According to comprehensive news from Bangkok, on August 17th, former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was granted a special pardon by the Thai king and regained his freedom one day after his young daughter Petantan became Prime Minister. It is reported that Thaksin's parole period was originally scheduled to end at the end of this month. This early end is due to the celebration of King Vajiralongkorn's 72nd birthday, and Thaksin's name has been included in the list of more than 50000 pardoned prisoners.

It is reported that last yearOn August 22, Thaksin returned to China after ending his 15 year exile and was immediately arrested and convicted of corruption and other charges, sentenced to eight years in prison. He was sent from prison to Bangkok Police General Hospital on the first night of his sentence due to chest pain, high blood pressure, and low blood oxygen. He has been hospitalized ever since and was later granted a one-year sentence reduction by the King of Thailand. On February 18th of this year, he was granted parole. But currently, 75 year old Thaksin still faces lawsuits for the crime of offending the monarch. Once convicted of the crime of offending the monarch, he can be sentenced to up to 15 years in prison.

02South Korean President Proposes Unification Strategy

According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean President Yoon Suk yeol proposed to North Korea at the "79th Anniversary of Liberation" celebration ceremony held in Seoul the establishment of a working level dialogue mechanism for aid, dialogue, and reunification. He said that through this mechanism, South and North Korea can discuss all issues such as easing tensions, promoting economic cooperation, facilitating personnel and cultural exchanges, responding to disasters and climate change, and dealing with separated families after the Korean War.

He emphasized that as long as North Korea takes a step towards denuclearization, South Korea can engage in political and economic cooperation with it, and there can be substantial progress in inter Korean relations. But this stance has also sparked strong dissatisfaction from the opposition parties in South Korea, who believe that the government should not ignore historical issues.

military

01Japan's military spending hits a new high

According to Japanese news, the Japanese defense authorities are preparing to request a larger budget to introduce new weapons in the new fiscal year under the pretext of strengthening island defense. At the end of August, Japan's defense budget is expected to exceed 8 trillion yen, the largest since World War II.

It is reported that after taking office, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida launched a five-year plan to expand military spending, which includesFrom 2023 to 2027, a total of 43 trillion yen will be spent on introducing new weapons to fundamentally strengthen national defense capabilities, which is five times the previous expenditure.

01The United States provides $4.6 billion to Texas Instruments

Bloomberg News: On August 16th, the US Department of Commerce announced that the federal government will provide $1.6 billion in grants and $3 billion in loans to Texas Instruments, a domestic semiconductor manufacturing company, under the 2022 Chip and Science Act. This funding will be used to help pay for the construction costs of a factory in Utah and two factories in Texas.

It is reported that Texas Instruments produces a variety of chips and has the largest customer base in the semiconductor industry. In addition to receiving subsidies and loans, it is expected that the company will also benefit from《The 25% tax credit under the 2022 Chip and Science Act is equivalent to a discount of $6 billion to $8 billion.