International
JUST IN: South Korea Issues More Foreign Trip Ban On Top Officials
South Korean authorities on Tuesday banned more top officials from leaving the country, Yonhap reported, in the wake of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s bungled attempt to impose martial law.
A day after Yoon himself was hit with a travel ban, his party was forging a “resignation roadmap” that reportedly could see him step down in February or March before fresh elections.
Yoon suspended civilian rule a week ago and sent special forces and helicopters to parliament, before lawmakers forced him to rescind the decree in a country assumed to be a stable democracy.
Investigators are probing the president and a cabal of allies — many from the same school — for alleged insurrection over the sequence of extraordinary events.
On Tuesday Cho Ji-ho, commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency, and two other top police officials became the latest to be banned from foreign travel, the Yonhap news agency reported.
Already confined to South Korean territory are the former defence and interior ministers, martial law commander General Park An-su and defence counterintelligence commander Yeo In-hyung.
– All my fault –
Kim Yong-hyun, the former defence minister, was detained on Sunday and late Monday prosecutors filed a formal arrest warrant against him.
Charges included “engaging in critical duties during an insurrection” and “abuse of authority to obstruct the exercise of rights”.
A Seoul court will hold a hearing later Tuesday to rule on whether to issue the warrant for Kim, the first court decision to be made related to the martial law chaos.
Kim issued contrite comments Tuesday saying that “all responsibility for this situation lies solely with me”.
Kim “deeply apologised” to the South Korean people and said that his subordinates were “merely following my orders and fulfilling their assigned duties”, in a statement made through his lawyers.
– ‘Second coup’ –
Yoon narrowly survived an impeachment effort in parliament on Saturday as tens of thousands braved freezing temperatures to call for his ouster.
Civic groups held further candlelight vigils across the country on Monday, with several thousand outside parliament in Seoul.
The motion failed after members of Yoon’s own People Power Party (PPP) walked out of parliament, depriving it of the necessary two-thirds majority.
The PPP says that in exchange Yoon, 63, has agreed to hand power to the prime minister and party chief, prompting the opposition to accuse it of a “second coup”.
Local media reported on Tuesday that the PPP will announce a “resignation road map” soon in order to head off a new impeachment motion, which the opposition wants to put before lawmakers on Saturday.
The party’s task force was also reportedly reviewing two options, including for Yoon to resign in February with an April election, or to step down in March with a vote in May.
AFP
International
Trump says he thinks Putin is helping Iran
“I think he might be helping them a bit, yeah.”“I guess, and he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right?”
President Donald Trump on Friday said he believed that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is helping Iran in its war against the United States and Israel.
According to CNBC, Trump’s comment came in a radio interview with Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, and a week after the president lashed out at Fox News reporter Peter Doocy for asking him at the White House about reports that Russia was aiding Iran.
Kilmeade asked Trump on Friday: “You think Putin is helping them?”
Trump replied, “I think he might be helping them a bit, yeah.”“I guess, and he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right?” Trump continued.
“Yeah, we’re helping them also,” Trump said, referring to Ukraine, which has been at war against Russia since being invaded in early 2022.
“So he [Putin] says that, and China would say the same thing, you know,” Trump told Kilmeade.
“It’s like, ‘Hey, they do it, and we do it, in all fairness,’ ” Trump said. “They do it, and we do it.”
International
IEA agrees to release record 400 million barrels of oil to address Iran war supply disruptions
The IEA did not set out a timeline for when the stocks would hit the market
Merchant ship on fire hits by Iran in Strait of Hormuz.
The International Energy Agency on Wednesday agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil to address the supply disruption triggered by the Iran war, the largest such action in the organization’s history.
The IEA did not set out a timeline for when the stocks would hit the market.
It said that the reserves would be released over a time frame that is appropriate to the circumstances of each of its 32 member countries.
IEA members are primarily advanced economies in Europe, North America and northeast Asia. The organization is tasked with maintaining global energy security.
It was founded in 1974 in response to the oil embargo imposed by Arab producers over U.S. support for Israel during the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.
(CNBC)
International
Iran tells world to get ready for oil at $200 a barrel as it fires on merchant ships
The war unleashed with joint U.S. and Israeli air strikes nearly two weeks ago has so far killed around 2,000 people, mostly Iranians and Lebanese, as it has spread into Lebanon and thrown global energy markets and transport into chaos.
(REUTERS): Iran said the world should be ready for oil at $200 a barrel as its forces hit merchant ships on Wednesday and the International Energy Agency recommended a massive release of strategic reserves to dampen one of the worst oil shocks since the 1970s.
The war unleashed with joint U.S. and Israeli air strikes nearly two weeks ago has so far killed around 2,000 people, mostly Iranians and Lebanese, as it has spread into Lebanon and thrown global energy markets and transport into chaos.
Despite what the Pentagon has described as the most intense airstrikes since the start of the war, Iran also fired at Israel and targets across the Middle East on Wednesday, demonstrating it can still fight back.
On Wednesday, three vessels were reported to have been hit in Gulf waters as Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said their forces had fired on ships in the Gulf that had disobeyed their orders.
While Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz said the operation “will continue without any time limit, as long as required, until we achieve all objectives and win the campaign,” Trump suggested the campaign would not last much longer.
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Iran tells world to get ready for oil at $200 a barrel as it fires on merchant ships
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International3 days agoIEA agrees to release record 400 million barrels of oil to address Iran war supply disruptions
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International23 hours agoTrump says he thinks Putin is helping Iran