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March
Asian gas buyers puzzle over Putin's demand for payment in roubles
Written by Nur Yasmin
Asian importers of Russian gas were scrambling on Thursday after Russian President Vladimir Putin said "unfriendly" countries must pay for Russian gas in roubles, in the latest jolt to global energy markets after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Japan, South Korea and Taiwan were on the list of countries deemed unfriendly. They all import liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Sakhalin-2 and Yamal LNG projects in eastern Russia.
Putin said on Wednesday that Russia, which calls its actions in Ukraine a "special military operation", would continue to supply gas in volumes and prices fixed in contracts but would require payment in Russian roubles. read more
Japan, the biggest importer of Russian LNG in Asia, had no idea how Russia would enforce that requirement.
"Currently, we're looking into the situation with relevant ministries as we don't quite understand what (Russia's) intention is and how they would do this," Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said in parliament.
Japan imported 6.84 million tonnes of LNG from Russia in 2021, according to Refinitiv trade flow data, making up nearly 9% of its LNG imports.
JERA, Japan's biggest LNG buyer, has not received any notification from Sakhalin Energy, the joint venture that operates Sakhalin-2, to change the currency of payment from the U.S. dollar, a company spokesperson said. The spokesperson added that the country's biggest power generator will keep gathering information.
A thermal power and fuel joint venture between Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (9501.T) and Chubu Electric Power (9502.T), JERA buys about 2 million tonnes a year (tpy) of LNG from the Sakhalin-2 project under long-term contracts, according to Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation's (JOGMEC) data.
Tokyo Gas (9531.T) and Osaka Gas (9532.T), the country's two biggest local gas suppliers, also were checking details on the rouble requirement, company spokespersons said on Thursday.
Tokyo Gas, one of Japan's largest LNG buyers, declined to comment on any details of its long-term contract for 1.1 million tpy with Sakhalin Energy, including what currency it can use for payment.
Sakhalin Energy is 50% owned by Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM), with Shell (SHEL.L) holding a 27.5% stake while the rest is held by Japan's trading companies Mitsui & Co (8031.T) and Mitsubishi Corp (8058.T). Shell said on Feb. 28 that it would quit the project and the Japanese government has said Shell's exit did not impact Japan's energy imports. read more
Mitsui and Mitsubishi are checking details of the Russia's announcement, their spokesmen said.
March
U.S. reinstates 352 product exclusions from China tariffs
Written by Nur Yasmin
The U.S. Trade Representative's office said on Wednesday it has reinstated 352 expired product exclusions from U.S. "Section 301" tariffs on Chinese imports, well short of the 549 exclusions that it was previously considering.
The reinstated product exclusions will be effective retroactively from Oct. 12, 2021, and extend through Dec. 31, 2022, USTR said. They cover a wide range of the initially estimated $370 billion worth of Chinese imports that former president Donald Trump hit with punitive tariffs of 7.5% to 25%.
The list released by USTR includes industrial components such as pumps and electric motors, certain car parts and chemicals, backpacks, bicycles, vacuum cleaners and other consumer goods.
A spokeswoman at China's commerce ministry said on Thursday the U.S. decision was beneficial to normalizing the trade flow of those products, and hoped bilateral trade relations would get back on a normal track.
"Amid inflation spikes and challenges to the global economic recovery, we hope the U.S. could scrap all tariffs on Chinese products as soon as possible for the fundamental interests of consumers and producers in China and the U.S.," spokeswoman Shu Jueting told reporters.
The Trump administration initially granted more than 2,200 exclusions to the tariffs to provide relief to certain industries and retailers. Most were allowed to expire, but 549 were extended for a year, and these expired at the end of 2020.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai last October launched a review of whether to reinstate those 549 exclusions as part of her strategy to confront China on its trade practices.
A series of virtual meetings with her Chinese counterparts since then yielded little improvement in China's performance under Trump's "Phase 1" trade agreement with Beijing.
March
ASEAN envoy says urged restraint from Myanmar military, discussed Suu Kyi access
Written by Nur Yasmin
A Southeast Asian envoy said on Wednesday he had urged Myanmar's ruling military to show restraint during offensives and was told by the junta leader there would be no access to ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi while her trial was ongoing.
Prak Sokhonn, special envoy for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said he sought the release of prisoners including Australian economist Sean Turnell, and junta boss Min Aung Hlaing told him he would consider a request to see Suu Kyi and other detainees in future.
Suu Kyi was overthrown by the military in a coup last year that sparked chaos and bloodshed in the country after a decade of tentative democratic reform.
The Nobel laureate is on trial for more than a dozen offences including violating a state secrets act and multiple counts of corruption. She has been found guilty of several crimes already, but has rejected all charges.
Prak Sokhonn said he understood that critics viewed his trip to Myanmar this week as legitimising the junta. But he added he sees the two-day visit as a positive step towards resolving the crisis, which he said could not be done during Cambodia's ASEAN chairmanship this year.
"The Myanmar issue is complicated, it needs a long time to solve, we can't solve it during one chairmanship or the current chairmanship," he told reporters on his return to Cambodia.
"I know of various levels of expectations on the visit, I also know of people who want to see a ceasefire and me meeting all involved parties, and the return to normalcy of democracy," he said.
"I understand reasons behind criticism, they don't want me being giving legitimacy to the state councilors," he said, referring to the junta.
Prak Sokhonn's trip has frustrated opponents to Myanmar's junta because it was centred largely on the generals, with most meetings with other parties cancelled.
ASEAN has barred the generals from attending its summits until they see progress in a five-point "consensus" agreed last year to end the violence.
The United Nations last week said the army had committed war crimes and crimes against humanity and was deliberately targeting civilians. The military has yet to respond. (reuters)
March
Red Cross boss to raise "pressing" issues on Ukraine with Russia- agency
Written by Nur Yasmin
The head of the International Committee of Red Cross will raise "pressing humanitarian issues" linked to the war in Ukraine during his two-day talks with Russian officials, the agency said on Wednesday, amid hopes of an agreement on visits to POWs.
ICRC President Peter Maurer, who arrived in Moscow on Wednesday after a five-day trip to Ukraine last week, aims to facilitate a dialogue between the two sides, it said, adding that he would also meet Russian defence ministry officials.
Russia's Foreign Minister Serge Lavrov would meet Maurer on Thursday to discuss the conflict, his ministry said earlier. read more
"Mr Maurer plans to speak about the pressing humanitarian issues to be addressed to alleviate suffering of people affected by the conflict in Ukraine," the ICRC said in a statement.
The agency - which upholds the Geneva Conventions laying down the rules of war - was seeking to increase respect for international humanitarian law, and as a neutral intermediary, to "address humanitarian issues and facilitate dialogue between all sides".
Ukrainian cities are under bombardment and the besieged southern port of Mariupol is in flames after a month-long conflict since Russian forced invaded Ukraine. read more
Moscow says its "special military operation" to disarm its neighbour is going to plan. It denies targeting civilians but has turned to siege tactics and bombardment of cities, causing massive destruction and many civilian deaths.
The ICRC visits people held in detention centres worldwide, from Syria to the U.S. base on Guantanamo Bay, requiring private interviews with inmates to check that their treatment and conditions are in line with the Geneva Conventions. The agency also transmits family messages.
If warring parties agree to exchange prisoners, the ICRC can facilitate transfers, as it did for more than 1,000 men released in the context of Yemen's war in Oct. 2020.
Maurer, speaking to reporters from Kyiv last week, said that captured troops should be treated with dignity and not exposed to "public curiosity" - a thinly-veiled reference to Ukraine posting images and details of Russian POWs.
"The dominant reflex of every belligerent is to ask for reciprocity when the president of the ICRC arrives," Maurer told a Foundation for Geneva ceremony on Monday after receiving its annual award.
"It is difficult for me to convince a Ukrainian government or a Russian government to stop certain practices unless I can show them that it is not in their own interest to continue the war in that way," he said. "Finding that common base when it seems to lie underneath layers of hard rock is what humanitarian work is all about." (reuters)
March
Taliban orders girl high schools remain closed, leaving students in tears
Written by Nur Yasmin
The Taliban on Wednesday backtracked on their announcement that high schools would open for girls, saying they would remain closed until a plan was drawn up in accordance with Islamic law for them to reopen.
Teachers and students from three high schools around the capital Kabul said girls had returned in excitement to campuses on Wednesday morning, but were ordered to go home. They said many students left in tears.
"We all got disappointed and we all became totally hopeless when the principal told us, she was also crying," said a student, not being named for security reasons.
The last time the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, from 1996 to 2001, they banned female education and most employment.
The international community has made the education of girls a key demand for any future recognition of the Taliban administration, which took over the country in August as foreign forces withdrew. The United Nations and United States condemend the reported closures on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Education had announced last week that schools for all students, including girls, would open around the country on Wednesday after months of restrictions on education for high school-aged girls.
On Tuesday evening a Ministry of Education spokesman released a video congratulating all students on their returning to class.
However on Wednesday a Ministry of Education notice said schools for girls would be closed until a plan was drawn up in accordance with Islamic law and Afghan culture, according to Bakhtar News, a government news agency.
"We inform all girls high schools and those schools that are having female students above class six that they are off until the next order," said the notice.
The country's ministry of education spokesman did not respond to calls and messages seeking comment. A Taliban administration source confirmed to Reuters that schools for girls in Kabul would be closed for now, without elaborating.
The Taliban is seeking to run the country according to its interpretation of Islamic law while at the same time accessing billions of dollars in aid that it desperately needs to stave off widespread poverty and hunger.
"The UN in Afghanistan deplores today's reported announcement by the Taliban that they are further extending their indefinite ban on female students above the 6th grade being permitted to return school," the United Nations' Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) said in a statement.
The U.S. Chargé d’Affaires for Afghanistan, Ian McCary, currently based in Qatar, said in a tweet that he was deeply troubled by the reports.
"This is very disappointing & contradicts many Taliban assurances & statements," he said. (reuters)
March
Consequences of any Russia-NATO clash would be 'hard to repair' - Kremlin
Written by Nur Yasmin
The Kremlin on Wednesday said any possible contact between the Russian military and NATO forces could have grave consequences, after Poland last week said peacekeepers should be sent to Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Poland's idea was reckless and extremely dangerous.
"Any possible confrontation between our troops and NATO forces could have clear consequences that would be hard to repair," Peskov told reporters. (reuters)
March
Ukraine's president asks Japan to boost sanctions pressure on Russia
Written by Nur Yasmin
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged Japan on Wednesday to ramp up pressure on Russia with a trade embargo, making an unprecedented direct appeal to parliament that invoked the two nations' shared experience of nuclear disaster.
Speaking to lawmakers by video link in a gesture never previously accorded to a foreign leader, Zelenskiy thanked Japan for leading the way among Asian nations in condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine and launching sanctions.
The address was covered live by almost all commercial broadcasters, highlighting the rare interest in the war in a country where domestic issues usually dominate headlines.
"An embargo on trade with Russia is necessary," said Zelenskiy, who wore a zipped-up military jacket. "It is necessary to remove companies from the Russian market so that money does not go to the Russian army."
Later, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he planned to unveil more support measures for Ukraine and strengthen Tokyo's sanctions against Russia at a G7 meeting in Brussels. L3N2VQ1LN
Japan's sanctions on 76 individuals, seven banks and 12 other bodies in Russia, imposed in response to the invasion, now cover defence officials and state-owned arms exporter Rosoboronexport.
It has also said it will revoke Russia's trade status of most favoured nation. read more
Zelenskiy, who received a standing ovation at the end of his speech, thanked Japan for leading the way among Asian nations in condemning the invasion and launching sanctions.
"You were the first in Asia who really began to put pressure on Russia to restore peace, who supported sanctions against Russia, and I urge you to keep doing this," Zelenskiy said.
Responding to the sanctions, Russia, which calls its action in Ukraine "a special operation", withdrew on Tuesday from peace treaty talks with Japan and froze joint economic projects related to the disputed Kuril islands. read more
Known in Japan as the Northern Territories, they are one of the main barriers to a pact between the two nations to formally end World War Two.
Asked on Tuesday about economic cooperation with Russia, Kishida said Japan valued any opportunity to secure inexpensive energy, referring to projects in Sakhalin, following withdrawals by Shell (SHEL.L) and Exxon Mobil (XOM.N). read more
A sombre Zelenskiy urged Japan to do more.
"I urge you to unite the efforts of the Asian states, your partners, in order to stabilise the situation, so that Russia seeks peace and stops the tsunami of its harsh invasion."
INVOKING CHERNOBYL
Without citing evidence, Zelenskiy said Russian forces were preparing new attacks from the so-called exclusion zone around the Chernobyl nuclear power station after occupying the defunct plant last month in the early stages of the war.
He gave no details.
"The world is on the verge of many new crises," Zelenskiy added. "The environmental and food challenges are unprecedented."
Kishida sat in the front row of his audience, with Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi beside him. Later the prime minister told reporters he was touched by Zelenskiy's speech.
Hayashi said Zelenskiy's references to the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 struck a chord.
Japan's triple disaster of March 2011 caused meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant and irradiated a vast swathe of its northeast. The worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl forced tens of thousands of people from their homes.
"We have always said that any kind of attack against a nuclear power plant is absolutely unacceptable," Hayashi told reporters.
"President (Zelenskiy) didn’t give the name Fukushima, but he talked about it (the nuclear power plants) and spoke with passion of how strongly the people of Ukraine feel about returning to their home." (Reuters)
March
Scholz tells Putin not to use biological, chemical weapons- Die Zeit
Written by Nur Yasmin
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has warned Russian President Vladimir Putin in direct talks not to use biological or chemical weapons in Ukraine, Die Zeit weekly reported on Wednesday.
Russian assertions that Ukraine was developing such weapons or that the United States wanted to use them seemed "like an implicit threat that Putin himself is considering using such weapons", the paper quoted Scholz as saying.
"That's why it was important to me to tell him very clearly and directly: That would be unacceptable and unforgivable," Scholz told Die Zeit. (reuters)
March
Russia says sending international peacekeepers to Ukraine would be 'very reckless'
Written by Nur Yasmin
Russia on Wednesday condemned what it called a "reckless" Polish proposal to send international peacekeepers into Ukraine and warned that it could lead to a direct clash between Russian and NATO forces.
Poland said last Friday it would formally submit a proposal for a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine at the next NATO summit. read more
Asked about the initiative, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "It would be a very reckless and extremely dangerous decision."
He told reporters on a conference call that any possible contact between Russian and NATO forces "could have clear consequences that would be hard to repair".
Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24 in what it called a special operation to degrade its southern neighbour's military capabilities and root out people it called dangerous nationalists.
Ukrainian forces have mounted stiff resistance and the West has imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia in an effort to force it to withdraw its forces.
Speaking in Kyiv last week, Poland's ruling party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said: "I think that it is necessary to have a peace mission - NATO, possibly some wider international structure - but a mission that will be able to defend itself, which will operate on Ukrainian territory."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also attacked the proposal in remarks to staff and students at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations on Wednesday.
"This will be the direct clash between the Russian and NATO armed forces that everyone has not only tried to avoid but said should not take place in principle," he said. (reuters)
March
Russia's Putin gets Chinese backing to stay in G20
Written by Nur Yasmin
Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to attend the next G20 summit in Indonesia later this year and received valuable backing from Beijing on Wednesday in a pushback to suggestions by some members that Russia could be barred from the group.
The United States and its Western allies are assessing whether Russia should remain within the Group of Twenty major economies following its invasion of Ukraine, sources involved in the discussions told Reuters.
But any move to exclude Russia would probably be vetoed by others in the group, raising the prospect of some countries instead skipping G20 meetings, the sources said. read more
Russia's ambassador to Indonesia, which currently holds the rotating G20 chair, said Putin intended to travel to the Indonesian resort island of Bali for the G20 summit in November.
"It will depend on many, many things, including the COVID situation, which is getting better. So far, his intention is... he wants to," Ambassador Lyudmila Vorobieva told a news conference.
Asked about suggestions Russia could be kicked out of the G20, she said it was a forum to discuss economic issues and not a crisis like Ukraine.
"Of course expulsion of Russia from this kind of forum will not help these economic problems to be resolved. On the contrary, without Russia it would be difficult to do so."
China, which has not condemned Russia's invasion and criticised Western sanctions, defended Moscow on Wednesday, calling Russia an "important member" of the G20.
The G20 is a group that needs to find answers to critical issues, such as economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.
"No member has the right to remove another country as a member. The G20 should implement real multilateralism, strengthen unity and cooperation," he told a news briefing.
Indonesia's foreign ministry declined to comment on calls for Russia to be excluded from the G20.
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24 on what he calls a "special military operation" to demilitarise and "denazify" the country. Ukraine and the West say Putin launched an unprovoked war of aggression. read more
'BUSY WITH SOMETHING ELSE'
Russia is facing an onslaught of international sanctions led by Western countries aiming at isolating it from the global economy, including shutting it out of the SWIFT global bank messaging system and restricting dealings by its central bank.
On Tuesday, Poland said it had suggested to U.S. commerce officials that it replace Russia within the G20 group and that the suggestion had received a "positive response".
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said G20 members would have to decide but the issue was not a priority now.
"When it comes to the question of how to proceed with the WTO (World Trade Organization) and the G20, it is imperative to discuss this question with the countries that are involved and not to decide individually," Scholz said.
"It is quite clear that we are busy with something else than coming together in such meetings. We urgently need a ceasefire."
Russia's participation in the G20 is almost certain to be discussed on Thursday, when U.S. President Joe Biden meets allies in Brussels.
"We believe that it cannot be business as usual for Russia in international institutions and in the international community," U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters.
A European Union source separately confirmed the discussions about Russia's status at G20 meetings.
"It has been made very clear to Indonesia that Russia’s presence at forthcoming ministerial meetings would be highly problematic for European countries," said the source, adding there was, however, no clear process for excluding a country.
Indonesia's deputy central bank governor, Dody Budi Waluyo, said on Monday Jakarta's position was one of neutrality and it would use its G20 leadership to try to resolve problems, but Russia had a "strong commitment" to attend and other members could not forbid it from doing so. (Reuters)