The United States and Taiwan have signed a trade deal aimed at deepening economic relations between both sides – in a move that has sparked a warning from Beijing. Taiwan’s government has described the deal as “the most comprehensive” trade agreement signed with Washington since 1979. The pact is “intended to strengthen and deepen the economic and trade relationship” between both sides, Sam Michel, a spokesperson at the US Trade Representative press office said in a statement on Thursday. The US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade looks to boost trade…
Day: June 1, 2023
Brics ministers call for rebalancing of global order away from West
On the first of two days of talks in Cape Town, Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the gathering must “send out a strong message that the world is multipolar, that it is rebalancing and that old ways cannot address new situations”. BBC
Experts: North Korea’s Satellite Launch Unlikely to Draw China’s Action
WASHINGTON — China is unlikely to take any action against North Korea even if Pyongyang tries to relaunch a spy satellite after its first attempt failed, experts said. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, said the regime would try for the second time to launch a military reconnaissance satellite “in the near future and start its mission.” She said through North Korea’s state-run KCNA on Thursday that if North Korea’s satellite launch is “censured,” satellites that the U.S. and other countries have launched “should be…
No Timeline Set for Writing US Rules on Certain Investment to China
washington — While there is still no timetable for issuing a long-expected executive order restricting U.S. outbound investments in sensitive sectors to China, a senior Treasury official said the administration is focused on a “narrow and tailored” approach in establishing such a screening mechanism. Speaking before a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Wednesday, Paul Rosen, who oversees investment security at the Treasury Department, said officials are working on screening investment from the United States that “comes with know-how and expertise to certain specific sectors and subsectors, such as advanced semiconductors,…
North Korea forces exhausted soldier-laborers to keep daily diary
North Korea is forcing exhausted soldiers assigned to a high-profile state construction project to keep a daily diary to prove their loyalty. But many complain that after working 14-hour days with no weekends, they are too drained to think about what to write, a resident and a soldier in the country told Radio Free Asia. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in 2021 unveiled an ambitious plan to address a housing shortage in the capital Pyongyang by building 10,000 new homes in the city by the end of the year,…
Saudi Arabia expands lithium processing to supply BMW
Saudi Arabia is planning a second lithium processing facility, as it steps up efforts to work with western partners to develop its battery supply chain. The facility, which will use feedstock mined in Austria to produce refined lithium hydroxide for BMW, is a sign of how supply chains to process the metal are slowly developing outside China. China accounts for nearly 60 per cent of global processing for lithium, a critical ingredient in electric car batteries — and the EU and US are bolstering incentives to create more capacity. Australia-listed…
China pressures Myanmar to proceed on port project amid community concerns
China is racing to complete a deep sea port project in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state, despite concerns from residents who rely on the area’s waterways and say it will destroy their livelihoods. The Kyaukphyu deep sea port and special economic zone is one of several China-backed megaprojects in Myanmar, along with the New Yangon City urban planning project, the Mee Lin Gyaing Energy Project in Ayeyarwady region and the Letpadaung Copper Mine in Sagaing region. On May 24, Chinese Ambassador Cheng Hai urged junta Legal Affairs Minister Thidar Oo to…
China’s high-speed trains are overwhelmed by poop, study says
“With the increase of the amount of waste water from sealed toilets, the existing sewage treatment facilities can no longer meet the current urban network discharge standards, and it is urgent to establish more complete waste water treatment facilities,” they added. The team also came up with a possible solution to the problem that uses bacteria to break down human waste more efficiently than existing methods. Unexpected crisis China built its first high-speed railway in 2008, a 100km line between Beijing and the northern port city of Tianjin with a…
As Russia’s Influence Wanes in Central Asia, China and US Step In
Washington — China and the United States are putting a new focus on diplomacy in Central Asia, a region where Moscow’s long-dominant position has been diminished by its troubled invasion of Ukraine and resulting sanctions by G-7 nations. Beijing pledged nearly $4 billion in investment during a China-Central Asia summit last month as a sign of its continuing interest in building trade and security ties with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Days later, the United States promoted its engagement with these nations at an annual event in Washington, the…
Cambodian opposition leader’s brief visit to Malaysia sets off Hun Sen
A recent visit to Malaysia by Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy has strained ties between the two countries. Sam Rainsy, who lives in self-imposed exile in Paris, arrived in Kuala Lumpur with his wife on Monday for a two-day private visit, Malaysian Parliamentarian Wong Chen said. It included a one-hour meeting with three non-executive members of parliament who are interested in human rights and free and fair elections, but not a visit with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysian officials said. The visit angered Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. Sam…