BANGKOK — Thailand on Monday officially began the selection of new senators, a process that has become part of an ongoing war between progressive forces hoping for democratic political reforms and conservatives seeking to keep the status quo.

Hopeful candidates headed to district offices across the country on the first day of registration to compete for one of the 200 seats in Parliament’s upper house.

The power of the Senate — although limited compared to the House of Representatives, which is tasked with law-making responsibilities — was demonstrated dramatically when it blocked the progressive party that won the most seats in last year’s election from forming a new government.

The senators were able to do so because of the 2017 Constitution, passed under a military government, which requires the prime minister to be approved by a joint vote of the elected House and the Senate, which was appointed by the military regime.

The Move Forward Party was opposed by senators who disapproved of its vow to seek reforms of Thailand’s monarchy.

The process of selecting the new senators will include three rounds of voting: district, provincial and national.

Unlike the elected lower house legislators, the senators will be chosen by their fellow applicants, competing in 20 categories such as occupation or social position, including women, the elderly and the disabled.

The final results are expected to be announced in July.

The selection process in the Constitution is so complicated and unclear that critics say it was deliberately designed to discourage public participation. Critics say the Constitution also allows the state bureaucracy to hold more power than directly elected political officeholders.

The new senators will no longer be able to take part in selecting a prime minister but will retain the power to approve legislation passed by the House.

They also have the power to select members of nominally independent regulatory bodies such as the Election Commission and the Constitutional Court, whose work has been widely seen as impeding efforts at political reform and crippling proponents with legal penalties, including prison.

The Senate’s votes are also required to amend the Constitution. The governing Pheu Thai party is pushing for a new charter to replace the 2017 one to facilitate certain reform efforts promised during the campaign.

Civil society groups have campaigned to raise public awareness and encourage those favoring democratic reforms to enter the Senate selection process.

Law reform advocate Yingcheep Atchanont of the group iLaw has been organizing public discussions on the importance of the Senate and workshops to help would-be applicants understand how the selection process works.

“We are telling people what to do if they want change. There have been calls in recent years to reduce the power of the Senate, to get rid of the Senate,” he said. “All of this can only happen if we can amend the Constitution, and we need enough votes from the senators for that.”

Candidates must be more than 40 years old and have more than 10 years of experience in their chosen occupational group, the latter provision not applying for those competing in one of the social identity groups. They also cannot campaign or do anything that can be interpreted as campaigning.

Even the Election Commission has acknowledged how complicated the process is but says it will be able to carry it out smoothly and transparently.

Purawich Watanasukh, a political science lecturer at Bangkok’s Thammasat University, said he thinks the complicated rules were intentionally designed to reduce public participation.

“This is the contest of the people to debug not just the Senate itself, but the Constitution, which would lead to a new political landscape in Thailand,” he said, ““It will be the next battleground between the progressive movement and the establishment.”
…

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia — Two Chinese warships docked Sunday at a commercial port in Cambodia, in preparation for joint naval exercises between the two countries.

The Jingangshan amphibious warfare ship and the Qi Jiguang training ship sailed into the Sihanoukville Port as onlookers waved Cambodian and Chinese flags from the piers.

The port is north of the Ream Naval Base, where China has funded a broad expansion project that has been carefully watched by the United States and others over concerns it could become a new outpost for the Chinese navy on the Gulf of Thailand.

The Gulf is adjacent to the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, and would give easy access to the Malacca Strait, one of the most important shipping lanes in the world.

Wang Wentian, China’s ambassador to Cambodia, dismissed concerns about Ream, telling reporters at Sihanoukville that wherever the Chinese navy sails “we bring friendship, we bring cooperation” and nothing else.

“The cooperation between the two armies, between China and Cambodia, is conducive to the security of both countries and the security of the region,” he said, standing on the pier.

The Jingangshan and the Qi Jiguang are due to take part in naval exercises from the Ream base from May 24-27, along with two Chinese corvettes that have been docked at Ream’s new pier for more than five months.

The joint training is the naval component of the ongoing Golden Dragon exercises, which are regularly held between the two countries.

Controversy over Ream Naval Base initially arose in 2019 when The Wall Street Journal reported that an early draft of a reputed agreement seen by U.S. officials would allow China 30-year use of the base, where it would be able to post military personnel, store weapons and berth warships.

Cambodia’s then-Prime Minister Hun Sen denied there was such an agreement. He pointed out that Cambodia’s constitution does not allow foreign military bases to be established on its soil but said visiting ships from all nations are welcome.

As the Golden Dragon exercises opened on May 16, Cambodian army Commander in Chief Gen. Vong Pisen thanked China for providing new equipment and helping to upgrade military facilities, including the Ream Naval Base.

At the same time, he underscored Cambodia’s official position, saying the country would “not allow any foreign military base on our territory.”
…

TOKYO — Japanese authorities have warned residents Saturday to be aware of wild bears in the country’s northeast after several people were attacked, including police officers.

The bears, measuring about 50 centimeters in height, were seen in the area, including Akita and Fukushima Prefectures.

Two police officers were attacked Saturday in the city of Kazuno in Akita while recovering the body of a missing man, according to Japanese media reports. The man had gone hunting for bamboo shoots in the mountains a few days earlier where he was found dead in the area with gash wounds. It remains unclear if he died due to a bear attack.

The officers are in serious condition, though not life-threatening, reports said.

In response, some wooded areas have been closed off in Kazuno “for an indefinite time,” officials said in a statement.

News footage showed police officers putting up signs warning people to stay out of mountainous areas where the bears were sighted.

Over the weekend, patrol cars were dispatched together with a helicopter search to locate the bears.

Akita Prefectural Police have urged people to keep bells and other noise-producing devices on hand to scare the bears away in case of an encounter, and not to go out at night.

Thousands of Asiatic black bears live in the wild throughout Japan. Attacks have risen as the borders blur between the bears’ habitats and people’s dwellings. The scarcity of acorns, berries and other food, possibly connected to climate change, is also blamed for the surge in bear encounters.
…

Pakistan’s new government is trying to ramp up work on the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. VOA Pakistan bureau chief Sarah Zaman speaks with Pakistan’s Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal about why Chinese companies should invest in Pakistan given the country’s poor economic and security conditions. Camera: Wajid Asad, Malik Waqar Ahmed
…

Taipei, Taiwan — China’s Taiwan Affairs Office this week vowed to punish five well-known Taiwanese media commentators and their families for “fabricating false, negative information” about China and “provoking [a] hostile cross-strait confrontation.”

The sharp rebuke was made at a news briefing Wednesday by TAO spokesperson Chen Binhua in response to a reporter’s question that China was looking at punitive measures for what it called “famous mouths,” or influencers, in Taiwan, who have been “spreading rumors and slander for a long time.”

The reporter from Cross-Strait Radio of the China Media Group who asked the question gave alleged examples of statements, such as “mainland people cannot afford tea-poached eggs” and “the mainland’s high-speed rail has no backrest.”

Chen responded that such commentators “ignored the facts of the development and progress of the mainland” and “hurt the feelings of compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.”

He named five Taiwanese — Huang Shih-tsung, Yu Pei-chen, Lee-Zhenghao, Wang Yi-chuan and Liu Bao-jie — and vowed to punish them and their families “in accordance with the law.”

Huang is a financial pundit on Taiwanese TV programs. Yu is a retired army major general and current member of the Taoyuan City Council. Lee is a political commentator in Taipei. Wang is currently the executive director of the Policy Research and Coordinating Committee of the Democratic Progressive Party. Liu is a journalist and host of the TV political commentary program “Critical Moment.”

Chen did not specify what remarks the five pundits made, which Chinese laws they violated, or what punishment China would impose on them and their families.

The critics speak back

The accused Taiwanese critics responded to the threats in comments to VOA with a mix of ridicule and political analysis.

Lee called them “glorious sanctions” that were likely “fake moves” by the Chinese government to appease internal hawks ahead of the inauguration Monday of Taiwan’s president-elect, Lai Ching-te.

“Looking at the sanctions among major powers, no one is sanctioning media people,” Lee told VOA. “When the United States sanctioned China, it sanctioned then-Defense Minister Lee Shang-fu and Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam. China’s sanctions on Taiwan in the past were against [former Premier] Su Tseng-chang and [former Taiwan Ambassador to the United States] Hsiao Bi-khim. Real sanctions are against government officials and legislators, not civilians.”

Huang noted the threat also came after U.S. President Joe Biden imposed additional tariffs on Chinese goods, including electric vehicles and solar panels, worth about $18 billion.

“It is obviously putting great pressure on China,” Huang told VOA. “[China] has a very low cost of imposing sanctions on Taiwanese influencers.”

Yu told VOA China’s sanctions are a “belated glory” and vowed, “I will never bow to autocracy.”

Sarcastically imitating the TAO’s usual language, Wang said China’s Taiwan Affairs Office needs “deep self-reflection.”

In a written statement, Taiwan’s Presidential Office spokesperson, Olivia Lin, said Taiwan is a democratic country, the constitution guarantees the people’s freedom of speech, and China has no right to interfere. She said that in the face of personal threats from China’s TAO, the Taiwanese government will ensure the safety of its people and “will not let such threats succeed.”

What Chinese netizens think

Chinese netizens had mixed reactions to China’s plans to somehow punish the Taiwanese pundits and their families for the unspecified violations of unspecified Chinese laws.

Some Chinese netizens echoed China’s Taiwan Affairs Office. One posted on social media, “These scammers are let off the hook easily even if they were shot in the head.  They should be sent to the mainland’s labor camps.”

Others disagreed and said the threats would only elevate the pundits’ statures. One posted on social media, “Isn’t this just like conferring medals on them?”

Akio Yaita is a prominent Japanese journalist who was raised in China and now lives in Taiwan. In his regular commentary series produced for VOA, “Akio Yaita Has Something to Say,” he said the sanctions won’t have a huge effect on Taiwan but will hurt the Chinese government instead.

“The Chinese Communist Party used to say, ‘We place our hope in the people of Taiwan [for reunification].’ These people are popular in Taiwan. No one thinks their remarks are outrageous,” he said. “If China doesn’t allow them to speak because they criticize China a little bit, it shows the Communist Party has no confidence. The Communist Party’s control of speech will be intolerable to Taiwan and will push most Taiwanese people into opposition.”

Beijing considers the self-ruled island of Taiwan a breakaway province that must one day reunite with the mainland, by force if necessary.

VOA’s Adrianna Zhang and Joyce Huang contributed to this report.
…

TOKYO — The U.S. ambassador to Japan stressed Friday the importance of increased deterrence and his country’s commitment to its key ally as he visited two southwestern Japanese islands at the forefront of Tokyo’s tension with Beijing.

Rahm Emanuel visited Yonaguni, Japan’s westernmost island just east of Taiwan, a self-governed island also claimed by China. He later visited another Japanese island, Ishigaki, home to Japan Coast Guard patrol boats defending the disputed East China Sea islands and Japanese fishermen from armed Chinese coast guard ships that routinely enter Japanese waters.

Japan has been making a southwest shift of its defense posture and is further accelerating its military buildup under a 2022 security strategy that focuses on counterstrike capability with long-range cruise missiles.

Emanuel was the first U.S. ambassador to visit Yonaguni. Escorted by Mayor Kenichi Itokazu, he looked toward Taiwan, only 110 kilometers (68 miles) away. He met with Japanese Self Defense Force servicemembers at a local base installed in 2016 and where a missile defense system is planned.

The ambassador said the main purpose of his visit was to show U.S. support for the local fishing community. He also met with a local fisherman who was among those affected by China’s increasingly assertive actions in the regional seas.

China fired five missiles into Japan’s exclusive economic zone in 2022 after the visit to Taiwan of then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Emanuel said the fisherman told him he could not sell his fish for about a week after the Chinese action.

“If they don’t have deterrence, that’s going to be worse,” Emanuel told The Associated Press from Ishigaki, the second island he visited Friday. “If you have a very robust deterrence, it ensures that there is peace, ensures that there is security, ensures economic prosperity. Without that, it’s more likely to be a green light to those that want to use economic coercion and confrontation as their only means of expression.”

Emanuel said Yonaguni fishers still catch fish for a living, supporting the local economy and helping reinforce Japanese territorial rights. “That’s what a real win looks like — economic security,” he said on social platform X.

In Ishigaki, Japan’s coast guard protects fishing boats in the disputed waters around the Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea that Tokyo calls Senkaku. Beijing also claims the islands and calls them Diaoyu, and its coast guard ships often face off with their Japanese counterparts.

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi welcomed the ambassador’s trip to the islands, saying it was “meaningful” for the ambassador to improve his understanding of Tokyo’s efforts in reinforcing its security in the southwestern region, where additional military units and missile defense systems are being deployed.

While local officials back the reinforcement of Japanese troops on the islands, residents staged a small protest amid concerns they may be the first to be affected in a possible U.S.-China conflict.

Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki supports the Japan-U.S. security alliance but has called for a reduction in the number of American troops housed on the island. About half of the 50,000 American troops in Japan are based in Okinawa.

Tamaki also criticized the use of Yonaguni’s commercial airport by a U.S. military aircraft used by the ambassador.
…

seoul — North Korea on Saturday confirmed that it had test-fired a tactical ballistic missile, the government news agency KCNA reported, with leader Kim Jong Un vowing to boost the country’s nuclear force. 

Kim oversaw the Friday test-launch into the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, on a mission to evaluate the “accuracy and reliability” of a new autonomous navigation system, the KCNA report said. 

Kim expressed “great satisfaction” over the test. 

The South Korean government reported the launch Friday, saying the North had fired multiple suspected short-range ballistic missiles. 

Seoul described the event as “several flying objects presumed to be short-range ballistic missiles” from North Korea’s eastern Wonsan area into waters off its coast. 

The missiles traveled around 300 kilometers (186 miles), the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul said, adding that the military had “strengthened vigilance and surveillance in preparation for additional launches” and was sharing information with allies Washington and Tokyo. 

The launch was the latest in a string of ever more sophisticated tests by North Korea, which has fired off cruise missiles, tactical rockets and hypersonic weapons in recent months, in what the nuclear-armed country says is a drive to upgrade its defenses. 

Seoul and Washington have accused North Korea of sending arms to Russia, which would violate rafts of U.N. sanctions on both countries. Experts have said the recent spate of testing may be of weapons destined for use on battlefields in Ukraine. 

The launches came hours after Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, accused Seoul and Washington of “misleading the public opinion” on the issue with their repeated accusations that Pyongyang is sending weapons to Moscow for use in Ukraine. 

The same day, Kim Jong Un visited a military production facility and called for “more rapidly bolstering the nuclear force… without halt and hesitation,” the KCNA report said Saturday.  

“The enemies would be afraid of and dare not to play with fire only when they witness the nuclear combat posture of our state,” KCNA reported Kim Jong Un as saying. 
…

TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Russian President Vladimir Putin concluded his two-day trip to China Friday after Beijing and Moscow reaffirmed their “strategic relationship” by signing a joint statement and vowing to cooperate against “destructive and hostile” pressure from Washington.

During meetings between Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the Russian president said Moscow is willing to work with Beijing and other global south countries toward “a multipolar world,” while Xi said the two countries are committed to steering global governance “in the right direction.”

Some analysts say Putin and Xi are trying to emphasize that Beijing and Moscow’s close partnership “is a force for good in the global system.”

“Both leaders want to emphasize that they are creating a more equal environment and inclusive global economic and political system,” said Philipp Ivanov, a China-Russia analyst and the founder of consultancy Geopolitical Risks + Strategy Practice.

In addition to challenging the existing world order led by the United States, Putin and Xi criticized the U.S. and NATO for creating negative effects on regional peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region by creating “closed and exclusive groupings” and expanding military presence.

“In the current geopolitical context, it is necessary to explore the establishment of a sustainable security system in the Eurasian space based on the principle of equal and indivisible security,” read the joint statement signed by Xi and Putin.

Some experts say Putin and Xi view Washington and NATO’s expanding military presence in Asia “as a zero-sum game.” “The logic of military balance is very central to their view of the international order and their target is the web of military alliances of the United States,” said Mathieu Duchatel, director of international studies at the French policy group Institut Montaigne.

He told VOA that one of Xi and Putin’s goals to uphold their partnership is to “undermine” Washington’s alliance networks in Asia.

Beijing’s limits

As Switzerland prepares to host a peace summit dedicated to the Ukraine war next month, Xi and Putin also exchanged views on that ongoing conflict during their meeting Thursday.

They believe that the war should be resolved through a political settlement. In a readout published by China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency, Xi said the fundamental solution to the war is establishing “a new, balanced, effective, and sustainable security architecture.”

He added that China supports an international peace conference “recognized by Russia and Ukraine at an appropriate time with equal participation and fair discussion of all options.”

Putin said Moscow “appreciates” Beijing’s “objective, just and balanced position on the Ukraine issue” and claimed that Russia is “committed to resolving the Ukraine issue through political negotiations.”

Ivanov said China’s current efforts to help resolve the Ukraine War, including a 12-point peace plan released last February, suggest Beijing is trying to avoid making any commitment. The peace plan “is a diplomatic document rather than any substantive strategy for China’s participation in resolving this war,” he told VOA.

Since neither Russia nor Ukraine is ready to negotiate, Ivanov thinks there is not much China can do to help end the war. “I haven’t seen any concrete steps from China in trying to resolve the war. I’m skeptical about Switzerland’s peace conference and China’s peace plan,” he said.

Lack of effective pressure on China

The meeting between Xi and Putin took place after Xi’s five-day trip to Europe, during which some analysts say Beijing was trying to exploit the disunity within the European Union.

It also follows repeated warnings from the United States about the potential consequences of Beijing’s ongoing support for Russia’s war against Ukraine.

During a news conference Thursday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel told journalists that China can’t support the Russian war efforts while simultaneously trying to improve relations with the West.

“It can’t have it both ways and want to have [better] relationships with Europe and other countries while simultaneously continuing to fuel the biggest threat to European security in a long time,” he said.

Some experts say China’s decision to uphold its partnership with Russia reflects Beijing’s belief that the West’s warnings about potential sanctions against Chinese entities supporting Russia’s war efforts may not materialize.

“I think Beijing believes that there is nothing that Europe can do so they are asking Europe to show its hand,” Ja Ian Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore, told VOA by phone.

In his view, the U.S. seems more serious about imposing potential secondary sanctions against Chinese entities while the European Union struggles to determine their responses to Beijing’s support for Moscow.

An upward trajectory of the partnership

Considering Washington’s repeated warnings of sanctioning Chinese entities for supporting Russia’s war efforts, Ivanov said Putin would try to safeguard Russia’s economic relationship with China through his visit.

“I’m pretty confident that there is an active discussion on how to circumvent sanctions, and we will probably see more transactions and import-export activities flowing through third countries, such as those in Central Asia,” he told VOA, adding that one of China and Russia’s goals is to build a geoeconomic system “that is immune from Western sanctions and export controls.”

Despite Western countries’ attempts to pressure or persuade China to stop support for Russia, Ivanov and Duchatel say Beijing will continue to uphold its partnership with Moscow.

“There is no sign that Russia’s access to Chinese dual-use technology has been seriously reduced, and no actions from China suggest a reduced commitment to supporting Russia,” Duchatel told VOA.

Ivanov said while there might be some disagreements between China and Russia, the overall direction of their partnership is “trending upward.” “I don’t think the U.S. or Europe can substantively influence the course of the China-Russia partnership at the moment,” he said.
…

SYDNEY — Australian scientists say they have discovered how an enzyme “hidden in nature’s blueprint” could help develop climate-resilient crops able to remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. 

An Australian study, by researchers from Australian National University and the University of Newcastle in New South Wales, focuses on a type of bacteria researchers call “tiny carbon superheroes.” 

Cyanobacteria, a type of algae-like bacteria also called blue-green algae, are found in fresh and coastal waters, as well as oceans.  They are commonly known for their toxic blooms in lakes and rivers.  

Through the process of photosynthesis, Australian scientists say, they capture about 12% of the world’s carbon dioxide each year. 

Their study says a carbon dioxide-concentrating mechanism in cyanobacteria lets them turn atmospheric carbon dioxide into sugars for cells to eat more quickly than most standard plants and crops.

Until now, the Australian team was unaware how critical an enzyme in cyanobacteria, called carboxysomal carbonic anhydrase, was to the process. The study says the mystery of how the enzyme maximizes the cyanobacteria’s ability to extract atmospheric carbon dioxide has been solved.

Ben Long, a senior lecturer in molecular plant biology at Australia’s University of Newcastle and is the study’s lead author.

He told VOA that the aim is to engineer crops that can absorb more greenhouse gases.   

“We are actually interested in utilizing this CO2-concentrating mechanism from cyanobacteria, which we know is a remarkably efficiently system for capturing CO2 and we want to engineer that into plant cells to make plant cells able to capture CO2 far more effectively and efficiently,” Long said.

The research says that engineered plants that are more efficient at capturing carbon dioxide could increase crop yield, making global food systems that are more resilient to climate change. 

Long says the findings should be part of international efforts to reduce greenhouse gases.  

“Every technology has to be brought to bear to try to reduce CO2 emissions and reduce CO2 in the atmosphere and I think to date we have not really focused much on those potential biological applications to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” Long said.

The study has been published in the journal Science Advances.
…

BEIJING — Russian President Vladimir Putin focused on trade and cultural exchanges Friday during his state visit to China that started with bonhomie in Beijing and a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping that deepened their “no limits” partnership as both countries face rising tensions with the West.

Putin praised China at a China-Russia Expo in the northeastern city of Harbin, hailing the growth in bilateral trade. He will also meet with students at Harbin Institute of Technology later Friday. Harbin, capital of China’s Heilongjiang province, was once home to many Russian expatriates and retains some of those historical ties in its architecture, such as the central Saint Sophia Cathedral, a former Russian Orthodox church.

Though Putin’s visit is more symbolic and is short on concrete proposals, the two countries nonetheless are sending a clear message.

“At this moment, they’re reminding the West that they can be defiant when they want to,” said Joseph Torigian, a research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institute.

At the exhibition in Harbin, Putin emphasized the importance of Russia-China cooperation in jointly developing new technologies.

“Relying on traditions of friendship and cooperation, we can look into the future with confidence,” he said. “The Russian-Chinese partnership helps our countries’ economic growth, ensures energy security, helps develop production and create new jobs.”

Putin started the second day of his visit to China on Friday by laying flowers at a monument to fallen Soviet soldiers in Harbin who had fought for China against the Japanese during the second Sino-Japanese war, when Japan occupied parts of China.

At their summit Thursday, Putin thanked Xi for China’s proposals for ending the war in Ukraine, while Xi said China hopes for the early return of Europe to peace and stability and will continue to play a constructive role toward this. Their joint statement described their world view and expounded on criticism of U.S. military alliances in Asia and the Pacific.

The meeting was yet another affirmation of the friendly “no limits” relationship China and Russia signed in 2022, just before Moscow invaded Ukraine.

Putin has become isolated globally for his invasion of Ukraine. China has a tense relationship with the U.S., which has labeled it a competitor, and faces pressure for continuing to supply key components to Russia needed for weapons production.

Talks of peacefully resolving the Ukraine crisis featured frequently in Thursday’s remarks, though Russia just last week opened a new front in the Ukraine war by launching attacks at its northeastern border area. The war is at a critical point for Ukraine, which had faced delays in getting weapons from the U.S.

China offered a broad plan for peace last year that was rejected by both Ukraine and the West for failing to call for Russia to leave occupied parts of Ukraine.

In a smaller meeting Thursday night at Zhongnanhai, the Chinese leaders’ residential compound, Putin thanked Xi for his peace plan and said he welcomed China continuing to play a constructive role in a political solution to the problem, according to China’s official Xinhua News Agency. They also attended events to celebrate 75 years of bilateral relations.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Russia has increasingly depended on China as Western sanctions have taken a bite. Trade between the two countries increased to $240 billion last year, as China helped its neighbor defray the worst of Western sanctions.

European leaders have pressed China to ask Russia to end its invasion in Ukraine, to little avail. Experts say China and Russia’s relationship with each other offer strategic benefits, particularly at a time when both have tensions with Europe and the U.S.

“Even if China compromises on a range of issues, including cutting back support on Russia, it’s unlikely that the U.S. or the West will drastically change their attitude to China as a competitor,” said Hoo Tiang Boon, who researches Chinese foreign policy at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University. “They see very little incentive for compromise.”

Xi and Putin have a longstanding agreement to visit each other’s countries once a year, and Xi was welcomed at the Kremlin last year. 
…

seoul — Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, again denied arms exchanges with Russia, the state’s Korean Central News Agency reported Friday. 

The U.S. and South Korea accused North Korea of transferring weapons to Russia for use against Ukraine, which it invaded in February 2022. Both Moscow and Pyongyang have denied the accusations, but vowed last year to deepen military relations. 

Ties between the two countries have strengthened dramatically following Kim Jong Un’s visit to Russia’s far east in September and a summit with President Vladimir Putin. 

But Kim Yo Jong said reports of a North Korea-Russia arms deal were false and constituted a “most absurd theory” that does not deserve anyone’s evaluation or interpretation, according to KCNA’s report on her press statement.

Kim Yo Jong added that North Korea’s developing weapons were not meant for exports but for defense against South Korea. 

North and South Korea remain technically at war because their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a treaty. 

Meanwhile, the United States announced fresh sanctions Thursday on two Russian individuals and three Russian companies for facilitating arms transfers between Russia and North Korea, including ballistic missiles for use in Ukraine. 

The debris from a missile that landed in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on January 2 was from a North Korean Hwasong-11 series ballistic missile, U.N. sanctions monitors told a Security Council committee in a report seen by Reuters. 

The leaders of North Korea’s major partners, China and Russia, met Thursday and criticized Washington and its allies for their “intimidation in the military sphere” against North Korea, according to a joint statement from Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

Amid a growing partnership between Moscow and Pyongyang, North Korea’s ambassador to Russia on Thursday called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a U.S. puppet and said Russia would emerge victorious in its conflict with Kyiv, KCNA reported.
…

WASHINGTON AND TAIPEI, TAIWAN — The U.S. military has warned that China is moving forward with development of floating nuclear reactors in the South China Sea to bolster its claim to disputed maritime territory. Analysts say the plan to build ships with mobile nuclear power sources would raise tensions with its neighbors and pose risks to the environment.

Chinese media reports described the marine nuclear power platforms as small plants inside ships that would act as mobile “power banks” at sea for stationary facilities and other ships. Beijing had suspended the project a year ago over safety and effectiveness concerns, reported the South China Morning Post.

But the outgoing commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and State Department officials this month said China is still building the floating reactors to supply power to disputed islands, the Washington Post reported.

Although U.S. officials told the Post the deployment of such reactors would take several years, Admiral John Aquilino said their development would undermine regional security and stability.

The Philippines last week echoed those concerns.

Philippines National Security Council Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya said China would use its floating reactors to power military bases it has built on artificial islands, including those within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone. He told local media that China’s nuclear plants would further militarize disputed areas of the South China Sea.

“Anything that supports their military presence in those islands is technically a threat to our national security and against our interests,” he said, adding that Australia and the U.S. would be among Manila’s allies conducting joint patrols in the South China Sea.

Beijing claims control over almost the entire South China Sea, putting it in dispute with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. China has already built artificial islands with airport runways to strengthen its claims.

Analysts say Beijing’s floating reactors would not only strengthen its military presence in the area but also give them an excuse to extend its reach through security actions.

Song Yanhui, director of the International Law Society of the Republic of China, Taiwan, told VOA the current military security zone for China’s artificial islands is a radius of 500 meters (1,640 feet), meaning other aircraft and ships that enter this radius can be legitimately expelled.

Song said that if China deploys a floating nuclear power plant in the South China Sea, it could use the excuse of protecting the environment from radioactive pollution to drive away ships from a larger area or to take defensive measures.

For Beijing, he said, “It kills two birds with one stone. It is a win-win strategy. It can strengthen its military presence, civilian use and claim to sovereignty.”

But the potential for radiation leaks is a real concern, say analysts.

Pankaj Jha, dean of research at the School of International Affairs of India’s Jindal Global University, told VOA China’s lack of experience in operating such floating reactors could spell disaster.

“It is a threat because it will contaminate water and also surrounding areas,” he said. “Any radiation leak would make the island uninhabitable and might also impact fishermen from the South China Sea.”

Analysts note in the event of conflict with China, the floating reactors could also become military targets.

China has deployed radars, anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles, and fighter jets, among other weapons, on the disputed territories of Mischief Reef, Subi Reef and Fiery Cross, the three largest artificial islands in the Spratly Islands.

Richard Fisher, senior fellow with the International Assessment and Strategy Center, told VOA floating nuclear power plants could also one day extend China’s weapons capabilities.

“If they were protected, these nuclear power plants could also potentially power future energy weapon devices,” Fisher said. “Laser weapons that could knock down missiles and aircraft or very powerful microwave weapons could also disable missiles and aircraft that would get within their range.”

Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, would not comment on the concerns expressed about China’s plans to move forward with the floating nuclear power plants.

“I am not aware of the particular case you have shared with us, thus could only reply in principle,” he told VOA in an emailed response May 14. “China’s position on the South China Sea issue is clear and consistent. We will stay committed to properly handling disputes through dialogue and consultation with countries concerned, and would like to work with ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nation] countries to fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, advance the consultation on a code of conduct in the South China Sea and jointly safeguard peace and stability in the region.”

China is not the first country to look at building floating nuclear reactors.

The United States took the lead in proposing the concept as early as 1970 but due to safety concerns did not quickly pursue development.

Russia is the only country that has brought a floating nuclear power plant to fruition, with the Akademik Lomonosov plant producing electricity and heating since 2020 from a harbor in Pevek, a town in the Arctic Circle.

The International Atomic Energy Agency at a November forum in Vienna expressed concern about the development of floating nuclear reactors, particularly when they cross international borders or operate in international waters.

“The IAEA is working with our member states to determine what further guidance and standards might be needed to ensure the safety of floating nuclear power plants,” IAEA Deputy Director General Lydie Evrard said in a press release.

The IAEA noted Canada, China, Denmark, South Korea, Russia and the U.S. are each working on marine-based “small modular reactor designs.”
…