” MOON SNIPER” The” Moon Sniper” mission of Japan’s area agency JAXA was launched in September, but the industry has been plagued by issues in recent years with two unsuccessful expeditions, one people and one private. Japan has also experienced problems with its build rockets, including mishaps following the launchContinue Reading
Experts expect China to continue walking a fine line between the developed and developing world. It remains reluctant to take on a more intermediary role, they said.
It is a position that deflects calls for Beijing to take on a more assertive role in climate leadership, yet maintains its position of economic influence among countries calling for more financial assistance from the West.
“They are unwilling to agree to developed country obligations, such as contributing to a loss and damage fund, because they see this as a slippery slope to broader obligations. So it seems they are often selective and strategic in how they portray climate leadership,” Ms Hsu said.
This “special” role could come under more pressure from nations feeling restless about the lack of progress on loss and damage in particular.
Beijing will again likely speak in solidarity with those calling for the mobilisation of assistance funds, another possible flash point with Washington, which has been a consistent drag on the concept.
“China should leverage its ‘in-between’ position to align the (Global) South and North. Its unique status could be the source of an identity crisis, but could also be an asset for Beijing to be a trusted friend with both sides,” Mr Li said.
“The world is anxiously waiting for China to redefine itself,” he said.
China has kept up its breathtaking levels of installing solar and wind power infrastructure and remains crucial to the value chain of green technologies like solar cells, thermal heating and electric vehicles.
But its levels of international engagement have not been fully revived post COVID-19.
Overseas development spending that has been ostensibly frozen under the Belt and Road Initiative has yet to resume in any form under the country’s new project, the Global Development Initiative. A key potential plank of China’s green leadership remains unfulfilled.
For two years, no overseas energy sector lending has been recorded from China’s two development finance institutions to foreign governments, according to research by the Boston University Global Development Policy Center.
“Now is the time for China to use its scale and experience to redirect development finance towards greener goals,” Dr Cecilia Springer, a non-resident fellow with the centre’s Global China Initiative, said in a statement.
But China has remained steadfast about not bowing to outside pressures, a position unlikely to yield at the negotiating tables at COP28.Continue Reading
BANGKOK: Luscious greens, egg-yolk yellows and delicate oranges flickered across waterways in the Thai capital Bangkok, as virtual projections of the Loy Krathong festival’s traditional offerings reduced waste at the popular event. The annual festival, celebrated on Monday (Nov 27), sees millions ask forgiveness from the river goddess Khongkha byContinue Reading
The Silkyara tunnel is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s infrastructure project aimed at cutting travel times between some of the most popular Hindu temples in the country. The 4.5km passage is meant to connect Uttarkashi and Yamunotri, two of the holiest sites. For Modi, leader of the Hindu-nationalist BharatiyaContinue Reading
NHAI officials along with others from the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation will inspect ongoing tunnel projects and submit a report in seven days, it added. These would include 12 tunnels in the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh, six in the Jammu and Kashmir region, and the rest in other statesContinue Reading
On Sunday, Delhi’s Environment Minister Gopal Rai told reporters that construction work on public infrastructure projects could resume, although with curbs on activities that blow dust through the air. Those remarks followed Saturday’s revocation of emergency measures ordered on Nov 5 to keep air quality from worsening, including a banContinue Reading
SAN FRANCISCO: The United States on Thursday (Nov 16) signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with the Philippines, clearing a path for US investment to jump-start atomic power in a country racing to expand its electricity supply. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, who has become a close US ally in his moreContinue Reading
HANOI: The ancient Vietnamese city of Hue, a world heritage site popular with tourists, was underwater on Wednesday (Nov 15) after heavy rain flooded thousands of homes and blocked highways. Pictures on state media showed residents navigating flooded streets in boats, while homes and cars were partially submerged. “The cityContinue Reading
NEW DELHI: On Wednesday, November 8, the capital of India, New Delhi, closed all schools for an extended period in response to dangerous heat excellent levels. This was the most recent step in a long line of defenses against rising air pollution. Although it was not as awful as theContinue Reading
KUALA LUMPUR: According to Malaysia’s environment ministry, a proposed bill to stop transborder cloud pollutants will not be implemented because it will be difficult to gather the data required for legal action. In Indonesia, smoke from fires to clear land for hand oil and pulp and paper crops blankets muchContinue Reading