Manila News: Recently, the PhilippinesthirteenA senator proposed a marijuana bill that would allow marijuana to be used for medical purposes to treat or alleviate the symptoms or conditions of eligible patients. The proposal states that after cannabis is included in medical use, individuals or entities can only acquire, possess, transport, deliver, distribute, manage, cultivate, and manufacture cannabis for medical and research purposes. The Philippine Ministry of Health will establish the Philippine Medical Marijuana Authority as the primary regulatory agency for the acquisition and use of medical marijuana and the implementation of related measures.

In addition, the bill also stipulates that eligible patients cannot use marijuana for purposes other than treatment or outside designated medical facilities; Cannabis cannot be mixed with other illegal anesthetics and hazardous substances, and medical marijuana cannot be sold or gifted. But the Philippine medical community and many citizens oppose this bill, fearing that it will open upThe door to legalizing the use of cannabis for leisure purposes.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the population dynamics statistics released by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare recently showed that the number of newborns in Japan in 2023 was 758631, a decrease of 5.1% from 2022, setting a new historical low.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare stated that the number of newborns in Japan has been decreasing for 8 consecutive years. The newborn data released this time also includes the number of foreign newborns born in Japan, with a domestic newborn population of approximately 700000 in 2023. In addition, the death toll in Japan in 2023 was 1.590503 million, and after deducting the number of newborns, the total population in Japan decreased by 831872 people in 2023, setting a new historical high.

In recent years, Japan has experienced a trend of declining birth ratesThe trend is intensifying. The number of newborns has decreased to the current level, earlier than the government had previously predicted12 years. To prevent a rapid decline in population, the Japanese government has taken various measures to curb the trend of declining birth rates, but the results have been minimal. At the current National Assembly, the Japanese government has passed bills such as increasing child subsidies.

military affairs

01NATO has stated that it will not send troops to Ukraine

According to Reuters and Agence France Presse, recently, following French President MacronImplying that the West may send troops to support UkraineLater, Russia warned that any such actions would inevitably lead to direct conflict between Russia and NATO.

The United States and major European allies have successively stated that they have no plans to send ground troops to Ukraine. White House National Security Council spokesperson Watson said that President Biden "has stated that the United States will not send troops to Ukraine to fight." Currently, US military personnel in Ukraine are only at the US Embassy in Kiev, and their "important job" is to ensure the supply of weapons to Ukraine.

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Scholz also stated that neither European countries nor NATO allies will send ground troops or soldiers to Ukraine. The UK, Spain, Poland, and Czech Republic have also stated that they have no plansDispatch troops to Ukraine.

01Vietnam's export orders rebounded

According to Vietnamese news agency, the latest statistical data from Vietnam's General Administration of Customs shows that from early 2024 to February 15, Vietnam's total import and export volume reached 84.74 billion US dollars, of which exports reached 44.42 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 19.6%. The Director of the Industry and Trade Bureau of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, stated that after the Spring Festival, most Vietnamese enterprises have orders, and more than 90% of workers have returned to work. Among them, many enterprises in the textile, clothing, and furniture industries have orders scheduled until June 2024, and some enterprises have orders scheduled until the end of the year.

Vietnamese textile, packaging, footwear, and wooden furniture enterprises, especially in the electronics industry,Export order replyThe signs of the Soviet Union are more obvious, mainly because there are gradually signs of improvement in commodity consumption in multiple major markets such as the United States and Europe. Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hung yan believes that although Vietnam's industrial production and trade growth are quite good, the next few months will still largely depend on the world economic and political situation, which already contains many unpredictable potential risk factors.

According to Agence France Presse, Japanese electronics giant Sony recently announced the layoff of its products in the Americas and Asia900 electronic game department employees and the closure of studios in London, UK, will affect approximately 8% of Sony's electronic game department employees in the Americas and Asia. Three other electronic game studios, Insomniac, Naughty Dog, and Guerrilla, will also be affected by this layoff.

Sony Interactive Entertainment President Ryan stated in a letter to employees that the way the electronic gaming industry develops, distributes, and launches games has changed, making it difficult for this business to achieve growth. It is understood that the company has releasedPlayStation 5 gaming console, launched since 2020Since then, 50 million units have been sold, but they have continued to decline since the COVID-19 pandemic. Sony announced that it will not release any new large-scale games in the coming fiscal year, which has led to a sharp drop in Sony's stock price.