One of the most pressing stories in the East Asia and Oceania region is that of Hong Kong, China, and to a lesser extent, the concentration camps for the Uyghurs. The way China handles their own humans rights abuses and their trade war with the United States affects their relations with the Western countries their economy depends on exporting to,… Read more »
The recent announcement of the US–Japan Trade Agreement (USJTA) must have come as a surprise to many in Japan given its unusual expeditiousness. The agreement was concluded just six months after negotiations began — a dramatic contrast to the EU–Japan Economic Partnership Agreement which took more than five years to achieve. One reason why the United States and Japan were able to… Read more »
China has suspended a joint human rights programme with Australia and blocked two parliamentarians from visiting the country as diplomatic ties between the two nations continue to flounder. Canberra said on Monday it had not been able to reach agreement with Beijing on continuing a two decades old technical dialogue, which is aimed at advancing human rights reform in China…. Read more »
Escalating violence between pro-democracy protesters and police had pushed Hong Kong to “breaking point,” Singapore’s Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing said, warning a similar situation could “easily happen” in his country if the government is complacent. Speaking to reporters from his offices in the city-state on Monday, the trade minister said Singapore should heed the lessons from what… Read more »
China’s Defense Minister told his US counterpart that Washington must stop “flexing its muscles” in the South China Sea when the two met Monday, according to a spokesman for Beijing.At the same time, China announced that its new domestically produced aircraft carrier was headed to the South China Sea for training and research purposes.US Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Chinese Defense Minister… Read more »