Ohtani interpreter charged with stealing over m from baseball star

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Shohei Ohtani answers questions and Ippei Mizuhara translates during the Los Angeles Dodgers Press Conference.Getty Images
By Max Matza
BBC News

US officials have charged football experience Shohei Ohtani’s longer- time speaker, Ippei Mizuhara, with stealing millions from the sports celebrity.

The result attorney in California claimed that Mr. Mizhuara had fabricated Mr. Ohtani to make money in casinos.

At a news conference in Los Angeles on Thursday, US Attorney Martin Estrada stated to investigators that” Mr. Ohtani is regarded as a victim in this case.”

Mr Mizuhara, 39, was fired last month as reports of the reported fraud emerged.

The speaker allegedly placed bets on Mr. Ohtani and deposited his winnings into a controled bill before the prosecution.

Between November 2021 and January 2024, officials said he wired more than$ 16m ( £13m ) in unauthorised transfers from Mr Ohtani’s account.

Mr. Mizuhara “doed all of this to feed his insatiable hunger for unlawful sports gambling,” according to Mr. Estrada.

The charging document alleges that Mr Mizuhara, who acted as Mr Ohtani’s de facto director, took advantage of the fact that the Chinese sports celebrity does not talk English.

According to the report, he claimed to have called banks officials and “falsely identified himself as]Mr. Ohtani to deceive employees into allowing wire transfers from]Mr. Ohtani’s bank accounts to members of the illegal gambling operation.”

From January to March 2024, Mr Mizuhara also allegedly purchased$ 325, 000 in baseball cards using money taken from Mr Ohtani’s account.

On Thursday, an LA-based defense attorney representing Mr. Mizuhara declined to comment on the allegations.

Last month, Mr. Ohtani sat for an appointment with the prosecution and denied giving the interpreter any financial information.

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” ]Mr] Ohtani provided his cellphone to law enforcement, who determined that there was no evidence to suggest that]Mr] Ohtani was aware of, or involved in ,]Mr] Mizuhara’s illegitimate gambling action or repayment of those bills”, according to the lawyer’s speech.

Federal jail sentenced to 30 years in prison for bank scam. According to The New York Times, he is negotiating with the prosecution to plead guilty.

Sports betting is permitted in 38 American claims, but it is still prohibited in California.

Major League Baseball has its own legislation that bans “any person, judge, or Club or League standard or staff” from betting on football games and placing bets with unlawful bookmakers.

Mr. Estrada stated to the media on Thursday that there was no evidence to support the claim that Mr. Mizuhara had staked out any football game.

Ohtani signed a document 10- season,$ 700m deal with the Dodgers before this year, becoming the face of the activities company. He had only received his second majority MVP award from the American League.

His stay in the US started in 2018, and Mr Mizuhara had been a constant partner. He and his wife were just seen in a photo that revealed Mr Ohtani’s family, Mamiko Tanaka, after months of speculation.

At a press conference for the LA Dodgers last month, Mr. Ohtani said,” I’m really shocked and saddened that people I trusted has done this.

” Ippei has been stealing funds from my bill and has told lies, “he said, speaking with the help of a unique speaker.

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Global economy now has its own ‘Three-Body Problem’ – Asia Times

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Tokyo — In recent months, Fitch Ratings researchers have been a hectic number, issuing warnings of loan landmines in the two biggest markets.

First, there was the score bank’s decision to drop the US last August, revoking Washington’s desired AAA standing. Its decision to reduce its outlook on China’s payment status is now in the news.

The Chinese yen dropped past 152 to the dollar, the lowest level in 34 times, on the same day Fitch warned about Beijing’s “more uncertain financial leads amid a shift from property-reliant progress to what the government sights as a more sustainable development model.” The currency’s path is upending business interactions outside.

Visit it the world economy’s” Three- Body Problem”. The guide here is Netflix’s fleeing strike alien invasion series. And as 2024 draws near, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the world’s economic system faces a three-troubling business dud.

The outcome is that almost everyone anticipated the year’s start to be much more chaotic for worldwide markets.

As China’s home problems festers and negative pressure spooks investors, it’s unquestionably that its challenges have garnered the highest viewing ratings. The US property market has cooled off from its peak in 2021 until January. However, worries that the biggest economy in Asia’s will experience disappointing growth are controlling decisions in trading pits all over.

Following a similar downgrade by Moody’s Investors Service in December, Fitch’s announcement lowers the outlook on China’s credit rating from firm to bad. Moody’s at the time identified risks that were related to” structurally and consistently lower medium-term economical growth” and the ongoing turbulence in the property market.

Fitch claims that its action “reflects growing risks to China’s public financing outlook as the nation contends with more questionable economic prospects as the country transitions from a property-reliant growth model to what the government views as a more lasting growth model.”

China’s expansion model is in a state of flux as President Xi Jinping’s group works to adjust vehicles. Xi’s press to produce “new quality creative forces” meant to change engines from smokestacks to&nbsp, services&nbsp, and innovation is a work in progress.

According to economist Diana Choyleva of Enodo Economics,” China’s dedication to move up the technologies value chain and to indigenize innovative technology production is not new and is fueled by both financial and geo-political considerations.” ” The latter are probably the more important”.

As the world grows more and more reliant on Chinese technology systems, Choyleva points out that “if China may establish a strong role in superior technologies, especially in terms of worldwide standard-setting, that will give it an economic and geo-political advantage.”

Fitch speculates that the property crisis may lead to China returning to its old-fashioned governmental pump-priming practices, which will cause Beijing’s regional balance sheet to explode.

Global investors are n’t quite sure where all the financial bodies are buried right now, nor do they care if they see one year out because of the lack of transparency surrounding China’s debt problems. The$ 9&nbsp, trillion&nbsp, pile of local government borrowing cars only poses big challenges.

This demonstrates the conflict that China faces between halting fiscal abuses and maintaining rise as close to 5 % as possible.

According to Lynn Song, ING Bank’s chief economist for Greater China, “long-term combination efforts might need to take a back seat to short-term stability issues, and the loan viewpoint may look worse before it looks better.” ” Failing to restore growth and confidence would weaken the ratio of debt to GDP, and it may have a similarly detrimental effect on long-term debt sustainability.”

This year, the US might be a bigger global growth spoiler. A case in point is the recent report that US consumer prices increased by 3.5 % to a 3.5 % annual rate from 3.2 % in February. It marked the&nbsp, hottest inflation&nbsp, gain in the last six months.

A US Federal Reserve rate cut is at the very least off the table for the foreseeable future. ” You can kiss a June interest rate cut goodbye”, says Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at advisory Bankrate.

The inflation-related conflict is exacerbated by Washington’s extreme political squabbling and a US-topping US$ 34 trillion. Since the last budget expired in September, republicans in control of the House of Representatives have n’t yet passed a resolution. There are numerous rumors of a potential government shutdown.

The US House of Representatives has been chaotic by lawmakers like Marjorie Taylor Greene. Photo: BBC

In November, Moody’s cited” continued political polarization” when it downgraded Washington ‘s&nbsp, credit outlook. Given that Moody’s is the only major credit rating AAA for US debt, it is a very significant moment.

According to Moody’s,” continued political polarization within US Congress” “raises the possibility that successive governments wo n’t be able to come together on a fiscal plan to slow the decline in debt affordability.”

In the event that Donald Trump retakes the US presidency following the November 5 election, these hostilities could escalate even further. Trump stoked the Fed by promising to lower interest rates, suggested default on US debt, and launched a trade war with China during his administration’s 2017-2020 tenure. Then he launched an uprising to protest his election loss in 2020.

Economists worry that Trump 2.0 will go even further afield. Already, he’s promising to slap 60 % tariffs on all Chinese goods on top of those he imposed during the Trump 1.0 era. And pledging to revoke “most favored nation” trade status.

” The most frequently asked questions among local investors ]in China ] include implications for China should Donald Trump become the next US president”, says Maggie Wei, economist at Goldman Sachs Group.

Not that current US President&nbsp, Joe Biden&nbsp, has gone easy on China. Along with keeping Trump’s tariffs in place, Biden curtailed China’s access to semiconductors and other vital technologies. He restricted the ability of multinational corporations to make investments in Xi’s economy. As such, Xi might not be happy with either election outcome.

” Whoever wins the 2024 presidential election, whether that’s Biden or Trump, I do n’t think there’ll be a difference in the way the US approaches China — whether it’s US investment, technology transfer or trade”, David Firestein, president of the George H. W. Bush Foundation for US- China Relations, tells Bloomberg.

Regardless of whether Biden or Trump wins, the political climate in the United States will be very similar to what it has been in terms of China for the next eight or nine years. When Biden came in, he essentially not only embraced Trump’s policies, but indeed largely doubled down on them”.

Add in the possibility of the Fed making a policy error. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell signaled he was not in a hurry to cut rates even before this week’s bad news for inflation, with the US unemployment rate still at 4 %.

Jerome Powell, the head of the US Federal Reserve. Image: Xinhua

Last month, Powell said:” We are prepared to maintain the current target range for the federal funds rate for longer if appropriate”. Now, it could be much longer.

According to Ronald Temple, chief market strategist at Lazard,” Three months of surprisingly strong services inflation are difficult to explain away and suggest that demand strength may be sustaining elevated US inflation, which limits the Fed’s ability to ease policy.”

According to Nationwide Mutual’s Economist Kathy Bostjancic, recent data” will undermine Fed officials ‘ confidence that inflation is on a sustainable course back to 2 % and likely delays rate cuts to September at the earliest and could push off rate reductions to next year.”

There’s growing concern, though, that extending the “higher for longer” era for US yields could backfire. Given that most US inflation is caused by supply constraints post-Covid 19, rather than by runaway demand that the Fed can control, that is especially true.

Some people worry that the risk of stress in credit markets is increased by the delay in Fed rate cuts. That could lead to more Silicon Valley Bank-like collapses in medium-sized banks and strains in the commercial property sector.

” In early 2008 Ben Bernanke’s Federal Reserve downplayed at great cost the downside risks to the economy coming from the subprime loan crisis”, says Desmond Lachman, economist at the American Enterprise Institute.

Today, Lachman adds,” Powell’s Fed seems to be making a similar mistake by downplaying the downside risks to the economy from the commercial real estate crisis and the bursting of the&nbsp, Chinese housing&nbsp, and credit market bubble. We must hoped the Fed will soon make a change of course to prevent us from an unnecessary economic downturn.

The Fed’s resistance to ease may make things more difficult for Asian central banks. Fed uncertainty will halt Governor Kazuo Ueda’s next tightening action for the Bank of Japan. This week, the yen dropped to 153.24, the lowest level since June 1990, as a result. &nbsp, Adding to the drama for Tokyo: some economists including former Treasury Secretary&nbsp, Lawrence Summers&nbsp, think the Fed’s next move will be to tighten, not ease.

The yen’s slide is putting People’s Bank of China Governor&nbsp, Pan&nbsp, Gongsheng in a tough spot. The yuan is likely to continue to fall as a result. In the event that Chinese demand declines even further in the coming months, this could impede the PBOC’s ability to reduce rates.

A weakened Chinese exchange rate poses a number of risks. It might make it harder for giant&nbsp, property developers&nbsp, to make payments on offshore debt, exacerbating China Evergrande Group- like default risks. It might waste the progress that Xi’s government has made by internationalizing the currency. In the run-up to a contentious US election, Beijing is already at a loss.

Despite this, the yen’s potential entry into a race to the bottom may make the markets pessimistic. That’s especially true as deflation festers in China, where domestic demand is struggling to increase.

” We think China’s low inflation is a symptom of its growth model built on a high rate of investment”, says economist Zichun Huang at Capital Economics. We anticipate that inflation will remain subdued in the long run in comparison to pre-pandemic norms because reducing investment dependence is still far off.

All global investors can do is hope their respective policymakers get things right as these three economic bodies, the US, China, and Japan, tend their wounds. A problem, indeed.

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Beware of scams involving fixed deposit ‘promotions’; at least S0,000 lost since January

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Scammers may claim that the records had been created” for them” or that the transactions were intended to “hold the cash prior to the creation of their account” to deter patients from seeking further confirmation.

Individuals may discover that they had been defrauded after opening their bank accounts and checking the system records for themselves. &nbsp,

” In some instances, the cheater may offer an’ detection time ‘ which delays the finding of the scheme”, said the police. &nbsp,

When victims later made a final check with the banks, they would eventually learn that the accounts were the property of someone else.

PHISHING SCAMS

Last year, DBS issued an alert notice alerting customers about spoofing SMSes containing fake promotions. &nbsp,

” These SMSes are scams, and the person on the other end is not a DBS representative”, said the lender. &nbsp,

Scammers may try to trick consumers into depositing money into their bank accounts, the warning warned. &nbsp,

According to DBS, scammers may also ask customers for their online key approval codes and login information in order to steal money or access bank accounts without their consent. &nbsp,

The bank urged its customers to ensure that they use DBS’s standard website or official mobile applications to submit any bank-related inquiries. &nbsp,

In December, 103 victims of phishing scams that involved the impersonating banks through flagged SMSes fell victim to at least &nbsp. Another&nbsp, 219 DBS consumers fell for such schemes in the first two months of 2024, losing about S$ 446, 000 in full.

More details on schemes can be found website or by calling the Anti-Scam Helpline at 1800- 722- 6688. &nbsp,

Call the police line at 1800 255 0000 or send the information online if you have any information about these crimes.

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Truong My Lan: Vietnamese billionaire accused in multi-billion dollar bank fraud

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Truong My Lan, chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Holdings, center, arrives at the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.Getty Images
By Jonathan Head &amp, Thu Bui
In Bangkok

It is the most impressive trial that has ever been held in Vietnam, fitting one of the biggest banks frauds the world has ever witnessed.

A 67-year-old property developer is accused of looting one of Vietnam’s largest businesses over the course of 11 years behind the lovely yellow portico of the colonial-era court in Ho Chi Minh City.

The quantities involved are dizzying. Trueong My Lan is accused of obtaining$ 44 billion ( £35 billion ) in loans from the Saigon Commercial Bank. Prosecutors say$ 27bn may never be recovered.

The frequently mysterious socialist authorities have covered this situation in great detail for the media, which is unusual. They say they have summoned 2, 700 citizens to speak. There are 10 condition prosecutors and around 200 doctors involved.

The information is contained in 104 boxes, each weighing six tons in total. Truong My Lan, who denies the allegations, is on trial with 88 accused. She and 13 people face a probable death sentence.

” There has never been a present test like this, I think, in the communist era”, says David Brown, a retired US State Department official with lengthy experience in Vietnam. ” There has truly been nothing on this level.”

The trial marks the Communist Party Secretary-General Nguyen Phu Trong’s most spectacular book so far in the” Blazing Furnaces” anti-corruption plan.

Nguyen Phu Trong, a liberal thinker steeped in Communist theory, believes that public outcry over wild problem poses an existential risk to the Communist Party’s stranglehold on energy. He launched the campaign in earnest in 2016 after outmanoeuvring the then-business prime minister to keep the party’s best position.

Vietnam's Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong speaks to the media after a meeting with US President Joe Biden at the Communist Party of Vietnam Headquarters in Hanoi on September 10, 2023.

Getty Images

Two leaders and two deputy prime ministers were ordered to retire during the campaign, and lots of officials were placed in jail or discipline. Now one of the government’s richest women may join their ranks.

Truong My Lan was born in Ho Chi Minh City, originally Saigon, to a Sino-Vietnamese home. It has long been the industrial engine of the Taiwanese economy, dating properly up to its days as the anti- socialist capital of South Vietnam, with a big, ethnic Chinese community.

She began selling makeup on the side of the market stall with her family before moving into the 1980s as a market stall seller. She then began purchasing land and property after the Communist Party ushered in a period of economic reform, known as the Doi Moi. By the 1990s, she owned a huge collection of hotels and restaurants.

Vietnam’s fast-growing manufacturing industry is best known outside of the country, but most powerful Vietnamese made their money by developing and investing in real estate. As an alternative source string to China, most powerful Vietnamese made their money developing and speculating in real estate.

All property is actually state- owned. It frequently depends on having close ties with state officials for exposure. Corruption escalated as the business grew, and became widespread.

By 2011, Truong My Lan was well-known in Ho Chi Minh City and able to arrange the consolidation of three smaller, cash-strapped lenders into Saigon Commercial Bank, a new company.

Every person is prohibited from holding more than 5 % of the stock in any institution under Asian rules. However, according to prosecutors, Truong My Lan truly owned more than 90 % of Saigon Commercial through lots of shell corporations and proxy who worked for her.

They accuse her of using that authority to appoint her own employees as directors and finally ordering them to review lots of money to the community of shell corporations she controlled.

The sums taken out are astounding. Her loans made up 93 % of all the bank’s lending.

According to prosecutors, over a period of three years from February 2019, she ordered her driver to withdraw 108 trillion Vietnamese dong, more than$ 4bn ( £2.3bn ) in cash from the bank, and store it in her basement.

That little money, even if all of it was in Vietnam’s largest religion coins, did weigh two kilograms.

She is even accused of paying off her debts freely to prevent scrutiny of her money. Previous central bank chief inspector who accepted a$ 5 million pay is one of the people facing charges alongside her.

Truong My Lan, whose weary, unmade-up appearance in court has been in stark contrast to the attractive publicity images people have seen of her in the past, has received common anger over corruption from the size of officially sanctioned attention about the situation.

However, questions are also being raised as to why she was able to continue working on the alleged fraud for so long.

People relax on the bank of Saigon River in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on Sunday, February 25, 2024.

Getty Images

Le Hong Hiep, the director of the Vietnam Studies Programme at the ISEAS- Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, says,” I am puzzled.

” Because it was n’t a secret. Truong My Lan and her Van Thinh Phat group were well known in the market to finance the massive acquisition of real estate in the most exclusive locations by using SCB as their own piggy bank.

It was obvious that she had to obtain the funds somewhere. But then it is such a common practice. This is not just a bank that is used like this. Therefore, it’s possible that the government has lost sight of the situation because there are so many comparable cases on the market.

According to David Brown, powerful individuals who have dominated Ho Chi Minh City’s politics and business for decades protected her. And he notices a bigger factor in play as this trial is being conducted: a bid to reaffirm the authority of the Communist Party over the south’s free-wheeling business culture.

Nguyen Phu Trong and his party allies are attempting to retake control of Saigon, or at least prevent it from fading away.

” Up until 2016 the party in Hanoi pretty much let this Sino-Vietnamese mafia rule the place. They would make the appropriate noises, as local communist leaders are supposed to, but they were also milking the city for a sizable portion of the money that was being made there.

Nguyen Phu Trong, party chief at 79 years old, is in shaky health, and he will almost certainly have to retire at the next Communist Party Congress in 2026, when new leaders will be elected.

He has been one of the party’s longest-serving and most consequential secretary-generals, restoring the party’s conservative wing’s leadership to a level unmatched since the reforms of the 1980s. He clearly does n’t want to take the chance of allowing too much openness to erode the party’s standing in politics.

But he is trapped in a contradiction. Under his leadership, the party has set an ambitious goal that will have a technology and knowledge-based economy by 2045, and to become a rich country status by 2045. This is what is propelling the ever-increasing partnership between the US and China.

However, Vietnam’s faster growth almost always results in more corruption. If you combat corruption too much, you run the risk of suffocating a lot of economic activity. There are already complaints that bureaucracy has slowed down as officials avoid making decisions that could lead to corruption.

” That’s the paradox”, says Le Hong Hiep. Their growth strategy has relied on dishonest practices for so long. The grease that kept the machinery running was caused by corruption. If they stop the grease, things may not work any more”.

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Thailand braces for exodus

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Govt may get 100k Myanmar immigrants

Thailand braces for exodus
Parnpree: ‘ Border stays open for then’

According to Foreign Affairs Minister Parnpree Bahiddha- Nukara, Thailand is prepared to accept 100, 000 immigrants who are escaping fighting in Myanmar after insurgent makes seized power of Myawaddy, a frontier town opposite Tak’s Mae Sot area.

The government made important procedures, according to Mr. Parnpree, the chief of the army and Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, after a meeting on Tuesday about the Myanmar conflict.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry intends to talk with other nations about requesting help if the number of persons fleeing the fight exceeds 100,000, he said, noting that the organizations concerned have assured us that they can also manage the situation.

After the Myanmar authorities requested permission for Thailand to fly three specific planes from Yangon to Mae Sot from Sunday to Tuesday to leave Myanmar military officers and their people to protected areas, the meeting was held to assess the situation in the neighboring nation.

After seeing a 30 % decline in activity in Mae Sot district, Mr. Parnpree said the meeting also covered the border trade situation.

He stated that although the Thai-Myanmar border is available, routes will be moved to another border provinces, such as Ranong, if fighting causes disruption to the movement of goods.

According to the foreign minister, Mr Srettha has also ordered the establishment of a committee, with himself as chair, comprising representatives from the National Security Council ( NSC), the Foreign Affairs Ministry, and security agencies.

He added that a committee will also be established to routinely review the situation in order to quickly address pressing issues with the key committee. He cited the Thai consulate in Yangon as evidence that there are no violent studies in Myawaddy at the moment.

Following a request made through the Thai government’s official in Thailand, Mr. Parnpree resisted the government’s demand for humanitarian reasons to allow a Myanmar airplane to get in Mae Sot area.

According to some media reports, he continued, claiming that the demand was for the transportation of citizens and documents from status bank branches in Myawaddy rather than military personnel or cash assets.

The NSC reviewed the unique flight request, and the prime minister was informed of the situation, he continued.

The Myanmar Economic Bank in Myawaddy and other private institutions in the city were officially used to transfer money back to Yangon on the Sunday trip from Mae Sot to Yangon, according to the Karen Information Center.

The Myanmar government canceled the remaining flights to Mae Sot originally scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, according to Thanawat Sirikul, deputy spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Monday.

When asked about potential peace talks in Myanmar, Mr. Parnpree stated that Thailand would do everything in its power to encourage dialogue regardless of the difficulties.

Mr Srettha posted on X on Tuesday &nbsp, that the situation in Myanmar is very important to Thailand. The government’s policy toward Myanmar is to promote peace and stability in the neighboring country for the benefit of the two countries ‘ citizens.

He added that Thailand will also provide humanitarian aid to those who are affected by the conflict, reduce potential harm to the nation, and establish a working committee to ensure that these measures are carried out effectively.

Since November last year, Chanin Songmek, chairman of the Tak Chamber of Commerce, has been affected by the fighting in Myanmar, with many operators being forced to use secondary routes with smaller vehicles.

He stated that Ranong, which adds costs to operators, requires that products like fresh goods be transported to Myanmar. He stated that the neighboring nation’s situation is still erratic and that he hopes it will improve as soon as possible to prevent harming border trade.

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Thailand braces for refugee influx

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Govt did get 100, 000 Myanma fleeing conflict

Thailand braces for refugee influx
Parnpree: ‘ Border stays available for today’

According to Foreign Affairs Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, Thailand is willing to accept 100, 000 immigrants who are escaping fighting in Myanmar’s frontier town of Myawaddy, which is directly contrary Tak’s Mae Sot area.

According to the commander of the military forces and the infantry captain, Mr Parnpree, who spoke after a meeting on Tuesday about the Myanmar circumstance between Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and the army commander, Mr. Parnpree, the government had made necessary preparations to handle an influx of refugees in protected areas periodically.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry strategies to hold discussions with other nations to ask for help if the number of people fleeing the fight exceeds 100, 000, he said, noting that the organizations concerned have assured us that they can also manage the situation.

After the Myanmar authorities requested permission for Thailand to fly three specific planes from Yangon to Mae Sot from Sunday to Tuesday to leave Myanmar military officers and their people to protected areas, the meeting was held to assess the situation in the neighboring nation.

Following a 30 % decline in Mae Sot district activity, Mr. Parnpree stated that the meeting also covered the border trade situation.

He stated that although the Thai-Myanmar border is open, routes will be moved to other border provinces, like Ranong, if fighting disrupts the movement of goods.

According to the foreign minister, Mr Srettha has also ordered the establishment of a committee, with himself as chair, comprising representatives from the National Security Council ( NSC), the Foreign Affairs Ministry, and security agencies.

He added that a subcommittee will be established to regularly review the situation so that crucial issues can be addressed to the central committee quickly. He cited the Thai Embassy in Yangon as a source of conflict.

Following a request made through the Thai government’s embassy in Thailand, Mr. Parnpree resisted the government’s request for humanitarian reasons to allow a Myanmar aircraft to land in Mae Sot district.

According to some media reports, he continued, the request was for the transportation of civilians and documents, not military personnel, weapons or cash assets from state bank branches in Myawaddy.

The NSC reviewed the special flight request, and the prime minister was kept informed of the situation, he continued.

The Myanmar Economic Bank in Myawaddy and other private banks in the town were reportedly used to transport money from Mae Sot to Yangon back to Yangon, according to the Karen Information Center.

The Myanmar government canceled the remaining flights to Mae Sot originally scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, according to Thanawat Sirikul, deputy spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Monday.

When asked about potential peace talks in Myanmar, Mr. Parnpree stated that Thailand would make every effort to promote dialogue regardless of the difficulties.

Mr Srettha posted on X on Tuesday &nbsp, that the situation in Myanmar is very important to Thailand. The government’s policy toward Myanmar is to promote peace and stability for the benefit of the neighboring countries ‘ citizens.

He added that Thailand will also provide humanitarian aid to those in need of it, reduce potential harm to the nation, and establish a working committee to ensure that these measures are effectively implemented.

Since November last year, the fighting in Myanmar has had an impact on the movement of goods between Mae Sot and Yangon, according to Chanin Songmek, chairman of the Tak Chamber of Commerce. Many operators have been forced to use secondary routes with smaller vehicles.

He claimed that Ranong, which adds costs to operators, requires the transportation of goods like fresh goods to Myanmar. He stated that the neighboring nation’s situation is still erratic and that he hopes it will improve as soon as possible to prevent harming border trade.

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US pushes ASML to deny maintenance in China – Asia Times

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According to reports, the French government has started stifling the release of certificates for ASML to maintain a number of imaging devices in China.

According to a Reuters report, US Undersecretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, Alan Estavez, may meet with Dutch authorities and ASML managers on Monday to discuss the issue of the leasing agreement. &nbsp,

Additionally, according to the report, the Biden administration may request that ASML stop selling products to a new record of Taiwanese chip-making factories.

Washington has been pressing the French government to impose a cap on the repair service that ASML provides to Chinese clients since last year. &nbsp,

According to Reuters ‘ report, the Netherlands will be slower to approve Taiwanese repair requests in the future and be quick to reject them. This is in line with current public statements made by Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s management.

Some Chinese experts predicted that if ASML truly stops making lithography machines in China, that equipment would be ineffective once it had a minor issue. They claimed that Taiwanese device manufacturers would have to send the equipment back to ASML or sell them abroad, which would make a condition that the French government and ASML do not want to see. &nbsp,

Does the lithography machines in China turn out to be garbage one day if ASML cuts its preservation services? According to a Sichuan-based technology writer using the pen name” Tiaotiao,” points” seem to have not reached this level” as of yet because the Netherlands does not fulfill the United States ‘ demand. &nbsp,

” Many state-owned chipmakers have already stated that they will send the printing technology back to ASML for a refund if the US device export ban comes into effect,” he says.

In an extraordinary situation, if China has to take all the existing 1, 500 printing and screening systems in the country up to the Netherlands, ASML may not be able to pay the costs, he says. He claims that this is why the Netherlands is unwilling to meet the demand from the United States.

Other commentators claimed that if ASML stops fixing some equipment in China, it should only affect a few advanced deep-UV ( DUV) lithography machines rather than lots of expensive ones. &nbsp,

From January 1 this year, the Dutch government stopped granting licenses for the shipment to China of ASML’s most advanced DUV immersion lithography systems ( NXT: 2000i, NXT: 2050i and NXT: 2100i and subsequent systems ). &nbsp,

There were fewer than five ASML networks in China, according to a report from Caijing.com in November, making NXT: 2000i the most advanced. The statement said the overall number of units of the NXT: 1980Di, which is not content to the US export restrictions, may be below 80 in China.

Estevez stated to Reuters that the US is requesting allies to prevent private companies from providing Chinese customers with specific chip-making tools during an trade control conference on March 27.

He said,” We are working with our allies to determine what is important to service and what is not important to service,” implying that the US wo n’t target the non-core components that Chinese companies can repair themselves. &nbsp,

The US is overstretching the definition of national security, according to the Chinese Embassy in Washington, and is using reasons to compel different nations into joining its modern siege against China.

China- Russia knot

The two most significant issues in the conferences between US and Chinese officials are now Beijing’s call for lifting the US’s request to boycott the export of Chinese products and Washington’s request to stop China from providing them with Russian products. &nbsp, &nbsp,

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held a press conference on Monday following a meet with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and Premier Li Qiang in Beijing on Sunday.

Yellen claimed that her Chinese rivals and she had contentious exchanges about regional stability. &nbsp,

” President Biden and I are determined to do everything that we can to stop the flow of materials that is supporting Russia’s defense-industrial base and assisting it in fighting Ukraine,” she said. ” We continue to be concerned about the position that any organizations, including those in the People’s Republic of China, are playing in Russia’s military purchasing”.

She said Chinese companies may not give material assistance for Russia’s warfare, or they will face major consequences. She added that any banks that facilitate important transactions that tether military or dual-use products to Russia’s defense-industrial base run the risk of US sanctions.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told US President Joe Biden that if China continues to thwart China’s commerce and technology development and adds more and more Chinese companies to its list of countries ‘ sanctions, in a two-hour phone contact on April 2.

Biden raised questions about China’s influence on European and transatlantic safety as well as its help for Russia’s defense-industrial center.

According to reports in the media, Chinese companies have shipped large trucks, dual-use items, and digital components to Russia for use in the Ukraine war. They claimed that China may have also provided Moscow with spatial information. &nbsp,

Rutte’s taste

Rutte is alleged to have not yet decided whether his federal may exert pressure on ASML to reduce its maintenance costs in China. &nbsp, &nbsp,

Xi told Rutte that the Netherlands should provide Taiwanese businesses with a fair and clear organization setting at a meeting in Beijing on March 27. &nbsp,

Rutte asserted that the French government will minimize business disruption. However, he added that the Netherlands are most concerned about their national surveillance as a result of China’s support for Russia and that it is also a major obstacle to Sino-Dutch relationships.

Rutte is a leading candidate to be NATO’s next secretary standard.

” China regulates the import of twin- apply articles in accordance with laws and regulations”, Mao Ning, a director of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said in a standard media presentation on Monday. Respective nations should not insult or denigrate the normal relations between China and Russia, and they should not violate the rights and freedoms of China and Chinese businesses.

Read: Xi tells Biden not to curb China’s tech sector

Follow Jeff Pao on Twitter at&nbsp, @jeffpao3

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Why Yellen’s reflation pleas fall flat in Beijing – Asia Times

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The People’s Bank of China is giving a total new meaning to “monetary knowledge”. Asia’s biggest economy’s central bank is devising a program to provide as much as 500 billion yuan ( US$ 69 billion ) to support innovation in science and technology.

It’s a “relending” system, meaning that the&nbsp, PBOC&nbsp, may extend funds to choose institutions that lend&nbsp, money to qualified sectors in need of financial support. The Communist Party’s presentation of the business on April 7 during US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s attend to Beijing demonstrates why Washington’s hope for significant reflationary stimulus seem implausible to materialize.

China’s 2024 plan combination is inspiring a lively debate among global economics. Some think that the PBOC should use yuan to prevent deflation and study from Japan’s errors from the 1990s. Others believe that fundamental reforms are much more essential to address China’s property crisis, stabilize the economy, and reduce the number of youth unemployment records.

However, President Xi Jinping’s team appears to be in favor of a second strategy: hyper-targeted liquidity infusions, efforts to change growth engines to tech-driven future industries that promote disruption and productivity, and a strategy that is specifically targeted at the areas where the PBOC’s liquidity might be most influential in boosting China’s upmarketness.

New hints from the group led by Governor&nbsp, Pan&nbsp, Gongsheng suggest the PBOC is assuming a key role in driving the supply- side renaissance that Xi and Premier Li Qiang pledged – &nbsp, And that this retooling effort, certainly aged- school blasts of stimulus, is the priority.

Pan Gongsheng ( pictured here as vice governor ) is now the governor of the People’s Bank of China ( PBOC). Photo: Twitter / New Straits Times / Screengrab

To start, the&nbsp, fresh program&nbsp, will channel one- year loans through 21 economic entities, including China Development Bank, Postal Savings Bank of China and various policy banks, state- owned business banks and combined- stock commercial banks. The loans are intended for small and medium-sized technology companies with a 1.75 % interest rate. The money may be re-allocated.

The drive aims to increase support for technology and technology-focused SMEs in both the growth stage and the early stages of development. It will prioritize businesses with the greatest potential to spur China’s transformation, as well as provide funding for a range of equipment renewal projects to promote natural initiatives across sectors.

The PBOC’s minutes from its first-quarter Monetary Policy Committee meeting next week included the hinge. Pan’s group emphasized the need to intensify efforts to implement structural reforms and develop new tools to improve performance in the real economy.

In order to boost demand and support distressed property developers, the meeting highlighted the need to update cover credit policies that are tailored to city-specific needs. In response to China’s economic opening, legislators urged officials to develop a new model for real estate development to lessen boom/bust processes and lessen challenges.

More significantly, officials referred to” mix- continuous adjustment”. That includes addressing longer-term structural issues, and how Pan’s PBOC addresses one of the most contentious topics in contemporary economic technology: whether central banks have a distinct role to play in promoting greater sustainability through increased innovation and productivity.

It’s a sign that Yellen’s hopes that China may accept Washington please- reflate- soon stance is a non- starter. On Saturday, after two days of meetings with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, Yellen said the two had agreed to promote “balanced” economic growth amid US concerns about&nbsp, overcapacity in China’s manufacturing industry.

The effort, Yellen says,” will facilitate a discussion around macroeconomic imbalances, including their connection to overcapacity, and I intend to use the opportunity to advocate for a&nbsp, level playing field&nbsp, for American workers and firms”.

In Guangzhou on Friday, Yellen chided China for pursuing “unfair economic practices, including imposing&nbsp, barriers to access&nbsp, for foreign firms and taking coercive actions against American companies”. She expressed concern that mainland factories could produce more goods than the world’s economy could handle. Vice Premier&nbsp responded by saying that China wants to” create a favorable environment for businesses and deliver benefits to our two countries and our two peoples.”

Yellen made a point of shouting out Deng Xiaoping’s 1992 visit to manufacturing&nbsp, and export powerhouse Guangzhou. Yellen hopes the Xi era will level the playing field for Western companies, marking a significant milestone in China’s transition to a market economy.

According to Yellen,” I firmly believe that this will not only harm these American businesses; it will also benefit China by promoting the improvement of the business climate in this country.” She added that many corporate CEOs worry about” the impacts of China’s shift away from a&nbsp, market approach“.

Yet Yellen’s recent pitch has influenced China to increase its stimulus efforts significantly. And there’s a lost- in- time element to Washington’s latest pleadings.

Change a few numbers, a few dates, and a few names, and Yellen’s remarks will sound similar to those made by Washington in the middle to the late 1990s. It’s not difficult to imagine then-Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin or his successor Lawrence Summers offering Tokyo officials the same counsel.

Japan has been trying to do this for 25 plus years with little success, as Yellen is advocating. The fiscal and monetary floodgates opening up year after year undoubtedly helped to boost the country’s gross domestic product. Tokyo’s only action was to address the signs of the weak demand that contributed to its multi-decade funk, but without bold supply-side reforms.

Japan currently accounts for roughly 260 % of GDP, which is the most of developed nations ‘ debt burden. The&nbsp, Bank of Japan, &nbsp, meanwhile, has kept interest either near zero, or below, since 1999. Six years ago, the BOJ’s balance sheet even topped the size of its US$ 4.7 trillion economy, a first for a Group of Seven economy.

The Bank of Japan. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

All this excess wealth covered the underlying economy’s deepening gaps. It took the onus off government after government to do the needful: cut red tape, internationalize labor markets, catalyze a startup boom, increase productivity and empower women. It lessened the need for corporate CEOs to experiment, change, and take risks.

When the Liberal Democratic Party won back control of the country in 2012, things got worse. With bold plans for a supply-side shakeup like Japan Inc. had never seen before, the LDP did so. Instead, the three governments have since allowed the BOJ to take the lead with more easing measures.

This includes Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government today. Look no further than the BOJ’s refusal to increase interest rates beyond 0.0%- 0.1 % on March 19. So tepid was the BOJ’s “rate hike” that day that the yen is 1.8 % weaker now.

No matter how much Yellen & Co. is receiving from China, Beijing must stay away from this formula for economic mediocrity.

International Monetary Fund head Kristalina Georgieva urged China to prioritize future-oriented industries over smokestacks during a trip to Beijing last month.

” Domestic consumption depends on income growth, which in turn relies on the productivity of capital and labor”, Georgieva explained. ” Reforms such as strengthening the&nbsp, business environment&nbsp, and ensuring a level playing field between private and state- owned enterprises will improve the allocation of capital. Higher labor productivity and higher incomes will be achieved when human capital is invested in: education, life-long training, and reskilling.

Such upgrades, Georgieva stressed, are “particularly important as China seeks to seize the opportunities of the AI ‘ big bang.’ Countries ‘ readiness for the artificial intelligence world is already a problem for today.

This has long been Xi’s plan. Efforts to champion high- tech industries, particularly cutting- edge manufacturing and&nbsp, service sectors, are centerpieces of the party’s” Made in China 2025″ project.

The plan is to lead the global charge on semiconductors, &nbsp, biotechnology, aerospace, renewable energy, self- driving vehicles, artificial intelligence, green infrastructure, logistics and other areas.

It is “absolutely necessary to support the efforts to modernize the industrial system and accelerate the development of new productive forces,” according to Xi’s team’s statement at the National People’s Congress last month.

More recently, Xi’s party unveiled a list&nbsp, of state- owned enterprises and conglomerates that will spearhead this fresh wave of&nbsp, future- oriented sectors&nbsp, that will raise Japan’s economic game. Priority areas include AI, neuroscience, nuclear fusion and quantum computing.

The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission will be in charge of the business. According to Lin Xipeng, an analyst with China Merchants Securities, it has been “given a clear mandate that developing emerging and future industries is a crucial task.” ” While cultivating start- ups and units within their ecosystems, SOEs will also tap external investment and merger opportunities”.

Enhancing the quality of growth rather than just increasing the quantity has always been a top Xi priority. A major priority for moving there is increasing the percentage of GDP driven by technology. According to a recent Bloomberg Economics study, the high-tech sector’s contribution is projected to surpass that of real estate by 2026.

According to economists Chang Shu and Eric Zhu,” the high-tech sector has the potential to become a much more significant source of growth.” Tech is seen driving demand worth nearly 19 % of GDP by 2026, up from 14.3 % last year. Just over 20 % of GDP is driven by the property sector.

The PBOC’s lending program could help hasten the transition, particularly if Xi and Li ensure that this initial&nbsp, 500 billion yuan to support science and technology is just the beginning.

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Thai-Laos QR payments to boost tourism

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National banks vision increase in spending

PUBLISHED: 8 Apr 2024 at 06: 00

Thai-Laos QR payments to boost tourism
The Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge, which crosses the Mekong River, connects Mukdahan territory in Thailand with Savannakhet in Laos. ( Bangkok Post file photo )

After the Bank of Thailand ( BoT ) and the Bank of Lao ( BoL ) announced a new QR payment system to support electronic transactions on Sunday, spending money on both sides of the Thai-Laos border appears to be rising.

On Sunday, Khon Kaen Chamber of Commerce president Khemchat Somjaiwong welcomed the announcement that the BoT and BoL had reached an agreement on the eve of the 11th Asean Finance Ministers ‘ and Central Bank Governors ‘ Meeting in Luang Prabang on April 3.

The cooperation is intended to boost the next quarter’s overall financial health, particularly with the upcoming Songkran and Lao New Year celebrations set to take place in the middle of this fortnight.

” First, Chinese people who travel to Thailand is check the Thai PromptPay QR code on their wireless phones to make purchases in Thailand.” He claimed that the company has been in place since April 3.

Thai citizens may apply their mobile banking apps to purchase goods and services in Laos starting at the end of June in the second phase. The services will increase spending, particularly in Laos ‘ Vientiane and Nong Khai territory in Thailand.

As some Thai people cross Thai-Laos connection bridges to purchase goods, see physicians, attend seminars, or take a relaxing vacation, other provinces like Udon Thani and Khon Kaen did also gain. They wo n’t have to worry about payment, as paying by QR code will be convenient”, he said.

According to BoT, the assistance will boost business, investment, tourism and the use of native assets under the Asean Payment Connectivity program.

Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput, the central bank government, said before the BoT recognised the importance of cross- border genuine- time payment linkage and has collaborated with five Asean countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

” Our sixth link is under the Asean Payment Connectivity effort,” says Lao. We think cross-border QR payment services will be a more secure, cost-effective, and safer alternative to traditional retail payments in Asean, helping to spur regional economic growth and aiding the transition to a modern society.

Bounleua Sinxayvoravong, government of the BoL, said the engagement reflected a shared vision for local integration, economic growth and success. Operators of instant payment systems, including the National ITMX Co and Lao National Payment Network Co ( LAPNet ), are among the participants in the initiative. Cross-border communities are handled by Kasikorn Bank and Banque Pour Le Commerce Exterieur Lao (BCEL). In the second phase, Krungthai Bank and Bank of Ayudhya in Thailand does offer the service for QR settlement in Laos. Six Laos businesses are already signed up.

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Belt & Road: Chinese techno-nationalism in Maldives – Asia Times

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The Maldives ‘&nbsp, current turn toward China and apart from India&nbsp, has boosted Beijing’s lengthy- term push for local control and disrupted New Delhi’s ambition to match Chinese proper competitiveness in the Indo- Pacific.

On&nbsp, March&nbsp, 12, &nbsp, the Island began setting in motion the expulsion of American forces on the island, ordered by President Mohamed Muizzu.

China’s diplomatic ties with the Maldives and China’s strengthening also mean that Beijing is well on its way to become local supervisor.

China’s broad Belt and Road Initiative, launched in 2013, presents Beijing as the Indo- Pacific’s strong power, with the Maldives having been one of the primary countries to visit.

The Sinamalé Bridge in the Island, built by China as part of the Belt and Road system, connects the investment Malé with Hulhumalé and Hulhulé. Photo: Women’s Daily

The&nbsp, Digital Silk Road, a premier task of Belt and Road, epitomizes Beijing’s purpose to lead the development of international communication, led by Chinese technology companies and telecommunications networks.

The Maldives are a key component of the online strategy. The islands ‘ geostrategic site is&nbsp, essential to China’s plan&nbsp, to create a maritime route linking China’s maritime areas to Southeast Asia, the Indo- Pacific, Africa and above. The International Community is exposed to a significant security and espionage risk from the Digital Silk Road, which could allow China to sing king of the castle in one of the world’s most proper locations.

China’s new stirring of discussion, over its usage of&nbsp, maritime patrols near Taiwan as well as a&nbsp, continued standoff&nbsp, with the Philippines, has generated local security issues. Against this backdrop of confrontation, the Maldives remains an ambitious partner of Beijing.

Over a decade ago, when Belt and Road was announced, a subsidiary of Huawei&nbsp, signed an agreement with the Maldives&nbsp, to build technological infrastructure in the archipelago, in a project called” SMART Maldives”.

This enormous initiative is slated for completion on the island of Hulhumalé, a region of the North Malé Atoll. With investment from the&nbsp, China Development Bank, the&nbsp, Maldivian Housing Development Corporation – a state- owned enterprise – is set to bring the smart city to life.

Without massive investment from China’s state banks, in the billions of dollars, the SMART Maldives project would not be possible. While there is little mention of China’s involvement by the Housing Development Corporation, China’s heavy influence in the project cannot be masqueraded. Despite being&nbsp, advertised by the Maldivian government&nbsp, as an eco- friendly and fully sustainable city, Hulhumalé is in its essence another means for China to extend its network of influence across the region and the greater world.

In February, a Chinese research vessel&nbsp, made a stop at a Malé port, &nbsp, raising concerns about China’s potential future use of the Maldives as a waypoint for conducting intelligence- gathering missions in the region. The ship, &nbsp, Xiang Yang Hong 03, spent weeks &nbsp, patrolling waters near India and Sri Lanka as well as the Maldives.

Malé, capital of the Maldives. Photo: US Department of State

In 2021, during a previous voyage, &nbsp, Indonesian authorities claimed&nbsp, the same ship turned its tracking system off multiple times.

On X ( previously Twitter ), the independent, open-source intelligence analyst known as “WLVN” on X ( formerly Twitter ) made a warning on March 6 that China planned to provide the Maldives with maritime surveillance systems. A defense pact signed by Beijing and Malé on March 4 approved sending non-lethal military equipment to the Maldives, despite its difficult to verify this claim.

Collaboration in military exercises and the sharing of bilateral maritime intelligence may be a result of the Maldives ‘ continued use as a Chinese maritime hub along the Digital Silk Road.

For China, the Digital Silk Road offers multifaceted benefits. Through extensive market capture, it is a means of expanding Beijing’s national tech corporations in terms of both influence and revenue.

Companies like Alibaba and Huawei, which already have significant footholds in Southeast and West Asia, have agreements with their host countries for servicing and operation, bringing money into China. With this money, Beijing is able to increase its domestic technological potential.

China will also gain a foothold in an increasingly strategic geopolitical area thanks to its increased connectivity in the Indo-Pacific. Chinese companies are investing in and financing the development of Indo-Pacific information and communications technology, which consists of various types of physical infrastructure, in the name of the Digital Silk Road.

Beijing has participated in the development of artificial intelligence and facial recognition technology, as well as the installation of fiber optic cables and the export of 5G technology to the region.

The&nbsp, Maldives- Sri Lanka Cable, built by&nbsp, HMN Technologies&nbsp, ( formerly Huawei Marine Networks ) cost$ 22 million and&nbsp, uses Hulhumalé&nbsp, as a landing station. HMN has, since 2020, &nbsp, completed 16 undersea cable projects&nbsp, across 27 countries in the Indo- Pacific, valued at$ 1.6 billion total.

Maldives- Sri Lanka Cable. Map: Submarine Cable Networks

Thus, the Maldives is a growing main market for China for fiber-optic communications in the Indian Ocean region. Beijing’s looming presence as overman in the Indo-Pacific is evidenced by China’s dominance in the regional information and communications tech sector.

Meanwhile, the international community has grown wary of China’s potential exploitation, for malicious use, of the data transmitted across the infrastructure it develops. Such a concern has &nbsp, been raised&nbsp, by the United States.

China’s” smart cities” concept, which Beijing has offered to partner countries under Belt and Road, includes the deployment of thousands of CCTV cameras, developed by companies Dahua and Hikvision, both Chinese. According to the&nbsp, Observer Research Foundation, 861 cameras have already been erected in the Maldives.

According to reports that Dahua-produced cameras used in European countries to analyze skin color, there are concerns about cybersecurity and espionage related to China’s use of surveillance cameras. Products from both&nbsp, Dahua&nbsp, and Hikvision have been deployed in China’s Xinjiang region and have been linked to&nbsp, human rights violations. These concerns were exacerbated by China’s capacity to deal with the Maldives ‘ nefarious use.

China’s buildup of technological power across the Indo- Pacific region underscores the pace at which Beijing is participating in a&nbsp, global techno- nationalist race&nbsp, for control over the&nbsp, emerging technology industry.

China wants to supplant Western influence in the world’s information and communication technology market by competing with the United States and aiming to do so as much as possible. Beijing’s” Made in 2025” initiative is emblematic of this desire. China is adamant about having a hand in every region of the world, gaining a foothold in physical ICT infrastructure, and promoting the sale of emerging technologies, which it consider to be of great value in terms of geopolitical influence.

There is no better way for Beijing to accomplish this than to invest in Belt and Road flagship projects while also strengthening diplomatic ties with partner governments and moving ahead in the global competition.

There is no reason to reject China’s ambitious projects for small nations like the Maldives, which are dependent on international economic agreements. One of the many nations that China wants to collaborate with is the Maldives. China’s Belt and Road interest, which has risen in intensity over the past few years and will undoubtedly increase, is the emerging Indo-Pacific market.

The Maldives has emerged as a stronghold for Beijing’s expansion as the world’s leading techno-nationalist power, and Chinese technology is a cornerstone of digital authoritarianism. Even if Beijing is ultimately promoted as a hegemonic leader of the Indian Ocean region, Malé is prepared to engage with China to diversify its economic and political agenda.

Joshua Bowes ( [email protected] ) is a research associate at the Millennium Project’s South Asia Foresight Network ( www. southasiaforesight. org ) in Washington, DC, focusing on South Asian security challenges, political conflict and the confluence of extremism and technology.

This article was first published by Pacific Forum. It is republished with permission.

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