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September
Russia and North Korea did not sign any military or other agreements during summit, Kremlin says
Written by Nur Yasmin
The Kremlin said on Friday that Russia and North Korea had not sign any agreements on military matters or on any other areas during Kim Jong Un's visit to Russia this week.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that there had not been a plan to sign any formal agreements during the visit, which saw Kim hold one-on-one talks with President Vladimir Putin.
Kim, who is still in Russia, inspected a Russian fighter jet factory that is under Western sanctions on Friday.
Washington and its allies fear his visit could strengthen Russia's military in Ukraine and bolster Pyongyang's missile program. (Reuters)
September
Senior South Korea, US officials agree North Korea-Russia arms cooperation violates UN sanctions
Written by Nur Yasmin
Senior diplomats and defence officials of South Korea and the United States agreed on Friday that military cooperation between North Korea and Russia is a serious violation of U.N. sanctions and that the allies would ensure there is a price to pay.
The officials, meeting in Seoul to discuss "extended deterrence" against growing threats from North Korea, called on Moscow to show responsibility as a permanent member of the Security Council.
"We agreed to work together to ensure there is a price to pay for the grave violation of Security Council resolutions," South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Chang Ho-jin told a news conference.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is visiting Russia this week and met President Vladimir Putin to discuss military cooperation, the war in Ukraine and Russian help for North Korea's satellite program.
U.S. Under Secretary of Defence Sasha Baker said the allies will identify, expose and counter Russian attempts to acquire military equipment for the war in Ukraine.
U.S. and South Korean officials have expressed concern that the summit between the increasingly isolated Moscow and Pyongyang was aimed at allowing Russia to acquire ammunition from the North to supplement its dwindling stocks.
Chang and U.S. Under Secretary of State Bonnie Jenkins also said any use of nuclear arms by the North against the South would be met with a swift and overwhelming response. (Reuters)
September
UN rights expert urges US to go further with sanctions against Myanmar junta
Written by Nur Yasmin
The U.N. human rights expert for Myanmar on Wednesday called on the United States to further tighten sanctions on the country's military rulers to include their main revenue source, the state oil and gas enterprise.
U.N. Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews, a former member of the U.S. Congress, also said it was vital for Washington to at least maintain levels of humanitarian support for victims of the junta inside and outside Myanmar.
Andrews told a hearing of the U.S. Congress's Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission he was "alarmed" by reports that some donors, including the U.S., might reduce support for Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar and said a Joint Response Plan that includes food rations for Rohingya children in Bangladesh was only 32% funded so far this year.
Andrews praised Washington for imposing sanctions on the Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank and Myanma Investment and Commercial Bank in June, but said more needed to be done.
"We need to have more sanctions imposed... I urge the U.S. to join the European Union and immediately impose sanctions on the junta's single largest source of revenue, the Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise," Andrews said.
"If you can stop the money, you can cut their ability to continue these atrocities," he said referring to civilian deaths at the hands of the military.
Andrews also urged Washington to work with other countries to block the junta's access to weapons.
Last month, Washington expanded its sanctions against Myanmar to include foreign companies or individuals helping the junta to procure jet fuel it uses to launch air strikes, while estimating that the military had killed more than 3,900 civilians since taking power in a 2021 coup.
In January, the United States targeted the managing director and deputy managing director of the Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise with sanctions, but has yet to go further against the firm, despite the urgings of rights groups and dissidents.
Myanmar military officials have played down the impact of sanctions and say their air strikes target insurgents.
Andrews said in a May report that Myanmar's military had imported at least $1 billion in arms and other material since the coup and called out Russia and China for aiding its campaign to crush its opposition. (Reuters)
September
South Korea's Yoon heading to New York next week for UN General Assembly
Written by Nur Yasmin
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will visit New York next week to attend the United Nations General Assembly, Yoon's office said on Thursday.
Yoon is scheduled to depart on Sept. 18 for the five-day trip during which he is expected to give a keynote speech on Sept. 20, Yoon's deputy national security advisor, Kim Tae-hyo, said.
The visit will include dozens of meetings, including talks with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to discuss global issues such as the war in Ukraine and North Korea's nuclear threats, Kim said.
The trip would follow North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's rare summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin this week where they discussed military matters and possible Russian help for the North's satellite programme.
Yoon will deliver a message on possible military exchanges between Pyongyang and Moscow at the General Assembly, South Korean news agency Newsis said, citing the presidential office. (Reuters)
September
Taiwan reports 40 Chinese military aircraft in its air defence zone
Written by Nur Yasmin
Taiwan's defence ministry said on Thursday that in the past 24 hours it had detected 40 Chinese air force aircraft entering the island's air defence zone, mostly flying to the south of Taiwan and into the Bashi Channel.
At least four of the aircraft also crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait to the northwest of the island, according to a map the ministry provided. (Reuters)
September
Australia toughens ban on training 'certain foreign militaries' after pilot case
Written by Nur Yasmin
Australia will toughen laws stopping former defence staff from training "certain foreign militaries", introducing a penalty of 20 years prison and widening the ban to stop any Australians offering military training to countries seen as a national security risk.
A series of cases where former military pilots living in Australia had worked for a South African flight school training Chinese pilots, which the United States alleges are Chinese military pilots, has prompted the crackdown.
Australia's "Five Eyes" intelligence partners of Britain, United States, New Zealand and Canada will be exempt from the new law, officials said.
Exemptions will also be provided if the defence minister authorises the training, or it relates to humanitarian relief or United Nations duties.
Penalties of up to 20 years prison will apply for providing military training or tactics to a foreign military or government body, including hybrid civilian and military organisations, or state-owned companies, without authorisation from the defence minister.
Defence Minister Richard Marles introduced the amendment to Australia's parliament on Thursday, saying the bill was partly modelled on U.S. laws, and will strengthen criminal laws in Australia that already ban the provision of military training to a foreign government by former Australian defence staff.
The new law goes further, stopping any Australian citizen or permanent resident from providing such training without the minister's authorisation.
The intention was to "prevent individuals with knowledge of sensitive defence information from training or working for certain foreign militaries or governments where that activity would put Australia's national security at risk", he said.
A former U.S. Marines Corp pilot who had recenty returned from working in China was arrested in Australia last year and faces extradition to the United States on charges of training Chinese military pilots at a South African flying school. The pilot, Daniel Duggan, an Australian citizen, remains in custody and denies any wrongdoing.
The Test Flying Academy of South Africa was placed on a U.S. trade blacklist on national security grounds in June for "providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources".
The flight training division of AVIC, a Chinese state-owned aviation and defence company that was in partnership with TFASA, is also on the blacklist.
The Australian home of TFASA chief operating officer Keith Hartley was raided by Australian Federal Police in November. A court was told Hartley, a former British military pilot, was suspected of organising the training of Chinese military pilots delivered by the flight school. Hartley has not been charged, and denies any wrongdoing.
Under the new law, working for companies where a foreign government holds 50% of shares or the directors are expected to act in accordance with the wishes of the foreign government is also banned. (Reuters)
September
US considering seeking access to more Philippine bases, admiral says
Written by Nur Yasmin
The U.S. military could be granted access to more bases in the Philippines under a joint defence agreement between the two countries, the chief of the U.S. Indo-Pacific command said on Thursday after meeting the head of the Philippines armed forces.
China is likely to react negatively, having earlier this year accused Washington of "stoking the fire" when the Philippines increased the number of bases the U.S. military could use to nine.
The four additional sites approved were located close to potential flashpoints for China, as three faced north towards Taiwan and one was near the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing recently sparred over a disputed atoll.
U.S. Admiral John Aquilino said he and the Philippines' military chief, Lieutenant General Romeo Brawner, discussed further expanding the number of bases U.S. forces could access under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) and had made "recommendations to our senior leaders".
The closer U.S. defence ties with the Philippines after a period of decline has caused concern in China.
The United States says it intends to bolster an already strong alliance and improve the defence capability of the Philippines.
Brawner said the purpose of EDCA was training exercises and humanitarian and disaster response, key planks of a decades-old alliance between the two countries, and was unrelated to regional security threats.
Aquilino, who was in Manila for an annual meeting on bilateral defence cooperation, also said the allies were seeking to complete an agreement to boost intelligence sharing.
The meeting comes as the Philippines' western command flagged concerns on Thursday over a "resurgence" of Chinese fishing vessels "swarming" in waters around the Spratly islands, inside the Philippines exclusive economic zone.
The Chinese embassy in Manila said China has "indisputable sovereignty" over the Spratlys, which it calls Nansha Islands. (Reuters)
September
South Korea warns North Korea, Russia against breaching UN resolutions
Written by Nur Yasmin
South Korea's National Security Council (NSC) said on Thursday North Korea and Russia would "pay a price" if they violate U.N. Security Council resolutions.
The council also said it was taking seriously the two countries' discussions on military cooperation, including the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM).
While urging Pyongyang and Moscow not to trade weapons, South Korea will work with the United States, Japan and the international community to deal with the situation, the council said in a statement.
"The government said that with any actions that threaten our security by North Korea and Russia violating (U.N.) Security Council resolutions, there will be a price to pay," it said.
The message comes after the NSC held a meeting to discuss the summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The South Korean meeting was attended by senior officials including the foreign minister as well as the unification minister, who is in charge of relations with North Korea.
Earlier, Unification Minister Kim Young-ho also expressed concern over military cooperation between North Korea and Russia. (Reuters)
September
Japan's new cabinet reflects PM's focus on gender and defence
Written by Nur Yasmin
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has picked a woman as foreign minister and appointed as defence minister a politician who has worked to build ties with Taiwan in Wednesday's new cabinet line-up.
The choices, among 11 new faces and five women, spotlight a focus on gender equality and a stronger line on defence as Kishida battles sagging ratings, with his term as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) set to end next year.
Both ministers face the task of navigating ties with China that soured after Japan began releasing into the Pacific Ocean treated radioactive water from its wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant, angering its neighbour.
Kishida said the new defence minister will be Minoru Kihara, a pro-Taiwan politician who has visited the democratically-governed island in the past and belongs to a Japan-Taiwan interparliamentary group.
"I do think this sends a message that Japan is seeking stability in Taiwan alongside the United States," said security expert Takashi Kawakami at Takushoku University in the capital.
The choice of Kihara as defence minister is not an anti-China move, but indicates a closeness with Taiwan, he added.
China claims Taiwan as its own territory and will be sensitive to any shift in Japan's stance on the island.
Kihara will also oversee efforts to bolster Japan's military in a plan to double defence spending over the five years to 2027, and grapple with funding the buildup as tension rises in East Asia over China's military expansion and maritime disputes.
The new foreign minister is Yoko Kamikawa, a former justice minister who oversaw the execution of key members of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult responsible for the deadly sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway in 1995.
The choice of Kamikawa, who has a master's degree from Harvard University, shows the government wants to ensure smooth ties with the United States, said Yu Uchiyama, a professor of politics at Tokyo University.
"She has plenty of experience, and I do think she will make significant contributions to strengthening ties with the United States," he said.
One political commentator said ministerial roles had diminished in importance, however, as summits increasingly become a forum for dialogue with China.
"Around the world, summit diplomacy has become mainstream," said Shigenobu Tamura, who previously worked for the LDP.
"Even if the foreign and defence minister posts change, there won't be any change or impact on Japan's diplomatic policy."
The cabinet reshuffle comes amid a dip in popularity for Kishida, following a string of scandals from data mishaps linked to government identity cards and the arrest of a vice minister on suspicion of graft.
About 43% of respondents disapproved of Kishida's leadership while 36% approved, a poll by public broadcaster NHK showed last week.
Kishida, who assumed office two years ago, retained both his finance and trade ministers, signalling there would be no major shift in economic policies.
The new cabinet's priorities include pulling together a fresh package of economic stimulus to cushion the squeeze on households from rising fuel bills, tackling the fallout from persistent inflation. (Reuters)
September
China to impose hefty fines, penalties for illegal education tutors
Written by Nur Yasmin
Unlicensed tutoring services in China could face penalties of up to 100,000 yuan ($13,715.54), the country's Education Ministry said as it seeks to crack down on the lucrative after school industry and promote a "good environment" for learning.
The announcement made by the Ministry of Education on state run CCTV on Tuesday, is the most recent measure by authorities to reform China's education sector and alleviate the academic pressure on students.
Beijing in 2021 imposed tough rules to clamp down on the booming $120 billion private tutoring industry, aiming both to ease pressure on children and boost the country's birth rate by lowering family costs.
However, problems such as unlicensed after school tutoring continues to "varying degrees" and the problem of individual institutions "taking money and running away" still occurs, the ministry said.
"There is an urgent need to improve the legal system for after school training," it said.
China's slowing economy, grappling with chronically low consumer confidence, is affecting young couples' plans to either get married or have children, compounding the demographic headaches of one of the world's fastest-ageing societies.
The high cost of education has been cited as a key factor by young Chinese for not wanting to have children. (Reuters)