8 h. ago Before Maduro’s capture in Venezuela, US spoke with minister who is his loyal ally

Trump administration officials had been in discussions with Venezuela’s hardline Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello months before the US operation to seize the country’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, and have been in communication with him since then, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The officials warned Cabello, 62, against using the security services or militant ruling-party supporters overseen by him to target the country’s opposition, four sources said. That security...

Politics

25 h. ago Counting China’s wins and losses among ‘swing nations’ in new era of power rivalry

It took the United States less than three hours to stun the world with its abduction of the sitting leader of a sovereign state, but the strategic ramifications of that dramatic operation are likely to reverberate for decades. In laying bare the limits of China’s economic-centric diplomacy towards third countries in its competition with the US, the Venezuela crisis has delivered a stark reminder that spheres of influence continue to shape global politics in this new era of great power...

Politics

43 h. ago Chinese power stocks surge on State Grid’s record US$574 billion investment plan

Shares of Chinese electricity and grid equipment makers surged after State Grid unveiled a 4 trillion yuan (US$574 billion) plan to upgrade the country’s power networks, as surging demand and the global race in artificial intelligence drive investment in energy infrastructure. Baoding Tianwei Baobian Electric, which makes transformers, climbed 4.6 per cent to 14.50 yuan in Shanghai and power equipment manufacturer Henan Pinggao Electric jumped 4.8 per cent to 20.83 yuan. Suzhou Electrical...

Economics

49 h. ago China spies used Maduro capture as lure to phish US agencies

China spies used Maduro capture as lure to phish US agencies  theregister.com

Politics

49 h. ago Chinese spies used Maduro's capture as a lure to phish US govt agencies

Chinese spies used Maduro's capture as a lure to phish US govt agencies  theregister.com

Politics

59 h. ago China’s alchemy: how it transforms critical minerals into global power

China’s alchemy: how it transforms critical minerals into global power  CaixaBank Research

Politics

3 d. ago Assessing China's Response to the U.S. Capture of Venezuela's Maduro

Assessing China's Response to the U.S. Capture of Venezuela's Maduro  Stratfor

Politics

3 d. ago Chinese risk study finds space solar power stations could accidentally zap satellites

As China pushes to take the global lead in building space-based solar power stations, a new study warns that powerful lasers beaming energy back to Earth could pose serious risks to other satellites in the increasingly crowded low-Earth orbit. If these beams miss their targets – because of tracking errors or system malfunctions – they could strike nearby spacecraft, overheat solar panels or trigger electrical discharges, according to a team from the Beijing Institute of Satellite Environment...

Events

5 d. ago Cuba’s president denies being in talks with US after Trump threats

Cuba’s leader on Monday reacted defiantly to US President Donald Trump’s threats to “make a deal” or pay the price in the aftermath of key ally Nicolas Maduro’s ouster in a US military raid. Trump has been ramping up pressure on Cuba, one of the few Latin American countries still run by an authoritarian leftist administration after Venezuelan leader Maduro’s capture on January 3. “We’re talking with Cuba,” Trump said aboard Air Force One on Sunday, hours after urging Havana to do a deal to head...

Politics

5 d. ago US action in Venezuela fuels Asia’s fears of collapsing rules

America’s capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro in a special operation sent shock waves across the world. With characteristically bombastic rhetoric, US President Donald Trump hailed Operation Absolute Resolve as “an assault like people have not seen since World War II” and “one of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might” in history. His deputies were quick to add that the operation also showed the long arm of the US justice system by accusing...

Politics

5 d. ago How the US Capture of Nicolás Maduro Impacts China’s Engagement with Indonesia

How the US Capture of Nicolás Maduro Impacts China’s Engagement with Indonesia  Fair Observer

Politics

6 d. ago Cuba defiant after Trump says island to receive no more Venezuelan oil or money

US President Donald Trump on Sunday said no more Venezuelan oil or money will go to Cuba and suggested the Communist-run island should strike a deal with Washington, ramping up pressure on the long-time US nemesis. Venezuela is Cuba’s biggest oil supplier, but no cargoes have departed from Venezuelan ports to the Caribbean country since the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by US forces in early January amid a strict US oil blockade on the Opec country, shipping data shows. “THERE...

Politics

6 d. ago Cuba defiant after Trump threat to cut off ‘oil and money’ lifeline

US President Donald Trump on Sunday said no more Venezuelan oil or money will go to Cuba and suggested the Communist-run island should strike a deal with Washington, ramping up pressure on the long-time US nemesis and provoking defiant words from the island’s leadership. Venezuela is Cuba’s biggest oil supplier, but no cargoes have departed from Venezuelan ports to the Caribbean country since the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by US forces in early January amid a strict US oil...

Politics

6 d. ago Maduro's capture was also a message to China as US moves to push Beijing out of the Americas

Maduro's capture was also a message to China as US moves to push Beijing out of the Americas  Telegraph India

Politics

7 d. ago How China and Russia are using Maduro’s capture to sway U.S. discourse

How China and Russia are using Maduro’s capture to sway U.S. discourse  The Washington Post

Politics

7 d. ago China's strategic partnership with Venezuela uncertain after U.S. operation to capture Maduro

China's strategic partnership with Venezuela uncertain after U.S. operation to capture Maduro  NBC News

Politics

8 d. ago Venezuela’s Oil, China’s Money: Is Beijing the Real Loser After Maduro's Capture?

Venezuela’s Oil, China’s Money: Is Beijing the Real Loser After Maduro's Capture?  Asianet Newsable

Politics

8 d. ago Top South Korean official calls Trump’s Venezuela raid ‘violent atrocity’, stirring unease

Senior officials in South Korea’s Prime Minister’s Office are voicing concern over Park Seok-woon, a committee chairman under its authority, after he joined protests criticising US President Donald Trump and his administration over American military operations in Venezuela. Park, a long-time liberal activist, took part in a rally on Monday in front of the US embassy in Seoul, following an American military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, who has been in power since 2013,...

Politics

9 d. ago Venezuela releasing ‘significant number’ of prisoners in bid to ‘seek peace’

Venezuela released citizens and foreigners from its prisons on Thursday in what a top government official described as a gesture to “seek peace” less than a week after former President Nicolas Maduro was captured by US forces to face federal drug-trafficking charges in New York. Jorge Rodriguez, brother of Acting President Delcy Rodriguez and head of the National Assembly, did not specify who they would be releasing or how many people would be released. But he said the release of prisoners “is...

Events

9 d. ago Venezuela frees opposition figures and activists, which Trump says US requested

Venezuela released a number of imprisoned high-profile opposition figures, activists and journalists - both citizens and foreigners - on Thursday in what the government described as a gesture to “seek peace” less than a week after former president Nicolas Maduro was captured by US forces to face drug-trafficking charges. US President Donald Trump, who has been pressuring Maduro allies now leading the country to fold to his vision for the future of the oil-rich nation, said the releases came at...

Politics