Author: Desk Team

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. State Department has approved the sale of an anti-tank mine-laying system to Taiwan amid the rising military threat from China. The department on Wednesday said the Volcano system and all related equipment would cost an estimated $180 million. It’s capable of scattering anti-tank and anti-personnel mines from either a ground vehicle or helicopter. The announcement indicated Taiwan would be buying the vehicle-borne version, the kind of general-use weapon many experts believe Taiwan needs more of to dissuade or repel a potential Chinese invasion. To advertise that threat, China’s military sent 71 planes and seven ships toward Taiwan in a 24-hour display of force directed at the self-ruled island it claims is its own territory, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said Mond

About 300 to be targeted by investigations into drug links Policemen take part in a flag-raising ceremony at the grounds of Station 6, Batasan Police Station, in Quezon City, Metro Manila in 2017. (Reuters File Photo) MANILA: Hundreds of top-ranking police in the Philippines were asked to resign on Wednesday as the government seeks to “cleanse” the corruption-tainted force of officers involved in the illegal drug trade. Police have been waging an anti-narcotics campaign launched by former president Rodrigo Duterte and continued by his successor Ferdinand Marcos. Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos urged all colonels and generals — about 300 in total — to offer “courtesy” resignations after an investigation found a “handful” were involved in narcotics. They could continue working while

Stock Exchange of Thailand one of the exceptions, with net foreign buying for first time since 2016 Share prices are displayed on a board outside the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in Mumbai. (Reuters File Photo) Foreign investors withdrew more money from equities in emerging Asian economies in 2022 than they had in any year since the global financial crisis in 2008, as rising US interest rates pulled funds towards dollar assets. Data from stock exchanges in Taiwan, India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and South Korea showed foreigners sold equities worth $57 billion last year, the biggest outflow since 2008. Thailand was one of the rare exceptions to the trend, with foreign net buying of 202.7 billion baht (about $6.1 billion) worth of shares on the Stock Exchange of Thai...

Inflation rate poised to slow to 2-3% in 2023 An egg vendor prepares his wares at Sri Kema Market in Bangkok’s Bang Sue district, following an increase in the price of eggs in August 2022. (Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya) Thailand's inflation rate is expected to slow to 2-3% this year after soaring to a 24-year high last year, driven mainly by rising energy prices. The Commerce Ministry on Thursday reported headline inflation, gauged by the consumer price index (CPI), rose by 6.08% in 2022 from a year earlier, which was close to the projection (between 5.5%-6.5%, with an average of 6%). The main contributors were rising energy prices following limited production controlled by oil-producing countries and the Russia-Ukraine war which led to a tight supply of energy and finally high domestic

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong has protested President Joe Biden’s two-year extension of a program that protects residents of the semi-autonomous Chinese city living in the U.S. from deportation, accusing Washington of “demonstrating sinister intentions and hegemonic bullying.” An unidentified government spokesperson was quoted Friday as saying the U.S. had “wantonly” smeared Hong Kong’s National Security Law, imposed on the city by Beijing in 2020 as part of a sweeping crackdown on the democratic movement. Since the law’s enactment by the Chinese legislature, at least 150 opposition politicians, activists and protesters have been taken into custody, while an unknown number of others have fled overseas. Biden first authorized the program, the Deferred Enforced Departure for Certain Hong Kong

Burkina rally celebrates French troop pull-out announcement Paris confirmed this week that the troops will leave within a month. OUAGOUGOU - Thousands of demonstrators rallied in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou Saturday in support of the ruling junta, days after France confirmed its special forces there would withdraw, an AFP journalist saw. Packing Nation Square in central Ouagadougou, protesters held signs bearing slogans including "Down with imperialism", "Down with French policy in Africa" and "Forwards for Burkina's sovereignty". "We do not want any more foreign military bases on our soil," Lazare Yameogo, spokesman for the Inter-African Revolutionary Movement told the crowd. "We want respect and a win-win cooperation. "We will remain on the lookout until Burkina Faso is liber...

Island's tourism sector buoyed by news of three more planned visits over the next month Passengers disembark from a boat sent to bring them ashore from the Mein Schiff 5 in Koh Samui on Saturday. About 3,000 passengers and crew visited the island in Surat Thani for a one-day trip. (Photo: Supapong Chaolan) SURAT THANI: Another cruise ship with about 3,000 passengers and crew arrived at Koh Samui for a one-day visit on Saturday. The visit was expected to generate 10 million baht for the resort island. Mein Schiff 5 docked at Na Thon pier on Saturday. Its 3,000 passengers, mostly German and other European tourists, and crew members had travelled from Singapore via Vietnam to the popular destination in the Gulf of Thailand. Chayaphon Intharasupha, chief of Koh Samui district, said the vis...

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping vowed Friday to deepen their bilateral cooperation against the backdrop of Moscow’s 10-month war in Ukraine, which weathered another night of drone and rocket attacks following a large-scale missile bombardment. Putin and Xi made no direct mention of Ukraine in their opening remarks by videoconference, which were broadcast publicly, before going into private talks. But they hailed strengthening ties between Moscow and Beijing amid what they called “geopolitical tensions” and a “difficult international situation,” with Putin expressing his wish to extend military collaboration. “In the face of increasing geopolitical tensions, the significance of the Russian-Chinese strategic partnership is growing as a st

Revive cultural traditions to help protect climate Is there a role for cultural heritage in our struggle to avert global warming? Can we trust technology to ease the stressed-out state of the planet? Or should we look back over our shoulders at ancestral wisdom for some answers? Speakers from 10 Asean nations mulled these questions at a conference on "Cultural Wisdom for Climate Action: the Southeast Asian Contribution," hosted by the Siam Society and Southeast Asian Cultural Heritage Alliance (Seacha) in Bangkok on Jan 12–14. The contributors included scientists, activists, academics, religious leaders, architects, writers and artists. The most passionate voices belonged to 16 young leaders, including several from indigenous and minority communities. As a young Thai participant exclaim

Hong Kong's actual Covid count could be up to 200,000 daily Coronavirus: Hong Kong's actual Covid count could be up to 200,000 daily, HKU expert says while arguing risks from reopening border with mainland China are small. Up to 200,000 people a day could be infected with Covid-19 in Hong Kong, according to a health expert who said the risks from a resumption of quarantine-free travel with mainland China were manageable compared with the massive city caseload. Jin Dongyan, a virologist at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), on Monday cited ongoing tests carried out by the institution after the city's chief secretary earlier said land borders could be reopened as early as January 8 with the mainland lifting most pandemic curbs. Jin said HKU had been testing 10,000 residents in the city a...