Latest news with #ForeignMinistry
The Star
an hour ago
- Business
- The Star
Anwar to deliver special address at Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore
PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will make a one-day working visit to Singapore on Saturday (May 31) to participate in the 22nd Shangri-La Dialogue. According to the Foreign Ministry, Anwar's invitation to the forum during Malaysia's tenure as Asean Chair this year reflects international recognition of the country's leadership in promoting regional peace and security. "The dialogue is an international annual event, serving as platform for leaders and officials to discuss regional and global security challenges," the ministry said in a statement on Friday (May 30). Anwar will deliver the special address at the Shangri-La Dialogue, organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). In addition to addressing the region's premier defence summit, Anwar will hold a bilateral meeting with his Singaporean counterpart Lawrence Wong. Both leaders are expected to review the state of Malaysia-Singapore relations and exchange views on regional and global developments of mutual interest. Anwar is also scheduled to pay a courtesy call on Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam. Last year, Singapore was Malaysia's second-largest trading partner globally and the largest within Asean. Bilateral trade increased by 8.9% to RM396.22bil, or 13.8% of Malaysia's total trade. Malaysia's exports to Singapore were valued at RM230.86bil, while imports from Singapore reached RM143.73bil. The ministry said that as close neighbours and key Asean partners, Malaysia and Singapore enjoy robust and multi-faceted cooperation. This year also marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. – Bernama
Barnama
an hour ago
- Business
- Barnama
PM Anwar To Deliver Special Address At Shangri-La Dialogue
GENERAL SINGAPORE, May 30 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will undertake a one-day working visit to Singapore on Saturday to participate in the 22nd Shangri-La Dialogue. According to the Malaysian Foreign Ministry, Anwar's invitation to the forum—held during Malaysia's ASEAN chairmanship this year—reflects international recognition of the country's leadership in promoting regional peace and security. "The dialogue is an international annual event, serving as platform for leaders and officials to discuss regional and global security challenges," the ministry said in a statement on Friday. Anwar will deliver the Special Address at the Shangri-La Dialogue, organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). In addition to addressing the region's premier defence summit, Anwar will hold a bilateral meeting with his Singaporean counterpart, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. Both leaders are expected to review the state of Malaysia-Singapore relations and exchange views on regional and global developments of mutual interest. The Prime Minister is also scheduled to pay a courtesy call on Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam. In 2024, Singapore was Malaysia's second-largest trading partner globally and the largest within ASEAN. Bilateral trade increased by 8.9 per cent to RM396.22 billion (US$86.69 billion), representing 13.8 per cent of Malaysia's total trade.
Mint
2 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
Trump Aims to Boost Taiwan Arms Sales Further, Reuters Says
President Donald Trump is planning to ramp up weapons sales to Taiwan to a level exceeding the pace set during his first term, Reuters reported, a move that risks escalating military tensions with China at a time the two nations are already locked in difficult talks over tariffs. Two US officials familiar with the matter said they expect US approvals for arms sales to Taipei over the next four years to surpass those in Trump's first term, according to a Reuters report Friday. New weapons packages are expected to focus on missiles, munitions and drones. Trump's first term was marked by 22 military sales notifications for Taiwan valued at $18.65 billion, including backlogged cases and funding for maintenance of existing systems, compared to about $8.7 billion during the Biden administration, according to a 2024 report from the Cato Institute. Washington's move could inflame tensions with Beijing just as bilateral frustration is flaring up again over trade, student visas and access to technology. Beijing considers democratically governed Taiwan to be its territory. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said his nation opposes US weapons sales to Taiwan and they should cease. Washington should 'stop creating new factors that could lead to tensions in the Taiwan Strait,' he added at the regular press briefing in Beijing on Friday. The White House and the State Department didn't immediately reply to a request for comment made outside working hours in the US. The news comes as US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visits Singapore for an annual defense forum where he's set to rally allies and partners to counter China. Beijing is sending a lower-level delegation to the Shangri-La Dialogue, avoiding a potential encounter with Hegseth. US-China relations had been on the mend since both sides reached a temporary trade truce in Geneva earlier this month. But that began to change in recent days, with the US announcing it would start revoking some Chinese student visas. Washington has also introduced new restrictions on the sales of chip design software and reportedly some jet engine parts to China. That came shortly after it sought to block Huawei Technologies Co. from selling advanced AI chips anywhere in the world, prompting an angry rebuke from Beijing. Read: Taiwan Says US Trade-Deal Push Still On Despite Court Ruling US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who helped reach the truce with Beijing officials, said Thursday that trade talks with China are 'a bit stalled' and could benefit from a direct call between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Any arms sales from the US to Taiwan would prompt an outcry from China. In 2019, Beijing protested against the Trump administration's tacit approval for Taiwan to buy dozens of F-16 fighter jets. With assistance from Jordan Fabian, Derek Wallbank and Colum Murphy. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
The Hill
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Hill
Japan says China will resume Japanese seafood imports it halted over Fukushima water discharge
TOKYO (AP) — China will resume Japanese seafood imports it banned in 2023 over worries about Japan's discharge slightly radioactive wastewater from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the sea, a Japanese official said Friday. China said their talks this week made 'substantial progress' but did not confirm an agreement with Japan on the issue that has been a significant political and diplomatic point of tension. Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the agreement was reached after Japanese and Chinese officials met in Beijing and the imports will resume once paperwork is complete. 'Seafood is an important export item for Japan and a resumption of its export to China is a major milestone,' Koizumi said. Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya also welcomed the move, saying, 'It will be a big first step that would help Japan and China to tackle a number of remaining issues between the two countries,' such as disputes over territory, trade and wartime history. But officials said China's ban on farm and fisheries products from 10 Japanese prefectures including Fukushima is still in place and that they will keep pushing toward their lifting. China's General Administration of Customs, in a statement issued Friday, said the two sides on Wednesday held 'a new round of technical exchanges on the safety issues of Japanese aquatic products … and achieved substantial progress' but did not mention an agreement. China blocked imports of Japanese seafood because it said the release of the treated and diluted but still slightly radioactive wastewater would endanger the fishing industry and coastal communities in eastern China. Japanese officials have said the wastewater will be safer than international standards and its environmental impact will be negligible. They say the wastewater must be released to make room for the nuclear plant's decommissioning and to prevent accidental leaks. Tokyo and Beijing since March held three rounds of talks on the issue before reaching the agreement on Wednesday on the 'technical requirements' necessary for Japanese seafood exports to China to restart, Japan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It did not say how long it may take before the actual resumption. Mainland China used to be the biggest overseas market for Japanese seafood, accounting for more than one-fifth of its seafood exports, followed by Hong Kong. The ban became a major blow to the fisheries industry, though the impact on overall trade was limited because seafood exports are a fraction of Japan's total exports. Japan's government set up an emergency relief fund for Japanese exporters, especially scallop growers, and has sought alternative overseas markets. Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which operates the Fukushima Daiichi plant, has said it would compensate Japanese business owners appropriately for damages from export bans. The nuclear plant had meltdowns in three reactors after being heavily damaged in the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan. Water used to cool the reactor cores has been accumulating ever since, and officials say the massive stockpile is hampering the cleanup of the site. The wastewater was treated and heavily diluted with seawater to reduce the radioactivity as much as possible before Japan began releasing it into the sea in August 2023. Last September, then-Prime Minster Fumio Kishida said the two sides reached 'a certain level of mutual understanding' that China would start working toward easing the import ban and join the International Atomic Energy Agency's expanded monitoring of wastewater discharges. People inside and outside Japan protested the initial wastewater release. Japanese fishing groups said they feared it would further damage the reputation of their seafood. Groups in China and South Korea also raised concerns.
Associated Press
3 hours ago
- General
- Associated Press
Czech Republic accuses China of ‘malicious cyber campaign' against its foreign ministry
PRAGUE (AP) — The Czech Republic has accused China of being 'responsible' for cyberattacks against a a communication network of its Foreign Ministry, officials said on Wednesday. The Foreign Ministry in Prague said the malicious activities started in 2022 and targeted the country's critical infrastructure, adding it believed the Advanced Persistent Threat 31, or APT31, hacking group, which is associated with the Chinese Ministry of State Security, was behind the campaign. It was not immediately clear what specific information were seized or what damage was caused by the attacks. The Czech ministry said a new communication system has already been put in place. Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said in a separate statement that his ministry summoned China's ambassador to Prague to make it clear to Beijing 'that such activities have serious impacts on mutual relations.' 'The government of the Czech Republic strongly condemns this malicious cyber campaign against its critical infrastructure,' the statement said. 'Such behavior undermines the credibility of the People's Republic of China and contradicts its public declarations.' The Chinese Embassy dismissed the Czech accusations as 'groundless.' It said China fights 'all forms of cyber attacks and does not support, promote or tolerate hacker attacks.' The United States denounced the Chinese activities and called on China to stop it immediately, the U.S. Embassy in Prague said in a statement. It said ATP31 previously targeted U.S. and foreign politicians, foreign policy experts and others. 'APT31 has also stolen trade secrets and intellectual property, and targeted entities in some of America's most vital critical infrastructure sectors, including the Defense Industrial Base, information technology, and energy sectors,' the embassy said. NATO and the European Union also condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with the Czechs. 'We observe with increasing concern the growing pattern of malicious cyber activities stemming from the People's Republic of China,' NATO said. 'This attack is an unacceptable breach of international norms,' Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, said. 'The EU will not tolerate hostile cyber actions.' In a separated cyberattack in 2017, the email account of then Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek and the accounts of dozens of ministry officials were successfully hacked. Officials said the attack was sophisticated, and experts believed it was done by a foreign state, which was not named then.
