https://apnews.com/article/south-korean-adoptions-investigation-united-states-europe-67d6bb03fddede7dcca199c2e3cd486e In the 1970s and 80s, South Korea tried to send babies abroad due to the rampant demand for them in Western countries. Due to rising access to birth control and abortion in Europe and the US, the amount of adoptable children lowered drastically, causing families to want to adopt. But recently, it has been discovered that the governments of… Read more »
Chinese exports saw the steepest fall in three years in February, adding to worries about growth in the world’s second largest economy. Official data show exports from China plunged 20.7% from a year earlier, as its trade war with the US took a toll. Imports fell 5.2% and the figures sent Asia stock markets sharply lower. Economists caution the data… Read more »
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said he would prefer to take sides with China over the U.S. if his country was forced to take sides in the trade war, the South China Morning Post reported on Friday. Although the 93-year-old Malaysian leader has been a strong critic of Chinese investments in his home country, he acknowledged that China is an economic power that presents opportunities. Malaysia has to “accept that China is… Read more »
The Philippines has taken an interesting role over the past few years in regards to Sino-American diplomacy. It’s a hotly-contested state, in terms of influence, due to its resources, size, and strategic position. For the Chinese, it’s the gateway to the south Pacific, with its vast sea resources and wide array of shipping lanes. For the US, it’s the opposite:… Read more »
The US secretary of state has committed Washington to aiding the Philippines in the event of an “armed attack” on its vessels or aircraft in the disputed South China Sea, in what some see as a warning shot to China. Speaking in Manila after meeting the president, Rodrigo Duterte, Mike Pompeo told the Philippines: “We have your back” and invoked the two… Read more »
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said plans to relocate a US military base on the island of Okinawa will continue, despite a referendum rejecting the move. Some 72% of voters in the non-binding poll opposed the construction of a new base to replace the one at Futenma. In recent years, a number of accidents and crimes have led to… Read more »
Out of all the countries involved and affected by the North Korean crisis, by far the most impacted is South Korea. Their proximity to the DPRK is surely causing distress in South Korea due to the current missile testing coming from Pyongyang. I think that it is a very smart move on South Korea’s part to be restoring ties with… Read more »
France 24 Hundreds of aircraft including two dozen stealth jets began training Monday as the United States and South Korea launched a massive combined air force exercise. The war games come a week after North Korea test-fired its most powerful missile ever, an ICBM that may be able to target the eastern seaboard of the United States.
(BBC): The US should block access to islands built by China in contested waters of the South China Sea, Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state says. The comments, which are likely to hike tensions with Beijing, were made by Rex Tillerson at his confirmation hearing. Beijing has been building artificial islands on reefs in waters also claimed by other… Read more »
(REUTERS): China and Russia have agreed to take further unspecified “countermeasures” in response to a U.S. plan to deploy an anti-missile system in South Korea, state news agency Xinhua reported on Friday. The countermeasures “will be aimed at safeguarding interests of China and Russia and the strategic balance in the region”, Xinhua said, citing a statement released after a China-Russia security… Read more »
