Health of Tuan Tuan, a male panda gifted by China to Taiwan, deteriorating

China had gifted a panda to Taiwan when the relation between them was better. However, relations between them have been on ice since 2016. Beijing severed official communications and government visits between the two sides. In spite of that, Taiwan has invited Chinese veterinary experts to come and have a look at the male panda Tuan Tuan who is not well. China had gifted the male panda to the island in 2008, but it fell ill in recent weeks and looks to be entering his twilight days. Hence, the Chinese vets will come, stay for seven days and observe, rather than conduct, health checks. As an official of the Taipei City Zoo explained to a section of the media - "The main purpose is to visit Tuan Tuan and see his present condition. They expressed their desire to come in person to visit Tuan Tuan. I also think it will be a very meaningful trip.” Taiwan invites Chinese veterinary experts as beloved panda nears death. Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council confirmed they were processing the visa applications of the vets.

Beijing had gifted Tuan Tuan and his breeding mate Yuan Yuan to Taiwan when the relations between the two neighbors were more cordial. The pair of pandas became huge stars in Taiwan and Yuan Yuan subsequently gave birth to two female cubs. China loans pandas to foreign zoos and they must usually return any offspring within a few years of their birth to join the country's breeding program. China made an exception for Taiwan as part of a brief charm offensive China launched in the late 2000s. It fully gifted both Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan and any offspring they had to Taiwan. Vets first noticed Tuan Tuan (18) was ill in August when he began suffering seizures and appeared increasingly unsteady and lethargic. Subsequently other symptoms emerged and he was moved into palliative care. The gift of the pandas happened during the presidency of then Beijing-friendly leader Ma Ying-jeou. However, relations soured with new presidents in both the countries.

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It seems Beijing wants to remove the status quo vis-à-vis Taiwan

According to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, China wants to remove the status quo vis-à-vis Taiwan. In his opinion, Beijing has shifted gears. It is apparently pursuing unification with Taiwan "on a much faster timeline." This is evident from the opening speech at the Communist party Congress in Beijing. On this occasion, President Xi Jinping did not rule out using force to unify with Taiwan. China treats the self-ruled island as a part of its territory. However, Taiwan does not agree – it sees itself as distinct from the mainland. Incidentally, last month US President Joe Biden had indicated that US forces would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese attack. This is in spite of the fact that there exists ambiguity on the official US policy pertaining to Taiwan. During a recent event where previous Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was present, Antony Blinken said that Beijing could resort to alternate means like coercion and possible force if it failed to achieve unification by peaceful means. He went on to add - "That is what is profoundly disrupting the status quo and creating tremendous tensions." China-Taiwan: Beijing speeding up plans for unification, Blinken says.

Washington has always walked a diplomatic tightrope over the issue of Taiwan and China. Antony Blinken said that the US would honor its commitments to Taiwan and support the island's ability to defend itself. The official policy of the US does not commit to military action on Taiwan. However, President Biden has apparently gone against this stance. He has repeatedly emphasized that Washington would defend Taiwan. China is currently holding a twice-in-a-decade party congress. The expectation is that he would return to a historic third time in office. In his opening remarks, he insisted, "complete reunification of our country must and will be realized." Tensions between US and China have escalated in recent months, following a visit to Taipei by US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi. As a result, China conducted large-scale military exercises. Taiwan condemned it as "highly provocative."

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Warships of the U.S. enter the Taiwan Strait, adds to tension in the region

Tension between the United States and China spiked in the aftermath of the recent visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan. Two ships of the US Navy have now entered the Taiwan Strait. This is the first US naval transit in the waterway since the visit of Nancy Pelosi. The ships are guided-missile cruisers and the US 7th Fleet in Japan explained that the voyage was "through waters where high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law." They added that the transit was "ongoing" and that there had been "no interference from foreign military forces so far." Incidentally, the strait is a 110-mile stretch of water. It separates the democratic self-ruled island of Taiwan from mainland China. In the words of the US Navy, most of the strait is in international waters. However, Beijing argues that the strait is a part of its "internal waters." US sends two warships through Taiwan Strait, in first transit since Pelosi trip. An international law defines territorial waters as extending 12 nautical miles from the coastline of a country. However, the movement of guided missile destroyers of the US in the straits has drawn angry responses from Beijing.

After the visit of Nancy Pelosi, Beijing has ramped up military naval and aerial maneuvers in the strait. Soon after her arrival in Taiwan on August 2, the People’s Liberation Army PLA announced four days of military exercises in six zones around the island. The maneuvers included war like activities around Taiwan. Those exercises have officially ended but warplanes have continued to cross the median line on a daily basis. Taiwan's Defense Ministry confirms this with statistics. US Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, was the latest member of Congress to visit Taiwan. She defied pressure from Beijing and said - "I will not be bullied by Communist China into turning my back on the island." Even though she does not represent the Joe Biden administration, she reiterated her support for Taiwan. She said - "I will never kowtow to the Chinese Communist Party. I will continue to stand with the (Taiwanese) and their right to freedom and democracy. Xi Jinping doesn't scare me."

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Tension increases between the U.S. and China on Taiwan - Chinese warplanes visible

At present, Taiwan is self-ruled. However, in the opinion of China, it sees it as a breakaway province and in due course of time, it will reunite. Hence, China views the visit of US Speaker Nancy Pelosi with concern. She is the senior most US politician to visit the country in the last 25 years. She has already met Tsai Ing, President of Taiwan and China has condemned it. Her message is that America would remain beside Taiwan. This is in spite of China saying that the US would have to face consequences for the visit. Referring to the Taiwan Relations Act, Pelosi reminded that America had promised to support Taiwan. She reaffirmed that America will not abandon the commitment to Taiwan. Taiwan: Nancy Pelosi meets President Tsai to Beijing's fury.

Relation between Washington and Beijing has always been tense. Beijing views the visit of Pelosi as another sign of support for Taiwan. The President of Taiwan and Nancy Pelosi praised each other. Even as the US plane landed, Chinese military jets were visible around Taiwan. Initially, Taiwan denied that but later admitted that Chinese military planes had entered its air defense zone. Within a short time of Nancy’s arrival, China revealed that the People's Liberation Army would conduct live military drills in the air and at sea around Taiwan. That could lead to tension in the region.

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Even after two years, the mystery of the missing MH370 continues to baffle the world

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 had gone missing on 8 March, 2014, as it was en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing - there were 239 passengers and crew aboard. The plane suddenly vanished and the mysterious disappearance continues to baffle the whole world. Debris ave been retrieved from time to time from different locations and have been sent for analysis to establish links to MH370 - the latest in this is the debris found on the coast of Mozambique. This will also be sent to Australia to determine whether it belongs to missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 3 March 2016.

The latest discovery is by an American blogger who reportedly discovered the three-foot-long debris fragment on the east African coast earlier this week. It has, since, been handed over to the authorities as confirmed by the president of Mozambique's Civil Aviation Institute'. The find is believed to be part of an aircraft's tail known as a horizontal stabilizer.
Malaysia's Transport Minister has opined that initial indications suggest there is a "high possibility" it came from a Boeing 777, the same model of aircraft as MH370. Australia's Transport Minister also feels that the location of the possible find is consistent with oceanic drift models that are used to search for signs of the missing plane.
It may be recalled that in July a wing fragment was found on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion, with experts later determining that it came from MH370. That was the only confirmed find of debris during a two-year investigation into the missing plane.
In the opinion of experts MH370 might have veered sharply off course to the far-southern Indian Ocean before crashing into the sea.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Parts of lost plane MH370 of Malaysia Airline washes up on Reunion Island

It has been confirmed by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak that the debris that have washed up on the beaches of Reunion Island belong to the Boeing of flight MH370 that had gone missing 17 months back as it was on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
This has been reported in news.sky.com dated 6 August 2015.

There were 239 passengers and crew on board and relatives and family members of the missing are demanding that the matter cannot be treated as closed but that the search must go on to find the bodies - some are refusing to believe that their relatives were dead.
Australia is coordinating the search operations and PM Tony Abbott has said that it is vital for the truth to be unearthed because it concerns the safety of future air passengers.
He has also assured that the finding of the debris on Reunion Island will not affect the sonar search of a 46,000-square-mile expanse of seabed more than 2,500 miles east of Reunion Island. That search had begun in October last, has covered almost half that area without finding any clues.
A portion of the debris that looked like a portion of the wing was flown to France and its analysis has begun in Toulouse.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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Man fatally stabs four school children to death in China

It seems fatal stabbing of school children in China is becoming a habit that the authorities are getting used to. In the latest incident, a man fatally stabbed four elementary school students while they were on their way to school in southern China foxnews.com.
The attack took place in Lingshan County of Guanxi Province. Three of the children were killed instantly and the fourth one died later in hospital. The police are searching for 56-year-old suspect.
China is a country where it is difficult to lay hands on firearms and has witnessed many high-profile slashing attacks that have targeted schools over the past 10 years. Accordingly, security measures have been tightened security but little in the way of lasting policy changes. Of course, some cities including Beijing require ID and registration for the purchase of some kinds of knives.
It may be recalled that an attacker had killed three students in a knife attack at a school in Hubei province earlier this month. And, in May 2010, an attacker hacked seven children and one teacher to death and wounded 20 other people in a rampage at a kindergarten in northwest China.
At the time, it was the fifth in a string of savage assaults at the country's schools in three months. Incidentally, many of the attacks have been carried out by adults with no connection to the schools, and the authorities believe that the assailants suffered from mental illness or were lashing out at society because of some personal grudge.

Six months have passed and still the disappearance of MH370 remains a mystery

It is now six months past that the Malaysia Airlines Boeing-777 flight MH370 vanished into thin air with 239 people on board while on a routine flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing - 154 of them were Chinese passengers theguardian.com. The mystery is whether MH370 was hijacked, sabotaged, or disappeared due to some sort of personal or psychological problems of someone on-board the flight. Even now the wreckage of the Boeing has not been located and in spite of latest technologies available, no one has any clue. Obviously, questions arise - in an age when individuals can be tracked to a street by their smartphones, how can a huge Boeing-777 simply vanish en-route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, and fly on for hours, without anyone noticing? The search had once involved 26 countries and is now focusing on 60,000 sq km of the southern Indian Ocean seabed off the west coast of Australia – the cost is expected to be in the region of tens of millions of pounds. In the opinion of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the most likely scenario was that the flight coasted into the ocean on autopilot, with all 239 people on board – the pilots were unresponsive because of hypoxia which is often caused by depressurization. That theory leaves many gaps – it does not shed any light on the plane's unexplained deviation from its route. It had turned back across the Malaysian peninsula and then headed south. Investigators believe that it was deliberate because the communications systems appeared to have been disabled just as it left the country's airspace, moments before its sudden diversion.
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