From Boris Johnson surviving the no confidence vote to Australia calling out China over a “dangerous maneuver" – Here’s your June 7 news briefing

From Boris Johnson surviving the no confidence vote to Australia calling out China over a “dangerous maneuver" – Here’s your June 7 news briefing
FILE PHOTO: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson attends the National Service of Thanksgiving held at St Paul’s Cathedral, during Britain’s Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, in London, Britain, June 3, 2022. Victoria Jones/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

To start off, we’re looking into:

BoJo is sticking around

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson narrowly survived a vote of no confidence triggered by lawmakers of Johnson’s own party in the country’s legislative body on Monday.

Johnson faced the vote due to a number of scandals he was involved in, most infamously the Partygate scandal in which he and members of his government held parties during COVID-related lockdowns during the early part of the pandemic.

The final tally was 211 in favor and 148 voting against him, but experts say that he likely isn’t out of the weeds just yet, pointing to former prime minister Theresa May who survived a similar vote in 2018 by a higher margin and then resigned only six months later.

Trump-era tariffs on Chinese imports coming to an end?

US China tariffs
FILE PHOTO: Chinese and U.S. flags flutter outside the building of an American company in Beijing, China January 21, 2021. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Sunday that the US might look into lifting or easing some tariffs on China imports to help fight inflation. About US$300 billion worth of trade restrictions is still in place from when Trump was in office. Speaking to CNN, Raimondo said that Biden had asked his team to look into it. She specified that while the team was looking into easing the trade restrictions on household goods, tariffs on items like steel and aluminum will stay in place to protect the nation’s industries.

Some people have also argued that Biden’s US$1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which helped Americans after COVID with things like rent and unemployment, was contributing to the record-high inflation rates. But Raimondo said it was because of the Russia-Ukraine war which sent oil prices soaring.

Australia calls out China for “dangerous maneuver"

Australia China
FILE PHOTO: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese attends the Quad leaders’ summit, in Tokyo, Japan, May 24, 2022. Yuichi Yamazaki/Pool via REUTERS

At a press conference on Sunday, Australian Prime Minister Albanese said that while a RAAF P-8 aircraft was doing a routine check in the South China Sea region on May 26, “exercising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters and airspace,” it was intercepted by a Chinese J-16 fighter aircraft, which flew very close next to the Australian military jet and then proceeded to release a “bundle of chaff, which contains small pieces of aluminum.”

Just for a bit of context, Australia and China have had relationship issues for some time now. The countries are at odds over a range of issues, such as trade, COVID origins and human rights violations accusations. And some experts are saying that this could be Beijing’s way of testing the newly sworn-in prime minister. Canada’s military also reported a similar incident last week.

Australia called the move a “dangerous maneuver,” saying that it views this situation as a safety threat and is now in contact with Beijing through “appropriate channels.”

To end, we’ll look into:

Wales football team comforts Ukrainian team

When your football team wins a match to qualify for the World Cup, it’s understandable to get really pumped up and maybe even forget about the other team and what they might be going through at that moment. That couldn’t be more true for the Wales football team, which hadn’t qualified for the World Cup in more than six decades.

But on Sunday, when Wales won against Ukraine, the Welsh team took a moment to console their opponents for the loss not only on the football field but also the losses being faced in their war-torn country.

Wales’ Ben Davies consoles Ukraine’s Andriy Yarmolenko after Wales beat Ukraine 1-0 on June 5, 2022.ACTION IMAGES VIA REUTERS/MATTHEW CHILDS

Fans followed suit, with Wales fans applauding the Ukrainian fans in the stadium, and Ukrainian fans returning the gesture. Fans swapped jerseys after the game, and the teams had only kind words for each other.

“We just wanted to show our appreciation to them and what they’re going through as a nation,” said Wales manager Robert Page. “I thought their team were outstanding in the two games and they deserve a lot of credit for what they’ve done, and their supporters as well. We wanted to show them that respect.”

“We did everything that we could,” Ukrainian coach Oleksandr Petrakov said through a translator, “but I really want the people of Ukraine to remember our team’s efforts.”

A young Ukraine fan lifts a Ukrainian flag reading “STOP WAR” during the FIFA World Cup qualifying playoff match between Wales and Ukraine at Cardiff City Stadium on June 05, 2022 in Cardiff, Wales. Wales won 100.GETTY IMAGES

In other news …

📈Stocks, oil and Bitcoin: US stocks were higher on Monday, with the three main Wall Street indexes increasing over 1%, but inflation worries kept gains in check. Investors expect the Fed to increase rates by 50 basis points when they meet on June 15, but as we mentioned, that consumer prices and sentiment report releasing on Friday is what everyone’s anxiously waiting for. With Chinese COVID controls easing and a WSJ report that said Chinese regulators were ending an investigation into ride-hailing company Didi, stocks rose over 1% in China and over 2% in Hong Kong. ​​Bitcoin rose over 5.5% to US$31,540.

🎬Paramount’s lawsuit: Tom Cruise’s “Top Gun” has become an instant hit, bringing in nearly US$550 million worldwide in its second weekend. But now, Paramount faces a copyright lawsuit, with the family of the author whose article inspired the original movie saying that they should get compensated for some damages, including profits of the movie.

⚡️An end to coal: Climate diplomats met in Bonn, Germany, because of the energy worries from the Russia-Ukraine war. But US official on climate change John Kerry said that the situation in Ukraine isn’t an excuse to keep using coal.

🇺🇦Weapons from the West: After Biden pledged to send Ukraine long-range missiles, and Putin threatened to retaliate if the West did arm Ukraine, shooting at least five missiles at Kyiv, the UK’s defense secretary said they’re going to be sending multiple-launch rocket systems to the country. While the number hasn’t been confirmed, there are reports of it being three initially.

🇭🇰COVID in Hong Kong: Hong Kong’s COVID infections have topped the highest in six weeks, seeing 543 cases yesterday.

🇿🇦South Africa’s president: South African President Ramaphosa has been accused of stealing money as his reelection nears, but he has claimed that he’s innocent, and the former spy chief Arthur Fraser’s accusations are politically motivated.

🇮🇩Bali anyone? With Indonesia’s borders back open, the government is looking to entice people who are willing to spend to stay longer. And, with remote work on the rise, the government is apparently looking into granting “digital nomads” five-year visas without the need to pay taxes if they don’t make money in the country.

✈️Oligarch assets, again, seized: The US DOJ has been issued a warrant by a New York judge to seize two jets worth around US$400 million owned by Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.

💰Musk-Twitter saga update: In another turn of events, Elon’s lawyers have written to Twitter, saying that the platform has been refusing to provide enough information about the number of fake accounts that exist on its service. He’s called it a “material breach” and has threatened to walk away from the US$44 billion takeover deal.

🍎Apple’s new swag: Apple has announced a range of new software updates and hardware products. There’s a new iPhone iOS 16 software, which will give you a range of new powers, like customizing your lock screen a bit more. Apple will also let users edit and recall iMessages, and the company announced new MacBook Airs and a buy-now-pay-later option (called Apple Pay Later).

Get the full list here: https://www.apple.com/newsroom/

Written and put together by Jake Shropshire, Christine Dulion and Krystal Lai