Biden, Xi seek to 'manage our differences' in meeting
NUSA DUA, Indonesia (AP) — President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping opened their first in-person meeting Monday since the U.S. president took office nearly two years ago, aiming to "manage" differences between the superpowers as they compete for global influence amid increasing economic and security tensions.
Xi and Biden greeted each other with a handshake at a luxury resort hotel in Indonesia, where they are attending the Group of 20 summit of large economies, before they sat down for what was expected to be a conversation lasting several hours.
“As the leaders of our two nations, we share responsibility, in my view, to show that China and the United States can manage our differences, prevent competition from becoming anything ever near conflict, and to find ways to work together on urgent global issues that require our mutual cooperation," Biden said to open the meeting.
Xi said he hoped they would “chart the right course for the China-US relationship” and that he was prepared for a “candid and in-depth exchange of views” with Biden.
Both men entered the highly anticipated meeting with bolstered political standing at home. Democrats triumphantly held onto control of the U.S. Senate, with a chance to boost their ranks by one in a runoff election in Georgia next month, while Xi was awarded a third five-year term in October by the Communist Party's national congress, a break with tradition.
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Ukrainian president visits liberated city of Kherson
KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday visited the newly liberated southern city of Kherson, where he posed with Ukrainian troops in a central square.
Zelenskyy has previously appeared unexpectedly in other front-line zones at crucial junctures of the war, to support troops and congratulate them for battlefield exploits.
Video footage showed Zelenskyy waving to residents who waved at him from an apartment window and yelled “Glory to Ukraine!” The reply “Glory to the heroes!” came back from Zelenskyy’s group, made up of soldiers and others.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday refused to comment on Zelenskyy’s visit to Kherson, saying only that “you know that it is the territory of the Russian Federation.”
The liberation of Kherson after a grinding offensive that forced Russian to withdraw its forces from the city was one of Ukraine’s biggest success so far of the nearly nine-month invasion and a stinging blow for the Kremlin.
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Across the US, a return to democratic order. Will it last?
WASHINGTON (AP) — There was no violence. Many candidates who denied the legitimacy of previous elections lost and quietly conceded. And few listened when former President Donald Trump tried to stoke baseless allegations of electoral fraud.
For a moment, at least, there's a sense of normalcy in the U.S. The extremism that has consumed political discourse for much of the last two years has been replaced by something resembling traditional democratic order.
The post-election narrative was instead focused on each party's electoral fate: Republicans were disappointed that sweeping victories didn't materialize, while relieved Democrats braced for the possibility of a slim House GOP majority. At least for now, the serious threats that loomed over democracy heading into Election Day — domestic extremist violence, voter intimidation and Republican refusal to respect election outcomes — did not materialize in any pervasive way.
“It was a good day, I think, for democracy,” President Joe Biden said, even as he acknowledged his party might lose one chamber of Congress.
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican, said midterm voters were concerned about Biden’s leadership but that they had a more urgent message: “Fix policy later, fix crazy now,” he told CNN.
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Congress faces leaders in flux, big to-do list post-election
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is returning to an extremely volatile post-election landscape, with control of the House still undecided, party leadership in flux and a potentially consequential lame-duck session with legislation on gay marriage, Ukraine and government funding.
Newly elected members of Congress arrived for Monday’s orientation amid jarring disappointments for Republicans, setting up rocky internal party leadership elections for GOP leader Kevin McCarthy and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell. Republicans suffered one of the most disappointing midterm outcomes in decades when a mighty red wave forecast for the House never hit.
Democrats performed better than expected, keeping narrow control of the Senate and pressing a long shot race for the House. But they, too, face leadership turmoil as Republicans pick up House seats toward majority control that would threaten Speaker Nancy Pelosi's gavel.
“There are all kinds of ways to exert influence,” Pelosi said Sunday, deflecting questions about her future if Democrats lose control of the House. “Speaker has awesome power, but I will always have influence.”
It's a changed place on Capitol Hill in the aftermath of the first election since the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, with the Republican Party split over its ties to former President Donald Trump, Democrats eyeing generational leadership changes, and Biden with just weeks to accomplish goals with guaranteed Democratic control of Washington. Much of the action will be playing out behind closed doors in private caucus meetings.
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3 killed, 2 wounded in shooting at University of Virginia
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Three people have been killed and two others were wounded in a shooting late Sunday at the University of Virginia, according to the school’s president. Police are searching for a suspect, who remains at large.
The shooting at around 10:30 p.m. Sunday “resulted in three fatalities; two additional victims were injured and are receiving medical care,” President Jim Ryan said in a letter to the university community posted on social media.
The university’s emergency management issued an alert on Monday night notifying the campus community of an “active attacker firearm." The message warned students to shelter in place following a report of shots fired on Culbreth Road on the campus.
The UVA Police Department posted a notice online saying multiple police agencies including the state police were searching for a suspect who was considered “armed and dangerous.”
Ryan's letter confirmed the suspect was still at large.
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Turkey detains Syrian suspect in bombing that killed 6
ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish police said Monday that they have detained a Syrian woman with suspected links to Kurdish militants and that she confessed to planting a bomb that exploded on a bustling pedestrian avenue in Istanbul, killing six people and wounding several dozen others.
Sunday's explosion occurred on Istiklal Avenue, a popular thoroughfare lined with shops and restaurants that leads to the iconic Taksim Square.
“A little while ago, the person who left the bomb was detained by our Istanbul Police Department teams,” Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu announced early on Monday. Police later identified the suspect as Ahlam Albashir, a Syrian national.
At least 46 other people were also detained for questioning, the Istanbul Police Department said in a statement.
Sunday’s explosion was a shocking reminder of the anxiety that stalked the Turkish population during years when such attacks were common. The country was hit by a string of deadly bombings between 2015 and 2017, some by the Islamic State group, others by Kurdish militants who seek increased autonomy or independence.
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G-20 summit casts spotlight on Bali's tourism revival
NUSA DUA, Indonesia (AP) — Bali wants the world to know it's back.
Dozens of world leaders and other dignitaries are traveling to the Indonesian island for the G-20 summit, drawing a welcome spotlight on the revival of the tropical destination’s vital tourism sector.
Tourism is the main source of income on this idyllic “island of the gods," which is renowned for its tropical beaches, terraced rice paddies, mystical temples and colorful spiritual offerings.
The pandemic hit Bali harder than most places in Indonesia.
Before the pandemic, 6.2 million foreigners arrived in Bali each year. Its lively tourism scene — fueled by hard-partying clubgoers, chilled surfers and spiritual bliss-seekers alike — faded after the first case of COVID-19 was found in Indonesia in March 2020. Restaurants and resorts shut and many workers returned to their villages to try to get by.
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Musk touches on Twitter criticism, workload at G-20 forum
NUSA DUA, Indonesia (AP) — It’s not easy being Elon Musk.
That was the message the new Twitter owner and billionaire head of Tesla and SpaceX had for younger people who might seek to emulate his entrepreneurial success.
“Be careful what you wish for,” Musk told a business forum in Bali on Monday when asked what an up-and-coming “Elon Musk of the East” should focus on.
“I’m not sure how many people would actually like to be me. They would like to be what they imagine being me, which is not the same,” he continued. “I mean, the amount that I torture myself, is the next level, frankly.”
Musk was speaking at the B-20 business forum ahead of a summit of the Group of 20 leading economies taking place on the Indonesian resort island. He joined the conference by video link weeks after completing his heavily scrutinized takeover of Twitter.
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Israel rushes to protect marine life as Mediterranean warms
ROSH HANIKRA MARINE RESERVE, Israel (AP) — Between the cliffs and crags of Israel’s submerged prehistoric coastline, a Mediterranean ecosystem is surging back to life.
Giant groupers flourish among the rocks, a psychedelic purple nudibranch sea slug clings to an outcrop, and a pair of rays skate along the undisturbed sandy bottom.
Israel is blazing forward with a plan to protect sections of its 118-mile coastline, a measure experts say is crucial to maintain biodiversity and shield ecosystems from humanity. Rosh Hanikra, just south of the Lebanese border, is the centerpiece of this effort, providing what scientists believe can be a blueprint for rescuing seas ravaged by pollution, overfishing and climate change.
Climate change, invasive species and explosive human activity are threatening what remains of the eastern Mediterranean's severely impacted ecosystems. Scientists warn that without protection, remaining marine ecosystems will be devastated.
But there is a glimmer of hope. In recent years Israel has taken steps to better protect critical habitats along its Mediterranean coast, like the Rosh Hanikra Marine Reserve, and researchers say key species have bounced back even after just a few years of protection.
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Flying home for the holidays will cost you more this year
People still looking to book trips home to visit family or take a vacation during the holidays need to act fast and prepare for sticker shock.
Airline executives say that based on bookings, they expect huge demand for flights over Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's. Travel experts say the best deals for airfares and hotels are already gone.
On social media, plenty of travelers think they are being gouged. It's an understandable sentiment when government data shows that airfares in October were up 43% from a year earlier, and U.S. airlines reported a combined profit of more than $2.4 billion in the third quarter.
Part of the reason for high fares is that airlines are still operating fewer flights than in 2019 even though passenger numbers are nearly back to pre-pandemic levels.
“Fewer flights and more people looking to head home or take vacation for the holidays means two things: Prices will be higher, and we will see flights sell out for both holidays,” says Holly Berg, chief economist for travel-data provider Hopper.
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