Category: 2. World

KUALA LUMPUR: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday that Asian nations might get “better” tariff rates than the rest of the world, as he attended Asean talks focused on Washington’s trade war.

Rubio’s visit to Malaysia came after US President Donald Trump threatened this week to impose punitive tariffs on more than 20 countries if they did not strike deals with Washington by Aug 1.

“I would say that when all is said and done, many of the countries in Southeast Asia are going to have tariff rates that are actually better than countries in other parts of the world,” Rubio said on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

“But these talks continue. There’ll be talks next week with Japan. There’s ongoing talks with virtually every country represented here.”

Trump said on Monday that duties he had suspended in April would snap back — even more steeply — by the new deadline.

He has told more than 20 countries, many in Asia, they face tariffs ranging from 20 to 50 per cent, and announced a 50pc toll on copper imports and a possible 200pc duty on pharmaceuticals.

Among those targeted were top trade partners Japan and South Korea, which could each be hit with 25pc.

Indonesia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Myanmar _ all members of Asean _ face duties ranging from 20 pc to 40pc.

Vietnam, which is also an Asean member, is one of only two countries _ Britain being the other _ to have reached a tentative agreement with Trump.

The levels were not too far from those originally threatened in April, although some were notably lower this time.

`Not going to walk away’

US officials said ahead of Rubio’s trip that Washington was “prioritising” its commitment to East and Southeast Asia.

In Malaysia, Rubio said the United States has “no intention of abandoning” the region.

“We’ve spent decades building these relationships,” Rubio told reporters.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2025

GENEVA: The UN warned on Thursday that Washington was setting a “dangerous precedent” by imposing sanctions on a UN expert for criticising US policy on Gaza and called for the cancellation of the action.

United Nations rights chief Volker Turk also called for a halt to “attacks and threats” against people appointed by the UN and international institutions like the International Criminal Court, whose judges have also been hit with US sanctions.

“I urge the prompt reversal of US sanctions against a special rapporteur of the UN Human Rights Council, Francesca Albanese, in response to work she has undertaken under the mandate on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory,” Turk said in a statement.

UN chief Antonio Guterres’s spokesman meanwhile insisted that “the imposition of sanctions on special rapporteurs is a dangerous precedent”.

The use of unilateral sanctions against any UN expert or official “is unacceptable”, spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday announced that Washington was sanctioning the outspoken Albanese “for her illegitimate and shameful efforts to prompt (ICC) action against US and Israeli officials, companies, and executives”. Albanese said the sanctions were “calculated to weaken my mission”.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2025

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart will meet Thursday in Malaysia for what could be a testy conversation as tensions between the countries rise over Moscow’s increasing attacks on Ukraine and questions about whether Russia’s leader is serious about a peace deal.

Rubio and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are to see each other in Kuala Lumpur, where both men are attending the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, which brings together all 10 ASEAN members and their most important diplomatic partners, including Russia, China, Japan, South Korea, the Europeans and the U.S.

The meeting will be their second face-to-face encounter since Rubio took office, although they have spoken by phone several times. Their first meeting came in February in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as the Trump administration sought to test both Russia and Ukraine on their willingness to make peace.

This one is set to take place shortly after the U.S. resumed some shipments of defensive weapons to Ukraine following a pause — ostensibly for the Pentagon to review domestic munitions stocks — that was cheered in Moscow.

The resumption comes as Russia fires escalating air attacks on Ukraine and as U.S. President Donald Trump has become increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Putin is not, he’s not treating human beings right,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting Tuesday, explaining the pause’s reversal. “It’s killing too many people. So we’re sending some defensive weapons to Ukraine, and I’ve approved that.”

Rubio was also seeing other foreign ministers, including many whose countries face tariffs set to be imposed on Aug. 1. The tariff threat could overshadow the top diplomat’s first official trip to Asia, just as the U.S. seeks to boost relations with Indo-Pacific nations to counter China’s growing influence in the region.

Rubio sought to assuage concerns as he held group talks with ASEAN foreign ministers.

“The Indo Pacific, the region, remains a focal point of U.S. foreign policy,” he told them. “When I hear in the news that perhaps the United States or the world might be distracted by events in other parts of the planet, I would say distraction is impossible, because it is our strong view and the reality that this century and the story of next 50 years will largely be written here in this region.”

“These are relationships and partnerships that we intend to continue to build on without seeking the approval or the permission of any other actor in the region of the world,” he said in an apparent reference to China.

Trump notified several countries on Monday and Wednesday that they will face higher tariffs if they don’t make trade deals with the U.S. Among them are eight of ASEAN’s 10 members.

U.S. State Department officials said tariffs and trade won’t be Rubio’s focus during the meetings, which Trump’s Republican administration hopes will prioritize maritime safety and security in the South China Sea, where China has become increasingly aggressive toward its small neighbors, as well as combating transnational crime.

But Rubio may be hard-pressed to avoid the tariff issue that has vexed some of Washington’s closest allies and partners in Asia, including Japan and South Korea and most members of ASEAN, which Trump says would face 25% tariffs if there’s no deal.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has warned that global trade is being weaponized to coerce weaker nations. Speaking at an ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting on Wednesday, Anwar urged the bloc to strengthen regional trade and reduce reliance on external powers.

Rubio’s “talking points on the China threat will not resonate with officials whose industries are being battered by 30-40% tariffs,” said Danny Russel, vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute and a former assistant secretary of state for East Asia and the Pacific during the Obama administration.

When Anwar said “ASEAN will approach challenges ‘as a united bloc’ — he wasn’t talking about Chinese coercion but about U.S. tariffs,” Russel noted.

Among ASEAN states, Trump has so far announced tariffs on almost all of the 10 members of the bloc, which would face a 25% tariff that could specifically hit its electronics and electrical product exports to the United States.

Trade Minister Zafrul Aziz said Wednesday that while Malaysia is ready to resume tariff negotiations, it wouldn’t cross its red lines, including U.S. requests for changes to government procurement, halal certification, medical standards and digital taxes.

Trump sent tariff letters to two more ASEAN members Wednesday: Brunei, whose imports would be taxed at 25%, and the Philippines at 20%. Others hit this week include Cambodia at 36%, Indonesia at 32%, Laos at 40%, Malaysia at 25%, Myanmar at 40% and Thailand at 36%.

Vietnam recently agreed to a trade deal for a 20% tariffs on its imports, while Singapore still faces a 10% tariff that was imposed in April. The Trump administration has courted most Southeast Asian nations in a bid to blunt or at least temper China’s push to dominate the region.

In Kuala Lumpur, Rubio also will likely come face-to-face with China’s foreign minister during his brief visit of roughly 36 hours.

Russel noted that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is a veteran of such gatherings and “fluent in ASEAN principles and conventions,” while Rubio “is a rookie trying to sell an ‘America First’ message to a deeply skeptical audience.”

Issues with China, including on trade, human rights, the militarization of the South China Sea and China’s support for Russia in Ukraine, remain substantial.

U.S. officials continue to accuse China of resupplying and revamping Russia’s military industrial sector, allowing it to produce additional weapons that it can use to attack Ukraine.

Earlier on Thursday, Rubio signed a memorandum on civilian nuclear energy memorandum with Malaysia’s foreign minister, which will pave the way for negotiations on a more formal nuclear cooperation deal, known as a 123 agreement after the section of U.S. law that allows them.

Such agreements allow the U.S. and U.S. companies to work with and invest in civilian energy nuclear programs in other countries under strict supervision.

___

Eileen Ng contributed to this report from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

EDITORIAL: The irony could not be more exquisite. Russia has become the first country to formally recognise the Taliban regime in Afghanistan — three decades after the Soviet Union was bled out of the same country by the Taliban’s ideological forebears.

The mujahideen, funded and armed by the West, fought what was then a global superpower to a humiliating retreat. The conflict helped unravel the USSR. Now, Russia returns not as occupier but as legitimiser, handing the Taliban the one thing they have desperately sought since seizing Kabul in 2021: international recognition.

From Moscow’s point of view, this is less nostalgia and more realpolitik. With the West distracted, relations frozen over Ukraine, and Central Asia in play again, Russia sees value in establishing formal ties with the new Afghan order. It gets a toehold in a strategically important region, potential insulation from Islamist extremism spilling over its own Muslim-majority republics, and a chance to check US influence. For the Taliban, of course, this is a breakthrough. One embassy signboard changed from “Chargé d’affaires” to “Ambassador” signals the potential beginning of legitimacy on the world stage.

But legitimacy comes with responsibility, and that’s where the Taliban regime continues to fall short — especially in its dealings with neighbours. None more so than Pakistan.

Despite hosting millions of Afghan refugees for over four decades and bearing the long-term consequences of the war next door, Pakistan now finds itself under attack from elements operating out of Afghan territory. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), designated a terrorist organisation by Islamabad, continues to launch cross-border attacks with impunity. Security agencies have raised alarm after alarm, insisting that the TTP enjoys safe haven across the Durand Line. Yet Kabul has done little more than offer vague denials and noncommittal statements.

This is not how a responsible government behaves, especially one that claims to represent the interests of the Afghan people and seeks broader recognition from the international community. For all its rhetoric about self-reliance and sovereignty, the Taliban leadership must understand that the path to recognition runs through regional stability and counterterrorism credibility.

Russia may have turned the page, but others won’t be so quick. China remains cautious. The West, while weary of its own failed occupation, is still not prepared to deal with a regime that suppresses women’s rights, restricts civil liberties, and offers sanctuary to transnational jihadists. Even the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has not gone beyond cautious engagement.

Afghanistan needs more friends. It needs trade, aid, and development support. But those will only follow when the regime in Kabul stops acting like an insurgency in power and starts behaving like a responsible state. That includes dealing decisively with groups like the TTP that threaten regional peace.

Pakistan, for its part, has exercised more patience than most. But that patience is wearing thin. Islamabad cannot indefinitely tolerate cross-border militancy, especially when its own internal security is fraying and its economy remains on life support. If the Taliban continue to ignore Pakistan’s concerns, they risk isolating themselves further — even from their last remaining friends.

Russia’s recognition may give the Taliban a diplomatic headline. But one endorsement does not a government make. The road to legitimacy is long and uneven, and it runs through hard choices. Afghanistan must decide whether it wants to be seen as a state or remain a rogue outpost shielded by ideology and inertia.

So far, the Taliban have benefited from the world’s fatigue with Afghanistan. But fatigue does not equal forgiveness. And recognition, even from a former foe, is not a free pass. If the Taliban are serious about being accepted as a legitimate government, then they must act like one — starting with protecting their neighbours from threats operating under their watch.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025

It is ironic that countries and people with the lightest ecological footprints are bearing the biggest brunt of climate change. While the global community is still reeling from the rise of climate-denying politicians and struggling to shore up alternative sources of climate related financing, the way the existing climate change policies are being implemented also needs a major rethink.

There is ample evidence to demonstrate how a lack of resources increases exposure to the consequences of climate change, and limits the ability of ordinary citizens, and even nations, to adapt to climate-related impacts. However, the climate related vulnerabilities of poor people and poorer nations are not uniform.

Yet, the global discourse on climate change assumes that all forms of climate action invariably help poorer countries and poorer people, so everyone must play along with whatever policy prescriptions are formulated by those in positions of power. Motivated by this rationale, global institutions like World Bank, IMF and even the UN have pushed homogenous climate policies such as carbon credit schemes to deal with global warming. The lingering dependence of poorer countries on donors makes them unable to push back against one-size-fits-all prescriptions, even if such impositions do not offer locally informed choices to deal with climate change.

The dearth of data on climate impacts within the global south also increases reliance on foreign experts, which then reinforces the use of top-down policy prescriptions. Poorer countries rely on donors not just for funding climate mitigation efforts, but also for climate-related research.

To be effective, climate action must be anchored in domestic political realities. Without adequate local ownership, climate commitments readily dissipate when donor funding dries up. For instance, signing onto pledges to limit deforestation is not enough. Political capital is needed to conserve forests, which cannot be created by foreign experts, if, for example, illegal logging provides a source of major revenue for local communities, whose votes are vital for local politicians.

Forest conservation also needs to recognise linkages between deforestation and subsistence farming requirements of local communities, which is also a major cause for encroachment on forest lands. Without investing in alternative sources of income, or identifying more sustainable methods of growing food, forest conservation schemes can undermine the welfare of local populations, which increases the chances of such efforts being subverted.

To tackle the global warming crisis, climate policies in the global south need to pay greater heed to the impact of climate mitigation strategies on local communities. More effective climate policies must be rooted in the idea of improving households’ material conditions while tackling climate threats. Exacerbating marginalisation via exclusionary mitigation strategies, such as paying local elites to conserve forests for earning carbon credits, is not a viable climate strategy.

Climate policies need to be more flexible and pay more heed to local contexts. While recognising the need for global consensus to coordinate action across different countries is important, climate policies must be participatory and be able to incorporate alternative perspectives. Building viable coalitions which can adhere to common-sense approaches to climate mitigation is more sensible.

The tendency to consider climate policies from a myopic technocratic lens is a recipe for failure. Greater efforts must be made to anchor climate policies in the domestic politics of individual countries. International development entities spearheading climate adaptation must learn to relinquish control. And poorer countries need to proactively provide solutions of greater relevance to their local environments, and these solutions must in turn be informed by voices of specific communities in whose name climate mitigation efforts are being implemented. Meaningful climate actions cannot succeed without garnering popular support.

The bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities led to a 12-day war

Updated On: Thu, 10 Jul 2025

23:56:46 PKT

DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran’s president said on Thursday the UN nuclear watchdog should drop its “double standards” if Tehran is to resume cooperation with it over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear programme, Iranian state media reported.

President Masoud Pezeshkian last week enacted a law suspending cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the IAEA said it had pulled its last remaining inspectors out of Iran.

Relations between Iran and the IAEA have worsened since the United States and Israel bombed Iranian nuclear facilities in June, saying they wanted to prevent Tehran developing an atomic weapon. Iran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes only and denies seeking atomic weapons.

“The continuation of Iran’s cooperation with the agency (IAEA) depends of the latter correcting its double standards regarding the nuclear file,” state media quoted Pezeshkian as telling European Council President Antonio Costa by phone.

“Any repeated aggression (against Iran) will be met with a more decisive and regrettable response,” he said.

Tehran accuses the IAEA of failing to condemn the attacks by the United States and Israel, and says the nuclear watchdog paved the way for the bombing by issuing a resolution declaring Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations.

“Failure to observe the principle of impartiality in reporting is one of the examples that casts doubt on the status and credibility of the IAEA,” Pezeshkian said.

The bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities led to a 12-day war, during which Iran launched drones and missiles at Israel.

IAEA inspectors have not been able to inspect Iran’s facilities since the bombing campaign, even though IAEA chief Rafael Grossi has said it is his top priority.