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Biden Makes Huge Gaff’s at 2022 Asean Summit Calls Cambodia Colombia
On Saturday, US President Joe Biden referred to Cambodia as Colombia, which is hosting an international summit led by Asean Southeast Asian leaders.
“Now that we’re back together here in Cambodia, I’m looking forward to making even stronger progress than we’ve already made, and I’d like to thank the Prime Minister of Colombia for his leadership as ASEAN chair and for hosting all of us,” Biden said during a meeting with his ASEAN counterparts in Phnom Penh.
He was referring to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who currently chairs the 10-member regional bloc.
On a whirlwind trip that includes stops at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt, ASEAN in Phnom Penh, and the G20 summit in Indonesia, the president made a similar gaffe recently while speaking to reporters at the White House.
The US president, who turns 80 on November 20, announced this week that he will run for re-election in 2024, with a final decision expected early next year.
Republican critics have pointed to Biden’s occasional verbal stumbles and tendency to veer off script during live appearances as evidence that he is too old for the job. Supporters argue that the president overcame a childhood stutter and improvised in public speeches for decades.
Biden and Xi centre stage at G20
On Monday, Biden and leaders from the world’s 20 largest economies will convene on the Indonesian island of Bali for a post-pandemic reunion tempered by Sino-US rivalry and overshadowed by a superpower meeting between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping.
With people around the world feeling the pinch of skyrocketing food and fuel prices, Ukraine embroiled in conflict, and the threat of nuclear war looming, G20 presidents and prime ministers will see what, if anything, they can agree on.
It is the largest gathering of leaders since the pandemic began. But this isn’t a happy reunion.
The rivalry between China and the United States has heightened sharply in the last three years, as Beijing has grown more powerful and assertive about replacing the US-led order that has prevailed since World War II.
The meeting between Biden and Xi on the fringes of the G20 on Monday has the air of the icy Cold War conclaves between American and Soviet leaders at Potsdam, Vienna, or Yalta that decided the fate of millions.
Biden has spoken of the meeting as establishing each country’s “red lines,” hoping that competition does not lead to confrontation and conflict.
According to US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Biden will be “completely straightforward and direct” with Xi and expect the same in return.
Biden won’t meet Putin.
Officials say he will also pressure China to rein in ally North Korea after a record-breaking series of missile tests raised fears that Pyongyang will soon conduct its seventh nuclear test.
Xi may be unwilling to assist. He comes into the meeting on the heels of securing a historic third term in office, cementing him as China’s most powerful leader in generations.
Meanwhile, Biden has been buoyed by the news that his Democratic Party retained control of the US Senate after outperforming expectations in the midterm elections, even though his domestic politics remain volatile.
One notable absence from the table will be Russian President Vladimir Putin.
His botched nine-month invasion of Ukraine has made the trip to Bali both logistically and politically difficult.
With members of his inner circle publicly feuding and his once-ironclad domestic authority tarnished, Putin chose to send veteran foreign minister Sergei Lavrov instead.
Officially, neither the Ukrainian conflict nor Putin’s dark threats to use nuclear weapons are on the summit’s agenda.
While the ex-KGB man will not be present at the summit, his war will undoubtedly be on the menu.
Soaring energy and food prices have impacted both rich and poor G20 members, and the conflict directly influences both.
When the current agreement expires on November 19, there will certainly be pressure on Russia to extend a deal allowing Ukrainian grain and fertilizer shipments through the Black Sea.
At the very least, Biden and his allies want the G20 to make it clear to Putin that nuclear war is not an option.
Even that previously uncontroversial position is likely to be stymied by a combination of the Russian opposition and Chinese reluctance to break ranks with its ally in Moscow or hand Washington a victory.
Xi recently told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz that a nuclear war cannot be won and should never be fought.
Ryan Hass, a former China director at the US National Security Council, said Xi “will likely not be as magnanimous in his meeting with Biden.”
“He will not want to be seen as fulfilling a Biden request, whether on Ukraine, nuclear use, North Korea, or any other issue,” Hass told AFP.
Series of G20 ministerial meetings fail
The G20, a disparate and unwieldy grouping formed in 1999 after the Asian financial crisis, has always preferred to talk about finance and economics rather than security.
Moscow wants it to stay that way.
“We categorically reject the politicization of the G20,” the Russian foreign ministry said on Sunday, hinting at what leaders might hear from Lavrov, who is known for his tough stance.
“We are convinced that the G20 is intended to address specifically socioeconomic issues.”
Host Indonesia, wary of favouring China or the United States, is skeptical that the leaders will be able to break the impasse.
In the run-up to the summit, a series of G20 ministerial meetings failed to agree on a final joint communique – a procedural-sounding tradition that can be important in driving cooperation.
On the eve of the summit, Indonesian government minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said, “Honestly, I think the global situation has never been this complex.”
“It’s fine if (G20) leaders don’t produce a communique at some point.”
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Today’s Wordle #1033 Hints and Answer
Today’s Wordle answer should be fairly simple. It has some somewhat common letters. But if this is confusing you, keep reading. Every day, we’ll publish hints and the answer to the current day’s Wordle in case you need them.
If you are here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we provide daily hints and ideas to help you figure out today’s solution.
If you want to know today’s word, scroll down to the bottom of this post to see the Wordle answer for April 17. If you prefer to solve it yourself, keep reading for some hints, tips, and techniques to help you.
Here’s a subtle hint for today’s Wordle answer:
A small monetary gift was given to the church.
Does today’s Wordle answer have a double letter?
The letter T appears twice.
Today’s Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with…
Today’s Wordle starts with the letter T.
What’s the answer to Wordle today?
Get your last guesses in now because it’s your final chance to solve today’s Wordle before we reveal the solution.
Drumroll, please!
The solution to Wordle #1033 is…
TITHE.
Don’t feel down if you didn’t manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we’ll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.
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Russian Missiles Slam Into A Ukraine City And Kill 14 People As The War Approaches A Critical Stage
Kyiv, Ukraine — Three Russian missiles smashed into the downtown district of Chernihiv, northern Ukraine, on Wednesday, striking an eight-story apartment building and killing at least 14 people, according to police.
According to Ukrainian emergency services, the morning attack injured at least 61 individuals, two of them are minors. Chernihiv is located 150 kilometers (90 miles) north of the capital, Kyiv, near the border with Russia and Belarus, and has a population of approximately 250,000.
Russian Missiles Slam Into A Ukraine City And Kill 14 People As The War Approaches A Critical Stage
The latest Russian shelling came as the war entered its third year and approached a critical juncture, with Ukraine’s Western partners’ lack of additional military backing increasingly leaving it vulnerable to the Kremlin’s larger forces.
During the winter months, Russia made no significant advances along the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, instead relying on attrition warfare. However, Ukraine’s lack of artillery ammunition, manpower, and armored vehicles has allowed the Russians to advance gradually, according to military analysts.
A critical factor for Ukraine is Washington’s delay in approving an aid package worth approximately $60 billion. House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Sunday that he would try to advance the deal this week.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think organization, Ukraine’s situation has become critical.
“The Russians are breaking out of positional warfare and beginning to restore maneuver to the battlefield because of the delays in the provision of U.S. military assistance to Ukraine,” the Institute of Strategic Studies (ISS) stated in a report released.
Russian Missiles Slam Into A Ukraine City And Kill 14 People As The War Approaches A Critical Stage
The statement stated, “Ukraine cannot hold the present lines now without the rapid resumption of U.S. assistance, particularly air defense and artillery that only the U.S. can provide rapidly and at scale.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged Western countries to send their own countries with more air defense weaponry, notably more surface-to-air Patriot-guided missiles. The attack on Chernihiv, he continued, “would not have happened if Ukraine had received enough air defense equipment and if the world’s determination to counter Russian terror was also sufficient.”
In an interview with PBS earlier this week, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine recently ran out of air defense missiles while defending against a major missile and drone attack that destroyed one of Ukraine’s largest power plants as part of a recent Russian campaign targeting energy infrastructure.
As he prepared to attend a meeting of the Group of Seven foreign ministers in Italy, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba reiterated Zelenskyy’s need for additional assistance.
“We need at least seven more Patriot batteries to protect our cities and economic centers from destruction,” Kuleba told the German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung in an interview published Wednesday. “Why is it so difficult to find seven Patriot batteries?”
Ukrainian forces are digging in and building fortifications in preparation for a big Russian onslaught, which Kyiv authorities warn might begin as early as next month.
Ukraine is conducting long-range drone and missile strikes behind Russian lines to damage Moscow’s war machine.
Russia’s defense ministry announced Wednesday that a Ukrainian drone was shot down over the Tatarstan region early Wednesday. That is the same location that Ukraine’s deepest strike into Russia so far targeted in early April, approximately 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) east of Ukraine.
Ukrainian drone developers have been increasing the weapon’s range.
The ministry reported that another Ukrainian drone was shot down over the Mordovia region, around 350 kilometers (220 miles) east of Moscow. That’s 700 kilometers (430 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Russian Missiles Slam Into A Ukraine City And Kill 14 People As The War Approaches A Critical Stage
About an hour before the Mordovia incident, due to safety concerns, Russia’s civil aviation authority grounded flights at airports in two of the country’s largest cities, Nizhny Novgorod and Kazan.
According to unsubstantiated accounts, a Ukrainian missile struck an airfield in occupied Crimea. Neither Russian nor Ukrainian officials verified the strike, although local police momentarily stopped the road near the airfield. According to the local mayor, a blast in the region destroyed windows in a mosque and a residential house.
SOURCE – (AP)
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A 9-Year-Old Boy’s Dream Of A Pet Octopus Is A Sensation, With Thousands Following Terrance’s Story Online.
Cal Clifford, 9, has wanted a pet octopus since childhood.
The boy’s family in rural Edmond, Oklahoma, entertained him with toy copies of an eight-legged snail, but as Cal grew older, it became evident that only the actual thing would suffice.
The child’s father, 36-year-old dentist Cameron Clifford, inquired about the prospect with a local aquarium business. Terrance, a California two-spot octopus known as a bimac, soon lived in an underwater habitat at the family home southwest of Oklahoma City.
A 9-Year-Old Boy’s Dream Of A Pet Octopus Is A Sensation, With Thousands Following Terrance’s Story Online.
“We really like to encourage our children’s interests,” stated the elder Clifford. “It’s beautiful to see a kid embrace and realize their ambitions. Cal has been fascinated in the natural world and marine biology since he was very little.”
The father opened a well-known TikTok story by telling the tale of Terrance the octopus in a fake British accent that the social media app had created. Eventually, hundreds of thousands of people started following.
Within weeks, the story took a surprising turn when it was discovered Terrance was a female, having deposited 50 eggs that the family initially presumed were unfertilized. Several weeks later, minuscule near-transparent octopus babies began hatching and were named Rocket Larry, Squid Cudi, Swim Shady, Jay-Sea, and Sea-Yoncé.
While female octopuses generally die shortly after laying their eggs, Clifford says Terrance still lives four months later.
Cal had broken into tears at the family dinner table when his father initially revealed that the local aquarium store had informed him that adopting an octopus was conceivable.
Father and son worked together to determine what was required, settling on a saltwater tank and water cycling system. They also ensured that they could provide food for the soft-bodied sea creature.
Lyle, the family’s younger son, and Kari, the mother, also contributed to the project in their ways. A family friend who is a reptile biologist has offered assistance and advice.
While female octopuses generally die shortly after laying their eggs, Clifford says Terrance still lives four months later.
Clifford stated that the family has benefited much from the experience.
While female octopuses generally die shortly after laying their eggs, Clifford says Terrance still lives four months later.
“Aside from the physical, financial, and emotional requirements of owning a species such as a bimac, you will learn a lot about yourself in the process,” Arizona-born Clifford told TikTok users in his app-generated accent. “There’s always some valve or seal that isn’t completely closed, and your storm-resistant carpet isn’t rated for thousands of gallons of seawater.” You will discover that seawater and electricity sometimes get along.
“You will learn new things, meet incredible people, and learn that wildlife is magnificent,” he went on to say. But most of all, you’ll learn to love a not-so-tiny octopus like Terrance.”
SOURCE – (AP)
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