Tag: Asia

Taiwanese foreign minister says China drills part of a game-plan for invasion

Post author By mangakiko
Post date August 9, 2022
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TAIPEI, Aug 9 (Reuters) – Taiwan’s foreign minister said on Tuesday that China was using the military drills it launched in protest against US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit as a game-plan to prepare for an invasion of the self-ruled island.

Joseph Wu, speaking at a press conference in Taipei, offered no time-table for a possible invasion of Taiwan, which is claimed by China as its own.

He said Taiwan would not be intimidated even as the drills continued with China often breaching the unofficial median line down the Taiwan Strait.

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“China has used the drills in its military play-book to prepare for the invasion of Taiwan,” Wu said.

“It is conducting large-scale military exercises and missile launches, as well as cyberattacks, disinformation, and economic coercion, in an attempt to weaken public morale in Taiwan.

“After the drills conclude, China may try to routinize its action in an attempt to wreck the long-term status quo across the Taiwan Strait,” Wu said.

Such moves threatened regional security and provided “a clear image of China’s geostrategic ambitions beyond Taiwan”, Wu said, urging greater international support to stop China effectively controlling the strait.

A Pentagon official said on Monday that Washington was sticking to its assessment that China would not try to invade Taiwan for the next two years. read more

Wu spoke as military tensions simmer after the scheduled end on Sunday of four days of the largest-ever Chinese exercises surrounding the island – drills that included ballistic missile launches and simulated sea and air attacks in the skies and seas surrounding Taiwan.

China’s Eastern Theater Command announced on Monday that it would conduct fresh joint drills focusing on anti-submarine and sea assault operations – confirming the fears of some security analysts and diplomats that Beijing would keep up the pressure on Taiwan’s defences.

A person familiar with security planning in the areas around Taiwan described to Reuters on Tuesday a continuing “standoff” around the median line involving about 10 warships each from China and Taiwan.

“China continued to try to press in to the median line,” the person said. “Taiwan forces there have been trying to keep the international waterways open.”

As Pelosi left the region last Friday, China also ditched some lines of communication with the United States, including theater level military talks and discussions on climate change.

Taiwan started its own long-scheduled drills on Tuesday, firing howitzer artillery out to sea in the southern county of Pingtung.

US President Joe Biden, in his first public comments on the issue since Pelosi’s visit, said on Monday he was concerned about China’s actions in the region but he was not worried about Taiwan. read more

“I’m concerned they are moving as much as they are,” Biden told reporters in Delaware, referring to China. “But I don’t think they’re going to do anything more than they are.”

Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl also said the US military would continue to carry out voyages through the Taiwan Strait in the coming weeks.

China has never ruled out taking Taiwan by force and on Monday Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said that China was conducting normal military exercises “in our waters” in an open, transparent and professional way, adding Taiwan was part of China.

Taiwan rejects China’s sovereignty claims, saying only the Taiwanese people can decide the island’s future.

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Reporting by Sarah Wu and Yimou Lee in Taipei; Writing by Greg Torode, Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Tags AMERS, Asia, ASXPAC, CWP, DEF, dip, EASIA, EMRG, GENE, HREP, NAME, NC, NEWS1, POL, SECURE, TOPCMB, TOPNWS, tw, us, WASH

Entertainment

Thirteen Lives: Ron Howard and Joel Edgerton on their Thai Cave Rescue movie

Post author By mangakiko
Post date August 9, 2022
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You only have to utter the words “Thai Cave Rescue” and almost anyone would know exactly what you’re talking about.

The extraordinary story of the international effort to save 12 boys and their football coach from a flooded cave system is remembered not just for the complicated rescue but for its triumphant ending.

“I remember when it first happened,” Joel Edgerton told news.com.au.

“Look, I’m a bit cynical. Whenever there’s a news event, particularly one that’s either super tragic or one that is incredibly positive – and this one was both, it started tragic and ended positively – I would sit with friends and say, ‘There will be a movie about that any minute now’.

“I’m sure producers were swooping into north Thailand at the time, trying to buy up the story. I never imagined I’d be part of it.”

The “it” is Thirteen Livesa dramatization of the Thai Cave Rescue by director Ron Howard and screenwriter William Nicholson.

Edgerton portrays Adelaide diver and anaesthetist Richard Harris alongside Viggo Mortensen and Colin Farrell who took on the roles of British divers Richard Stanton and John Volanthen.

It was inevitable that the story would be catnip to moviemakers, but when it’s a tale that was already so well-documented at the time, what could Hollywood add to it?

Perennial filmmaker Howard knew he had a task on his hands, but he also knew that the story was worth dramatizing because narrative film offers audiences a specific emotional connection.

“The role of a dramatized version of events is to be visceral and emotional and reach into people’s nervous systems with the truth of the story and the spirit of the story,” Howard told news.com.au.

“When audiences connect with the characters, which has to do to some extent with the writing but a lot to do with the actors, and this is a great ensemble cast, you begin to understand how difficult some of the choices (during the rescue operation ) were.

“When you present characters as very relatable, modern people, any of us could understand the logic of what it was and what they were thinking or going through. Then you begin to develop empathy.

“That’s something a scripted, dramatized version offers audiences, a kind of empathy bridge. That creates suspense because you might know what the overall outcome was, but you don’t know what the cost was for these individuals.

“You don’t know what the baggage was, the physical, personal or emotional injury was – so those are stakes as well.”

Edgerton said that even though he had kept up with the Thai Cave Rescue’s news cycle, he didn’t know how agonizing a decision it was for Dr Harris to agree to sedate the kids so they could be ferried out through the dangerous cave system which challenged even the most experienced of specialist divers.

Thirteen Lives really helps to humanize the people involved, Edgerton contended.

“(The sedation plan) was a very controversial decision. I’ve read Richard’s book and I’ve since had conversations with him – he wasn’t around when we were shooting – but I watched numerous interviews and it really underlined for me the steps it took for him to agree to do something that he thought was such a highwire act in terms of whether it would work,” Edgerton said.

“Helping them may result in the death of the boys but if you didn’t try something or didn’t agree to help try that thing, all the boys would have likely died anyway. The weight of that decision, I found, was extraordinarily emotional. He’s an unbelievably thoughtful and wonderful man.”

Howard said the real-life counterparts, including Stanton and Volanthen, whose life rights form the basis of Thirteen Livestrusted him to tell their story, citing his treatment of true events movies Apollo 13, Rush and A Beautiful Mind.

“They could see from the beginning that my own antenna was tuned towards integrity,” the filmmaker explained. “I didn’t want to amp things up. I didn’t need to.”

The resulting film is an expansive, thoughtful and measured rendering, one which may have centered the story of the British and Australian divers, but makes a conscious effort to pay tribute to the vast network of people involved in the rescue effort.

Such as that of Thai-American water engineer Thanet Natisri, who took it upon himself to co-ordinate a group of local volunteers to stop water pouring from Doi Nang Non mountain into the cave system.

At one point during the operation, the volunteers ran out of the pipe they were using to divert the water to the rice fields below.

Howard revealed: “I was talking to the real Thanet and I said, ‘How did you solve it?’ and he said, ‘One of the local villagers, one of the elders just said he could help and they split bamboo and made them into troughs that they lashed to the pipes’. And he showed me photos of it.”

Howard thought the ingenuity was brilliant and he included that detail in Thirteen Lives.

There was always the risk that a Thai story centered on three white divers could veer into white savior territory. Howard, having now also made several documentaries, understood the story is only complete when you contextualize those characters’ place in the bigger picture.

“I was aware of (the white savior complex) and particularly when I began to understand that, yes, the foreigners, these Brits and an Australian, came in and accomplished this thing. That was vital and, without a doubt, heroic.

“But none of it would have happened with this amazing support system and that was not without risks – physical, emotional, political, career-wise – and I thought that was all fascinating.

“I was really interested in letting people understand what made it all possible. Because it goes deeper than just some really dynamic, talented people with a specific skill coming in and rescuing the kids.”

Edgerton, one of Australia’s great acting and filmmaking exports, gave Howard credit for spinning so many plates.

“There are no Hollywood histrionics or over-sentimentality about what went down. He kept so many characters’ stories alive and paying tribute to the community at large, about the global community of care that went in and the volunteerism – the village that is willing to flood their fields, the people pitching in to divert the water, people feeding everybody that was there to help.”

Thirteen Lives is but one piece of the Thai Cave Rescue tapestry. It follows The Cavea 2019 indie movie from director Tom Waller, and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s widely-acclaimed documentary The Rescue.

Then there’s a Netflix miniseries, which has the life rights to the football team, that will premiere later this year.

Edgerton sees Thirteen Lives and The Rescue as complementary – “the more the merrier!”

“Perpetuate great stories, you want to tell them, you want to pass them along,” Edgerton said.

“It’s a story that reminds us, particularly at the time we’ve been going through, of what human beings are capable of when we get together. Our core value is that we care and that we want to help and that we’re human.

“We see so many signs of the opposite every night when we watch the news or when we click on a story. It’s a great time to tell a story about when human beings do the right thing with each other, when the impossible becomes possible.”

Thirteen Lives is streaming now on Amazon Prime Video

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Business

NSW government announces driverless bus trial in 2023

Post author By mangakiko
Post date August 9, 2022
No Comments on NSW government announces driverless bus trial in 2023

Self-driving buses could hit NSW roads as soon as next year, with trials for the futuristic vehicles preparing to begin.

The Perrottet government has announced it will invest $5m for an on-road connected and automated vehicle (CAV) bus trial to kick off the beginning of the future on NSW roads.

With driverless vehicles predicted to hit our roads commercially in less than a decade, the government is working to set up a CAV-friendly road network to keep up with the likes of San Francisco, Paris and Singapore.

The state government says the trial will be subject to “robust testing” to ensure the buses will operate safely.

A government spokesperson said where and when the vehicles will pop up will depend on proposals from industry groups, which are being called on to get involved with the first 18-month trial in 2023.

Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government Victor Dominello is hoping the project puts NSW on the map as a world-leading adopter of CAV technologies.

“Vehicle connectivity and automation are game-changing technological innovations with the potential to sustainably transform the future mobility of people and goods,” Mr Dominello said.

“Globally, these technologies are advancing rapidly and already appearing in vehicles on the market today.”

He said the move would put NSW “in the front seat” in the race to roll out of the new technology.

The strategy will introduce, test and deploy CAVS on the road network, shape policy, prepare the road network ready for the new models and develop physical and digital testing capabilities for the driverless cars.

Part of the project will also include supporting freight services and increasing knowledge of autonomous vehicles.

Metropolitan Roads Minister Natalie Ward said the strategy would “revolutionise the way we travel”.

“The CAV readiness strategy outlines six priority areas focused on integrating this new technology into our transport system,” Ms Ward said.

“This will include working within the national regulatory framework over the next five years so we’re ready for the safe commercial deployment of CAVS in Australia.”

Ms Ward said adopting the new technology would help the state keep up with constituents’ expectations.

“Getting ahead of the game will make it easier to upskill our transport staff so customers have a seamless service when it is officially on our roads,” she said.

Regional Transport and Roads Minister Sam Farraway said NSW had already set several national and international firsts in autonomous vehicle technology.

“This is big-picture thinking – by putting NSW one step ahead it will bring investment opportunities, knowledge and better customer outcomes,” he said.

The state introduced the world’s first fully automated shuttle service in a public setting through the Coffs Harbor BusBot trial, which was completed late last year.

“This builds on what NSW has already achieved through autonomous shuttle trials, partnerships with local universities and investment in the Future Mobility Testing and Research Center at Cudal,” Mr Farraway said.

Tags America, Anna Reynolds, Asia, Australia, Australia and New Zealand, autonomous shuttle trials, autonomous vehicle technology, autonomous vehicles, California, Carly Douglas, cross agency initiative, customer outcomes, digital testing capabilities, driverless vehicles, Europe, France, government spokesperson, highway network, hobart, industry groups, investment opportunities, Metropolitan Roads Natalie Ward, North America, Northern America, Oceania, Paris, Philip Gostelow, priority areas, robust testing, safe commercial deployment, San Francisco, Sandy Bay, self-driving electric bus, singapore, South East Asia, state government, supporting freight services, Tasmanian, transport system, United States of America, Vehicle connectivity, Western Europe

Technology

Here’s when and how you can access the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 beta

Post author By mangakiko
Post date August 9, 2022
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Here’s when and how you can access the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 beta – The AU Review

Activision has recently announced exactly how and when fans can get their hands on the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 beta. And the best news? It’s only a few weeks away.

The beta itself will be available at an earlier date for those who have pre-ordered the game, with two separate weekends providing access to the beta over a couple of days. We’ve outlined them for you below:

weekend 1
- Saturday September 17th, 3am AEST until Tuesday September 20th, for both PS5 and PS4 owners who have pre-ordered the game.
- Monday September 19th, 3am until Tuesday September 20th, for all PS5 and PS4 owners.
weekend 2
- Friday September 23rd, 3am AEST until Monday September 26th for all PS5 and PS4 owners, and for Xbox Series X|S/Xbox One/PC owners who have pre-ordered the game.
- Sunday September 25th, 3am until Monday, September 26th, for all console and PC owners.

Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Beta Dates

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will launch on the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and Windows PC on the 28th of October, 2022.

More to Explore on the AU:

Matthew Arcari

Matthew Arcari is the games and technology editor at The AU Review. You can find him on Twitter at @sirchunkee, or at the Dagobah System, chilling with Luke and Yoda.

Sports

Chris Lynn turns back on Big Bash League, signs for United Arab Emirates T20 tournament

Post author By mangakiko
Post date August 9, 2022
No Comments on Chris Lynn turns back on Big Bash League, signs for United Arab Emirates T20 tournament

Australian cricketer Chris Lynn has officially turned his back on the Big Bash League, signing on for the inaugural International League T20 in the United Arab Emirates.

On Monday, Emirates Cricket announced that 54 international cricketers had agreed to participate in the newly-developed T20 league, which makes its debut in January 2023.

Lynn, one of the sport’s most destructive short-format batters, was the only Australian featured on a list headed by Ashes winner Moeen Ali and West Indies veteran Andre Russell.

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The 2023 ILT20 will have 34 matches, with all the teams playing each other twice before four playoffs fixtures across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.

It’s understood the UAE league could offer players up to AU$700,000 for five weeks’ work.

“It’s exciting to see how well the squads are shaping up for the first season of ILT20,” Emirates Cricket General Secretary Mubashshir Usmani said in a statement.

“Each team will consist of 18 players including four UAE players and two other players from ICC Associate countries. The quality of the names announced today is outstanding and so is the interest in our league of top players from all around the world.

“We are very excited that a select number of UAE representative-players, from our current pool, will also be considered and signed on to participate in the league. It is also extremely important to note that these (UAE) players will form part of the team’s playing XI.

“One of the key objectives for ILT20 is to provide opportunities for players from UAE and other Associate nations to perform on the big stage, and, ECB extends its deep appreciation to the six franchises for their support of our vision to grow our game and create stronger, more competitive players.”

The announcement effectively confirms that Lynn, the highest run-scorer in Big Bash history, won’t sign for a BBL franchise this year.

In May, the Brisbane Heat elected not to renew the Queenslander’s $200,000 contract after a couple of underwhelming seasons in the domestic T20 tournament.

Lynn was not only one of the Heat’s foundation players, winning a BBL title with the Brisbane-based club in 2013, he also served as captain for several years.

According to The Agethe 32-year-old was unable to find another club willing to meet his asking price, although he had recently been in talks with the Adelaide Strikers.

The powerful right-hander has scored 3005 Big Bash runs at 34.54 at an imposing strike rate of 148.83.

Chris Lynn of Northamptonshire Steelbacks celebrates after scoring a century. Photo by David Rogers/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images

Lynn has been in impeccable form this winter, recently smacking an unbeaten 113 from 57 balls in the T20 Blast to equal his highest individual score and set up a Northamptonshire victory.

Although the loss of Lynn is a massive blow for the BBL, Cricket Australia is reportedly on the verge of brokering a deal with superstar batter David Warner.

According to AustralianWarner has been offered a groundbreaking BBL contract above and beyond any previous player contract.

“I am very hopeful David will play BBL and I am hopeful that all of our best Australian cricketers will play in it,” Australian Cricketers’ Association chief executive Todd Greenberg told the Cricket Et Cetera podcast this week.

“There’s a variety of reasons why. There’s absolutely no doubt that someone like David and others of his ilk could earn more in the coming Australian summer if they were to ply their trade overseas, but there’s a much broader discussion and a bigger picture we are trying to solve here and that’s the discussion I am having with several of our players this week.”

CA is desperate to ensure the sport’s biggest names will make an appearance in the BBL this summer; the competition has been starved of international-quality talent after the last two seasons were plagued by Covid-19.

Earlier this year, The Daily Telegraph reported that broadcaster Channel 7 had launched Federal Court action against CA in a bid to terminate its TV rights deal.

According to the News Corp report, Seven is adamant the cricketers that featured in last summer’s BBL were not of a high enough quality for the competition to meet the standard provisions stipulated in CA’s TV rights contract.

However, the Big Bash has already secured the services of former South African captain Faf du Plessis and Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan, while Australian stars Usman Khawaja, Mitchell Swepson, Nathan Lyon and Alex Carey have also signed for their respective BBL franchises.

Australia’s David Warner. Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA / AFPSource: AFP

“These leagues we are talking about at the moment are competing with our Australian domestic summer and that is the first time we’ve faced this, it is a unique challenge,” Greenberg said.

“The second thing is that the reasons they enjoy the benefits and remunerations that they enjoy under this model is because of those that came before them.

“David and others understand … and are very aware that if they play in this competition it increases the opportunity for the next broadcast deal to be secured at a higher number which maybe doesn’t benefit them specifically, but it benefits the next generation of Australian cricketers coming through.

“This is a real test of our players demonstrating the level of partnership.

“They understand they have to get the best players to play, which includes them and the best players from overseas, which is why we’ve agreed in this one-year deal to ensure that there is an international draft and salary cap – an opportunity to bring the best overseas players in.”

Because South Africa has withdrawn from next January’s three-match ODI series against Australia, the country’s international stars will be available for the second half of the BBL.

However, multi-format paceman Mitchell Starc has already decided he won’t be signing for any franchise due to the sport’s busy calendar, and Australian teammates Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins will most likely follow suit.

“I have always enjoyed the BBL when I have played it … but my approach with all franchise cricket hasn’t changed over the last seven years,” Starc told AAP earlier this month.

“My approach to the IPL, BBL, I have looked at the Australian schedule and wanting to be as fit and well-performed for that as I can.

“And franchise cricket has taken a back seat.”

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Sports

Cricket news 2022: Chris Lynn turns back on Big Bash League, signs for United Arab Emirates T20 tournament

Post author By mangakiko
Post date August 9, 2022
No Comments on Cricket news 2022: Chris Lynn turns back on Big Bash League, signs for United Arab Emirates T20 tournament

Australian cricketer Chris Lynn has officially turned his back on the Big Bash League, signing on for the inaugural International League T20 in the United Arab Emirates.

On Monday, Emirates Cricket announced that 54 international cricketers had agreed to participate in the newly-developed T20 league, which makes its debut in January 2023.

Lynn, one of the sport’s most destructive short-format batters, was the only Australian featured on a list headed by Ashes hero Moeen Ali and West Indies veteran Andre Russell.