International
Argentine president testifies for deputy in corruption trial
AFP
Argentine President Alberto Fernandez came to the defense Tuesday of his deputy Cristina Kirchner, testifying in a trial for alleged corruption committed when she was at the country’s helm from 2007 to 2015.
Fernandez appeared as a defense witness in a court in Buenos Aires, giving evidence of events that occurred when Kirchner was president and he her chief of staff.
The president could have provided testimony in writing, but opted to attend the hearing in person in what is interpreted as a show of support for his deputy.
The partnership of Fernandez and Kirchner was severely tested when their center-left Frente de Todos (Everyone’s Front) coalition suffered a battering in parliamentary primary elections in September.
Kirchner pressured her boss into a cabinet reshuffle in the hopes of appeasing an electorate increasingly frustrated with escalating economic woes.
But in a vote in November, their coalition lost control of the Senate — the upper house of Congress. The lower house was already in opposition control.
The pair have a bit more than a year left in office until the next presidential election in 2023.
– Several investigations –
Kirchner is on trial for the alleged fraudulent awarding of public works contracts in her fiefdom in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz, which allegedly benefited businessman Lazaro Baez.
Prosecutors say Baez overcharged for the projects, several of which remain unfinished.
Kirchner, 68, is the target of about a dozen investigations for crimes including bribe-taking, money laundering and obstruction of justice.
Some cases have been thrown out, but at least five are at the trial phase.
She claims political persecution and abuse of a politicized and right-leaning judicial system that her and Fernandez’s coalition have set out to reform.
Fernandez told the court Tuesday there had been no “arbitrary” spending under Kirchner’s presidency.
“Those decisions that were made in budgetary matters and in public works, were never arbitrary,” he testified.
Asked about decisions made to benefit Baez, Fernandes replied: “I am not aware that this is the case.”
He also argued it was impossible for a president to know the nitty gritty of each spending decision.
Fernandez left the court after three hours, without talking to waiting journalists.
Last year, a court dismissed a case alleging that Kirchner, as president, had obstructed an investigation into an attack on a Jewish center in 1994 that killed 85 people.
International
U.S. Senate Rejects Budget, Bringing Government Closer to Shutdown Amid DHS Dispute
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday against a budget proposal in a move aimed at pressuring changes at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), following the killing of two civilians during a deployment of immigration agents in Minneapolis.
All Senate Democrats and seven Republican lawmakers voted against the bill, which requires 60 votes to advance, pushing the country closer to a partial government shutdown that would cut funding for several agencies, including the Pentagon and the Department of Health.
The rejection came as Senate leaders and the White House continue negotiations on a separate funding package for DHS that would allow reforms to the agency. Proposed measures include banning Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from wearing face coverings and requiring them to use body-worn cameras during operations.
The vote took place just hours after President Donald Trump said he was “close” to reaching an agreement with Democrats and did not believe the federal government would face another shutdown, following last year’s record stoppage.
“I don’t think the Democrats want a shutdown either, so we’ll work in a bipartisan way to avoid it. Hopefully, there will be no government shutdown. We’re working on that right now,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House.
International
Trump Says Putin Agreed to One-Week Halt in Attacks on Ukraine Amid Extreme Cold
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he secured a commitment from Russian President Vladimir Putinto halt attacks against Ukraine for one week, citing extreme weather conditions affecting the region.
“Because of the extreme cold (…) I personally asked Putin not to attack Kyiv or other cities and towns for a week. And he agreed. He was very pleasant,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting broadcast by the White House.
Trump acknowledged that several advisers had questioned the decision to make the call.
“A lot of people told me not to waste the call because they wouldn’t agree. And he accepted. And we’re very happy they did, because they don’t need missiles hitting their towns and cities,” the president said.
According to Trump, Ukrainian authorities reacted with surprise to the announcement but welcomed the possibility of a temporary ceasefire.
“It’s extraordinarily cold, record cold (…) They say they’ve never experienced cold like this,” he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later commented on the announcement, expressing hope that the agreement would be honored.
International
Storm Kristin Kills Five in Portugal, Leaves Nearly 500,000 Without Power
Storm Kristin, which battered Portugal with heavy rain and strong winds early Wednesday, has left at least five people dead, while nearly half a million residents remained without electricity as of Thursday, according to updated figures from authorities.
The revised death toll was confirmed to AFP by a spokesperson for the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANPEC). On Wednesday, the agency had reported four fatalities.
Meanwhile, E-Redes, the country’s electricity distribution network operator, said that around 450,000 customers were still without power, particularly in central Portugal.
Emergency services responded to approximately 1,500 incidents between midnight and 8:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, as the storm caused widespread disruptions.
The Portuguese government described Kristin as an “extreme weather event” that inflicted significant damage across several regions of the country. At the height of the storm, as many as 850,000 households and institutions lost electricity during the early hours of Wednesday.
Several municipalities ordered the closure of schools, many of which remained shut on Thursday due to ongoing adverse conditions.
Ricardo Costa, regional deputy commander of the Leiria Fire Brigade, said residents continue to seek assistance as rainfall persists.
“Even though the rain is not extremely intense, it is causing extensive damage to homes,” he noted.
In Figueira da Foz, a coastal city in central Portugal, strong winds toppled a giant Ferris wheel, underscoring the severity of the storm.
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