All posts tagged: chief

Japan FX chief Mimura says on alert over yen moves, not reassured

Japan FX chief Mimura says on alert over yen moves, not reassured

Published by Sam Flores

TOKYO, Sept 3 : Japan’s top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura said on Thursday that he remained on alert over currency market developments, warning that he was not yet comfortable with recent moves in the yen. The yen extended gains after a sudden burst higher on Wednesday, though traders pointed to rising bets on Bank of Japan rate hikes rather than attribute the move to intervention by the Japanese authorities. Mimura, Japan’s vice finance minister for international affairs, declined to comment on specific currency levels or market movements, but said he was “neither satisfied nor reassured” by recent developments. “We remain on a state of heightened alert,” Mimura told reporters after he returned from the G20 finance leaders’ gathering in Asheville, North Carolina. When asked whether authorities had conducted a rate check, Mimura said: “I will not comment on that.” Mimura also said the Japanese Finance Minister and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had very productive discussions, whether on market developments or cooperation within the G20 framework, in response to a question about Bessent’s recent comments …

Bessent urges BOJ chief to conduct ‘sound’ policy to avoid yen volatility

Bessent urges BOJ chief to conduct ‘sound’ policy to avoid yen volatility

Published by Sam Flores

ASHEVILLE, North Carolina, Sept 1 : U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda to conduct sound monetary policy to anchor inflation expectations and avoid excessive yen volatility, the Treasury Department said, cementing the case for a Japanese rate hike this month. In a meeting with Ueda, Bessent also expressed “strong support” for Japan’s steps to address the yen’s undervaluation and noted how the weak yen was causing domestic inflationary pressures, the Treasury said in a statement on Tuesday. The remarks, which underline Bessent’s recent calls for the BOJ to raise interest rates, bolster the case for the central bank to hike borrowing costs at its next meeting on September 17-18. The two officials met on Sunday at the G20 finance ministers’ and central bank governors’ meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, the Treasury Department said in a statement. “The Secretary emphasized the importance of sound formulation and communication of monetary policy to anchor inflation expectations and avoid excess exchange rate volatility,” the statement said. “Secretary Bessent also expressed strong support for …

Former US aid chief ‘blames Donald Trump’ for Nepal flood death toll | World | News

Former US aid chief ‘blames Donald Trump’ for Nepal flood death toll | World | News

Published by Sam Flores

A former US aid chief has blamed Donald Trump for the Nepal flood death toll rate (Image: Getty) Catastrophic glacial floods which have killed at least 800 people and left around 3,000 missing in Nepal could have claimed less lives if not for the actions of Donald Trump’s administration, a former US aid chief who worked in the country has suggested. Wednesday’s apocalyptic flooding event saw whole towns and villages washed away by millions of tonnes of water, rocks and ice which broke free following a glacial collapse in the Himalayas. Satellite images indicated bedrock underneath a glacier high in the mountainous region broke apart, taking a huge chunk of the glacier with it. The rockfall was so extreme that it registered as a magnitude 5.2 earthquake and the massive outpouring of rock and meltwater then swelled the rivers in the valleys below, causing a terrifying torrent that swept away buildings, bridges and earth downstream in Tibet and Nepal. Many scientists agree unprecedented warming in the region caused by climate change may have been a …

Estonia’s spy chief: ‘Russia is in a very bad place – revolution could come overnight’

Estonia’s spy chief: ‘Russia is in a very bad place – revolution could come overnight’

Published by Sam Flores

It was, perhaps, the highest praise ever offered by one intelligence agency to another – and it was certainly the most British. As chief of MI6 in 2022, Sir Richard Moore publicly declared that “pound for pound”, the “brilliant” Estonian Foreign Intelligence Service (EFIS) “probably knock us into a cocked hat”. Kaupo Rosin, the director general of that service, is delighted by the compliment, though he asks with polite bewilderment what this expression about cocked hats could possibly mean. “It’s always good to see that our partners value us and our activities,” he says, after I offer assurances that Moore’s phrase was a great tribute. “But I have to say the same about the British services who are top-notch, with world-leading, excellent capabilities, and are doing an incredible job.” I meet Rosin at EFIS headquarters in Estonia’s capital, Tallinn, where it could hardly be more necessary for intelligence officers to do incredible jobs. Russia is only 130 miles away – the border is a two-hour drive down what was known in Soviet times as the …

Pinterest Finance Chief Julia Donnelly to Step Down in October

Pinterest Finance Chief Julia Donnelly to Step Down in October

Published by Sam Flores

(Corrects Donnelly’s name in ⁠bullets) Aug ⁠28 (Reuters) – Pinterest said ⁠on Friday Chief Financial Officer Julia Donnelly ​will leave on October 30, and the company ‌has launched an external ‌search for its next finance ⁠chief. Vikram ⁠Naidu, the image-sharing platform’s vice president of finance ​and business operations, will be principal financial officer in the interim. • Donnelly’s “leadership helped support a ​period in which we delivered 11 consecutive quarters ⁠of ⁠double-digit revenue growth, significantly ⁠increased ​operating rigor and expanded margins to ensure the ​ongoing health ⁠of our business,” CEO Bill Ready said in a memo to employees. • Donnelly — who is leaving to pursue an opportunity ⁠at a private, early-stage company — joined Pinterest in 2023, ⁠from online furniture retailer Wayfair, where she was the global head of finance. • The tenure saw Pinterest completing its acquisition of connected-TV advertising platform tvScientific and a $4 billion cloud-services partnership with Amazon Web Services. • The company forecast slower ⁠third-quarter revenue growth earlier this month, a sign of tough competition for digital advertising from bigger players …

Why critics oppose RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit

Why critics oppose RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Mohan Bhagwat, head of one of India’s most influential Hindu nationalist organizations, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), is coming to New York City on Saturday (Aug. 29). His visit might have been a diaspora gathering. Instead, it has become a test of how the U.S. will respond to an organization with an opaque network of affiliates that human rights groups accuse of fomenting religious discrimination and violence. The upcoming “Universal Oneness Celebration” is hosted by American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue, a nonprofit with links to the U.S. wing of the RSS and founded in 2025. The event is expected to draw 5,000 Hindu Americans along with more than 100 groups, from temple associations to yoga and cultural groups.  Founded in 1925, the RSS is one of India’s most influential social and ideological organizations. Through tens of thousands of local branches and a vast network spanning education, labor, student groups and social services, the RSS has helped spread Hindu nationalist, or Hindutva, ideas across Indian society and has faced criticism for its treatment …

Oneness or Hindu supremacy? RSS chief Bhagwat’s secretive New York hosts | Religion News

Oneness or Hindu supremacy? RSS chief Bhagwat’s secretive New York hosts | Religion News

Published by Sam Flores

A visit by India’s Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat to the United States this week is being opposed by many activists, politicians and human rights groups in New York. Bhagwat is scheduled to speak on Saturday at an event called the “Universal Oneness Celebration” at Madison Square Garden in New York, and is expected to draw more than 5,000 attendees, including multifaith leaders. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list But while the event is being billed as an event for unity, the RSS – a Hindu majoritarian front that is the parent of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party – has repeatedly faced accusations back in India of contributing to the persecution of religious minorities, including Muslims and Christians. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told local media on Tuesday that he does not support the upcoming event and called the RSS’s ideology “exclusionary.” Many human rights groups in the US, such as Hindus for Human Rights, have said in a statement that “Mohan Bhagwat does not represent Hindus.” …

Pentagon policy chief tells NATO allies U.S. wants European-led defense of continent

Pentagon policy chief tells NATO allies U.S. wants European-led defense of continent

Published by Sam Flores

BRUSSELS, Aug 27 (Reuters) – The Pentagon’s policy chief told NATO members on Thursday that the alliance must adapt and that he wants to hear from allies ‌as part of a review of U.S. forces in Europe he said was ‌meant to enable a more European-led defence of the continent. Washington announced a six-month review of U.S. troop deployments in Europe ​in June and in recent weeks sent NATO members a questionnaire covering issues ranging from defense spending to strategy, procurement and support for U.S. foreign policy priorities. The review will create at least four sets of options for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth by November 6, well ahead of ‌a December deadline for its completion, ⁠according to a document seen by Reuters. The process has fueled questions among European officials about whether the U.S. administration is seeking to use ⁠the review as a real consultation, symbolic gesture or negotiating tactic. “We believe that in order to survive and indeed thrive, NATO must change,” U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby told ambassadors ​representing …

CIA chief made Moscow trip to warn Russia not to attack NATO: Reports

CIA chief made Moscow trip to warn Russia not to attack NATO: Reports

Published by Sam Flores

Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John Ratcliffe speaks to the press during the press conference held by the United States President Donald Trump in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on April 6, 2026, in Washington DC, United States. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images) Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images U.S. CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a surprise trip to Moscow this week to warn Russia against attacking NATO, according to multiple media reports, amid growing fears of further escalation in the Ukraine war. Ratcliffe’s first publicly known visit to the Russian capital as CIA chief came to light on Tuesday, when a U.S. Air Force jet was spotted arriving at a Moscow airport, and footage of a diplomatic motorcade moving through the city emerged on social media. The purpose of Ratcliffe’s trip to Moscow was first reported Wednesday by The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources briefed on the trip. Politico and CBS News separately reported the same motive, citing multiple people familiar with the …