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Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's top security summit, Austin said that open lines of communication between U.S. and Chinese defence and military leaders were essential to avoid conflict and bolster stability in the Asia-Pacific. "The more that we talk, the more that we can avoid the misunderstandings and miscalculations that could lead to crisis or conflict." China's Minister of National Defence Li Shangfu had this week declined an invitation to meet Austin at the security summit. On Friday, the two shook hands on the sidelines of the conference but did not hold detailed talks, the Pentagon said. "(AUKUS) promotes greater stability and security," Austin said.

Persons: Defense Lloyd Austin, Caroline Chia, Austin, Austin Austin, National Defence Li Shangfu, Antony Blinken, Liu Pengyu, General, Lei, Zhao Xiaozhuo, Zhao, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, Xinghui Kok, Joe Brock, Chen Lin, Gerry Doyle, Kanupriya Kapoor, Greg Torode, Ryan Woo, Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart, Yew, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Defense, REUTERS, United, People's, National Defence, Austin, Pentagon, Academy of Military Sciences, Global Times, U.S, China's Academy of Military Sciences, Australia, Thomson Locations: Singapore, China, Taiwan, Asia, Pacific SINGAPORE, United States, South China, People's Republic of China, U.S, Washington, TAIWAN, Beijing, Ukraine, Pacific, Australia, Japan, India, Philippines

☆ Southeast Asian defence pact helps 'balance' region, members say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Chen Lin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SINGAPORE, June 3 (Reuters) - Top officials from Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Britain said on Saturday that their 52-year-old Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) pact helped keep things in balance amid regional tensions. "The longstanding FPDA... always been an important part of ensuring signalling collective defence in this region," New Zealand defence minister Andrew Little said at a media briefing on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. As the tensions between the United States and China persist, the longstanding relationships among smaller nations are "what keep things in balance", Little said. "I'm comfortable continuing to keep things in balance as different countries including the major powers work out how the relationships are working," he added. Singaporean Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen, Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles, Malaysian Defence Minister Seri Mohamad Hasan, Little, and British defence minister Ben Wallace discussed the importance of the FPDA as a constructive and peaceful arrangement.

Persons: Andrew Little, Little, Ng Eng, Richard Marles, Seri Mohamad Hasan, Ben Wallace, Marles, Anthony Albanese, Lloyd Austin, Chen Lin, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Singaporean, Defence, Malaysian Defence, Australian, U.S . Defense, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Zealand, United States, China, Asia

☆ Asia security summit kicks off amid US-China tensions
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Joe Brock | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Shangri-La Dialogue, which attracts senior military officers, diplomats, weapons makers and security analysts from around the globe, is taking place June 2-4 in Singapore. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will deliver the keynote address on Friday evening, before U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and China's new Defence Minister Li Shangfu are expected to trade barbs in speeches over the weekend. Li, who was named China's new defence minister in March, was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018 over weapons purchases from Russia. The United States is Australia's biggest security ally, and Beijing has criticised a deal announced in March to buy U.S. nuclear-powered submarines. Australia’s defence chief has said that as great power competition in the region persists, his country is focused on deterring conflict and deepening engagement with partners, including Pacific island and South East Asian nations.

Persons: Dr Ng Eng Hen, Lloyd Austin, Anthony Albanese, Li Shangfu, Li, Austin . Li, National Intelligence Avril Haines, Zhu Qichao, Joe Brock, Greg Torode, Kanupriya Kapoor, Xinghui Kok, Chen Lin, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Kirsty Needham, Gerry Doyle Organizations: U.S . Defense, Singapore Ministry of Defence, REUTERS, Singapore . Australian, U.S, Defence, Austin, National Intelligence, China, New Zealand, Albanese Labor, ASEAN, South East, Thomson Locations: Singapore, REUTERS SINGAPORE, United States, China, Taiwan, South China, Washington, Beijing, U.S, Russia, American, ., AUSTRALIA, Australia, Britain, Canada, New, Pacific, South

☆ NATO official calls for transparency over nuclear weapons
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Greg Torode | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Johanna Geron/Pool/File PhotoSingapore, June 2 (Reuters) - A senior NATO official on Friday urged Beijing to be more open about its accelerating nuclear weapons build-up, saying that as a global power, China had a responsibility to improve transparency. "As a global power it has a global responsibility to be more transparent," Lapsley said, adding that the scale and pace of the Chinese build-up was "really striking". "NATO is open to dialogue, but it can't substitute dialogue between the U.S. and China," he said. The Pentagon's annual China report, released in November 2022, noted that Beijing's nuclear programme had gathered pace and now has more than 400 operational nuclear warheads - a figure still far below U.S. and Russian stockpiles. A nuclear power since the early 1960s, China for decades maintained a small number of nuclear warheads and missiles as a deterrent under a "no first use" pledge that remains its official policy despite Beijing's broader military modernisation under President Xi Jinping.

Persons: Johanna Geron, Angus Lapsley, Lapsley, Xi Jinping, Anthony Albanese, Greg Torode, Gerry Doyle Organizations: NATO, REUTERS, Atlantic Treaty, Defence Policy, U.S, Pentagon, People's Liberation Army, Australian, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Singapore, Beijing, China, Atlantic, United States, France, Britain, Australia

SYDNEY, June 2 (Reuters) - Australia's largest pension fund will pause use of the domestic unit of auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) as the "big four" firm reels from a national scandal over its use of confidential government tax plans to drum up work with global clients. The roughly A$290 billion ($196.71 billion) fund, AustralianSuper, has frozen new contracts with PwC and expressed concerns about the scandal "at the highest level", according to a spokesperson. An audit contract worth A$1.6 million in 2022, will be reviewed this year, the spokesperson added. The Reserve Bank of Australia on Wednesday froze future work while Treasury and the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority have hinted that the firm is blacklisted. The A$150 billion AwareSuper said the fund was working with PwC to determine whether tax advisers who had worked with the fund were implicated in the leak.

Persons: PwC, Lewis Jackson, Gerry Doyle Organizations: SYDNEY, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Reserve Bank of Australia, Wednesday, Treasury, Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority, Thomson Locations: Australia

☆ 'Path is open' for Ukraine to join NATO -British defence minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Gerry Doyle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, June 2 (Reuters) - Britain supports adding Ukraine to NATO and "that path is open" to them, although political realities may slow the process, Defence Minister Ben Wallace said on Friday on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security meetings in Singapore. "The best thing we can do to help Ukraine is now to help them defeat Russia," Wallace said in an interview. Ukraine's membership of NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, is on the agenda for the group's July summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. Hanna Shelest, director of Ukrainian Prism, a think tank specialising in foreign policy and international security, said in Singapore that NATO membership would be a political decision. "We are not expecting to see a strong decision (about Ukraine’s membership) at Vilnius," said Shelest, who is based in Ukraine.

Persons: Ben Wallace, Wallace, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Hanna Shelest, Shelest, Li Shangfu, Lloyd Austin, Jens Stoltenberg, Gerry Doyle, Kanupriya Kapoor, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: NATO, Defence, Atlantic Treaty Organisation, Kyiv, Storm, U.S, Defense, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, Britain, Ukraine, Singapore, Russia, Vilnius, Lithuania, Ukrainian, Moscow, London, Asia, United States, Australia, China

☆ Japan tells US it wants closer cooperation to deal with North Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada shake hands at the end of a joint press conference after their meeting at the Japanese Defense ministry in Tokyo, Japan, 01 June 2023. After Japan, Secretary of Defense Austin will travel to Singapore, India and... Read moreTOKYO, June 1 (Reuters) - Japan's Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada on Thursday told U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin he wanted to deepen security cooperation with Washington and South Korea after North Korea's failed rocket launch. "We need to strengthen ties between Japan and the U.S. and also between Japan, the U.S. and ROK (Republic of Korea), as it possible that North Korea launches again," Hamada told Austin at a meeting in TokyoAustin was in Japan on a stopover on his way to Singapore for the Shangri-La Dialogue Asian security summit. The failed North Korean launch of what it said was a military satellite on Thursday prompted emergency alerts in parts of Japan and South Korea, with residents warned to take cover. Austin told Hamada he wanted to bolster cooperation between their alliance, South Korea and Australia, as they also face challenges posed by China and Russia.

Persons: Defense Lloyd Austin, Yasukazu Hamada, Defense Austin, Read, Lloyd Austin, Hamada, Austin, Tim Kelly, Mariko Katsumura, Tom Hogue, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Defense, Japanese Defense, Japan's Defense, Thursday, U.S . Defense, ROK, Korea, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, Singapore, India, TOKYO, Washington, South Korea, North, U.S, Republic of Korea, Tokyo Austin, France, Australia, China, Russia

☆ US Defense Secretary Austin says China's meeting snub unfortunate
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Tim Kelly | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin reviews the guard of honour at the Japanese Defense Ministry in Tokyo, Japan, 01 June 2023. After Japan, Secretary of Defense Austin will travel to Singapore, India and France. Austin stopped in Tokyo on his way to the annual Shangri-La Dialogue Asian security summit, which starts in Singapore on Friday. At their meeting in Tokyo, Austin and Hamada said they had discussed North Korea's rocket launch on Wednesday, tensions with China and Russia's attack on Ukraine. "North Korea's dangerous and destabilising nuclear and missile programs threaten peace and stability in the region," Austin said.

Persons: Defense Lloyd Austin, Defense Austin, FRANCK ROBICHON, Lloyd Austin, Austin, of National Defence Li Shangfu, Li, Yasukazu Hamada, Hamada, Tim Kelly, Mariko Katsumura, Tom Hogue, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Defense, Japanese Defense Ministry, REUTERS, . Defense, of National Defence, Austin, Japanese Defence, Ukraine, ASEAN, Association of Southeast Asia, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, Singapore, India, France, REUTERS TOKYO, U.S, Chinese, South China, China, Austin, Ukraine, North Korea, South Korea, Russia, Australia, Korea, United States, Republic of Korea, Association of Southeast Asia Nations

☆ New North Korean space rocket features engine from ICBMs, analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] A still photograph shows what appears to be North Korea's new Chollima-1 rocket being launched in Cholsan County, North Korea, May 31, 2023 in this image released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency and taken from video. "It appears to make use of an engine that appeared in an earlier North Korean intercontinental-range ballistic missile." The Chollima-1 appears to be a medium-lift space launch vehicle intended for delivering small satellites to low earth orbit. "In this case we do have a fairly large payload fairing compared to the earlier North Korean space launch vehicles," Panda said. South Korea said it was working to recover parts of the North Korean rocket, releasing photos that showed what analysts said appeared to be a section designed to join two stages, and a liquid propellant tank inside.

Persons: Joseph Dempsey, Panda, Korea's, Josh Smith, Gerry Doyle Organizations: North, Korean Central News Agency, REUTERS, Carnegie Endowment, International, North Korean, International Institute for Strategic Studies, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Cholsan County, North Korea, REUTERS SEOUL, U.S, Korea's, Soviet, United States, Korea, South Korea, South

SINGAPORE, June 1 (Reuters) - Tensions between the United States and China are expected to loom over Asia's top security meeting this week, as China has declined a bilateral meeting between the superpowers' defence chiefs. The Shangri-La Dialogue, which attracts top defence officials, senior military officers, diplomats, weapons makers and security analysts from around the globe, will take place June 2-4 in Singapore. More than 600 delegates from 49 countries will attend the meeting, which opens with a keynote address by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. China's new Defence Minister Li Shangfu, however, has declined to meet U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, the Pentagon said on Monday. Other key issues that are likely to be discussed include ongoing tensions in the disputed South China Sea and East China Seas.

Persons: Anthony Albanese, Li Shangfu, Lloyd Austin, General Li, Li, Xi Jinping, Zhang Youxia, Drew Thompson, Lee, Thompson, Chong Ja Ian, Lynn Kuok, Kuok, Xinghui Kok, Greg Torode, Raju Gopalakrishnan, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Australian, Defence, U.S, Pentagon, Central Military Commission, Lee Kuan Yew, of Public, National University of Singapore, NUS, International Institute for Strategic Studies, East China Seas, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, United States, China, Singapore, Beijing, U.S, Ukraine, Taiwan, North, Korean, Russia, East, Britain, Australia, Japan, India

Companies Toyota Motor Corp FollowTOKYO, May 31 (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) said on Wednesday that information on customers in some countries in Oceana and Asia, excluding Japan, may have been left publicly accessible from October 2016 to May 2023. Toyota is investigating the issue based on the laws and regulations of each country, a company spokesperson said. Toyota did not say how many customers were affected by the incident, in which countries they are located exactly, and whether customers of its luxury Lexus brand were affected. Only part of customers' information may have been externally accessible, the company said. The company initially uncovered the incident announced this month by chance, during inspections that started on April 7, the spokesperson said.

Persons: Daniel Leussink, Tom Hogue, Jacqueline Wong, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, Toyota Connected Corp, Toyota, Lexus, Thomson Locations: Oceana, Asia, Japan

That vote underscored the need for Democrats to help pass the measure in the House, which is controlled by Republicans with a narrow 222-213 majority. The Congressional Budget Office also said the measure, if enacted into law, would reduce interest on the public debt by $188 billion. Many Democrats in Congress did not want Biden to engage in budget-cutting negotiations with Republicans until they lifted their hold on enacting a debt limit bill. Jacquelyn Martin/Pool via REUTERS/File PhotoWhite House Budget Director Shalanda Young, who was one of Biden's lead negotiators, urged Congress to pass the bill. The debt-ceiling standoff prompted ratings agencies to warn that they might downgrade U.S. debt, which underpins the global financial system.

Persons: Joe Biden, Kevin McCarthy, Chip Roy, Ralph Norman, Biden, McCarthy, we've, Wednesday's, Hakeem Jeffries, Calif, Jacquelyn Martin, Shalanda Young, Biden's, Young, Republican Mike Lee, White, Moira Warburton, David Morgan, Richard Cowan, Steve Holland, Gram Slattery, Scott Malone, Mark Porter, Matthew Lewis, Gerry Doyle, Himani Organizations: Republicans, Senate, Treasury Department, Treasury, Congressional, Republican, Democratic, Capitol, Internal Revenue Service, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington

SEOUL, May 31 (Reuters) - Rare wailing air raid sirens and mobile phone alerts calling for evacuations rattled residents of the South Korean capital, Seoul, early on Wednesday after North Korea launched what it said was a satellite. North Korea launched the rocket southward, South Korea's military said, prompting emergency alerts and evacuation warnings in parts of South Korea and Japan. [1/2] People watch a TV broadcasting a news report on North Korea firing what it called a space satellite toward the south, in Seoul, South Korea, May 31, 2023. The two countries are still technically at war seven decades after the Korean War ended in an armistice. "Alerts" and "evacuation" were the most trending topics on Twitter in South Korea on Wednesday morning, with confused tweets scrambling to grasp what was going on or to find evacuation areas.

Persons: Lee Juyeon, Lee, Kim Hong, Kim Jong, Ed Davies, Lincoln, Gerry Doyle Organizations: North, REUTERS, Twitter, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, Seoul, North Korea, South, South Korea, Japan, Korean, Seoul's

☆ Beyond the Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museums says 'we are much more'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Barbara Jatta, director of the Vatican Museums, speaks to a reporter during the opening of a new exhibit of ceramic jars and other utensils used in a 17th century pharmacy that was once at the Benedictine monastery, at the Vatican, May 25, 2023. Jatta wants visitors to slow down and enjoy such... Read moreVATICAN CITY, May 30 (Reuters) - Barbara Jatta, the first woman to head the Vatican Museums, wants visitors to avoid being suffocated by the crowds and take in the lesser-known - but spectacular - attractions she helps to oversee. The Vatican Museums, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that closed or limited openings during the COVID-19 pandemic, have almost returned to their pre-pandemic level of about six million visitors a year. Many, particularly day trippers on fast-paced package tours of Rome, head straight for the Sistine Chapel, bypassing the museums' other wonders. She added that the museums, which close at 6 p.m. on most days, may extend opening hours.

Persons: Barbara Jatta, Jatta, Read, Cecilia, Luca Pesante, Raphael, Pope Francis, Philip Pullella, Gerry Doyle, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Vatican, CITY, UNESCO, Heritage, Sistine, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Vatican, Rome, Rome's Trastevere

☆ China launches Shenzhou-16 mission to Chinese space station - state media
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

China Daily via REUTERSBEIJING, May 30 (Reuters) - China sent three astronauts to its now fully operational space station as part of crew rotation on Tuesday in the fifth manned mission to the Chinese space outpost since 2021, state media reported. The astronauts on Shenzhou-16 will replace the three-member crew of the Shenzhou-15, who arrived at the space station late in November. China has already announced plans to expand its permanently inhabited space outpost, with the next module slated to dock with the current T-shaped space station to create a cross-shaped structure. Leading the Shenzhou-16 mission was Jing Haipeng, 56, a senior spacecraft pilot from China's first batch of astronaut trainees in the late 1990s. Also by the end of 2023, China is due to a launch space telescope the size of a large bus.

South Korean companies do not disclose the unit prices for their weapons, which are often sold with support vehicles and spare parts. That will include building South Korean arms on license in Poland, officials in Seoul and Warsaw said. "It may work for some countries at very, very low volume," he added of Polish-brokered South Korean weapons sales, discussing challenges the joint operation might face. The 2022 arms deal began with South Korean companies signing a framework agreement with the Polish government. Seoul has since approved at least some South Korean weapons components for use in Ukraine.

☆ North Korea says it will launch its first military spy satellite in June
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Soo-Hyang Choi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, May 30 (Reuters) - North Korea will launch its first military reconnaissance satellite in June for monitoring U.S. military activities, state media KCNA reported on Tuesday. Nuclear-armed North Korea has said it has completed development of its first military spy satellite, and leader Kim Jong Un has approved final preparations for the launch. The statement did not specify the exact launch date, but North Korea has notified Japan of the planned launch between May 31 and June 11, prompting Tokyo to put its ballistic missile defences on alert. A U.S. State Department spokesperson said on Monday any North Korean launch that uses ballistic missile technology, including those used to put a satellite in orbit, would violate multiple United Nations resolutions. Analysts say the satellite will improve North Korea's surveillance capability, enabling it to strike targets more accurately in the event of war.

☆ China says it will make efforts for political solution to Ukraine crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, May 27 (Reuters) - China will make concrete efforts for a political solution to the Ukraine crisis, the Chinese foreign ministry quoted special envoy Li Hui as saying on Saturday. China has always adhered to an objective and fair position on Ukraine, argued for peace and promoted talks, Li was quoted as telling Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Li's visit to Russia was the final stop in a multi-country tour that Beijing said was aimed at discussing a "political settlement" to the Ukraine crisis. Li said China will strengthen exchanges and dialogues with all parties, including Russia, according to the readout from the foreign ministry. Reporting by Ella Cao and Bernard Orr; Editing by Kim Coghill and Gerry DoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Meta hit with record $1.3 bln fine over data transfers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Padraic Halpin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The fine, imposed by Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), came after Meta continued to transfer data beyond a 2020 EU court ruling that invalidated an EU-U.S. data transfer pact. It tops the previous record EU privacy fine of 746 million euros handed by Luxembourg to Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) in 2021. "Without the ability to transfer data across borders, the internet risks being carved up into national and regional silos," Meta said. Europe's top court, the European Court of Justice, threw out the two previous pacts over concerns about U.S. surveillance. Unless U.S. surveillance laws gets fixed, Meta will likely have to keep EU data in the EU," he said in a statement.

☆ Abu Dhabi identifies $2 billion in investment opportunities in South Korea
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, May 22 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi organisations have identified about $2 billion of investment opportunities in South Korea after the two sides agreed to expand business ties in January, a joint statement said on Monday. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) pledged during South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's visit to Abu Dhabi in January to invest up to $30 billion in the Asian country in sectors including energy and information technology. "To date, Abu Dhabi organisations have helped identify approximately $2 billion of potential investment opportunities in Korea," read the statement on Monday from Korea Development Bank and Mubadala Investment Company. The two agencies have been exploring follow-up investment since the summit. Editing by Gerry DoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India says defence production exceeds $12 billion for first time
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] India's "Akash" missiles, mounted on a truck, are displayed during Republic Day parade in New Delhi, India, January 26, 2020. India, the world's largest arms importer in the past decade, depends on Russia for nearly half of its military supplies. The value of India's local defence production jumped to 1.07 trillion rupees in the year that ended on March 31 and was expected to rise further once data from some private defence companies came in, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement. "The government is continuously working with defence industries and their associations to remove the challenges faced by them and promote defence production in the country," the ministry said. India's defence exports have risen too, jumping 24% to about 160 billion rupees last fiscal year, according to government data.

☆ North Korea criticises US, South Korea military drills as 'nuclear blackmail'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Hyonhee Shin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, May 19 (Reuters) - North Korea accused the U.S. and South Korea of ramping up "nuclear blackmail" with joint military drills, pledging to take corresponding action against what it called "warmongers' madness," state media KCNA said on Friday. North Korea has reacted angrily to the exercises, calling them a rehearsal for invasion. This week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected a military satellite station, saying successfully launching a spy satellite is an "urgent requirement of the prevailing security environment". Kim has said he prioritised a spy satellite programme as part of efforts to advance surveillance technology to improve the country's ability to strike targets in a crisis. The reclusive country in December conducted what it called an important "final phase" test for a spy satellite and said it would complete preparations for the launch by April.

The bill passed the opposition-led parliament last month, prompting protests from some medical workers who said the new law would open the door for nurses to provide treatment without a medical license. Nurses say that the doctors' claim is groundless, and that the country needs more care centres to cope with its rapidly aging population. In vetoing the bill, Yoon said that the new law caused excessive conflict among medical workers, and that nursing practices outside medical institutions would cause public anxiety over the healthcare system. The Korean Nurses Association, which led the walkout, strongly denounced Yoon, saying he abandoned his promise as a presidential candidate to improve nurses' working conditions. The impact of the strike was seen as limited so far, as most protesters used holiday time or shortened business hours, with major hospitals operating normally.

☆ Berkshire Hathaway boosts stake in Occidental Petroleum to 24.4%
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 18 (Reuters) - Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) said on Thursday it had acquired more shares of Occidental Petroleum Corp (OXY.N), boosting its stake in the oil company to 24.4%. In a regulatory filing, the conglomerate controlled by billionaire Warren Buffett said it paid about $201 million for 3.46 million Occidental shares between May 16 and 18. Berkshire has bought Occidental shares on each of the last six trading days, paying about $327 million for 5.62 million shares. Berkshire also owns approximately $9.5 billion of Occidental preferred stock carrying an 8% annual dividend, plus warrants to buy $5 billion of Occidental common shares at $59.62 each. He also tried to end speculation that Berkshire might buy Occidental and further diversify its own energy portfolio.

☆ Alberta wildfires hit gas flow out of Canada to US, spiking prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] Smoke rises above the southeast perimeter of the Paskwa fire (HWF030) as it burns near Fox Lake, Alberta, Canada May 16, 2023. Alberta Wildfire/Handout via REUTERSOTTAWA, May 18 (Reuters) - Alberta officials on Thursday warned more wildfires could spread in next few hot and dry days, even as firefighters make progress in tackling widespread blazes that have slowed the outflow of natural gas from Canada into the United States, spiking prices. There were about 92 active wildfires and over 10,000 people out of their homes as of Thursday, Alberta officials told a daily briefing. "Firefighters can experience challenging conditions in hot, dry and windy weather, but progress has been made on many active wildfires," said Christie Tucker, information unit manager at Alberta Wildfire. "We are expecting and preparing for more active wildfire behavior today and over the next few days," she said.

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