US, UK defend strikes on Yemen's Houthis as legal under international law - CNA

More than 2,000 ships have been forced by the Houthi attacks to divert from the Red Sea since November.

"We took limited, necessary and proportionate action in self-defense alongside the United States with the non-operational support of the Netherlands, Canada, Bahrain and Australia," said British Ambassador Susan Woodward.

Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia charged that the US and British strikes violated international law and raised regional tensions.

"It's one thing defending commercial shipping, attacks on which are unacceptable, but another when you're disproportionately and illegally bombing another state," he said.

Zhang Jun, China's UN envoy, said the Security Council had not authorised the use of force against Yemen.

The US and British operation "not only caused infrastructure destruction and civilian casualties, but have also resulted in heightened security risks in the Red Sea", he said.

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2024-01-13 01:01:22Z
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Taiwan Votes 2024: Taiwanese head to ballot booths to pick a new president and legislators today. What's at stake? - CNA

President Tsai Ing-wen is ineligible to seek re-election after serving two straight terms.

The hopefuls have been busy through the 28 days of formal campaigning, staging rallies and taking part in televised debates as they seek to win people’s hearts and minds - and secure their votes.

CNA has been on the ground - here are the key issues that have emerged in this election.

CROSS-STRAIT TENSIONS

The issue has been at the forefront as China steps up military and economic pressure on Taiwan. Beijing has framed the election as a choice between war and peace across the Taiwan Strait, as well as between prosperity and recession.

While China has not publicly stated its preferred candidate, it has clearly signalled who’s not in its favour, calling the DPP’s Lai a “separatist” and “troublemaker”.

Mr Lai was previously outspoken in his support for Taiwan independence - which China sees as a red line -  but has since distanced himself from this. He has pledged to prioritise the status quo, saying only Taiwan’s people can decide the island’s future.

Mr Hou of the KMT has portrayed the presidential ballot as a choice between war and peace with China, mirroring Beijing’s warning. He has said he will restart talks with China, starting with lower-level events such as cultural exchanges. Still, he rejects Beijing’s “one country, two systems” model of bringing Taiwan under its control.

As for the TPP’s Dr Ko, how exactly he will conduct cross-strait policy remains unclear. He has touted his party as offering a “middle way” between the DPP and KMT on the matter of China, while offering few details.

We talked to analysts to find out the likely trajectories of cross-strait relations under each of the three men, and the best- and worst-case scenarios for Taiwan depending on who takes office.

SECURITY

Like previous elections, defence has remained a key issue, arguably gaining greater prominence this election cycle as an increasingly assertive China looms large.

In a sign of the times, a Chinese satellite launch triggered alarm in Taiwan just earlier this week after authorities sent out an emergency message notifying the public.

An English-language version announced it as “[Air raid alert], Missile flyover Taiwan airspace, be aware”. The island’s defence ministry later apologised, saying the reference to a missile in the message was inaccurate.

The three presidential candidates have all laid out their planned defence policies should they be elected. A common factor is to uphold defence spending, with the TPP’s Dr Ko going further to suggest raising the budget to 3 per cent of the island’s gross domestic product.

Taiwan will see a record-high overall defence budget of NT$606.8 billion (US$19.1 billion) this year, or about 2.5 per cent of its GDP. This would mark the seventh consecutive on-year increase in the island’s defence spending.

The candidates are also aligned on the extension of military conscription to one year, taking effect this month. It’s a rare consensus in a campaign trail which has seen the hopefuls locking horns on an array of issues.

The move has been met with broad public support. Still, reservations have been expressed over perceived lapses in training and equipment. Questions have also been raised over whether longer military service will translate to stronger national defence.

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2024-01-12 22:00:00Z
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Yemen's enigmatic Houthi leader is fierce battlefield commander - CNA

DUBAI: Abdul Malik al-Houthi, enigmatic leader of Yemen's Houthi fighters whose attacks on Red Sea shipping have drawn fire from the US and British militaries, created the defiant force challenging world powers from a ragtag militia in sandals.

Multiple shipping lines have suspended operations or taken the longer route around Africa because of the campaign by the Houthis, who rule most of Yemen after beating tough odds in a war against forces backed by powerhouse Saudi Arabia.

The Iran-backed militants have vowed to keep up the pressure on the global shipping trade, which could take a toll on the world economy, until Israel halts its bombardment of Gaza to wipe out Hamas, which is also backed by Iran.

The Houthis said they would hit back after US and British warplanes, ships and submarines struck across Yemen overnight in retaliation for the attacks on Red Sea shipping, a widening of regional conflict over the Gaza conflict that some analysts say could undermine the Houthis' hard-fought domestic gains.

"They have been able to survive the last eight years, have expanded their power, but now they are inviting air strikes from the world's most powerful military," said Tobias Borck, the Royal United Services Institute's Middle East Security Senior Research Fellow.

Al-Houthi established a reputation as a fierce battlefield commander before emerging as head of the Houthi movement, mountain fighters who have been battling a Saudi-led military coalition since 2015 in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands, devastated Yemen's economy and left millions hungry.

Under the direction of al-Houthi, who is in his 40s, the group has acquired tens of thousands of fighters and a huge arsenal of armed drones and ballistic missiles. It has used these to repeatedly strike strategic Saudi infrastructure despite years of bombings on its territory.

In January 2022, the Houthis raised the stakes with a missile attack on Gulf tourism and commercial hub the United Arab Emirates, like Saudi Arabia a key US ally.

"He (al-Houthi) managed to transform a rural militia mostly engaged in insurgency tactics into one of the most resilient non-state armed groups of the region," said Ludovico Carlino, principal analyst, Country Risk, Middle East and North Africa at HIS Markit.

In a speech in 2022, al-Houthi said its goal was to be able to strike any target in Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates, both major OPEC oil producers who view Iran and its proxies as major security threats to the Middle East and beyond.

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2024-01-12 15:16:00Z
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Taiwan Votes 2024: Outcome of presidential race to have broader impact on US-China ties - CNA

Mr Hou Yu-ih of the Kuomintang (KMT), China’s preferred contender, has emerged as the main challenger to the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate William Lai, who wishes to continue the incumbent president’s foreign policy. 

The other candidate they will face is former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je of the small Taiwan People's Party (TPP), only founded in 2019.

Despite KMT and TPP failing to agree on the terms of a coalition for a joint presidential bid, both sides concurred that Taiwan needs a change of government after eight years of DPP rule. 

Mr Hou introduced a '3D' cross-strait policy - deterrence, dialogue, de-escalation. Similarly, Mr Ko advocates deterrence and an increase in military budget to 3 per cent of the island's gross domestic product (GDP).

Cross-strait relations have been on a decline since Ms Tsai’s pro-independence DPP came to power in 2016.

"The biggest thing that US policymakers worry about is that Taiwan will flip suddenly and we will find ourselves looking at Taiwan which has either been enticed into a much closer relationship with the PRC (People’s Republic of China), or it will be coerced into a much closer relationship with Beijing,” said Professor Shelley Rigger from Davidson College in North Carolina, who specialises in Taiwanese politics and on the relationships among the US, China and Taiwan.

But in a region so volatile, charged and sensitive, any result may leave US-China ties once again fraught, cautioned Prof Rigger.

"My expectation would be that if the KMT wins, the PRC will perceive that to have happened in spite of the United States. If the DPP wins, the PRC will perceive that to have happened with the connivance of the United States. So either way, the US is somehow in the doghouse whatever the outcome may be,” she said.

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2024-01-12 09:43:24Z
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Taiwan parties to make final push for support in critical election - CNA

Ko has won a passionate support base, especially among young voters, for focusing on bread-and-butter issues like the high cost of housing. He also wants to re-engage China, but insists that cannot come at the expense of protecting Taiwan's democracy and way of life.

Tainan farmer Liu Ruen-shui, 70, plans to vote for the KMT.

"This is the most important (election) so far," Liu said. "Because if there's no change, things will just get worse and worse to the point of no return."

No matter who wins, China looms in the background.

Taiwan's government believes China is likely to attempt to put pressure on its incoming president after the island votes, including staging military manoeuvres near the island this spring, two senior government officials said.

Polls open at 8am and close at 4pm, with ballot counting by hand starting almost at once. There is no electronic, absentee, proxy or early voting.

The result should be clear by late evening on Saturday when the losers concede and the winner gives a victory speech.

Tsai is constitutionally barred from standing again after two terms in office.

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2024-01-12 07:46:00Z
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Taiwan Votes 2024: Beijing watches presidential race, dangling carrots for integration plans - CNA

Despite the criticisms, Mr Chen said he still found his experience studying in China invaluable.

He said that Taiwanese youths need more exposure in order to truly understand China, before passing judgement themselves.

The cross-strait integration plan unveiled by the Chinese State Council is part of China's longstanding strategy to foster closer ties with Taiwan.

“We will suppress pro-Taiwan independence forces while using a soft approach towards the Taiwanese people,” Professor Li Fei from Xiamen University’s Taiwan Research Center told CNA.

“It is a carrot-and-stick approach. The carrot is to promote cross-strait integration and preferential policies for the Taiwanese."

He added that despite many Taiwanese opposing reunification after seeing how Hong Kong is governed under the "One Country, Two Systems" principle, there is room for negotiation.

“The conditions for Taiwan’s 'One Country, Two Systems' may be discussed. 'One Country' is non-negotiable, but 'Two Systems' is negotiable. We are constantly adjusting and adapting it,” said Prof Li.

“We have to adapt it according to how we reunify with Taiwan. If it is a peaceful reunification, of course we can discuss the conditions. If it is a non-peaceful reunification, the system may be different."

BETWEEN WAR AND PEACE

Beijing has framed the upcoming Taiwanese presidential contest as a choice between war and peace.

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2024-01-12 01:10:00Z
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Israel to defend itself against Gaza genocide case at UN top court - CNA

Israel will on Friday (Jan 12) hit back at what it describes as "atrocious" allegations it is committing "genocide" in Gaza, in a closely watched landmark case before the UN's top court.

South Africa has launched an emergency case at the International Court of Justice arguing that Israel stands in breach of the UN Genocide Convention, signed in 1948 in the wake of the Holocaust.

Pretoria wants judges to force Israel to "immediately" stop the Gaza campaign launched after the devastating Oct 7 Hamas attacks, which left 1,140 dead, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel has responded with a relentless military campaign that has killed at least 23,469 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.

Israel and its ally the United States have dismissed the case as groundless and vowed a robust defence at the Peace Palace in The Hague, which houses the ICJ.

"No, South Africa, it is not we who have come to perpetrate genocide, it is Hamas," said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the run-up to the hearings.

"We will continue our defensive war, the justice and morality of which is without peer," he added.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the South African case was "unfounded".

"In fact, it is those who are violently attacking Israel who continue to openly call for the annihilation of Israel and the mass murder of Jews," said Miller.

The ICJ will likely rule within a matter of weeks on South Africa's request. Its rulings are final and legally binding but it has little power to enforce them.

A month after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the ICJ ordered a halt to the military operation - to no avail.

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2024-01-12 05:17:10Z
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