North Korea’s state media agency KCNA has broken its silence over the regime’s latest diplomatic moves, noting a “dramatic atmosphere for reconciliation” with South Korea and a “sign of change” with the U.S., AFP reports. The release doesn’t mention President Trump by name.
Why it matters: The North Korean populace likely has little awareness of potential talks between Kim Jong-un and Trump, but this release indicates that Kim's government is setting the stage.
The Trump administration announced today a plan to levy investment restrictions and roughly $60 billion worth of tariffs on China in response to its widespread violation of U.S. intellectual property rights. The message to Beijing is clear: Washington will no longer overlook China’s systematic efforts to acquire American technology.
Why it matters: These economic policies mark the dawn of a new era in U.S.–China relations. Though once a source of stability between the world's two most powerful nations, commerce and investment will from now on be a flashpoint.
Jared Kushner and U.S. special envoy Jason Greenblatt sent letters last week to Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and to the director of Palestinian intelligence General Majid Faraj after they survived an assassination attempt in Gaza. Kushner and Greenblatt wrote that Gaza should be governed by the Palestinian Authority and not by Hamas and stressed that "working together we can bring a better future to all Palestinians".
The backdrop: Kushner and Greenblatt sent the letters at a time when there is almost total disconnect between the Palestinian leadership and the White House. After Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas suspended all contacts with the Trump administration except for security and intelligence coordination.
As the US and China slouch towards each other’s throats over trade and technology, one of the issues that is set to get hot again is Taiwan. Late last week, President Trump signed a bill that encourages high-level official bilateral visits between Washington and the island nation of 23 million. Beijing, which considers Taiwan to still be a province of China, is not pleased.
The big picture: Self-governing Taiwan is where the nationalist forces who lost the Chinese civil war to Mao set up shop in 1949. As part of a deal to establish formal relations with China in 1979, the US agreed to pantomime Beijing’s “One China” policy, while also maintaining a robust trade relationship with the island that includes more than $25 billion in arms sales since then.
More than a dozen Russian news outlets, including three national newspapers, are boycotting the Russian parliament after the Ethics Committee declined to sanction Leonid Slutsky, chairman of the International Affairs Committee, for alleged sexual harassment. The decision came despite allegations from four journalists that he'd sexually harassed them, including a BBC reporter who recorded his unwanted advances.
Why it matters: This is the first massive sexual harassment scandal in Russia since the Weinstein allegations, and the act of solidarity by journalists is unprecedented, according to Ivan Kolpakov, editor-in-chief of Meduza. "This looks like the beginning of something huge," he tells Axios.
The House Intelligence Committee has voted on party lines to release the report on the Russia investigation, and now the probe is formally ending. The report finds that there was no evidence of collusion between Trump associates and the Kremlin and recommends rooting out intel leaks with "mandatory polygraphs" for those with top secret security clearances, per Politico.
What now: The intelligence community must review report to redact classified information before publicly releasing it, per Politico.The Democrats will continue their investigation, but they don’t have subpoena power without the Republicans on board, per CNN.
President Trump's personal lawyer John Dowd has resigned as the head of the president's legal team for Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, per the NYT. A White House official confirmed the report to Axios.
The backdrop: Dowd spent last weekend personally attacking Mueller — going so far as to encourage an end to his investigation. He later told Axios' Mike Allen that his statement was "nothing against Bob," adding, "On St. Patrick's Day, can't an old Marine make a prayer? No big deal." After the news broke of his resignation, Dowd told NBC's Kristin Welker, "I love the president and wish him very well."
Maldives President Abdulla Yameen has ended a 45-day state of emergency that he imposed after the Supreme Court lifted the convictions of nine of his political enemies, reports Al Jazeera. On Wednesday, the two Supreme Court justices who made the ruling were charged with terrorism, as were a top judicial administrator and former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Yameen's half-brother.
Why it matters: Critics have accused Yameen of using the state of emergency to crack down on dissidents, including journalists, government administrators and members of the opposition party. And the moves come as Yameen has tilted the Maldives toward Chinese influence while it has been historically aligned with India.
President Trump is ending the week with a flop — nowhere close to the border wall funding he wanted in the DACA-less spending bill that congressional leaders released last evening. But he's fulfilling one of his most aggressive campaign promises with his anti-China trade action.
The big picture: Trump's expected announcement today of tariffs on Chinese imports is a big deal, and analysts fear it could provoke a trade war — and it comes as Trump has been battling his own party here at home over the government spending bill.
President Trump may find himself in a difficult position as soon as he sits down with Kim Jong-un, according to Jim Walsh, who has been in the room for previous talks and says North Korea’s first pitch is often a curveball.
“I’ve been in settings [in which they] set it at the top of the meeting, ‘we’re not going to talk about denuclearization,’" Walsh told Axios. "People on the other side say ‘why the hell are we meeting?’”
Interviews and previously undisclosed documents revealed that a witness in Robert Mueller's probe had worked for over a year to convert a Republican fundraiser into a White House influencer to help usher in deals on behalf of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the New York Times reports.
The backdrop: George Nader, a political adviser of the U.A.E. and Elliott Broidy, the RNC's deputy finance chair, reportedly urged the White House to dismiss Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's support of combative approaches to Iran and Qatar. In another case, Nader promised Broidy over a $1 billion in contracts for his private security company in exchange for deals.
