BEIJING, May 15 (Xinhua) — The recent U.S. Census Bureau data suggest that the U.S. merchandise trade deficit with China was larger in 2022 than when Donald Trump was president, said an article on the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace website. Adding that America’s overall trade deficit hit an all-time high of 1.18 trillion U.S. dollars, Carnegie noted that this fortifies the view that “tariffs would not reduce U.S. trade deficits and the costs would be paid largely by Americans.” Similarly,…

SOUTH Africans have denounced attempts by Western sponsored media and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for orchestrating a smear campaign to influence South Africa to support Ukraine and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the conflict with Russia. Western sponsored media alongside the Centre for Information Resilience (CIR) have been pushing this agenda. This came about after some pro-Ukraine local media with their American counterparts criticised Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of ex-president Jacob Zuma when she expressed her support of Russia’s military operation…

SOUTH Africa will not take sides in a contest between global powers, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said as he hit out at critics accusing his country of siding with Russia in the war with Ukraine. Ramaphosa was writing in his weekly letter, days after the United States envoy in South Africa accused the African National Congress-led government of arming Russia. “Since the advent of democracy nearly 30 years, South Africa has pursued an independent foreign policy.” Ramaphosa said. He noted…

AN economist has dismissed claims China’s increased maize imports from South Africa are a “political posture” by the Asian powerhouse to replace the United States. Some media have made the claims after China bought 108 104 tonnes of maize from South Africa in the last week of March and the first fewweeks of April 2023. State-owned trader, COFCO, brought the grain. Some Chinese buyers reportedly cancelled 562 800 tonnes of US corn orders in the last week of April. Wandile…

THE United States of America’s claims that South Africa is supplying Russia with weapons are part of a fightback strategy against the BRICS’ growing influence, the escalating de-dollarisation campaign and the changing geopolitics, a former SA diplomat said.  Botsang Moiloa, an independent foreign policy analyst, believes US Ambassador Reuben Brigety’s allegations are a strategy to bully and use SA as an example to other developing nations that they would face the music should they dump the US dollar as their…

Political parties have gone to ideological war over the United States of America’s allegations that South Africa supplied Russia with weapons to fight against the Ukrainian army. At a hastily convened media briefing in Pretoria yesterday, US Ambassador to SA Reuben Brigety accused South Africa of supplying Russia with weapons. However, Brigety did not provide any evidence to substantiate his claims, only saying he was “confident” about his assertions and that he could bet with his life. He claimed that…

THE South African Communist Party (SACP) has called on the government to expel the United States (US) ambassador, Reuben Brigety II, following his claims the host country sent arms to Russia, in its conflict with Ukraine. At a press briefing he addressed on Thursday, Brigety accused South Africa of “arming Russia with a vessel that landed in Simons Town.” The envoy further asserted that this was “fundamentally unacceptable.” “The conduct of the United States ambassador to South Africa, leaves much…

MOGADISHU, May 5 (Xinhua) — The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has urgently appealed for funding to assist migrants facing life-threatening risks in Somalia. Funding to assist migrants in the country has fallen drastically over the years, while the needs of the migrant population continue to increase due to climatic shocks, conflicts, and economic crises, the United Nations migration agency said. IOM Chief of Mission for Somalia Frantz Celestin said the agency needs 3 million U.S. dollars before the end…

ISLAMABAD, May 6 (Xinhua) — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s recent layout of the U.S. “geo-economics” strategy has historical roots, which advocates that the United States should achieve its geo-political dominance through military as well as economic means, a Pakistani economist told Xinhua in a recent interview. When the United States had become a global hegemon decades ago, “it is argued that America should pursue its geo-political ends not just militarily but by primarily employing international economic relations, not in…

VLADIVOSTOK, May 5 (Xinhua) — Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov warned on Thursday that Russia and the United States are on the verge of an open armed conflict over Ukraine, but Moscow is trying to prevent this. Ryabkov said that Moscow knew that Kiev was acting under Washington’s instructions when it chose to attack targets in Russia, including a drone strike on the Kremlin, adding that both Ukraine and the United States looked ridiculous when they denied their involvement…