US and UK navy ships are seen conducting Mine Countermeasures Exercise taking place at Arabian Sea, Sept 10, 2018. [Photo/Agencies] Beijing firmly objects to any form of official or military contacts between the United States and Taiwan, an official said on Wednesday, after a US Navy research vessel docked at Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan on Monday. Our position is consistent and clear, as always, Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said at a regular news conference in Beijing. The Taiwan question concerns China's sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as the country's core interests, he said. We urge relevant parties to exercise caution so as not to cause damage to the peace and stability across the Straits. The island's military authority said on Tuesday that the vessel, the Thomas G. Thompson, is not engaged in military activities and is visiting Taiwan for joint scientific research with Taiwan University. It is the fourth time this year the ship docked at Kaohsiung Port, during which time it loaded up on supplies and made crew changes. The ship sets sail for Australia on Thursday, it said. The vessel belongs to the Office of Naval Research, and it can be used to conduct oceanic surveys for the US Navy. The ship is operated and maintained by the University of Washington, the island's media reported. In late September, the US State Department approved the sale of spare parts worth $330 million to Taiwan for F-16 fighters, C-130 cargo planes and other aircraft. Beijing has strongly protested the sale and urged Washington to immediately withdraw the deal and cease military contacts with Taiwan to avoid more damage to Sino-US relations and stability across the Straits. The arms sales to Taiwan have seriously violated the one-China principle, interfered with the country's domestic affairs and harmed Chinese sovereignty and security interests, as well as Sino-US relations, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement on Sept 25. Those who rely on foreigners to build themselves up and undermine the peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits will certainly pay a price for their deeds, An Fengshan, another spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office, said earlier. wristbands canadacustom silicone bracelets canadarubber bracelets canadasilicone bracelets canadasilicone wristbands canadacustom wristbands canadacanadian wristbandswristbands canada
TOKYO - The approval rating for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cabinet has plunged again amid renewed attention on a cronyism scandal implicating Abe and his wife Akie, multiple media polls have showed.According to a Kyodo News poll released on Sunday, approval rating for the prime minister's cabinet dropped to 38.7 percent, down 9.4 percentage points from a previous survey conducted on March 3 and March 4, while the disapproval rating stood at 48.2 percent, up 9.2 points.Among the respondents, 43.8 percent said Abe should step down as prime minister after more evidence came to light about state's influence in the shady land deal, while 47.6 percent said he doesn't need to do so.A total of 66.1 percent said Abe should be held accountable for the Finance Ministry's tampering of documents linked to the dubious land deal in a widely-suspected attempt to cover up the scandal, while 25.8 percent said otherwise.Among the respondents, 65.3 percent said Abe's wife Akie should testify at the parliament, while only 29.0 percent said it was not necessary.According to another survey released by Jiji Press on Friday, the cabinet's support rate has plunged to 39.3 percent, down 9.4 percentage points from a month earlier, while the disapproval rate stood at 40.4 percent, up 8.5 points, marking the first time since last October that the support rate was lower than the disapproval rate.Moritomo Gakuen, a private-school operator, reportedly bought a 8,770-square-meter piece of land in June 2016 in Toyonaka, Osaka prefecture, for 134 million yen (1.26 million U.S. dollars), equivalent to only 14 percent of its appraisal price.The land had been intended for a new elementary school to be opened in April last year with Abe's wife Akie as its honorary principal, though she has since stepped down as the scandal expands.The prime minister has since denied that he or his wife was involved in the shady deal, while Yasunori Kagoike, head of the school operator, gave sworn testimony in both chambers of parliament, stating that he believed the land deal involved politicians' intervention.Japan's Finance Ministry admitted earlier this week to knowingly altering documents on a cut-price land deal scandal, which drew renewed attention to the scandal and requests from the opposition camp and the public for deeper investigations and for the government to be held accountable.
