The Chinese Coast Guard used a water cannon against Philippines' ships attempting to deliver supplies to Filipino troops at an outpost in the South China Sea, according to Manila. Philippine naval vessels were involved in a clash with the Chinese coast guard on Saturday while attempting to resupply troops at a contested outpost in the South China Sea. A Philippine civilian boat, escorted by two navy ships and two coast guard vessels, was on a monthly supply run to a small number of Filipino marines stationed on the "Sierra Madre" – a warship intentionally run aground on the Second Thomas Shoal in 1999 in order to reinforce The Philippines' territorial claims in the area. Manila says Chinese ships were 'irresponsible' According to a statement from the Philippine coast guard, one of its ships was "impeded" and "encircled" by a Chinese coast guard vessel and two ships from the Chinese maritime militia. Philippine authorities said one of its vessels had been damaged by a water canon during the "dangerous maneuvers" undertaken by the Chinese, who it said had showed a "disregard" for the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS). The statement accused he Chinese ships of "irresponsible and provocative behavior."  China, which claims most of the South China Sea as its territorial waters, has regularly deployed vessels to monitor and disrupt efforts to resupply the "Sierra Madre" and described Saturday's operation as "control measures." In a similar incident in March, Manila claimed that four Filipino sailors had been injured and two boats damaged. No injuries have been reported this time. US, Japan support Philippines The United States and Japan immediately expressed support for the Philippines and alarm at the aggression of Chinese forces off Second Thomas Shoal. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement that Washington "stands with its ally the Philippines and condemns the dangerous actions by the People's Republic of China against lawful Philippine maritime operations in the South China Sea." Japan's ambassador-designate to Manila, Endo Kazuya, reiterated his country's "grave concern on the repeated dangerous actions by the Chinese coast guard in the South China Sea, which resulted in Filipino injuries." Meanwhile, Chinese coast guard spokesperson Gan Yu said the Philippine vessels intruded into what he said was China's territorial waters despite repeated warnings.  Several countries compete for dominance in South China Sea. China has even constructed artificial islands in the region and fortified them to underline its claims.

Gas supply will remain suspended for three hours in some areas of the capital on Tuesday. Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Limited said this in a press release on Monday (Feb 26). The supply will remain suspended in some areas of Dhaka from 11:00am to 2:00pm on Tuesday (Feb 27) for emergency replacement of gas pipeline. Gas supply will remain suspended for three hours in Maghbazar, Noyatola, Madhubagh, Tejgaon, Hatirjheel, Mirerbag, Gabtala, Greenway, Peyarabagh and Eskaton (Dilu Road and surrounding areas).  

The German business-focused FDP said an EU supply chain law would burden companies with cumbersome bureaucracy. The legislation will force firms to crack down on damaging actions in their supply chains. A blockade by Germany's business-focused Free Democrats, part of the country's governing coalition, has halted the adoption of a proposed EU law that would require large companies to assess whether their supply chains use forced labor or cause environmental damage. The Belgian EU presidency postponed the vote, which had been scheduled for Friday, at the last minute. A "qualified majority" of 15 EU countries representing 65% of the EU population is needed for the corporate sustainability due diligence directive (CSDDD) to proceed to a final vote in the European Parliament, where lawmakers are expected to support it. On Friday, it was not clear whether a sufficient number of envoys from the 27 EU countries would support the legislation, with Germany set to abstain. The Belgian EU presidency said the item would be postponed to a date to be announced.   What is CSDDD? Under the CSDDD, which would come into force in 2027, large companies in the EU will have to identify and take remedial action if they find that their supply chains use forced or child labor or cause environmental damage, such as deforestation. The rules will apply to EU companies with more than 500 employees and a global net turnover of more than €150 million ($161.5 million), and to non-EU companies with an EU turnover above that amount, but with a three-year delay. Fines for violating the rules could be as much as 5% of a company's global turnover. The law has stirred controversy in other countries, such as the United States, because it covers some 4,000 companies that do business in the EU but are headquartered elsewhere. Why does Germany block the law? The proposed supply chain law is not popular in German business circles. The Association of the German Textile and Fashion Industry called on EU countries to withdraw it altogether. The directive is a "completely unrealistic bureaucratic monster," said the association's managing director, Uwe Mazura. The law would cost companies "unnecessary resources," Mazura added. Germany's pro-business Free Democrats opposed the supply chain law, arguing it would burden business with excessive bureaucracy. They also raised late objections to an EU law to end sales of CO2-emitting cars by 2035 and to EU plans to reduce truck emissions. However, their coalition partners, the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the environmentalist Greens, supported the legislation and warned that Germany would lose credibility in the EU with its last-minute opposition.

A national park that provides clean water to Sierra Leone's capital Freetown is under threat due to human activities, a UN report has said. Water is a scarce resorce in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, where it is not unusual to see groups of youths gathered around water taps, jostling for turns to fill their buckets and jerrycans.  The struggle for clean water is oftentimes settled with the exchange of blows. Deforestation in the West African nation could contribute to water shortages, according to the Reuters news agency, which cited a recently-released UN report. The study called for close monitoring of forest coverage to protect the city's main water sources, Reuters said.     How does deforestation affect the water supply? Freetown is built on a forested peninsula, which is mostly made up of national parkland.  The water comes from reservoirs in the mountains — but deforestation causes rain to drain off the hillsides rather than seeping through roots into the soil and streams, depleting important groundwater sources. Freetown was designed for 400,000 residents, but is home to about 1.2 million residents and, according to the World Bank, is on track to reach 2 million within the decade.   'Luxurious' morning showers  Locals often struggle to access clean drinking water, explained Brima Jabbie, who is recognized by the community as the person in charge of maintaining order at the water source. "The tap starts running around 2 p.m., but sometimes it doesn't until 4 p.m.," another resident told DW. "So we hang out there and if it doesn't run on that day, we return home or take our buckets here to fetch water from this well," Zainab Favour Mason, a nursing mother told of her struggles to buy the scarce water that has become expensive. "We suffer in this area to access water. The tap starts running and within seconds, the supply is cut. We come to the water well, but they say unless we pay," she added.   For pupils, like Fatmata Bundu taking a morning shower has become a luxury rather than a necessity. "There are constraints for those of us going to school. It's hard to even access water in the morning for bathing and domestic work," Bundu told DW Freetown correspondent Claudia Anthony. "The tap runs three days a week and sometimes it doesn't for a whole week. When we're late for school, we're punished," Bundu said, adding that her parents accuse her of not being patient enough to fetch water before she goes to school. Bundu's concerns don't differ from Zino Thorpe's, a primary school teacher and parent. "As citizens, it's heartbreaking to see us suffer to access water and as a result, many people like pupils and nursing mothers suffer. The tap doesn't run on time, when they choose, they open it at night when everyone has gone to sleep," Thorpe told DW.   What is being done to help? To address water shortages for Freetown residents, several NGOs have set up the Western Area Peninsula Water Fund (WAPWF) to secure a sustainabe water supply for future generations. The water fund will also protect the water sources in a forest and national park located west of the Freetown. Several local laws guard natural water sources in this forest. But within this green belt, homes schools, and unregulated infrastructures have been erected, further aggravating an already dire situation.   However, Sierra Leone's Minister for Water Resources Sao-Kpato Hannah Max-Kyne warned of demolitions of illegal structures in protected areas.  "Those who have violated the law will be brought to book … If you build your house in the waterway it will be brought down because if the dam bursts it would be a catastrophe," Max-Kyne emphasized. "The issue of deforestation on the Western Area peninsula is tragic, worrying, and alarming," said Sierra Leone's Environment Minister Jiwoh Abdulai. "Enforcing the laws and policies is a major challenge," he said.  

Nasrul Hamid, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources  has said gas supply will improve in the next two days. "Besides, uninterrupted gas supply will be ensured by 2026,” Nasrul said while talking to journalists at the Secretariat on Sunday (Jan 21). He said 20% of the gas supply is coming from imports.  “Priority is to increase extraction of country’s own gas resources. Work is underway with a target of drilling 46 wells by 2025. Imports are supplying a total of 20% of gas in the system. We aim to maintain this ratio,” he added. Nasrul Hamid said the gas shortage in some areas including the Chittagong region is temporary.  Maheshkhali has two FSRUs (Floating Storage Re-Gasification Units) supplying LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas). In one of these, the gas supply was temporarily stopped due to a technical fault. Another was then under regular maintenance. Because of this crisis, both are currently in operation.   In response to a question, he said: “Currently the demand for gas is 3,800 million cubic feet. We can supply around 3,200 million cubic feet. Due to this, there is some shortage. Hopeful news is coming from domestic gas fields, as gas production is increasing.”   The state minister said the government will ensure uninterrupted gas supply by 2026, just as it achieved 100% electrification in 2021. By 2026, the daily demand will be 6,000 million cubic feet, he added.

Gas supply has been shut in Chattogram since morning due to technical glitches in the Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) of liquefied natural gas at Maheshkhali, said Petrobangla in a press release. Petrobangla did not mention the reason or manner of glitches in the FSRU. Google News LinkFor all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Residents of Dhaka and Narayanganj are also facing acute crisis since this morning in many areas. The Petrobangla press release said, due to the cold, many areas of the country are experiencing low gas pressure. "Maintenance is underway and officials are monitoring it round the clock," it said, adding that production and supply of domestic gas continues. "We sincerely apologise for the temporary inconvenience to our valued customers," it wrote. The country is facing acute gas crisis since October last year, as a result of low import and maintenance work of one of the two FSRUs. After completion of maintenance work, the FSRU was scheduled to resume gas supply last week, but that has been delayed.

The Philippines said a boat on a resupply mission to a territorial outpost in the South China Sea was "rammed" by a Chinese coast guard vessel. China claims the Philippine boat "changed direction" suddenly. The Philippine coast guard said on Sunday that a Chinese coast guard vessel assaulted three Philippine boats in the South China Sea with water cannons, and collided with one vessel, causing engine damage.  This latest confrontation between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the disputed waters of the South China Sea took place near Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands, where the Philippines maintains a small outpost on a grounded navy ship.  Philippine navy-operated supply boats with a Philippine coast guard escort were on a supply mission to deliver food and other supplies to troops stationed on the shoal.  The Chinese coast guard said Philippine boat "deliberately" collided with their ship after ignoring several warnings. The Philippine boat "changed direction suddenly in an unprofessional, dangerous manner, deliberately colliding with our coast guard," the China Coast Guard said in a statement. Hours before the incident on Sunday, a group of 40 vessels embarked from the western Philippine island of Palawan a civilian mission to the Spratlys to provide food and other supplies to troops stationed on Second Thomas Shoal, along with highlighting the Philippines' territorial claims in the South China Sea.  Organizers said the "Christmas convoy" comprised fishermen, youth leaders, and members of civil society groups. However, organizers said the convoy was redirected after the collision to go directly to Philippine-held Nanshan Island, where supplies and donations would be left.  China claims nearly the entirety of the South China Sea, although the claims are not recognized under international maritime law after they were rejected in a 2016 ruling. Nevertheless, China enforces these claims by sending coast guard vessels and maritime militia boats it claims are fishing vessels to reefs, shoals and islands in the South China Sea.  Beijing frequently bristles when the United States, and other naval forces like Australia, carry out "freedom of navigation" maneuvers in international waters of the South China Sea to counter China's claims.  Similar to other encounters, the Chinese coast guard issued a statement Sunday, claiming the Philippine boats "seriously infringed on China's sovereignty."  The Spratlys are a collection of shallow reefs, shoals and rocks parts of which are claimed by both China and the Philippines.  There have been dozens of confrontations in recent months between Chinese and Filipino vessels in the Spratly Islands and further north at Scarborough Shoal, a rich fishing ground around 200 kilometers (120 miles) off the coast of the Philippine island of Luzon.  In another incident Saturday, the Philippines said that Chinese ships used water cannons on its vessels near Scarborough Shoal.  Manila accused the Chinese coast guard of blocking three Philippine fisheries vessels from the disputed shoal in the South China Sea. Filipino officials said the assault caused "significant damage" to the communication and navigation equipment of one of the three ships.

In a first-ever nations-level exhibition focusing on supply chains, Beijing hosts an international conference, “China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE).” The expo covers five significant themes: Smart cars, green agriculture, clean energy, digital technology, and health. It showcased new products and services from all over the world, with 515 Chinese and international exhibitors from 55 countries and regions. Among the 134 international participants, a notable 1/5th are American, including big names like Apple, Amazon, Tesla, FedEx, and ExxonMobil. But, crucially, the expo is being seen as Beijing’s answer to Washington’s “de-risking” approach in the face of several multinationals exploring supply chain relocations to avoid fallouts of the China-US tech rivalry. On the one hand, the expo shows China is self-sufficient in certain areas, especially in the electric vehicle and clean energy industries, with Chinese companies like CATL already dominating Global production of EV batteries. It also tries to demonstrate that it remains the ‘go-to’ place for foreign companies to maximize profits. Tesla, for example, is showing how its Shanghai factory produces a new car every 40 seconds as a testament to China’s supply chain prowess. While the expo is trying to demonstrate China’s supply chain resilience, it is more important for Beijing to bid for new connections. But beyond self-sufficiency, China is sending a clear message that it wants to work with the world. In his speech at the opening ceremony of China’s first global supply chain expo, Chinese Premier Li Qiang warned that uncontrolled globalization, rising protectionism, public health crisis, and geopolitical conflicts are the main risk factors for global supply chains. He also took a stand against de-risking, a move pushed by the United States and the European Union to reduce company dependence on China, especially in high-technology areas. Disruptions in supply chains in recent years have brought the importance of diversification to the forefront. While this typically has to do with mitigating risk due to geopolitics, it also has to do with countries, including the United States, being unprepared for the pandemic and waking up to the reality that stocks for essential and strategic goods were not at levels where they should be. While previously cost and efficiency used to be the driving force for supply chains, now we are seeing risk mitigation becoming more and more critical despite the fact that this may mean higher costs. This China International Supply Chain Expo comes about at a time when we see the twin phenomena of globalization along with increased protectionism. For instance, during and post-pandemic, on one hand, some countries responded to concerns about supply chains by opening the markets and providing incentives for foreign direct investment; on the other hand, there were countries that kept their borders closed, keeping their medical supplies within their own nations. The reality is that global supply chains have begun to unravel movement in terms of US engagement with Asia, principally in semiconductors, has already started. For some time now, US companies have become more wary than they’ve been in a long time about doing business in China. This sentiment is reflected in China’s annual survey AmCham,, in which most of its more than 900 members no longer regard China as a top-three investment priority. This latest expo follows close to a six-day China International Import Expo (CIIE) held in Shanghai in October. The Shanghai Expo was also widely used by Beijing to highlight its consumer market and fight against decoupling efforts, with the event previously attended by individual firms, trade organizations, and regional officials. In an effort to position itself as a champion of globalization, the supply chain expo being hosted by Beijing is a message directed primarily to foreign companies that China is open for business to portray that it is still the manufacturing hub of the world. China is pushing to convince these companies that China is opening its market and improving the business environment. This is indeed going to be a heavy lift because there are a lot of concerns in boardrooms, particularly in the US and Europe, that companies need to diversify and not be overly reliant on China for not only its market but also inputs for their supply chains. Source: The EurAsian Times

Opium production in Afghanistan has plummeted since the Taliban banned cultivation of the poppy plant, according to a UN report published on Sunday. Afghanistan's Taliban rulers pledged to wipe out the country's drug industry, banning poppy cultivation in April 2022. Poppy plants are the source of opium and heroin. Afghanistan was the world's biggest opium producer and a major source for heroin in Europe and Asia before the Taliban takeover. What did the report on Afghan opium production say? The report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) found that poppy cultivation had dropped by an estimated 95% over the past year, from 233,000 hectares (575,755 acres) at the end of 2022 to 10,800 hectares in 2023. Opium production also dropped from 6,200 tons to 333 tons in 2023. According to the report, this year's harvest amounts to 24-38 tons of exportable heroin, much less than the 350-580 tons estimated for 2022. Farmer's incomes have fallen by 92% this year, from an estimated $1.36 billion to $110 million. In 2022, poppy crops made up almost a third by value of total agricultural production in Afghanistan. The UNODC warned of the risk of people previously involved in the opium industry moving toward other illegal activities, like the trafficking of arms, people or synthetic drugs. A September report from the same agency said that Afghanistan was the world's fastest-growing producer of methamphetamine. Poppy ban could worsen humanitarian crisis The UNODC said the Taliban crackdown on the poppy industry could have a negative impact on many Afghans' livelihoods and warned of "humanitarian consequences for many vulnerable rural communities." "Today, Afghanistan's people need urgent humanitarian assistance... to absorb the shock of lost income and save lives," UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly said. Waly said other crops, such as cotton and wheat, were far more water-intensive than poppy plants. She added that Afghanistan had undergone "three years of consecutive drought." "Afghanistan is in dire need of strong investment in sustainable livelihoods to provide Afghans with opportunities away from opium," she said. Afghanistan has already been grappling with a severe humanitarian crisis sparked by decades of war, as well as natural disasters such as earthquakes and droughts. Afghanistan has also been faced with an influx of returning refugees after neighboring Pakistan ordered over a million people to leave the country. The crisis has also been aggravated by the steep drop in international aid deliveries after the Taliban, whose rule is not formally recognized by any country, overthrew the country's former government. The drop in international aid came as the Taliban severely limited the rights of women and girls as well as numerous other basic human rights in the country. The Taliban took Afghanistan's capital, Kabul, in August 2021 amid the hasty withdrawal of US-led international troops.

Africa is the site of a new battle for influence as Washington ramps up efforts to build an alternative critical minerals supply chain to avoid reliance on China. Beijing dominates the processing of critical minerals such as cobalt, lithium and other resources from the continent that are needed for the transition to clean energy and electric vehicles. But at the Green Energy Africa Summit this week in Cape Town, which was held on the sidelines of Africa Oil Week, few were willing to talk about it directly. Asked whether the U.S. was playing catch-up with China, one of the panel’s speakers, Deputy Assistant Secretary in the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Energy Resources Kimberly Harrington, said simply that Washington was looking to "diversify." For his part, fellow panelist Chiza Charles Newton Chiumya, the African Union’s director for industry, minerals, entrepreneurship and tourism, told VOA he didn’t want to use the term "competing" to describe the relative approaches of the West and China but agreed there is "lots of interest" in Africa’s critical minerals. The Chinese Embassy in Washington was also circumspect when asked whether it sees itself in competition with the U.S. for the natural resources. "The tangible outcomes of China-Africa practical cooperation throughout the years are there for all to see," spokesperson Liu Pengyu wrote in an emailed response. "Supporting Africa’s development is the common responsibility of the international community. We welcome stronger interest and investment in Africa from all quarters to help increase the continent’s capability to achieve self-driven sustainable growth and move forward towards modernization and prosperity." Independent analysts, however, had a different take. The Chinese made it a "priority to corner the market for critical minerals about two decades ago and supported that strategy with massive public diplomacy and infrastructure investments into Africa — most of which [came] via long-term debt," said Tony Carroll, adjunct professor in the African studies program at Johns Hopkins University, told VOA earlier this year. "The West woke up to this strategy too late and have been scrambling ever since." Part of that response has been the Minerals Security Partnership set up by U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration last year as a way of diversifying supply chains. Partners include Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the European Union. "We see anywhere from three to six times demand growth for critical minerals across the world. ... So, I think our sense is that no single government, no single company, can create resilient supply chains," said Harrington at the Green Energy Africa Summit. "If the COVID-19 pandemic showed us anything...one of the primary things it showed us is that if we are too overly reliant on any one source in a supply chain … it creates vulnerabilities, and so I think our approach overall on this issue is to make sure that we have diversity," she told VOA during a Q&A after the panel. "When it comes to China in general, our secretary of state has been crystal clear, we have areas in which we cooperate with China, we have areas in which we compete with China, and that’s not going to change," she said. "This is a complex and consequential relationship and we see it as such." The view from Africa While he didn’t want to use the word "competition" to describe the outside interest in Africa’s critical minerals, the AU’s Chiumya stressed during the panel discussion that Africa must benefit from its mineral wealth. "This is not the first time that Africa is sitting at the frontier of having critical minerals. … In the past we have lost a chance," he said, referring to the continent’s vast gold and diamond deposits. "This time around we want to do things different." "For a long time, our governments have not been able to effectively exploit the mineral wealth that is there and ended up effectively going into very bad deals" which have not contributed to the social and economic development of the African people, Chiumya added. Democratic Republic of the Congo President Felix Tshisekedi has been among the African leaders demanding better terms from China for several years. His country produces some 70% of the world's cobalt but remains one of the world's least developed nations. Tshisekedi complained in January that the Congolese people have not benefited from a $6.2 billion minerals-for-infrastructure contract with China that was signed by his predecessor. Meanwhile in Zimbabwe, which has large lithium deposits, the government has imposed a ban on exports of raw lithium ore, insisting that it be processed at home. A Chinese company has since built a large lithium processing plant in the country. U.S. critical mineral plans Washington says environmental, social and governance standards are a key consideration for the U.S. when it comes to its dealings with the continent regarding critical minerals. "We want to do our part to ramp up our efforts with like-minded partners in Africa to promote sustainable clean energy supply chains in mining," said Harrington. She said it is also important to help countries "do some domestic processing and refining, because it’s really the value-added, that’s how you create jobs, that’s how you create local capacity." At the U.S.-Africa Summit in Washington in December, the DRC, the U.S. and Zambia — another major source of minerals — signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a supply chain for electric car batteries, in what was widely seen by analysts as a move to counter China. Harrington said the MOU had "the overall goal of a lot of an EV (electric vehicle) battery being processed and refined locally," even if some further refinement might need to be done in a third country. Additionally, on the sidelines of last month’s G20 summit, the U.S. and E.U. pledged to develop the partially existing Lobito Corridor — a railway connecting the DRC’s cobalt belt to Zambia’s copper belt and on to Angola’s port of Lobito, from where it can be shipped to international markets. Source: VOICE OF America