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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 |** French President Macron arrives in Beijing on state visit**
French President Emmanuel Macron has arrived in Beijing to kick off his state visit to China from April 5 to 7.
According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, during Macron's visit, Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet with his French counterpart to map out the future development of bilateral relations, deepen China-France and China-EU cooperation in various fields, and have an in-depth exchange of views on major international and regional hotspot issues.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang and top legislator Zhao Leji will also meet with Macron.
The French president will also visit Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province.
Top 2 |** Donald Trump facing at least 1 felony charge in NY case: AP**
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is facing multiple charges of falsifying business records, including at least one felony offense, in the indictment handed down by a Manhattan grand jury, the Associated Press reported on Friday, citing sources.
Trump is due to be fingerprinted and photographed in a New York courthouse next week as he becomes the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges, in a case involving a 2016 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
Trump's expected appearance before a judge in Manhattan on Tuesday, as the Republican mounts a bid to regain the presidency, could further inflame divisions in the United States. A New York judge in a document unsealed on Friday authorized Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, to disclose that Trump had been indicted, but it was not clear when the specific charges would be made public.
Top 3 |** Finland's opposition National Coalition Party wins parliamentary elections**
Finland's opposition National Coalition Party emerged as the largest party in the parliamentary elections held on Sunday, according to preliminary results reported by Finnish national broadcaster Yle.
With all votes counted, the National Coalition Party won 48 seats in parliament, an increase of 10 from four years ago, followed by the Finns Party with 46 seats, an increase of seven. The Social Democratic Party, the leading party in the current Finnish coalition chaired by Prime Minister Sanna Marin, won 43 seats, an increase of three.
Voter turnout was 71.9 percent, slightly lower than in 2019.
Top 4 | Putin admonishes new U.S., EU ambassadors at Kremlin ceremony
President Vladimir Putin hit out at the new U.S. and EU ambassadors to Russia for what he said was their countries' responsibility for a dramatic deterioration in relations since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict last year.
The U.S. and EU ambassadors were among 17 representatives who were formally presenting their diplomatic credentials to Putin at the Kremlin.
Putin used the opportunity to tell the new U.S. ambassador Lynne Tracy that U.S. support for the ousting of Ukraine's pro-Russian government in 2014 had led to the current situation where Moscow and Kyiv were in conflict.
He added that relations were in "a deep crisis" that was "based on fundamentally different approaches to the formation of the modern world order."
Top 5 | Revised settlement agreement reached to compensate First Nations in Canada
A multibillion-dollar revised settlement was reached to compensate those harmed by discriminatory underfunding of the First Nations children and families, the Canadian federal government said on Wednesday.
Following the original settlement agreement, the revised final settlement agreement now includes a total of just over 23.34 billion Canadian dollars (around $17 billion), an increase of 3.34 billion Canadian dollars, said Indigenous Services Canada in a news release.
According to Tuesday morning's release, First Nations across Canada came together to discuss and support the revised settlement agreement, and the Assembly of First Nations (AFN)'s First Nations-in-Assembly unanimously approved the draft revised settlement agreement.
Top 6 | Chinese premier holds talks with Singaporean PM
Chinese Premier Li Qiang held talks with visiting Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in Beijing on Saturday, with both sides vowing further efforts to enhance cooperation.
Noting Lee as an old friend familiar to Chinese people and one of the first batch of foreign leaders received by Li himself after taking office as the premier of the State Council, Li said this fully shows China and Singapore attach great importance to the bilateral relations.
During Lee's visit, both sides have agreed to upgrade bilateral relations to an "All-Round High-Quality Future-Oriented Partnership." Li said China is ready to work with Singapore to make "high quality" the most distinct feature of cooperation and bring bilateral ties and pragmatic cooperation to a new height, to deliver more benefits to the two peoples and inject more positive energy into regional and global peace, stability and prosperity.
Top 7 | Syrian FM to visit Egypt for 1st time since 2011
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad will hold talks with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry on Saturday.
It is the first visit by a top Syrian diplomat to Egypt since the start of the Syrian civil war about 12 years ago.
Strained relations between Syria and Arab countries have started to ease after the deadly earthquakes jolted large swathes of areas along the Turkish-Syrian border on Feb. 6 and killed tens of thousands of people in the two countries.
On Feb. 27, Shoukry met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus to express Egypt's support for Syria in dealing with the repercussions of the earthquakes and its willingness to strengthen bilateral relations.
Top 8 | Finnish PM steps down as party leader after election defeat
Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Wednesday she will step down as Social Democrats Party (SDP) leader at a news conference, local media reported.
She said she will continue to be a regular member in the newly elected parliament starting next week.
Sanna Marin conceded defeat last Sunday in the Nordic country's parliamentary election as the opposition right-wing National Coalition Party (NCP) claimed victory in a tightly fought contest.
Top 9 |** UN urges AI ethics recommendation enforcement after GPT-4 pause call**
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Thursday called on governments to fully and immediately implement its recommendation on the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI), following a call by over 1,000 tech workers including Elon Musk for a pause in the training of the most powerful AI systems including ChatGPT.
The recommendation was endorsed by all UNESCO member states in November 2021, and it is the first global framework for the ethical use of AI.
It guides countries in maximizing the benefits of AI and reducing the risks it entails. It contains values and principles, and detailed policy recommendations in all relevant areas.
Top 10 | Chinese premier holds talks with Spanish PM
Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday held talks with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Beijing, with both sides pledging further efforts to enhance bilateral ties.
Calling Spain a major EU country that plays a positive and significant role in regional and international affairs, Li said China is willing to work with Spain to take the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties as an opportunity to deepen friendship and expand cooperation in all fields, so as to jointly promote new progress in the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries and make positive contributions to the recovery and growth of the world economy.
Li urged the two sides to consolidate political mutual trust, maintain closer exchanges and communications, and further synergize development strategies.
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
