Defence chiefs of all five FPDA member countries meet for first time in a decade
The Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) is aiming to address growing threats to underwater infrastructure, which supports essential services such as phone lines, internet connectivity and energy transmission. The FPDA — whose member countries include Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom — is also focusing on threats from unmanned systems. This, as defence chiefs from all five FPDA countries met for the first time in a decade. Aslam Shah reports.
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Singapore-based sports marketing and player development firm Red Card Global, which had entered into an agreement to acquire Riteriai on Jan 20, pulled out of the deal and said it would be initiating legal action against the sellers for 'misrepresentation, breach of agreement and the unauthorised use of funds committed in good faith'. It left the Lithuanian top-tier club on the verge of bankruptcy. 'As a footballer, I know this career has its ups and down, there are a lot of highs and a lot of lows. So you can never get carried away. This is the real side of football,' said Stewart on June 3, after returning to Singapore for a national team training camp. Stewart, who has made seven starts and two substitute appearances for Riteriai since his transfer, had the option of leaving the club but the 25-year-old fullback decided to stay on. Stewart said: 'I feel the Lithuanian league is a good place to grow as a footballer. A lot of players come through here and go on to bigger leagues in Europe. 'I don't want to just go there and then just leave after two months. That's not what my initial plan was, so I want to stay and play as many games as I can and show what I can do.' On April 4, Riteriai said on their website that they are experiencing financial difficulties and attributed the situation to 'investors' unfulfilled obligations'. A report on the Baltic Football News website on May 16 stated that the club are up for sale. The report also added that 'the clock is ticking' and that 'the club now finds itself on the edge of collapse.' The Lithuanian Football Federation had already stepped in once, and transferred €50,000 (S$73,400) to Riteriai in early April to cover overdue wages and rent but LFF president Edgaras Stankevicius has said there will not be any additional help. When asked if he faced any issues, such as late payment of wages, Stewart said 'there's obviously been some difficulties' but declined to elaborate, stating that his club, coach and teammates have been 'very helpful'. His main objective, said the versatile player who can play as a fullback or winger, is to help his side avoid relegation. Fourteen matches into the 36-game A Lyga season, Riteriai are ninth out of 10 teams with two wins, four draws and eight losses. The bottom side will be relegated, while the ninth-placed club will face the second-placed team from the second tier in a two-legged play-off for the final place in the top flight. Adding that matches in Lithuania have been physically demanding – he runs almost 2km more per match than the 10km he clocked while in the Singapore Premier League (SPL) – Stewart believes he will benefit from the experience of being involved in a relegation dogfight. 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