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WASHINGTON, May 17 (Xinhua): U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday delayed slapping additional tariffs on imported autos and auto parts for 180 days, saying in a proclamation carried by the White House's website that he has ordered further negotiations to "address the national security threat."

"President Trump today issued a proclamation directing the United States Trade Representative to negotiate agreements to address the national security threat, which is causing harm to the American automobile industry," the White House statement said.

WASHINGTON, May 17. /TASS/: Russia will take reciprocal measures in response to new US sanctions introduced on the basis of the Magnitsky Act, the Russian Embassy in Washington D.C. said in a statement released on Thursday.

"Washington's new anti-Russian steps are associated with the so-called Magnitsky Act," the embassy said. "They represent an attempt to force unilateral measures of coercion which go against international law and cannot be considered as a civilized way of communication between countries," the embassy added noting that "reciprocal measures will follow."

WASHINGTON, May 16 (Xinhua): U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a plan on Thursday to reform the nation's immigration system, intended to favor high-skilled immigrants and restrict family-based migration.

Speaking at the White House, Trump said that his plan aims to create a "fair, modern and lawful system of immigration for the United States."

WASHINGTON, May 16 (Xinhua): U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday held back from further escalating tension with Iran.

When asked by a reporter at the White House on Thursday morning about whether the United States was going to war with Iran, Trump replied "I hope not."

Washington has piled up military pressure on Tehran over the past week by intensifying deployment including an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East following U.S. intelligence information revealing "an escalating of threatening actions" from Iran.

WASHINGTON, May 8 (Xinhua): U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday asserted executive privilege on the Mueller report, protecting the Department of Justice from Congressional subpoenas.

Trump had "asserted executive privilege over the entirety of the subpoenaed materials," Assistant Attorney General Stephen Boyd wrote in a letter to Congress.

WASHINGTON, May 4 (Xinhua): A two-seater helicopter crashed into the Chesapeake Bay in the U.S. state of Maryland Saturday, local police said, adding that search and rescue was underway.

The crash took place Saturday afternoon, according to Maryland Natural Resources Police, who are trying to determine how many people were on board the aircraft.

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Xinhua) -- The United States will withdraw all remaining U.S. personnel from its embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, this week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Monday.

The announcement was made in a statement released by the State Department late Monday night.

"This decision reflects the deteriorating situation in Venezuela as well as the conclusion that the presence of U.S. diplomatic staff at the embassy has become a constraint on U.S. policy," said the top U.S. diplomat in the statement.

ABOARD A US MILITARY PLANE (AP) — The Trump administration is urging Europe to impose tough new sanctions on Iran over its ballistic missile program.

The call comes as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is to meet European officials in Brussels this week and after the U.S. and others condemned an Iranian missile launch over the weekend.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is signaling potentially vulnerable spots in the financial system, citing U.S. businesses’ debt at the highest levels in more than two decades and risky debt growing.

The Fed’s report issued Wednesday was its first assessing the stability of the U.S. financial system. Ten years after the financial crisis, the new report points to excessive borrowing by households and businesses, banks’ elevated debt levels, and high prices for stocks and other assets exceeding their real value.