Due to Cyclone Mokha, Irrawaddy Division, Residents said that nearly 5,000 of the more than 10,000 people fleeing the storm in Laputta have returned home on May 15.
Because of the storm, the civilians of the villages fled to Laputta town on May 11th and 12th.
An official of Laputta Heart, a social aid organization, told RFA that there was a strong wind attack in Laputta Township, but there was no major damage.
"There are only a few broken branches. Nothing major. The return is not all. There are some who will return tomorrow. There will be some who return today."
On May 14, Cyclone Mokha began to enter near Sittwe, Rakhine State, and hit Paletwa, Chin State. different Kathara, in the upper part of Sagaing The Department of Meteorology and Hydrology announced on May 15 that it passed through the cities of Van Maw in Kachin State and weakened into a depression at the China-Myanmar border.
Rakhine state where the storm hit In Sittwe, the communication tower was broken and damaged. Falling trees, Homes were damaged and some were submerged by the flood, and currently, RFA has not been able to contact the residents of Sittwe.
UNOCHA said Mokha was the worst cyclone ever : Rakhine State
Cyclone Mokha, which hit Rakhine State on May 14 at a speed of 155 miles per hour, was one of the strongest cyclones to hit Myanmar, the UNOCHA United Nations Office for Humanitarian Coordination announced yesterday.
heavy rain all day, the storm Because of the strong wind, the low-lying areas of Rakhine State, UNOCHA reports that there are floods especially in Sittwe city and surrounding areas.
CNN reports that Cyclone Mocha is equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean. As the rescue groups have warned, it is a major natural disaster.
It is also reported that rescue teams from Myanmar and Bangladesh are working on an emergency rescue plan.
Bangladesh has an early warning system for the entire country and responded to the storm with more than three thousand local volunteers who have been trained to be ready in case of a natural disaster.
CNN reports that first aid is also available at prepared relief stations.
The Burma Fire Brigade under the Military Council released a report yesterday evening that at least 30 trees were downed in 23 townships of Yangon Region due to heavy rains and strong winds in Yangon due to the speed of Typhoon Mokha.
If you are strong, heel Tha Keta Thing Island cart crossing Tammu, It is said that trees have fallen in Manangone North Okkalapa and Kamaryut Townships.
on the road Trees fell on buildings and cars. Heavy rains and strong winds also blow in areas affected by the storm.
Due to the speed of this storm, there is flooding in Slin Township of Magway, said U Ola of Asia Climate Change.
"If it rains in Rakhine and Chintaung, the mountain streams in Magway, Flowing into the Irrawaddy River, the water falls in the tributaries of the creek. What I am currently worried about is the Slin River, which is known as Owita Mae River. I saw the water flowing into the villages."
He said that it is not possible to say for certain that two villages will be flooded, as some have estimated, and although the damage may not be as great as in Rakhine State, the affected villages will be affected.
U Ola predicts that although there are damages caused by the Mokha storm, there is no situation where the dams will break like in July 2015.
In 2015, the Irrawaddy Bago, not curved According to UNOCHA, nearly 200,000 people were affected by the floods in 34 townships in Sagaing and Chin State.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) exit is a result of sanctions Yangon Region
On May 4, the Indian company Adani Ports, which has worked with the Burmese military-owned Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC) for five years, announced on May 4 that it will sell its operations in Myanmar at a loss of more than US$90 million.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) is working with MEC to build a large cargo port in Alon Township, Yangon Region, and has already invested US$127 million.
"Those who can't bear the pressure will leave. But those who have many interests will remain. "
Now I decided to sell everything I had invested at a loss of 30 million dollars and leave.
Ko Mai, a spokesman for the Blood Money Cut Group, said that the withdrawal of large companies from China and India, which have good relations with the Myanmar Military Council, is because they know that it will no longer be profitable if they continue.
"If we can tell with evidence what kind of companies are involved in the massive human rights violations, it will be difficult for these companies to continue. Some companies, such as Chinese companies, such as an Indian company; They don't care about human rights like the Thai company. Whether or not the company is able to stand as a reputable business. For companies that don't really care, it's very difficult (to leave). If it will affect their business interests, I would like to answer that there is no need to continue."
Adani Group in 2019 In May, it signed a 50-year deal with MEC to build a port in Yangon's Allon Township, making it the second international port for the Adani group, according to the Finical Times, a UK-based business newspaper.
Adani estimated at the time that the project could cost between US$275 million and US$290 million.
After investing 127 million dollars out of that estimate, due to international pressure after the military coup, they sold it at a loss of 30 million dollars and left.
According to a May 4 report by Justice For Myanmar (JFM), which monitors the actions of the military, Adani Port paid US$22 million for land clearing in 2019, including land rent. It is reported that a total of $90 million was paid to MEC for land use fees.
Evidence of payment to MEC by Adani Ports; In March 2021, democratic forces including JFM released a report on direct communications between military leader General Min Aung Hlaing and the company.
After that, Norway's sovereign wealth fund Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) pulled the Adani group's investment out of the group's stake.
U Thein Tun Oo, executive director of the Thanang Grand Strategy Study Group, which is made up of former military officers, said that there was no major damage caused by the withdrawal of these companies.
"Those who can't bear the pressure will leave. But those who have many interests will remain. From 88 until now, the cycle will continue in the same way. In other words, there will be those who see business as business. For some development sectors, the business cycle may have slowed down a bit. It's not going to be a big, bad thing."
U Thein Tun Oo said that Myanmar has faced international sanctions before, so it can withstand them.
Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the spokesman for the Military Council, also made similar statements to RFA when the oil giants Total and Chelbron returned from Myanmar. Major General Zaw Min Tun once said that companies like China and Russia that want to invest will come in place of the large Western companies that are leaving.
Adani Group has sold its business in Myanmar to Solar Energy Limited for $30 million. According to a Reuters report, Adani Ports has invested $195 million in an undeveloped greenfield project.
Adani Ports has not made any official announcement regarding this, nor has it responded to RFA's email query.
Ma Yadana Maung, a spokesperson for the pro-democracy activist Justice For Myanmar (JFM), told RFA that Adani Ports is responsible and needs to release the details of the buyer in order to properly carry out its human rights obligations.
Companies paying taxes to the military council, Yangon UG Association (YUA) head of Yangon UG Association (YUA) said that if the people continue to do so, they will strongly oppose it.
"Encouraging the military council, In other words, who is encouraging the military council to kill people and make them earn income? I will go against any organization. If it gets worse than a certain level, we will retaliate severely.”
The military-owned business MEC is the United States. UK Canada The conglomerate, which has been sanctioned by Australia and the EU, has been working with the Adani group since before the coup.
On October 23, 2021, Adani Power Company, which is part of the Adani Group, sent a proposal to U Khin Maung Ri, the Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Military Council, to export coal to Sagaing, where there have been conflicts in the South after the coup.
Although Adani Ports' Yangon Allon Port project has been withdrawn, RFA contacted the Military Council's Minister of Economy and Commerce U Aung Naing Oo to ask whether Adani Power Company is still operating, but he did not answer the phone.
In order for the military council-related businesses to leave Myanmar, the governments of the respective countries, There is a need to exert pressure through shareholders, said Ko Moe Thane, a research and political advisor at Nyan Lin New Research Group.
"If you continue to work with the military group, you will not be given the relevant licenses. To take other measures, of course. We have to encourage governments, and on the other hand, companies and their company's shareholders. The revolutionary actions of the military group, I think it will be necessary for both parties to make sure (the shareholders) understand the war crimes committed against humanity, and then demand for the company's shareholders to leave."
According to the Association for the Assistance of Political Prisoners (AAPP), nearly 3,500 people have been killed and nearly 18,000 have been arrested in Myanmar in more than two years since the military coup.
Because General Min Aung Hlaing and the entire military council are responsible for such actions, the democratic forces are urging all businesses that support them to withdraw from Myanmar.
Due to these urges, the French oil and gas company Total Energies will leave in mid-2022 and the American Chevron company will now leave in February 2023.
Norway's Telenor Communication Company; Australia Mattel; Singapore Tobacco and Tobacco Industry Lim Kaling; Thailand's luxury housing company Amata and Malaysia's oil and gas company Petronas also withdrew from Myanmar after the military coup.
Korean Peninsula, Why are Chinese high-tech spy ships coming out of the East Sea?
( Moderator ) This is a 'Encyclopedia of New Weapons on the Korean Peninsula' that seeks to find a way to peace while accurately grasping the current state of the military confrontation on the Korean Peninsula. Lee Il-woo, Executive Director of Korea's Self-Defense Network.
( Moderator ) At the US summit in late April and the Korea-Japan summit in early May, pending issues such as the North Korean nuclear issue were discussed . Around the same time, China made an unusual move . It sent a large-scale fleet to the East Sea of the Korean Peninsula , not to the coast of China, but to the distant sea between North and South Korea , Japan , and Russia ?
( Lee Il-woo ) According to data released by Japan 's Joint Chiefs of Staff ( Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff ) , Chinese warships entered the East Sea over two days , April 29 and April 30 . From 2019, China expanded the East Sea Fleet operational area, which was defined as 35 degrees 10 minutes north latitude and south of the 132nd parallel east longitude, to 39 degrees north latitude and 134th parallel east longitude in 2019 , and from this point on , at the end of every month, it sends combat ships to the East Sea for about a week. Conducted patrol operations .
Aiming to advance into the Western Pacific through China and the East Sea
( Moderator ) Could this move by China be related to North Korea?
( Lee Il-woo ) Although part of Jilin Province extends between North Korea and Russia, China is a country that does not have a single centimeter of coastline contact with the East Sea . The fact that such a country has declared the East Sea of the Korean Peninsula as an operational area and is sending warships from time to time is in line with China's strategy for advancing into the western Pacific .
China has made a lot of efforts over the past five years to connect with North Korea and go to the West Pacific via the East Sea .
In October 2018 , China secured a 49 -year lease on Najin Port in North Hamgyong Province, North Korea, through a suspected paper company called 'Hunchun Goldstar Shipping Logistics' through the Busan Port Authority of Korea and Jilin Provincial authorities . Even after securing the lease, there is no activity, so it is doubtful that this lease was actually made for the purpose of using it as an advance base for the Chinese Navy in case of emergency .
If China secures passage to the East Sea, it can bring about a major change in logistics in Heilongjiang and Jilin Provinces, and can more actively utilize the fishing grounds in the East Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk . In case of emergency, it is possible to press the US and Japan by forward deployment of naval forces here, so it has been showing its greed for the East Sea for more than 10 years .
( Lee Il-woo ) Chinese warships deployed in the East Sea are usually multi-purpose escort ships, the 054A type , but very occasionally, the Chinese Navy's largest and strongest combat ship, the 055 Type 055 , which has only 8 ships in the Chinese Navy , is deployed . At this time, there are many cases where there is something special . In the case of March 2021 , when North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile, a 055-type Nanchang ship was deployed 100 km in front of the missile impact area to perform observation support missions for North Korea's new ballistic missile. I did .
The Chinese warships deployed in the East Sea this time are the largest in history and are composed of warships with powerful performance, so it is estimated that this deployment also has some purpose related to North Korea .
( Host ) The composition of the Chinese fleet entering the East Sea is unusual. It seems that there are missions suitable for each characteristic, from attack to detection and interception. How is it analyzed ?
( Lee Il-woo ) Based on the photos of Chinese warships taken by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and analyzing the types and names of ships, a total of five ships entered the East Sea this time . Type 055 Lhasa , the newest 13,000- ton destroyer; 7,500 -ton air defense destroyer Type 052D Guiyang and Qiqihar, called the Chinese version of Aegis; and 4,000- ton multipurpose frigate Type 054A Jingzhou (荊州)', 23,000 ton class 903A logistics support ship ' Taihe ', the most noteworthy warship, 6,000 ton class 815AThe intelligence collection vessel ' Kaiyangxing (Open阳星)' is confirmed .
The ships worth noting here are the Type 055 destroyer Lhasa and the Type 815 Intelligence Collector Kai Yangxing . Lhasa is a high-performance battleship that boasts a size comparable to the US Zumwalt-class destroyer with a full displacement of 13,000 tons, of which China has 8 ships and at least 8 to 16 more will be built in the future .
( Lee Il-woo ) It has the ability to track ballistic missiles as well as the ability to detect stealth aircraft. It is a combat ship that can effectively detect even distant underwater objects .
The Type 815A Kaiyangxing is a type of spy ship specially designed by China to collect enemy radio and acoustic information . It can intercept enemy radar waves or communication waves in the middle and analyze sensitive information such as frequency bands and encryption codes of those waves. You can .
( Host ) Battleship Lhasa is the name of the capital of the Tibetan Autonomous Region. In Tibetan, it means land of the gods , paradise , and spyship Kaiyangxing is Gaeyangseong in Chinese characters, and it is the brightest star in the Big Dipper . The reason why China's best battleship and best spy ship is cruising the East Sea is probably to keep the US in check, right ?
( Lee Il-Woo ) During the Trump administration, the US deployed all 4 Victorious-class ships and 1 Impeccable-class oceanographic research vessel in the US Navy to the 7th Fleet and deployed them to the level of permanent deployment in the South China Sea . At the time, the Chinese Strategic Submarine 094 , stationed at the Sanya Naval Base in Hainan, China , was tied up for fear of sound information being exposed to the United States . Strategic One Sleep can't help but be nervous .
It is no coincidence that China deployed high-performance intelligence collection ships and high-performance combat ships near the Korean Peninsula right after the Washington Declaration and the story of the US strategic nuclear submarine deployment on the Korean Peninsula came out.
( Moderator ) The Washington Declaration was signed after a summit meeting between US President Joe Biden and Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol in Washington at the end of April . The word ' strategic nuclear submarine ' appears only once . Let me introduce you . “ The United States will continue to enhance the regular visibility of US strategic assets to Korea , as evidenced by the upcoming planned call by US strategic nuclear submarines to South Korea , and will expand and deepen cooperation between the two militaries .” It is said that the US strategic nuclear submarine will regularly come and go to South Korea to check North Korea's military provocations , but China seems to be very concerned about this part .
( Moderator ) It is said that China, which deployed a fleet in the East Sea, also staged an armed demonstration near Guam. Do you think this is very threatening to the United States ?
( Lee Il-woo ) On April 29 and 30 , the Chinese fleet entered the East Sea and made a military demonstration on the way to the US strategic submarine . Changjeong -18 ' has appeared .
The Long March -18, classified as type 094A , is the most up-to-date among the strategic nuclear submarines currently possessed by China, with an underwater displacement of 12,000 tons and equipped with 12 submarine-launched ballistic missiles .
Originally, this submarine was equipped with 12 relatively old JL-2 submarine-launched ballistic missiles , but in November 2022 , Pacific Fleet Commander Samuel Paparo confirmed that the submarine's mounted missiles had been changed to the latest JL-3 .
The old JL-2 has a range of only 7,200 km , so it can barely attack the west coast of the United States when it goes near Wake Island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and it needs to go further east than 155 degrees west longitude, where Hawaii is located, to attack eastern cities such as Washington DC and New York. can . However, the JL -3 's range has been increased to 12,000 km , so it is possible to attack Washington DC from the 144th longitude line near Guam . You can attack at the same time .
For this reason, the United States has set an anti-submarine line connecting Japan- Okinawa - Taiwan - Philippines as an anti-submarine line , and is making every effort to prevent Chinese strategic nuclear submarines deployed in the South China Sea and the West Sea from entering the Philippine Sea . This is the reason why the main battleships of the 7th Fleet , the forward-deployed carrier strike group in the Western Pacific, mainly conduct patrol operations in the vicinity of the Philippine Sea .
It would be fortunate if the US had detected and tracked the Long March -18 , which had advanced to the 144th parallel in Tokyo this time , but if it failed to track it and China intentionally raised a submarine to boast about it, the US would be the mainland , even the heartland. It would have come as a surprise to the US authorities , as it would threaten the safety of large cities on the east coast where possible .
China's Extended Deterrence on North Korea
( Moderator ) Why is China giving military aid to North Korea to such an extent?
( Lee Il-woo ) China's latest measure, which came right after the Washington Declaration by the US and South Korea, can be seen as China's version of extended deterrence against North Korea. Just as South Korea and the United States are allies , and South Korea is under the protection of extended deterrence by the United States, North Korea is also a formal alliance relationship that has signed a treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with China, and according to Article 2 of this treaty , either side It states that if one country is invaded, the other country will automatically intervene and assist .
When the United States threatened North Korea by deploying strategic submarines near the Korean Peninsula to protect South Korea from the North Korean nuclear threat and maximize deterrence against North Korea through the Washington Declaration , China deployed anti-submarine forces in the roadway where the strategic nuclear submarine was expected to enter , We have taken the bold step of deploying strategic nuclear submarines in wartime launch zones that could strike America's heartland in case of emergency .
The reason China has come this far is because North Korea is so important in the US-China competition for supremacy. At the Labor Party's Central Military Commission enlargement meeting in June 2021, North Korea stipulates that the US pressure on North Korea is not the goal of North Korea's denuclearization itself, but part of an international political strategy with China in mind in the hegemonic competition landscape, and North Korea's strategic force is to China . announced a major overhaul to be used to support the U.S. strategy against the United States .
In fact, North Korea intensively developed and deployed short- and medium-range missiles to attack USFK and USFK bases with nuclear weapons, which could pose a threat to China in case of emergency , and used nuclear torpedoes and cruise missiles to counter the US aircraft carrier fleet . A regional denial strategy was introduced .
This shows that the military cooperation between North Korea and China is very advanced in the context of the US-China competition for supremacy. China and North Korea are raising the level of military threats with one heart and one mind , but they are fiercely criticizing the triangular cooperation between South Korea, the US and Japan, saying that it disrupts stability and peace in the region . It is North Korea and China that are aiming nuclear weapons and a large number of missiles at South Korea that have broken the stability and peace in the region. As the threat from them grows , South Korea must also face the threat and strengthen cooperation with the United States and Japan in order to survive. You have to realize that it is possible .
( Moderator ) Jaju National Defense Network Secretary General Lee Il-woo was with me.
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