Kim Jong-un makes history by crossing into South Korea for landmark inter-Korean summit. Follow the latest updates.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made history on Friday as he crossed into South Korea to hold talks with President Moon Jae-in.

It is the first time a North Korean leader has set foot in its southern neighbour since the end of the Korean War.

The two are holding talks in the demilitarised zone as part of the first inter-Korea summit in more than a decade. The meeting is expected to centre on the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula and a permanent peace deal between the two countries.
Russia, Japan respond to inter-Korea summit
The Kremlin has hailed the meeting between Kim and Moon. “This is very positive news,” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he expected North Korea to take concrete steps towards carrying out its promises. He added Japan was “absolutely not” being left out of the denuclearization process and that he would stay in close contact with the US and South Korea.
Kim says Koreas are ‘one nation’ in joint statement
“There is no reason why we should fight each other – we are one nation,” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in a joint statement with his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in.
After delivering their statement, the leaders met their wives Ri Sol-ju and Kim Jung-sook for a banquet.
Moon, Kim pledge to sign peace treaty this year
Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong-un signed a three-part declaration in the Peace House, pledging to sign a peace treaty to formally end the war between North and South Korea this year.
The declaration says the countries will work towards the “complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula,” but does not provide any specific measures.
By May 1, loudspeaker broadcasts and distribution of propaganda leaflets will be stopped, the declaration says.
North and South Korea will also pursue talks which will include the United States and potentially China.
The declaration states that the Koreas will work towards reunification and establish a communications post in Kaesong, North Korea. The countries will also organise a family reunion to be held on August 15.
Moon will visit North Korea in autumn.
For more measures the leaders agreed on, go here for a summary published by South Korean news agency Yonhap.

Kim and Moon embrace each other after signing the “Panmunjom Declaration” [Korea Summit Press Pool via The Associated Press]
Rallies in Paju
Anti-North Korea protests have been taking place in Paju, South Korea, with demonstrators demanding Moon cancels the summit.
There’s also been a rally in support of the summit with a large crowd watching the meeting unfold and waving flags with a map of a unified Korean Peninsula on it.

South Koreans shout slogans during a rally opposing the summit in Paju, South Korea [Lee Jin-man/AP]
‘Peace and prosperity’ tree
Kim’s limousine, once again flanked by jogging bodyguards in suits, returned to a site close to the military demarcation line at 4:30pm (7:30 GMT).
He met Moon for a ceremony in which both leaders scooped soil from both from Mount Hallasan in South Korea and Mount Paektu in the North on a commemorative pine tree.
The pair unveiled a stone marker which reads “Planting peace and prosperity” as well as the leaders’ names and official titles.
Moon and Kim are slated to have a second session in which they will try and iron out a final declaration, to be announced later today before their joint banquet.
Reporting from Paju, South Korea, Al Jazeera’s James Bays said “Particularly those in Washington, DC want to see that there’s real progress and a real willingness from the North Korean side to engage on all issues and of course the most important one for the US … is a North Korean willingness to give up their nuclear weapons and their long-range missiles.”

Kim and Moon scooped soil from both sides of the border on a ‘peace and prosperity’ pine tree [Korea Summit Press Pool/AP]

After the tree-planting ceremony, Moon and Kim talked one-on-one [Korea Summit Press Pool via Reuters]
‘Serious, frank’ talks
Moon and Kim had “serious, frank” discussions on denuclearising the Korean Peninsula and attaining permanent peace, a South Korean official told a briefing.
The official, Yoon Young-chan, said the leaders are writing a joint statement which will be announced when it is finished.
He added Kim’s wife Ri Sol-ju would join the leaders for dinner.
Seoul said Kim told Moon: “We won’t interrupt your sleep any more,” referring to missile tests.
First meeting ends
Moon and Kim concluded their first meeting at 12:00pm (3:00 GMT), with Kim returning to the North in a black limousine surrounded by jogging bodyguards to have lunch.
The leaders will return to the negotiating table in the afternoon after planting a memorial tree at the demarcation line. The tree will be planted with soil from both the North and the South, and watered with water from the North’s Taedong River and the South’s Han River.

Bodyguards jog alongside Kim Jong-un’s limousine as he returns north for lunch [Korea Summit Press Pool via The Associated Press]
Talks start in the Peace House
Moon and Kim started their first round of talks at 10:20am (1:20 GMT) in the Peace House. In a guest book entry, Kim wrote “A new history begins now”.
In his opening remarks, Kim said he hoped for talks that are “honest, frank and with intent”. “I hope that there is new history written with regards to peaceful prosperity and I will approach this with the feeling of a brand new start,” the North Korean leader said.
Moon noted there is “immense expectation” for the meeting. “Let’s approach this discussion boldly and wishing for peace. I would like to give something very big to the people watching us. We have all day to talk and let’s do so and make up for the 10 years that we have let pass,” he said.

Sitting to the left of Kim Jong-un is his sister Kim Yo-jong, who visited South Korea during the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in February [ Korea Summit Press Pool via Anadolu]
Kim Jong-un crosses military demarcation line
In the first summit between the two countries since 2007, Kim crossed the military demarcation line at 9:30am (0:30 GMT) on Friday for a meeting in Panmunjom’s Peace House.
Moon briefly stepped into the North as well, in an unscripted moment and at the invitation of Kim.
It is only the third time leaders of the two Koreas have met since an armistice agreement ended the Korean War in 1953, and the first time a summit has taken place in the South.
The truce is still in force and Kim and Moon were expected to discuss a more permanent peace treaty on Friday.
In their first encounter, the leaders seemed relaxed and were smiling. But, said Al Jazeera’s James Bays, an historic handshake does not necessarily lead to peace: “We have not seen anything actually change in terms of any of the policies, in terms of the agreement … It doesn’t necessarily mean we have a breakthrough.”

UN rights chief decries Israel’s excessive use of force in Gaza
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein has condemned Israel’s use of “excessive force” against Palestinian protesters, saying its security forces must be held to account for the many deaths and injuries sustained by Palestinians in the past month.

“The loss of life is deplorable, and the staggering number of injuries caused by live ammunition only confirms the sense that excessive force has been used against demonstrators – not once, not twice, but repeatedly,” Zeid said.

In the past four weeks, 42 Palestinians had been killed and over 5,500 injured along the fence in Gaza, with no reports of Israeli casualties.

Four Palestinians killed by Israeli forces
Palestinian officials say the death toll on Friday has risen to four, with Mohammed Ibrahim Ayyoub, a 15-year-old from Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, joining the growing list of fatalities.

Ashraf al-Qidra, spokesperson for Gaza’s health ministry, added that at least 729 Palestinians, including 45 children, had been wounded by Israeli forces.

The other three victims were identified as Ahmed Rashad, 24, Ahmed Abu Aqil, 25, and Saad Abdul Majid Abdul-Aal Abu Taha, 29.
Yahya Sinwar makes rare public appearance at protest site
Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, has made a rare public appearance at a protest near Gaza City.

Freed in a 2011 prisoner swap with Israel after more than 20 years in jail, Sinwar told the crowd of protesters that they would “march on Jerusalem.”

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) members will leave for Bangladesh $@$# Myanmar from New York late today (Friday, April 27) for a first-hand look at the plight of about seven lakhs Rohingya Muslims.

They will see the situation on the ground in a very desperate case of alleged human rights violations and abuses and crimes against humanity.
They have scheduled to arrival at Cox’s Bazaar in southern Bangladesh on Saturday (April 28), where the Rohingya who fled a military crackdown in Myanmar are now living in camps.
They also will visit the Bangladesh capital, Dhaka and Myanmar’s capital, Naypyitaw, for talks with government officials before travelling to Rakhine on Tuesday. Several hundred thousand remain in the country’s northern Rakhine State.

Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw

The US Congressional elections will be held in November this year. 20 Indian Americans are in the fray.

Traditionally, a significant amount of money is raised by candidates in the last two quarters.
And, these 20 Indian Americans have collectively raised more than 15.5 million dollars.

Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois is in the contention. Pitted against him is Indian American Jitender Digankar from the Republican party.

Indian-American scientist and entrepreneur Shiv Ayyadurai from Massachusetts is running as an independent candidate.
Three other Indian American Congressmen Ro Khanna, Dr Ami Bera and Pramila Jayapal are also in fray.
Four other Indian American women are also running for the US House of Representatives.

They are Hiral Tipirneni from Arizona; Aruna Miller from Maryland, Anita Malik from Arizona and Saira Rao from Colorado. All four are from the Democratic party.

Hindusthan Samachar/Shri Ram Shaw

Financial leaders from the Group of 20 (G20) have expressed concerns that trade disputes among major economies could pose downside risks to the global economy, Argentine Treasury Minister Nicolas Dujovne has said.

“Concerns on trade disputes occupied some part of the discussions that we had yesterday, and, of course, it is still one of the three main concerns in terms of the downside risks for the economy,” Dujovne told reporters in Washington on Friday after wrapping up a two-day meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors under Argentina’s presidency, Xinhua reported.

“We discussed trade and the potential impacts on the global economy and the potential disruption that modifications on the trade scheme can actually pose to the global economy,” he said.

While some differences over trade appeared in the last few months, Dujovne said G20 members “still have a very big consensus on the benefits of trade for growth.”

“The idea that the gains from trade have to be evenly shared is a concern that was placed both by advanced economies and emerging economies,” echoed Argentine central bank governor Federico Sturzenegger, noting “there was general appeal for multilateralism”.

However, the G20 meeting didn’t discuss specific trade measures, which are appropriate for the World Trade Organization (WTO) to deal with, according to Dujovne.

Chinese Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao said at the meeting that current global recovery is facing “substantial challenges from a strong wave of anti-globalization and unilateralism.”

He urged G20 members to “firmly support the multilateral trading system” and strengthen macroeconomic policy coordination so as to lay a solid foundation for sustainable global growth, according to a statement posted on the website of China’s Ministry of Finance.

The G20 meeting comes after the Trump administration recently announced additional tariffs on imported steel and aluminium and threatened to impose broad tariffs against Chinese imports.

These unilateral protectionist measures have sparked widespread criticism and provoked threats of retaliation from major trading partners, raising the prospect of escalating global trade conflicts that threaten global recovery.

 Violent anti-government protests that spread across Nicaragua in response to its social security system reforms have claimed more than five lives in three days of rioting, reports said.

The violence follows the decision of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) government to push through reforms that would apply a five per cent tax to old-age and disability pensions and increase the contributions paid by both employees and employers.

The reforms, which went into effect on Wednesday, were in response to the financial crisis affecting its National Social Security Institute (INSS), The Guardian reported.

Some reports over Friday night put the death toll between five and 10. Consecutive governments have been accused of using the INSS as a source of “petty cash”.

Rosario Murillo, the vice-president and wife of President Daniel Ortega, has defended the reforms in national radio address.

Murillo has comparing the protests to “vampires, needing blood to feed their political agendas”.

Alleged fraud in electoral processes have allowed Ortega to control the country’s national assembly and make important constitutional changes, including his own right to serve more than two terms as president.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said building up the presence of the United Nations (UN) in Syria deserves attention as it will help collect reliable information.

Russia cannot accept the situation that UN agencies produce reports and statements based on information from other sources than UN’s own ones, he said at a joint press conference on Friday following talks with visiting UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura, Xinhua reported.

Lavrov criticised the US-led missile strikes on Syria last week as they undermined the Geneva talks for the Syrian settlement under the auspices of the UN at a time when Russia, Turkey and Iran very closely approached the resumption of the Geneva process.

He asked the UN to step up humanitarian aid to the Syrian people and help with the reconstruction of housing, infrastructure and facilities of the war-torn country’s national economy.

De Mistura said at the press conference he was pleased that Russia remains committed to pushing for a political settlement of the Syrian crisis.

He said the deconfliction mechanism between Russian and the US forces in Syria has been effective and should continue.

De Mistura expressed the hope that experts of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) will visit Douma district near the Syrian capital of Damascus as soon as possible to investigate an alleged chemical weapon attack by the Syrian government forces.

The US, Britain and France launched intensive missile attacks on Syria on April 14, saying the move was in response to the alleged chemical weapon attack.

Damascus denied the accusation and Russia said its military experts found no traces of toxic substances in Douma.

The OPCW experts are now in Syria for the investigation, but so far they have not visited Douma.

Western countries accused Russia of hindering the OPCW investigation, while Moscow said that the experts cannot enter the area due to a lack of the UN’s permission over safety concerns following the US-led strikes.

The State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH) in China launched a database on Friday for stolen foreign antiques to prevent them from entering and circulating in the country.

The administration will go on to ask entry-exit examination offices to intensify the supervision over the entry and exit of stolen foreign antiques, Xinhua reported.

It also called on professional institutions, practitioners and the public to check the database from time to time, to avoid the purchase or sale of such items.

The damage to cultural heritage has become a common challenge for the international community, and the stealing and trafficking of antiques has damaged the historical and cultural legacy of many countries, the SACH said in the statement.

Last year, the administration joined with the Ministry of Public Security in a similar platform for stolen Chinese antiques.

Since 2008, the SACH has made public information on over 6,900 stolen foreign antiques.

 (07:34) 

Beijing, April 21 (IANS) The State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH) in China launched a database on Friday for stolen foreign antiques to prevent them from entering and circulating in the country.

The administration will go on to ask entry-exit examination offices to intensify the supervision over the entry and exit of stolen foreign antiques, Xinhua reported.

It also called on professional institutions, practitioners and the public to check the database from time to time, to avoid the purchase or sale of such items.

The damage to cultural heritage has become a common challenge for the international community, and the stealing and trafficking of antiques has damaged the historical and cultural legacy of many countries, the SACH said in the statement.

Last year, the administration joined with the Ministry of Public Security in a similar platform for stolen Chinese antiques.

Since 2008, the SACH has made public information on over 6,900 stolen foreign antiques.

(Ians)

The Trump administration has unveiled a new policy that could vastly expand sales of armed drones, making it easier to put American-made weapons into the hands of US allies and partners.

With the plan that was rolled out on Thursday, the administration sought to lift — what it viewed — as self-imposed policy restrictions that limited potential opportunities for business, the New York Times reported.

However, according to experts, the move posed grave risks to US security as the newly-released conventional arms transfer policy will put jobs and the interests of arms manufacturers ahead of safety, security and human rights in its decisions on who the US should arm.

Since taking office, President Donald Trump has shown an “insatiable appetite” for selling American weaponry abroad — at times using face-to-face meetings with global leaders to make a personal sales pitch.

Under the new Conventional Arms Transfer (CAT) policy and Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) export policy, private US defence companies will now be allowed to directly sell certain types of conventional weapons and a broader range of unmanned drones to allies without having to go through the US government, CNN reported.

Trump seemed to foreshadow the new policies during a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday when he said at a that after allies order weapons from the US, “we will get it taken care of, and they will get their equipment rapidly”.

“It would be, in some cases, years before orders would take place because of bureaucracy with Department of Defence, State Department.

“We are short-circuiting that. It’s now going to be a matter of days. If they’re our allies, we are going to help them get this very important, great military equipment,” Trump said.

The biggest change announced involved the sale of larger armed drones like the Predator and the Reaper, which were the workhorses of the fight against insurgents in Afghanistan and the tribal regions of Pakistan.

Former President Barack Obama embraced the weapons but was also so troubled by such remote warfare tools that he placed unusual restrictions on their sale, the Times report said.

“The new drone export policy will keep our defence industrial base in the vanguard of emerging defence technologies while creating thousands of additional jobs with good wages and generating substantial export revenues,” said Peter Navarro, assistant to the President for trade and manufacturing policy.

Under the old policy, only Britain, France and Italy were approved to purchase armed drones, said Dan Gettinger, co-director of the Centre for the Study of the Drone at Bard College.

As more countries are approved, “the risk is that countries may be more willing to use military force when they can do so without risking their own people”, Gettinger said.

(Ians)

Syria has returned to France the top Légion d’honneur presented to President Bashar al-Assad in 2001, saying he would not wear the award of a country that was a “slave” to the US.

The move came days after France said a “disciplinary procedure” for withdrawing the award was under way, the BBC reported.

France had joined the US and the UK in bombing Syrian targets in retaliation for an alleged chemical weapons attack on Douma, the last rebel-held town in the Eastern Ghouta region outside Damascus. More than 70 people were reportedly killed in the April 7 attack.

Former French President Jacques Chirac had decorated Assad with the highest class of the award, the grand-croix, after the latter took power following the death of his father.

“It is no honour for President Assad to wear a decoration attributed by a slave country and follower of the US that supports terrorists,” the Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The other recipients of the award included former dictators Benito Mussolini, Francisco Franco and Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. Tunisia’s ousted former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali received it in 1989 and Russian President Vladimir Putin got it in 2006.

So far, only one foreign leader, former Panamian President Manuel Norriega, has been stripped of the honour. Under French President Emmanuel Macron, Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was also stripped of the award after a series of accusations of sexual harassment and rape.