Foreign Affairs Archives - Defence Monitor

29 Oct

Hong Kong suffers economic hardship, property slump over China’s policy changes: Report

New Delhi, Oct 29 (IANS) Hong Kong was once celebrated as Asia’s ultimate success story is now enduring economic and social hardship due to property market pressures and business closures linked to Beijing’s policy changes, a new report has said. The report from Myanmar-based Ayeyarwady Times said Hong Kong is now ridden with vacant storefronts, rental notices hanging from once-premium retail properties, struggling restaurants, declining property values. While Hong Kong remains a major international financial centre, many residents feel the city has lost its dynamic, opportunity-rich metropolis character. The report attributed the fall to multiple factors including economic shocks, corrections…

27 Oct

Kim’s China trip may have been more than economic event: South Korean minister

Seoul, Oct 27 (IANS) South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said Tuesday that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's trip to China last week may have been more than an economic event, given the makeup of his delegation. "The fact that both sides fielded their diplomatic and security teams deserves a close look," Chung said at a parliamentary audit, responding to a lawmaker's question about the meaning of Kim's surprise one-day trip to the Chinese border city of Dandong on Saturday. He noted the North Korean delegation was heavy with diplomatic and security officials, and that no economic officials were present…

24 Oct

Pakistan faces risks of losing ‘EU GSP+’ status amid governance concerns

New Delhi, Oct 24 (IANS) Pakistan faces a growing risk of losing preferential access to the European Union market under the revised Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) framework after an EU assessment flagged weak implementation of human‑rights and governance commitments, a new report has said. As progress in Pakistan has been largely administrative and legislative, which has not translated into measurable improvements on the ground, there is "significant risk" of GSP+ status being lost, the report from European Times said. Pakistan reaped huge dividends from preferential access to the European Union market under the GSP + scheme but failed…

23 Oct

South Korea proposes military talks with North to ease tensions along border

Seoul, Oct 23 (IANS) South Korea renewed its offer Friday to hold military talks with North Korea to discuss their conflicting views on where the inter-Korean border sits, seeking to ease tensions sparked by last month's land mine blast inside the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ). Seoul and Pyongyang have traded sharp rhetoric since South Korea blamed the North for the September 21 mine blast inside the DMZ that injured three South Korean troops. Pyongyang has denied responsibility and vowed to take military actions along the border, if needed. "Different perceptions remain over the Military Demarcation Line (MDL)," Deputy Defence Minister Kim…

21 Oct

US probes Singham-linked groups; funding in India, Europe protests under scanner

Washington, Oct 21 (IANS) India's street protests over electoral rolls are being amplified by groups and figures now under US congressional scrutiny over funding from American tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, though no evidence has emerged that they fund or direct the protests. A Fox News Digital investigation by Asra Q. Nomani, published on Tuesday, said it had identified "101 organisations across 9 countries --including the US -- that are coordinating, organising or amplifying protests in Europe." India appears twice in the report. It said Progressive International "explicitly grouped the current protests in France, Spain, India and Albania in an…

21 Oct

Trump unveils major US chip investments

Washington, Oct 21 (IANS) US President Donald Trump has announced a $1.5 billion Pentagon investment in semiconductor production and a new industrial minerals manufacturing facility in North Carolina, linking the expansion of America's technology industry to national security, tariffs and efforts to reduce dependence on foreign supply chains. Addressing a Republican campaign rally in Greenville on Tuesday (local time), Trump said his administration was rebuilding domestic manufacturing capacity in strategically important industries, including semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and aerospace. The announcements came as Trump sought support for Republican candidates ahead of the November 3 congressional elections, warning that Democratic control of Congress…

15 Oct

‘China’s economy choking under huge debt burden’

New Delhi, Oct 15 (IANS) China’s debt burden has shot up in recent years, resulting in the country’s interest payments on borrowing surpassing even the high levels of the US economy, according to a media report. Besides the Fortune report, the Financial Times, citing new Conference Board estimates, said that debt-servicing payments in China will account for 19.2 per cent of the central government’s general public budget this year, up from 12 per cent in 2014. A separate report earlier this year from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), which found that 19 per cent of Beijing’s spending…

14 Oct

Vance announces Defense Production Act expansion of Texas refinery

Washington, Oct 14 (IANS) US Vice President JD Vance said the Trump administration had used the Defense Production Act to expand an oil refinery in Tyler, Texas, as he campaigned for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton three weeks before the midterm elections. "Today, I am pleased to announce that the Trump administration working with the refinery at Delek has used the Defense Production Act, and we are going to expand the refinery right here in Tyler, Texas," Vance told the rally. "We want millions of gallons of commercial grade and military spec fuel to come out of this refinery in…

14 Oct

Taiwan to buy 30 per cent of Alaska LNG: Trump

Washington, Oct 14 (IANS) US President Donald Trump has announced that Taiwan has agreed to purchase 30 per cent of the natural gas produced by a major Alaska pipeline project for the next 20 years and invest an additional $4.4 billion, describing the agreement as a significant boost to American energy exports and infrastructure development. Addressing an election rally in Wasilla, Alaska, Trump said the Taiwanese commitment would help secure the commercial future of the proposed 800-mile pipeline, which his administration is promoting as one of the largest energy infrastructure projects in the United States. "Taiwan has just agreed to…

14 Oct

South Korean President Lee calls for restructuring social system to meet needs of changing population structure

Seoul, Oct 14 (IANS) South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday called for restructuring South Korea's social system to reflect rapid changes in demographics, stressing that the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) provides an opportunity to redesign the industrial, employment, education and other sectors. The president made the call during a meeting of the presidential committee on population strategy, attended by government ministers and dozens of citizens and aimed at helping design the country's population policies. South Korea has been grappling with a fast-ageing population, with people aged 65 and older already accounting for more than 21 per cent…