China Billionaire Arrested for Child Molestation

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China’s official Communist Party newspaper has revealed that one of two previously unidentified suspects allegedly involved in a molestation case is billionaire Wang Zhenhua.

Wang recently stepped down as chairman of Seazen Holdings, one of China’s foremost real estate developers, “for personal reasons.” This announcement immediately followed news that Wang and another suspect identified only as “Zhou” had been arrested for their alleged involvement in the molestation of an underage girl in a Shanghai hotel.

The victims’s mother claims that Zhou transported her daughter on June 30 from Jiangsu province to Shanghai, where she was sexually assaulted. Zhou surrendered to the police on July 2, a day after the Wang investigation was announced. . .

Child molestation in China carries a maximum penalty of only five years, though the sentence can be extended with further charges. A statement by China police asserted that they “adopt a ‘zero tolerance’ attitude toward crimes against minors and will severely crack down on such crimes in accordance with law.” (Read more from “China Billionaire Arrested for Child Molestation” HERE)

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British Ambassador to U.S. Resigns After Trump’s Wrath

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The British ambassador to the United States resigned Wednesday after leaked memos showed he called the Trump administration “inept.”

“Since the leak of official documents from this Embassy there has been a great deal of speculation surrounding my position and the duration of my remaining term as ambassador,” Kim Darroch said in a letter released by the Foreign Office. “I want to put an end to that speculation. The current situation is making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like.”

He continued: “Although my posting is not due to end until the end of this year, I believe in the current circumstances the responsible course is to allow the appointment of a new ambassador.” . .

“I have been very critical about the way the U.K. and Prime Minister Theresa May handled Brexit. What a mess she and her representatives have created. I told her how it should be done, but she decided to go another way. I do not know the Ambassador, but he is not liked or well thought of within the U.S. We will no longer deal with him,” he tweeted. “The good news for the wonderful United Kingdom is that they will soon have a new Prime Minister. While I thoroughly enjoyed the magnificent State Visit last month, it was the Queen who I was most impressed with!”

(Read more from “British Ambassador to U.S. Resigns After Trump’s Wrath” HERE)

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Here’s How Many Assault-Style Weapons Have Been Returned in New Zealand for Their Gun Buyback

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By The Daily Caller. New Zealand has seen only a fraction of weapons surrendered after its government passed restrictive gun control measures, including a buyback program, following March’s mosque shootings.

About 1,000 guns estimated to qualify as prohibited have reportedly been turned over to New Zealand authorities as part of the country’s gun buyback program as of July 4, according to Radio New Zealand. . .

The gun rules that include a ban on assault-style guns and similar weapons were passed by New Zealand’s parliament in April in the wake of the March 15 mosque shootings in Christchurch that killed 51 people. . . .

The regulations face opposition, including a planned legal challenge from the Council of Licensed Firearms Owners, New Zealand’s leading gun lobby. The group plans to “take legal action, likely to be by way of a class action,” promised Secretary Nicole McKee, according to WaPo.

Three hundred gun collection events are planned for the next three months in various locations, including large sport stadiums. Authorities said they have informed registered firearm owners of the obligations, and have received 8,000 notifications of surrender through an online registration process, according to Radio New Zealand. (Read more from “Here’s How Many Assault-Style Weapons Have Been Returned in New Zealand” HERE)

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Less Than 1% Participate in New Zealand Gun Buyback

By American Military News. Just one percent of New Zealand’s guns have been turned in after the nation’s ban on semi-automatic rifles and high-capacity magazines. . .

Official data has not yet been released and is complex to even obtain due to the fact that many of the banned weapons are not on the national registry.

The New Zealand government has sent notices to owners of all registered firearms informing them of their obligation to turn in their firearm. An amnesty period lasts until December 20, and after that, gun owners will face consequences for being in possession of banned firearms. (Read more from “Less Than 1% Participate in New Zealand Gun Buyback” HERE)

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Iran Gives World Powers an Ultimatum to Avoid a Nuclear War

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Iran announced on Sunday they were hours away from breaching another aspect of the 2015 nuclear deal that was established. The country is planning to increase its amount of uranium enrichment, putting them over the cap established cap. This puts Iran closer to establishing a nuclear bomb, although they still have a ways to go, the New York Times reported.

The move is part of a bigger plan. According to Deputy Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, Iran will continue to increase accord limits over 60-day intervals until their country receives sanction relief. . .

In violating the limits on uranium enrichment, Tehran still remains far from producing a nuclear weapon. It would take a major production surge, and enrichment to far higher levels, for Iran to develop a bomb’s worth of highly enriched uranium, experts say. It would take even longer to manufacture that material into a nuclear weapon.

But for Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, who signaled in May that he would order the country’s engineers to cross both thresholds if Europe did not compensate Iran for American sanctions, the breach of the enrichment limit would be a watershed. He is betting that the United States will back away from crushing sanctions or that he can split European nations from the Trump administration, which the Europeans blame for setting off the crisis.

(Read more from “Iran Gives World Powers an Ultimatum to Avoid a Nuclear War” HERE)

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President Trump Credited After North Korea Quietly Releases Detainee

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An Australian student detained by North Korea has been quietly set free, and experts say President Donald Trump deserves credit for his release. . .

Alek Sigley, 29, of Perth went missing in North Korea last week ahead of President Trump’s historic visit to the communist country for a meeting with its dictator, Kim Jong Un. The New York Times reported Sigley was released Thursday morning and flew to Beijing, issuing a statement the next day thanking Australian and Swedish officials for orchestrating his freedom.

According to two experts, Sigley has other people to thank, namely President Trump. Former Australian MP Michael Johnson — who visited North Korea in 2006, 2007, and 2009 — says that if it weren’t for Trump’s visit to the rogue nation, Sigley could have met a similar fate to American college student Otto Warmbier, who died in 2017 shortly after being returned to the U.S. following detainment in North Korea.

Johnson told the Daily Mail, “Now we diplomatically and politically owe the Americans something and you can bet your bottom dollar, a favour will be asked and its delivery expected.”

He went on to argue that if President Trump hadn’t met with Kim, the best case scenario for Sigley would have been “another 12 months in physical detention and being roughed up.” (Read more from “President Trump Credited After North Korea Quietly Releases Detainee” HERE)

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Hater of Trump and Israel May Be Next Head of European Union

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This week, the man who has said Israel just has to live with the fact that Iran wants to destroy it was nominated to be the foreign policy chief of the European Union, putting him in the position where he would be likely to succeed EU Chief Federica Mogherini in November.

As The Times of Israel reports, Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell’s appointments must still be confirmed by the European Parliament. Borrell is a member of his country’s ruling Socialist Workers’ Party.

Bas Belder, a Dutch member of the European Parliament who is strongly supportive of Israel, tweeted, “More difficult times [are] ahead between the EU and Israel I fear.”

As Politico reported in February, Borrell is complacent about the fact that the despotic theocratic Iranian regime wants to destroy Israel; commenting on the U.S. leaving the Iran nuclear deal under President Trump, he ripped Trump, saying, “The agreement is dead, but not for us. The Americans decided to kill it, unilaterally as they do things without any kind of previous consultation, without taking care of what interests the Europeans have.” When he was asked whether the U.S. perspective was correct, given Iran’s vow to destroy Israel, he answered, “We are not children following what they say. We have our own prospects, interests and strategy and we will continue working with Iran. It would be very bad for us if it goes on to develop a nuclear weapon … Iran wants to wipe out Israel; nothing new about that. You have to live with it.” . . .

In February, Borrell ripped Trump as he lauded Iran, tweeting, “Iran remains an obsession for the U.S. government. They still do not have diplomatic relations and also Trump has withdrawn from the Nuclear Pact and imposed sanctions. Surely Iran can survive sanctions if Trump is not re-elected. Otherwise, the regime could revive the nuclear program for military purposes and multiply its interventions in the region.”

(Read more from “Hater of Trump and Israel May Be Next Head of European Union” HERE)

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Migrants Are Trying to Buy Children to Cross U.S. Border

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U.S. authorities have been warning for over a year now that children are being used and trafficked by prospective illegal immigrants in order to gain access to the American interior. Mexican authorities have now backed up those claims.

A story at the Seattle Times on Sunday details how migrants are trying to literally buy kids off of vulnerable single mothers in Tijuana, Mexico, so they can more easily get across the border. That’s because they know that if they cross the border posing as a “family unit,” they have a much higher probability of being released by authorities.

Now, the report explains, authorities in Tijuana are telling mothers to keep an extra-close watch on their children following reports of men trying to purchase kids.

“They want to rob our kids so they can cross into the United States,” 44-year-old migrant mother Antonia Portillo Cruz told the newspaper. “I can’t go to work because I can’t take my eyes off my boys.”

The migrant from Honduras said she personally witnessed men in the shelter where she’s staying asking to buy children, some of them offering the equivalent of $350. A Mexican police spokesman confirmed the reports to the paper and said that federal authorities are investigating the matter.

This is not a new problem. Government officials warned that catch-and-release loopholes surrounding family units would incentivize kidnappings as early as 2016. In May 2018, numbers from the Department of Homeland Security showed an “eye-popping increase” in such cases. Some children are now being recycled by human smugglers, according to immigration officials.

Meanwhile, a pilot rapid DNA testing program at the border revealed that roughly 30 percent of those suspected of posing as fake family units were indeed defrauding immigration officials.

At a press conference at the border on Monday, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, blamed the ongoing endangerment of children created by such loopholes squarely on Congress’ inaction on fixing the immigration system.

“Our policies, the loopholes that Congress has put in place, [are] encouraging people to risk their lives and even more tragically, it’s putting children in harm’s way,” Sen. Cruz said. “Today, roughly 50 percent of the adult men crossing into the Rio Grande sector have a child with them. The reason for that — the fault of that — is the U.S. Congress, because we have told the traffickers … ‘If you bring a child, that child is essentially a get-out-of-jail-free card.’”

Cruz went on to call the current system “an incentive from the United States Congress: ‘Go and find a small child and take that arduous journey, risk that child’s life.’”

(For more from the author of “Migrants Are Trying to Buy Children to Cross U.S. Border” please click HERE)

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You Can’t Look at Trump’s North Korea Moves Without Looking at China

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President Trump set foot several feet into North Korea. Is that a big deal? No other president has done it. Was it a symbolic gesture? Yes. Did it provide a great photo op for the North Korean leader? Absolutely. Was it seen as a stunt by the mainstream media in the U.S.? Of course. Does anyone think credit would be given to President Trump for any action he takes? We are talking about a huge segment of the U.S. media that would cheer for the enemy during a fight if it meant they could blame the president.

I’ve spent years watching and analyzing the events in North Korea and spent some of my military years preparing for a conflict with that nation. I’ve looked at issues ranging from potential individual actions all the way up to nation-state conflict. Here’s the reality: Kim Jong Un is not the leader of a sovereign nation. He is, as his father was, the person who inherited the job of overseer of China’s primary proxy fighter.

To put it more bluntly, Kim Jong Un runs the rabid dog Beijing keeps on a short leash. To believe that at any level of government, North Korea is an independent nation that can be approached by any other nation without approval or oversight from China is simply naive. North Korea is and has been for decades a threat to world peace – a threat that was proven indelibly in one horrific war already. North Korea is and has been a tool for China to leverage against the United States. Push China too far, and out comes the rabid dog.

So, is it possible for Mr. Kim to commit to any agreement without first receiving guidance from his puppet masters in Beijing? Is it possible to pry North Korea away from the orbit of China?

The answer to both questions is a resounding no.

Would China go to war before it would accept North Korea ending up in a Western-dominated environment?

You can bet your bottom dollar on it.

Since North Korea is not a sovereign nation, the next logical question is: Why is the U.S. seemingly wasting its time talking to a puppet?

Perhaps the U.S. is using Kim as a leverage point on a much larger issue. Perhaps this is all about countering the long-term Chinese vision for the region.

When you’re involved in preparing for war, you understand the true purpose of North Korea. So once you know your enemies’ tactics, you must set a plan to counter them. Can the U.S. and others show the people of North Korea there is a better way of life out there? In the end, is the issue of North Korea about North Korean nuclear weapons – weapons China would never allow North Korea to use without approval – or is it about containing the Chinese dragon?

Is it better to threaten Kim Jong Un and win a few votes back home come election time, or is it far more effective to play nice with him despite anything he might say or do? How does Beijing argue with President Trump agreeing to take a few steps into North Korea? How would the Chinese government paint that in a bad light? Seen from my foxhole, that move was pure genius.

If Team Trump has figured out how to play to the weaknesses of the primary Chinese proxy tool in a way not based on threats of total destruction, then I suggest his team has found a path that might just work. Does it give the appearance of going soft, as in the Clinton, Bush, and Obama years? No. Those administrations had a sadly simplistic approach to North Korea: avoidance. Team Trump seems to be on a mission to create pressure between the puppet proxy kingdom and its overlords in Beijing.

If it is indeed true that Team Trump is approaching this with a “peace through strength” strategy to counter China – the real player in the theater – and not from one of weakness that so defined his predecessors, then how will we know if the plan is working?

Well, that answer was on display just last week when Xi Jinping, the leader of China, visited his puppet kingdom. CNN reports that it was the first time a Chinese head of state has visited North Korea in 14 years. It demonstrates that China needed to show not just Mr. Kim, but his military commanders, who really calls the shots for North Korea. Jinping knew President Trump might take advantage of the G-20 summit trip. How could he not show up to make sure key people know where they stand? Let the trade talks continue to go badly for China, and they are, and you will see the puppet leader do something newsworthy.

Can Xi Jinping order North Korea to completely walk away from President Trump’s efforts? Yes. Another ballistic missile test or the cancellation of talks with South Korea would be disastrous for the 2020 election bid. The reality is, the puppet nation is still a tool at the disposal of the number one thereat to the U.S. President Trump is taking a calculated gamble.

In the end, it’s not only about the nukes, folks. Divide and conquer: It’s a timeless game the U.S. better remember how to play. (For more from the author of “You Can’t Look at Trump’s North Korea Moves Without Looking at China” please click HERE)

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Vietnam Says That China Is Mislabeling Products as Vietnamese to Avoid U.S. Tariffs

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Vietnamese officials say China is intentionally mislabeling its products as “made in Vietnam” to avoid American tariffs, and have ordered offices to more aggressively examine products’ certificates of origin.

Chinese firms first export products to Vietnam, then change the labeling on packages before exporting the goods to the United States, Japan or Europe, they said.

“Dozens” of products have been identified, Hoang Thi Thuy, a Vietnamese Customs Department official, told state-run media, and goods like textiles, fishery products, agricultural products, steel, aluminum, and processed wooden products were most vulnerable to the fraud. . .

“It will sabotage Vietnamese brands and products and it will also affect consumers. We could even get tariff retribution from other countries, and if that happens, it will hurt our economy,” Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh told the Vietnamese National Assembly last week.

Vietnam does not have any legal requirements for certification of the “Made in Vietnam” label. The country’s current regulations require that goods be produced partly or completely in Vietnam, but does not provide a mechanism for determining the veracity of the label. (Read more from “Vietnam Says That China Is Mislabeling Products as Vietnamese to Avoid U.S. Tariffs” HERE)

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Iran Calls Trump ‘Mentally Retarded.’ Trump Gives Them a Friendly Reminder.

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On Tuesday, after Iran’s president Hassan Rouhani attacked President Trump, saying the White House’s actions show that Trump is “mentally retarded,” Trump fired back with a series of tweets warning Iran that if they attack anything American, that action would be met with “great and overwhelming force. In some areas, overwhelming will mean obliteration. No more John Kerry & Obama!”

Trump’s series of tweets slammed the Iranian regime, warning it not to mess with American power, as he wrote, “Iran leadership doesn’t understand the words “nice” or “compassion,” they never have. Sadly, the thing they do understand is Strength and Power, and the USA is by far the most powerful Military Force in the world, with 1.5 Trillion Dollars invested over the last two years alone.”

(Read more from “Iran Calls Trump ‘Mentally Retarded.’ Trump Gives Them a Friendly Reminder.” HERE)

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