OLD ENMITIES, NEW FRIENDSHIPS The political situation in East Asia is changing rapidly. Former wartime enemies Japan and South Korea are moving closer together and seeking to close ranks with Taiwan. The three countries are arming themselves on a massive scale. While the world is looking at Ukraine, the Middle East and the USA's customs and trade policies, the political situation in East Asia is changing rapidly and fundamentally under pressure from China. Old Enmities, New FriendshipsOld Enmities, New Friendships Busan is home to one of the central harbours for world trade. It is a central transhipment centre for trade between China, Japan, the USA and Europe.Image: Michael Mueller/NGLOW Is an alliance emerging in the world's most dangerous and economically important region, with Japan, South Korea and Taiwan standing alongside the USA against China? Can peace in the region be secured through mutual deterrence? Old Enmities, New FriendshipsOld Enmities, New Friendships The amphibious fast landing force is Japan's latest defence effort in the event of an escalation of conflicts over Taiwan or Korea.Image: Michael Mueller/NGLOW Or will developments turn East Asia into a powder keg that could explode at any time? How reliable is the USA as a partner under a President Trump? Old Enmities, New FriendshipsOld Enmities, New Friendships Image: Michael Mueller/NGLOW And what impact would an escalation of the Taiwan conflict or the conflict between North and South Korea have on peace and prosperity in the rest of the world? Old Enmities, New FriendshipsOld Enmities, New Friendships Japan monitors the airspace from Taiwan via China to Korea. There are daily airspace violations by Chinese aircraft.Image: Michael Mueller/NGLOW This documentary explores these questions, traveling to military and economic hotspots in Japan and South Korea. The film examines the increasing military cooperation between the US and its allies in the region, the importance of East Asia for world trade and the difficult rapprochement between Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, which share a long and conflict-ridden history. Old Enmities, New FriendshipsOld Enmities, New Friendships Image: Michael Mueller/NGLOW Featuring interviews with military, economic and security experts, this documentary features visits to Japanese and US bases, a joint maneuver and encounters with people living on Japan’s southern islands and in South Korea. It provides an exclusive insight into a region whose security and stability is of global importance. 9th July,2025

RISING NUMBER OF VOLUNTEERS Volunteering for the German Armed Forces, learning to march and sleeping in a bunk bed in the barracks? Many young Germans can't even imagine doing such things, but Tom can. The 23-year-old from Erfurt is toying with the idea of joining the Bundeswehr. "The combination of camaraderie and team spirit fascinates me," he tells DW. "And I want to develop myself." That's why Tom has come to the Bundeswehr career counseling office in Erfurt, centrally located in a shopping center between a supermarket and a gym. He is precisely the type of person they are looking for here because the Bundeswehr is desperately looking for personnel. Their motto is: Don't scare anyone away! Even those who walk in without an appointment can, with a bit of luck, quickly receive some assistance. At the very least, they get an olive-green information sheet with the somewhat grand slogan, "Here you can secure Germany and your future." Before taking the big leap, Tom first needs some information. Tony Baumann, a career advisor in uniform, takes some time for him and asks him in a friendly manner about his professional experience and goals. Tom smiling into the cameraTom smiling into the camera Twenty-three year-old Tom from Erfurt is toying with the idea of joining the Bundeswehr Image: Nina Werkhäuser/DW Tom has been working in health care administration for seven years. He got interested in the Bundeswehr through an internship he did as a student, and he heard a lot about it from a soldier friend of his. Tom says that he could even imagine going for armed service or a foreign deployment. "I also want to give something back to my country. I've already benefited a lot, for example, from free education." With around 182,000 soldiers and 80,000 civilian employees, the Bundeswehr is one of Germany's largest employers. It attracts applicants with a wide range of training and study programs. "There are opportunities here that you might not find in the private sector," says Tom. He is thinking over whether to first do voluntary military service or whether to sign up for several years now. The assessment center in the barracks The Löberfeld barracks are 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from the career counseling office. First, everyone has to show their ID cards to the guard at the entrance to the Bundeswehr Career Center — one of 15 throughout Germany. Here, all applicants from Thuringia and Saxony must undergo a series of tests. The results determine whether they will be accepted by the Bundeswehr or not. There are already two young men in the gym taking an athletics test. It is warm, and the sun is shining through the windows. The two are pedaling energetically on ergometers to accomplish the required exercise routine. Prior to that, they sprinted across the room and hung from a horizontal bar in a "chin-up" position until beads of sweat formed on their foreheads. 9th July,2025

MIDDLE EAST FERTILITY SLUMP Just a few decades ago, women in the Middle East had an average of seven children each. Now they're barely having enough babies to maintain current population levels. Why and what impact could that have in the future? There's what experts have called a "quiet revolution" underway in the Middle East, one that doesn't involve protests on the street or the toppling of governments. This revolution, happening in the privacy of locals' own homes, is concerned with fertility rates in the region. Because in almost all countries in the Middle East, the number of babies a woman has during her childbearing years has fallen dramatically over the past two to three decades. The total fertility rate, or TFR — the rate refers to how many babies a female has between the ages of 15 and 49 — has more than halved in the Middle East since the 1960s. Women in the region used to have around seven children each but by the early 2010s, they were only having three. Falling fertility rates are a global phenomenon. But by 2016, researchers reported that the Middle East was seeing "the greatest fertility decline in the world over the past 30 years." Over the past decade, those numbers have kept falling. As a study published in the Middle East Fertility Society journal in October last year showed, countries in the region saw a decline in TFR of anywhere between 3.8% and 24.3% between 2011 and 2021, with the biggest drops in Jordan, Iraq and Yemen. A woman handles a baby at a camp for the displaced damaged by torrential rains in the Jarrahi district of Yemen's war-ravaged western province of Hodeida on August 19, 2022. A woman handles a baby at a camp for the displaced damaged by torrential rains in the Jarrahi district of Yemen's war-ravaged western province of Hodeida on August 19, 2022. Between 1975 and 1980, Yemeni women had an average of nine children each, now they only have around five — that's still the highest TFR in the regionImage: Khaled Ziad/AFP/Getty Images According to World Bank statistics, in 2023, five of the 22 member states of the Arab League were operating with a TFR below 2.1, the number of babies per woman required to maintain population levels, and another four were coming close. For example, the United Arab Emirates has a TFR of just 1.2, well below population replacement levels. That's even lower than some European states: In 2024, Germany's national TFR is estimated at 1.38 children per woman of childbearing age. 9th July,2025

AT LEAST 9 KILLED AFTER BRIDGE COLLAPSE Authorities said several vehicles were on the bridge at the time of the collapse. The area has been hit by heavy rains in recent days. At least nine people have been killed after a bridge partially collapsed on Wednesday in Gujarat’s Vadodara district, according to Press Trust of India, who quoted police officials. The area has seen heavy rains over the past few days. Gujarat’s Health Minister Rushikesh Patel said several vehicles were on the bridge when a portion of it collapsed. According to Patel, the bridge was constructed in 1985. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the incident was “deeply saddening” and offered condolences to those who died. At least 5 people have been rescued. India’s infrastructure has long raised concerns on its safety. This is the second bridge collapse within a month, after a bridge collapsed in the western city of Pune in June. In 2022, days after reopening, a century-old suspension bridge collapsed in Gujarat killing over 130 people. It had recently undergone renovation work 9th July,2025

ORC SETS OCT 30TH DEADLINE The Office of the Registrar of Companies (ORC) has issued a strong reminder to all businesses operating in Ghana to file their Beneficial Ownership (BO) information by October 30, 2025, or face stiff administrative penalties. The directive applies to all companies in existence before January 2020, when Ghana began the electronic collection of BO data. This move, the ORC says, is part of intensified efforts to promote transparency and curb illicit financial activities by revealing the true individuals who own or control corporate entities. In a press release signed by Mrs. Maame Samma Peprah, Acting Registrar of Companies, the ORC confirmed that a three-month grace period—running from July 1 to October 30, 2025—is currently in effect. Companies failing to meet the deadline will be charged a daily administrative penalty of 25 penalty units (approximately GHS 300) until compliance is achieved. The ORC is intensifying efforts to ensure all existing companies comply with Beneficial Ownership disclosure obligations,” the statement read. 9th July,2025

$30M FOR AFLAO MARKET REDEVELOPMENT Ghana has received a $30 million grant from the Chinese government to construct a modern market in Aflao, a major trading town in the Volta Region.Ghanaian fashion Foreign Affairs Minister and North Tongu MP, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, announced in a post on X (formerly Twitter), noting that the signing took place on July 7, 2025, at Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ablakwa signed on behalf of the Ghanaian government, while Chinese Ambassador Tong Defa represented China. The funding, according to Ablakwa, follows the directive of President John Dramani Mahama and fulfills a campaign promise made ahead of the 2024 elections. The market is expected to strengthen economic ties between Ghana and neighboring Togo, linking the Ho and Lomé markets and boosting livelihoods in the region. Ghanaian fashion “This new, befitting modern market will serve as a powerful economic hub for West African trade,” he said. Ablakwa also recalled a similar initiative during the Mills/Mahama era, when a Chinese grant funded the construction of the Kotokuraba Market in Cape Coast. Construction of the Aflao market is expected to commence soon, signaling renewed cooperation between Ghana and China in infrastructural development. 9th July,2025

NDC’S 24-HOUR ECONOMY, A GRAND DECEPTION, The Director of Communications for the 2024 Bawumia Campaign, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, has described the much-touted 24-Hour Economy policy of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the 2024 election campaign as nothing more than a grand deception. In a sharp critique following the release of the NDC’s policy document, he asserted that what Ghanaians have been handed is not the bold, job-creating economic revolution that was promised, but a diluted rehash of existing initiatives, particularly the Ghana Beyond Aid Charter.Ghanaian fashion “This is not a 24-hour economy policy. This is a glorified consultant’s report dressed up to cover broken promises,” Mr. Aboagye stated. “Ghanaians were sold a dream, but the NDC has delivered a scam.” Shifting the Goalposts He accused the NDC of moving the goalposts after winning power on the back of the 24-hour economy promise, saying the policy now presented lacks the very elements that made it a central campaign message. “They promised a shift job system, incentives for 24-hour businesses, and even nightlife expansion, but all they’ve offered is a footnote in an existing policy framework. Where is the transformational plan they promised?” Mr. Aboagye highlighted that key elements of the original proposal – such as the controversial “1-3-3” job model, where three people were to share one job through shifts – are conspicuously missing from the actual document. “Felix Kwakye Ofosu said waakye sellers would operate 24 hours. Former President Mahama promised nightclubs would run all night. Where are these in the final plan? Nowhere.” Key Points of Deception According to Miracles Aboagye 1. The 24-Hour Economy was a Mirage According to him, the NDC created the illusion of a nationwide economic overhaul, pledging that factories, offices, and services would run around the clock. Reality Check: For him, the so-called plan barely mandates 24-hour operations. He argues that most of the institutions cited (e.g., ports, Ghana Publishing) already operate 24 hours due to sector demands, not because of new interventions. Miracles Aboagye further criticises the absence of a clear roadmap for scaling 24-hour services nationwide.Ghanaian fashion 2. The “1-3-3” Employment Promise Was a Gimmick The campaign pitch that three workers would share one job via shift systems was abandoned altogether, according to Miracles Aboagye. Reality Check: In the statement, he reveals that the policy document makes no mention of “1-3-3.” Instead, it projects 1.7 million jobs by 2028, which he believes are regular jobs, not shift-based. Miracles Aboagye buttresses his point that the policy document concedes that unemployment will remain around 12% by 2028. “This was a bait-and-switch. They promised shift work jobs and now hide behind general employment projections,” he noted. 3. Incentives with No Teeth Mr. Aboagye dismissed the tax incentives for 24-hour businesses as “token gestures,” arguing that most businesses lack the capacity to benefit from them. 9th July,2025

CONCESSION WAS ‘POPULIST AND DANGEROUS’ Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mustapha Gbande, has strongly criticised Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the 2024 presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), for conceding defeat ahead of the official declaration of the general election results. Dr. Bawumia publicly congratulated then-NDC flagbearer, now President John Dramani Mahama, before the Electoral Commission (EC) formally announced the outcome of the 2024 presidential election. Appearing on Face to Face on Channel One TV with Umaru Sanda Amadu on Tuesday, July 8, Gbande described Bawumia’s action as “populist and dangerous,” arguing that it was premature and undermined the authority of the EC. “The day of declaration, right from the time Dr Bawumia made that pre-conceived defeat, needless because if you’ve lost an election, you wait for the Electoral Commission to declare, he made himself the Electoral Commission to come and declare a defeat for himself,” he said. Gbande stressed that a true concession should only come after official results are announced. “Concession is not when you come and pronounce that you have been defeated. A concession is when a figure is declared, you disagree, but you concede,” he clarified. He dismissed suggestions that Bawumia’s move helped preserve national peace, insisting the country was already calm and stable. “They said because they believed that without him conceding the country was to be chaotic. Nothing was going to happen in the country. And the temperature was absolutely normal. Everybody was happy that the NPP had lost,” he remarked. Gbande argued that the concession was politically calculated and aimed at scoring public sympathy rather than respecting due process. “I think that it [conceding] was dangerous, because he created an impression that he had lost. By law, he was not the one to declare an election. It’s sloganeering and populist when you rush to do what you have not been sanctioned to do. Or what you needed not to have done and want to receive praise for it. The EC should be allowed to do its work,” he stated. Dr. Bawumia’s early concession received mixed reactions at the time, with some praising it as a statesmanlike gesture, while others, like Gbande, viewed it as an overreach that undermined institutional processes. 9th July,2025