Trump threatens 25 per cent tariff on iPhones made in India
Today's headlines: Pro-Iranian Palestinian factions have left Damascus under pressure from Syria’s new authorities (and the US). Leo XIV met with one of the families of the victims of the Itaewon tragedy in South Korea who are demanding justice. Vietnam will block Telegram on 2 June. China and Uzbekistan agree to allow bilateral visa-free entry for their citizens.
INDIA – UNITED STATES
US President Donald Trump has attacked Apple again for its plans to expand its flagship mobile phone manufacturing facilities in India. On its Truth Social platform, the US leader is threatening to introduce a 25 per cent tariff on all iPhones produced outside the United States. Trump's post came shortly after the Financial Times reported that Apple's top supplier, Foxconn, is planning to expand its supply chain in India with a US$ 1.5 billion plant near Chennai. This move is part of Apple's broader effort to diversify its production outside of China, its largest manufacturing hub.
SYRIA – PALESTINE
Leaders of pro-Iranian Palestinian factions, close to former President Bashar al-Assad, left Syria under pressure from the new authorities, meeting a key US demand for lifting of sanctions. AFP cited Palestinian sources under anonymity saying that “most of the Palestinian factional leadership that received support from Tehran has left Damascus” for countries such as Lebanon. In the Palestinian camp of Yarmouk, on the outskirts of Damascus, the factions’ banners usually present at the entrance have disappeared and their buildings are closed and unmanned.
SOUTH KOREA
The family of one of the victims of the 2022 Itaewon tragedy, in which 159 young people die crushed in Seoul on Halloween night, met Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday during his first general audience in St Peter's Square. During the meeting, Lee Seong-hwan and Kang Seon-yi, whose daughter Lee Sang-eun perished in the disaster, asked the pontiff to pray for the victims and help discover the truth of what happened. The couple gave Leo XIV purple ribbons and star-shaped badges symbolising solidarity with the victims of the tragedy, and asked him to remember them. Despite investigations, no senior government official has been held responsible for the tragedy so far.
JAPAN
Nearly 44 per cent of Japanese have lost weight or skipped meals for at least a full day in the past year because they could not afford to buy food, this according to a recent survey conducted by the Tokyo Institute of Science. The latter placed people who do not eat enough food to maintain their health into the “food security crisis group”, which has expanded in recent months due to rising food prices.
VIETNAM
Vietnam has ordered telecom companies to block Telegram by 2 June after the Technology Ministry concluded that it was being used to spread "anti-government" content, state media reported on Friday. Unless there is a last-minute change of heart, Telegram will become the first encrypted messaging app to be banned in Vietnam.
RUSSIA
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law forcing taxi drivers to geolocalise, allowing only Russian-made Lada cars or certain Chinese models to be used under special investment contracts, manufactured between 1 March 2022 and 1 March 2025, with particularly high levels of localisation on Russian roads.
UZBEKISTAN – CHINA
Uzbekistan and China agreed to a visa-free regime for their citizens that will come into effect on 1 June. Meanwhile, controversy is brewing over Chinese investments in Uzbekistan that entail taking land from Uzbeks, while local authorities intend to develop tourism and boost trade relations between the two countries.
.png)
