Category Archives: Asia Pacific

Kim Jong-un’s bellicose stance could signal conflict, or his preference for a President Trump

Posted on by

North Korea’s leader has increased his displays of military aggression but analysts are split on whether it’s a sign of electoral interference or a war footing

When a highly militarised dictatorship fires artillery shells in the direction of its neighbour, which it has just denounced as its “greatest enemy”, then tests cruise missiles and underwater nuclear attack drones, it is reasonable to believe that armed conflict could follow.

But when that country is North Korea, conventional geopolitical punditry is often left wanting.

Continue reading...

Duterte calls Philippine president ‘a drug addict’ as rift deepens

Posted on by

Ferdinand Marcos Jr hits back with fentanyl insult amid breakdown in relations between political families

The former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte accused his successor, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, of being a drug addict who risked being ousted from office in an expletive-laden tirade that underlined the breakdown in relations between the two powerful political families.

Duterte’s speech on Sunday, in which he claimed Marcos Jr’s allies were trying to remove constitutional term limits so they could cling to power, follows long-running speculation about hostilities between the families.

Continue reading...

Papua New Guinea in talks with China on security cooperation, foreign minister says

Posted on by

Justin Tkachenko says they are in ‘early stages of negotiation’ with Beijing on its offer to assist with police and security

Papua New Guinea is in early talks with China on a potential security and policing deal, the country’s foreign minister Justin Tkachenko has said, weeks after deadly riots in the country’s capital.

Amid jostling between Washington and Beijing for influence in the Pacific, the biggest Pacific Islands nation, Papua New Guinea (PNG), has previously said Australia and the United States are its security partners, while China is an important economic partner.

Continue reading...

British Base jumper dies in 29-storey fall in Thailand

Posted on by

Nathy Odinson, 33, had parachute problem after climbing up building in Pattaya and jumping off

A British Base jumper has died after his parachute failed to open during a stunt in Thailand.

Nathy Odinson, 33, from Cambridgeshire, who had performed skydives and Base jumps around the world, is said to have illegally climbed up a 29-storey building in the coastal resort of Pattaya and jumped off on Saturday night.

Continue reading...

Amazon’s Expats series not available in Hong Kong, where it is set

Posted on by

First two episodes inaccessible to viewers in city, with some attributing censorship to umbrella protest scenes

Amazon’s big-ticket series Expats, set and filmed in Hong Kong, is not available for viewing in the city despite being billed as a worldwide release.

The first two episodes of the drama, starring Nicole Kidman and directed by The Farewell’s Lulu Wang, were released on Friday but listed as “currently unavailable” for viewers in Hong Kong. The series, based on a 2016 novel, The Expatriates, focuses on the lives of three American women in Hong Kong.

Continue reading...

Evergrande collapse: Hong Kong court orders liquidation of China property giant

Posted on by

Judge says ‘enough is enough’ after developer, which has $300bn in debt, fails to provide convincing restructuring plan

Embattled Chinese development company, Evergrande, has been ordered to liquidate by a Hong Kong court after an 18-month long hearing.

Evergrande, which holds the ignominious title of the world’s most indebted property developer with about $300bn in liabilities, failed to convince the court that it had a viable restructuring plan, after having been given seven extensions since court proceedings were first brought in June 2022. However it can still appeal.

Continue reading...

Japan’s Slim moon lander overcomes power crisis to start scientific operations

Posted on by

Moon probe starts taking pictures of lunar surface after bumpy landing left its solar cells pointing in the wrong direction

Japan’s Moon lander has resumed operations, the country’s space agency said on Monday, indicating that power had been restored after it was left upside down during a slightly haphazard landing.

The probe, nicknamed the “moon sniper”, had tumbled down a crater slope during its landing on 20 January, leaving its solar batteries facing in the wrong direction and unable to generate electricity.

Continue reading...

Chinese courts to rule on Hong Kong commercial disputes under new law

Posted on by

Legislation will further erode differences between legal systems of Hong Kong and mainland

A new law giving Chinese courts the authority to enforce rulings in commercial disputes in Hong Kong comes into effect on Monday, further reducing the barriers between the Hong Kong and Chinese legal systems.

The law puts into effect an agreement signed between China’s supreme people’s court and the government of Hong Kong in 2019 and is designed to reduce the need for re-litigation in civil and commercial disputes, in cases where there is a connection to mainland China.

Continue reading...

North Korea fires cruise missiles off east coast, says South Korea

Posted on by

South Korean military says it is analysing the launch along with US intelligence authorities

North Korea has fired multiple cruise missiles off an eastern military port, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff have said.

The missiles were launched about 8am (2300 GMT Saturday) and were being analysed by South Korean and US intelligence authorities, South Korea said, without specifying how many missiles were fired.

Continue reading...

Tuvalu’s pro-Taiwan prime minister Kausea Natano loses seat in partial election results

Posted on by

The results fuel concern that the micronation could switch diplomatic recognition to Beijing, as votes continue to be counted

The pro-Taiwan leader of the Pacific islands nation of Tuvalu, Kausea Natano, has lost his seat according to partial election results.

The vote is being closely watched by Taiwan, China and the United States, amid speculation the micronation could be poised to switch diplomatic recognition to Beijing.

Continue reading...

Thai woman charged over lion cub filmed cruising resort in Bentley

Posted on by

Sawangjit Kosoognern charged with illegal possession after video showing animal being driven around Pattaya gains 2.6m views

A Thai woman has been charged with illegal possession of a lion cub, police said on Friday, after a video of the animal cruising in a Bentley went viral online.

The police ordered an investigation after a video showing a lion cub riding around the raucous Thai resort town of Pattaya in a Bentley gained more than 2.6m views online.

Continue reading...

Indonesian fruit picker landed in debt bondage challenges Home Office

Posted on by

Exclusive: Test case likely against UK’s seasonal worker scheme as charity alleges breach of right to be protected from labour exploitation

When Ismael found himself sleeping rough at York station in the late October cold he struggled to understand how an opportunity to pick berries 7,000 miles from his home had so quickly ended there.

He had left Indonesia less than four months earlier, in July 2022. He was 18 and ready for six months of hard work on a British farm to save for a science degree. “I thought the UK was the best place to work because I could save up a little money and help my parents,” he said.

Continue reading...

Tuvalu goes to the polls in election watched by China and Taiwan

Posted on by

One candidate has said he wants to review the Pacific country’s relationships with Taiwan and China, just weeks after Nauru switched allegiances to Beijing

Voting has started in the tiny Pacific island nation of Tuvalu, in a national election that could reverberate from China to Australia, amid a tussle for influence in the region.

With just over 11,500 people spread across nine islands, Tuvalu is one of the smallest nations in the world, but the election for the 16-seat parliament was being closely watched. After the vote count, parliamentary negotiations will form a new government and elect the prime minister. Polls opened at 8am and were to close at 4pm.

Continue reading...

Suspect, 14, hospitalised after rock attack on politician in South Korea

Posted on by

Boy sent to mental health facility after Bae Hyun-jin left with cuts to her head from attack in Seoul

A 14-year-old boy who attacked a South Korean lawmaker with a rock has been sent to a mental health facility, police have said, as they continued to investigate the incident that left the politician, Bae Hyun-jin, with cuts to her head.

The suspect was arrested at the scene of the attack in southern Seoul on Friday and sent to a hospital after he was interviewed in the presence of his parents, said Cheon Young-gil, an official at Seoul’s Gangnam district police station.

Continue reading...

Kyoto anime studio fire: Japanese man sentenced to death for arson attack that killed 36

Posted on by

Japan media reported Shinji Aoba held a grudge against the studio when he doused the entrance in petrol and set it ablaze in 2019

A court in Japan has sentenced to death a man convicted of murdering 36 people in an arson attack on an animation studio in 2019.

The attack on Kyoto Animation, better known as KyoAni, sent shock waves through Japan, where violent crime is rare, and stunned fans of the studio’s output around the world.

Continue reading...

Women in Japan allowed to take part in ‘naked festival’ for first time

Posted on by

Women will take part in the hadaka matsuri in Inazawa, in which thousands of men dressed in next to nothing drive away evil spirits

Women in Japan have been permitted to take part in an ancient ceremony, known as the naked festival, for the first time in the event’s history, albeit with modifications.

Every February, thousands of men dressed in next to nothing take part in the hadaka matsuri at a Shinto shrine in Inazawa, a town in central Japan, to drive away evil spirits over the coming year.

Continue reading...

China announces 0.5% cut in banks’ minimum reserves

Posted on by

Biggest reduction since December 2021 will allow 1tn more yuan to be released in form of new loans

China’s central bank has announced a surprise cut to the amount of cash that banks must hold in reserve, hoping to boost the lending available to households and businesses as policymakers try to steer the economy through a fragile recovery.

Pan Gongsheng, the governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), said on Wednesday that the reserve requirement ratio would be cut by 0.5% from 5 February, the deepest cut to the rate since December 2021. The move will allow about 1tn yuan (£110.8bn) to be released in the form of new loans.

Continue reading...

Thai court rejects claim opposition MP violated election law

Posted on by

Pita Limjaroenrat’s party was blocked from taking power last year after complaints led to his suspension

Thailand’s constitutional court has ruled that an anti-establishment opposition figure whose party was blocked from taking power last year did not violate election law and can be reinstated as an MP.

The court rejected a complaint brought against Pita Limjaroenrat by conservative politicians that he had violated election law by owning shares in a media company.

Continue reading...

North Korea demolishes symbol of hope for reunification with South – report

Posted on by

The Arch of Reunification – built in 2000 after a landmark inter-Korean summit – has disappeared from satellite imagery

North Korea has demolished a monument that symbolised hope for reconciliation with the South, days after the regime’s leader, Kim Jong-un, said the peaceful reunification of the two Koreas was no longer possible.

In the latest sign of rising tensions on the peninsula, the Arch of Reunification – built in 2000 after a landmark inter-Korean summit – has disappeared from satellite imagery, according to the NK News website. It was not immediately clear when or how it had been taken down, NK News said.

Continue reading...

China’s human rights record criticised at UN as it faces rare scrutiny of policies

Posted on by

UK, US and others use universal periodic review to speak out over Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong

The UK, the US and several other countries criticised China’s human rights record on Tuesday as the country was subjected to rare scrutiny of its policies at the United Nations.

The UK called on China to “cease the persecution and arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and Tibetans and allow genuine freedom of religion or belief and cultural expression without fear of surveillance, torture, forced labour or sexual violence”, while the US said China should “release all arbitrarily detained individuals” and cease the operation of “forcible assimilation policies including boarding schools in Tibet and Xinjiang”.

Continue reading...