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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Israel signed a free trade deal with the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, its first with an Arab country, building on their US-brokered normalisation of relations in 2020. Israel’s ambassador to the UAE, Amir Hayek, tweeted “mabruk” — or congratulations in Arabic — alongside a photograph of Emirati and Israeli officials holding documents at a signing ceremony in Dubai. Israel has described as “historic” the deal abolishing customs duties […]
Talks between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and 10 Pacific Island nations failed to reach an agreement on a wide-ranging security deal Monday, after sharp warnings the proposal would push the region into “Beijing’s orbit”. A virtual summit of leaders and foreign ministers was expected to discuss proposals to radically increase China’s involvement in the security, economy and politics of the South Pacific. But the effort appeared to have fallen short after some regional leaders […]
Western powers sounded the alarm Thursday over leaked plans to dramatically expand China’s security and economic reach in the South Pacific, in what one regional leader called a thinly veiled effort to lock island states into “Beijing’s orbit”. If approved by Pacific island nations, the wide-ranging draft agreement and a five-year plan, both obtained by AFP, would give China a larger security footprint in a region seen as crucial to the interests of the United […]
Australia will present a more ambitious UN emissions target “very soon” and is bidding to co-host a COP summit with Pacific island neighbours, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Thursday, signalling a ground shift in climate policy. During a first solo overseas visit since her centre-left government was sworn in, Wong admitted that on the climate, “Australia has neglected its responsibility” under past administrations. She told hosts in Fiji’s capital Suva that there would be no […]
by Mikhail FLORES Philippine president-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr said Thursday he would uphold an international ruling against Beijing over the disputed South China Sea, insisting he would not let China trample on Manila’s maritime rights. China claims almost all of the resource-rich waterway, through which trillions of dollars in trade passes annually, with competing claims from the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam. Beijing has ignored a 2016 decision by The Hague-based Permanent Court […]
Chinese and Russian fighter jets carried out joint flights near Japan on Tuesday as leaders of the Quad bloc met in Tokyo, the Japanese defence minister said. Nobuo Kishi said the government had expressed “grave concerns” to Russia and China over the flights, which took place while leaders from the United States, India, Australia and Japan held talks on regional security. The planes did not breach territorial airspace, the defence ministry told […]
by Sara HUSSEIN / Sebastian Smith Leaders of Japan, India, Australia and the United States warned Tuesday against attempts to “change the status quo by force” as concerns grow about whether China could invade self-ruled Taiwan. A joint statement by the so-called Quad bloc avoided any direct mention of China’s growing military power in the region, but left little doubt about where its concerns lie. The carefully worded document also made reference to the […]
Sydney, AUSTRALIA (AFP) — Australia’s economy minister called on China Wednesday to drop punishing trade tariffs if it wants to thaw frozen relations, after Beijing sent a message signalling it is ready to improve ties. China — Australia’s biggest trading partner — imposed tariffs and disrupted more than a dozen key industries, including wine, barley and coal, as relations deteriorated sharply in the past two years. Canberra had irked Beijing by calling for an independent […]
https://youtu.be/9bx5onRYzx0 US President Joe Biden launched a new Asia-Pacific trade initiative Monday in Tokyo, with 13 countries including India and Japan signed up. Biden formally unveiled the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity, or IPEF, on his second day in Japan, where he held talks with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ahead of a regional Quad summit on Tuesday. Unlike traditional trade blocs, there is no plan for IPEF members to negotiate tariffs and ease market […]
by Sara Hussein / Sebastian Smith © Agence France-Presse Tokyo, JAPAN (AFP) — Leaders of Japan, India, Australia and the United States met in Tokyo on Tuesday, looking to put China on notice as it expands its military and economic influence in the region. The summit of the grouping known as the Quad comes a day after US President Joe Biden said Washington would be ready to intervene militarily to defend Taiwan, prompting China to […]
Beijing, CHINA (AFP) — Chinese premier Li Keqiang has sent a congratulatory note to newly elected Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese, Beijing’s state media reported, ending a year-long freeze in diplomatic contact between the two countries. China cut off diplomatic and trade channels with Australia in a largely symbolic act of fury last May, following clashes over issues including human rights, espionage and the origins of Covid-19. “The Chinese side is ready to work with the […]
A man who padlocked a church and opened fire on its Taiwanese-American congregation, killing one person and injuring five others, was motivated by hatred of the island and its people, US investigators said Monday. David Chou jammed the doors shut using chains and superglue as dozens of parishioners enjoyed a post-service banquet at the church in Laguna Woods, near Los Angeles. The 68-year-old, an American citizen, also hid bags containing Molotov cocktails and spare ammunition […]
