Politics

Bloomberg The presence of China’s “maritime militia” near a South China Sea reef shows Beijing’s intent to occupy more disputed areas, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in a statement on Sunday. China has “done this before” in other contested areas like Scarborough Shoal and is “brazenly violating Philippine sovereignty,” Lorenzana said. He was reacting to a statement from China’s ...

Bloomberg Scottish nationalist parties could win a pro-independence “supermajority” in the May election, according to the latest opinion poll, which shows unionist parties suffering the most from the creation of a new separatist party last month. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s Scottish National Party is seen winning 65 seats on May 6, giving it an outright majority of one, according to ...

Bloomberg The US, Japan, and South Korea sounded alarm over North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, following a series of short-range rocket tests last month signalling fresh provocation from Pyongyang. US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan hosted his Japanese and South Korean counterparts for talks at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and the trio said in a ...

Bloomberg US President Joseph Biden pledged to stand with Ukraine against Russian “aggression” in his first official phone call with his counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who raised concerns of troop movement near the border. Biden “affirmed the United States’ unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s ongoing aggression in the Donbas and Crimea,” the White ...

Bloomberg Liberians rejected a referendum backed by President George Weah which opposition feared could have been used to reset the clock and allow the former soccer star to extend his stay in office. The December 8 plebiscite, which sought to shorten presidential and senatorial term limits and allow dual citizenship, failed to achieve the two-thirds needed for the proposal to ...

Bloomberg West Africa’s Sahel region is headed for its deadliest year of militant violence. Insurgents have killed at least 450 civilians in the region this year, Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project data shows, compared with 401 last year. The first three months of 2021 have seen more non-combatant deaths blamed on extremist groups than the same period last ...

Bloomberg Commanders of Brazil’s army, navy and air force were fired after President Jair Bolsonaro dismissed his defense chief as part of a broader cabinet restructuring. The shake-up, precipitated by congressional allies who have been unhappy with the president’s pandemic response, displeased the heads of the military who received no advance warning about the replacement of Defense Minister Fernando Azevedo ...

Bloomberg President Joe Biden plans to allow a pandemic-related ban on visas for certain temporary workers, enacted by former President Donald Trump, to expire Wednesday, according to people familiar with the matter. The moratorium, which affected H-1B visas used by technology companies to hire foreign coders and engineers, was imposed last June. Biden is opting not to renew it, said ...

Bloomberg Pakistan’s government will resume trade with India, in the latest sign that tensions are easing between the two nations. Prime Minister Imran Khan’s economic coordination committee approved importing cotton yarn until June, Finance Minister Muhammad Hammad Azhar said at a briefing in Islamabad on Wednesday. It will also purchase 500,000 tons of sugar to help stabilise prices since the ...

Bloomberg China finalised a sweeping plan to ensure leaders in Beijing control the outcome of Hong Kong’s elections, a move that could deepen already-fraught relations with Western nations. President Xi Jinping on Tuesday signed orders to amend Hong Kong’s Basic Law, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, after revisions were passed by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee. The move ...