KUALA LUMPUR: North Korea's decision to sever diplomatic ties with Malaysia has not affected the country's economy, said Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz on Saturday (Mar 20). According to the minister, it is because North Korea's contribu...

Opponents of Myanmar's coup protested again on Saturday (Mar 20) as international pressure on the military junta to halt its repression of pro-democracy supporters increased, with Asian neighbours joining Western countries in condemning lethal force....

Olympic organisers meet Saturday for talks expected to bar overseas fans from this summer's pandemic-delayed Tokyo Games, in a bid to reduce virus risks and win over a sceptical public.

SHANGHAI: China's first local coronavirus case since February was a staff worker at a hospital and had received two shots of a vaccine between end-January and early February, state media reported on Saturday (Mar 20). The patient, identified by her...

UN says no international staff left in North Korea

KUALA LUMPUR: The congestion at the Malaysian High Commission in Singapore will be resolved, says the Malaysian Immigration Department on Saturday (Mar 20). Its director-general Datuk Khairul Dzaimee Daud said that it will station eight officers in ...

Myanmar garment workers urge global brands to denounce coup

SHANGHAI: China reported four new COVID-19 cases on Mar 19, the country's national health authority said on Saturday (Mar 20). The National Health Commission said all the new cases were imported from abroad. The number of new asymptomatic cases, wh...

YANGON: Two more journalists were detained in Myanmar on Friday (Mar 19), part of the junta’s intensifying efforts to choke off information about resistance to last month’s coup. Mizzima News reported that one of its former reporters, Than Htike...

Despite the Myanmar people’s sheer determination for democracy, there are a number of possible scenarios that could emerge from these protests, says Nicola S Williams.

JAKARTA: Dengan indera penciumannya yang tajam, Bailey kerap ditemukan sedang mengendus tas dan koper bawaan penumpang serta puluhan truk yang sedang melewati pelabuhan kapal yang menghubungkan dua pulau terbesar di Indonesia. Anjing ini juga kerap ...

JAKARTA: With her sharp sense of smell, Bailey can often be found sniffing out passengers’ suitcases and bags as well as dozens of trucks passing through a busy ferry harbour connecting two of Indonesia’s biggest islands. She is sometimes flown...

Lee Zii Jia shocked two-time world champion Kento Momota to reach the semi-finals of the All England Open on Friday.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reacted angrily Friday to the closed-door trial of a Canadian man detained in China for more than two years on espionage charges, dismissing it as "completely unacceptable."

Senior U.S. and Chinese officials are set to conclude their talks in Alaska on Friday after a dramatic opening round laid bare the depth of tensions between the world's two largest economies at the outset of the Biden administration.

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has directed several importers to recall eggs from Linggi Agriculture in Malaysia, after detecting the presence of Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) in the product. This is the second time in a week that SFA has ...

An Indian-born blockchain entrepreneur has revealed himself as the mystery buyer who paid a record $69.3 million for a digital artwork last week, describing his purchase as a shot fired for racial equality.

The South Korean capital on Friday (Mar 19) withdrew its mandate that all foreign workers in the city be tested for the coronavirus — an order that had caused huge lines at testing centers and prompted accusations of discrimination.

Taiwan will begin its COVID-19 vaccination programme on Monday, Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said on Friday, using AstraZeneca Plc shots that were approved for use this week by the government.

PENANG: Star Cruises will resume sailing in Malaysia on May 13, in a move aimed at revitalising the domestic tourism industry. In a joint press release on Friday (Mar 17), Genting Cruise Lines and Penang Port announced plans to offer two itinerarie...

New coronavirus infections in the Philippines hit a record high on Friday, health officials said, as pandemic restrictions were tightened in the capital to combat the resurgence in cases.

SINGAPORE: Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim said on Friday (Mar 19) that he is evaluating an opportunity to own a stake in Manchester United Football Club.  In a press conference, he said: “I know there is an opening for Manchester...

Singapore and Taiwan are in talks about a possible travel bubble, Taiwan’s Health Minister Chen Shih-chung reportedly said on Thursday (Mar 18). Singapore relaxed restrictions on arrivals from Taiwan in December, allowing travellers from the isla...

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's foreign ministry on Friday (Mar 19) denounced a decision by North Korea to sever diplomatic ties, describing the move as "unfriendly and unconstructive". In a statement, the ministry said Malaysia would close its embassy in ...

A group of Myanmar policemen recounted their escape to India after defying the Myanmar army's orders to shoot people who oppose the Feb 1 coup in the southeast Asian country.

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s most influential Islamic organisation said AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine is “haram” or forbidden for Muslims, but its use can be temporarily permitted due to a lack of alternatives. The Indonesian Council of Ulema or ...

Thailand's COVID-19 task force said on Friday it will ban for a second year the street water fights that usually take place during celebrations for the upcoming Thai New Year due to the pandemic.

Roads out of Myanmar's biggest city were choked Friday with people fleeing the junta's deadly crackdown on anti-coup dissent, as authorities in neighbouring Thailand said they were preparing for an influx of refugees.

India's wealthiest state Maharashtra and its capital Mumbai recorded on Friday the most daily coronavirus cases since the pandemic began, stoking a new nationwide wave.

DANDONG: China on Friday (Mar 19) put on trial one of two Canadians held for more than two years in apparent retaliation for Canada’s arrest of a senior Chinese telecom executive. Canada said its consular officials were refused permission to atten...

Ousted Myanmar lawmakers are exploring whether the International Criminal Court (ICC) can investigate any crimes against humanity committed since the Feb 1 coup, as an activist group said three more people had died in clashes with security forces. M...

JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Friday (Mar 19) called for democracy to be restored and violence to be halted in Myanmar and for Southeast Asian leaders to hold a high-level meeting to discuss the situation there. "I will immediately ca...

The Philippines has approved Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, the country's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Friday.

China to open 1st trial of Canadians held on spy charges

VANCOUVER: Lawyers for Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on Thursday (Mar 19) accused Canadian authorities of destroying evidence, saying federal police wiped the emails and computers of a senior officer involved in her extradition case. Meng, the Chine...

Myanmar factory attacks put focus on Chinese influence

ANCHORAGE, Alaska: China's actions "threaten the rules-based order that maintains global stability", US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday (Mar 18) at the opening of a two-day meeting with Chinese counterparts in Alaska. The US side ...

Lee Chong Wei may be the biggest sporting name in Malaysia, but it is the stories of Malaysian trailblazers that draw the most envy especially from across the causeway, says Jan Lin Lee.

JAKARTA: Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, is notorious for its traffic congestion, which is often cited as one of the worst in the world.  With people typically spending a minimum of two hours on the road, getting to Soekarno-Hatta International air...

SEOUL: North Korea said it would sever diplomatic relations with Malaysia after a court there ruled that a North Korean man could be extradited to the United States to face money laundering charges, in a foreign ministry statement carried on state n...

Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl claims it is "nonsense" for Japan forward Takumi Minamino to be asked to travel for international duty during the coronavirus pandemic.

Protesters in Myanmar fear they are being tracked with Chinese facial recognition technology, as spiralling violence and street surveillance spark fears of a "digital dictatorship" to replace ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Hundreds of people have fled Myanmar's towns and cities since last month's military coup and are sheltering in areas controlled by ethnic militias on the Thai border, an official from one of the groups said on Thursday, as Thailand prepared for a sur...

Indonesian police say new JI cell was recruiting, training

Myanmar's ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi faces fresh corruption charges from the ruling junta that her lawyer said Thursday were "groundless" but could ensure she would never be able to return to politics.

China's Jiangsu FC have withdrawn from the Asian Champions League following their financial collapse, officials said Thursday, in another sign they are on the brink of being disbanded.

China reported one confirmed local coronavirus case on Thursday, health authorities said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan’s first face-to-face meeting with Chinese officials offers limited incentives for a diplomatic reset, but climate action and maritime leadership could serve as openings, ...

Pakistan has reversed a decision which had allowed uncapped prices for COVID-19 vaccines imported by private firms, Health Minister Faisal Sultan said on Thursday.

The creative director for Tokyo's Olympic ceremonies announced his resignation on Thursday for proposing a plus-size female comedian appear as a pig, just weeks after the postponed Games' chief stepped down in a sexism row.

JOHOR BAHRU: Johor's Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar has backed the federal government's decision to appeal against a court's ruling to overturn a decades-old official ban and allow Christians in the country to use "Allah" to refer to God. Last week...

HONG KONG: Aircraft mechanic Don Yip is one of many thousands leaving Hong Kong after the imposition of a new security law last year and protests in 2019. Unlike many others, he won't leave without his pets. Yip, 40, spent more than US$14,000 moving...

Thailand's parliament has failed to pass a bill that would have allowed changes to a military-backed constitution enacted after a 2014 coup, stalling a move by lawmakers to address a key demand of mass street protests last year.

SEOUL: Authorities in the South Korean capital defended on Thursday (Mar 18) a decision to order coronavirus tests for all foreign workers on penalty of fines, as calls grew for the controversial measure to be rescinded. At least one lawmaker of the...

Southampton's Takumi Minamino and eight other Europe-based players were Thursday named in Japan's squad for next week's friendly against South Korea in Yokohama.

MUMBAI: New COVID-19 infections in India rose by the most in more than three months as a second wave of the epidemic gathered momentum, with Maharashtra, the country's richest state, accounting for two-thirds of the latest daily tally. Home to India...

Myanmar faced growing isolation on Thursday (Mar 18) with increasingly limited Internet services and its last private newspaper ceasing publication as the military built its case against ousted elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Nobel peace laureate...

TAIPEI: A top Taiwanese official issued a plea on Thursday (Mar 18) for people to stop changing their name to "salmon" after dozens made the unusual move to take advantage of a restaurant promotion. In a phenomenon that has been dubbed "Salmon Chaos...

PARIS: French senators are free to meet whomever they wish when they travel, the country's foreign ministry said on Wednesday (Mar 17) after the Chinese embassy in Paris warned against lawmakers meeting officials during an upcoming visit to Taiwan. ...

China’s cyberspace administrator said in a statement on Thursday that it and the public security ministry met with the companies to talk about "security assessments" and potential problems with deepfakes and audio social apps. Kuaishou Technology a...

HONG KONG: Hong Kong health authorities have defended the practice of physically restraining some babies and children to beds in COVID-19 isolation wards after criticism built over the treatment of families under the city's strict anti-virus measures...

LONDON: Badminton world No 1 Kento Momota made a winning return to international action at the COVID-19-affected All England Open on Wednesday (Mar 17), while Indonesia's team were forced to withdraw after a passenger on their flight to Britain teste...

SEOUL: Both pressure and diplomatic options are on the table for dealing with North Korea, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday (Mar 18), hours after a senior North Korean diplomat rejected any talks until Washington changed its poli...

SINGAPORE: Malaysian cargo drivers who have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in Singapore will receive an immunisation certificate and be exempted from daily on-arrival tests 14 days after the second dose, said Singapore's Ministry of ...

TOKYO: The Japanese government's advisory panel on coronavirus measures approved on Thursday (Mar 18) a plan to let the state of emergency expire in the Tokyo area as scheduled on Mar 21, while the capital's governor warned citizens not to let down...

SEOUL: North Korea said on Thursday (Mar 18) it will ignore a US offer for talks unless it withdraws its hostile policy, after Washington reached out to Pyongyang in a bid to resume nuclear negotiations. The statement by Choe Son Hui, the first vice...

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) said the benefits of the country's first spaceport in Biak, Papua, are greater than the downsides, while locals are divided over the project.  The planned rocket launch si...

Recovery in individual countries will remain weak and incomplete as long as the domestic spread of the virus is not under control, says an economist.

Countries must confront the dilemma at the heart of the Quad: How to engage China positively while countering its assertive moves, says Charles Hankla.

Sex workers, tourism employees and rural-to-urban migrants are among the victims of Thailand’s coronavirus fallout. How is the Land of Smiles improving its mental health care? The programme Undercover Asia finds out.

US President Joe Biden said in an interview broadcast on Wednesday (Mar 17) that it will be “tough” for him to meet a May 1 deadline to withdraw the last troops from Afghanistan, ending America's longest war.

Britain on Wednesday defended the need for critical engagement with China on climate change and trade, after drawing criticism for soft-pedalling troublesome issues with the world's second economy in a new global strategy paper.

About 6.5 per cent of coronavirus vaccine doses in India are going to waste, health officials said on Wednesday, urging states to manage their immunisation drives better to optimise use of what one called "this elixir-like precious commodity".

Pakistan on Wednesday received a Chinese donation of 500,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, bringing the country's total supply to 1 million shots, Health Minister Faisal Sultan said.

India said on Wednesday its coronavirus immunisation campaign would continue with "full rigour" despite some concerns in Europe about the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine it relies heavily upon as infections hit a three month high.

A 16-year-old girl's life hung in the balance on Wednesday, after she was caught in the crossfire of a crackdown on Myanmar protests, and her parents risked arrest in a frantic bid to get her to hospital.

Japan will lift a virus state of emergency in the Tokyo area, the prime minister said Wednesday, less than five months before the postponed Tokyo Olympics are due to begin.

BEIJING: China on Wednesday (Mar 17) said it "lodged solemn representations" with the United States and Japan over a statement by top officials from both countries that raised concerns about Beijing's behaviour in Hong Kong, Xinjiang and the South Ch...

Pope Francis appealed on Wednesday for an end to bloodshed in Myanmar, saying "Even I kneel on the streets of Myanmar and say 'stop the violence'".

DHAKA: A United Nations delegation will on Wednesday (Mar 17) start a three-day visit to a remote Bay of Bengal island where Bangladesh has moved more than 13,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees since December despite criticism from rights groups. Banglad...

Nepal expecting hundreds of climbers despite pandemic

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced a new economic stimulus package worth RM20 billion (US$4.8 billion) on Wednesday (Mar 17), one year after Malaysia first imposed a lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.   This ...

GENEVA: A United Nations team of investigators on Myanmar appealed on Wednesday (Mar 17) for people to collect and preserve documentary evidence of crimes ordered by the military since a Feb 1 coup, in order to build future cases against its leaders...

Japan's government said on Wedneseday it would investigate messaging app Line, owned by SoftBank Corp's Z Holdings Corp, after Japanese media reports that it let Chinese engineers at a Shanghai affiliate access Japanese users' data without informing ...

BANGKOK: Chinese factories torched as mainland workers hunker down under martial law – Beijing is being pulled into the ulcerous crisis in Myanmar, an unravelling country it had carefully stitched into its big plans for Asia. During a January 2020...

KATHMANDU: Nepal is investigating how a Bahraini prince planning to climb Mount Everest brought 2,000 coronavirus vaccine doses to the country without prior approval, authorities said. Sheikh Mohamed Hamad Mohamed Al Khalifa who flew into Kathmandu...

TAIPEI: Taiwan's newly-appointed defence minister said on Wednesday (Mar 17) it has strengthened deployments in the disputed South China Sea and that the United States has approved the export of sensitive technology to equip Taiwan's new submarine fl...

HANOI: Vietnam's first domestically developed COVID-19 vaccine, called Nanocovax, is expected to be available by the fourth quarter of this year and put into use in 2022, the health ministry said on Wednesday (Mar 17). The announcement comes as more...

WASHINTON: Chinese companies targeted by a sweeping investment ban imposed by former President Donald Trump are considering suing the United States government after a federal judge on Friday (Mar 12) suspended a similar blacklisting for Beijing-base...

YANGON: Myanmar's powerful Buddhist monks' association urged the military government to end violence against protesters and accused an "armed minority" of torture and killings of innocent civilians since last month's coup, media said on Wednesday (Ma...

TOKYO: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday (Mar 17) that China was acting aggressively and repressively, citing its actions in the East and South China Seas where it has territorial disputes with Japan and other Asian nations. Spe...

The growl of a chainsaw fills the air as a dead longan tree is felled under the watchful eye of Ricci Wong, founder of a Hong Kong non-profit to turn tree waste into furniture and other household products.

TOKYO: A Japanese district court on Wednesday (Mar 17) ruled that not allowing same-sex couples to marry is "unconstitutional", setting a new precedent in the only Group of Seven nation not to fully recognise same-sex partnership, though it rejected ...

MANILA: The Philippines will close its border to foreigners and restrict the number of Filipinos entering the country as authorities battle to contain a spike in coronavirus infections. The temporary measures come after the number of daily cases hit...

Leaving aside whether digital-verification means are the best, such programmes could inadvertently divert scarce vaccines and risk countries opening up too quickly, says a researcher at ANU.

The best possible outcome of the bilateral meeting later this week is an identification of topics of mutual interest for further negotiation, says Christian Le Miere.

The Myanmar generals may have been inspired by Suharto’s coup to oust powerful political foes in the 1960s but should look instead at Indonesia’s democratic transition, says Dr Nehginpao Kipgen.

North Korea might begin flight testing an improved design for its inter-continental ballistic missiles "in the near future," the head of the US military's Northern Command said on Tuesday (Mar 16), a move that would sharply increase tensions between...

PARIS: Myanmar's parallel civilian government and rights groups on Tuesday (Mar 16) called on Total and other oil firms operating in the country to suspend payments to the military-controlled state following last month's coup. The calls come a day a...

The UN on Tuesday decried surging deaths in Myanmar since the Feb 1 coup, warning that detained protesters were facing torture and hundreds had disappeared.