Daily: 11/29/2018

Kerch Naval Clash Upends Planned Trump-Putin Talks

Until the Russian attack Sunday on Ukrainian vessels in the Black Sea, the White House and the Kremlin had at least agreed on one thing, the agenda for Saturday’s scheduled face-to-face between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, their second summit meeting.

Arms control, security issues as well as the Middle East and North Korea were all set to figure prominently, senior U.S. and Russian aides told reporters in the run-up to the meeting.

The Kremlin had earmarked as their key issue, say Russian officials, Trump’s recent decision to abandon a landmark Cold War-era agreement prohibiting the U.S. and Russia from possessing ground-launched short-range nuclear missiles.

For the White House, securing a public commitment from the Russians to enforce United Nations sanctions on North Korea before next month’s planned summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was a key objective, according to U.S. officials.

But the Russian attack on three Ukrainian vessels shifted the dynamics of Saturday’s planned two-hour face-to-face between Trump and Putin on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Argentina, say analysts, with the U.S. leader being urged to take a tough line that might imperil his overall determination to improve U.S.-Russian relations.

Trump suggested Tuesday he might cancel the meeting after Russian ships opened fire on and seized the Ukrainian ships near Crimea.  Then on Thursday, after telling reporters the meeting will go ahead, he tweeted that he has canceled the meeting “based on the fact that the ships and sailors have not been returned to Ukraine from Russia.”  “I look forward to a meaningful Summit again as soon as this situation is resolved!” he said.

Kremlin officials had earlier said they expected the meeting to be held.

“We don’t have to agree on all issues, which is probably impossible, but we need to talk.  It’s in the interests of not only our two countries, it’s in the interests of the whole World,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Earlier this week John Bolton, the U.S. National Security Adviser, said Trump was planning to discuss security, arms control and regional issues with Putin.  “I think it will be a continuation of their discussion in Helsinki,” he said, referring to the first summit meeting between the two leaders held in Finland in July, when they met for more than two hours with only their translators present.

The Helsinki sit-down prompted widespread criticism of Trump from across the U.S. political spectrum, with Republican and Democrat lawmakers expressing dismay at what they saw as the U.S. leader’s amplifying of Putin denials of Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections.

State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Washington wanted to see tougher enforcement of sanctions against Russia as a consequence of the Russian action, the first time the Kremlin has staged open aggression against Ukraine since Putin annexed Crimea four years ago and launched a destabilization campaign in Ukraine’s Donbas region.

German chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to address the Kerch incident at the G-20 meeting.

Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko piled pressure Thursday on the G-20 by calling for a tough collective response to Russia, saying he fears Moscow intends broader military action against his country.  European Union hawks have called for more sanctions to be imposed on Russia, although with the bloc already divided over policy towards Russia it is unlikely that will happen swiftly without a strong lead from Washington, say diplomats.

Trump waited more than 24 hours after the maritime clash before he commented on the incident, prompting criticism, once again, that he was going lightly on his Russian counterpart.  But once he did address the clash, his irritation was clear.  “I don’t like that aggression.  I don’t want that aggression at all,” he told the Washington Post.

Steven Pifer, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and now an analyst at the Washington-based Brookings Institution told VOA if Trump “does not raise the question of the Russian conflict against Ukraine … the Russian would calculate the President is weak on this issue.  That’s going to be bad for Ukraine, but also bad for American foreign policy.”

 

 

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Екс-юрист Трампа зізнався, що дав неправдиві свідчення перед Конгресом

Колишній юрист президента Сполучених Штатів Дональда Трампа Майкл Коен визнав, що дав неправдиві свідчення у зв’язку з федеральним розслідуванням щодо втручання Росії у президентські вибори в США 2016 року.

Коен визнав свою провину в суді району Мангеттен у Нью-Йорку за одним пунктом обвинувачення. Він визнав, що дав неправдиві свідчення Конгресу в рамках розслідування щодо того, чи співпрацювали представники передвиборчого штабу Трампа з Росією, аби вплинути на результат виборів.

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Коен збрехав, даючи свідчення комітету Сенату, щодо планів побудувати вежу «Трамп-Тауер» у Москві, повідомляють американські ЗМІ. Колишній адвокат Трамп визнав, що перемови про будівництво вежі велися в серпні 2017 році. Раніше він стверджував, що дію угоди було припинено в січні 2016-го.

В серпні Коен визнав себе винним за іншими пунктами федерального обвинувачення, які стосувалися його работи на Трампа, власної служби таксі і банківського шахрайства.

 

Читайте також: США: Трамп відповів на питання спецпрокурора у рамках розлідування «російського втручання»

Згодом адвокат Коена заявив, що той дав «критично важливу інформацію» слідчим спеціального прокурора Роберта Мюллера.

Мюллер розслідує втручання Росії у вибори у 2016 році. Тоді на виборах переміг Дональд Трамп.

Розслідування Мюллера спричинило порушення кримінальних справ проти десятків людей, включно з Майклом Коеном, колишнім головою виборчої кампанії Трампа Полом Манафортом та колишнім радником Трампа з питань національної безпеки Майклом Флінном.

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Erdogan, Trump Set to Meet at G20

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump are due to meet  on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Erdogan indicated U.S. support for a Syrian Kurdish militia would top their agenda.

Speaking before leaving for Buenos Aires, Erdogan said the planned talks would pick up on themes raised in Wednesday’s telephone call with Trump. Ongoing tensions between Ukraine and Russia initiated the call.

“They agreed to meet again at G20 to discuss this concern and other important issues in the bilateral relationship,” read the White House readout of the call.

Trump and Erdogan have again started to work together on the many crises in Turkey’s region after months of diplomatic tensions. October’s release by a Turkish court of American pastor Andrew Brunson was the trigger for renewed cooperation and talks.

“There are some very thorny issues that have been postponed rather than resolved,” said analyst Atilla Yesilada of Global Source Partners. “But the release of Brunson has ended a psychological barrier to dialogue.”

At the top of Erdogan’s list of issues to be resolved is Washington’s ongoing support for the YPG Syrian Kurdish militia in its war against the Islamic State.

Turkey considers the YPG terrorists linked to a decades-long insurgency inside Turkey and is pushing for a road map agreement with Washington to end YPG presence in the strategically important Syrian City of Manbij.

Under the deal, American and Turkish forces would replace the militia. “We will discuss the Manbij issue at the [G-20] meeting with U.S. President Trump,” Erdogan said Thursday.

Former senior Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen, who served widely in the region, sees the Manbij deal as a blueprint for future efforts that would feature “joint Turkish-US patrols to push the YPG away from the border.”

Time is against the Kurds, he said. “We are at a new phase in U.S. Turkish relations with greater cooperation.”

Greater cooperation

A major stumbling block to greater cooperation between the U.S. and Turkey are the deepening Turkish-Iranian ties. Observers point out Washington increasingly sees curtailing Iran’s presence in Syria a priority, a role the YPG could play given it controls a fifth of Syrian territory.

“They [Washington] will ask Turkey to follow in line against Iran and hold the ground.” said Selcen, “Then, this will push Turkey to distance itself from the Astana process, from Iran and Russia altogether.”

The Astana process brought together Ankara, Moscow, and Tehran in efforts to end the Syrian civil war.

Leverage over Turkey

Trump does retain leverage over Erdogan. Turkish State-owned Halkbank is facing potential multi-billion dollars fines for violating U.S. Iranian sanctions.

“The fact that Halkbank is still on the hook with the American judiciary obliges Turkey to be nice to the U.S.,” said Yesilada.

Erdogan is expected to raise Halkbank with Trump at the G20 summit.

Turkey’s controversial purchase of S400 Russian missiles also is likely feature in the talks. The U.S. is calling for an end to the deal, claiming the missiles threaten to compromise NATO weapons systems, in particular, America’s latest fighter the F-35.

Tit-for-tat

A U.S. Congressional report cautions against the delivery of the F 35 to Turkey if the delivery of S400 goes ahead in mid-2019. Such a move could also jeopardize Turkey’s ongoing participation in the manufacture of the fighter.

“The F-35 is important to Erdogan as part of the development of Turkey’s defense industry, which is a priority for the president,” said Yesilada.

Erdogan insists the S-400 purchase will go ahead, although he has suggested readiness to consider buying an American missile system as well.

International relations professor Huseyin Bagci, of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University, says Turkey has “had enough with the economic and political crisis and now wants to repair relations. And Trump appears prepared to do this.”

Trump has received plaudits in Ankara for taking steps against Turkish Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who lives in self-imposed exile in the United States and denies Erdogan’s charges he was behind a 2016 coup attempt.

“Ankara is quite content with the state of a recent investigation by the FBI on Gulen’s approximately 180 charter schools in the U.S.” wrote columnist Cansu Camlibel for Hurriyet Daily News. “The FBI has been investigating tax and visa fraud, as well as money laundering, allegations against schools known for their ties to Gülen.”

The Erdogan-Trump meeting is not expected to result in any breakthroughs on critical issues that continue to plague bilateral ties. But analysts suggest both leaders share an interest in working to defuse tensions.

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Канада запроваджує санкції за вбивство Хашокджі – Фрілянд

Канада запровадила санкції проти 17 осіб, яких вважає причетними до вбивства саудівського журналіста Джамала Хашокджі, повідомляє голова Міністерства закордонних справ Канади Христя Фріланд.

За її словами, це рішення ухвалили 29 листопада.

«Сьогодні Канада запроваджує санкції – за нашим законом Магнітського – проти 17 осіб, які, згідно з позицією нашого уряду, несуть відповідальність або причетні до позасудового і такого, що було скоєне поза межами юрисдикції їхньої держави, вбивства Хашокджі», – повідомила голова МЗС.

Фріланд назвала вбивство журналіста «безчесним нападом на свободу висловлення думки і свободу преси».

«Цю справу не закрито. Канада продовжує вимагати повноцінного і незалежного міжнародного розслідування. Причетні повинні бути притягнуті до відповідальності», – заявила вона.

Закон про жертв корумпованих іноземних урядів, також відомий як закон Магнітського, був ухвалений в Канаді у жовтні 2017 року. Він дозволяє накладати санкційні обмеження на посадовців, причетних до порушень прав людини.

Санкції передбачають заморожування активів перелічених осіб у Канаді і заборону їм на в’їзд до цієї країни.

22 листопада санкції за вбивство Хашокджі запровадила Франція – під них підпали 18 осіб.

Оглядач газети The Washington Post Джамал Хашокджі був убитий на початку жовтня в саудівському консульстві в Стамбулі. В останні роки журналіст виступав з різкою критикою політики Ер-Ріяда. Турецькі й американські спецслужби вважають, що до вбивства може бути причетне вище керівництво Саудівської Аравії і особисто наслідний принц Мухаммад бін Салман.

Тіло журналіста досі не знайшли. Влада Саудівської Аравії оголосила про арешт 21 підозрюваного у вбивстві Хашокджі, однак відкинула власну причетність до організації нападу. Справи 11 обвинувачених передані в суд. Прокурор королівства запросив смертної кари для п’ятьох із них.

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Deutsche Bank Offices Raided in Money Laundering Probe

Police raided six Deutsche Bank offices in and around Frankfurt on Thursday over money laundering allegations linked to the “Panama Papers”, the public prosecutor’s office in Germany’s financial capital said.

Investigators are looking into the activities of two unnamed Deutsche Bank employees alleged to have helped clients set up offshore firms to launder money, the prosecutor’s office said.

Around 170 police officers, prosecutors and tax inspectors searched the offices where written and electronic business documents were seized.

“Of course, we will cooperate closely with the public prosecutor’s office in Frankfurt, as it is in our interest as well to clarify the facts,” Deutsche Bank said, adding it believed it had already provided all the relevant information related to the “Panama Papers”.

The news comes as Deutsche Bank tries to repair its tattered reputation after three years of losses and a drumbeat of financial and regulatory scandals.

Christian Sewing was appointed as chief executive in April to help the bank to rebuild. He trimmed U.S. operations and reshuffled the management board but revenue has continued to slip.

Deutsche Bank shares were down more than 3 percent by 1220 GMT and have lost almost half their value this year.

Offshore links

The investigation was triggered after investigators reviewed so-called “Offshore-Leaks” and “Panama Papers”, the prosecutor said.

The “Panama Papers”, which consist of millions of documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, were leaked to the media in April 2016.

Several banks, including Scandinavian lenders Nordea and Handelsbanken have already been fined by regulators for violating money laundering rules as a result of the papers.

The prosecutors said they are looking at whether Deutsche Bank may have assisted clients to set up offshore companies in tax havens so that funds transferred to accounts at Deutsche Bank could skirt anti-money laundering safeguards.

In 2016 alone, over 900 customers were served by a Deutsche Bank subsidiary registered on the British Virgin Islands, generating a volume of 311 million euros, the prosecutors said.

They also said Deutsche Bank employees are alleged to have breached their duties by neglecting to report money laundering suspicions about clients and offshore companies involved in tax evasion schemes.

The investigation is separate from another money laundering scandal surrounding Danish lender Danske Bank, where Deutsche Bank is involved.

Danske is under investigation for suspicious payments totaling 200 billion euros from 2007 onwards and a source with direct knowledge of the case has told Reuters Deutsche Bank helped to process the bulk of the payments.

A Deutsche Bank executive director has said the lender played only a secondary role as a so-called correspondent bank to Danske Bank, limiting what it needed to know about the people behind the transactions.

Under scrutiny

Weaknesses in Deutsche Bank’s controls that aim to prevent money laundering have caught the attention of regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. The bank has publicly said that it agreed it needed to improve its processes to properly identify clients.

In September, Germany’s financial watchdog – BaFin – ordered Deutsche Bank to do more to prevent money laundering and “terrorist financing,” and appointed KPMG as third party to assess progress.

In August, Reuters reported that Deutsche Bank had uncovered further shortcomings in its ability to fully identify clients and the source of their wealth.

Last year, Deutsche Bank was fined nearly $700 million for allowing money laundering through artificial trades between Moscow, London and New York. An investigation by the U.S.

Department of Justice is still ongoing.

Deutsche Bank has been under pressure after annual losses, and it agreed to pay a $7.2 billion settlement with U.S. authorities last year over its sale of toxic mortgage securities in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis.

 

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У Стамбулі мітингували на підтримку суверенітету України (фото, відео)

У Стамбулі пройшла акція на підтримку територіальної цілісності України і проти російської агресії.

Захід під назвою «Росія, що нападає» оргіназувала кримськотатарська громада Стамбулу. Підтримати організаторів прийшли представники українських громадських організацій.

 

Мітингувальники тримали в руках кримськотатарський, турецький і український прапори, а також плакати з лозунгами: «Путін, зупинись, припини війну!», «Крим без Росії», «Крим – батьківщина кримських татар», «Зупини окупацію», «Ми за територіальну цілісність України».

 

Під час акції голова кримськотатарської громади Джелял Ічтен зачитав резолюцію для преси. Згідно з документом, кримськотатарська громада Туреччини ​«категорично не приймає окупацію кримського півострова, виступає за територіальну цілісність України і проти російської агресії, зокрема нещодавнього нападу на українські кораблі з боку Росії». Автори резолюції закликають Кремль припинити провокації щодо України.

 

Діаспора кримських татар Туреччини також звернулася до турецької влади, громадських організацій і ЗМІ, підкресливши, що кримські татари і українці потребують їхньої підтримки і правильного висвітлення російської агресії. Джелял Ічтен висловив надію, що Туреччина не лишиться осторонь і долучиться до санкцій, які запровадили Євросоюз і Сполучені Штати Америки.

Читайте також: Керченська криза: Ердоган обговорив з Порошенком та Путіним можливе посередництво​

25 листопада російські прикордонники у Керченській протоці відкрили вогонь по трьох українських кораблях і захопили їх. За даними української влади, шестеро українських моряків були поранені, зокрема двоє – у тяжкому стані. Росія заявила, що надала медичну допомогу трьом пораненим, про інших трьох не згадувала.

Підконтрольні Кремлю суди у Криму арештували всіх 24 моряків на два місяці. Українська влада визнає їх військовополоненими.

Країни Заходу засудили дії Росії. В Євросоюзі закликали до «стриманості і деескалації», а генеральний секретар НАТО Єнс Столтенберґ оприлюднив заяву з вимогою до Росії звільнити військовополонених і захоплені кораблі.

26 листопада Верховна Рада проголосувала за введення воєнного станутерміном на 30 діб у внутрішніх водах Азово-Керченської акваторії та в 10 областях. Це Вінницька, Луганська, Донецька, Запорізька, Миколаївська, Одеська, Сумська, Харківська, Чернігівська, Херсонська.

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Йованович про напад на українські кораблі: Росія переступила межу

Росія переступила межу, напавши в Азовському морі на українські кораблі. Про це заявила посол США в Україні Марі Йованович під час ІІ Міжнародної конференції з морської безпеки, повідомляє «Укрінформ».

«Росія в неділю переступила межу. Скептики, посадовці більше вже не можуть заперечувати те, що ми знаємо. Ці ниточки, які контролюють конфлікт – чи це зелені чоловічки, чи сепаратисти – можна відстежити чітко. Москва визнала свої дії, і це перша відкрита російська атака, перший напад на українські ВМС, що перевело конфлікт із суходолу на море», – підкреслила дипломат.

Вона додала, що захоплення українських моряків та переслідування українських кораблів у водах біля Криму є порушенням міжнародного права.

«Ми закликаємо Росію припинити ескалацію тієї обстановки, яку створила Росія, повернути Україні затриманих членів екіпажу кораблів», – заявила Йованович.

25 листопада російські прикордонники у Керченській протоці відкрили вогонь по трьох українських кораблях і захопили їх. За даними української влади, шестеро українських моряків були поранені, зокрема двоє – у тяжкому стані. Росія заявила, що надала медичну допомогу трьом пораненим, про інших трьох не згадувала.

Підконтрольні Кремлю суди у Криму арештували всіх 24 моряків на два місяці. Українська влада визнає їх військовополоненими.

Країни Заходу засудили дії Росії. В Євросоюзі закликали до «стриманості і деескалації», а генеральний секретар НАТО Єнс Столтенберґ оприлюднив заяву з вимогою до Росії звільнити військовополонених і захоплені кораблі.

26 листопада Верховна Рада проголосувала за введення воєнного стану терміном на 30 діб у внутрішніх водах Азово-Керченської акваторії та в 10 областях. Це Вінницька, Луганська, Донецька, Запорізька, Миколаївська, Одеська, Сумська, Харківська, Чернігівська, Херсонська.

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Trump’s Next Challenge: Emboldened and Empowered Democrats

As President Trump prepares to re-enter the world stage at the G-20 summit in Argentina, allies and adversaries alike are taking stock of the president’s domestic challenges in the coming year. These include Democratic control of the House of Representatives, the potential for numerous oversight investigations and the long-awaited end of the Russia probe being led by special counsel Robert Mueller. National correspondent Jim Malone has more from Washington.

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Trump’s Next Challenge: Empowered, Emboldened Democrats

As President Trump prepares to re-enter the world stage at the G-20 summit in Argentina, allies and adversaries alike will be taking stock of the president’s new domestic challenges in the coming year. These include Democratic control of the House of Representatives, the potential for numerous oversight investigations and the long-awaited end of the Russia probe being led by special counsel Robert Mueller.

Foremost on the president’s mind, however, is his re-election bid in 2020. Trump provided some hints as to his strategy for re-election during his recent campaign stops for Republican Senator-elect Cindy Hyde-Smith.

“Under Republican leadership America is booming, America is thriving and America is winning again, winning like never before,” Trump told Republican supporters at a rally in Tupelo, Mississippi. “We are respected again. We are respected again as a nation.”

​New balance of power

But Trump faces a new reality in January when Democrats assume control of the House of Representatives as a result of the recent midterm elections, where they gained nearly 40 House seats.

After two years of unified Republican government in Washington between the White House and Capitol Hill, opposition Democrats will be an immovable part of the mix.

“The American people voted for a change,” said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. “They voted for a check on President Trump and a Congress that would stop Trump from trying to take away their health care. And after two long years that is what they will get.”

Analyst John Fortier told VOA that Trump’s new challenge will be adjusting to the shifting balance of power in Washington.

“Democrats will be in charge of the House of Representatives and will be able to investigate the president in a way that they haven’t being in the minority,” said Fortier, who is with the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington. “That will allow them a platform to really highlight the differences with the president on a number of issues.”

​Prospects for cooperation

Some Democrats may be open to trying to find common ground to work with the president on issues like infrastructure improvement. But Trump’s confrontational political style remains a major complication, said Jim Kessler of the center-left policy group Third Way.

“It raises the price of whatever deal he wants to seek with Democrats. So, if he wants a deal, he is going to have to act like someone who actually wants to deal, not someone who just wants to fight and be the center of the circus.”

Mueller probe

The great unknown for Trump and the rest of official Washington is what may come of the ongoing Russia probe led by special counsel Robert Mueller, which may be moving toward a conclusion.

Trump continues to blast the investigation as a “witch hunt”, but the ultimate outcome of the probe remains a political and legal mystery.

“We don’t know what Mueller has. We don’t know when he is going to drop (release) it,” said Brookings Institution’s Elaine Kamarck. “We don’t know if next week we are going to open the papers and see, you know, 15 more indictments. And that is what is hanging over this administration.”

Trump and his Republican allies in the House remain on the offensive that the Mueller probe is unfair and has produced no evidence of collusion between the 2016 Trump campaign and Russia.

Recent polls

But a recent poll by Hart Associates found that 76 percent of those surveyed believe Mueller should be allowed to complete his investigation, while 24 percent favor its termination.

Supporters of finishing the probe included 94 percent of Democrats, 78 percent of independents and 55 percent of Republicans in the poll.

Looking ahead to the next Congress, Trump can take some comfort from Tuesday’s victory by Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith in a Mississippi Senate race that now leaves Republicans with an expanded 53 to 47 seat majority in the Senate for the next two years.

But looking ahead to 2020, the president has to be concerned about his approval rating. The overall average, according to RealClear Politics, shows the president at 43 percent approval, 53 percent disapproval.

In the latest weekly Gallup Poll, Trump’s approval fell to 38 percent from 43 percent the previous week. His disapproval rate rose to 60 percent.

Trump and Republicans in Congress also have to be concerned about this year’s midterm results that showed a lot of suburban women supporting Democratic candidates, especially in key states Trump needs to win again in 2020 like Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

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Ruling Party Candidate Leads in Georgia Presidential Runoff

Preliminary results from Georgia’s presidential runoff showed the ruling party-backed candidate, who favours balancing the ex-Soviet republic’s relations with Moscow and the West, leading her rival who advocates a stronger pro-Western line.

Figures from the Central Election Commission gave French-born Salome Zurabishvili 58.2 percent of the vote in the runoff, which was held on Wednesday. Opposition candidate Grigol Vashadze had 41.8 percent, based on results from 55 percent of the polling stations, the CEC said on its website.

Voting under close scrutiny

Earlier, two exit polls also showed Zurabishvili, a former French career diplomat who served as Georgia’s foreign minister from 2004-2005, with a clear lead.

The second round of voting was under close scrutiny by opposition and international observers for any sign that the ruling Georgian Dream party is using its control of state machinery to help Zurabishvili win.

The opposition said there have been attacks on its activists during campaigning and complained there were many irregularities during the vote, including attempts to pressure voters and manipulation of voter lists.

The ruling party has denied attempting to influence the outcome of the vote unfairly.

International observers said the first round of voting last month had been competitive, but had been held on “an unlevel playing field” with state resources misused, private media biased, and some phoney candidates taking part.

Balanced approach

Vashadze, who was foreign minister in 2008-2012, had been expected to use the presidency’s limited powers to send a vocal message of integration with the U.S.-led NATO alliance and the European Union — sensitive issues in the South Caucasus country that fought a war in 2008 with its neighbour Russia.

Georgian Dream and Zurabishvili take a more pragmatic line, balancing the country’s aspirations to move closer to the West with a desire to avoid antagonising the Kremlin.

Constitutional changes have reduced the authority of the president, and put most levers of power in the hands of the prime minister, a Georgian Dream loyalist.

Move to electoral college

The election was the last in which the president will be selected by popular vote. From 2024, presidents will be picked by an electoral college of 300 lawmakers and regional officials.

Zurabishvili won 38.6 percent of the vote in the first round on Oct. 28. That was just one percentage point ahead of Vashadze, who was a foreign minister in 2008-2012 in a resolutely pro-Western government that was in power when the conflict with Russia broke out over a Moscow-backed breakaway Georgian territory.

Georgian Dream was founded by billionaire banker Bidzina Ivanishvili, the country’s richest man, and critics say he rules the country from behind the scenes.

Zurabishvili’s supporters say she would bring international stature to the presidency. But her opponents have criticized her for statements that appeared to blame Georgia for the 2008 war and remarks about minorities that some see as xenophobic. 

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Trump Studying New Auto Tariffs After GM Restructuring

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that new auto tariffs were “being studied now,” asserting they could prevent job cuts such as the U.S. layoffs and plant closures that General Motors Co. announced this week. 

 

Trump said on Twitter that the 25 percent tariff placed on imported pickup trucks and commercial vans from markets outside North America in the 1960s had long boosted U.S. vehicle production. 

 

“If we did that with cars coming in, many more cars would be built here,” Trump said, “and G.M. would not be closing their plants in Ohio, Michigan & Maryland.” 

 

The United States has a 2.5 percent tariff on imported cars and sport utility vehicles from markets outside North America and South Korea. The new North American trade deal exempts the first 2.6 million SUVs and passenger cars built in Mexico and Canada from new tariffs. 

 

Several automakers said privately on Wednesday that they feared GM’s action could prompt Trump to act faster than expected on new tariffs. 

 

GM did not directly comment on Trump’s tweets but reiterated that it was committed to investing in the United States. On Monday, the company said it would shutter five North American plants, stop building six low-selling passenger cars in North America and cut up to 15,000 jobs. The company has no plans to shift production of those vehicles to other markets. 

 

The administration has for months been considering imposing dramatic new tariffs on imported vehicles. 

 

The U.S. Commerce Department has circulated draft recommendations to the White House on its investigation into whether to impose tariffs of up to 25 percent on imported cars and parts on national security grounds, Reuters reported earlier this month. 

 

“The President has great power on this issue – Because of the G.M. event, it is being studied now!” Trump said. 

 

Shock to industry

The prospect of tariffs of 25 percent on imported autos and parts has sent shock waves through the auto industry, with both U.S. and foreign-brand producers lobbying against it and warning that national security tariffs on EU and Japanese vehicles could dramatically raise the price of many vehicles. 

 

Trump has also harshly criticized GM for building cars in China. The United States slapped an additional 25 percent tariff on Chinese-made vehicles earlier this year, prompting China to retaliate. 

 

China currently imposes a 40 percent tariff on U.S. automobiles, while the United States has a 27.5 percent tariff on Chinese vehicles. 

 

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement on Wednesday that he “will examine all available tools to equalize the tariffs applied to automobiles.” 

 

Additional tariffs on Chinese-made vehicles and parts would have a limited impact, said Kristin Dziczek, an economist at the Center for Automotive Research. She noted only a small number of vehicles were exported from China to the United States annually. 

 

The White House previously pledged not to move forward with imposing national security tariffs on the European Union or Japan while it was making constructive progress in trade talks. 

 

Trump wants the EU and Japan to buy more American-made vehicles. He wants the EU and Japan to make trade concessions, including lowering the EU’s 10 percent tariff on imported vehicles and cutting nontariff barriers. 

 

The White House in recent weeks has reached out to the chief executives of German automakers, including Daimler AG, MW AG and Volkswagen AG about meeting to discuss the status of auto trade.  

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UK Government to Face Challenges to May’s Brexit Plan in Parliament 

British Prime Minister Theresa May’s bid to win approval for her Brexit deal will have to overcome attempts to block or change it by rival lawmakers on Dec. 11, a proposed format for the debate published on Wednesday showed. 

 

The government has set out the details of a debate on a motion to approve May’s plan to take the country out of the European Union, allowing for amendments to be discussed that could try to reshape the deal she brought back from Brussels. 

 

The format of the debate has been keenly awaited to see whether rivals would have a chance to test their alternative exit plans, such as remaining in the EU’s customs union or making the exit conditional upon a second referendum. 

 

Any such amendments would not be legally binding on the government but would prove politically hard to ignore. 

May already has an arduous task to get the motion approved. It is opposed by a large group of lawmakers from her own party, the Northern Irish party that props up her minority government and by all opposition parties who say they will vote against it. 

 

Defeat would most likely unleash huge political uncertainty and could roil financial markets. 

 

According to documents filed at Britain’s Parliament on Wednesday, debates will be held on Dec. 4, 5, 6, 10 and 11, with up to six amendments selected on the final day. The opposition Labor Party said on Twitter the debate would conclude at 1900 GMT on Dec. 11. 

 

The amendments could be put to several votes, meaning that as well as overcoming the huge opposition to her plan, May will have to defeat attempts to add extra conditions to it or to thwart the exit agreement altogether. 

 

The government has previously voiced concerns that any of these so-called amendments that win support in the House of Commons could prevent the government from ratifying the exit deal because the amended motion would not provide the necessary unequivocal approval required under previously passed legislation.  

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Stocks Leap as Fed Chief Hints Interest Rate Increases May Taper Off

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell boosted U.S. stock markets on Wednesday when he said interest rates were “just below” estimates of a level that neither brakes nor boosts a healthy economy. Many took his comments as a signal that the Fed’s three-year tightening cycle is ending. 

The S&P 500 and Dow posted their biggest percentage gains in eight months, while the Nasdaq saw its largest advance in just over a month following Powell’s speech to the Economic Club of New York. 

Powell said that while “there was a great deal to like” about U.S. prospects, “our gradual pace of raising interest rates has been an exercise in balancing risks.” 

Earlier in the day, in its first-ever financial stability report, the Fed cautioned that trade tensions, Brexit and troubled emerging markets could rock a U.S. financial system where asset prices are “elevated.” 

‘Close to neutral’

“[Powell is] now acknowledging he’s close to neutral, which suggests maybe not quite as many rate hikes in the future as investors believed,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Cresset Wealth Advisors in Chicago. “It’s certainly a change of language and welcome news to investors.” 

The U.S. Commerce Department affirmed that U.S. GDP grew in the third quarter at a 3.5 percent annual rate, but the goods trade deficit widened, consumer spending was revised lower and sales of new homes tumbled, suggesting clouds are gathering over what is now the second-longest economic expansion on record. 

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 617.7 points, or 2.5 percent, to 25,366.43, the S&P 500 gained 61.61 points, or 2.30 percent, to 2,743.78 and the Nasdaq Composite added 208.89 points, or 2.95 percent, to 7,291.59. 

Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, all but utilities were positive. Technology and consumer discretionary were the biggest percentage gainers, each up more than 3 percent. 

The S&P 500 Automobile & Components index was up 1.4 percent after President Donald Trump said he was studying new auto tariffs in the wake of General Motors Co.’s announcement that it would close plants and cut its workforce. 

Humana cuts forecast

Health insurer Humana Inc. cut its 2019 forecast for Medicare drug plan enrollment but upped its estimated enrollment in the company’s Medicare Advantage plan. Its stock ended the session up 6.2 percent. 

Salesforce.com Inc. beat analysts’ earnings estimates and forecast better-than-expected 2020 revenue, sending its shares up 10.3 percent. Other cloud software makers rose on the news, with the ISE Cloud Index gaining 3.5 percent. 

Microsoft Corp briefly surpassed Apple Inc. in market cap but Apple took back its lead by closing. Nevertheless, Microsoft closed 4.0 percent higher as it benefited from optimism regarding demand for cloud computing services. 

Among losers, Tiffany & Co. shares dropped 11.8 percent after the luxury retailer missed quarterly sales estimates on slowing Chinese demand. 

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 3.95-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 3.58-to-1 ratio favored advancers. 

The S&P 500 posted 17 new 52-week highs and six new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 37 new highs and 129 new lows. 

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 8.04 billion shares, compared with the 7.82 billion-share average over the last 20 trading days. 

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