JAPAN
Drills simulate island attack
An Apache helicopter yesterday flew low over an uninhabited island in Okinawa in a simulated attack on invading forces, part of exercises under way to prepare the nation’s air, sea and land forces for a potential conflict in East Asia. The flight over Irisuna, about 70km from the main Okinawa island, was part of the country’s 11-day nationwide 05JX. The drills, which end on Monday, also include an air-defense exercise in the north and simulated attacks on five nuclear reactors. “The national security environment around Japan has become harsher, particularly with the growing military activities by China and Russia in the East China Sea, South China Sea and western Pacific,” Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade Commander Shingo Nashinoki said on Irisuna.
INDONESIA
ASEAN ministers meet
ASEAN defense ministers yesterday called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during the opening of a two-day regional meeting in Jakarta. Opening the annual get-together, Indonesian Minister of Defense Prabowo Subianto said the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation was deeply saddened by the deteriorating conditions in Gaza. “Indonesia’s stance is clear and firm. We push and call for immediate cessation of hostilities and the immediate setting up of corridors for humanitarian assistance,” he said. In a joint declaration, the ministers also urged “all parties concerned” to cease all violence in Myanmar and underscored the need to maintain peace in the South China Sea.
NORTH KOREA
New missile engine tested
The nation has developed and successfully conducted ground tests of a “new type” of solid-fuel engine for its banned intermediate-range ballistic missiles, state media said yesterday. The announcement came as Pyongyang also said that a Russian delegation led by Russian Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology Alexander Kozlov was visiting the capital to hold talks on cooperation in trade, economy, science and technology.
INDIA
Meds reach trapped men
Rescuers yesterday said they had sent medicine to 40 men trapped after the road tunnel they were building collapsed, as frantic efforts to free them entered a fourth day. Excavators have been removing debris since Sunday morning from the site in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand to create an escape tunnel for the workers, all of whom are still alive. “After consultation with doctors, medicine has been sent to the workers through pipes,” police officer Prashant Kumar said. “Contact is being maintained with the workers.” No details were given about the condition of the men or how many of them were sick. Food and oxygen had also been sent to the trapped workers, he said.
UNITED STATES
Funding bill passes
The House of Representatives on Tuesday overcame partisan animosity to pass a temporary government funding bill that greatly lowers the risk of a shutdown, even as it delays fights over Ukraine aid, border policies and deep cuts to federal programs. Democrats bailed out newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican whose plan drew opposition from hardliners in his party, because it does not cut government spending or change border policies. A total of 209 Democrats voted with 127 Republicans in support of the measure. The outcome is a reprieve for Johnson, who would have until next year to negotiate annual spending.
Airlines in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia and Singapore yesterday canceled flights to and from the Indonesian island of Bali, after a nearby volcano catapulted an ash tower into the sky. Australia’s Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin Australia all grounded flights after Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki on Flores island spewed a 9km tower a day earlier. Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia, India’s IndiGo and Singapore’s Scoot also listed flights as canceled. “Volcanic ash poses a significant threat to safe operations of the aircraft in the vicinity of volcanic clouds,” AirAsia said as it announced several cancelations. Multiple eruptions from the 1,703m twin-peaked volcano in
A plane bringing Israeli soccer supporters home from Amsterdam landed at Israel’s Ben Gurion airport on Friday after a night of violence that Israeli and Dutch officials condemned as “anti-Semitic.” Dutch police said 62 arrests were made in connection with the violence, which erupted after a UEFA Europa League soccer tie between Amsterdam club Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv. Israeli flag carrier El Al said it was sending six planes to the Netherlands to bring the fans home, after the first flight carrying evacuees landed on Friday afternoon, the Israeli Airports Authority said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also ordered
Former US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi said if US President Joe Biden had ended his re-election bid sooner, the Democratic Party could have held a competitive nominating process to choose his replacement. “Had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race,” Pelosi said in an interview on Thursday published by the New York Times the next day. “The anticipation was that, if the president were to step aside, that there would be an open primary,” she said. Pelosi said she thought the Democratic candidate, US Vice President Kamala Harris, “would have done
Farmer Liu Bingyong used to make a tidy profit selling milk but is now leaking cash — hit by a dairy sector crisis that embodies several of China’s economic woes. Milk is not a traditional mainstay of Chinese diets, but the Chinese government has long pushed people to drink more, citing its health benefits. The country has expanded its dairy production capacity and imported vast numbers of cattle in recent years as Beijing pursues food self-sufficiency. However, chronically low consumption has left the market sloshing with unwanted milk — driving down prices and pushing farmers to the brink — while
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