VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Tensions in the South China Sea will increase due to a U.S.-China rivalry that could be kept in check, if only Southeast Asian countries took a united stand to influence the status quo, a top Philippine security official said on Wednesday.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was caught up in the battle for regional influence but it could do more to ensure stability and should take a common approach, Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told a security forum.

“Where is the ASEAN in this superpower rivalry? Despite its avowed ASEAN centrality, it is anything but,” Lorenzana said.

“ASEAN would exert considerable influence on issues and events in the South China Sea if only it could act as one.”

Lorenzana’s remarks are unusually blunt for a minister from within the 10-member bloc, which rarely speaks up as a group against militarisation or perceived acts of aggression, with some states worried about angering Beijing or Washington.

The Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam have overlapping claims with China and all but Brunei have been involved in standoffs this year with Chinese vessels.

China says it has historical sovereignty over nine-tenths of the South China Sea. It does not recognise a 2016 international arbitral ruling that invalidated those claims.

Lorenzana said the issue was front and centre during discussions since May with counterparts in Japan, China, Australia, France and the United States.

“What do this tell us? That the South China Sea is important to a lot of nations,” he said.

“That the tension in the South China Sea will continue to rise as China will continue to accuse the U.S. and other nations of provocation and destabilisation ... that the West is trying to contain the rise of China.”

China has stepped up its coastguard presence and military drills this year, including near islands also claimed by Vietnam, while the United States has deployed warships to demonstrate freedom of navigation. They accuse each other of deliberate provocations.

Lorenzana said Southeast Asia worries the risk of armed conflict is rising.

U.S. ally the Philippines, he said, “will be involved whether she likes it or not.” (Reuters)

 President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo (Jokowi) emphasized that four areas will be prioritized in the 2021 State Budget (APBN).

"First is handling health. In terms of handling COVID-19, the main focus will be on vaccination," President Jokowi noted at the State Palace in Jakarta, Wednesday.

President Jokowi made the statement during the submission of the Budget Implementation List (DIPA) and the 2021 Transfer to Regions and Village Fund Allocation List to ministers, heads of institutions, and regional heads.

The handover was witnessed directly by Vice President Ma'ruf Amin, ministers of the Advanced Indonesia Cabinet, and Chairman of the House of Representatives Puan Maharani, while the heads of institutions and regional heads partook in the event through videoconference.

"Hence, a budget related to strengthening health infrastructure, such as laboratories, and research and development, is direly needed," the president reiterated.

The second area of focus pertains to social protection, particularly for the less fortunate and vulnerable groups.

"Third, the economic recovery program, especially support for MSMEs and the business world," the president noted.

The fourth focus area is to build a stronger foundation by conducting structural reforms in health, education, social protection, and other fields.

"In the 2021 APBN, the government allocates Rp2,750 trillion in expenditure, an increase of 0.4 percent as compared to the expenditure allocation in the 2020 APBN," the president added.

The allocation comprises Rp1,032 trillion for ministerial and institutional expenditures and regional transfers and village funds reaching Rp795.5 trillion.

"Of course, we will use this expenditure allocation to support economic recovery and restore development priorities in various fields," the president remarked.

Furthermore, the allocation for health sector expenditures reaches Rp169.7 trillion, while Rp550 trillion for the education sector, Rp417.17 trillion for infrastructure development, Rp408.8 trillion for social protection, Rp99 trillion for food security, and Rp26 trillion for the development of information technology.

"When the economy is still sluggish, government spending is the main driving force of our economy. Hence, the 2021 State Budget must be spent immediately to drive our economy," the head of state affirmed.

President Jokowi urged all ministers, institutional leaders, and regional heads to not delay spending their budget.

"This is especially applicable for those with large budgets, such as the Ministry of Education and Culture, Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing, Ministry of Transportation, and Ministry of Agriculture. The regions will also conduct auctions as early as possible in this December," the president stated.

The objective is to help the Indonesian economy return to growth in the first quarter of 2021.

"This means that in January 2021, a movement occurred since the auction was held as the DIPA was submitted, in addition to social assistance in early January 2021 that must also be immediately provided to beneficiaries in the community, so that public spending increases and also consumption in a bid to move the economy at the lower levels," the president remarked. (Antaranews)

New Zealand, one of the twelve founding members of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), plans to steer APEC’s efforts towards recovery in a time of unprecedented health and economic crises as the grouping’s host in 2021.

New Zealand has taken over the leadership of APEC from Malaysia, the host of APEC 2020, as noted in a written statement issued by the APEC Secretariat and received here on Wednesday.

The host year will be completely held online, as announced in June this year, demonstrating New Zealand’s leadership in digital diplomacy amidst the global pandemic, according to the statement.

"As we plan for recovery from COVID-19, it is economic cooperation through APEC, the most dynamic region in the world’s economy that will help us all rebuild," said New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in a video introducing New Zealand’s APEC year, presented at the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting last Friday.

Prime Minister Ardern, who will chair the 2021 APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, acknowledged the extraordinary scale of the challenges the world faces today and stressed the need for member economies to work together for the greater good.

She explained that New Zealand will create an environment where connections can be made and APEC’s important work can continue, including progress on sustainability, widespread adoption of digital tools to drive productivity, and development of inclusive plans to create opportunities for all people.

"The way we respond as a region to today’s challenges will be felt for generations to come," stated Prime Minister Ardern.

"APEC 2021 New Zealand will be the start of reigniting growth, continuing trade, and setting a plan for long-lasting recovery across the entire region," she added.

Speaking at a virtual briefing on Monday, Vangelis Vitalis, 2021 chair of APEC Senior Officials and deputy secretary of trade and economic affairs at New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, emphasized the importance of greater cooperation in times of crisis, noting that trade is "an absolute vital part" to the journey of recovery.

"We are hoping to take a closer look at the trade and economic policies that we need to drive recovery and to take us forward. We would also like to propel more discussion on not only how we can build back better, but to build back greener and more inclusively, so that the recovery will be much more resilient and sustainable," he explained.

Vitalis, who will be leading the technical discussions next year, also highlighted the importance of the digital and innovation aspect in driving recovery, improving productivity and efficiency, and keeping engagement and connectivity alive during periods of border closings and lockdowns.

"We look forward to a successful virtual APEC year as New Zealand continues the successful work laid by Malaysia this year, including to develop a work program for the implementation of the APEC Putrajaya Vision 2040," said executive director of the APEC Secretariat, Rebecca Sta Maria.

"We stand ready to fully support New Zealand in its vision to pave the way for a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable APEC region," she remarked.

New Zealand will begin its host year with a symposium and the Informal Senior Officials Meeting in December, 2020, followed by the first formal gatherings of senior officials early next year. (Antaranews)

AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford reported that the vaccine developed jointly for the coronavirus has shown 70% average effectiveness in its final trials.  The vaccine can prevent 70% of people infected from coronavirus, even it is up to 90% if given a lower dose.

Deputy Executive President of AstraZeneca, Menelas Pangalos explained that based on the data, the vaccines of AstraZeneca and Oxford University are effective in reducing the number of infections and reducing the spread of the coronavirus.

“It's clearly effective. We’re extremely excited because what the data has shown us says that the vaccine is clearly effective in terms of reducing infections. It’s clearly effective in terms of reducing people getting sick and going to the hospital. It's potentially reducing transmission and I think is a good chance of being a very successful, very effective vaccine and get us back to normal," Pangalos said.

Meanwhile, Chief Executive of AstraZeneca, Pascal Soriot in recent a statement explained that administering the lower dosage from the first trial was a huge extra value because it means that it can vaccinate more people and faster.

This vaccine is very effective when it is given half a dose and followed by a full dose one month later. Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO), Soumya Swaminathan mentioned that the results are blissful.

Soumya Swaminathan further said that the big advantage of having this vaccine is that it can be stored, transported, and handled at temperatures of 2-8 degrees Celsius so that it will facilitate the distribution of the vaccine to countries and people anywhere in the world.

“It can be stored in the ordinary refrigerator temperature of two to eight degrees and it's stable at that temperature. That of course has huge logistical advantages for transporting in delivering the vaccine to the cities and towns and villages and rural areas around the world," Swaminathan said.

Besides, when compared to vaccines produced by BioNTech / Pfizer and Moderna, which have been proven to be more than 90% effective, the vaccine analyzed by AstraZeneca provides lower effectiveness. However, the result of the preliminary trials is a new breakthrough in fighting against the virus that has killed almost 1.4 million people. (Borgias/AF)