BTS visited the White House on Tuesday, May 31st, where they met with President Joe Biden to discuss Asian inclusion and representation, as well as the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination. The timing of their visit coincided with the final day of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Month. The South Korean band also joined Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in the White House Briefing Room, with each member taking a turn at the podium to deliver brief remarks. “We are devastated by the recent surge of hate crimes, including Asian American hate crimes. To put a stop on this and support the cause, we’d like to take this opportunity to voice ourselves once again,” said Jimin. Advertisement “It’s not wrong to be different. I think equality begins when we open up an...
China’s lack of experience with tricky debt restructurings and slow coordination among its public lenders is holding up debt relief for Zambia, a test case for the top emerging market creditor, three sources familiar with the matter said. Zambia became in 2020 the first country to default in the COVID-19 pandemic era, struggling under a debt burden worth 120% of GDP. Its external debt topped $17 billion at the end of 2021, of which a third was owed to China, according to Zambian government data. China agreed last month to co-chair Zambia’s official creditor committee with France, a move welcomed by Zambia’s government, which has made tackling the country’s debts a priority since taking power last year. Emerging market investors and other debtor countries are closely watching Zambia’s case ...