing? Active duty service members are literally required to wear their dress uniforms when appearing on Capitol Hill in an official capacity. https://t.co/DWXD9LchoU

Lt Col Alexander Vindman testified that after he reported his concerns on Trump’s July call with the Ukrainian president, he was excluded from several meetings he usually would have attended in his capacity as the top Ukraine expert on the NSC.

Vindman says that after he reported on the July 25 call he was excluded from several meetings & “it was out of the course of normal affairs” to not have him participate.

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Jordan says US settlement decision is ‘entrenching occupation’

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US said on Monday Israeli settlements on West Bank were no longer considered illegal

Jordan has accused the US of entrenching the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, after Washington announced it did not consider Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank to necessarily be illegal.

Ayman Safadi, the Jordanian foreign minister, criticised the US decision, saying settlements “kill the two-state solution”, the most widely accepted blueprint for Middle East peace.

“Entrenching the occupation and its injustice, and violating the resolutions of international legitimacy will not achieve peace, and will not guarantee security and stability,” he said, according to state media.

“Nothing changes the illegal reality of settlements that the international community is unanimous in condemning,” he added.

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Pompeo says US does not view Israeli settlements as violation of international law – live

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Secretary of state announces major shift in US foreign policy, while House investigating whether Trump lied to Robert Mueller – follow live

The US official who overheard a key phone conversation between Eu ambassador Gordon Sondland and Donald Trump will testify publicly as part of the House impeachment inquiry, according to CNN.

That’s it from me today. My west coast colleague, Maanvi Singh, will take over the blog for the next few hours.

Here’s where the day stands so far:

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US says Israeli settlements no longer considered illegal in dramatic shift

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Declaration marks rejection of 2016 UN resolution that settlements on the West Bank are a ‘flagrant violation’ of international law

The US has declared that Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land are not necessarily illegal, in a dramatic break with decades of international law, US policy and the established position of most US allies.

“Calling the establishment of civilian settlements inconsistent with international law has not advanced the cause of peace,” said Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state. “The hard truth is that there will never be a judicial resolution to the conflict, and arguments about who is right and who is wrong as a matter of international law will not bring peace.”

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Ukraine ambassador describes Trump’s ‘shocking’ smear campaign against her

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Marie Yovanovitch, the third witness in public impeachment hearings, testified while president tweeted against her

An American ambassador recalled by Donald Trump from Ukraine has told impeachment investigators she felt “shocked and devastated” by Trump’s personal attacks on her, and that she was “amazed” corrupt elements in Ukraine had found willing American partners to take her down.

Related: Democrats to consider Trump Twitter smear in articles of impeachment – live

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US accuses Russia of exploiting conflict in Libya

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US urges Khalifa Haftar to end offensive on Tripoli amid concerns about unofficial Russian influence

Fears that Russian mercenaries, unofficially backed by Moscow, are tipping the scales in Libya in favour of the military leader Khalifa Haftar appears to have prompted the US to issue a strong warning to the general to pull back.

The US has been accused of taking little interest in the eight months of fighting on the outskirts of Tripoli that began when Haftar’s Libyan National Army mounted an assault on Tripoli, provoking a fierce counter-offensive by militia forces supporting the Government of National Accord (GNA).

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The US and Britain face no existential threat. So why do their wars go on? | Simon Jenkins

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Endless conflicts in the Middle East have cost us dear, yet all we hear are absurdities about ‘keeping our streets safe from terror’

Why does no one mention the war? The most militaristic, belligerent and chauvinist country I know – and also love – is the US. People fly flags from every post and see “bad guys” under every bed. When the president, Donald Trump, vows to leave the Middle East he is condemned as a traitor even by his fans.

The second most belligerent is Britain, albeit less so. With America, it is continuing to fight the so-called “wars of 9/11”, 18 years after they began – battling in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, in Britain’s case covertly. There is not the remotest sign of “victory” in sight. Somehow they are not seen as wars, just the licensed killing of foreigners.

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Trump contradicts aides and says troops in Syria ‘only for oil’

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  • President makes remarks as he hosts Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
  • Trump’s own officials say military is fighting Isis

Donald Trump has insisted that the US military presence in Syria is “only for the oil”, contradicting his own officials who have insisted that the remaining forces were there to fight Isis.

Related: Donald Trump says US military presence in Syria 'only for the oil' – live

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Trump fumes as Democrats get ready for ‘sober and rigorous’ public hearings

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  • TV crews move into halls of Capitol for first public testimony
  • Trump calls on Republicans to defend him from ‘total scam’

Only three times in the history of the American republic has Congress initiated public testimony that could result in the removal of the president by impeachment. The tally will rise to four on Wednesday.

Related: Lights, camera, impeachment: TV phase of inquiry carries pluses and pitfalls

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Uber chief tries to backpedal after calling Khashoggi murder ‘a mistake’

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Dara Khosrowshahi scrambles after saying Saudi Arabia’s murder of dissident was a ‘mistake’ similar to self-driving car accident

Dara Khosrowshahi, the chief executive of Uber, has attempted to limit the damage after calling the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi “a mistake” similar to a fatal accident that occurred during tests of his company’s self-driving car.

Related: The Killing in the Consulate by Jonathan Rugman review – a dark fable of unaccountable power

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US will keep 500 or 600 troops in Syria to counter Isis, chief says

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  • Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff gives Veterans Day interview
  • Turkish president Erdoğan due at White House this week

About 500 or 600 US troops will remain in Syria to counter Islamic State, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Sunday.

Related: 'Secure the oil': Trump's Syria strategy leaves Pentagon perplexed

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‘US creates monsters’: Trump talk of war on Mexico cartels echoes past failures

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After the massacre of a US family, the president offered to help ‘cleaning out these monsters’ but previous interventions have brought little peace

After nine members of a Mormon family with US/Mexican citizenship were slaughtered by gunmen, Donald Trump reacted by urging his Mexican counterpart to let him sort out the drug cartels.

“If Mexico needs or requests help cleaning out these monsters, the United States stands ready, willing & able to get involved and do the job quickly and effectively,” the US president tweeted on Tuesday, after news broke of the massacre – the latest in a series of extremely violent events across the country.

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Mick Mulvaney: new testimony draws Trump chief of staff into Ukraine scandal

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Congress hears Mulvaney approved Trump-Zelenskiy meeting on condition Ukraine announced investigations tied to Joe Biden

Donald Trump’s acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney approved a White House meeting with the president for the Ukrainian president on condition Ukraine announced investigations tied to Trump’s political rival Joe Biden, according to testimony released on Friday.

Related: Trump impeachment inquiry: Mick Mulvaney implicated in released transcripts – live

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