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What are the differences between the militaries of Cambodia and Thailand?
Thailand's military has announced that it launched airstrikes along its disputed border, with Cambodia. Both countries had accused each other of violating a ceasefire mediated by U.S. president Donald Trump. Thailand suspended its de-escalation measure last month after a Thai army soldier was injured in the latest of a series of incidents that involved landmines, which Bangkok claims were laid by Cambodia. Cambodia denies the accusations. Budgets and Ground Personnel In 2024, Cambodia had a defense budget of $1.3billion and 124.300 active military personnel. The Armed Forces were formed in 1993 by merging the former Communist military of Cambodia with two other resistance arms. The largest of these is the Cambodian Army, which has around 75,000 soldiers and more than 200 battle tank, along with 480 pieces artillery. Thailand is classified by the U.S. as a major non NATO ally. It has a well-funded, large military with a budget of $5.73billion in 2024. There are also over 360,000 active members. The Thai army is composed of 245,000 soldiers, including 115,000 conscripts. It also has 400 battle tanks, more than 1,200 armored personnel carriers, and 2,600 artillery guns. The army's fleet includes passenger planes, Black Hawk helicopters (made in the USA) and unmanned aerial vehicle. Air Forces The Cambodian air force is composed of 1,500 personnel and a fleet that includes 10 transport aircrafts and 10 helicopters. The country does not have any fighter aircraft, but it has 16 multi-role rotorcraft including six Soviet Mi-17 helicopters and 10 Chinese Z-9 helicopters. Thailand's air force is one of the most well-equipped and best trained in Southeast Asia. It has an estimated 46,000 people, 112 combat aircraft including 28 F-16s, 11 Swedish Gripen fighters and dozens helicopters. NAVIES The Cambodian Navy has a total of 2,800 personnel including 1,500 naval soldiers, 13 patrol and coastal battle vessels, and one amphibious landcraft. Thailand's Navy is larger than most, with 70,000 members, including marines, naval aviation, coastal defense, and conscripts. The fleet consists of one aircraft carrier and seven frigates. There are also 68 patrol vessels and coastal combat ships. Thai naval forces also include amphibious landing ships that can hold hundreds of soldiers each, as well as 14 smaller landing craft. Thailand's Naval Aviation Division has its own fleet, including UAVs and helicopters. It also has a Marine Corps with 23,000 personnel and dozens of armed combat vehicles. (Compiled by Devjyot Ghoshal, edited by Michael Perry).
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Britain revamps its power grid to eliminate 'zombie projects'
The National Energy System Operator in Britain will give priority to grid connections for the most viable projects of power generation and energy storage as part of a massive overhaul. Britain's goal is to decarbonise the power sector largely by 2030. This will require connecting many more renewable energy plants, such as solar and wind, to the electrical grid. The government also stated that it wanted the country to be a "superpower" in artificial intelligence, which would require grid connections for data centres with high power consumption. The new system replaces the first-come-first-served model that created a line of over 700 gigawatts worth of projects waiting to be connected - more than four times what Britain needs in order to reach its clean energy targets for 2030. Kayte O'Neill said that the changes would reduce grid bottlenecks, by prioritising projects ready to build, and giving certainty as to when and where these projects can be connected. This will unlock billions of dollars in clean energy investments. The new process will allow projects that have planning permissions, land rights, and are aligned with the national energy goals to be connected faster. Approximately 3,000 grid connections were evaluated. 132 GW was identified as being crucial to meeting the Clean Power 2030 government target. A further 151 GW is needed by 2035. NESO announced that 99 GW more projects, including data centres, which require power from the grid will be given priority for connection. It said that more than 300 GW will not be advanced because they have failed to demonstrate readiness, or alignment with the national objectives. Ed Miliband, Britain's energy secretary, said that the government inherited a "broken system" whereby zombie projects were allowed by the government to block grid connections for viable project. NESO stated that the reforms are the result of months of collaboration among NESO and network operators, government officials, industry, Ofgem, and regulators. (Reporting by Susanna Twidale, Editing by Kirby Donovan).
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Bloomberg News reports that Brookfield and GIC are close to a binding offer for National Storage.
Bloomberg News, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported Sunday that Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) and Singapore's GIC were close to making a binding bid for National Storage REIT. The deal could value the Sydney listed company at around 4 billion Australian Dollars ($2.65 billion). The report stated that the parties were finalizing the details of the deal, which could be announced as early as Monday. Brookfield and GIC had also made good progress in their due diligence process on National Storage. The report states that the price for the binding offer will likely be the same in November as the conditional offer. Could not verify immediately the report. National Storage REIT announced last month that it received an A$4.02 Billion buyout offer by a consortium consisting of Brookfield, Singapore's GIC and other companies. This would have been the largest real estate privatisation in Australia. ($1 = 1,5067 Australian Dollars) (Reporting and editing by Andrea Ricci in Bengaluru)
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Canada's Air Transat suspends flights after pilots union strikes notice
Transat AT, a Canada-listed tour operator, announced on Sunday that Air Transat, Canada, will suspend its flights from December 8 to 9 after receiving a 72-hour notice of strike by ALPA, the union which represents the 700 pilots at the company. Air Transat's pilots may begin their strike as early at 3:00 am. Air Line Pilots Association said that the strike would begin at 3:00 AM ET on December 10. The Canadian leisure carrier deemed the strike announcement "premature", given the progress made at the bargaining tables. It said that it had offered compromises including a salary increase of 59% over five years, and improved working conditions. Bradley Small, Chair of the Air Transat Master Executive Council, said: "There's still time to avoid striking, but unless there are significant improvements at the bargaining tables, we may strike to get a modern contract." Transat AT reported that Air Transat was working with the union in order to avoid a strike, but it will stop all operations on December 9th to ensure passengers and crews are not left stranded. Transat AT Inc. offers Air Transat as a brand. Reporting by Abu Sultan in Bengaluru and Shivani Tana; editing by Andrea Ricci
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American Airlines asks for notices regarding the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines
According to a court document, American Airlines has filed an appearance notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Spirit Aviation and requested that all notices and documents be served going forward. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The airline stated that it was looking at all possible options in its restructuring, including a merger and sale of the business. American Airlines filed a request in the Southern District Court of New York on December 5, requesting to receive all notices, including operating reports and plans of reorganization, as well as liquidation statements. Spirit and American didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Spirit Airlines has previously stated that they are considering all options to ensure the future of their airline. Spirit actively explores all possible opportunities. The merger or sale of Spirit could maximize value. Spirit stated in a SEC filing in October that the company was actively involved in discussions with several interested counterparties. The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year rejected a request from American Airlines to overturn a judicial ruling that found the company's scrapped U.S. Northeast Partnership with JetBlue Airways in violation of federal antitrust laws. JetBlue and United Airlines have partnered in a partnership since then. You can also Both airlines' websites allow travelers to book flights. Spirit Airlines urged the U.S. Transportation Department in June to reject the collaboration of United and JetBlue. Spirit Airlines said it was anti-competitive and that other large airlines would pursue similar deals. Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York, editing by Andrea Ricci
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American Airlines asks for notices regarding the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines
According to a court document, American Airlines has filed an appearance notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Spirit Aviation and requested that all notices and documents be served going forward. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The airline stated that it was looking at all possible options, including a merger and sale of the business. American Airlines filed a request in the Southern District Court of New York on December 5, requesting to receive all notices, including operating reports and plans of reorganization, as well as liquidation statements. Spirit and American didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Spirit Airlines has previously stated that they are considering all options to ensure the future of their airline. Spirit actively explores all possible opportunities. The merger or sale of Spirit could maximize value. Spirit stated in a SEC filing in October that it was actively in talks with several interested counterparties. (Reporting from Doyinsola Oladipo in New York, editing by Andrea Ricci.)
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Southwest Airlines fined $11 million by the US for holiday meltdown in 2022
The Trump Administration announced Saturday that it would waive a $11 million fine on Southwest Airlines, as part of the $140 million settlement for the airline's meltdown during a busy travel season in December 2022. Southwest Airlines in December 2023 will pay $35 million in cash and $90 million worth of travel vouchers for passengers who are delayed by at least 3 hours in reaching their final destination due to an airline issue or cancellation. This is because the airline handled the meltdown which stranded over 2 million passengers. In a written order, the U.S. Transportation Department cited Southwest Airlines' decision to invest more than $1 billion into its operations since the 2022 crash to improve performance and reliability as the reason for its decision to waive the remaining $11 millions of the fine due by January 31. Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Chizu nomiyama
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Merz and Macron to discuss fate FCAS fighter jet in the week of December 15, says industry source
A source in the industry said that the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and the French President Emmanuel Macron plan to discuss the fate the troubled Franco German fighter jet project FCAS – or SCAF – during the week of December 15. The Future Combat Air System (FCAS), a 100 billion-euro ($116-billion) project that was floated over eight years ago, is mired in disputes among the companies concerned about workshare and prized technologies. A source with knowledge of the project said earlier this week that the defence ministers from the participating countries, Germany, France, and Spain, will meet on the 11th to discuss it. The German government spokesperson refused to comment on the exact date but only said that the appointments made by the chancellor will be made public at the appropriate time. The French government did not respond to a request for comment. The French government was not immediately available for comment.
Japan's tourism share falls as diplomatic dispute with China worsens
After China warned its citizens not to travel to its North Asian neighbor following an increasing diplomatic split over Taiwan, stocks in Japan related to tourism plunged.
Isetan Mitsukoshi is a department store with significant sales from Chinese tourists. Its stock dropped 10.7% and it's on track to have its largest drop in over a year. Tokyo Disneyland operator Oriental Land dropped 5.9%, and Japan Airlines (JAL), fell 4.4%.
Beijing warned Chinese nationals against traveling to Japan on Friday. Minoru Kihara said on Monday that any attempt by China to restrict travel will violate the agreement between leaders.
Japanese media reported that senior Japanese diplomat Masaaki KANAI will visit China on Monday in order to meet with counterpart Liu Jinsong to try to ease tensions.
The China-Japan conflict over Taiwan, and Beijing's advice to avoid travel to Japan, will have a negative impact on consumer-facing industries in the near future. This was stated by Masahiko LOO, senior fixed income analyst at State Street Investment Management.
He added that "Chinese tourists account for approximately 25% of Japan's traffic inbound, making department shops, luxury retail and hospitality especially vulnerable."
Tourism has grown to be a major part of Japan's economic growth, fueled by the weakening yen. According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, more than 650,000 Chinese tourists visited Japan in September. They were only surpassed by South Koreans.
According to Takahide Kuchi, executive economist of Nomura Research Institute, the Beijing travel boycott could cause Japan's gross domestic product (GDP) to fall by 0.36 percent on an annual basis.
ANA Holdings said that it would continue to monitor the situation and added that the status of reservations for flights from or to China had not changed so far. Its shares fell 3.5%.
Spring Japan, the low-cost subsidiary company of JAL, has confirmed that there have been no changes made to their flight schedule, although they are receiving inquiries about cancellations from customers.
Fast Retailing, the operator of more than 900 Uniqlo shops in China, has dropped by 5.3%. Ryohin Keikaku (the operator of Muji stores) is down 9.4%. The Nikkei index, the benchmark for Japanese stocks, was down by 0.4%.
Tensions between Tokyo and Beijing have flared up since Japan's newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on November 7 that a Chinese attack on Taiwan could amount to a "survival-threatening situation" and trigger a potential military response from Tokyo.
The spat was a result of a disagreement between Japan and the United States over the decision to discharge wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi reactor into the ocean. This dispute has been affecting trade and tourism for many years.
According to Alicia Garcia-Herrero of Natixis, Asia-Pacific Chief Economist, a diplomatic rift between Japan and China could have a greater impact on Japan's tourism sector.
She said that the Japanese government's insistence on using rare earth metals has only marginally decreased since it began to diversify.
China produces 90% of rare earths and rare-earth magnets in the world, which are used for a variety of technologies.
Chinese companies that have exposure to the Japanese markets also suffered. The shares of Linkage Software, a software company that derives the majority of its revenue from Japan, dropped 3%.
South Korea's Tourism Industry will benefit from the economic turmoil in Asia. Lotte Tour Development, based in Seoul, saw its shares rise 9.6% on the Monday.
(source: Reuters)