Six In The Morning Saturday 3 September 2022

 

China warns of 'counter-measures' as US approves $1.1bn arms sales to Taiwan

By Teele Rebane, Shawn Deng, Larry Register and Heather Chen, CNN

Updated 0653 GMT (1453 HKT) September 3, 2022

China has warned the United States it will take "counter-measures" after the Biden administration approved more than $1.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan.

Chinese embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu said Saturday China was "firmly opposed" to the sales, which "severely jeopardize China-US relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait," and called on Washington to "immediately revoke" them.

Liu's comments on Twitter came after the Biden administration on Friday formally notified Congress of the proposed sales, which include up to 60 anti-ship missiles and up to 100 air-to-air missiles.

Calls for arrest of Sri Lanka’s ousted president after return

Rights groups say Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled in July amid protests, should be brought to justice on a number of charges

Agence France-Presse in Colombo

The deposed Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa is facing calls for his arrest after returning home from self-imposed exile under the protection of the government that took charge when he fled.

Rajapaksa fled the island country under military escort in July when a huge crowd stormed his official residence after months of angry demonstrations against his government.

The 73-year-old announced his resignation from Singapore and spent weeks under virtual house arrest at a Bangkok hotel lobbying his successor to allow his return.

Ukraine war and the long tradition of deception

Deceiving the enemy is an important war tactic. Throughout history, military strategy has involved the use of dummies — be it fake guns, tanks, airplanes, or soldiers. Ukraine is no different.

There have been numerous reports that the Ukrainian military is outfoxing the Russians on the battlefield in a modern adaptation of deception tactics that go back to ancient times. Videos posted on social media platforms seem to show Ukrainian forces using US-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, against Russian forces — with a devastating effect.

Strikes with the long-range rocket artillery system have indeed destroyed large ammunition and fuel dumps deep behind Russian lines in southern Ukraine in recent weeks, wreaking havoc on Russian logistics. So targeting HIMARS is a high priority for Russia.

‘A period of repression’: Iran’s crackdown on filmmakers escalates

One year after ultraconservative President Ebrahim Raisi came to power, Iranian authorities are targeting the country's cinema, an industry that includes directors Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof who are both icons abroad. Their arrests in July reflect the pressure that filmmakers and actors are under. 

The Iranian film community has been asking "who will be next?" ever since Panahi and Rasoulof were arrested in July in Tehran. 

Panahi, who was sentenced to six years in prison in 2010 for "spreading anti-regime propaganda", is one of Iran’s most celebrated filmmakers. Most notably, he won the Golden Bear in Berlin for "Taxi Tehran" in 2015 and three years later, the screenplay prize at Cannes for "3 Faces". For his part, Rasoulof won the Golden Bear in 2020 for "There is no evil", and the prize in the "Un Certain Regard" category in Cannes for his feature "A Man of Integrity" in 2017. Both filmmakers are very well known and their arrests have been publicised abroad, but other directors have also been touched by the wave of repression that has hit Iranian cinema in recent months. 

‘Friendly ties’: Myanmar’s top general to visit Russia

Military leader Min Aung Hlaing will hold talks with Russian officials to ‘further cement cooperation’ between the countries.

The leader of Myanmar’s ruling generals will travel to Russia next week for economic talks as both governments face diplomatic isolation over militaristic moves.

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing will attend the Eastern Economic Forum in the far-eastern city of Vladivostok, the Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported on Saturday.

Ukraine war: As UK counts pennies, we count casualties - Olena Zelenska

By Rob Corp
Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg

The economic impact of the war in Ukraine is tough on its allies, the country's first lady has told the BBC, but as Britons "count pennies", Ukrainians "count casualties".

Olena Zelenska told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that if support for Ukraine was strong the crisis would be shorter.

In an interview recorded in Kyiv, she also said it was important to keep highlighting the human toll of the war.

And Mrs Zelenska said while she rarely saw her husband, they talk every day.