Day: February 15, 2024

US Sees No ‘Imminent’ War by North Korea Despite Dangerous Activities

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The State Department —  The United States does not see signs of an “imminent” war by North Korea despite “incredibly dangerous” activities in recent months and its refusal to engage in diplomatic talks with the U.S., a top U.S. official told reporters Thursday. Jung Pak, the State Department’s senior official in charge of North Korea affairs, said U.S. officials “are always watchful for any kind of activity” by Pyongyang and will continue to work with Japan and South Korea to bolster extended deterrence, aiming to shape North Korean leader Kim…

Japanese dance group’s take of a TikTok dance hit irks Hong Kong

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The popular Japanese dance group Avantgardey has ignited the wrath of Hong Kong people with a performance of a popular Chinese dance move. Avantgardey, a finale performer for the Lunar New Year night parade event organized by the Hong Kong government, had posted photos and videos of the group’s activities across the city, including footage of the group performing the dance kemusan, also known as “subject 3” dance.The post was taken offline an hour after it was uploaded on Wednesday. The subject 3 dance originated from China’s southwest Guangxi autonomous…

As Europe reels from Donald Trump threat, Ukraine and Middle East, Wang Yi heads to Munich meeting

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On Friday, as Wang touches down in Munich to speak at the same forum, observers anticipate Washington will be the elephant in the room again. Wang is widely expected to meet US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of the meeting. During a speech on Saturday lunchtime and at bilateral meetings with Western officials, Wang is expected to pitch Beijing as a responsible global player, as large parts of Europe recoil at the potential return of ex-US president Donald Trump to the White House. Immediately after his speech,…

Pyongyang ‘open to enhancing ties with Japan’: N Korean leader’s sister

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The powerful sister of the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Thursday said the hermit state is open to enhancing its ties with Japan, even suggesting the possibility of inviting the Japanese prime minister to Pyongyang. Kim Yo Jong’s remark came after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said during a speech last week that he feels a “strong need” to alter the current relationship between Japan and North Korea. “I think there would be no reason not to appreciate his recent speech as a positive one, if it was…

China unlikely to cut major policy rate amid inflation, yuan pressure as ‘risk versus reward doesn’t seem attractive’

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China’s central bank is poised to keep cash conditions and monetary policy broadly stable as policymakers focus on a weakening currency. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) will leave the rate on its one-year policy loans – called the medium-term lending facility (MLF) – steady at 2.5 per cent as soon as Sunday, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of analysts. Most of the analysts see either a small increase in the MLF issuance, or little changed from the loans maturing this month. Some 499 billion yuan…

US’ show of strength to China, what to expect from Prabowo, PLA marriage in spotlight: SCMP’s 7 highlights of the week

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Weeks after Singaporeans were left fuming from an American lawmaker’s grilling of TikTok’s CEO over his nationality and links to China’s Communist Party, the island nation’s top envoy in Washington has suggested the line of questioning went too far and could tarnish perceptions of the US. 3. Mainland Chinese make only day trips to Hong Kong as city loses allure Hong Kong has lost some of its glamour for mainland travellers amid heightened competition from other Chinese cities over prices and number of attractions, industry commentators have said, as many…

YouTube co-founder Steve Chen returns to Taiwan to tap tech talent, link island with Silicon Valley

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“The dream is they’d all be unicorns,” Chen added, using an industry term for an unlisted start-up valued at more than US$1 billion. Taiwan has enough talent to form several big tech firms, Chen said, despite a rising number of job vacancies on the island that has spun out bleeding-edge computer, phone, and server hardware for the world. But people with the requisite knowledge often lack the international exposure or foreign connections that are useful for building a business that can grow outside Taiwan, Chen said. After long decline, Taiwan…

China won’t ‘compete’ with other developing nations during WTO fishing talks, subsidies set to be discussed in Abu Dhabi

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China said it would not behave irresponsibly towards developing nations when countries try to strike a new World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement on combating overfishing later this month. “We will not compete with other developing members,” Li Chenggang, Beijing’s ambassador to the WTO, told a press conference on Thursday. After more than two decades of negotiations towards banning harmful subsidies that encourage overfishing and threaten the sustainability of the planet’s fish stocks, a deal was finally sealed at the WTO in 2022. The agreement bans subsidies that contribute to fishing…

Top White House Asia Aide Moves to State Department as US-China Challenges Heat Up 

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washington —  The Biden administration is now focusing on implementing its goals for the Indo-Pacific, said analysts, as a White House strategist who initiated policies for the region moves to the State Department. Kurt Campbell, who served as Indo-Pacific coordinator for the White House National Security Council, initiated strategies that moved allies and partners to cooperate on challenges across the region, from counterbalancing China’s rise to offsetting North Korea’s threats. He is going to a new position at the State Department. He takes on the role of the deputy secretary…

Global green transition is re-energising China’s investments in Africa after pandemic slowdown

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Meanwhile, East Asian belt and road countries expanded their intake of Chinese investments by 94 per cent to US$6.8 billion in 2023, according to the report, which was produced in collaboration with the Green Finance & Development Centre of the Fanhai International School of Finance at Fudan University, Shanghai. Observers expect the upward trend for Chinese investments in Africa to continue, though they say they will not reach the same levels that were seen a decade ago. 07:25 Cop28 prepares temperature check on climate at Dubai meeting Cop28 prepares temperature…