Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 154

South Korea’s president lifts martial law hours after declaring it

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol ended martial law, just hours after he declared it to counter “threats from North Korea” and “anti-state activities” by the domestic political opposition. According to Yoon’s declaration, martial law would begin at 11 p.m. Tuesday, but the National Assembly voted to lift the decree nearly three hours later as protesters rallied outside. After Yoon’s own party

China ‘deposits’ statement regarding disputed Scarborough shoal to UN

China “deposited” a statement regarding “baselines of the territorial sea” adjacent to the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea to the U.N., calling it “legitimate measures” to defend its territorial sovereignty. Scarborough Shoal, known in the Philippines as Bajo de Masinloc, is a triangular chain of reefs about 125 nautical miles (232 kilometers) from Luzon, the main Philippine

China, Philippines trade accusations over South China Sea confrontation

The Philippines and China traded accusations about a maritime confrontation on Wednesday around the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, a day after Beijing submitted a chart of the feature’s shore to the U.N. to bolster its claim over it. Scarborough Shoal, known in the Philippines as Bajo de Masinloc and in China as Huangyan Dao, is a triangular chain of reefs about 125 nautical

China hits out at latest US effort to block Beijing’s access to chip technology

The Chinese government has slammed America’s introduction of a slew of export controls on US-made semiconductors that Washington fears Beijing could use to make the next generation of weapons and artificial intelligence (AI) systems. The new measures, unveiled by the outgoing Biden administration, have raised the political temperature between the world’s top two economies ahead of the imminent

China denounces US arms sales to Taiwan, President Lai’s visit

China vowed to take “strong measures” following the decision by the United States to approve more arms sales to Taiwan, urging the U.S. to stop “sending out a wrong signal” to the island, hours before Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te made a transit through the state of Hawaii. The U.S. State Department approved the potential sale, worth an estimated US$385m, of spare parts and support for F-16

Tibetan environmental activist sentenced to 8 months in prison

A Tibetan environmental activist from China’s Sichuan province has been sentenced to eight months in prison, after he made a rare public appeal to authorities over a company he accused of illegally extracting sand and gravel from a river, two Tibetan sources told RFA. Tsogon Tsering, 29, from Tsaruma village in Ngaba prefecture, called Aba in Chinese, openly posted a 5-minute video in which he

China slams Lithuania over expulsions amid cable-cutting row

China on Monday slammed Lithuania’s expulsion of three of its nationals amid an ongoing row over the involvement of a Chinese-registered cargo vessel in the cutting of undersea internet cables in the Baltic Sea. The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday declared three staff members of China’s representative office in the country, a type of diplomatic mission, as personae non gratae,

Anders Magnus: Hvorfor skal Norge betale for Kinas miljøgriseri?

Verdens rike land skal betale fattige land for klima-skader. Hvorfor slipper verstingen Kina unna hele tiden? Klimatoppmøtet COP29 i Aserbajdsjans hovedstad Baku endte med at de rike landene skal (forsøke) å betale 3000 milliarder kroner årlig for klimatiltak i de fattige landene. Dette nivået skal nås innen 2035, opp fra dagens enighet om 1000 milliarder kroner i året.«Akkurat nå er det

China jails journalist Dong Yuyu for 7 years for ‘spying’

A court in Beijing on Friday handed down a seven-year jail term to prominent journalist and columnist Dong Yuyu after finding him guilty of “espionage” in a trial behind closed doors that ended in July 2023, his family and press associations said. The Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court announced the verdict and sentence in the trial of Dong, 62, on Friday, saying it was based on evidence

Taiwan leader to visit Hawaii as part of visit to Pacific: report

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te will visit Hawaii and the U.S. territory of Guam on a trip to the Pacific that will include stops in three diplomatic allies, media reported, after the government called on China not to “overreact” to his travels. China views Taiwan as its territory and it objects to any country or organization treating it as a state. In particular, China gets infuriated by visits by