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From Washington, this is VOA news. I'm David DeForest reporting. China has announced stiff penalties for people caught illegally fishing in Chinese waters, including areas of the South China Sea claimed by neighboring nations.
The Supreme Court Tuesday said fishermen illegally entering Chinese waters more than once in a year will be subject to fines and up to a year in jail. Last month, a United Nations-backed court in The Hague ruled that China had no claim to the waters of the South China Sea. The Chinese defense minister has urged his nation to prepare for what he called a "people's war at sea" in an effort to safeguard national sovereignty. President Obama and Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong restated their commitment to passing the Trans-Pacific Partnership. At the White House Tuesday, the two leaders discussed the TPP pact which is currently stalled in Congress. During remarks at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Monday, Mr. Lee said the agreement would give the U.S. better access to markets that make up for 40 percent of the global economy. "Keeping your markets open to trade, deepening your partnership with ASEAN and cooperating with countries in the region to enhance regional security, you have helped create the basis for a peaceful, rules-based regional and international order." The pact has become controversial with both 2016 U.S. presidential candidates, Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, opposed to it. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has restated an earlier claim that the failed coup attempt against him last month was plotted outside the country. Those accusations are likely in reference to Muslim cleric Fetullah Gulen. This is VOA news. Speaking at the White House Tuesday, President Barack Obama said Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is "unfit" to succeed him in office. "I think the Republican nominee is unfit to serve as president. I said so last week and he keeps on proving it." Mr. Obama challenged Republicans to repudiate Trump, saying recent statements about the parents of a slain Muslim American soldier were offensive. The Vatican press office says Pope Francis has created a special commission to examine whether women can serve as deacons in the Roman Catholic Church. The pope has appointed Archbishop Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer, the secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, as president of the 13-member commission. Six women and six men from academic institutions around the world will serve on the commission. France laid to rest the 85-year-old priest, Father Jacques Hamel, who was killed by two Islamic extremists last week as he celebrated mass. Hundreds of mourners gathered Tuesday in the cathedral of Rouen for a funeral held under tight security. Iraq's prime minister has issued a travel ban for several parliamentary officials accused of corruption. The ban was ordered as a "temporary measure" against those accused and will remain in place until an investigation is completed. The ban came in response to claims by Defense Minister Khaled al-Obeidi, who on Monday told lawmakers that parliament speaker Salim al-Jabouri and several other lawmakers had tried to blackmail him to secure lucrative government contracts. Obeidi made the accusations as he was being questioned by parliament in response to allegations of corruption in the Defense Ministry. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has ordered the country's anti-corruption commission to investigate the allegations. Aid workers in Syria say a helicopter dropped barrels of toxic gas on a town near Aleppo. At least 30 people, mostly women and children, were affected. Workers say the gas was dropped overnight near the site where a Russian helicopter was downed hours earlier by rebel fire. A suicide bombing in the Libyan city of Benghazi has killed and wounded a number of people. Military sources say the attack apparently targeted soldiers loyal to Libya's recognized parliament. A coalition of Islamist militias claimed responsibility. Meanwhile, the United States has started an air campaign in the city of Sirte, the last bastion of the Islamic State group in Libya. The strikes on Tuesday hit an IS rocket launcher and a heavy equipment excavator. Taking a brief look at markets, on Wall Street, U.S. stock indexes were down at the close of trade today. European markets were also down. In Washington, I'm David DeForest. That's the latest world news from VOA. |