In the latest distancing by Trump administration advisors from recent statements by the President, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis arrived in Baghdad on an unannounced visit on Monday to discuss the war effort against ISIS, and said that the US military is not in Iraq "to seize anybody’s oil."
Secretary of Defence, James Mattis, arrives in Baghdad, February 20, 2017
The always 'fair and balanced' New York Times' Nicholas Kristof (author of such 'real news' as "Donald Trump: Kremlin Employee of the Month?", "What Did Trump Know, and When Did He Know It?" and "Donald Trump: The Russian Poodle") has outdone himself with this week's 'opinion' piece, asking "We’re just a month into the Trump presidency, and already so many are wondering: How can we end it?"
Despite a calm start to European trading, with local equity bourses posting solid early gains, European political fears have returned this morning, leading to a blow out in French government bond yields, pushing the 10y yield now higher by 5bps and 5y up 8bps, as early losses extend after latest poll shows support for anti-euro presidential candidate Marine Le Pen rising in both election rounds.
As a result, the French-German 10Y govt spread has jumped to 85 bps, following an accelerated selloff, to the widest level since July 2012.
Iran is hosting a two-day international conference on Palestine in a show of solidarity with the oppressed nation. The 6th International Conference in Support of the Palestinian intifada opens in Tehran on Monday, with 80 delegations from around the world expected to attend. Press TV reports: Around 700 foreign guests and representatives of the pro-Palestinian organizations are slated to take part in the event.
In Romania, thousands of people braved harsh weather conditions for the 2oth consecutive day of anti-government and anti-corruption protests. Despite the freezing weather thousands of Romanians continued protesting in the capital, Bucharest, to demand that the government of Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanus step down.