Taiwan will raise funds to help Ukrainian refugees who have fled to Poland following the Russian invasion.Calling the war a disaster for humankind, Tsai Chi-chang, deputy speaker of the island’s legislature, said on Monday he would launch a “Taiw...

As Russian bombs fell across Ukraine, the contrast between the leaders of the warring nations could not be starker.Russian President Vladimir Putin, 69, on Sunday sat stern-faced, his tie pulled tight, at a long table with his defence officials off t...

New Zealanders stranded overseas by the pandemic returned home to tears and hugs on Monday as the country began dismantling some of the world’s toughest Covid-19 border restrictions.At Auckland airport, relatives carrying signs such as “welcome h...

Oil soared as energy and commodity markets were thrown into a state of disarray after Western nations unleashed more sanctions to isolate Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.Brent futures jumped more than 7 per cent before pulling back slightly ...

Singapore on Monday said it would impose “appropriate sanctions and restrictions” on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, a rare move that marked just the second time in the city state’s history that it was censuring a foreign nation without th...

Guangdong logged the highest number of imported coronavirus cases in China on Monday, with most originating in its neighbour Hong Kong, a city experiencing an unprecedented outbreak.Mainland Chinese health authorities reported a total of 87 new local...

Singapore’s top court on Monday dismissed the latest challenge to a law banning sex between men, but gay rights campaigners pledged to fight on and get the legislation overturned.A holdover from British colonial rule, the law is not actively enforc...

Public hospitals in Hong Kong are planning to use refrigerated containers to store corpses, the Post has learned, as rising Covid-19 deaths have pushed the city’s mortuaries to near full capacity.A public hospital source on Monday said the measure ...

Hong Kong’s leader has turned down an invitation from Beijing to attend the opening of China’s annual parliamentary meetings on Saturday, citing her “overriding mission” to lead the city’s efforts against a worsening coronavirus outbreak.Ch...

Hong Kong students’ summer holiday will start on March 7, some four months earlier than usual, though kindergartens and international schools will be able to switch to online learning instead if they so choose, the city’s education minister has a...

Hong Kong confirmed more than 34,000 Covid-19 infections on Monday as the health minister conceded impending universal screening might require a citywide lockdown.Authorities revealed another 124 infected residents had died, 87 of them in the past 24...

A widely-anticipated push by China’s government to boost construction to stabilise growth in the world’s second-largest economy has yet to materialise, a blow to hopes that Chinese stimulus would lift global growth early on this year.The Communis...

Russia hosting the 2018 World Cup, the scandal-plagued 2014 Winter Olympics and Gazprom’s sponsorship of the Champions League were powerful tools for the country’s global image and gained Vladimir Putin prestige among the Russian population.Howev...

A delegation from Ukraine has arrived at its border with Belarus for talks with Russian delegates in a bid to stop the war, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office said on Monday.The main objective of the talks is to seek an immediate ceasefire and f...

Parts of Australia’s third-most populous city Brisbane were under water on Monday after heavy rain brought record flooding to some east coast areas and killed at least eight people.The flooding in Brisbane and its surrounds is the worst since 2011 ...

When Dr Liang Wannian sets foot in Hong Kong on Monday, he will be the highest-ranking Beijing health official coming to help manage the worsening fifth wave of Covid-19 infections.As a key architect of China’s “zero-Covid” strategy, Liang has ...

A pilot programme in Hong Kong to treat young patients with rare diseases at home has helped to avoid sending them to hospital during the Covid-19 pandemic.Fifteen patients under the age of 18 with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other rare conditi...

North Korea said it held an “important” test for a reconnaissance satellite over the weekend, in its first launch of a ballistic missile since late January.The launch that took place on Sunday helped confirm the characteristics and working accura...

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing.The worsening fifth wave of Covid-19 infections has shredded Hong Kong’s long-standing rule book on testing,...

This year sees the 50th anniversary of my arrival in Hong Kong. In all those years, I cannot recall seeing many things as striking as the events of the past few weeks. The central government has taken direct control of a major area of social policy a...

The number of births in Hong Kong hit a record low last year, falling below 40,000 for the first time in more than five decades, with experts warning of wide-reaching implications for the city’s ageing population.They said the trend would result in...

For well over a year, fear of becoming the target of office gossip or upsetting his employer caused Junya Ozawa to hide his relationship with a work colleague.“We just decided that it would be easier if other people in the company didn’t know,”...

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that immediate family members will be able to join Ukrainians settled in the UK as they flee the Russian invasion.The move comes after his government faced intense criticism over failing to relax the...

The bodies of residents who died from Covid-19 are being stored on gurneys in hallways or beds inside accident and emergency departments at public hospitals as mortuaries approach capacity in Hong Kong.David Chan Kwok-shing, a representative of the H...

Chinese authorities have called for caution over online comments about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine amid concerns that public internet sentiment stoked anger towards citizens abroad.The conflict is hotly debated on Chinese social media, with some i...

Ukraine launched a case against Russia at the United Nations’ highest court accusing Moscow of planning genocide and asking the court to intervene to halt the invasion and order Russia to pay reparations, the court said Sunday.The case, filed on Sa...

Mention Bangladesh and for most Australians, what comes to mind is cricket, where both are fierce rivals in international competition. But Canberra is seeking to change that, with Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne announcing earlier this month...

Fifa drew a swift backlash from European nations for not immediately expelling Russia from World Cup qualifying and only ordering the country to play without its flag and anthem at neutral venues under the name of its federation – the Football Unio...

The largest plane in the world – Ukraine’s Antonov-225 cargo plane – was destroyed by Russian strikes outside Kyiv on the fourth day of Moscow’s invasion, Ukraine’s state-owned Ukroboronprom group said on Sunday.“Russian invaders destroye...

Leading Republicans spent much of three days avoiding Donald Trump’s chief grievances or ignoring him altogether as they unified behind a midterm message designed to win back the voters the polarising former president alienated while in office.That...

Nepal’s parliament on Sunday approved a contentious US$500 million aid grant from the United States despite protests both inside the legislature and on the streets.The government was able to convince enough lawmakers to approve the proposal followi...

Taliban forces have arrested dozens of criminals, kidnappers and smugglers in operations across Kabul, a Taliban government spokesman said on Sunday.The clearance operations began in the capital and neighbouring provinces two days ago, and will conti...

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Sunday that it was calling an extraordinary meeting of its board of governors next week “to discuss the current situation in Ukraine”.The meeting will begin at 11am local time on Wednesday at ...

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sparked diplomatic and economic chaos around the world. Amid intensified sanctions and concerns about Russia’s gas supply to Europe, the world seems to be scrambling to respond to a crisis quickly spiralling out o...

The World Health Organization on Sunday called for a safe corridor through Poland to deliver critical medical aid to Ukraine and warned that hospital oxygen supplies in the country were dangerously low.WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Europe ...

New Zealand on Sunday reported almost 15,000 community infections of Covid-19, shattering the previous case count record for the sixth day in a row amid an Omicron outbreak.Over the course of the past week, the number of newly detected Covid-19 commu...

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global, which remains under a cybersecurity investigation by Beijing, has back-pedalled on its earlier decision to cease operations in Russia at a time when Western allies have started to close ranks against Moscow’s...

Malaysia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said the evacuation of its diplomatic staff in the under-siege Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Saturday was part of a detailed plan previously endorsed by the country’s top leaders, and refuted claims that ...

Desperate mother Shanice Ho made an emotional request for help in a support group on Facebook on Sunday morning after her daughters, aged five and six, returned positive results for Covid-19 using rapid antigen test kits and developed fevers of 40 de...

Hong Kong’s construction sector can expect a supply of about 27,000 semi-skilled and skilled workers in coming years as part of a HK$1 billion (US$128.05 million) plan to boost training and personnel for a looming building boom, a government offici...

A 49-year-old Chinese Covid-19 patient has been accused of breaching pandemic control measures by repeatedly using an office building lift unmasked, according to health authorities in the southern border city of Shenzhen.The property management compa...

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz addressed parliament in a special session on Sunday to explain a decision to reverse years of arms export policies, and allow direct weapons deliveries to Ukraine.The German government decided on Saturday to supply the U...

More than a year has passed since the G20 launched a debt restructure plan to help potential defaulters but developing countries have yet to see the benefits – something the US and multilateral groups are blaming on China.The Group of 20 wealthy na...

The finance chief has called on leading landlords in Hong Kong to provide rent relief to struggling businesses so they can better ride out the Covid-19 health crisis.The appeal by Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po on Sunday came a day after Chief E...

A top Chinese epidemiologist who heads the mainland’s government panel of experts on the coronavirus will arrive in Hong Kong on Monday to advise the city as daily infections reached a new record of over 26,000 cases and the death toll rose to 83.T...

Beijing’s top envoy in Kyiv has warned that a planned evacuation of its citizens in Ukraine had to be delayed and urged people to take all safety precautions in “a period of high security risks”.The Chinese embassy earlier said it would arrange...

At least once a week, Satish Mishra, 54, and his Delhi-based family of five dine in a multi-cuisine restaurant that offers not only South Indian and Mughlai food on their menu, but also pizza, Chinese, and Continental cuisine.Service is quick and eff...

Rescuers on Indonesia’s Sumatra island retrieved more bodies Sunday from a strong earthquake two days ago, raising the death toll to 11 while another 400 were injured and thousands displaced.The body of the latest victim was recovered from the rubb...

Japan should discuss a possible sharing of nuclear weapons similar to that of Nato members in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Sunday.Nato’s nuclear sharing arrangements let the US keep its nucle...

A research team in China say they can rapidly accelerate the ageing process of Chinese liquor, achieving in minutes what would otherwise take at least two years to do.And the equipment to do it can be found in almost any kitchen: a glass jar, timer, ...