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Why haven’t China and the US agreed to restore military contacts?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has wrapped up a closely watched visit to Beijing during which he and President Xi Jinping pledged to stabilize plunging U.S-China ties. But China refused the biggest U.S. request: restoring military-to-military contacts.Blinken said he raised the issue of military communications “repeatedly” but was rebuffed by the Chinese. “It is absolutely vital that we have these kinds of communications,” he said, adding that it was something the United States will “keep working on.”Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and President Joe Biden have called often over the past few months for China to reestablish military communication channels with the U.S.WHY DID CHINA HALT MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS?China suspended regular contacts with the U.S. military last August after then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, challenging Beijing’s principle that other countries should refrain from official exchanges with self-governing Taiwan, whi...

Foreign companies are shifting investment out of China as confidence wanes, business group says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Foreign companies are shifting investments and their Asian headquarters out of China as confidence plunges following the expansion of an anti-spying law and other challenges, a business group said Wednesday.The report by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China adds is one of many signs of growing pessimism despite the ruling Communist Party’s efforts to revive interest in the world’s No. 2 economy following the end of anti-virus controls.Companies are uneasy about security controls, government protection of their Chinese rivals and a lack of action on reform promises, according to the European Chamber. They also are being squeezed by slowing Chinese economic growth and rising costs.Business confidence in China is “pretty much the lowest we have on record,” the European Chamber president, Jens Eskelund, told reporters ahead of the report’s release.“There’s no expectation that the regulatory environment is really going to improve over the next five years,” Eskel...

Ex-state legislator defeats incumbent senator in Virginia primary race centered on abortion rights

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Former state legislator Lashrecse Aird defeated incumbent, self-described “pro-life” Democrat Sen. Joe Morrissey on Tuesday in a closely watched primary election in Virginia that centered on abortion rights.Aird, a former member of the state House of Delegates, ran a campaign heavily focused on Morrissey’s position on abortion. A veteran lawmaker and one of the most controversial figures in Virginia politics, Morrissey had expressed a willingness to vote with Republicans to enact stricter limits on abortion in Virginia sought by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.Morrissey was just one of many incumbents facing spirited challenges Tuesday in an election season that’s been upended by redrawn political maps legislative candidates are running in for the first time this year. In another high-profile race, Democrat L. Louise Lucas, a veteran legislator, defeated fellow Sen. Lionell Spruill. The race in the heavily Democratic Hampton Roads seat was one of only two featuri...

US and China are talking at a high level again, but their rivalry remains unchecked

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — The United States and China may be back to talking at a high level, but their battle for global power and influence remains unchecked and mutual suspicion still runs deep.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken set low goals for his visit to Beijing this week, and he met them. About the most the rivals can hope for these days is to stop things getting much worse.Blinken pointed to difficult days ahead, while China’s foreign ministry warned the relationship was in a downward spiral.“It was clear coming in that the relationship was at a point of instability, and both sides recognized the need to work to stabilize it,” Blinken said of the reason for his trip. “And specifically, we believe that it’s important to establish better lines of communication, open channels of communication, both to address misperceptions, miscalculations and to ensure that that competition doesn’t veer into conflict.”The two-day visit to the Chinese capital helped restore top-level ties, but Chin...

3 pedestrians injured in apparent hit-and-run collision outside Chicago White Sox stadium

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — An apparent hit-and-run collision Tuesday evening injured three pedestrians, one critically, outside Guaranteed Rate Field, where the Chicago White Sox were preparing to play the Texas Rangers.The Chicago Fire Department tweeted that it transported three adults to hospitals, including one “very critical with trauma.” The other two patients were in serious but stable condition, the tweet said.It wasn’t immediately clear whether the three people were headed to the ball game.The collision occurred around 6:20 p.m., WMAQ-TV reported. The game had a 7:10 p.m. start time.The driver was taken into custody on the nearby Dan Ryan Expressway and was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, the WMAQ-TV report said. Charges were pending, police said.The Associated Press

Thousands gather at Stonehenge for annual ritual marking the summer solstice

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

LONDON (AP) — All hail the rising sun.A seemingly curious alliance of druids, pagans, hippies, local residents, tourists and costumed witches and wizards are gathering around a prehistoric stone circle on a plain in southern England to express their devotion to the sun, or to have some communal fun.They will stay and celebrate at Stonehenge for the night and greet sunrise on Wednesday, which will be the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere.All over the U.K., optimism will reign supreme as summer officially starts. It’s no coincidence that the nearby Glastonbury Festival, one of the world’s biggest music events, opens its doors on Wednesday, too. Both Stonehenge and Glastonbury supposedly lie on ley lines — mystical energy connections across the U.K.For the thousands making the pilgrimage to Stonehenge, approximately 80 miles (128 kilometers) southwest of London, it is more than looking forward to Elton John at Glastonbury or a few ciders in the sun.For druids, modern-d...

North Carolina state House speaker sued for damages over alleged affair

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s state House speaker is being sued by a local elected official who alleges the powerful Republican ruined his marriage by having an affair with his wife. Lawyers for Scott Lassiter claim that for more than three years Speaker Tim Moore “willfully interfered in the marital relationship” between Lassiter and his wife, who leads an agency within the state courts system.In a television interview on Tuesday, Moore acknowledged having a “casual” relationship with her but rejected other legal claims filed against him as “absolutely 100% false.” Moore, who has been elected to five terms in the job since 2015, is the state’s longest serving House speaker.Lassiter wants at least $200,000 in compensatory and punitive damages against Moore and another unidentified man whom Lassiter said conspired with Moore in recent weeks to install a camera outside Lassiter’s suburban Raleigh home. Moore “used his position as one of the ...

Reform-minded prosecutor in northern Virginia wins reelection nomination in Democratic primary

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

LEESBURG, Va. (AP) — Incumbent Buta Biberaj, one of three prosecutors in northern Virginia who faced tough challenges after being elected four years ago on a progressive reform agenda, won her Democratic primary Tuesday over challenger Elizabeth Lancaster. Biberaj, the commonwealth’s attorney in Loudoun County, raised significantly more money, but Lancaster had earned the endorsement of The Washington Post. Biberaj faced criticism, including some within her own party, over her day-to-day management of the office and as Loudoun found itself in the national spotlight over issues like school safety. She also faced criticism in her handling of two sex assaults at two different high schools in 2021. In November, Biberaj will face Republican Bob Anderson, who held the commonwealth attorney’s post in Loudoun more than 20 years ago.In a phone interview, Biberaj said the general election race “will be about Loudoun County going forward or going backward 20 or 30 years.”Biberaj...

The Titan submersible: What it is, what might have gone wrong and what's being done to find it

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

A growing number of aircraft and ships from the U.S. and Canada searched Tuesday for a submersible vessel carrying five people that disappeared on its way to the wreckage of the Titanic. The U.S. Coast Guard is leading the search for the small craft, named Titan, in a remote area of the North Atlantic Ocean. OceanGate Expeditions, an undersea exploration company, has been chronicling the Titanic's decay and the underwater ecosystem around it via yearly voyages since 2021. What we know so far about the submersible, what may have gone wrong, and what's being done to find it: WHEN AND WHERE DID THE TITAN GO MISSING?The craft submerged Sunday morning, and its support vessel lost contact with it about an hour and 45 minutes later, according to the Coast Guard. The vessel was reported overdue about 435 miles (700 kilometers) south of St. John’s, Newfoundland, according to Canada’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia.The Titan was launched from an icebreaker that was h...

Morgan Wallen's 2-year-old son bitten in the face by dog

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:24:13 GMT

(WJW) — Morgan Wallen's 2-year-old son Indigo was bitten in the face over the weekend by a dog, according to the country singer's ex-fiancé, KT Smith.Smith took to Instagram Monday to talk about the incident, saying her son required stitches after the bite. "Indigo is OK," she explained. "His scar will be minimum. He did have stitches, but he'll be OK."Online commenters told Smith she should euthanize the dog, a Great Pyrenees named Legend that she got last year. But she fought back, crying and saying she wasn't ready to do that. "We have been looking for options and I just couldn’t bring myself to what everyone else says and what you’re supposed to do, apparently … what the world tells you to do is to put the dog down because they are aggressive," she told followers. Father of 13 dies after saving kids during whitewater rafting trip Smith, an influencer based in Nashville, has since announced they found a new family, which doesn't have young children, for Legend.The news comes as...