The Swedish indie pop duo, Flora Cash, is new in the pop/rock world but has been gaining popularity with a hit song on the charts and a newly-released record.  It also has been gaining a following, especially among Albanian-American fans because one of its members, Shresa Lleshaj, is of Albanian descent.  The duo recently performed in Baltimore, and VOA’s Ardita Dunellari was there. 
 

Thousands of people were expected to join an unsanctioned march in a town along the mainland Chinese border Saturday to voice their anger with a government that they feel has ignored their political demands and at what they consider the government’s slowness in addressing the brutal attacks by thugs who beat railway customers last weekend.

Though it is rare for police to fully reject a request for a march or protest, security officials refused this week to sanction a protest march through Yuen Long, a congested industrial suburb where some residents have been associated with organized crime. 

The gangs were accused of beating and bloodying customers, journalists and a lawmaker at the Yuen Long rail station July 21 leaving 45 people with injuries, some severe.

The march’s organizer, Yuen Long resident Max Chung, said it was important for Hong Kongers to stand against what he termed a terrorist attack and against a government that has seemed more concerned with silencing democracy protesters. 

Yuen Long attacks

An hour before the Yuen Long event, a group of young people defaced the national emblem of China on a government building Sunday and then blocked a major tram route for hours, even after police showered the crowd with tear gas and fired rubber bullets. The standoff ended hours later.

Then, in Yuen Long, about 100 men dressed in white T-shirts used rattan sticks, pipes and other implements against people leaving and trying to board trains and fleeing through a shopping mall. 

The next day, Hong Kong residents were enraged by a press conference when police officials admitted it took them 39 minutes to adequately respond to pleas for help. Only a dozen people, associated with triad gangs, have been arrested. Comments from the city’s embattled chief executive, Carrie Lam, did not reassure the public that the thugs would be found and stopped.

Residents “think police aren’t protecting them anymore,” Chung said in an interview Friday. Before, “none of us had any plan to hold protest in Yuen Long, but they started to intimidate us.” His appeal to hold the march was denied.

Safety gear

Many young protesters spent Friday night buying safety equipment such as helmets, thick gloves and protective padding; the better to withstand police who may use batons and rubber bullets.

Some said they would go to Yuen Long to protect the residents or each other. Most everyone anticipated clashes with police. But they didn’t know what the plan would entail beyond marching.

“For me, going inside of Yuen Long is a way of telling them we are not afraid. Terror is an important method for gangsters, for controlling society,” says Brian, a 21-year-old undergraduate who lives in a nearby town. Most young people will not disclose their full name out of concerns of retribution. “We have to show the terrorists we aren’t afraid of them.”

Political crisis

Hong Kong is facing its worst political crisis since its handover to China in 1997. After millions of people marched twice in June against an extradition bill, now suspended, that would have permitted criminal suspects to be sent to China, many residents turned their ire on the police.

The force has used tear gas and rubber bullets twice against protesters who did little more than defy their orders with their bodies, umbrellas and plastic bottles. Clashes have left scores injured.

The Reuters news agency reported on Friday that Li Jiyi, the director of the Central Government Liaison’s local district office in Yuen Long, urged guests at a July 11 community banquet for hundreds of villagers to thwart democracy protesters. According to a recording of the event, Li appealed to those who attended to protect their towns in the Yuen Long district and to rebuff anti-government activists, the news agency said.

Local news reports said Yuen Long residents stockpiled food on Friday, while some residents left Hong Kong altogether, to brace for potential clashes at protests against mob violence at the district’s subway station a week earlier. Shops and public sports facilities were expected to close early and other services such as a clinic were expected to be shuttered.

The upper deck of a nightclub collapsed on top of revelers in South Korea on Saturday, killing two people and injuring several foreign athletes competing at the World Aquatics Championships, rescue officials and witnesses said.

The floor gave way in the Coyote Ugly nightclub in the city of Gwangju about 2:30 a.m. (1730 GMT Friday), pinning people underneath and injuring at least 10, rescue officials said. 

The two people killed were South Korean.

New Zealand men’s water polo team captain Matt Small said he was on the second-floor deck when it collapsed.

“We were just dancing and then the next minute we dropped,” he told New Zealand’s Radio Sport. “We … fell on top of the heads of other people that were beneath us. … Some of them were pretty dire cases,” he said of the injured.

Kim Young-don, chief of the Gwangju Seobu Fire Station, told a briefing there were about 370 people in the club at the time.

“We deem that the second level … seems to have collapsed because there were too many people on it,” he said. “The second level is a small space, it’s not a space where a lot of people can be.”

World Aquatics Championships

Gwangju, about 330 km (205 miles) south of the capital Seoul, has been hosting the championships, which feature swimming, water polo and diving, over the past fortnight. The meet finishes Sunday.

Organizers said eight foreign athletes were injured, with seven sustaining minor injuries and one remaining in hospital for treatment of a leg laceration.

Three of the injured athletes were from the United States, two from New Zealand and one each from Italy, the Netherlands and Brazil, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported.

All but the Brazilian were water polo players, it said.

A Gwangju police officer told Reuters two co-owners and two workers at the nightclub were being questioned about possible illegal expansion and renovation at the nightclub, and the legality of its licensing.

‘It was quite scary’

Australian, New Zealand and U.S. water polo officials confirmed team members were present when the incident occurred.

The women’s water polo tournament wrapped up Friday with the United States beating Spain in the final and Australia beating Hungary in the bronze medal match.

Christopher Ramsey, CEO of USA Water Polo (USAWP), said it was an awful tragedy.

“Players from our men’s and women’s teams were celebrating the women’s world championship victory when the collapse occurred,” Ramsey said. “Our hearts go out to the victims of the crash and their families.”

USAWP said women’s team member Kaleigh Gilchrist suffered a leg laceration and underwent surgery at a Gwangju hospital, while Paige Hauschild and Johnny Hooper needed stitches. Ben Hallock suffered minor scrapes.

Water Polo Australia said some of its players were in the club but were not hurt. Women’s team captain Rowie Webster said she was one of those who fell from the second floor.

“It was quite scary,” she said.

Public safety

Public safety has been a hot button issue in South Korea after the 2014 sinking of the Sewol ferry, which killed 304 people, most of them school children.

The administration of President Moon Jae-in has made the establishment of a national system for accident prevention and disaster management a priority. But there have been several major incidents since Moon came to power.

In December 2017, 29 people were killed and 40 were injured in a fire at a fitness center in Jecheon city. A month later, 45 people died and 147 were injured in a fire in a hospital in Miryang.

A newlywed woman from Belarus who was swept away by a river in Alaska was trying to reach an abandoned bus made famous by the book and film “Into the Wild.”

Veramika Maikamava, 24, and her husband, Piotr Markielau, also 24, Thursday were heading for the bus where hiker Christopher McCandless met his death in 1992, The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported.

The bus has been the source of multiple rescues since it was made famous, first by Jon Krakauer’s book published in 1996 and then by Sean Penn’s 2007 film. Both chronicled the life and death of McCandless, who hiked into the Alaska wilderness with little food and equipment and spent the summer living in the bus. McCandless was found dead in the bus almost four months later.

Markielau called troopers in Fairbanks late Thursday to report his wife’s death during a hike, Alaska State Troopers said.

The couple was trying to cross the Teklanika River along the Stampede Trail near Healy when the woman was swept under water, the troopers said. The river was flowing high and fast because of recent rains.

Markielau reported he was able to pull his wife out of the water a short distance away downriver, but she had died by then, the troopers said.

The body has been recovered. 

Updated at 11:23 p.m. July 26, 2019

MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Three strong earthquakes hours apart struck a group of sparsely populated islands in the Luzon Strait in the northern Philippines early Saturday, killing at least eight people, injuring about 60 and causing substantial damage. 

The quakes collapsed houses built of stone and wood, arousing residents from sleep, said Roldan Esdicul, who heads the Batanes provincial disaster-response office. 

“Our bed and everything were swaying from side to side like a hammock,” Esdicul told The Associated Press by cellphone from Basco town, the provincial capital. “We all ran out to safety.”

More than 1,000 residents of hard-hit Itbayat island — nearly half of the island’s population of mostly fishermen — were advised not to return to their homes and stay in the town plaza as successive aftershocks shook the region, he said. 

“The wounded are still being brought in,” Itbayat Mayor Raul de Sagon told a local radio station. He said more doctors may be needed if the number of injured from interior villages rises.

The Philippine seismology agency said the quakes measured 5.4 and 5.9. A third quake magnitude 5.7 struck later Saturday. 

Esdicul said he was already in his office with the provincial governor when the second and more powerful quake struck about three hours after the first shock. “We have to hold on because you can’t stand or walk. It was that strong,” he said. 

The initial quake severely cracked the bell tower of the island’s old limestone church, the 19th-century Santa Maria de Mayan, a popular tourist attraction. The tower collapsed when the second temblor hit the island, he said.

An Itbayat hospital was damaged but remained open. An air force helicopter and a plane were en route to Batanes to help ferry and provide aid to victims.

Itbayat, part of the Batanes Islands, has a population of about 2,800 people and lies in the Luzon Strait that separates the Philippines and Taiwan. The islands are famous for their stone-built houses, coral walls and cogon grass roofs. 

A U.S. senator from Missouri has written the state university system and a private liberal arts university to express his concerns about Chinese espionage and Confucius Institutes on campus.

Republican Senator Josh Hawley directed his concerns to the University of Missouri and Webster University, which host Confucius Institutes.

Confucius Institutes and centers around the world offer language and cultural programs that, in the past few years, have been accused of spreading Chinese propaganda. Several colleges and universities worldwide have ended their relationships with the institutes and shuttered their on-campus facilities as tensions over Chinese spying in the U.S. have grown.

Hawley was motivated by a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing this week with FBI Director Chris Wray.

‘Source of concern’

Chinese Confucius Institutes at American universities are a “source of concern,” Hawley said, because they allow the Chinese government to disseminate communist propaganda, encourage censorship and restrict academic freedom.

Hawley said a number of U.S. colleges and universities have closed their Confucius Institutes in the past year, including Texas A&M University, the University of Iowa, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities and North Carolina State University.

“Both the University of Missouri and Webster University should follow their examples,” Hawley tweeted.

University of Missouri spokesman Christian Basi said the school appreciated Hawley’s letter and shared many of his concerns related to academic espionage.

“This is something that has been on the radar of our top leadership for the last one to two years,” Basi said. “We also have periodically met with the FBI, both at national conferences when they provided information, as well as meeting with them here on campus.”

Webster University, in suburban St. Louis, said it felt confident its oversight of the campus Confucius Institute was sound.

“We take academic freedom very seriously and will not sacrifice it for the sake of any relationship,” Webster President Elizabeth Stroble wrote. “Our arrangement with Hanban expressly reserves for Webster University the right to determine the curricula and the manner of instruction for all programs that we offer. Nothing in our agreements concerning the Confucius Institutes restricts us from addressing any academic subject.”

The Hanban is a Chinese state agency chaired by a member of the Politburo and the vice premier of the People’s Republic of China.

Of the more than 1 million international students in the U.S., more than 300,000 are Chinese, according to the Institute of International Education. 

Organization cites demand

“As China’s economy and exchanges with the world have seen rapid growth, there has also been a sharp increase in the world’s demands for Chinese learning,” according to the Confucius Institute website.

Chinese influence has been a top concern of U.S. intelligence agencies.

The FBI’s Wray, who testified before lawmakers including Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, and Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from California, said the agency has “a thousand open investigations … involving attempted theft of intellectual property,” and almost all the cases involved the Chinese. He called it “deep, diverse, wide and vexing.”

A statement from the American Association of University Professors published in 2014 said, “Confucius Institutes function as an arm of the Chinese state and are allowed to ignore academic freedom.”

This week #VOAOurVoices joins the international community in marking the World Day against Trafficking Persons. Yearly millions of vulnerable victims, mainly adult women, fall into human trafficking, through violence, manipulation and false promises. Our team, joined by VOA Zimbabwe Digital Lead Marvelous Nyahuye, takes a closer look at the myths and misconceptions of trafficking, measures to combat the act and how survivors cope.

U.S. President Donald Trump is pressing the World Trade Organization to stop designating China and other countries as “developing” nations, a label that allows them to receive lenient treatment under global trade rules. 
 
In a memo Friday, Trump directed U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to “use all available means” to get the WTO to stop describing countries as “developing” if their economies are strong.  
  
He said the WTO uses “an outdated dichotomy between developed and developing countries that has allowed some WTO members to gain unfair advantages.”  
  
Trump said that if the United States decides the WTO has not made “substantial progress” after 90 days, it will unilaterally stop treating those nations as developing countries. 
 
The statement notes that seven of the 10 wealthiest economies in the world, including China, claim developing country status with the WTO. The status allows governments the ability to protect some domestic industries and maintain subsidies, as well as to receive longer time limits to implement trade commitments. 
 
In a tweet Friday, Trump said the “WTO is BROKEN when the world’s RICHEST countries claim to be developing countries to avoid WTO rules and get special treatment. NO more!!! Today I directed the U.S. Trade Representative to take action so that countries stop CHEATING the system at the expense of the USA!” 

Retaliation against France
 
In another trade development Friday, Trump vowed to retaliate against France for imposing a tax against U.S. tech giants, hinting that the United States could adopt tariffs on French wine. 
 
“France just put a digital tax on our great American technology companies,” Trump tweeted, referring to France’s announcement that it would tax tech giants, including Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple.  
  
“If anybody taxes them, it should be their home Country, the USA. We will announce a substantial reciprocal action on Macron’s foolishness shortly,” Trump tweeted, referring to French President Emmanuel Macron.  
  
“I’ve always said American wine is better than French wine!” he added. 
 
The French tax targets companies that use consumer data to sell online advertising. Britain has announced plans for a similar tax. 
 
Deputy White House spokesman Judd Deere said Friday that Washington was “extremely disappointed by France’s decision to adopt a digital services tax at the expense of U.S. companies and workers.” 

This story originated in VOA’s Albanian service.

PRISTINA, KOSOVO — Kosovo’s outgoing Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj is calling on the international community, the United States and the European Union to stop pressuring his country to remove tariffs against Serbia as a precondition for negotiations between the countries. 
 
Haradinaj offered his resignation last week before being questioned as a suspect by a special court investigating alleged war crimes by the former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). 

Appearing before prosecutors in The Hague on Wednesday, Haradinaj refused to answer questions. As he left, he said his response was made “at the advice of my lawyer.”  
 
In an exclusive interview with VOA’s Albanian service, his first since returning from the Netherlands, Haradinaj insisted tariffs should remain in place until Serbia recognizes Kosovo. 
 

Haradinaj gained popular support after introducing a 100 percent tax on goods produced in Serbia last November, immediately prompting Belgrade to pull out of talks with Pristina. Many saw the move as a way to block Kosovar President Hashim Thaci and Serbian President Alexandar Vucic from discussing a change of borders as a formula for normalizing relations between the two countries. 
 
Asked if he saw any connection between his insistence on keeping tariffs and the summons from the special court in The Hague, Haradinaj said that “he was surprised to be summoned.” 
 
“I have fulfilled the legal obligation to appear as a suspect after being called for questioning,” he said, adding that “there is a lot of suspicion in Kosovo that it can be a conspiracy, but what I can confirm is that I strongly believe in what I have openly and in the most sincere way told the international partners: that Kosovo’s borders are not controversial, and there should be no discussion of territory or borders changes. 
 
“The agreement with Serbia should include mutual recognition within the existing borders, and at the same time free trade must be linked with the recognition,” he told VOA. 
 
The United States and European Union have repeatedly urged Haradinaj to end the tariffs. 
 
“I call upon the international community, our allies, to stop unjust pressure on Kosovo for tariffs as well as other topics, because it is not right to accept Serbia’s conditions for dialogue,” he said. 

Bias accusation
 
Haradinaj, who has twice been exonerated by prior trials before the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal for former Yugoslavia, then accused the international community of bias. 
 
“I was called for the second time to testify before an international court; I resigned twice because of that, while, on the other hand, Mr. Aleksandar Vucic, who was part of Slobodan Milosevic’s regime — [which] has committed crimes in the Balkans, not only in Kosovo but also in other countries — he has no such concerns. 
 
“This proves an imbalance of international community pressure logic that needs to be corrected as soon as possible.” 
 
Haradinaj first resigned as prime minister in 2005 upon being indicted by the U.N. tribunal, which exonerated him. The same court then tried and acquitted him again in 2012. 
 
His resignation is expected to prompt snap elections. Thaci is expected to start consultations with political parties to find a way out of the new political situation.  

On Friday, Philip Kosnett, the U.S. ambassador to Kosovo, tweeted that the United States was “watching closely as Kosovo deals, for the first time, with a PM resignation. How it is handled will indicate the strength of Kosovo’s institutions and officials’ willingness to adhere to the Constitution and laws.” 
 
The Kosovo special court was created on 2015 to investigate alleged war crimes between January 1998 and December 2000. Over a dozen former KLA leaders have been called for questioning in various capacities. So far, no indictments have been issued. 

An extraordinary diplomatic dispute between the United States and Sweden has escalated with President Donald Trump alleging unfair treatment for a jailed American rap musician.

Sweden is rejecting demands from Trump that it free Rakim Mayers, known as A$AP Rocky, who along with two other men, has been formally charged with assault after a street fight that was captured on video.

Sweden’s prime minister, Stefan Löfven, has “explained and emphasized the complete independence of the Swedish judicial system, prosecutors and courts,” says Karin Olofsdotter, the Swedish ambassador to the United States. “In Sweden, everyone is equal before the law. The government is not allowed, and will not attempt, to influence legal proceedings.”

The White House on Friday did not respond to a VOA query for comment on the Swedish reaction after Trump demanded a day earlier that the Swedes free the artist.

“We do so much for Sweden but it doesn’t seem to work the other way around. Sweden should focus on its real crime problem!”

Give A$AP Rocky his FREEDOM. We do so much for Sweden but it doesn’t seem to work the other way around. Sweden should focus on its real crime problem! #FreeRocky

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 25, 2019

Trump also on Twitter accused the Swedish prime minister of “being unable to act,” adding he “has let down “our African American community in the United States.”

Very disappointed in Prime Minister Stefan Löfven for being unable to act. Sweden has let our African American Community down in the United States. I watched the tapes of A$AP Rocky, and he was being followed and harassed by troublemakers. Treat Americans fairly! #FreeRocky

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 25, 2019

Prosecutor Daniel Suneson says he’s pressing charges against the three suspects for assault, “because in my judgment what has happened amounts to a crime, despite the objections about self-defense and provocation.”  

The rapper has been in custody since his arrest because he is considered a flight risk.

On his Instagram account, however, Mayer alleges the attack was self-defense in response to a man and a second person, who were harassing women and hitting members of his staff.

In video obtained by American celebrity news website TMZ, Mayers and two other men can be seen punching and kicking the victim on the ground.

Celebrity and criminal justice activist Kim Kardashian West has thanked Trump, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the president’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, for their attention to the case.

Trump’s intervention is criticized by some, though, who note the reputation of Sweden’s judiciary (ranking number 4 out of 126 countries World Justice Project’s 2019 Rule of Law Index), compared to other countries. Detractors also point out the U.S. president has been virtually silent about other high-profile cases..

The opinion page editor of The Washington Post, Karen Attiah, calls it “absolutely absurd” Trump has reacted more angrily to Sweden’s prime minister over the rapper’s case than he did to Saudi Arabia over the killing of the newspaper’s writer, Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident and U.S. resident.

Absolutely absurd that Trump has reacted more angrily to the Prime Minister of Sweden over the arrest of a rapper than to Saudi Arabia over the vicious killing of U.S. resident and @washingtonpost writer Jamal #Khashoggi.

Signed, A Member of the “African American Community” https://t.co/JzpfwftvGb

— Karen Attiah (@KarenAttiah) July 26, 2019

Others allege a racial motive by the Swedes.

“I don’t want to call the race card but that’s what it’s looking like. If it walks like a duck and it quacks like a duck, then it’s a duck,” said Renee Black, Mayers’ mother.

Fellow rapper G-Eazy also contends Mayers’ treatment stems from racism, referencing his own arrest in the country a year earlier.

“The difference between me and Rocky’s treatment and process in Sweden brings to mind two concepts that disgustingly go hand in hand: white privilege and systemic racism. Let’s call it what it is. He should not be behind bars right now. My heart goes out to my brother,” wrote G-Eazy on Instagram.

G-Eazy, whose real name is Gerald Gillum, was arrested in Sweden for violence against a public servant, resisting arrest and possession of narcotics. The rapper pleaded guilty and was fined $8,400.

Mayers is due in court Tuesday, and the trial is expected to last three days. He faces a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

Prosecutors set to defend Bill Cosby’s sexual assault conviction in appeals court next month say the accusations from other women are no coincidence, but “the culmination of a decades-long pattern of behavior.”

The 82-year-old comic actor is the first celebrity convicted and sent to prison in the (hash)MeToo era.
 
He is serving a three-to 10-year prison term for drugging and molesting a woman at his Philadelphia-area home in 2004.

Cosby’s lawyers are raising a long list of alleged trial errors on appeal. They include the judge’s decision to let five other accusers testify and references to Cosby’s possession of Quaaludes and other drugs.
 
Montgomery County prosecutors in a filing late Thursday say the women’s testimony is allowed under Pennsylvania law because it points to a “signature” crime.    Arguments in Cosby’s appeal are set for Aug.12.?

Swedish authorities have released court documents in the assault case in which American rapper A$AP Rocky and two other men are charged, with prosecutors saying that the victim was punched and kicked while on the ground and attacked with a bottle.

Rakim Mayers, the 30-year-old rapper’s real name, and two other suspects “deliberately, together and in agreement” assaulted the victim in central Stockholm on June 30, prosecutors said in documents from the Stockholm District Court obtained by The Associated Press on Friday.

The 500 pages of documents, in which prosecutors also said that Rocky pushed the man to the ground, included photos of the victim’s injuries — mostly cuts and bruises — and blood-stained clothes.

The rapper, who has been in custody since July 2, has asserted that it was self-defense. The charges can carry a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

The case has sparked an unusual diplomatic spat between the U.S. and Sweden, after President Donald Trump called for Rocky to be released.

Prosecutors charged Rocky on Thursday, prompting Trump to send two sharply-worded tweets, calling on Sweden to “Treat Americans fairly!” and criticizing Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, whom he had personally lobbied, “for being unable to act.”

A Lofven spokesman responded by emphasizing the independence of the Swedish judicial system.

Rocky, a platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated artist who has collaborated with Kendrick Lamar, Cardi B, Drake and Selena Gomez, has been in custody since July 3 as authorities investigate the fight. The case has also drawn the attention of a long list of U.S. celebrities, including Sean “Diddy” Combs, Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian West.

Trump on Saturday tweeted that he had spoken with Lofven about the case and “offered to personally vouch for his bail,” even though that’s not something available under Swedish law. Urged on by the first lady and celebrities including Kardashian West, the president had said that he would intervene to try to free Rocky.

Lofven’s press secretary, Toni Eriksson, later said the two leaders had a “friendly and respectful” conversation in which Lofven “made certain to emphasize the complete independence of the Swedish judicial system, prosecutors and courts” and stressed that the government cannot and will not attempt to influence the legal proceedings.

The rapper and the other two suspects, who have been described as members of his entourage, will remain in custody until trial.

Prosecutor have recommended that the Stockholm District Court set aside three days for the trial, which defense lawyer Slobodan Jovicic said is expected to start Tuesday.

North Korea has formally announced its latest ballistic missile test, saying the launch was a warning to “military warmongers” in South Korea who are set to soon hold joint military exercises with the United States.

North Korean state media showed pictures of Kim Jong Un personally supervising the Thursday test of what it called a “new-type tactical guided weapon.” U.S. and South Korean officials say the projectile was a short-range ballistic missile.

The official Korean Central News Agency said the test was meant “to send a solemn warning to the south Korean military warmongers who are running high fever in their moves to introduce the ultramodern offensive weapons into south Korea and hold military exercise in defiance of the repeated warnings.”

Complaints about South Korea

North Korea has repeatedly complained about South Korea’s recent acquisition of U.S. F-35 fighter jets, as well as upcoming U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises. Pyongyang has warned it may not resume working-level talks with the United States if the drills take place.

“South Korean authorities show such strange double-dealing behavior as acting a ‘handshake of peace’ and fingering joint declaration and agreement and the like before the world people and, behind the scene, shipping ultra-modern offensive weapons and holding joint military exercises,” Kim was quoted as saying by KCNA.

New type of missile

South Korea’s National Security Council expressed “strong concern” about the launch, which it determined was a “new type of short-range ballistic missile.” That is firmer than Seoul’s response after a similar North Korean launch in May. At the time, South Korea referred to the North Korean weapons as “projectiles.”

The U.S. military command in South Korea also assessed that North Korea tested a “new type of missile for the DPRK,” using an acronym for North Korea’s official name. “These two short range ballistic missiles were not a threat directed at the ROK or the U.S., and have no impact on our defense posture,” the statement said.

The test raises further doubts about working-level talks, which were supposed to resume shortly after last month’s meeting between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump at the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas.

Trump, Pompeo optimistic

In an interview with the U.S. cable network Fox News, Trump was optimistic, saying he still gets along “very well” with Kim. 

“They haven’t done nuclear testing. They really haven’t tested missiles other than, you know, smaller ones. Which is something that lots test,” Trump said.

In an earlier interview with Fox News, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he still believes negotiations will start soon. 

“We’re working our way towards that. I think we’ll be able to pull that off in just a handful of weeks,” Pompeo said.

“North Korea has engaged in activity before we were having diplomatic conversations far worse than this. … I think this allows negotiations to go forward. Lots of countries posture before they come to the table,” he said.

Asked about Kim’s unveiling Tuesday of a newly built submarine that is apparently capable of handling nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles, Pompeo said: “We all go look at our militaries. And we all take pictures of them.”

UN resolution

Under United Nations Security Council resolutions, North Korea is banned from conducting any ballistic missile activity. But Trump administration officials have said they do not see North Korea’s short-range tests as a breach of trust.

Kim last year declared a moratorium on intercontinental ballistic missile and nuclear tests. During their meeting at the DMZ last month, Kim also promised Trump that he would “continue to avoid launching intermediate range and long-range ballistic missiles,” Pompeo said Thursday.

At a State Department briefing Thursday, spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said the Trump administration’s focus is on continued diplomatic engagement with North Korea.

“And we continue to urge the North Koreans to resolve all of the things that the president and Chairman Kim (Jong Un) have talked about through diplomacy. We urge no more provocations, and that all parties should abide by our obligations under Security Council resolutions.”

Trump and Kim have held three meetings since June of last year. At their first meeting, both men agreed to work toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. But neither side has agreed on what that idea means or how to work toward it.

North Korea wants the United States to provide security guarantees and relax sanctions in exchange for partial steps to dismantle its nuclear program. Washington has insisted it will not ease sanctions unless Pyongyang commits to totally abandoning its nuclear program.

North Korea has given the United States until the end of the year to change its approach to the talks. Trump insists he is in no hurry to reach a deal, insisting his friendship with Kim will eventually persuade the young North Korean leader to give up his nuclear weapons.
 

Tech savvy farmers in Nigeria are using a farming technique known as aeroponics, in which plants are grown in humid air. The practice is not well known in Nigeria, but those using it are on a mission to make it more popular. 

In the town of Abeokuta, the technique could make a big difference in a country where violence and desertification have made huge amounts of land unfarmable.

Biochemist Samson Ogbole is popularly known as Nigeria’s smart farmer.

He and his team are growing crops without soil at a tech-based farm they started three years ago in Abeokuta, in southwest Nigeria.

Working to end food scarcity

They say they’re on a mission to eliminate seasonal food scarcity in Nigeria.

“Because we’re the ones controlling everything that the plant requires, we’re not depending on seasons,” Ogbole said. “So it’s no longer seasonal farming, it is just farming anytime of the year, meaning we can plant anytime of the year, we can harvest anytime of the year.”

But setting up the smart farm was not easy. It required startup capital of more than $180,000, Ogbole said.

“We were called wizards, demons, that we are doing something unnatural. So it took a whole lot to try to convince people that there’s nothing demonic about what we are doing,” he added.

Farming difficulties

In Nigeria, about 30 million hectares of farmland is being cultivated, instead of 78.5 million hectares needed for food security.

Widespread communal clashes, insurgency and desertification in the north are the top reasons arable land is lost.

And only 49% of the cultivated land is fertile, a situation that worries traditional farmers like Abubakar Ibrahim.

“I don’t have any other place that I’ll go to farm apart from here,” he said. “And here already the land has become weak. We’re just managing it for us not to stay idle.”

No land needed

In contrast, aeroponics does not require land other traditional farm work. Nutrients for the plants are automatically regulated in a recycling system, greatly increasing productivity.

Philip Ojo is director general of Nigeria’s National Agricultural Seeds Council. He says the government is encouraging new farming methods.

“One very good thing that is actually very important, particularly when you’re using it for yam or cassava, you discover that you can rapidly multiply planting materials that you can use outside there,” he said. “So it’s one of those new technologies that we are even promoting.”

Nigeria’s agricultural sector contributes about 40% of the country’s economic activities. The government wants to expand this percentage substantially.

For the moment, most farmers lack the technical know-how to enhance productivity and do not have access to high quality seeds to guarantee better harvests.

Tech savvy farmers like Ogbole are offering an alternative.
 

Temperature records are being broken across Europe as a heat wave grips the continent.

Hot air moving from the Sahara region has caused temperatures to rise.

Paris surpassed its heat record Thursday, with temperatures in the city reaching 42.7 degrees Celsius. Paris’ record had been set in 1947 at 40.4 degrees Celsius.

In June, France experienced its hottest day on record, with temperatures reaching 47 degrees Celsius, causing the heat alert system to go to its maximum level of red for the first time.

The Netherlands experienced its hottest day on record Thursday, with temperatures reaching 41.7 degrees Celsius. The previous record was set Wednesday, with temperatures reaching over 40 degrees Celsius in the Gilze Rijen municipality near the Belgian border.

In Germany, heat records are also being broken, with temperatures reaching 42.6 degrees Celsius. The previous record was set Wednesday, with a high of 40.5 degrees Celsius in Geilenkirchen also near the Belgian border.

Belgium also experienced its hottest day Thursday, with highs reaching 40.7 degrees Celsius, also in the western town of Beitem.

Many public buildings in Europe lack air conditioning. Additionally, only 5% of homes have cooling units, according to reports.

Trains across the continent have stopped, and authorities have advised people to seek cool environments.

In Germany, Switzerland and Austria, some communities painted vital rail tracks white in hopes that the light color would bring down the temperature a few degrees.
 

There was more flash than substance Thursday as the White House celebrated the anniversary of an initiative to spur job training by companies.

The initiative, led by President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka, has garnered commitments from 300 companies to provide 12 million training opportunities in the years ahead. But there are questions about how much the administration is willing to spend to help U.S. workers, whether the agreements by companies will result in higher salaries and whether employers will stick to their nonbinding pledge if the economy sours.

A look at the celebratory rhetoric:

Ivanka Trump: “This administration believes that every American should have a chance to earn a great living doing work that they love. … The president’s call to action for the pledge has become a full-blown national movement. Over the last year, more than 300 businesses, 300 businesses, have signed the pledge, businesses large and small, and today we celebrate reaching 12 million pledged commitments. … This pledge is more than just a number. Every single pledge is a commitment to the promise of an individual and his or her potential.”

Vice President Mike Pence: “That is an astonishing accomplishment.”

The Facts: It’s much too early to declare the pledge a game changer for working Americans.

Spending cut

For one thing, the government has not devoted significant spending to training workers. In fact, the Trump administration has come up with budget proposals calling for cuts in that area. The government spends just 0.03% of the gross domestic product on job training, a level of support that has been halved since 2000, according to the Paris-based Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Of the 36 countries in the organization, only Japan and Mexico spend less than the U.S. by that measure.

By having companies sign the pledge, the Trump administration is relying on the private sector to take on more of the financial burden of training workers. It’s unclear whether the commitment by 300 entities will be honored during the half-decade horizon if the economy begins to weaken and companies have less incentive to invest in employees.

Nor is it clear how many workers were already going to be trained, absent the initiative. In many cases, the pledge simply confers a presidential seal of approval on what some companies are doing anyway.

Not college

Major corporate leaders such as IBM CEO Ginni Rometty have worked with the administration and sincerely committed company resources to training workers. But she also told reporters at an event this year that the government should expand its grant and student debt programs to what were later described as “career-oriented learning programs” other than colleges. That means some workers would need to finance their training with personal debt. Other companies such as the tech firm Infosys have lengthened their training programs and partnered with universities.

Yet on the whole, companies have done relatively little to invest in workers — who increasingly hold college degrees — by paying them more money.

Until 2003, compensation and corporate profits had moved roughly in sync, according to figures compiled by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. But they have sharply diverged in the past 15 years as profits shot upward while spending on employee pay has crept up much more slowly. This gap between profits and incomes has persisted under Trump.

A key victory

The Trump administration can claim one small victory as the number of registered apprentices — a key initiative — increased 10% last year to 585,026 people, according to the Labor Department.

It’s also worth putting the 12 million commitments for job training over five or so years into context.

Roughly 20 million people enroll in a college or university annually, according to the government. This means that plenty of Americans are already seeking out training, though not necessarily the kind of training that employers say they want.
 

RFE/RL contributed to this report.

Despite the arrest of a top Kremlin critic and police raids on the homes of several political activists, opposition leaders in Russia remained determined to go ahead with a planned protest in Moscow on Saturday.

Opposition leader Alexei Navalny was ordered jailed Wednesday for 30 days for calling “unauthorized protests” for this weekend to protest the disqualification of several opposition-minded candidates from the Sept. 8 Moscow city council elections.

Election officials have barred about 30 independent candidates from the ballot, saying some of the 5,500 signatures they needed to get on the ballot were invalid. The rejected candidates say the reason for not validating the signatures is to keep genuine independents off the ballots and ensure the ruling United Russia party and others who do President Vladimir Putin’s bidding maintain dominance.

“If the United Russia swindlers don’t register the independent candidates and spit on the opinions of the citizenry, then all of us … will come to the mayor’s office at Tverskaya 13,” Navalny wrote on a social media post earlier this week.

Last weekend, more than 20,000 people marched in the streets of Moscow to protest the disqualifications. That’s when Navalny called for an even bigger rally Saturday.

Mass protests

Rejected candidate Lyubov Sobol, a lawyer with Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, also called for mass protests after a meeting between the disqualified candidates and Central Election Commission (CEC) Chairwoman Ella Pamfilova.

The Russian authorities appear to be adopting a carrot-and-stick approach as the July 27 demonstration nears. Pamfilova met with the opposition candidates and heard their complaints — one of which was that Moscow election officials had refused to meet with them and hear their complaints.

Pamfilova promised to consider the complaints of the disqualified candidates, but warned them that the CEC does not have the authority to overturn decisions of the Moscow Election Commission. She said the law grants local election commissions such autonomy to prevent Moscow from exerting influence on them.

Pamfilova also urged candidates not to participate in protests, saying “the influence of street protests on the CEC is zero.”

Navalny was arrested just hours after the meeting with Pamfilova.

On the ballot

Sixteen regions will choose governors in Russia’s Sept. 8 elections, including the city of St. Petersburg. Fourteen regions and the city of Moscow will select legislative assemblies, and 21 other cities will choose municipal councils.

United Russia has entered the election season with a record-low public approval rating. Analysts and Kremlin critics say the authorities are resorting to numerous “dirty tricks” and other tactics to ensure the party maintains the grip on power it has enjoyed through most of Putin’s nearly two decades at the country’s helm.

Joe Biden no longer plans to turn the other cheek.
 
His front-running status fragile, the former vice president is embracing an aggressive plan to confront Democratic rivals who have tried to undermine his popularity with black voters.
 
After ignoring his Democratic competition for much of the year, Biden and his team shrugged off the risks Thursday and leaned into a deliberate campaign to push back against New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and California Sen. Kamala Harris, the only high-profile African-American candidates in the race.
 
Biden’s team highlighted Booker and Harris’ past praise of Biden while raising questions about their own records related to race. And Biden’s allies made clear that the former vice president was prepared for a fight in next week’s debate. They also point to numerous surveys showing Biden with durable support among black voters that far exceeds that of Booker or Harris.
 
“He’s going to forcefully defend his record and not let it get distorted,” declared Cedric Richmond, a Louisiana congressman and national co-chairman of Biden’s campaign. The comments echoed Biden’s own from the night before in Detroit when he warned his competitors that he was “not going to be as polite” in the upcoming prime-time faceoff, where Biden will share the stage with both Booker and Harris.
 
Biden’s shift underscores the escalating racial rift roiling the Democratic primary just days after President Donald Trump issued racist calls for four female congresswomen of color to leave the country, even though all of them are American citizens. For Democrats, the evolving fight represents an unwelcome distraction away from Trump’s record.
 
In some respects, however, it is only beginning.

 
Both Harris and Booker have hit Biden in recent weeks by highlighting his support for criminal justice reform that disproportionately hurt the minority community and his willingness to cooperate with segregationist senators in the 1970s, among other trouble spots from his nearly four-decade career in Congress. Booker this week called Biden the “architect of mass incarceration” for his support of a crime bill in 1994.
 
Biden struggled to defend himself against Harris on race in the first debate, but his team insists he won’t be caught off guard again.
 
The strategy marks a critical test for Biden, who has worked in the past month, with varying degrees of success, to stress his eight-year partnership with President Barack Obama over a 36-year Senate career he long saw as worthy of the presidency.
 
In the past month, he has sought to move beyond those early Senate years, attempting to untangle himself from awkward comments lauding his collaboration with segregationist colleagues and his opposition to federally mandated busing. Instead, he has stressed key roles alongside Obama and married his own policy proposals to gains made during that administration.
 
During a speech in South Carolina last month, he apologized for anguish caused by the segregationist comments, but also said he did not plan to relitigate in 60-second debate answers his long Senate career, a sentiment reflected in some supporters’ observations that Biden has appeared defensive or dismissive.
 
Biden’s preemptive criticism of Booker’s time as Newark, New Jersey, mayor suggests Biden sees value in a level of defiance. But in some cases, he has come off as defensive and dismissive, even to his supporters.
 
In an interview, the Rev. Al Sharpton, whose support many candidates covet to help win votes from African Americans, said he didn’t know if Biden could execute the delicate strategy.
 
“In the past he has had fumbles. We’ll see if he can operate with discipline now,” Sharpton said. “He needs to be cautious.”
 
Indeed, Biden’s strategy pits an older white male against two younger people of color at a time when the Democratic Party’s most passionate voters are demanding a new generation of diverse leaders.
 
So far, Biden can take comfort in polls that show him with a commanding edge among black voters. A survey released Thursday by Monmouth University found that 39% of likely South Carolina Democratic voters supported Biden. That was more than any other candidate — including Harris, who had support from just 12%, and Booker, with 2%. Biden’s support was particularly strong among black voters, winning 51%.
 
Biden strategist Kate Bedingfield used his strong support from black voters as ammunition to attack Booker on social media on Thursday, tweeting pictures of poll results that showed Biden far ahead of Booker among black voters.
 
The day before, she released a statement condemning Booker’s tenure as mayor of Newark, where, she said, he ran “a police department that was such a civil rights nightmare that the U.S. Department of Justice intervened.’ She also highlighted Booker’s “zero-tolerance” policy for minor infractions and a stop-and-frisk policy that disproportionately hurt African Americans.
 
Biden himself noted this week that Harris has been a vocal supporter long before she used his record on school busing to attack him in the first debate.

 
At the 2016 California Democratic convention, Harris heaped praise on then-Vice President Biden. “I say from my personal experience that the Biden family truly represents our nation’s highest ideals, a powerful belief in the nobility of public service,” she said.
 
To complement the campaign against his Democratic opponents, Biden has also tweaked his message on the campaign trail.
 
Since the first debate, he has almost completely dropped references to his Republican friendships and focused instead on his eight years as President Barack Obama’s vice president.
 
“I think anybody in this race would love to have the record of achievement alongside Barack Obama that Joe Biden has,” Bedingfield said. “If they want to tear it down, I’d say best of luck to them.”
 
Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright worries about the long-term consequences of sustained Democratic attacks on Biden’s commitment to minority communities, who will play a vital role in the November 2020 general election. Still, he says Biden has a real opportunity to project strength ahead of a prospective general election matchup against Trump.
 
“When you get swung at, you don’t have to swing back, but you also have to show that you know how to fight,” he said.

After months of anticipation, Congress finally heard testimony from former special counsel Robert Mueller. So what now? 
 
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Mueller’s appearance was “a crossing of a threshold,” raising public awareness of what Mueller found. And Democrats after the hearing said they had clearly laid out the facts about the Mueller report, which did not find a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia but detailed extensive Russian intervention in the 2016 election. Mueller also said in the report that he couldn’t clear President Donald Trump on obstruction of justice. 
 
But it remains to be seen how the testimony will affect public views of Trump’s presidency and the push for impeachment. Mueller said some of the things that Democrats wanted him to say — including a clear dismissal of Trump’s claims of total exoneration — but he declined to answer many of their questions, and he spoke haltingly at times. Trump claimed victory, saying Mueller did “a horrible job.”

Democrats say they will continue to hold Trump to account. A look at the ways they will try to do that in the coming months: 
 
Investigations continue 
 
Democrats have struggled to obtain testimony from some of the most crucial figures in Mueller’s report, including former White House counsel Donald McGahn. And the few people they have interviewed, such as former White House aide Hope Hicks, have failed to give them new information beyond what’s in Mueller’s report. 
 
But Democrats have multiple investigations of the president ongoing that don’t require cooperation from the White House or Justice Department. The House intelligence and financial services committees are probing Trump’s finances, an area that Mueller appears to have avoided. And the intelligence panel is investigating Trump’s negotiations to build a Trump Tower in Moscow during the campaign. 
 
Their day in court 
 
To obtain the testimony from McGahn and others, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said Wednesday that his panel will file lawsuits this week. 
 
Democrats will seek to obtain secret grand jury material from Mueller’s report that has been withheld from Congress by the Justice Department. They will also try to force McGahn to provide documents and testimony. 
 
As part of the suits, the House is expected to challenge the White House’s claim of “absolute immunity,” which has been used to block McGahn and others who worked in the White House from testifying. 
 
While going to court can be a lengthy process, Democrats believe it will be their best chance of obtaining information after Trump declared he would fight “all of the subpoenas.”  
 
Calls for impeachment inquiry
 
Almost 90 House Democrats have called for an impeachment inquiry, and more are certain to do so after Mueller’s testimony. Those who support opening proceedings say it would bolster Democrats’ court cases and show the American people they are moving decisively to challenge what they see as Trump’s egregious behavior.

But Pelosi isn’t there, not yet. And a majority of the caucus is siding with her, for now. 
 
Pelosi said Wednesday she wants “the strongest possible hand” by waiting to see what happens in court. 
 
August recess 
 
The House is expected to leave town for a five-week August recess on Friday, so some of the Democrats’ efforts will be on hold until September. 
 
During that time, they’ll be at home listening to their constituents and judging how urgently voters want them to act. Those conversations and town halls could inform next steps in the fall. 
 
Still, not everyone will be taking a break. Rhode Island Representative David Cicilline said Wednesday that members might fly back in August if witnesses are available for testimony. He said the judiciary panel understands “the urgency of the moment and are prepared to do whatever is necessary to secure the attendance of witnesses and documents.” 
 
Election security 
 
Democrats in both the House and the Senate want to move forward with legislation to make elections more secure after Mueller extensively detailed Russian interference. 
 
House Democrats have passed legislation to secure state election systems and try to prevent foreign meddling, but bipartisan legislation in the Senate has stalled. Democrats tried to bring up an election security bill in the Senate on Wednesday, but Republicans objected.  
 
Justice Department reviews 
 
The Justice Department isn’t done with its own investigations into what happened before the 2016 election. 
 
There are two ongoing reviews into the origins of the Russia probe that Mueller eventually took over — one being conducted by the Justice Department’s inspector general and another by U.S. Attorney John Durham, who was appointed by Attorney General William Barr to examine surveillance methods used by the Justice Department. 
 
Republicans have said the department, then led by Obama administration officials, was biased against Trump. They are eagerly anticipating the results of those probes. 
 
Republican say it’s over 
 
Republicans say that nothing should be next, at least when it comes to investigations of the president. They have strongly defended Trump, who’s called Mueller’s probe a hoax, and have said the country wants to move on. 
 
“Today was [the] day we closed the book on this investigation,” said House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy after Mueller’s hearing. 
 
Georgia Representative Doug Collins, the top Republican on the judiciary panel, said at the hearing that “we’ve had the truth for months — no American conspired to throw our elections.”

Said Collins: “What we need today is to let that truth bring us confidence and closure.” 

White House officials on Thursday were baffled as to why a doctored presidential seal — including an eagle clutching golf clubs in its talons instead of arrows — was projected on stage at an event at which U.S. President Donald Trump spoke.

The seal was displayed on Tuesday at Turning Point USA’s student summit, where Trump gave a raucous 80-minute speech and was greeted warmly by the youthful audience.

The image included a two-headed eagle, instead of just one head, which the Washington Post said closely resembles the bird on the Russian coat of arms and also appears on the flags of Serbia, Albania and Montenegro.

The eagle has a set of golf clubs in its talons instead of the traditional seal’s clutch of arrows.

There were suspicions at the White House that the organizers had found the doctored image online and mistakenly used it.

“We never saw the seal in question before it appeared in the video,” said a White House official. “The White House had no knowledge of it.”

Officials referred questions to Turning Point USA, which could not immediately be reached for comment.

The political nonprofit group was founded to organize conservative students on college campuses by Charlie Kirk, an outspoken supporter of Trump. It maintains a controversial Professor Watchlist of college professors it deems too liberal.

As a political nonprofit, the group may raise and spend unlimited sums of money and engage in educational efforts around politics, but it is prohibited from using its resources to campaign for a candidate for elected office.