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 The United States faced further diplomatic humiliation on Thursday as it emerged that Recep Tayyip Erdogan "binned" a letter from Donald Trump asking him not to invade Syria and vowed to continue Turkey's operation there despite US calls for a ceasefire. News of the spectacular snub came as Mike Pence, the US vice president, flew into Ankara on an emergency mission to end Turkey's assault on formerly US-allied Kurdish forces and defuse a rapidly escalating diplomatic crisis between Nato's two largest armies. The letter, dated October 9, the day the Turkish offensive began, was released by the White House on Wednesday in response to accusations that Mr Trump gave Mr Erdogan a "green light" for the attack when he ordered US troops out of northern Syria. Donald Trump's letter to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Credit: AFP Written in colloquial, non diplomatic language, it used a combination of exhortation laced with threats to persuade Mr Erdogan to reverse a decision to invade Syria that the Turkish leader told Mr Trump about in an Oct 6 phone call. "Let's work out a good deal!" Mr Trump began. "You don't want to be responsible for slaughtering thousands of people, and I don't want to be responsible for destroying the Turkish economy - and I will." He went on: "I ha
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 (Bloomberg) -- One of Hong Kong's most prominent protest organizers -- including a march planned for Sunday -- was recovering after being attacked on the street by men wielding hammers.Jimmy Sham -- convenor of the Civil Human Rights Front, which has organized many of the city's largest peaceful protests -- issued a plea from his hospital bed Thursday for police to allow the march go ahead in the Tsim Tsa Tsui area as planned. Sham was assaulted by four to five men Wednesday while on his way to a meeting in nearby Mong Kok -- the second time he's been attacked since August."When Jimmy was at his street counter, many of the citizens expressed that they really hope there will be a safe march on Sunday," the Civil Human Rights Front said in a statement Thursday. "Jimmy therefore urges the Police to issue Letter of No Objection, so that Hongkongers can express their views."The Civil Human Rights Front has helped organize several of the largest protests ever held in the former British colony, including two largely peaceful marches in June that drew more than a million people. The demonstrations have since mushroomed into a broader push for greater democracy, leading to regular clashes between protesters and police and occasional incidents of mob violence.On Thursday, Hong Kong's embattled leader, Carrie Lam, was forced to repeatedly halt a question session in the city's legislature as opposition lawmakers demanded her to step down and address other protester demands. The coming weekend will be the Asian financial cente
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 (Bloomberg) -- Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is pledging close to $1 billion to implement a law to improve labor conditions that U.S. Democrats say is key to passing a stalled North American trade accord.Mexico's Finance Ministry will ask lawmakers to boost the budget that was already presented to congress by $69 million for next year, Lopez Obrador stated in a letter he sent to U.S. Representative Richard Neal, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. He promised another $830 million over the following three years to fund the labor overhaul.The expensive pledges seem to be working, as both the White House and House Democrats are becoming increasingly upbeat about the stalled U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, known as USMCA. But AMLO's steep austerity measures for most of his other ministries amid a stagnant economy present a challenge to his carrying out those promises.Neal said he was very pleased with Mexico's demonstration of good faith, and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer separately told a Bloomberg Government audience on Thursday that Democrats are "working hard to get to yes." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she's "optimistic" about finishing work on the accord, although "we are not there yet."AMLO, as Lopez Obrador is known, also said he'd tell the relevant authorities to carry out a "frontal attack" against labor impunity.To contact the reporter on this story: Nacha Cattan in Mexico City at ncattan@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story:
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 Chicago Public Schools teachers went on strike Thursday morning, seeking smaller class sizes, more support staff and a pay raise.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's snubbing of Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sure didn't last long.Sky News on Wednesday morning published an interview with Erdogan in which he indicated ahead of a U.S. delegation's visit to Turkey he wouldn't meet with Pence and Pompeo, saying "I'm not going to talk to them" and that he'll talk "when Trump comes here." This seemed to surprise Pence, who in an interview subsequently said, "we have every expectation that we will meet with President Erdogan." But the meeting is evidently back on, with Erdogan's communications director quickly telling Turkish press he actually does plan to meet with Pence and the rest of the U.S. delegation after all, Axios reports. Pence and Pompeo are visiting in order to negotiate a ceasefire in Syria. At the same time that he's reversing this snub, Erdogan is floating the possibility of canceling his upcoming meeting with Trump in the United States next month, per Reuters, saying he may re-evaluate it because "arguments, debates, conversations being held in Congress regarding my person, my family and my minister friends are a very big disrespect" to Turkey.
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