Bhinneka News Online: Tuesday Morning Briefing: Recovery of U.S. troops' remains in North Korea hindered by cash, politics

Tuesday 24 July 2018

Tuesday Morning Briefing: Recovery of U.S. troops' remains in North Korea hindered by cash, politics

Highlights

When North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed in June to help return the remains of American troops killed in the 1950-53 Korean War, it was seen as one of the more attainable goals to come out of his summit with Trump. American officials expect North Korea to hand over around 50 sets of remains in coming weeks, but the drawn out process of negotiations to get to this point highlights the complications involved in the issue.

More than 450 immigrant parents who were separated from their children when they entered the United States illegally are no longer in the country though their children remain behind, according to a joint court filing by the federal government and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Middle East

Commentary: Can the Iran nuclear accord survive looming U.S. sanctions and the escalating war of words escalates between Trump and Iran's President Hassan Rouhani? "Today, the weakened nuclear agreement confronts three possible fates: survival, abrupt death, or gradual demise," writes Maysam Behravesh. The most likely scenario: that Tehran will "creep out" rather than "break out."

With its dream of a Caliphate in the Middle East now dead, Islamic State has switched to hit-and-run attacks aimed at undermining the government in Baghdad, according to military, intelligence and government officials interviewed by Reuters.

Ahmed Aboulenein

@aaboulenein

I spoke to Salahuddin and Diyala military commanders, intelligence officials, and elected local officials in Tikrit and Baquba. It became clear that lack of coordination, and trust, between #Iraq’s myriad security forces was a large factor in this nascent #IslamicState comeback.

5:42 AM - Jul 24, 2018

World

“Residents and visitors in the area did not escape in time even though they were a few meters from the sea or in their homes”, fire brigade spokeswoman Stavroula Maliri said; after wildfires sweeping through a Greek resort town killed at least 60 people, including families with children found clasped in a last embrace as they tried to flee the flames.

Hundreds of people are missing after a hydropower dam under construction in Laos collapsed, causing flash flooding which swept away homes, state media reported

A jailed Reuters reporter told a court in Myanmar that documents he is accused of breaking state secrets laws to obtain were planted by a police officer, who handed him papers he had not sought in order to entrap him. The officer had then lied to the court about what happened, he said. Follow the latest updates on the case.

Sponsored by Barclays: Job security in the robot economy. As machine learning and AI become more commercially viable, will humans be replaced in the workplace? We don’t think so. Find out why.

Business

Cost to insure Tesla's debt rises on growing default fears

The amount investors must pay to insure their debt holdings in Tesla against declining credit quality rose to its second-highest price ever, implying the company is at a greater risk of default following a report that sparked concern that Tesla may need to raise funds.

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Harley-Davidson profit tops estimates on overseas sales

Harley-Davidson’s profit topped Wall Street estimates for the sixth straight quarter, as sales of its bikes overseas edged up, although the company warned that new EU tariffs would squeeze its operating margins.

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China's caffeine war: Fast-growing Luckin brews up a threat to Starbucks

Qian Zhiya may be Starbucks’ worst nightmare. The 42-year-old Chinese entrepreneur says she is betting that her fledgling Luckin Coffee brand will eventually have more cafes in China than Starbucks, and she has Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund and other investors bankrolling her plan.

8 min read