The German government remains committed to completing the Nord Stream 2 project despite strong objections from Washington. Photo: AP According to Bloomberg, Foreign Minister Maas affirmed that it is too early to conclude that the US will not impose additional sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 project. Maas emphasized, in fact, in US politics, neither Democrats nor Republicans have a positive view of the gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. However, Minister Maas expects that the gas cooperation project between Moscow and Berlin will no longer be a conflict in US-German relations. The US has repeatedly voiced its objections and continuously put pressure on the implementation of the Russian gas project. Most recently, Washington imposed sanctions on 13 Russian ships and 3 companies related to the project, but lifted sanctions on Nord Stream 2 AG – the company operating the Stream project. The North 2, and CEO Matthias Warnig. Speaking at a press conference on May 19, Foreign Minister Maas said the US decision was “a constructive step”, and affirmed that Berlin would continue to dialogue with its partners in Washington. The German government remains committed to completing the Nord Stream 2 project despite strong objections from Washington, and asserts that this pipeline will help ensure Europe’s energy security and is completely a economic project. In a related development, Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 4 said that the Nord Stream 2 project is ready to transport natural gas from Russia to Germany.

On June 15, the Department of Health of Ninh Binh province deployed the second phase of COVID-19 vaccination including 14,330 doses for priority subjects according to Resolution No. 21 of the Government; of which there are more than 8,000 doses for the 1st injection, the remaining more than 7,000 doses are for the 2nd injection cases when they are eligible for injection 8-12 weeks apart. The second phase of COVID-19 vaccination at the Children’s Hospital of Ninh Binh province. Photo: Hai Yen/VNA. Dong Thap province deployed Astra Zeneca vaccine for the 3rd phase of COVID-19 disease, with 30,000 doses allocated from the Ministry of Health, of which 27,000 doses are expected to be injected in the first dose and 3,000 doses in the second injection. prescribed in accordance with Resolution 21/NQ-CP of the Government, including: Subjects who are absent or delayed in injection in the 2nd round; frontline force for epidemic prevention and control; essential service providers; Teachers and administrative units often come into contact with many people. Master Tran Van Hai – Director of the Center for Disease Control of Dong Thap province said that this activity was carried out urgently and earlier than the original plan from July 5. Dong Nai province will use 17,450 doses to inject the second dose for more than 20,000 people. The remaining 11,450 doses will be administered to about 13,500 people in priority groups. The duration of the second phase of COVID-19 vaccination in the province is expected to last from June 12 to June 30. Vaccination sites at 170 health stations in communes, wards and towns… COVID-19 vaccine fund received VND 5,126 billion According to the Management Board of the COVID-19 Vaccine Fund, as of 5pm on June 15, the fund has received 5,126 billion VND (including foreign currency conversion) with a total of 306,791 organizations and individuals contributed. Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phuc said that the COVID-19 vaccine fund operates not for profit, uses capital for the right purposes and in accordance with the provisions of the law, ensuring publicity and transparency. Economical, efficient. The Fund is subject to the inspection, inspection and audit of financial activities by state management agencies in charge of finance and State Audit; supervision of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and the community. According to the Ministry of Finance, to vaccinate 75 million people, about 25,200 billion VND is needed; in which the budget has already prepared more than 14,000 billion VND and needs about 11,000 billion VND more. Japan will provide 1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to Vietnam On June 15, Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi announced that the country would directly and freely provide 1 million doses of a domestically produced COVID-19 vaccine under license from AstraZeneca Plc. (UK) for Vietnam. Speaking at a regular press conference in Tokyo, Minister Motegi said that Japan has received requests for vaccine support from many countries and regions. According to Motegi, Japan made the decision to grant a COVID-19 vaccine to Vietnam based on a comprehensive review of the epidemic situation in Vietnam, the shortage of vaccines and the relationship between Vietnam and Japan. Minister Motegi said the above batch of COVID-19 vaccine will be shipped from Japan to Vietnam on June 16. Earlier, on June 2, Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide announced that Japan would provide 30 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to other countries. In addition to providing vaccines, Japan also plans to help developing countries build cold storage chains, allowing the transport and storage of vaccines at low temperatures. On the afternoon of June 15, Vietnam had 213 new cases of COVID-19 On June 15, Vietnam recorded 402 new cases. As of 6pm on June 15, Vietnam had a total of 9,566 domestic cases and 1,646 imported cases. Number of new cases from April 27 to now: 7,996 cases, of which 1,765 patients have been announced to be cured. Screening test for people with COVID-19. Photo: VNA. There are 23 provinces (Yen Bai, Quang Ngai, Dong Nai, Quang Ninh, Quang Nam, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue, Nam Dinh, Hoa Binh, Tuyen Quang, Son La, Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa, Thai Nguyen, Hung Yen, Hai Phong, Tay Ninh, Gia Lai, Bac Lieu, Dien Bien, Dak Lak, Dong Thap, Tra Vinh) have not recorded new cases for 14 days. The number of tests from April 29, 2021 to now, has done 2,171,076 samples for 4,818,269 turns of people. Currently, the number of negative cases for SARS-CoV-2 is 497. To date, Vietnam has recorded 61 deaths related to COVID-19. The number of cured cases is 4,543 cases.

On April 27, Russia’s Akademic Chersky pipe-laying vessel began installing the unfinished pipeline in Danish territorial waters. According to Foreign Minister Maas, it is impractical to consider the project to bring gas from Russia to Germany as a political lever of Russia. “Based on our previous assessment, the Northern Flow 2 project is purely related to energy policy. Therefore, Germany should not see this project as a move to influence the Russia ”- German Foreign Minister said. German officials have repeatedly asserted that they consider completion of the Northern Flow 2 project construction as essential. Berlin considers this project an economic one. However, the German government maintains that Ukraine should play the role of transshipment of gas from Russia to Europe, after the Northern Flow 2 pipeline becomes operational. Germany is now abandoning coal and nuclear power to convert to renewable sources that do not pose a problem for its industry, which needs more gas. In a related development, the project operator Nord Stream 2 AG announced on April 27 that Russia’s Akademic Chersky pipe-laying vessel began to install the unfinished pipeline in Danish territorial waters. “After conducting sea trials, the Akademic Chersky has begun work on the installation of the pipeline in the Danish exclusive economic zone from today,” said Nord Stream 2 AG on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Fortuna – another Russian pipe-laying vessel also continues to carry out the construction of the project in Danish territorial waters under license. Up to now, the Northern Flow 2 project is 95% complete, only the final 121km of the pipeline have to be installed.

Latvian Foreign Minister Edgar Rinkevich announced that he would expel a Russian diplomat and said he would “not allow hostile operations in his or her own territory”. Consecutively, many EU countries expelled Russian diplomats Meanwhile, the Estonian Foreign Ministry has also issued a decision to expel a Russian diplomat involved in the explosion of the Czech army’s ammunition in 2014. The Estonian side confirmed, this incident is clear “vi violating international law, undermining the security and stability of Europe and is unacceptable “. New diplomatic tensions with Russia began after the Czech ordered 18 Russian diplomats to leave the country on suspicions they were involved in a 2014 ammunition explosion. Russia responded by expelling 20 Czech diplomats after denying Prague’s accusations. Confrontation between the two countries continued to escalate, with the Czech demanding that 63 Russian diplomats leave the country. Before three countries Baltics, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Poland also announced the deportation of Russian diplomats respectively.

The Chinese foreign minister participates in online exchanges with the US Foreign Relations Council. Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. In his speech, Mr. Vuong Nghi emphasized that the important phone call on New Year’s Eve between the heads of the two countries has indicated a great direction for the Sino-US relationship, the dialogue in Anchorage (Alaska) has opened. direct high-level interaction between the two parties in the context of an epidemic. However, the new administration’s policy toward China in the US has not yet removed the shadow of its predecessor, has not escaped the misunderstanding in perception of China and has not found the right way to conclude. delivery with this country. He gave 5 points on how to view the Sino-US relationship from a strategic perspective, wanting the US to perceive objectively and to deal with China’s development; to work together with China to find a new way to peacefully coexist and win cooperation together; respect and tolerate the path and regime that China chooses; practice authentic multilateralism and stop interfering in China’s internal affairs. The Chinese Foreign Minister reaffirms that the country’s development and reassurance are “not meant to replace or defeat anyone” and that it needs equality. “Either China or the US is successful does not mean the other side fails,” he said. Separating from the world’s second largest economy and facing China’s 1.4 billion people, it not only does not help the US in resolving the conflicts faced, but also confuses the world ” . According to Mr. Vuong Nghi, the key to properly handling the relationship between the two sides is “whether the US can accept the peaceful rise of a major country with a social regime, cultural history and a period of time. develop differently or not “. China welcomes President Biden’s administration to return to multilateralism, said Wang Yi, but said that true multilateralism is “not allowed to confront the new group under the banner of multilateralism. , do not set up closed factions under the guise of multilateralism “. The Chinese Foreign Minister also reaffirmed that Beijing will “respond legally” when “national sovereignty and national dignity are threatened and violated”. He called on the two countries to go beyond the inevitable view that “conflict is bound to arise between emerging and current powers”, beyond ideological differences and social regimes, beyond thinking. Cold War and group confrontation, actively seeking ways to live peacefully and win cooperation between the two great powers./.

Czech Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhanek announced that Russia would not be allowed to have more diplomats in Prague than the number of Czech diplomats currently available at their embassy in Moscow. Except for the number of diplomats allowed to be maintained, all remaining staff at the Russian embassy in Prague had to leave by the end of May. Notice comes after Russia expulsion 20 Czech diplomats on April 18 in retaliation for the Czech government’s expulsion of 18 Russian diplomats, identified as spies by Russian intelligence services. Russian Embassy in Prague. Photo: PM. The Czech government objected to what it called Russia’s “inappropriate response”, saying that Russia crippled the Czech Embassy in Moscow. Foreign Minister Kulhanek warned that if Russia does not regulate the expulsion of Czech diplomats at the last minute, he will cut the staffing of the Russian Embassy in Prague to be equal to their remaining staff at the embassy. Checks in Moscow. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the ministry had summoned the Czech ambassador on April 22. “It is unacceptable to speak to Russia,” said Ms. Zakharova.

With the federal government canceling an agreement related to the Victoria State’s “Belt and Road” initiative, Australia-China relations are worse than ever (Photo: Multidimensional). According to the news site Multi-Dimensional (Dwnews) April 23, citing AFP on the same day, said US State Department spokesman Ned Price on April 22 announced his solidarity, claiming that Australia is facing China’s “forced diplomacy”. , said the Australian government had made its own decision, but because it suffered greatly from Beijing’s actions. “We will continue to stand side by side with the Australian people as they are the leaders facing the coercive actions of the People’s Republic of China,” Ned Price told reporters. Mr. Ned Price, spokesperson for the US State Department (Photo: Dong Phuong). Australia has shown that these “Belt and Road” agreements are inconsistent with Australian foreign policy. China warned that Australia’s withdrawal from the agreement would seriously damage the relations between the two countries. According to previous reports, the Australian government announced on April 21 that it would cancel Victoria’s four foreign agreements, including two related to China’s “Belt and Road” initiative. These two agreements were signed between the Victorian government and China’s National Development and Reform Commission. One of them is a memorandum of understanding signed in October 2018 and the other is a framework agreement signed in October 2019. The Chinese Embassy in Canberra criticized the move as an “unreasonable provocation”. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Uong Van Ban also responded saying that China expressed strong resentment and firmly opposed it, had “strict relations” with Australia and China reserved the right to respond. more in-depth on this. Australian Foreign Minister Marise Penn announced the cancellation of two agreements related to “Belt and road” Victoria signed with China (Image: Reuters). In this case, Australian female Foreign Minister Marise Payne replied: “This plan is very relevant to the national interests of Australia. This action (canceling the two agreements) to ensure consistency in foreign relations. We are all over Australia and it certainly is not aimed at any country. ” She expressed Australia’s efforts to contact China and “requires all governments around the world to respect our government’s decision-making authority”. On April 22, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison also stated that the cancellation of the related agreement was because the federal government did not want the agreements signed by other authorities to go against Australia’s foreign policy. He said the government has always acted in the national interests of Australia to protect Australia, but must also ensure that in promoting national interests, the government can be in an Indo-Pacific region itself. be free and open and be in a world that seeks a balance in favor of freedom. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison: the cancellation of the related agreement is due to the federal government’s unwillingness to have the agreements signed by other authorities go against Australia’s foreign policy (Photo: AP). On the Chinese side’s response, the news site Multidimensional give details: At a regular press conference of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs taking place on the afternoon of April 22 in Beijing, a reporter asked: “Recently, the Australian government announced the rejection of the cooperation agreement” The Belt and Road “was signed by the Victorian government with the National Development and Reform Commission of China. Please ask what China has to comment on this? “. Mr. Uong Van Ban, spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China replied: “Australia’s Victoria has decided to cooperate with China within the framework of the“ Belt and Road ”initiative to improve the welfare of the people. people from both sides. This is inherently a mutually beneficial affair. The Australian Government has unreasonably vetoed the “Belt and Road” cooperation agreement signed between the Victorian Government and China; arbitrary interference undermines normal exchanges of cooperation, seriously harms China-Australia relations and mutual trust. Mr. Uong Van Ban said, “China expressed strong resentment and strongly opposed it and had strict relations with Australia, China reserved the right to make a deeper response to this.” China urged Australia to give up Cold War thinking and ideological stereotypes, treat Sino-Australian cooperation objectively and soberly, and immediately correct mistakes. make mistakes, change directions, do not go further on the wrong path, do not make the China-Australia relationship that is in serious difficulty worse. ” Mr. Uong Van Ban: China expressed strong resentment and strongly opposed it and has strictly interacted with Australia, China reserves the right to give deeper reactions (Photo: Orient). At the same time, the spokesman of the Chinese Embassy in Australia also stated that China expressed strong dissatisfaction and firmly opposed the Australian Foreign Minister’s announcement on April 21 announcing the cancellation of the memorandum and agreement. Framework for the “Belt and Road” initiative was signed between China and the Victorian government. “Australia’s move is yet another irrational provocation against China,” said the Chinese embassy spokesman. It once again shows that Australia is not sincere in improving China – Australia relations, which will definitely cause more damage to the bilateral relationship, the country will definitely carry stones for its feet “. In Australia’s mainstream media, Secretary of State Marise Payne’s actions began to receive a positive response. Sheet Canberra Times published an article saying that Australia’s actions “made China ache” and that Victoria’s was seen as “against the interests of the country” in the eyes of Canberra officials. Sheet Sydney Morning Herald also criticized the fact that before signing with China, Victoria did not report to the federal government. The Century points out that Australia has become the first country to “tear” agreements related to the “Belt and Road” initiative. Last year China imposed a 212% punitive tax on Australian wines (Image: Getty). According to the Seventh News Network Australia’s move to “cancel” the deal was made after weighing more than 1,000 deals. The four deals that Secretary Payne tore off resemble Australia’s ruling Liberal strategy against the opposition Labor Party. The article called the move a “blow” against Victoria’s Labor governor Daniel Andrews. Nineth News Network Marise Penn, based in South Australia, revealed that Marise Penn went to Sydney to speak after announcing the cancellation of the deal, saying that the Australian side is still in contact with China. This represents a significant contrast to her statement on April 13 that “it is necessary to deal with China’s underground war”. For now, some analysts in Australia are pessimistic about the prospects. For example, Eryk Bagshaw, economic correspondent of the The Century , said that when Australia leads the “fight against China” trend, at least six major industries, including iron ore, worth at least 20 billion USD, will be hit hard, traders Australian imports and exports will have to pay the price. In October 2020, Australia allowed naval ships to participate in joint exercises with the US and Japan in the South China Sea, making China dissatisfied. There are also some Australian scholars and businessmen who remain optimistic about the status quo. For example, Roland Rajah, the lead economist at Lowy Institute, an Australian consulting organization, published an article on April 22 in the newspaper. The Century and Sydney Morning Herald “Why does our economy accept the veto of the agreement related to the Belt and Road initiative”, saying that Beijing’s sanctions against Australia are still limited to a relatively small scope, for example such as barley, beef, copper ore and coal. China will not cut off purchases of major Australian commodities such as iron ore and natural gas. After large commodity trade between China and Australia continued and small items shipped to other exporters, Australia was able to recover under Chinese “sanctions”.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said he viewed his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi as the eldest brother during his visit to China. (Source: THX)

During a recent joint press conference in Fujian province (China) with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said he considered Wang Yi to be taiko (roughly translated: eldest brother) after He describes Malaysia and China as a family.

Mentioning this phrase, Mr. Hishammuddin spoke in Mandarin before translating himself into English. In response, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also emphasized: “We are brothers”.

Malaysian public opinion responded

Immediately, this “big brother” diplomacy “stormed” Chinese social networks because that claim was seen as Malaysia’s strong respect for China, the second largest economy. gender.

However, it has caused a lot of controversy in Malaysia because many people believe that Mr. Hishammuddin seems to be “marrying” Beijing and downplaying Kuala Lumpur’s status.

In response to criticism from domestic public opinion, the Malaysian Foreign Minister explained that it was a way of showing respect to his Chinese counterpart, as Wang Yi was older (67 years old) Mr. Hishamuddin (59 years old). and a more veteran diplomat.

During his first visit as foreign minister, Mr. Hishammuddin chose China as a way to express his appreciation to Beijing for its help in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic.

Before that, when the Covid-19 epidemic was seriously spreading in Malaysia, China sent masks and other medical protective equipment to assist this country, and at the same time shared its epidemic prevention experience.

Although Malaysia’s Foreign Minister has voiced his opinion that this is a way of showing respect and thanks, his explanation still cannot calm domestic public opinion.

Led by the attackers were former Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman and opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. They commented that Mr. Hishammuddin had made an elementary mistake in diplomacy, leaving his personal feelings overwhelmed and possibly unintentionally “putting Malaysia in a position as a puppet” of a major country and asking for an apology.

Meanwhile, the Chinese side highly appreciated the desire for cooperation and the sincerity in the words of Mr. Hishammuddin, who has always had goodwill in relations with China and hopes a positive future for the two countries’ relations.

The Chinese daily newspaper in Malaysia Sin Chew Jit Poh commented that the word “taiko” did not show inferiority and turned the issue over: “Does Mr. Hishammuddin sign any treaty that could destroy Malaysian interests? Did Mr. Hishammuddin give up national sovereignty to China? What is diplomacy? It is the clever use of language to smooth the process of achieving its goals in international negotiations ”.

Two angles of politics and economics

For the political observer, Professor Dr. Chin Yew Sin, Mr. Hishammuddin’s statement can be explained from two perspectives on politics and economics.

From a political perspective, with the Malaysian general election (GE15) approaching, Mr. Hishammuddin wants to express his goodwill to China to attract Chinese-American votes in Malaysia. According to the survey, about 30% of Chinese voters have not decided which party to support in GE15.

From an economic perspective, Malaysia’s economy is facing many difficulties due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so it is very necessary for big partners like China in the context that Beijing is facing many “obstacles” in relations with the West. In addition, after the Covid-19 epidemic, Malaysia also needs to attract Chinese tourists to revive the tourism industry.

“Did Hishammuddin suddenly call China ‘taiko’?”, Professor Chin Yew Sin emphasized.

Some have suggested that Foreign Minister Hishammuddin is looking to use his personal capacity to achieve the national goals for Malaysia. As the Chinese economy is thriving when it recovers rapidly from the pandemic, Kuala Lumpur needs to strengthen economic cooperation with Beijing.

China is Malaysia’s largest trading partner for the past 12 years. Despite the pandemic, China’s imports of goods hit a record high in 2020. This brings many economic and commercial benefits to Malaysia.

From this trip, Malaysia has achieved a number of breakthroughs in trade. In particular, Beijing agreed to allow imports of red palm oil from Kuala Lumpur, which previously did not meet China’s color specification standards.

This is an important turning point for the Malaysian economy because palm oil is a major export item and foreign currency earnings for Malaysia. The Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) recently forecast that China would import about 6.8 million tons of palm oil this year. Of which, about 42% of palm oil will come from Malaysia.

In addition, during the visit, Mr. Wang Yi also said that China was ready to work with Malaysia to continue promoting cooperation in the post-Covid-19 high quality Belt and Road initiative.

At the same time, the Chinese side also expressed its readiness to strengthen cooperation in Covid-19 vaccine and treatment research with Malaysia. In addition, the two sides also agreed to strengthen cooperation in digital technology areas such as 5G, the digital economy and modern agriculture.

Malaysia’s foreign minister’s visit to China is part of a series of foreign ministers’ visits to Beijing from March 31 to April 2, at the invitation of the Chinese Foreign Minister. The foreign ministers of the remaining three Southeast Asian countries are Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.

(According to The Star)