Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 129

Obituary: François Ponchaud, French Missionary Who Alerted the World to the Khmer Rouge

François Ponchaud, the French missionary who revealed the reality of Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge to the outside world, has died aged 85. Ponchaud spent 56 years of his life as a missionary in Cambodia, and was the first to provide an authoritative account of the horrors committed by Pol Pot’s genocidal regime which ruled Cambodia from 1975 to 1979.The world was willing to hope for the best when the

How bad is the trade war with China going to get?

The first punches have been thrown between the United States and China in what could amount to a short-lived trade dispute with limited economic fallout or the start of yet another lengthy and painful trade war reminiscent of President Donald Trump’s first term.Immediately after a new 10% tariff on all Chinese goods shipped to the US went into effect on Tuesday at 12:01 a.m. ET, China responded

A rare diplomatic spat exposes growing pressures in the Pacific as US, China vie for influence

Pacific allies don’t usually air their dirty laundry in public. But a rare on-the-record dispute between New Zealand and Kiribati has renewed focus on the poor and isolated island nation, highlighting the existential threat it faces from the climate crisis – against the backdrop of a tussle between the world’s biggest powers for regional dominance.When New Zealand’s right-wing government

Seek and Deploy: China’s Tech Giants Race to Adopt DeepSeek AI

Weeks after Chinese startup DeepSeek disrupted global markets for rivaling OpenAI and Google, its open-source AI models are being rapidly integrated into China’s top cloud platforms. Over the past week, Chinese tech giants including Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent, and Huawei have launched support for DeepSeek-R1 and DeepSeek-V3, the AI company’s open-source models, competing to offer lower-cost, more

Modi’s party returns to power in Indian capital for first time in 27 years

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist party won elections in the sprawling megacity of Delhi for the first time in 27 years on Saturday, defeating one of his most prominent critics in a much-needed boost after losing its national majority last year. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 48 seats in the capital territory’s 70-member assembly, according to figures posted online

'Trump study sessions': How Japan PM's homework paid off

If Japan needed reassurances it was indeed still the US's top ally and friend in the increasingly unstable Asia-Pacific, it got that and then some. But what was striking about the Trump-Ishiba meeting at the White House was what didn't happen. Unlike most of the Trump domestic and global dynamics so far, this was neither controversial nor confrontational."On television, he is very frightening,"

Trains: A Chinese Family History of Railway Journeys, Exile, and Survival

This happened in the 1990s:Two decades after her family moved back to Wuhan, Aunt Dongsheng made a special trip to Fularki. My grandfather had died by then, but my little uncle Lusheng was still alive, and in his sober, wistful moments, he would beg Aunt Dongsheng: “Could you go bring Mom home from the northeast?”It was a very long journey by train, so Aunt Dongsheng got off in Beijing to take a

China’s spy agency warns people not to ‘endanger national security’ during holidays

China’s spy agency has called on the country’s citizens to beware of “endangering national security” over the holiday period, a phrase commentators said was a warning to people to be careful what they say, and to not pass on information that hasn’t been officially released.“Certain traps that endanger national security can enter our lives unannounced,” the Ministry of State Security said in a Jan

China’s dissidents struggling, apart from loved ones at New Year

While millions across China have piled onto trains, planes and buses to welcome the Year of the Snake with extended family, relatives of those who ran afoul of the ruling Communist Party remain separated from loved ones. Many of China’s political prisoners are serving jail terms because they criticized the government, shared sensitive information with others, or stood up for the victims of

China, Vietnam cause most South China Sea reef destruction: research

Rivals in the South China Sea developing artificial islands to back up their claims have destroyed nearly 7,000 acres (28.3 km2) of coral reefs, the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, or AMTI, said. The total area increased 800 acres (3.2 square kilometers) from 6,200 acres (25 square km) at the end of 2023. “China has caused the most reef destruction, having buried roughly 4,648 acres (18.8