Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Thursday his country was looking forward to working with the new US administration, adding that he was very optimistic about overcoming "the many challenges" in the Middle East.

"We are very very optimistic about our ability to resolve issues in the region," Jubeir said on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Bonn, Germany.

Asked whether he was concerned that US President Donald Trump was backing away from a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Jubeir declined to comment directly.

"We look forward to working with the Trump administration on all the issues in the region," he said.

On Wednesday, Trump dropped Washington's commitment to the eventual creation of a Palestinian state, a key pillar of US Middle East policy through successive administrations.

Jubeir's comments came at the top of a meeting with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in Bonn.

• Officials said the action was an indication of the level of mistrust between intelligence officials and Trump administration

• Intelligence officials were reluctant to share their sources of information and methods they used to obtain it

WASHINGTON, U.S. - According to reports, U.S. intelligence officials are holding sensitive intelligence from President Donald Trump because they are reportedly concerned that the information could be compromised, the Wall Street Journal has reported.

The White House disputed the report, telling WSJ, "There is nothing that leads us to believe that this is an accurate account of what is actually happening."

Former and current officials, however, said the action was an indication of the level of mistrust that was currently prevalent between intelligence officials and the Trump administration.

In particular, intelligence officials were reluctant to share their sources of information and the methods they used to obtain it, citing “the means that an agency uses to spy on a foreign government” as an example, the WSJ report stated.

WSJ said sources didn’t know of any instance in which “crucial information about security threats or potential plotting has been omitted” from intelligence briefings with the president.

The report did note that while it is not uncommon for the intelligence officials to withhold some information on their methods from presidents or Congress when it was required for the safety of their sources or agents, this was the first instance when information was withheld because of fear over trustworthiness or leaks.  

The intelligence community appeared particularly concerned about Trump and some members of his administration's relationship with Russia, amid concerns that some of the information they give the U.S. president could be leaked or compromised, according to current and formal officials, WSJ's report said.

The report further quoted Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, who said, “I’ve talked with people in the intelligence community that do have concerns about the White House, about the president, and I think those concerns take a number of forms.”

“What the intelligence community considers their most sacred obligation is to protect the very best intelligence and to protect the people that are producing it,” he added.

The report was denied by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Any suggestion that the U.S. intelligence community is withholding information and not providing the best possible intelligence to the president and his national security team is not true."

The president himself has been rather vocal in expressing his distrust of the intelligence community, more so in the aftermath of the resignation of Michael Flynn as his national security advisor.

On Wednesday he tweeted, "The real scandal here is that classified information is illegally given out by "intelligence" like candy. Very un-American

north korean times-

Mission: The U.S. 7th Fleet (C7F) operates in the largest of the U.S. Navy’s numbered fleets. At any given time there are 70-80 ships and submarines, 140 aircraft and approximately 40,000 Sailors and Marines in region.

C7F has maintained a continuous forward presence in the Indo-Asia Pacific since being founded in Australia in 1943, providing security and stability to the region, upholding key alliances and building upon maritime partnerships.

C7F uses both forward-deployed ships from Japan, Singapore, Guam and other locations as well as rotationally-deployed ships from the West Coast to execute military operations across the spectrum, from major combat operations to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

C7F forces operate in the region every day of the year and work closely to build partnerships with our allies, partners and friends while allowing for rapid response to any crisis, natural or man-made.

Building partnerships and familiarity helps improve stability through cooperation, avoid misunderstandings and prevents unnecessary military escalation. C7F units typically take part in 100 bilateral & multilateral exercises and 200 port visits each year, comprising 1,800 total days of engagement every year.

AO: Covers 48 million square miles of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, from the International Date Line to the India/Pakistan border and from the Kuril Islands in the north to the Antarctic in the south. The region Includes 36 maritime countries, more than 50 percent of the world’s population, 3,000 languages and seven of the world’s 10 largest militaries. The U.S. maintains mutual defense treaties with five allies in the region to include the Philippines, Australia, the Republic of Korea, Japan and Thailand.

Flagship: USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19)

carl vinson isnt alone.

Malaysia summons North Korea envoy over Kim Jong Nam death

The Kuala Lumpur government is angry over claims it has something to hide in its probe into the murder of Kim Jong Un's half brother. Malaysia has also recalled its ambassador to Pyongyang in protest

• Decision comes as China complies with a UN Security Council resolution

BEIJING, China - In a bid to comply with the UN Security Council resolution that China participated in drafting in November last year, the country has now decided to ban all coal imports from North Korea.

China’s decision also comes in light of the recent missile test conducted by North Korea. 

The country announced the decision in a public notice that was issued by China's Ministry of Commerce, along with the country's customs agency.

China said in the notice that was posted on the ministry's website, “Imports of coal produced in North Korea - including shipments already declared to the customs but yet to be released - will be suspended for the remainder of this year.”

Last year, North Korea, after the launch of a nuclear warhead in September 2016 disregarded an earlier UN ban which led to the imposition of the Resolution 2321, some of the toughest sanctions against the North Korean regime.

Pyongyang’s recent missile test on February 12 has further increased tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea had claimed the success of a new medium long-range ballistic missile, the Pukguksong-2. 

UN Security Council members, including China opposed the launch of the missile

The move also comes immediately after U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi for the first time since his appointment at the G20 ministerial conference.

In the meeting on Friday, Tillerson had discussed the the growing threat posed by North Korea's nuclear and missile programs with Yi in detail.

Acting U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner had said in a statement after the meeting that Tillerson urged China to "use all available tools to moderate North Korea's destabilizing behavior.”

Speaking to the media in Germany, Yi pledged to strictly implement UN-imposed sanctions and said that there is still hope to resolve the North Korea nuclear issue through diplomacy.

Chinese foreign ministry further said in a statement that Beijing is willing to facilitate multilateral talks.

Earlier last month, some Chinese ministries had jointly issued a statement, providing a list of prohibited items for export to North Korea in compliance of Resolution 2321.

The list included articles related to military-civilian dual-use, related to weapons of mass destruction. It included chemicals and weapons technologies, and design software, high-speed cameras and truck chassis.

China is North Korea’s only regional ally and its biggest trade partner.

sourcehttps://www.northkoreatimes.com/index.php/sid/251845099