San Francisco Chronicle

Biden pledges unity with key Asia allies

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President Biden and the leaders of Japan and South Korea on Sunday vowed a unified, coordinate­d response to North Korea’s threatenin­g nuclear and ballistic missile programs, with Biden declaring that the three-way partnershi­p is “even more important than it’s ever been” when North Korea is stepping up its provocatio­ns.

Biden met separately with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol before all three sat down together on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Cambodia.

The meeting was heavily focused on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s recent escalation­s, although Biden said the three leaders would also discuss strengthen­ing supply chains and preserving peace across the Taiwan strait, while building on the countries’ support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.

Biden had also planned to seek input from Kishida and Yoon on managing China’s assertive posture in the Pacific region on the eve of his face-toface with President Xi Jinping.

“We face real challenges, but our countries are more aligned than ever, more prepared to take on those challenges than ever,” Biden said. “So I look forward to deepening the bonds of cooperatio­n between our three countries.”

Both Yoon and Kishida discussed the ongoing displays of aggression by North Korea, which has fired dozens of missiles in recent weeks. The launches include an interconti­nental ballistic missile 10 days ago that triggered evacuation alerts in northern Japan, as the allies warn of a looming risk of the isolated country conducting its seventh nuclear test in the coming weeks.

Biden has said he plans to press Xi to use China’s sway over North Korea to curtail its aggressive behavior, as part of what is expected to be a widerangin­g meeting Monday between the leaders on the margins of the Group of 20 gathering in Bali, Indonesia.

Netanyahu tapped to form government

Israel’s president officially asked former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to form a government on Sunday, opening the door for the likely return to power of the long-serving leader after a one-year hiatus. With Netanyahu comes what’s expected to be Israel’s most right-wing coalition ever.

Elections earlier this month indicated a clear win for Netanyahu and his ultra-Orthodox and ultranatio­nalist allies and ended the short-lived, ideologica­lly-diverse government that had ousted him last year after Netanyahu’s 12 consecutiv­e years in power.

Though political horse-trading began as soon as the election results firmed up, Sunday’s developmen­t means Netanyahu now has six weeks to conclude negotiatio­ns and cobble together a government.

Netanyahu struck a conciliato­ry tone at the Jerusalem event where Israel’s ceremonial President Isaac Herzog bestowed upon him the task of forming a government. Netanyahu played down concerns by Israeli liberals and some of the country’s internatio­nal allies that Israel was “entering a dark tunnel” with his expected government.

“We will do everything to make this, with God’s help, a stable government, a successful government, a responsibl­e

government, a dedicated government that will work for the benefit of all residents of the state of Israel, without exception,” he said.

Netanyahu, 73, faces charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of scandals involving media moguls and wealthy associates. In exchange for their policy priorities and plum government appointmen­ts, Netanyahu’s likely coalition partners have promised to advance a series of legal reforms and to weaken the Supreme Court, measures that could make his legal woes disappear.

Commanders agree on open access for aid

Top military commanders from Ethiopia and its embattled Tigray region have agreed to allow unhindered humanitari­an access to the region and form a joint disarmamen­t committee following their recent truce.

The commanders, who have been meeting in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, signed an agreement Saturday that they said calls for disengagem­ent from all forms of military activities.

Both parties have agreed to protect civilians and facilitate the delivery of humanitari­an aid to the region of more than 5

million people, according to a copy of the agreement seen by the Associated Press.

The agreement states that disarmamen­t will be “done concurrent­ly with the withdrawal of foreign and non(Ethiopian military) forces” from Tigray.

The lead negotiator for Ethiopia, Redwan Hussein, told the AP that Saturday’s signing event created a conductive environmen­t for ongoing peace efforts, noting that the next meeting of military leaders will “most likely” be held in Tigray in mid-December before a final meeting in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, in January.

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, who is helping to facilitate the talks, said Saturday that “humanitari­an aid should have resumed like yesterday.” Former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta, who is also involved in the talks, thanked the commanders for their commitment to peace.

Border chief resigns under pressure

The head of U.S. Customs and Border Protection has resigned from his job leading the nation’s largest law enforcemen­t agency as agents encounter record numbers of migrants entering the U.S. from Mexico.

Chris Magnus submitted his

resignatio­n to President Biden on Saturday, saying it had been “a privilege and honor” to be part of the administra­tion.

Two people who were briefed on the matter told the Associated Press that Magnus was told to resign or be fired less than a year after he was confirmed. The people spoke on condition of anonymity.

The removal of Magnus, former Richmond police chief, is part of a larger shakeup expected at Homeland Security as it struggles to manage migrants coming from a wider range of countries, including Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua.

Migrants were stopped 2.38 million times at the Mexican border in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, up 37% from the year before.

Memorial to school massacre opens

A memorial to the 20 first graders and six educators killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting opened to the public Sunday, a month before the 10th anniversar­y of the massacre.

No ceremony was planned at the site a short distance from the school. It has become a custom in Newtown, Conn., on anniversar­ies and other remembranc­es of the shooting to mark them with quiet reflection. Some victims’ relatives were given a private tour of the grounds on Saturday.

“I think they deserve not to have the bright lights of the world on them,” said Newtown First Selectman Dan Rosenthal, the town’s top elected official.

The memorial was designed as a peaceful place of contemplat­ion. Paths with a variety of plantings lead to a water feature with a sycamore tree in the middle and the victims’ names engraved on the top of a surroundin­g supporting wall.

Town voters approved $3.7 million for the cost of the memorial last year. Part of the cost was offset with funding from the State Bond Commission.

 ?? Bryan Woolston/Associated Press ?? A memorial to victims of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting is inscribed with their names, including Charlotte Bacon’s.
Bryan Woolston/Associated Press A memorial to victims of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting is inscribed with their names, including Charlotte Bacon’s.

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