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October
Hong Kong Seeks Fresh Economic Edge While Steeling Security in Policy Blueprint
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Buffeted by years of upheaval and China's economic slowdown, Hong Kong's leader on Wednesday outlined his annual policy vision focused on kick-starting the ailing property market while further tightening national security laws.
The policy blueprint, the second delivered by Chief Executive John Lee since he took office, comes at a critical moment for Hong Kong, as the Chinese-ruled former British colony looks to emerge from the turmoil of the last few years.
Mass pro-democracy protests in 2019, the COVID lockdown, the emigration of tens of thousands of residents and unease over a national security crackdown have all sapped energy from one of Asia's most vibrant cities.
Lee, a former police officer, in a three-hour speech outlined policies that ranged from slashing property transaction fees to geopolitics and offering cash bonuses for local parents to have more babies.
"Hong Kong has many strengths. We should treasure them, without inflating our ego. In face of competition, we should never be complacent; we should not be frustrated or doubt ourselves when we lag behind," Lee said.
Lee's primary focus was on stimulating Hong Kong's economy, which contracted 3.5% last year, and luring back international businesses and capital at a time when the local stock market has struggled and families have sold flats and moved abroad.
But Lee, who was sanctioned by the U.S. government for his role in cracking down on freedoms after the pro-democracy protests in 2019, also emphasized the need to bolster national security -- a priority for China's President Xi Jinping.
"External forces continue to meddle in Hong Kong affairs," he said, adding that fresh security legislation including laws to counter alleged espionage activities, known as Article 23, would be enacted by the end of 2024.
"We should pay particular attention to those anti-China and destabilising activities camouflaged in the name of human rights, freedom, democracy and livelihood," he said.
To enhance Chinese national identity and unity, Hong Kong would be rolling out "patriotic" education in local schools, Lee said.
He also said cybersecurity would be strengthened to protect critical infrastructure.
Some observers say Lee's economic and security priorities are difficult to balance.
"The Hong Kong business environment is already facing challenges due to an unwelcoming atmosphere and a repressive political climate," said Sunny Cheung, an exiled activist and visiting fellow at John Hopkins University in Washington D.C.
PROPERTY AND STOCKS
Turning to the property market, Lee said stamp duty, would be halved to 7.5% from 15% for second home buyers and non-citizen buyers with immediate effect, to help revive a sector that is one of the economy's pillars.
Other adjustments were made to allow some home owners to sell properties after two years without incurring hefty duties.
And Lee said the government would continue to increase the overall supply of land for public and private housing.
The reaction from investors was lukewarm, with shares of Sun Hung Kai Properties (0016.HK) and Henderson Land (0012.HK), two major residential property developers, closing down 0.5% and 0.7%, respectively.
Hong Kong had tried to cool the property market during a surge of nearly 300% in home prices in the decade to 2019. Since then prices have fallen 13%.
In August, property prices dropped to a seven-month low, and realtors expect them to end 2023 as much as 5% down.
"The relaxation of cooling measures is only a band-aid solution that is unlikely to reverse the downward trend of home prices," said Joseph Tsang, chairman of property consultancy JLL in Hong Kong, citing the global economic downturn and interest rate hikes as lingering factors weighing on the market.
Lee said stamp duties for stock transactions would be reduced to 0.1% from 0.13% to help bolster liquidity in the Hong Kong market, and market data fees would be cut later this year to help brokerages.
He added Hong Kong would seek to strengthen its role as an offshore yuan centre and bolster financial ties to China, and enhance schemes to attract foreign talent.
($1 = 7.8241 Hong Kong dollars) (Reuters)
October
US, Australia to Discuss China, Pacific Security in White House Visit
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - U.S. President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will discuss maritime and cybersecurity defense on Wednesday as they coordinate their China strategy in an official White House visit.
Australia is a key U.S. ally in the Pacific and the visit comes as crisis rages in the Middle East. Biden scheduled the visit after canceling a trip to Sydney in May to stay in Washington and negotiate a government funding crisis.
The visit will produce a series of agreements aimed at deterring and competing with China, even as separately the two countries try to thaw relations with Beijing.
The expected deals include launching an undersea internet cable project and maritime wharf infrastructure investment designed to benefit and woo Pacific Island nations whose assistance may be needed to respond to any future conflict over Taiwan or the South China Sea, according to U.S. officials.
Washington and Canberra, already partners in a decades-old collective defense agreement, will also announce wider security cooperation with Japan.
The balancing act of strengthening deterrence against China without offending Beijing too much is made more complicated by a Middle East crisis that has again diverted Washington's attention away from the Indo-Pacific.
A leadership vacuum in the U.S. House of Representatives has also complicated the approval of a set of laws needed to deliver on Biden's promise to support the AUKUS defense partnership between the United States, Britain and Australia. The AUKUS deal includes transferring sensitive U.S. and British nuclear submarine technology to Australia.
Financing and approvals related to AUKUS still need to come from Congress, where Republican lawmakers, who have a narrow majority, have repeatedly failed to line up enough support behind a party candidate to elect a new speaker of the House.
On Friday, the Biden administration submitted a supplementary budget request to Congress that includes measures to support U.S. commitments under AUKUS.
A senior administration official said Biden would reassure Albanese that the United States will follow through on its end of the deal as Australians express private frustrations over the delays in moving ahead on the partnership.
"We're in close and deep consultations on Capitol Hill," the official told reporters. "We are confident that the various procedural steps and budget conditions necessary to move forward with pillar one of AUKUS will move through in a way that will support our larger endeavor."
The U.S.-Australian efforts, designed to counter China's territorial claims and reduce trade dependence on the Asian country, come as both countries also work to reduce diplomatic tensions with Beijing.
Albanese will visit China, Australia's largest trade partner and biggest buyer of its iron ore, on Nov. 4.
White House aides are working to lock down a meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Nov. 11-17 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco.
Biden and Albanese will also seek to boost cooperation on cybersecurity and Australia's rare earth minerals output to reduce reliance on China, the dominant supplier.
Biden will also announce that a cyberattack on Australia could be taken as an "armed" attack that would trigger U.S. collective defense obligations. In the event of such an attack, the United States would make a case-by-case decision on whether to invoke the treaty, according to another U.S. official.
Australia has been a major hacking target for China.
Biden will also work on the more intangible parts of the U.S.-Australian alliance.
Albanese, his partner Jodie Haydon and the Bidens will eat a three-course banquet prepared by five-time James Beard Foundation Award nominee Katie Button, set against a canvas of American Monarch butterflies and Australian Cairns Birdwing butterflies.
Nodding to the downbeat politics of the moment, a planned performance by the pop group B-52s at the dinner is being scrapped in favor of music from a U.S. military band. (Reuters)
October
Sri Lanka Approves Free Tourist Visa for Seven Countries to Boost Tourism
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Sri Lanka's cabinet approved issuing free tourist visas to visitors from seven countries including China, India and Russia, a statement issued by the media ministry said on Tuesday, to boost tourism and help revive its crisis-hit economy.
Tourists from China, India, Russia, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia will be issued free visas till March 31, 2024 under a pilot programme, the statement detailing cabinet decisions said.
The scheme is part of attempts by Sri Lanka to boost tourism recovery and hit a target of five million arrivals by 2026, the statement added.
The country of 22 million people, famed for its beaches, ancient temples and aromatic tea, saw its tourism industry pummelled first by the COVID-19 pandemic and then by a severe financial crisis last year that saw mass scale protests and shortages of essentials such as fuel.
But the tourism industry is seeing a turnaround in 2023 with Sri Lanka clocking a million arrivals by September, for the first time since 2019. The island is expecting to close the year at 1.5 million arrivals.
India is the largest source of tourists with 200,310 arrivals, followed by Russia with 132,300, latest data from the Sri Lanka Development Authority showed.
Sri Lanka earned $1.3 billion from tourism in the first eight months of 2023, up from $833 million dollars during the same period last year, according to the central bank. (Reuters)
October
China, US Officials Discuss Macroeconomic Developments in Meeting
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Officials from the United States and China on Monday held a two-hour long virtual meeting to discuss domestic and global macroeconomic developments, the U.S. Treasury Department said, calling the meeting "productive and substantive".
THE TAKE
Ties between the world's two largest economies have been strained in recent years due to a number of issues including Taiwan, the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, allegations of spying, human rights issues and trade tariffs.
Senior officials from both sides have been meeting each other in recent months to lay the ground for an expected meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in San Francisco in November.
KEY QUOTES
"Today, the United States and the People's Republic of China held the first meeting of the Economic Working Group (EWG), which serves as an ongoing channel to discuss and facilitate progress on bilateral economic policy matters," the Treasury Department said.
China's finance ministry said the two sides had "in-depth, frank and constructive" talks, and also discussed bilateral cooperation in "addressing global challenges".
Both sides will continue to maintain communication, the ministry said.
U.S. and Chinese officials also raised "areas of concern," statements from the two sides said, without elaborating. The meeting was led by senior officials from the U.S. Treasury Department and China's finance ministry.
The EWG was launched last month following U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's trip to Beijing in July. It was launched in parallel with a financial working group, which will hold its first meeting on Wednesday.
CONTEXT
The economic meeting follows other high-level engagements between the two countries in recent months that have seen visits from U.S. officials to China like Secretary of State Antony Blinken in June, Yellen in July and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in August.
More recently, Blinken met Chinese Vice President Han Zheng in New York and U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Malta. China's top diplomat will travel to the United States later this week to meet Blinken. (Reuters)
October
Qatar's Emir: Israel Shouldn't Get Unrestricted OK to Kill
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Qatar's ruling emir on Tuesday urged the international community not to grant Israel "unrestricted authorisation to kill" Palestinians in its fight against Hamas, in what he called a dangerous escalation that threatens global security.
"We say enough. Israel shouldn't be granted an unconditional green light and unrestricted authorisation to kill," Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani said in an annual speech to open the Gulf Arab state's advisory Shura council, his first public comments since Qatar began its most recent efforts to mediate between Israel and Hamas.
The Palestinian health ministry said the Gaza death toll had topped 5,000 in two weeks of Israeli air strikes in response to Hamas' surprise Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, in which the Islamist militant group killed more than 1,400 people and captured more than 200 hostages.
Since then, wealthy gas-producer Qatar has had an open dialogue with both Israel and Hamas which has brought about the release of four hostages held by Hamas, including two Israeli women on Monday.
"We call for a serious regional and international stance against this dangerous escalation that we are witnessing, which threatens the security of the region and the world,” Sheikh Tamim said.
"We do not accept double standards and acting like the lives of Palestinian children aren't accounted for, as if they don't have faces or names." (Reuters)
October
Russia, Iran Strengthen Ties in 'Trusting' Atmosphere -Russian Foreign Ministry
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Russia and Iran are firming up bilateral relations in a 'trusting' atmosphere, Russia's foreign ministry said early on Tuesday after its chief, Sergei Lavrov, was received by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi during a visit to Tehran.
"In a traditionally trusting atmosphere, current aspects of the bilateral agenda were substantively discussed with an emphasis on further building up the entire complex of multifaceted Russian-Iranian partnership," the foreign ministry said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.
Lavrov, who went to Tehran shortly after an Asia trip to China and North Korea, discussed energy and logistics projects with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian.
As has been the Russian norm, few details of the talks, which took place amid the rising tensions in the Middle East, have been disclosed.
Lavrov also participated in regional talks hosted by Iran, aiming to bring peace to the South Caucasus region after Azerbaijani forces last month recaptured the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh and forced thousands of ethnic Armenians to flee.
Since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Moscow has sought to firm up ties with countries traditionally considered Western aligned, accusing "the collective West" of trying to break up Russia.
Ukraine has urged Tehran to stop supplying deadly drones to Russia, which Kyiv says have played a major role in Moscow's attacks on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.
Iran initially denied supplying the Shahed kamikaze drones to Russia but later said it had provided a small number before Moscow launched the war.
The United States has said that it has been concerned by the "burgeoning defence partnership" between Iran and Russia, which poses risks not only to Ukraine but also to Iran's neighbours. (Reuters)
October
Obama Warns Some of Israel's Actions in Gaza May Backfire
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Some of Israel's actions in its war against Hamas, like cutting off food and water for Gaza, could "harden Palestinian attitudes for generations" and weaken international support for Israel, former U.S. President Barack Obama said on Monday.
In rare comments on an active foreign policy crisis, Obama said any Israeli military strategy that ignores the human costs of the war "could ultimately backfire."
"The Israeli government's decision to cut off food, water and electricity to a captive civilian population (in Gaza) threatens not only to worsen a growing humanitarian crisis; it could further harden Palestinian attitudes for generations, erode global support for Israel, play into the hands of Israel's enemies, and undermine long-term efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region," Obama said.
Israel has heavily bombarded Gaza with air strikes since Hamas' Oct. 7 assault on Israel left over 1,400 people dead. Israel's air strikes have killed more than 5,000 Palestinians, Gaza officials say.
Obama condemned Hamas' attack and reiterated his support for Israel's right to defend itself, while cautioning about risks to civilians in such wars.
It was not clear whether Obama had coordinated his statement with U.S. President Joe Biden, who served as his vice president for eight years.
During his presidency, Obama often backed Israel's right to self-defense at the start of conflicts with Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza, but quickly called for Israeli restraint once Palestinian casualties mounted from airstrikes.
Gaza, a 45 km-long (25-mile) strip of land that is home to 2.3 million people, has been ruled politically since 2007 by Hamas, an Iran-backed Islamist group, but faces a blockade from Israel.
The Obama administration sought, but ultimately failed to broker, a peace deal in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
Since taking office in early 2021, Biden has not tried to resume long-stalled talks, saying that leaders on both sides were too intransigent and the climate was not right.
Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a testy relationship when Obama was in office, including when Obama's administration was negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran.
Biden, as Obama's vice president, often acted as a mediator between the two men.
In his statement on Monday, Obama acknowledged that the U.S. had itself "fallen short of our higher values when engaged in war," especially after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. (Reuters)
October
Radionuclides detected in Fukushima nuclear wastewater
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOI, Jakarta - Pre-discharge test results released by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) show the third batch of nuclear-contaminated water from Fukushima to be discharged in the third round of Japan's nuclear wastewater disposal process to the sea contains carbon-14, cobalt 60, strontium-90, and several other types of radionuclides. TEPCO said that preparations for the third round in the process of discharging wastewater into the sea will begin after the second round is completed, and that relevant maintenance and confirmation operations have been carried out. This is despite growing concerns and resistance among local fishermen and from other countries.
After passing through the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS), nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) must enter measurement and confirmation facilities and await the results of pre-discharge testing before being discharged into the sea. The measurement and confirmation facility is divided into three groups of 10 tanks with each group used on a rotational basis as receiving tanks, measurement and confirmation tanks, and discharge tanks. Currently, the 10 tanks in Group B have been emptied in the first round of wastewater discharge that started on August 24.
Meanwhile, 10 tanks in Group C were confirmed to have met the discharge standards on September 21, and their discharge began on October 5. Sampling of nuclear wastewater stored in Group A tanks for the third round of disposal was completed on July 10. According to TEPCO's report on Thursday (Oct 19), the analysis results showed that the wastewater contained trace amounts of carbon-14, cobalt 60, strontium-90, iodine-129, and cesium-137, with strontium-90 not detected in the second round of discharge on Oct 5.
TEPCO claims that its ALPS facility, a multinuclide removal system, can remove 62 radioactive substances except tritium. However, it was found that about 70 percent of the water in the waste storage tanks contained non-tritium radionuclides at concentrations exceeding regulatory standards for discharge into the natural environment. (VOI)
October
Half of Gaza's homes damaged by Israeli airstrikes
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOI, Jakarta - About 50 percent of Palestinian residential units have been partially or completely damaged by the ongoing Israeli offensive in the coastal enclave, a Palestinian official said on Sunday (Oct 22). "The Israeli occupation deliberately damaged residential buildings, public facilities, and service facilities," Salama Maarouf, head of the Hamas-run state media office in Gaza, said in a press statement. "As a result of the intensified Israeli airstrikes, more than 165,000 housing units were partially damaged and nearly 20,000 housing units were completely destroyed or uninhabitable," Maarouf said.
As a result, around 70 percent of local residents were displaced from their homes and moved to 220 shelter centers or other places throughout the Gaza Strip. The Israeli airstrikes were triggered by Hamas' large-scale attacks on Israeli military targets and cities on October 7, which have so far killed at least 1,400 people in Israel. The number of Palestinians killed by Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip rose to 4,651, the Hamas-run Palestinian Health Ministry said on Sunday. (VOI)
October
Australia PM to Visit China, with Progress on Wine, Wind Tower Disputes
Written by Nur Yasmin
VOINews, Jakarta - Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Sunday he will travel to China from Nov. 4 to 7 to meet with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in a bid to stabilise relations with the country's biggest trading partner.
The announcement of the trip to Beijing and Shanghai, the first by an Australian leader to China since 2016, came after a breakthrough on Saturday in resolving a dispute with China over its wine tariffs that have battered the industry.
China's Commerce Ministry said on Sunday the two sides had reached a consensus to settle the WTO wine dispute as well as a dispute over Australian duties on Chinese wind towers.
Patching up relations with China, which had deteriorated over several years due to disputes over telecoms firm Huawei, espionage and COVID, has been a top priority for Albanese since he took office in 2022.
"It is important that we stabilise our relationship with China," Albanese said.
On the visit, the leaders will discuss cooperation in areas such as economic links, climate change and "links between our people", he said in a statmement.
"I look forward to further engaging with President Xi and Premier Li in Australia's national interest," he said.
Speaking in Canberra, Albanese said Australia late on Saturday had reached a deal with China to move forward to solve its World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute over wine, potentially clearing the way for the resumption of imports worth $800 million a year before the duties were imposed in 2021.
"We have agreed on the issue of wine for there to be a review of China's position on wine tariffs to be conducted over the next months," Albanese told reporters.
"We will suspend our action before the WTO, but we're very confident that this will result in once again Australian wine, a great product, being able to go to China free of the tariffs."
Albanese did not mention duties on wind towers in his comments. However, on Oct. 16, Australia's Anti-Dumping Commission recommended lifting anti-dumping measures on Chinese wind towers. No final decision has been made yet.
"China and Australia are important trading partners of each other, and we are willing to work with the Australian side to continue to meet each other halfway through dialogue and consultation," China's Commerce ministry said in a statement.
The ministry added that China and Australia held "friendly consultations" on WTO disputes of mutual concern over various items, and was willing to "jointly promote the stable and healthy development of bilateral economic and trade relations."
The announcements are the latest in a diplomatic thaw that has already seen China lift restrictions on imports of Australian coal, timber and barley, which Beijing had targeted after Canberra called for an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19.
The duties of up to 218% on most Australian wines were imposed in March 2021, causing trade to collapse in what had been the most valuable export market for the country's winemakers. (Reuters)