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Every weekend, Asia Pacific Daily will provide you with a run-down of the latest hot news.
This week, the following hot news you should know:
Top 1 | Biden speaks to Swedish PM, Finnish president amid NATO push
The United States President Joe Biden spoke to Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Finnish President Sauli Niinisto on Friday, the White House said, as the two countries signal their intent to join NATO.
Niinisto said on Twitter that he had explained "Finland's next steps" towards becoming part of the transatlantic defense group, and that his country "deeply appreciates all the necessary support from the U.S."
Finland's leaders on Thursday said they're in favor of rapidly applying for NATO membership, paving the way for a historic expansion of the alliance.
Top 2 | Macron names Elisabeth Borne as new French Prime Minister
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday named Elisabeth Borne as the new Prime Minister, making her only the second woman to hold the position in the country's history.
Borne, 61, takes over from Jean Castex who resigned earlier on Monday
A statement issued by the Élysée noted that Borne would now be charged with forming a government.
Until her appointment, the only other woman to serve as France's Prime Minister was Edith Cresson between May 1991 and April 1992 under president Francois Mitterrand.
Top 3 | China's embassy in UK urges G7 to mind their own affairs
The Chinese Embassy in Britain on Monday urged the Group of Seven (G7) countries to mind their own affairs well, solve their own human rights problems and do something useful to restore peace in Europe.
The G7 foreign ministers' meeting recently issued a communique, which contains China-related contents concerning Taiwan, Xinjiang and maritime affairs. The G7 members expressed concerns over the aforementioned issues and asked China not to support Russia amid the Ukraine crisis.
Commenting on the communique, a spokesperson for the embassy said, "China expresses strong dissatisfaction with and firm opposition to the words and actions of the G7."
Top 4 | U.S. 'securitizes' Asia-Pacific in face of non-alignment, neutrality
On the second day of the White House Summit with ASEAN member states, Joe Biden's administration adopted policies aimed at "securitizing" Asia-Pacific while targeting China in the process. This attempt to coax ASEAN members has once again exposed America's actual intentions for the region.
However, the organization continued with its unwavering commitment to non-alignment and neutrality with little appetite for American machinations.
Yet the United States has sought to "securitize" the discourse and ensure that all ASEAN states align their policies with camp politics against China. This strategy is bound to fail.
Top 5 | China calls on ROK to work together to fend off a new Cold War
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Park Jin, the new foreign minister of the Republic of Korea (ROK), via video link on Monday. During the meeting, he urged the two countries to "guard against the risks of the new Cold War and oppose camp confrontation."
"Standing at a new starting point, we should grasp the right direction and create a new 30 years of greater development of China-ROK relations," Wang said, stressing that the two countries opened a new chapter of cooperation 30 years ago.
Noting that China always viewed the ROK and China-ROK relations from a strategic and overall perspective, Wang said their bilateral relations have experienced ups and downs and achieved leapfrog development, benefiting both peoples and promoting regional stability and prosperity.
Top 6 | Hassan Sheikh Mohamud wins Somali presidential election
Former Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was re-elected as the 10th president of Somalia, defeating incumbent President Mohamed Farmajo in the third round of vote held in capital Mogadishu on Sunday.
Farmajo's mandate ended in February last year but he stayed on amid a delay in the holding of parliamentary elections.
Mohamud, 67, who was previously president from 2012-2017, becomes the first president to be elected twice in the history of Somalia.
Top 7 |China's industrial profits up 4.0% in first four months
The profits for China's major industrial enterprises rose 4 percent year on year in the first four months of this year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Monday.
Major industrial companies in the country refer to those with an annual business turnover of at least 20 million yuan from their main operations.
Top 8 | UK, Norwegian PMs discuss security, energy cooperation
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson met with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store in Downing Street on Friday.
The leaders discussed extensive cooperation in the security, green transition, energy and business sectors.
Johnson and Store also signed a joint declaration to promote bilateral strategic cooperation between the UK and Norway.
Top 9 | Sweden's ruling party backs joining NATO, paving way for bid
Sweden's ruling Social Democratic Party said on Sunday that they support the country's application to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
"The party board has, at its meeting on May 15, 2022, decided that the party will work toward Sweden applying for membership in NATO," the leadership said in a statement.
It came after the Finnish government
officially announced
its application for NATO membership on Sunday, breaking away from a tradition of non-alignment and neutrality.
Top 10 | Turkey stands in way of Finland and Sweden's bids to join NATO
After an intense political process, Finland and Sweden handed in their formal requests for North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO membership on Wednesday.
The bids were warmly received by Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, as he welcomed NATO ambassadors from both countries to the bloc's headquarters in Brussels.
Having previously served as Prime Minister of Norway, Stoltenberg said the decisions of his Nordic neighbors to join NATO come at "a critical moment for our [Norway's] security."
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
