Year: 2022

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen calls on Beijing to resume cross-strait talks in New Year’s address

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Beijing cut off senior-level talks with Taiwan after Tsai came into power for the first time in 2016. The Chinese side views Tsai as a pro-independence figure who opposes its claim over Taiwan. Beijing has been aggressively ramping up pressure on Taiwan on the military front over the past few months since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei in August, leading to growing concern among stakeholders in the region, including Washington. Chinese officials also continue to threaten to invade Taiwan to prevent the democratic, self-ruling island’s formal independence. Advertisement…

In post-coup conflict, at least 157 Myanmar children died in 2022

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The junta and militia soldiers entered the village under cover of darkness and started torching houses. A 13-year-old child was shot and killed during the Dec. 19 raid on Zee Pin Thar village in Sagaing, witnesses said. The sixth grade student was one of 157 children killed this year by the military as it tried to consolidate its power after it deposed an elected government in a Feb. 1, 2021, coup, according to a report from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners,  a Thailand-based group that monitors human rights abuses…

China’s 2022: A year of lockdowns, protests and mass COVID-19 infections

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A momentous year of lockdowns, calls for Xi Jinping’s resignation, economic stagnation, street protests and the lifting of the zero-COVID policy has left China’s future looking much less predictable. China started the year amid an ongoing program of rolling lockdowns, mass tracking of citizens and compulsory coronavirus testing and a concerted effort by Communist Party leader Xi Jinping to garner political support for an unprecedented third term in office, drawing comparisons in some quarters with late supreme leader Mao Zedong. It ended the year engulfed in a nationwide wave of…

China Accuses US of Distorting Facts After Aircraft Close Call

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SHANGHAI —  A U.S. military plane involved in a confrontation with Chinese aircraft in disputed southern waters last week had violated international law and put the safety of Chinese pilots at risk, a defense ministry spokesperson said. The U.S. military said Thursday that a Chinese Navy J-11 fighter jet had come within 3 meters of a U.S. air force RC-135 aircraft on Dec. 21, forcing it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision. But Tian Junli, spokesperson for China’s Southern Theater Command, said in a statement late Saturday that…

Kim Jong Un Vows ‘Exponential’ Increase in Nuclear Warheads

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SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA —  North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to dramatically boost production of nuclear warheads and to build a new long-range missile, according to year-end comments published by state media Sunday. In an address at a major ruling party meeting a day earlier, Kim urged an all-out effort to develop “overwhelming military power” to counter what he said were hostile moves by the United States and its allies, according to a summary published by the Korean Central News Agency. South Korea, Kim said, is a “clear enemy,”…

North Korea Launches Short-Range Ballistic Missile on New Year’s Day, South Says

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seoul, south korea —  North Korea fired one short-range ballistic missile into the sea on Sunday, the South Korean military reported, as Pyongyang pressed on with last year’s record-breaking blitz of launches. The New Year’s Day firing reported by the Yonhap news agency was the second in as many days. It came from the Yongseong area of the capital Pyongyang and landed in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, Yonhap said, quoting the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which gave no immediate details of this missile flight.…

China ‘stands on right side of history’, says Xi Jinping in new year address

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China “stands on the right side of history”, Xi Jinping said on Saturday in a new year address that came as questions are raised over his government’s handling of Covid-19 and economic and political challenges at home and abroad. Speaking on national television from behind a desk in a wood-panelled office, the Chinese president largely avoided addressing issues confronting the country directly, pointing instead to successes in agricultural production, poverty elimination and its hosting of the Winter Olympics in February. He later turned somewhat obliquely to the challenges facing the…

1 year on, EU alternative to China’s belt and road fails to deliver

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So far, Global Gateway has delivered plenty of hype, but little in terms of concrete projects, while confusion reigns in Brussels and beyond about what the initiative actually is. At a hearing in the European Parliament last month, lawmakers pressed officials for details, only to learn that none of the €300 billion would be “new”. Advertisement “Global Gateway does not bring new financial means – there is no additional money when it comes to the EU level,” said Vincent Grimaud, an acting director in the commission’s department for international partnerships.…

Sydney leads global New Year’s Eve celebrations

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Australia is gearing up to celebrate its first restriction-free New Year’s Eve after two years of Covid disruptions, with more than a million revellers expected to flock to Sydney’s harbourfront and watch an elaborate fireworks display. Sydney is one of the world’s first major cities to welcome in the new year and draws huge TV audiences around the world, with a public countdown and fireworks display over its famous opera house. “This New Year’s Eve we are saying Sydney is back as we kick off festivities around the world and…

27 Bodies Recovered from Cambodian Casino Fire

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Cambodian officials said Friday at least 27 bodies have been recovered from the charred remains of a casino hotel complex in Poipet, on the country’s border with Thailand. The cause of the fire at The Grand Diamond City casino and hotel was not immediately clear, but Sek Sokhom, head of the Banteay Meanchey provincial information department, told Reuters that the blaze may have been due to an electrical short circuit. Firefighters and rescue teams from Thailand were deployed across the border to help extinguish the fire and to engage in…