Peru seeks high-level meeting with China, Brazil to advance bi-oceanic railroad
Economy Minister Raul Perez Reyes met with China's ambassador to Peru, who told him a meeting between the countries' leaders would help define a joint roadmap for the regional rail corridor, according to the statement.
The proposed railway would connect Brazil to a new port on Peru's Pacific coast, creating a trade route with China that would allow it avoid routes going through the Panama Canal and around the southern tip of South America.
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Telegraph
6 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Taiwan has a stronger claim to statehood than Palestine. Will Starmer recognise it?
Now that Sir Keir Starmer has declared his intention to recognise the imaginary state of Palestine, perhaps he might want to consider affording similar status to one that does actually exist: Taiwan. Starmer's decision to recognise Palestine at the UN next month might have helped to appease his restless backbenchers, who champion the Palestinian cause without having the faintest notion what they are talking about. But recognising a state that does not exist, is incapable of holding democratic elections and where a decent proportion of the population are in thrall to Islamist-inspired terrorism is hardly a blueprint for success. Taiwan, by contrast, is a self-proclaimed independent territory that regularly holds free and fair democratic elections – despite the malign efforts of China's Communist rulers to disrupt the process – where the overwhelming majority continue to uphold their right of self-determination. Apart from being a fully functioning democracy, Taiwan is also a valued trading partner, with total trade between the UK and Taipei currently averaging around £9.3bn. And yet, despite his willingness to offer full recognition to Palestine, an area that has no formal borders, a non-functioning administration and meagre trading options, our prime minister appears strangely reticent on the subject of upgrading our diplomatic ties with a democratic and prosperous ally such as Taiwan. This aversion to addressing the issue is all the more remarkable given that the official policy is to protect Taiwan from Chinese aggression, a position that means the Royal Navy regularly conducts freedom of navigation exercises in the region – including through the Taiwan Strait – to demonstrate Britain's solidarity. The extent of the UK's military support for Taiwan is evident from the participation of HMS Prince of Wales, the Royal Navy's new 65,000-tonne aircraft carrier, in the Talisman Sabre exercises currently taking place in the Asia-Pacific region. The British warship is part of a 35,000-strong multi-national force conducting military exercises aimed at deterring China from launching an attack against Taiwan. Indeed, Defence Secretary John Healey was at his most bullish when asked about the UK's commitment to defend the region from Chinese aggression, commenting, 'If we have to fight, as we have done in the past, Australia and the UK are nations that will fight together. We exercise together, and by exercising together and being more ready to fight, we deter better together.' It is unlikely that we would ever see Healey, or any other Labour minister, making such robust comments about defending a future Palestine state – assuming, that is, that one ever materialises. The Starmer Government's desire to steer clear of any serious military entanglements in the Middle East was evident during the recent confrontation between the US and Iran. While the US deployed its aircraft carrier groups to the Gulf in anticipation of war with Tehran, the Prince of Wales, which was sailing through the region at the time, continued on its passage to Australia, out of harm's way. If the Government is so determined to defend Taiwan's right to exist, even risking the prospect of war with China by doing so, then it begs the question: why, having recognised a non-state like Palestine, will it not make the same commitment to Taipei? Ever since the leadership of the original Republic of China fled from the mainland to Taiwan in 1949, successive British governments have sought to adopt a neutral position in its dealing with the territory. While the UK is perfectly willing to maintain lucrative trade ties, as well as providing declarations of military support, ministers have been reluctant to upgrade Taiwan's diplomatic status for fear of causing offence to China, its more powerful and prosperous neighbour. Since 1972, when London eventually recognised the People's Republic as the sole government of China, the view in Whitehall has been that the future status of Taiwan should be a matter for the Chinese to decide. A number of recent factors have made this compromise appear less satisfactory, not least Chinese President Xi Jinping's pronounced determination to reclaim Taiwan as Chinese sovereign territory. Having declared that the ' reunification' of China with Taiwan is a cornerstone of his aim of achieving the Chinese dream of nation rejuvenation by 2049, Xi has authorised the Chinese military to engage in a massive build up, with some Western military analysts predicting a Chinese invasion could take place by 2027. The gathering storm clouds over China's territorial ambitions towards Taiwan have already resulted in significant changes to British policy to the region, most notably the 2021 Integrated Review that proposed an Indo-Pacific 'tilt' in our military and security outlook. Apart from sending an aircraft carrier to participate in joint naval exercises, the Royal Navy is also committed to upgrading its 'persistent presence' in the region to include the rotational deployment of nuclear submarines from 2027 as part of the recent Aukus agreement signed between the UK, US and Australia. If the UK is preparing to defend Taiwan's sovereignty, it makes sense for Starmer to give serious consideration to offering the Taiwanese people the same level of recognition that he is prepared to give to the Palestinians. Otherwise the UK could one day find itself in the invidious position of fighting for a people whose sovereignty it does not even acknowledge.
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Myanmar military courts sentence 12 to life for human trafficking, including Chinese nationals
Myanmar military courts have sentenced a dozen individuals — including five Chinese nationals — to life imprisonment for their involvement in multiple human trafficking cases, state-run media reported Saturday. According to the Myanma Alinn newspaper, the convictions stem from a range of offenses including the online distribution of sex videos and the trafficking of Myanmar women into forced marriages in China. In one case, five people — including two Chinese nationals identified as Lin Te and Wang Xiaofeng — were sentenced to life imprisonment by a military court in Yangon, the country's largest city, on July 29. They were found guilty under Myanmar's Anti-Trafficking in Persons law for producing sex videos involving three Myanmar couples and distributing the footage online for profit. In a separate case, the same court sentenced a woman and three Chinese nationals — Yibo, Cao Qiu Quan and Chen Huan. The group was convicted of planning to transport two Myanmar women, recently married to two of the convicted Chinese men, into China, the report said. Additionally, three other people received life sentences from a separate military court for selling a woman as a bride to China, and for attempting to do the same with another woman. In another case, a woman from Myanmar's central Magway region was given a 10-year sentence on July 30 for planning to transport two Myanmar women to be sold as brides to Chinese men, the report said. Human trafficking, particularly of women and girls lured or forced into marriages in China, remains a widespread problem in Myanmar, a country still reeling from civil war after the military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The persisting conflict in most areas of Myanmar has left millions of women and children vulnerable to exploitation. A 2018 report by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Kachin Women's Association Thailand (KWAT) — which works to prevent and respond to trafficking in northern Kachin and Shan states bordering China — estimated that about 21,000 women and girls from northern Myanmar were forced into marriage in China between 2013 and 2017. In its latest report published in December, KWAT noted a sharp decline in the number of trafficking survivors accessing its services from 2020 to 2023. It attributed the decline to the COVID-19 pandemic and border closures caused by ongoing conflict following the army takeover. However, it reported a resurgence in 2024 as people from across Myanmar began migrating to China in search of work. Maj-Gen Aung Kyaw Kyaw, a deputy minister for Home Affairs, said during a June meeting that the authorities had handled 53 cases of human trafficking, forced marriage and prostitution in 2024, 34 of which involved China, according to a report published by Myanmar's Information Ministry. The report also said that a total of 80 human trafficking cases, including 14 involving marriage deception by foreign nationals, were recorded between January and June this year.
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Brazil's Azul secures $650 million investment commitment
SAO PAULO, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Brazilian airline Azul said it signed an agreement with certain stakeholders for a $650 million investment in a future capitalization deal, according to a late Friday securities filing. The airline's so-called "backstop commitment agreement" must be approved by the U.S. court overseeing its bankruptcy proceedings, the filing said. In May, Azul filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States after months of trying to restructure mostly pandemic-era debt.
