Viceroy

Five states in Mexico now have the sternest "do not travel" advisories under a revamped U.S. State Department system unveiled Wednesday, putting them on the same level as war-torn countries like Syria, Yemen and Somalia. The five states are Tamaulipas on the U.S. border and Sinaloa, Colima, Michoacan and Guerrero on the Pacific coast. All the states are hotspots of drug cartel activity, either hosting trafficking routes or extensive drug-crop cultivation. The State Department had previously discouraged travel to all or part of those states but the new warnings are sterner, placing them on a level 4 warning, the highest level of potential danger. Mexico as a whole has a level 2 rating, meaning Americans should "exercise increased caution" because of concerns about crime. But an additional 11 Mexican states got a level 3 warning Wednesday, which urges people to "reconsider travel" there. Mexico has 31 states, half of which are now under level 3 or 4 warnings. Those states where Americans are urged to reconsider travel include the State of Mexico — Mexico's most populous state, which includes most suburbs of Mexico City — and Jalisco, home to the city of Guadalajara, the Puerto Vallarta resorts and the lakeside expat community of Chapala and Ajijic. But the travel advisory said there are "no restrictions on U.S. government employees for stays in ... Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, Chapala, and Ajijic." Mexico's federal tourism department was not immediately available to comment on the new warnings. Most of northern Mexico, including the border states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Sonora as well as Durango, Zacatecas and San Luis Potosi, are under level 3 warnings. Some of the states have long been off limits for U.S. government employees. Last year, the State Department extended a total ban on personal travel by U.S. government personnel to Guerrero. U.S. personnel had previously been allowed to fly to the resort of Ixtapa, the last place in Guerrero where they had been allowed to go. Personal travel by land and to the resort city of Acapulco had already been prohibited. Tamaulipas has long been riven by turf wars between rival drug cartels, and Sinaloa is home to the cartel of the same name. Michoacan was so dominated by a drug cartel that vigilantes took up arms in 2013 to drive them out. Colima has seen homicides skyrocket in recent years due to the growth of the Jalisco New Generation drug cartel, and the state now has Mexico's highest homicide rate, with 83.3 killings per 100,000 residents, according to figures for the first 11 months of 2017. The state with second-highest homicide rate — 61.6 per 100,000 — was Baja California Sur, home to the twin resorts of Los Cabos. The state conserved its level 2 advisory, "exercise increased caution," despite a series of shootouts and killings in recent months. Rising levels of violence have not so far affected Los Cabos, which saw a 16 percent increase in tourism arrivals and an 18 percent rise in hotel occupancy in 2017, said Rodrigo Esponda, managing director of the Los Cabos Tourism Board. Esponda said local officials and tourism operators are investing in increased security, including camera systems and the construction of a new marine base. "We are going to keep working very hard in 2018 to make sure that Los Cabos continues as a safe destination," Esponda said. Speaking to local media earlier this week, Tourism Secretary Enrique De la Madrid said, "In my opinion, the most important challenge we have in the tourism sector are crime events occurring where they didn't before, for example in Cancun, la Paz and Los Cabos."

An oil tanker that caught fire after colliding with a freighter off China's east coast is at risk of exploding and sinking, Chinese state media reported Monday, as authorities from three countries struggled to find its 32 missing crew members and contain oil spewing from the blazing wreck. State broadcaster China Central Television, citing Chinese officials, said none of the 30 Iranians and two Bangladeshis who have been missing since the collision late Saturday had been found as of 8 a.m. Monday. Search and cleanup efforts have been hampered by fierce fires and poisonous gases that have engulfed the tanker and surrounding waters, CCTV reported. The Panama-registered tanker Sanchi was sailing from Iran to South Korea when it collided with the Hong Kong-registered freighter CF Crystal in the East China Sea, 257 kilometers (160 miles) off the coast of Shanghai, China's Ministry of Transport said. China, South Korea and the U.S. have sent ships and planes to search for the Sanchi's crew, all of whom remain missing. The U.S. Navy, which sent a P-8A aircraft from Okinawa, Japan, to aid the search, said late Sunday that none of the missing crew had been found. All 21 crew members of the Crystal, which was carrying grain from the United States to China, were rescued, the Chinese ministry said. The Crystal's crew members were all Chinese nationals. It wasn't immediately clear what caused the collision. Kwon Yong-deok, a Korea Coast Guard official, said thick black smoke was still billowing from the ship on Monday afternoon and bad weather was worsening visibility at the scene. The Sanchi was carrying 136,000 metric tons (150,000 tons, or nearly 1 million barrels) of condensate, a type of ultra-light oil, according to Chinese authorities, who have dispatched three ships to clean the spill. By comparison, the Exxon Valdez was carrying 1.26 million barrels of crude oil when it spilled 260,000 barrels into Prince William Sound off Alaska in 1989, badly damaging local ecology and the area's fishing-based economy. But the size of the oil slick from the Sanchi — and the scale of the environmental toll — may be smaller. Unlike the thick crude that gushed out of the Valdez, much of the light, gassy condensate from the Sanchi may have evaporated or burned immediately, Kwon said. The Sanchi's own fuel that leaked during the collision will be more difficult to clean, officials said. South Korean petrochemical company Hanwha Total Co., a 50-50 partnership between the Seoul-based Hanwha Group and French oil giant Total, said in an email to the AP it had contracted the Sanchi to import Iranian condensate to South Korea. A Hanwha Total spokesman, who asked not to be named citing office policies, said there is "little possibility" that condensate would leave traces in the ocean after it burned. He added the losses would be covered by an insurance company. The Sanchi's cargo was estimated to be worth more than $60 million. The tanker has operated under five different names since it was built in 2008, according the U.N.-run International Maritime Organization. The IMO listed its registered owner as Hong Kong-based Bright Shipping Ltd., on behalf of the National Iranian Tanker Co., a publicly traded company based in Tehran. The National Iranian Tanker Co. describes itself as operating the largest tanker fleet in the Middle East. An official in Iran's Oil Ministry, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters, said the tanker was owned by the National Iranian Tanker Co. and confirmed that 30 of the tanker's 32 crew members were Iranians. "We have no information on their fate," he said Sunday. "We cannot say all of them have died, because rescue teams are there and providing services." It's the second collision for a ship from the National Iranian Tanker Co. in less than a year and a half. In August 2016, one of its tankers collided with a Swiss container ship in the Singapore Strait, damaging both ships but causing no injuries or oil spill. In this photo provided by Korea Coast Guard, the Panama-registered tanker "Sanchi" is seen ablaze after a collision with a Hong Kong-registered freighter off China's eastern coast Sunday, Jan. 7, 2018. The oil tanker collided with a bulk freighter and caught fire off China's eastern coast, leaving its entire crew of 32 missing, most of them Iranians, authorities said. (Korea Coast Guard via AP)

The Epiphany celebrations in the Portuguese village of Vale de Salgueiro feature a tradition that each year causes an outcry among outsiders: Parents encouraging their children, some as young as 5, to smoke cigarettes. Locals say the practice has been passed down for centuries as part of a celebration of life tied to the Christian Epiphany and the winter solstice — but nobody is sure what it symbolizes or exactly why parents buy the packs of cigarettes for their children and encourage them to take part. The two-day celebrations, which start Friday and end Saturday with a Mass, include dancing around bonfires, a piper playing music and an elected "king" who distributes plentiful wine and snacks. The legal age to purchase tobacco in Portugal is 18, but nothing prohibits parents from giving kids smokes, and Portuguese authorities don't intervene to stop the practice. Guilhermina Mateus, a 35-year-old coffee shop owner, cites custom as the reason why she gives her daughter cigarettes. "I can't explain why. I don't see any harm in that because they don't really smoke, they inhale and immediately exhale, of course," Mateus said on Saturday. "And it's only on these days, today and tomorrow. They never ask for cigarettes again." Jose Ribeirinha, a writer who has published a book on the Vale do Salgueiro festivities, said the roots of the tradition are unknown, but may have to do with celebrating the rebirth of nature and human life. He said the village is in a region that adheres to many traditions dating back to pagan times, and that during the winter solstice period villagers here have taken the liberty to do things that would be out of the norm in the rest of the year since the Roman times. Ribeirinha also believes the relative seclusion of the remote village — at 450 kilometers (280 miles) to the northeast of the capital Lisbon — has helped keep the tradition alive. He said that the surrounding Tras os Montes region "has always been the furthest from Lisbon, the most 'forgotten one'." Portugal, like many countries, has taken steps to reduce smoking, including a partial ban on smoking indoors. ——— AP write Barry Hatton contributed from Lisbon.

Nearly 3,000 U.S. flights have been canceled today as a powerful storm hits the Northeast, packing heavy snow, gusty winds and the coldest air of the season. “A powerful Nor'easter will move north along the east coast through Thursday,” the National Weather Service said in a statement. “Reinforcing arctic air and gusty winds will sweep in behind the Nor'easter for the coldest wind chills of the season in many eastern locations.” U.S. airlines canceled more than 2,850 flights in and out of the United States Wednesday and delayed about 150 others, according to airline tracking firm FlightAware. Most of the cancellations were in New Jersey, Boston and New York, where some areas could get 1 to 3 inches of snow per hour starting this morning. PHOTO: Blizzard warnings stretched from North Carolina to Maine on Jan. 4, 2018.ABC News Blizzard warnings stretched from North Carolina to Maine on Jan. 4, 2018. PHOTO: Over the next 24 hours, New York City could see 6 to 8 inches of snow while some parts of Maine could get close to 18 inchesABC News Over the next 24 hours, New York City could see 6 to 8 inches of snow while some parts of Maine could get close to 18 inches Major cities along the East Coast -- from North Carolina to Maine -- were under blizzard warnings, while others were placed under winter storm warnings. The storm has already brought record snowfall to cities like Tallahassee, Florida, where residents got the most snow since 2010, and Charleston, South Carolina, which received more than 5 inches of snow, breaking a record that had stood since 1989. Meanwhile, some areas between Georgia and Virginia were blanketed with up to a half a foot a snow by this morning. “This will be a rapidly strengthening storm that is expected to produce strong winds and minor to moderate coastal flooding,” the National Weather Service said Wednesday, after warning that the storm could result in downed trees and power outages along the East Coast. PHOTO: Snow from the storm system will spread further into New England by the afternoon on Jan. 4, 2018. ABC News Snow from the storm system will spread further into New England by the afternoon on Jan. 4, 2018. PHOTO: Snow will end for much of the Northeast by the evening on Jan. 4, 2018.ABC News Snow will end for much of the Northeast by the evening on Jan. 4, 2018. Snowfall in Boston should let up this evening, while the areas surrounding New York City should get some relief by midnight, meteorologists said. But winds are expected to pick up as the storm picks up off the coast of New England and “bombs out,” meteorologists said, referring to the so-called bombogenesis, which occurs when a storm system undergoes a quick drop in atmospheric pressure and strengthens. Wind gusts are forecast to come in between 40 to 60 mph along most parts of the East Coast this afternoon, but some areas, including Atlantic City, New Jersey, could see gusts above 70 mph. PHOTO: Wind gusts will be 40 to 60 mph as the storm moves up the northeast coast on Jan. 4, 2018.ABC News Wind gusts will be 40 to 60 mph as the storm moves up the northeast coast on Jan. 4, 2018. PHOTO: The worst of the cold will hit the Northeast in the early morning on Jan. 5, 2018.ABC News The worst of the cold will hit the Northeast in the early morning on Jan. 5, 2018. Separately, the coldest air of the season is forecast to spill from Canada into the eastern United States, bringing wind chills down to as low as 1 degree in some major cities, including Washington, D.C., and New York City today. The worst of the cold will be in the Northeast Friday morning, when wind chills are forecast to hit the minus 40s in New England.

President Donald Trump slammed Pakistan for 'lies & deceit' in a New Year's Day tweet that said Islamabad had played U.S. leaders for 'fools.' 'No more,' Trump tweeted. Trump in his tweet said the U.S. had given Pakistan $33 billion in the last 15 years, yet Afghanistan and the U.S. have long accused Pakistan of providing safe havens for militants. Meanwhile, Pakistan had no official comment but Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif tweeted that his government was preparing a response that 'will let the world know the truth.' Pakistan's Urdu language Geo Television quoted Asif as saying: "We have already said 'no more' to America, so Trump's 'no more' has no importance. We are ready to give all account for every single penny to America in public." Asif said Trump's tweet was borne out of frustration and that the United States should pursue dialogue with Afghanistan's insurgents rather than military force. "America is frustrated over defeat in Afghanistan. America should take the path of dialogue instead of using military might in Afghanistan," Asif was quoted as saying. The Afghan Ambassador to the U.S. Hamdullah Mohib welcomed Trump's tweet. "A promising message to Afghans who have suffered at the hands of terrorists based in Pakistan for far too long," Mohib tweeted. The uneasy relationship between the United States and Pakistan has been on a downward spiral since the 2011 U.S. Operation that located and killed Osama bin Laden in the military garrison town of Abbottabad. Trump ratcheted up the pressure last year when he announced his Afghan strategy that called out Pakistan for harboring Afghan Taliban insurgents warning it would have to end. In August, the United States said it would hold up $255 million in military assistance for Pakistan until it cracks down on extremists threatening Afghanistan. On Monday, the Trump administration's National Security Council said that was still the plan although the U.S. would continue to reassess the situation. "The president has made clear that the United States expects Pakistan to take decisive action against terrorists and militants on its soil, and that Pakistan's actions in support of the South Asia Strategy will ultimately determine the trajectory of our relationship, including future security assistance," according to the U.S. statement Vice President Mike Pence in a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Dec. 22 said the U.S. administration was putting Pakistan on notice to end its support for Taliban insurgents, a comment that generated a chorus of criticism from the Pakistani civilian and military establishment, which has denied harboring Afghan militants. In a news conference last Thursday the Pakistani military spokesman, Gen. Asif Ghafoor said Pakistan wouldn't bow to coercion. "What kind of friends are we that we are being given notices?" he asked at the news conference. Much of the money Pakistan has received from the U.S. has been through its Coalition Support Funds which gives money to its coalition partners in Afghanistan and Iraq. Pakistan has been one of the largest recipients. "The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools," Trump tweeted. "They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!" Ghafoor denied that Pakistan allowed training camps or organizational headquarters on its territory. "We have started the construction of forts and posts on the Afghan border for effective border management — what more does the U.S. and Afghanistan want from us?" Ghafoor was quoted by the English-language Dawn newspaper as saying at the news conference. Yet Afghanistan and the U.S. have long accused Pakistan of providing safe havens and Pakistan's former adviser on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz had previously publicly stated that Afghan militants have been living for decades in Pakistan. The Taliban are believed to run several leadership councils out of Pakistan, in southwestern Quetta and northwestern Peshawar, two cities on the border with Afghanistan Meanwhile, Pakistan has accused Afghanistan of harboring its militants and has sent a list of wanted terrorist to the Afghan government demanding they be returned. Kabul too sent a list of wanted insurgents to Islamabad as well as locations of training camps.

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Monday the United States should be aware that his country's nuclear forces are now a reality, not a threat. But he also struck a conciliatory tone in his New Year's address, wishing success for the Winter Olympics set to begin in the South in February and suggesting the North may send a delegation to participate. Kim, wearing a Western-style gray suit and tie, said in his customary annual address his country had achieved the historic feat of "completing" its nuclear forces and added he has a nuclear button on his desk. "The U.S. should know that the button for nuclear weapons is on my table," he said during the speech, as provisionally translated by the AP. The official transcript of his address was expected to be released shortly. "The entire area of the U.S. mainland is within our nuclear strike range. ... The United States can never start a war against me and our country." Kim also called for improved relations with the South, an idea mentioned in speeches more often than it is met. He said the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics would be a good opportunity to showcase the status of the Korean nation. He said the North and South could meet urgently to discuss the North sending a delegation. "The Winter Olympic games that will be held soon in the South will be a good opportunity to display the status of the Korean nation and we sincerely wish that the event will be held with good results," he said. South Korea's presidential office says it welcomes the proposal to hold talks between government officials over the issue of North Korea sending a delegation to the Olympics. The office of President Moon Jae-in says the successful hosting of the Pyeongchang Olympics will contribute to peace and harmony not only on the Korean Peninsula and in northeast Asia but in the entire world. The New Year's address is an annual event in the North and is watched closely for indications of the direction and priorities Kim may adopt in the year ahead. This year's speech was seen as particularly important because of the high tensions over Pyongyang's frequent missile launches and its nuclear test in 2017. The tests were the focus of fiery verbal exchanges between the North and U.S. President Donald Trump, who has derisively called Kim, "little rocket man." Kim also stressed North Korea's economic achievements during the speech, and noted the importance of improving the nation's standard of living! Thank you for reading this report! Regards,

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