Month: February 2022

The European Commission has accused the UK of breaching EU law during the Brexit transition period by virtue of a UK Supreme Court judgment handed down in February 2020.

An aide to Thailand’s prime minister said he would seek the expulsion of human rights group Amnesty International from the country, after it was accused by ultra royalists of undermining national security.Seksakol Atthawong, a vice-minister in Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s office, said on Friday that a petition opposing Amnesty’s presence in Thailand had garnered 1.2 million signatures and would be submitted to the National Security Council and Interior Ministry next week.Thai protesters…

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and a unit of Sony Group Corp have unveiled plans for a new production facility in southern Japan, becoming the largest beneficiaries to date of the subsidy scheme set up by the Japanese government as the first step in regenerating the domestic chip industry.TSMC has collaborated with Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corp (SSS) to set up Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Inc (JASM) and plans have been drawn up for a new fabrication plant in…

The Biden administration on Thursday approved a nearly US$14 billion arms sale to Indonesia, as the US presses ahead with steps it believes will help counter China’s increasing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.The State Department announced the US$13.9 billion sale of advanced fighter jets while Secretary of State Antony Blinken was visiting Australia on a visit also intended to underscore the US determination not to allow China free rein in the Pacific, even as developments between Russia and…

UK tax authority HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has two powers described as ‘game changers’ in relation to those who have entered into tax avoidance schemes.

New Zealand police on Thursday began forcefully removing hundreds of people who have been camping outside its parliament building for the last three days to protest Covid-19 vaccine mandates and pandemic restrictions.Inspired by the truckers demonstrations in Canada, which is into its 13th day with protesters blocking two border crossings with the United States, several thousand people this week blocked streets near the parliament in capital Wellington with their trucks, cars and motorbikes…

The China-Asean code of conduct for the disputed South China Sea is unlikely to be concluded by the end of this year, according to a panel of Southeast Asian experts at a forum on Wednesday.Their comments follow remarks from a Chinese military adviser in late December who said that China and Asean remained divided on a number of contentious issues. These, said Yao Yunzhu, a retired People’s Liberation Army major general, included whether the agreement should be legally binding, its geographic…

Pro-Kashmir social media posts by KFC, Hyundai and other global brands have sparked uproar in India, with diplomats saying that the controversy had prompted an apology from a foreign government.Control of Kashmir has been contested between India and Pakistan since their independence in 1947 and the nuclear-armed foes have fought two wars over the territory.Both countries regularly trade heated diplomatic barbs over the issue and Pakistan marks every February 5 as a national holiday in a gesture…

Mixed signals from the Malaysian government over its plans to reopen borders and minimise restrictions amid an increase in Omicron cases has led the public and some experts to question whether it is prioritising the economy over public health.Muhyiddin Yassin, a former prime minister who heads the National Recovery Council (NRC) tasked with guiding the country out of the Covid-19 pandemic, on Tuesday said a full reopening of borders to international tourists could take place by March to…

Some of Australia’s leading authorities on intellectual property (IP) law are set to consider whether artificial intelligence (AI) systems can be classed as inventors for the purposes of patent law.