U.S. President Donald Trump and his national security adviser are publicly at odds about the seriousness of the threat currently posed by North Korea. In a Sunday morning tweet from Tokyo, Trump issued a retort to John Bolton, who the previous day here had told reporters that there was “no doubt” North Korea’s recent test-firing of short-range ballistic missiles violated a U.N. resolution. Bolton’s remark was the first by a U.S. official describing the North Korean launches as a violation… Read Full Article

In a rare visit to Tibet, U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad urged Beijing to engage in substantive dialogue with exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama, a spokesperson to the U.S. Embassy said Saturday. Branstad also “expressed concerns regarding the Chinese government’s interference in Tibetan Buddhists’ freedom to organize and practice their religion,” an embassy statement said. The U.S. envoy also raised long-standing worries about the lack of consistent access to the… Read Full Article

Albanian opposition supporters took to the streets again Saturday in a mostly peaceful protest, the sixth national one in three months, calling on Prime Minister Edi Rama to step down to pave the way for early elections. Waving posters and releasing paper lanterns marked “Quit,” some in the crowd of several thousand threw a dozen paint bombs at Rama’s office. Some also hurled firecrackers at riot police near the parliament building. But there was less unrest than in the last protest two… Read Full Article

Sunday marks the last time the Rolling Thunder motorcycles will participate in the Memorial Day observance on the National Mall.      For many people, the group's decades-long presence with the loud hum of their motorcycle engines has become synonymous with Memorial Day activities in Washington.     Rolling Thunder's Ride for Freedom was designed to raise awareness of service people who have given their lives or are missing in action during U.S. military combat.    Rolling Thunder… Read Full Article

In a referendum, voters overwhelmingly back changes to the constitution to make divorce easier.

Malawi’s High Court has ordered the electoral commission not to announce presidential results until ballots from a third of the voting districts have been recounted, after complaints of vote rigging. Vote tallies from three-quarters of the country’s polling stations, released Thursday, found incumbent President Peter Mutharika leading with 40.9% of the vote. Opposition candidate Lazarus Chakwera of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) had 35.4% of the vote, while Vice President Saulos Chilima was… Read Full Article

Thousands of Israelis protested Saturday against legislative steps that could grant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immunity from prosecution and limit the power of the country's Supreme Court.  The demonstration in Tel Aviv was attended by nearly all opposition parties, a rare show of unity for Israel's splintered political system. Police did not say how many people attended. A Reuters photographer estimated about 20,000 were present, while organizers put the figure at 80,000.  In office… Read Full Article

Protesters gather in Tel Aviv to rally against moves to safeguard the PM from corruption cases.

Deutsche Bank AG and Capital One Financial Corp. will not have to immediately hand over the financial records of U.S. President Donald Trump, three of his children and the Trump Organization, according to a court filing on Saturday.  The filing in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York followed an appeal submitted Friday by Trump and his affiliates against an existing order from a federal judge allowing the banks to hand over financial records to Democratic lawmakers. … Read Full Article

Support for Ireland's Green Party surged in European and local elections, an exit poll showed Saturday, putting it in line to take its first seats in the European Parliament in 20 years and make the biggest gains in county and city councils.  The Greens were set to win as many as three of the 13 European seats up for grabs and increase their local vote to 9% from less than 2% five years ago, according to a RED C exit poll for RTE/TG4, a showing that would put them in contention for government… Read Full Article