President Biden has repeatedly raised with Chinese President Xi Jinping the need for Beijing to address the origins of COVID-19, the State Department said on Monday, following reports that a new intelligence assessment favors a theory that the global pandemic resulted from a lab leak in the Chinese city of Wuhan in 2019. State Department…
Author: Laura Kelly
Ukraine protesters confront those attending party at Russian Embassy
Protesters in support of Ukraine on Thursday night confronted visitors heading into the Russian embassy in Washington D.C. as the world marked the one-year anniversary of Moscow’s invasion. The demonstration, a cross between a candlelight vigil and protest, was to mark the hour Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It was organized by…
United Nations approves resolution calling for Russia to withdraw from Ukraine
The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution calling for the Russian military to withdraw from all the territory of Ukraine, in a vote that marked one year since Moscow launched a full invasion of the country. While 141 countries voted in favor of the resolution, mirroring a similar vote that occurred in…
Blinken to travel to Germany, raising possibility of meeting with Chinese counterpart
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will attend a prominent European security conference this week that will overlap with the travel of his Chinese counterpart, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The secretary’s travel raises the possibility of a face-to-face meeting with Wang. Blinken canceled a high-stakes trip to Beijing in the wake of the Biden administration’s…
Biden withdraws nominee who said Dem leader was ‘bought’ by pro-Israel groups
President Biden on Tuesday dismissed the Ivy League law professor put forth as a candidate for an international human rights organization over comments that appeared to invoke antisemitic tropes in criticizing House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said that the administration was not previously aware of the comments made by…
US ‘deeply troubled’ about Israeli plans to recognize West Bank settlements
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday criticized a decision by Israel’s government to recognize at least nine settlements in the West Bank as part of Israel, saying such a move worsens tensions with the Palestinians. Blinken, in a statement, said the moves to legally authorize such settlements, which have earlier been identified as illegal…
Air Force observed Chinese balloon last year over Middle East
A Chinese balloon was observed by the U.S. Air Force Central Command in the Fall of 2022 but was not closely inspected because it did not appear to pose a threat, according to the top general for the region that includes the Middle East and Afghanistan. Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, Commander of U.S. Air Forces…
Spy balloon offers worrying trial run for a bigger US-China crisis
The U.S. downing of a Chinese spy balloon over the weekend is offering Washington and Beijing a dress rehearsal for an unexpected crisis — and the results are concerning. While the incident has deepened distrust and suspicion between U.S. and Chinese officials and delayed strategic talks meant to stabilize the relationship, the risk of dangerous…
Congress unites behind Ukraine as Biden calls war ‘test for the ages’
Lawmakers stood for a rare bipartisan ovation in support of Ukraine as President Biden asked Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova to stand up and called Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion a “test for the ages.” Biden’s remarks before a Republican-controlled House of Representatives come as a small but vocal group of GOP lawmakers have criticized U.S. assistance…
Biden nods to spy balloon in warning to China during SOTU
President Biden nodded to his decision to shoot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon as evidence that his administration will “act to protect our country” against threats from Beijing during his State of the Union address on Tuesday evening. Biden has come under intensive criticism from Republican lawmakers that he was slow to act in…