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Batang Gilas Fortea happy with national career flight

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
PART of the Batang Gilas program for just a year, 16-year-old Terrence Fortea said he is very happy and satisfied with how his national team career has been going so far.
Fresh from their stint in the FIBA U16 Asian Cup where they finished fourth but nonetheless qualified for the U17 Basketball World Cup later this year, Fortea said it was an experience he would never forget and only made his inclusion in Batang Gilas all the more significant.
“I had a great experience in FIBA Asia. It was very memorable, something that will stick with me forever,” said Fortea, of San Juan City, in a recent interview with BusinessWorld.
Joined Batang Gilas just last year, first playing in the Southeast Asian Basketball Championship (SEABA), Fortea shared that he has learned a lot as a player being a member of the national youth team.
“It has helped my development tremendously. Whereas before you just go out and play, with Batang Gilas you learn other facets of the game and makes you a better player. Credit to my coaches and teammates for that,” said Fortea, who plays for the National University Bullpups.
In the recent FIBA U16 Asian Cup in China, Fortea posted steady numbers of 11.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
He also forged a special bond on the court with seven-foot teammate Kai Sotto, who he said he likes playing with for the big man makes the game easy for their team and also help him as a player.
“Playing with Kai Sotto makes things easy for me as a guard. You just have to learn how he plays the game and just take it from there. He is a great player and I’m looking forward to playing with him in the national team for years to come,” said 5’10” guard Fortea.
A product of San Juan Elementary School where he first turned heads with his basketball skills, Fortea said he is very appreciative of the opportunities given him even at such a young age, including the support of the people in his community.
“The support of my town mates in Barangay Progreso in San Juan has been overwhelming. They never fail to show their support every time I play for the national team. They come up to me and say I played well and just keep on doing what I’m doing,” he said.
“I’m proud to represent San Juan and hopefully I’m inspiring other kids as well to go for their dreams and make something out of their lives,” Fortea added.
In closing, Fortea said that apart from his national duties he also hopes to make the most of his two years left with the Bullpups, helping the team achieve steady success armed with the lessons he has gotten from Batang Gilas.
Batang Gilas, backed by Smart Communications, Inc. and Chooks-to-Go, will play in the FIBA U17 World Cup from June 30 to July 8 in Argentina.

Stocks snap three-day decline on Wall Street gains, bargain hunting

The local barometer for investor confidence snapped its three-day decline on Wednesday, April 18, fuelled by investors looking for bargains alongside optimism from global markets overnight.
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 0.9% or 69.74 points to close at 7,793.13, bouncing back from its 100-point decline in the previous trading session. The broader all-shares index also firmed up 0.52% or 24.62 points to end at 4,720.58.
“Technical indicators such as a Bullish Divergence with RSI as well as optimism from US markets last night from strong first quarter corporate earnings signaled the possible comeback of the index today. And true enough, the index gained as much as 105 points before closing slightly lower at 7,793.13,” Papa Securities Corp. Trader Gabriel F. Perez said in an email.
Earnings reports boosted Wall Street’s performance on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing 0.87% higher or 213.59 points to 24,786.63. The S&P 500 index jumped 1.07% or 28.55 points to 2,706.39, while the Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 1.74% or 124.81 points to 7,281.10.
“(The PSEi) probably just moving in line with United States markets last night. Could also be due to bargain hunting given yesterday’s move,” China Bank Securities Corp. Research Director Garie Ouano said via text.
Four sectoral counters stayed in positive territory, led by property which added 147% or 52.32 points to 3,619.70. Industrial rose 1.14% or 126.13 points to 11,178.63; financials went up 1.12% or 22.04 points to 1,997.31; while holding firms closed 0.26% higher or 20.29 points to 7,747.10.
On the other hand, mining and oil lost 1.35% or 147.05 points to 10,717.66, while services gave up 0.14% or 2.14 points to 1,587.20.
Some 1.1 billion issues switched hands, resulting to a value turnover of P7.31 billion, slightly higher than Tuesday’s P7.03 billion.
Decliners narrowly beat advancers, 107 to 103, while 40 stocks were unchanged. — Arra B. Francia

Toronto and Boston race to 2-0 series lead

LOS ANGELES — DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points as the Toronto Raptors overwhelmed the Washington Wizards 130-119 to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference NBA playoff series Tuesday.
A record-breaking first-half performance laid the foundations for the Raptors, who had surged into a 76-58 lead at half-time to leave Washington chasing an 18-point deficit after the break.
DeRozan, who also contributed four assists and five rebounds, spearheaded a rampant Toronto offense, which saw six players finish with double-digit points tallies.
Jonas Valanciunas scored 19 points, while C.J. Miles had 18 off the bench as Toronto took a firm grip on the series with game three set for Washington on Friday.
Washington’s resistance was led by John Wall with 29 points, but the Wizards were rarely in the contest, save for one late rally as the top-seeded Raptors eased up.
Wall had given Washington hope of a recovery after draining two free throws to take the Wizards back to within five points at 108-103 in the fourth quarter.
But Toronto slammed the door with a rapid burst of scoring to take the game away from the Wizards for good as the clock wound down.
Earlier, the Raptors wasted no time in forging ahead during a lop-sided first half. Toronto powered into a 24-11 midway through the first period and were soon 34-13 up.
Toronto maintained a 20-point cushion through most of the first half, and they quickly passed their franchise record points tally of 63 to finish on 76 as the half-time the buzzer sounded at the Air Canada Center.
Elsewhere Tuesday, second seeds Boston shrugged off their injury crisis to down Milwaukee 120-106 to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round series.
The Celtics are still reeling from confirmation that star Kyrie Irving will miss the rest of the season.
But the Boston club produced a dominant display to seal a win that puts them firmly in the driving seat in the best-of-seven series.
Jaylen Brown shouldered the offensive burden in the absence of Irving, scoring 30 points in 33 minutes on court.
Terry Rozier had 23 points with eight assists on a night when six Celtics put up double figures.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the scoring for the Bucks with 30 points, with Khris Middleton adding 25 in a losing effort. — AFP

Curry, Warriors lead most popular merchandise lists anew

STEPHEN Curry and the Golden State Warriors’ popularity was validated anew after leading for the third straight year the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) list of most popular jerseys and team merchandise.
GWS jeysey
In a list released by the NBA to members of media, based on NBAStore.com sales since the beginning of the 2017-18 NBA season, the two-time league most valuable player (MVP) Curry and defending champions Warriors were tops in their respective categories.
Mr. Curry, who is currently out in the first round of the playoffs for the Warriors against the San Antonio Spurs because of an ankle injury, was number one in jersey sales.
He was followed at number two by Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James, Kevin Durant of the Warriors at third, Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks at fourth, and Kyrie Irving of Boston Celtics at fifth.
The NBA noted that Mr. Irving climbed significantly from the last release of the list in January, climbing seven rungs to barge into the top five.
Reigning NBA MVP Russell Westbrook of Oklahoma City Thunder is at number six with Kristaps Porzingis of New York Knicks, Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers, James Harden of the Houston Rockets and Ben Simmons of the Sixers rounding out the top 10.
Making it to the top 15 were Kawhi Leonard (Spurs), Lonzo Ball (Los Angeles Lakers), Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers), Klay Thompson (Warriors) and Jimmy Butler (Minnesota Timberwolves).
Meanwhile in team merchandise, the Warriors continued to hold sway, followed by the Cavaliers, Sixers, Lakers and Celtics.
Completing the top 10 were the Bucks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Knicks, Chicago Bulls and Houston Rockets. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo

Grenke Chess Classic tourney

Grenke Chess Classic 2018
Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, Germany
March 31-April 9, 2018

Final Standings (8 of 9)
1. Fabiano Caruana USA 2784, 5.5/8
2-3. Magnus Carlsen NOR 2843, Nikita Vitiugov RUS 2735, 5.0/9
4-5. Levon Aronian ARM 2794, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave FRA 2789, 4.5/8
6. Matthias Bluebaum GER 2631, 4.0/8
7-9. Hou Yifan CHN 2654, Viswanathan Anand IND 2776, Arkadij Naiditsch AZE 2701, 3.0/8
10. Georg Meier GER 2648, 2.5/8
Average ELO 2736 Category 20
Time Control: 100 minutes for the first 40 moves, then 50 minutes for the next 20 moves then 15 minutes play-to-finish with 30 seconds added after every move starting move 1
Fabiano Caruana won the Berlin Candidates’ tournament last March to line himself up for a 12-game world chess championship match against defending titleholder Magnus Carlsen in London this November.
The Candidates’ tournament ended in March 27. He then went directly from Berlin to Karlsruhe to play in the Grenke Chess Classic tournament which started March 31. This is a category 209 event (average ELO of participants is 2736, making it among the strongest tournaments of the year. Magnus Carlsen was also there eager to play and crush this new pretender to the crown. They met in the first round and Carlsen as Black got a huge advantage out of the opening. Caruana put up maximum resistance and somehow managed to draw. Let me show you the game.

Caruana, Fabiano (2784) — Carlsen, Magnus (2843) [E61]
Grenke Chess Classic 2018 Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, GER (1.1), 31.03.2018

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.e3 0–0 5.Be2 d6 6.Nc3 Nc6 7.d5 Nb4 8.a3 Na6 9.Nd4
[9.b4? Nxd5]
9…e5 10.dxe6 fxe6 11.0–0 e5 12.Nb3 c6 13.e4 Nc7
Heading for d4.
14.f4 Ne6!
Carlsen has to make this move now as otherwise f4–f5 will prevent it forever.
15.f5 Nd4 16.Be3
[16.Nxd4 exd4 17.Qxd4 Ng4 18.Qd2 Qb6+ Black is better.]
16…Nxe2+!
A surprise as the usual follow-up to Nd4 would be support it with c6–c5. However, Magnus is an original thinker and he is reckoning that the two bishops and better control of the center means that Black is better.
17.Qxe2 gxf5! 18.exf5 d5 19.cxd5 cxd5 20.Rad1 d4 21.Bg5 Qb6 22.Qc4+ Rf7 23.Na4 Qc7 24.Qxc7 Rxc7 25.Nac5 b6 26.Bxf6 bxc5!
[26…Bxf6 27.Ne4 Bg7 28.g4 it is White who has the more threatening pawns]
27.Bxg7 Kxg7 28.Nd2 Bb7 29.f6+ Kf8!
Putting the king on f7 would make it susceptible to knight checks on either d6 or e5. For example: 29…Kf7 30.Rde1 Re8 31.Nc4! etc.
30.Rde1 Re8 31.Ne4 Bxe4 32.Rxe4 c4 33.g4 Rb8 34.Rxe5
Caruana has to play actively. Passive defense by 34.Rf2? Rcb7 Black is clearly winning.
34…Rxb2 35.Rd5 c3 36.Rd8+!
[36.Rxd4 c2 the pawn will queen]
36…Kf7 37.Rh8 <D>
POSITION AFTER 37.RH8
37…Rbb7?
The correct way to win is 37…Rcb7 38.Rxh7+ Kg6 39.f7 Rb8 40.Rh5 (40.f8Q Rxf8 41.Rxf8 Kxh7 is an easy win for White) 40…c2 41.h4! R2b6!! (There is an incredible reason why this move is necessary. After the “obvious” 41…Rb1 42.f8Q! Rxf8 43.Rg5+ there is perpetual check. Putting the rook on b6 ensures that this does not happen) 42.f8Q Rxf8 43.Rg5+ Kh7 44.Rh5+ Rh6 and Black wins.
38.Rxh7+ Kg6
Talking to the chess press after the game Carlsen revealed that he thought he was winning after 38…Kg8 39.Rxc7 Rxc7 40.Kf2 Rd7 but looking at the position some more, once again incredibly, White can still put up resistance here. 41.g5! Kf7 (41…d3? 42.g6 d2 even loses to 43.Ke2 c2 44.f7+ Kf8 45.g7+) 42.h4 d3 43.h5 d2 44.g6+! Kxf6 45.Ke2+ Kg5 46.Rg1+ and the draw is the most likely result.
39.Rxc7 Rxc7
Black is still winning but Caruana is still fighting.
40.Kf2 c2 41.Rc1 d3 42.Ke3 Rd7 43.Kd2 Kxf6 44.h4 Ke5 45.Rf1 Kd4 46.h5 Re7 47.Rf4+ Kd5 48.Rf1 Kc4 49.Rf4+ Kd5 50.Rf1 Kc4 51.Rf4+ Kb3 52.Rb4+ Kxa3 53.Rc4 Kb3 54.Rc8 a5
Carlsen thought that there was nothing better than a draw here but, doubly incredibly, it is here where Black can win: 54…Rh7!! stopping the white pawns 55.Rb8+ Ka2 56.Rc8 a5 and 57.Kxd3 is met with 57…Kb1! 58.Rb8+ Kc1 59.Rc8 Kd1 White has to give up his rook.
55.h6!
White’s pawns become threatening so Magnus now forces the draw.
55…Re2+ 56.Kxd3 Rh2 57.g5 Rh3+ 58.Kd2 Rh2+ 59.Kd3 ½–½
Caruana himself says that he was lucky to draw this game, but it seems to me he made his own luck.
The early leader in the tournament was Nikita Vitiugov, perhaps one of the least known 2700+ players in the world. His “iron” year was in 2009 in the Khanty-Mansiysk World Cup where he beat Abhijeet Gupta, Gilberto Milos and Konstantin Sakaev in 2-game mini-matches to reach the Final 16 before being eliminated by Sergey Karjakin. He then subsequently qualified for and finished 3rd in the Russian SuperFinals. GM Nikita is known for his theoretical preparedness and has written two books on the French Defense. He acted as Peter Svidler’s second (or assistant) in the Candidates Tournaments of 2013 and 2014. He is quiet and does not have any spectacular superGM tournament victories, but you will also notice that he always finishes high in these very strong events.
In Karlsruhe he started the tournament with a brilliant victory.

Bluebaum, Matthias (2631) — Vitiugov, Nikita (2735) [D12]
Grenke Chess Classic 2018 Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden, GER (1.5), 31.03.2018

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Bg6
Provoking White with 6…Be4 first and only after 7.f3 then Bg6 is another possibility and this is currently a popular way of continuing.
7.Bd2 Nbd7 8.Nxg6 hxg6 9.c5
I have never liked this move in such formations. First of all White has the two bishops and he should be opening up the position, not closing it. Second of all with 9…e5 I always feel like Black has already equalized.
9…e5 10.b4 Be7 11.b5 0–0 12.Qa4?
White should have looked after his king safety with 12.bxc6 bxc6 13.Be2 followed by kingside castling. The queen excursion gives Black just enough time to break through in the center.
12…Re8
Another way is 12…exd4 13.exd4 Bxc5! 14.dxc5 Nxc5 15.Qd4 Re8+ 16.Be2 Ne6 17.Qa4 d4 White’s position looks extremely uncomfortable.
13.bxc6 bxc6 14.Be2
[14.Qxc6? is too reckless: 14…Rc8 15.Qa4 exd4 is a lot of fun to play for Black. The game might continue 16.exd4 Bxc5+ 17.Be2 Nb6 18.Qb3 Bxd4 19.Kf1 Nc4 20.Bxc4 dxc4 21.Qc2 Ng4 you get the drift]
14…exd4 15.exd4 Nxc5! 16.dxc5 d4 17.0–0 dxc3 18.Bxc3 Bxc5 19.Bf3 Rc8 20.Bxc6?
White is playing as if nothing can happen to him.
20…Re2! 21.Bf3 Rxf2! 22.Rxf2 Bxf2+ 23.Kxf2 Rxc3 24.Qxa7?
This position will make a good puzzle. Black to play and win.
24…Ne4+!!
Black took more than 20 minutes on this, and it works.
25.Kg1
There is a story behind this. After the game Vitiugov was approached by one of the chess journalists, Eric van Reem, who complimented him on the beautiful combination. GM Nikita’s reply was that “It was quite a decent game, but I was very lucky, because until the very end it was balanced. Then he just missed this quite nice move 25…Ra3, but instead of 25.Kg1 of course he had to take on e4 and it must be a draw.”
So it turned out that Vitiugov had not seen all the lines! You see, one of the main points was that 25.Bxe4 is refuted by 25…Rc7! (Black is threatening a double check on either d4 or f6, winning the white rook in the corner) 26.Qa8 Rc8 27.Qa6 (27.Qa7 Qf6+) 27…Qd4+ 28.Kg3 Rc3+ 29.Bf3 g5! 30.h3 Qe5+ 31.Kf2 Rc2+ and the rook on a1 hangs.
Anyway, I am pretty sure that if White had played 25.Bxe4 in the game Vitiugov would have dug in and found the finishing touch over the board.
25…Ra3! 26.Qxa3 Qd4+ 0–1
The Philippines has a new International Master! FEU’s John Miciano won the Under-18 Asian Youth Championship and was automatically awarded the title. Through the kindness of his coach GM Jayson Gonzales, he has graciously agreed to annotate all his games in the championship for us. We will present them to the BW readers starting Tuesday.
 
Bobby Ang is a founding member of the National Chess Federation of the Philippines and its first Executive Director. A Certified Public Accountant, he taught accounting in the University of Santo Tomas for 25 years and is currently Chief Audit Executive of the Equicom Group of Companies.
bobby@cpamd.net

Missing Beal

Technically, the match wasn’t over at the end of the first quarter. After all, there were still 36 minutes left to play, thrice as much time as the Raptors needed to put up a 17-point lead. Yet, there was little to nothing else that indicated the Wizards had what it takes to overcome the deficit and ultimately prevail. If anything, they showed the opposite; leaders John Wall and Bradley Beal were already in foul trouble, and not even two early timeouts could help them prevent the hosts from puncturing the hoop with impunity.
Creditably, the Wizards did manage to come close, getting to within five with under eight minutes left in the fourth quarter. By then, however, they had expended too much energy clawing back from a disadvantage that went up to as high as 23 points; by the time they managed to make their next field goal three minutes later, they were again down by double figures. The outcome was all but sealed, and they found themselves with nothing to show from their visit to the Air Canada Centre.
Significantly, the Wizards remained defiant in the aftermath of their twin losses up North. Perhaps it was because they finally seemed to latch on to something that could work as the first-round series heads to the Capital One Arena. If they made things somewhat interesting in Game Two, it was because they played small ball and gave Wall more space to operate and cut through the otherwise-stout Raptors defense. In this regard, reserves Mike Scott and Ty Lawson proved indispensable, their accuracy from long range exposing the follies of walling the paint.
Still, “seemed” and “could” will continue to be the operative words for the Wizards unless and until Beal wakes up from his stupor. He was all but nonexistent in Game One and proved to be even more appalling in Game Two, ending up with a minus-34 stat line, the worst of any stalwart of the red, white, and blue in the last two decades. For them to be competitive against the confident Raptors, he needs to be close to his All-Star self. Else, no amount of adjustments by head coach Scott Brooks will be enough for them to avoid an early vacation.
 
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.

Lacson wants probe over unreleased P59-M SAF allowance

Senator Panfilo M. Lacson wants a Senate investigation into the alleged withholding of daily subsistence allowance and explosive ordinance disposal hazardous pay worth P59.8-million for the Philippine National Police’s elite Special Action Force.
Senate Resolution No. 712 directs the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, chaired by Mr. Lacson, to conduct an inquiry in aid of legislation on the alleged illegal withholding of the release of the allowances.
It seeeks to propose remedial legislation “to correct the same and put a stop to this unlawful practice to the prejudice of the intended beneficiaries.”
Mr. Lacson filed the resolution the same day outgoing PNP chief Ronald M. Dela Rosa sacked Police Director Benjamin Lusad, then SAF chief, from his current post in Southern Luzon. Mr. Lusad, along with other SAF officials, are also facing malversation and plunder charges at the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with the allowance withholding.
“We cannot allow, yet again, another injustice to be committed against our heroes in uniform who are in the forefront of our fight against the ills of terrorism and criminality, lest we risk demoralization within their ranks. Thus the need to probe into the said allegations,” he said in his resolution.
Aside from the regular allowances given to the police forces, members of the PNP SAF are given a daily additional subsistence allowance (ASA) worth P30 or P900 monthly and allocations for Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) Hazardous Pay.
However, records from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) showed that the 4,000 SAF members only got their share of ASA for January 2016 and January to July 2017. — Camille A. Aguinaldo

Trump reveals direct N. Korea contacts, okays peace talks

PALM BEACH, United States — President Donald Trump Tuesday confirmed direct contacts between the United States and North Korea and gave his blessing to talks aimed at formally ending the Korean War in a series of diplomatic revelations.
Raising expectations for a major breakthrough at a series of upcoming summits, Trump said “a great chance to solve a world problem” was within reach on the Korean peninsula.
Side-by-side with Japanese Prime Minster Shinzo Abe at Trump’s Palm Beach, Florida resort, the US president said that a rare inter-Korean summit in 10 days time could, with his “blessing,” discuss an elusive peace treaty to formally close the 1950-53 conflict, which concluded with an armistice.
“People don’t realize the Korean War has not ended. It’s going on right now. And they are discussing an end to the war,” he said. “Subject to a deal they have my blessing and they do have my blessing to discuss that.”
Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have not spoken directly, the White House said, but the US president confirmed that Washington and Pyongyang had been in contact at “very high levels” to prepare for a historic meeting between them.
The Washington Post reported that CIA director Mike Pompeo had met Kim on a secret trip to the North over the first weekend of April, shortly after he was nominated to be secretary of state.
Both the White House and the CIA declined to comment on the report.
“Five locations” were being considered for the summit with Kim, Trump said.
“That will be taking place probably in early June or before that assuming things go well. It’s possible things won’t go well and we won’t have the meetings and we’ll just continue to go on this very strong path we have taken.”
Officials say that no decision has yet been made on a meeting venue, but China, North Korea, South Korea, and Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone between the two Koreas are seen as possible locations.
Panmunjom was the site of the signing of the 1953 armistice and will be the location of the April 27 summit between Kim and South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in.
Officials from the two Koreas were to meet Wednesday in preparation, after Seoul’s culture minister — who sat next to Kim at a K-pop concert in Pyongyang earlier this month — said Tuesday that Seoul “thinks that the inter-Korean summit should lead to the signing of a peace treaty.”
The US-led United Nations command, China and North Korea are signatories to the half-century-old armistice, but most experts agree South Korea would likely have to sign any successor agreement — which could need extensive negotiations.
‘UNWAVERING DETERMINATION’
Trump’s announcements somewhat overshadowed bilateral talks with his golfing buddy Abe, in which both leaders were eager to iron out differences on trade and display a united front on North Korea.
“Donald, you have demonstrated your unwavering determination” Abe said, effusively praising Trump’s handling of the North Korea crisis.
He thanked Trump for agreeing to bring up the issue of Japanese abductees taken to North Korea, a major domestic issue.
“This reflects your deep understanding for how Japan cares about this abduction issues. I am very grateful for your commitment.”
Last year, Trump and Abe traded fist bumps and high fives as they snuck in a round of golf in Palm Beach and a return leg near Tokyo, tucking into burgers with ketchup for good measure.
The two leaders have a chunk of time free Wednesday and Trump indicated they would try to play 18 holes.
“This is a very important meeting, a lot of really key issues are on the line,” said Larry Kudlow, Trump’s top economic advisor.
But with Abe’s approval rating languishing at its lowest level in years and Trump mired in controversies and crises too numerous to list, both are under domestic pressure.
Trump could do with a political victory — perhaps in the form of opening up trade negotiations with Japan — as he seeks to calm an increasingly restless and crisis-weary base.
Amid the tumult, Trump has taken a harder line on his promise to rewrite the global terms of trade in America’s favor.
Trump has announced tariffs on billions of dollars of Chinese imports, hit out at what he called European Union protectionism and warned he may walk away from a longstanding trade deal with Mexico and Canada.
Abe was cautious on trade ahead of the talks, saying only that he would “exchange opinions based on our shared understanding that Japan and the United States will lead the economic growth of the Indo-Pacific region through free and fair trade.”
So far Trump has proven flexible about Abe’s reluctance to begin negotiations on a free trade agreement.
But Japan’s protectionist agriculture and auto markets could well be Trump’s next target, unless Abe can use his friendship to tee-up a compromise. — AFP

Germany hits brakes on Macron’s European dreams

BERLIN — French President Emmanuel Macron’s vision for a stronger European Union may be in tatters as a growing rift emerges with Germany on everything from defense to his plans for deeper euro zone integration.
Less than a year after his stunning election win on a pro-EU platform, Macron’s hopes of pushing through his bold post-Brexit reforms with Chancellor Angela Merkel by his side are facing a cold dose of reality.
“Macron’s European initiative is as dead as a dormouse,” Der Spiegel news weekly wrote ahead of the Frenchman’s visit to Berlin Thursday, a chance for both leaders to take stock of the stalled reform process.
The talks come as differences between the neighbors were thrown into stark relief in recent days, when Berlin — but not Paris — chose to sit out the biggest Western intervention yet in the Syrian war.
And while Macron laid out his lofty reform goals in a passionate speech to the European Parliament, Merkel’s own party publicly pushed back against his proposals for a euro zone budget and an expansion of the EU’s bailout fund.
Merkel nevertheless said she remained convinced both sides would find “common solutions” before an EU summit in June.
“Things are moving at a snail’s pace, if at all,” said Stefani Weiss, an analyst at the Bertelsmann Foundation think tank.
“I think we’ll end up with only very modest reforms.”
INACTION ON SYRIA
Topping the agenda on Thursday will be talks on bolstering European defense cooperation, with Macron calling for a joint intervention force and joint military doctrine.
Berlin and Paris agree that Europe must be able to stand alone on defense in the face of US President Donald Trump’s isolationist tendencies — but it remains to be seen how far Germany is willing to go.
The air strikes against the Syrian regime last weekend by the US, France and Britain, in response to a suspected chemical attack, were carried out without the EU’s biggest and most powerful nation.
Although Merkel supported the intervention, she ruled out any German participation, sparking debate about Berlin’s leadership role.
“When people are being slaughtered, the time comes to take action,” former German defense minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg told Bild newspaper, accusing Merkel of “letting others do the dirty work.”
“Macron turns to Trump, not Merkel,” the daily Die Welt wrote.
But observers say the veteran chancellor, who has just begun her fourth term with a much-reduced parliamentary majority, was playing to the domestic gallery.
As the instigator of two world wars, Germany abhors the idea of getting involved in armed conflicts and Merkel anyway needs parliamentary approval before she can agree to any deployments.
Although the country has in recent years cautiously stepped up its role in multinational missions abroad, including alongside French troops in Mali, Germany remains reluctant to resort to military force.
Years of underfunding have also left Germany’s military equipment in a woeful state, leaving allies to privately grumble over the nation’s lack of combat-readiness.
THWARTING EURO ZONE REFORMS
Another great stumbling block to Macron’s European dream is growing skepticism in Berlin about some of his flagship plans for overhauling the euro zone.
Most of the opposition has come from within Merkel’s own conservative camp, deeply wary of any possibility that debt might be pooled or German taxpayer money handed over to spendthrift neighbors.
Merkel’s center-left coalition partners, the pro-EU Social Democrats, meanwhile have been more openly supportive of Macron’s reform drive.
Lawmakers from Merkel’s CDU/CSU bloc this week released a joint paper laying down strict conditions for the proposed transformation of the bloc’s bailout fund into a European Monetary Fund that can act as a “lender of last resort.”
The document includes a potentially deal-breaking insistence on getting each member state’s parliament to sign off on the fund’s creation, a lengthy process with a high potential for failure.
Merkel’s party also dismissed Macron’s plan for a separate investment budget for the 19-member single currency area, saying it was not “a top priority” when the bloc is still grappling with how to plug the hole that Britain’s departure will leave in the wider EU budget.
“I don’t see why I should place Macron’s happiness at the heart of my policies,” said top CSU lawmaker Alexander Dobrindt.
But a senior French official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he believed the German position would soften.
“Are they jumping for joy in Berlin at the thought of a euro zone budget? Probably not,” he told AFP.
“But we need it, and everyone agrees there’s been insufficient investment in the euro zone, including Germany.” — AFP

China offers visa-free travel to Hainan

BEIJING — China unveiled plans Wednesday to permit visa-free travel to its southern island of Hainan, as Beijing pushes international tourism to the tropical destination in another step to open up the region. The new policy will start in May and allow travellers from 59 countries to visit Hainan for 30 days visa-free, said Qu Yunhai, deputy director of the State Immigration Administration at a press conference in Beijing. Among the countries to be included in the programme are Russia, United States, France, Britain and Germany, according to the official Xinhua news agency. The new rule will give Hainan less stringent visa requirements than in the rest of China, where travellers have to apply for visas through Chinese consulates abroad. The policy “embodies our resolve and approach to move one step further to opening to the outside world,” Qu said. The liberalisation comes as part of a package of reforms to remake the island as a free trade zone and a beacon of openness for China. On Monday, China announced it would allow Hainan to develop horse racing and explore opening new types of lotteries connected to sports and international competitions. Beijing also said it wants to position Hainan as a “center of international tourism consumption,” a goal which has faced slow progress despite sandy beaches and massive spending on plush resorts. The province attracted fewer than a million foreign visitors in 2016 — compared with over seven million in Thailand’s Phuket, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News. — AFP

US Supreme Court sides with immigrant felon

WASHINGTON — A US law requiring the deportation of immigrants convicted of certain crimes of violence is unconstitutionally vague, the Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday, in a decision that could hinder the Trump administration’s ability to step up the removal of immigrants with criminal records. The court, in a 5-4 ruling in which President Donald Trump’s conservative appointee Neil Gorsuch joined the four liberal justices, invalidated the provision in the Immigration and Nationality Act and sided with convicted California burglar James Garcia Dimaya, a legal immigrant from the Philippines. The ruling, written by liberal Justice Elena Kagan, was decried by the administration, which had defended the provision.Federal authorities had ordered Dimaya deported after he was convicted in two California home burglaries in 2007 and 2009. Neither burglary involved violence. Kagan said ambiguity surrounding the crimes of violence provision created confusion in lower courts. “Does car burglary qualify as a violent felony?” Kagan wrote. “Some courts say yes, another says no.” Kagan mentioned other examples including evading arrest and trespassing in which courts have also been divided. The court’s ruling will not affect a number of serious crimes, including murder, rape, counterfeiting or terrorism offenses, which are specifically listed in the law as grounds for deportation, several immigration attorneys said. That could limit its impact, though the government does not provide data on which crimes trigger the most deportations. Immigration attorneys are uncertain how many pending deportations will be affected by the ruling, but “it’s certainly not a tidal wave,” said Kathy Brady, a senior staff attorney at the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. — Reuters

Iran: we don’t intend any aggression in region

TEHRAN — President Hassan Rouhani said Wednesday that Iran “does not intend any aggression” against its neighbors but will continue to produce all the weapons it needs for its defense. “We tell the world that we will produce any weapons that we need, or if necessary we will procure them. We have not been waiting… and will not wait for your remarks or agreement,” said Rouhani at a military parade in Tehran to mark the annual Army Day. “But at the same time we announce to our neighboring countries in the region… we do not intend any aggression against you.” The United States and its allies have been demanding that Iran curb its ballistic missile program, but Tehran sees this as crucial to its defensive posture. US President Donald Trump has threatened to tear up the 2015 nuclear deal that lifted sanctions on Iran in exchange for curbs to its atomic programme unless new restrictions are imposed on its missile programme and other areas by May 12. “We want friendly and brotherly relations with our neighbors and we tell them that our weapons, our equipment, our missiles, our planes, our tanks are not against you, it is for deterrence,” said Rouhani. “The only way to resolve problems is political negotiation and peaceful behavior,” he added. Regional rival Saudi Arabia accuses Iran of seeking to dominate the Middle East through the expansion of proxy forces in countries like Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. Iran argues these forces operate with the permission of allied governments to fight jihadist groups and prevent the disintegration of states. Rouhani did not appear to reference Israel, which Iran considers an “illegitimate regime” and whose dissolution is a top priority for the country’s Islamic rulers. — AFP

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