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April
U.S. negotiator says Biden would be warmly welcomed in Pacific
Written by Nur Yasmin
The United States needs to accelerate diplomatic "catch up" with the Pacific island region in the face of Chinese competition, a U.S. diplomat said on Friday, adding that he was sure President Joe Biden would be warmly welcomed there if he decided to visit.
Joseph Yun, a special presidential envoy who leads renegotiation of agreements with three Pacific island states, was asked at a U.S. think tank about what officials from Papua New Guinea say are plans by Biden to make a brief stop there on May 22.
"Obviously for the Pacific, I am sure they would welcome President Biden, if he were to go there," Yun told the Hudson Institute.
"I don't think that decision has been fully made," he said while adding: "It is a good thing whenever heads of state get engaged on new issues."
A spokesperson from the PNG prime minister's office told Reuters on Thursday that Biden will stop in the capital Port Moresby for three hours on the way from a G7 meeting in Japan to Australia to attend the a summit of the Quad countries - the United States, Japan, India and Australia.
A Pacific islands source told Reuters that Biden was also expected to meet with more than a dozen Pacific islands leaders, but the White House National Security Council has not responded to request for comment on the plans.
Yun said the level of Chinese coercion in the region that is crucial to U.S. national security, but that had been neglected by the United States, is concerning.
"So now we're playing ... a little bit of catch up, I would say, and but you know, we need to accelerate our catch up."
Yun has been leading talks to renew so-called Compact for Free Association (COFA) agreements with the Marshall Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia under which the United States retains responsibility for the islands' defense and gains exclusive access to huge strategic swaths of the Pacific. The deals are due expire this year and next.
Yun said the "topline" agreements in the negotiations with the nations would provide them with a total of about $6.5 billion over 20 years.
He said he was very optimistic the agreements would be finalized and that the U.S. Congress would approve them in a short time, but there is still some hard work ahead. (Reuters)
April
Taliban not invited to UN Doha meeting on Afghanistan, says UN
Written by Nur Yasmin
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has not invited the Taliban administration to a meeting that he is convening with special envoys on Afghanistan from various countries in Doha next week, a U.N. spokesperson said on Friday.
"The Secretary-General has not extended an invitation to the de facto authorities," said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Last week the United Nations had to stress that the meeting will not focus on the possible international recognition of the Taliban administration after comments by the deputy U.N. chief sparked concern and confusion.
The gathering in Qatar on Monday and Tuesday is instead intended to focus on reinvigorating "the international engagement around common objectives for a durable way forward on ... Afghanistan," Dujarric has said.
Guterres' deputy, Amina Mohammed, had suggested last week that the meeting in Doha "could find those baby steps to put us back on the pathway to recognition."
The Taliban seized power in August 2021 as U.S.-led forces withdrew following 20 years of war.
In December, the 193-member U.N. General Assembly approved postponing, for the second time, a decision on whether to recognize the Afghan Taliban administration by allowing them to send a United Nations ambassador to New York.
The U.N. Security Council unanimously condemned on Thursday a Taliban administration ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations in Afghanistan and called on Taliban leaders to "swiftly reverse" a crackdown on the rights of women and girls.
The Taliban says it respects women's rights in accordance with its strict interpretation of Islamic law. Taliban officials said decisions on female aid workers are an "internal issue." (Reuters)
April
Japan PM Kishida to visit South Korea for summit with Yoon
Written by Nur Yasmin
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is expected to visit South Korea in coming weeks and meet with President Yoon Suk Yeol, officials said, reciprocating a Tokyo visit by the South Korean leader last month.
A Japanese government official and another official from a Group of Seven government said the meeting was expected before Kishida hosts a G7 summit from May 19.
Japan's Kyodo news agency said on Saturday the two will meet around May 7 or 8, citing multiple unnamed Japanese and South Korean diplomatic sources.
Their aim will be to confirm the two neighbours' strengthening of cooperation over North Korea ahead of the Hiroshima G7 summit, Kyodo said.
Asked about reports of the bilateral summit, Kishida said in remarks broadcast by public network NHK that nothing concrete had been decided.
An answering machine at Japan's foreign ministry on Saturday said no one was available over the weekend.
Ties between Japan and South Korea, long strained by issues including war time compensation and trade, have been improving in recent months in the face of North Korea's frequent missile launches and China's more muscular role on the global stage.
The two sides agreed to revive shuttle diplomacy when Yoon met with Kishida in Tokyo in March, the first Japan visit by a South Korean president in 12 years.
The last visit by a Japanese prime minister to South Korea was made by Shinzo Abe in 2018, according to NHK.
U.S. President Joe Biden this week praised Yoon's efforts toward improving relations with Japan during a visit by Yoon to Washington. Biden, Yoon and Kishida are to meet on the sidelines of the Hiroshima summit, according to Japanese media reports.
North Korea's Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un, said a U.S.-South Korea agreement this week about the need to shore up South Korean security will worsen the situation, according to state media KCNA.
North Korea is convinced it must further perfect a "nuclear war deterrent" as a result, Kim was quoted as saying. (Reuters)
April
Uzbeks vote on allowing president to extend time in power
Written by Nur Yasmin
Uzbekistan votes on constitutional amendments on Sunday that promise its citizens greater social protections in exchange for resetting President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's term count to zero, which could allow him to stay in power until 2040.
Mirziyoyev, 65, has been praised at home and abroad as a liberal reformer for abandoning the previous leadership's isolationist policies and police state approach.
And while Tashkent's Western partners are unlikely to approve of the attempt to extend presidential powers, Uzbekistan risks little given the West is seeking support from all ex-Soviet nations in its efforts to isolate Russia over its war in Ukraine.
Although the current and the proposed new version of the constitution limit successive presidential terms to two, officials have said that if the revised constitution is adopted, Mirziyoyev's term count would be reset to zero.
The reform also extends the presidential term to seven years from five, which could in theory allow Mirziyoyev to remain in charge of the country of 35 million people until 2040.
At the same time, the package of amendments proclaims Uzbekistan a "social state" with increased welfare obligations and allows non-farming land ownership.
It also abolishes the death penalty and establishes greater personal legal protection, for instance to a person's rights when they are detained by police, and the concept of habeas corpus, or protection against unlawful and indefinite imprisonment.
"Our lives have been improving, and under this president it will continue, I hope," said 62-year-old voter Nazira who declined to give her last name. "I don’t mind and approve (presidential) terms being extended. I thank the president for what he is doing for us."
Some Uzbek commentators have called for more democratic principles to be included in the bill, and in stronger wording, but the general idea of reform - and extending presidential powers in particular - has met no opposition.
"What I see is that the new changes will boost our rights and the openness (of the state)," said another voter, Abdurashid Kadirov, 65.
Patriotic music was played at many polling stations on Sunday, some decorated with flowers and some handing out baseball caps and T-shirts with the referendum logo to first-time voters.
The referendum will be declared valid if over a half of Uzbekistan's 19.7 million voters participate. Preliminary vote results are expected on Monday. (Reuters)
April
Philippines' Marcos to forge stronger relationship with US during visit
Written by Nur Yasmin
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said his meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday was essential in advancing his country's national interest and strengthening the "very important alliance" between Manila and Washington.
Before leaving for his four-day official visit to Washington, Marcos said on Sunday he would convey to Biden his determination to forge "an even stronger relationship" with the United States to "address the concerns of our times," including issues related to the economy.
"During this visit, we will reaffirm our commitment to fostering our long standing alliance as an instrument of peace and as catalyst of development in the Asia Pacific region, and for that matter for the rest of the world," said Marcos, the son of the late strongman whom Washington helped flee into exile in Hawaii during a 1986 'people power' uprising.
Marcos' official visit to Washington is the first by a Philippine president in more than 10 years, and the latest in a series of high-level meetings the Philippines has held with leaders of the United States and China, which are jostling for strategic advantage in the region.
Biden and Marcos are expected to reach agreements on greater business engagement, as well as "military enhancements" amid shared concerns about China, a senior Biden administration official told Reuters.
The senior U.S. administration official said it was impossible to underestimate the strategic importance of the Philippines, although the relationship was more than just about security.
The official said that as part of moves to boost commercial ties, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo would a lead a presidential business delegation to the Philippines.
While Marcos was seeking good relations with both China and the United States, Manila was increasingly concerned about "provocative" diplomacy by Beijing and seeking stronger ties with allies, he said.
"We're seeking not to be provocative, but to provide both moral and practical support for the Philippines as they try to make their way in a complex Western Pacific," the official said. "Their geographic position is critical," he added.
Experts say Washington sees the Philippines as a potential location for rockets, missiles and artillery systems to counter a Chinese amphibious invasion of Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory.
Marcos' Washington visit comes after Philippines on Friday accused China's coast guard of "dangerous maneuvers" and "aggressive tactics" in the South China Sea. The maritime confrontation between the two countries comes despite a visit to Manila this weekend by Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang.
In the face of such pressure from China, the Philippines and the United States have rapidly stepped up defense engagements, including large-scale military exercises and a recent expansion of U.S. access to Philippine bases. China has objected to the bases agreement.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said earlier this month that it was "too early" to discuss what assets the United States would like to station at bases in the Philippines.
It is a delicate issue for Manila, not only because of its concerns about China, its main trading partner, but given domestic opposition to U.S. military presence in the past.
The two sides did agree to complete a road map in coming months for the delivery of U.S. defense assistance to the Southeast Asian nation over the next five to 10 years.
Alluding to the difficult period in bilateral relations under Marcos' predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, the official said Monday's summit would be part of efforts to build the "habits of alliance management" back to levels of the 1970s and 1980s.
The official said the U.S. planned to enhance trilateral dialogue with Japan and the Philippines, and Marcos would have discussions at the Pentagon about joint maritime patrols.
"We will and have stepped up our broader regional security discussions with the Philippines on all the issues in the South China Sea and elsewhere," the official said, a reference to Manila's disputed maritime claims with China and other nations.
Separately, the official said no final decision had been made on whether Biden would stop in Papua New Guinea next month as part of stepped-up engagement with the Pacific-island region, but Washington was "in active discussions no matter what about our direct high-level interactions with the Pacific." (Reuters)
April
Biden, India's Modi to meet Pacific island leaders, Papua New Guinea PM says
Written by Nur Yasmin
U.S. President Joe Biden and his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, will join Pacific Islands leaders next month for a "historic" future-oriented meeting, Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape said on Sunday.
"This is a historic first and at the same time a 'going forward' futuristic meeting of global superpowers, in the biggest country in the Pacific," Marape said in a statement.
Biden's May 22 stopover in the capital Port Moresby would be the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to the resource-rich but largely undeveloped country of 9.4 million people just north of Australia.
Papua New Guinea is being courted by China and by the U.S. and its allies, as Marape seeks to boost foreign investment. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the nation in 2018.
Washington has stepped up efforts to counter Beijing's growing influence in the region after China struck a security pact with the Solomon Islands last year. China failed to reach a wider security and trade deal with 10 Pacific island countries.
China and Australia have been major aid and infrastructure donors.
Papua New Guinea is negotiating security pacts with the United States and Australia, and Marape has been invited to visit Beijing this year.
"In the Indo-Pacific conversation, PNG and the Pacific cannot be ignored. With our combined forest and sea areas, we have the world's greatest carbon sink, and the biggest sea and air space on earth," Marape said.
The 18 countries and territories in the Pacific Islands Forum cover 30 million square km (10 million square miles) of ocean. The region's leaders say climate change is their greatest security threat, amid worsening cyclones and rising sea levels.
Modi and Biden will stop in Papua New Guinea on the way to Australia for a May 24 summit of the Quad, which also includes Japan and Australia.
Marape said he had invited Biden when they met in Washington last year, and was "very honoured that he has fulfilled his promise to me to visit our country". (Reuters)
April
US says Chinese coast guard harassing Philippine vessels
Written by Nur Yasmin
The United States urged China on Saturday to stop harassing Philippine vessels in the South China Sea, pledging to stand with the Philippines after another maritime confrontation between the two Asian countries.
"We call upon Beijing to desist from its provocative and unsafe conduct," the U.S. State Department said in a statement.
The Philippines on Friday accused China's coast guard of "aggressive tactics" following an incident during a Philippine coast guard patrol close to the Philippines-held Second Thomas Shoal, a flashpoint for previous altercations located 105 nautical miles (195 km) off its coast.
China on Sunday said it was willing to handle maritime differences with countries of concern in the South China Sea through friendly consultations and warned the United States against interference.
"The U.S., as a country outside of the region, must not interfere with the South China Sea matter or use the South China Sea matter to sow discord among regional countries," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said in a written statement.
The Second Thomas Shoal is home to a small military contingent aboard a rusty World War Two-era U.S. ship that was intentionally grounded in 1999 to reinforce the Philippines' territorial claims. In February, the Philippines said a Chinese ship had directed a "military-grade laser" at one of its resupply vessels.
China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, with a "nine-dash line" on maps that stretches more than 1,500 km off its mainland and cuts into the exclusive economic zones of Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia. An international arbitral ruling in 2016 dismissed that line as having no legal basis.
China's foreign ministry on Friday said the Philippine vessels had intruded into Chinese waters and made deliberate provocative moves.
The State Department said Washington "stands with our Philippine allies in upholding the rules-based international maritime order." (Reuters)
April
US dollar gains after GDP, jobless claims data; rate hike bets intact
Written by Nur Yasmin
The dollar rose on Thursday as weaker-than-expected U.S. economic growth in the first quarter is not likely to deter the Federal Reserve from raising interest rates next week.
The advance estimate of first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) showed a 1.1% annualized rate during the period. The economy grew at a 2.6% pace in the fourth quarter. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP rising at a 2.0% rate.
However, investors focused on the quarterly inflation number within the GDP report. Core personal consumption expenditure prices rose 4.9% in the first three months of the year, higher than the consensus figure of 4.7% and up from the fourth quarter figure.
"The knee-jerk reaction was to sell the dollar because yields turned lower after the weaker-than-expected GDP, but the market seemingly wanted to focus on the higher quarterly core PCE number," said Erik Bregar, director, FX and precious metals risk management at Silver Gold Bull in Toronto.
He added that the weak GDP, especially with the higher core PCE, should not prevent the Fed from raising rates by 25 basis points at next week's policy meeting. Markets have priced in an 88% probability of that rate increase for May.
A separate report from the Labor Department on Thursday showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits decreased 16,000 to a seasonally adjusted 230,000 for the week ending April 22. Economists had expected 248,000 claims in the latest week.
The report suggested a still tight labor market and also underpinned next week's rate increase expectations.
The greenback turned positive against the yen after the data, and was last up 0.3% at 134.04 yen . The dollar index rose 0.4% to 101.72 .
The euro, meanwhile, fell 0.4% to $1.10 . (Reuters)
April
New Zealand committed to cutting spending, PM Hipkins says
Written by Nur Yasmin
The New Zealand government is committed to reducing spending even though severe weather events earlier this year caused asset damage of roughly NZ$9 billion ($5.51 billion) to NZ$14.5 billion, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said on Thursday.
Flash floods hit Auckland, the country’s largest city, in January and Cyclone Gabrielle tore through the North Island in February leaving a trail of destruction.
Hipkins said the government would not introduce any major new taxes in this year’s budget and that the cost of repairs would largely be met by budget operating and capital allowances.
In in a separate report released on Thursday, the Treasury estimated that roughly half of the damage caused was to public infrastructure while both households and businesses suffered more than NZ$2 billion in damage.
“For our part, the government is committed to reducing our proportion of spending to dampen demand in the economy,” Hipkins said in a speech to the Employers and Manufacturers Association.
New Zealand is already dealing with historically high inflation and the central bank has previously raised concerns that any boost in government spending could add to the inflation problem.
Treasury estimates inflation over the March and June quarters is likely to be around 0.4% higher as a result of the weather events and that output from farms and crops is expected to be down by between NZ$400 million to NZ$600 million in the first half of the year.
Hipkins said his aim is to get government spending down to around the low thirties as a percentage of GDP.
The government's core expenses were equivalent to 35% of GDP in the year ended June 2022 and were forecast to fall to 32.8% of GDP in the current financial year.
“This will be an orthodox, no-frills Budget focused on funding the things most important to New Zealanders like support with the cost of living and cyclone recovery,” Hipkins said.
He said infrastructure will be a major focus of the budget with the country not only needing to rebuild following the cyclone but also in need of new hospitals and schools. (Reuters)
April
India tells China peace needed on border for better ties
Written by Nur Yasmin
India's defence minister told his Chinese counterpart on Thursday that improved relations depend on "peace and tranquillity" returning to their frontier disturbed by military tensions, an Indian government statement said.
Relations between the nuclear-armed Asian giants have deteriorated since mid-2020, when Chinese and Indian troops clashed on their disputed Himalayan frontier, leaving 24 dead.
The situation has largely calmed after military and diplomatic talks but the faceoff continues in pockets along the 3,800-km (2,360-mile) frontier.
India's defence minister Rajnath Singh underlined New Delhi's position on its strained ties with Beijing at a meeting with Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu in the Indian capital, the statement said.
Singh "categorically conveyed that development of relations between India and China is premised on prevalence of peace and tranquillity at the borders", it said.
"He reiterated that violation of existing agreements has eroded the entire basis of bilateral relations and disengagement at the border will logically be followed with de-escalation," the statement added.
India accuses China of frequently intruding into its side of the disputed border in violation of agreements signed since the 1990s. Beijing denies the accusations and blames New Delhi for the transgressions.
China has not issued any comment about the meeting.
China pushed for engagement and cooperation between the two militaries but was told by India that could happen only if there is tranquillity on the border, two Indian sources told Reuters.
The two ministers met ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's (SCO) defence ministers' gathering in New Delhi.
The meeting is the first between defence ministers of the two countries since September 2020 when they held talks on the sidelines of a SCO meeting in Moscow.
It is also the first visit by a Chinese defence minister to India since the violence in the Himalayas began in May 2020. (Reuters)