South Korea and US will start summer military drills next week to counter North Korean threats

MADRID: Several people were hurt in a second night of anti-migrant unrest in the Spanish town of Torre Pacheco after a pensioner was beaten up, authorities said on Sunday.

Despite a major police presence, groups armed with batons roamed the streets looking for foreign-origin people, regional newspaper La Opinion de Murcia reported.

The regional government did not say how many people were injured but stated that at least one person had been arrested for the violence.

The unrest erupted after a 68-year-old man told Spanish media he was beaten up in the street on Wednesday by three youths of North African origin.

The attack was filmed and put on social media.

The town hall organized a demonstration on Friday that was intended to be peaceful but where far-right elements shouted anti-migrant slogans.

One group, named “Deport Them Now,” posted a message on social media calling for attacks against people of North African origin.

Spanish authorities launched an appeal for calm on Sunday in the town of 36,000 people.

“Torre Pacheco must get back to normal,” said the head of the Murcian regional government Fernando Lopez Miras in a message on X.

“I understand the frustration but nothing justifies violence,” added the conservative politician.

“I call on residents to be calm, for tranquility,” said Torre Pacheco mayor, Pedro Angel Roca Ternel, on RTVE public television.

Spain’s Youth Minister Sira Rego, a member of the extreme left wing party Sumar, condemned the violence against migrants in a message on Bluesky, blaming the role of the “ultra-right” in the unrest.

SYDNEY: France’s defense relations with Australia have recovered after their 2021 bust-up over a major submarine contract, the country’s ambassador said Sunday.

Paris expressed its “strong regrets” when Australia tore up a multibillion-dollar deal to buy a fleet of diesel-powered submarines from France, Ambassador Pierre-Andre Imbert said.

Since the 2022 election of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, however, the defense relationship had been “restarted,” he said.

“Now, the first pillar of our cooperation is defense and security, so we have a very good level of cooperation,” the ambassador told AFP as French forces joined major military drills around Australia.

When Australia ditched the French deal, it opted instead to acquire nuclear-powered vessels in a new three-way AUKUS pact with the United States and Britain.

But a US defense official last month revealed that a review of AUKUS was underway to ensure it “aligned with the President’s America First agenda” and that the US defense industrial base was “meeting our needs.”

Under the AUKUS deal, Australia would acquire at least three Virginia class submarines from the United States within 15 years, eventually manufacturing its own subs.

The US Navy has 24 Virginia-class vessels but American shipyards are struggling to meet production targets set at two new boats each year.

Asked if France would ever consider discussing a new submarine deal with Australia if the AUKUS agreement was torpedoed by the review, the French ambassador said he was reluctant to speculate.

“I would say it’s more an issue for Australia for the moment. And of course, we are always discussing with our friends of Australia,” he said.

“But for the moment, they have chosen AUKUS,” he said. “If this changes (and) they ask, we’ll see.”

More than 30,000 military personnel from 19 nations are set to join the three-week, annual Talisman Sabre military exercises, which started Sunday across Australia and Papua New Guinea.