Hours before arriving in the U.S., South Korean leader Lee Jae Myung has signaled difficulties in reaching a deal with Washington on its demand that U.S. forces in South Korea play a larger role in countering China. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/25/asia-pacific/politics/south-korea-lee-us-trump-china/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics#leejaemyung #donaldtrump #usmilitary #defense #budgets #china #northkorea #southkorea #nuclearweapons #us
The Pentagon is working on plans to deploy the U.S. military to Chicago as President Donald Trump says he is cracking down on crime, homelessness and undocumented immigration, The Washington Post reported Saturday. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/24/world/pentagon-military-deployment-chicago/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #donaldtrump #usmilitary #chicago
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has overseen the test-firing of two new air-defense missiles, state media said Sunday, after Pyongyang accused Seoul of fomenting tensions on the border. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/24/asia-pacific/north-korea-air-defense-missiles/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #northkorea #southkorea #missiles #nuclearweapons #usmilitary
When South Korean leader Lee Jae Myung meets U.S. President Donald Trump for their first summit, he will be asked to pay more for the upkeep of U.S. troops during talks set to be dominated by security issues and China. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/23/asia-pacific/politics/lee-trump-south-korea-us/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #southkorea #us #usmilitary #donaldtrump#leejaemyung #northkorea #nuclearweapons #trade #china #taiwan
The head of the Pentagon's intelligence was removed, in what appeared to be the latest attempt to penalize current and former military, intelligence and law enforcement officials seen to be at odds with Trump's views. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/23/world/politics/pengaton-purge-defense-intelligence/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #us #defense #petehegseth #espionage #donaldtrump #usmilitary
The U.S. military will deploy a new short-range air defense system in next month's joint drill with Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force, informed sources said. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/21/japan/us-new-air-defense-system-japan-drill/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #usjapanrelations #usmilitary#usbases #sdf #okinawa
The Republican governors of three states are deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., at the request of the administration of President Donald Trump, who has portrayed the city as awash in crime. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/17/world/states-national-guard-washington/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #washington #us #donaldtrump #usmilitary #republicans #democrats #uspolice
U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that Chinese leader Xi Jinping told him he would not invade democratic Taiwan as long as the American president remains in office. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/16/asia-pacific/politics/trump-xi-china-taiwan/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #uschinarelations #china #us #taiwan #pla #usmilitary #xijinping #donaldtrump
District of Columbia officials and the U.S. Justice Department negotiated a deal under the urging of a federal judge that scales back U.S. President Donald Trump's attempted takeover of the capital city's police force. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/16/world/crime-legal/trump-washington-dc-police/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #crimelegal #washington #us #donaldtrump #uspolice #usmilitary
The White House decision to pause military aid to Ukraine earlier this year undercut the country’s fighting capability and undermined its negotiating position with Russia, according to the U.S. European Command. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/16/world/politics/trump-pause-ukraine-aid-readiness/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #russia #ukraine #russiaukrainewar #usmilitary #defense #donaldtrump #europe
Civilians who survived the U.S. air raids on Japan in the closing stages of World War II are still fighting to receive compensation from the government 80 years on. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/14/japan/history/end-of-war-anniversary-civilian-relief/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #history #wwii #tokyoairraids #tokyo #us #usmilitary #katsueihirasawa #shigeruishiba
Following a trade deal with Seoul, the United States’ focus is now expected to shift to reorienting defense ties with South Korea as the two countries’ leaders meet for a summit that could reset their military alliance. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/10/asia-pacific/politics/south-korea-us-trump-lee-summit-preview/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #asiapacific #politics #southkorea #us#leejaemyung #donaldtrump #northkorea #china #defense #budgets #usmilitary #indopacific
The U.S. under President Donald Trump is crafting a confrontational approach toward Latin America that signals a willingness to use military force against drug cartels. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/08/09/world/politics/trump-military-drug-cartels/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #worldnews #politics #latinamerica #us #donaldtrump #drugs #gangs #usmilitary
Alex Akselrod
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The father of 5 fled to Pakistan with his family in 2021. There, Zia applied for an #SIV, while his youngest brother—already a US citizen—applied for #humanitarian parole on Zia’s behalf.
In April 2024, the #State Dept approved Zia’s SIV application, acc/to a letter from the US Embassy in Kabul. He also received humanitarian parole that year, which temporarily granted him & his family entry into the #US.
Alex Akselrod
boosted
Zia worked as an #interpreter & cultural adviser at Camp Mike Spann in Mazar-e Sharif, #Afghanistan, from about 2005 until 2009, Petersen, his attorney, told The Post.
Because of his work, Zia “suffered & continues to suffer threats to the life & property of himself & his family members by enemy forces & criminal elements,” says a recommendation letter from a supervisor who oversaw Zia’s interpreter work.
Alex Akselrod
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Matt Zeller, an #Army veteran whose #Afghan interpreter saved his life in a 2008 firefight, co-founded the nonprofit No One Left Behind to help resettle #Afghans. He said he fears the #immigration crackdown will unwind that effort.
“The #Trump administration knows what’s going to happen to these folks. They’re not stupid. They understand that the #Taliban is going to kill them when they get back to #Afghanistan,” Zeller said. “They just don’t care.”
Alex Akselrod
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They point to the arrests of Zia, 36, and Sayed Naser, 33, whose attorneys argue they followed proper #immigration processes. The Post agreed to withhold the last names of both men because of the ongoing threats to their lives from the #Taliban.
“Zia is not an outlier,” his attorney Lauren Cundick Petersen said during a news conference last month. “We’re witnessing the deliberate redefinition of legal entry as illegal for the purpose of meeting enforcement quotas.”
Alex Akselrod
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But the #Trump admin is rolling back programs created to assist >250k #Afghans — including the #allies who worked for #US forces & other #refugees who fled after the #Taliban takeover. And while admin officials say #SIV processing will continue, advocates for Afghans who served with US troops fear the curtailment of programs they depend on, along with Trump’s ambitious #deportation plan, jeopardizes those still vying for SIV protection.
Alex Akselrod
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As the admin seeks to fulfill #Trump’s pledge to carry out the largest #deportation op in #US history, attys for the men say their clients — #Afghans who fear retribution from the #Taliban for their work assisting the US in its 20-yr war in #Afghanistan — have found themselves in the crosshairs of #ICE. The attys provided WaPo with #military #contracts & certificates, #asylum & #visa applications, recommendation letters & other records that described both men’s work on behalf of #USmilitary….
Zia worked as an #interpreter & cultural adviser at Camp Mike Spann in Mazar-e Sharif, #Afghanistan, from about 2005 until 2009, Petersen, his attorney, told The Post.
Because of his work, Zia “suffered & continues to suffer threats to the life & property of himself & his family members by enemy forces & criminal elements,” says a recommendation letter from a supervisor who oversaw Zia’s interpreter work.
The father of 5 fled to Pakistan with his family in 2021. There, Zia applied for an #SIV, while his youngest brother—already a US citizen—applied for #humanitarian parole on Zia’s behalf.
In April 2024, the #State Dept approved Zia’s SIV application, acc/to a letter from the US Embassy in Kabul. He also received humanitarian parole that year, which temporarily granted him & his family entry into the #US.