George Yeo, Hun Sen join Malaysia PM Anwar in meeting with informal ASEAN adviser Thaksin

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While Hun Sen had sparked controversy for cracking down on the opposition, media, and civil community while he was in power in Cambodia, Thaksin was found guilty of fraud and abuse of power in Thailand.

However, an analyst had previously told CNA that Thaksin’s session may be related to his acquaintance with Myanmar’s political scenery as well as his connections there.

Hun Sen met the head of Myanmar’s coup Min Aung Hlaing in January 2022, making her the first foreign leader to travel to the country since the junta seized control in a revolution in 2021, while Cambodia was chair of the ASEAN.

ASEAN was critical of HunSen’s visit as the group remained divided on how to approach Myanmar, Saifuddin Abdullah, the then-Malaysian foreign minister, claiming that Hun Sen may have consulted other members second.

CRYPTOCURRENCY POLICY

Anwar and the ASEAN expert group discussed cryptocurrency, but the Indonesian leading revealed that the state is considering putting together a policy on digital finance, according to local media reports on January 15.

Malaysia might be able to acknowledge the use of cryptocurrencies and the existence of bitcoin technology as a result of the plan.

Anwar stated to Malaysian reporters that he had spoken with the United Arab Emirates state and cryptocurrency tycoon Binance after completing a three-day formal attend to Abu Dhabi in January.

” This innovation, like AI, will shift the financial world. We shouldn’t wait patiently and wait until people do it, according to Anwar, only to be made to work when others have already done it.

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Trust between racial groups in Singapore grows, but stereotyping rises: IPS-OnePeople.sg survey

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Just over half of those ( 53.2 % ) said they have at least one close friend of a different race at the same time. &nbsp,

While this is a significant increase from a decade ago ( 45.6 per cent ), there was a marginal decrease compared to 2018 ( 55.5 per cent ).

According to the report, the drop may be related to a general decrease in near friends. &nbsp,

Regardless of race, the typical number of close friends in 2024 was 6.49, a increases from 10.67 in 2018 and 8.33 in 2013, as reported by responders.

Chinese respondents were significantly less likely to report having at least one close friend of another race ( 45.3 per cent ), compared to their minority-race peers- 72.5 per cent of Malays, 84.5 per cent of Indians, and 85.1 per cent of” Others” respondents. &nbsp,

The report said that this is most likely because of the population’s demographics, with minorities being much more likely to encounter and form friendships with people of bulk race groups. &nbsp,

Younger responders and HDB-dwellers were more likely to report cross-racial friends compared to their older and secret property-dwelling rivals. &nbsp,

The change in the number of cross-racial friends was “unexpected”, said Dr Puthucheary. He added that such connections are essential to Singapore’s method in maintaining social cohesion, connectivity, peace and harmony across community.

He noted that while more people are available to cross-racial friends, shrinking societal circles mean less chances to form and sustain these friendships.

” This is not a Malaysian problem, not just a Singapore problem. Similar styles are prevalent in many other nations. We must consider how to approach this issue really carefully.

TENSIONS

In 2024, the majority of respondents believed that Singapore is free of racial and religious conflicts.

More than eight in ten people stated that their daily lives do not elicit for hostilities. According to the report, older responders and those with lower educational backgrounds were more likely to keep these favorable views. &nbsp,

More than three-quarters of responders over the age of 65 also said they never felt outraged because someone had an insult against their race or cultural customs. This rate was higher than the 42.3 % that was reported for people between the ages of 18 and 35.

Chinese responders were also more likely to claim they have not felt upset in the past month by cultural taunts, than minority-race responders. &nbsp,

However, certain spiritual practices, such as the using of spiritual items and noisy events at space decks,” continue to offend” 13.7 per share and 10.1 per cent of respondents both in 2024, the report said.

This is in contrast to the reported 2018 levels of 9.3 percent of loud events and 16 % for burning religious objects. &nbsp,

While some cultural practices still cause tension, 71 % of respondents believed or felt strongly that racial diversity benefits Singapore. &nbsp,

This was a 4.4 % increase over 2018, with responders from China and India being more likely to benefit variety.

Younger responders were also more likely to believe strongly in receiving instruction from people of other races and religions.

This could indicate that younger generations of Singaporeans who have completed federal education programs are more likely to be able to access the cultural narrative, according to IPS.

The interest in learning about customs and practices from various nations had also increased. &nbsp,

About four in 10 respondents ( 41.8 per cent ) agreed or strongly agreed that they had an interest in understanding other racial groups ‘ customs and practices, up from 38.3 per cent in 2018. &nbsp,

Furthermore, 37.9 per share of respondents were interested in learning about different religious beliefs and practices, compared to 33.9 per share in 2018. &nbsp,

Racial and religious immigrants, as well as younger responders, were more likely to be wondering about different traditions. &nbsp,

The poll results total act as a “reality test” on the state of cultural unity, racial and religious harmony across Singapore, said Dr Puthucheary.

He added that the work was “increasingly crucial” for OnePeople. brs work on social unity. &nbsp,

” In other words, yes, things are improving in the workplace, but as things are improving more in all the other areas, we have to give more attention to what happens in the workplace. &nbsp,

Thus, the work becomes a somewhat more important area of focus.

In a reply to the study findings, OnePeople. roc said that it was working to solve split that extend across millennial, education and socio-economic ranges. &nbsp,

In order to develop receptive and respectful exchanges, the organization had a series of group dialogues involving academic institutions, ethnic and religious organizations, and had already started. &nbsp,

This will allow members of different backgrounds to better know one another’s ideas and build valuable connections, said OnePeople. gs. &nbsp,

Additionally, it had established the Workplace Diversity Programme in collaboration with IPS, which had produced “positive benefits.” &nbsp,

Through designed sessions, OnePeople. Roc stated that it aims to assist businesses in creating situations where people from all origins feel valued and respected. &nbsp,

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Do Trump and Netanyahu see eye to eye on Gaza’s endgame? – Asia Times

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Given the depth of hostility and enmity between the warring factions, the weak Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continues against all odds.

In exchange for some 400 Arab captives from Israeli jails, Hamas has released more than a few Jewish hostages since its enactment almost three weeks ago. More captives and prisoners are scheduled to be released during the majority of the first step of the truce if the procedure proceeds as easily as it has so far.

This is reason for a level of enthusiasm. However, negotiations over the size, words, and application of the second and third stages of the peace will turn out to be quite difficult.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for example, has already declared the ceasefire to become “temporary”.

In exchange for lots of prisoners, all Jewish hostages, both alive and dead, are supposed to be freed during the next level. As a precursor to the restoration of the coastal area in the final stages of the ceasefire, Israel is also anticipated to remove all of its causes from Gaza.

There are many problems that may disrupt the process, two of which are important:

  • Israel’s unattainable goal of putting an end to Hamas and establishing Gaza as a security for itself
  • Hamas’s steadfast desire to restore its supremacy over Gaza.

Another issue is the effect of the new US president, Donald Trump. While Trump has allies with Netanyahu, it’s not clear how eager the US president is to escalate Middle Eastern hostility.

A meeting between the two in Washington this year may be crucial to the resolution of the ceasefire’s second stage or the restart of the Gaza battle.

This year, Palestinians pass the wreckage of ruined buildings on a street in Gaza City. &nbsp, Photo: Mohammed Saber / EPA

Hamas ‘ life at conflict with Israel’s war seeks

Over the past 15 months of Hamas ‘ scorched-earth operations in Gaza, which Israel launched in response to Hamas ‘ attacks on October 7, 2023, Israel has undoubtedly degraded it. But, it has not eliminated the party.

The team’s survival is demonstrated by the well-armed and well-composed Hamas soldiers ‘ appearance during the choreographed three rounds of captive transfers in the regions Israel has destroyed.

It effectively indicates that Netanyahu and his radical supporters are unable to accomplish their main objectives, which are establishing a defense for release of the hostages.

The folly of using power as the only way to retaliate against Hamas is clearly demonstrated by Netanyahu’s approval of the ceasefire at this time.

He may have accepted the ceasefire much earlier, allowing for a quicker captive launch without more lives lost or more harm to Israel’s already tarnished reputation.

Hamas ‘ success means it is still a dangerous power, according to previous US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the middle of January. He claimed that the organization has “recruited almost as many fresh insurgents as it has lost” during the conflict.

In Gaza City, Hamas militants gather. &nbsp, Picture: Mohammed Saber / EPA via The Talk

In addition, reviews claim that Hamas has continued to have control over Gaza’s security forces despite Israel’s attempts to wrest control of it.

If that is the case, Jewish citizens have the right to seriously question the leadership of the prime minister, who have been greatly divided between those who want the hostages to be freed through a ceasefire and those who support Netanyahu’s administration to continue the war.

The same applies to Israel’s inside supporters, especially the United States.

However, this may not occur. The war-makers does get over the serenity candidates. For Netanyahu and his backers, the task is not finished. Some experts believe that Hamas’s very existence will only increase their motivation to rekindle the conflict once all of the victims have been freed.

What does Trump want?

The future of the peace now seems to pivot on Netanyahu’s conference with Trump in Washington. The Jewish leader is interested to know where Trump stands on the second phase of the agreement before the conversations begin, according to reports in the media.

Trump just rebuffed his proposal to” certain out” the 2.3 million people of Gaza by moving them to Egypt and Jordan, despite a number of 1.5 million. Nothing more would please the extremists in Netanyahu’s fragile partnership, given the past claims of its leaders, than a depopulated and annexed Gaza.

Cairo and Amman, as well as other Muslim countries, have strongly rejected the idea. Hamas and the ailing Arab Authority in the West Bank have unwaveringly condemned it.

Trump has argued that the Egyptian and Syrian leaders will ultimately change because of US support, probably because they rely heavily on American aid each year.

If this scenario were to occur, it may lead to more hostilities and bloodshed in the Middle East as well as more international support for the Palestinian cause and the two-state option.

While there is still hope for the continuation of the peace and the completion of the next phase of the stalemate, it is still possible that Netanyahu will engage in military action to annihilate Hamas and annex Gaza in the manner that Trump has suggested.

The Jewish leader might even be able to declare West Bank independence because of the strong relationship between Trump and Netanyahu.

Given these risks, the next phase of the stalemate regarding the restoration of Gaza, which is estimated to be upward of&nbsp, US$ 80 billion, is, at this point, nothing more than thoughts on a piece of paper.

At the Australian National University, Professor Amin Saikal is retired teacher of Middle Eastern and Central Asian research.

This content was republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original post.

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SingPost Singapore CEO Shahrin Abdol Salam resigns after less than a year in the role

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In May of this year, Mr. Shahrin was appointed CEO of SingPost Singapore. Before that, he was &nbsp, managing director of SMRT’s Thomson-East Coast Line and senior vice president of corporate connections at SMRT Corporation.

We applaud Shahrin for his contributions to SingPost during his lifetime and wish him the best of luck in his upcoming endeavors, SingPost stated on Monday.

Mr. Shahrin has participated in West Coast GRC.

He is a district representative in the People’s Action Party’s ( PAP ) Malay Affairs Bureau, which was formed in 1954 to represent the views of the Malay-Muslim community to the party leadership.

He is also president of the Ayer Rajah Community Club ‘s&nbsp, Malay Activity Executive Committee.

West Coast GRC is already a five-member GRC.

Before he resigned from the PAP in January 2024, it was led by former transport secretary S Iswaran, who was charged with corruption and with obtaining goods as a common slave. &nbsp, He was sentenced to 12 months in jail next October.

Desmond Lee, Foo Mee Har, &nbsp, Ang Wei Neng, and Rachel Ong are the other West Coast GRC members of parliament.

By November, Singapore may hold a general election, and political economists anticipate surveys to be held as early as April.

With 51.7 percent of the ballot, the PAP just won West Coast in the previous General Election in 2020 versus a Progress Singapore Party group that included Tan Cheng Bock, Leong Mun Wai, Hazel Poa, Nadarajah Loganathan, and Jeffrey Khoo.

Mr. Leong and Ms. Poa later became Non-Constituency MPs, jobs that are offered to the best losers in a public vote as part of a plan to ensure a maximum amount of opposition members in congress.

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Jevons paradox debunks DeepSeek’s clean, green claim – Asia Times

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Artificial fires through a lot of tools. Perhaps a more energy-efficient AI is likely to result in more energy being used over the long run, as a conundrum was first discovered in the 1860s.

For most consumers, “large speech models” such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT function like instinctive search engines. However, AI models return information they’ve created from scratch, in contrast to traditional online searches that locate and retrieve data everywhere along a worldwide network of servers. Like powering up a nuclear furnace to use a computer, this designed process is quite wasteful.

One study suggests the AI industry will be consuming somewhere between 85 and 134 terrawatt-hours ( TWh ) of electricity by 2027. That’s the same amount of energy that the Netherlands consumes annually. One well-known researcher predicts that over 20 % of US electricity will be used to power AI data centers ( huge warehouses stuffed with computers ) by 2030.

Big tech companies have often vowed to be significant investors in wind and solar energy. However, most people are developing their own atomic options due to AI’s desire for 24/7 energy. Microsoft also plans to revive&nbsp, the legendary Three Mile Island&nbsp, power flower, the image of America’s worst-ever legal radioactive accident.

Despite Google’s ambitious goal of being carbon neutral by 2030, the agency’s AI improvements mean its emissions have climbed 48 % in the past few years. Additionally, each month, the processing power required to train these concepts increases tenfold.

Nevertheless, Chinese start-up DeepSeek claims to have created a fix: a design that fits the effectiveness of established US foes like OpenAI, but at a fraction of the cost and carbon footprint.

An environmental game changer?

DeepSeek has created a powerful open-source, relatively energy-lite model. The company claims it spent just US$ 6 million renting the hardware needed to train its new R1 model, compared with over$ 60 million for Meta’s Llama, which used 11 times the computing resources.

DeepSeek uses a “mixture-of-experts” architecture, a machine-learning method that allows the model to scale up and down depending on the complexity of prompts. The manufacturer claims that its model can train and store more data without using sizable amounts of pricey processor chips.

deepseek logo on phone screen
Compared with its US rivals, DeepSeek promises to do more with less. Image: Chitaika / Shutterstock via The Conversation

Following investor concerns that AI companies would reevaluate their energy-intensive data center developments, US chip manufacturing and energy stocks fell. As the world’s largest supplier of specialist AI processors, Nvidia saw its share price fall by$ 589 billion, the biggest one-day loss in Wall Street history.

Paradoxically, as well as upsetting the performance of US tech stocks, improving the energy efficiency of AI platforms could actually worsen the industry’s environmental performance as a whole.

With tech stocks crashing, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella tried to bring a longer-term perspective:” Jevons paradox strikes again”! he posted on X. ” As AI gets more efficient and accessible, we will see its use skyrocket, turning it into a commodity we just can’t get enough of”.

The Jevons paradox

For more than a century, people have been saying that using less energy isn’t always beneficial to Earth’s resources. In his book” The Coal Question” in 1865, a young Englishman named William Stanley Jevons argued that Britain’s position as an industrial superpower might soon be ended as a result of its rapidly dwindling coal reserves.

But to Jevons, frugality was not the solution. He claimed that” the idealism that the sparse use of fuel is equivalent to a decreased consumption is completely confounds all other ideas. The very contrary is the truth”.

According to Jevons, any increase in resource efficiency generates an increase in long-term resource consumption, rather than a decrease. Higher energy efficiency has the effect of lowering energy’s implicit price, which in turn raises the rate of return and demand.

Jevons gave an example of the British iron industry. If advances in technology enabled a blast furnace to produce iron with less coal, profits would increase and new investment in iron production would be drawn. Price reductions would also encourage higher demand. He concluded:” The greater number of furnaces will more than make up for the diminished]coal ] consumption of each”.

Since the dawn of human civilization, the economist William Nordhaus has used this concept to improve lighting efficiency.

In a paper published in 1998, he came to the conclusion that the typical worker in ancient Babylon might need to work for more than 40 hours to buy enough fuel to generate the same amount of light as a typical lightbulb for an hour. However, an average American would need to produce the same amount of work by 1992.

Throughout time, efficiency gains haven’t reduced the energy we expend on lighting or shrunk our energy consumption. We now, in contrast, produce so much electric light that areas without it have turned into tourist attractions.

Warming and lighting our homes efficiently, driving our cars, mining Bitcoin and, indeed, building AI models are all subject to the same so-called rebound effects identified in the Jevons paradox. And because of this, it will be impossible to guarantee that an energy-use reduction in the overall industry is achieved.

A Sputnik moment

In the 1950s, the US was horrified when the Soviets launched Sputnik, the first space satellite. America spent more money on the space race, not less, as a result of the development of a more effective rival.

DeepSeek is Silicon Valley’s Sputnik moment. In an arms race that is no longer limited to US tech giants, more distributed and powerful models will likely mean more distributed and powerful models.

AI offers superpower status, and the floodgates may now be fully open for the UK and other global competitors, as well as China. What’s for certain is that in the long term, the AI industry’s appetite for energy and other resources is only going to increase.

Peter Howson is assistant professor in international development, Northumbria University, Newcastle

This article was republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Shein: Chinese fashion giant re-enters India five years after ban

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23 days before
Nikita Yadav

BBC News, Delhi

BBC A photo showing Shein India app on ios and google playstoreBBC

Five decades after Delhi banned the Chinese strong style software Shein, it relaunched in India through a partnership with American retailer Reliance Retail.

Reliance Retail’s official, who declined to be named, revealed to the BBC that the corporation has entered a long-term licensing agreement with the family firm to market products produced and sourced in India on the system. The team has not yet made an official notification.

Shein’s re-entry to the American business comes with tight conditions, which include saving all files within the region, India’s Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said in December.

India outlawed Shein and lots of different Chinese programs, including TikTok, in 2020.

It claimed that this was in response to concerns about data security and that it was done in response to a rise in tensions between China and India following clashes between the two nations ‘ soldiers in a contentious Himalayan border region.

More than 10,000 people have so far downloaded the app, which was released in India on Friday nights. It is offering fashionwear for as little as 199 rupees ($ 2.30, £1.90 ).

According to a warning on the game, Shein will shortly offer providers throughout India, but only in the towns of Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.

Over the past ten years, Shein has evolved from a little-known company to one of the biggest fast fashion stores on the planet. Now, it boats to users in 150 countries across the world.

Before the ban, it became a huge hit in India because it gave consumers a variety of choices to purchase modern designs for a reasonable price. Initial results of the ban left a gap in the American market, which was afterward filled by numerous local players.

According to experts, Mukesh Ambani, the billionaire of India, is launching Reliance Retail with Shein India and shifting away from its current method of selling global brands through its flagship Ajio online store.

Shein will be a modern partner while Reliance Retail will have complete control over its operations and data as a result of the revival, Goyal told the American parliament in December.

Shein won’t have any access rights to any user or app data, he said, and it will be kept there permanently.

Goyal furthermore clarified that the game was banned in India, never the” sales of Shein-branded products”.

As part of its efforts to encourage export of textiles and clothing from India, a Reliance Retail official said, Shein will employ India as a” provide source for its worldwide businesses” and will assist Reliance Retail in” building the network” and training American garment manufacturers.

Shein’s rejoinder in the relationship with Reliance Retail is a eminently unusual exclusion to India’s five-year-old restrictions on more than 200 Chinese programs.

American officials claimed that the ban came as a result of numerous complaints about the software ‘” stealing and unauthorized transmission of user information”

ByteDance’s TikTok and popular combat and survival game Player Unknown’s Battleground ( PUBG ) were also banned.

However, PubG was later renamed and launched for the Indian market under the name Battlegrounds Mobile India ( BGMI ), which is owned by Krafton India.

Follow BBC News India on Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

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Trump’s path to Ukraine peace becoming more apparent – Asia Times

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Trump’s Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg told&nbsp, Reuters&nbsp, that he’d like to see Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hold legislative and presidential primaries, though that site’s resources in Kyiv say that Washington has yet to officially make the request.

Ukrainian law requires that elections be held during times of conjugal union rules, requiring the need to first uphold it. That didn’t happen without a peace, yet, but therein lies the problem since Russia’s ceasefire conditions are also unethical to Ukraine.

Vladimir Putin, the leader of Russia, stated in a statement last June that Russia would stop hostilities once Ukraine withdrawn from all the country it now claims as its own and declares that it no longer wants to join NATO.

Negotiations may continue soon afterwards, but he&nbsp, specified at the time&nbsp, that they would have to be held with the parliamentary listener instead of Zelensky, whose constitutional term expired at the end of May per Putin’s checking of the Ukrainian Constitution. He then&nbsp, reiterated this position&nbsp, past week but with an additional spin.

According to Putin, Zelensky could also potentially participate in discussions, but he’d be useless to signal anything. This followed Zelensky ‘s&nbsp, claim&nbsp, that October 2022’s prohibition on talks with Russia applied to everyone but himself.

He therefore told the&nbsp, Associated Press&nbsp, over the weekend, around the same day as Kellogg’s interview with Reuters, that he is interested in resuming talks with Russia but doesn’t think that it wants a peace. Amidst these remarks from Kellogg, Putin and Zelensky were Trump’s.

He&nbsp, claimed&nbsp, that” We’re having very serious discussions ( with Russia ) about that war, trying to get it ended”, but said that he hadn’t yet talked to Putin about it, thus implying that talks are only taking place at the embassy level. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Rybakov&nbsp, confirmed&nbsp, on the same day that” there is no development” on organizing those leaders ‘ future visit.

However, their unavoidable talk will likely be about a peace and, specifically, the agreement Trump hopes to agent.

In order to ensure compliance with the ceasefire, he might ask: 1 ) Ukraine withdraws from Kursk and Donbas, the latter of which is at the center of the territorial dispute with Russia, but stays where it is everywhere else; 2 ) neither side rescinds its territorial claims to the other; 3 ) Ukraine holds its next elections; and 5 ) the new government begins peace talks with Russia after taking office.

Ukraine can be coerced into all this by threatening to withhold military aid&nbsp, while&nbsp, threats of maximally disbursing such to Ukraine alongside the imposition of maximum secondary sanctions against Russia’s top energy clients ( China&nbsp, and&nbsp, India ) could coerce it into compliance as well.

As an opportunity to Russia, which has been continuously advancing for the past two years, the US might consent to mobilise the” trans-Dnieper” place and place it under the command of non-Western soldiers.

That request forms one of the two hundred concessions that were analyzed on these pages&nbsp, these &nbsp, and elaborated on in detail&nbsp, around.

In order to convince Russia to accept a peace, its full implementation or some other variant thereof may prove crucial in terms of achieving this goal without Ukraine initially fully adhering to Putin’s demands from last June regarding its claim to all the place that Russia claims as its own. Trump’s diplomats had, so, do well to seriously consider this plan.

The previously mentioned threats could still be used as compulsions to encourage compliance if they can persuade Ukraine and Russia to accept a ceasefire, while carrots may involve more Ukrainian aid for reconstruction and gradual sanctions relief, increasing the chances that it will be implemented.

The US may yet consent to the US allowing the EU to resume pipeline fuel imports from Russia, whether through the last intact portion of Nord Stream or across Ukraine if Kyiv agrees. As part of the benefits of Russian compliance, the US may also agree to do so.

In terms of the successive election step in this process, the US might like that Zelensky never work for re-election; in addition, it may support one of his possible rivals as part of a “phased leadership transition” to facilitate a peace deal, which is premised on Putin wanting him out of the way.

Between the hypothetical ceasefire and Ukraine’s next elections, Zelensky might still participate in talks, but Russia wouldn’t allow him to sign anything, so he’d only take part in them for self-serving political reasons.

In any case, the legal changes that Russia’s stated objectives of restoring Ukraine’s constitutional neutrality and “denazifying” its society entail can only be advanced once the elections establish a new parliament, which could then bring these changes under US pressure ( the second goal perhaps only partially ).

Prior to that, the size of the armed forces could be curtailed in partial compliance with Russia’s demilitarization goal as a trust-building measure, but Russia ‘s&nbsp, spring 2022 demands&nbsp, might not ever be met in full.

Trump’s strategy to broker a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine mostly depends on the latter’s agreement because the former can be much more coerced, necessitating pragmatic compromises that meet some of Putin’s ceasefire demands from last June.

This might include imposing sanctions on Russia on Ukraine, seriously considering a demilitarized” Trans-Dnieper” region under the control of non-Western peacekeepers, and promising gradual sanctions relief.

Putin might agree to these conditions if they are followed by threats to provide Ukraine with the most military aid and the enactment of the most severe secondary sanctions against China and India, two of Russia’s top energy clients.

Putin’s continually proven his preference for avoiding escalations, notably reaffirmed last November through&nbsp, Russia’s unprecedented use of the hypersonic Oreshniks &nbsp, for de-escalation purposes vis-a-vis the US, while a sizeable share of Russia’s budgetary revenue is dependent on Asian energy imports.

If Trump agrees to the ceasefire terms that were discussed as well as the threatened consequences if Putin rejects them, these things will work in his favor.

A ceasefire will undoubtedly lead to peace, which will likely require some territorial concessions from Ukraine in order for Russia to agree to a compromise on Putin’s demands. Then new elections can be held to validate peace negotiations. The most likely scenario is to diplomatically end the conflict.

This&nbsp, article&nbsp, was first published on Andrew Korybko’s Substack and is republished with kind permission. Become an Andrew Korybko Newsletter subscriber&nbsp, here.

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Thap Lan park closed until April because of forest fires

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PUBLISHED: 3 Feb 2025 at 13: 09

Officials review the situation in Thap Lan National Park in Nakhon Ratchasima province on Monday. (Photo: Prasit Tangprasert)
On Monday, authorities in Nakhon Ratchasima state reviewed the situation in Thap Lan National Park. ( Photo: Prasit Tangprasert )

NAKHON RATCHASIMA- Thap Lan National Park has been closed to the public for three weeks, starting soon.

Suraphan Silpasuwan, the deputy provincial government, announced on Monday that the whole park was being closed for three months to make room for guards and other organizations to combat forest fires.

He claimed that while previously unspotted in the towns of Pak Thong Chai and Khon Buri, lava may still develop in the dry climate.

Thap Lan even includes the Prachin Buri province’s Na Di city.

Mr. Suraphan warned that locals who ignore the closure and enter the park to collect exotic goods like mushrooms could face legal action.

No fixed day was given for the museum’s reopening.

Authorities and local residents met on Monday to discuss the flames position and the decision to close the park.

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30 immigration officials at Jakarta airport removed from posts for alleged extortion of Chinese visitors

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A group of 30 emigration leaders have been removed from their content at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, following allegations of bribery targeting Chinese tourists, according to an Indonesian secretary. &nbsp,

According to local media, Immigration and Corrections Minister Agus Andrianto confirmed the statement on Sunday ( Jan 2 ) and claimed his organization had received a formal complaint from the Chinese Embassy in Indonesia, which described at least 44 alleged illegal surcharges at the airport.

” Without the knowledge from the Chinese Embassy, we wouldn’t have been informed of this problem. Thanks to their document, we were able to get timely action to improve immigration service”, he stated, as quoted by The Jakarta Globe.

The chancellor also urged all immigration officials to carry out their duties with professionalism and integrity.

According to Tempo, Arfa Yudha Indriawan, the Mind of the Intelligence and Immigration Enforcement Division at the School I Unique Immigration Office TPI Soekarno-Hatta, was one of the leaders.

When asked if Arfa was among the officers, Agus confirmed, according to local advertising. &nbsp,

The Directorate General of Asia Pacific and Africa Affairs, according to local press, sent a letter dated Jan 21 to the Directorate General of Protocol and Consular Affairs of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Directorate General of Immigration of the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections Affairs, and the Directorate General of Asia Pacific and Africa Affairs.

According to the text, immigration officials at Soekarno-Hatta Airport, which was also known as Jakarta International Airport, had extorted a number of Chinese nationals.

According to Tempo, which cited a report it had obtained, the text detailed at least 44 alleged bribery circumstances that occurred between February 2024 and January 2025. It also stated that a total of 32, 750, 000 rupiah ( US$ 2, 000 ) had been refunded to more than 60 Chinese citizens as a result of these cases.

This is only the tip of the iceberg because more Chinese citizens were extorted without making a complaint because of limited schedule or fear of reprisal when they came in the future, according to the letter, which Tempo quoted. &nbsp,

Agus claimed earlier that the officers had been partially fired, which may serve as a chance to adopt reforms in the relatively new ministry. &nbsp,

Because emigration serves as Indonesia’s infantry in engaging with international customers, he said,” This is an opportunity to implement major changes.”

Following President Prabowo Subianto’s opening on October 20, the novel Immigration and Corrections Ministry was established. Prior to this, the Justice Ministry had authority over the emigration and penitentiary units.

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Millions of invalid or no-vote ballots cast in provincial elections

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PUBLISHED: 3 Feb 2025 at 12: 50

A resident registers before voting in the provincial administrative organisation election in Chaiyaphum province on Saturday. (Photo: Makkawan Wannakul)
A resident in Chaiyaphum state files before voting in the statewide administrative organization vote on Saturday. ( Photo: Makkawan Wannakul )

Nearly 2 million non-vote votes were cast on Saturday for the presidents of statewide operational organizations in 47 regions.

The Office of the Election Commission released data for the polls for PAO leaders and municipal council on Saturday, according to the Office of the Election Commission’s Monday release.

In the election of PAO presidents in 47 provinces, there were 931, 290 invalid ballots, or 5.69 % of all ballots, and 1.17 million ballots in which voters ticked the no-vote box ( 7.08 % of all ballots ).

Of 27.99 million eligible voters, 16.36 million ( 58.45 % ) exercised their electoral rights.

There were also votes of municipal ministers in 76 regions.

Of 47.12 million eligible voters, 26.42 million ( 56.06 % ) cast votes. There were 1.49 million invalid ballots ( 5.63 % ) and 1.80 million no-vote ballots ( 6.81 % ).

The state of Lamphun, in the northern part of the country, had the highest voter turnout at 73.43 % for the poll of PAO leaders and provincial commissioners. The opposition candidate’s victory in local government elections gave the government’s chair its first significant win. &nbsp, &nbsp,

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