Myanmar troops retreat to Thai border bridge after days of fighting - CNA

A spokesperson for the Myanmar junta did not respond to calls for comment.

The KNU said last week that its troops had attacked a junta camp near Myawaddy, forcing about 600 security personnel and their families to surrender.

Border crossings in the area were open for civilians who have been coming into Thailand from Myanmar in large numbers, said Police Colonel Borwornphop Soontornlekha, Superintendent of Immigration in the Thai province of Tak, where Mae Sot is located.

"Usually there are about 2,000 people who cross into Mae Sot from Myawaddy each day but the last three days the number was almost 4,000 per day," Borwornphop told Reuters.

Thailand's military has stepped up security on its side of the border, deploying army vehicles equipped with roof-mounted machine guns.

At least 2,000 people have been displaced within Myanmar by the latest round of fighting between the rebels and the military, according to civil society group Karen Peace Support Network.

Myanmar's military, which took power in a 2021 coup after deposing an elected civilian government, has faced a series of setbacks against a loose alliance of ethnic rebel groups and a civilian militia movement.

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2024-04-11 04:34:51Z
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Israel says more aid is entering Gaza, but figures disputed - CNA

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An increase in aid flows into Gaza over recent days has also been noted by Red Crescent officials in Egypt, who said more than 350 trucks had crossed from there into Gaza on Monday and 258 on Sunday. That was much more than in recent weeks when the number was usually fewer than 200, they said.

However, UNRWA, the main United Nations agency in Gaza, said 223 trucks had entered on Monday, fewer than half the 500 trucks it says are required daily.

In its daily situation report on Tuesday, UNRWA said "there has been no significant change in the volume of humanitarian supplies entering Gaza or improved access to the north".

Around 500 trucks with aid and other commercial supplies were entering Gaza daily before the conflict when the enclave was also able to produce much of its food through agriculture and fishing, both of which have nearly entirely ceased.

UNRWA communications director Juliette Touma said both humanitarian and commercial supplies were needed for Gaza because the entire population was now dependent on handouts, which was not sustainable.

OCHA spokesperson Laerke said Israel typically counted the half-filled trucks going through an initial screening process, rather than repacked, full trucks for delivery inside Gaza.

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2024-04-09 18:26:00Z
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Muslims in Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand to celebrate Aidilfitri tomorrow - New Straits Times

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Muslims in Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand to celebrate Aidilfitri tomorrow  New Straits TimesView Full coverage on Google News
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2024-04-09 14:21:03Z
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Singapore Muslims to celebrate Hari Raya Puasa on Apr 10: Mufti - CNA

SINGAPORE: Muslims in Singapore will celebrate Hari Raya Puasa on Wednesday (Apr 10), the Mufti of Singapore said on Tuesday.

The crescent moon for the Islamic month of Syawal appeared during sunset on Tuesday according to calculations, signifying that Hari Raya Puasa – also known as Hari Raya Aidilfitri – will fall on Wednesday, Dr Nazirudin Mohd Nasir said in a statement.

"According to astronomical calculations, the crescent for the month of Syawal did appear during sunset today for 32 minutes," he said.

"As such, I am pleased to announce that the first day of Syawal or Hari Raya Aidilfitri for the year 1445 Hijrah falls on Wednesday, Apr 10, 2024."

This year, the holy month of Ramadan started on Mar 12 and lasted 29 days.

"I would like to take this opportunity to wish all Muslims in Singapore: 'Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri,'" Dr Nazirudin added.

"May God accept our deeds of worship during the month of Ramadan and grant us blessings and success as we celebrate Hari Raya."

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2024-04-09 11:43:46Z
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Taiwan quake: Rescue dogs given missing Singapore couple's clothes to pick up scent - The Star Online

SINGAPORE: The family of the Singaporean couple still missing in Taiwan after the worst earthquake to strike the island in 25 years has given the pair’s clothing to rescuers in the hope that it will aid sniffer dogs searching for them.

The search has progressed to Taroko Gorge national park on April 8, the sixth day since the earthquake hit, with a team of seven rescue officers and three dogs involved in searching for the couple, according to the Hualien County Fire Department.

The two Singaporeans, who have been identified as Sim Hwee Kok and Neo Siew Choo, are among six people still unaccounted for since the April 3 earthquake, which killed 13 people and injured more than 1,140.

Their sisters on April 8 handed clothes worn by Sim and Neo to the rescue team so that the sniffer dogs can pick up their scent at the site and find them as soon as possible, the leader of the special search and rescue team, Wen Tsung-hao, told Taiwan’s United Daily News.

The couple, who also hold Australian passports, were last seen alighting from a bus on the Shakadang Trail in Hualien’s Taroko Gorge at around 7.20am on April 3, CCTV footage from the vehicle has shown.

The 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan around 40 minutes later, with the epicentre about 18km south-west of Hualien City on the island’s east coast.

Taiwanese media reported that the missing couple’s family have requested to keep a low profile and have turned down requests for interviews while hoping to be reunited with their kin at the soonest.

On the morning of April 8, the fire department estimated the couple to be within 1.5km of the Shakadang Trail, where most of the rescue efforts have been focused. But the search area was later expanded after a fruitless search at a rest stop known as Wu Jian Wu (Five Houses in Mandarin).

Three dogs – Wilson, Hero and Fancy – have joined the rescue efforts since April 5, said the Hualien fire department. Wilson was the first to discover two casualties in quick succession at a rescue site of collapsed rubble. But the search for the Singaporeans has been fruitless so far.

The Singapore Trade Office in Taipei is in touch with the local authorities on the matter, and its officials have been in contact with the next-of-kin and are providing consular assistance. - The Straits Times/ANN

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2024-04-09 02:00:00Z
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China's EV, solar exports raising tensions with US amid Yellen's visit - The Straits Times

News analysis

China’s EV, solar exports raising tensions with US amid Yellen’s visit

United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that US-China ties are now on a firmer footing than a year earlier in 2023. PHOTO: REUTERS

BEIJING - On her current trip to China, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen gained Chinese fans for dining in a public area, rather than in a private room, at a modest Sichuan cuisine restaurant in Beijing.

A video of her restaurant stop, where she ordered dishes such as mapo tofu, was widely viewed online.

That moment of cordiality, however, did not mask a renewed source of tension between the two major powers that was in a key message that Dr Yellen carried to top Chinese leaders – China’s industrial overcapacity, particularly in clean technology.

Beijing’s manufacturing prowess in such technology, including electric vehicles (EVs) and solar panels, has caused increasing concern in Washington. The US has argued that a flood of cheap Chinese exports would hurt producers in other countries, including America itself.

The subject was among the top-priority issues Dr Yellen raised with Chinese leaders, including Premier Li Qiang and economic czar He Lifeng, during her six-day visit that started on April 4.

This was her second visit to the country in nine months, as US-China ties show signs of stabilising amid a series of official visits since mid-2023.

At a press conference in Beijing on April 8, Dr Yellen said US-China ties are now on a firmer footing than a year earlier in 2023, thanks to the efforts of President Joe Biden’s administration to intensify diplomacy with China and “put a floor under the relationship”.

She stressed, however, that China’s excess capacity affects not just American jobs and firms, but is also a concern shared by the US’ allies and partners, including emerging markets such as Mexico and India.

“China is now simply too large for the rest of the world to absorb this enormous capacity,” she said of China’s EV, lithium-ion battery and solar panel industries, which have been touted as the “New Three” growth drivers in Chinese media for their strong export performance.

Premier Li, however, said the issue of production capacity should be regarded “objectively” and from the economic perspective, at a meeting with Dr Yellen on April 7.

Beijing has argued that economic logic dictates that producing more of what it is good at promotes international trade, and that the US is containing its development as it moves up the industrial value chain.

China controls around 80 per cent of the world’s solar panel supply chain. Chinese EV sales rose 82 per cent in 2022, making up nearly 60 per cent of such sales globally. About 70 per cent of global battery production capacity is located in China.

In particular, EVs have emerged as an area of contention. China filed a dispute with the World Trade Organisation on March 26 contesting “discriminatory subsidies” for EVs under the Biden administration’s signature law to fight climate change, the Inflation Reduction Act, saying that it resulted in the exclusion of such goods from China.

Professor of Political Science and International Relations Zhu Zhiqun said that Dr Yellen is unlikely to succeed in her mission, which appears to be asking for China’s cooperation in minimising the negative impact of its industrial overcapacity on the US.

“There is not much China can do in this competitive environment. China will not slow its tech development to help protect American jobs,” said Prof Zhu, who is from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania.

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Prof Zhu said that in the short term, the Biden administration is concerned about the displacement of US workers. The 0.2 percentage point increase in the unemployment rate to 3.9 per cent in February was not a good trend for Mr Biden, who is seeking re-election in November. The jobless rate ticked down to 3.8 per cent in March.

In the longer term, the US is worried that China may charge further ahead in high-tech industries, which it has made significant progress in despite Washington’s restrictions and sanctions, he added.

Mr Bert Hofman, a professor at the National University of Singapore’s East Asian Institute, said China’s shift from over-investment in real estate to over-investment in manufacturing could lead to industries in Western countries being dislocated, because of China’s size.

He believes Dr Yellen has substantiated her argument on the risks of such global economic imbalances, although he does not think Chinese government officials share her analysis, judging by their public statements.

Rather than focusing on manufacturing, however, Mr Hofman believes it is in China’s interest to strengthen household consumption to stimulate services growth and employment. He noted that China’s shift to manufacturing has not resulted in a stronger job market as modern factories are highly automated.

Also, over-investment and regional protectionism within China can lead to duplication and waste, he said, adding that China now has some 140 car companies, of which probably at most 10 will be viable in the long run.

Mr Clifford A. Hart, a Singapore-based senior adviser at strategic advisory firm BowerGroupAsia, said that China’s export-led model that powered its growth in the past three decades is no longer tenable because it is causing friction.

“To gut the advanced manufacturing industries in the US or Europe isn’t politically acceptable; given the size of the PRC (People’s Republic of China) economy, it wouldn’t be even if we were just talking about trade in lower-value goods. Beijing has to get used to such responses from Washington and Brussels,” he said.

Mr Hart, a US diplomat for 33 years, noted that Dr Yellen did not give ultimatums in her meetings with Chinese officials on this issue, and that the signalling from both sides was that the discussions were useful, even if they disagree.

Some see Dr Yellen’s complaint as a precursor to raising US tariffs on such China exports, although she held back from making such suggestions at her press conference.

Both sides agreed on April 6 to hold more meetings on China’s excess capacity and other topics, starting as soon as next week in the US, she told reporters.

Mr Hofman said it is encouraging that both sides are willing to engage. But he warns: “Failing a solution, trade measures from the US and others will be hard to avoid – irrespective of whether they are justified or not.”

More On This Topic

China files WTO complaint over US electric-vehicle subsidies

US, China need ‘tough’ conversations, Yellen tells Chinese Premier Li

• China
• China economy
• US-China ties

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2024-04-08 14:35:00Z
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Hong Kong customs makes largest gold smuggling bust - CNA

HONG KONG: Hong Kong customs said on Monday (Apr 8) that it has made the biggest gold smuggling bust in its history, seizing 146kg of the precious metal disguised as air compressor parts at the city's international airport.

Melted and moulded into parts like motor cores, screws, and gears, the smuggled gold was intercepted last month in two air compressors that were sent by air from Hong Kong to Japan and estimated to be worth HK$84 million (US$10.7 million), the customs department said at a press conference.

"This is the largest gold smuggling case in our Hong Kong customs record," said Lau Yuk-lung, the customs' syndicate crimes bureau acting chief.

Hong Kong is one of the largest gold trade hubs in the world and prices have recently been on the rise as investors seek asset security against geopolitical uncertainties and inflation.

Smuggled gold in Hong Kong used to be detected mostly at land checkpoints along the border of Hong Kong and mainland China, where inspections of cross-border trucks could lead to the discovery of gold slabs – and the arrest of truck drivers.

Lau said in this latest case the syndicate "racked their brains" to make use of the space and structure of the air compressors to hide the gold.

But the texture and the extraordinary heaviness of the compressors roused the suspicions of the customs department's inspectors, Lau said.

"Our investigation showed that the syndicate tried to smuggle the gold in order to evade taxes in Japan, which, if successful, would be equivalent to around HK$8.4 million," Lau added.

One man aged 31 and reported to be a company director was arrested and released on bail, Lau said, adding that more arrests could be made.

Smuggling carries up to seven years in jail and a maximum fine of HK$2 million under Hong Kong laws.

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2024-04-08 09:48:00Z
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