Economy Politics & Government

Friday News Roundup - International

VENEZUELA-CRISIS-OPPOSITION-GUAIDO
Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed "acting president" Juan Guaido talks to the press as he holds his daughter Miranda, next to his wife Fabiana Rosales, outside his home in Caracas on January 31. FEDERICO PARRA/AFP/Getty Images

With guest host Todd Zwillich.

In Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, who declared himself interim president last week, announced several large protests this week, while President Nicolas Maduro has clung to power.

The BBC reported that Guaidó said he held “secret meetings” with the military to “to win support for ousting President Nicolás Maduro.” The allegiance of the Venezuelan military represents critical support if Guaidó should take control.

President Donald Trump spoke to Guaidó this week. Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said they “agreed to maintain regular communication to support Venezuela's path back to stability, and to rebuild the bilateral relationship between the United States and Venezuela,” according to The Hill.

Regarding American military intervention in Venezuela, National Security Advisor John Bolton said “all options are on the table.”

And in addition, journalists reporting on the country's turmoil are in danger, including foreign correspondents.

In Afghanistan, American military officials announced a tentative peace agreement with the Taliban. But some have worried about what the return of the Taliban under a potential deal might mean for the region's women.

NPR's All Things Considered spoke to the BBC's Kabul bureau chief, Shoaib Sharifi who shared his reporting:

In the northern city of Mazar, I talked to a female painter who has a shop in the city. And she’s worried that under the Taliban regime, women were not allowed to go out of their homes without being accompanied by a male. And even painting was forbidden under the Taliban. So for her, a return of the Taliban with the same strategies and approach they had 20 years back would mean immediate loss of her profession and, as she put it, imprisoned in the – in their homes.

So overall there is a feeling people are trying to digest that maybe the Taliban has also transformed in the last 18 years, and people hope the Taliban understand that there have been a lot of progress in terms of education and human rights overall. So it’s hope [sic] that it’s a new Taliban with a new approach, with an understanding of new realities in Afghanistan.

What would a peace agreement mean for citizens in Afghanistan?

And in negotiations with North Korea, American efforts to get the country to denuclearize “got nowhere” according to sources that spoke with CNN.

In November of 2018, The New York Times reported: “North Korea is moving ahead with its ballistic missile program at 16 hidden bases that have been identified in new commercial satellite images.”

But the president tweeted on Wednesday morning that the U.S. relationship with North Korea was good.

Which is it? We'll ask our panel as we recap the week in global news.

GUESTS

Tom Bowman, Pentagon correspondent, NPR; @TBowmanNPR

Emily Tamkin, Freelance foreign affairs reporter; @emilyctamkin

Courtney Kube, National security and military reporter, NBC News; @ckubenbc

For more, visit https://the1a.org.

© 2019 WAMU 88.5 – American University Radio.

Copyright 2019 WAMU 88.5. To see more, visit WAMU 88.5.

300x250 Ad

More 1A

300x250 Ad

Support quality journalism, like the story above, with your gift right now.

Donate