Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
6 December 2019
In today’s bulletin: Kim Jong Un’s possible plans to strike around Christmas; China’s anger over Washington’s offensive; political chaos in Malaysia; how single women are dealing with their loneliness in China and more.
IS PYONGYANG PREPARING TO STRIKE WASHINGTON?
North Korea’s getting restless with no fresh offer from Washington for talks or concessions for Pyongyang. Leader Kim Jong Un had set a year-end deadline for the same. ST’s US Bureau Chief Nirmal Ghoshsays satellite images indicate Pyongyang could be preparing to conduct rocket engine tests at the Sohae Launch Facility, which had been dismantled earlier. The country has also warned about an undefined “Christmas present” for the US. While denuclearisation negotiations have been deadlocked since a summit in Hanoi broke down, Kim is due to make a New Year speech on Jan 1. A war of words, meanwhile, is on.
Here’s more:
North Korea prepares to conduct engine tests again
North Korea says ‘very dangerous challenge’ if Trump calls Kim Jong Un ‘Rocket Man’ again
North Korea fires two ‘unidentified projectiles’ on Thanksgiving
CHINA REACTS ANGRILY TO WASHINGTON’S TWIN OFFENSIVE
US-China relations seemed set for a downturn with Washington approving a Bill targeting Beijing’s crackdown on ethnic Muslim minorities and America objecting to World Bank’s plans to continue lending to China. The twin moves follow US President Donald Trump’s approval of the US legislation supporting Hong Kong protesters.
Some of the matters in the new Uighur Bill set to anger China include a ban on export to China of items that can be used for surveillance of individuals and a call for sanctions against a member of the powerful politburo, for the first time.
Also read:
US objects to World Bank’s lending plans for China
China official media blasts US Uighur Bill, calls for reprisals
ASIA-PACIFIC COUNTRIES GROWING WARY OF CHINA’S RISE
People in Asia-Pacific welcome China’s economic rise but are wary of its growing military might, a new survey shows. China has been named the top threat in the Asia Pacific – by 40 per cent of Australians, 50 per cent of Japanese and 62 per cent of Filipinos, according to Pew Research Centre’s latest report, which is based on a survey across 34 countries. Now even investments from China is seen as a potential liability in the region.
Also read:
China’s tough talk threatens to thwart soft power drive
How China Inc can be tripped up by its overseas miscalculations
CHAOS AND DRAMA AT MALAYSIA’S POLITICAL MEETS
The truce between warring factions of the ruling Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) party, a key component of the ruling coalition, was short-lived.Tensions led to violent scuffles at the youth congress meet earlier today.Delegates aligned with PKR deputy president Azmin Ali decided to keep away from the rest of the party’s youth wing congress meeting in a move that will likely widen the split with party president Anwar Ibrahim.
Meanwhile, at the opposition Umno national assembly, the presidents of United Malays National Organisation (Umno) and Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) sat on the same stage, in a major sign of warming ties between the Malay-Muslim parties, which had fought bitterly for decades.
Catch up:
Chaos at PKR youth meeting as sacked chairman insists on entry
Party-hopping Umno lawmakers a sign of how the mighty have fallen
Calls in Umno for BN to ‘migrate’ to Muafakat Nasional
I’M SINGLE AND I CAN DEAL WITH IT, SAY CHINA WOMEN
Intimacy on demand is gaining popularity in China as the number of single women in the middle-income group rise. Shops selling virtual friends are appearing on Chinese messaging app WeChat and e-commerce sites such as Taobao. Other, slightly older single women, meanwhile, are looking for sperm donors abroad.
Don’t miss:
China’s single women seek sperm donors overseas
Till death do I stay single: South Korea’s #NoMarriage women
IN OTHER NEWS
HONG KONG MARCH: Pro-democracy activists have vowed to hold another massive rally over the weekend, with some protesters saying it would be the last chance for Chief Executive Carrie Lam to address people’s woes. The city police have given the go-ahead for the protesters – the first time they have done so since mid-August.
RAPE VIOLENCE: Four men accused of gang-rape and murder of a 27-year-old woman near the southern city of Hyderabad have been shot dead during an alleged botched escape attempt – in a development that has earned the police both criticism and praise. The rape of the woman, a vet, had triggered public outrage across the country amid heated debates on the lack of safety for women.
GARUDA CEO & HIS SMUGGLED BIKE: Indonesian national airline Garuda Indonesia’s CEO has been told to leave his post after he was caught allegedly trying to smuggle a classic 1972 Harley-Davidson motorcycle on a flight to the country.
These insights are produced by The Straits Times, the official media partner for the Asia House Global Trade Dialogue, which took place in Singapore on 7 November 2019.
Reading this on the web or know someone who might enjoy receiving Asian Insider? The sign-up page is here
