Tensions flare as Chinese fire four missiles into South China Sea, America adds sanctions

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Bloomberg Last Updated: Aug 27, 2020, 10:10 AM EconomicTimes

China launched four medium-range ballistic missiles into the South China Sea on Wednesday amid broader military exercises by the PLA, according to a U.S. defense official who asked not to be identified. The missiles landed in the sea in an area between Hainan Island and the Paracel Islands, the official said. The move came a day after Beijing protested a flyover by a U.S. spy plane.

By David Wainer and Tony Capaccio
U.S.-China tensions over the South China Sea escalated on Wednesday with Beijing firing four missiles into the disputed waterway and the Trump administration strengthening action against companies that helped set up outposts in the region.

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US targets Chinese individuals, companies amid South China Sea dispute

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TĐH: List of Russian and Chinese entities blacklisted by the US (not confirmed yet)

Russia
Power Machines
China
1/ China Communications Construction Company Dredging Group Co., Ltd.
2/ China Communications Construction Company Tianjin Waterway Bureau
3/ China Communications Construction Company Shanghai Waterway Bureau
4/ China Communications Construction Company Guangzhou Waterway Bureau
5/ China Communications Construction Company Second Navigation Engineering Bureau
6/ Beijing Huanjia Telecommunication Co., Ltd.
7/ Changzhou Guoguang Data Communications Co., Ltd.
8/ China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, 7th Research Institute (CETC-7)
9/ Guangzhou Hongyu Technology Co., Ltd., (a subordinate institute of CETC-7)
10/ Guangzhou Tongguang Communication Technology Co., Ltd. (a subordinate institute of CETC
11/ China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, 30th Research Institute (CETC-30)
12/ China Shipbuilding Group, 722nd Research Institute
13/ Chongxin Bada Technology Development Co., Ltd.
14/ Guangzhou Guangyou Communications Equipment Co., Ltd.
15/ Guangzhou Haige Communication Group Co., Ltd.
16/ Guilin Changhai Development Co., Ltd.
17/ Hubei Guangxing Communications Technology Co., Ltd.
18/ Shaanxi Changling Electronic Technology Co., Ltd.
19/ Shanghai Cable Offshore Engineering Co., Ltd.
20/ Telixin Electronics Technology Co., Ltd.
21/ Tianjin Broadcasting Equipment Co., Ltd.
22/ Tianjin 764 Avionics Technology Co., Ltd.
23/ Tianjin 764 Communication and Navigation Technology Co., Ltd.
24/ Wuhan Mailite Communication Co., Ltd.

Hình ảnh này không có thuộc tính alt; tên tập tin này là us-china.jpg
FILE PHOTO: Chinese and U.S. flags flutter near The Bund in Shanghai

File photo of Chinese and US flags fluttering near The Bund in Shanghai, China, Jul 30, 2019. (Photo: REUTERS/Aly Song)

26 Aug 2020 09:15PM(Updated: 27 Aug 2020 08:59AM) CNA

WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday (Aug 26) blacklisted 24 Chinese companies and targeted individuals it said were part of construction and military actions in the South China Sea, its first such sanctions move against Beijing over the disputed strategic waterway.

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Góp ý về Lộ trình phát triển điện gió ngoài khơi cho Việt Nam – Comments on Offshore wind roadmap for Vietnam 

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

Comments on Offshore wind road map for Vietnam

See comments in English below

Tháng 7.2020, Ngân Hàng Thế Giới đưa ra Báo cáo giữa kỳ về Lộ trình điện gió ngoài khơi cho Việt để tham vấn công khai các bên.

Báo cáo đề cập các khía cạnh bao quát cần được xem xét trong phát triển gió ngoài khơi Việt Nam. Báo cáo này có nội dung kỹ thuật rất đáng kể và cho thấy nhóm nghiên cứu thực hiện  khối lượng công việc nghiên cứu khá chuyên sâu trong một thời gian ngắn.

Tuy nhiên, còn nhiều điểm chúng tôi mong muốn nhấn mạnh nhưng chưa được đề cập trong báo cáo này

1. Báo cáo không đề cập đến việc can thiệp  của Trung Quốc trên Biển Đông (Biển Nam Trung Hoa) có thể ảnh hưởng tới các dự án điện gió ngoài khơi của VIệt Nam . Toàn bộ vùng biển, từ miền Bắc Việt Nam đến Khánh Hòa có thể không ổn định cho các nhà đầu tư quốc tế. (Nhưng tất nhiên, đây là một thực tế không thể đưa vào trong báo cáo vì vấn đề này vẫn chưa có giải pháp thực sự hiệu quả).

2. Báo cáo dựa trên giả thiết với nền hệ thống pháp lý, chế độ chính trị và hành chính hiện hành của Việt Nam và hiện trạng sẽ tiếp diễn, và không đề cập đến những thay đổi về mặt cấu trúc cần thiết đối với hệ thống này, đặc biệt trong ngành năng lượng. Điều đó có nghĩa là, tất cả các vấn đề hành chính đang tồn tại sẽ vẫn còn đó, và sẽ tiếp tục cản trở sự phát triển của ngành năng lượng, bao gồm phát triển điện gió ngoài khơi.
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A slip down memory lane: Vietnam in the 1880s

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By Mai Nhat   August 24, 2020 | 08:33 am GMT+7 vnexpress

Grayscale photos by French photographer Pierre Dieulefils shed light on Vietnam’s historical landscape during the late 19th century.

A local book publication has published a book titled Indo-Chine Pittoresque & Monumentale which show a collection of old photos taken by different French photographers, including Dieulefils. These photos served as a form of research about locals lives back during the French colonial period.
Locally published “Indo-Chine Pittoresque & Monumentale: Annam – Tonkin” book includes a collection of photos taken by different French photographers, including Dieulefils. These images serve to expose Vietnamese culture during the French colonial period and can be dated back to 1885.

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Vietnam sees rooftop solar boom

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By Anh Minh   August 26, 2020 | 11:57 am GMT+7 vnexpressVietnam sees rooftop solar boomWorkers install solar power panels on a rooftop in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo courtesy of Vietnam Electricity.

Over 45,000 households and organizations in the country have installed rooftop solar panels, whose prices have been falling rapidly in recent years.

Le Anh Tuan, lecturer at Can Tho University in southern Can Tho City, spent VND130 million ($5,600) to install a 3.9 kWp rooftop solar power system in his home four years ago and is now enjoying the fruits of his investment.

Tuan was able to save up to VND1.2 million each month compared to using normal electricity, twice the amount of monthly deposit interests.

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Vietnam’s lawmaker addresses dual citizenship exposed in Cyprus Papers

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Wednesday, August 26, 2020, 16:39 GMT+7 tuoitre

Vietnam’s lawmaker addresses dual citizenship exposed in Cyprus Papers
Pham Phu Quoc, a deputy of Vietnam’s lawmaking National Assembly for 2016-21, is seen in a file photo.

A serving member of Vietnam’s lawmaking National Assembly (NA) has addressed the controversy around his dual citizenship exposed in an exclusive report by the Al Jazeera.

Dozens of major political figures and their families have bought Cyprus citizenship through the ‘golden passport’ program of the Cypriot government, the Al Jazeera reported on Monday after obtaining what they call ‘The Cyprus Papers.’

Such papers are a batch of leaked documents containing more than 1,400 approved applications for the Cyprus Investment Programme (CIP) run by the Republic of Cyprus.

“The programme allows people to buy a Cypriot passport, and by extension become European Union citizens, by investing at least €2.15 million ($2.5 million) in the country,” the Al Jazeera said in their investigative report.

Named in the papers is Pham Phu Quoc, the incumbent NA representative from Ho Chi Minh City who is serving the 2016-21 tenure.

Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper was able to interview Quoc on Tuesday to give further details on his Cyprus citizenship.

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Việt Nam demands China to stop military exercises in Paracel islands

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Update: August, 26/2020 – 12:15|vietnamnewsChina’s Liaoning aircraft carrier sailing during a drill in the South China Sea in 2018. — AFP/VNA Photo

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam has condemned China’s latest military drill in Hoàng Sa (Paracel) islands as a move against the country’s territorial integrity and regional peace.

The statement was made by Việt Nam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lê Thị Thu Hằng on Wednesday over reported Chinese naval exercises and live-fire drills in a part of the Paracels lying within the hotly contested South China Sea (known in Việt Nam as the East Sea) on August 24-29.

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The risk of China-US military conflict is worryingly high

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The US and China have settled into a pattern of military manoeuvring in the South China Sea that allows both sides to ‘save face’

The two sides are sleepwalking into confrontation in the South China Sea. ZHOU BO. Financial Times

The US and China have settled into a pattern of military manoeuvring in the South China Sea that allows both sides to ‘save face’ © Zha Chunming/Xinhua/AP

Zhou Bo YESTERDAY

The writer is a senior fellow at the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University, and a China Forum expert

The relationship between China and the US is in freefall. That is dangerous. US defence secretary Mark Esper has said he wants to visit China this year, which shows the Pentagon is worried. That Wei Fenghe, China’s defence minister, spoke at length with Mr Esper in August shows that Beijing is worried too. Both men have agreed to keep communications open and to work to reduce risks as they arise.

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Institutional Racism in Higher Ed

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Walter E. Williams / @WE_Williams / August 26, 2020 / Daily Signal

Despite the nation’s great achievements in race relations, there remains institutional racism in higher education. (Photo: Sshepard/Getty Images)

COMMENTARY BY

Walter E. Williams@WE_Williams

Walter E. Williams, a columnist for The Daily Signal, is a professor of economics at George Mason University.

Institutional racism and systemic racism are terms bandied about these days without much clarity. Being 84 years of age, I have seen and lived through what might be called institutional racism or systemic racism. Both operate under the assumption that one race is superior to another. It involves the practice of treating a person or group of people differently based on their race.

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Phát triển ngành Năng Lượng Việt Nam: Góc nhìn chiến lược

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

T.S Đào Thu Hằng

Tóm lược

Bài báo đóng góp những kiến nghị để cải tiến và đổi mới ngành năng lượng và giao thông của Việt Nam, hai lĩnh vực nhìn chung được coi quan trọng nhất đối với các chính sách về năng lượng và khí hậu.

Trong nhiều năm, Việt Nam vẫn đi sau thế giới về năng lượng tái tạo – đặc biệt là điện gió, điện mặt trời, và hiệu quả năng lượng, và phần lớn dựa vào than và dầu. Việt Nam định ra cho ngành năng lượng một phần rất nhỏ trong Đóng góp quốc gia tự quyết định (Nationally Determined Contribution – NDC) để giảm thiểu phát thải carbon, mặc dù ngành năng lượng chiếm đến một nửa lượng khí thải của quốc gia, và điều này gần như loại trừ hoàn toàn ngành công nghiệp năng lượng khỏi NDC. Việt Nam cũng đã gần như chưa hề để tâm đúng mức tới giảm phát thải trong giao thông vận tải, một ngành vẫn gần như phụ thuộc hoàn toàn vào xăng dầu. Ngoài ra, Việt Nam chưa tìm ra cách hiệu quả để tạo ra sự cạnh tranh trên thị trường năng lượng, khiến cho giá năng lượng phù hợp hơn với thực tế thị trường và hiệu quả hơn.

Đầu tư trực tiếp nước ngoài (Foreign direct investment – FDI) vào lĩnh vực năng lượng còn yếu. Việt Nam cần hỗ trợ về vốn từ các nhà đầu tư quốc tế và các tổ chức cho vay để tạo ra một bước tiến lớn trong ngành năng lượng. Nằm trên lộ trình của Sáng kiến ​​Vành đai và Con đường của Trung Quốc (Belt and Road Initiative – BRI), Việt Nam có thể hưởng lợi từ các dự án BRI, nếu các dự án đó phù hợp với những đánh giá và mong muốn của Việt Nam. Vốn Hỗ trợ Phát triển Chính thức (ODA) từ các nước khác tài trợ cũng có thể giúp ích. Nhưng quan trọng nhất, môi trường pháp lý phải được cải thiện để tạo ra sự cạnh tranh và do đó, có được lợi nhuận hợp pháp trên thị trường. Tiếp tục đọc “Phát triển ngành Năng Lượng Việt Nam: Góc nhìn chiến lược” →

Samsung targeted by NGOs for proposal to build coal power station in Vietnam

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ecobusiness.org
Famous for innovation in consumer electronics and a progressive approach to sustainability, Samsung has been called out by NGOs for links to the construction of the controversial Vung Ang 2 coal-fired power plant in Vietnam.
Civic society campaign protests against Samsung's proposed construction of the Vung Ang 2 coal-fired power station in Vietnam.
Civic society campaign protests against Samsung’s proposed construction of the Vung Ang 2 coal-fired power station in Vietnam. Image: Market Forces
By Robin Hicks

News that electronics giant Samsung’s construction arm could be building a controversial coal-fired power station in Vietnam has surprised environmentalists, and prompted a campaign that highlights the environmental and social impact of the project.News emerged on Monday (10 August) that Samsung Construction & Trading (C&T) is considering participation in the 1,200 megawatt Vung Ang 2 coal project in Vietnam’s Ha Tinh province.

The proposed plant has been repeatedly targeted by NGOs in recent years for its potential to pollute and exacerbate the climate crisis, and a number of companies including Standard Chartered Bank, OCBC Bank and DBS have withdrawn from Vung Ang 2, citing conflicts with tightened climate policies.

Campaigners have also pointed out that Vung Ang 2 has air pollution standards far lower than those in Korea, which is one of the world’s biggest investors in overseas coal projects.

A collective of green groups including Greenpeace, Solutions for Our Climate and Market Forces said in a campaign due to run in international media this week that Samsung’s involvement in Vung Ang 2 goes against group-level sustainability pledges, which include reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and will tarnish the company’s brand image.

“Innovation is such a big focus for Samsung. It seems odd that a company so focused on building the next new thing wants to build 19th century technology,” Bernadette Maheandiran, a researcher for investments watchdog Market Forces, told Eco-Business.

The campaign launches less than a month after environmental protests prompted Samsung Securities, the conglomerate’s financial investment arm, to withdraw from the Adani Abbot Point coal terminal in Australia. Prostesters had called for a boycott of Samsung products. Tiếp tục đọc “Samsung targeted by NGOs for proposal to build coal power station in Vietnam” →

CANCER CONTROL IN VIETNAM: WHERE ARE WE?

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cancercontrol.info

This article looks at the current situation of cancer control is in Vietnam, which is a lower-middle-income country in South East Asia. It highlights the advances that have been made in capacity-building and in spreading knowledge about cancer to improve early diagnosis and treatment. The article also sets out the key challenges that the country still faces including policy development, resources and the need to develop partnerships with other developed regions of the world.

The cancer incidence rates for all cancers per 100,000 persons, which have been reported by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IACR) in 2012, are 173 for males and 114.3 for females. These incidence rates indicate a national cancer incidence of 125,000 new cases per year for both sexes. IARC estimates cancer mortality rates of 148 per 100,000 for males, 76.3 per 100,000 for females and 94,700 people died from cancer each year. Five year prevalent cases were reported to be 211,800. The top five most frequent cancers in Viet Nam in males and females are cancers of the liver (17.6 % of new cases), lung (17.5 % of new cases), stomach (11.4% of new cases), breast (8.9% of new cases) and colorectum (7 % of all new cases) (1, 2).
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Can We Be Forced to Say Something We Don’t Believe? Ask This Teacher

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Rachel del Guidice / @LRacheldG / August 25, 2020 / Daily Signal

French teacher Peter Vlaming, who had taught since 2012 at West Point High School in West Point, Virginia, was fired in December 2018. (Photo: Alliance Defending Freedom)

A French teacher at West Point High School in West Point, Virginia, was fired for not using pronouns preferred by a transgender student.

Should people be forced to contradict their core beliefs just to keep a job? Can you be compelled to speak a message you don’t believe in?

Caleb Dalton, a counsel with the Christian legal organization Alliance Defending Freedom who represents the teacher, Peter Vlaming, joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” to discuss the issues involved.

https://player.acast.com/thedailysignal/episodes/tds082520

Rachel del Guidice: I’m joined today on “The Daily Signal Podcast” by Caleb Dalton, who serves as legal counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom. Caleb, it’s great to have you on “The Daily Signal Podcast.”

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Covid Lays Bare the Flaws in Asia’s Booming Megacities

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asiafoundation.org

August 19, 2020

Throughout modern history, pandemics—like wars, earthquakes, catastrophic fires, and other sweeping calamities—have fundamentally shaped and transformed cities. In the early 20th century, the Spanish Flu bore witness to the dangers of concentrating people in dense urban housing. In its aftermath, city governments in Europe and the Americas embraced new urban planning strategies to make cities healthier and more livable. Their efforts focused on creating more parkland and giving cities green “lungs.” More recently, the 1994 outbreak of pneumonic plague in Surat, India, led to the establishment of a citywide system to monitor public health, while the 2003 SARS outbreak prompted Singapore to improve its medical infrastructure. Tiếp tục đọc “Covid Lays Bare the Flaws in Asia’s Booming Megacities” →

Research shows air pollution could play role in development of cardiometabolic diseases

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sciencedaily.com

August 20, 2020

Source:University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center

Summary:Air pollution is the world’s leading environmental risk factor, and causes more than nine million deaths per year. New research shows air pollution may play a role in the development of cardiometabolic diseases, such as diabetes. Importantly, the effects were reversible with cessation of exposure.

Researchers found that air pollution was a “risk factor for a risk factor” that contributed to the common soil of other fatal problems like heart attack and stroke. Similar to how an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise can lead to disease, exposure to air pollution could be added to this risk factor list as well.

“In this study, we created an environment that mimicked a polluted day in New Delhi or Beijing,” said Sanjay Rajagopalan, MD, first author on the study, Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine at University Hospitals Harrington Heart and Vascular Institute, and Director of the Case Western Reserve University Cardiovascular Research Institute. “We concentrated fine particles of air pollution, called PM2.5 (particulate matter component < 2.5 microns). Concentrated particles like this develop from human impact on the environment, such as automobile exhaust, power generation and other fossil fuels.” Tiếp tục đọc “Research shows air pollution could play role in development of cardiometabolic diseases” →