Author Archives: montecyril

China on Monday, 11 July 2022, warned the US and Taiwan that there would be “dark clouds or even ferocious storms” if the one-China principle, that it upholds, on how it perceives self-governed Taiwan, is abandoned, and blamed Washington of seeking to sabotage the policy.  China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking at the Association ofContinue reading “Is China planning to take Taiwan by 2027? “

Those who do nothing but care for their own wants  Live their entire life solely in selfishness’ haunts  That in seeking and finding desires one only makes manifest  The illusions of life not the truth, and put the soul to rest  That in these pursuits we want our failures to gain to be brief  NotContinue reading “Sacrifice stands tall: A poem “

China on Thursday, 30 June 2022, denigrated NATO’s strategic concept published at a summit in Madrid in June 2022, that called Beijing’s stated ambitions and coercive policies a challenge to the alliance’s interests, security and values.   China excoriated NATO’s strategic concept, terming it as a ‘malicious attack’ and ‘Cold War thinking’. “NATO’s so-called new strategic conceptContinue reading “Russia apart, NATO finally wakes up to China “

I had voices and visions ever since childhood  They can sometimes be bad and mostly be good  I’m blessed with the sacred, wrestle with the profane  With all these musings, life can’t be mundane  History has it that some people have what others lack  A case in point is the story of Joan of Arc  SheContinue reading “My voices and visions: A poem “

What is life without some colour? The average speaker of English may, however, be pleased to admit that there’s more colour in the mouthful, than is apparent in the black and white between lines. And though silence is golden, it takes silvery eloquence, much too often, to brighten one’s day.  Language can often work wonders.Continue reading “The colours of life: Just for laughs “

The US happens to be going all hammer and thongs in its latest bid to counter Chinese influence around the globe. The G7 group of rich democracies, led by the US, on Sunday, 26 June 2022, made a bid to countervail China’s formidable Belt and Roads Initiative (BRI) by announcing some USD 600 billion for globalContinue reading “US seems resolute on containing China’s influence “

He who seeks to manifest the holy magnum opus  Must in these little truths always indelibly trust  That the dignity of justice is not in all-encompassing love  It is embedded with discrimination, which is the calling from above  That the pure work involves loving those who need and deserve it  It is in giving worthContinue reading “The alchemist’s guide to love and forgiveness “

South Asia is in dire straits. From the high mountain peaks of Nepal and Pakistan to the flat sandy beaches of Sri Lanka and Maldives, the economies of South Asia are facing the crises of both inflation and interest rates rising and currencies depreciating, and what is worse, a dearth of foreign exchange reserves toContinue reading “Dark clouds of debt loom over India’s neighbourhood “

When we are in bondage of our own sentiments  Then anger and pride be our hellish predicament  As we seek to vindicate all our false beliefs  And the anguish of hurting others should be no relief  What can we wish for but wilful rabid pursuits  The card of selfishness takes us away from the truths Continue reading “Ego and humility: A poem “

China has warned the US not to turn the South Pacific into a sparring contest between the two superpowers. The South Pacific should not become “a boxing ring” for the US-China rivalry, Xie Feng, vice foreign minister in charge of North American and Oceanian affairs, said on Friday, 10 June 2022.   In fact, China isContinue reading “US-China rivalry sees heightened militarisation of Indo-Pacific “