BRASILIA: President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva departed Brazil on Tuesday (Apr 11) for an official visit to China, where he aims to convince President Xi Jinping to form a group of nations to mediate an end to Russia’s war with Ukraine. Lula’s visit, postponed from March for health reasons,Continue Reading
SHOW OF FORCE, MODERATED Beijing on Monday completed three days of military exercises said to simulate sealing Taiwan, a self-governing democracy it considers part of its territory. The show of force came after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen met in California with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who is second in lineContinue Reading
WASHINGTON: Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Vietnam later this week in the latest bid to build relations with a growing US partner as tensions flare with China over Taiwan, the State Department said on Monday (Apr 10). Blinken will visit Hanoi on his way to a Group of Seven foreignContinue Reading
BRUSSELS: The European Union expressed concern on Monday (Apr 10) over Chinese military drills around Taiwan, saying the island’s status should not be changed by force as any escalation, accident or use of force there would have huge global implications. China’s military carried out aerial and naval blockade drills aroundContinue Reading
NEAR BAKHMUT, Ukraine: Ukrainian and Russian forces battled in Bakhmut, the devastated eastern city which has become a symbol of Kyiv’s defiance, while seven civilians were reported killed by Ukrainian artillery strikes in Russian-controlled areas. Ukrainian soldiers in trenches just outside Bakhmut said they were ready for a long-anticipated counter-offensiveContinue Reading
President Joe Biden’s administration on Thursday (Apr 6) released a summary of after-action reports on the US’ chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan that laid blame on his predecessor Donald Trump, saying “there were no signs that more time, more funds or more Americans” could have fundamentally changed the trajectory. The 12-pageContinue Reading
WITHDRAWAL POSTPONED The 20-year war in Afghanistan, the longest conflict involving US troops, was started under President George W Bush and furthered under President Barack Obama. Over 100,000 people were killed and about 3 million displaced, according to data from the nonpartisan Costs of War project at Brown University. BidenContinue Reading
Visiting French President Emmanuel Macron says he is counting on Xi Jinping to “bring Russia to its senses and everyone to the negotiating table”.Continue Reading
Tsai “listened to a briefing on the overall regional situation”, her office said in a statement. “The president asked relevant units to continue to grasp the surrounding situation, and to enable the visiting delegation to continue to grasp the situation in real-time,” it added, referring to keeping Tsai and herContinue Reading
US President Joe Biden’s administration said on Monday (Apr 3) it could not confirm reports that China was able to collect real-time data from a spy balloon as it flew over sensitive military sites earlier this year, saying analysis was still ongoing. NBC News on Monday reported that the ChineseContinue Reading