As Chinese military exercises, US lawmaker pledges training for Taiwan

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March 19 (Reuters) – The Philippines´ presidential candidates debating on Saturday agreed on at least one thing and that was the need to hold social media firms liable for the spread of disinformation as the country prepares for elections on May 9.

An FBI probe was launched Friday to determine the source of the leak, however a senior official told The New York Times that tracking down the perpetrator could prove difficult because a large number of officials have the security clearances needed to access the information.

‘I realise I hadn’t had an education, and I tried some side jobs, 9-5 jobs and none of it worked. So I did a bit of study on how to work in something you love. That was social media, and it’s really started to take off in the last year.’

Married At First Sight’s Davina Rankin returns to Instagram… Is everything OK? Married At First Sight ‘villain’ Davina… Married At First Sight’s Dean Wells claims ‘there is no… He’s finally found Mrs Right! Married At First Sight’s Dean…

China describes Taiwan as the most sensitive and important issue in its relations with the United States, and the topic is a constant source of friction between Beijing and Washington. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Robert Birsel)

While a defence pact between Taiwan and the United States ended in 1979 when Washington severed formal diplomatic ties in favour of Beijing, a close military relationship endures and the United States is Taiwan’s main foreign source of arms.

However, the scandal is already being noted as one of the most damaging national security breaches in recent memory, which may have further implications into the legitimacy of US espionage into the future.

With the coronavirus pandemic disrupting traditional campaigning, candidates and supporters are increasingly turning to social media to reach voters, prompting concerns about online hate speech and disinformation.

The documents – while up to several months old – offer detailed insights into which Russian intelligence agencies have been most compromised, and clues as to how the United States has gleaned so much secret Kremlin information. 

And Dean Wells was grabbing attention for another reason on Saturday, as he surrounded himself with twerking ladies at a party held by tobacco tycoon Travers ‘Candyman’ Beynon at the Candyshop mansion in Queensland.

Aric Toler, head of research and training at the Bellingcat investigative consortium, said Saturday that the photos were posted by the Thug Shaker Central on Discord, but DailyMail.com was unable to find the group on on the platform Saturday. 

Speaking at a lunch in Taipei hosted by Tsai for his bipartisan delegation, Michael McCaul, chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, said they were there in strong support of Taiwan and that it was important democracies stood together.

The United States and has long offered some degree of training on weapon systems, as well as detailed advice on ways to strengthen its military to guard against an invasion by China’s People’s Liberation Army.

TAIPEI, April 8 (Reuters) – A senior U.S.
lawmaker pledged on Saturday to help provide training for Taiwan’s armed force and to speed up the delivery of weapons, as China began three days of military exercises around the island Beijing claims as its territory.

The leak comes amid speculation that a wave of classified document breaches could be being orchestrated by Russia, in what was described by a senior intelligence official as ‘a nightmare for the Five Eyes’ – a reference to the intelligence sharing agreement between the United States, Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.  

American officials told the New York Times that while the leak underscores the Pentagon’s capacity to collect information on Russia’s strategies, it remains to be seen whether their sources of information will be hampered by the revelations.

Allied nations, such as South Korea, have also reportedly been the subject of spying by the Pentagon, raising questions as to the diplomatic impact the leak could have at a time of deteriorating global ties.

In recent days, photos that were posted to several social media platforms showed the documents as if someone had taken them from a secure area, unfolded them from their pocket and quickly took pictures of the papers, an official said. 

Pentagon officials are said to be launching a huge probe into the leak. The leaked documents shared online – at least some of which are believed to be genuine – consist of photographs of printed sheets of paper.

In Ukraine, the documents suggested a misalignment between US and Ukrainian military strategies, with intelligence reports appearing to show the US continues to spy on top military and political leaders in the region.

Toler, whose investigative consortium has done several probes of Russian intelligence operations, said he believed he had traced the posting back to Thug Shaker Central on Discord, which was then reposting by users to a bigger group. 

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