Tag: Region Asias

From August, China is to restrict exports of gallium and germanium, two critical elements for making semiconductor chips. With China dominating the supply of both elements, exporters will now need special license to get them out of the country. The move has the potential to harm a range of western tech manufacturers that use these elements to make their products. The move is reportedly…

TORONTO – A few hundred members of Canada’s Sikh community demonstrated outside the Indian Consulate in Toronto on Saturday to protest the unsolved killing of one of their leaders last month in the Vancouver, British Columbia, area. They accused the Indian government of being responsible for the gunning down of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, president of a Sikh temple and campaigner…

BEIRUT (AP) — A French court Tuesday upheld the freezing of the assets of Lebanon’s embattled central bank governor, rejecting his appeal to have them released, an official close to the investigation said. Several European countries are investigating central bank Gov. Riad Salameh and his associates over myriad alleged financial crimes, including illicit enrichment and laundering of $330 million. A…

Russian jamming in Ukraine has become so effective that even US-made guided weapons sent to Kyiv may no longer hit targets accurately, according to several British military analysts. A recent analysis by the UK’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) notes that while Moscow’s electronic warriors could not stop the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), their improved jamming skills are taking…

China says the UK is sheltering fugitives after Hong Kong put bounties on the heads of eight pro-democracy activists who fled the territory. The statement from its London embassy came after the UK said it would not tolerate attempts by China to silence individuals in the UK or overseas. The eight left the former British territory after Beijing imposed a…

Monday, 03 July 2023 5:02 PM Turkish authorities say they have uncovered and disrupted a vast “ghost” Mossad spy network centered in Istanbul, following months of surveillance. The substantial efforts by Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) exposed 56 operatives allegedly spying on non-Turkish citizens in Turkey in the service of the Israeli spy agency Mossad, Turkey’s Daily Sabah newspaper reported…

US Department of State Press Statement Matthew Miller, Department Spokesperson July 3, 2023 The United States condemns the Hong Kong Police Force’s issuance of an international bounty for information leading to the arrest of eight pro-democracy activists who no longer live in Hong Kong. The extraterritorial application of the Beijing-imposed National Security Law is a dangerous precedent that threatens the…

State Department advisory removes concerns about COVID lockdowns but warns of rise in ‘wrongful detentions.’ Alex Willemyns for RFA 2023.07.03 — Americans should reconsider any travel to China due to “arbitrary enforcement of local law,” “exit bans” and “wrongful detentions,” the U.S. State Department says in an updated travel advisory. The update, which is dated Friday, removes concerns about COVID…

SHANGHAI – China’s major state banks have lowered their US dollar deposit rates for the second time in a month, seven banking sources with direct knowledge of the matter said, as the authorities step up efforts to arrest a slide in the Renminbi currency. Interest rates offered by the “Big Five” state-owned lenders on most dollar deposits are now capped…

The United States said Monday that ally Israel had a right to “defend its people” against Islamist militants but called for protection of civilians after a major, deadly raid in the occupied West Bank. “We support Israel’s security and right to defend its people against Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist groups,” a State Department spokesperson said. “It is…

Steve Li Kwai-wah, Hong Kong’s national security department superintendent, speaks during a press conference to issue arrest warrants for eight activists, in Hong Kong on Monday. Joyce Zhou/Reuters TAIPEI, Taiwan — Hong Kong has issued arrest warrants for eight exiled activists and lawyers, accusing them of violating China’s national security law — and offering a hefty bounty for their capture….

LONDON – Kyiv has placed British consumer goods giant Unilever on Ukraine’s “International Sponsors of War” list, claiming Monday it continues to profit from operations in Russia, triggering demonstrations in London. “The National Agency on Corruption Prevention has added British company Unilever onto its list of ‘International Sponsors of War’,” a statement said. This was owing to its “presence in…

China’s defense minister said on Monday he hoped to expand naval cooperation with Russia, in the highest-level public talks between military officials from the two countries since a failed mutiny in Russia last month. Li Shangfu spoke in Beijing with Nikolai Yevmenov, head of the Russian navy, and said he hoped both countries could “strengthen communication at all levels,” according to a readout…

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian forces have destroyed a Ukrainian Starlink satellite communication station and a drone control center near Artemovsk (Bakhmut), a Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson told Sputnik. “… the artillery of the group [of Russian forces] destroyed a Starlink communication station, a control center for unmanned aerial vehicles together with a Leleka-100 drone, a communication center and a pickup…

Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin on Monday released the first audio statement since an aborted armed rebellion he staged on Saturday, defending the move as a reaction to an attack on his force that killed some of his 30 fighters. “We started our march because of an injustice,” Prigozhin said in an 11-minute audio. He didn’t offer any details as to…

BlackRock and JPMorgan Chase are reportedly aiding the Ukrainian government in setting up a reconstruction bank that could see rebuilding projects being heavily invested in by private entities. The Financial Times noted that it would cost Ukraine roughly $411 billion to rebuild their country amid the onslaught of attacks by Russia, but the cost is continuing to increase.

Potential investors will get an inside preview of how things will look during a London conference that is set to take place this week.