Ukraine struggles to hold eastern front as Russians advance on cities - CNA

CITIES BRACE FOR RUSSIAN ADVANCE

Russian forces are gradually making inroads that could come to threaten several big cities in the east including Kostiantynivka, Druzhkivka, Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, which serve as key military hubs for Kyiv's war effort.

Some gains are striking fear in the heart of the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians living in those Donetsk region cities as the enemy grinds ever closer.

"We live only for today," said 31-year-old school teacher Nina Shyshymarieva, standing with her young daughter outside a church in Kostiantynivka as artillery thundered in the distance.

"We don't know what will happen tomorrow."

Russian cannons are now easily within range of Kostiantynivka; the closest Russian position at the start of 2024 was about 20km away, according to open-source maps that show shifting positions along the frontline. Now it is 14km.

Shyshymarieva and the fighters on the frontline were among more than a dozen soldiers, commanders, residents and evacuation volunteers interviewed by Reuters in eastern Ukraine over the last two weeks. They painted a picture of deep uncertainty.

Much of the Donetsk region, which along with Luhansk makes up the greater Donbas area, is under daily bombardment, typically targeted at least a dozen times a day by Russian artillery or air strikes, according to regional governor Vadym Filashkin.

Ruins of homes, apartment blocks and administrative buildings are common sights in towns and cities.

Oleksandr Stasenko, a volunteer rescuer, said his team was receiving more evacuation requests, particularly from Kostiantynivka and Kurakhove, another town further south, among other settlements.

Russian forces have encroached toward Kurakhove, too, advancing 2km to 3km along the road running east from the town so far this year.

"Wherever the front line is approaching, people in those places are trying to leave as soon as possible," said Stasenko, adding that his group, East SOS, evacuates around two dozen a week, many of them elderly or infirm.

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2024-05-18 10:45:27Z
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US relations with Taiwan likely to be factor in upcoming presidential elections - CNA

US LIKELY TO STICK TO STATUS QUO

Analysts told CNA that the US will likely stick to the status quo, given that its presidential candidates would not want to contend with a crisis as they try to rally support.

Biden and former president Donald Trump are gunning to re-enter the White House, with the election set to be held on Nov 5.

Containing China tends to be one of the few areas of bipartisan policy agreement in Washington DC, meaning that US support for Taiwan is likely to continue no matter who wins the presidency, the experts noted.

Michael O’Hanlon, senior fellow and director of research in foreign policy at American think-tank The Brookings Institution, said he thinks “things are okay” because the incoming Taiwan president understands where things lie.

“I think that Vice-President (William) Lai, soon-to-be President Lai, understands that wherever his heart may be and wherever his past may have been on the issue of Taiwan independence, it's a non-starter for the United States – in the sense that if it were simply declared or actively promoted, it would lead to a crisis that we just don't need,” O’Hanlon added.

He also said that the issue is not likely to appeal to American voters, if it is explained to them that promoting Taiwan independence would increase the risks of war.

“I don't really feel like the American people are in a bloodthirsty mode,” he added.

The people in Taiwan would also want to avoid such a situation, Einar Tangen, senior fellow at Beijing-based non-profit organisation Taihe Institute told CNA's East Asia Tonight.

"I don't think anybody in Taiwan wants to risk kinetic warfare. They've seen what's happened in Ukraine. They've seen what the US and Europe pushed Russia into doing and they don't want to see that happening to them," he said.  

Taiwan’s top diplomat in the US, Alexander Yui Tah-Ray, has said it is “under constant challenge from mainland China” and that international support is vital for its survival.

The representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States added: “We are well aware that we need to increase our security preparations against any eventual or possible Chinese aggression, but also, it's important to be integrated economically in the world.

“And to us, the more integration we do with the world, the better we are protected against mainland Chinese aggression."

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2024-05-18 07:53:00Z
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IN FOCUS: China is set to wield bigger 'carrots and sticks' over Taiwan. Here's how it may impact ASEAN states - CNA

SINGAPORE: Five days before Mr William Lai Ching-te’s inauguration as Taiwan’s president, its defence ministry detected 45 Chinese military aircraft around Taiwan, the highest single-day number this year. Twenty-six of the planes on Wednesday crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, which once served as an unofficial barrier between the two sides. 

In a friendlier gesture, when lawmakers from Taiwan’s China-friendly opposition party Kuomintang (KMT) visited the mainland last month, China said it would restart the travel of Fujian residents to Taiwan’s Matsu islands and later allow group tours to other parts of the territory. 

China also said it would approve the import of pomelo and other agricultural and fishery products from Taiwan.

Such a “carrot and stick” approach is likely to continue and intensify as China’s preferred way of dealing with Taiwan under Mr Lai, who takes over from Ms Tsai Ing-wen on May 20, say observers, as Taipei becomes more important to Beijing’s calculations amid a tussle for influence with the West and economic challenges at home.

Mr Lai won a historic third successive presidential term for the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in January’s elections, beating the KMT’s Mr Hou Yu-ih and Mr Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP).

Beijing’s message to Mr Lai is clear, observers say: Taiwan will reap benefits if it plays ball in forging deeper cross-strait integration but face reprisal should it try pushing further away from China, which sees the self-governing island as part of its territory to be reunified with the mainland.

Amid growing pressure from China, analysts say Taiwan will look increasingly towards other states for economic and diplomatic mileage as Mr Lai attempts to maintain the cross-strait status quo of not declaring independence.

But there are limits on what Taipei can do, with the lack of a legislative majority potentially stonewalling efforts. There are also clear constraints on how far Mr Lai can expand or deepen Ms Tsai’s New Southbound Policy of closer economic and people-to-people links with South and Southeast Asian countries, as well as Australia and New Zealand.

“China is basically the primary economic lifeline for all the countries in the region,” Dr Hoo Tiang Boon, associate professor at the School of Social Sciences at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU), told CNA.

“(Southeast Asian nations) will be very cautious to be seen as forging closer linkages with Taiwan … they have to be very mindful of and indeed sensitive to Chinese considerations.”

“CARROT AND STICK” APPROACH

Cross-strait relations have ebbed and flowed depending on the person and party that governs Taiwan. 

Ties were strained from 2000 to 2008 when the DPP’s Chen Shui-bian was president. They improved considerably under his KMT successor Mr Ma Ying-jeou – including a landmark meeting in 2015 with Chinese President Xi Jinping – before deteriorating again when the DPP’s Tsai Ing-wen took office in 2016.

Troubles surfaced during her inaugural speech, which Beijing criticised as an “incomplete test answer” for not explicitly recognising the 1992 consensus.

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2024-05-17 22:00:00Z
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Ukraine ramps up domestic arms production as troops face weapons shortage on battlefield - CNA

SCRAMBLING TO PRODUCE MORE WEAPONS

Ukraine has no choice but to pump out more weapons, and faster than ever before, with big factories and even homes being used in the country’s fast-expanding military industrial complex. 

When CNA visited one factory in an undisclosed location in the Kyiv region, armoured infantry vehicles were getting their final touches on the assembly line.

Ukrainian Armor, the defence industry company operating it, said production has increased significantly since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The firm is behind the multi-purpose armoured vehicle Novator, built to protect troops from shrapnel and small arms fire.

“For vehicles, we expanded more than 10 times,” said Ukrainian Armor director-general Vladislav Belbas. 

“In 2023, we started to produce each month the same quantity as we produced in (the whole of) 2022. So it’s quite significant. And this year, compared to 2023, we plan to expand approximately three times.”

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2024-05-17 08:33:20Z
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2 cops dead after attack on Johor police station, Jemaah Islamiyah suspect shot dead - The Straits Times

Johor police chief M. Kumar (second from left) said the suspect was shot dead at the scene. PHOTO: BERNAMA

Police investigations revealed that the suspect has no criminal records. PHOTO: BERNAMA

An assailant came to the Ulu Tiram police station with a weapon at about 2.30am on May 17. PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM GOOGLE MAPS

JOHOR BAHRU – Three people – two constables and a Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) suspect – died in an attack at a police station in Johor early on May 17. Another policeman suffered injuries.

It is learnt the man came to the Ulu Tiram police station at about 2.30am. A constable manning a counter was slashed and died on the spot, said sources.

The suspect then used the constable’s gun to shoot dead a policeman who came to check on the commotion.

Johor police chief M. Kumar said the suspect was shot dead at the scene.

Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain said the man is believed to be a member of the JI extremist group. Seven people, including two students and a 62-year-old believed to be a JI member, have been arrested. Five of them are the suspect’s family members, including the 62-year-old who is his father.

“I have instructed our Special Branch to arrest all JI members in Johor to be investigated,” Mr Razarudin added, noting that there are about 20 identified members in Johor.

He said the incident began when the two students, a 22-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman, came to the police station at 2.30am on May 17.

“The duo came to seek advice from the police regarding a sexual assault case that happened two years ago,” he told local media.

A 21-year-old man on a motorbike then turned up and went to the back of the police station. A policeman, who checked on him, was slashed in the neck.

“The suspect then took the victim’s gun. At the same time, another two mobile patrol vehicle (MPV) policemen, who had just finished their patrol, returned to the police station.

“One of our men was shot in his cheek and the bullet went through his head, while another was shot in the shoulder and waist,” Mr Razarudin said.

Police investigations revealed that the suspect, who has no criminal records, made preparations to confront the police – based on items found in his bag which he used as a shield. There were zinc sheets and paper inside.

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“Investigations at the suspect’s house found texts pasted on the walls,” Mr Razarudin added, noting that family members are aged between 19 and 62.

He said the suspect’s likely motive was to steal weapons from the police station for an unknown agenda. Of the students arrested, he noted that the sexual assault case happened two years ago and they sought police advice only in the wee hours.

Mr Kumar said the bodies of the deceased were sent to a hospital for a post-mortem. The injured policeman, who is reported to be in stable condition, has been moved to a regular ward at Hospital Sultan Ismail.

“The officers were assaulted and shot. Further investigation is being carried out,” he added at the scene of the incident.

Apart from determining the motive, the police are checking if the attacker was of unsound mind.

The two policemen killed in the attack served with the force for less than two years, said Malaysian police.

They were in the Ulu Tiram station’s crime prevention patrol unit.

Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, Malaysia’s King, has expressed his condolences to their families. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK

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• Malaysia
• Police
• Crime

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2024-05-17 08:01:08Z
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More than 20 suspected Jemaah Islamiyah members arrested in Johor after attack on police station which left 2 officers dead - CNA

Mr Razarudin outlined that more than 20 people believed to be linked to JI have been arrested for questioning, including five members of the suspect’s family aged between 19 and 62. 

He stressed that the suspect's father, aged 62, is a known member of JI. 

Mr Razarudin added that two people who were making a police report at the time have also been nabbed as he said that “it was not logical” for them to be reporting an incident which allegedly took place two years ago, implying that they might be involved in the attack as distractions for police. 

Mr Razarudin added that security has been stepped up at police stations, the state’s palace as well as the official residence of the Johor chief minister.

The bodies of the two police officers and the suspect have been taken to Hospital Sultan Ismail for autopsy and further investigations. The injured officer has also been taken to the same hospital for treatment, reported Bernama. 

Jemaah Islamiyah is linked to Al Qaeda, the terror group that carried out the 9/11 attacks in the US in 2001. JI is responsible for some of Indonesia’s deadliest terror attacks, including the 2002 Bali bombings which killed more than 200 people.

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2024-05-17 04:35:00Z
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Putin and Xi pledge a new era and condemn the United States - CNA

UKRAINE

After the West imposed the most severe sanctions in modern history on Moscow due to the war in Ukraine, Putin pivoted Russia towards China.

Beijing, once the junior partner to Moscow, remains by far the most powerful of Russia's friends - and its top buyer of crude.

That closeness has perturbed some in the Russian elite who fear that Russia is now too dependent on China, with which the Soviet Union came to the brink of war in 1969 over a border dispute.

Xi said both sides agreed that a political settlement to the Ukraine crisis was the "right direction" and the joint statement said both countries were opposed to a drawn out conflict.

Putin, who arrived on Thursday for a two-day visit, said he was grateful to China for trying to solve the Ukraine crisis, adding that he would brief Xi on the situation there, where Russian forces are advancing on several fronts.

Describing his initial talks with Xi as "warm and comradely", he outlined sectors where the two countries were strengthening ties, from nuclear and energy cooperation to food supplies and Chinese car manufacturing in Russia.

One notable absence from Putin's delegation was Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller, who was holding talks with Iranian officials.

Putin and Xi will participate in a gala celebration marking 75 years since the Soviet Union recognised the People's Republic of China, which Mao Zedong declared in 1949.

It was not immediately clear if Putin would make any further stops in Asia.

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2024-05-16 20:25:00Z
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