TOKYO, June 30 -- Japan withdrew from the International Whaling Commission on Sunday after more than 60 years of membership, as it plans to resume commercial whaling amid criticism from anti-whaling states and conservation groups. Japan exited the IWC in its first walkout from a major international organization in its postwar history after three decades of lobbying for the restart of commercial whaling. It remains unclear whether there will be any increase in demand for whale meat even if commercial hunting begins for the first time in 31 years. The decision came after Japan's latest proposal to resume commercial whaling was voted down at the annual IWC meeting last September. Tokyo had threatened to leave the international organization that remains divided between pro- and anti-whaling nations and others that support one side or the other. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has said the rejection at the September meeting "unveiled the fact that it is not possible in the IWC even to seek the coexistence of states with different views." The IWC, founded in 1948, was originally composed of whaling nations, with its preamble stating that its purpose is to provide for the "proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry." But the organization has seen an increasing number of anti-whaling countries joining it. Japan halted commercial whaling in line with a moratorium adopted in 1982 by the IWC which Japan joined in 1951. However, it started hunting whales for what it claimed were research purposes in the Antarctic and northwest Pacific oceans in 1987 and in 1994, respectively, a practice criticized internationally as a cover for commercial whaling. Meat from the captured whales was sold domestically. Tokyo, meanwhile, had lobbied over the past 30 years for the restart of commercial whaling of relatively abundant species such as minke whales while still a member of the IWC. But its attempts had always been stymied by anti-whaling countries. Last December, the Japan government decided to pull out of the IWC, sparking criticism from members such as Australia and New Zealand as well as conservation group Greenpeace. Protein-rich whale meat was once a major source of nutrition in the postwar era when it was served in school lunches. Japan will restart commercial whaling from Monday in nearby waters and within its exclusive economic zone but not in the Antarctic Ocean, where the country had carried out "scientific whaling" for what it said were research purposes. Even after the withdrawal, Japan said it will seek to contribute to preserving maritime resources by participating in the IWC as an observer and conduct whaling within the catch limits calculated by the IWC's method, according to Suga.
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SPIELBERG, June 30 -- Race results of the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, round nine of the 2019 Formula 1 season.
2019 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix - Race Results
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* Verstappen fastest race lap PARIS, June 30 -- Thousands of demonstrators have been flooding the streets of France every weekend since the movement began in November 2018, initially to protest planned fuel tax hikes, but then growing into a larger movement against the policies of the French government. French police have employed teargas to disperse crowds of Yellow Vests protesters in Paris. Law enforcement officers have also blocked off streets to contain the demonstration. But tear gas and a heavy police presence didn’t deter ‘Yellow Vest’ protesters from filling the streets of Paris on Saturday, for their 33rd consecutive week of anti-government protests. Protesters could be seen marching and waving French flags amid clouds of tear gas, in footage captured by Ruptly. Since its beginning in November, tens of thousands have marched every Saturday through the streets of France over a variety of grievances, ranging from taxes on fuel to income inequality. SEOUL, June 30 -- President Donald Trump stepped foot into North Korea on Sunday, making him the first US leader to enter the country. The two leaders greeted each other warmly after crossing the open ground of the de-militarised zone separating the country. “Stepping across that line was a great honour, a lot of progress has been made,” Mr Trump told the assembled press after Kim Jong-Un accompanied him back onto the South Korean side of the de-militarised zone. South Korean President Moon Jae-in announced that Mr Kim accepted Mr Trump’s invitation to meet when the US president visits the heavily fortified site at the Korean border village of Panmunjom. Mr Moon praised the two leaders for “being so brave” to hold the meeting and said: “I hope President Trump will go down in history as the president who achieves peace on Korean Peninsula.” Earlier, Mr Trump expressed his desire to be the first sitting US president to cross into North Korea when he makes his first trip to the DMZ. “I look forward to saying hello to him if that all finally works out,” Mr Trump said. “I guess there’s always a chance that it might not, but it sounds like the teams would like to have that work out, so that’s good.” Mr Trump made his audacious offer to meet Mr Kim at the DMZ in a tweet on Saturday before meetings at the Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, jolting the gathering of world leaders as well as officials in the US and Seoul. The American and South Korean governments have scrambled to arrange the meeting, but there is so far no public indication Mr Kim will show up.
SPIELBERG, June 30 -- Starting grid for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, round nine of the 2019 Formula 1 season.
2019 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix - Starting Grid
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* Albon to start from back after power unit changes ** Sainz to start from back after power unit changes *** Hülkenberg getting a five-place grid penalty for engine upgrade **** Magnussen getting a five-place grid penalty after a gearbox change ***** Hamilton getting a three-place grid penalty for impeding Räikkönen ****** Russel getting a three-place grid penalty for impeding, starting from pit lane THE HAGUE, June 30 -- The meeting that Queen Máxima had during the G20 with the Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has come to criticize her. Agnes Callamard, who was investigating the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Kashoggi for the UN, said he was confident that the prince had raised the issue of extrajudicial execution. "I trust that you have insisted on justice." The point now is that Máxima had not done that. She is a special advocate for the UN for inclusive financing (microcredit in developing countries). Among other things, they discussed the economic position improvement of women in Saudi Arabia, in preparation for the next G20 in Saudi Arabia. The murder of the columnist Washington Post in the Saudi consulate in Instanbul remained undiscussed. That is not good, according to Callamard, for whom silence equals complicity. "Credible evidence" about responsibility The Callamard UN investigation revealed that there is "credible evidence" that Bin Salman was responsible for the murder. Kashoggi, columnist from The Washington Post, was stunned with an injection during a visit to the consulate and killed with a plastic bag over his head. The body of the Saudi dissident, presumably cut to pieces, was never recovered. A critical response was received in the Lower House, including by D66, SP. "Is it really true that she did not talk about the murder of journalist Khashoggi?" Says MP Karabulut. "Incomprehensible." She wants to talk to Minister Blok (Foreign Affairs) about the meeting on Monday. The VVD also sees it differently. Member of Parliament Sven Koopmans is "proud that our queen is having difficult diplomatic talks." "The inclusive financing envoy dares to have a difficult conversation here about women's rights with someone far away from her."
The RVD said it was customary for the queen to have a conversation with the host of the next G20 summit, which is Saudi Arabia. "The conversation between Queen Maxima and Prince Mohammed bin Salman was conducted under the responsibility of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, as usual in international performances by members of the Royal House," Algemeen Dagblad cited the RVD. "The cabinet was aware of the conversation."
US President Donald Trump also faced questions about his sit-down with Bin Salman at the G20 in Japan, his first face-to-face meeting since the US intelligence community concluded that the crown prince directed the killing of the Washington Post columnist. Trump, who called Bin Salman his "friend", has long sought to minimise the crown prince's role in the killing and has been reluctant to criticise the killing of the critic. Trump views the kingdom as the lynchpin of his Middle East strategy to counter Iran. At the news conference on Saturday, Trump was asked by a reporter if he agreed it was "despicable" for a government to kill a journalist. Trump replied: "Yes, I do. I think it's horrible. Or anybody else, by the way. And if you look at Saudi Arabia, you see what's happening, thirteen people, or so, have been prosecuted. Others are being prosecuted. They've taken it very, very seriously. And they will continue to." Callamard said the ongoing trial in Saudi Arabia was not carried out in "good faith". "Overall it does not meet international standards," she said. Only 11 out of 15 operatives who were at the consulate were being indicted, but their names and their charges have not been made public, said Callamard. She said the chain of command's responsibility was not being investigated and the trial's proceedings were contradicting the statements made by the public prosecutor. "For those who want to see a proper criminal trial taking place, an official request should be undertaken by the UN secretary-general upon the request of at least one member state," she said.
SPIELBERG, June 29 -- Full qualifying results for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, round nine of the 2019 Formula 1 season.
2019 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix - Qualifying Results
Note:
* Albon to start from back after power unit changes ** Sainz to start from back after power unit changes *** Hülkenberg getting a five-place grid penalty for engine upgrade **** Magnussen getting a five-place grid penalty after a gearbox change ***** Hamilton getting a three-place grid penalty for impeding Räikkönen
SPIELBERG, June 29 -- Full results from third practice for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, round nine of the 2019 Formula 1 season.
2019 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix - Third Practice Results
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* Albon to start from back after power unit changes ** Sainz to start from back after power unit changes *** Hülkenberg getting a five-place grid penalty for engine upgrade **** Magnussen getting a five-place grid penalty after a gearbox change During the event, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who chairs the two-day summit from Friday, received reports on activities and recommendations on the issue from groups such as a U.N. entity dedicated to gender equality and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Abe said the G-20 will establish a follow-up system to review at the leaders' level the steps taken by members to achieve a goal agreed in 2014 of reducing the gender gap in labor force participation by 25 percent by 2025.
The special event, which was opened to the media and featured Dutch Queen Maxima as a guest, was held to add momentum to women's empowerment, seen as essential for achieving sustainable economic growth, according to the Japanese government. A report submitted to Abe by the OECD and the International Labor Organization said "further progress" was seen in most G-20 economies toward meeting the 25 percent target, but there remain large country differences in the labor force participation of women and, consequently, in the gender gap in participation. The report said particularly large gender gap reductions occurred in Argentina, Brazil, South Korea and Japan, where Abe has been pushing his "womenomics" policy that focuses on enhancing women's role in the economy. In Japan, the share of the population aged 15-64 participating in the labor force by gender was about 70 percent for women and nearly 90 percent for men in 2018, according to the report. But Japan ranked the lowest among members of the G-20 major economies in a 2018 global ranking on representation of women in parliament, coming 165th among 193 countries, according to a different report by an international organization that was announced in March. Among the G-20 leaders who gathered in western Japan, only two were women -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Theresa May. LAMPEDUSA, June 29 -- A German charity rescue ship with 40 migrants on board has defied authorities and docked in the port of the Italian island of Lampedusa after being at sea for more than two weeks. Italian news agency ANSA reported that an Italian customs police boat attempted to prevent the Sea-Watch 3 charity ship from docking on multiple occasions, but had to get out of the way in order to not be trapped against a wharf. Sea-Watch spokesman Ruben Neugebauer told the AFP news agency the ship's German captain Carola Rackete, 31, was arrested. The 40 migrants disembarked soon after the vessel docked early on Saturday, one kissing the ground, others hugging ship crew members before boarding a bus. Rackete was cuffed by police for refusing to obey a military vessel, after manoeuvring the ship into port without permission, a crime punishable by between three and 10 years in jail. While five European countries on Friday agreed to take in the migrants, permission for the Dutch-flagged Sea-Watch 3 to enter port and disembark the migrants did not come. Proud of our captain Rackete called the situation "incredibly tense" on Friday saying the migrants were finding the uncertainty "difficult ... psychologically". Matteo Salvini, Italy's interior minister and head of the right-wing League party, had previously said he would only allow Rackete to dock when other European Union states agree to immediately take the migrants. Even then, Italian authorities would seize the ship and prosecute its captain for assisting people-smugglers, he said. Premier Giuseppe Conte told reporters at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, on Friday three or four European countries were willing to take part in the redistribution of the migrants. In the meantime, prosecutors in Sicily launched a probe into Rackete on suspicion of aiding "illegal immigration". "Even though in the afternoon the prosecution has opened an investigation against me, at the same time they notified us that they will not help to bring the rescued off the ship," Rackete said in a video statement on Twitter. "I have decided to enter the harbour, which is free at night, on my own," she added. OSAKA, June 29 -- The following are profiles of leaders of the countries making up the Group of 20 major economies. This year's G-20 summit takes place in Osaka, western Japan, on June 28 to June 29.
Canada - Prime Minister Justin TrudeauOSAKA, June 29 -- This is Trudeau's fifth G-20 summit after taking power following his Liberal Party's victory in October 2015. Trudeau was born in Ottawa on Christmas Day in 1971 to then Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. From very early in his life, he grew up in the public eye. The 47-year-old graduated from McGill University in 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in literature and continued on to complete a Bachelor of Education degree at the University of British Columbia. He spent several years teaching French and math among other subjects as a schoolteacher. After his younger brother died in an avalanche while skiing in 1998, Trudeau became involved in promoting avalanche safety. The telegenic prime minister entered politics in 2007. He was elected leader of the Liberal Party in April 2013 and attracted support particularly from younger voters with his call for respecting diversity and ensuring fair economic opportunities. He is married to Sophie Gregoire, a former TV and radio host. They have three children. Britain - Prime Minister Theresa MayWhen former Prime Minister David Cameron took power in 2010, she was appointed home secretary and in that role advocated tighter restrictions on immigration. She was the longest-serving home secretary for over 60 years.
Known as a fashion-conscious leader, she also loves cricket and cooking.
SPIELBERG, June 28 -- Full results from second practice for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, round nine of the 2019 Formula 1 season.
2019 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix - Second Practice Results
Note: *Albon and **Sainz to start from back after power unit changes
Brazil - President Jair BolsonaroOSAKA, June 28 -- Retired military officer Bolsonaro entered office in January, with a promise to crack down on crime and ease gun control laws so that ordinary people can defend themselves. The 64-year-old right-wing politician, dubbed "Trump of the Tropics" for his radical comments, has been a vocal supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump. He also expressed skepticism about Chinese investment in Brazil during last year's election campaign, much of which he was forced to sit out after being hospitalized by a life-threatening knife stab to the abdomen in September. Bolsonaro is also known for praising Brazil's 1964-1985 military dictatorship, and for making remarks some have interpreted as racist. Hailing from Sao Paulo, he graduated from military academy and joined a paratrooper brigade. He decided to pursue a political career after being disciplined for advocating a rise in military salaries, in a column he wrote for a local magazine in 1986. He served as a lower-house member for seven consecutive terms from 1991 before being elected president. A Catholic with the middle name Messias, meaning savior, he has called the presidential post his mission from God. |
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