30/08/2025

SATURDAY | AUG 30, 2025

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US-Venezuela tensions rise over warship buildup

India, Canada appoint new high commissioners NEW DELHI: India and Canada on Thursday appointed new high commissioners in a sign of improvement in their relations, 10 months after expelling each other’s top envoys and a number of other diplomats. Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said senior diplomat Christopher Cooter would be Canada’s high commissioner to India while the Indian External Affairs Ministry announced that India’s current ambassador to Spain Dinesh K. Patnaik would be the next envoy to Canada. A diplomatic row erupted between Ottawa and New Delhi in 2023 after then-prime minister Justin Trudeau accused Indian government agents of involvement in the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a 45-year-old vocal supporter of the Khalistan separatist movement. The Sikh activist, designated a terrorist by India, was shot dead by two masked attackers in June that year in the province of British Columbia. India dismissed the allegations of its involvement in the murder as “absurd”. Tensions escalated further, leading to the diplomatic expulsions in October last year. The announcement of new high commissioners follows a commitment made by prime ministers Mark Carney and Narendra Modi at the G7 Summit, said Anand. “The appointments are an important step towards restoring necessary diplomatic services to citizens and businesses in both countries,“ she said. – Bernama “The Netherlands has also been targeted as part of a global cyber-espionage campaign by Salt Typhoon. The target was not the major telecommunications providers but smaller internet and hosting providers.“ The statement added that the hackers were unable to penetrate the internal networks of providers to steal data. – Bernama-Sputnik/Ria Novosti SALMONELLA OUTBREAK LINKED TO RECALLED EGGS LOS ANGELES: Nearly 100 people have fallen ill in a multistate Salmonella outbreak in the United States linked to recalled eggs, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Thursday. A total of 95 cases across 14 states have been confirmed as the same strain of salmonella, with 18 hospitalisations but no deaths reported, according to the CDC. California accounted for the majority, with 73 infections. Country Eggs LLC, a small-scale egg farm based in Lucerne Valley, California, announced a recall of its “Large Brown Cage Free Sunshine Yolks” eggs on Wednesday due to potential salmonella contamination, according to the US Food and Drug Administration. The CDC urged the public not to eat the recalled eggs, to clean any surfaces or utensils that may have come into contact with them using hot, soapy water or a dishwasher, and to seek medical care if they develop severe symptoms. – Bernama-Xinhua DUTCH AGENCY CLAIMS CHINESE HACKER ATTACK MOSCOW: Dutch internet and hosting providers have been targeted by Chinese hacker organisation Salt Typhoon, said the Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.

BR I E F S

CARACAS: Tensions between the United States and Venezuela are rising amid a large US naval buildup in the Southern Caribbean and nearby waters, which US officials say aims to address threats from Latin American drug cartels. US President Donald Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a central goal of his administration, part of a wider effort to limit migration and secure the US southern border. While US Coast Guard and Navy ships regularly operate in the Southern Caribbean, this buildup is significantly larger than usual deployments in the region. A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Thursday seven US warships, along with one nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, are either in the region or expected to be there in the coming week. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has denounced the moves. The Pentagon has not indicated publicly what the US mission would be but the Trump administration has said it can now use the o Seven combat vessels and one nuclear-powered fast attack submarine in region or expected soon: Anonymous official LONDON: A pilot was killed on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet crashed in central Poland, Anadolu Ajansi reported, citing local media reports. The Polish fighter jet crashed during a training flight before the Radom International Air Show, TVP World reported, citing officials. The incident, the first F-16 jet crash in the country’s aviation history, took place at 7.25pm local time (1725 GMT) during a training flight of the Polish Air Force F-16 Tiger Demo aerial display team. The pilot was killed, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, who travelled to the scene and briefed Prime Minister Donald Tusk. “This is a great loss for the Air Force and the entire Polish army,“ he said. The air show, scheduled from today to tomorrow, has been cancelled due to the crash, according to reports. – Bernama-Anadolu Polish pilot dies after jet crashes

“Our diplomacy is not the diplomacy of cannons, of threats, because the world cannot be the world of 100 years ago,” said Maduro, whose government said last week it would send 15,000 troops to states along its western border with Colombia to address drug trafficking groups. Maduro has also called for civil defence groups to train each Friday and Saturday. Maduro’s government regularly accuses the opposition and foreigners of conspiring with US entities, such as the CIA, to harm Venezuela, accusations the opposition and the United States have always denied. Maduro said on Thursday there is “no way” US troops could invade Venezuela, vowing that his country is well prepared to defend its “peace, sovereignty and territorial integrity”. The United States has made no public threat to invade. Maduro, who claimed a disputed third term in July 2024 elections, has been in Trump’s sights ever since the Republican’s first term in office. Washington accuses Maduro of heading cocaine trafficking cartel Cartel de los Soles, which the Trump administration has designated a terrorist organisation. The United States recently doubled its bounty to US$50 million (RM210 million) for Maduro’s capture to face drug charges. Maduro, who succeeded socialist firebrand Hugo Chavez in 2013, has accused Trump of attempting to effect regime change. – AFP

military to go after drug cartels and criminal groups, and has directed the Pentagon to prepare options. Venezuela on Thursday complained to United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres about the US naval buildup, accusing Washington of violating the founding UN Charter. “It is a massive propaganda operation to justify what the experts call kinetic action, meaning military intervention in a country that is a sovereign, independent nation and no threat to anyone,” Venezuela’s UN Ambassador Samuel Moncada told reporters. On Thursday, the White House said Trump is ready to use “every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country”. “Many Caribbean nations and many nations in the region have applauded the administration’s counter-drug operations and efforts,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. In February, the Trump administration designated Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and other drug gangs, as well as the Venezuelan criminal group Tren de Aragua, as global terrorist organisations. The ships are carrying 4,500 service members, including 2,200 marines, sources told Reuters. The US military has also been flying P-8 spy planes in the region to gather intelligence, officials said.

TAKING A STAND ... A crowd on Thursday protesting against the actions of US President Donald Trump and his administration, including having members of the National Guard patrol the streets of Washington DC, as well as the sacking of federal workers. – AFPPIC

Firefighters arrested by immigration officials LOS ANGELES: Two firefighters battling a wildfire in the United States have been arrested by border patrol agents, immigration officials said on Thursday, as President Donald Trump’s migration crackdown gathers pace.

unusual in that such operations have customarily not been carried out around natural disasters or sites of emergency. But under an election campaign pledge to undertake the largest deportation in US history, Trump’s administration has pushed the envelope, carrying out widespread arrests, often in Democratic areas, that have provoked anger. Washington’s Democratic Governor Bob Ferguson said he is seeking details about the operation. “Deeply concerned about this situation with two individuals helping to fight fires in Washington state. I have directed my team to get more information about what happened.” The Bear Gulch Fire erupted in July, caused by human activity, official information shows. – AFP

Border Patrol officers were there at the request of rangers who wanted to verify that the names provided on contractor rosters were accurate. “Several discrepancies were identified and two individuals were found to be present in the United States illegally, one with a previous order of removal,“ a CBP statement said on Thursday. The two were arrested and detained while the remaining 42 were removed from federal lands in what the agency characterised as a “contract termination and enforcement” following a criminal investigation, the CBP said. The operation “did not interfere with firefighting operations or the response to any active fires in the area, nor did it pose any danger to the surrounding community”. Wednesday’s immigration action was

Federal agents held crews from private fire contractors for several hours on Wednesday as they readied to help tackle the 3,600ha Bear Gulch Fire in Washington state, reports said. Agents lined 44 people up and ordered them to produce identification, firefighters told the Seattle Times , with crew members told that they were not allowed to film the encounter. “You risk your life out here to save the community. This is how they treat us,“ said a firefighter. US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said