Latest news with #hawkish
eNCA
5 days ago
- Politics
- eNCA
North Korea denies removing border loudspeakers
The powerful sister of North Korea's leader on Thursday denied reports by the South Korean military that Pyongyang has started removing loudspeakers used in tit-for-tat propaganda wars along their border. South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung has vowed to reach out to the nuclear-armed North and pursue dialogue without preconditions since his election in June -- a reversal from his hawkish predecessor. The South's military said in the same month that the two countries had halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarised zone, adding last week that it had detected North Korean troops dismantling loudspeakers on the frontier. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, on Thursday denied the reports, saying Pyongyang had no interest in improving relations with Seoul. "We have never removed loudspeakers installed on the border area and are not willing to remove them," Kim said in an English-language statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency. "Recently, the ROK has tried to mislead public opinion by saying that its 'goodwill measures' and 'appeasement policy' are meeting a response, as well as to create public opinion that the DPRK-ROK relations are being 'restored'", she said, referring to the two Koreas by the abbreviations of their formal names. "We have clarified on several occasions that we have no will to improve relations with the ROK... and this conclusive stand and viewpoint will be fixed in our constitution in the future," Kim added. Her statement came as South Korea and the United States prepare to hold annual joint military drills aimed at containing the North, from August 18 to 28. "Whether the ROK withdraws its loudspeakers or not, stops broadcasting or not, postpones its military exercises or not and downscales them or not, we do not care about them and are not interested in them," Kim said. The South Korean government, meanwhile, maintained a diplomatic stance, saying Thursday that it would continue to "pursue normalisation and stabilisation measures" with the North. "Over the past three years, inter-Korean relations have been locked in a hardline standoff. To turn this into a period of dialogue and engagement, we must approach the situation with composure and a long-term perspective," an official from Seoul's unification ministry told reporters. - 'Practical measure' - AFP | ANTHONY WALLACE Last year, North Korea sent thousands of trash-carrying balloons southwards, saying they were retaliation for anti-North propaganda balloons floated by South Korean activists. Later, the South turned on border loudspeaker broadcasts for the first time in six years -- including K-pop tunes and international news -- and the North started transmitting strange sounds along the frontier, unsettling South Korean residents. Loudspeaker broadcasts, a tactic that dates back to the Korean War, have previously prompted Pyongyang to threaten artillery strikes on Seoul's speaker units. The South's defence ministry said earlier this month it had begun removing loudspeakers from its side of the border as "a practical measure aimed at helping ease tensions with the North". Days later, Seoul said the North had started removing its own loudspeakers "in some parts along the front line". Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, said Kim Yo Jong's latest statement essentially kills any chances to improve inter-Korean or US-North Korean relations. Calling her remarks a "death certificate", Lim told AFP her stance had "hardened" since July when she said North Korea had no interest in pursuing dialogue with the South. "North Korea now appears to be formalising not just a refusal to talk, but the impossibility of talks with both the US and the South," Lim said. Kim's message is that "any tension-easing move will be ignored, suggesting that military de-escalation mechanisms could be neutralised at any time", added Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul. "The timing -- four days before the start of South Korea-US joint drills -- signals that Pyongyang may shift to high-intensity military displays, such as ballistic missile launches, or tactical nuclear strike drills," he said. North Korea -- which attacked its neighbour in 1950, triggering the Korean War -- has always been infuriated by US-South Korean military drills, decrying them as rehearsals for invasion. The United States stations around 28,500 troops in South Korea, and the allies regularly stage joint drills they describe as defensive in nature. The two Koreas technically remain at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. By Hieun Shin
Int'l Business Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
North Korea Denies Removing Border Loudspeakers
The powerful sister of North Korea's leader on Thursday denied reports by the South Korean military that Pyongyang has started removing loudspeakers used in tit-for-tat propaganda wars along their border. South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung has vowed to reach out to the nuclear-armed North and pursue dialogue without preconditions since his election in June -- a reversal from his hawkish predecessor. The South's military said in the same month that the two countries had halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarised zone, adding last week that it had detected North Korean troops dismantling loudspeakers on the frontier. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, on Thursday denied the reports, saying Pyongyang had no interest in improving relations with Seoul. "We have never removed loudspeakers installed on the border area and are not willing to remove them," Kim said in an English-language statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency. "Recently, the ROK has tried to mislead public opinion by saying that its 'goodwill measures' and 'appeasement policy' are meeting a response, as well as to create public opinion that the DPRK-ROK relations are being 'restored'", she said, referring to the two Koreas by the abbreviations of their formal names. "We have clarified on several occasions that we have no will to improve relations with the ROK... and this conclusive stand and viewpoint will be fixed in our constitution in the future," Kim added. Her statement came as South Korea and the United States prepare to hold annual joint military drills aimed at containing the North, from August 18 to 28. "Whether the ROK withdraws its loudspeakers or not, stops broadcasting or not, postpones its military exercises or not and downscales them or not, we do not care about them and are not interested in them," Kim said. The South Korean government, meanwhile, maintained a diplomatic stance, saying Thursday that it would continue to "pursue normalisation and stabilisation measures" with the North. "Over the past three years, inter-Korean relations have been locked in a hardline standoff. To turn this into a period of dialogue and engagement, we must approach the situation with composure and a long-term perspective," an official from Seoul's unification ministry told reporters. Last year, North Korea sent thousands of trash-carrying balloons southwards, saying they were retaliation for anti-North propaganda balloons floated by South Korean activists. Later, the South turned on border loudspeaker broadcasts for the first time in six years -- including K-pop tunes and international news -- and the North started transmitting strange sounds along the frontier, unsettling South Korean residents. Loudspeaker broadcasts, a tactic that dates back to the Korean War, have previously prompted Pyongyang to threaten artillery strikes on Seoul's speaker units. The South's defence ministry said earlier this month it had begun removing loudspeakers from its side of the border as "a practical measure aimed at helping ease tensions with the North". Days later, Seoul said the North had started removing its own loudspeakers "in some parts along the front line". Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, said Kim Yo Jong's latest statement essentially kills any chances to improve inter-Korean or US-North Korean relations. Calling her remarks a "death certificate", Lim told AFP her stance had "hardened" since July when she said North Korea had no interest in pursuing dialogue with the South. "North Korea now appears to be formalising not just a refusal to talk, but the impossibility of talks with both the US and the South," Lim said. Kim's message is that "any tension-easing move will be ignored, suggesting that military de-escalation mechanisms could be neutralised at any time", added Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul. "The timing -- four days before the start of South Korea-US joint drills -- signals that Pyongyang may shift to high-intensity military displays, such as ballistic missile launches, or tactical nuclear strike drills," he said. North Korea -- which attacked its neighbour in 1950, triggering the Korean War -- has always been infuriated by US-South Korean military drills, decrying them as rehearsals for invasion. The United States stations around 28,500 troops in South Korea, and the allies regularly stage joint drills they describe as defensive in nature. The two Koreas technically remain at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. Loudspeaker broadcasts, a tactic that dates back to the Korean War, have previously prompted Pyongyang to threaten artillery strikes on Seoul's speaker units AFP A North Korean soldier stands guard in a watch tower next to a giant loudspeaker near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) dividing the two Koreas in June AFP
Business Recorder
08-07-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Australian shares retreat ahead of rate cut; Trump tariff warnings stir unease
Australian shares slipped on Tuesday, dragged by energy and mining stocks, with investors retreating to the sidelines ahead of the central bank's expected interest rate cut later in the day. The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.3% to 8,565.3, as of 0029 GMT. The benchmark fell after hovering near the 8,600 mark since July 2 till the previous session, as traders focused on the looming tariff showdown. US President Donald Trump issued the first in a series of tariff warning letters, saying that the reciprocal levies will take effect from August 1. Australia faces a 10% baseline tariff. Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of Australia is set to announce its closely watched interest rate decision later in the day. The RBA is widely expected to deliver a 25-basis-point cut - its third since the first was announced at its February meeting. 'Anything different from a rate cut or a hawkish tone has the potential to generate increased volatility,' analysts at ANZ said. 'Overall, market volatility is expected to remain elevated this week, with US trade policy the dominant global concern,' analysts at trading platform Moomoo said. The mining sub-index shed 0.7%, tracking a fall in iron ore prices. Shares of the world's biggest listed miner BHP were down 2.3%, while Rio Tinto and Fortescue lost 2.2% and 1.8%, respectively. Energy stocks dropped 0.2% and rate-sensitive financial stocks declined 0.1%. Bucking the broader trend, gold stocks advanced by 2.7%. 'Investors are increasingly seeking refuge in safe-haven assets, with gold beginning to recover recent losses,' analysts at Moomoo said. Meanwhile, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.3% to 12,723.52. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is due to announce its monetary policy stance on Wednesday, with economists in a Reuters poll pointing towards a hold from the central bank.
Business Recorder
19-06-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Indian shares subdued as Middle East conflict saps risk appetite
India's equity benchmarks were muted on Thursday and the broader markets declined, as investors stayed cautious amid escalating Middle East tensions and hawkish U.S. monetary policy cues. The Nifty 50 fell 0.08% at 24,793.25 and the BSE Sensex lost 0.1% to 81,361.87. Twelve of the 13 major sectors logged losses. The auto index defied broader weakness to close 0.5% higher, with Mahindra & Mahindra extending gains after it received antitrust approval for its proposed acquisition of SML Isuzu. Asian and European markets declined on the day. Gold and the dollar gained as safe-haven demand rose after U.S. President Donald Trump said America 'may or may not' join Israel's strikes on Iran, escalating fears of U.S. entry into the Israel-Iran air war. 'The conflict threatens to choke supply near the Strait of Hormuz, a key trade route, and spur a rise in crude prices, which is a fast-track to inflation and market jitters,' said Ross Maxwell, global strategy lead at VT Markets. The broader small-caps and mid-caps closed 2% and 1.6% lower, respectively, with analysts attributing their underperformance to their weaker buffer against rising crude prices relative to large-caps. Indian shares slip as Trump's Tehran warning, oil surge rattle investors Overnight, the Fed left interest rates steady but projected two reductions by the year-end and signalled a slower path for rate cuts. 'The status quo on rates, even amidst the wave of criticism from Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's commentary, indicated high uncertainty over the impact of tariffs,' said analysts led by Hitesh Suvarna of JM Financial. Among individual stocks, Biocon rose 2% after HSBC expected a successful qualified institutional placement to ease debt and help sharpen its focus on the biosimilars segment. Tata Consumer gained 2.2% after the company said it has a 'sizable amount of gunpowder' for acquisitions at the right price.
Bloomberg
18-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Norway Will Keep Waiting Before First Rate Cut
Norway's central bank is poised to stick with one of the most hawkish policy stances among advanced economies, holding off on any start to post-pandemic easing until later this year. In a decision on Thursday, officials in Oslo are widely expected to keep their interest rate at 4.5%, the highest since 2008. Investors will focus on any change to current plans for two cuts this year and a total of 150 basis points of reductions by the end of 2028.
