Tag: World

  • Vote APC If You Want Ajaokuta Steel Company Resurrected – Shettima Tells Kogi People As Party Flags Off Campaign

    The Vice President, Senator Kashin Shetima, on Sunday told residents of Kogi that voting for All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the Nov. 11 governorship election is as good as revamping Ajaokuta Steel Complex.

    Shettima, who made the declaration during the APC’s official flag-off campaign for governorship election in Lokoja, also said “a vote to our party means dredging the river Niger for developmental purposes for Kogi”.

    “I am giving you these assurances because the Federal Government is already collaborating with foreign companies towards the resuscitation of Ajaokuta Steel Company and dredging of the River Niger.

    “You should understand that the choice of your son, Shuaibu Abubakar Audu as Steel Minister underscores the intention of the APC ruling government toward revamping the steel company.

    “We shall by God’s grace dredge the river Niger in a bid to attract meaningful development in Kogi and Nigeria as a whole.

    “Of course, all these can only come to fruition if you vote our gubernatorial candidate, Usman, come November 11, for our party to emerge victorious. You can not afford to have a state government that does not belong to the centre,” he said.

    The vice president described President Bola Tinubu as a man of courage and conviction, and so pregnant with ideas on how to reposition the nation and Kogi, which is one of the frontier states in the North.

    On the battered Ganaja road, he said Tinubu had approved funds for its construction, stressing: “Be rest assured that Abuja-Lokoja-Okene and Kabba-Ilorin is also going to receive government attention to ease movement of the people.”

    The APC National Chairman, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, said that residents of Kogi could testify of the positive of APC government under the tutelage of Gov. Yahaya Bello.

    He said that Bello has not only been able to transform Kogi but has been able to present a successful candidate in Ododo, who would succeed him in providing the desired infrastructure development.

    The chairman added: “Since we cannot afford to have a stranger at the Lugard House, we should ensure we have APC at both the national and state levels in order to consolidate on the achievements of Gov. Yahaya Bello.”

    On his part, Bello thanked Tinubu for providing the desired support that enabled him to perform and reposition the state to the present status.

    Bello recalled that when he took over as governor the state was nowhere in terms of healthcare delivery, education, infrastructure development and others, but “today the story of Kogi is a cheering one”.

    The inaugural campaign ceremony was capped with the presentation of the APC flag to the state Governorship Candidate (Ododo) and his deputy, Joel Oyibo.

    Source

  • North Korea executes warehouse manager for stealing penicillin

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.

    A manager at a North Korean pharmaceutical warehouse was publicly executed last month for stealing 20,000 doses of penicillin, sources inside the country said.

    The man, who was in his 40s, was shot to death on Sept. 25 in Hyesan, a northern city in Ryanggang province on the Chinese border, said a resident of the province who declined to be identified for safety reasons. 

    It was the same spot where 25,000 people were forced to watch the execution of nine people on Aug. 30 for running a beef smuggling ring. 

    But this time, the number of people who witnessed the execution was much smaller, the source told Radio Free Asia.

    “Only housewives and relevant officials gathered at the execution site,” the source told RFA Korean. “Factory and farm work did not stop, and the marketplace was not closed.”

    North Korean authorities carry out both secret and public executions by firing squad, hanging or other brutal methods as a means of deterrence to keep its estimated 26 million people in line and loyal to the authoritarian socialist state.

    The Sept. 25 execution took place as officials were on edge about the rising number of people with coronavirus-like symptoms and respiratory illnesses, a second source from Ryanggang province said.

    “In the public execution, it seemed as if the rapid increase in colds and respiratory symptoms was caused by a shortage of penicillin,” he said.

    ‘No more than a fly’

    And while those who witnessed the execution believe there is a medicine shortage, many believe that shooting someone to death was too excessive a punishment, said the second source. 

    “In August, people were shot to death for distributing beef, and this month, a manager is shot to death for stealing penicillin,” he said. 

    “In this country, human life is worth no more than that of a fly.”

    Residents also raised doubts that one person could commit such a crime on his own, the first source said.

    “Security is not so lax so that only one person could steal them,” he said. “It is difficult for one manager to steal more than 20,000 doses of penicillin as stated by the court.”

    The manager who died oversaw medicines at the No. 4 Warehouse where supplies belonging to the Civil Defense Department under the Provincial People’s Committee are stored for use during wartime, the first source said.

    The man had “secretly sold a large amount of wartime reserve medicine” but it wasn’t clear who he had sold it to, the source said.

    The No. 4 Warehouse sends medicines that have almost expired to local hospitals and receives new orders to replace them, he added.

    “In this process, the entire shortage of penicillin was blamed on one person, and he was shot,” the source said.

    A day after the execution, the government-controlled Korean Central News Agency issued a report on the further strengthening of quarantine measures in response to seasonal changes in the North Korean capital Pyongyang. 

    City officials are closely monitoring the quarantine situation, quickly establishing preventive measures related to respiratory diseases, including colds, and ensuring that the rapid mobile quarantine team and rapid diagnosis and treatment team are always on high alert, the article said.



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  • No Underhand Dealings In Award Of Pipeline Rehabilitation Contracts, NNPCL Clarifies Misleading Reports

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has faulted reports (Not THE WHISTLER) alleging underhand dealings in the award of contracts for the rehabilitation of pipelines across the country.

    The National Oil Company stated this in a statement issued on Sunday night and made available to THE WHISTLER.

    It described the reports as fallacious, adding that it is designed to bring the good name of the Company into disrepute.

    According to the statement, the NNPC Limited expressed its deep commitment to adhering to the highest standards of transparency and global best practices in all its activities, noting that this includes its contracting process.

    It stated further that these contracts being claimed in the reports were advertised and awarded based on rigorous evaluation criteria and in line with industry norms.

    The statement reads, “The attention of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has been drawn to reports in an isolated section of the media alleging underhand dealings in the award of contracts for the rehabilitation of pipelines across the country.

    “It is crucial to provide accurate information to address any misconceptions and ensure transparency in our operations. We would like to state categorically that these reports are fallacious and designed to bring the good name of the Company into disrepute.

    “NNPC Limited is deeply committed to adhering to the highest standards of transparency and global best practices in all our activities, and this includes our contracting process. These contracts, which were advertised, were awarded based on rigorous evaluation criteria and in line with industry norms.

    “To re-emphasise our commitment to transparency, NNPC subjected the selection process to a competitive tender guided by Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) standards, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission expertise, and the active involvement of a Transaction Advisor. We also had representations from NEITI and the Ministry of Justice in the project development team and the evaluation exercise.

    “Below is the composition of Consortium members per lot spread across Nigeria.

    “LOT 1: Oilserve Ltd, Chu Kong Steel Pipe Group Company Ltd, Saudi Crown Oilserve,

    “LOT 2: MacReady Oil and Gas Services, COBRA Instalicios S.A, Control Y Montajes Industriales & International De Pipelines, Iron Products Industries Ltd, Batelitwin Global Services Ltd, Bauen Empresa Constructora SAU, Sanderton Energy Ltd, The Spanish National Association of Manufacturers

    “LOT 3: A A Rano, Zakhem Construction Nigeria, Bablinks Resources Ltd, VAE Controls S.R.O.

    “LOT 4: MRS Oil and Gas, CPPE Nigeria Ltd.”

    In the statement, the NNPC Limited emphasise that these contracts are Build, Operate and Transfer agreements, adding that selected partners are to finance the rehabilitation as the contracts do not entail the transfer of control of these assets to any particular company.

    “Our objective is to enhance the integrity and functionality of the pipelines to facilitate the efficient transportation of crude oil to refineries and the distribution of its products across the country.

    “The ownership of these strategic national assets remains with NNPC Limited, and we are fully committed to ensuring their continued operation in the interest of over 200 million Nigerians.

    “We are always open to engaging in constructive dialogue with all stakeholders, ” it concluded.

    Source

  • Growing Concerns of Conflict Escalation at Black Sea

    By Davide Donateo

    I want to begin by clarifying that in this case, I do not have access to privileged information. The conclusions I am about to share are based solely on my experience, public news, and publicly accessible sources. So, there is no reason for the reader to attribute this information to secret or hidden sources, as it comes directly from my analysis.

    However, in recent days, during a meeting between peace advocates and influential international actors in the field of geopolitics, there has been a growing tension. This tension has been fueled by the concern that, if Ukraine does not agree to a peace proposal or, at the very least, a de-escalation of the conflict, significant events may occur in the Black Sea.

    Certainly, at this moment, a dangerous game of accusation and suspicion is underway, revolving around the hypothesis of a possible “false flag” operation. On one hand, British intelligence advanced the idea last week, publishing an alarming report, that the Russians may be behind a “false flag” operation in the Black Sea, suggesting that they could deploy sea mines against civilian ships and falsely attribute the responsibility for the attacks to Ukraine. According to the British report, this move could increase pressure on the Ukrainian economy.

    On the other hand, it is interesting to note that the Russians, in turn, seem to harbor suspicions of a possible “false flag” operation orchestrated by the United States during Operation Sea Breeze 23.3 in the Black Sea. This suggests that both sides are considering the possibility that the other side may seek to use a provocative event to justify further military actions or to blame the enemy.

    Already in July of last year, the U.S. Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) reported warnings from the United States that Russia could use sea mines to blow up a ship and attribute the attack to Ukraine. Ambassador Michael Carpenter at the time stated that Russia could use such an incident, known as a false flag attack, to justify further attacks on civilian ships in the Black Sea.

    Two warning signals, one from British intelligence and the other from the United States, shed light on the situation in the Black Sea. Considering the modus operandi of intelligence agencies from these countries (serial deceivers), we could conclude that their warnings may conceal exactly the opposite of what is officially stated.

    Currently, there is an ongoing military operation in the Black Sea, specifically a naval exercise scheduled from September 11th to September 15th, “Sea Breeze 23.3.” A multinational naval exercise that took place precisely in Constanta, Romania. This exercise involved military personnel and naval forces from various countries, including the United States, Romania, Ukraine, Bulgaria, France, Great Britain, and Turkey.

    Concerns arise that this exercise could be used as cover for a “false flag” event orchestrated by the United States. To support this concern, I refer to past events such as the Nord Stream pipeline incident during Operation BALTOPS, where the U.S. Navy was accused of placing explosives on the pipeline and then blowing up the Nord Stream pipeline. This had serious consequences for the German industry and significantly weakened Germany.

    Throughout history, false flags have often been used by the United States to maintain their power, conceal evidence, or justify military actions. These tactics have also been used to bypass constitutional limitations in times of crisis and initiate military conflicts by blaming the enemy.

    Operation Sea Breeze 23 may have been used to provoke Russia or justify an attack by the United States. It is not difficult for me to even hypothesize the possibility that the United States, if necessary, may launch a nuclear attack on its own naval assets in the Black Sea, blaming Russia for such an attack as a pretext for a nuclear war.

    To cover up an orchestrated attack from the West, it is not even out of the question that such an event could take place using Russian materials to prevent the identification of the origin of a potential nuclear device through the analysis of radioactive isotopes.

    We must remain extremely vigilant. In the event that (and especially IF) something erupts, whether it is a nuclear conflict or otherwise, it will mark the beginning of World War III.

    Article by Davide Donateo – Publisher at News Academy Italia – Intelligence For Freedom

  • 3 Filipino fishermen dead after ship strikes boat: coast guard

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.

    The Philippines said Wednesday it was investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths of three Filipino fishermen after a foreign ship struck and sank their boat in the country’s exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea.

    The accident involving the Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker and the fishing boat happened on Monday, some 85 nautical miles (157 km) northwest of Bajo de Masinloc – which is internationally known as Scarborough Shoal – the Philippine Coast Guard said in an incident report.

    “On October 2, 2023, at approximately 0420H, the Filipino Fishing Boat (FFB) DEARYN was involved in an accident where it was rammed by an unidentified vessel,” the report said. 

    The Philippine boat was moored over a payao – a man-made structure anchored offshore to attract fish – when the tanker identified as the Pacific Anna collided with it, it said.

    “Due to the adverse weather conditions causing darkness, the crew on board the mother boat failed to detect an unidentified vessel approaching, resulting in a collision that caused the mother ship to capsize,” the coast guard said in a statement Wednesday.

    “Three casualties, including the boat captain, were reported from the incident.”

    Eight crew members survived and used smaller, service vessels to transport the dead to Infanta, a coastal town in Pangasinan province, according to the coast guard.

    The coast guard said the Pacific Anna would be boarded by authorities at its next port call.

    President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the incident was under investigation and urged people to refrain from speculation.

    “We are deeply saddened by the deaths of the three fishermen, including the captain of the fishing vessel,” Marcos said in a statement.

    “We assure the victims, their families and everyone that we will exert every effort to hold accountable those who are responsible for this unfortunate maritime incident.”

    The South China Sea is one of the most important maritime trade routes in the world, through which trillions of dollars of goods pass through annually. 

    It is also the site of overlapping territorial claims between China, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam and Taiwan.

    The sinking comes amid heightened tensions between the Philippines and China in the region. On Sept. 22, Manila accused the China Coast Guard of deploying a 328-yard-long “floating barrier” to obstruct the entrance to the disputed Scarborough Shoal. The next day, the Philippine Coast Guard removed the barrier in a “special operation.”

    Both Manila and Beijing claim the Scarborough Shoal, though it is under China’s control.

    A United Nations tribunal in 2016 dismissed China’s sweeping claims over most of the South China Sea, including the shoal, but Beijing has refused to recognize the ruling.

    In 2019, a larger Chinese fishing vessel struck a Filipino fishing boat near the Recto Bank in the South China Sea, leaving 22 Filipino fishermen to fend for themselves in rough seas before they were rescued by a passing Vietnamese ship. 

    Manila said the waters in which the incident took place were in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

    Fernando Hicap, the chairman of small fisherfolk organization Pamalakaya, demanded a swift investigation into the sinking of the Philippine fishing vessel.

    “It is unfortunate that Filipino fishermen have to be vulnerable and unprotected in our own traditional waters,” he said in a statement, adding accountability and government help for the bereaved families must follow.



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  • CertificateGate: Atiku Accuses Presidency Of Twisting Facts To Confuse Nigerians

    Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2023 presidential election, Atiku Abubakar, has accused the presidency of twisting key facts that indicted president Bola Tinubu of certificate forgery to confuse Nigerians.

    Atiku made the allegation on Sunday in a statement issued by his media adviser, Paul Ibe.

    Recall Tinubu has been a subject of serious inquest in a US court following decades of controversy surrounding his educational records.

    He had provided different accounts that he graduated from a Nigerian College after his initial presentation that he did not attend a college but wrote the senior secondary school certificate examination from home before proceeding to the US fell through.

    The president also made another explanation that the certificate which the Chicago State University, CSU, issued to him alongside other students in 1979 upon graduation could not be found after a military attack on his house.

    He said he proceeded to obtain a replacement certificate from a third party but three different certificates with various discrepancies are in circulation including the copy he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

    These discrepancies including his real name, age, and if indeed he attended CSU after first filing before the country’s electoral body in 1999 when he was vying to be Lagos State Governor, that he graduated from University of Chicago prompted Atiku’s request to put to rest the confusion about the president’s identity.

    The CSU indeed acknowledged there was a Bola A. Tinubu, who was its student, said the certificate the president presented to INEC ahead of the 2023 general election was not issued by it.

    Atiku in the statement on Sunday highlighted the key takeaways against the president from the court saying, “On page 26 of the deposition which is publicly available, the Registrar of the Chicago State University, Caleb Westberg, under oath, was asked a simple question that, “CSU has determined that it does not have a true and correct copy of the diploma issued to Bola Tinubu is 1979, correct? To which the Registrar responded, “That’s correct.

    “Also, on page 27, a similar question was put to Mr. Westberg: So, CSU, after going through every diploma, was unable to find an authentic copy of any diploma that CSU issued to Tinubu in 1979. Is that correct? The CSU Registrar, in his response, said: We did not find any diploma issued by CSU in 1979 to Mr. Tinubu.”

    He further stated that when asked whether the CSU is aware of or in possession of the diploma that Tinubu submitted to INEC,” Mr. Westberg simply said, “Correct, we are not aware of it.”

    Over the weekend, the confusion surrounding the president’s past worsened when his discharge certificate from the National Youth Service Corps was made public.

    The NYSC discharge certificate showed the president commenced his compulsory national service in 1982 ending in 1983 with the name Tinubu, Bola Adekunle.

    Soon after the certificate was made public, the president who’s always been known as Bola Ahmed Tinubu had his Wikipedia profile edited to read Bola Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu further raising eyebrows to what more the president could be hiding.

    Source

  • The ‘perfect droplet’: A new mosquito-spraying method aims to stop them from multiplying

    If Broward’s mindset was to find a better way to spray and defeat mosquitoes, then it’s marking a milestone in the skeeter battle.

    After about a year of tinkering and refining plans, a team of county engineers, as well as mechanics, created a system to reduce liquid mosquito spray into particles — to reach the “perfect droplet size.”

    The atomizer breaks the spray into the right-sized pieces to help them go farther. The droplets can’t be too large or they would fall to the ground, and they can’t be too small or they would travel too far once they hit the wind and take too long to reach their destination, making them less effective.

    “When I see something we do is beneficial to the community, that’s what pushes me forward,” said Adriana Toro, the assistant director of the Broward’s Highway & Bridge Maintenance Division, who dreamed up the invention in 2016 when there was widespread concern about the Zika virus. Toro is a materials engineer and civil engineer and used her expertise to fight the mosquito-causing calamity.

    The spray now has a better chance of breezing through the air to go over fences, under trees and into rooftop gutters, all the places where the dangerous breed of mosquitoes called Aedes (a Greek word that means unpleasant) aegypti lay their eggs. It’s the predominant type of mosquito in South Florida and a vector of several viruses including yellow fever virus, dengue virus, chikungunya, and Zika virus.

    Securing a patent

    Their invention, which sits on the back of a pickup, with a large tank of the larvae spray, was granted a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in August. It is called the “System, Method and an Apparatus for Spraying Insect Control Substances.”

    “It’s not a cool name,” admits Anh Ton, director of Broward’s Highway & Bridge Maintenance Division, a division of the county’s Public Works Department, which oversees its Mosquito Control Division.

    The county now has three of the machines and it hits the streets when workers identify a high concentration in an area using mosquito traps that are discreetly placed in backyards, with permission.

    The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention call mosquitoes the “world’s deadliest animal” because the diseases they transmit are responsible for more than 700,000 deaths worldwide every year.

    The Florida Department of Health releases a weekly report of mosquito-borne viruses. According to the most recent report, Sept. 17-23, there were eight cases of locally acquired dengue reported. Throughout the year, there were 31 cases of locally acquired dengue reported, including Broward County. Although the report doesn’t blame which mosquito, it is the Aedes aegypti that’s more common for urban areas, according to a spokesman.

    Refining the system

    The idea was the brainchild of county engineers, led by Assistant Director Toro, who hand-sketched their vision. The staff used pumps, valves and nozzles until the mosquito spray reached the ideal size, which is the diameter of a human hair.

    Ton said in addition to being more effective, it will mean less cost and waste because it uses less mosquito spray to cover the same geographical area.

    Until now, the means of spraying has been by airplane, but that’s not perfect because it drops on an area whether all residents want it or not, and trees could get in the way.

    There also are “backpack sprayers” — a worker carrying the arsenal on his back who goes to one house at a time — but “it takes an army of people,” Ton said. “We don’t have an army of people.”

    The worker on foot would need to work a 10-hour day to cover 10 homes, but the machine could reach 100 homes in less than two hours from the back of the truck going at about 10 mph, Ton said. “The magic is to get it in people’s backyards,” Ton said.

    The best results will be when wind conditions are just right at a range of 5 mph to 25 mph, and there is no rain, he said.

    The larvicide spray, approved by the World Health Organization, is not harmful to humans, pets, or “beneficial” insects such as bees.

    Dr. Aileen Marty, an expert in infectious disease with Florida International University, was enthusiastic about the new process. She said there are “tons of different ways to spray that kill adult mosquitoes” but not that target the mosquito at the larval stage.

    “That’s fantastic,” she said, of both the greater area the spray could cover and the cost savings by both plane and by hand.

    “With this fine mist (they can) get to a lot of small places where these mosquitoes can breed,” she said. That could include anything, like a container that has been left outside and that gather water.

    And people won’t see all of those hard-to-reach sites, which could also include pool toys or trees with holes where rainwater gets trapped: “It’s very hard for humans to find all those sources of water,” she said.

    Ton said it will only target Aedes aegypti larvae and not the “good” mosquitoes that is vital to the bat population.

    Now Broward might be in a position to not only be able to get a better handle on killing mosquitoes, but making money, too, as it dreams of getting the 3,000-pound invention of the blower and the atomizer made of steel, aluminum and plastic it to “counties and municipalities across this nation,” said County Mayor Lamar Fisher.

    “We look forward to sharing, and at the same time, ‘How can we be financially rewarded with this opportunity as well?’” he said.

    ___

    © 2023 South Florida Sun Sentinel

    Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.



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  • JUST IN: Arsenal Beat Manchester City 1-0 At Emirates Stadium

    Arsenal on Sunday defeated Manchester City 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium in their week 8 of the Premier league season.

    Second half goal from Brazilian star, Gabriel Martinelli after 86 minutes gave Arsenal the maximum point in the game that was drab but full of energy.

    Both teams adopted technicalities and patience to cancel each other out in the first half.

    After coming on top in the first half in which the trajectory of the game shifted in their favour, City could only muster one goal shot on target.

    Pep Guardiola’s men almost took the lead when Nathan Ake’s header was cleared off the line.

    Arsenal not starting Saka showed clearly while Martinelli started from the bench.

    Short of key players, Mikel Arteta started Trossard and Jesus but both could not influence the game in Arsenal’s direction.

    Second half began with Arsenal replacing Trossard and the game came alive.

    They pressed forward and put City under pressure. They even came close to opening the scoring via a corner.

    But City retaliated as the ball was released to Alvarez on the left wing. His cross into the defence was cleared as City searched for a goal.

    Despite a flurry of changes City could not dominate proceedings as Stones and Nunes came in for Lewis and Kovacic.

    It was Arsenal that broke the deadlock when Martinelli hit a shot that took a huge deflection and found the back of the net to put them a goal ahead.

    Arsenal are now second in the table with 20 points behind Tottenham while City are third with 18 points.

    Source

  • Seoul, Tokyo reopen strategic diplomatic channels amid nuke threats

    This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.

    The foreign ministries of South Korea and Japan held their first “strategic dialogue” in nine years, and agreed to strengthen ties to deal with the common threat of Pyongyang’s nuclear provocations, a development indicating that the bilateral collaboration is extending beyond the military, finance to diplomacy.

    South Korea’s first vice minister for foreign affairs Chang Ho-jin and his Japanese counterpart Masataka Okano met in Seoul on Thursday, where the agenda centered around bilateral, regional and global issues, including the Indo-Pacific strategy and geopolitics of East Asia, according to the South’s foreign ministry statement.

    The two also jointly condemned North Korea’s nuclear provocations during the talks, the statement added. They concurred that the United States, South Korea, and Japan must “collaborate to spearhead a resolute and unified international response,” vowing that the three nations will put efforts towards improving human rights in North Korea.

    “The vice-ministerial strategic dialogue is a part of the close communication between ROK and Japan, and we expect it to further strengthen our cooperation on issues of common interest based on this communication,” said Lim Soo-suk, South Korea’s foreign ministry spokesperson in a regular briefing, referring to South Korea by its formal name.  

    Seoul’s ties and communication with Tokyo were improving at both bilateral and multilateral levels, she added. 

    The meeting between the two key U.S. allies took place for the first time since 2014, after the two leaders of the countries, Yoon Suk Yeol and Kishida Fumio agreed to mend ties during a summit in March.

    The meeting was first held in 2005, with the aim of expanding  bilateral strategic cooperation to tackle regional challenges, but was suspended as relations between Seoul and Tokyo soured over disagreement surrounding Japan’s colonial rule over the Korean peninsula.

    Most notable is the issue of compensating forced laborers and ‘comfort women,’ a Japanese euphemism for wartime sex slaves. As the dispute showed no signs of reaching a resolution, its implication has extended to other areas, affecting military and economic security.

    The discord between Tokyo and Seoul ran against the interests of Washington to reunite allies in addressing challenges posed by China. South Korea’s conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, who took office last year, made steps to reconcile the dispute, and had proposed measures to compensate the wartime victims using South Korean funds, despite the domestic backlash.

    Expanding cooperation

    Thursday’s meeting signals South Korea and Japan’s effort to expand their scope of cooperation – a move that could aid U.S. President Joe Biden’s Asia strategy to unite regional allies.

    Initial indications of reconciliation have appeared in the military sector, with the navies of South Korea and Japan actively and openly participating in drills in waters that divide the Koreas and Japan.

    The scope of cooperation then extended to the finance sector, with the two countries agreeing to revive their financial cooperation earlier this week, in the face of heightened geopolitical risks including those that could potentially stem from China’s unstable property market.  

    During the U.S.-South Korea-Japan trilateral summit at Camp David in August, Yoon indicated that the cooperation is poised to expand its hi-tech industries. “In the fields of artificial intelligence, quantum, bio, next-generation information and communication, and space, ROK-US-Japan cooperation has great synergies,” Yoon said.

    Kishida also echoed Yoon in the press conference: “In the area of economic security, there was consensus on promoting cooperation in key emerging technologies and cooperation related to strengthening supply chain resilience,” Kishida said, indicating that Tokyo’s cooperation with Seoul would create a foundation for continued and stable strengthening of trilateral cooperation.

    The real game now is bringing specific measures into strengthening the cooperations, pointed out Cheon Seong-whun, a former security strategy secretary for South Korea’s presidential office.

    “The devil is in detail,” Cheon said. “It’s essential to identify specific methods to enhance collaboration. One approach could be establishing a committee dedicated to fostering direct cooperation.”

    “The focus now should be on achieving tangible outcomes. Operating the current framework without producing meaningful results is futile,” he added.



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  • Pope Calls For End To Israel-Palestine War

    Pope-Francis

    Pope Francis on Sunday called for prayer for the restoration of peace in the warring nations of Israel and Palestine.

    Recall that on October 7, 2023, Palestinian militant groups from the Gaza Strip launched a large-scale offensive against Israel, breaking through the Gaza–Israel barrier and forcing entry into Gaza border crossings, nearby Israeli cities, adjacent military installations, and civilian settlements.

    The pope who was speaking at St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, called for an end to attacks in Israel as he added that terrorism and war do not lead to a solution.

    “War is a defeat. All war is a defeat. Let us pray for peace in Israel and Palestine.

    “I follow with apprehension and pain what is happening in Israel. I express my solidarity with the families of the victims,” he told crowds after his traditional Angelus prayer.

    He added, “I pray for all those who are living through hours of terror and anguish. May the attacks and the weapons cease, I beg you.

    “Terrorism and war do not lead to a solution, but only to the death and suffering of many innocent people.”

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