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Seoul, South Korea | AFP | South Korea’s military said Monday it had fired warning shots at a North Korean ship that crossed the countries’ de facto maritime border, prompting the North to fire a warning in return. Pyongyang has conducted a blitz of weapons tests, including what it claimed were tactical nuclear drills, in recent weeks, with Seoul and Washington ramping up joint military exercises in response. With talks long-stalled, North-South relations are […]
Seoul, South Korea (AFP) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has sent his “warmest congratulations” to Chinese President Xi Jinping on securing a third term as head of China’s ruling Communist Party, state media reported Sunday. The unusually prompt report from Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency came after the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee elected Xi as its general secretary for another five-year term. “Please accept my warmest congratulations to you upon the glad […]
Beijing, China | AFP | by Laurie CHEN Xi Jinping secured a historic third term as China’s leader on Sunday and filled his inner circle with close allies, achieving after a decade in power complete dominance over the ruling Communist Party. The party’s Central Committee elected Xi as its general secretary for another five-year term, bringing the country back towards one-man rule after decades of power-sharing among its elite. “I wish to thank the […]
Beijing, China | AFP | by Laurie CHEN / Matthew WALSH Chinese President Xi Jinping locked in support for a historic third term in power at the Communist Party’s Congress on Saturday, but the dramatic removal of his predecessor from the event stole the headlines. At the end of the week-long gathering in Beijing, China’s ruling party approved a sweeping reshuffle that saw a number of top officials — including Premier Li Keqiang — […]
Yangon, Myanmar | AFP | Myanmar ethnic rebels attacked a key town near the Thai border on Friday, residents and local media said, with the military junta calling in air strikes. The Karen National Union (KNU) has been a vocal opponent of the coup which brought the generals to power last year, and has provided shelter to dissidents working to oust the junta. Its fighters have clashed sporadically with the military along the Thai border, sending […]
Manila, Philippines | AFP | The Philippines will acquire heavy-lift military helicopters from the United States, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said Thursday, after scrapping a deal to buy similar aircraft from Russia. The government of his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte had signed a deal worth $216 million for 16 Mi-17 helicopters, but backed out in the months following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of wide-ranging sanctions on Moscow. Earlier Thursday, local media had […]
Hanoi, Vietnam | AFP | A “new wave of repression” in Vietnam is jeopardising progress in tackling climate change, human rights groups told UN chief Antonio Guterres Friday as he began a visit to Hanoi. Vietnam, which has an economy heavily reliant on coal, has committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. But the authoritarian regime has also handed down prison terms to four environmental human rights defenders this year, sentencing them on “trumped-up” […]
Washington, United States | AFP | The US military must be ready to respond to a potential invasion of Taiwan as soon as this year, a senior admiral said Wednesday, signaling heightened alarm over Beijing’s intentions towards the island. Admiral Michael Gilday, chief of US naval operations, is the latest senior official in Washington to raise concerns that China’s President Xi Jinping may be much more willing than previously thought to seize Taiwan. His comments […]
Putrajaya, Malaysia | AFP | by M JEGATHESAN Malaysia will head to the polls on November 19, officials said Thursday, after the prime minister called for a snap election to restore political stability. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob dissolved parliament earlier this month and called for the vote a year ahead of schedule to shore up his slim majority in the 222-member legislature. The “election date is November 19”, Election Commission chairman Abdul Ghani Salleh […]
Jakarta, Indonesia | AFP | Photos of FIFA’s president laughing and high-fiving in a football match with local officials weeks after a stadium disaster killed 133 people in Indonesia sparked online fury in the country on Wednesday. More than 40 children were among those killed in the stampede on October 1, one of the deadliest disasters in football history. Police had fired tear gas to quell a pitch invasion after a match in East […]
Hong Kong, China | AFP | A Hong Kong court on Wednesday allowed a veteran British lawyer to represent jailed pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai at his upcoming national security trial despite opposition from city authorities. Lai and a group of executives from the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper are being prosecuted for “colluding with foreign forces”, an offence under a new security law China imposed on Hong Kong to stamp out dissent. The trial is set […]
Beijing, China | AFP | China said Wednesday it has lodged a formal complaint with Britain over an altercation between its diplomats and a Hong Kong protester on the grounds of its Manchester consulate. British police have said a group of men came out of the consulate during a weekend demonstration, dragging one of the protesters inside the grounds and assaulting him. The incident has drawn widespread condemnation in Britain and triggered an international row […]
