International
Key witness involves Trump in efforts not to be harmed in the elections
The former editor of the American tabloid The National Enquirer, David Pecker, confirmed in a New York court his link with former President Donald Trump in 2016 to hide “embarrassing stories” that could involve the Republican politician and harm him in the elections.
“I wanted to protect my company, myself and also Donald Trump,” said who was also an executive of the media conglomerate America Media Inc. and who goes to court as a witness.
With the help of Pecker and his former lawyer Michael Cohen, Trump is accused of falsifying accounting records to pay for a “criminal plot” that would have bought the silence of porn actress Stormy Daniels. In addition to that of model Karen McDougal, preventing her alleged love affairs with him from coming to light.
The deal (a practice known as ‘catch and kill’) consisted of acquiring the rights to these stories supposedly to be published in that tabloid, but with the real purpose of leaving them ‘forgoten’ in a drawer.
Something that Pecker acknowledged having done in McDougal’s case, with the payment of $150,000 that would then have to be reimbursed by the Trump Organization. But not in the case of Daniels.
“The boss (Trump, according to Pecker) is going to get very nervous, Cohen told me (…). I assumed that this concern was due to its impact on the campaign,” recalled the media tycoon, who said he had refused to buy the porn actress’s exclusive because he did not want it to affect “the reputation” of the tabloid.
Dozens of bills, checks, letters or emails were brought up by the Prosecutor’s Office while Trump remained impassive from the dock.
His gesture barely soured on a couple of occasions. One of them, when Pecker recalled how the negotiation was with McDougal who, according to his version, feared that the agreement would be leaked.
“I really didn’t want to become the new Monica Lewinsky,” she added.
Pecker mentioned different calls with Trump during 2016 in which his mood varied as media such as The Wall Street Journal or the New York Post learned about the agreement that the former president had with The National Enquirer.
“He called me very upset asking how he could have happened and saying that he thought he had everything under control. That call ended without being said goodbye,” the then editor explained.
However, Pecker stated that, despite not having been in contact since 2019, he still considers Trump “someone close”: “I still consider him a friend,” he said.
Before reaching the court, Trump was in a campaign event with approximately thirty followers from a new construction site in Manhattan. There, Trump defined Pecker as “good people.”
This opinion was considered by the Prosecutor’s Office as a new violation of the gag order that weighs on the former president. This prevents him from publicly referring, among others, to witnesses, jury members and court workers.
International
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump criticized what he described as unfair fees imposed on American ships passing through the Panama Canal and threatened to demand that Washington take back control of the strategic waterway.
“Our Navy and commerce have been threatened in a very unjust and reckless way. The rates that Panama charges are ridiculous,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The president-elect also denounced the growing influence of China in the canal, a situation he called concerning as U.S. businesses depend on the waterway to transport goods between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
“This complete scam against our country will end immediately,” he stated.
The Panama Canal, completed by the United States in 1914, was handed over to Panama under the 1977 treaty signed by Democratic President Jimmy Carter. Panama took full control of the commercial passage in 1999.
“It was exclusively for Panama to manage, not China or anyone else,” Trump said. “We would never allow it to fall into the wrong hands!”
“If Panama cannot guarantee a ‘safe, efficient, and reliable’ operation of the canal, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us in its entirety, without a doubt,” the Republican added.
Panamanian authorities did not immediately respond to Trump’s statements. While he will assume office on January 20, Trump has been exerting his political influence in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration.
Five percent of global maritime trade passes through the Panama Canal, which allows vessels traveling from Asia to the U.S. East Coast to avoid the long and dangerous route around the southern tip of South America.
The countries that use the Panama Canal the most are the United States, China, Japan, and South Korea.
In October, the Panama Canal Authority reported earnings of nearly $5 billion in the last fiscal year.
International
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised more “destruction” in Ukraine on Sunday, in response to a drone strike that hit a residential building in the city of Kazan, located in central Russia, on Saturday.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching a “massive” drone attack, which struck a luxury apartment block in Kazan, about 1,000 kilometers from the border.
Videos shared on Russian social media show drones hitting a high-rise glass building. No casualties have been reported as a result of the attack.
In his statements, Putin addressed the local leader of Tatarstan, the region where Kazan is located, during a virtual ceremony marking the opening of a road.
The attack in Kazan is the latest in a series of increasingly frequent bombings in this nearly three-year-old conflict. Ukraine has not commented on the attack.
Putin had previously threatened to strike the center of Kyiv with a hypersonic ballistic missile in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities were retaliation for Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied missiles to target Russian territory.
International
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
At least nine people were killed on Sunday after a small aircraft crashed in a commercial area of the tourist city of Gramado, in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, authorities confirmed.
“There are nine confirmed deaths according to Civil Defense services, and there are no survivors from the plane,” said Cléber dos Santos Lima, director of the Interior Police Department of the Civil Police of the state, in a statement to AFP.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the exact number of passengers and crew aboard the aircraft, a turbo-prop Piper Cheyenne 400. However, Civil Defense had previously stated that “preliminarily, the plane was carrying ten people.”
The plane crashed on Sunday morning “into the chimney of a building, then onto the second floor of a house, and finally fell onto a furniture store,” according to a statement from the Rio Grande do Sul Public Security Secretariat.
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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