AsiaCast

Asia Cast for Sunday 24th February

In this Bulletin…

- Iran defiant about nuclear program;
- Turkey ups offensive on PKK guerrillas in Iraq; and
- Japan launches internet satellite.

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Iran’s President has told the UN’s Nuclear Watchdog, the IAEA, that world powers can pass U.N. sanctions resolutions for 100 years without but they won’t deter Iran from its nuclear ambitions.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s defiant comments came a day after a report by the IAEA said Iran was being more transparent about its nuclear plans but was not doing enough to clear up concerns about whether Tehran had military aims.

Tehran insists its plans are peaceful. But the United States, which has accused Iran of seeking to build nuclear bombs, said findings of an IAEA report was a good reason to impose more U.N. sanctions.

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Yesterday, Turkish troops intensified their offensive against Kurdish PKK guerrillas in northern Iraq, two days after crossing the mountainous border in a campaign Turkey’s allies hope will be short and limited.

Backed up by warplanes and combat helicopters, troops killed 35 rebels in the remote mountainous area on Saturday, taking the total PKK death toll since a major offensive began on Thursday to 79.

The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been battling for decades to create a Kurdish homeland in southeast Turkey, threatened reprisal attacks on Turkish soil.

Ankara says it was forced to launch a cross-border offensive after Iraqi authorities failed to stop an estimated 3,000 PKK members from using northern Iraq as a base to stage attacks inside Turkish territory.

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Russian maritime officials have confirmed that a Russian cargo ship has been detained and boarded by armed coastguard agents in North Korean waters.

The Lida Demesh, which was carrying a consignment of cars from Japan, was heading for the Russian port of Vladivostok when it was stopped by patrol near Cape Musudan.

No reason was given for the search, but Russian sources said the ship may have gone too close to a missile test site.
A similar incident in 2005 took 15 days to resolve through diplomatic channels.

The ship had sought shelter from a storm in North Korean territorial waters.

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Yesterday through a joint project of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan launched a rocket into orbit carrying a satellite which it hopes will revolutionize internet access.

The rocket is carrying a WINDS satellite which will test new technology that promises to deliver “super high-speed Internet” service to homes and businesses around the world.

If the technology proves successful, subscribers with small dishes will connect to the Internet at speeds many times faster than what is now available over residential cable or DSL services.

The Associated Press said the satellite would offer speeds of up to 1.2 gigabytes per second.

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And now for our original SOH news direct from China

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On 22nd of February, the hearing for China’s biggest false invoice forge case opened in Luoping District Court in Yunnan province.

Four suspects accused of illegally forging false invoices in a factory in Guizhou province presented at the hearing.

According to report by BBC, the value of the confiscated false invoices could reach hundreds of millions of US dollars
The situation of black market business using false invoices is very serious in China.

Many companies use false invoices method to fill up their accounts so that they can pay less tax.

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According to reports from New Tang Dynasty Television since mid January, Zhoutong and 10 other districts and cities in Yunnan Province have experienced very severe snowstorms and freezing conditions.

This has resulted in death and casualties, houses damaged, large destruction to agricultural products, and many animal deaths. In addition, the roads are cut off, electricity supply equipment is damaged, and some regions are having to do without electricity and water.

Local residents have sent out messages to New Tang Dynasty Television asking the outside world to provide them assistance.

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And now for our daily update on the NTDTV Divine Performing Arts “New Year Spectacular” show.
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Today marks the end of the run of New Year Spectacular shows in Seoul and London. On Tuesday the shows will begin a two day run in Busan, South Korea, and Antwerp, Belgium.

The performances had been delighting sold out audiences in both Seoul and London, with audience members giving the shows rave reviews.

A psychoanalyst in London said she thought the shows were visually spectacular, and that the choreography and the dancing were wonderful.

Another audience member, Penny Hunter, a lip-reading tutor whose family are originally from China said the Chinese Spectacular is an “extraordinary show”.

For information on shows in the Divine Performing Arts world tour, please visit: www.bestchineseshows.com