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<ul><li>A typhoon is expected to approach <keyword id="4741" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tokyo">Tokyo</keyword> and its neighboring areas from the Pacific on Sunday .</li><li>The final day would host competition like track and field, volleyball, water polo, and others.</li></ul><ul><li>The ceremony would end at 8:00 pm tomorrow.</li></ul>A typhoon is expected to approach Tokyo and its neighboring areas from the Pacific on Sunday (August 7), the final day of the Tokyo Olympics, reported Kyodo News. Typhoon Mirinae was moving over the sea south of the Japanese archipelago at 30 kilometers per hour as of noon, the Japan Meteorological Agency said on Saturday as it warned of strong winds and high waves. The closing ceremony is scheduled to take place on Sunday at 8:00 p.m. local time in Japan. The final day will also feature competitions including track and field, volleyball, water polo, boxing, handball, and basketball. After 19 days of competition, where emotions of sport have triumphed, the official handover between Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 will be one of the highlights of the Closing Ceremony at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium. The Governor of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike, will hand the Olympic flag to the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo. Speaking about this, Hidalgo said: "It is with great emotion that I will bring home the flag from Tokyo in the company of the victorious French athletes and the Olympic values of openness, excellence, effort, and fair play. The prospect of gathering in 2024 for Games that are respectful of invited nations and which carry the ambition of a more sustainable city will motivate all our efforts." (ANI) SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/byjus-last-two-acquisitions-and-a-deal-with-disney-reveal-its-american-dream/articleshow/84783749.cms" style="">Byju's last two acquisitions and a deal with Disney reveal its American dream ⁠— one that is anchored in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/personal-finance/news/six-red-flags-for-investors-to-avoid-becoming-a-victim-of-misselling-by-agents-or-financial-advisors/slidelist/84782913.cms" style="">Six red flags for investors to avoid becoming a victim of misselling by agents or financial advisors</a>

Typhoon expected to approach Tokyo on the last day of Olympics

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Satellite images caught the movements of <keyword id="182233" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Kim-Jong-Un">Kim Jong Un</keyword>'s luxury yacht.</li><li><keyword id="13473" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="North-Korea">North Korea</keyword> is undergoing food shortages and struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic.</li><li>The amusement-park-themed yacht can be a good indicator of Kim's whereabouts, <a href="https://www.nknews.org/pro/kim-family-using-newly-remodeled-amusement-park-boat-on-east-coast-imagery/?t=1634289992493">NK News reported</a>.</li></ul>Kim Jong Un's 260-foot luxury yacht has been spotted moving toward his private compound as North Korea struggles with famine and COVID-19. Satellite-imaging company Planet Labs captured pictures of the yacht, as well as a second 200-foot yacht, moored at the private beach near Kim's palace at Wonsan on July 12.The images were published by the South Korean outlet <a href="https://www.nknews.org/pro/kim-family-using-newly-remodeled-amusement-park-boat-on-east-coast-imagery/?t=1634289992493">NK News</a>, which marked up the images on its website. The weather around Wonsan in July is warm, and the temperature on Tuesday was 86 degrees Fahrenheit.A tweet from May about the yacht's movements included an image of the yacht.The larger of the <keyword id="613151" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="yachts">yachts</keyword> is constructed as a floating amusement park, with a double waterslide, an Olympic-size pool, and a multistory lounge, the outlet reported. <div type="image" title="Satellite image of Kim Jong-Un's luxury compound in Wonsan, North Korea, as of 2021" height="1000" width="2000" msid="84582136" hostid="261"></div>It is unclear who is using the luxury boats, which have been lent to friends and family in the past.The yachts' movements coincide with days the leader did not make public appearances and can be a reasonably reliable indicator of his movements, NK News reported. In April last year, during an extensive withdrawal from public view, Kim's 200-foot yacht was spotted <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kim-jong-un-satellite-images-show-boat-moving-wonsan-resort-2020-4">moving around</a> the same spot.Less than a month ago, Kim made a rare announcement. He said there was a "tense" situation with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kim-jong-un-warns-north-korea-food-shortage-tense-2021-6">North Korea's food supply</a>, which he attributed to typhoons in the past year. Food prices have skyrocketed, prompting one UN official to propose lifting sanctions in order to prevent mass starvation, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-northkorea-un-idUKKBN23G17S">Reuters reported</a>. The country also recently hinted at a COVID-19 surge, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kim-jong-un-reshuffles-top-officials-great-crisis-2021-7">after Kim reshuffled his senior officials</a>, blaming them for a "great crisis" in their response to the pandemic.North Korea does not release COVID-19 data, and it's long said that it's free of the virus, but reports from outside the country suggested that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/almost-200-north-korean-soldiers-died-coronavirus-2020-3">there have been surges in the past year</a>.The country has been sluggish in attempting to access vaccines, despite being entitled to 2 million doses through the UN's COVAX scheme, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/north-korea-shows-no-vaccine-urgency-despite-new-virus-woes">Voice of America News reported</a>. US and South Korean officials said that it's plausible that Kim used the resort to shelter from the virus in May last year, <a href="https://news.sky.com/story/satellite-images-of-luxury-boats-suggest-kim-jong-un-is-in-north-korean-coastal-resort-11980769">Sky News reported</a>.Kim is a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kim-jong-un-weight-gain-loss-2021-6">heavy smoker</a>, a high risk factor in complications for COVID-19.

Satellite images show Kim Jong Un's waterslide yacht in action, while North Korea struggles with famine and COVID-19

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image">REUTERS/Morris Mac MatzenParticipants lie in the mud to break the world record for total number of 'mud angels' at the "Wattoluempiade," or Mud Olympics, in the northern German city of Brunsbuettel, July 6, 2014. During the event, participants also join in other games including football, handball and volleyball. </div></div></div>Good morning! Here's what you need to know.
There's An Enormous Typhoon Heading For Japan. A "once in a decade" typhoon is barreling toward the country's southern islands. "I can't stress enough how dangerous this typhoon may be when it hits Okinawa," wrote Brigadier General James Hecker on the base's Facebook page on Sunday <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/typhoon-described-as-a-once-in-decades-storm-is-barelling-towards-japan-2014-7#ixzz36mOlqxJM">per Reuters</a>. "This is not just another typhoon." There are no nuclear plants on Okinawa, but there are two on Kyushu island and one on nearby Shikoku island.
Archer Daniels Midland Buys WILD. The Illinois foods giant <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/archer-daniels-midland-to-buy-wild-flavors-in-deal-valued-at-2-3-billion-1404720087?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection">beat out a Japanese competitor with a $2.99 billion offer</a> for the maker of a popular Stevia product and Capri Sun.
Goldman Ratchets Rate Calendar. The investment bank now says the Fed will likely raise rates in Q3 2015 instead of Q1 2016, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-07/treasuries-fall-after-goldman-sachs-brings-forward-fed-forecast.html">after stronger jobs data</a>. Goldman joins JP Morgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and Capital Economics in <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/monday-scouting-report-july-7-2014-2014-7">raising this warning flag</a>.
Welcome To Q2 Earnings Week. Nothing today, but Alcoa kicks things off tomorrow after the bell. "People said the U.S. earnings would be bad for January-March but in the end the profits were up. I would expect decent results (this time)," Tsuyoshi Shimizu, chief strategist at Mizuho Asset Management, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/07/us-markets-global-idUSKBN0FC0NT20140707">told Reuters</a>.
Repo Alarm. More trades are going uncompleted, causing short-term cash crunches, as repurchase agreement volumes fall to record lows, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-06/bond-anxiety-grows-in-1-6-trillion-repo-market-as-failures-soar.html">Bloomberg says</a>, thanks to intense demand for U.S. notes. Failures to deliver Treasuries have averaged $65.6 billion a week this year, reaching as high as $197.6 billion late last month. Compare that with $51.6 billion in 2013, and $28.8 billion in 2012. "The effect of all the collateral issues we see now is an indication of not so much how things are, but how bad things will be when you really need liquidity," Jeffrey Snider, chief investment strategist at West Palm Beach, Florida-based Alhambra Investment Partners LLC, told Bloomberg. "That's when you get into potentially dire situations."
Oil Rally Fades. Brent was trading as low as $110.59 Monday, nearly 4% lower than mid-June levels, as fears of Iraq outages have been assuaged for now. Meanwhile Libya <a href="http://t.co/B7DG4clNdQ">is set to open new oil terminals. </a>
German Output Drops Again. German production data fell 1.8% in May, the third straight month of declines . "There was a little dent in the second quarter," Jens-Oliver Niklasch, a fixed-income strategist at Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg in Stuttgart, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-07/german-industrial-output-falls-in-sign-of-slower-growth.html">told Bloomberg</a>. "But generally speaking, the German economy is in quite good shape and there's no reason for concern as growth rates will remain solid."
Deflation in Sweden? The kroner fell 0.2% after dropping 1.6% last week, giving the sovereign its worst run of the year. The Swedish Central Bank cut rates 5o bps to 0.25% last week as the specter of deflation spooked regulators, <a href="http://on.ft.com/VRM9OY">the FT said</a>. 
Markets. U.S. futures were lower. Stocks in Europe and Asia were both down. 
No Major Economic Data. Hope you had a great 4th.

10 Things You Need To Know Before The Opening Bell

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Khaled AbdullahChildren ride in the trunk of a car on a flooded street in Sanaa, Yemen August 1, 2016.</div></div></div>Hello! Here's what you need to know on Tuesday.1. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-hong-kong-shuts-down-as-typhoon-nida-hits-2016-8">Hong Kong shut down as Typhoon Nida brought violent winds and torrential rain</a>. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and the stock market, schools, and businesses have closed.2. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-rigged-election-2016-8">US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said if he didn't win the general election "by massive landslides" it's "rigged."</a> Trump would be the first US candidate in modern presidential times to blame an election loss on voter fraud or a rigged election.3. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-venezuela-recall-clears-hurdle-but-no-date-for-next-step-2016-8">Venezuela's opposition has gathered enough signatures to proceed with efforts to call a referendum on removing President Nicolas Maduro</a>. Next, the opposition must collect four million signatures in just three days.4. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/hillary-clinton-dnc-polls-2016-8">US Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is now surpassing Donald Trump in several new polls that have come out since the Democratic convention</a>, erasing the brief lead that Trump had in the race.5. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/theranos-scientific-presentation-aacc-conference-2016-8">Silicon Valley blood-testing company Theranos presented at a scientific conference for the first time</a>, but left unanswered many of the key questions about the science behind its blood tests.6. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-local-mexico-mayor-policeman-arrested-over-alleged-murder-of-10-2016-8">A Mexico mayor and a police officer were arrested for their alleged involvement in the murder of 10 people</a>. Police picked up a group of people at a store in the state of Michoacan and forced them to get into a red truck on the orders of local mayor Juan Carlos Arreygue, according to investigators.7. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/olympics-not-going-to-bump-brazil-economy-2016-8">Several economists and analysts have recently argued that the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio alone won't be enough to jump-start Brazil</a>, in part because the country's economy is already so massive.8. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/natalie-kerris-leaves-twitter-2016-8">The Apple veteran whom Twitter recently hired to head up its public-relations team has left the company</a>. Natalie Kerris had joined Twitter in February.9. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/millennium-tower-san-francisco-tilting-sinking-2016-8">A $350 million skyscraper in San Francisco, California is tilting and sinking</a>. The skyscraper's frame uses huge slabs of concrete instead of steel.10. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/trump-campaign-asks-capitol-hill-for-support-in-khan-controversy-2016-8">Donald Trump's campaign is reaching out to Republican lawmakers to support his attacks on the Muslim parents of a decorated US soldier killed in Iraq</a>. Trump's criticism of Khizr Khan and Ghazala Khan has dominated the White House campaign in recent days.And finally ...<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/famous-sites-reality-versus-instagram-2016-7">26 photos that show what popular tourist sites are really like</a>. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/malcolm-gladwell-revisionist-history-donate-princeton-vassar-bowdoin-tipping-point-outliers-blink-2016-7">MALCOLM GLADWELL: 'Anyone who gives a single dollar to Princeton has completely lost their mind' </a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="tlNzV5NDE68LblejgkI-6sByYCuoiDZ7" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

The 10 most important things in the world right now

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">AP Photo/Alexander ZemlianichenkoThe Moscow GUM State Department store decorated with New Year and Christmas illumination reflected in a wall of a skating rink at Red Square in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015.</div></div></div>Good morning! Here's what you need to know today.1. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/russia-bombing-in-syria-regime-assad-putin-2015-12">Russian airstrikes in Syria have escalated to new levels in recent days.</a> "We've never been bombed like this," Issa Khaled, a resident of the Aleppo suburb of Ghouta, told The Guardian after Sunday's attack on a busy marketplace that killed at least 70 civilians.2. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/peak-pessimism-everyone-seems-to-think-crude-is-going-lower-2015-12">A growing number of i</a><a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/peak-pessimism-everyone-seems-to-think-crude-is-going-lower-2015-12">nvestors are betting that the crude price will continue to slide in the year ahead</a> after hitting an 11-year low recently.3. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-france-says-it-foiled-jihadi-attack-near-orleans-2015-12">France said Tuesday that it foiled a terror attack that targeted "soldiers, police and representatives of the state."</a> Two French citizens who are accused of being in contact with a French jihadi in Syria were arrested on December 19.4. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-iom-migrant-arrivals-into-europe-tops-1-million-in-2015-2015-12">Over 1 million migrants have arrived in Europe in 2015</a>, more than four times as many as last year.5. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/isis-fighters-fallujah-civilians-2015-12">The US military has obtained a pamphlet </a><a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/isis-fighters-fallujah-civilians-2015-12">that officials say shows the terrorist group ISIS telling its fighters to pose as Iraqi military forces and to commit atrocities before fleeing the city of Fallujah.</a> Some experts, however, cast doubt on the authenticity of the document.6. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-boko-haram-violence-forces-1-million-children-from-school-2015-12">Attacks by Islamic extremist group Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria and neighboring countries have forced more than 1 million children out of school</a>, according to the United Nations.7. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-brazil-attorney-general-alleges-bribes-tied-to-rio-olympics-2015-12">The Brazil attorney general is alleging that bribes were used to</a><a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-brazil-attorney-general-alleges-bribes-tied-to-rio-olympics-2015-12"> help secure contracts for the construction of venues</a> for next year's Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-putin-russia-will-develop-not-use-nuclear-weapons-2015-12"></a>8. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-nasa-calls-off-next-mars-mission-because-of-instrument-leak-2015-12">NASA is delaying the launch of its next Mars spacecraft, originally scheduled for March, due to a problem with one of its instruments</a>. The next launch opportunity isn't until May 2018.9. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/r-philippines-gets-500-million-world-bank-credit-line-to-reduce-disaster-risk-2015-12">The Philippines has been given a $500 million World Bank credit line to deal with risks from natural disasters</a>, such as typhoons, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.10. <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/ap-new-zealand-judges-rules-kim-dotcom-can-be-extradited-to-us-2015-12">A New Zealand judge has ruled that German tech entrepreneur Kim Dotcom can be extradited to the US to face criminal copyright charges</a>. The ruling comes four years after US authorities shut down his Megaupload website, which allowed users to illegally download songs and movies.And finally ...<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/how-a-spacex-rocket-launch-works-2015-12">This awesome illustration shows how Elon Musk's SpaceX had the biggest launched and landed rocket in history.</a> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-isis-and-al-qaeda-are-funded-make-money-terrorist-groups-terrorist-2015-12">How ISIS makes over $1 billion a year</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="R0N2JleTqvRC6uEEi5Ey6TouNvj_gHDb" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/license/584911098">Chris McGrath/Getty Images</a>The Christ the Redeemer statue is seen at sunset in front of the Maracana Stadium ahead of the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.</div></div></div>Good morning! Here's what you need to know in markets on Tuesday.<keyword id="6354868" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="UK">UK</keyword> construction numbers are coming - and they're set to be terrible. Markit's construction PMI for July is due at 9.30 a.m. BST (5.30 a.m. ET), with economists predicting the sector will shrink at an faster pace than the prior month. The reading is forecast to come in at 43.8, compared to 46.0 in June. Any number below 50 signals a contraction in activity, while above 50 means growth.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-jpmorgan-ceo-says-brexit-could-add-costs-for-european-banking-2016-8?IR=T">JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union could lead to duplicate costs to provide banking services to European customers.</a> Dimon, speaking on CNBC television during a bus tour of bank offices in California, said it is too early to tell how much of the work the bank now does from the UK might have to be done redundantly in Europe.<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/goldman-sachs-recommends-selling-stocks-2016-8">Goldman Sachs thinks it's time to sell some stocks.</a> In a note to clients on Sunday, Goldman strategist Christian Mueller-Glissmann moved his team's portfolio weighting recommendation on stocks to Underweight from Neutral, effectively giving clients the green light to sell down some of their stock holdings.Japan is diving. The benchmark Nikkei stock market is down 1.28% at the time of writing (6.40 a.m. BST/1.40 a.m. ET). China's Shanghai Composite is up 0.01% and the Hong Kong Hang Seng is <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-01/hong-kong-prepares-for-strongest-typhoon-this-year-as-nida-nears">closed after a serious typhoon in the city.</a> <a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/closing-bell-august-1-2016-8">US stocks were flat overnight.</a><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/r-bofa-warns-of-impact-if-brexit-uncertainty-continues-2016-8?IR=T">Bank of America said its business, results, and operational model could be adversely affected if economic volatility stemming from Britain's vote to exit the European Union continues.</a> The Brexit vote has introduced "complexities and variables" in calculating fair values of certain businesses, the bank said in a regulatory filing on Monday.<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/theranos-scientific-presentation-aacc-conference-2016-8">Theranos, the Silicon Valley blood-testing company that's been under fire for almost a year, presented at a scientific conference for the first time on Monday.</a> But the company left unanswered many of the key questions about the science behind its blood tests, instead choosing to focus on new technology called the Theranos Virtual Analyzer and Theranos Sample Processing Unit, or miniLab.<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/salesforce-buys-quip-2016-8">Salesforce is buying Quip, the productivity app founded by Facebook's former CTO, Bret Taylor.</a> TechCrunch is reporting the acquisition price at $750 million (£568.6 million). In the four years since founding Quip, Taylor had raised $45 million (£34.1 million). The app allows users to create and edit documents online with a real-time commenting system.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-australia-cuts-interest-rate-to-record-low-1.5-percent-2016-8?IR=T">Australia's central bank cut interest rates to a new record low Tuesday in a widely expected decision after a recent run of soft inflation readings.</a> The 25 basis points cut to 1.5% means the Reserve Bank of Australia has slashed rates by 300 basis points since November 2011 to support the economy as it transitions towards non-resources growth after an unprecedented mining investment boom.<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/oil-demand-growth-remains-lackluster-2016-8">July was the worst month for crude oil in a year.</a> The usual seasonal boost in demand that could be helping prices is lackluster right now, Barclays' Michael Cohen and his team wrote in a note on Monday. This postpones any chances for the market to balance out, he said.<a href="http://uk.businessinsider.com/alibaba-looks-to-globalize-e-commerce-platform-2016-8">Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba wants to start negotiations with one or two countries following the G20 summit in September about its plan to create a global e-commerce platform, which company founder and chief Jack Ma says can help knock down trade barriers.</a> Ma said he hoped global enterprises, including rival Amazon, would work together to create the new platform to connect smaller enterprises around the world. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/most-interesting-men-world-watches-rolex-breitling-jorg-gray-2015-8">These are the watches worn by the smartest and most powerful men in the world</a></h3> <div> <div> <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="N3NGJ0djpb_DdQzkXVopAvbq5AmmiuOx" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div> </div> </div> </div>

10 things you need to know in markets today

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Wu Hong/Pool Photo via APChinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, center, and Australia's now-former foreign minister Julie Bishop, right, talk as they arrive for a joint press conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016.</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>A proposed trade deal between Australia and Taiwan apparently never had a chance to see the light of day, former foreign minister Julie Bishop says.</li><li>Bishop blamed what she said was direct and constant pressure from Beijing.</li><li>That startling concession shines light on a sobering truth: China is comfortable exerting pressure at the very highest corridors of power in order to secure its interests.</li></ul>Australia's former foreign minister Julia Bishop says direct and consistent pressure from Beijing effectively skewered any chance Canberra had of even striking up a conversation with Taiwan on a free trade deal.The startling concession highlights how Beijing is apparently comfortable exerting pressures at the very highest corridors of power to secure its interests.Bishop, who served as foreign minister from 2013 to 2018, told <a href="https://amp.smh.com.au/politics/federal/australia-abandoned-plans-for-taiwanese-free-trade-agreement-after-warning-from-china-20181024-p50bj5.html?__twitter_impression=true">Fairfax Media on Thursday</a> that for two years, her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi "made it clear" that any official flirtations with the island state that China considers a rogue province would ensure that Beijing "would not look favorably on Australia."Those are words not to be taken lightly when the resource-rich Australian economy is beeping away on China's life-support.China is far and away Australia's key economic partner. China is its largest two-way trading partner, its top export market and its biggest import source, last year generating $129 billion USD in revenue - up 16% on 2016 - and now accounting for 24% of the country's total trade."During my time as foreign minister, I observed an increasing assertiveness on the part of China to encourage nations to disengage from their relationship with Taiwan," Bishop said in remarks that now barely illicit a cringe from Asian Pacific analysts."This included in the Pacific and where some nations still formally recognize Taiwan and in some of the major multilateral forums where Taiwan had observer status to participate in such meetings," she added.Dr. Kevin Carrico, a lecturer in Chinese Studies at the University of Macquarie said smaller nations in the region were vulnerable to an increasingly assertive Beijing."This is an example of the really dangerous nature of People's Republic of China party state influence in Australia's political system," Dr. Carrico told Business Insider."Australia is a sovereign nation and can decide for itself if it would like to pursue a free-trade pact with Taiwan."Taiwan's economic contribution is far from insignificant and the island nation of 23 million remains Australia's 14th most significant business partner and one of its fastest growing.<a href="https://www.austrade.gov.au/news/economic-analysis/australias-two-way-trade-with-the-world-was-up-11-to-763-billion-in-2017">According to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade,</a> two-way trade in goods and services between Taiwan and Australia topped $10.6 billion in 2017, a rise of 10.9% year-over-year, and now 2% of Australia's total trade.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">ReutersXi Jinping.</div></div></div><h2>It's a cheque, mate</h2>While China has for decades been wielding Pacific states like chess pieces in its admirably single-minded pursuit of reintegrating <a href="https://guidetotaipei.com/article/what-is-chinese-taipei">"Chinese Taipei"</a> with the mainland, this is the first time an Australian official at the very highest levels has so publicly acknowledged what so many have feared:That the Chinese state is capable and willing to use economic threats to direct Australian foreign policy in the pursuit of its own interests from the corridors and gardens of <a href="https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/china/zhongnanhai.htm">Zhongnanhai</a>.Australian <keyword id="6358883" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="politics">politics</keyword> has been literally stalked in recent years by what many observers perceive as the growing shadow of Chinese influence across domestic and international policy.Politicians have been implicated, journalists have been sued and desperate cracks have taken hold within one of the world's most diverse and proudly multicultural of countries.Following an investigation into the extent of foreign interference in Australia ordered by former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull earlier this year, reports emerged of attempts by the Chinese Communist Party to influence "all levels" of Australian politics."Our system as a whole had not grasped the nature and magnitude of the threat," Turnbull said in May, just months after <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/12/sam-dastyari-quits-labor-senator-china-connections">a high-profile political figure was sacked and labeled a Chinese "agent of influence."</a>The following week, the Chinese ambassador Cheng Jingye addressed a business event that Business Insider attended at Parliament House, insisting China "never interferes in the internal affairs" of Australia or any other state.The ambassador then told business leaders that China never exercised "so-called infiltration of other countries."Nevertheless, the following month, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/australia-passed-foreign-interference-laws-amid-china-tensions-2018-6">Australia passed sweeping new counterintelligence laws</a> that broaden the powers and increase the severity of offenses within espionage and foreign influence.And while the ever-diplomatic Turnbull said the laws did not single out any one country, there was no doubt that their target was Beijing.Turnbull had previously remarked of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/dec/09/mao-did-not-say-it-australian-pm-malcolm-turnbull-quote-china-">"disturbing reports about Chinese influence,"</a> and even once had a decent crack at speaking directly to camera in Mandarin to announce, quite daringly, that Australia has stood up, as China once did so famously under the leadership of Mao Zedong - "Zhong guo ren min zhanqilai!"Without a doubt, the new laws exacerbated the already inflamed tensions with China, which, again in the words of Ambassador Chen and a state media blitz, accuses Australia of having a "Cold War mentality."A December 2017 editorial in the <a href="http://opinion.huanqiu.com/editorial/2017-12/11425288.html">Global Times</a> made that pretty clear."Australia poses a problem for China. If we mind its silly carrying-on, it will deplete our energy, and it doesn't seem worth our while; however, if we leave it be and pretend nothing is happening, that would only encourage it, and it may go from bad to worse.""Australia is one of the countries that have benefited most from China's rise, yet it is also one of the most provocative voices in the Western bloc. It is beginning to look like a piece of chewing gum stuck to the bottom of China's shoe."<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Billy H.C. Kwok/Getty ImagesTAIPEI, TAIWAN - OCTOBER 10: Military honour guards take part to mark the island's National Day celebrations in front of the Presidential Palace on October 10, 2018 in Taipei, Taiwan.</div></div></div><h2>It's getting close to checkmate</h2>Meanwhile, China has ramped right up that pressure on Taiwan since President Tsai Ing-wen of the more independence-minded Democratic Progressive Party won office in 2016, more actively blitzing Taiwan's attempts at international engagement and looming ever larger across its domestic politics.Tsai immediately staggered Communist Party officials by refusing to endorse the "1992 consensus," a pillar of regional stability that enshrines the One China, Two Systems principle that provides China some flexibility with the way it deals with its various client states and wayward provinces from Hong Kong to Taipei.And since Tsai took power in the democratic stronghold across from Fujian province, the Pacific chess game has swung strongly in China's favor.The Chinese government first cut off official communication with Tsai's government and then leaned into its multilayered strategy of erasing Taiwan from the international stage and poaching its handful of remaining diplomatic allies.In under two years, China has seduced away five Taiwanese diplomatic allies, most recently when China established ties with El Salvador, shrinking Taiwan's diplomatic pool to just 17 allies.In May, the West African state of Burkina Faso became the fourth country to cut ties following similar kiss-offs from diplomatic heavyweights like Panama, Sao Tome, the Dominican Republic and Principe.Now, many of the countries with which Taiwan has formal relations worldwide are tiny, weakly developed, and highly vulnerable nations with many dotting across the Pacific like Palau and Nauru.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Reuters / Michael Buholzer</div></div></div><h2>Climate change, seasonal typhoons?</h2>No, it's often the tug-of-war between Taiwan and China that makes these states especially vulnerable to systemic failings, from long-term corruption, debt-trap diplomacy, and the insidious reach of foreign influence in sovereign surrounds.From 2000 to the opening of the Beijing Olympics, Taiwan lost nine allies to China amid a bidding war, as Taiwan also showered cash on sovereign states to gain diplomatic recognition.There have been successes and failures on both sides.Nauru surprised everyone when it jumped ship from China to Taiwan in 2005.Tonga, which has voiced concerns about its growing Chinese debts, cut ties with Taiwan in 1998.From Vanuatu to the Marshall Islands to the Solomons, China's growing influence and Taiwan's waning is often viewed as an opportunity to roll the dice again.In July an airline based in the Pacific nation of Palau <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com.au/palau-airline-closes-over-anger-from-china-about-taiwan-ties-2018-7">says it was forced to close</a> because of China's attempts to punish the nation for its diplomatic ties with Taiwan.And according to Business Insider's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/which-companies-have-changed-taiwan-description-china-2018-7">Tara Francis Chan,</a> China has been judicious in its application of threats, fines, public shaming, cajoling and the introduction of social credit scores for corporations to force foreign companies to adopt and adhere to its political rhetoric.According to Dr. Carrico, Australia's democratic values are being threatened by the intersection of China's rising sense of its place in the world and Canberra's own economic weaknesses."Taiwan is a democratic nation with which Australia shares many values, of course it is unfair to both countries to be held hostage to Beijing's fantasy that Taiwan, never ruled by the People's Republic of China, is somehow "an inalienable part of China."Following <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/2169493/taiwan-independence-protesters-take-street-taipei">demonstrations in Taipei</a> on Saturday over the increasing threats from Beijing and as a referendum over whether Taiwan should compete as "Taiwan" or "Chinese Taipei" in international sporting events draws ever closer, Chinese <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-golf-taiwan-china-exclusive/exclusive-chinese-women-golfers-told-to-pull-out-of-taiwan-event-sources-idUSKCN1MX0Z2">golfers were pulled out en masse</a> from an international event in Taiwan on Wednesday, Reuters reported.Beijing has also recently cut Chinese tour groups from visiting Taiwan while both sides have ratcheted up military exercises to show their respective capabilities in any Taiwan Strait conflict.Here is a list of the remaining nations still diplomatically aligned, including their dates of engagement and re-engagement, with Taiwan as of October 2018:<ul><li>Swaziland (1968)</li><li>Vatican City (1942)</li><li>Kiribati (2003)</li><li>Marshall Islands (1998)</li><li>Nauru (1980-2002, 2005)</li><li>Palau (1999)</li><li>Solomon Islands (1983)</li><li>Tuvalu (1979)</li><li>Haiti (1956)</li><li>Saint Kitts and Nevis (1983)</li><li>Saint Lucia (1984-1997, 2007)</li><li>Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (1981)</li><li>Belize (1989)</li><li>Guatemala (1933)[56]</li><li>Honduras (1941)</li><li>Nicaragua (1962-1985, 1990)</li><li>Paraguay (1957)</li></ul> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/megyn-kelly-santa-is-white-remark-fox-news-nbc-ignition-today-controversial-remarks-2017-11">Megyn Kelly in 2017: 'I regret a lot' of the controversial stuff I've said on live television</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

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