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April
China, North Korea poised to resume freight rail links as trade revives
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. China is set to resume cargo train service with North Korea, people familiar with the matter said, following a 15-month border closure due to COVID-19, as trade with the impoverished and isolated country begins to rebound.
The bridge linking the city of Dandong with Sinuiju, across the Yalu River in North Korea, will partially reopen to allow cargo train service "sometime before or after May 1", the head of a transportation company handling cross-border trade told Reuters on Wednesday.
No date is set for resumption of passenger traffic, the person said, as North Korea remains fearful of COVID-19. China, which has all but stamped out the spread of the virus, also tightly restricts entry.
Another source, a China-based diplomat, said that there appeared to be preparations to reopen the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge. North Korea is motivated to reopen its border to ease the economic burden of the lockdown, the diplomat said.
Both people declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.
China declined on Tuesday to say when the border would reopen but said it respects North Korea's epidemic controls.
U.S. government-funded Radio Free Asia on Tuesday cited unnamed sources saying a train carrying food aid left Dandong for North Korea on Saturday. Reuters was unable to verify that report.
Freight cars marked in Korean - including the name of what appeared to be a location in North Korea - were visible at Dandong station on Wednesday, but it was not clear how long they had been there.
Signs of a pending resumption of trade are evident on both sides.
Along the railway between the bridge and Dandong station, Chinese customs recently built a zig-zagging row of booths labelled "epidemiological survey area". At the North Korean end of the bridge, disinfectant facilities have been set up, said multiple sources, including the diplomat.
In Dandong, which relies heavily on Chinese tourists visiting or catching a glimpse of the North and is the main hub for trade with the country, many business engaged with North Korea are shut but some have recently reopened, merchants said.
"Of course we are eagerly expecting the border to reopen," said a metals trader in Dandong surnamed Qian.
'ARDUOUS MARCH'
North Korea closed its border in January 2020, soon after the virus broke out in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
It relies on China for oil, fertiliser and mechanical parts to stay afloat amid U.N. sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes. China accounts for over 90% of its trade.
Earlier this month, leader Kim Jong Un called on North Koreans to prepare for another "arduous march", referring to the devastating 1990s famine, underlying the severity of the economic crisis.
"Kim's speech ... indicates how precarious its economy is now. Coupled with the fact that it needs fertiliser for the spring ploughing, it's no surprise that North Korea would agree to reopen its borders now," said Zhao Tong, a North Korea expert at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center in Beijing.
China's March exports to North Korea rose to a six-month high of $13 million, nearly 400 times combined January-February shipments, according to Chinese data.
NK Pro, a website tracking North Korea, said ship traffic between the two countries had increased recently, and that satellite imagery shows North Korea may have built a disinfectant facility at an airport near the border. read more
Last week, Russia's ambassador to North Korea told Russia's TASS news agency that international aid has been stuck in warehouses on the Chinese side of the border, but North Korea's "large disinfection complexes" would likely be completed by the end of April. read more
Despite the lockdown, some aid has been getting through.
A Chinese truck driver said he made two Sinuiju runs last year, which required that he leave his truck on the North Korean side and be immediately bussed back across the bridge to Dandong for 14 days of quarantine.
"It's good money, 10,000 yuan ($1,540) per trip, but the quarantine bored me to tears, so I didn't want to do more trips," he said. (Reuters)
April
South Korea offers to help search for missing Indonesian submarine
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. South Korea’s Defence Ministry has conveyed its willingness to join a coordinated search and rescue mission to locate Indonesian submarine KRI Nanggala-402, which went missing in the waters north of Bali Island early on Wednesday.
South Korea's Minister of National Defence, Suh Wook, has instructed the navy to remain on standby for the search mission in Bali, in case Indonesia requests Seoul’s participation, the South Korean Embassy in Jakarta said in a statement released on Thursday.
According to the South Korean Defence Ministry, the two nations share a close partnership in the defence sector as part of the implementation of their special strategic partnership, the embassy added.
Indonesian Military Commander, Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, informed earlier that contact with German-made KRI Nanggala-402, which was carrying 53 sailors on board, was lost while it was preparing for a torpedo drill in Bali waters.
"The last contact was made at 4:30 a.m. local time (April 21, 2021). There was no more contact when the torpedo drill was to be conducted," Tjahjanto said.
The Indonesian Defence Ministry said it has been monitoring search efforts to locate the submarine, which went missing after receiving clearance for diving around 3 a.m. local time on Wednesday.
The search mission has been continued with the deployment of Indonesian naval ships KRI Rigel and KRI Rengat, which are equipped with side-scan sonar devices.
The Indonesian Navy has also sent out a distress call to the International Submarine Escape and Rescue Liaison Officer (ISMERLO), the Defence Ministry informed.
The navies of several countries, including Australia, India, and Singapore, have responded to Indonesia's call for assistance and offered to help in the search for the missing submarine, the ministry said.
Singapore has sent MV Swift Rescue, while Malaysia has dispatched Rescue Mega Bhati to join the search for KRI Nanggala-402 in Bali Island's waters, it added.
The missing 209/1300-type submarine was built in Germany's Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft in 1977, and was officially inducted into the navy in 1981.
Its propulsion system uses a Siemens low-speed diesel electric motor, connected directly to the propeller shaft, which generates about five thousand shaft horsepower (shp).
The electrical power is stored in batteries, which make up 25 percent of the weight of the vessel, according to the navy. Four MTU diesel supercharged engines are responsible for generating electricity in the vessel. (Antaranews)
April
Australia to cut flights from India to contain virus risk
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. Australia will reduce the number of its citizens able to return from India and other red-zone countries to contain the risk of more virulent strains of COVID-19 spreading, the government said on Thursday as it announced changes in its vaccination program.
The restrictions will result in a 30% reduction in direct flights from India to Sydney and chartered flights that land in the Northern Territory.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison, speaking to reporters after a meeting of the National Cabinet, said that he would announce in the next 24 hours when the new restrictions would come into place.
"We're in the middle of a global pandemic that is raging. And Australia has been successful throughout this pandemic ... to have very effective border arrangements," Prime Minister Scott Morrison said. "There will continue to be the opportunity for those to return from places like India but in very controlled circumstances."
Australia currently allows about 5,800 citizens or permanent residents to enter its territory each week before quarantining for two weeks in hotels. It is not clear how many of these are typically from India each week.
In a massive surge of new virus cases, India registered a record number of new daily infections for anywhere in the world on Thursday, eclipsing even the United States at the height of its pandemic last year. read more
Australia will be adopting a model more like that of the United Kingdom, Morrison said, which bans arrivals if they have visited any countries on its red-zone list of some 40 countries in the past 10 days.
"While we're not adopting that list, it gives you somewhat of an idea of the type of approach we'll be seeking to put in place from those high risk countries," Morrison said.
Morrison's comments come as two Australian states urged staff and guests in COVID-19 quarantine hotels to get tested immediately and fully self-isolate, launching investigations into three suspected cases of travellers contracting the virus from other residents.
Australia closed its borders to non-citizens and permanent residents more than a year ago to contain the pandemic, and travellers arriving from overseas are required to undergo a two-week hotel quarantine at their own expense.
While the country has fared much better than many other developed nations during the pandemic, with just over 29,500 cases and 910 deaths, its vaccination rollout programme has hit major roadblocks.
The government is battling with a shortage of vaccines, after delays to imports and is now unlikely to finish vaccinating its population before the end of 2021 while domestic ramp-up of the AstraZeneca (AZN.L) vaccine has been sluggish.
Australia will now prioritise Pfizer (PFE.N) vaccines for those under 50 with underlying health issues, in residential aged care and remote communities, Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said, leaving older people to take the AstraZeneca vaccine or to wait.
"With a few exceptions, Pfizer is now restricted to those under 50," he said.
"We recommend AstraZeneca. The risk benefit for over 50 is vastly in favour of being vaccinated. But people always have a choice and more Pfizer will be available later in the year." (Reuters)
April
Indonesian leader orders all-out effort to find submarine as oxygen runs low
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. Indonesia's president ordered an all-out effort to find a missing submarine in a race against time to save the 53 crew, whose oxygen supply defence chiefs said would last only until Saturday.
Indonesia sent a helicopter and five ships to search waters north of the holiday island of Bali but found no signs of the KRI Nanggala-402, which went missing early on Wednesday during a torpedo drill.
“I have ordered the military chief, navy chief of staff, the search and rescue agency and other instances to deploy all the forces and the most optimal efforts to find and rescue the submarine crew," President Joko Widodo said on Thursday.
“The main priority is the safety of the 53 crew members.”
Yudo Margono, the navy chief of staff, said the search was being aided by calm conditions but the crew's air supply would last only until Saturday.
"Hopefully before they can be found, the oxygen will be enough," he told a news conference in Bali.
The vessel had been cleared for use and was in good condition, he added.
The 1,395-tonne vessel was built in Germany in 1977, according to the defence ministry, and joined the Indonesian fleet in 1981. It underwent a two-year refit in South Korea that was completed in 2012.
Indonesia said several countries had responded to requests for assistance, with Malaysia and Singapore sending ships and Australia offering "help in any way we can".
An aerial search found an oil spill near the submarine's dive location, and two navy vessels with sonar capability had been deployed to assist in the search, officials said.
The oil slick could indicate damage to the vessel or could be a signal from the crew, the navy said.
Chief of staff Yudo said authorities had found an item with "high magnetic force" floating at a depth of 50 to 100 metres.
MODERNISATION 'IMPERATIVE'
Indonesia has been seeking to modernise its defence capabilities but some of its equipment is old and there have been fatal accidents in recent years.
Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto said it was "imperative" that Indonesia modernises its defence equipment faster, but did not suggest there had been problems with the missing vessel.
Navy spokesman Julius Widjojono told KompasTV that the diesel-powered submarine that runs on electric batteries while submerged could sustain a depth of 250-500 metres (820-1,640 ft).
"Anything more than that can be pretty fatal, dangerous," the spokesman told KompasTV.
The waters in the area are shallower than in other parts of the archipelago but can still reach depths of more than 1,500 metres.
The navy on Wednesday said a blackout may have occurred during static diving, causing a loss of control and preventing emergency procedures from being carried out if the vessel falls to a depth of 600-700 metres.
Military chief Hadi Tjahjanto on Wednesday told Reuters contact with the submarine was lost at 4:30 a.m. and a search was under way 60 miles (96 km) off Bali.
Indonesia in the past operated a fleet of 12 submarines bought from the Soviet Union to patrol the waters of the sprawling archipelago.
It now operates five - the two German-built Type 209 submarines and three newer South Korean vessels. (Reuters)
April
Australia cancels Belt and Road deals; China warns of further damage to ties
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. Australia on Wednesday cancelled two deals struck by its state of Victoria with China on Beijing's flagship Belt and Road Initiative, prompting the Chinese embassy in Canberra to warn that already tense bilateral ties were bound to worsen.
Under a new process in Australia, Foreign Minister Marise Payne has the power to review deals reached with other nations by the country's states and universities.
Payne said she had decided to cancel four deals, including two that Victoria agreed with China, in 2018 and 2019, on cooperation with the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese President Xi Jinping's signature trade and infrastructure scheme.
"I consider these four arrangements to be inconsistent with Australia's foreign policy or adverse to our foreign relations," she said in a statement.
China's embassy in Australia voiced its "strong displeasure and resolute opposition" to the cancellations late on Wednesday.
"This is another unreasonable and provocative move taken by the Australian side against China," the embassy said in a statement. "It further shows that the Australian government has no sincerity in improving China-Australia relations."
Bilateral ties were strained in 2018 when Australia became the first country to publicly ban Chinese tech giant Huawei from its 5G network. Relations worsened last year when Canberra called for an independent probe into the origins of the coronavirus outbreak.
Australia's latest move "is bound to bring further damage to bilateral relations, and will only end up hurting itself," the Chinese embassy said.
Australia's federal parliament granted the veto power over foreign deals by states in December amid the deepening diplomatic spat with China, which has imposed a series of trade sanctions on Australian exports ranging from wine to coal.
Liberal Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull had declined to agree to a country-level MOU with China on the Belt and Road Initiative.
But Victoria's Labor state premier Dan Andrews signed agreements with China's National Development and Reform Commission to promote the initiative in 2018 and 2019.
Some countries fear the lending the Belt and Road scheme entails could lead to unsustainable debt levels in developing nations, including the Pacific islands region.
Morrison's government has denied that its new veto power is aimed at China, Australia's largest trading partner and biggest source of overseas universities students before the pandemic led the country to close its borders.
Payne said states, local governments and publicly funded universities had notified her of more than 1,000 foreign deals overall. (Reuters)
April
EXCLUSIVE UN envoy to hold "sideline" meetings ahead of ASEAN summit on Myanmar
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. The United Nations special envoy for Myanmar will fly to Jakarta on Thursday to meet senior officials of Southeast Asian nations searching for a path to end bloodshed after a coup in Myanmar, according to three sources familiar with her movements.
Christine Schraner Burgener will not be attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders' summit on Saturday but aimed to hold meetings on the sidelines of the event, the sources said. (Reuters)
April
Australia cancels Belt and Road deals; China warns of further damage to ties
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. Australia on Wednesday cancelled two deals struck by its state of Victoria with China on Beijing's flagship Belt and Road Initiative, prompting the Chinese embassy in Canberra to warn that already tense bilateral ties were bound to worsen.
Under a new process in Australia, Foreign Minister Marise Payne has the power to review deals reached with other nations by the country's states and universities.
Payne said she had decided to cancel four deals, including two that Victoria agreed with China, in 2018 and 2019, on cooperation with the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese President Xi Jinping's signature trade and infrastructure scheme.
"I consider these four arrangements to be inconsistent with Australia's foreign policy or adverse to our foreign relations," she said in a statement.
China's embassy in Australia voiced its "strong displeasure and resolute opposition" to the cancellations late on Wednesday.
"This is another unreasonable and provocative move taken by the Australian side against China," the embassy said in a statement. "It further shows that the Australian government has no sincerity in improving China-Australia relations."
Bilateral ties were strained in 2018 when Australia became the first country to publicly ban Chinese tech giant Huawei from its 5G network. Relations worsened last year when Canberra called for an independent probe into the origins of the coronavirus outbreak.
Australia's latest move "is bound to bring further damage to bilateral relations, and will only end up hurting itself," the Chinese embassy said.
Australia's federal parliament granted the veto power over foreign deals by states in December amid the deepening diplomatic spat with China, which has imposed a series of trade sanctions on Australian exports ranging from wine to coal.
Liberal Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull had declined to agree to a country-level MOU with China on the Belt and Road Initiative.
But Victoria's Labor state premier Dan Andrews signed agreements with China's National Development and Reform Commission to promote the initiative in 2018 and 2019.
Some countries fear the lending the Belt and Road scheme entails could lead to unsustainable debt levels in developing nations, including the Pacific islands region.
Morrison's government has denied that its new veto power is aimed at China, Australia's largest trading partner and biggest source of overseas universities students before the pandemic led the country to close its borders.
Payne said states, local governments and publicly funded universities had notified her of more than 1,000 foreign deals overall. (Reuters)
April
Return the favour: South Korea looks to U.S. for COVID-19 vaccine aid
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. South Korea hopes its ally the United States will help it tackle a shortage of coronavirus vaccine in return for test kits and masks Seoul sent to Washington earlier in the pandemic, the foreign minister said on Wednesday.
The government has drawn fire from the media for not doing enough to secure enough vaccines early, with just 3% of the population inoculated, due to tight global supply and limited access.
"We have been stressing to the United States that 'A friend in need is a friend indeed,'" the minister, Chung Eui-yong, told reporters at the Kwanhun Club of South Korean journalists.
He said South Korea had airlifted Washington a large volume of coronavirus test kits and face masks in the early stages of the pandemic "in the spirit of the special South Korea-U.S. alliance," despite tight domestic supply at the time.
"We are hoping that the United States will help us out with the challenges we are facing with the vaccines, based on the solidarity we demonstrated last year."
The allies were in talks, added Chung, who also flagged South Korea's potential contribution to preserving a global semiconductor supply chain U.S. President Joe Biden is keen to maintain.
Diplomatic efforts have not yielded any concrete steps, however, as the talks with Washington are still in an early stage, health ministry official Son Young-rae told reporters.
The U.S. State Department declined to comment.
"We do not comment on the details of private diplomatic conversations," a spokeswoman said.
While South Korea is an important and longstanding ally, the United States has said its priority is vaccinating Americans, although it has promised to look into options to help other countries bolster their supplies. read more
South Korean opposition lawmaker Park Jin urged more aggressive vaccine diplomacy, calling for the government to invoke its free trade pact (FTA) with Washington to secure pharmaceutical products.
"The government needs to be more proactive," Park told Reuters.
"The FTA provides us a legal base to demand (vaccines) as it stipulates the two countries' commitment to promoting the development of, and facilitating access to, pharmaceutical products."
About 1.77 million people in South Korea have had their first dose of the AstraZeneca Plc (AZN.L) or Pfizer (PFE.N) vaccines. The low rate compares with a 40% vaccination rate in the United States, according to Reuters data.
Tuesday's 731 new coronavirus infections, up from 549 cases a day earlier, took South Korea's tally to 115,926, with 1,806 deaths. (Reuters)
April
Philippines says boosting maritime presence to protect territory, resources
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. The Philippines is beefing up its presence in the South China Sea and deploying more ships and an aircraft to protect its maritime territory and resources, a government task force said on Wednesday.
The Philippines has ramped up its rhetoric in recent weeks in defiance of what it says is threatening behaviour by Chinese vessels in its 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), despite four years of rapprochement with historic rival China.
"We are exhausting all means possible to protect our territory and EEZ," the Philippines' South China Sea task force said in a statement.
The deployment is the latest move in an ongoing feud with China over what Manila called "swarming" by hundreds of fishing vessels it said were manned by Chinese state-backed militias. China has denied militias were aboard.
President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered authorities to continue "sovereignty patrols", and intensify operations against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in its territorial waters, the task force said.
Nine vessels from the coastguard and the fisheries bureau, a coastguard aircraft and police watercraft and rubber boats were being deployed in the South China Sea, including in waters off Philippine-held islands in the Spratlys, the task force said.
U.S.-ally the Philippines has filed several diplomatic protests over Chinese activities in the South China Sea, with the latest accusing its giant neighbour of illegal fishing and massing more than 240 boats within its EEZ. read more
The challenge puts the spotlight on Duterte's controversial pursuit of better relations and economic ties with China.
The firebrand leader said on Monday he was prepared to deploy navy ships to assert the Philippines' sovereign rights to oil and mineral resources in its EEZ, telling China that if it started drilling for oil, so will he. read more
China claims almost the South China Sea, where about $3 trillion worth of ship-borne trade passes each year. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims. (Reuters)
April
Thai PM promises more vaccine amid criticism of slow rollout
Written by Nur Yasmin
Jakarta. Thailand is trying to secure 35 million more doses of COVID-19 vaccines from two or three companies this year on top of existing orders of around 65 million doses, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Wednesday.
The government push comes amid growing public frustration about the slow vaccine rollout, with only 604,947 people inoculated so far, less than 1% of its population.
Of the new shots sought, the private sector will help source 10 to 15 million doses, Prayuth said in a Facebook post.
"I have ordered that we distribute and administer all the vaccines that we can find by December," he added.
Prayuth did not name the brands, nor specify whether the 35 million included the five to 10 million doses of Pfizer (PFE.N) and BioNTech's (22UAy.DE) vaccine that he announced were being sought on Tuesday. read more
After early success in containing COVID-19, Thailand is fighting a new wave that includes the highly transmissible B.1.1.7 variant.
The new outbreak has accounted for more than a third of Thailand's 46,643 cases, of which 110 were fatalities. It reported 1,458 new infections and two deaths on Wednesday.
Its mass vaccination plan has been centred on 61 million doses of locally-made AstraZeneca (AZN.L) vaccine, the first batches scheduled for June.
For initial inoculations, Thailand has received 2 million doses of Sinovac Biotech's (SVA.O) vaccine and has ordered a further 1.5 million doses, with 500,000 to arrive on Saturday and the rest next month. It has also imported 117,000 doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine.
The private sector, which had been for months seeking permission to import vaccines, welcomed its inclusion.
"This is the race. We have to be fast and have volume, but we haven't had any other vaccines," Chalerm Harnphanich, president of the Private Hospital Association, told Reuters.
Health experts also questioned the government's decision not to use the COVAX international vaccine-sharing facility, which has provided vaccines to 100 countries including the Philippines, Vietnam and South Korea.
"We missed an opportunity by not joining COVAX," said Thiravat Hemachudha, head of the Thai Red Cross Emerging Infectious Diseases Centre.
The government has argued joining COVAX risked higher costs and uncertain delivery times. (Reuters)