China eviscerates Biden for equating Xi to ‘dictators’

BEIJING—China’s foreign ministry on Wednesday slammed comments by US President Joe Biden equating Chinese leader Xi Jinping with “dictators” as an “open political provocation”.

Beijing’s foreign ministry termed Biden’s comments as “ridiculous”.

“The relevant remarks by the US side are extremely ridiculous and irresponsible, they seriously violate basic facts, diplomatic protocol and China’s political dignity,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a Wednesday briefing.

“China is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposed to this,” she added. The White House tried to ease tensions later on Wednesday, saying Blinken “made some progress” during his trip to China and that Washington still had “every expectation of building on that progress.”

“Diplomacy, including that undertaken by Secretary Blinken, is the responsible way to manage tensions,” a senior administration official said, adding “it should come as no surprise that the president speaks candidly about China and

Restaurant explosion kills 31 in Chinese city

BEIJING—At least 31 people were killed when an explosion caused by a gas leak ripped through a restaurant in the northwestern Chinese city of Yinchuan, state media said Thursday.

the differences that we have.”

Speaking at a fundraiser in California on Tuesday, Biden said Xi had been angered over an incident in February when a Chinese balloon—which Washington says was used for spying—flew over the United States before being shot down by American military jets.

His comments come just days after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken concluded a visit to Beijing aimed at reestablishing lines of communication in order to avoid conflict between the two global powers. AFP experts for acoustics analysis.

“There have been multiple reports of noises and every one of those noises is being analyzed,” said Carl Hartsfi eld, from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

He added that the sounds were “described as banging noises.”

The US Coast Guard said the number of surface vessels in the search would double from five to 10 within 24 to 48 hours.

The Navy has sent a specialized winch system for lifting heavy objects from extreme depths, other equipment and personnel; and the Pentagon has deployed three C-130 aircraft and three C-17s. Fears of a leak

Titan’s mission was expected to be the only manned trip to the Titanic this year due to bad weather, Harding wrote in an Instagram post beforehand. AFP date of this publication.

23, 2023) were living together in Japan; that on February 7, 2019, Hidenori Noto, eventually applied for and cause notification of divorce against Petitioner, as evidence by Certificate of Acceptance - Divorce Registration and Divorce Notification issued on February 7, 2019 executed in Itabashi, Tokyo with official English translation and duly authenticated in the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines at Tokyo, Japan; that the report of divorce was accepted and further certified by the Mayor of Itabashi, Tokyo and was entered in the Compilation of Family Register, all executed in Japanese language with Official English Translation and duly authenticated in the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines at Tokyo, Japan; that the divorce, obtained by Respondents in accordance with Article 763 and 765 of the Japanese Civil Code; that neither common children were born during the marriage between Petitioner and Respondent Hidenori Noto nor personal and real properties acquired either in the Philippines or abroad. applied for a spouse visa in order to follow respondent in Japan; that Petitioner moved to Japan in order to work out their marriage, however her efforts proved futile when they were living together in Japan; that on February 7, 2019, Hidenori Noto, eventually applied for and cause notification of divorce against Petitioner, as evidence by Certificate of Acceptance - Divorce Registration and Divorce Notification issued on February 7, 2019 executed in Itabashi, Tokyo with official English translation and duly authenticated in the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines at Tokyo, Japan; that the report of divorce was accepted and further certified by the Mayor of Itabashi, Tokyo and was entered in the Compilation of Family Register, all executed in Japanese language with Official English Translation and duly authenticated in the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines at Tokyo, Japan; that the divorce, obtained by Respondents in accordance with Article 763 and 765 of the Japanese Civil Code; that neither common children were born during the marriage between Petitioner and Respondent Hidenori Noto nor personal and real properties acquired either in the Philippines or abroad.

The blast occurred on the eve of the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, when many in China go out and socialize with friends.

Footage on state broadcaster CCTV showed more than a dozen firefighters working at the site as smoke poured out of a gaping hole in the restaurant’s facade.

Shards of glass and other debris littered the darkened street, which is also home to a number of other eateries and entertainment venues.

Nine people including the restaurant’s “owner, shareholders and staff” were held by police following the explosion, CCTV said, adding that “their assets have been frozen”.

WHEREFORE, finding the Petition to be sufficient in form and in substance, let this petition be set for hearing before this Court located at Room 604, Sixth Floor, Hall of Justice - Annex, Diliman, Quezon City on August 23, 2023 at 8:30 o’clock

“A leak of liquefied petroleum gas... caused an explosion during the operation of a barbecue restaurant,” state news agency Xinhua said of the Wednesday evening blast, citing the regional Communist Party committee.

Seven more people were receiving medical treatment, the agency said, with one of them in a “critical condition”.

Two others suffered severe burns, two had minor injuries and two had scratches caused by flying glass, Xinhua said. AFP

WHEREFORE, finding the Petition to be sufficient in form and in substance, let this petition be set for hearing before this Court located

PAL eyes other suppliers of engine parts to cut disruptions

By Darwin G. Amojelar

PHILIPPINE Airlines said Thursday it implemented measures to normalize operations and minimize disruptions amid supply chain delays and unexpected technical issues.

“To minimize disruptions and restore normalcy to our flight schedules, we are making adjustments to our flight operations,” PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said.

“To enhance efficiency and reduce aircraft servicing time, we are making changes to our maintenance procedures without compromising safety and aircraft reliability,” she said.

Villaluna said PAL is regularly reviewing flight capacity to ensure that maintenance schedules are met. She said one of the measures that PAL is undertaking is seeking more sources of critical parts in the market.

“The airline is also looking at acquiring an additional A321CEO to join PAL fleet in the first week of July and finalizing lease arrangements for additional one Q400 and one A330,” she said.

PAL is expecting an additional A320 to return from storage in the first week of August.

Villaluna said PAL recently signed a purchase agreement for nine A3501000 aircraft from Airbus.

The A350-1000 was selected under PAL’s Ultra Long Haul Fleet project and will fly on nonstop services from Manila to North America, including to the East Coast of the US and Canada.

The new aircraft will join two A350-900s already in service at the airline.

By Julito G. Rada

THE Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Thursday kept the benchmark interest rate at 6.25 percent as expected on signs of slowing inflation.

The interest rates on the overnight deposit and lending facilities were also retained at 5.75 percent and 6.75 percent, respectively.

BSP Governor and MB chairman Felipe Medalla said the latest baseline projections continued to suggest a gradual return of inflation to the target band of 2 percent to 4 percent over the policy horizon.

“Average inflation for 2023 is pro- jected to settle at 5.4 percent, slightly lower than 5.5 percent previously, while the average inflation forecast for 2024 now stands at 2.9 percent from 2.8 percent. For 2025, inflation is expected to average at 3.2 percent,” Medalla said. Inflation expectations for 2023 were adjusted lower, while those for 2024 and 2025 appeared to have settled firm- ly within the target range, the BSP said.

Inflation, which hit a peak of 8.7 percent in January 2023, eased to 8.6 percent in February, 7.6 percent in March, 6.6 percent in April and 6.1 percent in May. This brought the average in the first five months to 7.5 percent, above the target range of 2 percent to 4 percent.

Both headline and core inflation decelerated further in May on slower increases in the prices of food and energyrelated items, affirming expectations of a return to the target range by yearend.

Medalla said, however, the balance of risks to the inflation outlook continued to lean towards the upside because of the potential impact of additional transport