Link to article: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/australian-pm-tells-us-house-speaker-he-hopes-aukus-legislation-passes-this-year-2023-10-26/ Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met Mike Johnson, the new speaker of the U.S House of Representatives, Thursday on Capitol Hill. Albanese spoke to Johnson about his hopes that the United States Congress would pass the AUKUS legislation. AUKUS is a three-way pact with Australia, Britain, and the United States that was created as a response… Read more »
Link to article: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/china-nudges-mongolia-join-eurasian-security-bloc-2023-10-27/ Chinese Premier Li Qiang spoke to Mongolian Prime Minister Li Oyun-Erdene in Bishkek, stating that China is ready to strengthen its relations with Mongolia through the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The SCO is a regional security alliance with Eurasian members such as Russia and India that has recently expanded to focus on counter-terrorism and expanding globally,… Read more »
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-67061964 For context, the greusome civil war in Myanmar resurged in the early 2020’s due to a coup that took place in Feburary of 2021, since then the country has been through turmoil with protests and violence. In north-east Myanmar, a camp meant for disspalced persons as well as surrounding area, controlled by the Kachin Independance Orginization (KIO) has been… Read more »
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/oct/11/borneo-orangutan-killings-likely-still-occurring-numbers-research Orangutans continue to be illegally killed on the island of Borneo even though it is frowned upon in the culture. When reaserching the number of orangutan killings per year, more than 400 villagers were surveyed and it was determined that 2,000 to 3,000 orangutans are directly killed per year. And studies have shown that there are only 100,000 Bornean… Read more »
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/11/business/china-oil-saudi-arabia-iran.html China has been active in the middle east, specifically Saudi Arabia and Iran primarily because of the abundance of oil in these regions. In March, China drafted a deal that would help Iran and Saudi Arabia foster new relations and potentially resolve unrecognized tensions between the two countries. Ever since the terrorist group, Hamas (which is primarily backed by… Read more »
Petty Officer Wenheng Zhao of the U.S. Navy has pleaded guilty to accepting bribes and selling sensitive military secrets to China. Zhao originally pleaded not guilty when he was originally charged on August 4th. He was accused of collecting $15,000 in bribes from a Chinese intelligence officer in exchange for information, photos, and videos that included Navy exercises, operations, resources,… Read more »
Article Link: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231013_02/ The Untied States of america has decided to fly patrol planes through the Taiwan Strait. The United States justifies this act claiming that they are protecting the navigational rights of every single nation, as demanded by international law. China is mad calling it a publicity stunt as the american navy was “publicly hyping the incident”. China then… Read more »
Link to article: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20231011_26/ Japan’s chief foreign policy maker went and met with Taiwan’s President and have agreed to work together more than they already are. On monday LDP Policy Research Council Chairperson Hagiuda Koichi landed in Taiwan, that following wednesday he met Tsai Ing-wen, the president of taiwan. Japan urges for there to be peace surrounding Taiwan. Taiwan and… Read more »
Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/sri-lanka-bondholders-sent-12-bln-debt-rework-proposal-government-sources-2023-10-12/ Sri Lanka’s private creditors have submitted a debt restructuring proposal for the country’s $12 billion overseas debt, which it defaulted on in May 2022 due to a severe shortage of dollars. The proposal includes a write-down on both capital and interest. It introduces a new type of bond, Macro Linked Bonds (MLBs), which would automatically lower coupon payments… Read more »
Link to article: https://english.news.cn/20231011/7024364370d44be1a84291d4dc304107/c.html The article talks about China’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’, which is a program china has started to help industrialize other countries. The program is used in more underdeveloped countries which are in need of assistance. China finds these countries then allies with them promising a place in the Belt and Road Initiative. The Belt and Road… Read more »
