News Wire | August 2023 Archive
MONTHLY NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
Chinese Economy Falls Into Deflation as Recovery Stumbles
By Thomas Hale and Andy Lin | Financial Times
China’s economy has fallen into deflation after consumer prices declined for the first time since early 2021, in one of the starkest indicators of the challenges facing policymakers as they struggle to revive consumption. The consumer price index fell 0.3 percent year on year in July, according to official statistics released on Wednesday.
US Set to Limit Scope of China Investment Ban With Revenue Rule
By Anna Edgerton and Eric Martin | Bloomberg
A U.S. plan to restrict investment in China is likely to apply only to Chinese companies that get at least half of their revenue from cutting-edge sectors such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence, people familiar with the matter said.
More from WPR: The Global Order Might Be Big Enough for the U.S. and China
Amazon Nations Seek Common Voice on Climate Change, Urge Action From Industrialized World
By Fabiano Maisonnave and David Biller | Associated Press
Eight Amazon nations called on industrialized countries to do more to help preserve the world’s largest rainforest as they met at a major summit in Brazil to chart a common course on how to combat climate change.
More from WPR: In Brazil, Lula’s Green Agenda Is Putting Him in a Political Bind
Poland to Send 2,000 Troops to Reinforce Belarus Border
Reuters
Poland will send 2,000 troops to its frontier with Belarus, the deputy interior minister told state-run news agency PAP on Wednesday, twice the number requested by the Border Guard, to stem illegal crossings and maintain stability.
More from WPR: The EU Scrambles to Respond to ‘Hybrid Warfare’ on the Poland-Belarus Border
Hopes for Dialogue Dim in Niger as Junta Clings to Power
By Elian Peltier and Eric Schmitt | The New York Times
The new military leaders of Niger have rebuffed diplomatic efforts by the United States, the United Nations and regional groups to resolve a crisis sparked by a coup in the West African nation, dimming hopes that civilian rule will be restored soon.
More from WPR: Niger Was Never the ‘Success Story’ It’s Being Made Out to Be
Bahrain Prison Inmates on Hunger Strike in Latest Sign of Simmering Unrest in Island Kingdom
By John Gambrell | Associated Press
Bahrain prison inmates are taking part in a hunger strike over conditions there, activists and authorities said Wednesday, the latest sign of simmering unrest in the island kingdom a decade after the Arab Spring.
Philippine Leader Says No Promise Made to China to Remove Grounded Warship
By Karen Lema and Neil Jerome Morales | Reuters
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday denied making an agreement with China to remove a grounded warship that serves as a military outpost in South China Sea, and said if there ever were such a deal, it should be considered rescinded.
More from WPR: Marcos Is Bringing the Philippines Back Into the U.S. Fold
Pakistan Election Delay Raises Fears for Democracy
By Farhan Bokhari and Benjamin Parkin | Financial Times
The decision on Saturday by a committee led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to redraw the country’s electoral boundaries on the basis of a recently completed census means ministers now expect the election to be delayed until early next year. That means the nuclear-armed south Asian nation of 241 million faces a prolonged period without a government backed by parliament.
More from WPR: Pakistan’s Political Crisis May Be Reaching a Breaking Point
Taiwanese Chipmaker TSMC Approves $3.8 Billion German Factory Plan
By Ben Blanchard and Thomas Escritt | Reuters
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) will spend 3.5 billion euros ($3.8 billion) on a factory in Germany, its first in Europe, the company said on Tuesday, taking advantage of the continent's eagerness to bring supply chains closer to home.
More from WPR: The U.S. Can’t Win the Battle Over Semiconductors Alone
Thousands of Protesters March in Haiti Against Gang Violence
Reuters
Tensions escalated in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince on Monday, as thousands of protesters took to the streets to speak out against the country's devastating gang violence, which resulted last week in the death of a police officer.
More from WPR: Haitians Have a Solution to Haiti’s Crisis
Belarus Begins Military Drills Near its Border With Poland and Lithuania as Tensions Heighten
Associated Press
Belarus began military exercises Monday near its border with Poland and Lithuania, a move coming with tensions already heightened with the two NATO members over Russia-linked Wagner mercenaries moving to Belarus after their short-lived mutiny in Russia.
Senior U.S. State Department Official Visits Niger to Negotiate With Junta
By Katharine Houreld and Michael Birnbaum | The Washington Post
A top State Department official held what she described as “difficult” talks in the West African country of Niger on Monday in a bid to start negotiations with the military junta that last month deposed the elected president, a key U.S. ally in the region.
More from WPR: Niger Was Never the ‘Success Story’ It’s Being Made Out to Be
Far-right Finance Minister Freezes Funds for Israeli Arab Cities, East Jerusalem Students
By Nati Tucker and Nir Hasson | Haaretz
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is persisting in his refusal to allocate funding to Arab municipalities and educational programs in East Jerusalem, defying stark warnings from the Shin Bet security service and the education ministry, who see a direct connection between funding the programs in East Jerusalem and a decrease in terrorism.
More from WPR: Netanyahu’s Far-Right Government Is Tearing Israel Apart
China Hacked Japan’s Sensitive Defense Networks, Officials Say
By Ellen Nakashima | The Washington Post
In the fall of 2020, the National Security Agency made an alarming discovery: Chinese military hackers had compromised classified defense networks of the United States’ most important strategic ally in East Asia. Cyberspies from the People’s Liberation Army had wormed their way into Japan’s most sensitive computer systems.
More from WPR: China’s Road to ‘Cyber Superpower’ Status
Imran Khan Sentenced to Prison, Likely Dashing Hopes of Political Comeback
By Salman Masood and Christina Goldbaum | The New York Times
Former Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan was arrested on Saturday after a trial court sentenced him to three years in prison, a verdict likely to end his chances of running in upcoming general elections.
More from WPR: Khan Has Lost His War With Pakistan’s Army—for Now
Niger’s Junta Shuts Airspace and Accuses Regional Countries of Planning to Invade as Deadline Passes
By Sam Mednick | Associated Press
Niger’s mutinous soldiers closed the country’s airspace and accused foreign powers of preparing an attack, as the junta defied a deadline to reinstate the ousted president.
More from WPR: Niger Was Never the ‘Success Story’ It’s Being Made Out to Be
Panama Criticizes Colombia for Not Helping Stem Record Flow of Migrants Through Darien Gap
Associated Press
Panama’s top immigration official lashed out at Colombia on Sunday, saying it is not helping to slow the record flow of migrants through the dangerous jungle of the Darien Gap.
Two Dead, 30 Missing After Migrant Shipwrecks Off Italy's Lampedusa
By Alvise Armellini and Angelo Amante | Reuters
Two people died and around 30 more are missing at sea after two migrant shipwrecks off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, the coastguard said on Sunday, adding that 57 people had been rescued.
More from WPR: Instead of Resettlement Schemes, Make Migration Easier
Ethiopia Accuses Amhara Militia of Trying to Overthrow Government
By Dawit Endeshaw | Reuters
A senior Ethiopian official accused militiamen in the Amhara region of seeking to overthrow the regional and federal governments following days of fighting that led the authorities to declare a state of emergency.
More from WPR: The Tigray War Is Over. Ethiopia’s Conflict in Oromia Is Raging On
Israel Kills 3 Suspected Palestinian Militants as West Bank Violence Shows No Signs of Slowing
Associated Press
Israeli troops on Sunday killed three alleged Palestinian militants in the northern West Bank, further escalating a wave of violence in which two other people, including a young Palestinian man believed to have been gunned down by extremist Jewish settlers, were killed over the weekend.
More from WPR: The West Bank Is a Powder Keg. Israel’s Raids Could Set It Off
Philippines Summons Chinese Ambassador Over Water Cannon Incident in Disputed South China Sea
By Jim Gomez | Associated Press
The Philippine government summoned China’s ambassador on Monday and presented a strongly worded diplomatic protest over the Chinese coast guard’s use of water cannons in a weekend confrontation with Philippine vessels in the disputed South China Sea, officials said.
Cambodia’s King Appoints Army Chief Hun Manet as Successor to His Father, Long-Ruling Hun Sen
By Sopheng Cheang | Associated Press
Cambodia’s king on Monday formally appointed army chief Hun Manet to succeed his father and long-ruling Prime Minister Hun Sen as the nation’s leader later this month after their party sealed victory in a one-sided election last month.
More from WPR: Hun Sen Is Tightening His Grip Ahead of Cambodia’s Elections
Colombia and Rebel Group Begin Cease-Fire After Decades of Combat
By Genevieve Glatsky | The New York Times
A cease-fire between the Colombian government and the country’s largest remaining rebel group took effect on Thursday, the longest halt to hostilities the group has agreed to and a milestone in efforts to end the country’s 60-year internal conflict, which has killed roughly 450,000 people.
More from WPR: Colombia’s ‘Invisible’ Violence Persists Despite Petro’s ‘Total Peace’
UN Bodies Call for Urgent Action Over Panama’s Darién Gap Migration Route
By Luke Taylor | The Guardian
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have called for urgent intervention in the Darién Gap to prevent a further escalation of a humanitarian crisis as new figures showed that record numbers of people are risking their lives to cross the lawless 100-mile stretch of rainforest between Panama and Colombia.
More from WPR: The U.S. Should Welcome Immigrants With Open Arms—and Open Borders
Russian Warship Damaged in Ukrainian Attack on Novorossiysk Naval Base, Sources Say
Reuters
A Ukrainian intelligence source said the Olenegorsky Gornyak, a Russian Navy landing ship, had suffered a serious breach and could not conduct combat missions following a joint operation by the Ukrainian Navy and SBU intelligence service.
Mutinous Soldiers in Niger Sever French Military Ties While ‘Hostage’ President Pleads for US Help
By Sam Mednick | Associated Press
Niger’s military junta says it is severing military agreements with France, its former colonial ruler, firing some of the previous government’s key ambassadors and warning citizens of the West African nation to watch for foreign armies and spies. A regional delegation’s efforts at negotiation quickly deadlocked.
More from WPR: Niger Was Never the ‘Success Story’ It’s Being Made Out to Be
Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Invited to Iran Amid Tensions Over Gas Field
Reuters
Iran's foreign minister has invited his Kuwaiti counterpart to Tehran, Kuwait said on Thursday, as tensions simmer over the offshore Durra gas field. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait claim exclusive joint rights to the field while Iran also claims a stake and says a Saudi-Kuwaiti agreement to develop it, signed last year, is illegal.
China Reopens Trade in Australian Barley in a New Sign of Improved Relations
By Rod McGuirk | Associated Press
China is lifting a stifling 3-year-old tariff on Australian barley starting Saturday—a sign of an improving bilateral trade relationship since Australia’s government changed.
Vanuatu Prime Minister to Face No Confidence Vote in Parliament
By Kirsty Needham | Reuters
Vanuatu, at the centre of strategic rivalry between China and western countries in the Pacific Islands, has plunged into political crisis, with its prime minister to face a no-confidence vote in parliament next week.