CHINA
Xi slams climate inaction
President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the world economy faces growing risks and uncertainties from countries turning inward on trade and resisting combating climate change, delivering an implicit rebuke to his US counterpart, Donald Trump. Xi did not refer to the US by name, although Trump has said trade pacts are a threat to US jobs and decided to pull the US out of the Paris agreement on climate change. “Multilateral trade negotiations are having a difficult time. The implementation of the Paris agreement on climate change is encountering resistance,” Xi said during a summit of BRICS nations, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. .
KENYA
Odinga sets poll conditions
Opposition leader Raila Odinga yesterday set several conditions for taking part in a presidential vote rerun on Oct. 17 after the Supreme Court annulled last month’s poll won by President Uhuru Kenyatta. His conditions include the sacking of several election commission officials, a review of the electronic transmission of results and for all eight presidential candidates who took part in the Aug. 8 poll to be allowed to run in the upcoming election.
CHILE
Island sets marine zone
Easter Island’s Rapanui people have voted to create a vast marine protection zone. Along with a marine park that already exists, the new area will cover 720,000km2 around the island. The waters around the island are a spawning ground for tuna, shark, marlin and swordfish. They also host shallow-water coral reefs that are home to unique marine species. The seas around the island are under threat from overfishing, rising tourism and the introduction of invasive species, as well as increasing acidity in the ocean water and climate change. Chilean Environmental Minister Marcelo Mena told an environmental conference in La Serena that the vote by the Rapanui people means the nation would have the largest marine protection zone in Latin America.
JAPAN
Flight halted by bird strike
A Japan Airlines (JAL) plane bound for New York yesterday returned safely to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport after the pilot reported a bird strike to an engine during takeoff. TV footage showed a red flame flickering from the left engine as the plane ascended from the runway. JAL said the Boeing 777 carrying 233 passengers and 15 crewmembers requested an emergency landing minutes after takeoff from Haneda. The plane returned to the airport about an hour after takeoff and no injuries were reported. JAL said it will inspect the engine.
AUSTRALIA
Breast ‘enhancer’ charged
A Chinese national yesterday was charged with manslaughter over an alleged botched attempt at breast augmentation surgery at a Sydney beauty clinic that led to the death of the salon’s manager. Jean Huang, 35, was rushed to hospital last week after she went into cardiac arrest during a breast implant procedure. Attempts to revive her failed and she died a few days later. Prosecutors allege Jie Shao, 33, administered an incorrect dose of anesthetic while performing the surgery. She reportedly had no medical qualifications in Australia and was visiting on a tourist visa. Court documents listed the drugs involved as pain relievers tramadol and lidocaine, and restricted substance hyaluronic acid, which is often used in cosmetic surgery. Shao was refused bail and is due back in court next month.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese