Author: Tyler Potter

LONDON (AP) — The Russian ruble on Monday reached its lowest value since the early weeks of the war in Ukraine as Moscow increases military spending and Western sanctions weigh on its energy exports. It led Russia’s central bank to announce an emergency meeting for Tuesday to review its key interest rate, raising the likelihood of an increase in borrowing costs that would support the flagging ruble. The Russian currency had passed 101 rubles to the dollar, continuing a more than one-third decline in its value since the beginning of the year and hitting the lowest level in almost 17 months. The ruble…

Since the Taliban took over Kabul in 2021, the United States has struggled to make progress in talks with the group. A common complaint among Afghanistan observers against the office of the US State Department’s Special Representative for Afghanistan has been that it often does the right thing at the wrong time. Over the past two years, the US would often appear to increase its efforts to reach out exactly as the Taliban announce yet another decree restricting the human rights of Afghans. This supposedly has to do with the sluggishness of the State Department’s machinery, which takes quite a…

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS or the Committee) recently proposed expanding the scope of its jurisdiction to review real estate transactions to add over 200,000 square miles of land associated with national security-related facilities. CFIUS’s proposal would add significantly to the Committee’s broad reach over real estate deals, and comes on the heels of proposals in the Congress to potentially expand the focus on such transactions further. Foreign investors in the United States should be attuned to these considerations and the need to conduct thorough diligence on proposed acquisitions. As discussed below, this expansion effort fits within…

The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada issued the following statement from United States Attorney Jason M. Frierson on World Day Against Trafficking in Persons: “As World Day Against Trafficking in Persons approaches, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada reaffirms its commitment to using every available resource to combat human trafficking, bringing traffickers to justice, and supporting victims and survivors. “Human trafficking impacts every race, age, religious affiliation, gender identity, and socioeconomic group. Traffickers prey upon and lure vulnerable members of society through false job promises, false promises of love; and Traffickers exploit their…

Skip Thurman and his brother bought 40 acres in Chaffee County near Buena Vista in 2000. They have spent about $3,000 a year on taxes. But their property tax bill just nearly tripled. Thurman’s tax bill for his home in Denver’s Park Hill also surged by more than 50%. “My entire life I’ve recognized taxes as so important for our roads and education system and everything else. But this is crazy,” he said. “Nobody can afford this.” The sticker shock from property valuations has reverberated across all 64 Colorado counties. The wild real estate market of 2021 that saw home…

Hope you’re having a good Thursday. Overturning nearly five decades of precedent, the Supreme Court ruled today that the use of racial considerations in college admissions is unconstitutional, prompting wildly different reactions across the political spectrum. President Biden slammed the decision, warning that “This is not a normal court,” while Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said the ruling is “yet another blow to the fight for equal opportunity” that “takes our country decades backward.” On the right, politicians celebrated the decision, with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell denouncing what he called the “illegal social engineering” of affirmative action. “Today’s rulings make…

The Republicans running for president applauded the Supreme Court’s ruling on Thursday to strike down race-based affirmative action in college admissions, a policy that for decades has stoked the conservative agenda. Former President Donald J. Trump called the decision a “great day for America” in a statement. “People with extraordinary ability and everything else necessary for success, including future greatness for our country, are finally being rewarded,” he said, adding, “We’re going back to all merit-based — and that’s the way it should be!” Mr. Trump’s political organization, the MAGA War Room, cast him as a main catalyst for the…

WASHINGTON ― Hypersonic weapons and cybersecurity are among the advanced technology fields in which the Indo-Pacific security framework AUKUS (Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States) is seeking to expand the number of countries with which it cooperates. Kurt Campbell, coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs in the National Security Council, an advisory body to the U.S. president, told a think tank meeting in Washington on Monday, “We are in conversation with a variety of countries who are interested [in cooperation].” Campbell said that allies and partner countries were counterparts in cooperation discussions, but he did not name specific countries, such…

Governments and institutions around the world are working around the clock to fight COVID-19. Some individuals, first of all, entrepreneurs, make their input too. Kenes Rakishev and Saby Fund spent more than 40 million USD to help his country and its people to keep COVID-19 numbers low. As soon as COVID-19 struck Kazakhstan or even somewhat earlier responsible local businessmen started to brace for impact. Those who participated in charity begun to accumulate funds and develop programmes to help Kazakhstani people drive through the pandemic. Kenes Rakishev supported people with the help of Saby fund. He also aided at least two other…

The war in the Ukraine created two main opposing camps of countries. An Alliance of Democracies on one side and a Group of Authoritarian. The escalation of geopolitical tensions linked to the Ukrainian crisis has highlighted two main opposing camps of countries — an Alliance of Democracies on one side and a Group of Authoritarian Regimes on the other. A number of countries have resisted choosing sides, however, as they strive to balance their national interests with international developments while simultaneously advocating the need to maintain peaceful diplomacy and global connections. While the number of these so-called “in-between” countries abound…