Guy Taylor
Articles by Guy Taylor
Afghanistan peace talks see life with Taliban prisoner release
The release Tuesday of as many as 900 Taliban prisoners signaled a potentially major breakthrough in relations between the Taliban and the government in Kabul, which continued to trade violent blows after the Trump administration and Taliban leaders announced a deal in February. Published May 26, 2020
China punishes Australia for coronavirus questions, ‘pandering’ to U.S.
Australia is paying a heavy price for taking the lead in demanding a global probe into China's handling the coronavirus crisis, a demand that has prompted retaliatory Chinese tariffs on Australian goods and angry propaganda from Beijing accusing Canberra of being a U.S. lackey. Published May 25, 2020
Mike Pompeo denies State Dept. inspector general was fired in retaliation
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday defended last week's abrupt firing of the department's official watchdog, sharply denying allegations the firing of State Department Inspector General Steve Linick was payback for investigations the IG was conducting of Mr. Pompeo himself. Published May 20, 2020
U.S. accuses China of helping Iran move weapons, smuggle gold out of Venezuela
The State Department accused China on Tuesday of helping an Iranian airline smuggle gold out of Venezuela and ship U.N.-restricted missile and nuclear items into Iran, saying a Shanghai-based company has facilitated the airline's nefarious operations. Published May 19, 2020
Charles Grassley demands Trump to give reasoning for firing of State Department IG Steve Linick
A top Senate Republican Monday called on President Trump to "provide a detailed reasoning" for the firing late last week of State Department Inspector General Steve Linick, amid claims by Democrats he was pushed out for probing the administration's handling of controversial Mideast weapons deals. Published May 18, 2020
Pompeo slams WHO for excluding Taiwan, claims China pressuring world body
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sharply criticized the World Health Organization on Monday for not allowing Taiwan observer status at its virtual meeting this week, claiming the organization's director yielded to "pressure" from China not to invite the Taiwanese. Published May 18, 2020
U.S. may benefit as grim spring undercuts Putin’s plans
Plunging poll numbers, a shelved agenda and a coronavirus outbreak that ranks among the worst in the world have created sudden and deep challenges for Russian President Vladimir Putin, undercutting his carefully crafted image as a 21st-century czar reclaiming a global role for his country. Published May 8, 2020
Russia and Turkey are paying Syrians to fight each other in Libya
Russia is sending Syrian fighters into Libya to back rebel commander Khalifa Haftar, according to a U.N. probe that suggests desperate militants left over from the Syrian civil war are now being paid to fight on opposite sides of Libya's conflict. Published May 6, 2020
Mike Pompeo: U.S. will get back any Americans seized by Venezuelan forces
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vowed Wednesday to "use every tool available" to secure the release of two American citizens that Venezuela claims it detained in a botched mercenary raid on the South American country. Published May 6, 2020
U.S., opposition disavow aborted anti-Nicolas Maduro ‘invasion’ bid in Venezuela
The Trump administration sought Monday to distance itself from an apparently abortive attempt to topple Venezuelan socialist President Nicolas Maduro over the weekend, in a mission that a former U.S. Special Forces soldier said envisioned a "daring amphibious raid" near Caracas. Published May 4, 2020
China Belt and Road initiative threatens to take win in global influence fight
Few doubt that the pandemic has created an inflection point in the battle for global influence between China and the West, and some warn that Washington should be more wary of Beijing's desire to replace the U.S. as the world's most go-to economic partner. Published May 3, 2020
Pompeo calls on Baghdad to drop sectarian ‘quota’ system amid struggle to form new government
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says leaders in Iraq should get rid of their country's sectarian quota system in order to facilitate a much-needed end to a political crisis that's been gripping Baghdad for months. Published April 29, 2020
Mike Pompeo: U.S. mission won’t change if Kim Jong-un replaced
The U.S. demand of total and "verified denuclearization" of North Korea won't change even if the isolated nation's missing-in-action dictator, Kim Jong-un, is replaced anytime soon, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday. Published April 29, 2020
Kim Jong-un death rumors spur theories, predictions
When Kim Jong-un went conspicuously missing for a month back in 2014, North Korean state media finally put rumors about the young dictator's status to bed by announcing he was very much alive, just experiencing some "discomfort." Published April 26, 2020
Trump ‘shoot down’ tweet, Iran satellite launch increase tensions
Iran ratcheted up tensions with its neighbors and with the U.S. Wednesday with the successful launch of its first-ever military satellite, even as Tehran pleads for U.S. sanctions relief and help from the international community to help battle one of the world's worst coronavirus outbreaks. Published April 22, 2020
News of Kim Jong-un heart surgery sparks flurry of speculation
Rumors continued to swirl Tuesday about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's health, even as South Korean and Chinese officials said they saw no evidence to back reports that claimed the secretive Mr. Kim was gravely ill following emergency heart surgery. Published April 21, 2020
Reports of Kim Jong-un health ‘not true,’ South Korea says
South Korean officials pushed back Tuesday at reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had a heart operation and is at serious risk of dying, saying instead that there is "nothing unusual going on" in the North. Published April 21, 2020
Barham Salih, Iraq president, faces perfect storm with coronavirus, oil price drop
Iraq faces a "perfect storm" of challenges from plummeting oil prices to rising COVID-19 rates, President Barham Salih warned Monday, as it struggles to form a government after more than a year of delay while sitting at the epicenter of rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran. Published April 20, 2020
Two North Korean defectors take seats in South Korean parliament
Two North Korean defectors will sit in South Korea's parliament for the first time ever after scoring a small victory for conservatives in the country's midterm elections this week, which were otherwise dominated by President Moon Jae-in and his left-leaning Democratic Party. Published April 16, 2020
U.S. optimistic on supply cut deal as oil prices sag
The Trump administration defended its efforts to lead world oil markets out of crisis Wednesday, even as the International Energy Agency warned the major production cut deal that President Trump helped to broker won't fully offset plummeting global prices and demand. Published April 15, 2020