|
|
 |
US
in 'denial' over China's Pacific plans
 Reports that
China's eyes in the skies over the Pacific are approaching the same strength as
the United States' spy satellite capabilities feed into the Pentagon's "access
denial" doctrine that China is building an asymmetrical strike force. It is
more likely however that China is sticking to its "active defense" strategy and
building on "space deterrence". - Craig Guthrie
(Jul 27, '11)
|
|
Pakistan
to get rid of Bali bombing suspect
After much debate, Pakistan has decided to return to Indonesia Umar Patek, the
prime suspect in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombing. Jakarta is concerned its
courts will not be able to successfully prosecute Patek, who could also become
a rallying cry for would-be jihadis. Australia and the United States have
reason to be miffed. - Amir Mir (Jul 27, '11)
More fuel for Malaysia's
fire
United States diplomatic cables suggest Malaysia's ruling party has been
focused for years on avoiding overthrow by "people power", throwing a spotlight
on controversial anti-riot methods seen in the crackdown on the
opposition-backed Bersih 2.0 protests. Perhaps more damaging are allegations
the party orchestrated religious controversies to foment sectarian divisions
and increase its support among Malay voters.
- Simon Roughneen (Jul 27, '11)
Taiwan consulate stirs Hong Kong
A symbolic renaming of Taiwan's consular  office
in Hong Kong from the Chung Hwa Travel Agency to the Taipei Trade and Tourism
Office reveals how Beijing will use its "model for reunification" to spearhead
exchanges in an improved cross-strait climate. The opening also gives Taipei's
ruling Kuomintang party a chance to reprise a role it played in Hong Kong's
political past. - Augustine Tam (Jul 27, '11)
Dragon, eagle, elephant and a
black swan
Hype over China's and India's rise is too easily undermined by hard facts, with
innovation keeping the United States in its lead role. The race between the
flying dragon, lumbering elephant and swooping eagle is still on for the 21st
century, but the "rugged individualism" that defined America's success may -
like a lonesome cowboy - soon ride into an Asian sunset.
- Dinesh Sharma (Jul 27, '11)
Tough talk, mixed results
from Aquino
President Benigno Aquino, the Philippines' unassuming leader, was applauded for
tough talk on the contested Spratly Islands in his state of the nation address
marking a year in office. Few of the successes he cited - including rising
stock prices - win plaudits from ordinary citizens who voted him in on reform
vows he has yet to fulfill.
- Joel D Adriano (Jul 27, '11)
 SINOGRAPH
Reading between the
lines of the
Vatican rift
China's Bureau of Religion reacted as stung by the Vatican's threat to
excommunicate bishops ordained without the permission of the Holy See, but
nevertheless indicated for the first time that China's government has no desire
to rule the religious affairs of the Catholic Church. But the real issue for
China is who controls the Church as a socio-political entity.
- Francesco Sisci (Jul 27, '11)
A Saudi beacon for Iraq's Sunni
militias
Iraqi Shi'ite militias have stepped up attacks on United States troops while
al-Qaeda and Sunni forces have exercised restraint, targeting only Shi'ites and
refraining from firefights. It seems al-Qaeda has reached an understanding with
a foreign power reluctant to be tied to killing US soldiers and interested in
rolling back Iran's influence. But is Saudi Arabia courting disaster?
- Brian M Downing (Jul 26, '11)
Split personalities revealed
in Cambodia
A trove of United States diplomatic cables on Cambodia reveals a grudging
respect for the charm and sophistication of strongman leader Hun Sen, while
relentlessly picking apart the "tragi-comic" divisions in the royal family.
Most revealing are insights into top tycoons, with glib monikers like "Mr Rough
Stuff" given to a motley assortment of the premier's wealthy cronies.
- Sebastian Strangio (Jul 26, '11)
 SUN
WUKONG
Speedy growth lays
tracks of China's tears
The seeds of China's bullet train disaster on Saturday were laid in the
high-speed growth responsible for the economic achievements of the past 30
years. An autocratic system has been the engine of Beijing's advances, but 39
lives will have been lost in vain unless the government conducts a thorough
review of nationwide railway expansion and of the wider decision-making
processes.
- Wu Zhong (Jul 26, '11)
Setback for Rajapaksa's
reconciliation
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa pledged more infrastructure in a bid for
a local election victory in the north that he could hold as evidence of Tamil
support and a reconciliation process on track. His refusal to confront
political issues at the core of Tamil alienation assured he failed - and that
reconciliation remains at distant dream. - Sudha Ramachandran
(Jul 26, '11)
South Vietnam's unlikely
leader dies
 The
death a few days ago of Nguyen Cao Ky, South Vietnam's prime minister in the
mid-1960s, evokes memories of an unlikely leader whose rambling pronouncements
embarrassed his American sponsors. Among a cast of characters from Vietnam
during the war, however, few were more colorful than the playboy who hailed
from Hanoi.
- Donald Kirk (Jul 26, '11)
Pakistan revenues fudge deepens
IMF loan doubts
Pakistan's restatement of tax revenues, alongside the departure of central bank
governor Shahid Kardar and other top finance officials, further darkens its
reputation. What appears an attempt to pretend it beat International Monetary
Fund targets may only heighten its difficulties in achieving loans. - Syed
Fazl-e-Haider (Jul 26, '11)
THE BEAR'S LAIR
Freedom beyond bonds
A world without government bonds may be unimaginable today, but it is not
economically impossible or irrational, and the benefits would be considerable:
fewer cost-inflating regulations; more private-sector jobs; smaller government;
fewer unpopular taxes - and economic activities would have to be viable in
their own right. - Martin Hutchinson (Jul 26,
'11)
NORWAY MASSACRE
THE ROVING EYE
Al-Qaeda's Christian mirror
"Al-Qaeda" - or the nebula of franchises and copycats commonly bundled as
"al-Qaeda" - does not have the resources to attack Europe, and this is not the
priority anyway; the priority is AfPak, Central Asia and India. But the
priority of Christian fundamentalist terror is definitely Europe. And the
attacks will come via loners such as Norwegian Anders Behring Breivik as well
as organized groups.
- Pepe Escobar (Jul 25, '11)
SPENGLER
A time to be silent and
mourn
Grief - wrenching, uncomprehending and mute grief - is the response that life
elicits to the appalling deaths of so many people in Norway, so many of them
children. Our silence and our tears in the face of repudiation of life bears
witness to life. (Jul 25, '11)
|
Iran draws the line with Turkey
on Syria
Iran, by throwing its weight behind the Syrian regime, is playing catch-up to
Turkey's diplomacy in the Middle East. Coupled with the signing of an energy
deal with Syria and Iraq, the strong signal from Tehran for Ankara to reel in
its role in Syria confronts the Turks with a choice either to emulate Iran or
to risk broadening the arc of instability. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi
(Jul 25, '11)
Pakistan's Iran overtures test
Saudi faith
 Saudi
Arabia has reacted sharply to a "new era" in economic and political ties taking
shape between its Sunni-dominated ally Pakistan and its Shi'ite rival Iran.
Reports that Islamabad sought closer links in the religious sphere by sending
devout Sunni scholars to Tehran on a secret mission for "inter-faith dialogue"
will also test Riyadh's faith.
- Malik Ayub Sumbal (Jul 25, '11)
 BOOK
REVIEW
The real AfPak deal
Inside al-Qaeda and the Taliban: Beyond Bin Laden and 9/11
by Syed Saleem Shahzad
Drawn from fearless reporting in the complex and deadly Pakistani tribal areas,
this book outlines the grand strategy al-Qaeda plotted for AfPak before the
United States even coined the term. Despite the book's revelations and vision,
it's also the cracking narrative of one man armed only with a strong moral
compass; a man murdered by his own state for searching out the truth.
- Pepe Escobar (Jul 22, '11)
 CHAN
AKYA
Beggars and choosers
The European Union, like a well-meaning passer-by handing out coins to beggars,
has thrown more cash at Greece, blind to the truth of what is involved.
Markets, with an eye on Spain and Italy, will test the claim that this is the
"first and only" such deal, and the core Greek solvency problem remains
unresolved. (Jul 22, '11)
<IT WORLD>
Apple harvest doubles
Apple's harvest from consumers demanding ever more iPads, iPhones and even Mac
computers continues to grow, with quarterly profit more than doubling. Sales in
Greater China may even be outpacing products from China's Lenovo - helped, or
otherwise, by counterfeit stores. (Jul 22, '11)
Martin J Young surveys the week's developments in computing, science,
gaming and gizmos.
|
|
|
China hand seen
behind vast buy-up
of Japanese shares
China's five-year plan requires development of several "strategic",
technologically demanding industries. An Australia-based fund that has become a
leading shareholder in many top Japanese companies appears to be helping
Beijing towards that goal. Why the fund is a top-three stakeholder in Japan's
three biggest banks is more mystifying. - Hussain Khan
India marks 20 years
of
Manmohanomics
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh can look back with satisfaction to the reforms he
initiated 20 years ago as India's finance minister - if he keeps a deaf ear to
claims he actually initiated very little, and turns a blind eye to the
persistent high inflation, vast poverty and ill-funded social infrastructure of
his "modern" India. - Raja Murthy
Pakistan Rail on life-support
A US$23 million government handout to state-owned Pakistan Railways will barely
keep the corruption-bound and hugely indebted company operating, with millions
more needed to purchase engines, repair tracks - and buy the fuel to get those
few engines that do work running. - Syed Fazl-e-Haider
Crash Club
Novelistic and macabre treatment of the horrors of a car crash can have a
mesmerizing effect on hot-blooded adolescents, but chill responsible adults to
the core. We are now watching three malfunctioning economies head towards a
collision - their trajectories gripping to watch, the consequences almost too
grim to consider. - Mike Davis
CREDIT BUBBLE BULLETIN
Greek deal piles on risk
Last week's Greek summit emboldens those who believe it best to ignore risk and
instead ride the policy-induced market wave. Markets may become even more
speculative - and more volatile, unpredictable and dysfunctional. Meanwhile,
two bailouts have in no way ameliorated Greece's solvency issue.
Doug Noland looks at the previous week's events each Monday.
|
|
Asia Times Online fund
A fund has been established for the family of Syed Saleem Shahzad - his wife
Anita, two sons aged 14 and seven, and daughter aged 12. Asia Times Online's
Pakistan bureau chief was killed in May. For details of the bank account number
to which donations can be sent, please click
here. Please note that payment can no longer be made via Paypal.
Tributes to Saleem
|
Turkey
toughens its
stand on Syria
No sooner than the Turkish parliamentary elections were out of the way, a more
robust intervention by the reelcted leadership of Recep Erdogan in Ankara in
Syrian upheaval has begun. Turkish press has been highlighting a steady flow of
Syrian 'refugees' across the border - obviously, building up a case for
intervention. For the first time, the Turkish government is encouraging
journalists to meet the refugees... - M K Bhadrakumar
What is safer?
A downgrade of US debt would accelerate efforts to replace the dollar as a
world reserve currency - but that's not a short-term process. Then there is the
problem of where to turn - if your safest assets just got riskier, you're less
likely to take additional portfolio risk. - David P Goldman
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
All material on this website is
copyright and may not be republished in any form without written permission.
Copyright 1999 - 2011 Asia Times Online (Holdings),
Ltd.
|
|
Head Office: Unit B, 16/F, Li
Dong Building, No. 9 Li Yuen Street East, Central, Hong Kong
Thailand Bureau: 11/13 Petchkasem Road, Hua
Hin, Prachuab Kirikhan, Thailand 77110
|
|
|
|
