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BANGKOK, Sept 25, 2023 (AFP) – Chinese tourists received a personal welcome from the Thai prime minister Monday as they arrived in Bangkok under a new visa-free scheme the government hopes will give the kingdom’s vital tourism sector a boost. Traditional dancers accompanied a smiling PM Srettha Thavisin as he greeted visitors arriving from Shanghai at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport, handing out welcome gifts. “I was shocked by the welcoming ceremony, and I’m very happy. It’s […]
SOUTH CHINA SEA, Philippines, Sept 24, 2023 (AFP) – Filipino fisherman Arnel Satam guns the motor of his tiny wooden boat as he makes a dash for the shallow waters of Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, with Chinese coast guard speedboats in hot pursuit. In a high-seas chase lasting several minutes, Satam tries in vain to outrun the faster boats in the hope of slipping inside the ring of reefs controlled by […]
TAIPEI, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – Taiwan’s defence minister said China’s recent military activities were “abnormal”, after a spike in incursions by Chinese warplanes around the island this week. China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its territory and has maintained it will seize it one day — by force, if necessary. Beijing performs near-daily aerial incursions around the island, and on Monday Taiwan’s defence ministry reported a “recent high” of 103 warplanes within a 24-hour window. […]
HANGZHOU, China, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad on Friday, and said the two leaders would unveil a new “strategic partnership”. Assad is on his first official trip to China in almost two decades as he seeks financial support to rebuild his devastated country, as well as rehabilitation for his regime from years of isolation over Syria’s civil war. He will attend the opening ceremony […]
HONG KONG, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – Crypto investor Jenny first learned about digital assets at a Hong Kong store that promoted cryptocurrency exchange JPEX in March — but by September she was among more than 2,000 “inexperienced” victims police said the platform had defrauded. “Many of my classmates and friends went all in with our investments,” Jenny — not her real name — who lost “six figures” in Hong Kong dollars, told reporters. “We […]
PARIS, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – By the end of 2023, China will control half the world’s installed capacity of electrolysers for producing low-carbon hydrogen amid a slowdown in new projects due to inflation, according to an International Energy Agency report released Friday. “After a slow start, China has taken the lead on electrolyser deployment,” the IEA report on hydrogen said. China’s installed electrolyser capacity has jumped significantly in recent years, and is expected to […]
UNITED NATIONS, United States, Sept 21, 2023 (AFP) – China warned Thursday at the United Nations not to underestimate its “strong will” on Taiwan, while saying Beijing preferred peaceful means to take the self-governing democracy. Addressing the General Assembly, Vice President Han Zheng repeated Beijing’s stance that Taiwan — around which the communist mainland has staged repeated military exercises — constitutes an “inalienable part” of China. “No one should ever underestimate the firm resolve, strong […]
By Rebecca BAILEY A Chinese journalist who popularised the country’s stalled #MeToo movement and a labour activist were due to face trial Friday, with supporters voicing concerns for their health after two years in detention. Sophia Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing were arrested on 19 September 2021, under the broad charge of “inciting subversion of state power” — but their trial in the southern city of Guangzhou was only announced this week, according to their […]
BANGKOK, Sept 22, 2023 (AFP) – For millions of Chinese tourists, Thailand used to be a happy land of delicious food. But thanks to social media rumours and a blockbuster movie, the kingdom’s image among many Chinese people is now one of dangerous illegality and seedy scam border compounds — leaving visitor numbers plummeting. Thailand is hugely reliant on tourism, particularly from China. The country welcomed more than 10 million Chinese visitors each year before […]
HONG KONG, Sept 19, 2023 (AFP) – China has given foreign consulates in Hong Kong a month to submit their local staffers’ names, home addresses and job descriptions, according to diplomatic sources and documents seen by AFP on Tuesday. The documents include a letter in English and Chinese dated Monday from Beijing’s Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (OCMFA), as well as two forms for consulates to fill in with their […]
GENEVA, Sept 19, 2023 (AFP) – China has appealed a World Trade Organization ruling faulting it over tariffs it has imposed on billions worth of US imports in retaliation for Washington’s steel and aluminium duties. The chair of WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body informed diplomats Tuesday that China had notified its decision to appeal a ruling last month by a panel of experts finding its extra tariffs violated international trade rules, a Geneva-based trade official said. […]
BATAM, Indonesia, Sept 19, 2023 (AFP) – Militaries from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations began their first-ever joint exercises on Tuesday in Indonesia, with a Myanmar representative present despite the bloc’s ban on its junta leaders. ASEAN countries have participated in multinational defence drills before, but these are the first featuring just the bloc, which is battling perceptions of irrelevance on major regional issues such as the turmoil in Myanmar and disputes in the […]
