Beijing also targets relatives of US House speaker as major military activity continues around Taiwan
China’s government has announced sanctions against the US House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, for “vicious and provocative actions” in going to Taiwan, as large-scale military activity around the island continues.
The sanctions, which also target Pelosi’s direct relatives, were reported by state media on Friday afternoon.
Continue reading...Fumio Kishida welcomes Nancy Pelosi in Tokyo and urges Beijing to halt planned four days of military exercises sparked by US House speaker’s visit
Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, has condemned Chinese military drills near Taiwan as a “grave problem” and a threat to regional peace and security, after five ballistic missiles landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Speaking after a meeting with the US House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, in Tokyo on Friday, Kishida said China’s live-fire exercises near the self-governed island must “stop immediately”. Beijing announced four days of drills that are expected to finish on Sunday.
Continue reading...Taipei accuses Beijing of imitating North Korea after firing missiles across part of island and disrupting flights and shipping
China raised tensions across Asia on Thursday after launching huge military exercises in the air and seas around Taiwan, including firing ballistic missiles close to the island some of which landed in Japanese waters. The brazen show of force disrupted one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes and diverted hundreds of flights.
The exercises, which included rockets, attack helicopters and gunships, were arranged in reaction to a defiant visit to the island by the US House speaker, Nancy Pelosi. Beijing claims Taiwan as its own and has threatened to take it by force.
Continue reading...Veteran diver struck by ‘intricate detail’ sent footage to be uploaded to Jellyfish app
A diver has captured footage of an unusual-looking jellyfish off the coast of Papua New Guinea, sparking interest among researchers.
The video was captured by Dorian Borcherds, who owns Scuba Ventures in Kavieng, in the New Ireland province of PNG.
Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning
Continue reading...Yoon will not meet US House speaker in move critics say aims to avoid antagonising China as tensions in the Taiwan strait simmer
South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk-yeol, has been accused of trying to placate China by avoiding Nancy Pelosi, a day after she became the most senior US official to visit Taiwan for a quarter of a century and sparked a furious response from Beijing.
Yoon, a conservative who took office in May, will reportedly speak to Pelosi on the phone but will not meet her in person during her visit to Seoul on Thursday, South Korean media said.
Continue reading...The president of Paraguay has offered solidarity to Taiwan. The South American nation is one of just 14 nations formally recognising Taiwan as a country.
“Paraguay expresses its solidarity with the Republic of China (Taiwan) in the context of the threats it has been subjected to,” Mario Abdo Benítez said on Twitter.
Continue reading...As global demand for monkeypox vaccine surges, health officials say they are stuck in the queue and don’t know when jabs will be available
New Zealand health officials have revealed they are stuck in the queue to order monkeypox vaccine and are unsure when it will arrive.
Monkeypox cases continue to rise globally – more than 23,000 people in at least 75 countries have caught the virus. New Zealand confirmed a third case this week.
Continue reading...Island accuses Beijing of planning to breach sovereign territory in wake of controversial visit by Nancy Pelosi
China is to begin a series of unprecedented live-fire drills that would effectively blockade the island of Taiwan, just hours after the departure of US House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, whose controversial visit this week has sparked fears of a crisis in the Taiwan strait.
Taiwan has characterised the drills, which will last until Sunday afternoon – and will include missile tests and other “military operations” as close as nine miles to Taiwan’s coastline – as a violation of international law.
Continue reading...UK foreign secretary calls US House speaker’s trip ‘perfectly reasonable’ and urges China to de-escalate
Liz Truss has criticised China’s “inflammatory” response to a senior US politician visiting Taiwan and called for a de-escalation ahead of military drills expected over the coming days.
Hours after the US House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, ended a historic trip to the island about 100 miles east of China, the UK foreign secretary said her meetings with human rights activists and others were “perfectly reasonable”.
Continue reading...South Korea calls for dialogue and Japan conveys concerns over drills, while North Korea praises China
The historic visit to Taiwan of the US House of Representatives speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has provoked a furious response from China, and heightened fears of a crisis in the Taiwan strait. In Asia and beyond, the visit has put governments on edge.
Continue reading...Defence review to be announced
The government is announcing a defence force review today, which it wants completed in about six months. Is this in response to China?
It’s because we need an ADF that is well-positioned to meet our security challenges over the next decade and beyond.
And we have inherited, as you all know, some real capability issues, some of which have been well publicised in the media. It is important that we look at how we ensure the Australian defence force can meet our security challenges, not just now, but in the years ahead. So, you know, I welcomed this and the prime minister and the defence minister will be having – we’ll have more details about this later today.
Continue reading...All stories are to be approved by the government before broadcast on the SIBC, prompting grave concerns about press freedom
The Solomon Islands’ government has prompted outrage by ordering the censorship of the national broadcaster, forbidding it from publishing material critical of the government, which will vet all stories before broadcast.
On Monday the government announced that the Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation (SIBC), a public service broadcaster established in 1976 by an act of parliament, would be brought under government control.
Continue reading...US House speaker leaves island as China orders live-fire drills off coast
The US House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has said Beijing cannot prevent world leaders from travelling to Taiwan, as she departed from the island on Wednesday to continue her tour of Asia.
In a newly released statement that summarised her trip, Pelosi expressed her admiration for Taiwan’s democracy and criticised China’s ruling Communist party for obstructing Taiwan on the world stage.
Continue reading...Hyperbolic tenor of debate shows lack of knowledge of country’s unique political situation, Taiwanese Americans say
Nancy Pelosi’s arrival in Taiwan has inflamed US-China relations anew, with China’s military announcing it will conduct live-fire exercises around the island and state media condemning the visit as “stupid, reckless and dangerous”. Meanwhile, US commentators across the ideological spectrum, from Thomas Friedman to Tucker Carlson to Code Pink, have called Pelosi’s trip a reckless provocation to war.
But to Taiwanese Americans who have spent a lifetime grappling with the island’s strange geopolitical status, the hyperbolic tenor of the debate over Pelosi’s visit is indicative of how little most Americans know or care about the people of Taiwan.
Continue reading...Property prices in New Zealand skyrocketed during the pandemic, but have fallen 2.5% in the last quarter
House prices in New Zealand are experiencing the fastest drop in value since the global financial crisis, but many first homebuyers remain locked out of home ownership due to an inflated market, the cost of living crisis and rising interest rates.
New Zealand has been plagued by a runaway housing market for years. Wellington and Auckland are among the least affordable property markets in the world, and homeownership rates have been falling since the early 1990s across all age brackets, but especially for people in their 20s and 30s. The average house price nationally is now more than NZ$1m.
Continue reading...Stoic, often fatalistic population paid little attention to talk of House speaker’s visit – until it was confirmed
At a central Taipei branch of a popular bank on Tuesday, a few clients came to Joseph Chiu, a teller, with an odd request: to withdraw millions of kuai from their accounts. “They worry the bank will close its doors tomorrow,” he said during an afternoon streetside smoke break.
Chiu said he wasn’t worried about such an event, and there is no indication that it is even a possibility, but it was a small sign that among Taiwan’s stoic, often fatalistic population, something had shifted this week.
Continue reading...Analysis: House speaker’s arrival is likely to inflame relations between the US and China without making Taiwan safer
In the era of US-China geopolitical competition, Joe Biden has been keen to ensure great power politics do not lead to uncontrollable escalation. Yet the trip to Taiwan by Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House of Representatives, is threatening to break what administration officials call “guardrails”. She is the highest-ranking member of Congress to visit the island since 1997.
The move, which is a welcome and a bold assertion of democratic principle to Pelosi’s supporters, has certainly rattled Beijing in a politically sensitive year for China’s ruling Communist party. Xi Jinping is expected to be anointed for an extraordinary third term in the party’s five-yearly congress in the next few months. It also comes as the People’s Liberation Army is celebrating the 95th anniversary of its founding.
Continue reading...People’s Liberation Army announces targeted military operations as it calls visit a ‘malicious provocation’
Nancy Pelosi has landed in Taiwan for a controversial visit to the self-ruled island, offering “unwavering commitment” to supporting its democracy as already heightened tensions with China escalate.
Timed with her arrival, China’s ministry of defence said the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had been put on “high alert” and announced a series of targeted military operations, including missile tests in the waters east of Taiwan and drills encircling the main island for four days after Pelosi leaves.
Continue reading...National security council says speaker has ‘right to visit’ after China warns its military would ‘not sit idly by’
The US national security council (NSC) has insisted that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “has the right to visit Taiwan”, amid reports that she will be landing on the island on Tuesday – a move that China has vowed to respond to forcefully.
Speaking at a press conference in Washington on Monday, NSC spokesman John Kirby said Pelosi has visited Taiwan before “without any incident”.
Continue reading...Some in space industry bewildered by Australia’s lack of fanfare about the launch of the satellites, which will be used to collect intelligence for allied nations
A second spy satellite built by Australia and the United States is scheduled for liftoff on Tuesday from a launch site in New Zealand.
The first of the two satellites, which will be used to collect intelligence for the allied nations, launched two weeks ago.
Continue reading...