POMPEO'S PUSH TO EXTEND IRAN ARMS EMBARGO FACES UPHILL BATTLE AT UN

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on the United Nations Security Council

today to extend the conventional arms embargo on Iran indefinitely, only to

face several harsh rebukes from allies and adversaries alike.

While American allies in the Middle East have started to line up behind US

threats to snap back multilateral sanctions on Iran should the UN refuse to

extend the embargo, the Security Council nonetheless appeared unmoved by

Pompeo's arguments at today's virtual meeting.

"From Israel to the Gulf, countries in the Middle East - who are most

exposed to Iran's predations - are speaking with a single voice: Extend the

arms embargo," said Pompeo. "The council has a responsibility to listen to

them. The United States' overwhelming preference is to work with this

council to extend the arms embargo to protect human life, to protect our

national security and to protect yours."

The arms embargo is currently set to expire in October as the first sunset

provision under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint

Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Representatives of Britain, France and Germany voiced unease at both the

expiration of the embargo and the American approach, particularly the

snapback, which they flatly opposed.

The resistance to Mr. Pompeo's call - coming not only from only rivals like

China and Russia, but also from key allies - illustrates the growing

isolation and declining influence of the United States, analysts said, even

in dealing with an Iran that members see as a rogue nation destabilizing the

region.

"China opposes the U.S. push for extending the arms embargo on Iran," said

Zhang Jun, the ambassador from China - which, like Russia, France, Britain

and the United States, has veto power in the council. China, Russia,

Germany, Britain, France and the European Union are signatories to the 2015

agreement.

"Having quit the JCPOA, the U.S. is no longer a participant and has no right

to trigger a snapback at the U.N.," Mr. Zhang said.

Addressing the council, Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia described

the policy as "a maximum suffocation policy."

"The task is to achieve regime change or create a situation where Iran

literally wouldn't be able to breath. This is like a putting a knee to one's

neck," he said in a veiled reference to the death of a Black man in

Minneapolis after a white police officer knelt on his neck.

EU BANS PAK AIRLINE FOR AT LEAST 6 MONTHS

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency on Monday (local time) suspended

flight operations of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) for a period of

six months after it failed to fully develop its software application for

safety data management within the earlier given stipulated time.

This order has been issued after Pakistan's Minister for Aviation Ghulam

Sarwar Khan disclosed in the National Assembly that many pilots have dubious

licenses following which the PIA announced that 141 pilots holding

fraudulent licenses have been grounded.

"The software application, proposed by the operator, for safety data

management, risk assessment and analysis including the statistical analysis

and the ability to identify repeated or similar hazards/occurrences is still

under development. The Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited

indicated that the software development completion requires additional three

to four months, which cannot be granted by the EASA, as EASA considers that

the operator has been granted a sufficient timeline to eliminate the issues

(more than nine months since the issuance of the finding)," said EASA in its

letter.

F.C.C. DESIGNATES HUAWEI AND ZTE AS NATIONAL SECURITY THREATS

The Federal Communications Commission designated Huawei Technologies Co. and

ZTE Corp. as national security threats, a step toward driving the Chinese

manufacturers from the U.S. market where small rural carriers rely on their

cheap network equipment.

The action means money from federal subsidies used by many small rural

carriers may no longer be used to buy or maintain equipment produced by the

companies, the FCC said in a news release.

"Both Huawei and ZTE have close ties to the Chinese Communist Party and

China's military apparatus," FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said on Twitter. "We are

sending a clear message: the U.S. government, and this @FCC in particular,

cannot and will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to exploit

vulnerabilities in U.S. communications networks."

The FCC has increasingly scrutinized Chinese companies as tensions grow

between Beijing and Washington over trade, the coronavirus and security

issues. The agency is considering banning three Chinese telephone companies,

and last year barred China Mobile Ltd. from entering the U.S. market.

The U.S. contends that Huawei's equipment could be used by China for spying.

IRE AS CHINA PASSES HONG KONG NATIONAL SECURITY LAW

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday signed into law the Hong Kong

national security bill in a closed-door meeting of the of the Communist

Party of China (CPC) elite in Beijing, formalising a legislation that

critics fear could crush the city's freedoms.

Hong Kong's pro-democracy activists could potentially face life sentences if

they are found to have broken the new law.

Critics say the new law effectively curtails protest and undermines Hong

Kong's freedoms.

The territory was handed back to China from British control in 1997, but

under a unique agreement supposed to protect certain freedoms that people in

mainland China do not enjoy - including freedom of speech.

Hong Kong's leader, Carrie Lam, defended the law, saying it filled a "gaping

hole" in national security.

Details have been closely guarded and the Beijing-backed politician admitted

she had not seen the draft before commenting.

But Ted Hui, an opposition legislator, told the BBC: "Our rights are (being)

taken away; our freedom is gone; our rule of law, our judicial independence

is gone."

The UK, EU and Nato have all expressed concern and anger, while

pro-democracy groups have started to disband amid fears of immediate

reprisals.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for sanctions and other steps against

China, saying the "brutal" law would "frighten, intimidate and suppress"

those peacefully seeking freedom.

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab called the legislation a "grave

step", saying China had chosen to break its promises to the people of Hong

Kong. Britain will not turn its back on its commitments to Hong Kong, he

tweeted.

"We wish to raise our deep concerns at the imposition of national security

legislation on Hong Kong which undermines 'One Country, Two Systems', and

has clear implications for human rights," Julian Braithwaite, Britain's

ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, told the U.N. Human Rights

Council.

Braithwaite spoke on behalf of 27 countries, many of them European Union

members, as well as Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand and Switzerland.

NOW CHINA OPENS BORDER DISPUTE WITH INDIA ALLY BHUTAN

Continuing with its expansionist agenda, China has now created a new border

dispute with Bhutan, one of India's traditional ally.

At a virtual meeting of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) in the first

week of June, Beijing objected to the grant for Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary

(SWS) in eastern Bhutan's Trashigang district bordering India and China,

claiming that the location was disputed.

Even as the rest of the world is struggling with the coronavirus pandemic,

which originated in Wuhan city of China's Hubei province, Beijing has been

aggressively attempting to alter the status quo in East China Sea, South

China Sea and with India in Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh.

As per Strat News Global, the GEF Council gathered to decide on funding for

various environmental projects across the world, was shocked by China's

objection and instantly rubbished it.

The majority of the GEF council members supported Bhutan's view and the

draft summary of the chair was approved by the council and despite objection

from the Chinese council member, the work programme was adopted.The council

refused to record China's reason for objection, saying that the footnote

would only record that China objected to the project. However, the Chinese

council member said that he would need time to consult with his higher ups

to come to a view on the matter.

TRUMP 'MORE AND MORE ANGRY AT CHINA' OVER CORONAVIRUS

President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was growing "more and more angry at

China" over the spread of the coronavirus, as American health officials

warned they were not in "total" control of the pandemic.

"As I watch the Pandemic spread its ugly face all across the world,

including the tremendous damage it has done to the USA, I become more and

more angry at China," Trump tweeted.

The global pandemic, which Trump blames on Beijing, has intensified already

strong tensions between the two countries over an ongoing trade war.Amid a

surge in US cases, particularly in the south and west, infectious disease

expert Anthony Fauci told Congress earlier Tuesday that things were "going

in the wrong direction," and that "clearly we are not in total control right

now."

He also warned that cases could more than double to 100,000 per day if

authorities and the public fail to take steps to suppress the pandemic.

China has accused Trump's administration of politicizing the pandemic to

deflect from its own handling of the illness, with the United States

suffering by far the highest death toll of any country.

US officials, meanwhile, have urged greater transparency from China.

BOLTON, DEMOCRATS URGE RUSSIA SANCTIONS IF BOUNTY REPORTS ARE TRUE

Democrats and a leading Republican hawk on Tuesday called for U.S. President

Donald Trump to consider imposing new economic sanctions on Russia if a

reported Russian effort to pay the Taliban to kill U.S. soldiers in

Afghanistan was confirmed.

Mr. Trump has been under pressure over a New York Times report on Friday

that a Russian military intelligence unit had offered bounties for U.S. and

allied soldiers and later reported that he received a written briefing on

the matter in February.

After Mr. Trump initially said he was not briefed on the matter, the White

House said Mr. Trump was not "personally" briefed but did not address

whether he had received a written report, read it, and why he had not

responded more aggressively if so.

The shifting statements have generated controversy among his fellow

Republicans as well as Democrats and the suggestion that Mr. Trump may have

ignored or not known about a threat to U.S. troops could damage him as he

seeks re-election on Nov. 3.

House of Representatives Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, a

Democrat, said Mr. Trump should be looking to impose costs on Moscow.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden called Mr. Trump 's handling of

the matter a "dereliction of duty."

And John Bolton, Mr. Trump 's former national security adviser, told Reuters

if the allegations were true it was "tantamount to an attack on Americans

directly."

"That requires a very serious response," he said. "It could well be

asymmetric economic sanctions.

TRUMP APPROVES CUTTING 9,500 TROOPS IN GERMANY: PENTAGON

President Donald Trump has approved a plan to slash the U.S. military

presence in Germany by 9,500 troops, the Defense Department said Tuesday.

Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said the move, which has sparked

concerns in Berlin and in the NATO alliance, is to redeploy the troops and

will "enhance Russian deterrence, strengthen NATO, (and) reassure allies,"

as well as improving U.S. strategic flexibility.

The move will cut the current troop level in Germany from about 34,500 to

25,000, Mr. Trump's stated goal.

Mr. Hoffmann gave no details on when the reductions would happen or whether

the troops would be redeployed to another NATO country.

He said the Pentagon will brief Congress on the plan "in the coming weeks"

and then consult allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization "on the

way forward."

Pentagon officials say that if the reduction takes place, some of the troops

could be sent to former Eastern Bloc countries - some on a permanent basis

but most in short-term rotations - to send a message to Moscow.

FAUCI WARNS SPREAD OF COVID-19 'COULD GET VERY BAD', SAYS NO GUARANTEE OF

VACCINE

The United States government's top infectious diseases expert on Tuesday

warned that daily COVID-19 cases could more than double if Americans fail to

take countermeasures and cautioned against pinning hopes on a vaccine.

California, Texas and several other states are reporting record increases in

cases of the sometimes deadly illness caused by the novel coronavirus,

leading to a sobering reassessment of efforts to contain it and raising the

stakes for the scores of vaccine candidates being developed at unprecedented

speed.

Unless Americans wear masks and recommit to social distancing, the daily

increase in new cases nationwide, currently around 40,000, could reach

100,000, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy

and Infectious Diseases, told a U.S. Senate committee.

"Clearly we are not in total control right now," Dr. Fauci said. "I am very

concerned because it could get very bad."

Dr. Fauci said "there is no guarantee" that ongoing efforts will produce a

safe and effective vaccine to prevent infection by the virus, pouring cold

water on hopes for a quick fix to the health crisis.

BIDEN ATTACKS TRUMP'S HANDLING OF COVID-19 AS U.S. CASES RISE

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Tuesday launched a fresh

attack on President Donald Trump's "historic mismanagement" of the

coronavirus pandemic as the number of confirmed cases in many states rises.

Speaking in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, the former vice president

argued that earlier action by Mr. Trump would have reduced the number who

fell ill and the economic impact of the virus.

"The American people don't make enormous sacrifices over the past four

months so ... you can waste all their efforts they have undertaken with your

midnight rantings and tweets," said Mr. Biden, who delivered the speech to

reporters in a high school gymnasium.

Mr. Biden released an updated plan to tackle the pandemic, which would

include more COVID-19 testing and hiring at least 100,000 contract tracers.

He predicted that the coronavirus outbreak would likely worsen with the

onset of the flu season, and said preparations should include more flu

vaccines.

Mr. Biden said that, if elected, he would ask the federal government's top

disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, to serve another term.

EXPLOSION FROM GAS LEAK AT CLINIC IN IRAN'S TEHRAN KILLS 19

An explosion from a gas leak in a medical clinic in northern Tehran killed

19 people, Iranian state TV reported on Tuesday.

Authorities initially said 13 people were dead, but Jalal Maleki,

spokesperson for the Tehran Fire Department, later told state TV that the

toll had risen to 19.

State-run IRNA news agency also quoted Maleki as saying the dead included 15

women and four men. Maleki added that firefighters had rescued 20 people.

Video posted online appeared to show more than one explosion and thick black

smoke rising from the flames.

Hamidreza Goudarzi, deputy Tehran governor, told state TV that a leak from

medical gas tanks in the building was the cause of the explosion and fire.

People in nearby Tajrish Bazaar rushed to the scene, impeding a rescue

operation, authorities said.

State TV said there could be more explosions because there were a number of

oxygen tanks remaining in the medical centre.

U.N. RAISES $7.7 BILLION FOR SYRIANS BESET BY WAR AND COVID-19

The United Nations raised $7.7 billion in humanitarian aid on Tuesday for

Syria, where nine years of war have displaced millions in a humanitarian

crisis exacerbated by soaring food prices and the coronavirus crisis.

While less than the almost $10 billion sought by U.N. agencies, the pledges

were higher than expected, given the economic shock of COVID-19 on many

governments and shortfalls in other aid appeals, notably for Yemen this

month.

"We recognise that the circumstances are very unusual, it is a difficult

moment in every country to find the resources necessary to relieve the

suffering of the Syrian people," U.N. aid chief Mark Lowcock said after the

virtual donor conference by some 60 governments and non-official agencies.

Pledges came from countries including Qatar, which has promised $100

million, and Germany, which offered 1.58 billion euros ($1.78 billion) in

what Berlin said was the single biggest country donation.