Asia-Pacific

US Blasts China's 'Destabilising' Acts Near Taiwan

United States (US) Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday blasted China's "provocative, destabilising" military activity near Taiwan, as well as Beijing's growing aggression across the wider Asia-Pacific region.Tensions between Washington and Beijing are soaring over democratic, self-ruled Taiwan, which China views as its territory and has vowed to seize one day, by force if necessary.Beijing has conducted dozens of incursions into Taiwan's air defence zone this y

12 June 2022
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Can NATO Counter China’s Influence In APAC?

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and its partner countries in the Asia-Pacific are increasingly concerned about the challenges that an assertive China could pose to global security. Based on the report ‘NATO 2030: United for a New Era’ dated November 2020, these challenges are multi-domain. A political strategy is there but so are the hurdles.

28 August 2021
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EXCLUSIVE: A European Union Perspective On RCEP

The recent signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) between ASEAN and five Asia-Pacific countries (China, Japan, Australia, South Korea and New Zealand) has created the world’s largest free-trade zone that covers about a third of the world’s population and accounts for about 30 percent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP).The European Union (EU) is not a signatory to RCEP, but is paying close attention to it.

30 November 2020
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The Impact Of The RCEP On The European Union

The 15 November agreement to form the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) between the 10 members of ASEAN and Australia, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand has only modest immediate economic effects for the European Union (EU).  However, with China playing a central role in the new arrangement, the long-term strategic and geopolitical implications are major.

23 November 2020
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Huge Asian Trade Pact Signed In Coup For China

15 Asia-Pacific countries on Sunday signed the world's biggest free trade deal, seen as a huge coup for China in extending its influence.The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) includes 10 Southeast Asian economies along with China, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and Australia, with members accounting for around 30 percent of global GDP.First proposed in 2012, the deal was finally sealed at the end of a Southeast Asian summit as leaders push to get their pandemic-hit econ

16 November 2020
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ASEAN Leaders To Sign China-Backed Trade Deal

Fifteen Asia-Pacific nations are set to sign an enormous free trade deal at an online summit that started Thursday, with the pact seen as a coup for China in extending its influence across the region.Once signed, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will be the world's largest trade pact in terms of GDP, according to analysts.The pact, which was first proposed in 2012 and viewed as a Chinese-led rival to a now-defunct United States (US) trade initiative, loops in 10 Sou

13 November 2020
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Breast Cancer Amid The Pandemic

Every year in October, pink ribbons are distributed as part of a public awareness campaign aimed at reminding women across the globe to head for a breast examination in order to combat breast cancer. 2020’s Breast Cancer Awareness campaigns have mainly shifted to social media and online as most nations are currently practicing social isolation amid the coronavirus pandemic.

19 October 2020
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Building A Resilient And Sustainable Future

The unprecedented public health emergency triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic and its multi-faceted impact on people’s lives around the world is taking a heavy toll on Asia and the Pacific. Countries in our region are striving to mitigate the massive socioeconomic impact of the pandemic, which is also expected to affect the region’s economic health.

11 April 2020
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Between “Indo-Pacific” and “Asia-Pacific”

“I’ve had the honour of sharing our vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Trump told delegates at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum in Vietnam earlier this month.The term, “Indo-Pacific” has been used repeatedly during Trump’s Asian jaunt in reference to the region running from Eastern Africa to the Pacific Ocean.

18 November 2017
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Trump to host Singapore's PM at White House

US President Donald Trump will host Singapore's prime minister in Washington later this month, the White House said Tuesday, with North Korea likely topping the agenda.In a statement announcing Lee Hsien Loong's October 23 White House visit, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the meeting would reaffirming ties with "one of America's closest partners in Asia for more than 50 years."Singapore has long positioned itself as something of a cultural and political t

11 October 2017
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