NEW ZEALAND
Space legislation passed
The government yesterday passed legislation to regulate the use of ground-based space infrastructure following concerns about foreign actors using it to harm national security. Minister for Space Judith Collins said in a statement that an amendment to the Outer Space High Altitude Activities Amendment Act would take effect on Tuesday next week and from then ground-based space infrastructure such as satellite tracking stations and telemetry systems would be subject to oversight and safeguards. The law “supports New Zealand’s interest in the safe, secure and responsible use of space and stop any attempts by foreign entities that do not share our values or interests,” Collins said. “Ground-based space infrastructure in New Zealand plays a vital role in supporting global satellite operations and space activities, but without regulation, it can also pose risks to national security, and other national interests.”
SOUTH KOREA
Birthrate reaches record
The government registered record birthrate growth during the first five months of the year, statistics agency official Kang hyun-young said yesterday. “The number of newborns for the January-May period stood at 106,048, a 6.9 percent increase, the highest growth rate since such data collection began in 1981,” Kang said. The latest figure marks a turnaround from early last year, when the number of births for the January-May period dropped by 2.7 percent from the previous year. The fertility rate, or the average number of babies a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, for May stood at 0.75. The country needs a fertility rate of 2.1 children to maintain its population of 51 million people. At current rates, the population would nearly halve to 26.8 million by 2100, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle.
CHINA
Minister complains to EU
Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao (王文濤) lodged “solemn representations” to his EU counterpart over two Chinese banks’ inclusion in the bloc’s sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine war, Beijing said yesterday. European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen today are to speak with Chinese leaders in Beijing. The summit comes less than a week after the EU adopted new sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine war.
GREECE
Fire starts near Corinth
A major forest fire on Tuesday broke out near Corinth, prompting authorities to order the evacuation of several villages. More than 180 firefighters, 15 planes and 12 helicopters were tackling the wildfire in a pine forest in the mountains near Corinth, the fire department said. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
UNITED STATES
Trump, Obama trade barbs
Trump on Tuesday said that “it’s time to go after people,” as he claimed that former president Barack Obama and other officials had engaged in treason following a new report about Moscow’s involvement in the 2016 presidential election. Trump’s attack prompted a rare response from Obama’s post-presidential office. “Our office does not normally dignify the constant nonsense and misinformation flowing out of this White House with a response, but these claims are outrageous enough to merit one” Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said. “These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction.”
IDENTITY: A sex extortion scandal involving Thai monks has deeply shaken public trust in the clergy, with 11 monks implicated in financial misconduct Reverence for the saffron-robed Buddhist monkhood is deeply woven into Thai society, but a sex extortion scandal has besmirched the clergy and left the devout questioning their faith. Thai police this week arrested a woman accused of bedding at least 11 monks in breach of their vows of celibacy, before blackmailing them with thousands of secretly taken photos of their trysts. The monks are said to have paid nearly US$12 million, funneled out of their monasteries, funded by donations from laypeople hoping to increase their merit and prospects for reincarnation. The scandal provoked outrage over hypocrisy in the monkhood, concern that their status
Trinidad and Tobago declared a new state of emergency on Friday after authorities accused a criminal network operating in prisons across the country of plotting to kill key government officials and attack public institutions. It is the second state of emergency to be declared in the twin-island republic in a matter of months. In December last year, authorities took similar action, citing concerns about gang violence. That state of emergency lasted until mid-April. Police said that smuggled cellphones enabled those involved in the plot to exchange encrypted messages. Months of intelligence gathering led investigators to believe the targets included senior police officers,
A disillusioned Japanese electorate feeling the economic pinch goes to the polls today, as a right-wing party promoting a “Japanese first” agenda gains popularity, with fears over foreigners becoming a major election issue. Birthed on YouTube during the COVID-19 pandemic, spreading conspiracy theories about vaccinations and a cabal of global elites, the Sanseito Party has widened its appeal ahead of today’s upper house vote — railing against immigration and dragging rhetoric that was once confined to Japan’s political fringes into the mainstream. Polls show the party might only secure 10 to 15 of the 125 seats up for grabs, but it is
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr is to meet US President Donald Trump this week, hoping Manila’s status as a key Asian ally would secure a more favorable trade deal before the deadline on Friday next week. Marcos would be the first Southeast Asian leader to meet Trump in his second term. Trump has already struck trade deals with two of Manila’s regional partners, Vietnam and Indonesia, driving tough bargains in trade talks even with close allies that Washington needs to keep onside in its strategic rivalry with China. “I expect our discussions to focus on security and defense, of course, but also
RSS