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BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping made a public visit to Xinjiang, state media reported Friday, his first since a crackdown in the region saw Beijing accused of detaining over a million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in camps. The United States and lawmakers in other Western countries have labelled China’s actions in Xinjiang a “genocide”, imposing sanctions over the alleged human rights abuses. Beijing has denied the allegations, calling them the “lie […]
BALI, Indonesia (AFP) — Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs met in Indonesia Friday for talks on the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with the host warning them failure to tackle energy and food crises would be catastrophic. The two-day meeting on the resort island of Bali started under the shadow of a war that has roiled markets, spiked food prices and stoked breakneck inflation, a week after Moscow’s top diplomat […]
by Sean GLEESON and Mahesh PERERA Agence France-Presse COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AFP) — Out of gas and stuck in line for days, a group of motorists kick off their shoes and settle on a sidewalk in Sri Lanka’s capital for a round of cards. Emergency curfews, tear gas plumes and the sudden departure and resignation of the president have all failed to budge the long vehicle queues snaking out of Colombo’s empty petrol stations. Chronic […]
by Beiyi Seow Agence France-Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — China logged its slowest economic growth since the initial Covid outbreak, official data showed Friday, expanding just 0.4 percent in the second quarter with lockdowns and property market weakness nudging a government target further out of reach. Beijing has dug its heels in on a zero-Covid policy of stamping out virus clusters as they emerge with snap lockdowns and long quarantines, but this has battered businesses […]
CAIRO, Egypt (AFP) — As US President Joe Biden visits the Middle East this week, one issue on the table will be the status of two small Red Sea islands that are uninhabited but of key strategic value. Resolving the tricky status that stems from their location and turbulent history would help build trust between Israel and Saudi Arabia, two US allies now taking gradual steps that Washington hopes could one day lead to diplomatic […]
by Robbie COREY-BOULET Agence France Presse Saudi Arabia announced Friday it was lifting restrictions on “all carriers” using its airspace, an apparent gesture of openness towards Israel ahead of US President Joe Biden’s arrival. It was the latest conciliatory move by Riyadh concerning the Jewish state, which it has refused to recognise despite intensive efforts by the Israelis to establish ties with Arab countries. The Saudi civil aviation authority “announces the decision to open […]
JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel has “no objection” to two strategic Red Sea islands being transferred to Saudi Arabia as a step towards any normalisation of ties between both countries, high-ranking officials said Thursday. The Jewish state hopes US President Joe Biden’s Middle East tour will hail the start of diplomatic ties between it and Saudi Arabia. After meeting Israeli officials on Wednesday and Thursday, Biden is on Friday to travel on to Saudi Arabia […]
Colombo, Sri Lanka | AFP | Thursday 7/14/2022 by Amal JAYASINGHE Sri Lanka’s president submitted his resignation Thursday shortly after reaching Singapore, the parliamentary speaker’s office said, days after the head of state fled protests triggered by his country’s worst-ever economic crisis. Gotabaya Rajapaksa resigned by email, the speaker’s spokesman said hours after he landed in the city-state, after protesters overran his palace on the weekend. Rajapaksa fled to the Maldives on Wednesday, and left […]
London, United Kingdom (AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE) Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday awarded the George Cross to the state-run National Health Service (NHS) for its work over the past 74 years and praised its Covid-19 vaccine rollout. The George Cross is the highest non-military award for gallantry bestowed by the British government. The queen presented the medal to health leaders from across the UK. They were joined at the ceremony by frontline workers, who nursed the […]
by Jack MOORE Agence France Presse Russia’s war in Ukraine poses the greatest threat to the global economy, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday as G20 ministers prepare to start talks in Indonesia. Moscow’s invasion has sent inflation soaring at a time when the world is struggling to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, endangering the gains of the past two years and threatening widespread hunger and poverty. “Our greatest challenge today comes from […]
by Heather SCOTT Agence France Presse US inflation surged to a fresh peak of 9.1 percent in June, further squeezing American families and heaping pressure on President Joe Biden, whose approval ratings have taken a battering from the relentless rise in prices. Government data released Wednesday showed a sharp, faster-than-expected increase in the consumer price index compared to May driven by significant increases in gasoline prices. The 9.1 percent CPI spike over the past […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korea’s central bank on Wednesday delivered a historic half-point interest rate hike to tame fast-growing inflation, particularly soaring energy costs linked to the war in Ukraine. The Bank of Korea (BOK) raised its benchmark policy rate by 50 basis points to 2.25 percent, it said in a tweet, the largest increase since its current framework was implemented in 1999. The decision comes as Asia’s fourth-biggest economy recovers from […]
