Briefly with OZY

In a closed-door meeting this week, President Donald Trump

reportedly told acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan that he’s not

interested in a conflict with Iran. Meanwhile, Taiwan has become the first state in

Asia to legalize gay marriage as lawmakers voted in favor of government-

sponsored legislation.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order yesterday widely

believed to be aimed at banning the controversial Chinese giant’s

telecommunications gear from U.S. networks. Meanwhile, following Alabama Gov.

Kay Ivey’s approval yesterday of America’s most restrictive state law on

abortions, politicians on both sides of the aisle are gearing up for a fight.

The Alabama State Senate voted 25-6, with one abstention, in favor

of what could become the country’s most restrictive such law by banning

abortions at all stages. Meanwhile, during a visit to Russia yesterday, Secretary of

State Mike Pompeo assured Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Washington isn’t

gunning for war with Iran — but added that it would “respond in an appropriate

fashion” if U.S. interests are attacked.

After China retaliated with increased tariffs on $60 billion in U.S. goods yesterday, the White House said it could slap a 25 percent tax on another $300 billion in Chinese imports. Meanwhile, Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp said it has fixed a vulnerability that exploited the app’s voice-call feature to remotely install spyware on the device being called.

Swedish authorities have reopened their probe into rape allegations against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, raising the possibility that he could initially be extradited there instead of the United States, where he faces allegations that he conspired to obtain classified documents. Meanwhile, an adviser to President Donald Trump’s admits that Americans will end up paying in part for punitive trade tariffs levied against China.

Chinese and American trade negotiators agreed to keep talking but not before U.S. officials threatened to impose tariffs on all Chinese imports if a deal isn’t stuck within a month. Meanwhile, the vaunted Uber IPO ended Friday with the new corporation’s stock down 7.6 percent from its already conservative offering price.

Despite hinting that a deal could still be reached and noting the “beautiful letter” he received from his Chinese counterpart, President Donald Trump increased tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports Friday morning. Meanwhile, a spike in tensions between Pyongyang and Washington has further dampened hopes that talks between the countries would continue.

The Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee recommended

that Attorney General William Barr be held in contempt for failing to produce the

unredacted Mueller report. Meanwhile, the South Korean military reported that

today Pyongyang carried out its second launch in five days.

Exactly one year after President Donald Trump withdrew from the

2015 nuclear deal with Tehran, his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani,

announced his country is reversing some of its commitments to that

pact. Meanwhile, two students are in custody following an attack yesterday on the

STEM School Highlands Ranch, a public K-12 charter school in suburban Denver.

President Donald Trump’s top trade adviser accused China

yesterday of reversing course on negotiations, raising fears that

Washington’s economic showdown with Beijing is far from over. Meanwhile,

reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo walked out of a Myanmar prison today after

spending more than 500 days behind bars.