Latest news with #politicalpressure
Japan Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Why Ishiba refuses to quit even amid intense pressure for him to go
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba faces intense pressure within the Liberal Democratic Party to take responsibility for three election defeats by resigning. But he remains at bat following his third strike as the head of the LDP — the party's July 20 Upper House election loss. Ishiba's first strike came after becoming LDP president in September last year, when he led the party to a Lower House election a month later in which it lost its majority. The second strike came when the LDP was dealt a huge blow in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election in June, during which it lost nine seats and was relegated to becoming the second-largest party in the assembly, behind Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike's Tomin First no Kai (Tokyoites First). In a meeting with party executives and angry LDP lawmakers on Monday, Ishiba resisted calls for him to resign, saying he would stay on as party president and prime minister in order to prevent a political vacuum from forming. 'It's important that public opinion and our party's views are aligned,' Ishiba said, adding that an appropriate decision on his future would be made with these and other factors in mind. Recent media polls suggest that the public is not as anxious as many in the LDP to see Ishiba resign over the electoral losses, which past party presidents have often done. The LDP is also expected to complete its own evaluation of the Upper House results, and why it lost, by mid-August. Ishiba is likely to wait until the party's conclusions are official before formally deciding his future. Ishiba says that his insistence on remaining, at least for now, is also due to specific policy issues. On Tuesday, he told reporters that he wanted to make sure the 15% tariff deal with the U.S. is implemented. He said it was vital to examine the impact of the agreement on the roughly 4,300 domestic items covered by it. Pro-Ishiba demonstrators concerned about who might succeed him in the event that he steps down urge the prime minister to stay on during the rally on Friday. | AFP-JIJI Another reason Ishiba isn't bowing to pressure to resign is a busy August schedule. He'll likely attend events related to the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, such as memorial services for victims of atomic bombings in Hiroshima on Aug. 6 and Nagasaki on Aug. 9, as well as a ceremony commemorating Japan's war dead on Aug. 15. The Bon summer holidays follow soon after, and then Ishiba will welcome African leaders to the Tokyo International Conference on African Development that takes place from Aug. 20 to Aug. 22. Once August ends, any push for a leadership change becomes tricky as the political world prepares for the opening of the autumn session of parliament. The timeline is sure to be on the minds of LDP members seeking to oust Ishiba as quickly as possible. These include Sanae Takaichi, a former economic security minister and a conservative, and Toshimitsu Motegi, a veteran leader and a former party secretary-general. Both are trying to boost their standings within the party and among the public by criticizing Ishiba, who is in no hurry to let either of his rivals take over. While many LDP members agree Ishiba needs to go, the party — still reeling from the three election losses — has not rallied around a single rival candidate due to its own internal divisions. To win an LDP presidential election, a candidate needs to win a majority of votes from party parliamentarians and local chapters in the first round, or in a runoff between the top two first-round finishers. Yet even if an Ishiba rival manages to rally enough supporters to win the LDP presidency, the prime minister job is not guaranteed due to the party's lack of any parliamentary majority. Anyone replacing Ishiba would have to secure votes from at least one of the main opposition parties to become prime minister. For that to happen, LDP executives and opposition parties would first need to hammer out a deal right after a presidential election takes place. That could prove difficult to do quickly before the start of the autumn session of parliament, and would risk internal dissent within the LDP as well as create political problems for an opposition party leader who must convince members to vote for an LDP candidate to become prime minister rather than one of their own. Many want to see Ishiba strike out, but replacing him may not guarantee a more stable LDP or a more stable political situation. Staff writer Gabriele Ninivaggi contributed to this report.
Arab News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Iraq's prime minister seeks closer US ties while keeping armed groups at bay
BAGHDAD: The prime minister of Iraq has kept his country on the sidelines as military conflicts raged nearby for almost two years. This required balancing Iraq's relations with two countries vital to his power and enemies with each other: the US and Iran. The feat became especially difficult last month when war broke out between Israel, a US ally, and Iran — and the US struck Iranian nuclear sites. Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani said he used a mix of political and military pressure to stop armed groups aligned with Iran from entering the fray. In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Al-Sudani explains how he did this, how he plans to keep these groups in check going forward and — as he seeks a second term — why he wants to get closer to the Trump administration, even as he maintains strong ties to Iran-backed political parties that helped propel him to power in 2022. Staying on the sidelines as Israel and Iran traded blows After Israel launched airstrikes on Iran and it responded by firing missiles at Tel Aviv, armed groups in Iraq attempted to launch missiles and drones toward Israel and at bases in Iraq housing US troops, Al-Sudani said. But they were thwarted 29 times by Iraqi government 'security operations' that he did not detail. 'We know that the (Israeli) government had a policy — and still does — of expanding the war in the region,' Al-Sudani said. 'Therefore, we made sure not to give any justification to any party to target Iraq.' Al-Sudani said his government also reached out to leaders in Iran 'to urge them toward calm and to make room for dialogue and a return to negotiations.' The future of the US presence in Iraq is in flux The US and Iraq last year announced an agreement to wrap up the mission of an American-led coalition in Iraq fighting the Islamic State — and in March Al-Sudani announced that the head of IS in Iraq and Syria had been killed in a joint Iraqi-US operation. The first phase of the coalition's drawdown was supposed to be completed by September 2025, but there has been little sign of it happening. Al-Sudani said the US and Iraq will meet by the end of the year to 'arrange the bilateral security relationship' between the two countries. He also hopes to secure US economic investment — in oil and gas, and also artificial intelligence — which he said would contribute to regional security and make 'the two countries great together.' A variety of militias sprung up in Iraq in the years after the 2003 US invasion that toppled former autocratic leader Saddam Hussein. And since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October 2023, sparking regionwide conflicts, an array of pro-Iran armed factions have periodically launched strikes on bases housing US troops. Al-Sudani said the presence of the coalition forces had provided a 'justification' for Iraqi groups to arm themselves, but that once the coalition withdrawal is complete, 'there will be no need or no justification for any group to carry weapons outside the scope of the state.' The fate of Iran-backed militias in Iraq is unclear One of the most complicated issues for Al-Sudani is how to handle the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of mostly Shiite, Iran-backed militias that formed to fight IS. This coalition was formally placed under the control of the Iraqi military in 2016, although in practice it still operates with significant autonomy. The Iraqi parliament is discussing legislation that would solidify the relationship between the military and the PMF, drawing objections from Washington. The State Department said in a statement last week that the legislation 'would institutionalize Iranian influence and armed terrorist groups undermining Iraq's sovereignty.' Al-Sudani defended the proposed legislation, saying it's part of an effort to ensure that arms are controlled by the state. 'Security agencies must operate under laws and be subject to them and be held accountable,' he said. Indications of weak state authority In recent weeks, a series of drone attacks have targeted oil facilities in northern Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region. Kurdish regional authorities accused groups in the PMF of carrying out the attacks. Authorities in Baghdad disputed this, but haven't assigned blame. Al-Sudani called the attacks a 'terrorist act' and said his government is working with Kurdish authorities and coalition forces to identify those responsible and hold them accountable. Just as the drone attacks have called into question Baghdad's control over armed groups, so has the case of Israeli-Russian researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov, who went missing in Iraq in 2023. Her family believes she is being held by the Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah, and there have reportedly been US-mediated negotiations to negotiate her release. Al-Sudani did not name the group responsible for Tsurkov's kidnapping, but he pushed back against the idea that his government has not made serious efforts to free her. He said his government has a team dedicated to finding her. 'We do not negotiate with gangs and kidnappers,' he said, but the team has been in discussions with political factions that might be able to help locate her. Rebuilding relations with Damascus Relations between Iraq and the new government in Syria have been tenuous since the fall of former President Bashar Assad in December, after a lightning offensive led by Sunni Islamist insurgents. Syria's interim President Ahmad Al-Sharaa was formerly known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed Al-Golani. He once joined the ranks of Al-Qaeda insurgents battling US forces in Iraq after the US-led invasion in 2003. Al-Sharaa still faces a warrant for his arrest on terrorism charges in Iraq. Al-Sharaa has since broken with Al-Qaeda and has fought against the Islamic State. Al-Sudani said his government is coordinating with the new Syrian government, particularly on security matters. 'We and the administration in Syria certainly have a common enemy, Daesh, which is clearly and openly present inside Syria,' he said. Al-Sudani said his government has warned the Syrians against the mistakes that occurred in Iraq after Saddam's fall, when the ensuing security vacuum spawned years of sectarian violence and the rise of armed extremist groups. In recent weeks, sectarian violence in Syria has shaken the country's fragile postwar recovery. Al-Sudani called for Syria's current leadership to pursue a 'comprehensive political process that includes all components and communities.' 'We do not want Syria to be divided,' he said. 'This is unacceptable and we certainly do not want any foreign presence on Syrian soil,' apparently alluding to Israel's incursions into southern Syria.
Associated Press
3 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Iraq's prime minister seeks closer US ties while keeping armed groups at bay
BAGHDAD (AP) — The prime minister of Iraq has kept his country on the sidelines as military conflicts raged nearby for almost two years. This required balancing Iraq's relations with two countries vital to his power and enemies with each other: the U.S. and Iran. The feat became especially difficult last month when war broke out between Israel, a U.S. ally, and Iran — and the U.S. struck Iranian nuclear sites. Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said he used a mix of political and military pressure to stop armed groups aligned with Iran from entering the fray. In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Al-Sudani explains how he did this, how he plans to keep these groups in check going forward and — as he seeks a second term — why he wants to get closer to the Trump administration, even as he maintains strong ties to Iran-backed political parties that helped propel him to power in 2022. Staying on the sidelines as Israel and Iran traded blows After Israel launched airstrikes on Iran and it responded by firing missiles at Tel Aviv, armed groups in Iraq attempted to launch missiles and drones toward Israel and at bases in Iraq housing U.S. troops, al-Sudani said. But they were thwarted 29 times by Iraqi government 'security operations' that he did not detail. 'We know that the (Israeli) government had a policy — and still does — of expanding the war in the region,' al-Sudani said. 'Therefore, we made sure not to give any justification to any party to target Iraq.' Al-Sudani said his government also reached out to leaders in Iran 'to urge them toward calm and to make room for dialogue and a return to negotiations.' The future of the US presence in Iraq is in fluxThe U.S. and Iraq last year announced an agreement to wrap up the mission of an American-led coalition in Iraq fighting the Islamic State — and in March al-Sudani announced that the head of IS in Iraq and Syria had been killed in a joint Iraqi-U.S. operation. The first phase of the coalition's drawdown was supposed to be completed by September 2025, but there has been little sign of it happening. Al-Sudani said the U.S. and Iraq will meet by the end of the year to 'arrange the bilateral security relationship' between the two countries. He also hopes to secure U.S. economic investment — in oil and gas, and also artificial intelligence — which he said would contribute to regional security and make 'the two countries great together.' A variety of militias sprung up in Iraq in the years after the 2003 U.S. invasion that toppled former autocratic leader Saddam Hussein. And since the war between Israel and Hamas began in October 2023, sparking regionwide conflicts, an array of pro-Iran armed factions have periodically launched strikes on bases housing U.S. troops. Al-Sudani said the presence of the coalition forces had provided a 'justification' for Iraqi groups to arm themselves, but that once the coalition withdrawal is complete, 'there will be no need or no justification for any group to carry weapons outside the scope of the state.' The fate of Iran-backed militias in Iraq is unclear One of the most complicated issues for al-Sudani is how to handle the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of mostly Shiite, Iran-backed militias that formed to fight IS. This coalition was formally placed under the control of the Iraqi military in 2016, although in practice it still operates with significant autonomy. The Iraqi parliament is discussing legislation that would solidify the relationship between the military and the PMF, drawing objections from Washington. The State Department said in a statement last week that the legislation 'would institutionalize Iranian influence and armed terrorist groups undermining Iraq's sovereignty.' Al-Sudani defended the proposed legislation, saying it's part of an effort to ensure that arms are controlled by the state. 'Security agencies must operate under laws and be subject to them and be held accountable,' he said. Indications of weak state authority In recent weeks, a series of drone attacks have targeted oil facilities in northern Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region. Kurdish regional authorities accused groups in the PMF of carrying out the attacks. Authorities in Baghdad disputed this, but haven't assigned blame. Al-Sudani called the attacks a 'terrorist act' and said his government is working with Kurdish authorities and coalition forces to identify those responsible and hold them accountable. Just as the drone attacks have called into question Baghdad's control over armed groups, so has the case of Israeli-Russian researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov, who went missing in Iraq in 2023. Her family believes she is being held by the Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah, and there have reportedly been U.S.-mediated negotiations to negotiate her release. Al-Sudani did not name the group responsible for Tsurkov's kidnapping, but he pushed back against the idea that his government has not made serious efforts to free her. He said his government has a team dedicated to finding her. 'We do not negotiate with gangs and kidnappers,' he said, but the team has been in discussions with political factions that might be able to help locate her. Rebuilding relations with Damascus Relations between Iraq and the new government in Syria have been tenuous since the fall of former President Bashar Assad in December, after a lightning offensive led by Sunni Islamist insurgents. Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa was formerly known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani. He once joined the ranks of al-Qaida insurgents battling U.S. forces in Iraq after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Al-Sharaa still faces a warrant for his arrest on terrorism charges in Iraq. Al-Sharaa has since broken with al-Qaida and has fought against the Islamic State. Al-Sudani said his government is coordinating with the new Syrian government, particularly on security matters. 'We and the administration in Syria certainly have a common enemy, ISIS, which is clearly and openly present inside Syria,' he said. Al-Sudani said his government has warned the Syrians against the mistakes that occurred in Iraq after Saddam's fall, when the ensuing security vacuum spawned years of sectarian violence and the rise of armed extremist groups. In recent weeks, sectarian violence in Syria has shaken the country's fragile postwar recovery. Al-Sudani called for Syria's current leadership to pursue a 'comprehensive political process that includes all components and communities.' 'We do not want Syria to be divided,' he said. 'This is unacceptable and we certainly do not want any foreign presence on Syrian soil,' apparently alluding to Israel's incursions into southern Syria.
Washington Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Iraq's prime minister seeks closer US ties while keeping armed groups at bay
BAGHDAD — The prime minister of Iraq has kept his country on the sidelines as military conflicts raged nearby for almost two years. This required balancing Iraq's relations with two countries vital to his power and enemies with each other: the U.S. and Iran. The feat became especially difficult last month when war broke out between Israel, a U.S. ally, and Iran — and the U.S. struck Iranian nuclear sites. Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said he used a mix of political and military pressure to stop armed groups aligned with Iran from entering the fray.
CNN
24-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNN
CBS picks new ‘60 Minutes' boss amid persistent concerns about Paramount shake-up
FacebookTweetLink CBS News is not hiring an outsider to helm '60 Minutes' as the program's correspondents feared might happen. Instead, the coveted executive producer job is going to Tanya Simon, a 25-year veteran of the newsmagazine, which has faced intense political pressure from President Trump for nearly a year. Simon took charge on an interim basis last spring when the program's longtime leader Bill Owens resigned under pressure last spring. The promotion became official on Thursday morning when CBS News president Tom Cibrowski announced her new title at the network news division's daily editorial meeting. Simon 'understands what makes '60 Minutes' tick,' Cibrowski said, praising her depth of experience with the program, which is America's highest-rated newsmagazine. Inside CBS, serious questions persist about potential corporate interference in news coverage. After Trump filed a legally dubious lawsuit against CBS News over a '60 Minutes' interview of Kamala Harris last fall, journalists felt that the network's parent company Paramount did not fully back them up. Throughout the winter and spring, as '60 Minutes' continued to produce sharply reported segments about Trump's return to office and the impacts of his actions, news executives repeatedly clashed with Paramount bosses over the content of the program. Getting and keeping '60 Minutes' on the air was a week-by-week challenge, people at the network told CNN at the time. When Owens stepped down in April, he said it had become clear 'that I would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it,' to 'make independent decisions based on what was right for 60 Minutes, right for the audience.' Simon, the daughter of the late '60' correspondent Bob Simon and the executive editor of the program for the past six years, stepped up as an interim executive producer. '60 Minutes' is currently on its annual summer hiatus, which means CBS is airing encore episodes while teams are hard at work on new reports for the fall and beyond. Earlier this month, Paramount struck a $16 million settlement deal with Trump to resolve his '60 Minutes' lawsuit, and was widely criticized for doing so. Journalists at the newsmagazine have ongoing concerns about what pressures Simon might face as executive producer. Nevertheless, her promotion on Thursday came as a relief to staffers. CBS noted that Simon 'is the fourth executive producer in the broadcast's 57-year history, and the first woman in the role.' In a press release, Simon said she is deeply committed to the newsmagazine's historic 'level of excellence,' and 'I look forward to delivering an exciting season of signature 60 stories that cover a wide range of subjects for a broad audience and engage viewers with their world.' New episodes of '60 Minutes' are slated to begin airing on September 28. By then, CBS might be closer to having a new owner. Paramount is in the process of merging with Skydance Media, but the deal requires Trump administration approval, and the review has been taking an unusually long time. Earlier this week, in an apparent effort to win the administration's blessing, Skydance told the FCC that if allowed to take over Paramount, it will hire an ombudsman at CBS and will take complaints about bias seriously. The company also pledged not to implement any of the 'DEI,' or diversity, equity and inclusion, policies that Trump has condemned. FCC chair Brendan Carr, a Trump loyalist, shared Skydance's commitments with associates on Tuesday — a possible signal that he was pleased. When asked by CNN if he is now any closer to approving the merger, he did not respond.
