ASIA TODAY More than 800 Taiwanese citizens have ‘disappeared’ in China in a decade

Today’s news: Kuki drone bomb attack on security forces in Manipur. UN launches polio vaccination campaign in Gaza. Japanese defence minister aims for record funding allocation for next fiscal year. China strengthens relations with Turkmenistan over gas supplies.

TAIWAN – CHINA

More than 800 Taiwanese citizens have “missing” over the past 10 years in China, which has long used enforced disappearances to silence and control dissidents and human rights activists. According to data from the Taiwan Human Rights Association and other NGOs, 857 Taiwanese citizens have been “forcibly disappeared or arbitrarily detained.” They include publisher Li Yanhe, democracy activist Lee Ming-cheh and businessman Lee Meng-Chu.

INDONESIA

Jakarta is strengthening security measures for the arrival of the Pope Francis from 3 to 5 September, the first leg of their 12-day tour of Asia, with snipers deployed and thousands of officers lining the streets. Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, is talking about a massive deployment, with training even for the “worst possible scenario” such as terrorism, demonstrations and earthquakes. A highly anticipated spectacle in the Istiqlal Mosque to revive interfaith harmony

INDIA

Manipur Militants attacked yesterday security forces using drones to drop explosives on the outskirts of the capital, Imphal, in a “significant escalation” of violence in the northeastern state. A 31-year-old woman was killed and six people were killed in what police described as an “unprecedented attack” by “so-called Kuki rebels” (Christians, who have been at odds with Meitei Hindus since May 2023).

LOOP

The UN and the Palestinian Health Authority started vaccination yesterday anti-polio of more than 640,000 children in Gaza. This operation was made possible by the eight-hour pause in fighting for three consecutive days agreed by Israel and Hamas. The first cycle is expected to be completed in fifteen days. Doctors marked the children who received the drops with pens on their fingers.

JAPAN

The Japanese Defense Ministry is pushing for a record allocation of funds for the next fiscal year to strengthen military capabilities at a time of regional tensions, especially with China and North Korea. The goal is to raise up to $76 billion, 10.5 percent more than this year. Among the goals is a new satellite intelligence system.

UZBEKISTAN – AFGHANISTAN

The grand Termez International Trade Centre was inaugurated in the city of Termez, near the border between Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. The inauguration took place three months after the agreement was signed between the two countries, in the presence of the Prime Minister of Tashkent, Abdulla Aripov, and the Prime Minister of Kabul, Abdul Gani Barodar, as well as several representatives of the governments of Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.

CHINA – TURKMENISTAN – RUSSIA

The blockade of the Siberia-2 gas pipeline project with Russia is strengthening China’s gas supply relations with Turkmenistan, which already exceed Russia’s in total revenues. The Central Asian country has become Beijing’s top supplier in 2024, with exports worth $5.67 billion; Moscow’s is set to reach $4.69 billion, with prospects for strong growth.