21 May, 2013
Foreign Affairs
The United Nations on 20 May praised the Myanmar government and army for its steps made toward ending the recruitment of child soldiers. While the UN noted in this most recent report that recruitment of children to the Myanmar armed forces continued, the number of new cases had decreased and 66 children had been released since the action plan was signed.
20 May, 2013
Foreign Affairs
In a scene that would have been unimaginable just a few years ago, President and former general Thein Sein met with US President Barack Obama in the White House on 20 May, in a landmark visit to Washington. The Myanmar government released 23 political prisoners three days ahead of Thein Sein’s visit. President Barack Obama urged Thein Sein to halt violence against a Muslim minority but praised economic and political reforms in the country. “The displacement of people, the violence directed towards them needs to stop,” Obama said. Thein Sein appealed for US “assistance and understanding” as Myanmar attempts difficult reforms.
Two months after the incident of a Chinese vessel firing and damaging a Vietnamese boat, Hanoi lodges another formal complaint to its Chinese Embassy. A Vietnamese boat with 15 fishermen on board has been hit by a Chinese vessel from the side on 20 May, while fishing in Vietnam’s “exclusive economic zone”. Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs cited this as a serious case of violating Vietnamese sovereignty.
Sixty key products spread across various sectors including food, medicine, construction materials, agricultural products and plastics were highlighted at the China-ASEAN Expo, showcasing the strong trade links between China and ASEAN. ASEAN is now considered China’s third largest trade partner with bilateral trade from January to April of this year reaching US$138.97 billion, an 18.1% year-on-year increase. Malaysia is China’s largest single trade partner from within the ASEAN bloc with trade volume reaching US$33.88 billion during the first quarter of the year.
As coordinator for ASEAN-China relations for 2013, Thailand proposed that ASEAN ministers meet sometime in August to firm up its position on the protracted South China Sea disputes before meeting with Beijing in September later this year to discuss the sea disputes, including how to move forward a proposed regional code of conduct aimed at reducing territorial and maritime conflicts in the South China Sea.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China’s Singapore branch will start providing yuan-clearing services in Singapore to participating banks beginning Monday, 27 May 2013. The new system is expected to divert some yuan flows from Hong Kong, and whilst Hong Kong have much more experience dealing with yuan, the availability of competitive yuan clearing, the increase in volume of yuan-denominated trades through Singapore would deepen the overall pool of yuan liquidity outside China, which would in turn accelerate the development of new offshore yuan products and services, according to HSBC Chief Executive Guy Harvey-Samuel.
The Arctic Council, which traditionally has served as a watchdog for the rights of the region’s indigenous people and protector of its fragile ecosystem, has granted observer status to six Asian states. Being the sole ASEAN representative, Singapore is joined by China, India, Italy, Japan, and Korea in observing the ministers’ short meeting, which is held only every two years. According to Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, “by becoming an observer you’re also signing up to the principles embodied by this organization.”
The recent ASEAN+3 Airport Interdiction Task Force Workshop held in Badung, Indonesia has seen the ASEAN drug law-enforcement agency, together with China, Japan and South Korea, reaffirm their joint commitment to combat the growing concern of narcotics trafficking in the region. Through strengthening airport interdiction cooperation, the countries hope to prevent and cut off international drug trafficking and narcotics precursors in the region; this is in line with the region’s commitment to realise Drug Free ASEAN 2015, as stipulated in the ASEAN Leaders’ Declaration on Drug Free ASEAN 2015.
ASEAN rice exporters Vietnam and Thailand, the world’s second- and third-largest exporters of rice, stand to be in line for a significant opportunity to increase their exports to China should further testing reveal cadmium contamination of Chinese rice to continue to be a problem; the Chinese government reported that nearly half the samples of rice showed cadmium above permissible levels with the rice originating from nearby Hunan province, China’s largest rice-producing province. India, the world’s largest rice exporter, will not be in a position to take advantage of this as China limits imports due to quality concerns.
The Philippine tourism industry has taken a significant hit with travel agencies from Taiwan cancelling nearly all tour packages involving approximately 9,500 tourists. Officials forecast that the Philippines will lose between 40,000-50,000 tourists from Taiwan within the next 6 months; with a total of only 216,511 tourists from Taiwan in 2012, a shortfall of 50,000 tourists represents a significant loss. This follows the 9 May 2013 shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman by the Philippine Coast Guard in the disputed South China Sea in the midst of a territorial dispute.