Chuyên mục: US

Inside the Biden administration’s decision to reverse course and give tanks to Ukraine

~ Trần Đình Hoành ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Biden warmed to a path suggested by Blinken and Sullivan and a plan proposed by Milley and Austin.

02:15 /02:29 ABC News

Jan. 26, 2023, 4:30 AM EST

By Courtney Kube, Carol E. Lee and Abigail Williams

When he announced his decision to provide Abrams tanks to Ukraine, President Joe Biden made a point to say Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had recommended the move. But Austin, along with other military leaders, had for weeks argued it didn’t make sense for the U.S. to send the tanks to Ukraine, and he made his recommendation about how to provide them only after it was clear Biden wanted to send them, about 48 hours before his announcement, three U.S. officials said.

Biden wasn’t initially sold on sending the tanks, despite pressure to do so to give cover to Germany to send Ukraine some Leopard 2 tanks, the officials said. He warmed to the idea after Secretary of State Antony Blinken presented him with potential solutions to an issue that was very publicly exposing divisions within the U.S.-European alliance, the officials said.

In this file photo taken on May 19, 2022, a US Abrams tank is seen as troops from Poland, USA, France and Sweden take part in the DEFENDER-Europe 22 military exercise, in Nowogrod, Poland. - US President Joe Biden will address Americans on January 25, 2023, about US support for Ukraine, the White House announced, amid expectations that the US will announce future delivery of Abrams tanks. The White House gave no details of the remarks scheduled for 12:00 pm (1700 GMT), other than saying Biden "will deliver remarks on continued support for Ukraine."
A U.S. Abrams tank crew participates in a military exercise with troops from Poland, France and Sweden in Nowogrod, Poland, on May 19, 2022.Wojtek Radwanski / AFP – Getty Images file
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Nobel panel knew Kissinger Vietnam deal unlikely to bring peace, files show

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theguardian – Accords negotiated by Kissinger and Le Duc Tho in 1973 sealed US exit from war but were soon flouted by North and South Vietnam

Portraits of Nobel peace prize laureates, including of Henry Kissinger, top second left, at the Norwegian Nobel Institute in Oslo.
Portraits of Nobel peace prize laureates, including of Henry Kissinger, top second left, at the Norwegian Nobel Institute in Oslo. Photograph: Gwladys Fouche/Reuters

Reuters in OsloWed 11 Jan 2023 17.28 GMT

The 1973 Nobel peace prize to top US diplomat Henry Kissinger and North Vietnam’s Le Duc Tho, among the most disputed in the award’s history, was given in the full knowledge the Vietnam war was unlikely to end any time soon, newly released papers show.

Nominations to the Peace prize remain secret for 50 years. On 1 January, documents about the prize awarded to Kissinger and Hanoi’s chief negotiator Tho were made available on request.

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Vietnam boots UK out of top seven US trading partners

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blomberg – By Brendan Murray

December 19, 2022 at 7:00 PM GMT+7

Vietnam is on track this year to bump Britain from its long-time place among the US’s top seven goods trading partners, which would be the first time the UK hasn’t been in that group in records going back at least to 2004.

The UK’s share of the US merchandise trade slid to 2.6% through the first 10 months of this year while Vietnam’s rose to 2.7%, according to Census Bureau data.

In full-year numbers going back almost 20 years, the top seven US partners in goods trade have consistently been Canada, Mexico, China, Japan, Germany, South Korea and the UK, though their position within the group has shifted around.

Vietnam didn’t appear in the bureau’s top-15 list until 2019, and it has climbed ever since, ending last year at No. 10. If Vietnam’s lead over the UK holds for the final two months of 2022, it’ll be the first time that a majority of the top seven are Asian economies.

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Russia, Vietnam slowly but surely parting strategic ways

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Asiatimes – Hanoi is now openly diversifying its weaponry purchases away from Moscow, an emerging break driven by the war in Ukraine

By RICHARD JAVAD HEYDARIANDECEMBER 17, 2022

When Vietnam hosted this month its first-ever International Defense Expo at a military airstrip in Hanoi, the event signaled a quiet but evolving shift in the communist nation’s defense policy.

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The U.S. Needs to Change the Way It Does Business With China

~ Trần Đình Hoành ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Dec. 18, 2022, 6:00 a.m. ET

A security personnel wearing a face shield and mask standing between the national flags of China and the United States.
Credit…Andy Wong/Associated Press
A security personnel wearing a face shield and mask standing between the national flags of China and the United States.

By Robert E. Lighthizer, New York Times

Mr. Lighthizer was the U.S. trade representative in the Trump administration.

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In a recent speech, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo suggested an incremental shift in how the United States approaches “competitiveness and the China challenge.” She recognized the serious threat from China, explaining that the United States “will continue to press China to address its nonmarket economic practices that result in an uneven playing field.” She noted, though, that “we are not seeking the decoupling of our economy from that of China’s.”

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Vietnam protests against US State Department’s adding Vietnam to religious freedom Special Watch List

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Addition of Vietnam to US religious freedom watch list based on inaccurate info

By Vu Anh   December 15, 2022 | 09:20 pm GMT+7 VNExpress

Addition of Vietnam to US religious freedom watch list based on inaccurate info

Deputy spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign AffairsThe government says the U.S. decision to put Vietnam on a Special Watch List regarding religious freedom was based on inaccurate information.

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UAV – Bóng ma sát thủ từ trên không (5 kỳ)

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

UAV – Bóng ma sát thủ từ trên không – Kỳ 1: Máy bay ném bom thời thế chiến

03/12/2022 11:07 GMT+7

TTO – Chiến sự Nga – Ukraine đã chứng minh vai trò quan trọng của vũ khí máy bay không người lái trên chiến trường hiện đại.

UAV - Bóng ma sát thủ từ trên không - Kỳ 1: Máy bay ném bom thời thế chiến - Ảnh 1.

Từ chức năng trinh sát ban đầu, loại máy bay này đã biến thành sát thủ tấn công từ trên không và có thể định hình cuộc chiến trong tương lai.

Tại triển lãm hàng không ở Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ vào đầu tháng 9-2022, lần đầu tiên nước chủ nhà đã giới thiệu thế hệ máy bay không người lái (UAV) siêu thanh Bayraktar Kizilelma. UAV mới có tính năng tàng hình, bay gần 980km/h với tốc độ tối đa Mach 1.

Chuyến bay đầu tiên dự kiến được thực hiện vào đầu năm 2023. Đến cuối tháng 9, báo chí Pháp đưa tin Tổng cục Vũ khí Pháp đang thử nghiệm thế hệ UAV mới AVATAR trang bị súng trường tấn công.

Chất nổ Torpex phát nổ sớm đã phá hủy máy bay BQ-8 giết chết Kennedy và Willy ngay lập tức.

DONALD L. MILLER

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U.S., Russia vie to sell arms to Vietnam at first Hanoi fair

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reuters – December 8, 20223:17 PM GMT+7

By Francesco Guarascio  and Khanh Vu

Vietnam holds first international arms expo in Hanoi

Military arms are displayed at the Vietnam International Defence Expo 2022, in Hanoi, Vietnam, December 8, 2022. REUTERS/Khanh Vu

HANOI, Dec 8 (Reuters) – U.S. and Russian defence firms on Thursday displayed weapons and promoted models of aircraft at Vietnam’s first large-scale arms fair, as the two powers vie for influence and arms sales in the strategic Southeast Asian country that borders China.

The event at a Hanoi airbase attracted 174 exhibitors from 30 countries, including all large arms-making nations except China.

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Vietnam arming up to serve in US chip war on China

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Asiatimes – Samsung, Intel, Amkor Technology and others pouring billions into Vietnam’s chip industry as China decoupling gathers pace

By PHAN LE And HAI THANH NGUYEN

NOVEMBER 16, 2022


Samsung’s plant in Thai Nguyen Province, northern Vietnam. Photo: Samsung

The CEO of Samsung Electronics met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and announced a US$850 million investment to manufacture semiconductor components in Thai Nguyen province on August 5, 2022.

The investment will make Vietnam one of only four countries – alongside South Korea, China and the United States – that produce semiconductors for the world’s largest memory chipmaker. Vietnam’s selection over more developed locations speaks volumes about the country’s rising importance in the semiconductor value chain.

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What the Biden-Xi Meeting Means for U.S.-China Relations

~ Trần Đình Hoành ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

CFR

The meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping did not resolve major disagreements, but it could start the process of building guardrails to prevent competition from turning into conflict.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the Group of Twenty summit in Bali, Indonesia.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the Group of Twenty summit in Bali, Indonesia. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

Blog Post by David Sacks

November 15, 2022 9:17 am (EST)

On the margins of the Group of Twenty (G20) gathering in Bali, Indonesia, U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met for the first time in person as leaders of their respective nations. Their three-and-a-half-hour meeting came against the backdrop of heightened tensions over Taiwan, unprecedented U.S. export controls on advanced technologies levied against China, ramped up North Korean missile tests, and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

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EU and international partners launch ground-breaking partnership on just energy transition with Indonesia

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ec.europe.eu

Today, the President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen , on behalf of the EU, and the leaders of the International Partners Group (IPG), which is jointly led by the United States and Japan and includes Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Norway and the United Kingdom, launched a Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) with Indonesia . The launch takes place in connection with an event within the framework of the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) at the G20 summit, which takes place on 15-16 November 2022 in Bali.

In a joint statement , Indonesia and international partners have announced their commitment to meeting ground-breaking climate targets and related financing. This is done to support the Asian country in an ambitious and fair energy transition, which is in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement and which contributes to keeping the global warming limit of 1.5 °C within reach.

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Xinjiang exports to US dip in September but still higher year on year despite forced labour law

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này
Machinery and mechanical equipment top category of products shipped from region, whose month-on-month decline aligns with weakening in Chinese exportsUS customs chief insists ‘seeing good examples of compliance so far’ with recently implemented Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act

Published: 2:00am, 25 Oct, 2022

Xinjiang’s exports to the United States dropped in September after soaring for two consecutive months, but were still nearly three times as high as the same month last year, according to the latest Chinese customs data – despite a Washington law that seeks to ban goods from the far-west region of China due to forced labour allegations.

The shipments from Xinjiang to the US have appeared to continue even as officials from the US customs agency insist that they have been effectively enforcing the Uygur Forced Labour Prevention Act, which kicked in on June 21.

Companies from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in September exported US$21.05 million worth of goods to the US, slashed by more than half compared with the figure for August, but more than double the tally in June, trade data showed.

The month-on-month decline of Xinjiang exports to the US was in line with the overall weakening of Chinese exports.

https://multimedia.scmp.com/widgets/graphicsEmbeds/charts2/chart/?id=CHG2022092115_columnN2UB

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Vietnam’s wood trade under pressure from logging, Ukraine war

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nikkei – Murky origins plague furniture sector coming down from COVID-fueled buying spree

A company displays lumber in Vietnam, whose wood products industry is grappling with risks ranging from the Ukraine war to fake forest certificates and U.S. trade probes. (Photo by Lien Hoang)

LIEN HOANG, Nikkei staff writerOctober 28, 2022 16:08 JST

HO CHI MINH CITY — Reputational risks are piling up for a Vietnamese lumber industry already beset by a falloff in demand from the heights of the pandemic.

One of the world’s biggest wood and furniture exporters, Vietnam enjoyed a surge in orders when overseas buyers spent COVID lockdowns renovating their home offices and kitchens.

But the Southeast Asian country faces accusations of importing Chinese goods for re-export with “Made in Vietnam” labels since the onset of the China-U.S. tariff war in 2018. Now an actual war in Ukraine is stoking concern that sanctioned products from Russia may be routed through Vietnam, which maintains a neutral stance on the conflict between Kyiv and Moscow, as it does with Beijing and Washington. A third concern, about logging of fuel wood, has added to the pressure.

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Vietnam won’t be pressured into joining U.S.-led Cold War against China

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peoplesworld – October 28, 2022 11:24 AM CDT  BY AMIAD HOROWITZ

Vietnam won’t be pressured into joining U.S.-led Cold War against China

Communist Party of Vietnam leader Nguyen Phu Trong, left, meets with China’s Communist Party leader Xi Jinping in Beijing in 2015. | Xinhua

HANOI—The Socialist Republic of Vietnam will not be coerced into joining the United States-led effort aimed at isolating China and provoking conflict as part of its Cold War 2.0 foreign policy.

That’s a major message expected to come out of the upcoming visit to China by Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam. Trong will travel to China to pay an official visit to the newly re-elected Communist Party of China leader Xi Jinping. Trong will be one of the first world leaders to visit China since the closing the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, earlier this month.

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Iran: Từ một tấm khăn choàng đầu

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SÁNG ÁNH – 01/10/2022 07:43 GMT+7

TTCT – Ngày 16-9-2022, thiếu nữ 22 tuổi người Kurd Mahsa Amini bị cảnh sát đạo đức Iran tại thủ đô Tehran bắt giữ về tội “ăn mặc không đứng đắn” và mang về đồn.

Iran: Từ một tấm khăn choàng đầu - Ảnh 1.

Một phụ nữ người Iran tự cắt tóc trong cuộc biểu tình bên ngoài lãnh sự quán Iran tại Istanbul, Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ. Ảnh: AFP

Chuyện này rất phổ biến tại Iran, vì phụ nữ ra đường phải có khăn che tóc. Tùy thời điểm và địa điểm, lúc gay gắt thì phải khoác cả áo choàng đen hay không được dùng khăn màu. Có lúc không được dùng cả vớ trắng vì phụ nữ không được hở cổ chân, họ tuân thủ nhưng đi vớ trắng để phản đối. Có lúc nới thì tóc được hở ít nhiều và khăn quấn nhiều màu lượt là đẹp mắt.

Cách mạng thần quyền ở Iran thành công năm 1979 và lúc này lúc kia, khắt khe và cởi mở tùy tình hình. Ngược lại với các chế độ Hồi giáo quân chủ thân Mỹ ở vùng Vịnh, Iran có bầu cử quốc hội và tổng thống dân chủ và thật thà ít nhiều. Còn nhớ Cách mạng xanh năm 2009, quần chúng xuống đường phản đối cuộc bầu cử tổng thống bị cho là gian lận.

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