Less politics more marine diplomacy – a fix for South China Sea?

Territorial wrangling over who owns the South China Sea has strangled local marine life, say scientists, urging China and the Philippines to set aside political differences and work to save the fish, coral and plants that live border-free.

Since 2013, China has built artificial islands that cover more than 3,000 acres of the Spratlys, according to U.S.-based policy organisation Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative.

A study last December by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative also blamed China’s dredging and clam harvesting for destroying almost 20,000 acres of reefs in the South China Sea.

Less politics more marine diplomacy – a fix for South China Sea?

The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) is part of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Gregory Poling is director of the AMTI. The same Poling that told the U.S. government-funded Voice of America that “Vietnam’s use of cutter suction dredgers is much more environmentally destructive than its previous dredging methods.

According to the CIA’s World Factbook, Vietnam occupies around 50 outposts, The Philippines occupies nine, Malaysia occupies five, and China occupies seven in the disputed Spratly Islands.

Previously:

China unveils evidences showing Philippine grounded warship at Ren’ai Jiao destroys coral reefs, endangers marine organism

Experts warn of Philippines scheming for ‘new arbitration’ on South China Sea + More

Vietnamese Poachers using Cyanide and Dynamite Fishing in the Philippines’ EEZ

Philippine Coast Guard clarifies ‘assertive transparency’ tact

Atlantic Council’s Ali Riaz to lead commission on constitutional reforms for Bangladesh

Ali Riaz to lead commission on constitutional reforms

The government yesterday named Professor Ali Riaz as head of the Constitutional Reform Commission, replacing Supreme Court lawyer Shahdeen Malik.

Prof Yunus announced the formation of six reform commissions in his address to the nation on September 11.

They were formed to reform the judiciary, the election system, the administration, the police, the Anti-Corruption Commission, and the constitution. Prof Yunus also named the chiefs of the commissions.

Ali Riaz, a Bangladeshi-American, is a distinguished professor of politics and government at Illinois State University, US. He was the chair of the Department of Politics between 2007 and 2017.

He is a nonresident senior fellow of the Atlantic Council and the president of the American Institute of Bangladesh Studies.

Related:

About Ali Riaz

Atlantic Council, American Institute of Bangladesh Studies, BBC World Service, Claflin University (South Carolina), Illinois State University, ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute (Singapore), University of Hawai’i (East-West Center), University of Lincoln (U.K.), V-Dem Institute (funders), Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (2023 donors), Testified at U.S. Congress in 2013, 2015, and the US Commission on International Religious Freedom in 2008.

See Page 2 for more:

‘Ya Casi Venezuela’ Signifies a Crossroads for the Opposition

With a campaign of intrigue on social media launched on September 16, the US businessman and founder of the infamous mercenary company Blackwater, Erik Prince, promoted a plan to raise funds to prepare an eventual armed invasion of Venezuela and the overthrow of its authorities. Although Prince has not fully claimed responsibility for the campaign, he has been one of its most prominent spokespersons.

‘Ya Casi Venezuela’ Signifies a Crossroads for the Opposition

Related:

Attorney General’s Office Is Investigating ‘Ya Casi Venezuela’ Coup Plot

Venezuela’s Minister of Interior: María Corina Machado is Behind Latest Terrorist Plot (along w/ Erik Prince)

[2011] Golden Apollo held the FBI’s heart with a walkie-talkie

Thread

Kim Apollo held the FBI’s heart with a walkie-talkie (translated by Google Translate)

The recent conflicts in the Middle East have caused this 2011 article to attract attention and discussion. However, according to the statement of Golden Apollo on September 18, 2024, Golden Apollo only provides brand trademark authorization for the model involved, and production and sales are through the Hungarian partner BAC Consulting. Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs also stated that there is no record of Golden Apollo being directly exported to Lebanon. The models exported from Taiwan are equipped with AA batteries and there is no possibility of explosions causing casualties.

World Magazine Issue 477
Release time: 2011-07-27

Golden Apollo sells walkie-talkies that are almost extinct in Taiwan, but its professional technology, customization and strict quality control have helped it win orders from European and American governments, ranking first in the United States and second in Europe.

Pagers and walkie-talkies have not been seen by many people for a long time. They were products that were eliminated several generations ago. Many major manufacturers have even listed them as antiques and put them in exhibition rooms. However, there are manufacturers in Taiwan that continue to work intensively, making the pager number one in the United States and second in Europe. Even the FBI is its customer, and its gross profit margin is not inferior to that of HTC and MediaTek.

Read More »

PH gov’t encourages youth participation in SCS campaign

Surprisingly, I didn’t see Powell there. /s

Source

PH gov’t encourages youth participation in WPS sovereignty campaign (Translation by Google Translate)

The Philippine government anchors transparency* efforts in its vision to make the West Philippine Sea (WPS) an “intergenerational concern.”

Commodore Jay Tristan Tarriela of the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) said that the main objective of the government’s efforts is to ensure that the fight for the WPS will be continued by future generations.

Tarriela joined the third episode of the PN Conversations organized by Palawan News on September 13.

“The national government’s responsibility now for the younger generation is for us to hold the line so that the next generation of Filipinos can still be able to fight for our rights in the West Philippine Sea,” he said.

The transparency effort implemented under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., is part of the government’s obligation to provide the right information to Filipinos, he added.

Tarriela believes that the right information will also awaken Filipinos’ sense of patriotism, particularly among the youth.

The government’s transparency could also raise awareness among the international community about the situation in the WPS.

The limited information given during the previous administration under former president Rodrigo Duterte made it easy for China to spread disinformation, Tarriela said. In contrast, the current administration supported the concept of having “many voices with one message.”

“We recognize that our fight in the West Philippine Sea cannot be met by us alone,” he said.

National Youth Commission (NYC) Commissioner-at-Large Karl Josef Legazpi, a Palaweño himself, shares the view on the need to emphasize that the future of younger generations is at stake in the fight for sovereignty.

“But the waters that belong to us are gradually being taken from us—we want to convey to you what is happening. Our future is at stake,” he said.

NTF-WPS is actively working with various partner agencies, including the state information arm, Philippine Information Agency** (PIA). Director General Jose Torres, Jr.***, also joined Tarriela in the forum, believing in the role of the youth in the fight over the WPS.

Torres emphasized that the youth’s use of technology plays a significant role in fighting misinformation and disinformation about WPS.

“The young people play a great role and challenge when it comes to the West Philippine Sea. As young people, we need to stand up for our country and truth,” he said.

The PN Conversations is a Palawan News initiative that provides a platform for in-depth discussions on pressing issues faced by the community, such as WPS.

Notes on page 2:

Venezuela’s Minister of Interior: María Corina Machado is Behind Latest Terrorist Plot (along w/ Erik Prince)

Source

The Venezuelan minister for interior, justice and peace, Diosdado Cabello, emphasized that behind the entire mercenary operation reported on Saturday is the ultra-right-winger María Corina Machado*. Machado is also fighting with the fugitive from justice, Leopoldo López**, said Cabello, for control of the money of the new mercenary operation against Venezuela.

In a special interview with the Telesur channel, Cabello said on Saturday, September 14, “They call it the ‘liberation of Venezuela;’ they are fighting over who controls it.”

Far-right Venezuelans based in the United States have launched a campaign named “Ya Casi Venezuela” (“we are almost ready, Venezuela”) where they announced that the mercenary tycoon Erik Prince will begin a massive fundraising effort to collect US 600 million dollars to organize a mercenary operation to assassinate Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and other high-ranked Chavista leaders.

Prince’s operation, according to many analysts, is directly linked with the new mercenary plot unveiled in Venezuela where US and Spanish intelligence operatives have been captured.

Venezuela’s Minister of Interior: María Corina Machado is Behind Latest Terrorist Plot

Erik Prince’s full interview on Ya Casi Venezuela is here. He says that they’ve currently raised $100 million. More notes are at the bottom of the next page.

Related:

Read More »

Yes, there is the book “1984” in Xinjiang bookstore

Hi, everyone,

I visited Xinjiang recently. Before I went, I asked my followers what they would like me to see for them, and one of them wanted me to check whether there is the book of “1984” by George Orwell in Xinjiang’s bookstores and libraries.

Yes, there is the book “1984” in Xinjiang bookstore

Ironic, considering that the CIA and Britain’s FCDO used the snitch Orwell’s works in their cultural war against Communism.

Related:

Orwell and the CIA

The Cultural Cold War: The CIA and the World of Arts and Letters (PDF)

*Xinjiang*

New US-Ukraine partnership proposal from influential senators is a recipe for World War III

Atlantic Council resident fellow Andrew D’Anieri describes a new potential U.S.-Ukraine partnership

New US-Ukraine partnership proposal from influential senators is a recipe for bipartisan success

Related:

Washington wants Ukraine’s resources – US Senator

“According to open-source data, the total value of Ukraine’s former mineral resource base is estimated at almost $14.8 trillion, but $7.3 trillion of this is now in the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics. That means almost half of the former Ukraine’s national wealth is in Donbass!” Medvedev explained in a lengthy Telegram post.

“To get access to the coveted minerals, the Western parasites shamelessly demand that their wards wage war to the last Ukrainian. They are already directly voicing such intent without hesitation,” Russia’s former leader added.

WikiSpooks: Atlantic Council

The future of critical raw materials: How Ukraine plays a strategic role in global supply chains

Ukraine is a key potential supplier of rare earth metals, including titanium, lithium, beryllium, manganese, gallium, uranium, zirconium, graphite, apatite, fluorite, and nickel. Despite the war, Ukraine holds the largest titanium reserves in Europe (7% of the world’s reserves). It is one of the few countries that mine titanium ores, crucial for the aerospace, medical, automotive and marine industries.

Before February 2022, Ukraine was a key titanium supplier for the military sector. It also has one of Europe’s largest confirmed lithium reserves (estimated at 500,000 tons), vital for batteries, ceramics, and glass. Ukraine is the world’s 5th largest gallium producer, essential for semiconductors and LEDs, and has been a major producer of neon gas, supplying 90% of the highly purified, semiconductor-grade neon for the US chip industry.