NEWSLETTER
Thursday / September 29Sep 29
Wednesday / December 22
Sino-US tensions
The United States' efforts to strengthen its worldwide alliances over the past 11 months have put the country in a stronger position to counter China, the US Secretary of State said on Tuesday.
“We’re much more aligned with our allies and partners now than we were a year ago on nearly every issue,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters, “including Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine and its neighbours, Iran’s nuclear programme, and China’s efforts to challenge the rules-based international order,” he added.
Blinken commented on the continuing escalation of tensions in the US-China relationship over issues ranging from human rights in the Xinjiang region to Hong Kong's autonomy and the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.
Blinken also pledged support to Lithuania in the Baltic nation's ongoing Taiwan dispute with Beijing.
Putin not backing down
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that in tensions with the US-led West over Ukraine, Russia has no room to retreat and will have to respond sharply if the West does not relinquish its "offensive line".
Russia has been pressing for an immediate US and NATO response to its offers from the West for a set of binding security guarantees last week.
Speaking to military officials, Putin said, "What the US is doing in Ukraine is on our doorstep… They must understand that we have nowhere else to retreat. Do they think we're going to just stare at it?"
"If the offensive line of our Western colleagues continues, we will take adequate military-technical intervention measures and react sharply to unfriendly steps," he added.
Ukraine and the USA accuse Russia of preparing to invade Ukraine at any moment.
Russia says it needs commitments from the West, including a pledge not to conduct NATO military activity in Eastern Europe, says Ukraine's security is threatened by its growing ties to the Western alliance and the possibility of deploying NATO missiles against it on Ukrainian soil.
US stocks
US stocks rebounded sharply on Tuesday after three days of losses amid fears over the rapidly spreading Covid omicron variant.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 560.54 points, or 1.6%, to 35,492.70, aided by gains in Nike and Boeing.
The S&P500 rose nearly 1.8% to 4,649.23, with nine out of 11 industries posting gains. The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite was up 2.4% to 15,341.09. The small-scale benchmark Russell 2000 rose 2.9% on its best day since July 20.
The reopening of games like airlines, cruise companies and entertainment stocks provided some relief on Tuesday. Delta Air Lines increased 5.9%, United Airlines increased approximately 6.9%, and Carnival increased approximately 8.7%. Boeing rallied 5.8 percent.
The United States' efforts to strengthen its worldwide alliances over the past 11 months have put the country in a stronger position to counter China, the US Secretary of State said on Tuesday.
“We’re much more aligned with our allies and partners now than we were a year ago on nearly every issue,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters, “including Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine and its neighbours, Iran’s nuclear programme, and China’s efforts to challenge the rules-based international order,” he added.
Blinken commented on the continuing escalation of tensions in the US-China relationship over issues ranging from human rights in the Xinjiang region to Hong Kong's autonomy and the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.
Blinken also pledged support to Lithuania in the Baltic nation's ongoing Taiwan dispute with Beijing.
Putin not backing down
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that in tensions with the US-led West over Ukraine, Russia has no room to retreat and will have to respond sharply if the West does not relinquish its "offensive line".
Russia has been pressing for an immediate US and NATO response to its offers from the West for a set of binding security guarantees last week.
Speaking to military officials, Putin said, "What the US is doing in Ukraine is on our doorstep… They must understand that we have nowhere else to retreat. Do they think we're going to just stare at it?"
"If the offensive line of our Western colleagues continues, we will take adequate military-technical intervention measures and react sharply to unfriendly steps," he added.
Ukraine and the USA accuse Russia of preparing to invade Ukraine at any moment.
Russia says it needs commitments from the West, including a pledge not to conduct NATO military activity in Eastern Europe, says Ukraine's security is threatened by its growing ties to the Western alliance and the possibility of deploying NATO missiles against it on Ukrainian soil.
US stocks
US stocks rebounded sharply on Tuesday after three days of losses amid fears over the rapidly spreading Covid omicron variant.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 560.54 points, or 1.6%, to 35,492.70, aided by gains in Nike and Boeing.
The S&P500 rose nearly 1.8% to 4,649.23, with nine out of 11 industries posting gains. The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite was up 2.4% to 15,341.09. The small-scale benchmark Russell 2000 rose 2.9% on its best day since July 20.
The reopening of games like airlines, cruise companies and entertainment stocks provided some relief on Tuesday. Delta Air Lines increased 5.9%, United Airlines increased approximately 6.9%, and Carnival increased approximately 8.7%. Boeing rallied 5.8 percent.
