Trade : US has more to lose if Trump pulls it out of WTO   (Chakravarthi Raghavan, Geneva) (PRIV)
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In a speech on Tuesday (13 August) in Pennsylvania, a crucial state he must win for re-election in 2020, US President Donald Trump threatened to pull the United States out of the World Trade Organization (WTO) if conditions are not improved.

Trade : US to delay imposing additional tariffs on Chinese goods   (D. Ravi Kanth, Geneva) (PRIV)
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The Trump administration appears to have developed cold feet in escalating its trade war with China, as Washington delayed until 15 December 2019, levy of the 10% additional tariff on several Chinese consumer products worth around $160 billion.

United Nations : Will sanctions undermine 1947 US treaty with UN?   (IPS, New York) (PRIV)
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When Yassir Arafat was denied a US visa to visit New York to address the United Nations back in 1988, the General Assembly defied the United States by temporarily moving the UN's highest policy making body to Geneva - perhaps for the first time in UN history - providing a less-hostile political environment for the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO).

Mexico : Women use sunlight instead of firewood or gas to cook meals   (IPS, Villa de Zaachila) (PRIV)
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Reyna Diaz cooks beans, chicken, pork and desserts in her solar cooker, which she sets up in the open courtyard of her home in a poor neighborhood on the outskirts of this town in southwestern Mexico.

Opinion : Promoting women's safety in Latin America   (IPS, Rio de Janeiro) (PRIV)
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Every year, over 12,000 women are killed in Latin America. The region is plagued by extremely high levels of violence, and a vacuum of state power persists.