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More than 450 immigrant parents who were separated from their children when they entered the United States illegally are no longer in the country though their children remain behind, according to a joint court filing on Monday by the federal government and the American Civil Liberties Union.

The absence of the 463 parents, which U.S. government lawyers said was “under review,” could impede government efforts to reunite separated families by Thursday, the deadline ordered by a federal judge. The filing did not say why the 463 parents had left the country, but government officials previously acknowledged that some parents had been deported without their children.

As of Monday, 879 parents had been reunited with their children, according to the filing.

About 2,500 children were separated from their parents after the Trump administration announced a “zero tolerance” policy in April aimed at discouraging illegal immigration. The policy was ended in June amid an international outcry about the government’s treatment of immigrant children.

U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw in San Diego ordered last month that the government had to reunite the children with their parents in a case brought by the ACLU.

On Monday, the government also said 917 parents were either not eligible to be reunited or not yet known to be eligible to be reunited with their child. That number includes parents no longer in the country as well as those deemed unsuitable because of criminal convictions or for other reasons.

Immigration advocates have expressed alarm about parents deported without their children, saying it can create problems with the children’s immigration cases.

“How can we go forward on a case if we don’t know the parent’s wishes?” Megan McKenna, spokeswoman for Kids in Need of Defense, told Reuters earlier this month.

While Monday’s report indicated progress with reunifications, the ACLU made clear its frustrations with the process. The rights group said it did not have a list of parents who signed a form electing to be deported without their child.

“These parents urgently need consultations with lawyers, so that they do not mistakenly strand their children in the United States,” the ACLU wrote in the court filing.

The ACLU asked Sabraw to order the government to turn the information over by the end of Tuesday.

The government said it had cleared an additional 538 parents for reunification pending transport.
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More than 450 immigrant parents who were separated from their children when they entered the United States illegally are no longer in the country though their children remain behind, according to a joint court filing on Monday by the federal government and the American Civil Liberties Union.

The absence of the 463 parents, which U.S. government lawyers said was “under review,” could impede government efforts to reunite separated families by Thursday, the deadline ordered by a federal judge. The filing did not say why the 463 parents had left the country, but government officials previously acknowledged that some parents had been deported without their children.

As of Monday, 879 parents had been reunited with their children, according to the filing.

About 2,500 children were separated from their parents after the Trump administration announced a “zero tolerance” policy in April aimed at discouraging illegal immigration. The policy was ended in June amid an international outcry about the government’s treatment of immigrant children.

U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw in San Diego ordered last month that the government had to reunite the children with their parents in a case brought by the ACLU.

On Monday, the government also said 917 parents were either not eligible to be reunited or not yet known to be eligible to be reunited with their child. That number includes parents no longer in the country as well as those deemed unsuitable because of criminal convictions or for other reasons.

Immigration advocates have expressed alarm about parents deported without their children, saying it can create problems with the children’s immigration cases.

“How can we go forward on a case if we don’t know the parent’s wishes?” Megan McKenna, spokeswoman for Kids in Need of Defense, told Reuters earlier this month.

While Monday’s report indicated progress with reunifications, the ACLU made clear its frustrations with the process. The rights group said it did not have a list of parents who signed a form electing to be deported without their child.

“These parents urgently need consultations with lawyers, so that they do not mistakenly strand their children in the United States,” the ACLU wrote in the court filing.

The ACLU asked Sabraw to order the government to turn the information over by the end of Tuesday.

The government said it had cleared an additional 538 parents for reunification pending transport.
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The eruption of Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano could last for months or years and threaten new communities on the Big Island, according to a report by U.S. government geologists.

A main risk is a possible change in the direction of a lava flow that would destroy more residential areas after at least 712 homes were torched and thousands of residents forced to evacuate since Kilauea began erupting on May 3, the report by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said.

A higher volume of molten rock is flowing underground from Kilauea’s summit lava reservoir than in previous eruptions, with supply to a single giant crack — fissure 8 — showing no sign of waning, according to the study published last week.

“If the ongoing eruption maintains its current style of activity at a high eruption rate, then it may take months to a year or two to wind down,” said the report designed to help authorities on the Big Island deal with potential risks from the volcano.

Lava is bursting from same area about 25 miles (40 km) down Kilauea’s eastern side as it did in eruptions of 1840, 1955 and 1960, the report said. The longest of those eruptions was in 1955. It lasted 88 days, separated by pauses in activity.

The current eruption could become the longest in the volcano’s recorded history, it added.

Geologists believe previous eruptions may have stopped as underground lava pressure dropped due to multiple fissures opening up in this Lower East Rift Zone, the report said.

The current eruption has coalesced around a single fissure, allowing lava pressure to remain high.

A 1,300-foot-wide (400-meter) lava river now flows to the ocean from this “source cone” through an elevated channel about 52 to 72 feet (16 to 22 meters) above ground.

“The main hazard from the source cone and the channel system is a failure of the cone or channel walls, or blockage of the channel where it divides in narrower braids. Either could divert most, if not all, of the lava to a new course depending on where the breach occurs,” the report said.

The report said it only considered risks from a change in lava flow direction to communities to the north of the channel as residents there have not been evacuated, whereas residents to the south have already left their homes.
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The eruption of Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano could last for months or years and threaten new communities on the Big Island, according to a report by U.S. government geologists.

A main risk is a possible change in the direction of a lava flow that would destroy more residential areas after at least 712 homes were torched and thousands of residents forced to evacuate since Kilauea began erupting on May 3, the report by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said.

A higher volume of molten rock is flowing underground from Kilauea’s summit lava reservoir than in previous eruptions, with supply to a single giant crack — fissure 8 — showing no sign of waning, according to the study published last week.

“If the ongoing eruption maintains its current style of activity at a high eruption rate, then it may take months to a year or two to wind down,” said the report designed to help authorities on the Big Island deal with potential risks from the volcano.

Lava is bursting from same area about 25 miles (40 km) down Kilauea’s eastern side as it did in eruptions of 1840, 1955 and 1960, the report said. The longest of those eruptions was in 1955. It lasted 88 days, separated by pauses in activity.

The current eruption could become the longest in the volcano’s recorded history, it added.

Geologists believe previous eruptions may have stopped as underground lava pressure dropped due to multiple fissures opening up in this Lower East Rift Zone, the report said.

The current eruption has coalesced around a single fissure, allowing lava pressure to remain high.

A 1,300-foot-wide (400-meter) lava river now flows to the ocean from this “source cone” through an elevated channel about 52 to 72 feet (16 to 22 meters) above ground.

“The main hazard from the source cone and the channel system is a failure of the cone or channel walls, or blockage of the channel where it divides in narrower braids. Either could divert most, if not all, of the lava to a new course depending on where the breach occurs,” the report said.

The report said it only considered risks from a change in lava flow direction to communities to the north of the channel as residents there have not been evacuated, whereas residents to the south have already left their homes.
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“The fundamental basis for the alliance” between the United States and South Korea “would continue” and grow stronger, even after North Korea’s nuclear threat and tension on the peninsula are reduced, a former U.S. ambassadors to South Korea said.

Although the pace of the denuclearization effort by North Korea has been slow since it made a commitment to work toward “complete denuclearization” at the summit in Singapore held in June, the level of threat from the regime has declined, Gen. Vincent Brooks, top U.S. commander in South Korea, said.

“We’ve gone now 235 days without a provocation, so we saw a big change occur,” Brooks said at the Aspen Security Forum via video link on Saturday. “To be sure, the physical threats and capabilities are still in place. But it’s evident through words and action that the intent to use them has changed.”

US-South Korea alliance

Even if North Korea’s nuclear threat is reduced and tension on the peninsula de-escalates, the U.S.-South Korea alliance will remain unchanged. The relationship is bound by the Mutual Defense Treaty, signed at the conclusion of the Korean War in 1953, to provide a basis for the continued U.S. troop presence on the Korean Peninsula to deter a North Korean attack on South Korea and to provide a nuclear umbrella in the region.

“The fundamental basis for the alliance would continue, in terms of mutual defense commitment under the original treaty,” said Alexander Vershbow, who served as ambassador to South Korea during the George W. Bush administration. 

Vershbow also said, in the long run, the absence of a North Korean threat could potentially reduce the U.S. troop presence in South Korea.

“In the context of the much-reduced threat from the North, one could see the basis for the reduction of the U.S. presence,” Vershbow told VOA. 

Before the June 12 Singapore summit, President Donald Trump had asked the Pentagon to consider reducing U.S. troops on the peninsula in May.

After meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore, Trump called for the suspension of “war games” with South Korea.

The annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian joint military exercises conducted by the U.S. and South Korea that usually takes place in August have been suspended, fueling concerns of possible U.S. force reduction on the peninsula.

During his visit to Seoul in June after Trump’s summit with Kim, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said the U.S. will maintain the current level of military presence in South Korea and that U.S. commitment to the country will remain “ironclad.”

Currently, there are 28,000 U.S. troops in South Korea.

‘Overarching goal’

Vershbow said if there is going to be a reduction of U.S. troops, it is after achieving a unified and “overarching goal of denuclearization as a precondition for any fundamental change when it relates to the North.”

Mark Lippert, who served as the U.S. ambassador to South Korea from 2012 to 2017, said even if the security situation on the peninsula changes, the U.S.-South Korean alliance that has “modernized and adapted in very, very strong capable ways to keep it relevant” will continue to grow robust, “not just on the Korean peninsula but helping the U.S. and Korea work on issues in the region and around the world.” 

Vershbow echoed Lippert, saying the alliance will continue to serve a purpose beyond deterring North Korean because it will continue by providing a deterrent throughout northeast Asia as envisioned in the defense treaty.

“The U.S. is not going to necessarily change the broader deterrent posture in the region,” he said. 

Mentioning that North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member states found “strong overriding” reasons for the U.S. “to stay in and engage in Europe with its military and security forces” even after the fall of the Soviet Union, Lippert said, “There are all sorts of data points to suggest it’s beyond the [Korean] peninsula at this point.”

Lippert pointed out that America’s largest overseas military base is Camp Humphreys in South Korea, as evidence that the U.S.-South Korean alliance is “one of the world’s greatest alliance, if not the greatest.”

Ending 70 years of presence in Seoul, the U.S. military headquarters in South Korea relocated to Pyeongtaek in late June, about 45 miles south of the capital.

The newly expanded Camp Humphreys took more than $10 billion to build, of which Lippert said South Korea paid about 92 to 96 percent. It is expected to house approximately 45,000 troops and their families by 2022. 

“One of the most important indicators of [the alliance growing strong] is the current move to Camp Humphreys,” Lippert said. “This is a great symbol of alliance. … And you noticed nobody is making negative noises about Camp Humphreys and our troop presence there. I think that suggests durability over time.”

Another factor suggesting the alliance remains strong and that “positive change is coming is that the Blue House has made comments that the alliance is not just about North Korea. It’s about other countries, other issues … in a form of global Korea,” Lippert added.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said during his three-day visit to Singapore that started July 11, “South Korea and the U.S. maintain a firm stance about the role and importance of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) for peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia.”

Moon also responded to the suspension of military drills possibly leading to the reduction of U.S. troops in South Korea, saying, “USFK is a completely different issue. It is a matter of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, not something that can be discussed in denuclearization talks between North Korea and the U.S.”

By providing a foundation of security and stability in northeast Asia, U.S. military presence on the peninsula and the alliance and relationship that Lippert said has grown in “multidirections” will continue to help create a condition for “unbridled economic and cultural success” in the region.
…

“The fundamental basis for the alliance” between the United States and South Korea “would continue” and grow stronger, even after North Korea’s nuclear threat and tension on the peninsula are reduced, a former U.S. ambassadors to South Korea said.

Although the pace of the denuclearization effort by North Korea has been slow since it made a commitment to work toward “complete denuclearization” at the summit in Singapore held in June, the level of threat from the regime has declined, Gen. Vincent Brooks, top U.S. commander in South Korea, said.

“We’ve gone now 235 days without a provocation, so we saw a big change occur,” Brooks said at the Aspen Security Forum via video link on Saturday. “To be sure, the physical threats and capabilities are still in place. But it’s evident through words and action that the intent to use them has changed.”

US-South Korea alliance

Even if North Korea’s nuclear threat is reduced and tension on the peninsula de-escalates, the U.S.-South Korea alliance will remain unchanged. The relationship is bound by the Mutual Defense Treaty, signed at the conclusion of the Korean War in 1953, to provide a basis for the continued U.S. troop presence on the Korean Peninsula to deter a North Korean attack on South Korea and to provide a nuclear umbrella in the region.

“The fundamental basis for the alliance would continue, in terms of mutual defense commitment under the original treaty,” said Alexander Vershbow, who served as ambassador to South Korea during the George W. Bush administration. 

Vershbow also said, in the long run, the absence of a North Korean threat could potentially reduce the U.S. troop presence in South Korea.

“In the context of the much-reduced threat from the North, one could see the basis for the reduction of the U.S. presence,” Vershbow told VOA. 

Before the June 12 Singapore summit, President Donald Trump had asked the Pentagon to consider reducing U.S. troops on the peninsula in May.

After meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore, Trump called for the suspension of “war games” with South Korea.

The annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian joint military exercises conducted by the U.S. and South Korea that usually takes place in August have been suspended, fueling concerns of possible U.S. force reduction on the peninsula.

During his visit to Seoul in June after Trump’s summit with Kim, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said the U.S. will maintain the current level of military presence in South Korea and that U.S. commitment to the country will remain “ironclad.”

Currently, there are 28,000 U.S. troops in South Korea.

‘Overarching goal’

Vershbow said if there is going to be a reduction of U.S. troops, it is after achieving a unified and “overarching goal of denuclearization as a precondition for any fundamental change when it relates to the North.”

Mark Lippert, who served as the U.S. ambassador to South Korea from 2012 to 2017, said even if the security situation on the peninsula changes, the U.S.-South Korean alliance that has “modernized and adapted in very, very strong capable ways to keep it relevant” will continue to grow robust, “not just on the Korean peninsula but helping the U.S. and Korea work on issues in the region and around the world.” 

Vershbow echoed Lippert, saying the alliance will continue to serve a purpose beyond deterring North Korean because it will continue by providing a deterrent throughout northeast Asia as envisioned in the defense treaty.

“The U.S. is not going to necessarily change the broader deterrent posture in the region,” he said. 

Mentioning that North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member states found “strong overriding” reasons for the U.S. “to stay in and engage in Europe with its military and security forces” even after the fall of the Soviet Union, Lippert said, “There are all sorts of data points to suggest it’s beyond the [Korean] peninsula at this point.”

Lippert pointed out that America’s largest overseas military base is Camp Humphreys in South Korea, as evidence that the U.S.-South Korean alliance is “one of the world’s greatest alliance, if not the greatest.”

Ending 70 years of presence in Seoul, the U.S. military headquarters in South Korea relocated to Pyeongtaek in late June, about 45 miles south of the capital.

The newly expanded Camp Humphreys took more than $10 billion to build, of which Lippert said South Korea paid about 92 to 96 percent. It is expected to house approximately 45,000 troops and their families by 2022. 

“One of the most important indicators of [the alliance growing strong] is the current move to Camp Humphreys,” Lippert said. “This is a great symbol of alliance. … And you noticed nobody is making negative noises about Camp Humphreys and our troop presence there. I think that suggests durability over time.”

Another factor suggesting the alliance remains strong and that “positive change is coming is that the Blue House has made comments that the alliance is not just about North Korea. It’s about other countries, other issues … in a form of global Korea,” Lippert added.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said during his three-day visit to Singapore that started July 11, “South Korea and the U.S. maintain a firm stance about the role and importance of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) for peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia.”

Moon also responded to the suspension of military drills possibly leading to the reduction of U.S. troops in South Korea, saying, “USFK is a completely different issue. It is a matter of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, not something that can be discussed in denuclearization talks between North Korea and the U.S.”

By providing a foundation of security and stability in northeast Asia, U.S. military presence on the peninsula and the alliance and relationship that Lippert said has grown in “multidirections” will continue to help create a condition for “unbridled economic and cultural success” in the region.
…

More than half of Germans think Europe can defend itself without military backing from the United States, a poll showed on Monday, less than two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump said he could withdraw support.

Only 37 percent of respondents said they believed Europe depended on U.S. military help, the Forsa poll showed.

The survey found no significant difference between eastern German regions and western areas, which have stronger historical ties to the United States. In the east, 60 percent thought Europe did not need Washington, and in the west, 55 percent.

Trump gave an ultimatum to European allies on July 12, warning a NATO summit the United States could withdraw its support if Europe did not share more of what he called an unfair burden on U.S. taxpayers in funding the alliance.

In a rebuke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he also called Germany a “captive” of Moscow because, he said, Berlin supported a Baltic Sea gas pipeline from Russia.

About 84 percent of respondents said Trump’s comments about Russia controlling Germany were “completely absurd”, according to the poll which surveyed 1,004 Germans.

Even more — 92 percent — said they suspected that Trump’s motive for making the comments was primarily to promote the sale of U.S. liquefied gas in Europe and Germany.

Two thirds said they supported the construction of the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline because it would help provide Germany with a more reliable supply of natural gas.
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More than half of Germans think Europe can defend itself without military backing from the United States, a poll showed on Monday, less than two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump said he could withdraw support.

Only 37 percent of respondents said they believed Europe depended on U.S. military help, the Forsa poll showed.

The survey found no significant difference between eastern German regions and western areas, which have stronger historical ties to the United States. In the east, 60 percent thought Europe did not need Washington, and in the west, 55 percent.

Trump gave an ultimatum to European allies on July 12, warning a NATO summit the United States could withdraw its support if Europe did not share more of what he called an unfair burden on U.S. taxpayers in funding the alliance.

In a rebuke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he also called Germany a “captive” of Moscow because, he said, Berlin supported a Baltic Sea gas pipeline from Russia.

About 84 percent of respondents said Trump’s comments about Russia controlling Germany were “completely absurd”, according to the poll which surveyed 1,004 Germans.

Even more — 92 percent — said they suspected that Trump’s motive for making the comments was primarily to promote the sale of U.S. liquefied gas in Europe and Germany.

Two thirds said they supported the construction of the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline because it would help provide Germany with a more reliable supply of natural gas.
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