DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Taiwanese ruling party suffers local election defeats Taiwanʼs ruling party lost two mayoral elections to the Nationalist party on Saturday in polls seen as a popularity test of the countryʼs independence-leading president, Tsai Ing-wen, as China exerts ever-more economic and political pressure on the island. Tsaiʼs Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost both in the southern port city of Kaohsiung, where it had held power for 20 years, and in the central city of Taichung. The president said after the defeats that she would step down as party leader. "As chairperson of the ruling party, I will take complete responsibility for the outcome of todayʼs local elections," she told reporters. She said she had rejected the resignation of her premier, William Lai, who had offered to quit earlier in the evening. Saturdayʼs defeats have dealt a major blow to Tsaiʼs prospects of re-election.
US climate report warns of worsening disasters Climate change will wreak havoc on the natural environment, economy and public health in the United States unless more is done to drastically reduce carbon emissions, a US government report has warned. "Without substantial and sustained global mitigation and regional adaptation efforts,climate change is expected to cause growing losses to American infrastructure and property and impede the rate of economic growth over this century," the Fourth National Climate Assessment said Friday. The report, mandated by Congress, includes assessments by 13 federal agencies. It details how rising temperatures threaten to lower agricultural yields, increase the likelihood of flooding and wildfires, impede energy production and increase the prevalence of tropical diseases across the country. Government action now could nevertheless mitigate the most extreme impacts, it said.
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Britainʼs Theresa May holds pre-summit talks Brexit:
British Prime Minister Theresa May has held talks with key EU leaders ahead of a summit to endorse her Brexit deal. A deal reached with Spain has cleared the way for EU approval.
Chinaʼs economy not opening up despite Beijingʼs assurances Threatened by a trade spat with the US, Beijing has once again promised to open up its economy. The reality, however, is that foreign firms are finding it harder than ever to compete against Chinaʼs state-owned giants. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang declared again this week that Beijing would allow more foreign participation in its $13.5 trillion (€11.86 trillion) state-led economy. He recited an often-made assurance that the country is opening up to international investment. But while the US loses patience over what it calls
an uneven playing field for multinationals operating in China, those remarks increasingly ring hollow. Washington has released an updated report detailing how Beijing deploys a number of illegal techniques to force American firms to transfer technology to its state-owned firms.Pressure from government officials, cyberattacks and espionage were cited by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), whose earlier report encouraged President Donald Trump to impose two rounds of tariffs on Chinese imports to the US over the summer.
The new Robin Hood turns the legendary outlaw into a video game superhero The arrows have never flown so fast, Robin of Loxley has never dodged his enemies so cleverly, and the Sherriff of Nottingham has never before been so awful or inhuman. The 2018 reboot of Robin Hood is shooting for a younger audience, one which may well be more accustomed to the gaming console than a cinema screen. In the lead role, Taron
Egerton makes even Kevin Costner look flat-footed, never mind his predecessors Douglas Fairbanks and Errol Flynn. For almost the entire 120 minutes, the action is unrelenting — interrupted only rarely by a brief melodramatic scene. The musical bombardment that serves as a soundtrack only ceases its fire as the final credits roll.
Russia wants to check truth of 1969 US moon landing A proposed Russian mission to the moon will include verifying whether US astronauts really landed there in 1969, the head of Russiaʼs Roscosmos space agency said in a video posted on Twitter on Saturday. "We have set this objective to fly and verify whether theyʼve been there or not," Dmitry Rogozin said in the video. However, Rogozin appeared to be joking in his answer to a corresponding question, although conspiracy theories about NASAʼs lunar missions are rife in Russia. Russia plans to send the first cosmonauts to the moon in the early 2030s. The Soviet Union dropped its lunar program in the mid-1970s after four experimental rockets exploded. The cosmonauts are to remain on the moon for 14 days.
Paris police fire tear gas at ʼyellow vestʼ protesters Police fired water cannons and tear gas at protesters in Paris early on Saturday, asthe "yellow vest" demonstratorscontinued a week of opposition to rising fuel costs and the economic policies of President Emmanuel Macron. After staging roadblocks on highways across France for days, hundreds of demonstrators converged on the Champs Elysees carrying signs that read "Macron, thief" and "Macron, resign."
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