海角大神

The Times of India / Mumbai
Ties with China should be strengthened
鈥淣ew Delhi would do well to adopt a calibrated approach to China鈥檚 Silk Road Economic Belt initiative to boost trade and connectivity,鈥� . 鈥淐hinese expertise in building infrastructure would certainly help India while inflow of Chinese investments can counter the yawning trade deficit. Beijing too should facilitate better Indian access to Chinese markets, especially in ... [sectors] such as IT and pharmaceuticals.... [T]here鈥檚 an urgent need to bridge the serious information deficit between people of the two countries. Despite ancient cultural linkages, we know very little about each other.... [C]ooperation between India and China ... [could] propel the common dream of an Asian century.鈥�

Taipei Times / Taipei City, Taiwan
Asia pivot brings opportunities for Taiwan
鈥淎fter a decade of antiterrorism efforts concentrated on Central Asia and the Middle East, the US has become an active player in shaping the balance of power between India and China...,鈥� . 鈥淚ndian policymakers always view China as an interloper in South Asia, an external power that challenges India鈥檚 natural sphere of influence. As a rising power, China perceives South Asia as a legitimate area for flexing its muscles against India and the US. In response ... India has pursued security relations with China鈥檚 neighbors in the Pacific Ocean, especially Taiwan, Vietnam and Japan.... Although the future is contingent upon many circumstantial factors, the US pivot toward South Asia has opened a new door for Taiwan to reset its diplomatic agenda and to boost its business and cultural ties with India.鈥�

The Korea Herald / Seoul, South Korea
South Korea鈥檚 challenge of balancing between world powers
鈥淜orea now finds itself in an awkward position in discussing free trade schemes with the world鈥檚 two largest economies 鈥� the U.S. and China...,鈥� . 鈥淜orea had dragged its feet on deciding whether to join the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership while engaging in trade talks with China. Seoul officials seemed particularly worried about disrupting China鈥檚 push for its own version of a regional bloc named the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific.... This is yet another reminder of the difficulties or risks Korea faces in trying to strike a delicate balance between China and the U.S.鈥�

The Japan Times / Tokyo
Japan should invest in its young farmers
鈥淛apan鈥檚 agriculture is characterized by large numbers of small-scale farming units and aging farmers. Many farming communities are located in mountainous areas. One wonders whether the government鈥檚 blueprint is applicable in such conditions and whether it will in fact help revitalize these farming communities,鈥� . 鈥淲hile the nation鈥檚 farmers are aging and many of them have no one to take over their operations when they retire, some young people are interested in taking up agriculture. The administration should seriously consider how to help these young people start careers in farming since they could play a leading role in revitalizing the farming sector and the nation鈥檚 rural economies.鈥�

China Daily / Beijing
Public needs reassurance about safety of GM crops
鈥淎s usual, the top leadership鈥檚 first 鈥榙ocument鈥� of the year was exclusively agricultural...,鈥� . 鈥淸T]his year鈥檚 document is the first to incorporate the proposal to popularize scientific knowledge related to the use of genetic modification.... For too long, the discourse over genetically modified crops in China has been more like furious name-calling between those for and against.... One strange thing throughout the discourse, however, has been the conspicuous absence of the authorities.... Not only has there been little mention about exactly what is going on in the labs and experimental plots. They have [also] been notoriously mute on the safety of GM crops.... GM technologies, GM food in particular, have been unpopular thus far not because they have proven unsafe, but mostly because the authorities have been unnecessarily quiet.鈥�