This Is East Asia tonight good evening I'm otelli Edwards tonight's top stories from East Asia a far exchange of the US presidential debate with both candidates trading accusations that the other has yielded to rival superpower China but we'll have all the analysis from the clash between camela Harris and Donald Trump beijing's top Diplomat wangi meets Russian officials at a security meeting for bricks economies are they gearing up to challenge Western hegemony and South Korea warn against growing military ties between Russia and North Korea that Soul says is advancing pyongyang's nuclear Ambitions and Pope Francis arrives in Singapore the final stop of his asia-pacific tour he'll engage in state meetings and celebrate a Papal Mass tomorrow also the Yen rallies to its strongest this year after the bank of Japan signals it is ready to raise interest rates while markets are anticipating its us Pier will cut [Music] also on East Asia tonight from Gucci to Vace more luxury fashion brands are enlisting K-pop stars to be their new face we'll tell you why they generate more media Buzz than Western celebrities [Music] both CA Harris and Donald Trump have declared Victory after coming face to face for the first time in a fiery presidential debate with just eight weeks left in the race to the White House well the two candidates Crossed Swords over key policy differences over immigration and abortion and spent much of the time sparring over the economy Miss Harris and Mr Trump accusing each other of yielding to China under Donald Trump's presidency he ended up selling American chips to China to help them improve and modernize their military basically sold us out when a policy about China should be in making sure the United States of America wins the competition for the 21st century but what Donald Trump did let's talk about this with covid is he actually thanked president she for what he did during Co look at his tweet what's going to have and who's going to have higher prices is China and all of the countries that have been ripping us off for years I charged I was the only president ever China was paying us hundred hundreds of billions of dollars and so were other countries Miss Harris also accused her opponent of inviting trade Wars will Mr Trump hit back saying American workers are losing jobs to other nations part of building a clean energy economy includes investing in American made products American automobiles it includes growing what we can do around American manufacturing uh they're building big Auto plants in Mexico in many cases owned by China they're building these massive plants and they think they're going to sell their cars into the United States well the debate at times also turned p Aral Miss Harris repeatedly baiting her opponent into renting instead of focusing on the issues it is absolutely well known that these dictators and autocrats are rooting for you to be president again because they're so clear they can manipulate you with flattery and favors and that is why so many military leaders who you have worked with have told me you are a disgrace everything that she believed three years ago and four years ago is out the window she's gone to My Philosophy but if she ever got elected she'd change it and it will be the end of our country she's a Marxist everybody knows she's a Marxist her father's a Marxist professor in economics and he taught her well earlier we spoke with us politics Professor Timothy J Lynch at the University of Melbourne who shared his thoughts on what whether there's a winner from the debate I think Cara Harris won it um she won it much more decisively I think than many people imagined I don't think this guarantees that uh she'll win the General in lots of ways though she corrected all sorts of uh misapprehensions particularly on our own side that if given free reign she would just produced Gaff after Gaff she was no Gaff machine this evening in Pennsylvania she was actually very polished and the cramming and the rehearsing which we understand that she has done paid off I don't think Trump was crushed and in lots of ways I think Trump landed some blows and Trump was Trump so I don't think his position was reduced but hers was certainly elevated by a much better performance than many imagined it's certainly going to be spun as a resounding victory for her but I just have some caveats that that that doesn't mean Trump will lose and that she will win but it's not this performance and this was the great fear of her campaign was that this would actually ruin her chances it's done the opposite he actually enhanced them we also spoke with William Schneider from George Mason University and he thinks that while Donald Trump is tough CA Harris came off stronger than most would have expected well I think Donald Trump came across as very very angry now I don't know if that's going to succeed with American voters because his anger was right there up front he attacked the Biden Administration he attacked camela Harris he attacked her record he attacked her plans and that anger is felt by a lot of Americans I don't know if it's a majority or enough to make him president but he is clearly the president who tries to convey the anger that a lot of Americans feel he is a strong candidate and that was very clear tonight but she came across as able to fight with him to reprimand him when she thought he got something wrong she came across as much tougher than anyone probably expected and I think that was to her benefit on some issues he was very good he talked about the terrible admin the administration's policies on Afghanistan bringing up the most vulnerable point in the entire Biden record but she was very strong on the issue of abortion rights which is a key issue in this election for a lot of Voters so how do the two presidential candidates differ on their approach to China well we'll have more analysis lateer in the show with our special guest Professor Elvin Lim China's top Diplomat wangi is in St Petersburg meeting officials from the emerging economies of the bricks Group Well since his arrival Mr Wong has been emphasizing the importance of solidarity and cooperation within the global South for the next two days Mr Wong will be discussing security issues with high ranking officials from the brics group and they include Brazil Russia India South Africa and new members like Iran and Egypt the group wants stronger cooperation among developing countries to counterbalance what both Beijing and Moscow call Western hey and for more we have Dasha chinova joining us live from Moscow uh Dasha first up perhaps can give us the latest lines uh coming out from the bricks security meeting yes indeed in the opening remarks that the security officials from the bricks countries have made we understand that they want to review the main security challenges that the uh International Community is facing at the moment they want to discuss the Practical activities of the working groups when it comes to counteracting uh terrorism as also uh the information technology uh Technologies and all the threats coming from these area extremisms they do want to see where they can uh help one another and uh contribute to the security of another Nation now the main late motive obviously that we are hearing from this meeting is that that the global South has to cooperate with the bricks and Bricks should serve as a platform for the cooperation for the developing countries as well as the global South in countering or any security threats because they are interfering with the steady development of these countries now we heard from the Secretary of Russia Security Council Serge Sho speaking there and saying that it is the erosion of the International Security system that is threatening The Sovereign uh countries so all in all we understand this meting is important in terms of bringing the countries on the same uh page when it comes to the approaches they have uh facing the security challenges but also it is the preparation for the summit of the bricks leaders that is expected to take place next month in Kazan well leading up uh to this meeting I believe wangi met with the Russian Security Council secretary Shu um what did the two agree upon well that was indeed uh yet another meeting between the high ranking Russian and Chinese officials so in this meeting we heard the both sides concerning uh the uh strategic nature of the relations that Moscow and Beijing uh have at the moment we've heard uh that this mission was also the proof of the All incompass In partnership this is according to seru the Secretary of Russia Security Council he also has said that there is the steady support that Beijing is playing to the Russian chairmanship in the bricks group now we understand that this uh meeting uh he said uh will help to uh even uh even tighten and bring the relationship between the two even further now we understand also that there are issues that stay behind the closed doors this is where we don't know what they were talking about but the general line that we are hearing is that the two countries both Russia and China they do want to make sure that bricks serves as the platform of multilateral world order that is being established and we've heard from the multiple officials actually in this bricks uh meeting uh already on Wednesday saying that it is the multipolarity that is driving those countries together in one room and this is why they are talking about so Moscow and Beijing they want to make sure that bricks uh is serving as this platform and they want to do uh to put their best effort into to ensuring that so this was uh one of the Prime focuses of the meeting between one e and serge sh and Dash as you've mentioned earlier the presidents of Russia and China they are slated to meet next month um what uh can we expect then well first of all we expect that to be the bricks leaders Summit where the Declaration will be adopted by the entire uh group and uh their vision of the future of these group in but also uh keep in mind that Moscow and Beijing have uh announced that they have the uh all incompass in strategic partnership relationship so the whole host of bilateral issues is also expected to be discussed uh there are multiple issues that are at the moment um important for the two countries in Russia there have been the issues that have been admitted by the Kremlin such as the problems with the payments with the Chinese Banks because of uh most likely the fear of the secondary sanctions from the Western countries there are also issues that are related to the bilateral trade and to the exploration of new areas where these two countries can be working together but this is the work for the groups and ministers and uh other governmental organizations so endly there Summit in Kazan and in the bilateral meetings it is expected that the leaders will be able to finalize and iron um those uh Arrangements that have been previously made Das chova reporting from Moscow on the bricks security meeting thank you well the US is expected to send a more senior official to China's top security Forum this year another sign the superpowers military ties are on the menend while senior Pentagon official Michael Chase is set to lead the US delegation defense officials and schols from nearly a 100 countries and international organizations will gather at the sang Shan Forum in Beijing starting tomorrow and C Tans has this report the sanction Forum started with the just 14 countries in its first iteration in 2006 it grew to more than 70 in 2018 and half a decade later to more than 90 this year's forum is set to be its biggest before it was one among many now uh given that there's been reduced contact between the PRC and in particular the US uh and some of its allies um it becomes one of the fewer available conduits uh for some level of exchange to happen The sanan Forum has become a yearly Affair since 2015 it's styled as China's answer to the shanga dialogue Asia's Premier security gathering in Singapore scheduled months after the Singapore dialogue that typically happens around mid year it's being seen as a platform for China to respond to views a during the shanga dialogue which China continues to criticize as being westernized the shanga diog the P criticizes as much as it receives criticism and would prefer a more managed environment like the Shang Forum that allows them to put their point across the real point is about having it after the shangula dialogue where I suppose Beijing may feel that the sh Forum provides an opportunity for them to respond to what they see as criticism coming out from the shangula dialog us typically sends a lower level delegation to The sangan Forum compared to the Singapore dialogue which is typically represented by its defense Chief this year the US attendance takes place after Chinese defense minister Dong Chin met us defense secretary Lloyd Austin in Singapore in June it's good for the US to be represented because uh it will provide an Avenue for for China and us to meet and if they want they can actually also meet behind and closed doors to further thres out issues I think the US will continue to stress the importance of freedom of navigation and it's it's right to fly sell and operate wherever international law allows last year the US sent a delegation led by zanti gas the China country director in the office of under Secretary of Defense other Western countries have either shunned or sent small and low-level delegations the sanction forum is expected to feature a significant number of countries from the global South which China is focusing its Outreach more recently The Forum also gave rare but prominent billing to Russia which received International scrutiny over its invasion of Ukraine T CNA Beijing another defense Summit is on this week in South Korea this one drawing senior officials from the US South Korea's new defense chief says all options are on the table to protect itself if Pyongyang refuses to stop its nuclear weapons program Mr kimyong hun was speaking at a defense dialogue in Soul just one day after North Korean leader Kim Jong hun vowed an exponential boost to his country's nuclear Arsenal cna's Lian has more barely a week into his job at South K defense minister Kim yongan has a strong warning for his International counterparts on Russia and North Korea military Alliance [Music] he said all options were on the table if North Korea does not stop this weapons development program [Music] [Music] Mr Ken was speaking on Wednesday at the soul defense dialogue his first International appearance since he took up his post last week the soil defense dialogue has been held every year since 2012 and it brings military leaders from around the world to discuss security issues especially on the Korean Peninsula addressing the Forum NATO's military committee chief Bower voiced concerns over the complex Dynamics between Russia China North Korea and Iran the relations between Russia and China Russia and North Korea Russia and Iran is very concerning Russia is basically in a way supporting illegal actions from a country like North Korea when it comes to the missile tests that is in that is uh that is in violation with all sorts of un Security Council resolutions and they're not doing anything about it unfortunately China doesn't do anything about it as well and that is very concerning both Russia and China this week sent greetings to North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un to Mark North Korea's founding anniversary on September 9th in a speech to Mark the occasion Kim Jong-un said his country was facing a grave threat because of the US Le Regional military block which is now developed into a nuclear-based threat and that was why North Korea was expanding its military capabilities Lianna Soul coming up on East Asia tonight an influential Japanese business executive weighs in on the $39 billion bid for 7ni Holdings which it rejected as being too low and a potential break within the EU ranks after the Spanish prime minister calls on the Block to rethink plans to impose extra ter s on Chinese [Music] EVS hello again good to have you in East Asia tonight right here on CNA you are just in time for business and Roland limb he is raring to go to give us the latest in business news and it's about the Yen again a week Yen sometime back hogging the headlines but now it's uh it's there's an about turn what's that all about that's right the Yen Bulls are having a nice little run alongside with some other Asian currencies now these currencies strengthening today as the dollar retreated in reaction to the fiery US president presidential debate the greenb also weaker ahead of key inflation data out later which could lead the Federal Reserve to trim interest rates by a bigger margin than expected Japanese currency is today's outperformer in Asia it Rose nearly 0.99% against dollar at one point to 1471 that's its highest this year the Yen currently is at 14159 and it is up 0.58% against the dollar the strong Yen however hurting Japanese stocks particularly the exporters m225 sliding almost 1 and a half% at the close down for a seventh straight session Japanese stocks could be in for more pain as the Yen may rise further after a senior Japanese Central Bank officials signaled Readiness to raise rates again that's if inflation is back on track the bank of Japan policy board member junko nakagawa however also stressed that before making such a move it must account for the impact on the economy and on prices also getting a left today is the Chinese currency investors betting that aala Harris presidency would mean reduce risk of punitive tariffs on Chinese Goods now former president Trump had floated a black 10% import tariff and much higher levies on Chinese Goods Japan's biggest steelmaker nipon steel is reportedly mounting a last ditch effort to save its proposed takeover of Pennsylvania based firm us steel the financial times reports that nippon's Vice chair takahiro Mori has flown to Washington to meet senior us officials now he said to be scheduling talks with several Deputy secretaries working under the inter agency committee that reviews National security implications on foreign investments to the US now it's the Japanese company's last attempt to salvage their 1515 billion takeover of us steel now that deal would have created one of the world's biggest steel companies outside of China and it had been hailed by investors as the answer to the financial Wes of the 123 year old us steel but the proposed acquisition ran into resistance from the US Steel Workers Union and politicians who fear that the deal would create National Security risks it's also become a contentious issue in the US presidential election with both kamla Harris and Donald Trump framing the deal as a threat to American jobs even as analysts assess the acquisition may actually benefit the local steel seor over the long term nepon steel shares closing almost 2 and a half% lower today as prospects for the acquisition hang in the balance a highly regarded Japanese business executive has waited into the ongoing takeover bid for 7ni Holdings santor Holdings CEO takesi namami says that the operator of the 7-Eleven stores has quote responded fairly to the Takeover bit from Canada's Alim manasan kushar the 65-year-old who has advised current and former Japanese prime ministers is seen as one of the country's most influential Executives Mr namami says that 7ni I rejection of the $39 billion bid indicates a shift in Japan's corporate governance he added the Takeover offer has made other Japanese CEOs nervous about being potential targets now he was the CEO of convenience store operator Lawson before becoming the first non-founder giant santor he also stated that Japan's corporate governance reforms are forcing companies to focus more on generating returns but Mr namami says Jeff companies still have a quote strong appetite to invest in the US that's as outbound deal value stands at 17-year highs despite a historically weak Yen now China has opened a criminal investigation into highwind wealth management for alleged involvement in illegal fundraising this comes nine months after highwind pledge to address delayed payments on some investment products the prob into what was once the nation's biggest distributor of Real Estate wealth management products underscores how China's middleclass investors are caught up in the property crisis the talk that high wind would delay payments surfaced last December and that sank the shares of its us listed entity highwind Holdings it then changed its name to santac earlier this year and stiz with highwind wealth established back in 2006 the Shanghai based highwind has more than 152,000 clients and $1.2 billion in assets under management as of June last year now it's unclear how much investor money is involved according to its listing Prospectors hwin had worked with developers such as China everr group and sunak once China's biggest developer everr collapsed earlier this year after defaulting on its bonds and amassing debts exceeding $300 billion a greater China markets ending makes the Hing retreated to a one Monon low oil producer copaco let the losers after prices fell more than 4% overnight in Shanghai investors remain cautious amid renewed concerns on the weak domestic consumption that could weigh down on economic growth but the tech Focus cion component well it did Buck the trend tracking the overnight gains on big Tech firms listed on Wall Street the weak domestic demand in China has been discouraging European firms from operating in China the latest report from the EU Chamber of Commerce in China found its members har doubt that the government has a credible plan to boost demand in the alien economy the survey showed the chambers members were resigned to the fact that the problems they're facing are becoming permanent features rather than quote Growing Pains this has caus more of them to lose appetite in investing in China in 2023 EU foreign direct investment flows to China dropped by 29% from the previous year to around $7 billion the Spanish prime minister has urged the European Union to reexamine its plan to impose additional tariffs on Chinese made electric vehicles Pedro Sanchez made the comments at the end of his three-day visit to China underlining simmering EU divisions over the trade measure experts say the Spanish premier's comments raised the prospect that national leaders could try to muster enough support to block the European commission's efforts to impose restrictions on Chinese EV Imports now such a move would represent a dramatic reversal for EU trade Chiefs in Brussels the European commission which oversees the blocks trade policy announced last month that it plan to Levy 5year import duties of up to 36% on EVS imported from China Spanish PM's China visit comes against the backdrop of mounting trade tensions between the European Union and China in June China launched an anti-dumping investigation into pork imports from the Block and Spain is of course the biggest European pork exporter to China and you're up to date with the business you tell thanks so very much Rand well we're going to go for a short break now but coming up next on East Asia tonight who landed the best punches the US presidential debate and will it make a difference at the polls we check in with an expert after the break [Music] both camela Harris and Donald Trump have declared Victory after coming face to face for the first time in a fiery presidential debate the White House hopefuls accusing each other of yielding to rival superpower China a meantime beijing's top Diplomat wangi meets officials from brics economies in St Petersburg to review security challenges facing member states South Korea sounds the alarm over the growing military TI between Russia and North Korea saying it's helping Pyongyang improve its nuclear and missile capabilities the US presidential debate has snap polles and commentators declaring Miss Harris the winner despite Mr Trump calling it his best performance and here is a breakdown of how each candidate made use of their time during the debate well Donald Trump spoke for some 43 minutes in all spending about the % of that time attacking camela Harris while Miss Harris on the other hand was much more aggressive devoting close to half her speaking time of nearly 38 minutes on attacking Mr Trump well the vice president's offensive eclipsed that of President Joe Biden in his debate with Mr Trump back in June Miss Harris spent four minutes more than the president in attacking Mr Trump while keeping to a similar speaking time the economy abortion rights democracy and immigration are among topics both both candidates spent most of their time on Miss Harris spoke most on the US economy while it was immigration for Mr Trump on foreign policy the Russia Ukraine war was the overriding concern the candidates spent 8% of their time on it next the Israel Hamas War at 5% the US pullout from Afghanistan took 4% of the time trade tariffs at 3% and when it comes to China a country the US regards as a systemic rival on multiple fronts including technology and trade just 2% of the debate or just over two minutes was spent on it um but we are East Asia tonight after all and to shed more light on this closer to this region we have with us Professor Elvin Lim he Dean College of Integrative studies at a single management University and Professor LM just based on the fari exchange between the two US Presidential uh candidates on countering China I'm wondering how do you see their approaches differ thanks for having me on um so their approaches are basically a traditional Republican Democrat distinction where Republicans in general prefer a one more one-on-one bilateral approach to dealing with Nations including China as well as Nations around the region whereas Democrats in general take a more multilateral approach where they hope to build alliances around the region so what's interesting here is and that's part of the reason why China is not clear which candidate is better for them in part because a multilateral approach will actually create more of a choice forced on nations in this region to take a pick between which which of these two haimon they would side on whereas Trump's more isolated one-on-one sporadic episodic strategy gives nations in this region a chance to double date and not take a clearer stand and that's one of the reasons why in some ways um China may prefer uh a more bilateral approach that the Trump side is endorsing that's a very interesting uh point you made there uh Professor but I I just want to single out a few lines here and there one of it which was Harris um her critique that Trump has sold us out on China that's what she said suggesting I guess somewhat that she thinks that his approach is misguided how do you think then cuz she talked about how you know um the US should be competing with China in areas like Ai and Quantum Computing how do you think that is going to change the US China Dynamics I think that Biden Administration has been actually very tough on China um you know Trump talks about tariffs but people are less clear about whether or not he can pull off this 60% hike in tariffs uh imports from China because the American Consumer is going to feel it right it's going to be passed on directly so you know we have to pierce through the rhetoric which is very Fierce at this time obviously because there's a run up to the elections and really what they're doing with these statements is to signal to their to their basis respectively that they are strong leaders that they're presidential K har is of course is standing toe-to-toe to the former president and she wants to show that she's tough and strong too that's why she was strongly on the attack much more than uh Joe Biden was as you showed in your analysis a few minutes ago and I think this is more really playing to an internal domestic audience rather than speaking specifically about uh a specific policy direction or change um from where Biden was and to be fair um Biden has also been very tough uh on you know he inherited as As Trump notes uh the tariffs held on to it so in some ways you can say that the reason why only 2% of the time was spent on China is because it is a rare place where both parties are equally on board they recognize the strength of China as a rising haimon in the world good point uh you know referring to the stats that uh uh we we flashed out um earlier now now Biden you've said you know he has been tough on China but you know Trump this time around he's claiming credit uh for being even tougher on China so um do you think his actions during his president Pres presidency um actually resulted in significant changes whether it's to do with China's Behavior or us China relations no I mean the fact is he he he does a bit of double speak sometimes um which is very effective politically I'll give him that and that is he's rhetorically very strong but on the other hand he also face things like I respect xinping I respect Putin I respect you know he's he's trying to register this message that he's tough on them but at the same time he also respects them and this plays well to his base because they think that having a strong uh relationship is the basis on which tough and honest negotiations can happen but it can also swing in the other direction where sometimes people feel that he's been too cozy with world leaders including ging and and that's why you can see that actually policy-wise although there are you know assertions of tariffs and the the strong commitments that the United States make Visa uh the deficit imbalance uh the trade imbalance you actually find that across both administrations there has been a relatively constant um economic relationship between the two um and one that will be intensifying in the years to come and you've talked about you know China's leaders how they're interpreting um the candidates positions but I'm curious to know what do you think of the other East Asian countries you know Japan South Korea and Taiwan how do you think they're perceiving the debate I mean do they have a preference for one approach um over the other here I will be speculating and I don't have diplomatic ties to them but my guess is the United States has um bases in many countries around the world and of course they have particularly strong ties with these countries historically uh South Korea and Japan precisely because these Northern Asian countries have always had a testy relationship with their uh their neighbor China so I would say these larger North Asian countries do see it in their benefit that would be my speculation uh to have a stronger us presence multilateral presence and therefore a haris Administration I think it would be a slightly different story a propos my earlier point for smaller Nations Assan Nations who are not clearly in such a tight Rel reltionship with the US historically and do have business ties with China well need your speculation again here for the next question because I'm wondering after this debate you know are we any closer uh to knowing how the next uh us Administration will approach you know the as we all know the complex and sensitive relationship with China so it will depend very much on who wins I suppose um and as far as I can tell today the the polls the momentum appear to be going for Harris um she has more Pathways to the 270 Electoral College votes that are required for victory into the White House um she basically needs to keep the blue wall going so I'll have to base my speculations on that and of course I should say that this is by no means a done deal Anything Can Happen October surprises can happen and whatnot but if she does win and she's I say her chances are 6040 today easily change she will certainly dive into um the domestic economy this is the main thing that she cares a lot about and that's why it comes it came out again in your analysis of the debate and to the extent that um deficit with China the relationship with China impinges on her domestic program then yes she will certainly um take a more stuff tough stand uh on China but I shall say that in the initial months of um a presidential Administration for one that is a a first term it's usually domestic um and so for better and For Worse the policies will focus more on the domestic uh uh promises that she made on the campaign Trail and usually only towards the end of the first term they might turn to foreign policy and relations with Ukraine and China so there's a bit of time countries to wait pause and uh reset if there's a change in administration right just very quickly professor before I let you go I'm just wondering what questions or topics related to China were notably absent from the debate that you would have liked to see it addressed uh today I wouldn't say I the same I would like to see but what was unusual was that Democrats generally talk about you know spreading democracy and importance of Human Rights and that's usually one of the issues that's brought up right when talking about China and Hong Kong and whatnot and that didn't come up um and I think that was a strategic decision by uh Harris because she wanted to make this a domestic debate and the fact is most Americans are more concerned about um the Hamas and Israel situation and the Ukraine situation but rid large Americans are generally much more focused on pocketbook issues than in foreign policy and for this reason I think Trump um um Harris advisers rightly told her to steer away from foreign policy where her base is a little bit divided on Israel and us and to focus instead on the pocket book issues that would sway swing voters yeah it's always great uh talking to you some fabulous points there Professor elen Lim Dean College of Integrative studies at the Singapore management University a China has expressed concern about what it calls the United States manipulation of Hong Kong related issues after the House of Representatives passed a bill which could force the closure of the city's economic and trade offices across the US well it's part of the houses so-called China weak to push through more Beijing related proposed legislation well the governments the city's government says the move is a fact twisting attack on Hong Kong and grossly interferes in its Affairs the Hong Kong Economic and trade office certification act would requ require a review of Hong Kong trade officers Privileges and exemptions in New York Washington and San Francisco they would need to shut within 180 days if found to be operating without a high degree of autonomy from China the bipartisan bill was passed overwhelmingly on Tuesday but now has to go through the US Senate before it can be signed by President Joe Biden and passed as law a some us lawmaker say the bill demonstrates Washington solidarity with the persecuted citizens of Hong Kong including media Tycoon Jimmy lie and pro-democracy activists Joshua Wong both convicted under the city's National Security laws the West has repeatedly criticized the legislation as stifling democracy but China and Hong Kong say that they are necessary to restore stability in the city coming up on East Asia tonight Pope Francis gets arousing welcome in Singapore cheered on by a thousand volunteers who made this trip possible and why High fashion is jumping on the K-pop bandwagon and changing the faces fronting their band their [Music] brands Pope Francis is in Singapore the final leg of his Asia Pacific Tour on landing at chongi airport the pontiff received flowers from children who also put up a d performance for him outside the airport he was given a rousing welcome by about a thousand volunteers who helped to organize his trip for many Catholics in Singapore this will be their first time seeing the head of their Church the last papal visit was in 1986 by the late pom po Pope John Paul II I feel so blessed sister what do you feel very blessed because it's a historic uh Pop's historic visit to Singapore yeah yeah yeah we so blessed to welcome him I'm so excited to come here but I never thought like we can uh see him like this uh distance I feel like I'm so blessed right now and uh yeah I'm so happy it's just like a miracle it'll never happen this kind of Miracle again in my in my whole life yeah it was the best day ever I love pope we all love pope we're all in one together yeah thank you Singapore thank you Pope Francisco yeah we love you God bless you div [Music] Singapore prime minister Lawrence Wong will hold a welcome ceremony for the pope tomorrow at Parliament House he will then deliver and address the National University of Singapore before meeting government officials Civil Society groups and members of The Diplomatic Corp the pope will cap the day with a mass at the National Stadium more than 50,000 people are expected to attend on Friday Pope Francis will visit St tre's home for the elderly as he has done in the three other countries he's visited the pope will end his trip with an interreligious youth meeting and that will be held at Catholic junior college and you can catch up with the latest from our coverage of the Pope's visit on our website cna. Asia it looks like K-pop has not only muscled into the global music scene its stars are now increasingly the faces of high fashion brands all thanks to the allegiance of loyal fans K-pop fans were in frenzy in May when all eight members of stray kids made history as the first Korean group to attend the Met Gala all of them decked out and custom Tommy Hilfiger tuxedos as the collective face of the Brand's spring campaign Hilfiger himself looks back fondly on that moment and we did a a special label Tommy Hilfiger with the stay kids and they loved it we loved it and I think it'll go down in history as probably one of the most exciting projects we've had to date I turn this way look at this keeping us relevant was was part of it but also always looking for the next step is something we've done for many years so that in fact has been a big benefit to the brand so big that the label has brought stray kids back as the faces of their fall campaign posing on a rooftop and puffer jackets and preppy cold weather outfits they are just one of an ever increas number of K-pop Idols that luxury fashion houses are bringing into their ranks as brand ambassadors it was rock and then hip hop and now it's really K-pop last year saw more than two dozen Stars installed as faces for labels who want to tap into the massive Global fan bases that follow K-pop personalities there is bts's Jin at GUI Lisa from blackpink at Louis Vuitton I feel so honored to be working it's such a great brand that I admire straight kids's own hin is also a brand ambassador for Versace The Outfits designed by Donatella feel very luxury Allison bringe is the chief marketing officer at launch metrics which measures brand success by its impact on media for her one key factor in the rise of K-pop brand ambassadors was the way events had to change during the co era and so they turn to these kind of virtual streaming or virtual attendees and because of that it allowed the world to open up and start bringing in more K's more K-pop Stars you know different ambassadors from different parts of the world and we could see fall winter 2021 there was a huge emergence of K-Pop Stars attending all of these fashion shows and it was because the world kind of was ready to leverage these different ambassadors to to interact with a more digitally Savvy audience in a launch metrics report on the men's spring summer 2025 Paris Fashion Week an event held in June South Korea ranked as quote the third top region driving Buzz with 87% generated by South Korean celebrities specifically K-Pop Stars often draw out the loudest cheers from fans waiting outside Fashion Week shows many are expected again this catwalk season and the trend doesn't look set to change Lily from girl band nmix says it's all a natural fit she too is a brand ambassador for Spanish fashion house L I think when you look at K-pop fans they obviously like the the the members but they also like the glitz and glamour of K-pop and one of that is fashion and because it's so important to a group's image the companies and everything pay so much attention to Fashion which means that each group has its own kind of amazing style that you can kind of see and I think that's another thing that makes fans excited to like a group so I think fashion is very important to K-pop and K-pop is very important to fashion and that does it for Wednesday's edition of East Asia tonight and forget your headlines anytime at cna. Asia thanks for watching [Music]