Geopolitics
[ Washington Post ] Navy nuclear engineer and his wife charged with trying to share submarine secrets with a foreign country
A Navy nuclear engineer and his wife have been charged with repeatedly trying to pass secrets about U.S. nuclear submarines to a foreign country, in an alleged espionage plot discovered by the FBI, according to court document The court papers say that in December 2020, an FBI official received a package that had been sent…
Read More[ Intelligencer ] U.S. Troops Have Reportedly Been in Taiwan for Over a Year
According to the Wall Street Journal, a small contingent American troops have been deployed in Taiwan for over a year, involving a special-operations unit of around two dozen and supporting Marines. U.S. officials told the Journal that the troops are working with local maritime forces on training missions involving small boats. DPA Notes: Curious that USA would actually…
Read More[ Nikkei ] U.S. set to resume trade talks with China
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai is expected to speak to Chinese vice premier Liu He by telephone over the next few days, calling on China to respect the “phase one” trade agreement it signed with Washington under former President Donald Trump. The U.S. also plans to resurrect partial exemptions on punitive tariffs to help curb the impact of…
Read More[ Reuters ] Canada foreign minister says eyes wide open when it comes to normalizing China ties
Huawei Technologies Co Ltd Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, flew back to China on Friday after reaching an agreement with U.S. prosecutors to end a bank fraud case against her. That resulted in the scrapping of her extradition battle in a Canadian court. Soon after Meng flew to…
Read More[ SCMP ] North Korea open to closer ties with Seoul, formal end to Korean war is ‘admirable idea’: Kim Yo-jong
Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un, says the North is open to “constructive discussion” to mend fences with South Korea if Seoul drops its “hostile attitude” toward Pyongyang. Speaking on Friday, she also welcomed South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s recent call to declare an end to the Korean war as an “interesting and admirable idea”,…
Read More[ The Defenstar ] Argentina to buy inferior and more expensive JF-17 over FA-50 due to UK
Argentia has decided to buy 12 FC-1 ‘Xiaolong’ a.k.a. JF-17 Block-3 jets from China for 664 million USD (55 million per unit) rejecting other fighters on offer including the South Korean FA-50. India had not offered its Tejas fighter due to geopolitical reasons, however this deal helped to finally reveal the unit price of the…
Read More[ ABC News ] Why World Bank is under fire over set of rankings
World Bank has long been accused of using sloppy methodology and of succumbing to political pressure in producing the rankings. This week, the bank dropped the report after investigators had reviewed internal complaints about “data irregularities’’ in the 2018 and 2020 editions of “Doing Business” and possible “ethical matters” involving World Bank staff members. In…
Read MoreSyrian gas pipeline sabotage, causing complete power outage across Syria
Last night, Syria suffered a complete power outage for unknown reasons (other reports mention that this only affected Damascus and the surrounding regions). It was later announced by Syria’s Minister of Electricity Ghasan Al Zamel that a pipeline was targeted an explosive device at Deir Ali Power Plant, that caused the blackout. “There was a…
Read More[ NYT ] Furious Over Sub Deal, France Recalls Ambassadors to U.S. and Australia
Calling American and Australian behavior “unacceptable between allies and partners,” France announced on Friday that it was recalling its ambassadors to both countries in protest over President Biden’s decision to provide nuclear-powered submarines to Australia. It was the first time in the history of the long alliance between France and the United States, dating back…
Read More[ Sky News ] China says AUKUS submarine deal ‘highly irresponsible’ and ‘intensifies the arms race’
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian condemned the move and said: “The US, the UK and Australia’s cooperation in nuclear submarines severely damages regional peace and stability, intensifies the arms race, and jeopardises the international efforts in promoting the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. “The US and UK’s action of exporting highly sensitive nuclear…
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