In US visit Japan's Premier talks alliance and Middle East war

Today’s headlines: three Palestinian women have been killed by an Iranian missile; Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has been reappointed by Parliament.; A new report highlights the paradoxes surrounding education and employment in India; The Chinese company BYD is considering entering Formula 1 racing.

JAPAN – USA

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will arrive in the United States today to meet President Donald Trump, with whom she will discuss how to strengthen the alliance between the two countries. Commentators suggest that Trump is likely to press Takaichi for support in the war against Iran. “Global peace and stability are under threat, including with regard to the safety of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and energy security,” the Prime Minister said at a press conference. “If the current instability persists, matters will become even more complicated for both Japan and the United States, as well as for the rest of the world.”

PALESTINE

Last night three Palestinian women were killed by an Iranian missile that struck Beit Awwa, south-west of Hebron in the West Bank, where there are far fewer air-raid shelters than in Israel. A further 13 people were injured. Since the conflict began around three weeks ago, 15 people have been killed in the Holy Land.

AFGHANISTAN – QATAR

In the as-Sayliyah refugee camp in Doha, Qatar, there are still 1,100 people evacuated from Afghanistan who were due to be resettled in the United States for having collaborated with US forces prior to the withdrawal from the country in August 2021. Earlier this year, the Trump administration announced that it would close the camp – established by President Joe Biden as part of an operation called ‘Allies Welcome’ – by 31 March, and that the displaced people would not be transferred to the United States.

THAILAND

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who is close to the conservative and pro-monarchist establishment, was reappointed prime minister of Thailand this morning after his party, Bhumjaithai, won 191 out of 500 seats in the recent elections, thanks to a campaign centred on nationalist sentiment fuelled by a brief conflict with Cambodia.

INDIA

A new report on the state of education in India has highlighted all the paradoxes afflicting the Asian giant. There are 367 million young people aged between 15 and 29, considered to be of working age, and of these, 263 million are not enrolled in the education system and are therefore considered the true workforce. Among those who are studying, however, almost 40% of graduates aged between 15 and 25 and 20% of those aged between 25 and 29 are unemployed, a percentage far higher than that found among people with a lower level of education, who are mainly employed in the agricultural sector.

CHINA

The Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD is considering entering top-tier motor racing, including Formula 1. According to rumours circulating on social media, the Shenzhen-based company is reportedly weighing up two possible routes into Formula 1: acquiring an existing team (seen as the most likely option) or creating a completely new one.

RUSSIA – UKRAINE

On the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, a ‘drone festival’ was held at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, inviting students to practise controlling drone flights using laptops from the Taiwanese company Getac, specifically designed with special defences for extreme weather or wartime conditions, purchased by the Ministry of Defence despite Getac having already announced in 2022 its intention to withdraw from the Russian market.

RUSSIA – MOLDOVA

The Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs has handed a note of protest to the Russian ambassador in Chişinău, Oleg Ozerov, over the spill of oil products into the River Dniester, which supplies water to 80% of the country’s population and 98% of the capital’s residents, caused by a Russian attack on a Ukrainian power station near the Moldovan border, “an action with serious consequences for the climate, health and security”.