For the first time, Japan confirmed a Chinese GJ-2 reconnaissance/attakdrone
For the first time, Japan confirmed a Chinese GJ-2 reconnaissance/attack drone operating near Okinawa, alongside a BZK-005 reconnaissance drone. Both flew between Okinawa and Miyako Island into the Pacific before returning. Japanese F-15 jets were scrambled in response.
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MTV Lebanon
a day ago
- MTV Lebanon
BRICS Tensions Loom as Bessent No‑Show Threatens Durban G20 Summit
Another no-show by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Donald Trump's tariff threats and rising tensions between Washington and BRICS countries all look set to overshadow this week's meeting of G20 finance chiefs in Durban, South Africa. Several key officials including Bessent skipped February's Cape Town gathering of finance ministers and central banks in the grouping, already raising questions about its ability to tackle pressing global challenges. "I think it's problematic not to have the world's largest economy represented at the table, at least at a senior political level," said Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at the Atlantic Council. "It raises questions about the G20's long-term viability," said Lipsky, adding that Bessent's absence foreshadowed U.S. plans for a slimmed-down, "back to basics" G20 when it assumes the grouping's rotating presidency next year. Trump has implemented a baseline 10% tariff on all U.S. imports, with punitive rates targeting specific countries and products - including steel and aluminum at 50%, autos at 25%, and threatened levies of up to 200% on pharmaceuticals. Extra tariffs on 25 countries are set to take effect on August 1. His threat to impose further tariffs on BRICS countries adds complexity, given that eight G20 members - including host South Africa - belong to the expanded BRICS grouping. The overlap hints at the emergence of competing forums as Western-led institutions face credibility challenges. "Policy uncertainty is the biggest theme at this point in time," South African Reserve Bank Deputy Governor Fundi Tshazibana told Reuters. The G20 has its origins in past crisis fire-fighting and really took off as countries around the world saw a need to coordinate policies to emerge from the global financial crisis of the late 2000s. "The G20 was built around a presumption that all the world's major economies shared a common interest in a stable, relatively open global economy," said Brad Setser of the Council on Foreign Relations. "But Trump doesn't really care about stability and wants a more closed global economy." The Durban gathering of finance chiefs on Thursday and Friday also unfolds against a backdrop of mounting economic pressures, particularly for African economies. Sub-Saharan Africa's external debt has ballooned to $800 billion, or 45% of GDP, according to Goldman Sachs, while traditional funding sources are drying up. Chinese lending has slowed to a trickle after years of expansion, leaving an $80 billion financing gap. "The views that they've expressed are if you negotiate them down before taking the loan, they will go with that," said Trevor Manuel, the former finance minister of South Africa who is leading the Africa Expert Panel of the G20. "But once the loan is made, then they expect a return, and that is embedded in their legislation. So that is one issue that needs a lot of attention," he said. China's Belt and Road Initiative has brought very significant resources to the African continent, "but there are also the offsets," said Manuel. "I think that part of the push going forward is greater transparency, which means that some of the barter arrangements and so on need to be dealt with quite differently." Meanwhile, U.S. and European grants - accounting for 25% of the region's external financing - face cuts as Washington suspends foreign aid and European capitals redirect funds towards defence. "Africa is in a difficult space," said Lumkile Mondi, political commentator at the University of Witwatersrand. "Investment in the continent is going to dwindle because of high levels of indebtedness and low GDP growth, making it less relevant in the current geoeconomics." When it assumed the G20 presidency in December under the motto "Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability", Pretoria had hoped to use the platform to pressure rich countries on climate finance and address the distrust between the global North and South. Instead, it finds itself managing the fallout from aid cuts and tariff wars that directly undermine those goals. As the continent's most developed economy, South Africa faces pressure to champion African interests while navigating great power rivalries. The National Treasury said it was "premature to comment" on specific goals for the gathering, however. Director General of Treasury Duncan Pieterse said in a statement on Monday that they hoped to issue the first Communique under the South African G20 presidency at the end of the meetings. On Monday the G20's financial stability watchdog delivered a new plan on how to tackle climate risks but paused policy work amid a U.S. retreat that has tested efforts to advance a united financial policy on climate-related risks. The U.S. has withdrawn from multiple groups dedicated to exploring how flooding and wildfires and big climate-related policy shifts could impact financial stability.
MTV Lebanon
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Rubio says meeting with China's Wang 'constructive and positive'
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday he had "positive" talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and expressed hope for a meeting between the presidents of the rival superpowers. "I thought it was very constructive and positive meeting," Rubio told reporters after meeting Wang on the sidelines of ASEAN talks in Malaysia, and said there was a "strong desire" for a meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
MTV Lebanon
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EU Awaits Trump Letter as Markets Digest Latest Tariff Salvo
The European Union braced on Friday to receive a letter from U.S. President Donald Trump, outlining planned duties on his largest trade and investment partner after a broadening of his tariff war in recent days. The EU initially hoped to strike a comprehensive trade agreement, including zero-for-zero tariffs on industrial goods, but months of difficult talks have led to the realisation it will probably have to settle for an interim agreement and hope something better can still be negotiated. The 27-country bloc is under conflicting pressures as powerhouse Germany urged a quick deal to safeguard its industry, while other EU members such as France have said EU negotiators should not cave into a one-sided deal on U.S. terms. After keeping much of the world guessing on his intentions, Trump has outlined new tariffs for a number of countries, including allies Japan and South Korea, along with a 50% tariff on copper, and a hike to 35% on Canada. "We would need a crystal ball to detect what the U.S. intentions are," an EU diplomat said on condition of anonymity. Another source with knowledge of the U.S.-EU negotiations said an agreement was close, but that it was hard to predict if the EU might still get a letter announcing more tariffs or when any agreement might be finalised. One European industry lobbyist said it was nearly impossible to anticipate Trump's thinking. 'It's policy by Truth Social,' the lobbyist said, referring to Trump's social media platform. European shares dipped on Friday as investors awaited word on tariffs for the EU. "The EU has been negotiating with the U.S. about the sector tariffs and also about the reciprocal was expecting that there would be a better trade deal coming, but now it looks like it will be a worse outcome," said Jochen Stanzl, chief market analyst at CMC Markets. Stanzl added a rally on Germany's DAX reflected hopes of a better trade deal with the United States, but that the tariffs on Canada, despite weeks of talks, had cast some doubt on whether it could be achieved. Elsewhere U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Kuala Lumpur on Friday, as the two powers vied to push their agendas in Asia as tension simmers over Trump's tariffs. Rubio said the meeting was "very constructive," while adding the two sides had issues to resolve. China this week warned the United States against reinstating hefty levies on its goods next month and Beijing has also threatened to retaliate against nations that strike deals with the United States to cut China out of supply chains. Trump has periodically railed against the EU, saying in February that it was "formed to screw the United States" and asking why Europe exports so many cars but buys so few from the U.S. in return. His biggest grievance is the U.S. merchandise trade deficit with the EU, which in 2024 amounted to $235 billion, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The EU has repeatedly pointed to the U.S. surplus in services that in part redresses the balance. The potential escalation between the EU and the U.S. is a big deal for financial markets, said Joseph Capurso, head of international economics at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. "If you get something similar to (the U.S.-China trade war in April), that's going to be very destabilising." In an interview with NBC News published on Thursday, Trump said other trading partners that had not yet received such letters would likely face blanket tariffs. "Not everybody has to get a letter. You know that. We're just setting our tariffs," Trump said in the interview. 'We're just going to say all of the remaining countries are going to pay, whether it's 20% or 15%. We'll work that out now,' Trump was quoted as saying by the network.
