Trump Postpones G7 Summit and Calls for Russia to Attend - The New York Times

President Trump said on Saturday that he planned to postpone the annual Group of 7 summit of world leaders until September and that he wanted to invite Russia to rejoin as part of an alliance to discuss the future of China.

Mr. Trump told reporters traveling with him aboard Air Force One on his way back from Florida, where he attended the launch of the SpaceX shuttle, that he also planned to invite South Korea, Australia and India to the meeting to discuss China’s future.

“I don’t feel that as a G7 it properly represents what’s going on in the world,” Mr. Trump said, according to a pool report of his remarks. “It’s a very outdated group of countries.”

The United States currently holds the presidency of the Group of 7 industrialized nations, which also includes Germany, Japan, France, Britain, Canada and Italy.

“We want Australia, we want India, we want South Korea,” Mr. Trump said. “And what do we have? That’s a nice group of countries right there.”

Mr. Trump made the announcement not long after Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany had suggested she wouldn’t attend a summit held in Washington amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The president’s saying he would invite Russia — which was indefinitely suspended from the group in 2014 after the annexing of Crimea from Ukraine — could inflame other member nations.

Mr. Trump has previously floated the idea of asking Russia to rejoin, but other member nations have opposed the suggestion, and their approval would be required.

Still, as the host president, Mr. Trump is allowed to invite whoever he wants. And by making Russia one of four countries he said he wants to invite, it means that Russia would be a guest, the way it was before it formally joined the group in the mid-1990s.

Mr. Trump at one point described the theoretical gathering as the “G10 or G11,” which would mean making those countries members — something he cannot do on his own. He said he had had conversations with the leaders of those countries.

At one point Mr. Trump suggested he would host the summit in September, possibly around the time of the United Nations General Assembly, which is slated to begin Sept. 15 in New York, a city that is scheduled to begin its first phase of reopening from coronavirus shutdowns on June 8. At another point, Mr. Trump mused that he might schedule the summit for after the November general election.

Russia’s status in what was then the G8 was a source of consternation for other member nations in 2014, some of whom disagreed on how to punish Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, for aggression in Crimea.

Mr. Putin last visited the United States for an event that was unrelated to the U.N. General Assembly in 2007, when President George W. Bush invited him to the Bush family compound at Kennebunkport, Maine. Mr. Putin, through advisers, has been pushing for another invitation to the United States since 2018. In July of that year, Mr. Trump stunned his director of national intelligence at the time, Dan Coats, when he announced he planned to invite Mr. Putin to visit in the fall. That visit never took place.

Inviting countries with geopolitical significance to discuss China, a country that Mr. Trump has seen as a competitor and an adversary, gives the president a rationale to host Mr. Putin. But the sight of Mr. Putin appearing in the United States two months before the presidential election, after the U.S. intelligence community determined that Russia interfered in the previous one to benefit Mr. Trump, will inflame his critics and risk discomfiting some of his Republican allies.

Even before Mr. Trump’s announcement Saturday, the planning of the summit has fueled months of drama. Mr. Trump had previously suggested holding the summit in June. At the time, officials said it would be held virtually because of the pandemic.

But in late May, Mr. Trump suggested holding the event at Camp David, the rustic presidential retreat that the president has visited only periodically during his term.

It is not only the invitees that have been a source of drama at the U.S.-hosted summit. In October, Mr. Trump announced he would host the summit at one of his private clubs, the Trump National Doral near Miami.

The Coronavirus Outbreak

• Frequently Asked Questions and Advice

  Updated May 28, 2020

  • My state is reopening. Is it safe to go out?

    States are reopening bit by bit. This means that more public spaces are available for use and more and more businesses are being allowed to open again. The federal government is largely leaving the decision up to states, and some state leaders are leaving the decision up to local authorities. Even if you aren’t being told to stay at home, it’s still a good idea to limit trips outside and your interaction with other people.

  • What’s the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface?

    Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.

  • What are the symptoms of coronavirus?

    Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.

  • How can I protect myself while flying?

    If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)

  • How many people have lost their jobs due to coronavirus in the U.S.?

    More than 40 million people — the equivalent of 1 in 4 U.S. workers — have filed for unemployment benefits since the pandemic took hold. One in five who were working in February reported losing a job or being furloughed in March or the beginning of April, data from a Federal Reserve survey released on May 14 showed, and that pain was highly concentrated among low earners. Fully 39 percent of former workers living in a household earning $40,000 or less lost work, compared with 13 percent in those making more than $100,000, a Fed official said.

  • Is ‘Covid toe’ a symptom of the disease?

    There is an uptick in people reporting symptoms of chilblains, which are painful red or purple lesions that typically appear in the winter on fingers or toes. The lesions are emerging as yet another symptom of infection with the new coronavirus. Chilblains are caused by inflammation in small blood vessels in reaction to cold or damp conditions, but they are usually common in the coldest winter months. Federal health officials do not include toe lesions in the list of coronavirus symptoms, but some dermatologists are pushing for a change, saying so-called Covid toe should be sufficient grounds for testing.

  • Can I go to the park?

    Yes, but make sure you keep six feet of distance between you and people who don’t live in your home. Even if you just hang out in a park, rather than go for a jog or a walk, getting some fresh air, and hopefully sunshine, is a good idea.

  • How do I take my temperature?

    Taking one’s temperature to look for signs of fever is not as easy as it sounds, as “normal” temperature numbers can vary, but generally, keep an eye out for a temperature of 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. If you don’t have a thermometer (they can be pricey these days), there are other ways to figure out if you have a fever, or are at risk of Covid-19 complications.

  • Should I wear a mask?

    The C.D.C. has recommended that all Americans wear cloth masks if they go out in public. This is a shift in federal guidance reflecting new concerns that the coronavirus is being spread by infected people who have no symptoms. Until now, the C.D.C., like the W.H.O., has advised that ordinary people don’t need to wear masks unless they are sick and coughing. Part of the reason was to preserve medical-grade masks for health care workers who desperately need them at a time when they are in continuously short supply. Masks don’t replace hand washing and social distancing.

  • What should I do if I feel sick?

    If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.

  • How do I get tested?

    If you’re sick and you think you’ve been exposed to the new coronavirus, the C.D.C. recommends that you call your healthcare provider and explain your symptoms and fears. They will decide if you need to be tested. Keep in mind that there’s a chance — because of a lack of testing kits or because you’re asymptomatic, for instance — you won’t be able to get tested.

  • How can I help?

    Charity Navigator, which evaluates charities using a numbers-based system, has a running list of nonprofits working in communities affected by the outbreak. You can give blood through the American Red Cross, and World Central Kitchen has stepped in to distribute meals in major cities.

---

That prompted a widespread outcry from critics, including some Republicans, who said that Mr. Trump had crossed a line in trying to hold that kind of event at one of his properties, where he would ostensibly profit off the spending of taxpayer funds to host the event and receive free publicity. World leader summits like the G7 typically involve hundreds of officials and support personnel and elaborate security measures.

He then said he would host it at Camp David instead.

Last August, Mr. Trump called for Russia to be readmitted to the summit.

“I think it’s much more appropriate to have Russia in,” Mr. Trump told reporters. “I could certainly see it being the G8 again.”

He said at the time that a rationale for readmitting Russia was that “a lot of the things we talk about have to do with Russia.”

During his presidential campaign, in July 2016, Mr. Trump was dismissive about objections to the Russian incursion into Ukraine during an interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC News.

“The people of Crimea, from what I’ve heard, would rather be with Russia than where they were,” Mr. Trump told Mr. Stephanopoulos. “And you have to look at that, also.”

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China media bristles at U.S. moves on Hong Kong over national security push - Reuters

HONG KONG (Reuters) - China’s state media lashed out on Sunday at possible retaliatory moves by the United States to impose sanctions and end Hong Kong’s special status if Beijing imposes new national security laws, as the city braces for fresh protests.

FILE PHOTO: A pro-democracy demonstrator raises his hand up as a symbol of the "Five demands, not one less" during a protest against Beijing's plans to impose national security legislation in Hong Kong, China May 28, 2020. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

The state-backed China Daily said U.S. President Donald Trump’s pledge to “take action to revoke Hong Kong’s preferential treatment as a separate customs and travel territory”, and to impose sanctions on unspecified individuals, would hurt the United States, and unite Hong Kong with mainland China.

“China has already prepared for the worst. No matter how far the U.S. goes, China will keep its company. If Trump’s plan continues, Washington will soon run counter to the interests of most Hong Kong people,” the state-run Global Times tabloid wrote.

“The extreme tactics of a superpower like the U.S. are nothing less than chronic suicide.”

A Hong Kong government spokesman expressed regret the United States continued to “smear and demonise the legitimate rights and duty of our sovereign” to safeguard national security.

In a sign of diplomatic manoeuvring, the U.S. government said it would put one of its prime Hong Kong properties up for sale - a luxury residential complex worth up to HK$5 billion ($645.09 million).

A spokesman for the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong told Reuters this was part of the U.S. government’s global reinvestment programme that “reinforces the U.S. government’s presence in Hong Kong” through reinvestment in other areas.

China and Hong Kong officials have justified the laws that will be directly imposed by China to restore order to a city that has been wracked by sometimes violent anti-China, anti-government protests over the past year.

Protesters, however, have said they are railing against China’s deep encroachment on Hong Kong’s autonomy and freedoms despite Beijing’s promise to grant the city a high degree of autonomy under a so-called “one-country, two systems” formula since it reverted from British to Chinese rule in 1997.

They have said more protests are planned in the coming weeks.

Countries including the United States, Canada and Britain have expressed deep concerns about the law, with Britain saying it may grant expanded visa rights to large numbers of Hong Kongers.

Demosisto, the advocacy group led by prominent young Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong, said the security law will be “the death of freedom in Hong Kong”.

Details of the laws remain unclear, even to Hong Kong officials, but are expected to be enacted by China’s parliament this summer. The laws will outlaw secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference in Hong Kong, and will be imposed without any local legislative scrutiny.

Authorities in Beijing and Hong Kong insist the legislation will target only a small number of “troublemakers” who threaten China’s national security.

Reporting by Hong Kong newsroom and Stella Qiu in Beijing; Writing by James Pomfret; Editing by Christopher Cushing

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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UFC Fight Night results -- Tyron Woodley vs. Gilbert Burns: Live updates, fight card, highlights, start time - CBSSports.com

In a competitive UFC welterweight division, a single loss can put a fighter a long way from a title shot. That fact alone makes the fight between Tyron Woodley and Gilbert Burns a big fight. The clash serves as the main event of UFC on ESPN 9 from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas.

Woodley is making his return to action for the first time since losing the welterweight championship to Kamaru Usaman in March 2019. Prior to the loss, Woodley had gone seven fights without a loss. Burns, is riding a five-fight winning streak and coming off the biggest win of his career, a first-round TKO of Demian Maia in March.

That fight anchors a five-fight main card, with a heavyweight showdown between Blagoy Ivanov vs. Augusto Sakai serving as the co-main event as the UFC returns to its home base in Nevada.

Can't get enough UFC? Subscribe to our podcast State of Combat with Brian Campbell where we break down everything you need to know in the Octagon.

CBS Sports will be with you all evening bringing you results and analysis from UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas on Saturday, with the main card getting underway at 9 p.m. ET.

UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs. Burns card, results

• Tyron Woodley vs. Gilbert Burns -- Welterweights
• Augusto Sakai def. Blagoy Ivanov via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
• Billy Quarantillo def. Spike Carlyle via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Roosevelt Roberts def. Brok Weaver via second-round submission (rear-naked choke)
• Mackenzie Dern def. Hannah Cifers via first-round submission (kneebar)
• Katlyn Chookagian def. Antonina Shevchenko via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-25)
• Daniel Rodriguez def. Gabriel Green via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jamahal Hill def. Klidson Abreu via first-round TKO (punches)
• Brandon Royval def. Tim Elliott via second-round submission (arm triangle)
• Casey Kenney def. Louis Smolka via first-round submission (guillotine)
• Chris Gutierrez def. Vince Morales via second-round TKO (kicks)

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Former NFL Executive: Teams Saw Colin Kaepernick as 'Bad for Business' - Sports Illustrated

Trump postpones G7 summit, seeks to expand invitation list - Al Jazeera English

US President Donald Trump has announced that he would postpone the Group of Seven summit that he wanted to hold in late June and expand the list of countries invited to include Australia, Russia, South Korea and India.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One during his return to Washington from Cape Canaveral in Florida, Trump said the G7 in its current format is a "very outdated group of countries".

More:

"I'm postponing it because I don't feel that as a G7 it properly represents what's going on in the world," Trump said.

The decision is a dramatic pivot for Trump, who had sought to host the group of major industrialised countries in Washington as a demonstration that the United States was returning to normal after the coronavirus epidemic, which has killed more than 103,000 Americans to date.

The G7 is made up of the US, Italy, Japan, Canada, France, Germany, the UK, as well as the European Union.

Earlier, Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that she has declined Trump's invitation to attend the G7 summit in person, while the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread around the world.

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who hosted the 2018 summit, had also said that any in-person gathering would have to prioritise safety, while a French presidential official said President Emmanuel Macron, last year's host, was "willing to go to Camp David if the health conditions allow".

European Council head Charles Michel, meanwhile, said through a spokesman that he would attend "if health conditions allow".

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European Union Leaders Urge U.S. To Remain In WHO - NPR

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Top officials with the European Union urged President Trump to rethink his plans to leave the international agency. Trump announced his decision Friday after weeks of levying criticisms and threatening to pull funding. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

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Alex Brandon/AP

Officials with the European Union are urging President Trump to rethink his recently announced plans to pull the United States from the World Health Organization.

The president told reporters on Friday of his intentions to immediately cut ties with the international health agency. On Saturday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Josep Borrell, the EU's top diplomat, called on Trump to reconsider his plans, saying "actions that weaken international results" during the coronavirus pandemic "must be avoided."

"The WHO needs to continue being able to lead the international response to pandemics, current and future," said von der Leyen and Borrell in a joint statement. "For this, the participation and support of all is required and very much needed."

The officials also note that the members of the WHO had agreed earlier this month to review lessons learned from the pandemic response.

In April, Trump temporarily halted U.S. funding for the WHO and accused it of "mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus." He's also claimed that China has too much influence over the agency.

Then on May 18, Trump gave the United Nations agency 30 days to make substantial changes or face the U.S. funding cuts becoming permanent. Trump's Friday announcement happened less than two weeks after that ultimatum.

The WHO had no comment on Trump's announcement, but health ministers and member states expressed disappointment in the retreat of the agency's largest single donor.

South African Health Minister Zweli Mkhize called the decision "unfortunate."

"Certainly, when faced with a serious pandemic, you want all nations in the world to be particularly focused ... on one common enemy," Mkhize told reporters.

Quoting German media, The Associated Press reports that the country's foreign minister said Trump's plan sends the "wrong signal at the wrong time."

"The number of people infected worldwide is increasing and the crisis is spreading," Heiko Maas told the Funke media group. "We can't tear down the dike in the middle of the flood and build a new one."

The BBC reports a spokesperson for the United Kingdom reaffirmed that country's commitment to the WHO.

"Coronavirus is a global challenge and the World Health Organization has an important role to play in leading the international health response. We have no plans to withdraw our funding," the spokesperson said.

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Former NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart: Vikings should sign Colin Kaepernick - MSN Money

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Former White House press secretary Joe Lockhart served as the NFL’s primary spokesperson during the anthem controversy in 2017. He has become the first current or former league executive to make a clear, candid statement about the league’s approach to free-agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

Lockhart, in a column posted at CNN.com, argues that the Vikings should sign Kaepernick.

In the column, Lockhart summarizes the anthem controversy and Kaepernick’s role in launching the protests as a way to bring awareness to the mistreatment of African-Americans and people of color by law-enforcement authorities. Although not every single factual assertion is accurate (e.g., Kaepernick did not have “several” workouts with NFL teams . . . in reality, he has had none), Lockhart peels back the curtain on the things that transpired as the league and its franchises tried to grapple with the issues arising from the protests and Kaepernick’s lingering unemployment.

“Kaepernick was not blocked because the league wanted to punish him for setting off the protests,” Lockhart asserts. And he’s right, as it relates to the league office. But the teams ignored the league’s “prodding and pushing” to get Kaepernick a job — due directly to fears over fan reaction to hiring someone who set off the protests.

“Signing Kaepernick, they thought, was bad for business,” Lockhart writes. “An executive from one team that considered signing Kaepernick told me the team projected losing 20% of their season ticket holders if they did.”

So while the refusal to do business with Kaepernick may not have been go-to-bed-without-supper-style discipline because of his protests, he received adverse treatment because of his protests.

Lockhart explains that he justified the unemployment of Kaepernick at the time by focusing on the “millions” being spent by the league “to help address the problem of racial division in the country.” Lockhart admits in his column that he was wrong.

“I know now it was not enough just to spend money to make progress on the issue of racial disparities,” Lockhart writes. “That is crucial, but so are symbols that reflect that attempt at progress — and also the failure to reach it. And Colin Kaepernick became the symbol of black men being treated differently than white men in America.”

The column builds to Lockhart arguing that, given the presence of the Vikings in the epicenter of the current controversy, the Vikings should sign Kaepernick.

He’d definitely fit the offense; the Broncos flirted with trading for Kaepernick in 2016, when Vikings offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak was Denver’s head coach. Still, it’s unlikely that Kaepernick would fit the budget. If offered a job as a backup to Kirk Cousins, one of the highest paid players in the league, Kaepernick would have to take far less than the $12 million that he made in his final season with the 49ers, or the $20 million that he reportedly wanted from the AAF or the XFL. Given the team’s salary-cap situation, the Vikings possibly would be limited to offering Kaepernick a deal for the veteran minimum.

Lockhart likely hasn’t analyzed the situation from a football perspective, however. He’s simply connecting two large dots between Minneapolis and the football team that plays there.

And so the better argument is that someone (not necessarily the Vikings) should offer Kaepernick a contract for 2020. Even then, the current inability to give him a physical or an in-person workout due to the pandemic complicates any effort to move quickly.

It doesn’t stop any team from making a statement immediately that Kaepernick is invited to visit, to submit to a physical to work out, and possibly to enter into contract negotiations as soon as facilities open. Given the broader societal circumstances and the fact that the issues for which Kaepernick protested have reached an obvious tipping point, the potential damage to a team’s bottom line should be far less now than it would have been in 2017.

Especially if, due to the pandemic, fans won’t be attending games, anyway.

 

Former NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart: Vikings should sign Colin Kaepernick originally appeared on Pro Football Talk

Related slideshow: The best QBs drafted by every team (Provided by Yardbarker) 

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