DECEMBER 23, 2021
Russian President Putin Holds Year-End News Conference
Russian President Vladimir Putin held his annual year-end news conference in Moscow, which lasted just under four hours. During this almost 90-minute portion, he answered a wide range of questions on the economy, relations with China and Belarus, the Olympics, his political future, and the situation in Ukraine. On whether he would guarantee no military actions against Ukraine, he inferred it was the U.S. and NATO being the aggressors against Russia. He went on to say Russia is not a threat to anyone, and if "you want guarantees from me, you should come up with guarantees, right now, immediately, and not to keep talking about this for decades.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held his annual year-end news conference in Moscow, which lasted just under four hours. During this almost 90-minute portion, he answered a wide range of questions on the economy, relations with China and Belarus, the Olympics, his political future, and the situation in Ukraine. On whether he would guarantee no military actions against Ukraine, he inferred it was the U.S. and NATO being the aggressors against Russia. He went on to say Russia is not a threat to anyone, and if "you want guarantees from me, you should come up with guarantees, right now, immediately, and not to keep talking about this for decades.
Russian President Vladimir Putin holds annual press conference |
Latest World English News
Dec 23, 2021
Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding an annual press conference. The focus primarily will be on the Russia-Ukraine border conflict and crackdown against political opponents and media.
Latest World English News
Dec 23, 2021
Russian President Vladimir Putin is holding an annual press conference. The focus primarily will be on the Russia-Ukraine border conflict and crackdown against political opponents and media.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has wound up his annual end-of-year press conference, having taken questions on the Kremlin’s policy positions at home and abroad, amid strained relations with the West, high rates of Covid-19 deaths and pressure on a range of domestic political issues.
NATO, China, anti-vaxxers: Putin wraps up 2021 with a major press-conference
Russian leader set out his opinion on everything from conflict with NATO to the anti-vaxx movement.
Date published on Dec. 24, 2021
Talks with NATO
Last week, Moscow issued a series of proposals to both Washington and NATO as part of a bid to seek assurances that the US-led military bloc will not expand closer to its borders. The demands include written guarantees that the ambitions of Ukrainian politicians to join will not be realized, with the Kremlin having long described the prospect of Western troops and hardware being deployed to the former Soviet Republic as a red line.
Just a day before, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced that talks would soon take place between Russian officials and American diplomats, as early as January next year. However, Putin insisted, meetings alone would not be seen as enough. “We don’t care about negotiations, we want results,” the President blasted. “Not an inch to the East they told us in the 1990s, and look what happened – they cheated us, vehemently and blatantly.”
“Now they’re saying that they will have Ukraine as well. This means they will deploy their weapons there, even if it's not officially part of NATO,” he went on. According to the Russian leader, it is now up to the US-led bloc to come up with guarantees “immediately,” instead of continuously talking about it “for decades.” more
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NATO ‘cheated’ Russia – Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin claims NATO lied to Moscow when it pledged not to expand eastwards.
NATO, China, anti-vaxxers: Putin wraps up 2021 with a major press-conference
Russian leader set out his opinion on everything from conflict with NATO to the anti-vaxx movement.
Date published on Dec. 24, 2021
Talks with NATO
Last week, Moscow issued a series of proposals to both Washington and NATO as part of a bid to seek assurances that the US-led military bloc will not expand closer to its borders. The demands include written guarantees that the ambitions of Ukrainian politicians to join will not be realized, with the Kremlin having long described the prospect of Western troops and hardware being deployed to the former Soviet Republic as a red line.
Just a day before, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced that talks would soon take place between Russian officials and American diplomats, as early as January next year. However, Putin insisted, meetings alone would not be seen as enough. “We don’t care about negotiations, we want results,” the President blasted. “Not an inch to the East they told us in the 1990s, and look what happened – they cheated us, vehemently and blatantly.”
“Now they’re saying that they will have Ukraine as well. This means they will deploy their weapons there, even if it's not officially part of NATO,” he went on. According to the Russian leader, it is now up to the US-led bloc to come up with guarantees “immediately,” instead of continuously talking about it “for decades.” more
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NATO ‘cheated’ Russia – Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin claims NATO lied to Moscow when it pledged not to expand eastwards.
China will end US dominance – Putin
Beijing is on the cusp of overtaking America as the powerhouse of global trade, the Russian president has argued.
Dec. 24 - Within the next three decades, China will surpass the US in every aspect of its economy, Vladimir Putin said, predicting that America will lose its position of dominance in finance and trade.
Speaking to journalists at his annual end-of-year press conference on Thursday, Putin pointed out that “today, China’s economy is already larger than America’s in terms of purchasing power parity.” According to him, “by 2035-2050, it will have surpassed it and China will become the leading economy in the world according to all metrics.”
However, the Russian president continued, the West is working to undermine the world’s most populous nation and strangle its growth. The US-led boycott of the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing purportedly over human rights abuses is an attempt to make sure China “cannot raise its head” above its competitors, he added.
Putin blasted the decision as “unacceptable and erroneous,” and an “attempt to restrain the development of the People’s Republic of China.” Washington announced the decision over concerns for the safety of tennis player Peng Shuai, who disappeared from public for several weeks after accusing former vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault. The Women’s Tennis Association has suspended all tournaments in the East Asian nation in response.
Earlier this month, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks via video link amid escalating tensions between the two nations and the West. In the wake of the discussions, the Kremlin revealed that the pair had agreed to develop a shared financial system to reduce reliance on US-dominated platforms. The move appears to be a response to a series of warnings that Western nations could push to disconnect Russia from the Brussels-based SWIFT financial system as a form of sanction.
During the press conference on Thursday, Putin said China is his country’s number-one partner, adding that “we have very trusting relations and it helps us build good business ties as well.”
“We are cooperating in the field of security. The Chinese Army is equipped to a significant extent with the world’s most advanced weapons systems. We are even developing certain high-tech weapons together,” the Russian leader added.
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Kremlin reveals new independent Russian-Chinese financial systems
Beijing is on the cusp of overtaking America as the powerhouse of global trade, the Russian president has argued.
Dec. 24 - Within the next three decades, China will surpass the US in every aspect of its economy, Vladimir Putin said, predicting that America will lose its position of dominance in finance and trade.
Speaking to journalists at his annual end-of-year press conference on Thursday, Putin pointed out that “today, China’s economy is already larger than America’s in terms of purchasing power parity.” According to him, “by 2035-2050, it will have surpassed it and China will become the leading economy in the world according to all metrics.”
However, the Russian president continued, the West is working to undermine the world’s most populous nation and strangle its growth. The US-led boycott of the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing purportedly over human rights abuses is an attempt to make sure China “cannot raise its head” above its competitors, he added.
Putin blasted the decision as “unacceptable and erroneous,” and an “attempt to restrain the development of the People’s Republic of China.” Washington announced the decision over concerns for the safety of tennis player Peng Shuai, who disappeared from public for several weeks after accusing former vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault. The Women’s Tennis Association has suspended all tournaments in the East Asian nation in response.
Earlier this month, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks via video link amid escalating tensions between the two nations and the West. In the wake of the discussions, the Kremlin revealed that the pair had agreed to develop a shared financial system to reduce reliance on US-dominated platforms. The move appears to be a response to a series of warnings that Western nations could push to disconnect Russia from the Brussels-based SWIFT financial system as a form of sanction.
During the press conference on Thursday, Putin said China is his country’s number-one partner, adding that “we have very trusting relations and it helps us build good business ties as well.”
“We are cooperating in the field of security. The Chinese Army is equipped to a significant extent with the world’s most advanced weapons systems. We are even developing certain high-tech weapons together,” the Russian leader added.
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Kremlin reveals new independent Russian-Chinese financial systems
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《今日关注》CCTV中文国际
Dec 23, 2021
《今日关注》CCTV中文国际
Dec 23, 2021
US Senator thanks Taiwan for voting against pork import ban
US Senator from Iowa Chuck Grassley has thanked Taiwanese voters for rejecting a proposal to reinstate restrictions on pork imports that would have affected US pork.
In January, Taiwan’s ruling party lifted a ban on importing pork treated with the leanness-enhancing additive ractopamine, much of which is produced in the US. In a referendum last Saturday, voters were asked whether the government should reinstate the ban. The measure failed to pass.
Had the measure passed, it would have dealt a blow to the US-Taiwan trade relationship.
Grassley Tweeted “Taiwanese people rejected [a] referendum that [would] [have] overturned [President] Tsai’s move [to] allow imports of quality US pork into Taiwan. [Thank you to the] Taiwanese [government] & [citizens] for your friendship. I look [forward] to expanded trade.”
Meanwhile, US Iowa Representative Ashley Hinson also Tweeted that Taiwan is a “partner in democracy & continues to be a strong export market for Iowa pork producers.”
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Taiwan: A capable partner that deserves a closer relationship with emerging Europe
US Senator from Iowa Chuck Grassley has thanked Taiwanese voters for rejecting a proposal to reinstate restrictions on pork imports that would have affected US pork.
In January, Taiwan’s ruling party lifted a ban on importing pork treated with the leanness-enhancing additive ractopamine, much of which is produced in the US. In a referendum last Saturday, voters were asked whether the government should reinstate the ban. The measure failed to pass.
Had the measure passed, it would have dealt a blow to the US-Taiwan trade relationship.
Grassley Tweeted “Taiwanese people rejected [a] referendum that [would] [have] overturned [President] Tsai’s move [to] allow imports of quality US pork into Taiwan. [Thank you to the] Taiwanese [government] & [citizens] for your friendship. I look [forward] to expanded trade.”
Meanwhile, US Iowa Representative Ashley Hinson also Tweeted that Taiwan is a “partner in democracy & continues to be a strong export market for Iowa pork producers.”
Related Articles:
Taiwan: A capable partner that deserves a closer relationship with emerging Europe
Charles Ernest Grassley (born September 17, 1933) is an American politician serving as the president pro tempore emeritus of the United States Senate, and the senior United States senator from Iowa, having held the seat since 1981. He is in his seventh Senate term, having first been elected in 1980.
A member of the Republican Party, Grassley served eight terms in the Iowa House of Representatives (1959–1975) and three terms in the United States House of Representatives (1975–1981). He has served three stints as Senate Finance Committee chairman during periods of Republican Senate majority.[1][2] When Orrin Hatch's Senate term ended on January 3, 2019 following his retirement, Grassley became the most senior Republican in the Senate, and he served as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate from 2019 to 2021.[3][4]
During his four decades in the Senate, Grassley has chaired the Senate Finance Committee, the Senate Narcotics Committee, the Senate Judiciary Committee, and the Senate Aging Committee.
查爾斯·歐內斯特·「查克」·葛雷斯利（英語：Charles Ernest "Chuck" Grassley；1933年9月17日－），是一位美國共和黨政治人物，自1981年擔任艾奧瓦州美國參議院議員，前任美國參議院臨時議長。在此以前，他曾於1975年到1981年出任艾奧瓦州美國眾議院議員[1]，以及於1959年到1974年出任艾奥瓦州众议院議員[2]。2020年11月17日，葛雷斯利的COVID-19病毒檢測呈陽性[3]。
A member of the Republican Party, Grassley served eight terms in the Iowa House of Representatives (1959–1975) and three terms in the United States House of Representatives (1975–1981). He has served three stints as Senate Finance Committee chairman during periods of Republican Senate majority.[1][2] When Orrin Hatch's Senate term ended on January 3, 2019 following his retirement, Grassley became the most senior Republican in the Senate, and he served as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate from 2019 to 2021.[3][4]
During his four decades in the Senate, Grassley has chaired the Senate Finance Committee, the Senate Narcotics Committee, the Senate Judiciary Committee, and the Senate Aging Committee.
查爾斯·歐內斯特·「查克」·葛雷斯利（英語：Charles Ernest "Chuck" Grassley；1933年9月17日－），是一位美國共和黨政治人物，自1981年擔任艾奧瓦州美國參議院議員，前任美國參議院臨時議長。在此以前，他曾於1975年到1981年出任艾奧瓦州美國眾議院議員[1]，以及於1959年到1974年出任艾奥瓦州众议院議員[2]。2020年11月17日，葛雷斯利的COVID-19病毒檢測呈陽性[3]。
US and Japanese forces sail in formation in the Philippine Sea during multinational military exercises in 2018.
US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report
US would set up bases from a Japanese island to Taiwan and deploy troops, with Japan providing logistical support, Kyodo reports
Date published on Dec. 24, 2021
Japanese and US armed forces have drawn up a draft plan for a joint operation for a possible Taiwan emergency, Japan’s Kyodo news agency has reported, amid increased tensions between the island and China.
Under the plan, the US marine corps would set up temporary bases on the Nansei island chain stretching from Kyushu – one of the four main islands of Japan – to Taiwan at the initial stage of a Taiwan emergency and would deploy troops, Kyodo said on Thursday, citing unnamed Japanese government sources.
Japanese armed forces would provide logistical support in such areas as ammunition and fuel supplies, it said.
Japan, a former colonial ruler of Taiwan, and the US would likely reach an agreement to start formulating an official plan at a “2+2” meeting of foreign and defence ministers early next year, the news agency said.
Japanese defence ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own “sacred” territory and in the past two years has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty claims, fuelling anger in Taipei and deep concern in Washington.
Taiwan’s government says it wants peace, but will defend itself if needed.
In October, Japan’s government signalled a more assertive position on China’s aggressive posture towards self-ruled Taiwan, suggesting it would consider options and prepare for “various scenarios”, while reaffirming close US ties.
Earlier this month, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe said Japan and the US could not stand by if China attacked Taiwan.
US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have long said that given the tens of thousands of troops the US has in Japan and its proximity to Taiwan, Japan would likely have to play an important role in any Taiwan emergency.
Japan is host to major US military bases, including on the southern island of Okinawa, a short flight from Taiwan, which would be crucial for any US support during a Chinese attack.
The US, like most countries in the world, recognises China over Taiwan, in line with Beijing’s “one China” policy. But Washington is the island’s biggest arms supplier and ally and is obliged by law to help it defend itself.
As we approach the end of the year in Taiwan, we have a small favour to ask. We’d like to thank you for putting your trust in our journalism this year - and invite you to join the million-plus people in 180 countries who have recently taken the step to support us financially, keeping us open to all, and fiercely independent.
In 2021, this support sustained investigative work into offshore wealth, spyware, sexual harassment, labour abuse, environmental plunder, crony coronavirus contracts, and Big Tech.
The new year, like all new years, will hopefully herald a fresh sense of cautious optimism, and there is certainly much for us to focus on in 2022 - a volley of elections, myriad economic challenges, the next round in the struggle against the pandemic and a World Cup.
With no shareholders or billionaire owner, we can set our own agenda and provide trustworthy journalism that’s free from commercial and political influence, offering a counterweight to the spread of misinformation. When it’s never mattered more, we can investigate and challenge without fear or favour. more
Related Articles:
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Simon Tisdall
US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report
US would set up bases from a Japanese island to Taiwan and deploy troops, with Japan providing logistical support, Kyodo reports
Date published on Dec. 24, 2021
Japanese and US armed forces have drawn up a draft plan for a joint operation for a possible Taiwan emergency, Japan’s Kyodo news agency has reported, amid increased tensions between the island and China.
Under the plan, the US marine corps would set up temporary bases on the Nansei island chain stretching from Kyushu – one of the four main islands of Japan – to Taiwan at the initial stage of a Taiwan emergency and would deploy troops, Kyodo said on Thursday, citing unnamed Japanese government sources.
Japanese armed forces would provide logistical support in such areas as ammunition and fuel supplies, it said.
Japan, a former colonial ruler of Taiwan, and the US would likely reach an agreement to start formulating an official plan at a “2+2” meeting of foreign and defence ministers early next year, the news agency said.
Japanese defence ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own “sacred” territory and in the past two years has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty claims, fuelling anger in Taipei and deep concern in Washington.
Taiwan’s government says it wants peace, but will defend itself if needed.
In October, Japan’s government signalled a more assertive position on China’s aggressive posture towards self-ruled Taiwan, suggesting it would consider options and prepare for “various scenarios”, while reaffirming close US ties.
Earlier this month, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe said Japan and the US could not stand by if China attacked Taiwan.
US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have long said that given the tens of thousands of troops the US has in Japan and its proximity to Taiwan, Japan would likely have to play an important role in any Taiwan emergency.
Japan is host to major US military bases, including on the southern island of Okinawa, a short flight from Taiwan, which would be crucial for any US support during a Chinese attack.
The US, like most countries in the world, recognises China over Taiwan, in line with Beijing’s “one China” policy. But Washington is the island’s biggest arms supplier and ally and is obliged by law to help it defend itself.
As we approach the end of the year in Taiwan, we have a small favour to ask. We’d like to thank you for putting your trust in our journalism this year - and invite you to join the million-plus people in 180 countries who have recently taken the step to support us financially, keeping us open to all, and fiercely independent.
In 2021, this support sustained investigative work into offshore wealth, spyware, sexual harassment, labour abuse, environmental plunder, crony coronavirus contracts, and Big Tech.
The new year, like all new years, will hopefully herald a fresh sense of cautious optimism, and there is certainly much for us to focus on in 2022 - a volley of elections, myriad economic challenges, the next round in the struggle against the pandemic and a World Cup.
With no shareholders or billionaire owner, we can set our own agenda and provide trustworthy journalism that’s free from commercial and political influence, offering a counterweight to the spread of misinformation. When it’s never mattered more, we can investigate and challenge without fear or favour. more
Related Articles:
Antony Blinken warns China to stop ‘aggressive actions’ in Asia-Pacific
In China’s new age of imperialism, Xi Jinping gives thumbs down to democracy
Simon Tisdall
