Australia and the Philippines said their militaries would conduct a joint maritime activity with Japan, New Zealand and the United States in the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, which covers one of Asia's most sensitive sites. channelnewsasia.com/asia/philippin… "The Maritime Cooperative Activity demonstrates our collective commitment to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific," Australia's Department of Defence said.

My latest: As #China and Russia look to deepen cooperation in the Arctic, analysts cite concern about increasing geopolitical competition in the region, forcing countries to think more about how to respond to potential threats.

voanews.com/a/china-russia… Following a meeting between Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Moscow on August 21, China released an expansive communique outlining ways the two countries are boosting cooperation.

The EU is expected to notify #China that it will impose tariffs on electric vehicle imports this week, firing the starting gun on a potential summer trade war with Beijing. theguardian.com/business/artic… A formal pre-disclosure of tariffs could happen as early as Wednesday, after a lengthy investigation into China’s state subsidies for its car manufacturing, which is predicted to conclude that massive support continues to be concentrated on the EV sector.

My latest: Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun Sunday issued a stern warning on Taiwan and the South China Sea at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. voanews.com/a/china-warns-… During his 40-minute-long keynote speech, Dong accused Taiwan’s government under the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, which favors highlighting Taiwan’s sovereignty, of "pursuing separation [from China] in an incremental way" …

Thread: Following U.S. Secretary of Defense @SecDef's speech at #SDL24, the People's Liberation Army held a presser to hit back against the speech, criticizing Washington's stance on a range of issues including #Taiwan, South China Sea and the Middle East conflict: “The real purpose [of The U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy] is to merge a small circle into the big circle of NATO, that is, an Asia-Pacific version of NATO, to maintain the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy.

My latest: #Taiwan’s opposition-controlled parliament has passed a set of legal amendments granting lawmakers greater investigative power to scrutinize the government under President Lai Ching-te, who took office on May 20. voanews.com/amp/taiwan-s-p… Despite days of protests that have attracted hundreds of thousands of people since May 17, the two opposition parties, the China-friendly Kuomintang, or KMT, and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party, or TPP, …

My latest: Russian President Vladimir Putin concluded his two-day trip to #China Friday after Beijing and Moscow signed a joint statement and vowed to cooperate against “destructive and hostile” pressure from Washington. voanews.com/a/china-and-ru… During meetings between Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the Russian president said Moscow is willing to work with Beijing and other global south countries toward “a multipolar world,” ...

My latest: #HongKong’s adoption of Article 23 Tuesday is being criticized by foreign governments, while some business figures say the law will hasten foreign businesses’ departure from the city.
@benedictrogers @SamuelBickett @laiyanhoeric

voanews.com/a/west-eyes-ne… The United Nations, the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union expressed concern about the ambiguous language in the law and its speedy adoption, which was completed in less than two weeks.

Summary from #China Foreign Minister Wang Yi's Presser: "We insist on a political solution to all hotspot issues. We resolutely oppose all acts of hegemony, and vigorously safeguard national sovereignty, security, development and the common interests of developing countries. We will never stop serving the people through diplomacy, and we will vigorously serve the overall situation of national development and stability."

"Chinese officials arrested more than 100 Tibetan monks and other ethnic Tibetans in China’s southwestern Sichuan province on Thursday to quell protests against a massive dam project that would destroy six Buddhist monasteries ... rfa.org/english/news/t… ... and force the relocation of two villages."

My latest: The international community has praised #Taiwan’s democratic elections in the face of pressure from Beijing. However, some voters share their concerns on a range of issues with me following DPP's historic victory on Saturday.#Taiwanelections2024 independent.co.uk/asia/east-asia… For millions of Taiwanese people, this weekend’s presidential and parliamentary elections were an example of a vibrant democracy despite the ire of Beijing that Lai Ching-te won an unprecedented third term in power for the pro-sovereignty Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

Taiwan issued a national warning about #China launching a satellite which is flying over the sky of southern Taiwan and cautioning citizens to watch for debris falling from the sky. The English translation of missile has been proven wrong by the Defense Ministry. This happened as #Taiwan foreign minister Joseph Wu is holding an international press conference attended by dozens of foreign media outlets.

"#China appointed a new head of its navy, a move that comes amid worsening tensions in the South China Sea." bloomberg.com/news/articles/… Hu Zhongming was promoted to the rank of general at a ceremony in Beijing attended by President Xi Jinping on Monday, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

Taiwan's ruling party will not let war break out with China, but it is #China that is to blame for stirring up tensions, Taipei's former top diplomat in the United States and now frontrunner to become its next vice president, said on Friday. channelnewsasia.com/asia/we-wont-l… In a live televised pre-election policy address by the three vice presidential candidates, Lai's running mate Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan's high-profile former de facto ambassador to the United States, said her opponents had consistently blamed the DPP for tensions in the Taiwan Strait

Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday announced new sanctions against two Chinese officials for “serious human rights abuses” against #Uyghurs in #Xinjiang. rfa.org/english/news/c… The State Department said that Gao Qi, as the leader of the northern Xinjiang Yili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture Public Security Bureau, had facilitated the arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in a mass internment campaign.

Latest on #Taiwan Election: With TPP's Huang scheduled to pick up the presidential registration form for Ko later at 4 p.m., it looks like the KMT and TPP are now talking past each other and kicking the ball back into the other side's court ...

https://twitter.com/WilliamYang120/status/1727200387860693394

... so to avoid becoming the one that officially announces the collapse of the cooperation.

"The number of people fleeing #China to seek asylum in the United States has spiked sharply in recent weeks, with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol reporting more than 4,000 arrests of Chinese nationals in September, a rise of 70% from the previous month." rfa.org/english/news/c… "In the 12 months to September 30, more than 24,000 Chinese nationals have made the arduous and sometimes dangerous overland journey through South and Central America to cross the border from Mexico and apply for political asylum in the United States."

My latest: Tension is rising again in the South China Sea following two collisions Sunday between vessels from the Philippines and #China near the Second Thomas Shoal, a disputed reef situated within Manila’s exclusive economic zone.

voanews.com/a/analysts-chi… Both sides issued strongly worded statements to criticize the other and released videos to support their accusations. On Monday, the Philippines summoned the Chinese ambassador to express its position on the disputed reef.

After a three-hour negotiation, #Taiwan's two main opposition parties, KMT and TPP, failed to reach a consensus on the possibility of joining forces in the upcoming presidential election. The only agreement they reached was to hold a debate for canddiates.cna.com.tw/news/aipl/2023… TPP proposed that the strongest presidential candidate for the opposition parties should be nominated based on opinion polls conducted by five polling companies. Half of the polls will be conducted by landlines and half of the polls will be conducted by cell phones.

Russian President Vladimir Putin heads to #China next week to meet his "dear friend" Xi Jinping, forging even closer ties in a key strategic relationship in which experts say Moscow is increasingly the junior partner.
france24.com/en/live-news/2… This year, trade between the two powers has soared to levels not seen since the beginning of Moscow's war in Ukraine, with Chinese imports of Russian oil offering Moscow a critical lifeline as international sanctions bite.

"A high-profile Chinese television presenter who was in a relationship with the country’s ousted foreign minister had a child last year with the help of a surrogate mother in the US, people familiar with the matter have said." ft.com/content/f73e36… "Fu Xiaotian, 40, was in a relationship with Qin Gang, according to six people close to Fu and China’s foreign policy establishment. She told a close associate about the surrogate pregnancy last year, the person told the Financial Times.