Chronologies
Regional Overview
Chronology from Sep 2022 to Dec 2022
: President Biden signs into law the $1.65 trillion Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act covering funding for the US government for fiscal year 2023 that includes provisions to authorize $2 billion in loans to Taiwan to buy weapons from the US.
: US authorizes the sale to Taiwan of Volcano (vehicle-launched) antitank mine-laying systems, valued at $180 million.
: President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan announces that conscription for all young men born after 2005 will be extended from 4 to 12 months beginning in 2024.
: Five North Korea drones cross the inter-Korean border, with one flying over northern Seoul. South Korea fails to shoot down the five drones but sends its own drones to the border, with some crossing the border to carry out surveillance and other operations.
: Japan announces a defense spending hike of more than 26% for the following year—its biggest increase since World War II—in response to concerns over a potential invasion of Taiwan. The amount includes $1.6 billion to purchase US-made Tomahawk cruise missiles.
: North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, following the combined South Korea-United States air drills the day before.
: World Trade Organization rejects US efforts to attach “Made in China” label to products manufactured in Hong Kong.
: North Korea reportedly conducts first static ground test of a large solid-propellant rocket motor, the first indication that the regime is developing a propulsion system usable in intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) or ICBM-range submarine-launched ballistic missiles.
: Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong arrives in China to mark the 50th anniversary of bilateral ties, potentially offering an opportunity to mend relations that have soured over trade and security tensions.
: South Korea, the United States, and 13 other member nations participate in US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework ministerial meeting.
: Operator of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange opens its first US office in New York to attract foreign companies interested in listing in the Asian financial hub, even as US-China tensions weigh on the bourse’s profits.
: North Korea conducts an “important final-stage” test that evaluates the capabilities of putting a military reconnaissance satellite into orbit.
: Local government in China’s Xinjiang region scrubs detailed data on monthly exports from its customs website after the US slapped a ban on shipments over forced labor concerns.
: North Korea fires two ballistic missiles toward the sea off the Korean Peninsula’s east coast, days after the country tested a high-thrust solid-fuel engine that experts said would allow quicker and more mobile launch of ballistic missiles.
: Japan issues the National Security Strategy (NSS), the National Defense Strategy (NDS), and the Defense Buildup program. South South Korea issues strong protest against Japan’s territorial claim over disputed islands made in a national security strategy released on Friday while cautiously responding to Tokyo’s plans for an unprecedented military buildup.
: UN General Assembly passes a resolution calling for international efforts to improve human rights conditions in North Korea, making this the 18th consecutive year the General Assembly has adopted such a resolution.
Dec. 16, 2022: Malaysian political parties supporting PM Anwar Ibrahim sign a cooperation pact promising to ensure stability, ahead of a confidence vote on the premier next week.
Dec. 16, 2022: Malaysian political parties supporting PM Anwar Ibrahim sign a cooperation pact promising to ensure stability, ahead of a confidence vote on the premier next week.
: Australia signs new security deal with Vanuatu. It comes amid intensified competition with China in the Pacific, after Beijing’s own security deal with the Solomon Islands.
: US Forces Korea launch a new space forces unit as the allies ramp up efforts to better counter North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile threats.
: Leaders from ASEAN and the EU resolve to cooperate more on everything from clean energy to security, as they gathered in Brussels for the first-ever summit between the blocs.
: India’s defense minister says that Indian troops prevented Chinese soldiers from entering Indian territory during a border scuffle that led to injuries on both sides in the first such clash since 2020 between the Asian giants.
: Top nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US, and Japan hold trilateral meeting in Jakarta amid speculation that North Korea may carry out another nuclear test.
: South Korea’s foreign minister tells his Chinese counterpart that the country expects China to actively support South Korea’s efforts for dialogue with North Korea.
: Indonesia summons a United Nations official after the organization expressed concerns over threats to civil liberties posed by the newly-ratified revisions to its criminal code.
: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) storms to power in Gujarat with a historic mandate, winning a record-breaking 156 of 182 seats, a seventh consecutive victory for the party in the native state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
: China and Saudi Arabia sign 34 energy and investment deals as President Xi vows to strengthen the comprehensive strategic partnership with Riyadh during his first visit to the Middle East since 2016.
: US downgrades diplomatic relations with Myanmar, with the incumbent US ambassador returning home later this month and Washington deciding not to send a successor.
: Indonesian Parliament votes to revise the country’s Criminal Code to criminalize adultery, sex outside marriage, and insults to the president or other state authorities.
: China moves one step closer to reopening by relaxing COVID-19 control measures and allowing some who test positive to isolate at home.
: US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announces two arms sales approvals for Taiwan, with a total value of $428 billion, which includes spare parts for the F-16 Fighting Falcon, Indigenous Defense Fighter, and C-130 military transport aircraft.
: “Tool-in” ceremony celebrating installation of the first equipment at TSMC’s factory in Arizona marks the start of a new era of semiconductor manufacturing in the US and for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, with Biden flying in for the ceremony.
: North Korea fires 130 artillery shells into inter-Korean maritime buffer zones.
: Canada will increase its role in the Indo-Pacific and challenge China when it disrupts the international order, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly says, stating that “international norms have kept us safe since the Second World War and therefore need to be respected.”
: South Korea imposes sanctions targeting eight persons and seven agencies seen as complicit in the DPRK’s WMD programs.
: Korean government asks the US to include car-sharing EVs such as Uber and Lyft in the EV tax incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act.
: President Biden and French counterpart Emmanuel Macron reiterate the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and expressed concerns over the challenges posed by China.
: India takes over as president of the G20 for next year’s summit that is scheduled to be held in New Delhi. India’s FM Jaishankar says the presidency is a “crucial responsibility that is being assumed by India at a very challenging time in world politics.”
: Delhi responds to criticism from Beijing regarding India-US military exercises, with India’s External affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi saying China “needs to reflect and think about its own breach of these agreements of 1993 and 1996.”
: India assumes the G20 presidency.
: Jiang Zemin, China’s paramount leader during the 1997 Hong Kong handover and 2001 entry into the World Trade Organization, dies at age 96.
: India-Australia bilateral training exercise “AUSTRA HIND 22” between contingents of the Indian Army and the Australian Army takes place at Mahajan Field Firing Ranges (Rajasthan).
: India-Malaysia joint military annual training exercise “Harimau Shakti -2022” is conducted at Pulai, Kluang, Malaysia.
: Congressional and other sources claim that weapons deliveries to Taiwan amount to $18.7 billion, up from more than $14 billion a year earlier.
: Malaysia’s new prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, says he will continue to maintain stable ties with China as he seeks to emphasize economic engagement, while avoiding confrontation on contentious issues.
: Taiwan’s opposition Nationalist (Kuomintang or KMT) Party scores a major victory over President Tsai Ing-wen’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in island-wide local elections.
: South Korean President Yoon warns that the government might step in to break up a nationwide strike by truckers, describing it as an illegal and unacceptable move to take the national supply chain “hostage” during an economic crisis.
: 9th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) convenes in Siem Reap, Cambodia, where regional defense chiefs adopt a joint declaration to promote peace and security in the region.
: Malaysia’s King Abdullah calls special meeting of hereditary sultans to discuss who should be prime minister as an unprecedented post-election crisis enters its fourth day.
: US VP Kamala Harris wraps up a three-day visit to the Philippines by flying to an island that faces the disputed South China Sea, making her the highest-ranking US official to visit Palawan, which has been at the front-line of the maritime feud between China and several Southeast Asian countries.
: Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim seeks backing from the graft-tainted incumbent coalition and his longtime rival to form a government, in a bid to gain an edge over opponent Muhyiddin Yassin, after a tumultuous election delivered a hung Parliament.
: Japanese PM Kishida sacks internal affairs minister Terada Minoru over a funds-related scandal amid falling support ratings for his Cabinet. Terada is the third Cabinet minister to go in under one month.
: Myanmar’s ruling military says that it did not engage in bargaining with other countries before releasing four foreign prisoners among nearly 6,000 in an amnesty this week.
: North Korea fires one short-range ballistic missile into the East Sea.
: South Korea and the United States co-host the Symposium on Countering DPRK Cyber-Exploitation of Cryptocurrency Exchanges. Officials from more than a dozen countries discuss ways to counter cryptocurrency theft and other illegal cyber activities of North Korea.
: Myanmar junta releases 5,800 prisoners, 400 of whom are estimated to be political detainees including Australian economist Sean Turnell and US citizen Kyaw Htay Oo.
: Japan and China hold their first summit in about three years as Japanese companies struggle to find a balance between maintaining a presence in the world’s No. 2 economy and responding to US calls to diversify. The meeting between PM Kishida and President Xi comes ahead of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders meeting.
: President Xi criticizes Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in person over alleged leaks of their closed-door meeting at the G20 summit, a rare public display of annoyance by the Chinese leader.
: ROK President Yoon and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida agree to seek a quick settlement of the issue of compensation for Korean victims of wartime forced labor, a key point of contention between the two neighbors, during their summit in Cambodia.
: Thailand hosts the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting and brokers a consensus statement that calls Russia out for the war in Ukraine.
: G20 Summit takes place Nov. 15-16.
: President Biden and President Xi hold a three-hour meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, their first in-person meeting as presidents. President Biden warns President Xi that the US would enhance its security position in Asia if Beijing cannot rein in North Korea’s weapons programs. During a three-hour meeting the two leaders also had strong words about Taiwan.
: President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea meets Indonesian President Joko Widodo, discussing potential areas of cooperation between the two economies in high-tech and clean energy sectors.
: Japanese PM Kishida criticizes Beijing for stepping up actions that infringe on Japan’s sovereignty in the East China Sea at an annual summit of ASEAN and its partners.
: US upgrades ties with ASEAN, elevating their relationship to a “comprehensive strategic partnership,” vowing to deliver more aid as President Biden steps up efforts to counter China’s growing influence in the regional bloc.
: President Biden participates in the East Asia Summit in Cambodia and the adjacent US-ASEAN Summit. Presidents Xi Jinping of China and Vladimir Putin of Russia do not attend the EAS
: Southeast Asian heads of government issue a “warning” to Myanmar to make measurable progress on a peace plan or risk being barred from ASEAN meetings, as social and political chaos escalates in the country.
: After meeting his Russian counterpart for the fifth time this year, India’s foreign minister says that India will continue buying Russian oil because it benefits the country, adding that the two countries were expanding trade ties.
: President Biden extends for an additional year the national emergency declared in 2020 related to the threat from securities investments that finance certain Chinese companies.
: North Korea launches one short-range ballistic missile toward the East Sea. The missile is assumed to be one of North Korea’s new SRBMs.
: US midterm election take place, with Republicans capturing a majority in the House of Representatives but Democrats retaining control of the Senate.
: North Korean state media reports that it has never had arms dealings with Russia and has no plans to do so, after the US said North Korea appears to be supplying Russia with artillery shells for its war in Ukraine.
: Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Forces hold international naval fleet review, with South Korea’s navy participating amid efforts by the two countries to thaw their icy relations.
: North Korea fires four short-range ballistic missiles toward the Yellow Sea on the last day of the Vigilant Storm drill of South Korea and the United States.
: North Korea fires three short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea.
: Foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain, and the US include Taiwan in their G7 meeting statement, saying they “reaffirm the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and call for the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait issues.”
: North Korea fires intercontinental ballistic missile and two short-range missiles toward the East Sea.
: North Korea launches a barrage of missiles and artillery shells, with one short-range ballistic missile flying across its de facto maritime border with South Korea.
: North Korea fires multiple ballistic missiles, including one that triggered an alert for residents in parts of central and northern Japan to seek shelter.
: Rights group Amnesty International claims that aviation fuel supply chains connect foreign companies to the Myanmar junta’s airstrikes on civilians.
: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang chairs the 21st SCO Prime Ministerial meeting.
: Chinese President Xi tells visiting leader of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party that both countries and parties should “never let anyone interfere” with their progress, state broadcaster CCTV reports.
: South Korea and Poland sign agreement to jointly push for a plan to build a nuclear power plant in the European nation, raising hopes for Seoul’s first nuclear power plant export in more than a decade.
: South Korea and the United States conduct the five-day Vigilant Storm exercise involving stealth jets and more than 240 aircraft.
: Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council head states that China should stop sabre-rattling against Taiwan and maintain peace and stability, as Beijing ramped up political and military pressure on the island.
: North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea.
: Secretary of Defense Austin releases 2022 National Defense Strategy, which codifies China as the US military’s pacing challenge and seeks to prevent the PRC’s dominance of key regions. He also releases the Nuclear Posture Review and the Missile Defense Review.
: Cambodia, current chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, says the bloc is gravely concerned about escalating violence in Myanmar.
: India’s navy hosts the 29th edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) at Visakhapatnam.
: Goto Shigeyuki, a former health minister, is chosen to replace Yamagiwa Daishiro as Japan’s economic revitalization minister, who resigned due to controversy surrounding his ties with the Unification Church.
: Department of Justice charges individuals for alleged participation on malign schemes in the US on behalf of the Chinese government, including conspiracy to forcibly repatriate Chinese nationals, obstruction of judge, and acting as illegal agents of a foreign country.
: Chinese President Xi seals his bid for a third term while his deputy and several other top officials got the boot as the country’s top leadership meeting wrapped up.
: Sri Lanka’s Parliament passes a constitutional amendment aimed at trimming presidential powers, beefing up anti-corruption safeguards, and helping to find a way out of the country’s worst financial crisis since independence.
: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., announces that Manila will drop a $215 million helicopter deal with Russia and instead purchase military helicopters from the United States.
: Indian National Congress elects its first president outside the Gandhi family in over 20 years, party veteran Mallikarjun Kharge.
: North Korea fires around 100 artillery rounds into the Yellow Sea and another 150 rounds into the East Sea, into the eastern and western buffer zones north of the Northern Limit Line.
: Japan announces additional sanctions on North Korea and freezes the assets of five organizations for their involvement with the nuclear and missile programs.
: Maritime forces from the US, Canada, and Japan conduct exercises in the South China Sea in support of Royal Australian Navy forces.
: Singapore and Vietnam ink new agreements to deepen collaboration in trading renewable energy and working on carbon credit projects.
: Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio sends a ritual offering to Yasukuni Shrine, but does not visit the shrine.
: Xi Jinping opens the Chinese Communist Party’s twice-a-decade National Congress by pledging to never renounce using force to take control of Taiwan while championing a clampdown on Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. Congress continues until Oct. 22.
: North Korea fires a short-range ballistic missile into the sea and hundreds of artillery rounds near the border with the South.
: South Korea announces new unilateral sanctions against North Korea, the first in five years, designating 15 individuals and 16 organizations for their involvement with the nuclear and missile programs.
: Around 10 North Korean military aircraft fly close to the border with South Korea, prompting the South Korean Air Force to scramble F-35A stealth fighters and other assets.
: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervises the testfiring of long-range strategic cruise missiles involving units operating “tactical nukes” to send a “clear warning to the enemies” and a demonstration of the country’s deterrence capabilities.
: Philippines seeks to revive its upstream oil industry with redevelopment of an oil field that last produced in the early 1990s, as it hopes to wean itself off fuel imports, according to energy officials.
: Indonesian President Jokowi orders a stress test for the economy amid global uncertainty. His comments follow IMF cuts to its global growth forecast for 2023 amid pressures from the war in Ukraine, high energy and food prices, inflation, and sharply higher interest rates.
: White House releases its National Security Strategy.
: Japan lifts border restrictions after almost 2 years and 7 months.
: Malaysian PM Ismail Sabri Yaakob announces dissolution of Parliament, paving the way for the country’s 15th general election despite protests by most political parties over holding polls during the monsoon flood season.
: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervises an exercise of tactical nuclear operation units to check and assess the “war deterrent and nuclear counterattack capability” in response to recent joint US-South Korea military exercises. Kim states that North Korea has “no content for dialogue with the enemies and felt no necessity to do so.”
: North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, its seventh missile provocation in two weeks.
: US Commerce Department imposes sweeping export controls against China’s semiconductor industry, affecting both US chip design firms and Taiwan suppliers using American technology like TSMC.
: South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup meets the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command in Seoul to discuss North Korea’s provocations and the Seoul-Washington alliance.
: North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, its sixth missile test in under two weeks.
: US Treasure Department announces sanctions on three individuals for procurement of Russian-made arms from Belarus for the military regime in Myanmar.
: South Korea, Japan, and the US conduct a joint naval exercise in the East Sea focusing on countering nuclear and missile threats from North Korea.
: US aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan redeploys near the Korean Peninsula in a show of might aimed at deterring further North Korean activity after Pyongyang fired a ballistic missile over Japan.
: Taiwan vows to safeguard interests amid US-led Chip4 talks, as a senior Taiwanese official says full decoupling from China, Taiwan’s largest trading partner, is “not realistic.”
: North Korea fires intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan, its first launch of an IRBM in eight months and the fifth missile test in just over a week. In response, a South Korean F-15K fighter fires two JADAM precision bombs at a firing range on a Yellow Sea island and air drills with the US in a combined strike package.
: South Korean activists clash with police while launching balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang propaganda materials across the North Korean border, ignoring their government’s plea to stop since the North has threatened to respond with “deadly” retaliation.
: Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76) and fleet replenishment-oiler USNS Rappahannock (T-AO 204), in cooperation with the Royal Canadian Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Forces, conducts exercises in the South China Sea.
: North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, a day a day after South Korea, the US, and Japan staged an anti-submarine warfare exercise. This marks North Korea’s fourth missile launch within a week.
: In Taipei, the US government convenes a preliminary meeting of “Chips 4,” a new working group of the US, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan intended to strengthen semiconductor supply chain resiliency and cooperation.
: China withdraws draft resolution against the AUKUS alliance at the general conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna after apprehending that the measure would not receive majority support.
: Court in military-ruled Myanmar jails deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her former economic adviser, Australian Sean Turnell, for three years for violating a secrets law.
: North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast, a day before US Vice President Kamala Harris is set to arrive in Seoul.
: Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio kicks off three days of meetings with nearly 40 global leaders in Tokyo to attend state funeral for Abe Shinzo, using the opportunity to renew the ex-leader’s push for a “free and open Indo-Pacific.”
: US Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group conducts series of exercises with ROK Navy.
Sept. 27, 2022: State funeral for Abe Shinzo takes place.
Sept. 27, 2022: State funeral for Abe Shinzo takes place.
: North Korea fires a short-range ballistic missile toward the East Sea, the North’s fifth missile firing since the Yoon administration took office.
: Top diplomats from the US, Japan, and South Korea meet in New York to coordinate joint response to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.
: Nuclear-powered USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier arrives in South Korea to conduct its first combined drills with the South Korean Navy.
: Senior diplomats from the United States and China meet with tensions high after an explicit pledge by Biden to defend Taiwan.
: Quad Foreign Ministers Meeting on the sidelines of the 77th UNGA. Quad countries promised “to deepen Quad multilateral cooperation in support of advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific, which is inclusive and resilient” and agreed their “vision is for a region where the rules-based international order is upheld, and where the principles of freedom, rule of law, democratic values, peaceful settlement of disputes, sovereignty, and territorial integrity are respected.”
: BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) Ministers of Foreign Affairs and International Relations meeting takes place.
: Taiwanese government says that it will never allow China to “meddle” in its future after a Chinese government spokesperson said Beijing was willing to make the utmost effort to strive for a peaceful “reunification” with the island.
: Japan abandons controversial training program for Myanmar cadets, with a Defense Ministry spokesperson saying that the decision was a response to the military junta’s shocking execution of four political prisoners in July.
: US President Joe Biden says US forces would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, his most explicit statement on the issue, drawing an angry response from China that said it sent the wrong signal to those seeking an independent Taiwan.
: Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76), in cooperation with Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver (FFH 331), conducts exercises in the South China Sea.
: US President Joseph, when asked “Would US forces defend the island (of Taiwan)?” responds “Yes, if in fact there was an unprecedented attack.”
: Two Chinese military drones, the CH-4 and the WZ-7, are reported to have flown near Taiwan for the first time.
: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tells Russian President Vladimir Putin that now is not the time for war, publicly assailing the Kremlin chief over the conflict in Ukraine.
: Seoul Central District Court dismisses its case for Japan to disclose its state assets in South Korea to pay compensation to comfort women because of its refusal to comply.
: President Biden signs executive order directing the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CIFUS) to concentrate on specific types of transactions that would give a foreign power access to key technologies that are critical to US economic growth.
: Four Russian naval ships and three Chinese vessels launch their 2nd joint Pacific patrol.
: US Senate committee approves legislation that would significantly enhance US military support for Taiwan, including provisions for billions of dollars in additional security assistance, amid increased pressure from China toward the democratically governed island.
: UN General Assembly convenes in New York.
: Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who seized power in a 2014 coup, is suspended while the court deliberates on the case filed by the opposition.
: Head of a UN team of investigators on Myanmar states that Facebook has handed over millions of items that could support allegations of war crimes and genocide.
: Indonesia and Norway sign bilateral climate and forest partnership to support Jakarta’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, even as it reduced deforestation to a 20-year low.
: Member nations of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework agree to start official negotiations to boost regional economic cooperation.
: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un publicly expresses determination not to give up the country’s nuclear weapons, accusing the United States of seeking the collapse of his regime, not just denuclearization.
: North Korea celebrates 74th anniversary of its founding. At the 14th Supreme People’s Assembly, North Korea announces five conditions for a nuclear preemptive strike, states that it will not share nuclear weapons and technology with other countries, and reaffirms that the country will resist all sanctions and pressures to give up its nuclear weapons.
: Japan and India agree to bolster bilateral cooperation on maritime security, including expanding joint drills and setting up a high-level defense dialogue.
: Third ministerial (and first in-person meeting) of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) is held in Los Angeles. The 14 members declare which pillars that they will negotiate in and agree upon the main issue areas for each pillar.
: State Department approves the potential sale of F-16 aircraft sustainment and related equipment to Pakistan in a deal valued at up to $450 million.
: Russia purchases millions of rockets and artillery shells from North Korea to re-energize its offensive in Ukraine, as Western sanctions cut Moscow’s supply of weapons.
: Philippine ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez states that the Philippines may allow the US military access in the event of a Taiwan conflict, “for our own security.”
: Biden administration says it will keep tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars in Chinese imports while it continues statutory review of duties imposed by former President Donald Trump.
: US State Department approves potential $1.1 billion sale of military equipment to Taiwan, including 60 anti-ship missiles and 100 air-to-air missiles.
: Office of the US Trade Representative confirms that domestic industry representatives requested continuation of Section 301 tariffs on China and the tariffs accordingly did not expire on their four-year anniversary.
: Former Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled and left the country in crisis back in July, returns from Bangkok in an apparent end to his self-imposed exile.