20/06/2025

FRIDAY | JUNE 20, 2025

7

Thai prime minister apologises over leaked call

Taiwan bid to root out Chinese sympathisers TAIPEI: Taiwan is vetting hundreds of thousands of military service members, public school teachers and civil servants in a bid to root out potential homegrown Chinese sympathisers. Prosecutors last week charged four recently expelled members of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, including a former staffer in President Lai Ching-te’s office, for sharing state secrets with Beijing. Lai, an outspoken defender of Taiwan’s sovereignty, has branded China a“foreign hostile force” and sought to raise public awareness on Chinese actions that he says threaten national security. After a sharp rise in the number of people prosecuted for spying for China in recent years, the government is trying to identify people within its own departments, military and public schools with a possible allegiance to Beijing. Anyone on the public service payroll found with Chinese residence or other identification (ID) cards risks losing their Taiwanese household registration, effectively their citizenship. In the first round held recently, 371,203 people, nearly all those surveyed, signed statements declaring that they did not hold any Chinese ID documents prohibited by Taiwanese law. Two people admitted to having Chinese ID cards and 75 to having residence permits, which were annulled, said Taiwan’s top policy body on China, the Mainland Affairs Council. The second round of vetting is underway but the government has said the general public would not be targeted. The main opposition Kuomintang party has accused the government of conducting “loyalty” tests. – AFP YANGON: Myanmar’s deposed democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi marked her 80th birthday in junta detention yesterday, serving a raft of sentences set to last the rest of her life. “It will be hard to be celebrating at the moment,“ said her 47-year-old son Kim Aris. He said he has heard from his mother only once via letter two years ago since she was imprisoned. “We have no idea what condition she is in.” – AFP SINGAPORE CONFIRMS TWO ZIKA CASES SINGAPORE: The National Environment Agency (NEA) and the Communicable Diseases Agency (CDA) here yesterday confirmed two local Zika cases at Woodlands Street 11 and Street 32. NEA advised residents in the area to protect themselves from mosquito bites and monitor their health closely. CDA said symptoms of Zika include rashes, fever, joint pain, muscle pain and conjunctivitis. – Bernama ‘U.S. TO STRIKE N. KOREA IF SOUTH NUKED’ SEOUL: South Korea’s spy agency director nominee yesterday said he believes the United States would strike North Korea with nuclear weapons if Pyongyang launched a nuclear attack against South Korea. Lee is nominated to lead the National Intelligence Service under new liberal President Lee Jae Myung who took office on June 4. – Reuters SUU KYI MARKS 80TH BIRTHDAY IN JAIL

BR I E F S

o My genuine intention was to maintain peace: Paetongtarn

BANGKOK: Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra yesterday apologised to the public over a leaked phone conversation with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen that has sparked widespread anger. Paetongtarn acknowledged that the incident should not have happened and expressed regret for the discomfort that it has caused. “I must apologise to the public for the incident involving the leaked audio of my conversation with the Cambodian leader. This is something that should not have happened,” she told a press conference after meeting with security officials, military leaders and representatives from the Foreign Ministry yesterday. In the call, Paetongtarn reportedly discussed an ongoing border dispute with Hun Sen, who

Peters’s spokesperson said the agreements signed by the Cook Islands and China and the lack of consultation with New Zealand illustrated a gap in understanding between the Cook Islands and New Zealand about what their special relationship requires. “Trust and meaningful engagement are fundamental to free association.“ New Zealand’s Massey University security studies associate professor Anna Powles said using aid as leverage is “punitive and short-sighted”, and would not be regarded positively by other members in the Pacific Islands community. Previous punitive measures, such as sanctions on Fiji following a 2006 coup, had little impact, she said. – Reuters government and the military are united. We ask the public to stand with us in unity to protect our nation’s sovereignty. This is not the time for internal conflicts.” She said the leaked call posed a significant national security threat and should not be taken lightly. “Today, all sectors have agreed that this is a major threat to national security, not merely a minor issue involving the public or a matter of conflict between the government and the military. “I once again apologise for not being aware that the conversation was being recorded. Moving forward, I will be more cautious in my communication,” she added. Paetongtarn said the Cambodian Ambassador to Thailand had been summoned over the recorded conversation. “It was a private conversation conducted on my personal phone, not an official negotiation through diplomatic channels, and this should never have happened.” Thai Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nikorndej Balankura said the Cambodian ambassador was handed a “protest letter”. “This action taken by the Cambodian side is unacceptable. It breaches diplomatic etiquette, is a serious violation of trust and undermines relations between the neighbouring countries,” he said. Paetongtarn has lost the backing of a key coalition partner over the leaked call and is left with a slim parliamentary majority while the other parties that voted her into office were due to hold emergency summits yesterday. Hundreds of protesters gathered outside Thailand’s Government House yesterday, demanding Paetongtarn resign. The protest drew mostly elderly demonstrators wearing yellow shirts, a colour strongly associated with Thailand’s monarchy, who accused Paetongtarn of “lacking diplomatic skills” and “endangering national interests”. – Bernama

adding that he would make the entire call available if requested. Paetongtarn explained that her intentions during the conversation were to employ communication techniques aimed at achieving peaceful negotiations. She said she had already spoken with the Commander of the Second Army Area and military leaders to clarify that her intention was to establish an initial understanding before discussing further details. “My genuine intention was to maintain peace,” she said, adding that the military had understood her explanation. “I want to reaffirm that the

stepped down as Cambodian prime minister in 2023, and made remarks allegedly blaming her own military for “miscommunication”. The leaked June 15 phone call, which has been confirmed as authentic by both Hun Sen and Paetongtarn, features the Thai prime minister addressing the veteran leader as “uncle” and referring to a prominent Thai military commander at the border as “the opposite side”. Hun Sen posted the conversation on his Facebook page on Wednesday. He said the recording lasted for 17 minutes and that he initially released a nine-minute excerpt,

Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hun Many (centre) during a solidarity march organised in support of the government’s actions in its recent border dispute with Thailand. – AFPPIC

NZ halts Cook Islands funding over China ties WELLINGTON: New Zealand has suspended millions of dollars in budget funding to the Cook Islands, it said yesterday, as the relationship between the two constitutionally linked countries continues to deteriorate amid the island group’s deepening ties with China. We “will also not consider significant new funding until the Cook Islands government takes concrete steps to repair the relationship and restore trust,“ the spokesperson said. spanning areas from deep-sea mining to education scholarships but excluding security ties. New Zealand said Brown was told of this funding decision in early June by a letter and the Cook Islands did not properly consult on the documents ahead of the signing, breaching the arrangement between the two countries.

The Cook Islands Foreign Affairs and Immigration Ministry said the country is committed to restoring its relationship with New Zealand. News of the freeze comes as New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is in China, ahead of a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in Beijing today. Luxon is expected to raise China’s deepening ties with the Cook Islands and New Zealand’s concerns about Beijing’s behaviour in the Pacific region. In February, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown visited China and signed a strategic partnership

A spokesperson for Foreign Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand decided in June to suspend NZ$18.2 million (RM46 million) in core sector support funding for 2025-2026 as this “relies on a high-trust bilateral relationship”. New Zealand and Australia have become cautious about China’s growing presence in the Pacific region and the potential threat it poses to their national security. In January, New Zealand halted development funding to the Republic of Kiribati, an island in Micronesia.

The Cook Islands ministry said there had been a “breakdown and difference in the interpretation of the consultation requirements” and this was being addressed as a matter of urgency. The two countries have established a formal dialogue mechanism and have met twice, it said, making progress in identifying risk mitigation in regard to the agreements the Cook Islands signed with China.