Blinken and Qin meet in Beijing to try to put US-China relations back on track - South China Morning Post

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1. Blinken and Qin meet in Beijing to try to put US-China relations back on track  South China Morning Post
2. US Secretary of State Blinken starts rare China trip with hopes low for any breakthrough  CNA
3. Antony Blinken arrives in Beijing for long-awaited two-day visit  South China Morning Post
4. Opinion | Blinken makes a delayed trip to China. It's a good start.  The Washington Post
5. Opinion | Nikki Haley and other experts: How to thaw relations with China  The Washington Post
6. View Full coverage on Google News

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2023-06-18 07:11:11Z
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US Secretary of State Blinken talks to Japanese, South Korean counterparts ahead of China trip - CNA

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke separately with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, emphasising the importance of "sustained ... trilateral cooperation" ahead of his visit to China, the State Department said on Saturday (Jun 17).

The conversations also come as North Korea has stepped up missile launches in the past year, and Tokyo contends with growing pressure from Chinese vessels around islands contested with Beijing.

Blinken on Friday reassured Foreign Minister Park Jin of the United States' "ironclad commitment" to South Korea's defense, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement Saturday.

"The Secretary and the Foreign Minister condemned the DPRK's continued unlawful ballistic missile launches and noted the need for the PRC to use its influence to encourage Pyongyang to engage in serious and sustained diplomacy," he added, using acronyms for North Korea and China's official names.

Blinken repeated the "ironclad commitment" to defense to Japan's Minister for Foreign Affairs Hayashi Yoshimasa Saturday, and "condemned the DPRK's continued unlawful ballistic missile launches into the Sea of Japan".

The three countries issued a joint statement Thursday to "condemn" North Korea's launch of two short-range ballistic missiles, shortly after Pyongyang warned of an "inevitable" response to ongoing US-South Korea joint military drills.

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2023-06-17 23:22:00Z
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'First step in a steep uphill climb': Low hopes for US-China breakthrough on Blinken visit - The Straits Times

WASHINGTON/BEIJING – United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to Beijing aims to build open communications with China, amid low expectations of any breakthrough in the rancorous relationship.

Hours before his departure on Friday to Beijing, Mr Blinken told reporters: “Intense competition requires sustained diplomacy to ensure that competition does not veer into confrontation or conflict.”

The first objective of his trip is to establish “open and empowered communications so that our two countries responsibly manage our relationship, including by discussing challenges, by addressing misperceptions, and avoiding miscalculations”, he said.

The trip is also to advance US interests and values and those the country shares with allies and partners, “including speaking directly and candidly about our very real concerns on a range of issues”, he added.

The US will also explore the potential for cooperation on transnational challenges such as global economic instability, illicit synthetic drugs, climate change and global health.

When asked if he was optimistic that his trip could lead to more interactions, Mr Blinken said it was in line with what President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping had agreed on when they met in Bali in November 2022 – which was to establish sustained, regular lines of communication at senior levels across governments.

“If we want to make sure, as we do, that the competition that we have with China doesn’t veer into conflict, the place you start is with communicating,” he added. “We’ll see what comes from this visit.”

Mr Blinken will hold talks on Sunday and Monday in Beijing, including with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

It is the first trip to China by a top US diplomat in nearly five years.

In February, Mr Blinken called off a planned trip to Beijing due to a row over an alleged Chinese spy balloon flying over the US. America eventually shot it down, and the incident plunged US-China relations to a new low.

Mr Blinken also has to contend with China hawks in Washington – especially in Congress, where many view China as an enemy – who compete with one another to be more hawkish, and are ready to pounce on any hint of the Biden administration being soft on Beijing.

Mr Qin, in a phone call with Mr Blinken ahead of his visit, told the latter that the US should “stop interfering in China’s internal affairs, and stop harming China’s sovereignty, security and development interests in the name of competition”, said a statement from China’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.

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2023-06-17 15:43:09Z
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King Charles III saddles up for birthday parade - CNA

The minutely choreographed event has its origins in the display of colours or flags of different regiments to allow their soldiers to identify them in battle.

The 1st Battalion Welsh Guards will troop, or parade, their colour up and down the ranks this year.

The United Kingdom is currently experiencing a hot spell making it difficult for the troops in their ceremonial black bearskin hats and thick red tunics.

William inspected troops from the Household Division group of senior regiments last weekend, and the high temperatures saw several soldiers faint.

As Prince of Wales, William is an honorary colonel of the Welsh Guards.

Charles - who as head of state is commander-in-chief of the armed forces - will later lead soldiers back to the palace.

He will then join other senior members of the royal family to watch a fly-past of about 70 military aircraft over the British capital, after a 41-gun salute from nearby Green Park.

Bad weather cut short a planned fly-past at Charles's coronation on May 6.

The late Queen Elizabeth last rode her horse Burmese, a gift from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, at the parade in the mid-1980s.

After the horse, which she rode for 18 years, was retired in 1986 she decided to use a carriage for Trooping the Colour.

Last year's parade was the last for the late queen, and formed part of four days of events to mark her record-breaking 70th year on the throne.

It was one of her final public appearances before her death, aged 96, in September.

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2023-06-17 11:37:52Z
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Japan raises age of consent for sex from 13 to 16, redefines rape in milestone law change - The Straits Times

TOKYO – Japan passed a landmark sex-crime Bill on Friday, in a long fought-for bid to make a range of sexual offences, including rape, photo voyeurism and online child-grooming, more easily punishable.

The amendments to the Penal Code change the term for the crime of “forced sexual intercourse” to “non-consensual sexual intercourse”, widening the scope of cases that can be treated as an offence. 

It specifies eight scenarios in which intercourse can be deemed non-consensual, including evidence of force or intimidation, the use of alcohol or drugs, and taking advantage of economic or social status.

Problems of consent had previously been little explored by the authorities in Japan.

A court in 2019 sparked outrage by acquitting a man for repeatedly raping his teenage daughter on the grounds she could have resisted him. The verdict was overturned by a higher court and he was sentenced to a decade in prison for the offence. 

In addition, Japan’s age of sexual consent was lifted from 13 – the lowest among Group of Seven countries – to 16, following a decades-long battle by activists. The age of consent had been unchanged since 1907.

The law revision also criminalises photo voyeurism – secretly taking sexual pictures of people – and the online grooming of children. In 2022, more than 150 children were the victims of serious crimes, including rape, initiated through social media, according to the National Police Agency.

About 7 per cent of women and 1 per cent of men said they had experienced forced sexual intercourse, according to a 2021 government survey of 5,000 people. Just 5.6 per cent of victims took their cases to the police, the survey showed.

In the same year, 1,330 individuals were charged with rape, resulting in only 455 convictions, according to Ministry of Justice figures. BLOOMBERG

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2023-06-16 14:35:00Z
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Ahead of Blinken visit, China urges US to avoid ‘illusion’ of strength - South China Morning Post

[unable to retrieve full-text content]

1. Ahead of Blinken visit, China urges US to avoid ‘illusion’ of strength  South China Morning Post
2. Breakthrough unlikely as Blinken heads to China  The Straits Times
3. Blinken Says His China Trip Aims to Lower Risk of Conflict  Bloomberg
4. China Should Heed Blinken's Demand for Military Guardrails  Bloomberg
5. Blinken’s visit a welcome chance for better US-China relations  South China Morning Post
6. View Full coverage on Google News

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2023-06-16 11:54:01Z
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COVID-19 vaccination available at 8 polyclinics from Jul 1, down from current 23 - CNA

SINGAPORE: Fewer polyclinics will offer COVID-19 vaccinations from Jul 1 as the demand for the jabs stabilises with Singapore's shift to endemicity, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Friday (Jun 16). 

Only eight polyclinics will continue to offer COVID-19 vaccination services from July, down from the current 23.

They include - Bukit Batok Polyclinic, Eunos Polyclinic, Geylang Polyclinic, Kallang Polyclinic, Pioneer Polyclinic, Punggol Polyclinic, Tampines Polyclinic and Woodlands Polyclinic. 

"As demand for COVID-19 vaccination stabilises with the shift to endemicity, MOH will streamline COVID-19 vaccination services at the polyclinics to optimise their resources," MOH said in its press release on Friday.

All eight polyclinics will offer the Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty vaccine for eligible individuals aged 12 and above. Selected clinics will offer the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for those aged five to 11, or the Moderna/Spikevax vaccine for those aged six months to 4 years old. 

Currently, people who wished to get their COVID-19 jabs are required to make an appointment at the 23 polyclinics located across the island. 

From Jul 1, eligible individuals may walk in to the eight polyclinics to receive their jabs without an appointment. 

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2023-06-16 10:30:00Z
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