VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen ordered the shutdown of one of the last independent local news organizations in the country on Sunday night, saying it had attacked him and his son and hurt the country.

The Voice of Democracy, also known as VOD, will no longer have a license to publish or broadcast from 10am local time on Monday, the prime minister said in a statement posted on his official Facebook page.

He ordered Phnom Penh police to "keep order" but not seize property. He said foreign donors to VOD should take back their money and its staff should find new jobs.

"Commentators tried to attack me and my son Hun Manet," Hun Sen wrote. He said a VOD story published earlier this week had hurt the "dignity and reputation" of the Cambodian government, and he ordered the Ministry of Information to cancel VOD’s license.

VOD on Wednesday published a story on Cambodia’s earthquake aid to Turkey. The story quoted government spokesperson Phay Siphan saying the prime minister's son and presumed successor Hun Manet had signed the aid agreement. Hun Manet is the joint chief of staff and deputy commander for the country’s armed forces, and signing such an agreement appeared to have overstepped the bounds of his position.

Hun Sen, one of the world’s longest-serving dictators, on whose watch political rivals have been jailed and exiled, critical media outlets shuttered and civil dissent crushed, demanded a public apology.

The NGO that runs VOD, the Cambodian Center for Independent Media, sent a letter to Hun Sen’s Cabinet saying it was sorry for any confusion it may have caused and explaining that VOD had quoted government spokesman Phay Siphan. Hun Sen said the response was unacceptable.

Phay Siphan and the media director for CCIM did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

VOD is not the first media organization to be shut down in Cambodia. The Cambodia Daily was shut down in late 2017 after being given one month to pay millions in back taxes that the publication disputed.

The paper had a reputation for breaking news on tough issues and was shut months ahead of the last general election in 2018. The next general election is due to be held in July. (Reuters)

India is scouting for billions of dollars worth of military planes, completing jetliner deals to meet civilian demand and pressing global aircraft manufacturers to produce more locally at a major air show this week.

Flanked by nuclear-armed rivals China and Pakistan, India has the world's fourth-largest air force but its largely Soviet-era fleet is in desperate need of modernising. It also wants planes for aircraft carriers to balance China's growing power in the Indian Ocean.

As the country prepares to host the Aero India show in Bengaluru from Monday, its airlines are expanding, with Air India expected to announce a potentially record deal to buy nearly 500 jets from Airbus SE (AIR.PA) and Boeing Co (BA.N), worth more than $100 billion at list prices.

IndiGo, the country's biggest carrier and a top Airbus client, could be next, with aviation consultant CAPA India predicting it will make a blockbuster order of a similar scale as Air India's.

Indian carriers may buy 1,500 to 1,700 aircraft in coming years, CAPA said, including Air India and IndiGo.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to open the air show, which runs through Friday. It will be military-dominated but also feature India's efforts to accommodate a domestic travel boom and rebuild its brand abroad.

Modi has made "Make-in-India" a centrepiece of his economic policy, insisting that manufacturers such as Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N), Boeing and Airbus share technology or make more than parts in the country.

His government's push to expand the world's fifth-largest economy to $5 trillion by 2026 from $3.2 trillion in 2021 could mean more industrial supply deals.

MILITARY, COMMERCIAL COMPETITION

"The days of foreign companies selling directly to India are over," a defence industry source told Reuters. "The narrative has moved as the Modi government wants Indian companies to manufacture in partnership with global firms."

The push for transfer of high technology and domestic manufacturing signals Modi's ambition to share the stage with military superpowers like the United States, Russia and China.

At the same time, airlines like Air India are seeking to go head-on with rivals like Emirates Airline (EMIRA.UL) for a bigger share of international passenger flow. But many analysts warn recapturing traffic from established Gulf hubs will face tough competition.

With manufacturers lining up for a slice of the multi-billion-dollar opportunity and the chance to partner with a rising power, Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (RR.L) has said it was ready to work with India on developing combat-aircraft engine technologies.

New Delhi is trying to reduce its traditional dependence on Russia, turning to the United States, France and Israel for equipment and pushing its own Tejas light combat plane.

The U.S. delegation will be the largest in the air show's 27-year history, said the embassy in New Delhi. "As India modernises its defence capabilities, certainly we want to be the partner of choice."

India's pressing military air need is to shore up its fighter squadrons, which have fallen to 31 from the approved 42 as political and bureaucratic hurdles and lack of funds delay purchases. A $20-billion proposal to buy 114 multi-role fighter aircraft has been pending for five years, brought into sharp focus by tensions with China and Pakistan.

The biggest military aircraft makers want in on such a deal, with attention on French Dassault Aviation SA's (AM.PA) Rafale, Saab AB's (SAABb.ST) JAS-39 Gripen, Boeing's F-15EX and F/A-18 Super Hornet, and Lockheed Martin's F-21 - an upgraded version of the F-16 unveiled at the India show in 2019. (Reuters)

Top diplomats from Japan and China are preparing to hold informal talks on the sidelines of an international conference in Germany, Kyodo news agency reported on Monday.

China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, will attend the Munich Security Conference this month, China's foreign ministry said on Monday, along with visiting several other nations including Russia.

Kyodo said arrangements were being made for him to meet informally with Japan's foreign minister, Yoshimasa Hayashi, on the sidelines. (Reuters)

Talks between the International Monetary Fund and Pakistan will resume virtually on Monday, a Pakistani official said, as the two sides look to reach a deal to unlock funding critical to keep the cash-strapped south Asian country afloat.

The two could not reach a deal last week and a visiting IMF delegation departed Islamabad after 10 days of talks, but said negotiations would continue. Pakistan is in dire need of funds as it battles a wrenching economic crisis.

"Duration (of the talks) cannot be confirmed but we intend to wrap these up at the soonest," Finance Secretary Hamed Yaqoob Sheikh told Reuters in a text message, confirming that talks were resuming on Monday.

Talks centre around reaching an agreement on a reforms agenda under the country's $6.5 billion bailout programme, which it entered in 2019. An agreement on the ninth review of the programme would release over $1.1 billion.

Pakistan's international bonds slipped again on Monday after having suffered sharp falls on Friday following news that a deal with the fund had still to be reached.

The dollar-denominated 2025 bond saw the biggest declines, falling nearly 2 cents in the dollar before clawing back some losses to trade down 1.4 cents at 48.1 cents by 0900 GMT, Tradeweb data showed. ,

Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank have fallen to $2.9 billion, barely enough to cover three weeks of imports. A resumption of the IMF programme would also unlock other avenues of funding for Pakistan.

An agreement, if reached, would still need to be cleared by the IMF board. (Reuters)