Tuesday Morning Briefing: Iran says U.S. sanctions on Khamenei mean end of diplomacy

Top News

New U.S. sanctions against Iran’s supreme leader and foreign minister have closed off diplomacy, Iran said, blaming the United States for abandoning the only route to peace just days after the two foes came within minutes of conflict. Donald Trump targeted Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top Iranian officials with sanctions on Monday, taking a dramatic, unprecedented step to increase pressure on Iran after Tehran’s downing of an unmanned American drone.

NATO urged Russia to destroy a new missile before an August deadline and save a treaty that keeps land-based nuclear warheads out of Europe or face a more determined alliance response in the region. NATO defense ministers will discuss on Wednesday their next steps if Moscow keeps the missile system that the United States says would allow short-notice nuclear attacks on Europe and break the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty.

Hackers have broken into the systems of more than a dozen global telecoms companies and taken large amounts of personal and corporate data, researchers from a cyber security company said, identifying links to previous Chinese cyber-espionage campaigns. Investigators at U.S.-Israeli cyber security firm Cybereason said the attackers compromised companies in more than 30 countries and aimed to gather information on individuals in government, law-enforcement and politics.

Mexico has deployed almost 15,000 soldiers and National Guard in the north of the country to stem the flow of illegal immigration across the border into the United States, the head of the Mexican Army said. Mexico is trying to curb a surge of migrants from third countries crossing its territory in order to reach the United States, under the threat of tariffs on its exports by U.S. President Donald Trump, who has made tightening border security a priority.

U.S. presidential contender Bernie Sanders proposed a plan to cancel $1.6 trillion in student loans and pay for it with a tax on Wall Street, elevating the issue in the 2020 debate and going beyond proposals from his Democratic White House rivals. The proposal builds on Sanders’ longstanding call to make public universities and colleges tuition-free, an issue he has highlighted since his first presidential run in 2016. He said student loan debt was economically crippling young Americans.

Business

Huawei's U.S. research arm builds separate identity. The U.S.-based research arm of China’s Huawei - Futurewei Technologies - has moved to separate its operations from its corporate parent since the U.S government in May put Huawei on a trade blacklist, according to two people familiar with the matter. Futurewei has banned Huawei employees from its offices, moved Futurewei employees to a new IT system and forbidden them from using the Huawei name or logo in communications, a Futurewei employee told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

Dirty oil crisis over for Russia, but contagion felt on high seas. In the opinion of Russian officials, the oil contamination crisis that disrupted flows from the world’s second-largest exporter of crude this spring is long over. But a closer look at a dozen tankers containing dirty Russian oil suggests that for the buyers, the debacle has a long way to run and will cost them hundreds of millions of dollars.

Central bankers weigh up Facebook's Libra plan A senior member of the Swiss National Bank said he was open-minded about Facebook’s cryptocurrency project, while an Italian official looked for more information as central bankers try to get to grips with the initiative.

AbbVie to buy Botox-maker Allergan in $63 billion deal. Allergan shareholders will receive 0.8660 AbbVie shares and $120.30 in cash for each share held, for a total consideration of $188.24 per Allergan share, a premium of 45% to Allergan’s Monday close. The deal is expected to add 10% to adjusted earnings per share over the first full year following the close, the companies said.

'Storm approaching': U.S. furniture company RC Willey Home Furnishings is so concerned that new global clean air rules will cause transport disruption that it brought forward the shipment of arm chairs and sofas from China by two months. The tougher regulations, set by the United Nations shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization, come into force on Jan 1. Costs will rise for ships towards the end of this year and there will be a knock on effect for trucks and other transporters that move goods around the world.

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Middle East

U.S. to solicit funds for Middle East peace plan in Bahrain, though details remain vague

The Trump administration launches its Israeli-Palestinian peace plan with a bid to drum up $50 billion dollars to fund investment in the region, although the political details remain a secret and Palestinians have already denounced the approach as a sell-out.

6 min read

Syrians returning home to reach one million once safe zone created - Erdogan

President Tayyip Erdogan said he believed the number of Syrians returning from Turkey to their homeland will reach one million once a safe zone is established in northeast Syria along their shared border. Turkey hosts nearly 4 million Syrians - the largest number in any one country of Syrians displaced during the eight-year-old civil war. Tensions between Turks and Syrians flare up on occasion in the host country.

2 Min Read

Saudi Aramco concerned over Gulf attacks, has capacity to meet demand: CEO

Saudi Aramco is concerned at recent actions in the Gulf but can meet its customers’ needs thanks to its experience and the availability of additional spare capacity, its chief executive said.

3 min read

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