white house — President Joe Biden and President Prabowo Subianto met Tuesday at the White House, marking the 75th anniversary of U.S.-Indonesia relations, part of a multination visit by the newly inaugurated leader of Southeast Asia’s largest economy.   

“I will work very hard to strengthen Indonesia and United States relationship,” said Prabowo, who goes by his first name.    

Biden said he looks forward to deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the highest level among nontreaty allies, which the two countries signed in 2023. “That includes deepening our security cooperation,” he said before their meeting. 

In brief remarks to the press, Biden twice raised an issue of concern for Washington: freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. He said he wanted to strengthen the U.S. partnership with Indonesia, “by advancing [a] free and open Indo-Pacific.”   

“We’ll discuss, also, global challenges, including in Gaza and the South China Sea,” he said.   

China’s nine-dash line 

The White House meeting came days after Prabowo’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, where Indonesia and China signed a series of agreements valued at about $10 billion and focusing on infrastructure, green energy, digital technology and agriculture.

“In the present situation, geopolitical and geoeconomic, Indonesia and China have become very close partners in many, many fields,” Prabowo said.   

One of the deals is to jointly develop fisheries, and oil and gas exploration in waters around Indonesia’s Natuna Islands where China’s “nine-dash line” marking its expansive claims in the South China Sea overlaps with Indonesia’s Exclusive Economic Zone.  

Critics say the agreement risks implicitly validating China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, which, according to the United Nations, has no basis in international law.  

VOA asked the White House whether Biden was specifically referring to this deal in his meeting with Prabowo. 

“We continue to encourage Indonesia to work with their legal experts to make sure any agreement they make with the PRC [People’s Republic of China] is in accordance with international law, especially the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.   

Beijing claims the major shipping route almost entirely, infringing into the EEZs of Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines. All but Indonesia formally dispute the Chinese claim while Taiwan makes a claim to the sea similar to Beijing’s.   

“It’s a big deal for Indonesia,” as a non-claimant country in the South China Sea dispute that supports the concept of a “free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Klaus Heinrich Raditio, author on South China Sea issues and lecturer at Indonesia’s Driyarkara School of Philosophy. “People will question our position,” he told VOA. 

The Indonesian Foreign Ministry clarified Sunday that it remains firm in rejecting China’s nine-dash line. 

Beijing’s claim, Jakarta said, “does not comply” with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and “therefore has no bearing” on Indonesia’s sovereignty and jurisdiction over the North Natuna Sea. 

Jakarta’s agreement with Beijing highlights a “new phase of building the China-Indonesia community with a shared future,” according to the joint statement.  

This reference supports “China’s vision of a new global order that is anti-Western hegemony,” Raditio said. 

It’s unclear whether this language was an intentional signaling of a geopolitical shift or merely an overlook from a new administration eager to bolster ties with great powers. The Indonesian Embassy in Washington has not responded to VOA’s queries.    

“Most likely, it is a bureaucratic mistake,” Raditio said. “We put too much attention on economic cooperation. How many investments that we can attract from China? We kind of sideline other important issues.”    

Prabowo’s outreach to Trump 

Just as important to Jakarta as the White House meeting is Prabowo’s outreach to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Jakarta is gearing up for Trump’s new administration that begins in January.  

“Wherever you are, I’m willing to fly to congratulate you personally, sir,” Prabowo said in a call to Trump that was posted Monday on his social media.  

The Trump team has not responded to VOA’s queries on the conversation.  

U.S. foreign policy under Trump “may become more transactional and more focused on elements related to U.S.-China, competition,” said Andreyka Natalegawa, associate fellow for the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.    

“The downside risk of this as it relates to Southeast Asian countries, is that it may limit some of the decision-making space they have in their diplomatic affairs,” Natalegawa said.   

Prabowo has voiced ambitions to raise Indonesia’s international profile and has made early foreign policy moves, including a surprise decision to join Southeast Asia’s largest economy to the BRICS bloc.     

BRICS, which stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, is a growing group of emerging economies seen as a counterweight to the West. In October, BRICS added Indonesia as one of the group’s 13 new “partner countries.” 

The move could be a shift away from the position taken by Prabowo’s predecessor, Joko Widodo, who took in massive amounts of infrastructure investments from Beijing but remained mostly nonaligned geopolitically.  

The White House visit marks a milestone for Prabowo, who was barred from entering the U.S. under the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations over his role in abducting activists of the 1998 “Reformasi” movement that ousted President Suharto, Prabowo’s then father-in-law. 

The Trump administration lifted the visa ban for then-Defense Minister Prabowo, for his visit in 2020.   
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Washington — Following President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, leaders in the Uyghur American community are advocating for renewed U.S. attention on human rights abuses in Xinjiang in northwest China, where Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities have reportedly faced severe repression.

Advocates urge Trump to continue his administration’s previous measures against China, citing the impact of his first-term policies on Uyghur rights.

During Trump’s first term, his administration formally labeled China’s actions in Xinjiang as genocide, leading to sanctions on Chinese officials and entities connected with alleged abuses, including mass detentions, forced labor and sterilizations. China has consistently denied accusations of abuses against ethnic minorities, asserting its policies aim to combat extremism and terrorism.

Nury Turkel, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and former chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, pointed to the bipartisan support for Uyghur rights, underscoring that these concerns resonate across both U.S. legislative and executive branches.

“[Uyghur rights] concerns extend beyond typical human rights issues. They have profound national security implications tied to America’s long-term economic and strategic security,” Turkel told VOA.

Turkel expressed cautious optimism that Trump’s new administration will build on its previous actions, referencing the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act and the genocide designation.

“I am optimistic that the incoming administration will take concrete steps to address these urgent concerns affecting Uyghurs, as it had previously,” he said.

VOA contacted the Trump campaign for a comment regarding the new administration’s plans for Uyghur rights in China but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

Renewed calls for action

Uyghur American leaders plan to press Trump’s administration to bolster sanctions on Chinese officials and entities involved in abuses against Uyghurs, with the hope of strengthening the U.S. response.

“I anticipate that the Trump administration will impose additional sanctions on Chinese officials and entities responsible for atrocity crimes against the Uyghurs, potentially strengthening U.S. efforts to confront these abuses,” Turkel added.

Rushan Abbas, executive director of the Washington-based Campaign for Uyghurs, emphasized the need for strict enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act of 2021.

“Uyghurs are enduring a genocide, and Americans should know that addressing the genocide of Uyghurs is not just a foreign policy matter; it’s about preventing the U.S. from becoming complicit through the consumption of Chinese products tainted by forced labor,” Abbas told VOA. “[I]t’s about stopping China from using Americans’ hard-earned money to fuel their imperial ambitions and undermine the United States, and rejecting foreign intimidation on U.S. soil.”

Salih Hudayar, prime minister of the Washington-based East Turkistan Government in Exile, echoed these sentiments, urging the Trump administration to formally recognize the region — referred to as Xinjiang by China but called East Turkistan by many Uyghurs —as an occupied nation.

“An independent East Turkistan would directly challenge China’s ambitions for dominance across Central Asia and the Indo-Pacific, safeguarding American and broader global interests,” Hudayar told VOA. He suggested appointing a special coordinator for Uyghur issues to demonstrate U.S. support for Uyghur rights and those of other minorities in the region.

Current policy challenges

Despite calls for stronger actions, Uyghur American advocates remain concerned that economic and strategic interests with China may take precedence. Turkel highlighted that various advocacy groups have influenced the U.S. response to Uyghur issues in recent years.

“Climate activists have lobbied for closer cooperation with China on environmental initiatives; pro-engagement China watchers have advocated a softer, more conciliatory approach to ‘lower the temperature’ in U.S.-China relations; and business interests have warned of the economic risks of escalating tensions, pushing for policies that protect U.S.-China trade relations,” he said. “These pressures have contributed to a more nuanced stance and a quieter approach to human rights and Uyghur-related policies.”

Turkel added, “While steps like the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act were commendable [during the Biden administration], the focus on Uyghur rights has often been eclipsed by broader geopolitical priorities,” pointing to how shifting U.S. economic priorities have impacted the response.

Addressing transnational repression

In addition to actions on Uyghur rights, Uyghur American leaders are urging the Trump administration to address transnational repression by China, specifically targeting covert operations that intimidate Uyghur Americans on U.S. soil.

“The administration should take immediate steps to multiply the efforts to counter transnational repression by Chinese authorities, particularly targeting the presence of covert Chinese police stations and agents who monitor and intimidate Uyghur Americans and China dissidents in the U.S.,” Abbas said.

Abbas noted Trump’s efforts in securing hostage releases in his first term, urging him to prioritize Uyghur detainees held in China.

“China continues to detain Uyghur [American] family members and community leaders as a tactic to silence Uyghurs abroad … with many forced to self-censor to protect their families,” she said, advocating for strong U.S. efforts to secure their release and end repression tactics targeting Uyghurs in the diaspora.
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MOSCOW — The key task for Russia and China is to counter any attempt by the United States to contain their countries, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin told China’s foreign minister on Tuesday.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose steep tariffs on China and other countries, raising fears of a trade war and the United States casts China as its biggest competitor and Russia as its biggest nation-state threat.

China’s Xi Jinping and Putin in May pledged a “new era” of partnership between the two most powerful rivals of the United States, which they cast as an aggressive Cold War hegemon sowing chaos across the world.

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing that the strong relations between Moscow and Beijing were a stabilizing influence on the world.

“I see the most important task as countering the policy of ‘dual containment’ of Russia and China pursued by the United States and its satellites,” Shoigu was quoted as saying by Russian state news agencies.

Xi and Putin believe the post-Cold War era of extraordinary U.S. dominance is crumbling after the perceived humiliations of the 1991 Soviet collapse and centuries of European colonial dominance of China.
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wellington, new zealand — New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon made a “formal and unreserved” apology in Parliament on Tuesday for the widespread abuse, torture and neglect of hundreds of thousands of children and vulnerable adults in care.

“It was horrific. It was heartbreaking. It was wrong. And it should never have happened,” Luxon said, as he spoke to lawmakers and a public gallery packed with survivors of the abuse.

An estimated 200,000 people in state, foster and faith-based care suffered “unimaginable” abuse over seven decades, a blistering report released in July said at the end of the largest inquiry ever undertaken in New Zealand.

“For many of you it changed the course of your life, and for that, the government must take responsibility,” Luxon said.

“Words do matter, and I say these words with sincerity: I have read your stories, and I believe you,” he added. The prime minister was apologizing on behalf of previous governments too, he said.

The results were a “national disgrace,” the inquiry’s report said, after a six-year investigation believed to be the widest-ranging of comparable probes worldwide. Of 650,000 children and vulnerable adults in state, foster and church care between 1950 and 2019 — in a country that today has a population of 5 million — nearly a third endured physical, sexual, verbal or psychological abuse. Many more were exploited or neglected.

They were disproportionately Maori, New Zealand’s Indigenous people.

In response to the findings, New Zealand’s government agreed for the first time that historical treatment of some children in a notorious state-run hospital amounted to torture and pledged an apology to all those abused in state, foster and religious care since 1950.

Luxon’s government was decried by some survivors and advocates earlier Tuesday ahead of the apology for not yet having divulged plans for the financial compensation of those abused.
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Taipei, Taiwan — Palau’s President Surangel Whipps Jr. has secured another term in office after defeating former President Tommy Remengesau Jr. in its Nov. 5 election that was closely monitored. Palau sits on the front line of competition for geopolitical influence between the United States and China in the Pacific Ocean.

While election authorities still haven’t finished counting absentee ballots, Whipps has won the vote with one of the biggest margins in Palau’s electoral history, 57.5%. Remengesau, who is Whipps’ brother-in-law, took 41.3%.

Whipps thanked supporters for allowing him to continue “building on the progress” that his administration has achieved over the last four years.

“Your decision to grant me a second term as president is a responsibility I hold with the utmost respect,” he said in a statement shared with VOA on Monday.

The president can only have two consecutive four-year terms and must step down after that, but he can run again after a four-year gap in between.

Remengesau has served a total of four terms already.

Separately, the spokesperson for Palau’s election commission told Radio New Zealand the following day that it was “highly unlikely” that Whipps would lose the election.

Meanwhile, in a concession speech broadcast by a local radio station, the Palau Wave Productions, on November 7, Remengesau said the election is finished and the Palauan people have “spoken through a peaceful and free election.”

Analysts say the outcome shows more Palauan voters support Whipps’ policy agenda, which includes tax reforms and deeper engagement with the United States.

“It seems Palau’s closer relationship with the United States under Whipps Jr.’s leadership makes sense for the majority of Palauans,” said Henryk Szadziewski, an expert on Pacific affairs at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Palau has a population of around 20,000 people and is situated around 890 kilometers (550 miles) east of the Philippines. It is one of three Pacific Island countries that receive significant economic support from the U.S. under agreements known as the Compacts of Free Association, or COFA.

Under the accords, the U.S. provides economic aid worth billions of dollars, while Palau, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia give the U.S. exclusive military access to their land, water and airspace, as well as the right to deny China access to their ports and territorial waters.

In September, U.S. lawmakers passed funding for key provisions in COFA for Palau. The U.S. military is also helping to repair a runway on a World War II-era Japanese airfield on the island of Peleliu and installing two radar systems on Palau. 

Experts say they expect Palau to keep deepening ties with the U.S. during Whipps’ second term and relevant efforts will likely include increasing the frequency of U.S. military visits and enhancing connectivity with Palau.

“There’s going to be a much stronger U.S. presence in terms of military visits, joint actions to combat transnational crime and illegal fishing, and boost transport and digital connectivity,” Meg Keen, a senior fellow at the Lowy Institute in Australia, told VOA by phone.

During his first term, Whipps repeatedly said “presence is deterrence,” referring to the increased U.S. military presence in Palau, and characterized the Pacific island country as “part of the U.S. homeland” when it comes to security.

In an interview with VOA last month, Whipps said U.S. protection plays a key role in safeguarding Palau’s territorial integrity.

“Since Palau is small, having the protection of the United States is important because we see what’s happening now in the South China Sea between the Philippines and China,” he said during an interview at his office in Koror, Palau.

Since 2023, the Chinese and Philippine coast guards have repeatedly confronted each other at several disputed shoals that both sides claim to be their territories. While Beijing views almost the entire South China Sea as its territorial water, a 2016 ruling by an international arbitration court found that most Chinese claims in the South China Sea were invalid. Beijing refuses to abide by the ruling.

While many Palauans support the Whipps administration’s efforts to deepen security ties with the U.S., some political observers say some Palauans are still concerned about the negative impacts associated with the increased U.S. military presence across the Pacific island country.

“Some Palauan people hold this apprehensiveness about the implication of increased U.S. military presence in Palau because they rarely saw U.S. soldiers in military uniforms in the past,” Kambes Kesolei, editor of one of Palau’s main newspapers, Tia Belau, told VOA by phone.

“Some Palauans wonder what they can do to prevent Palau from becoming over-militarized,” he added.  

In addition to deepening ties with the U.S., some analysts say Palau will maintain its diplomatic ties with Taiwan, which could lead to “increased coercive pressure” from China. Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and has repeatedly vowed to reunite with the island, by force if necessary.

“I expect ties between Palau and Taiwan to remain robust but increasing coercive pressure from the People’s Republic of China, [PRC,] may increase risks for Palau, which will need strong support from the U.S. and like-minded partners to maintain resiliency against PRC coercion,” Parker Novak, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, told VOA in a written response.  

Whipps has accused China of weaponizing tourism against Palau and posing a wide range of threats to the Pacific island country’s national security, including cyberattacks and illegal incursion of Palau’s territorial water by Chinese vessels.

“In 2015 and 2016, tourism numbers from China went through the roof, which helped Palau’s economy grow 30%, but since Palau never switched diplomatic recognition [from Taiwan] to China, that number just basically collapsed in the following years,” Whipps told VOA.

In response to questions about Whipps’ claim that China has pressured Palau to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said during a regular press conference on November 4 that only a small number of countries, including Palau, still maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

“China urges these countries to fulfill their obligations under international law, stand on the right side of history, and make right decisions that truly serve their fundamental and long-term interests at an early date,” she said.

While Whipps is likely to remain critical of China’s attempt to coerce Palau, Keen in Australia said the Palauan president is not going to completely “shut the door for China.” “He is very much wary of how China has used land and tourism to build pressure, but if the investment is in the national interests of Palau, he is willing to consider,” she told VOA.
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HONG KONG — Merchants and consumers alike found the Singles’ Day shopping festival Monday less shiny than in years past as e-commerce firms look abroad for growth.

The annual event named by the numeric form of its Nov. 11 date was started by e-commerce platform Alibaba, which offered attractive discounts to entice shoppers to spend big. The extravaganza has since expanded to other platforms like JD.com and Pinduoduo in China as well as abroad.

While Singles’ Day was previously a one-day event, shopping platforms in China now kickstart the festival weeks ahead to drum up sales volume. The festival has also traditionally been regarded as a barometer of consumer sentiment.

But amid China’s lagging domestic economy, dragged down by a real estate crisis and deflationary pressures, consumers no longer go all out on purchases during the shopping extravaganza.

“I only spent a few hundred yuan on daily necessities,” said Wang Haihua, who owns a fitness center in Beijing.

Wang said that the prices offered on e-commerce platforms during Singles’ Day are not necessarily cheaper than usual.

“They’re all tricks and we’ve seen through it over the years,” she said.

Zhang Jiewei, a 34-year-old who runs a barber shop in Xi’an city, echoed Wang’s sentiments, saying that he no longer trust Singles’ Day promotions as some merchants tend to raise the usual price of a product before offering a discount, giving consumers the illusion they are getting a deal.

“I used to buy a lot two or three years ago and I even purchased a mobile phone (during Singles’ Day),” he said.

“I stopped doing that following the pandemic because of less income. I am not going to buy anything this year,” Zhang added.

Some experts say that Beijing’s recent stimulus measures have had little impact to boost consumer confidence.

“People are not interested in spending and are cutting back on big-ticket items,” said Shaun Rein, founder and managing director of China Market Research Group in Shanghai. “Since October 2022, the weak economy means that everything has been on discount year-round, 11.11 is not going to bring in more discounts that the month before.”

Rein said he expects low growth for the Singles’ Day shopping festival as consumers tighten their spending in anticipation of difficult economic times ahead.

Categories such as sportswear and fitness, however, have been doing well as customers “trade down a Gucci bag for Lululemon sportswear,” he said.

Platforms like JD.com and Alibaba, which operates e-commerce platforms Taobao and Tmall, previously used to publish the value of transactions made during the festival, but have since stopped revealing the total figure. While yearly growth used to be in the double digits, estimates of recent figures have dwindled to low single-digit growth.

Syntun, a data provider, estimated that last year’s gross merchandising volume sales across major e-commerce platforms grew just 2% to $156.40 billion, a far cry from double-digit growth before COVID-19.

Merchants who typically take part in the Singles’ Day shopping festivals say the costs of participation no longer pay off, amid high advertising fees and unsatisfactory sales.

Zhao Gao, who owns a garment factory in eastern Zhejiang province, said that after paying advertising costs to e-commerce platforms he would only break even after sales.

“The platforms have so many rules for promotions and customers have become more skeptical,” he said. “As a merchant, I no longer participate in the Singles’ Day promotions.”

Another merchant, Du Baonian who runs a food company processing mutton in Inner Mongolia, said that overall sales in the past year have fallen 15% as consumers downgraded and reduced consumption.

Du said that while he still takes part in the Singles’ Day promotions, the higher expenses do not typically generate returns because of sluggish sales.

“We are seeing shrinking revenue, but advertisement on the platform can help us to maintain our leading sales position,” he said, adding that he was considering advertising on more e-commerce platforms to target more consumers.

Meanwhile, e-commerce platforms grappling with a slowing domestic market have also turned to overseas markets to seek new growth, offering promotions like global free shipping and allowing merchants to sell globally with ease.

Alibaba, for example, said in a blog post on its Alizila site that some 70,000 merchants saw sales double with global free shipping. In markets like Singapore and Hong Kong, new customers also doubled, Alibaba said.
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TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Taiwanese businessman Robert Tsao said on Monday he would sue in a Taiwan court senior Chinese officials over sanctions they had placed on him, saying he was seeking to counter China’s intimidation of lawful activity.

China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, last month said it would punish and sanction Tsao, the retired founder of chipmaker UMC, for alleged criminal and pro-Taiwan independence activities.

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said the “Black Bear Academy” that Tsao has helped fund was seeking to incite separatism that would endanger cross-strait ties.

Tsao, one of Taiwan’s richest men who has pledged to provide millions to two civilian defense training programs, told a press conference that China was threatening the lawful holding of political views in Taiwan, and his personal safety.

The lawsuit will be lodged in a Taipei court against Song Tao, head of China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, and also the office’s spokesperson Chen Binhua.

Taiwan courts have no jurisdiction in China and senior Chinese officials do not visit the island.

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment.

Cheng Wen-lung, one of Tsao’s lawyers, said they understood that neither Song nor Chen would come to Taiwan and there would be no way of enforcing any judgment, but the case was about sending a message to Beijing, given it has been seeking to use legal means to put pressure on Taiwanese persons it does not like.

“Legally, we have to do this,” Cheng said. “Taiwan is in a difficult spot, but we have to work hard. You cannot not do anything.”

Tsao’s team is also looking at suing in a U.S. court under that country’s Alien Tort Claims Act.

China’s announcement against Tsao came as the country’s military staged a day of war games around Taiwan it said were a warning to “separatist acts.” Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims.

UMC says Tsao has nothing to do with the company any longer having retired a decade ago.
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Beijing — China has published baselines for a contested shoal in the South China Sea it seized from the Philippines, a move that’s likely to increase tensions over overlapping territorial claims.

The Foreign Ministry on Sunday posted online geographic coordinates for the baselines around Scarborough Shoal. A nation’s territorial waters and exclusive economic zone are typically defined as the distance from the baselines.

Both China and the Philippines claim Scarborough Shoal and other outcroppings in the South China Sea. China seized the shoal, which lies west of the main Philippine island of Luzon, in 2012 and has since restricted access to Filipino fishermen there. A 2016 ruling by an international arbitration court found that most Chinese claims in the South China Sea were invalid but Beijing refuses to abide by it.

Ships from China and the Philippines have collided several times as part of increased confrontations, and the Chinese coast guard has blasted Philippine vessels with water cannons.

China’s move came two days after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed two laws demarcating the government’s claims in the disputed waters.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said that the delimiting of the baselines was in accordance with a U.N. agreement and Chinese law.

“This is a natural step by the Chinese government to lawfully strengthen marine management and is consistent with international law and common practices,” it said.

The statement added that one of the laws signed by Marcos, the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, violates China’s sovereignty in the South China Sea.

“China firmly opposes it and will continue to do everything necessary in accordance with law to firmly defend its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests,” the Foreign Ministry said.

China stakes claim to almost the entirety of the South China Sea. It has a series of disputes with several Southeast Asian nations including the Philippines and Vietnam over territory in the waters, which are part of a key shipping route in Asia.
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Hanoi, Vietnam — Vietnamese authorities arrested a pro-democracy activist, state media said, the latest in a crackdown on political dissidents in the southeast Asian country.

Tran Khac Duc, 29, was held on charges of “creating, storing, distributing or disseminating information, documents and items aimed at opposing the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,” according to the publication Safeguarding the Law.

He was arrested in September, but authorities only announced his detention through state media on Saturday.

Duc is affiliated with the Assembly for Democracy and Pluralism organization, whose website says it aims to “establish a multi-party democratic system” in the communist nation.

Its website praised Duc as an “intelligent, wise, dynamic and gentle young man” who “firmly believes that Vietnam should progress towards a pluralistic democracy,” maintaining that he is an “informal member” of the group.

It reposted state media’s announcement of Duc’s arrest but did not directly comment on it.

The ADP was founded in 1982 and is led by Nguyen Gia Kieng, an intellectual and former official of the U.S.-allied South Vietnamese government before the end of the Vietnam War in 1975.

Kieng — who lives in exile in France — told Radio Free Asia Saturday that ADP members had previously been harassed and beaten by police, but that Duc’s arrest was “unusual.”

It comes less than two weeks after a Vietnamese court sentenced a blogger who criticized the government to 12 years in jail on the same charges.

The country ranks 174th out of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders campaign group’s World Press Freedom Index. 
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SYDNEY — England cricketing great Ian Botham was saved by his former Ashes rival Merv Hughes after a fall into crocodile-infested waters while on a fishing trip in northern Australia.

Botham, along with Hughes and a group of friends, was on a boat when the accident happened, resulting in some heavy bruising to his torso but no serious injuries for the former England all-rounder.

The 68-year-old Botham reportedly got tangled in some ropes while moving to another boat, causing him to slip headfirst into the Moyle River, 200 kilometers southwest of Darwin in Australia’s tropical north. The river is known to be inhabited by saltwater crocodiles and bull sharks.

Posting about the incident on social media, Botham shared his relief, saying: “My catch of the day was the barra while I was nearly catch of the day for all the crocs and bull sharks…thanks boys for getting me out.”

The two cricket legends, who faced off many times during Ashes series in the late 1980s and early ’90s, have maintained a close friendship over the years.

In a comment to News Corp, Botham compared himself to the Australian film character Crocodile Dundee, saying: “At the end of the day, Crocodile Beefy survived.

“I was out of the water quicker than I went in it. Quite a few sets of eyes were having a peep at me. Luckily I had no time to think about what was in the water. The guys were brilliant, it was just one of those accidents. It was all very quick and I’m OK now.”

There have been three fatal crocodile attacks in Australia this year.
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SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korea staged GPS jamming attacks on Friday and Saturday, an operation that was affecting several ships and dozens of civilian aircraft in South Korea, Seoul’s military said.

The jamming allegations come about a week after the North test-fired what it said was its most advanced and powerful solid-fuel ICBM missile, its first such launch since being accused of sending soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine.

The South fired its own ballistic missile into the sea on Friday in a show of force aimed at demonstrating its resolve to respond to “any North Korean provocations.”

“North Korea conducted GPS jamming provocations in Haeju and Kaesong yesterday and today,” Seoul’s joint chiefs of staff said in a statement Saturday, adding that several vessels and dozens of civilian aircraft were experiencing “some operational disruptions.”

The military warned ships and aircraft operating in the Yellow Sea to beware of such attacks.

“We strongly urge North Korea to immediately cease its GPS provocations and warn that it will be held responsible for any subsequent issues arising from this,” they said in the statement.

Relations between the two Koreas are at one of their lowest points in years, with the North launching a flurry of ballistic missiles in violation of UN sanctions.

It also has been bombarding the South with trash-carrying balloons since May, in what it says is retaliation for anti-Pyongyang propaganda missives sent North by activists.

The South Korean military said Pyongyang also attempted to jam GPS signals in May, but added at the time that it did not hinder any military operations in the South.

In Friday’s drill, South Korea fired a Hyunmoo surface-to-surface short-range missile into the West Sea, which the military said was to show Seoul’s “strong resolve to firmly respond” to any North Korean threats.

The Hyunmoo missiles are key to the country’s so-called ‘Kill Chain’ preemptive strike system, which allows Seoul to launch an attack if there are signs of an imminent North Korean attack.

‘Real risk’

Experts say such jamming attacks can lead to other incidents that could escalate tensions on the Korean peninsula.

“It remains unclear whether there is an intention to divert the world’s attention from troop deployments, instill psychological insecurity among residents in the South, or respond to Friday’s drills,” said Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.

“However, GPS jamming attacks pose a real risk of serious incidents, including potential aircraft accidents in the worst-case scenario,” he told AFP.

Ahn Chan-il, a defector-turned-researcher who runs the World Institute for North Korea Studies, told AFP the North’s jamming could be “to shield their own communications and intelligence exchanges during critical military operations” at home and abroad.

Russia and Ukraine

North Korea has become one of the most vocal and important backers of Russia’s offensive in Ukraine.

Seoul and the West have long accused Pyongyang of supplying artillery shells and missiles to Moscow for use in Ukraine.

The latest accusations, based on intelligence reports, indicate the North has deployed around 10,000 troops to Russia, suggesting even deeper involvement in the conflict and triggering outcry in Seoul, Kyiv and Western capitals.

Seoul, a security ally of Washington, said last month the presence of North Korean troops in Europe would be a major escalation.

South Korea, a major arms exporter, has a long-standing policy of not providing weapons to countries in conflict.

But President Yoon Suk Yeol said this week that Seoul is now not ruling out the possibility of providing weapons directly to Ukraine, given Pyongyang’s military support of Moscow.

On Friday, Seoul’s presidential office said cyberattacks by pro-Russian hacking groups against South Korea have increased following North Korea’s troop dispatch for Russia’s war in Ukraine.
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Washington — Indonesia’s newly inaugurated President Prabowo Subianto set off for China on Friday for his first international trip as president. 

“From Beijing I will fly directly to Washington, D.C., on the invitation of the U.S. president,” said Prabowo upon departing Jakarta. Indonesians often refer to public figures by their first names.

His tour aims to “cultivate good relations with all parties,” Prabowo said. He has stated his ambition to raise Indonesia’s international profile and made early foreign policy moves, including a surprise decision to join Southeast Asia’s largest economy to the BRICS bloc. 

BRICS, which stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, comprises a growing group of emerging economies and is seen as a counterweight to the West. In October, the group added Indonesia as one of its 13 new “partner countries.” 

The move is a shift away from the position taken by Prabowo’s predecessor, Joko Widodo, who took in massive amounts of infrastructure investments from Beijing but remained mostly nonaligned geopolitically.   

Prabowo’s visit comes during a transitional period at the White House, ahead of the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump in January. The White House has not formally announced the visit; however, Jakarta said Prabowo is scheduled to meet U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House early next week. 

Indonesian diplomatic sources who spoke under condition of anonymity told VOA that Prabowo has requested a meeting with Trump. The Trump team has not responded to VOA’s query on whether it will be granted.   

New period of US-Indonesia ties 

Starting in January, both countries will be under the helm of leaders who were democratically elected but have employed authoritarian rhetoric, at a time when Washington is focused on its rivalry with the authoritarian regime in China under Xi Jinping. 

Like Trump, Prabowo made a historical political comeback under unlikely circumstances. He secured a landslide victory after two failed attempts, 26 years after his father-in-law, President Suharto, was ousted from power. This, despite Prabowo admitting he was ordered by Suharto in 1998 to abduct activists protesting the regime.  

Washington was aware of Prabowo’s involvement, and the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations denied Prabowo entry to the U.S., citing human rights concerns. The Trump administration lifted the visa ban and then-Defense Secretary Mark Esper invited then-Defense Minister Prabowo to Washington in 2020.    

With Trump in the White House, analysts say, Jakarta could see more opportunities to expand ties with Washington if Prabowo makes inroads through the right people for the right incentives, given Trump’s history of relying more on personal connections than institutional relationships.   

Personal connections 

Jakarta’s point person for Washington under the first Trump administration was Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, a businessman and retired four-star army general who then served as coordinating minister for maritime affairs and investment.    

Luhut developed close ties with Adam Boehler, head of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and a former college roommate of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. In 2020, Boehler dangled the promise of a $2 billion investment into Indonesia’s planned sovereign wealth fund.

The plan fell through because the price, recognition of Israel under the Trump administration’s Abraham Accords, was too high for Jakarta, according to an interview Boehler gave to Bloomberg at the end of 2020.   

In Prabowo’s administration, Luhut holds the position of head of the National Economic Council and special adviser on investment affairs. But in a Cabinet of more than 100 officials, his influence has diminished. 

“The deck is being shuffled right now, and we don’t know yet where the cards will land,” said Yeremia Lalisang, assistant professor of international relations at the University of Indonesia. What’s clear, Lalisang told VOA, is that the “pragmatic” Prabowo will be delighted to be welcomed by Trump after being treated as a “human rights criminal” by previous U.S. administrations. 

One possibility to bolster ties under Trump would be for Prabowo to capitalize on the connection between billionaires among Trump’s inner circle. This would include Trump’s wealthiest backer, Elon Musk, and Hary Tanoesoedibjo, an Indonesian tycoon who has partnered with the Trump family on several real estate projects in Indonesia. Both were at Trump’s residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Tuesday night, celebrating his election victory. 

Tanoesoedibjo, who commonly goes by his initials H.T., would not confirm whether he is facilitating a Trump-Prabowo meeting next week. However, he said, Trump’s victory would bring “positive hope for Indonesia.” 

“Trump’s favorable understanding of Indonesia should be maximalized for the economic benefit of both countries, especially Indonesia’s economic interests,” H.T. told VOA.  

Investing in nickel 

Under Jokowi’s administration, Jakarta courted Musk, head of SpaceX and Tesla, to invest in two key areas: satellites and electric vehicle batteries. Earlier this year, Musk launched SpaceX’s satellite internet service, Starlink, in Bali and Maluku.   

With the Earth’s largest reserves of nickel, Indonesia is eager to develop its EV battery industry, and Prabowo is expected to continue his predecessor’s yearslong effort to lure Tesla to invest. 

The Biden administration has put aside tens of billions of dollars in tax credits to spur the U.S. EV industry, under the Inflation Reduction Act, its signature climate and energy legislation. To qualify for the credit, 40% of the minerals used for battery production for EVs sold in the U.S. must be extracted or processed domestically or in one of its free-trade partners.   

Jakarta has been pushing for a limited free-trade agreement that will allow it to benefit from IRA tax credits. However, its nickel industry is backed by investment from Chinese companies and besieged by environmental concerns, limiting its access to the U.S. market. 

“You might see some of this calculus change during the course of the Trump administration,” said Andreyka Natalegawa, associate fellow for the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Trump has vowed to loosen environmental restrictions. 

U.S.-Indonesia cooperation on nickel is “out there as an objective,” said Ann Marie Murphy, senior research scholar at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University. “If it fails to come to fruition, I think that could be disappointing to both sides,” she told VOA. 

However, Trump, who has made high tariffs on China a central theme of his campaign, will be looking closely at the tariffs’ impact on the EV industry. He has vowed to roll back tax credits available to EV buyers in the U.S.   

He will also be watching bilateral trade deficits. In 2017, his administration placed Indonesia on a watchlist of countries that have a large trade surplus, threatening Jakarta with unspecified consequences if trade was not brought into balance.    

“There’s lots of question marks here that we still need to wait and see to get answers,” Natalegawa told VOA. 

Yuni Salim contributed to this report.
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