NAYPYITAW — China and Japan are forging ahead with independent plans to improve Myanmar’s transportation infrastructure, with projects that have the potential to alter the flow of people and goods in the region. Beijing on Thursday inked a long-awaited deal to build a deep-water port in the town of Kyaukpyu on the Indian Ocean. The port will be a crucial… Read more »
Recently elected governor of Okinawa, Denny Tamaki, has vowed to resolve to US military base dispute on the island of Okinawa. Since 1945 after World War II the United States military has maintained its presence in Japan and more specifically on the island of Okinawa where about half of the 54,000 Japanese stationed US soldiers are located. Near the end of the war,… Read more »
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s top court is due to rule on Tuesday on a damages lawsuit against a Japanese company filed by South Koreans forced into labour during Japan’s 1910-45 occupation, a decision that could unsettle ties between the uneasy neighbours. Japan and South Korea share a bitter history that includes Japan’s 35-year occupation of the peninsula and the… Read more »
KABUL (Reuters) – An Afghan army helicopter crashed in southwestern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing 25 crew and passengers, provincial officials said. Naser Mehri, a spokesman for the governor of western Farah province, said two army helicopters were on their way to neighbouring Herat province when one lost control. He said the aircraft crashed in bad weather. A Taliban spokesman said… Read more »
Tehreek-e-Labaik (TLP) said talks with the government have failed, and called upon its followers to get ready for a show down. “Talks have completely failed, Federal and provincial representatives and an Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) General Faiz took part in talks,” Khadim Hussain Rizvi, the leader of TLP said in a tweet early on Friday morning.
Pakistan’s foreign reserves have plunged 42 percent since the start of the year and now stand at about $8 billion, or less than two months of import cover. Last month, Pakistan received a $6 billion rescue package from Saudi Arabia, but officials say it is not enough and the country still plans to seek a bailout from the International Monetary… Read more »
The service is professional, he says, though the paperwork he receives does not bear the name of state-owned power company Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat, which provides the electricity, but instead carries the printed logo of the Taliban. “Given the strictness of Taliban regarding implementation of their rules and regulations, I think they raise more from tax collection than the Afghan… Read more »
Hong Kong (AsiaNews) – As the trade war between Beijing and Washington continues, other Asian countries are trying to figure out its repercussions on their economies. Some have been negatively affected by China’s economic slowdown. At the end of October, some PMI indices (which measure economic growth in various sectors) showed a drop in manufacturing activity in Taiwan, Malaysia and Thailand. Even in… Read more »
Rome (AsiaNews) – Chinese authorities tore down two shrines dedicated to Our Lady. One is Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows in Dongergou (Shanxi), and the other is Our Lady of Bliss (pictured), also known as Our Lady of the Mountain, in Anlong (Guizhou). The two pilgrimage sites, used by both official and underground communities, were demolished just a few… Read more »
China on Tuesday issued an ardent defence of the alleged mass internment of minorities in its far west Xinjiang region, with a regional official insisting that authorities are saving Muslims from the lure of religious extremism. Beijing has sought to counter a global outcry against the facilities with a series of op-eds and interviews and a roll out of new… Read more »