CHINA
Envoy to WTO removed
Senior Chinese trade negotiator Li Chenggang (李成鋼) has been removed from his post as permanent representative to the WTO, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday, just days after US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent described him as “unhinged.” Li, during a visit to Washington in August, had allegedly threatened that “China would unleash chaos on the global system if the US went ahead with our docking fees for Chinese ships,” Bessent said in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday last week, adding that his behavior was “slightly unhinged.” Xinhua yesterday published a list of ambassadorial appointments and changes, including the removal of Li as WTO envoy. Asked if the move was related to Bessent’s comments, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: “This is a routine personnel change.” Li remains China’s international trade representative and vice minister of commerce.
Photo: Reuters
AUSTRALIA
PLA jet maneuver ‘unsafe’
Canberra yesterday raised concerns with Beijing after a Chinese fighter jet dropped flares near one of its maritime patrol planes, labeling the incident “unsafe and unprofessional.” The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) jet released flares in close proximity to an Australian maritime patrol plane carrying out surveillance in the South China Sea, posing a risk to the latter craft and its crew, the Department of Defence said in a statement. “On two occasions, it released flares very close to the [Australian patrol plane] P-8,” Minister for Defence Richard Marles said in a TV interview with Sky News Australia. “And it’s really that, the proximity at which the flares were released, which has given us cause to deem this unsafe and unprofessional.” Marles said the government had raised its concerns with the Chinese embassy in Canberra and through the Australian embassy in Beijing. The Chinese embassy did not immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment.
SOUTH KOREA
US acting envoy leaving
Acting US ambassador to South Korea Joseph Yun is to leave his position on Friday, the US embassy in Seoul said in a social media post yesterday. “The State Department expresses its deep appreciation to Ambassador Yun for his leadership and dedication in advancing the United States’ interests and further strengthening our enduring and ironclad commitment to the US-Republic of Korea Alliance,” the embassy wrote on X. Local media, including newspaper Hankyoreh, on Sunday reported that US Deputy Assistant Secretary for Japan, Korea and Mongolia Kevin Kim is expected to replace Yun as acting US ambassador to Seoul without citing a clear source. Yun leaving his post comes days before US President Donald Trump is expected to visit South Korea later this month for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平).
UNITED STATES
AWS cloud hit by outage
Amazon Web Services (AWS) yesterday morning reported a widespread disruption that affected services on other platforms. “We can confirm increased error rates and latencies for multiple AWS Services in the US-EAST-1 Region.” Amazon.com Inc said on the AWS health dashboard. User complaints began spiking just after 7:30am London time, with data from Down Detector showing thousands of user reports. Artificial intelligence firm Perplexity said the AWS service disruption was “affecting the stability of the website.” A representative for Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment as of press time last night.
School bullies in Singapore are to face caning under new guidelines, but the education minister on Tuesday said it would be meted out only as a last resort with strict safeguards. Human rights groups regularly criticize Singapore for the use of corporal punishment, which remains part of the school and criminal justice systems, but authorities have defended it as a deterrent to crime and serious misconduct. Caning was discussed in the parliament after legislators asked how it would be used in relation to bullying in schools. The debate followed stricter guidelines on serious student misconduct, including bullying, unveiled by the Singaporean Ministry of
As evening falls in Fiji’s capital, a steady stream of people approaches a makeshift clinic that is a first line of defense against one of the world’s fastest-growing HIV epidemics. In the South Pacific nation — a popular tourist destination of just under a million people — more than 2,000 new HIV cases were recorded last year, a 26 percent increase from 2024. The government has declared an HIV outbreak and described it as a national crisis. “It’s spreading like wildfire,” said Siteri Dinawai, 46, who came to be tested. The Moonlight Clinic, a converted minibus parked in a suburban cul-de-sac in Suva, is
A MESSAGE: Japan’s participation in the Balikatan drills is a clear deterrence signal to China not to attack Taiwan while the US is busy in the Middle East, an analyst said The Japan Self-Defense Forces yesterday fired a Type 88 anti-ship missile during a joint maritime exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces, hitting a decommissioned Philippine Navy ship in waters facing the disputed South China Sea, in drills that underscore Tokyo’s rising willingness to project military power on China’s doorstep. The drill took place as Manila and Tokyo began talks on a potential defense equipment transfer, made possible by Japan’s decision to scrap restrictions on military exports. The discussions include the possible early transfer of Abukuma-class destroyers and TC-90 aircraft to the Philippines, Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. Philippine Secretary of
Separatists in Alberta are preparing to submit a petition tomorrow that they said has enough signatures to force a referendum on independence for the oil-rich Canadian province. Polls indicate the pro-independence camp remains a minority among Alberta’s 5 million people, but has hit a historic high of roughly 30 percent. Alberta separatists are also closer than ever to forcing a referendum, riding momentum fueled by intensifying grievances over Ottawa’s control of the provincial oil industry. They have also undeniably gotten a boost from the return to power of US President Donald Trump. After launching a petition in January, Stay Free Alberta, the group
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