Connect with us

ASIA

End subservience to the US, Varoufakis tells Australia

Published

on

Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has called on Australia to end its ‘subservience’ to the United States and rebuild its reputation as a country that ‘acts on its own’, including by turning to peaceful cooperation with China.

Speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday, Varoufakis, a former Greek minister who holds an Australian passport, said a diplomatic approach to Beijing would be a ‘much better way’ than buying nuclear-powered submarines that would ‘force China’s political class to close ranks around an authoritarian core’.

Varoufakis’ speech came a year after Australia, the UK and the US announced the timetable for the delivery of nuclear-powered submarines to Australia as part of the AUKUS alliance, which aims to reduce China’s influence.

Downshift in expectations for deal

Expectations for the deal were dampened by reports that Washington was planning to slow down submarine production.

The new defence budget of President Joe Biden’s administration has halved submarine production, reducing Virginia-class submarine production from two to one by 2025.

This has raised questions about Washington’s ability to meet its commitment to sell Canberra up to five nuclear-powered vessels from the 2030s.

The latest US announcement was expected by critics of the AUKUS, such as respected Australian defence expert Hugh White, who argued that Australia did not need such submarines and that Washington’s ability to deliver them was questionable.

On Wednesday, former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told local media that the US would not sacrifice its own defence needs to meet Australia’s. “The Americans are not going to make their own submarine deficit worse than it already is by giving or selling submarines to Australia,” he said.

Senate inquiry into AUKUS submarine nuclear waste

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese denied that the deviation would derail Canberra’s submarine purchase plans, saying he remained committed to the purchase and pointing out that Australia’s agreement with the US and Britain had already been approved by the US Congress.

On the same day, a Senate inquiry was held in Canberra into new legislation that would allow the nationwide dumping of nuclear waste from AUKUS submarines.

Varoufakis said that using weapons such as submarines to counter Beijing’s aggression in the South China Sea was not the answer.

Citing Russia’s intervention in Ukraine, he said that current world events proved this.

“After repeated promises not to expand NATO, which have been completely violated by the West… does that justify Putin using this particular violation of promises as a weapon to invade Ukraine? I don’t think so,” he said.

“In other words, let’s be reasonable. Let’s keep diplomatic proportionality. And certainly let’s not spend A$368 billion on submarines that will be of no use to Australia, that will do nothing – it will do nothing to alleviate the threats that you’re talking about,” Varoufakis said.

‘A false perspective on a non-existent threat’

While it is right to be concerned that Beijing is ‘backtracking’ on its promises not to militarise the South China Sea, Varoufakis said diplomacy or at most ‘some military manoeuvres commensurate with the threat’ were needed.

He said Australia should only respond if there is a real provocation, such as Chinese ships entering Australian territorial waters, otherwise weapons such as AUKUS submarines ‘create a false perspective of a threat that does not exist’.

Similar warnings have been issued by former Australian officials such as former Prime Minister Paul Keating.

Varoufakis said the AUKUS deal would ‘give impetus to a new Cold War’ and that Australia would do more for its reputation by neutralising such an initiative than by participating in it.

“Australia has an obligation to defuse the new Cold War. This can only be done by ending Australia’s subservience to the US, which actively creates threats and makes us pay for protection from those threats,” he said.

Fears over loss of dollar hegemony

“Imagine an Australia that helps bring about a just peace in Ukraine instead of a senseless perpetual war… An unaligned Australia that is never neutral in the face of injustice, but at the same time does not automatically participate in every warmongering adventure its allies decide on,” Varoufakis continued.

He said Washington’s move to contain Beijing was motivated neither by Beijing’s growing military power nor by concerns that it might invade Taiwan, but by fears that US global financial dominance would be disrupted by China’s ‘cloud capital’ systems, including non-bank online payment methods.

“America’s hegemony … is entirely based on its ability to maintain its monopoly on international dollar-denominated payments,” Varoufakis said, adding that ‘this is what allows the US to make the rest of the world pay for its deficits’.

ASIA

Afraid of the gun; Taliban supreme leader fears of a coup

Published

on

Hibatullah Akhundzada, the supreme leader of the Taliban, has ordered the security institutions that without his permission, “no one can distribute or use the military equipment registered by the ministries of defense and interior, the directorate of intelligence and other independent institutions.”

Experts and analysts have considered this move by Hibatullah as last resort to weaken the position of defense minister, Yaqoob Mujahid, interior minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani and the head of Taliban intelligence, Abdul Haq Wasiq in order to prevent a possible internal coup that was initiated by these three top officials.

In the first article of the order, it is mentioned that no person can distribute military equipment registered in the reserves of the ministries of defense, interior and intelligence, or issue an order to distribute it without the order of Hibatullah.

This decree titled “Regarding the distribution, protection and supervision of registered military equipment”, specifies that whenever an Emirate entity (Taliban-related entity) needs weapons, ammunition, night vision cameras, telecommunications and other military equipment” must receive the approval order from the leader of the Taliban.

Also, in the second article of this decree, it is stated that whenever one of the military departments of the Taliban needs military equipment, it must send its request to Hibatullah’s office in Kandahar.

In the third article of the decree, it is emphasized that if the military equipment was distributed or used without the permission of the Taliban leader before the issuance of this decree, they must be returned to the reserves.

Ministries of defense, interior and head of intelligence department are banned from disturbing military weapons.

According to this article, Hibatullah entrusted the ministries of defense and interior, as well as the general directorate of Taliban intelligence, with the responsibility to report the list of available military equipment to the directorate of registration, and protection of military equipment.

This order of the Taliban leader has been considered as another step in the direction of concentrating more power in the hands of Mullah Hibatullah in Kandahar. Many have seen it as a sign of Hibatullah’s increasing distrust of senior Taliban officials in Kabul. Previously, some senior Taliban officials, including Sirajuddin Haqqani, have openly disobeyed Hibatullah’s order to prohibit photography and filming and have not followed the order of their supreme leader.

(R) Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid and (L) Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani.

Previously, several reports have been published about the sale of military equipment left over from the US troops and Afghan security forces during the republic government. Even the US-elected president Donald Trump, repeatedly mentioned this issue during his election campaigns. Not long ago, the government of Pakistan also announced that the Pakistan security forces have discovered and confiscated a car carrying US weapons smuggled from Afghanistan.

Pakistani media reported that this equipment included M4 assault rifles, night vision cameras and thousands of rounds of ammunition, which were transported in a truck carrying vegetables. Pakistani security officials have estimated the total value of weapons smuggled from Afghanistan in this truck to be 126,354 US dollars.

The cost of US’s remaining equipment in Afghanistan estimated over 7 billion US dollars

The Pentagon has already announced that after the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, about 7 billion dollars of military equipment fell into the hands of the Taliban. This equipment reached the hands of the Taliban after the fall of Afghanistan on 15 August, 2021.

It has been reported that when the US forces left Afghanistan, there were 78 US-made aircrafts in the country, whose value reached 1 billion dollars. According to CNN, with the end of the US military presence, a total of more than 9,000 air-to-ground munitions worth more than six and a half million dollars have remained in Afghanistan.

The report also states that out of a total of 96,000 military vehicles, more than 40,000 units, including 12,000 Humvees (armored tanks), fell into the hands of the Taliban. Moreover, out of a total of more than 400,000 weapons that the US gave to the forces of the former Afghan government, about 300,000 remain in the country.

Almost all “communications equipment, including mobile base stations, portable and hand-held commercial and military radio systems, and associated transmitters and encryption devices, all remain in Afghanistan,” according to the report.

The report added that “almost all” of the equipment for night vision cameras, surveillance, biometric and positioning equipment,” a total of nearly 42 thousand pieces of specialized equipment, remained in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Five Mi 17 helicopters of the then Afghan army, which were transferred to Ukraine for repair before the collapse of the government, have also returned to Afghanistan and now are used by the Taliban.

It should be noted that the internal rivalries in the Taliban, especially among the different factions of this group, is one of the important reasons for Mullah Hibatullah’s distrust of some Taliban officials. Some officials, including interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani and defense minister Mohammad Yaqub Mujahid, gained a lot of power, especially during the Taliban’s war against foreign forces, and Mullah Hibatullah may be worried that these officials are trying to expand their power, which is a clear threat to his position as the Taliban leader.

Continue Reading

ASIA

China’s BYD prepares to launch latest SUV, the Sealion 07, in Europe despite EU tariffs

Published

on

BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle (EV) maker, is set to launch its latest SUV, the Sealion 07, in Europe, undeterred by recent tariff increases on Chinese-made electric vehicles. This strategic move highlights BYD’s commitment to expanding overseas sales despite economic barriers.

Deliveries of the Sealion 07 are scheduled to begin in 2025, marking BYD’s seventh all-electric model in the European market, the company announced on Wednesday. Additionally, BYD plans to enter the South Korean market next year, adding to its existing presence in 95 countries worldwide.

This European expansion comes on the heels of the European Union’s decision last month to impose new tariffs—ranging from 17% to 35.3%—on Chinese electric vehicles following an anti-subsidy investigation. BYD’s EVs are subject to a 17% tariff, in addition to the standard 10% tariff applied to all pure electric cars imported from China. These tariffs, which took effect last month, will remain in place for five years. Meanwhile, U.S. tariffs on Chinese-made EVs increased from 25% to 100% as of September, citing similar concerns.

Despite the added costs, BYD’s vehicles continue to hold strong appeal in export markets. “BYD’s vehicles remain attractive even after the additional tariffs, so it’s not really a big problem for the company,” said Chen Jinzhu, CEO of Shanghai Mingliang Auto Service, a leading industry consultancy. “The Sealion 07 exemplifies how BYD’s cost advantage enables it to counteract such trade barriers in key export markets.”

Shenzhen-based BYD has yet to disclose the European pricing for the Sealion 07. On the mainland, the SUV—featuring a range of 450 kilometers—starts at 189,800 yuan (approximately US$26,272), with deliveries beginning in May.

According to a report last year from UBS analysts, BYD has a sustainable cost advantage of 25% over traditional European brands.

Continue Reading

ASIA

Singles’ day promotions target overseas Chinese as China’s domestic demand slows

Published

on

After last year’s Singles’ Day shopping festival in China was dubbed the “quietest in history,” China’s e-commerce platforms focused on a new strategy this year.

For this year’s Singles’ Day event, major e-commerce companies such as Alibaba, JD.com, and Pinduoduo invested heavily in expanding overseas markets, targeting the estimated 100 million Chinese living abroad with offers like discounts and free or low-cost shipping.

The central question, however, is not whether these efforts will succeed in the short term, but rather if this shift can help platforms grow their user bases as online sales growth in China reaches a bottleneck.

“Domestic consumption is quite weak right now, and every company is certainly considering new ways to drive growth for Singles’ Day,” said an executive at a leading online retailer, who requested anonymity. “The overseas market is widely seen as a promising source for additional growth,” he added in an interview with Nikkei Asia.

Singles’ Day, a one-day sales event launched by Alibaba in 2009 as a celebration for singles, has since evolved into a month-long campaign with special offers and deep discounts, culminating on or around November 11.

This year, China aimed to revitalize its retail sector with the event. Total consumer goods sales rose by 3.3% year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2024, though high-end consumer spending remained stagnant. Cosmetics sales fell by 1%, while gold and silver jewelry sales declined by 3.1% year-on-year.

Last month, Alibaba’s Taobao launched a significant marketing campaign in Hong Kong and Taiwan, flooding subway stations with advertisements for “free shipping on orders over 99 yuan,” among other offers. According to the company, the campaign cost 2 billion New Taiwan dollars ($61.7 million) in Taiwan and 1 billion yuan ($138 million) in Hong Kong.

Following Alibaba’s move, JD.com announced it had invested 1.5 billion yuan to offer discounted product prices and cheaper shipping to Hong Kong shoppers. Bargain platform Pinduoduo took it a step further, offering free shipping via courier SF Express for Hong Kong shoppers, regardless of the item’s price. All products on these platforms are shipped from mainland China.

A spokesperson from Alibaba’s International Digital Commerce Group noted that since the overseas initiative launched in October, Taobao Hong Kong has achieved double-digit growth in both orders and gross merchandise value (GMV)—a metric that excludes canceled orders—on both a monthly and year-on-year basis.

The platforms are also targeting Chinese shoppers in Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore.

This year, unlike in previous years, shoppers could combine online discounts with a subsidy program introduced by the Chinese government to boost domestic consumption, primarily for home appliances and household products. Analysts suggest these incentives will likely boost sales for JD.com, which is known for selling high-quality large appliances and offering after-sales services.

While JD.com has yet to release sales or GMV figures for home appliances during the shopping festival, it is expected to share its June-September results, along with Alibaba, later this week.

Last year, data provider Syntun estimated that total GMV on major e-commerce platforms grew by only 2.1% to 1.14 trillion yuan, falling short of the 2.9% growth forecast for 2022. Similarly, consultancy Bain predicted that Singles’ Day sales would reach 1.15 trillion yuan in 2023.

On Tuesday morning, Alibaba announced “strong GMV growth” and a “record number” of active shoppers for this year’s Singles’ Day event.

Continue Reading

MOST READ

Turkey