November 17, 2015
Obama Pledges Support for Philippine Navy
U.S. President Barack Obama landed in Manila on Tuesday ahead of this week's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference, touring a naval vessel (Bloomberg) and pledging two more ships (IBT) that could aid the Philippines in defending its claims in the South China Sea. Leaders of the twenty-one-member forum have also voiced outrage over the attacks in Paris as security and geopolitical concerns overshadow talks (AP) on trade and the economy. Although China asked Philippine officials not to include territorial disputes in the APEC agenda, U.S. officials plan to highlight the issue in Manila as well as at the ASEAN (NYT) summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia later this week.
ANALYSIS
"The thing to watch is whether Xi will reposition RCEP as a complement, rather than a competitor, to the TPP, so that Apec's ultimate goal of an Asia-Pacific free trade area can be realised. It is a sign of the times that Apec's long-standing objective of creating the Asia-Pacific's largest free trade area has been co-opted by China – once a free-trade laggard - as its own vision when Beijing hosted the Apec summit last year,'" writes Yang Razali Kassim for South China Morning Post.
"This year it faces an even bigger challenge: 12 APEC members have signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement that would achieve many of the group's goals, but outside its framework. That raises the question, if the TPP is realised, of what APEC itself is for," writes the Economist.
"Much of the media's attention has focused on lower tariff barriers in politically sensitive sectors such as auto manufacturing and agriculture. But tariffs on goods have fallen sharply over the past two decades through work done by the World Trade Organization. It is the provisions dealing with nontariff barriers that make the TPP significant and ground-breaking," writes Justin Patrie for Nikkei Asian Review.
EUROPE
France Appeals to EU for Military Aid
European Union defense ministers backed French appeals for military assistance (DW) in the fight against the self-proclaimed Islamic State. France has conducted multiple air strikes in Syria since the Paris attacks and evoked a never-before used article in the EU Treaty to appeal for aid.
RUSSIA: Russia confirmed that a bomb was responsible (FT) for the downing of a Russian passenger jet over Egypt last month that killed 224 people. Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed retribution, saying that Russia will intensify its air strikes in Syria.
PACIFIC RIM
Japan Sues Okinawa Over U.S. Base
Japan sued the local government of Okinawa Island on Tuesday after its governor blocked approval (JapanTimes) for the landfill work needed to relocate a large U.S. airbase in the prefecture. The case comes amid long-standing tension over U.S. military presence on the island.
CAMBODIA: Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy has delayed returning (SMH) to his country to face a two-year jail sentence on a defamation charge his supporters say is politically motivated. Rainsy, who survived an assassination attempt in 1997, was stripped of parliamentary immunity on Monday.
SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA
Pakistan's Army Chief to Visit United States
Pakistan's army chief will embark on a five-day visit to the United States, where stalled Afghan peace talks (Dawn) are expected to top the agenda. The visit will include a meeting with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday.
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA
Yemeni President Returns From Exile
Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi returned to the southern port city of Aden from Saudi exile (AFP), a day after his loyalists launched a new offensive against Iran-backed rebels with the support of Saudi-led troops. At least 5,700 Yemenis have been killed during seven months of civil war.
TUNISIA: Senior Tunisian officials said authorities arrested a cell of seventeen Islamist militants they say were planning a major attack (Reuters) on hotels and security forces in the resort town of Sousse.
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
Somalia Votes for Kenya's Military Exit
Somalia's parliament overwhelmingly voted in favor of a motion requiring Kenya's government to withdraw its forces from Somalia (Star). Parliament had raised concerns surrounding a recent report accusing Kenya's military of illegal resource trade, as well as the country's plans to build a wall along its border with Somalia. Kenya's military arrived in the country in 2011 to help Somalia's government regain control of territory seized by militant group Al-Shabab.
GUINEA: Health officials said that Guinea's last known Ebola patient was released (TIME) from a treatment center in the capital of Conakry. The country will be declared free of the virus if no new cases are reported in the next six weeks.
AMERICAS
U.S. Governors Seek to Block Syrian Refugees
More than twenty Republican governors moved to block U.S. acceptance of Syrian refugees (WaPo) in the wake of the Paris attacks, and some have suggested only accepting Christian refugees. U.S. President Barack Obama denounced the proposals.
NICARAGUA: Nicaragua turned back hundreds of Cuban migrants who had flown to Ecuador and were reportedly trying to reach the United States by land. Nicaragua's government lodged a complaint (LAHT) with the United Nations accusing neighboring Costa Rica of provoking a humanitarian crisis by allowing the migrants transit in country as they travelled north to Nicaragua.
