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India is considering imposing restrictions on rice exports in a bid to ensure adequate availability in the domestic market and prevent a rise in prices, sources said.
The price situation of essential commodities, including non-Basmati rice, is being monitored by the country’s highest quarters and prompt action is likely if their prices rise, reports our New Delhi correspondent.
The Indian government has announced that it would limit sugar exports from June 1. On May 24, the country’s directorate-general of foreign trade issued a notification saying the government will allow sugar exports up to 10 million tonnes.
India is the world’s second-largest rice producer after China and exported rice to more than 150 countries in 2021-22.
Officials said export restrictions on five products are being considered. Of them, wheat and sugar have already been covered.
Sources said the ceiling on rice export could be pegged at 10 million tonnes like that on sugar.
The government is concerned over rising inflation, which reached an eight-year high of 7.79 per cent.
India exported $6.115 billion worth of non-Basmati rice in financial year 2022. It was the top forex earner among all agricultural commodities.
India’s non-Basmati rice exports grew 109 per cent from $2.93 billion in FY2013-14 to $6.12 billion in FY2021-22, government data said.
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Prime Minister Hun Sen told UN special envoy on Myanmar Noeleen Heyzer that Cambodia remains committed to assisting this country in finding the solution to ending the crisis and providing humanitarian assistance to those in need as well as spurring dialogue between all parties to the conflict.
Hun Sen spoke with Heyzer on the sidelines of the May 22-26 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, according to Kao Kim Hourn, the minister delegate attached to the prime minister.
“[Hun Sen] emphasised that though the relevant work in Myanmar is important, it is not easy. However, [he] emphasised that Cambodia remains committed to assisting Myanmar, and especially in fulfilling our role as chair of Asean,” he said.
Hun Sen identified three priorities for helping Myanmar. The first is to end the violence through a permanent ceasefire. The second is to provide humanitarian assistance to the people in most need of it, and the third is to spur a constructive dialogue with the participation of all parties concerned.
Heyzer thanked Hun Sen for helping the people of Myanmar and hoped the premier’s comments would be heeded. She said the important thing now is to look for a means to reduce the violence against civilians in Myanmar.
Heyzer also stated that Cambodia’s efforts reflected well on the Kingdom’s ability to lead on important issues, especially the prime minister’s visit to Myanmar and his meetings with Senior General Min Aung Hlaing – chairman of the ruling State Administration Council (SAC).
Back on January 7-8, Hun Sen visited Myanmar to meet with Min Aung Hlaing, who at that time pledged to extend a ceasefire until the end of 2022 and to curb the violence there, but eventually reneged on those promises, with Hun Sen later publicly noting his objection to the resumption of combat operations.
Heyzer told Hun Sen that Min Aung Hlaing had invited her to pay a visit to Myanmar shortly, noting that she plans to go there but wants the premier’s views on the situation before she does.
In late January, Hun Sen met virtually with Min Aung Hlaing a second time and expressed concerns over the violence. He also proposed several actions that the SAC leader could undertake to resolve the crisis. Then in early May, Hun Sen met virtually with the senior general for a third time to discuss the implementation of the Asean five-point consensus.
Yang Kim Eng, president of the People’s Center for Development and Peace, said that if the prime minister’s three basic priorities were implemented, it would do a great deal of good for the people of Myanmar, but it would also be highly dependent on the armed groups agreeing to them.
“Cambodia, as Asean chair, could find ways to make the second and third priorities happen, but first they need to achieve a ceasefire. Once there is a ceasefire, the dialogue and humanitarian assistance will not face such great obstacles. But getting everyone to agree to a ceasefire and then somehow ensuring that it holds may be difficult, so first, they need to think of a scenario that accomplishes that,” he told The Post on May 26.
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In his first foreign policy pronouncement, Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Thursday said he would uphold a 2016 decision by the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) that favoured Manila’s diplomatic protest against Beijing’s sweeping claims in the South China Sea.
“Our sovereignty is sacred and we will not compromise it in any way,” Marcos said at his press briefing with local media a day after he was proclaimed by Congress as the successor of President Duterte.
In 2016, the United Nations-backed PCA invalidated Beijing’s claim to almost the entire South China Sea but the Asian superpower has not recognised the ruling.
Marcos made a bold declaration saying he would not “allow a single millimetre of our maritime coastal rights to be trampled upon”.
“We have a very important ruling in our favour and we will use it to continue to assert our territorial rights. It is not a claim. It is already our territorial right,” he said.
“We’re talking about China and how do we do that? We talk to China consistently with a firm voice,” he added.
“[War] is the last thing we need right now. So we have to continue to discuss with them the conflicting claims that we have with China and that China has with other members of Asean,” he said.
Not a claim but right
In February this year, Marcos said he would seek the help of Southeast Asian nations and the United Nations to resolve territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
He also said he would push for the completion of the code of conduct in the South China Sea between the Asean and Beijing.
Meanwhile, former foreign secretary Albert del Rosario on Thursday lauded Marcos’ remarks that he would uphold the PCA ruling.
“We are deeply thankful that President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr declared what Filipinos would like to hear: that the 2016 arbitral ruling is not a claim but already a right; that our sovereignty is ‘sacred’ and that he would not ‘allow a single millimetre of our maritime coastal rights to be trampled upon’,” said Del Rosario in a statement.
Del Rosario, who led the arbitration team in challenging China’s claim to nearly the entire South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea, in The Hague tribunal, said it was his “fervent hope” that Marcos would abide by his words to protect the West Philippine Sea for the benefit of the Filipinos.
The country’s former top diplomat said that while the war had never been an option for the Philippines, the president has various ways to fulfil his duty to the Filipino people, including elevating the matter to the UN General Assembly and other international fora and consolidating the support of other countries which believe in the arbitral ruling and rule of law.
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K-pop superstars BTS will head to the White House next week to address hate crimes targeting Asians and people of Asian descent with U.S. President Joe Biden, the White House said in a statement on Thursday.
Biden would host the global phenomenon musical group on Tuesday and would “discuss Asian inclusion and representation, and to address anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination which have become more prominent issues in recent years,” it said.
The seven members of the South Korean boy band are known for their upbeat songs and dances and have built a loyal global fan base, winning the IFPI Global Recording Artist of the Year crown in February for the second straight year.
The meeting comes as May’s recognition of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) month comes to a close amid a sharp upswing in hate crimes against Asian Americans in the past year. Attacks against people of Asian descent have escalated as some politicians and pundits have encouraged Americans to blame China for COVID-19, amid other tensions.
Just this month, a man was charged with allegedly shooting three women of Asian descent at a hair salon in Dallas, while another man in California was accused of killing one person and wounding five others in a shooting at a Taiwanese-American church. Authorities are investigating both incidents as potential hate crimes.
The K-pop stars are also known for using their lyrics and social campaigns aimed at empowering youngsters since debuting in 2013.
“Biden and BTS will also discuss the importance of diversity and inclusion and BTS’ platform as youth ambassadors who spread a message of hope and positivity across the world,” the White House said in its statement.
The group’s management Big Hit Music said it was honored to be invited to the White House.
“As we are visiting as artists representing South Korea, we look forward to discussing various topics including inclusion, diversity, anti-Asian hate crimes, culture and art,” Big Hit Music said.
Group leader and rapper RM shared the decision on its online fan platform, Weverse, saying the invitation has a “good cause.”
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Security cooperation between China and the Solomon Islands does not target any third party and China has no intention of building a military base there, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday.
He made the remarks in Honiara, capital of the Pacific Island country, in a news briefing with Solomon Islands’ Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade Jeremiah Manele following their bilateral talks.
When asked about the framework agreement on security cooperation signed between the two countries last month, Wang said it is a cooperation deal by two sovereign countries that aims to assist the Solomon Islands in boosting its law enforcement capabilities.
It will help the country maintain public order while protecting the safety of Chinese citizens and organizations there, Wang said, describing the cooperation as “reasonable, legitimate and lawful”.
Severe unrest broke out in the Solomon Islands in November, putting the lives and property of the people at great risk. China provided multiple shipments of police equipment and sent an ad-hoc police advisory team to the country to conduct training and help its police strengthen capacity-building, which was widely praised by the Solomon Islands government and all sectors of society.
Wang refuted smears against normal China-Solomon Islands security cooperation, saying that any attempt to disrupt such cooperation will not succeed.
The Pacific Island nations are sovereign and independent countries and are not the “backyard” of anyone, Wang said, noting that all of these countries have the right to make their own choices instead of being vassals of other nations.
He said that China never coerced the cooperation agreement and never interfered in the Solomon Islands’ domestic affairs or undermined the interests of other countries.
Such practice does not conform with China’s foreign policy and is not the way that Chinese people deal with things, Wang said, adding that security cooperation between the two countries does not contradict but rather can complement other regional arrangements.
China supports Pacific Island countries to strengthen security cooperation and jointly deal with regional security challenges, he said.
The Solomon Islands is the first leg of Wang’s 10-day tour of the Pacific, which will also bring him to Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste.
Earlier on Thursday, the Acting Governor-General of Solomon Islands, John Patteson Oti, and the country’s Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare, met with Wang.
Chen Xiaochen, executive deputy director of the Centre for Asia Pacific Studies at East China Normal University in Shanghai, said that Wang’s visit to Honiara shows China’s firm support to the Solomon Islands, which had the lowest GDP per capita among Pacific Island countries before it established diplomatic ties with China.
“The China-Solomon Islands cooperation is indicative in that China would help countries with urgent development needs,” he said.
Chen said the root reason that some people in the West view China-Solomon Islands cooperation through a geopolitical lens is because of their outdated “sphere of influence” thinking, which should be rejected.
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The Japanese government and ruling parties plan to begin discussions to boost the country’s defence budget in the next fiscal year and beyond after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told U.S. President Joe Biden that Japan will secure “a substantial increase” in its defence budget.
The majority of ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers have called for a fundamental expansion of the defence budget, but the cautious stance of the LDP’s junior coalition partner Komeito, as well as fiscal constraints, may impede the move.
LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi expressed his support for Kishida’s resolve to increase the defence budget. “It is extremely important to develop a defence system that can respond to the severe security environment,” Motegi said at a press conference on Tuesday.
Japan’s defence budget for the current fiscal year stands at ¥5.4 trillion, or 0.96% of gross domestic product, which is about half of the 2% target that NATO member countries set for themselves.
Calls have been growing within the LDP to raise defence spending following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and North Korea’s repeated ballistic missile launches.
Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is spearheading the discussions on the defence budget increase. He was the first to insist on greater defence expenditures, saying, “We must make efforts to move toward 2%.”
On an internet program on Friday, he said the Self-Defense Forces do not have a sustainable combat capability and that their equipment, ranging from machine gun rounds to SM-3 interceptor missiles, “cannot be said to be sufficient.”
Following Kishida’s remarks on the defence budget increase on Monday, Abe called for an increase of more than ¥1 trillion for next fiscal year, aiming for a budget above ¥6.5 trillion.
Japan’s defence spending has grown by only about ¥700 billion over the past 10 years. As China has become increasingly active in its maritime expansion, the government has instead raised a much smaller budget for the Japan Coast Guard, which is connected to the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry.
Calls have emerged within the Defense Ministry for more ammunition and missiles, and improvement of SDF facilities in addition to the reinforcement of “mainstay defence equipment” such as tanks. “This is a good opportunity to allocate funds to areas that have previously been left behind,” a senior Defense Ministry official said.
However, in order to achieve a target of “2% within five years,” an increase of nearly ¥1 trillion will be needed each year.
Komeito, which calls itself the “party of peace,” is cautious about a large increase in defence spending. “We take the prime minister’s determination seriously,” Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi said at a press conference on Tuesday. However, he also said, “How much of an increase is appropriate is something we will consider during our discussions on defence capabilities.”
How to secure financial resources is another unavoidable issue.
A senior Finance Ministry official said, “It’s fine to increase [defence spending], but in which other areas should we make cuts?” Coordination in boosting defence expenditures may face difficulties as the financial issue could lead to discussions on slashing social security spending, which accounts for one-third of the country’s budget.
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India will continue to allow wheat exports to countries that are in serious need and are friendly and have a letter of credit, Minister for Consumer Affairs and Food and Public Distribution Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum at Davos in Switzerland, he highlighted that while a 7-8 per cent rise in wheat production was expected this year, severe heat wave had led to an early harvest and loss of production.
“Given this situation, what we are producing is about enough for domestic consumption,” Goyal added.
India was never a traditional player in the international wheat market and the export of wheat only began about two years ago.
He noted that last year, 7 million metric tonnes of wheat was exported and the bulk of exports was done in the last two months of the year.
“India’s wheat exports are less than 1 per cent of world trade and our export regulation should not affect global markets. We continue to allow exports to vulnerable countries and neighbours,” the minister said.
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A Chinese company, Jiangsu General Science Technology Co Ltd, is investing nearly $300 million (THB10.2 billion) to build the largest tyre factory in the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone (SSEZ), according to Beijing’s embassy in Phnom Penh.
With a capital investment of about $300 million, the project will be the largest within the special economic zone (SEZ) and is expected to create a total of 1,600 local jobs after construction is complete.
A statement from the Chinese embassy said that the tyre factory project has been “progressing smoothly”.
Chen Jiangang, the CEO of industrial park developer and operator of Sihanoukville Special Economy Zone Co Ltd, which oversees development of the SSEZ, pledged to continue improving the area’s infrastructure to be able to support large-scale enterprises such as the tyre factory to run seamlessly.
He highlighted that a thermal power station is being built in the area, “providing a guarantee for heavy enterprises to be able to set up there”, and added that the first phase of the industrial park is complete, and construction of the city support area and the second phase of the zone is underway.
Chen said that there are currently 170 enterprises set up in the area, which he predicted would provide employment to some 30,000 locals. And “when construction on the SEZ is completed, it is expected that the number of enterprises will increase to 300, creating jobs for 80,000 to 100,000 people”, he said.
Him Aun, head of the General Directorate of Rubber at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, told The Post that with more tyre factories, the demand for natural rubber latex, which is one of Cambodia’s key commodities, will increase.
He said that officials from the department had recently visited a tyre factory in Svay Rieng province to study the potential demand for rubber for processing at such factories, including those to be built in the SSEZ.
The team concluded that the Svay Rieng factory has “high demand” for rubber, Aun said, but had not processed natural rubber from Cambodia, and was completely reliant on imports of the commodity.
“However, we will continue to work together to encourage factories to buy natural rubber from local farmers to expand the market,” he said.
“We hope to explore cooperation with the tyre factory in Sihanoukville to reduce the export of rubber raw materials, and increase the export of finished products.”
Royal Academy of Cambodia economics researcher Hong Vanak called the tyre factory project a “strong and long-term” project that would boost Cambodia’s economic growth.
“Once the company is fully operational, there will definitely be a demand for manpower that will directly help the Cambodian economy,” he said.
The tyre factory to be built by Jiangsu General Science Technology may not be the first in the SSEZ. In January, the Council for the Development of Cambodia announced that it had approved a proposal by General Intelligence (Cambodia) Co Ltd to establish a tyre factory in the SEZ with an investment of $297 million that is also expected to generate 1,600 jobs.
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A China-Myanmar train on the new Chongyun-Lancang-Mandalay route, which departed from Chongyun on May 23, will arrive in Mandalay city on June 6 after a journey of 15 days, the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar said in a statement.
One carriage of the train bound for Myanmar carries 60 containers of machinery, electrical accessories, cars and spare parts.
The train left China via the Lancang border gate in Yunnan province.
The new route will reduce transport time by 20 days, thereby cutting expenditure on commodity flows by 20 per cent, the embassy statement said.
On May 21, a China-Laos train on a new road-waterway route left Chongyun, arriving in Vientiane after four days, the embassy announced.
Meetings at the union and lower levels have taken place to reopen the Chinese-Myanmar border gates by June.
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