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U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he did not make and does not possess any tapes of his conversations with James Comey, after suggesting last month that he might have recordings that could damage the former FBI director.

"With all of the recently reported electronic surveillance, intercepts, unmasking and illegal leaking of information, I have no idea whether there are 'tapes' or recordings of my conversations with James Comey, but I did not make, and do not

have, any such recordings," Trump wrote on Twitter.

Lawmakers investigating allegations of Russian meddling in the U.S. 2016 election had asked the White House for any such recordings of Comey, who Trump fired in May.

Shortly after dismissing Comey, Trump mentioned the possibility of tapes in a Twitter post.

"James Comey better hope that there are no 'tapes' of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!" Trump wrote on Twitter on May 12.

The Russia issue has cast a shadow over Trump's first five months in office, distracting from attempts by his fellow Republicans in Congress to reform the U.S. healthcare and tax systems.

Comey's firing and its aftermath caused a political firestorm. He testified before a Senate committee that Trump had asked him to drop a probe into former national security adviser Michael Flynn and his alleged ties to Russia.

Trump has privately told aides that the threat of the existence of tapes forced Comey to tell the truth in his recent testimony, a source familiar with the situation said.

Earlier on Thursday, CNN reported that two top U.S. intelligence officials have told investigators Trump suggested they publicly deny any collusion between his campaign and Russia, but they did not feel he had ordered them to do so.

Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and National Security Agency Director Admiral Mike Rogers met separately last week with investigators for Special Counsel Robert Mueller and the Senate intelligence committee, according to CNN.

The two senior officials said they were surprised at Trump's suggestion and found their interactions with him odd and uncomfortable, but they did not act on the presidents' requests, CNN reported, citing sources familiar with their accounts.

The Kremlin has denied U.S. intelligence agencies' conclusion that Moscow tried to tilt the election campaign in Trump's favor, using such means as hacking into the emails of senior Democrats.

Trump has denied any collusion, and he continued to cast doubt on the investigations in a series of tweets on Thursday morning.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Julia Edwards Ainsley; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by David Gregorio)

Iraq's oil exports in June near May level, oil minister says

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By Aref Mohammed | BASRA, IRAQ,

Iraq's oil exports from fields owned by the central government in Baghdad are at around 3.27 million barrels per day (bpd) so far in June, about the same level as in May, Oil Minister Jabar al-Luaibi said on Thursday.

Total exports for all fields in Iraq, those of Baghdad and the Kurdish region in the north, have averaged 3.8 million bpd so far in June, he told Reuters in the southern oil city of Basra. The country as a whole is producing about 4.315 million bpd, he said.

Kurdish exports are running at about 520,000 to 530,000 bpd so far this month, he said.

Iraq is in "quiet negotiations" with foreign oil companies operating in Iraq to amend their services contract, he said, declining to give more details.

The country wants to change the terms of the contracts it deems no longer in its favor after oil prices collapsed three years ago, when they were in excess of $100 per barrel, to about $45 per barrel now.

Oil prices should start recovering by the end of July, to reach $54 to $56 a barrel by the end of the year, Luaibi said.

Iraq is the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' second oil producer, after Saudi Arabia. The group in May rolled over an agreement to cut oil production with other exporting nations, until March, in order to support oil prices.

"Iraq supports the agreement that we reached; if developments happen contrary to OPEC's interests, the (OPEC) ministers will hold an extraordinary meeting," he said.

Iraq will continue developing its production capacity and will start executing a sea water injection project in its oilfields at the end of the year, even without an agreement with Exxon (XOM.N), he said.

"We are now in talks with Exxon Mobil, if we don't reach an agreement, we have other options," he said.

(Reporting by Aref Mohammed in Basra and Ahmed Rasheed in Baghdad; writing by Maher Chmaytelli, editing by David Evans)

Tanzania's progress in fighting corruption key to poverty eradication

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DAR ES SALAAM, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The World Bank said on Thursday that Tanzania's progress in the fight against corruption was key to the country's efforts in eliminating poverty and generating inclusive growth.

Bella Bird, the World Bank Country Director for Tanzania, Burundi, Malawi and Somalia, said in a short time since the October 2015 elections Tanzania has seen an unprecedented major effort by the government in fighting corruption.

Bird said this has had a profound impact on the public service, business sector and citizens at large and in all these areas there was adjustment taking place to reflect the new way of doing business.

"Tax revenue performance and public service delivery have improved," she told an international high-level meeting on anti-corruption reforms in Tanzania.

Bird said the 2015 presidential elections were highly contested, with one of the key issues being the fight against corruption.

"At the time, corruption was widespread and affecting critical services such as health and education," Bird told the two-day meeting in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

She said the World Bank was keen to assist the government of Tanzania to reduce corruption to deliver services and better outcomes for its citizens and business people.

Jim Brumby, the Director for Governance at the World Bank, said President John Magufuli and the government of Tanzania have demonstrated strong commitment to confronting corruption as a part of their overall program to develop public and private sectors that meet the needs of the people of Tanzania.

Brumby said Tanzania has demonstrated by public commitments at home and at international forums that it was serious in the fight against corruption.

President Magufuli's commitment have been demonstrated through actions such as the removal of officials who were not meeting standards of integrity and effectiveness, purging ghost workers from the civil service roles, and confronting abuse in tax administration and customs, he said.

When inaugurating parliament in November 2015, President Magufuli made it clear his commitment to confront the vices that undermined the east African nation's efforts in eradicating poverty and ensuring economic growth and welfare.

President Magufuli cited grand corruption, embezzlement of funds especially in local government authorities, poor management of public funds and natural resources and bureaucracy in government offices.

He has since then fired hundreds of senior officials, including cabinet ministers, permanent secretaries, chief executives of state owned enterprises and directors of local government authorities.

Magufuli has also implemented his pledge of repealing and amending the Procurement Act 2011, which he cited as providing major corruption loopholes.

Turkish soldiers arrive in Qatar for military base deployment

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ANKARA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- A team of 23 Turkish soldiers and five armored vehicles have arrived in Qatari capital Doha as part of its deployment in a military base, Turkish army said on Thursday.

The Turkish soldiers arrived on Thursday morning, under the framework of arrangements on military training and cooperation between Turkey and Qatar, the Turkish army said in a statement.

On June 7, the Turkish parliament approved two agreements for the deployment of Turkish troops in a Qatari base, as well as offering military training to the nation's gendarmerie forces.

Under the agreements, the armed forces of the two countries will also carry out joint exercises.

The move came amid a diplomatic crisis between Qatar and some other Arab states, led by Saudi Arabia, which cut diplomatic ties with Doha and imposed economic sanctions early the month.

Turkey has openly sided with Qatar in the diplomatic row and have provided humanitarian aid to the Gulf nation. It has also been actively mediating among the rivaling parties in a bid to broker an end to the crisis.

German federal parliament to vote on extensive surveillance law

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BERLIN, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The German government hopes to pass a law in German Federal Parliament (Bundestag) Thursday which would enable state authorities to extensively survey digital communication.

According to the law, "for more effective and practice-oriented criminal procedure," authorities would be given the right to use malware to infiltrate and access data on digital devices during the investigation of offenses such as murder, manslaughter and currency counterfeiting.

Currently, such technology in Germany can only legally be employed in exceptional cases under strict judicial oversight to prevent an acute and concrete danger.

As digital messenger services including Skype, WhatsApp and Telegram have gained in popularity however, officials in Germany and elsewhere have become concerned about their implications for wider crime prevention.

Often relying on sophisticated encryption software, these services have resisted passing on information about their users, citing privacy concerns.

The German government now seeks to obtain access to data before it can be encrypted with specially designed malware, which it views as a critical measure to enhance national security.

"Traditional surveillance of telecommunications has reached its limits since offenders have started using encrypted digital messenger services and only order pizza on the phone," Elisabeth Winkelmeier-Becker, legal policy spokesperson for the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)/Christian Social Union (CSU) fraction in the Bundestag, said.

There was no use, she said, in authorities using investigative measures which "completely bypass criminal behavior."

If passed, the law could mark the most significant expansion of state surveillance in modern German history.

Investigative authorities would be able to infiltrate the private devices of both suspects and individuals such as friends, families and colleagues, when deemed necessary.

The extensive list of offenses which would justify surveillance through governmental malware ranges from terrorism to "encouraging an improper application for asylum"

Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia to tighten noose on IS allied terrorists

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MANILA, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia closed ranks on Thursday, committing to tighten the noose on Islamic State (IS) militants in Southeast Asia like tightening the flow of funds to finance the terror cells operating in the region.

The three Southeast Asian countries also vowed "to work together to jointly develop and implement counter-terrorism measures and strategies" to ensure that the IS militants will not gain foothold in the region.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman attended the meeting aimed at enhancing cooperation to nip in the bud efforts of IS terrorists to establish a caliphate or base in the region.

High-level officials from the countries respective armed forces, national police and intelligence agencies also attended the meeting.

In a joint statement issued by the foreign ministers of the three countries at the end of their trilateral meeting on security, the foreign ministers of the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia expressed concern over the recent terror-related incidents in their respective countries.

"The meeting reaffirmed their governments' commitment to effectively address existing as well as emerging transnational challenges and threats that have the potential to undermine the stability and well-being of countries in the region," the statement read.

The ministers discussed a proposed Plan of Action designed to thwart efforts by the IS militants to carve out a base in the region, including enhancing "the intelligence and information sharing among the all security and intelligence agencies on potential, imminent and real threats."

They also agreed to stop the flow of money to fund terrorist activities in the region, and to contain the spread of terrorism and terrorism-related content in the cyberspace, particularly in social media.

They stressed the need to "prevent and suppress the terrorist exploitation of information and communication technology and the dissemination of terrorist messages."

The ministers also agreed to "prevent and stop the flow of illicit arms and arms smuggling as well as the movement of all terrorists" especially in the areas bordering the three countries.

The joint statement said the ministers are also considering the provision of specialized military and law enforcement training of their law enforcement agencies.

The ministers also discussed ways "to counter the extremist narrative through education, community engagement including the involvement of religious leaders and the promotion of tolerance, moderation and unity in diversity."

They looked at ways to promote "deradicalization, rehabilitation and reintegration programs as part of comprehensive measures in countering terrorism."

The ministers stressed the need to enhance effort and cooperation in addressing the root causes of underlying conditions of extremism, including but not limited to poverty, narcotics or illegal drugs, crime and social injustice.

Moreover, they stressed the need to promote social and economic development particularly in adjoining areas of the three countries.

"The ministers reiterated their shared view that success in effectively addressing transnational threat can only be achieved through the proper development of strategies, and cooperation in security and intelligence on a regional scale," the ministers said.

The trilateral meeting, which Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte endorsed, was initiated by Indonesia.

It took place as Philippine troops continue to battle with about 500 IS militants, including 40 Indonesian, Malaysian and Middle Eastern terrorists, that overran a southern Philippine city of Marawi since May 23, killing nearly 400 people and forcing more than 200,000 residents to flee.

7 dead in suicide blast at police station in Somalia capital

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MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — At least seven people are dead and a dozen wounded after a suicide car bomb blast at a police station in Somalia's capital, police and an ambulance service said Thursday. The bomber was trying to drive into the Waberi district's police station gate but detonated against the wall instead, Capt. Mohamed Hussein told The Associated Press.

(1 of 5) A Somali woman walks past the scene of a suicide car bomb attack on a police station in Mogadishu, Somalia Thursday, June 22, 2017. A number of people are dead and several others wounded in the blast in Somalia's capital, police said Thursday, adding that the bomber was trying to drive into the police station's gate but detonated against the wall instead.

June 22, 2017

Ambulance sirens echoed across Mogadishu, with dozens of soldiers at the scene. Aamin Ambulance Service said it had transported seven bodies and 12 wounded. The Somalia-based al-Shabab extremist group claimed responsibility for the attack, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors such groups.

Al-Shabab often targets high-profile areas in Mogadishu. On Tuesday, at least 15 people were killed when a suicide car bomber posing as a milk delivery van detonated at a district headquarters in Mogadishu. Most of the victims were civilians. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility.

The extremist group has vowed to step up attacks after the recently elected government launched a new military offensive against it. The group also faces a new military push from the United States after President Donald Trump approved expanded operations, including airstrikes.

Al-Shabab last year became the deadliest Islamic extremist group in Africa, with more than 4,200 people killed in 2016, according to the Washington-based Africa Center for Strategic Studies.

: Russia proposing monitors inside Syria

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BEIRUT (AP) — The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local): 6:15 p.m. A senior Turkish official says Russia has proposed deploying troops from Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan to Syria, to monitor de-escalation zones there.

(1 of 1) France's President Emmanuel Macron, left, and his wife Brigitte Macron awaiting Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos and his wife Maria Clemencia Rodriguez for a dinner at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Wednesday, June 21, 2017. Nobel Peace Prize winner and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos starts a three-day visit to Paris for talks on cooperation. (Christophe Petit Tesson/Pool Photo via AP)

June 22, 2017

Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, also told a group of reporters that Russia and Turkey may send their troops to monitor a zone in Idlib, in northern Syria. Russia and Iran would monitor another zone near Damascus while the United State and Jordan would observe the Dera region, Kalin said.

His words were carried by Hurriyet newspaper's online edition on Thursday.

11:45 a.m.

President Emmanuel Macron says France is no longer pushing for the departure of Syrian President Bashar Assad, a shift in French policy throughout the Syrian war.

Macron said in an interview with eight European newspapers published on Thursday that he wants to work more closely with Russia for a solution in Syria and says foreign powers were too focused on Assad as a person.

Macron says: "The new outlook I have on this issue is that I haven't stated that Bashar Assad's departure is a necessary condition for everything. Because no one has shown me a legitimate successor."

Macron's predecessors were among the most vocal Assad opponents.

However, Macron warned France would attack Syria if the government uses chemical weapons. French warplanes are already targeting Islamic State extremists in Syria.

Thursday News Briefing

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Thursday, June 22, 2017

A man jumps from a bridge into the Limmat river during hot temperatures in Zurich, Switzerland June 21, 2017. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann

Washington

A seven-year push by U.S. Republicans to dismantle Obamacare and kill the taxes it imposed on the wealthy will reach a critical phase today when Senate Republican leaders unveil a draft bill they aim to put to a vote, possibly as early as next week. The bill is expected to curb Obamacare's expanded Medicaid help for the poor and reshape subsidies to low-income people for private insurance.

Ohio’s opioid crisis deepens

President Donald Trump, under siege in Washington, defended his record at a political rally in Iowa, rejecting a Russia investigation as a witch hunt and saying he was succeeding against all odds, despite no major legislative achievements. "All we do is win, win, win,” he told a cheering crowd.

Middle East

Islamic State militants blew up the Grand al-Nuri Mosque of Mosul and its famous leaning minaret, Iraq's military said in a statement. It was from this medieval mosque three years ago that the militants' leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a self-styled "caliphate" spanning parts of Syria and Iraq. Islamic State fighters have destroyed many Muslim religious sites, churches and shrines, as well as ancient Assyrian and Roman-era sites in Iraq and in Syria.

Saudi Arabia's new crown prince and likely next king shares Trump's hawkish view of Iran, but a more confrontational approach toward Tehran carries a risk of escalation in an unstable region, current and former U.S. officials said.

Business

Airbus conceded defeat to rival Boeing in the race for new business at the Paris Airshow, as a late haul of almost 100 aircraft failed to close a gap opened up by the launch of the American firm's new 737 model. Airbus won 326 orders versus Boeing’s 443. "Is this a slower show than previous years? Yes, it is. Are we conceding that Boeing sold a few more airplanes than we did? Yes," Airbus sales chief John Leahy told a news conference.

A network of dummy online stores - purporting to sell items including fabric, DVD cases, maps, gift wrap, mechanical tape selling - has been used as a front for internet gambling payments, a Reuters examination found.

For thousands of U.S. auto workers, downturn is already here

North Korea

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said China should do more to rein in North Korea's nuclear program and he would call on President Xi Jinping to 'lift all measures' against South Korean companies taken in retaliation against Seoul's decision to host a U.S. anti-missile defense system.

People participate in a yoga class during an annual Solstice event in the Times Square district of New York.

A number of British apartment buildings have combustible cladding, Prime Minister Theresa May said, citing the results of tests conducted after a fire killed at least 79 people in London. Flames spread rapidly up the 24-story building, trapping residents inside, in what was Britain's worst blaze since World War Two. Exterior cladding added during a refurbishment may have played a part, residents have said.

Verbatim: More buildings ‘combustible’ - PM May

Prince Harry said no one in Britain's royal family wants to be king or queen and criticized a decision to force him to parade behind his mother Princess Diana's coffin after her death in 1997, according to an interview with a U.S. magazine.

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Thursday, June 22, 2017