US envoy Goldberg vows ‘Yolanda’ aid to continue

 News
Dec 022013
 
US envoy Goldberg vows ‘Yolanda’ aid to continue

New US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg: Continuing aid. AFP FILE PHOTO New US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg on Monday met with President Aquino, expressing condolences for the victims of Supertyphoon “Yolanda” and vowing that his country would continue to help the Philippines in its rehabilitation efforts. “I first want to say that we’re all still saddened and want to send our condolences to the people of the Eastern Visayas, with all the people of the Philippines after Typhoon Yolanda,” Goldberg told reporters in Malacañang after presenting his credentials to the President. “I had a chance to make the same kind of expression to President Aquino that the United States will remain with the Philippines as you move from the relief period into reconstruction. And the United States will take the lead of the Philippine government in areas that are most urgent for rehabilitation and reconstruction,” he said. But Goldberg also took the opportunity to make a pitch for an agreement that would allow “increased rotational presence” of US troops and access to their former military bases in the Philippines. “In the security area, but also in the cooperation that we have undertaken to work on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, we want to further that effort and be able to help even more as we move toward a framework agreement where the United States and the Philippines can move to the next level of [their] relationship,” he said. Goldberg, however, could not say when Manila and Read More …

Why spy on allies? Even good friends keep secrets

 News
Oct 312013
 
Why spy on allies? Even good friends keep secrets

President Barack Obama walks with Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel toward a group photo outside of the Konstantin Palace in St. Petersburg in this September 6, 2013 file photo. AP In geopolitics, even best friends don’t tell each other everything. And everybody’s dying to know what the other guy knows. Revelations that the US has been monitoring the cellphone calls of up to 35 world leaders, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, have brought into sharp relief the open secret that even close allies keep things from one another — and do all they can to find out what’s being held back. The Israelis recruited US naval analyst Jonathan Pollard to pass along US secrets including satellite photos and data on Soviet weaponry in the 1980s. The British were accused of spying on UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan before the Iraq War. The French, Germans, Japanese, Israelis and South Koreans have been accused of engaging in economic espionage against the United States. But the technology revealed by former National Security Agency analyst Edward Snowden has underscored the incredible reach of the US spy agency. And it is raising the question for some allies: Is this still OK? National Intelligence Director James Clapper testified this week that it is a “basic tenet” of the intelligence business to find out whether the public statements of world leaders go with what’s being said behind closed doors. What might the Americans have wanted to know from Merkel’s private conversations, for example? Topics could include her thinking on Read More …

U.S. Embassy closed on Nov. 1 for All Saints’ Day

 News
Oct 312013
 
U.S. Embassy closed on Nov. 1 for All Saints’ Day

INQUIRER.net 3:33 pm | Thursday, October 31st, 2013 US Embassy in Manila, Philippines. AP FILE PHOTO The Embassy of the United States in Manila and its affiliated offices will be closed to the public on Friday, November 1, 2013, in observance of All Saints’ Day, a Philippine holiday. The Embassy and its affiliated offices will resume services on Monday, Nov. 4. Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines. Tags: all saints’ day , Global Nation , Holidays , u.s. embassy Factual errors? Contact the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s day desk. Believe this article violates journalistic ethics? Contact the Inquirer’s Reader’s Advocate. Or write The Readers’ Advocate: c/o Philippine Daily Inquirer Chino Roces Avenue corner Yague and Mascardo Streets, Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines Or fax nos. +63 2 8974793 to 94

BIR seeks IRS help in finding Napoles assets in United States

 News
Oct 102013
 
BIR seeks IRS help in finding Napoles assets in United States

BIR Commissioner Kim Henares. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue expects its American counterpart — the Internal Revenue Service — to help find any assets that Janet Lim Napoles and her family may have in the United States. BIR Commissioner Kim Henares confirmed, on Thursday, reports that the tax bureau has sought the assistance of the IRS, and she expressed confidence the latter would give a favorable response given the existence of a tax treaty between the Philippines and the United States. Henares said that under the tax treaty of the Philippines with the United States, as well as with many other countries, each of the two parties could seek the assistance of the other in pursuing people guilty or suspected of tax evasion. Member-countries of the influential and international group Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), to which the Philippines and the Unites States are members, are expected to help out in efforts to catch tax evaders and money launderers, according to Henares. “Cooperation [between internal revenue agencies of member-countries] is a common practice. Non-cooperative countries may be subjected to blacklisting by the OECD,” she said in a phone interview. “So, yes we [the BIR] have asked assistance of the IRS. In return, we should also help them in case they need information from the Philippines on tax matters,” Henares also said. The BIR thought of seeking help from the IRS amid reports the Napoles family may have assets in the United States, Read More …

Kerry presses China, neighbors on maritime issues

 News
Oct 092013
 
Kerry presses China, neighbors on maritime issues

Associated Press 3:47 pm | Wednesday, October 9th, 2013 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry AP PHOTO BANDAR SERI BAGAWAN, Brunei — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Brunei for meetings with top officials from China and its smaller Southeast Asian neighbors, in which he will urge all countries to cool tensions over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Kerry will make the case in Wednesday discussions with China’s prime minister and the leaders of the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. U.S. officials said Kerry would call on the Chinese to accept a binding code of conduct to govern maritime behavior until disputes with the ASEAN states are resolved. Kerry is filling in at the summit for President Barack Obama, who had to cancel his participation due to the government shutdown in Washington. One senior official traveling with Kerry said he would he encouraging the ASEAN countries to continue to work “for enhanced coherence and unity” among themselves to bolster their position with China in negotiating a code of conduct. China has bristled at what it sees as U.S. interference in its backyard and has only reluctantly agreed to open consultations with ASEAN on a code of conduct. It has also lobbied some ASEAN members hard to prevent a consensus on the matter. The U.S. weighed in on the issue during Obama’s first term, when Washington announced it had a national security interest in keeping the world’s busiest commercial sea lanes open and Read More …

US shutdown fears perturb APEC summit

 News
Oct 062013
 
US shutdown fears perturb APEC summit

President Barack Obama AP File Photo NUSA DUA, Bali – The US government warned Sunday that business in America was suffering from the federal shutdown as concern about Washington’s policy paralysis was voiced at an Asia-Pacific summit where President Barack Obama was a notable absentee. The first government closure in 17 years has directly affected hundreds of thousands of federal employees, but Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker said companies were also starting to hurt, not least from her department’s inability to collate vital economic data. “The shutdown is not good for business. It’s not good for the economy,” Pritzker told reporters at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum on the Indonesian island of Bali, which Obama has been forced to skip to deal with the political crisis gripping Washington. “And we need to move on with the business of doing business in the United States. So, I am hopeful this gets resolved soon. It’s obviously having an impact,” Pritzker said. Her remarks on the economic impact came after Secretary of State John Kerry warned at the APEC meetings on Saturday that the standoff was “reckless,” and would weaken America’s diplomatic standing abroad if it did not end soon. Apart from APEC, Obama is also missing a separate East Asian summit this week and scheduled trips to Malaysia and the Philippines. His failure to come coincides with a diplomatic push by China in Southeast Asia featuring high-profile visits by President Xi Jinping, who is at APEC. Speaking at a Bali meeting of Read More …

US reliability questioned overseas

 News
Oct 052013
 
US reliability questioned overseas

Dark clouds pass over the Capitol in Washington in this October 1 file photo. Political chaos from legislative gridlock, the government shutdown and an increasing fear of a default on its debts have deepened global unease that Washington is distracted from world affairs and scrambling to solve its domestic crises. AP An unmistakable sense of unease has been growing in capitals around the world as the US government from afar looks increasingly befuddled — shirking from a military confrontation in Syria, stymied at home by a gridlocked Congress and in danger of defaulting on sovereign debt, which could plunge the world’s financial system into chaos. While each of the factors may be unrelated to the direct exercise of US foreign policy, taken together they give some allies the sense that Washington is not as firm as it used to be in its resolve and its financial capacity, providing an opening for China or Russia to fill the void, an Asian foreign minister told a group of journalists in New York this week. Concerns will only deepen now that President Barack Obama canceled travel this weekend to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum in Bali and the East Asia Summit in Brunei. He pulled out of the gatherings to stay home to deal with the government shutdown and looming fears that Congress will block an increase in US borrowing power, a move that could lead to a US default. The US is still a pillar of defense for places in Asia Read More …

Stocks end higher despite of caution

 Economy
Oct 032013
 
Stocks end higher despite of caution

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) – The stock market extended its rally today even after the fiscal drama in the United States has left many guessing of local investors on the US Federal Reserve’s next move. The bellwether Philippine stock market gained 0.4 percent or 25. 39 points to 6,387.65, while the broader all-share index rose by 0. 14 percent or 5.52 points to 3,842.32. Trading volume reached 921 million shares worth P6.11 billion ($141.74 million) with 72 stocks declining, 62 advancing, and 52 were unchanged. Of the six counters, only the financials and the industrial sectors bucked the trend. “Share prices appeared to poised to take a breather and snapped a two-session run as the continuing fiscal drama in the US left investors clueless,” analyst Justino Calaycay of Accord Capital Equities Corp. said in his daily stock market comment. The latest investment rate upgrade from Moody’s Investor Service nevertheless helped boost investors confidence, especially after the index tumbled by as much as 60 points during the session before clawing back to its closing level. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 Calaycay said the three-day rally of the local equities suggest that investors might have shifted gear and are now bullish. “Prudence is still better. There are still many headwinds and obstacles along the way,” he said. Stocks in the 30-company index closed mixed. Among those picked up were Alliance Global Group, Inc., Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co., and heavyweight Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.   

No escaping China for Aquino, Obama

 News
Sep 292013
 
No escaping China for Aquino, Obama

US President Barack Obama (right) and President Aquino: China on the agenda. MALACAÑANG PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Defense cooperation, including China’s incursions into Philippine territory, will top the agenda of President Aquino’s meeting with US President Barack Obama during the latter’s two-day visit to the country next month. In a radio interview, Ricky Carandang, head of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Group, said Aquino and Obama will talk at length on defense cooperation, specifically the “rotational presence” of US troops in the country. The meeting will be held on either Oct. 11 or 12. “Whether or not we will sign something during the Obama visit is not something I can answer at this point. What I can assure our countrymen is that these discussions with the US will lead to enhanced security for the Philippines and that’s why we’re entering into these discussions,” Carandang said. With the pivot of the United States toward East Asia, “our ties will continue to grow stronger,” he added. Carandang said the talks would likely touch on China’s undiplomatic efforts to expand its maritime borders in the South China Sea, including into portions of the West Philippine Sea. “I think we cannot avoid talking about this (territorial dispute with China) because that is part of the context of our action to enhance our maritime security. This is one of the biggest issues concerning not only the Philippines, but also Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and Japan,” Carandang said. The Philippines and the United States are currently Read More …

First in Asia: Philippine bananas to be sold in US

 News
Sep 142013
 
First in Asia: Philippine bananas to be sold in US

Photo from official account of Philippine Embassy in the United States. @philippinesusa. MANILA, Philippines – The first batch of fresh Philippine bananas has finally arrived in the United States, the Philippine Embassy in the US announced Sunday. A shipment of 7.047 metric tons of highland cavendish from Bukidnon arrived September 9 in California, making the Philippines the first Asian country to export bananas to the US. “With this shipment, we are hopeful that Philippine bananas would be able to find and satisfy a niche in the competitive US banana market,” said Philippine Ambassador Jose Cuisia Jr. The shipment came after eight years of negotiations with the US on quarantine and sanitation issues. “Philippine bananas are among the best in the world and there is opportunity to bring in the unique and special banana varieties like lakatan and latondan, which Filipinos in the US have long been craving for and which Americans can learn to love,” said Agriculture attaché Dr. Josyline Javelosa. Javelosa said the shipment, a first of an estimated 3,000 metric tons from Dole Philippines, was transferred to a ripening warehouse and will soon be available in the Los Angeles market. She said they are hoping that the new market will help the Philippine banana industry, especially Mindanao which is recovering from the onslaught of the recent typhoons. With the successful shipment, US joined other Philippine banana importers – Japan, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Korea, China, Singapore, the Middle East, Canada, Russia and Indonesia. Bananas are among the country’s dollar earners. Read More …

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