BRI - Isthmus of Kra in discussion

 Meanwhile Thailand is revisiting the Isthmus of Kra project, that had been talked about for decades. Probably building a canal just like Panana is not in the plan, but building two ports on either side of the Isthmus with road and rail connections is the intention. This is said to provide another alternative, just in case the Straits of Malacca is blockaded. China should be interested in the project.

Hard to tell at this time, but there will be opposition from countries with vested interest in keeping the Straits of Malacca as the only passage for trade between China and Europe, Middle East and Africa. And therein will come all the reasons, including environment issues, to stop the project.

By the way, it seems the Panana Canal is now facing a big problem - water. That sounds illogical. But water for the locks to work comes from Gatun Lake, a freshwater lake, to raise and lower ships transversing the canal, on top of providing water to its citizens. It is reported that the amount of freshwater released into the sea each time a vessel goes through the canal is a big drain on the lake, what with climate change affecting the water level.

And there were also loose talk of Nicaragua looking at the possibility of digging another canal across the land. China should be interested in this as well.

Anonymous

Dismissing the western myth of debt traps...real debt traps by IMF and World Bank

 In fact if China extended loans to poor countries in US$ (by recycling its US$ surpluses in trade, which in the past goes to buying more risky US$ Treasuries) and asking for repayment in Yuan over an extended period, is actually beneficial for those debtor countries with the slightly weakening Yuan. This is my two cents worth, so please pardon me, as I am no economist.

On the other hand, when countries take US$ loans from the IMF and World Bank, which is to be repaid in US$ for sure, the debt trap is there, if those countries' currencies are slowly being devalued, as it is happening today. Therefore, repayment is getting more and more difficult for them by having to buy expensive US$ to repay their loans, using their devalued currencies. That is the debt trap that we are talking about, pure and simple. Argentina is the perfect example of taking IMF loans.

Mohammed bin Salman just rubbished the Chinese debt trap narrative espoused by the West over those BRI projects. Countries that took the loans from China have all the infrastructures to show - airports, railways, roads, reservoirs, ports, housing, on top of opening up trade that benefits economically those countries that took Chinese loans for infrastructures. Such infrastructures belongs to them and no one is able to take them away. Those infrastructures that China constructed do not belong to China anymore, while the surplus US$ in trade as held by China is a target for sanctions and is subject to the risk involved. The lessons from Russia, having its Central Bank reserves seized by the USA, has not gone unnoticed by the Chinese. That was a drop in the ocean compared to the size of China's foreign reserves of US$3.2 trillion.

The only take away is that it is a win win situation for China and the debtor countries, and this is not beneficial for the USA. China discovers a channel to recycle its massive US$ surpluses, without having to take the risk of buying more US$ treasuries, while the USA has no chance of seizing those assets constructed by China, which now belongs to others and not China. Seizing those infrastructures is impossible, unlike USA assets held by China, which had alreay been targeted by the USA neo-Cons during the COVID19 pandemic, right?

Anonymous

Arrest warrant for ICC officials

 The treacherous arrest warrant on Putin was anything but a laughing stock. The charges were fabricated and untrue but the ICC went ahead to issue the warrant. On the other hand, many very serious war crimes were conducted not only in Ukraine pre the War, in Kosovo, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, and in the past in Vietnam and North Korea were not spoken off and nothing was done to the criminals of such serious war crimes. The undisputed and widely acknowledged war crimes against Iraq, invaded by fake news leading to hundreds of thousands of deaths and millions wounded or displaced and the perpetrators are still walking free, Bush Jr and Blair and many others, is a sheer mockery of ICC.

Now there are war crimes against the Palestinians in Gaza daily, every hour, every minute. In fact these war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed by the Israeli occupation forces in Palestine for decades but not a whimper from ICC. They simply turned a blind eye to the crimes against hapless, helpless and defenceless civilians, mother and children, young and old. What is the point of having an ICC that is not doing its job but acting on political interest of the Americans to condemn and even arrest innocent individuals but not bothering with the guilty?

The officials in ICC have abused the trust in them and turning the ICC into a farcical organisation. They are committing crimes against humanity for not doing their job according to the constitution of ICC. They are perverting justice and law and protecting criminals instead of their victims. They are in cahoot with the Americans and the West against the rest of the world. They are the thugs and gangsters, not people upholding law and justice.

They should all be arrested for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

PS. The culling of Palestinians must be stopped immediately.

Gaza - Stupidity of the Americans beyond redemption...USA now the most hated country in the Arab Muslim world

 Even the sliver of support from the Muslim and Arab world is disintegrating for the USA following its actions and verbal spouting over Gaza. Full fledged support for Israel is the final nail in the coffin for the USA going forward, in trying to gain support from the Muslim and Arab world.

Turkey was sitting on the fence when it was weighing its support for the USA and Nato over issues, but is now different and decisive in its support for Palestine. Egypt is changing its stance in trying to normalise relations with Israel, but its people are unhappy with that. The two wars in Sinai put paid to any attempts to normalise relations between Muslim countries in the region and Israel, and is unlikely to change going forward. Behind the scene, of course, are the manipulators, the USA, UK and France. That is a major hindrance to any peace deal even if attempted.

Ukraine was never a bigger motivation for the Muslims and Arabs to take a stand against the USA, as it does not involve the Muslim and Arab countries. Palestine is a different kettle of fish and the stance of the USA is totally hitting them below the belt.

In fact, the whole Global South is standing up for the Palestinians. While the MSM tries to hide the reality that protest across the world are mainly for Palestinians, with Israel's name thrown into the narrative under those protest as a sign of support, in order to garner some semblance of balance. The attempt is futile at best and pure fabricated propaganda at worst.

That shows the world as to who is slowly being isolated - the USA and the West or particularly Russia? The USA had no more than 40 White countries, mainly from the EU being counted as real supporters, out of a global community of 197 countries. Even then, coercion is never out of the question. Russia is supposed to be a totally isolated country according to the West, but over 140 countries are in Beijing together with Putin probably discussing issues of common interest. And countries are queueing to join the BRICS, even knowing that Russia is among the founding members. Does all this indicate that Russia is isolated?

And it is now no more a cat and mouse game for North Korea to supply weapons to Russia, and Russia in return is promising all out support for North Korea in any situation. That is telling, in the same category as Putin and Xi cementing their 'no limits' co-operation. The South Koreans are now claiming that North Korea supplied the weapons to Hamas to attack Israel. But so far no confirmation from the rest of the echo chamber members.

Now the West is concentrating on the Hospital attack, with Joe Biden trying to blame Hamas immediately for the attack, claiming USA data said so. Does this sound familiar with the attack on the Russian Nord Stream pipelines a year or so ago? The first thing they did was to accuse the Russians of doing it to themselves, then as more evidence came out to refute the accusation, five men in a small boat, said to be patriotic Ukrainians, took the blame. But we know who was involved - and who orchestrated the attack. It was in fact pre-destined with the narrative that the USA has ways and means to put the pipeline out of service. How much more evidence do we really need?

And why was Sweden afraid to reveal its findings, if it was indeed Russia, knowing that the USA and the West will immediately start to capitalise on any sliver of evidence in their hands? Does that sound logical?

Anonymous

American's demonising of China losing effect. No one believes in American lies

 After almost 200 years of humiliation and violent attacks and invasions by the West, China has through hard work and struggle rise up again like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes. The Anglo-Saxons headed by the US and UK look at China's rise with askance. The Anglo-American elites comprising the billionaires and millionaires of Wall Street in the Deep State shadow government of the Rothschild Illuminati cabal and the Pentagon are working hand in hand with wicked American Zionist Jews to plan a war with China to stop China's rise and development. To them China's rise in wealth, power and stature is unaccepptable and therefore they must contain China's development and take it down.

They blare to the world that China wants to invade Taiwan. This is using pervert deceptive psychology to bluff the world for Taiwan is a Chinese sovereign territory as recognized by the United Nations Organization and by over 190 countries except now it is wrongly occupied by the US in connivance with Taiwanese Chinese traitors. Taiwan is sacred Chinese sovereign territory so when China wants to take it back from the evil American occupier it is not invasion. It is eviction of Chinese traitors and evil American occupiers.

The Anglo-Saxon Americans and the British like to deceptively tell South China Sea littoral states that China is reclaiming land from the sea and is militarising the South China Sea. China is not the first country to reclaim land from the sea from its own shoals and islets. Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines and Brunei did first with American instigation and encouragement.

The United States deceptively claim China is militarising the South China Sea. The United States which is almost 8,000 miles away tend to ignore that it has many illegal and illicit military bases in the Philippines, Taiwan, Okinawa and Japan. In fact the US has about 450 military bases in East Asia menacing and threatening China and intimidating the other Southeast Asian States. Not to forget the United States has over 1,000 military bases worldwide menacing and threatening all countries big and small. Why is it nobody is asking the US why it must have so many military bases around the world. Yet some silly Asian countries seem to fall into the US deceptive trap of questioning China's few military bases. Why can't China build military bases in her own sacred sovereign island territories to prevent and ward off American aggression. The fact is US wants to have hegemonic control over East Asia and Southeast Asia through deception and subterfuge. Yet the US is even not a country in this region. Asean countries must not fall for this US deceptive and subterfuge trap. US is trying to instigate and goad some unsuspecting Asean countries to go against China in the hope that if hostilities arise it will give US a chance to intervene and exercise hegemonic control and dominance over the whole region. It is a pipe dream for China and Asia will never allow that to happen.

To have peace, tranquility and harmony in Asia and Southeast Asia it is of paramount importance that the satanic Anglo-Saxon United States and the West must not be allowed to stir and create uncalled for choas and hostilities in the region.

Yang Tai Chung