作者： root

世粮署因资金短缺将约旦河西岸援助人数减半

2026年9月1日 18:54 / 联合早报

8月18日，约旦河西岸北部纳布卢斯附近库斯拉村，以色列右翼定居者的车辆停在他们围困的民宅外。当地散户巴勒斯坦居民称，自8月9日起对方开始封锁以来，他们的食物和其他物资供应受阻。 （法新社）

联合国世界粮食计划署称，由于资金削减，世粮署被迫将巴勒斯坦西岸地区的援助对像人数减半，并警告可能带来严重后果。

法新社报道，世粮署星期二（9月1日）说，从本月起，机构在巴勒斯坦西岸地区提供粮食援助的人数将从40万人减少至20万人。

世粮署驻巴勒斯坦地区代表休斯说：“世粮署被迫约旦河西岸受援人数削减一半”，并警告称当地粮食需求已是两年前的两倍多。

休斯指出，粮食不安全过去并非西岸地区的主要问题。但自2023年10月以哈战争爆发以来，定居者暴力行为加剧、以色列军事行动持续升级、通行限制严厉、房屋被拆毁以及当地大规模人口流离失所，这些因素削弱了巴勒斯坦人的生计，并导致粮食不安全情况加剧。

世粮署称，最新季度粮食安全分析显示，约旦河西岸76%的家庭收入显著下降。许多家庭为维持生计，被迫出售资产，并减少用餐次数和降低饮食质量。

分析还发现，三分之一家庭已无力负担营养充足的饮食。其中，农村地区及约旦河西岸南部省份居民受影响最严重。

休斯说：“那些曾经生活富足，依靠土地谋生的家庭，如今已买不起足够食物。”

以色列自1967年以来占领约旦河西岸地区。

Trump says Iran is ‘DEAD’ — experts point to the real sign Tehran is nearing the brink

2026-09-01 06:00 EDT / Fox News

Trump declares Iran a ‘Failed Nation’ as renewed strikes raise questions over whether Tehran is losing its remaining leverage

By Efrat Lachter Fox News

Published September 1, 2026 6:00am EDT

Iran economy ‘on the verge of collapse’ as tensions with US escalate

Miad Maleki, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, tells Fox News Digital that mounting economic pressure could push Iran to escalate in an effort to force Washington back to the negotiating table. Photos credit: Reuters/Getty

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President Donald Trump declared Iran a “Failed Nation” Monday, claiming the country is economically and militarily broken as renewed fighting with the U.S. raises questions about how much leverage Tehran still has left.

“Iran is officially a Failed Nation. IT IS DEAD!” Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday morning. “They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, they have no currency, they are not paying their soldiers or police.”

Trump also claimed Iranian inflation had reached 300% and said the country’s leadership was “in total disarray and incapable of properly representing the country.”

Iran is facing pressure from nearly every direction — renewed U.S. military strikes, tighter sanctions and a steep drop in oil exports — raising fresh questions about how long Tehran can keep absorbing the economic pain and still maintain leverage against Washington.

COULD IRAN’S REGIME COLLAPSE? EXPERTS ASSESS BESSENT’S BID TO SEVER FINANCIAL LIFELINES

Ships are anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on August 10, 2026, off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran.(Ali Saeedi/Getty Images)

Official Iranian data cited by Reuters put annual inflation at 66% in July, while the IMF projects average consumer-price inflation of 68.9% in 2026.

Trump’s post came amid the sharpest U.S.-Iran military escalation in weeks. U.S. forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island Sunday after Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz, according to a U.S. official. Iran retaliated by launching ballistic missiles toward U.S. bases in Jordan, while Jordan said it intercepted eight missiles that entered its airspace.

The renewed confrontation comes as Washington ratchets up economic pressure.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Reuters Sunday that the administration expects to roll out additional secondary sanctions as frequently as every week, initially focusing on banks and potentially cutting financial institutions that continue facilitating Iranian transactions out of the U.S. dollar-based financial system.

IRAN’S DEEPEST WEAKNESS IS GETTING EXPOSED THROUGH AMERICA’S MAXIMUM PRESSURE CAMPAIGN

An Iranian navy special forces service member, known as Takavaran, stands guard near the Iranian Kharg replenishment ship docked in the Red Sea Sudanese town of Port Sudan on Oct. 31, 2012. The visit of two Iranian naval ships to Sudan reflects strong ties between the countries, Sudan’s military said after Khartoum denied Iranian involvement in weapons manufacturing.(Ashraf Shazly/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran’s own leaders are acknowledging growing economic strain.

President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran’s exports and imports have fallen nearly 35% because of U.S. sanctions and the naval blockade, while annual inflation reached 66% in July, Reuters reported Aug. 29. The IMF projects Iran’s economy will contract 5.4% this year.

Miad Maleki, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies who previously served as associate director of Treasury’s Office of Global Targeting at the Office of Foreign Assets Control, told Fox News Digital that the Islamic Republic may be nearing an economic breaking point. FDD says Maleki previously helped oversee U.S. sanctions programs and served as chief and senior sanctions coordinator for Iran and the Middle East.

“I think where we stand today, it’s very clear — we see very clear signs, indications of what I would call an economy that is on the verge of collapse, if it hasn’t already collapsed yet,” Maleki said.

Maleki argued that the critical pressure point is Iran’s ability to turn oil exports into usable revenue.

US TARGETS CHINESE REFINERY IN SWEEPING IRAN OIL CRACKDOWN, SANCTIONS ‘SHADOW FLEET’ TANKERS

Oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz as seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026.(Altaf Qadri/AP Photo)

He estimates Tehran needs roughly 1 million barrels of oil exports per day to sustain itself, about 1.5 million to avoid hyperinflation and approximately 2 million to support development. Maleki said Iranian exports have fallen dramatically and Tehran is increasingly struggling to repatriate revenue from the oil it can sell.

Kpler data cited by Reuters showed Chinese imports of Iranian crude falling from an average 1.4 million barrels per day in 2025 to a provisional 534,000 barrels per day so far in August.

Maleki said Tehran is increasingly relying on money creation rather than cutting politically sensitive salaries and pensions. But there are limits.

“They can keep printing money, but they can’t really print the type of commodities that they need, such as gasoline, such as wheat,” he said.

The pressure, however, may create a dangerous paradox.

IRAN COULD UNLEASH ‘KINETIC’ RESPONSE AS US TIGHTENS ECONOMIC CONTAINMENT, ANALYST WARNS

An Iranian woman shops in a local market in Tehran, Iran, April 28, 2026.(Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters)

Iran analyst Danny Citrinowicz, a fellow at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative, told Fox News Digital that the maritime blockade, wartime losses and wider economic pressure are hurting Tehran, but argued Washington should not assume economic pain will lead to capitulation.

Citrinowicz said continued pressure could instead increase Tehran’s incentive to escalate if Iranian leaders conclude the status quo is worse than renewed confrontation. He said Iran could attempt to target “U.S. economic assets in the Gulf,” ports or U.S. vessels involved in enforcing the blockade, even as its missile-production capabilities have been degraded.

Maleki agreed Iran would likely attempt to escalate, but questioned how much leverage Tehran still possesses.

“They’re going to try to escalate,” Maleki said, pointing to the attacks of the last 24 hours. But he argued that further escalation would increasingly affect Gulf states Iran has relied upon for trade, sanctions evasion and diplomacy — potentially bringing even greater economic and diplomatic pressure.

MILLIONS OF BARRELS OF IRANIAN OIL SIT BEYOND TRUMP BLOCKADE AS HE VOWS ‘ZERO LEAKAGE’

People shop for produce at the historic Tajrish bazaar in northern Tehran on Aug. 25, 2026.(AFP via Getty Images)

Asked whether Iran was losing its leverage, Maleki responded: “Absolutely.”

He argued Tehran has emerged weakened from internal unrest and the external war and is increasingly isolated domestically and internationally.

What Maleki is watching next is not necessarily missed government payrolls, but shortages that could trigger another wave of domestic unrest.

“What I’m looking for is shortages of items such as gasoline,” Maleki said. “Right now they’re fighting a war inside Iran that is way more challenging to the regime than it is from external forces that they’re facing.”

Commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained severely disrupted Monday, while Brent crude climbed more than 2% to above $90 as markets reacted to the renewed U.S.-Iran exchanges. Reuters reported Aug. 31 that Gulf oil flows have recovered from their wartime lows but remain below pre-war levels.

Maleki said he expects Iranians to return to the streets and argued Western governments should prepare now to help them communicate and organize if Tehran again shuts down internet access.

“What we need to do is to contain this regime, cut off this economic lifeline, empower the Iranian people, be prepared next time Iranians are back on the street [and] take actions to stop this regime from slaughtering Iranians,” Maleki said.

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The Iranian internet blackout started Jan.8 and cost $1.56 million per hour amid protests.(Maria / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

“Those are the right policies — put the pressure on, be prepared to push back on the Iranian regime every time it escalates,” he added. “At this point, they are the weakest they’ve been since 1979. Every time they try to escalate, they become weaker.”

Reuters contributed to this story.

Efrat (Effie) Lachter is a reporter for Fox News Digital with more than 15 years of experience covering conflict, global affairs, human rights and political accountability.She has directed and produced more than 200 documentary segments across more than 40 countries, documenting conflicts, humanitarian crises, corruption, human trafficking, gender-based violence and the human stories behind major world events.

Lachter’s reporting has taken her into conflict zones and crisis areas across the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa. Her work has included uncovering human trafficking networks, revealing an ISIS underground torture prison in Syria, documenting the war in Ukraine and interviewing senior political figures and world leaders. She was also among the Western journalists who entered Russia after the war began to bring testimonies from Putin’s opposition. Lachter is the recipient of the 2022 Peres Center for Peace Award and was a 2023–2024 Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan. She also won two Rockower Awards for Excellence in Reporting. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communication and a master’s degree in political science.

Democratic socialists’ next hurdle: Winning over Black voters

2026-09-01T10:08:19.412Z / Reuters

WASHINGTON, Sept 1 (Reuters) – After a summer of victories for Democratic Socialists of America-aligned candidates, the movement faces a new test: whether it can win over Black voters, a constituency central to Democrats’ hopes of regaining control of Congress in November.

Florida state Representative Angie Nixon, who could become the first Black lawmaker elected to represent Florida in the U.S. Senate, may offer part of an answer. She overcame a more than 16-to-1 fundraising disadvantage to defeat retired Lieutenant Colonel Alex Vindman in the Democratic primary contest, running up large margins in Black communities while focusing on affordability and other everyday concerns.

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The debate underscores a challenge for DSA-backed candidates seeking to build on their primary successes. While Black voters have long criticized Democrats for paying attention to their communities mainly at election time, activists, strategists and community leaders interviewed by Reuters said some democratic socialists and progressive candidates face a different hurdle: persuading voters they are focused on housing, healthcare and rising living costs rather than ideological issues such as Gaza and defunding the police.

DSA officials say their organizing is centered on economic concerns, from housing costs and food prices to stagnant wages.

DSA-aligned candidates have challenged and in some cases defeated more moderate Democratic rivals in a string of high-profile primaries, intensifying an internal party debate over whether progressive energy can translate into broader voter appeal when Democrats face Republicans in November.

Interviews with more than two dozen activists, strategists and community leaders suggest DSA-backed candidates face an uphill battle with some Black voters in November. Some fear alienation from democratic socialists could threaten turnout among one of Democrats’ most reliable constituencies.

“Many times, Black people feel like the Democratic Party doesn’t come until it’s time to vote,” Nixon told Reuters. “That’s why it’s just really important to organize. And I would say DSA has to do the same thing.”

THE BLACK VOTER CHALLENGE

The divide also played out in the razor-thin Democratic primary for governor in Wisconsin, where Black voters helped Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley overcome a double-digit polling deficit to defeat DSA member Francesca Hong.

The stakes are perhaps highest in Michigan, where an Abdul El-Sayed loss would cost Democrats a key U.S. Senate seat, imperiling their bid to win control of the chamber in November. El-Sayed narrowly defeated moderate U.S. Representative Haley Stevens, who was overwhelmingly backed by Black voters.

Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist, said the mistake Democrats and the DSA have made is waiting until they need votes from Black voters to ask them what they actually want from a candidate.

“I don’t think the DSA is interested in actually hearing what Black voters think or feel is important,” he said. “I think they’re more interested in trying to say their agenda is the only agenda.”

Ashik Siddique, DSA national co-chair, said the group’s organizing has paid off with working-class Black voters in races such as the Washington, D.C., mayoral race.

“Black people, especially in the United States, have been dealing with discrimination in various systematic ways, and we are really focusing on economic solutions that bring people together across identity differences and would benefit people who have been disproportionately harmed by massive inequality,” he said.

EL-SAYED COURTS BLACK VOTERS IN MICHIGAN

Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate majority, meaning Democrats would need to flip four seats to win the chamber — assuming they successfully defend Michigan and Georgia, two states Republican President Donald Trump won in 2024. Former U.S. Representative Mike Rogers ran unopposed for the Republican nomination and has built a $4.5 million campaign fund.

Though El-Sayed says he is a capitalist, Republicans have repeatedly painted him as a socialist. His supporters say his grassroots campaign has energized liberal voters and young people disillusioned with politics, pointing to the primary’s record turnout. But political leaders and community advocates in Michigan say one of his most significant challenges will be earning the support of Black voters.

The Michigan Democratic Party Black Caucus initially endorsed Stevens but has since backed El-Sayed. Keith D. Williams, the group’s chairman, advised El-Sayed to pivot from Israel to kitchen-table issues, noting Black communities across the state are grappling with rising costs and want to know how candidates plan to make their lives more affordable.

“Leave Gaza and all that other stuff,” Williams said. “Just stay focused on here, right here, right now, because he needs Black voters.”

Pastor Greg Lewis, who leads the Milwaukee-based voter engagement nonprofit Souls to the Polls, said many Black voters are turned off by extreme politics, such as calls to defund the police.

“When you move too far to the left or too far to the right, I think you lose people and you lose energy,” Lewis said.

Frank D. Woods, chairman of the Wayne County Democratic Black Caucus, which backed El-Sayed, held an event at his home for El-Sayed in August. Nearly 200 people gathered to hear his plans to support Black Michiganders.

“He’s a minority as well,” Woods said of El-Sayed, a Muslim whose father was an Egyptian immigrant. “People tend to overlook that his community suffers through a similar discrimination that we do.”

GENERATIONAL DIVIDE AMONG BLACK VOTERS

In interviews, activists, organizers and Democratic strategists said that while older Black voters tend to be more moderate, the DSA has made inroads among young Black voters.

Donna Givens Davidson, president and CEO of the Eastside Community Network on Detroit’s East Side, attributes the defeat of U.S. Representative Shri Thanedar by democratic socialist state Representative Donavan McKinney to a “political awakening” among young Black voters.

“I don’t know too many millennials and Gen Z’ers who are opposed to DSA,” she said. “It’s mostly Gen X and Boomers who are sort of taking these establishment positions.”

Activists said Black voters are more concerned about candidates’ actual policies and whether they consistently show up in their communities than DSA, Democrat or any other political label.

“The conversation between establishment and socialism feels like a really wonky, almost academi-fied type of conversation about electoral politics that doesn’t actually include how real voters think and speak,” said Angela Lang, executive director of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities in Milwaukee.

Armando Grundy-Gomes, president of the Democratic Black Caucus of Florida, said Nixon, the DSA candidate who has been most successful winning over Black voters, did it by focusing on issues such as healthcare, childcare, paid parental leave, housing and immigration.

“Was it DSA messaging that resonated with Florida voters?” he said. “No, it was Angie Nixon and Angie Nixon’s platform.”

Reporting by Bianca Flowers, Nolan D. McCaskill and Kat Stafford; Additional reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by Michael Learmonth and Howard Goller

American missing in wake of Nepal floods contacted, Nepali officials tell CBS News

2026-09-01 7:02 AM EDT / CBS News

By Ramy Inocencio
Ramy Inocencio Correspondent

Kathmandu, Nepal— One of the dozens of U.S. nationals missing in the wake of the devastating flash floods on the Nepal-Tibet border has been contacted, Nepali government officials confirmed to CBS News on Tuesday.

About 85 Americans were still listed as missing, and word that rescuers have managed to contact one could bring hope to thousands of families around the world desperately waiting for word of loved ones.

CBS News was still working to confirm details of the case, and it was unclear who the U.S. national contacted by Nepali agencies might be, where they were located or what condition they were in.

More than 4,600 people were still believed to be missing and at least 1,050 confirmed dead in Nepal alone as of Tuesday, authorities said. Chinese authorities have confirmed that 16 people were killed in Tibet, and more than 550 remained missing on that sided of the border.

People scout for usable materials from debris after flash floods at Trishuli Center in Nepal’s Nuwakot district, Sept. 1, 2026. Arun SANKAR/AFP/Getty

About 600 hydroelectric power plant workers are among the missing in Nepal, believed to be trapped inside several projects in the disaster area, according to the Himalayan nation’s prime minister.

Work by search and rescue teams to clear mud-blocked tunnels to reach the workers has continued apace, amid concern that oxygen inside could run out.

It was almost a week ago that a mountainside and glacier collapse in the Himalayas triggered avalanches in Tibet and Nepal, which in turn triggered the devastating flash floods.

Recovery teams have found bodies in riverbeds far downstream. No one in the region can remember the sacred Trishuli River ever swelling higher than it did last week.

Rohit Tamang, 22, has spent his entire life in his home perched above the Trishuli. He told CBS News he watched helplessly when the waters surged last Wednesday, and he’s not leaving now, “because my childhood memories are here.”

Nepal’s foreign minister told CBS News on Tuesday that authorities believe many foreigners may have been hiking in the mountains when the disaster struck, leaving them marooned without communications, but possibly safe.

He was hopeful that, rather than mud and water, more good news could soon come down from the Himalayas.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/search-rescue-recovery-efforts-nepal/

Utah judge to decide if accused killer of Charlie Kirk will stand trial, face death penalty

2026-09-01T10:05:00.304Z / Reuters

By Andrew Hay

September 1, 2026 10:05 AM UTC Updated 1 hour ago

Tyler Robinson, accused in the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, attends a hearing at the 4th District Court in Provo, Utah, U.S., June 12, 2026. Francisco Kjolseth/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

• Summary

• DNA evidence on murder weapon at issue
• Judge to rule from bench after closing arguments
• Kirk killed during appearance at Utah university

Sept 1 (Reuters) – Nearly a year after Charlie Kirk was shot dead at ​a Utah university, a judge on Tuesday is expected to rule whether the Utah ‌man accused of killing the conservative activist will stand trial and whether he should face the death penalty.

At a 10 a.m. (1600 GMT) hearing in Provo, Utah, Judge Tony Graf will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to try Tyler ​Robinson, 23, and allow prosecutors to seek the death penalty for the murder of ​one of the U.S. right’s most prominent figures.

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Graf will rule from the bench after up ⁠to four hours of closing arguments. Should he find probable cause for a trial, an arraignment ​could follow, a Utah courts spokesperson said in an email. Robinson has yet to enter a plea.

Prosecutors ​have accused the former electrical apprentice of firing the single shot that killed Kirk, 31, as he debated with students at Utah Valley University in Orem on September 10, 2025.

Tuesday’s proceedings follow a week-long preliminary hearing in July that ​was attended by Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk. She was expected to be at Tuesday’s session.

During the preliminary hearing, ​prosecutors presented what they called “overwhelming” evidence, including test results that allegedly show Robinson’s DNA on the murder weapon. Robinson’s lawyers ‌questioned ⁠the prosecution’s DNA testing and said police failed to investigate evidence someone else might have carried out the killing.

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Robinson is charged with aggravated murder for also endangering the lives of others at the event, a count that carries the death penalty in Utah. His attorneys have argued the shooting is not a ​capital offense as the ​shooter hit the “intended target” ⁠and did not put anyone else’s life at risk.

Prosecutors also allege Robinson, who was in a relationship with roommate Lance Twiggs, targeted Kirk for his political views against ​gay marriage and transgender rights. That argument could bolster the prosecution as ​it pursues the ⁠death penalty.

Defense lawyers have said there is no evidence Robinson disagreed with Kirk’s political views. Kirk, co-founder of Turning Point USA, helped build support for President Donald Trump among young voters and aided Republican voter-turnout efforts.

At ⁠a ​memorial following Kirk’s shooting, Erika Kirk, who became CEO and ​board chair of Turning Point USA after her husband’s death, said she forgave the alleged shooter. She has not commented on ​the death penalty charge.

blob:https://www.reuters.com/dfc9b9fc-ec84-4a3a-a759-8c8cfc5365b1

Reporting by Andrew Hay in New Mexico; editing by Donna Bryson and Cynthia Osterman

韩国2027年预算案规模创新高 斥近200亿新元发展高新科技项目

2026年9月1日 16:02 / 联合早报

韩国政府通过史上规模最大的财政预算案，并将继续大力投入发展半导体和人工智能等高新科技领域。图为龙仁市正在建设中的半导体园区。 （路透社档案照片）

韩国2027年度财政预算案规模高达820万亿韩元（约7600亿新元），创下历史新高，并计划斥资21.3万亿韩元发展半导体、物理人工智能（AI）和产业园区基建等高新科技项目，延续打造AI强国的目标。

韩联社报道，韩国政府星期二（9月1日）通过了2027年度预算案，将在9月3日前提交给国会审查。

根据预算案，政府预测，明年总收入将达880.8万亿韩元，较今年增加205.6万亿韩元，增幅30.4%；总支出为820.9万亿韩元，较今年增加93万亿韩元，增幅为12.8%。这是韩国预算总支出首次超过800万亿韩元，增幅也创下新高。

总收入大增主要得益于半导体行情火爆，政府也宣布，将利用超预期税收成立规模达162.3万亿韩元的“未来应对基金”，用于教育、青年发展、人才培养、地方增长等领域，以及缩减国债发行规模和缓冲税收波动及提升财政能力等方面。

明年预算的五大重点投资领域包括半导体、AI数据中心和物理AI“三大超级项目”，以及发掘未来增长动能、全周期惠青政策、消除两极分化和实现全民增长、保障国民安全与和平。

其中，政府为半导体、物理AI、产业园区基建项目编制21.3万亿韩元的预算；为先进战略产业和能源转型等未来增长项目编制62.8万亿韩元；为全周期惠青项目编制43.3万亿韩元；为民生稳定编制117.1万亿韩元；为保障国民安全及和平编制38.3万亿韩元。

韩国2027年预算案规模创新高 斥近200亿新元发展高新科技项目

2026年9月1日 16:02 / 联合早报

韩国政府通过史上规模最大的财政预算案，并将继续大力投入发展半导体和人工智能等高新科技领域。图为龙仁市正在建设中的半导体园区。 （路透社档案照片）

韩国2027年度财政预算案规模高达820万亿韩元（约7600亿新元），创下历史新高，并计划斥资21.3万亿韩元发展半导体、物理人工智能（AI）和产业园区基建等高新科技项目，延续打造AI强国的目标。

韩联社报道，韩国政府星期二（9月1日）通过了2027年度预算案，将在9月3日前提交给国会审查。

根据预算案，政府预测，明年总收入将达880.8万亿韩元，较今年增加205.6万亿韩元，增幅30.4%；总支出为820.9万亿韩元，较今年增加93万亿韩元，增幅为12.8%。这是韩国预算总支出首次超过800万亿韩元，增幅也创下新高。

总收入大增主要得益于半导体行情火爆，政府也宣布，将利用超预期税收成立规模达162.3万亿韩元的“未来应对基金”，用于教育、青年发展、人才培养、地方增长等领域，以及缩减国债发行规模和缓冲税收波动及提升财政能力等方面。

明年预算的五大重点投资领域包括半导体、AI数据中心和物理AI“三大超级项目”，以及发掘未来增长动能、全周期惠青政策、消除两极分化和实现全民增长、保障国民安全与和平。

其中，政府为半导体、物理AI、产业园区基建项目编制21.3万亿韩元的预算；为先进战略产业和能源转型等未来增长项目编制62.8万亿韩元；为全周期惠青项目编制43.3万亿韩元；为民生稳定编制117.1万亿韩元；为保障国民安全及和平编制38.3万亿韩元。

John Roberts often defers to Trump but not for the White House ballroom project

2026-09-01T08:00:29.315Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/01/politics/john-roberts-ballroom-dissent-supreme-court

“The White House is not just any building.”

So said Chief Justice John Roberts, who has often deferred to Donald Trump’s executive authority, but on Monday separated himself from the president and fellow Supreme Court conservatives to protest the colossal ballroom project.

It was a rare dissent and remarkable break for the chief justice who has penned some of the most important opinions backing Trump, including the 2024 grant of immunity from criminal prosecution and last June’s decision giving him power to fire the heads of independent agencies.

Still, the rhetoric was vintage Roberts.

His six-page dissenting statement was laced with regard for history and architecture in the nation’s capital. He quoted Theodore Roosevelt and Winston Churchill as he extolled the value of iconic structures.

“‘We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us,’” Roberts wrote, lifting a page from a 1943 Churchill war speech.

To that, the chief justice added, “All the more reason to ensure that those responsible follow the rules in deciding what to tear down and what to build up at the People’s House.”

Roberts, who regularly tells audiences that he once intended to pursue a history Ph.D. rather than law degree at Harvard, touted the symbolism of Washington’s historic architecture.

He observed that when Roosevelt in 1902 thanked Congress for the appropriations for the additions of the East and West wings, Roosevelt referred to “the stately simplicity” of the original architecture and the importance of preserving “such buildings as historic monuments which keep alive our sense of continuing with the Nation’s past.”

Throughout his opinion, the chief justice, who often shows pride in the Supreme Court’s columned building, demonstrated his own regard for the aesthetic of the White House structure. (The court did not have its own building until 1935, more than a century after the construction of the White House and US Capitol.)

Yet, Roberts’ position failed to make a difference and was costless, at least to Trump. Roberts’ five conservative colleagues had a majority to allow the president to continue the ballroom construction that has been underway for nearly a year and nearing completion.

Still, Roberts’ statement Monday adds another dimension to the chief’s record as he has confronted Trump’s audacious second-term agenda. The Trump cases have dominated the court’s docket and will contribute to Roberts’ own legacy.

While Roberts has greenlit many of Trump’s policies, he voted last session against two of the most extreme: the sweeping tariffs imposed on foreign goods without congressional approval, and the attempt to limit birthright citizenship, a centuries-old practice that entitles any child born in the US to American citizenship.

Monday’s case invoking American history also serves as a reminder of Roberts’ position as chancellor of the Smithsonian Institution. The role is largely ceremonial, by virtue of his role as chief justice, yet he has overseen Smithsonian board meetings and witnessed the Trump administration’s ongoing effort to reshape the nation’s major public museums.

Trump’s drive to transform the look of Washington in his image has included his move to inscribe his name on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and to build a triumphal 250-foot arch. The arch is planned for the traffic circle between the Arlington National Cemetery entrance and the Lincoln Memorial.

The case was brought by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. It contended that demolition of the East Wing and the construction of 90,000 square-foot ballroom and security structure required congressional approval.

Lower federal courts preliminarily sided with the Trust and let the case proceed. Judges found that the Trust had “standing” to sue because it had demonstrated a significant injury. The Trust pointed to a long-time Trust leader and member, Alison Hoagland, an architectural historian, who claimed her enjoyment of the White House had been harmed.

The high court majority declared her grounds insufficient, writing “mere offense, disagreement, or distaste does not qualify as a concrete and particularized injury” to sue. The majority issued the opinion, per curiam, Latin for “by the court,” as happens in such appeals that come to its emergency docket. None of those justices (Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett) signed any separate opinion.

To Roberts, there was nothing meager about Hoagland’s claim. (Joining his opinion were liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.)

The chief justice emphasized her architectural credentials as he observed, “The White House is not just any building, and – when it comes to historic preservation – Hoagland is not just any person.”

He noted that past court cases have found an injury when “esthetic interests” were asserted. He referred to a 1992 precedent in which, as Roberts described it, with lines from that prior case, “a desire to … observe an animal species like a particular crocodile, even for purely esthetic purposes was undeniably a cognizable interest for purposes of standing.”

As for the case at hand, Roberts declared, “A historic preservationist such as Hoagland can be aesthetically injured in a concrete, particularized way by the transformation of a historic building that she frequently enjoys, just as an environmentalist can sustain a concrete, particularized aesthetic injury from the extinction of a particular animal or the transformation of a particular forest or river that he regularly enjoys.”

Monday’s case turned on the standing issue alone – the majority said it was not ruling on the lawfulness of the ballroom project itself – but Roberts made clear his view of the entire enterprise.

He observed at the outset that Congress had explicitly prohibited construction on such federal property “without express authority of Congress.”

“That construction is likely unlawful,” he said, declaring that the usual appropriation for White House maintenance “likely does not authorize the President to use hundreds of millions of dollars in private donations to tear down the East Wing and construct a ballroom in its stead.”

印度据报已重启与赞比亚关键金属投资谈判

2026-09-01 16:40 / 联合早报

随着经济发展，印度对铜的需求量激增，并主要依赖进口。图为斯利那加（Srinagar）一家铜器店。 （法新社）

随着印度经济快速增长带来对原材料的需求激增，新德里正越来越多地将目光投向海外。消息人士称，印度已与赞比亚重启谈判，探索在铜和其他关键矿产领域的投资机会。

路透社星期二（9月1日）引述两名匿名知情人士报道，印度矿业部官员已于上星期三（8月26日）与赞比亚官员进行了初步接触。

今年4月，由于赞比亚没能为去年授予印度的9000平方公里区域的采矿权提供保障，两国谈判一度陷入停滞。一名消息人士指出，双方这次谈判并没有讨论这个项目。

印度矿业部未回应路透社的置评请求；赞比亚矿业部发言人则表示，目前无法确认任何消息。

印度是全球第二大精炼铜买家。自2018年韦丹塔集团（Vedanta）旗下的斯特里特铜冶炼厂（Sterlite Copper）关闭以来，印度的铜进口量急剧上升。

印度政府此前表示，到2047年，印度可能必须进口91%至97%的铜精矿。

印度目前主要通过卡尼吉·比德什矿业公司（Khanij Bidesh India Ltd，简称KABIL）在海外获取关键矿产供应。这家公司目前也在评估澳大利亚、巴西、加拿大、俄罗斯和印度尼西亚的投资机会，并正就马拉维的一个项目进行谈判。

为了以政府间合作的方式获取关键矿区，印度一直在与几个非洲国家进行谈判，同时也积极在澳大利亚和拉美地区寻找机会。

印度矿业联合会发言人指出，以刚果（金）和赞比亚为首的非洲国家，可以在满足印度对铜和钴日益增长的需求方面，发挥重要作用。

发言人表示，应主要鼓励印度企业争取已有一定基础的现有项目，以及接近投产的项目，并达成长期包销协议。

印度据报已重启与赞比亚关键金属投资谈判

2026年9月1日 16:40 / 联合早报

随着经济发展，印度对铜的需求量激增，并主要依赖进口。图为斯利那加（Srinagar）一家铜器店。 （法新社）

随着印度经济快速增长带来对原材料的需求激增，新德里正越来越多地将目光投向海外。消息人士称，印度已与赞比亚重启谈判，探索在铜和其他关键矿产领域的投资机会。

路透社星期二（9月1日）引述两名匿名知情人士报道，印度矿业部官员已于上星期三（8月26日）与赞比亚官员进行了初步接触。

今年4月，由于赞比亚没能为去年授予印度的9000平方公里区域的采矿权提供保障，两国谈判一度陷入停滞。一名消息人士指出，双方这次谈判并没有讨论这个项目。

印度矿业部未回应路透社的置评请求；赞比亚矿业部发言人则表示，目前无法确认任何消息。

印度是全球第二大精炼铜买家。自2018年韦丹塔集团（Vedanta）旗下的斯特里特铜冶炼厂（Sterlite Copper）关闭以来，印度的铜进口量急剧上升。

印度政府此前表示，到2047年，印度可能必须进口91%至97%的铜精矿。

印度目前主要通过卡尼吉·比德什矿业公司（Khanij Bidesh India Ltd，简称KABIL）在海外获取关键矿产供应。这家公司目前也在评估澳大利亚、巴西、加拿大、俄罗斯和印度尼西亚的投资机会，并正就马拉维的一个项目进行谈判。

为了以政府间合作的方式获取关键矿区，印度一直在与几个非洲国家进行谈判，同时也积极在澳大利亚和拉美地区寻找机会。

印度矿业联合会发言人指出，以刚果（金）和赞比亚为首的非洲国家，可以在满足印度对铜和钴日益增长的需求方面，发挥重要作用。

发言人表示，应主要鼓励印度企业争取已有一定基础的现有项目，以及接近投产的项目，并达成长期包销协议。