Quick Glance: British Royal Family Left with Only 9 Working Members
- Kate Middleton and King Charles have announced cancer treatments and temporarily stepped back from royal duties.
- The royal family now consists mainly of older members who are taking on responsibilities.
- Prince William is supporting his wife and taking on duties while King Charles and others are absent.
- The royal family is in a vulnerable position, relying on few working members who are mostly in their 70s and 80s.
Quick Glance: EU to Regulate AI Systems Including ChatGPT
- EU lawmakers voted on Wednesday to adopt a key text that will serve as the basis for a future law regulating artificial intelligence systems, such as ChatGPT, while also promoting innovation in the technology.
- Although the EU's plans for regulating AI systems date back to 2021, the urgency of drafting rules increased when ChatGPT emerged last year, showcasing the rapid advances and possible risks of AI.
- The proposed law aims to regulate AI systems based on their level of risk, meaning higher risks to individuals' rights or health would result in greater obligations for the systems.
- Generative AI systems, like ChatGPT and DALL-E, must inform users that content was produced by a machine and not a human. Additionally, lawmakers proposed banning AI systems that use biometric surveillance, emotion recognition, and predictive policing.
Quick Glance: Blinken calls for US funding to UNESCO to counter China
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Congress to approve $150 million to rejoin UNESCO and curb China's influence on regulating artificial intelligence.
- Blinken emphasized that the absence of the US is letting China write the rules.
- The budget was presented to a Senate committee, with Blinken stating that the US should rejoin UNESCO because its affairs matter.
- As part of the giant spending bill approved at the end of 2022, Congress gave the President the power to waive the previous law and fund UNESCO if he determines that it would counter Chinese influence.
Quick Glance: Blinken hopes to smooth over a rocky relationship with a rare trip to China.
- Reuters, February 2 – There will be plenty to disagree about when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets his Chinese counterpart in Beijing next week, from Taiwan to chips and trade.
- Blinken's visit to China will be the first by a secretary of state since Mike Pompeo met then-foreign minister Wang Yi in Beijing in October 2018, when the two dignitaries exchanged pointed remarks amid a worsening trade war.
- Wendy Sherman, Deputy Secretary of State, will accompany him.
- "Much like it has on other issues, [Beijing] is attempting to link cooperation with other completely unrelated issues."
Quick Glance: Middle East conflict: Antony Blinken calls for Middle East de-escalation
- Following meetings with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Egypt's foreign minister, Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to Israel and the West Bank, where he will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
- On Friday, a Palestinian gunman killed seven people outside an East Jerusalem synagogue before being shot dead by police.
- In 1967, Israel captured the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
- The Palestinians want to establish their own state in Gaza and the West Bank, which Israel has since vacated, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Quick Glance: US must quit "bullying" China's growth, says foreign minister
- In the most recent phone conversation between the two leaders, Wang stated that the US must pay heed to China's legitimate concerns, cease stifling and inhibiting its development, and stop "salami-slicing" China's red line.
- Biden had expressed concern over China's "coercive and increasingly aggressive actions toward Taiwan," which he claimed threatened peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the region, as well as jeopardized global economy.
- "S. relations, promote dialogue at all levels, and resolve specific issues between the two countries through joint working groups," Wang explained.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that "the combination that we've seen of COVID, of climate and now conflict ... Show more
Quick Glance: Blinken tested positive for Covid.
- On April 26, 2022, Secretary of State Antony Blinken appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
- A PCR test revealed Blinken's positive test result on Wednesday afternoon.
- In recent weeks, Blinken has also maintained a rigorous travel schedule.
- "The secretary will isolate at home and maintain a virtual work schedule," Price explained.
Sec. of State Antony Blinken has tested positive for COVID-19 via a PCR test, the State Department says.
"He is experiencing only mild symptoms ... Show more
Secretary of State Antony Blinken tested positive for Covid-19 Wednesday, according to the State Department, making him the latest to contract the virus ... Show more
Quick Glance: The Israeli Prime Minister has tested positive for COVID-19.
- According to his office, he is "feeling well and will continue his schedule as planned from his home" on Monday.
- Bennett had previously visited Hadera in northern Israel, where gunmen killed two police officers in an attack claimed by the extremist Islamic State organization.
- The two gunmen, Israeli Arabs recognized by Israeli intelligence as local IS operatives, were slain by counterterrorism cops who happened to be nearby, according to police.
- Bennett's office stated that the prime minister "will hold a situation assessment following the attack that took place last night with" the ministers of defense, public security, the army's chief of staff, and other officials on Monday.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reaffirmed his country’s commitment to solving the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict through a two-state ... Show more
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal next week. Blinken's meeting with Kenya's Uhuru Kenyatta ...
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Nairobi, Kenya on November 17th to advance US-Kenyan cooperation towards peacefully resolving the conflict ...
Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers remarks on the passing of former Secretary of State Colin Powell.