International

The US claims that China has rejected a meeting between its Defense chiefs in Laos

The US Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, said that Beijing has rejected a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Minister Dong Jun, in Laos, where both participate this Thursday in a Southeast Asian security ministerial meeting with their partners.

“I’m sorry that China has chosen not to see each other here. The decision of the People’s Republic of China is a step backwards for the entire region,” Austin told media from Laos, according to a Pentagon statement on Wednesday.

US and China in ASEAN

Austin and Dong participate today in Vientian in the meeting of the defense ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) with their partners (Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the United States).

Although it was expected that the heads of Defense of the world’s major powers could be seen on the margins of the meeting, Austin considered it “unfortunate” that China has declined the face, without the American going into explaining the reasons.

“You have to be in touch to get an explanation of your decision. It’s unfortunate. It affects the entire region because they really want to see two powerful people talking to each other, which would send a message of tranquility,” Austin added.

20250301_vacunacion_vph-728x90

20241211_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

20231124_etesal_728x90_1

20230601_agenda_primera_infancia_728X90

domfuturo_netview-728x90

20240604_dom_728x90

CEL

China, for its part, has not yet commented on this issue.

Taiwan in the focus of the matter

According to CNN, Beijing would have rejected the meeting between Dong and Austin due to the sale of weapons in October from Washington to Taiwan, a self-governing island that China does not rule out invading and to which the United States provides ammunition and in principle would defend.

Dong and Austin had met for the first time at a security forum in Singapore in June, which formalized the restoration of high-level contact between the two powers, cut after the former speaker of the US House of Representatives. Nancy Pelosi will visit Taiwan in August 2022.

Tensions did not ease until Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping met in San Francisco in November 2023.

Austin ruled out that the lack of a meeting this time will have “any kind of implication in the future,” amid uncertainty in the region in the face of the imminent change of administration in the United States and the turn in Defense that it may mean.

20250301_vacunacion_vph-728x90

20241211_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

20231124_etesal_728x90_1

20230601_agenda_primera_infancia_728X90

domfuturo_netview-728x90

20240604_dom_728x90

CEL

“I just think it’s something they’ve chosen to do right now and only they can explain why they’ve chosen not to take advantage of a good opportunity,” he said.

The ministers of ASEAN (made up of Burma, Brunei, Cambodia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam) conclude today with their partners their annual two-day summit in Vientian, with several hot spots in the region, including Burma and the South China Sea, and amid a war escalation in Ukraine, Gaza and Lebanon.

International

Marco Rubio warns Venezuela against military action against Guyana

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Venezuela on Thursday that a military attack on Guyana would be “a big mistake” and “a very bad day for them,” expressing his support for Georgetown in its territorial dispute with Caracas.

“It would be a very bad day for the Venezuelan regime if they attacked Guyana or ExxonMobil. It would be a very bad day, a very bad week for them, and it would not end well,” Rubio emphasized during a press conference in Georgetown alongside Guyanese President Irfaan Ali.

International

Ecuador oil spill worsens as containment dam collapses

The collapse of a containment dam holding back part of the 25,000+ barrels of oil spilled from a pipeline rupture nearly two weeks ago has worsened the environmental crisis in northwestern Ecuador, contaminating rivers and Pacific beaches.

The Ecuadorian government attributed the March 13 pipeline rupture—which led to the spill of 25,116 barrels of crude—to an act of sabotage. The spill affected three rivers and disrupted water supplies for several communities, according to authorities.

On Tuesday, due to heavy rains that have been falling since January, a containment dam on the Caple River collapsed. The Caple connects to other waterways in Esmeraldas Province, a coastal region bordering Colombia, state-owned Petroecuador said in a statement on Wednesday.

Seven containment barriers were installed in the Viche River, where crews worked to remove oil-contaminated debris. Additional absorbent materials were deployed in Caple, Viche, and Esmeraldas Rivers, which flow into the Pacific Ocean.

Authorities are also working to protect a wildlife refuge home to more than 250 species, including otters, howler monkeys, armadillos, frigatebirds, and pelicans.

20250301_vacunacion_vph-728x90

20241211_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

20231124_etesal_728x90_1

20230601_agenda_primera_infancia_728X90

domfuturo_netview-728x90

20240604_dom_728x90

CEL

“This has been a total disaster,” said Ronald Ruiz, a leader in the Cube community, where the dam was located. He explained that the harsh winter rains caused river levels to rise, bringing debris that broke the containment barriersthat were holding the accumulated oil for extraction.

International

Federal court blocks Trump’s use of Enemy Alien Act for deportations

A federal appeals court upheld the block on former President Donald Trump’s use of the Enemy Alien Act on Wednesday, preventing him from using the law to expedite deportations of alleged members of the transnational criminal group Tren de Aragua.

With a 2-1 ruling, a panel from the Washington, D.C. Court of Appeals affirmed previous decisions by two lower court judges, maintaining the legal standoff between the White House and the judiciary.

On March 14, Trump invoked the 1798 Enemy Alien Act, a law traditionally used during wartime, to deport hundreds of Venezuelans whom he accused of belonging to Tren de Aragua, a criminal organization that originated in Venezuelan prisons.

The centuries-old law grants the president the power to detain, restrict, and expel foreign nationals from a country engaged in a “declared war” or an “invasion or predatory incursion” against the United States, following a public proclamation.