President Yoon Suk-yeol has shrugged off the decline in his approval ratings, but as they fall below 30 per cent, he faces an uphill battle if he wants to get public opinion on his side.
According to a poll released by Gallup Korea on Friday, which surveyed 1,000 people from July 26-28, only 28 per cent of the respondents said Yoon was doing well.
Personnel management accounts for the biggest part of the decline in approval ratings.
Alongside his cabinets dominated by former prosecutors and figures embroiled in personal scandals, the “unfair” hiring of his and first lady Kim Keon-hee’s acquaintances in the presidential office caused controversy several times. Whenever criticism was made, Yoon and his office refused to apologise, denouncing the media for taking issue with it.
In the second and third weeks of July, the decline seemed to be slowing, with a positive evaluation holding up at an already low 32 per cent.
At the time, he refrained from speaking during regular morning press briefings – where he often made gaffes – and his spouse Kim also refrained from public activities.
However, as a text message between Yoon and his closest aide Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader of the ruling People Power Party, was caught on press cameras, controversy erupted again. The text message showed Yoon saying he was happy with the change in the party’s leadership and took a swipe at suspended party leader Lee Jun-seok.
“To recover public trust, Yoon should apologise in a press conference after returning from vacation and reshuffle his Cabinet,” he said. “Yoon can regain the people’s trust with these measures because he is a political novice and is still in the early stages of state administration.”
The 61-year-old former public prosecutor took over from Moon Jae-in on May 10, 2022.
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The various ways in which politicians have received election support from the Unification Church have come to light in the wake of former prime minister Shinzo Abe’s assassination.
Some politicians are now reviewing their ties to the religious group, which has engaged in activities that provoke concern in society, such as a “spiritual sales” method to cajole its followers into buying expensive items.
“I received various kinds of assistance from individual volunteers during election campaigning,” Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi told the press on Friday, explaining his relationship with the group, which is now officially called the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
Kishi, Abe’s younger brother, said he had some volunteers linked to the group working for him to make phone calls to voters to ask for their support during the House of Representatives election campaign.
Kishi said he “thought at the time there was no problem”, but will “carefully examine whether that was the right thing to do”.
In 1968, Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon (1920-2012) launched an anti-communist political organisation called the International Federation for Victory over Communism. Since that time, the church is said to have built relationships with conservative politicians, mainly from the LDP, including former prime minister Nobusuke Kishi, the grandfather of Abe and Nobuo Kishi.
There are many LDP Diet members among the politicians whose relationships with the church have recently come to light.
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Minister Shinsuke Suematsu said people linked to the group had bought tickets for his political fund-raising parties in 2020 and 2021. The tickets cost a total of ¥40,000 (about 11,000 baht).
In 2016, a political party chapter headed by Hakubun Shimomura, former education minister, also received a ¥60,000 donation from an organisation affiliated with the group.
Opposition parties are no exception. Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki received donations totalling ¥30,000 in 2016 from a former president of an organisation affiliated with the group. Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party) chief Ichiro Matsui attended a meeting of an organisation affiliated with the group about 20 years ago.
Congratulatory messages
Why have politicians built ties with the group? Many in the political world say it is for election purposes.
Yoshiyuki Inoue, an LDP member of the House of Councillors, became a “supporting member” of the group shortly before official campaigning kicked off for the upper house election in July, in which he was reelected.
It was reported that he became a supporting member because his campaign pledges were in line with the group’s concepts. One of his secretaries told the Yomiuri Shimbun that Inoue did so to receive support in the election.
Many politicians were also found to have sent congratulatory messages for events linked to the group.
“There are many organisations whose actual status remains unclear, but if you do nothing when asked to attend an event, you’ll make them your enemies in the election. That’s why I used to send congratulatory messages,” a former lower house member recalled, speaking to the Yomiuri Shimbun.
Local leaders have also received support from the group. Toyama governor Hachiro Nitta admitted that he had received support from the group in the 2020 gubernatorial election in which he was first elected.
“They took a grassroots approach in the election campaign, and I was grateful for that at the time,” said Nitta.
Meanwhile, the group is also believed to have taken advantage of its connections with politicians.
A former follower of the group said he was repeatedly shown pictures of Moon shaking hands with politicians.
Since the 1980s, the group has used its spiritual sales method to cajole people into buying expensive goods, such as pots and personal seals, by telling them that they are cursed by their ancestors to fuel their anxiety. The group’s mass weddings in which total strangers are made into couples has also emerged as a social problem.
Even sending a congratulatory message to an event related to the group means “support” to it, and the group could use such gestures by politicians for publicity, according to Hokkaido University professor Yoshihide Sakurai.
“For voters, the support groups of each politician are important information in choosing who to vote for, so politicians should clearly indicate from which groups they receive support,” said the expert in the sociology of religion.
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A huge piece of space junk – apparently from the Chinese Long March rocket has crashed down to Earth – with its fiery re-entry spotted by many over Sarawak skies.
The 22.5-tonne core stage of the Long March 5B rocket re-entered Earth’s atmosphere over the Indian Ocean at approximately 12.45am on Sunday, according to US space agency Nasa.
“#USSPACECOM can confirm the People’s Republic of China [PRC] Long March 5B [CZ-5B] re-entered over the Indian Ocean at approx 10.45am MDT [Mountain Daylight Time] on 7/30. We refer you to the #PRC for further details on the reentry’s technical aspects such as potential debris dispersal+ impact location,” the US Space Command tweeted on Sunday.
The dramatic event was spotted by many people in Sarawak, with videos being uploaded to social media by residents of Sibu, Bintulu, Kuching and more. Many did not realise what they were witnessing, with some even labelling it a “meteorite”.
“Meteor spotted in Kuching! #jalanbako 31/7/2022,” said Nazri Sulaiman (@nazriacai) on Twitter, although he later corrected himself to say that it was the remains of the Long March rocket.
“Kuching Sarawak.. meteor or APA?” tweeted hanifDaslepzz (@hanifDaslepzz).
Hanif also stated later that it was the Long March rocket and said an “explosion” was heard over Kuching.
“There is a long streak of clouds … the people of Kuching have reported hearing the explosion an hour ago,” he tweeted.
According to astrophysicist and satellite tracker Jonathan McDowell from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics: “The video from Kuching implies it was high in the atmosphere at that time — any debris would land hundreds of kilometres further along the track, near Sibu, Bintulu or even Brunei.
“It’s ‘unlikely but not impossible’ that one or more chunks hit a population centre,” he said in a series of tweets.
The Malaysian Space Agency (Mysa) had previously said the debris from the rocket was unlikely to land in Malaysia.
“Due to the strong atmospheric drag to the orbit, the debris is expected to enter the Earth’s atmosphere a few days after the launch.
“Basically, the location of the re-entry of the debris can’t be predicted accurately until a few hours prior to re-entry and in many cases, there will be a vast difference in the forecast due to the change in the physical characteristics of the object during re-entry, including location and speed,” it said in a statement on Friday, adding that most of the debris would be burnt during re-entry into the atmosphere, with only smaller fragments landing on Earth.
“As such, the public need not be concerned about the dangers as 70 per cent of it was water and Malaysia is a small entity compared to Earth’s mass area.
“Furthermore, the exact location of the re-entry currently can’t be ascertained and Mysa will update on any development from time to time, ” it added.
The Long March 5B blasted off July 24 to deliver a laboratory module to the new Chinese space station under construction in orbit, marking the third flight of China’s most powerful rocket since its maiden launch in 2020.
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The Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry said Mysa, as informed by the Chinese Space Agency, stated that the re-entry of the Chinese Long March 5B rocket debris into Earth’s atmosphere was detected at 12.55am.
“The rocket’s debris burned up when entering the Earth’s atmosphere and the movement of the debris could be detected in several areas, with some crossing Sarawak’s airspace.
“The burning debris fell into the Sulu Sea in the area between latitude 9.1° North and longitude 119.0° East,” the ministry said on Sunday.
Homestay is an additional source of income for many families in the country. It has allowed rural communities to take advantage of modern technologies as well.
There is a buzz in the Zangmo Village Homestay in Ngyenphey, Phobjikha. From afar comes the whirring of chainsaw.
The family is constructing a new toilet and bathroom next to the small lobby.
The toilet outside is inconvenient to the guests, says the homestay owner, Zangmo.
The floor is freshly polished and the walls are painted the traditional way. The one-storey house is getting ready to receive guests.
Zangmo says that with the closure of the border, not many guests came to visit.
“We see better days coming now. Even if international tourists do not come, we will get local visitors,” she says.
The homestay is registered with the Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB) and has been operational since 2017.
There are 158 village homestays in the country that have registered with TCB.
Homestay is an additional source of income for many families in the country. It has allowed rural communities to take advantage of modern technologies as well.
However, while some homestay owners expect good business with the increase in Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) others are worried that this might discourage guests from coming to the country.
Passang Tobgay, 35, from Phobjikha, says that he expects more local tourists to visit his homestay.
He says that homestay is a good business to earn extra income. “But with the new SDF, I am not too sure about my income from the homestay.”
Homestay owners have mixed feelings about the increased SDF.
Dema Village Homestay’s owner, Kencho Wangdi, says that with the borders opening soon he sees two things on the way: fewer opportunities for homestay business with hotels providing standard services and more local tourists coming to homestays.
He says: “The government has increased the SDF to provide quality tourism; I am trying to improve the quality of service in my homestay.”
For the past few months, Kencho has been renovating his homestay. The tiled toilets with washbasins, water supply, and geysers are expenditures he hopes will not go in vain.
The homestay in Paro offers experiences such as gardening or playing archery and Khuru, among others.
Kencho says he was informed that officials from the Tourism Council of Bhutan are visiting the homestay.
“The quality of services I provide will also have impact on the country’s reputation. I am giving my best to provide quality service,” he added.
One homestay owner said that before the pandemic homestay guests were mostly regional tourists. “With increase in SDF, many might not be keen to come.”
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The Communications and Information Ministry has blocked access to eight popular electronic services providers (ESPs) – including Yahoo, Steam and PayPal – for failing to register under a controversial licensing regime.
The ministry has said it would block any ESP that failed to register and that registrants would have to comply with its content-moderation rules, as stipulated in a 2020 ministerial regulation on private ESPs.
Semuel Abrijani Pangerapan, the ministry’s informatics applications director general confirmed on Saturday that search engine Yahoo, video game digital distribution service Steam and online payment service PayPal were among eight ESPs that have been blocked.
“There are [a total of] eight [ESPs],” Semuel told Detik.
The other ESPs are online game platforms Dota, Counter-Strike, Epic Games and Origin.com, and data platform Xandr.com.
Massively popular platforms such as Zoom, Twitter, Netflix, Spotify, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Google and YouTube have registered under the controversial licensing regime. Some 200 foreign and 8,000 domestic private ESPs had registered with the Communications and Information Ministry before last week’s deadline.
All registered platforms must take down content that “incites unrest” or “disturbs public order” within 24 hours of receiving a ministry instruction to do so.
If the content contains child pornography or messages supporting terrorism – or if the ministry feels there is an immediate need to remove the content for the sake of public order – registered platforms will have four hours to remove the offending post following the ministry’s warning.
If a platform ignores the order, the ministry can order internet service providers to block access to it.
Critics have raised concerns that such ESPs will find it easier to simply self-censor content and provide ready access to user data than risk tangling with regulators in an opaque legal system.
The rule on ESPs itself is one of a set of implementing regulations issued to carry out Government Regulation No. 71/2019 on electronic systems and transactions, which is based on the draconian Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law, which has been used to silence activists and government critics.
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Lee and Austin warn that alliance will get stronger corresponding to North Korea’s provocative actions
The South Korean and US defense chiefs committed to stepping up combined military exercises and restarting strategic dialogue on extended deterrence in September to address North Korea’s escalating threats.
South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met Friday in Washington and “discussed the major pending issues of the alliance and shared their assessment of North Korea’s evolving threats,” South Korea’s Defense Ministry said in a Korean-language statement.
Austin and Lee committed to “responding sternly and jointly to North Korea’s provocative actions” and figuring out ways to reinforce the South Korea-US combined defense posture.
Expanding upcoming military exercises
The defense leaders agreed to expand the combined military exercises tentatively scheduled to be held between Aug. 22 and Sept. 1. The two also shared views on incorporating combined military exercises and the South Korean government’s independent Ulchi Exercise and conducting them simultaneously.
Against that backdrop, South Korea earlier this month announced that the title of the combined military exercise has been changed to Ulchi Freedom Shield, adding the name of the government’s independent drill.
“The title of combined military exercise has been decided as Freedom Shield. The shield means that the exercise is defensive in nature and aims to defend the freedom of the Republic of Korea,” Lee told a press briefing following the defense-ministerial meeting.
Austin and Lee committed to “strengthening the alliance’s deterrence posture” through various means including reinforcing the ballistic missile defense system and deploying US strategic assets on the Korean Peninsula.
Strategic dialogue on extended deterrence
Austin and Lee also discussed follow-up steps to agreements at the May 21 South Korea-US summit, where the South Korean and US leaders agreed to reinforce the alliance’s deterrence and readiness against North Korea.
The defense ministerial meeting came around a month and a half after an initial discussion on how to implement the leaders’ commitments in June in Singapore on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue Asian security summit. But this time, Lee and Austin advanced their discussion and fleshed out plans to take follow-up steps.
“The two defense chiefs committed to holding a meeting of high-level Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) at an early date so as to enhance the alliance’s deterrence and reinforce strategic communication between South Korea and the US,” South Korea’s Defense Ministry said.
The leaders confirmed that the decision to resume their strategic dialogue on the US extended deterrence will contribute to regional security.
Austin and Lee both supported holding an EDSCG meeting in September, a South Korean senior military official — who wished to remain anonymous — confirmed Friday following the defense ministerial meeting.
The last meeting of the EDSCG between South Korean and US vice ministers of foreign affairs and defense — which was launched in 2016 — was held in January 2018. But the South Korean and US presidents agreed to reactivate the EDSCG “at the earliest date” during the May 21 summit.
Extended deterrence is the US commitment to deter or respond to coercion and attacks on US allies and partners. The US nuclear umbrella is one means the US offers to achieve extended deterrence.
Seoul and Washington also plan to conduct tabletop exercises (TTXs) on the use of deterrence assets and deployment of US strategic military assets this year after holding an EDSCG meeting.
The TTXs allow South Korea and the US to practice joint military responses in simulated contingency scenarios, including North Korean nuclear threats and use of nuclear weapons.
“The EDSCG has a strong message to North Korea at the policy level, whereas the TTXs aim to enhance military readiness,” Lee told reporters following the meeting, adding the two-pronged approach would enhance the viability of the US extended deterrence.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry said the two defense chiefs “shared the view that the security situation on the Korean Peninsula was very grave due to North Korea’s continued provocations.”
“But they emphasized that the more North Korea makes provocations, the stronger the South Korea-US alliance becomes,” the ministry said.
“The two defense chiefs also clarified that South Korea and the US will respond sternly and jointly based on the ironclad combined defense posture should North Korea press ahead with a seventh nuclear test despite the international community’s opposition.”
Austin also said “our alliance remains resolute and ready in the face of these dangerous and destabilizing actions” in his opening remark.
“Secretary Austin emphasized that the United States stands firm, with the full range of U.S. capabilities, in its extended deterrence commitment to the ROK,” acting Pentagon Press Secretary Todd Breasseale said.
Indo-Pacific regional issues
The US Defense Department additionally said the two leaders also exchanged views on the security environment in the Indo-Pacific region.
In his opening remark, Austin said he looked forward to a “productive discussion today on how the alliance can further enhance our deterrent posture against aggression from North Korea and other systemic competitors, including the People’s Republic of China and Russia.”
The Pentagon said Austin and Lee agreed on the importance of trilateral security cooperation among South Korea, the US and Japan and “enhancing regional cooperation that protects shared security and prosperity, upholds common values, and bolsters the rules-based international order.”
The two defense chiefs “reaffirmed the joint commitment to develop the South Korea-US alliance into a global strategic alliance that contributes to peace, security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region based on universal values including freedom and human rights,” South Korea’s Defense Ministry added.
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Asia and the Pacific’s next tech startup “unicorn” may spring from Việt Nam, as the groundwork to build a strong ecosystem capable of supporting these businesses is well under way, according to a new report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
HÀ NỘI — Asia and the Pacific’s next tech start-up “unicorn” may spring from Việt Nam, as the groundwork to build a strong ecosystem capable of supporting these businesses is well underway, according to a new report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The Government of Việt Nam’s long-term objective for the sector is to attract knowledge, organisations, individuals, and entrepreneurs to contribute to economic development and create successful start-ups.
ADB’s report, Việt Nam’s Ecosystem for Technology Startups, looks at the progress of start-ups in the Southeast Asian country.
An example of government support is Project 844, which aims to develop up to 600 enterprises by 2025, 100 of which will have collectively raised at least VNĐ2 trillion (about US$85.44 million).
This is supported by the National Technology Innovation Fund and two new projects, “Supporting Students in Starting a Business up to 2025” and “Supporting Women’s Start-ups in 2017–25”.
“The Government of Việt Nam recognises that tech start-ups are the new engines of growth for the country,” said ADB Economist Aimee Hampel-Milagrosa, one of the report’s lead authors. “To facilitate this, it has started to put together key ingredients, such as financial and policy incentives, to create and build the next generation of Vietnamese start-up unicorns.”
In 2021, the top five start-up sectors that received the largest funding were financial technology, or “fintech” (26.6 per cent); e-commerce (20.3 per cent); educational technology, or “edtech” (17.2 per cent); health technology, or “healthtech” (7.8 per cent); and software as a service (6.3 per cent).
The report looks at healthtech and agriculture technology, or “agritech”, because they have a high social impact and potential to contribute to more inclusive and sustainable development.
While financing was a common constraint to the growth of start-ups, angel investors and venture capitalists were found to be eager to invest. Another obstacle to growth is insufficient human capital. However, universities and research institutes in Việt Nam work with provincial authorities and central ministries to establish units to support start-ups. They are also organising start-up events for students to promote the culture of entrepreneurship among young people.
ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members, with 49 from the region. VNS
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A draft proposal by the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry (METI) to lift the ban on sports betting has caused a stir in Japan. While there are those who accept the idea that it will help revitalize the sports industry, others argue that such a move should not be rushed and that it could lead to match-fixing and encourage the development of gambling addictions.
According to the draft, a tech company and other entities will purchase match data and footage from leagues and clubs, and provide it to betting operators to calculate odds. Participants would place bets on smartphones and computers while watching the matches. Baseball, soccer and basketball were envisaged as targets.
The government denies pushing to introduce the system, with economy minister Koichi Hagiuda saying, “It is absolutely untrue that METI is taking the initiative and moving to immediately realize the system.” However, officials of METI and private companies have already visited the United States, where sports betting is increasingly legalized, and exchanged information with relevant parties.
The introduction of sports betting has been promoted by METI and Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers who are highly interested in the promotion of sports. Hajime Sasaki, secretary general of the LDP’s Research Commission for the Establishment of a Sports Oriented Nation, said: “Sports betting will circulate funds in the domestic sports market and serve as a catalyst for market revitalization. By securing independent financial resources for the sports industry, it will also help to improve the management of sports organizations, the treatment of athletes and the performance of athletes.”
Sports betting is popular in Europe and other countries. According to METI, Japan is the only G7 country that has not introduced it. In the United States, which had been cautious, the legalization of sports betting is now being promoted in various states after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that a law banning sports betting was unconstitutional. It is said that behind this trend is the realization that U.S. sports had become the target of betting operations from abroad and that large amounts of wealth were flowing out of the country. Japanese sports too have become the target of betting operations from abroad, with some estimates suggesting that ¥5 trillion to ¥6 trillion worth of bets are being placed on Japanese sports each year. This situation also encourages proponents of legalization.
However, Japan’s Penal Code prohibits gambling. Public gambling, such as horse racing, bicycle and boat racing, and the Toto sports promotion lottery for soccer operated by the Japan Sport Council, are only exceptionally permitted under special legislation.
In addition, there is a strong sense of fear in the Japanese sports community that sports betting can be linked to match-fixing. Professional baseball, Japan’s national sport, has a particularly bitter past: In 1969, several players were permanently disqualified for match-fixing in connection with baseball betting involving gangsters. This scandal, known as the “Black Fog” incident, is remembered as an abhorrent episode that shook the very foundations of Japanese professional baseball.
This led to strict instructions for players and team officials not to get involved in gambling. The Nippon Professional Baseball Agreement prohibits match-fixing and applies heavy penalties including permanent disqualification to offenders. It also prohibits baseball gambling and associating with gangsters. This applies not only to players and managers, but also to team officials.
Yoshitaka Katori, who served as head coach and general manager of the Giants, said: “In baseball, there are many [shady] things that individual players can get involved in, such as pitchers giving up four balls or fielders making errors. It can be said that match-fixing is easily possible and can lead to large-scale cheating. There is concern that baseball players may be viewed unfavorably even though they are playing at their best.”
Consternation has also been expressed in the educational community. This is because a plan has emerged to use the proceeds from gambling as a source of funding for the reform of school club activities, with responsibility for those activities shifted from schools to private entities in local communities.
Prof. Atsushi Nakazawa of Waseda University, who specializes in the sociology of sports, commented: “In Japan, it is difficult to achieve social consensus even for attracting integrated resorts, including casinos, for the purpose of regional development. Many people must be disgusted by the idea of using gambling profits for school club activities. To bring up sports betting as a source of revenue is a facile argument.”
There is also a strong fear that it will accelerate an increase in gambling addictions. The Toto system currently in place for soccer predicts results only on a match-by-match basis, but in sports betting, each and every play in a match is subject to betting. Noriko Tanaka, representative of the Association for the Problem of Gambling Addiction, estimated that there are 3.2 million adults in Japan who may have a gambling addiction. “Sports betting has a much higher risk of addiction than existing public gambling. Lifting the ban on sports betting is completely unacceptable,” she sternly warned.
Sports journalist Akemi Masuda, chairperson of Japan Para Athletics, noted that Japan’s three-pillar educational philosophy of taiiku, chiiku and tokuiku, or physical, intellectual and moral education, has shaped the development of sports in this country. She said: “Sports culture in Japan has a different background from Western sports culture, which is derived from the Latin word deportale, meaning to enjoy or play. When introducing something new, it is necessary to proceed with caution, taking cultural differences into account.”
The Japanese sports community has a history of developing in a different context than that of the West. Japanese companies, in particular, have always seen their support for sports as a “social contribution.” This is because sports has a “clean” image. There are considerably high barriers to introducing sports betting into a society with such a background. How should fraud and addiction be prevented? It will be difficult to promote sports betting in Japan unless measures are taken to gain the full understanding of the Japanese public, rather than just pursuing business interests.
By Yuji Kondo / Yomiuri Shimbun Sports Writer
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China set out priorities on Thursday for its economic policies in the second half of this year, pledging to enable its macro policies to play a proactive role in boosting demand and to increase credit support to businesses in a bid to attain the best possible outcomes for growth this year.
A meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee highlighted the need to consolidate the momentum of economic recovery, stabilize the job market and commodity prices, and maintain major economic indicators within a proper range.
Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting.
The tone-setting meeting came after China’s economy grew 0.4 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2022, posting 2.5 percent growth in the first half of the year, as the world’s second-largest economy was battered by a surge in COVID-19 cases in Shanghai and other manufacturing hubs in eastern China.
China set the target of around 5.5 percent for its GDP growth in 2022 during the annual session of the National People’s Congress earlier this year.
Policymakers at Thursday’s meeting said the nation must maintain its strategic orientation and remain unwavering in running its own affairs well as it faces some stark contradictions and problems in the economy.
In coordinating efforts to fight the pandemic and pursue economic and social development, they highlighted the need to adopt a comprehensive, holistic and long-term perspective, saying that political considerations should be the priority.
They reaffirmed the nation’s dynamic zero-COVID strategy, saying that new outbreaks must be contained immediately and there should be zero complacency in fighting the pandemic.
The monitoring of new variants of the coronavirus and the research and development of new vaccines and pharmaceuticals should be stepped up, they said.
The meeting pledged support to local authorities to take full advantage of special-purpose bonds, which totaled 3.65 trillion yuan ($540.77 billion) this year.
The government will ensure reasonable and ample liquidity in monetary policy to scale up credit support to businesses and put new loans from policy banks and investment funds for infrastructure to proper use.
They highlighted the need to bolster the stability and global competitiveness of industry and supply chains, ensure unimpeded transportation and logistics, and support the nation’s central and western regions in improving their infrastructure and business climate.
The nation will reinforce its efforts to ensure food security, improve its ability, guarantee the supply of energy and resources, and plan the development of a system for the supply and use of new energy.
Homebuyers seeking to meet their basic needs and those trying to improve their housing conditions will receive support, and local authorities will be urged to assume their duties in ensuring that real estate developers deliver their projects.
The meeting underscored the need to properly defuse risks from village and township banks in some areas and crack down on financial crimes.
It reaffirmed the importance of promoting the standardized, healthy and sustainable growth of the platform economy, conducting regularized oversight of businesses in the sector and approving a host of new investments by such businesses.
The policymakers urged the provincial regions serving as China’s economic powerhouses to lead the nation’s growth, saying that eligible provincial areas must strive to reach their preset targets for economic and social development this year.
The government will create a good policy and institutional environment to free the hands of State-owned enterprises, boost the courage of private businesses and shore up the confidence of foreign enterprises, they said.
The meeting was held three days after a high-level symposium that solicited opinions and suggestions on economic work for the second half of the year from non-CPC personages.
While presiding over the meeting, Xi said the long-term positive fundamentals of the Chinese economy, which has strong resilience, immense potential and adequate vitality, remain unchanged.
He expressed hope that non-CPC personages can give full play to their strengths, contribute to socioeconomic development and help create a sound environment for the 20th National Congress of the CPC.
By XU WEI
Asia News Network: The Nation (Thailand), The Korea Herald, The Straits Times (Singapore), China Daily, Jakarta Post, The Star and Sin Chew Daily (Malaysia), The Statesman (India), Philippine Daily Inquirer, Yomiuri Shimbun and The Japan News, Gogo Mongolia, Dawn (Pakistan), The Island (Sri Lanka), Kuensel (Bhutan), Kathmandu Post (Nepal), Daily Star (Bangladesh), Eleven Media (Myanmar), the Phnom Penh Post and Rasmei Kampuchea (Cambodia), The Borneo Bulletin (Brunei), Vietnam News, and Vientiane Times (Laos).
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi are both planning to attend the 55th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and related meetings from July 29 to August 5 in Phnom Penh.
“China’s foreign minister and the US secretary of state will attend the upcoming meetings to be hosted by Cambodia,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation spokesperson Chum Sounry confirmed to The Post on July 28.
Stephanie Arzate, spokesperson the US embassy in Phnom Penh, told The Post on July 28 that the State Department will officially announce which official will represent the US at the meetings closer to their scheduled date.
Yang Kim Eng, president of the People’s Centre for Development and Peace, opined that the US does not want to see China become involved in the Ukraine crisis by providing military assistance to Russia such as weapons or other economic aid that would lessen the impact of sanctions, while China does not want to see the US interfere further in their dispute with Taiwan.
“The US and China could both try to influence ASEAN to gain its support for their foreign policies, especially concerning the war in Ukraine, the South China Sea dispute and other controversial issues,” he said. “Of course, this competition for influence in the ASEAN region is one that will probably be ongoing for a long time to come, but it could become a problem for ASEAN if the bloc doesn’t stand together and becomes divided in loyalty between the two superpowers.”
Kim Eng continued that Blinken will also want to discuss human rights issues and democracy in ASEAN and he will especially focus on the Myanmar crisis, which is already tarnishing the reputation of ASEAN on the international stage.
“This Burma problem with the military regime killing its political opponents will be focused on by the US, and the US secretary of state will likely urge ASEAN to redouble its efforts to resolve the Myanmar crisis and apply more pressure on the [ruling State Administration Council] to force it to return to democracy,” he said.
Kin Phea, director of the International Relations Institute at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, said on July 28 that the presence of both of the top diplomats from the world’s two superpowers is of vital importance because it is necessary to the success of Cambodia as chair of ASEAN and as the host of the meeting, having invited all of the meetings’ prospective participants to the Kingdom to attend this summit.
“I think that if these two superpowers can find enough goodwill between them to work together to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict, that might simultaneously contribute to solving the food and energy crises and possibly even the Myanmar crisis,” he said.
Phea continued that the upcoming meeting may not be significantly productive because it could spark a fierce debate concerning the Russia-Ukraine crisis, because Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine and NATO’s involvement in arming Ukraine are hot-button issues that either of the superpowers might raise independently even though the ASEAN chair has not officially included them on the summit’s agenda.
By Ry Sochan
Asia News Network: The Nation (Thailand), The Korea Herald, The Straits Times (Singapore), China Daily, Jakarta Post, The Star and Sin Chew Daily (Malaysia), The Statesman (India), Philippine Daily Inquirer, Yomiuri Shimbun and The Japan News, Gogo Mongolia, Dawn (Pakistan), The Island (Sri Lanka), Kuensel (Bhutan), Kathmandu Post (Nepal), Daily Star (Bangladesh), Eleven Media (Myanmar), the Phnom Penh Post and Rasmei Kampuchea (Cambodia), The Borneo Bulletin (Brunei), Vietnam News, and Vientiane Times (Laos).
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