News from April 5, 2025 at 2 PM

US President Donald Trump's tariffs announced on April 2 triggered a plunge in global financial markets and drew condemnation from world leaders. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba termed it a 'national crisis' as Tokyo's stock market faced its worst week in years on April 4. JPMorgan raised the probability of a global recession by year-end to 60%. Mixed messages from the White House left uncertainty about whether the tariffs were permanent or a negotiation tactic, with Trump asserting they provide negotiation leverage. The tariffs, the highest in over a century, could significantly increase prices for US consumers. Companies like Stellantis and General Motors announced layoffs and plant closures. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced countermeasures, stating the global economy had fundamentally changed. China and the EU vowed retaliation, while France's President Macron called for suspending US investments. Other trading partners, including Japan, South Korea, Mexico, and India, held off on retaliation for now. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned of significant risks to the global outlook due to the tariffs.

South Korea's Constitutional Court unanimously upheld the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol on March 24, ousting him from office. This decision initiates a 60-day countdown for a presidential election to select a new leader. In the interim, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has been reinstated as acting president. Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae stated that Yoon's declaration of martial law did not meet legal requirements and that sending troops to parliament to stop its reversal was illegal. Following the ruling, the Kospi index fell 1.66%, Kosdaq dropped 0.85%, and the South Korean won strengthened by about 1%. The Democratic Party hailed the decision as a 'people's victory,' while Yoon's People's Power Party 'humbly accepted' the court's ruling. South Korea's finance minister convened an emergency meeting with Bank of Korea governor Rhee Chang-yong and other financial officials to assess the economic impact. Yoon was impeached on December 14 after declaring martial law on December 3, which was subsequently overturned by parliament.

A major earthquake struck Myanmar on March 28, with the death toll rising to 3,145, according to Xinhua News Agency. Another 4,589 people have been injured, and 221 are still missing. Emergency services in Myanmar are conducting search and rescue operations in collaboration with international rescuers, having saved 653 individuals and recovered 626 bodies from the rubble. The Thai Meteorological Department reported the earthquake's magnitude as 8.2, followed by a 6.4 magnitude aftershock. The disaster affected Thailand, with tremors felt in China and Vietnam. The earthquake in Myanmar caused damage to residential houses and infrastructure, with the death toll in Bangkok reaching 22.

On April 4, a Russian missile attack on the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih killed at least 18 people, including nine children, and left dozens wounded. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the strike hit a residential area, damaging several buildings. Local officials said the missile exploded in the air to maximize casualties. The city later faced a massive drone attack, resulting in at least one death and five injuries. UK and French military chiefs met with Zelensky in Kyiv to discuss plans for foreign peacekeepers, but there has been little sign of a reduction in violence.

Russell Brand has been charged with rape, indecent assault, and sexual assault involving four women between 1999 and 2005. The charges stem from an investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times, and Channel 4's Dispatches in September 2023. Brand denied the allegations in a video posted on X, stating he will defend himself in court. The Metropolitan Police informed Brand he must appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on May 2. Currently believed to be in the United States, prosecutors may seek his return or extradition. Additionally, a civil case for personal injury and sexual abuse was filed against Brand at the High Court in London by an anonymous woman in February.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to visit the White House on April 7 to discuss recently announced tariffs with US President Donald Trump, according to three Israeli officials on April 5. The impromptu visit, first reported by Axios, would make Netanyahu the first foreign leader to meet Trump in person to negotiate tariff removal. Netanyahu's office has not confirmed the visit, which is likely to include discussions on Iran and Israel's conflict with Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza. The surprise invite came during a phone call on April 3, when Netanyahu, visiting Hungary, raised the tariff issue. Under Trump's new tariff policy, unspecified Israeli goods exports to the US face a 17% tariff. The US is Israel's closest ally and largest trading partner. An Israeli Finance Ministry official noted that Trump's tariff announcement could impact Israel's exports of machinery and medical equipment. Israel had already lifted its remaining tariffs on US imports on April 1, following a 40-year-old free trade agreement that now allows about 98% of US goods to enter Israel tax-free.

Australia plans to regain control of the northern Darwin Port after next month's national elections. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated that Darwin Port is a strategic asset that must be under Australian control. The government is in talks with potential buyers, including private pension funds. Both Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton have pledged to advance this issue if elected. In 2015, the Northern Territory government signed a 99-year lease agreement with the Chinese company Landbridge Group, sparking controversy. The Australian Defense Department reviewed the lease in 2021 and found no security concerns. Financial difficulties of Landbridge Group and Chinese naval exercises near Australia have heightened Australian security concerns.

The China-Cambodia Joint Support and Training Center at Ream Naval Base was officially inaugurated on the 5th, with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet in attendance and a delegation from the Chinese People's Liberation Army participating. Hun Manet reiterated that the project aims to enhance Cambodia's defense capabilities and denied any Chinese military presence. He thanked China for its support in upgrading the Ream Naval Base and expressed hope for continued technical and equipment assistance. Hun Manet emphasized the transparency and legality of the base's modernization, welcoming friendly nations' ships to dock. Established in 1954, the Ream Naval Base saw a cooperation agreement signed between China and Cambodia in 2019 to build the joint center. The Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that Sino-Cambodian cooperation is open and transparent, not targeting any third party.

A landmine-detecting rat named Ronin in Cambodia has set a new world record by uncovering 109 landmines and 15 items of unexploded ordnance since 2021. Cambodia remains riddled with millions of unexploded munitions following its civil war. The charity Apopo, which trains these rats, stated that they can check an area the size of a tennis court in about 30 minutes. Ronin's work in Preah Vihear province surpasses the previous record held by Magawa. Over 25 years, Apopo has cleared 169,713 landmines and explosives globally, with over 52,000 in Cambodia.

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that it is expelling three Moldovan diplomats in response to Moldova's expulsion of three Russian diplomats. Moldova expelled the Russian diplomats on Monday, accusing the Russian Embassy in Chisinau of orchestrating the escape of a pro-Kremlin lawmaker, Alexander Nesterovschii, to avoid imprisonment for illegal political funding. The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Moldova's envoy, Lilian Darii, to protest the expulsion and declared three Moldovan embassy employees in Russia 'persona non grata.' The ministry insisted its embassy in Moldova acted in accordance with diplomatic conventions and denied any interference in Moldova's internal affairs. The pro-European government of Moldova, a former Soviet republic, has repeatedly accused Russia of meddling in its domestic politics, a claim Moscow denies. The latest diplomatic row centers around Nesterovschii, who was convicted of illegally channeling funds to a pro-Russian party and fled to the Russian embassy last month, shortly before being sentenced in absentia to 12 years in jail.

This week, multiple Ukrainians legally residing in the United States under a humanitarian program received an email instructing them to leave the country within seven days or face federal government action. On April 4, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson clarified that the email was sent in error and that the Ukrainian parole program, established after the 2022 Russian invasion, remains unchanged. The number of Ukrainians who received the erroneous email is unclear. In March, Reuters reported that the Trump administration planned to revoke temporary legal status for about 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia. One Ukrainian woman, whose immigration status was valid for another two years, described her panic upon receiving the email. Angela Boelens, president of IA Nice, a non-profit in Iowa that has sponsored several Ukrainians, mentioned that at least two women, including a pregnant one, received the erroneous letter, causing widespread panic among affected families.