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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/russia-central-asia/40021150

Putin ‘wants to attend’ Bangkok Apec summit but it’s complicated: Don

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin has not confirmed whether he will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit in Bangkok next month, Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai said on Tuesday.

“Putin wants to attend the meeting but he has to consider a lot of things, such as complicated travel arrangements,” Don said.

However, Don doubted other Apec leaders would be deterred from taking part in the summit if Putin does turn up.

Last Tuesday, he said no member country had said it would stay away from the Bangkok meet.

“I insist that every member of Apec will be in attendance, represented either by their leader or delegates,” Don said.

Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai 

He also confirmed that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the newly appointed prime minister of Saudi Arabia, is scheduled to attend the summit as a guest of Apec host Thailand.

Tensions between the United States, an Apec member, and Saudi Arabia flared last week after Washington accused Riyadh of pushing other members of the Opec cartel into cutting oil production by 2 million barrels per day. The move is expected to raise oil prices and increase revenue for Russia, an oil producer, softening the impact of sanctions imposed by the US and other countries over its invasion of Ukraine.

Tensions between Apec members spilled over at May’s meeting in Bangkok when the US and five other member countries staged a walkout protest over the invasion as Russia’s representative got up to speak. The May meeting also ended without the customary joint statement.

Thailand, which holds the Apec chair this year, will be looking to avoid a repeat of such scenes when world leaders arrive for the November 18-19 Apec summit at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre in the heart of Bangkok.

Apart from Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, the leader of the host nation, the following is a tentative list of Apec leaders or their representatives who are scheduled to attend the summit:

1. Russia – President Vladimir Putin

2. China – President Xi Jinping

3. Canada – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

4. Indonesia – President Joko Widodo

5. South Korea – President Yoon Suk-yeol

6. Hong Kong – Chief Executive John Lee

7. Australia – Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

8. Chile – President Gabriel Boric

9. Brunei Darussalam – Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah

10. Malaysia – Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob

11. Mexico – Economy Minister Tatiana Clouthier

12. New Zealand – Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern

13. Papua New Guinea – Prime Minister James Marape

14. Peru – President Pedro Castillo

15. Phillippines – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr

16. US – Vice President Kamala Harris

17. Saudi Arabia – Prime Minister Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (guest of the Thai government)

18. Singapore – Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong

19. Representative of Taiwan President – Morris Chang

20. Vietnam – President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc

21. France – President Emmanuel Macron (guest of the Thai government)

22. Cambodia – Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen (guest of the Thai government)

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asia-pacific/40021136

BMW electric cars to transport delegates attending Apec meetings in Bangkok

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

Up to 100 BMW electric cars from Millennium Group Corporation (Asia) (MGC Asia) will be used to transport delegates attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Bangkok from November 14 to 19.

The fleet will feature 30 black electric sedans “BMW i7 xDrive60 M Sport (First Edition)” imported from Germany, and another 70 BMW X7, BMW 530e M Sport and BMW 330Li electric cars. These cars will be sold once the summit is over.

MGC Asia CEO Sunhavut Thamchuanviriya said he was proud that Thailand’s Foreign Ministry had chosen the company to arrange these vehicles for the Apec delegates.

“We believe that these BMW cars would be the perfect driving experience for Apec delegates along with promoting sustainable development,” he said.

He said the BMW i7 xDrive60 M Sport (first edition) would be delivered to customers at the end of this year, while two other models, “BMW i7 xDrive60 M Sport and “BMW i7 xDrive60 M Sport Gran Lusso”, would be delivered to customers next year.

He added that the hybrid BMW 7 Series (G70), which runs both on diesel and battery, would be assembled in Thailand in the first quarter of next year.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asean/40021138

Hun Sen orders end to Battambang-Pailin boundary dispute

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has given the governors of Battambang and Pailin provinces two weeks to resolve their provincial boundary issues, so people can easily manage their land deeds and register to vote.

At a graduation ceremony on Monday, Hun Sen said the boundary issue between the two goes back to 1996 and now, nearly 30 years later, no resolution has been found.

“I spoke by phone with the two governors and made it clear that I expect the problem to be solved in the next two weeks or I will handle it myself. This is hardly an international border issue, so I believe they will be able to find a solution themselves,” he said.

He added that he has told Battambang governor Sok Lou that his province is large enough to partition a few thousand hectares for Pailin.

“I also let Interior Minister Sar Kheng and the National Assembly know that this needs to be resolved so land titles can be issued and people can register for next year’s general election. Both Lou and Pailin governor Ban Srey Mom are aware of the urgency,” he added.

The premier noted that several of their predecessors had been unable to solve this problem. Citing his enquiries, he revealed that some powerful people own the disputed land and have prevented the Battambang Provincial Administration from ceding the land to Pailin.

“To the people involved – your mango plantations will not disappear. The land in both provinces will remain in Cambodia, and you will still be able to collect your crops. I am also assured that it will be easier for Pailin to administer the land, as it is closer to administrative offices. From the Battambang side, it is very remote,” he added.

Lou told the Post on October 17 that after receiving the order, he had visited the area and had arranged to meet with his Pailin counterpart to inspect the area together.

“We have already mapped out a solution to this problem,” he said, noting that adjusting the provincial border would affect Samlot and Kamrieng districts

“We will try to follow the prime minister’s orders,” he said.

Am Sam Ath, deputy director of the rights group LICADHO, said unclear demarcation of the boundaries could lead to many problems for the public, especially when land disputes arise.

“A lack of clear demarcation has led to many issues, including requests for public services,” he said.

The Phnom Penh Post

Asia News Network

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asia-pacific/40021130

South Koreans reclaim world ramen noodle-eating crown from Vietnam

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

South Koreans have hit back at Vietnamese claims to be the world’s top ramen noodle consumers.

On Monday, survey results released by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp showed South Koreans consume an average 1.7 bowls of ramen per week or 88.4 bowls per year. The finding comes after Vietnam boasted in June it had dethroned South Korea in the global Ramen rankings with a per-capita average 87 bowls per year.

The Korean survey was conducted on 500 people aged 15-65, with Nongshim’s bestseller Shin Ramyun being the top pick.

Korean men ate ramen 1.8 times per week while women only indulged 1.5 times per week, the study found.

Men in their 20s and 50s were the biggest ramen consumers, eating the noodles twice a week, while women in their 60s consumed the least, at just 1.3 times per week.

Allowed to provide multiple answers, 58.2 per cent said they consumed ramen for lunch, while 43.2 per cent preferred ramen for dinner.

More than 80 per cent still bought their ramen from shops or supermarkets. Only 14 per cent purchased ramen online.

Nongshim’s flagship Shin Ramyun scored top among respondents, with 16.9 per cent giving it the nod, followed by Ottogi’s Jin Ramen (9.5 per cent) and Nongshim’s Chapagetti black bean instant noodles (7.5 per cent).

Last year, the nation’s top four ramen makers – Nongshim, Samyang, Ottogi and Paldo –recorded 2.01 trillion won ($1.4 billion or 53 billion baht) in combined sales, down 6.7 per cent from the year before.

But their exports increased 11.7 per cent to $670 million last year despite an unfavourable foreign exchange rate – a winning streak for a seventh consecutive year.

China was the largest importer, taking in 22.2 per cent, followed by the US (12 per cent), Japan (9.7 per cent) and Taiwan (4.7 per cent).

In the meantime, South Korea’s ramen imports more than doubled to $12.4 million last year, possibly due to more diversified tastes among local consumers.

The Korea Herald

Asia News Network

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asean/40021126

Philippine locals ride high and dry as taxis find ingenious flood solution

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

Motorbike taxi drivers in a Philippine town have come up with an ingenious way of keeping passengers dry in the perennial floods. As pedestrians wade waist-deep on flooded streets in Hagonoy, passengers ride high in specially modified moto-taxi sidecars.

The modification can raise seats up to a metre higher, helping commuters to stay clear of floodwater that can reach up to 2 metres in height during monsoon typhoons.

Located 37 kilometres north of Manila, Hagonoy is frequently besieged by floods due to high tides in Manila Bay that leave streets unpassable to small vehicles.

“The floods do affect us. For us motorbike taxi drivers, our vehicles are not made to cross floodwaters, so what we did was we modified them in order to make a living despite having year-long floods,” said Russel Lopez, who has been a motorcycle taxi driver for the past 10 years.

Lopez says they charge 40 pesos (26 baht) per person for a ride, typically following set routes around flooded sections of Hagonoy, and earn an average of up to 500 pesos a day.

Earnings are slightly more than compared to those operating unmodified taxis, but due to maintenance costs to limit saltwater corrosion and the investment required, any profit margins are levelled out.

Village leader Avelino San Juan says the floods have regularly swamped their neighbourhood for decades but have become worse due to improper garbage disposal and development that reduced the river’s drainage capacity.

The local government of Bulacan did not respond to a request for comment, but its website said it was working on a river dredging project to combat flooding.

Until things change, many residents in Hagonoy say the modified motorbikes are a godsend enabling them to get on with their daily lives.

“They are very important to us, especially to those who have to work when floodwaters do not subside until the afternoon. We need these types of transport,” said Hagonoy local Lilibeth Alvaro.

Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asia-pacific/40021125

Australia reverses recognition of west Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, backs two-state solution

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

Australia on Tuesday reversed the previous government’s recognition of west Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and said the issue should be resolved as part of peace talks between Israel and Palestine.

“Australia is committed to a two-state solution in which Israel and a future Palestinian state coexist, in peace and security, within internationally recognised borders,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong said during a media briefing.

“We will not support an approach that undermines this prospect.”

In 2018, the conservative coalition government led by Scott Morrison formally recognised west Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, reversing decades of Middle East policy. Morrison had flagged moving the embassy from Tel Aviv in 2018 just days before a by-election in a Sydney electorate with a strong Jewish representation, which his Liberal party nonetheless lost. It drew criticism from Muslim-majority neighbours such as Indonesia and Malaysia.

Morrison’s Liberal-led coalition lost a national election in May.

The status of Jerusalem, home to sites holy to the Muslim, Jewish and Christian faiths, is one of the biggest obstacles to a peace agreement between Israel and Palestinians. Israel regards all of the city as its capital, including the eastern sector which it annexed after the 1967 Middle East war, and wants all embassies based there.

Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/40021116

UN chief calls for urgent global action on poverty eradication

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2022

THE NATION

“On this important day, let us renew our commitment to a better world for all. Let us consign poverty to the pages of history,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday called for urgent global action to reverse the negative trend in poverty eradication.
 

“As we mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, we face a harsh truth: the world is moving backward,” he said in a video message played at an event to mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which falls on Oct. 17.

COVID-19 plunged millions of people into poverty, setting back more than four years of hard-won progress. Inequalities are widening. National and household economies are battered by job losses, skyrocketing food and energy prices, and the gathering shadows of a global recession, he said.

At the same time, the climate crisis and raging conflicts are causing immense suffering, with the poorest people bearing the brunt. Developing countries are being squeezed dry, and denied access to resources and debt relief to invest in recovery and growth. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are being pushed far out of reach, he added.

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is a wake-up call to the world, said Guterres. This year’s theme, “Dignity for all in practice,” must be a rallying cry for urgent global action: action to invest in people-centered solutions — from health and decent work, to gender equality, social protection, and transformed food and education systems; action to transform a morally bankrupt global financial system and ensure access to financing and debt relief for all countries; action to support developing countries as they transition from planet-killing fossil fuels to renewable energy and job-creating green economies; action to end conflicts, heal geopolitical divisions and pursue peace; and action to achieve the SDGs.
 

“On this important day, let us renew our commitment to a better world for all. Let us consign poverty to the pages of history,” said Guterres.

In his opening remarks at the event, Csaba Korosi, president of the UN General Assembly, also called for action — through peace, science and solidarity — to address the impact of the 3 C’s of climate change, Covid-19, and conflicts, which he said are to blame for the interruption of the positive trend on poverty eradication.

“If we want to see our ‘No Poverty’ goal achieved soon, we must end the fighting everywhere, including in Ukraine,” he said.

Korosi stressed the role of science in poverty reduction.

“Rooting our decisions in science will produce evidence-based solutions. Let us harness our scientific and technical knowledge to wipe poverty off the face of the earth,” he said.

The pandemic highlighted the importance of solidarity both for social cohesion within countries, and for collective security among states. This momentum of solidarity must be kept alive, he said. “In addition to official development assistance, we must mobilize financial institutions, philanthropy, and the private sector. We must create incentives for funding our mission to leave no one behind.”

THE NATION

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asia-pacific/40021110

Kharge or Tharoor: Indian Congress Party votes for new president

MONDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2022

The Indian Congress Party’s interim president Sonia Gandhi said on Monday that she has been waiting a long time to cast her vote for the presidential poll.

“I have been waiting a long time for this day,” she said to waiting reporters after casting her vote at the party headquarters in New Delhi. She was accompanied by her daughter, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

The party is voting to elect the new president and in the fray are Mallikarjun Kharge and Shashi Tharoor.

Tharoor is pitching for a change to the party’s outlook.

About 9,300 Congress delegates are scheduled to vote for the new party president, and the voting is underway across all states and union territories until 4pm.

Once the voting process ends, all ballot boxes will be brought to the All India Congress Committee headquarters in New Delhi. The results are expected to be announced on Wednesday.

The Statesman

Asia News Network

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asia-pacific/40021100

Tackling malnourishment in Asia Pacific still an uphill climb

MONDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2022

On World Food Day, the Asia-Pacific region faces multiple challenges to reach its most disadvantaged and malnourished.

Global conflicts, a lingering pandemic, inflation, erratic swings in the price of energy, fertilisers and basic foods – these are just some of the major challenges facing countries and people in the Asia-Pacific region as it marked World Food Day on October 16, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said.

The world’s biggest region – home to most of the planet’s hungry – has been backsliding in its quest to end hunger and malnutrition in all its forms, one of the world’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG2 – Zero Hunger). Indeed, a recent UN report predicted that the region, as a whole, is so far off-track from meeting the SDG 2030 deadline, it would need an additional 35 years to hit all 17 SDG targets.

While the pandemic, inflation and other challenges are a major influence on the present situation, successive annual editions of FAO’s flagship publication, the State of Food Security and Nutrition had warned the fight against hunger and malnutrition was failing in Asia and the Pacific. By 2021, more than 400 million people in the region were malnourished, most of them in South Asia, with 40 per cent of all the region’s inhabitants unable to afford a healthy diet.

At a regional World Food Day observance ceremony in Bangkok, speakers discussed the need for a revitalized effort – involving multiple stakeholders – to reset the region on a path to end hunger, poverty and inequalities.

“We need to empower the most vulnerable, including small-scale producers, by investing in global agrifood systems. This means improved access to training, incentives, science, data, technology and innovation, so that small-holders can be at the centre of this transformation,” said FAO Director-General, Dr QU Dongyu, in a recorded video statement, to open the event. “We need decent rural employment and services, and to end child labour, while fostering gender equality and supporting rural and Indigenous Peoples who are the custodians of much of the earth’s biodiversity. At the same time, governments need to provide timely and well-targeted social protection programmes that protect the most fragile.”

Several hundred participants joined the virtual event from across the Asia-Pacific region, as well as many more from the Near East, Africa and the Americas.

FAO’s Special Goodwill Ambassador for Asia and the Pacific, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, also addressed the ceremony with a video message.

“Agrifood systems should be transformed to be more resilient to shocks and stresses, including natural disasters and pandemics such as Covid-19. This would require innovative and cost-effective measures aimed at providing social protection to reduce vulnerabilities, particularly of women, Indigenous Peoples and socially marginalized smallholders. Leaving no one behind, regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, location, disability or migratory status, remains the central commitment of the 2030 Agenda,” Her Royal Highness said.

Leaving no one behind in Asia and the Pacific

The theme of this year’s World Food Day is “Leaving no one behind.” A guest speaker from Nepal, Bonita Sharma, co-founder and CEO of the group Social Changemakers and Innovators, spoke about the importance of engaging the region’s youth to elicit their ideas on how to achieve better nutrition through innovation.

A panel discussion followed considering ways to reach the region’s most vulnerable, particularly rural women and youth, indigenous communities, persons with disabilities and others. The panellists included Lenny N. Rosalin, Indonesia’s Deputy Minister for Gender Equality in the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection. She is also Chair of the Asean Committee on Women (ACW). Other panelists were Panudda Boonpala, Deputy Regional Director of the ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, and James Leyson, Managing Director of the Scholars of Sustenance (SOS) Foundation.

FAO’s “Four Betters” approach to leave no one behind 

FAO is working with its Member Nations in Asia and the Pacific to help them achieve the SDGs through a systematic approach known as the ‘Four Betters’.

“FAO’s goal is a sustainable and food-secure world for all. We are supporting our Member Nations in their efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda through a transformation to more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, leading to better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind,” said Jong-Jin Kim, Assistant Director-General and FAO Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific.

“Leaving no one behind means working on many fronts at the same time. For FAO, that includes promoting decent rural employment and services, ensuring social protection, ending child labour, and supporting local food production for vulnerable populations in food crisis countries. It also means fostering gender equality and supporting rural and Indigenous Peoples who are the custodians of much of the Earth’s biodiversity,” Kim added.

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https://www.nationthailand.com/world/asia-pacific/40021099

Samsung opens remote offices across South Korea to promote hybrid working culture

MONDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2022

South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics announced on Monday it has opened six shared working spaces to nurture a hybrid work environment and flexible work culture.

Two of the six spaces are located outside Samsung offices, in Seoul and Daegu, while the rest are in Samsung office buildings in other parts of the country.

These co-working spaces, dubbed “d’light”, feature open seats, partitioned desks, adjustable standing desks, meeting rooms and phone booths, among others. Samsung Electronics launched the d’light system for a pilot run on October 4.

The rented co-working space in Seoul can accommodate up to 220 people, a Samsung official said, without elaborating on seats available at the other five locations.

This working environment, designed to meet the needs of developers, designers and marketers as well as offer easier access to public transport, has drawn a “positive response” from workers, Samsung said in a statement. The shared spaces are also expected to shorten the commute for employees and foster their creativity, Samsung added.

The chip-to-mobile giant, which had 117,904 employees as of June, said it will continue committing to enhancing a flexible and efficient work culture for employee satisfaction.

The introduction of the “work from anywhere” policy is the latest initiative of a Samsung task force comprising some of its staff and executives to prioritise flexibility and diversity in the workplace to address external uncertainties and tackle the talent shortage.

The flexible working hour policy is in place across all divisions, from chipmaking to consumer electronics. Under the policy, Samsung employees can customise their work schedule without having to stick to the minimum required hours within a day.

Also, high-ranking staff at Samsung’s smartphone and consumer electronics unit, as well as the group’s management department, have been encouraged to ditch their suits and ties in tandem with rank-and-file employees. To encourage female workers to stay on after maternity leave, tech giant Samsung Electronics is granting them training, mentorship and remote work opportunities.

The Korea Herald

Asia News Network