International
Pope Francis is “very interested” in visiting the Dominican Republic, according to Abinader
The President of the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, said that Pope Francis was very interested in visiting the Caribbean country, as the pontiff would have told him last week during a private hearing in the Vatican.
“We invited him” to visit the country “and I saw him very interested in coming and we are following up on that invitation,” Abinader said during his weekly press conference, dedicated this Monday to the trip made last week to Europe, which took him to Italy and Portugal.
The conversation with the pontiff was “quite fluid, I found him in very good health, with some difficulties walking but totally lucid and in a very good mood, in a very good mood.” “That meeting was very cordial and very pleasant,” said Abinader, who during the meeting with the pope also addressed issues such as the situation in Ukraine or Haiti.
In addition, the president met with the Vatican Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, and with the Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations of the Holy See, Monsignor Richard Gallagher.
On the other hand, as for the meeting he had with the president of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, Abinader pointed to the success of the European country in aspects “of great interest to the Dominican Republic, it is an eminently tourist country, they have a population similar to the Dominican one, but they receive 30 million tourists, and they have made a lot of progress in the digital transformation part “and they are collaborating with us” in that matter.
In that sense, Abinader mentioned the Simplex program, equivalent in Portugal to the Dominican “Zero Bureaucracy”, which will be addressed in a virtual meeting and later a Portuguese delegation will visit the Dominican Republic to make an exchange of experiences and “see the cases that we can replicate in the country.”
The Dominican president also visited the Portuguese Navy, the oldest in the world, an institution with which the acquisition of several patrol ships was addressed, vessels that are not very old, but that are changing them for a series of requirements and that are destined for the fight against drug trafficking from North Africa.
Abinader also referred to his intention to be present at the Ukrainian peace conference in mid-June in Switzerland and in which about 160 States will participate: “I think that. the more countries we are present advocating for world peace (…), it will help peace and that is what we are looking for,” he said.
International
Floods in Central Vietnam leave 28 dead, thousands displaced
The death toll from heavy rains and flooding in central Vietnam has risen to 28, with six people reported missing and 43 injured, local newspaper VnExpress reported Friday night.
More than 22,100 homes remain flooded, primarily in the cities of Hue and Da Nang. Floods and landslides have destroyed or swept away 91 houses and damaged another 181, the report added.
Around 245,000 households are still without electricity, particularly in Da Nang, where over 225,000 homes are affected.
Additionally, 80 stretches of national highways are blocked or disrupted due to landslides. Authorities expect the flooding to continue for another day or two in the region.
International
FBI foils ISIS-Inspired attack in Michigan, arrests five teens
Kash Patel did not provide further details, but police sources told CBS News that the potential attack was “inspired” by the Islamic State (ISIS).
“This morning, the FBI thwarted a potential terrorist attack and arrested several individuals in Michigan who were allegedly planning a violent attack during the Halloween weekend,” Patel wrote on X.
“Thanks to swift action and close coordination with our local partners, a possible terrorist act was prevented before it could be carried out,” he added.
CBS reported that five people between the ages of 16 and 20 were arrested on Friday. At least one of them was reportedly acquainted with a former member of the Michigan National Guard, who was arrested in May for plotting an ISIS-inspired attack on a U.S. military facility in the Detroit suburbs.
International
U.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth expressed concerns over China’s growing military activity near Taiwan during a meeting on Friday with Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun in Kuala Lumpur.
“It was a constructive and positive meeting,” Hegseth wrote on X. “I emphasized the importance of maintaining a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific and raised U.S. concerns about China’s actions around Taiwan,” the self-governed island that Beijing claims and does not rule out invading.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus, one day after U.S. President Donald Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea. According to Trump, Taiwan was not discussed during their talks.
“The United States does not seek conflict and will continue to firmly defend its interests, ensuring it maintains the capability to do so in the region,” Hegseth added in his message.
Friday’s encounter followed a September 9 video call between Hegseth and Dong. Their previously planned meeting at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore was canceled due to Dong’s absence from the event.
Trump’s sit-down with Xi — their first since 2019 — resulted in some trade agreements but avoided addressing the issue of Taiwan, a long-standing source of tension between the world’s two largest powers.
Trump has taken a more ambiguous stance on Taiwan’s future compared with former President Joe Biden, who repeatedly stated that Washington would support Taipei if China launched an invasion. The Republican president has also criticized Taiwan for “stealing” the U.S. semiconductor industry.
Floods in Central Vietnam leave 28 dead, thousands displaced
FBI foils ISIS-Inspired attack in Michigan, arrests five teens
U.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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