The best word to describe the past few days is nostalgic. North Korea backed out of talks with South Korea that were scheduled for this past Tuesday, it’s not going to resume talks with South Korea unless something is done about the joint military exercises currently going on, and it’s suggesting that it might pull out of the summit in… Read more »
Source: France24 China’s first domestically manufactured aircraft carrier started sea trials Sunday, state media said, a landmark in Beijing’s ambitious plans to modernise its navy as the Asian giant presses its claims in disputed regional waters. The carrier, known only as “Type 001A”, set out for the trials from a port in northeastern China at around 6.45 am (2245… Read more »
Source: BBC Reformist politician Anwar Ibrahim has hailed a “new dawn” for Malaysia on his release from prison, days after a stunning opposition election win. Mr Anwar told jubilant supporters he fully backed his ally and former rival, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed. Earlier he was pardoned from what was widely seen as a politically motivated conviction for sodomy. Mr Mahathir,… Read more »
Source: BBC Japan’s economy shrank in the first quarter of 2018 for the first time in two years, ending the longest stretch of economic growth since the 1980s. The world’s third biggest economy contracted at an annualised rate of 0.6%, official data showed. Expectations were for an annualised contraction of 0.2%. Private consumption and capital expenditure slowed during the January… Read more »
Source: BBC North Korea has cancelled Wednesday’s high-level talks with South Korea because of anger over its joint military exercises with the US. The North’s official KCNA news agency said the exercises were a “provocation” and a rehearsal for an invasion. It also warned the US over the fate of the historic summit between Kim Jong-un and US President Donald… Read more »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States has raised concerns with China about its latest militarization of the South China Sea and there will be near-term and long-term consequences, the White House said on Thursday. U.S. news network CNBC reported on Wednesday that China had installed anti-ship cruise missiles and surface-to-air missile systems on three outposts in the South China Sea…. Read more »
BEIJING (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un told a visiting Chinese diplomat on Thursday that he is committed to denuclearisation, China’s foreign ministry said, as diplomatic efforts to bring lasting peace to the Korean peninsula gather pace. China is North Korea’s most important economic and diplomatic backer, despite its anger at North Korea’ repeated nuclear and missile tests,… Read more »
Source: Al Jazeera Government luxury housing project draws ire of northern Thais with one of the largest protests since 2014 military coup. More than 1,000 people demonstrated in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai against the building of a government luxury housing project on forested land – one of the largest protests during the nearly four years of military… Read more »
Source: Al Jazeera With all sides guilty of abuses, it’s civilians who are the main victims and as the conflicts drag on, they and their communities continue to fall further behind. Myanmar‘s peace process with ethnic minority groups appears to be floundering because of a deteriorating relationship between the government and its military – or, perhaps, as some would say,… Read more »
If someone was told a year ago that North Korea would most likely end up in direct negotiations with the US and South Korea, they probably wouldn’t have believed it. Now, the peninsula is a week away from a summit between Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in, with reports about what will be discussed popping up every few days. The ones… Read more »