Global Pulse

标签： Asia

亚洲

  • Japan marks 15 years since tsunami disaster as Takaichi pushes more nuclear energy use

    Japan marks 15 years since tsunami disaster as Takaichi pushes more nuclear energy use

    TOKYO — Japan solemnly observed the 15th anniversary of the catastrophic earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdown that devastated its northeastern coastline, even as the government advances controversial initiatives to expand atomic energy usage.

    The magnitude 9.0 temblor that struck on March 11, 2011, triggered massive tsunami waves that ravaged coastal communities across Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures. The disaster claimed over 22,000 lives and displaced approximately half a million residents from their homes, with radiation concerns forcing the evacuation of some 160,000 people from Fukushima alone.

    At precisely 2:46 p.m., the nation paused for a moment of silence to honor the victims. During a memorial ceremony in Fukushima, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi committed to accelerating regional recovery efforts within the next five years while preserving the “valuable lessons learned from the huge sacrifice of the disaster.”

    This commemorative event occurs against the backdrop of a significant policy reversal. In 2022, Japan terminated its decade-long nuclear phase-out strategy, with Takaichi now actively promoting reactor restarts and advocating for nuclear power as a stable energy source.

    Despite substantial infrastructure reconstruction, community and economic recovery remains sluggish. Approximately 26,000 displaced residents have not returned to their hometowns, having resettled elsewhere or remaining concerned about radiation risks in still-restricted zones.

    The technical challenges at the Fukushima Daiichi plant remain formidable. Three reactors contain at least 880 tons of melted fuel debris, with detailed assessment hampered by persistently dangerous radiation levels. Full-scale debris removal has been postponed until at least 2037.

    Additionally, decontamination efforts have produced enormous quantities of slightly radioactive soil—sufficient to fill 11 baseball stadiums. Government proposals to repurpose this material for public works projects have encountered significant public opposition.

    In affected coastal communities, residents gathered at dawn to offer prayers for missing loved ones, their remains still lost to the sea fifteen years after the tragedy.

  • China’s defense spending maintains reasonable growth

    China’s defense spending maintains reasonable growth

    China has unveiled a strategic defense budget of 1.91 trillion yuan ($278 billion) for fiscal year 2026, representing a measured 7% year-on-year increase. Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang, spokesperson for the People’s Liberation Army and People’s Armed Police Force delegation, articulated the rationale behind this expenditure during the fourth session of the 14th National People’s Congress.

    The budget allocation reflects China’s commitment to synchronized development of national defense capabilities and economic prosperity. Colonel Zhang emphasized that the funding determination follows comprehensive evaluation of multiple strategic factors, including national security requirements, overall development objectives, and the synchronization between military modernization and China’s broader modernization agenda.

    According to defense officials, the increased expenditure will primarily fuel three key modernization initiatives: advancing integrated military development through mechanization, informatization, and smart technology implementation; enhancing joint operational capabilities and traditional combat forces; and accelerating the systematic development of new-domain forces with combat-ready capabilities.

    The budgetary expansion will also facilitate critical investments in advanced weaponry development, defense technology innovation, modern logistics infrastructure, and combat-oriented training programs. Additionally, the military plans to implement comprehensive reforms in budget management systems, establishing dynamic balance mechanisms between funding supply and demand while strengthening full-cycle financial oversight and performance evaluation.

    Colonel Zhang characterized these developments as essential strategic underpinnings for Chinese modernization, noting that the approach simultaneously enhances both defense capabilities and economic strengths while safeguarding national sovereignty and security interests.

  • Motions prioritize emerging industries

    Motions prioritize emerging industries

    Chinese legislators are channeling significant attention toward establishing legal frameworks for cutting-edge technological sectors during the current National People’s Congress session. According to the session’s secretariat, an overwhelming majority of the 226 motions submitted by NPC deputies focus on legislative priorities for the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), with particular emphasis on building China’s modern industrial system.

    Guo Zhenhua, head of the motions work group, revealed that more than two-thirds of proposals target legal establishment or amendment to strengthen technological self-reliance and develop a high-standard socialist market economy. The legislative push specifically addresses artificial intelligence governance, digital economy regulations, low-altitude economic development, and national laboratory operations.

    Beyond emerging technologies, deputies have advocated for revisions to existing legislation including the Patent Law to accelerate the transformation of scientific achievements into practical applications. This initiative aims to bridge the gap between innovation and industrial implementation.

    Concurrently, social welfare concerns feature prominently in the legislative agenda. Sixty-six motions address quality-of-life improvements including traffic safety enhancements, comprehensive elderly care services, and protection for workers in emerging employment sectors such as ride-hailing and delivery services.

    The secretariat additionally reported receiving over 7,000 suggestions covering broader policy areas including internet economy development, green energy transition, agricultural智能化services, and combating online misinformation and telecommunications fraud. Unlike formal motions, these suggestions represent advisory opinions for government departments rather than items requiring NPC review.

  • India’s top court allows removal of life support of man in vegetative state

    India’s top court allows removal of life support of man in vegetative state

    In a historic judicial decision, India’s Supreme Court has authorized the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment for Harish Rana, a 31-year-old man who has remained in a persistent vegetative state since a tragic 2013 accident. This ruling establishes the first court-sanctioned implementation of passive euthanasia since its legalization in 2018, marking a significant evolution in India’s approach to end-of-life care.

    Rana, formerly an engineering student at Punjab University, sustained catastrophic head injuries after falling from a fourth-floor balcony, resulting in permanent brain damage and complete dependency on medical interventions. For over a decade, he has been maintained through tracheostomy breathing assistance and gastrostomy feeding tubes, exhibiting no meaningful cognitive function or ability to interact with his environment.

    The legal journey began when Rana’s parents, having exhausted their financial resources and facing concerns about their son’s future care, petitioned multiple courts seeking permission to cease artificial life support. Their initial plea was rejected by the Delhi High Court in 2024, which noted Rana wasn’t dependent on external support systems. However, subsequent deterioration in his condition prompted a renewed Supreme Court application in 2025.

    Critical to the verdict was the assessment by two independent medical boards, which unanimously concluded that Rana had negligible recovery prospects and suffered from extensive bed sores alongside his profound neurological impairment. The court’s decision enables medical professionals to exercise clinical judgment regarding treatment withdrawal in accordance with India’s legal framework for passive euthanasia.

    This case has ignited substantial ethical debate within India’s medical and legal communities, particularly regarding the application of passive euthanasia principles when patients cannot provide direct consent through living wills. The ruling establishes an important precedent for future cases involving terminally ill patients without advance directives, balancing compassionate care with rigorous judicial oversight.

  • Reusable rocket models being developed

    Reusable rocket models being developed

    China is making significant strides in reusable rocket technology with two distinct recovery systems currently under development by the nation’s premier space contractor. China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) is advancing parallel programs featuring fundamentally different retrieval methodologies for rocket boosters, according to senior rocket scientist Jiang Jie.

    The technical approaches represent divergent paths to achieving reusable launch capabilities. One configuration employs ground-based vertical landing technology where the first-stage booster returns to a designated terrestrial landing site using its engines and deploys landing legs for stabilization. The contrasting system utilizes maritime net-assisted recovery, wherein a specialized vessel captures the descending booster mid-air using an engineered net system.

    Jiang Jie, a prominent researcher at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, emphasized that reusable launch vehicles constitute the exclusive pathway toward achieving cost-effective, high-frequency access to space with heavy payload capacity. She made these statements during the ongoing National People’s Congress session in Beijing.

    The technological development follows China’s recent milestone achievement in February 2026, when a prototype Long March 10 rocket successfully completed its inaugural launch-and-recovery test. The vehicle’s first-stage booster ascended to space before executing a controlled return trajectory using engine burns and aerodynamic grid fins, ultimately achieving a precise splashdown in the South China Sea. This accomplishment positioned China as only the second nation after the United States to demonstrate operational reusable rocket technology.

    CASC is intensifying efforts to overcome critical technological barriers and achieve full operational capability for reusable boosters. The state-owned enterprise plans to conduct the first net-recovery test for the Long March 10 booster in coming months. Beyond governmental programs, private aerospace firms including Land-Space and Space Pioneer are concurrently developing competing reusable systems, anticipating substantial contracts from state satellite operators planning extensive orbital constellations.

  • Booking a stronger future

    Booking a stronger future

    Educational experts across China are welcoming newly implemented regulations designed to foster nationwide reading habits, responding to growing concerns about declining attention spans in the digital era. Professor Dan Hansong of Nanjing University’s English literature department has observed a disturbing pattern among students who increasingly struggle with extended literary works, even when dealing with concise authors like minimalist writer Raymond Carver. The phenomenon reflects a broader global challenge where technological advancements, particularly artificial intelligence, have fundamentally altered academic engagement. Students now find it nearly impossible to imagine spending uninterrupted afternoons immersed in classic literature such as Dostoevsky’s ‘Crime and Punishment’ or Tolstoy’s ‘War and Peace,’ with even moderate reading assignments of 100-200 pages presenting significant difficulties. Educators characterize this shift as more than an academic concern—it represents a crucial evolutionary challenge for human cognitive development. The national reading promotion framework arrives as a strategic response to these developments, aiming to reinforce traditional reading practices while acknowledging the irreversible impact of digital technologies on education. The initiative has garnered support from academic professionals who see it as essential for maintaining critical engagement with complex texts in an increasingly fragmented information environment.

  • South Korea confirms US moving air defence systems to the Middle East

    South Korea confirms US moving air defence systems to the Middle East

    South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has publicly acknowledged that the United States intends to reposition air defense assets from the Korean Peninsula to the Middle East, marking a significant shift in regional security priorities. During a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, President Lee expressed opposition to the withdrawal of these systems but conceded that Seoul’s ability to prevent the move remains limited.

    This development represents the first official confirmation that Washington is reallocating vital missile defense capabilities from East Asia to address escalating tensions with Iran. According to initial reports by The Washington Post, the Pentagon is specifically relocating components of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system from South Korea.

    The strategic repositioning occurs despite South Korea’s status as a key U.S. ally facing ongoing threats from nuclear-armed North Korea. The two nations maintain substantial economic ties, with South Korea ranking as America’s sixth-largest trading partner—economic relations that far surpass U.S. commercial links with Israel, Turkey, or Gulf states.

    This marks not the first instance of the U.S. diverting defensive resources in response to Iranian missile capabilities. Turkey recently confirmed additional Patriot battery deployments to Malatya province following Iranian missile attacks. Middle East Eye reported these systems were transferred from NATO’s Ramstein base in Germany, with analysts suggesting Iranian missiles may have been testing Turkish air defenses near critical NATO radar installations.

    The redistribution underscores increasing strain on U.S. military resources as Middle Eastern partners request additional air defense interceptors. Some Gulf analysts have begun questioning the effectiveness of U.S. military presence in the region despite ongoing attacks from Iran.

    This strategic reallocation presents a paradox given the Trump administration’s previous commitments to disengage from Middle Eastern conflicts. The move also contrasts with defense policy recommendations from officials like Under Secretary Eldridge Colby, who advocated for reducing Middle East commitments to better focus on strategic competition with China.

  • Trump: US Navy sank unarmed Iran ship because it was ‘more fun’

    Trump: US Navy sank unarmed Iran ship because it was ‘more fun’

    Former President Donald Trump has sparked international condemnation by openly admitting that the U.S. Navy deliberately sank an unarmed Iranian frigate in the Indian Ocean simply because it was “more fun” than capturing the vessel. The March 4 attack on IRIS Dena resulted in the deaths of 104 Iranian sailors and injured 32 others, according to Iran’s state media.

    The warship was returning from the Milan Peace 2026 naval exercises hosted by India when an American submarine torpedoed it approximately 2,000 miles from the Persian Gulf. Both Iranian and Indian officials have confirmed the vessel was unarmed and operating in a purely ceremonial capacity during the multinational drills.

    During a gathering hosted by the Congressional Institute, Trump recounted his conversation with military officials about the incident. He expressed initial frustration about destroying what he called a “top-of-the-line” vessel, questioning why they didn’t capture it instead. According to Trump, an unidentified official responded that sinking ships was “more fun” and “safer,” prompting laughter from both the audience and the former president.

    The incident has been described by political commentator Adam Schwarz as “the most blasé admission of a war crime by a US president in history.” International law experts note that while attacking military ships might technically be legal under naval warfare rules, the stated motivation of doing it for “fun” raises serious ethical and legal concerns.

    Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies emphasized that failing to rescue survivors constitutes a clear violation of the Second Geneva Convention. The 32 survivors and numerous bodies were eventually recovered by a Sri Lankan joint rescue operation following a distress call.

    The attack occurs within the broader context of escalating US-Israel military actions against Iran that have reportedly killed at least 1,255 people, including 200 children and 11 healthcare workers. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has previously stated the US would not abide by “stupid rules of engagement” in the campaign against Iran.

    Journalist Mark Ames characterized the attack as demonstrating “sadistic pleasure” in tormenting those who can’t fight back. Bennis further argued that the entire US campaign against Iran represents the “supreme international crime” of aggression under Nuremberg principles, as it lacks UN Security Council authorization or justification as self-defense.

  • ‘Swinging into action:’ The Saudi Arabian pipeline designed to bypass Hormuz

    ‘Swinging into action:’ The Saudi Arabian pipeline designed to bypass Hormuz

    In a decisive response to Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia has initiated full operational deployment of its strategic East-West Pipeline, a critical infrastructure project originally conceived during 1980s Gulf tensions. Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser confirmed the pipeline is achieving its maximum daily capacity of seven million barrels, providing crucial alternative routing for Gulf oil exports bypassing the blocked waterway.

    The 750-mile pipeline, stretching from Abqaiq oil field to Yanbu port on the Red Sea, represents Saudi Arabia’s transformation into the producer of last resort during the current crisis. While providing economic relief to Saudi coffers and buying tactical time for US President Trump’s campaign against Iran, experts emphasize the system’s limitations. The Yanbu terminal can only handle approximately 4.5 million barrels daily—insufficient to compensate for the 18 million barrels of oil and 4 million barrels of refined products normally traversing Hormuz.

    The market faces a compounded crisis: not merely a crude shortage but a critical deficit in refined products including diesel and jet fuel. Energy analyst Ellen Wald notes the pipeline cannot simultaneously fulfill crude export contracts and product demand, while Global Risk Management’s Arne Rasmussen identifies this as primarily a ‘distillate crisis’ particularly affecting European markets dependent on Middle Eastern refineries.

    New vulnerabilities emerge as exports shift to the Red Sea, bringing Houthi forces into strategic consideration. Despite maintaining a fragile truce with Saudi Arabia, these Iran-aligned militants control access through the Bab el-Mandeb strait—a potential chokepoint for redirected shipments. Iran’s calibrated escalation, avoiding permanent damage to Saudi infrastructure while inflicting broader economic pain, demonstrates sophisticated conflict management that could change dramatically should Saudi Arabia directly enter the conflict.

    With G7 nations debating strategic reserve releases and oil prices exhibiting extreme volatility, the East-West Pipeline provides temporary relief rather than comprehensive solution to a crisis threatening global economic stability.

  • That purple Hawaii vacation lei likely came from Thailand, and some lawmakers want to change that

    That purple Hawaii vacation lei likely came from Thailand, and some lawmakers want to change that

    HONOLULU — A cultural paradox is unfolding in Hawaii’s iconic lei industry, where the vibrant purple orchid garlands presented to tourists are predominantly imported from Thailand rather than cultivated locally. This revelation has sparked significant legislative action and cultural concern throughout the Aloha State.

    Hawaiian lawmakers are currently advocating for measures to support locally-grown lei production, including potential labeling requirements that would distinguish Hawaii-made garlands and restrictions on state agencies purchasing imported lei. The movement stems from deep cultural connections to the lei tradition, which has symbolized the spirit of ‘aloha’ and Hawaiian identity for generations.

    Kuhio Lewis, CEO of the Hawaiian Council nonprofit organization, expressed cultural embarrassment about the current import dependency. ‘You don’t come to Hawaii and not at least have a flower or a lei,’ Lewis stated. ‘For us to now be importing is not good.’

    The cultural significance of lei in Hawaii extends far beyond tourist souvenirs. These floral garlands represent love and connection in Hawaiian culture, used in celebrations ranging from graduations to legislative ceremonies. A unique tradition involves presenting pregnant women with open-ended strands rather than closed necklaces due to cultural beliefs about umbilical cord symbolism.

    State Representative Darius Kila, who is Native Hawaiian, has been at the forefront of legislative efforts to address the issue. Although his initial bill requiring state officials to purchase a percentage of locally-grown lei failed, a related Senate bill remains active. This legislation proposes establishing a work group to study whether local flower-growers can meet rising demand and make recommendations for protecting the indigenous industry.

    The Senate bill explicitly addresses concerns about cultural appropriation, noting that ‘the growing commercialization of lei and lei materials has led to increased use of imported plant materials and manufactured components that are marketed using Hawaiian language, imagery, and place names,’ potentially misleading consumers and undermining local cultural practitioners.

    In Honolulu’s Chinatown, the heart of Hawaii’s lei industry, vendors like Francis Wong of Jenny’s Lei and Flowers note that locals consistently prefer fragrant local flowers such as pikake jasmine, tuberose, and puakenikeni. However, seasonal shortages and cost considerations make imported Thailand orchids a practical necessity for many businesses.

    Monty Pereira, general manager of Watanabe Floral—Hawaii’s largest florist selling approximately 250,000 lei annually—expressed concern that restrictive legislation might inadvertently harm the tradition it seeks to protect. ‘The bigger threat is making it so expensive that the people of Hawaii cannot afford to enjoy something that’s culturally significant to us,’ Pereira warned, noting that popular lei already command prices up to $150 for special occasions.

    The debate continues as Hawaii balances cultural preservation with economic reality, seeking solutions that honor tradition while maintaining accessibility to this cherished cultural practice.