US Vice President Kamala Harris and French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday agreed on the importance of "absolutely critical" France-US relations.
A White House statement said Ms Harris underlined US commitment to co-operation on various global challenges, "from transatlantic security to the Indo-Pacific to the Sahel".
Expanded co-operation on space and cybersecurity issues was also announced. The two leaders "discussed the need for continued co-operation and concrete actions to create norms around emerging technology and strengthen preparedness for future pandemics", the White House said.
The meeting between the two countries came after a diplomatic storm caused by a ditched Australian submarine contract.
Mr Macron was furious in September when Australia dropped out of a deal to buy submarines from France in favour of nuclear-powered vessels from the US in an agreement that had been negotiated in secret.
After weeks of anger in Paris, Mr Macron held talks with US President Joe Biden in Rome on October 29.
"I have to say we had a fruitful meeting in Rome a few days ago with President Biden, which paved the way for the coming weeks, months and, I have to say, years," Mr Macron told Ms Harris.
Facing each other over a table at the Elysee Palace, Mr Macron thanked Ms Harris for her four-day visit to Paris.
"We do share the view that we are at the beginning of a new era. Our co-operation is absolutely critical for this era," he said.
France wants to work closely with the US on matters ranging from climate change to the Indo-Pacific region, where China's rise is a cause of a mutual concern.
French officials called the submarine deal a "stab in the back" and regarded it as a setback for efforts to rebuild ties after years of tension under former US president Donald Trump.
"I do believe, and we share this belief, that we are at the beginning of a new era which presents us with many challenges but also many opportunities," Ms Harris told Mr Macron.
"When France and the United States have worked on challenges and opportunities in the past we have always found great success.
"Building on the great conversation that you and President Biden had, I look forward to the next few days where we'll continue to work together and renew the focus that we have always had on partnership."
Mr Biden sought to make amends over the submarine dispute at his meeting with Mr Macron last month, telling the French leader that his government had been "clumsy" in the way it secured the submarine deal with Australia in partnership with Britain.
France temporarily recalled its ambassadors to Washington and Canberra after the announcement of the deal on September 15.
Anger in Paris stemmed not only from the loss of the deal, which was worth $36.5 billion in 2016, but also the shattering of an alliance it regarded as a cornerstone of its Indo-Pacific security strategy.
Ms Harris is scheduled to attend a peace forum with other world leaders on Thursday, and an international conference on Libya on Friday.
On Tuesday, during a tour of the famed Pasteur Institute in Paris, where Ms Harris's mother conducted cancer research in the 1980s, she was asked about the recent difficulties in Franco-American ties.
She compared politics with scientific research, as well as cooking, and suggested it entailed a constant search for improvement.
"There will be glitches and there will be mistakes," Ms Harris said. "If you don't make the same mistake twice … that's a good process and we should encourage it."
As she arrived on Tuesday, she said she was "looking forward to many, many days of productive discussions reinforcing the strength of our relationship".
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.0-litre, twin-turbocharged W12
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 626bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh1,050,000
On sale: now
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J%20Street%20Polling%20Results
%3Cp%3E97%25%20of%20Jewish-Americans%20are%20concerned%20about%20the%20rise%20in%20anti-Semitism%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E76%25%20of%20US%20Jewish%20voters%20believe%20Donald%20Trump%20and%20his%20allies%20in%20the%20Republican%20Party%20are%20responsible%20for%20a%20rise%20in%20anti-Semitism%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E74%25%20of%20American%20Jews%20agreed%20that%20%E2%80%9CTrump%20and%20the%20Maga%20movement%20are%20a%20threat%20to%20Jews%20in%20America%22%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
Votes
Total votes: 1.8 million
Ashraf Ghani: 923,592 votes
Abdullah Abdullah: 720,841 votes
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
Match info
Deccan Gladiators 87-8
Asif Khan 25, Dwayne Bravo 2-16
Maratha Arabians 89-2
Chadwick Walton 51 not out
Arabians won the final by eight wickets
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Seoul from Dh3,775 return, including taxes
The package
Ski Safari offers a seven-night ski package to Korea, including five nights at the Dragon Valley Hotel in Yongpyong and two nights at Seoul CenterMark hotel, from £720 (Dh3,488) per person, including transfers, based on two travelling in January
The info
Visit www.gokorea.co.uk
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Karwaan
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala
Director: Akarsh Khurana
Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar
Rating: 4/5
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
A cryptocurrency primer for beginners
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Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.
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