The United States cannot guarantee India will be exempt from sanctions if it purchases weapons and defence systems from Russia, a top Pentagon official said.

Randall Schriver, the Pentagon’s top Asia official, called into question on Wednesday the idea that the US would protect its relationship with India and that it will be insulated from any fallout if the purchase happens.

“I would say that is a bit misleading. We would still have very significant concerns if India pursued major new platforms and systems (from Russia),” Schriver said at a think-tank event, according to Reuters news agency.

The US has imposed sanctions on Russia for its annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, which means any country that engages in defence or intelligence sharing with Russia could also be subject to sanctions.

“I can’t sit here and tell you that they would be exempt, that we would use that waiver, that will be the decision of the president if he is faced with a major new platform and capability that India has acquired from Russia,” Shriver added.

The waivers would be possible according to a new US defence bill, which gives President Donald Trump the authority to exempt countries.

Despite Secretary of Defense James Mattis saying he is a strong proponent of granting waivers to India, Schriver said that Trump having the ability to apply these waivers did not automatically mean he would.

India is in the final stages of acquiring S-400 long-range surface to air missile systems from Russia, a deal worth $6bn. 

The agreement is expected to be signed by Russia later this year.

The acquisition of the S-400 system would be the latest in a long series of Indian defence purchases, as the country has previously bought combat planes, ships and submarines from Russia.

Schriver stated that the US is concerned about this planned purchase, and is willing to talk to India about potential alternatives to the Russian missile system.

State-of-the-art missile system

India is not the only country buying the state-of-the-art system from Russia.

Other countries such as China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have all bought or are planning to buy the anti-aircraft missile weapon.

US military officials and politicians have also expressed concerns over Turkey’s intention to buy the Russian missile system. 

In June, Saudi Arabia said it would consider “all necessary measures” if Qatar closes the deal with Russia.

Despite these threats, Russia has said the supply of the missiles to Qatar will continue, with Qatar’s Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani saying acquiring the system is a “sovereign” decision.

The S-400 missile system is a state-of-the-art weapons platform with a maximum range of 400km, considered one of the best defence systems in existence.

You’ve heard about 8K televisions for years, but even if you had a desire to buy one — given that 8K content is incredibly hard to find — you probably weren’t actually able to do so as sales haven’t yet started for most 8K models. 

Now, however, Samsung has an 8K TV that isn’t just for show. The 85-inch Q900FN, announced ahead of the IFA trade show in Berlin, has four times the pixels than your typical puny 4K TV, and it’ll arrive to U.S. stores this October. 

The QLED TV — not to be confused with OLED — offers 4,000 nit peak brightness and supports the new HDR10+ standard, which optimizes brightness levels so that content doesn’t appear darker than originally intended. 

Possibly the most important tech in the Q900FN (given you probably won’t be able to find decent amounts of 8K content anywhere) is its AI-powered 8K upscaling tech. When you feed lower resolution content to the TV, regardless of the source, the TV’s processor will intelligently upscale it to 8K. I haven’t been to test it, but if this is done well, it will make this TV a lot more desirable. 

Other specs of note include One Remote, which recognizes other devices connected to the TV, and One Invisible Connection, which is a fancy term for optical and power cable being rolled into a single cord. 

There’s no word on the price just yet. 

HEMPSTEAD – Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon engaged in a fiery debate Wednesday evening that saw the candidates spar over government corruption, transparency and who would be better to battle President Donald Trump.

Cuomo, a second-term incumbent, pledged not to run for president in 2020 during the debate at Hofstra University with Nixon, a fellow Democrat who directly and repeatedly challenged Cuomo’s record on progressive issues during the hour-long moderated discussion.

The two candidates engaged in testy exchanges over who was telling the truth and what their personal finances show, but neither appeared to commit any major gaffes in what is the first and only scheduled debate of the primary. 

The primary election is set for Sept. 13.

Here’s a rundown of some of the issues they debated:

Experience

The first question of the debate went to Nixon, who was asked about why she’s running for office and whether she has the necessary experience to be governor.

Nixon, an actor who starred in Sex and the City and is making her first run for office, pointed to her experience as a public-school parent and an activist for LGBT rights and education funding.

She quickly tried to turn the issue on Cuomo.

“I’m not an Albany insider like Governor Cuomo,” Nixon said. “But I think that experience doesn’t mean that much if you’re not actually good at governing.”

Cuomo, who is seeking a third term and has a large lead in public-opinion polls, fired back by pointing to the responsibilities of the governor, including management of a $168 billion budget and responding to natural disasters and crises.

“The governor of New York is not a job about politics, it’s not about activism,” he said. “It’s about doing. This is real life.”

Cuomo 2020?

Cuomo made news early in the debate, vowing to serve a full four-year term should he win in November.

He was asked: Can you promise New York voters that you would serve four years in office and not run for president if you win?

“Yes,” Cuomo said. “Yes, yes and yes. Double yes.”

Later, he added a caveat.

“The only caveat” — the crowd groaned — “is if God strikes me dead,” Cuomo said. “Otherwise, I will serve four years as governor of the state of New York.”

Battling Donald Trump

It didn’t take long for Cuomo to shift the conversation to his differences with President Donald Trump.

Cuomo said he’s the right person to lead resistance to the Trump administration’s policies in New York.

He touted the state’s recent battles with the Trump administration over immigration policy, tax reform and other issues.

“Today, you have to fight Donald Trump, who is the main risk to the state of New York,” Cuomo said. “He is trying to change the rights and values of New Yorkers and the first line of defense is New York and the governor leads that fight and you need to know how to do it.”

Nixon referred back to Cuomo’s recent comment that America “was never that great,” which drew a rebuke from Trump. Cuomo ultimately walked back the comment.

“You stood up to (Trump) about as well as he stands up to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,” Nixon said.

Who is lying?

Fireworks flew when the candidates accused each other of lying.

Several times, Cuomo grew frustrated with Nixon interrupting him during his responses, which caused the two candidates to directly engage.

“Excuse me, can you stop interrupting me?” Cuomo said to Nixon.

“Can you stop lying?” Nixon responded.

“Yeah, as soon as you do,” Cuomo said.

Later, Cuomo said Nixon “lives in a world of fiction” and he “lives in a world of facts.”

Corruption

Cuomo was asked about the March corruption conviction of Joseph Percoco, his former top aide, campaign manager and close personal friend.

The governor said Percoco “did something wrong and it was very painful.”

Cuomo laid out a series of reforms he said the state should adopt to deal with Albany corruption.

“No outside income, period,” he said. “Full financial disclosure and campaign-finance reform because we have to take the money out of politics. It’s that simple.”

Nixon faulted Cuomo for not doing more to push for those changes during his eight years in office and criticized him for shutting down the Moreland Commission, an anti-corruption panel the governor had created.

Marijuana

With Nixon making marijuana legalization a key part of her campaign, moderator Maurice DuBois asked her: What would you say to parents trying to keep their children away from drugs?

Nixon called marijuana a “racial-justice issue,” pointing to arrest data showing black and Latino people are arrested for using the drug at a higher rate than white people.

“What I would say is that we’re not talking about children smoking marijuana,” she said. “We’re talking about adults and effectively, marijuana has been legal in New York for some time and it’s time we made it legal for everyone.”

Cuomo said marijuana use is a “personal decision.”

“My children are now older and I’ve given them the best counseling I can,” he said. “They’re in their 20s and they’re going to make their own decisions.”

Are we human?

Cuomo repeatedly criticized Nixon over her personal taxes, which shows she collects her acting income through an entity known as an S corporation, which comes with certain tax benefits.

He painted Nixon as a hypocrite for backing democratic socialist principles while benefiting from an S corporation. 

At one point, Cuomo went as far to call Nixon a corporation herself.

“You are a corporation,” Cuomo said. “When you file taxes as a corporation, you are a corporation.”

Nixon interjected, saying it’s common for actors to form an S corporation.

“Are you a corporation?” Cuomo shot back.

“I am a person,” Nixon said.

JCAMPBELL1@Gannett.com

Jon Campbell is a correspondent for the USA TODAY Network’s Albany Bureau.

 

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WASHINGTON – When Sen. John McCain left the nation’s capital in December to celebrate Christmas and battle brain cancer in Arizona, friends and colleagues vowed he would return.

For three tribute-filled days beginning Thursday night, their hopes will be realized – posthumously.

It will be a hero’s welcome for the former Navy pilot who spent 5 1/2 years imprisoned in Vietnam and a public servant who spent 36 years in a political career that took him from the House to the Senate and nearly to the White House – twice. 

The swashbuckling style that led to McCain’s label as a maverick will give way to more decorous forms of affection, first inside the U.S. Capitol, then at Washington National Cathedral, and finally overlooking the Severn River at his beloved U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. 

The 81-year-old’s belief in the need for bipartisanship will be on display at the ceremonies and services, including a full-dress memorial during which the two presidents who vanquished him – Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama – will speak.

But even as he settles those old scores, one will remain: President Donald Trump, who had called McCain a “dummy” rather than a hero, was not invited. Vice President Mike Pence will speak at one event, while three members of Trump’s administration will attend another.

The events will be an occasion to recall the many highlights, and perhaps even the low moments, of a career that both enriched and enraged McCain’s colleagues.

On the high side, there was his successful, bipartisan effort to regulate the financing of political campaigns. His winning the Republican nomination for president in 2008 after being written off. His chairmanship of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

On the low side, there was his early entanglement in the “Keating Five,” a group of senators scandalized after intervening on behalf of a failing savings and loan. His frustrated efforts to solve the nation’s immigration crisis. His choice of Alaska governor Sarah Palin as his 2008 running mate and ultimate defeat in November. 

Presidents as ‘friends’

The pomp and circumstance will start Thursday when McCain’s body departs Arizona from Goldwater Air National Guard Base, named for former Sen. Barry Goldwater, who McCain replaced in 1987. Earlier in the day, he was to be eulogized at a Baptist church by former Vice President Joe Biden, whose son Beau died in 2015 from the same vicious disease.

From the Joint Base Andrews military facility in Maryland, McCain will be taken to the U.S. Capitol, where he began his public service career in 1983. There he will lie in State on Friday, becoming only the 31st person to be so honored in 166 years – a list that includes Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan and unknown soldiers from the two world wars, Korea and Vietnam.

Following an 11 a.m. EDT ceremony at which Pence, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan will speak, the public will be invited to pass by McCain’s casket from about 1 to 8 p.m. – and later if necessary.

On Saturday, a motorcade will take the late senator along Constitution Avenue to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, where his widow, Cindy McCain, will lay a ceremonial wreath honoring those who lost their lives in the war that cost McCain his freedom. 

Then it will continue to Washington National Cathedral, where funeral services have been held for 15 presidents dating back to William McKinley in 1901, and where former president Woodrow Wilson is buried. Others eulogized there include Eleanor Roosevelt, Neil Armstrong, Nelson Mandela and victims of the 9/11 attack.

In addition to Bush and Obama, speakers at Saturday’s service include former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, former Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman and television commentator Meghan McCain, the late senator’s daughter. The presidents and others are identified on McCain’s website first as “friend.”

Finally on Sunday, McCain will be moved not to Arlington National Cemetery – where his father and grandfather, both four-star Navy admirals, are buried – but to a spot overlooking the Severn River at the U.S. Naval Academy, beside his old Navy buddy, Charles “Chuck” Larson.

Services there will be private and will include tributes from Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., McCain’s closest friend in the Senate; former CIA director David Petraeus; and McCain’s son Jack, a Navy helicopter pilot.

‘Not even close’

McCain’s last days in Washington included a stay at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in nearby Bethesda, Maryland, to treat an infection stemming from treatment for glioblastoma, the most deadly form of brain cancer. By January, however, his return was rumored.

“We need his voice now more than ever,” Graham mused.  

Happily for his allies and to the chagrin of his opponents, McCain didn’t stop speaking out during his illness, even imparting a farewell statement delivered after his death Saturday afternoon.  

“We weaken our greatness when we confuse our nationalism with tribal rivalries that have sown resentment and hatred and violence in all the corners of the globe,” he said. “We weaken it when we hide behind walls, rather than tear them down, when we doubt the power of our ideals, rather than trust them to be the great force for change they have always been.”

Now it will be left to his wife and seven children, along with his Senate colleagues and friends, to keep John Sidney McCain III’s voice alive. They did so this week by urging well-wishers to send flowers to their local veterans hospital. By Wednesday, the Phoenix hospital had received four deliveries.

“His impact on America hasn’t ended. Not even close,” Biden said Saturday. “It will go on for many years to come.”

In Arizona: ‘We can be proud he was our senator’: John McCain remembered at Arizona ceremony

Reporter’s recollections: What I learned about John McCain during 20 years covering him

Raising hell: McCain wanted to ‘raise hell’ and leave it all on the field. Mission accomplished, Senator.

 

 

 

 

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England’s Keaton Jennings is “completely deceived” by Jasprit Bumrah to be dismissed for a duck on day one of the fourth Test at Southampton.

FOLLOW LIVE: England v India, fourth Test, day one – in-play clips, radio and text

Available to UK users only.

Maiduguri, Nigeria – When a Boko Haram fighter called in during Hauwa Tiramisu’s late-evening radio programme at Dandal Kura International last summer, the presenter froze.

“He said what we are doing is bad and forbidden,” she said.  “[He said] we are working with the government and they’d come for us.

“I was shocked. I was really shocked. I was afraid that night.”

Three months earlier, Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram, released a video describing the radio station’s female employees as prostitutes.

“Listen! That radio station called Dandal Kura, with those prostitutes you parade as your female workers. May Allah curse all of you,” Shekau says, in the local Kanuri language.

Over the past seven years, Boko Haram has been attempting to install a caliphate in northeast Nigeria. 

Since 2009, at least 20,000 people have been killed because of violence. More than five million people do not have regular access to food and nearly two million people have been displaced.

Launched in the northwestern state of Kano in 2015, Dandal Kura was established by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) with Nigerian journalist and manager Faruk Dalhatu and David Smith, the station’s Canadian project lead.

In 2016, the channel – which is editorially independent – moved to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, as relative peace returned to the city.

The station broadcasts information about the government’s counterinsurgency efforts and informs listeners of Boko Haram fighters’ activities and planned attacks.

“People will call us during our live programmes to inform us about an attack in a town, this helps the neighbouring town to be vigilant,” says Bello Sani, head of operations at the station.

There are news bulletins, regular updates from the station’s 30 correspondents, and an array of feature programmes on deradicalisation, education and entrepreneurship.

“Dandal kura” translates as a large meeting place.

The station can be accessed by more than 10 million Kanuri speakers across Nigerian states and neighbouring Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Sudan.

“Dandal Kura was established to roll back the narratives of Boko Haram,” says Dalhatu, the manager, “and to produce quality content that will help to improve communities.”

The station chose the local Kanuri language because “if we have to counter [Boko Haram leader Shekau’s] ideology, we have to do that in his own language,” said Sani, the head of operations.

At the peak of Boko Haram’s campaign of violence, the radio station featured psychologists, counsellors and Muslim leaders to demystify the group’s ideology.

They also informed the audience of security measures to take as attacks raged across villages and towns in the northeast.

Keen listeners such as 54-year-old Bukar Muhammed learned how to avoid traffic jams, insecure areas and crowded hubs – all prime targets for suicide bombers.

“What also interests me about the station is most of the programmes are done in Kanuri. And I have an interest in any programme that is aired in my own language,” Bukar said.

The threats mean our messages are reaching the uppermost echelons of Boko Haram’s leadership.

Faruk Dalhatu, jouranlist and Dandal Kura manager

The station is tucked away in an apartment in an old and safe government residential area, guarded by security agents with AK47 guns at the entrance.

There is nothing to identify the radio station.

“This is deliberate,” said Sani. “Initially we had a banner and a signpost. But we removed them because there were threats.” 

As well as the Boko Haram video, the radio station received a series of phone calls promising attacks unless it stopped broadcasting.

As a result, security was beefed up with new doors installed in the newsroom and studio.

Interns, casual workers and visitors can only enter with senior staff members. 

While troubling, Dalhatu said the threats suggest the station is doing something right.

“[The threats] mean our messages are reaching the uppermost echelons of [Boko Haram’s] leadership,” he said.

Musa Liman, a senior lecturer in mass communication at the University of Maiduguri, said the station has a positive effect.

“Its significance was felt because people got to know about Boko Haram’s strategy and [some of] those who were about to be recruited decided not to get entangled,” she said.

Looking ahead, Dandal Kura plans to tackle another scourge which acts as a motivating factor for recruits to armed groups – unemployment.

“We want this station to be sustained because there’s none like it and it is serving a useful purpose,” says Dalhatu.

Back at the station, an atmosphere of fear still hangs in the studios.

Sani is yet to relocate his family to Maiduguri. He visits them often in Kano, which is about 600km away.

“I have never felt confident to bring them here. When I know my family is safe, it takes the pressure off,” he says. “But I am not safe.”

Image: Joe raedle/Getty Images

The gaming community has rallied together following the shooting at a Madden event in Jacksonville, and now Electronic Arts has made a sizeable monetary contribution.

EA will donate $1 million to support the victims of Sunday’s tragedy, which it’s called the Jacksonville Tribute. 

“We’re also working to set up a fund where others can contribute alongside our donation, and we will come back very soon with further details,” the statement reads.

“Contributions will go to the victims, including the families of Taylor Robertson, Elijah Clayton, and all those who were affected.”

EA will also host a livestream in tribute on Sep. 6, allowing the wider community to join together and  unite in play. 

On Tuesday, EA cancelled three remaining qualifier events which were scheduled as part of the Madden Classic tournament. EA CEO Andrew Wilson said it would run “a comprehensive review of safety protocols for competitors and spectators.”

“We will work with our partners and our internal teams to establish a consistent level of security at all of our competitive gaming events,” the statement added.

Competitors Taylor “SpotMePlzzz” Robertson and Elijah “TrueBoy” Clayton died at the Jacksonville event, while 11 others were injured in the incident.

Associated Press

Published 5:49 a.m. ET Aug. 30, 2018

COPENHAGEN, Denmark – A Swedish government study says there’s been a recent surge in the number of automated Twitter accounts ahead of the Sept. 9 election, noting that 40 percent of them are more likely to support the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats party, expected to make gains.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark – A Swedish government study says there’s been a recent surge in the number of automated Twitter accounts ahead of the Sept. 9 election, noting that 40 percent of them are more likely to support the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats party, expected to make gains.

The study by Sweden’s defense research agency comes amid broader concerns over misinformation ahead of the election. 

Researcher Johan Fernquist says the number of so-called Twitter bots discussing politics nearly doubled from July to August.

The report published Wednesday said users “may be led to believe that this content (is) more widely accepted or more mainstream than it actually is.”

Swedish authorities repeatedly have talked about the potential risk of foreign inference in the vote.

Polls suggest the Sweden Democrats could become Sweden’s second largest party.

Researcher Johan Fernquist says the number of so-called Twitter bots discussing politics nearly doubled from July to August.

The report published Wednesday said users “may be led to believe that this content (is) more widely accepted or more mainstream than it actually is.”

Swedish authorities repeatedly have talked about the potential risk of foreign inference in the vote.

Polls suggest the Sweden Democrats could become Sweden’s second largest party.

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A US official has called for an investigation into attacks by the Saudi-UAE coalition in Yemen and for perpetrators to be held accountable.

In an interview with Al Jazeera in the Saudi city of Jeddah, Deputy US Ambassador to Yemen Ana Escrogima called for a speedy and transparent probe into the raids carried out by the Saudi-UAE coalition in Yemen.

Escorgima’s calls came after a team of UN-mandated investigators said in a report they had “reasonable grounds to believe that the parties to the armed conflict in Yemen have committed a substantial number of violations of international humanitarian law.”

The damning report blamed both the Houthis and the Saudi-UAE coalition for the violence in Yemen, but said air attacks by the military coalition had caused the most direct civilian casualties in the war, and added that a blockade of Yemeni ports and airspace may have violated international humanitarian law.

Kamel Jendoubi, who heads the UN team, said the investigators had identified a number of alleged perpetrators.

“A confidential list of these individuals will be presented today to the [UN] High Commissioner” for Human Rights, he told journalists in Geneva.

“The group of experts has reason to believe the government of Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, are responsible for violations of human rights,” said Jendoubi.

“Violations and crimes have been perpetrated and continue to be perpetrated in Yemen by the parties to the conflict.

The experts also accused the Houthis of indiscriminate shelling in civilian areas and snipers targeting non-combatants.

Saudi-UAE response

The coalition, which has been at war with Houthi rebels since March 2015, has repeatedly denied allegations of war crimes, and claims its attacks are not directed at civilians.

A spokesperson for the Saudi military said the UN report was referred to a legal team for review and will announce its conclusions after it is completed.

UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said the report merited a response.

“We should review and respond to the [UN] experts’ report published today,” said Gargash in a tweet. “The coalition is fulfilling its role in reclaiming the Yemeni state and securing the future of the region from Iranian interference.”

In a statement published by the Saudi Press Agency on Wednesday, the coalition condemned the report saying it “did not refer to the Iranian role in the continuation of the war in Yemen and fueling the conflict and its continued support for the Houthis.”

Data collected by Al Jazeera and the Yemen Data Project has found almost one-third of the 16,000 air raids carried out in the country have hit non-military sites.

The attacks have targeted weddings and hospitals, as well as water and electricity plants, killing and wounding thousands.

The aid group Save the Children has estimated that an average of 130 children die every day from extreme hunger and disease – a crisis brought about by the conflict.

And according to the UN, at least 10,000 people have been killed since the start of the conflict. However, analysts say the death toll is likely to be higher.

The UN has described the situation in Yemen as world’s worst humanitarian crisis.