The Asian reporter. (Portland, Or.) 1991-current, October 03, 2022, Page 5, Image 5

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    ASIA / PACIFIC
October 3, 2022
THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 5
Harris’ Asia trip focused on security, Korea DMZ tour added
ASIAN DIPLOMACY. U.S. Vice President
Kamala Harris stands at a military observation post
during her visit to the demilitarized zone (DMZ)
separating the two Koreas, in Panmunjom, South
Korea, on September 29, 2022. (Leah Millis/Pool
Photo via AP)
By Chris Megerian
The Associated Press
OKYO — In meeting after meeting
with Asian leaders last Tuesday,
Vice President Kamala Harris
emphasized the U.S. commitment to
regional security. She ended her Asia trip
with a visit to the Demilitarized Zone
(DMZ), the border area dividing the rival
Koreas.
North Korea test-fired a short-range
ballistic missile shortly before Harris left
Washington, an apparent response to joint
military exercises between the United
States and South Korea that included the
nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS
Ronald Reagan.
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visit-
ed the DMZ in August, and then-President
Donald Trump went in 2019 when he met
with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
President Joe Biden did not go when he
was in South Korea earlier this year.
Harris’ plan, which had been kept under
wraps by her team, was unexpectedly
revealed during a meeting with South
Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.
Harris toured sites at the DMZ, met with
service members, and received an opera-
tional briefing from U.S. commanders.
She also reflected on the “shared
T
sacrifice of tens of thousands of American
and Korean soldiers who fought and died
together” in the war that divided the
peninsula seven decades ago.
According to the White House, Harris
also talked with Han about South Korea’s
complaints about the Inflation Reduction
Act, which makes electric cars built
outside of North America ineligible for
government subsidies.
“They pledged to continue to consult as
the law is implemented,” the White House
said.
Security concerns dominated Harris’
public remarks during her meetings in
Tokyo, where she attended the state
funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo
Abe, who was assassinated in July.
India’s top court gives equal abortion access to all women
By Bhumika Saraswati
The Associated Press
EW DELHI — India’s Supreme
Court has ruled that all women,
regardless of marital status, can
obtain abortions up to 24 weeks into their
pregnancies.
Previously, under India’s abortion law,
married women could have abortions up to
24 weeks into their pregnancies, but single
N
women were limited to 20 weeks. The court
extended the 24-week period to all women
last week.
The judgement was cheered by repro-
ductive rights activists, who said the court
had ensured that the law does not
discriminate and expands the right to safe
and legal abortions to single women.
“Now, all the rights that married women
have, single women will also have,” said
Aparna Chandra, an associate professor of
law at the National Law School of India,
who works on reproductive justice. In its
judgement, the court “breaks away from
the stigma that is attached to single
women getting pregnant,” she said.
Abortion has been legal in India since
1971 under the Medical Termination
Pregnancy Act. In 2021, the law was
amended to allow certain categories of
women — including married women who
Continued on page 9
While sitting down with Han, Harris
said the U.S. alliance with South Korea is
the “linchpin of security and prosperity” in
the region.
“We stand with you in the face of
threats,” she said.
Afterwards, Harris met with Australian
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, telling
him their countries share a “common goal
and bond as it relates to our dedication to
peace and security.”
The conversations followed Harris’
meeting with Japanese Prime Minister
Fumio Kishida, shortly after her arrival in
Tokyo. During that encounter, Harris
described the U.S. alliance with Japan as
“a cornerstone of what we believe is
integral to peace, stability, and prosperity”
in the region.
Like the abrupt disclosure of Harris’ trip
to the DMZ, the meeting with Kishida was
also marked by confusion. His staff tried to
usher reporters out of the room while
Harris was still speaking. The commotion
drowned out some of her remarks, making
it hard for her office to finalize a transcript
of her exact comments.
In addition to concerns over North
Korea, there’s been increased tension
involving Taiwan, the self-governing
island that China views as part of its
territory.
Biden recently said that the U.S. would
send troops to defend Taiwan if China
attacked. Wang Yi, China’s foreign
minister, said any attempt to prevent
reunification with Taiwan would be
“crushed by the wheels of history.”