Colombia has upgraded its ties with Beijing – a new sign that Latin America is tired of Washington gatekeeping its development
By Timur Fomenko, a political analyst
Colombian President Gustavo Petro made an official visit to Beijing and met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Wednesday. The two countries officially upgraded their relationship to a ‘strategic partnership’, elevating their economic and diplomatic cooperation.
China has established over 100 ‘strategic partnerships’ in the world since the end of the Cold War. This umbrella term is usually an expression of commitment to a long-term, stable, and mutually beneficial partnership, and signifies that the two countries have a number of common goals and interests, and a desire to work on them together – usually trade- and investment-related.
A strategic partnership with China is not an alliance. Some of them can be with countries that have been aligned with the US and have even shown brazen hostility towards China in recent years, such as Australia. Beijing ultimately sees the establishment of these partnerships as critical to ensuring its own place in the world, thwarting long-term US attempts to isolate it, and creating pathways to its own development......more
https://www.rt.com/news/586106-china-colombia-strategic-partnership/
US President Donald Trump confirmed on Wednesday the upcoming start of ground strikes against drug cartel targets in Latin America.
He made the remarks during Christmas greetings to the military.
Trump said the United States was "now going after the land" in its fight against drug cartel targets, noting that drug trafficking by sea was down 96 percent.
The U.S. president also extended special congratulations to the crew of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, currently deployed in the Caribbean.
BEIJING (Sputnik) - China has begun operating the world's first intelligent ultra-large oil tanker powered by methanol, the China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Monday.
The tanker, designed to transport crude oil, was successfully put into operation in the city of Dalian in China's northeastern coastal province of Liaoning, the report said. State-owned company Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co Ltd independently designed and built the vessel, it added.
The tanker is approximately 333 meters (1,092 feet) long and can carry around 2.1 million barrels of crude oil, the CCTV reported. Designed to produce low emissions and having intelligent control capabilities, the tanker will serve the route to the Middle East, among others, according to the report.
The vessel is powered by a dual-fuel methanol engine, which reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 92% compared to conventional fuel, the CCTV reported. It is equipped with an intelligent ship platform, an intelligent liquid cargo ...
A car bomb has killed a senior General Staff member, officials have confirmed
Source: The Investigative Committee
A Russian general has been killed in a car bomb blast in Moscow, the Investigative Committee has reported.
Officials identified the victim as Lt. Gen. Fanil Sarvarov, head of operational training at the General Staff. According to the statement, an explosive device had been planted beneath the vehicle he was traveling in, and detonated on Monday morning in the southern part of the Russian capital.
The blast also damaged several other vehicles and seriously injured Sarvarov’s driver, media reports stated.
Russian officials said one line of investigation is an assassination carried out by Ukrainian intelligence services, noting that Kiev has previously used explosive devices in targeted killings of officials and public figures.
Last December, a bomb hidden in an e-scooter killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, commander of Russia’s Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense ...
