India and Japan will “shape the Asian Century”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday, on a visit expected to secure billions of dollars in Japanese investment and an upgrade to security ties.
“India and Japan’s partnership is strategic and smart. Powered by economic logic, we have turned shared interests into shared prosperity,” Modi told a business forum in Tokyo.
“India is the springboard for Japanese businesses to the Global South. We will shape the Asian Century for stability, growth,…
Groundhog day as Thai court sacks PM and Shinawatra clan runs out of options
Thailand’s constitutional court dismissed Paetongtarn Shinawatra as prime minister on Friday for breaching ethics in a call with Cambodia’s former leader, a ruling that tips the country into uncertainty and lands a hammer blow to the ambitions of her political dynasty.
Paetongtarn, 39, the daughter of divisive but influential billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra, becomes the second leader in two years from the Pheu Thai-led coalition to be removed for an ethics breach by the same bench.
The nine-judge…
ABC returns to Beijing after 5 years as Australia-China ties improve
Australia’s public broadcaster said on Thursday it will again base a correspondent in China, five years after two journalists fled the country under diplomatic protection as bilateral ties soured.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) Bill Birtles and Australian Financial Review correspondent Michael Smith were rushed out of the country in September 2020 after Chinese police conducted midnight raids on their homes and sought to question them.
The broadcaster said it had been “eager to…
Will lifestyle checks on Philippine agencies stem flood corruption?
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr has ordered lifestyle checks on government officials as part of a sweeping review of flood control projects mired in allegations of corruption, but analysts warn the move risks being more symbolic than systemic.
Presidential press officer Claire Castro confirmed the directive at a briefing on Wednesday, saying the checks would cover the entire executive branch, starting with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which oversees…
UPC extends remit to non-EU companies
Non-EU companies with European representatives will need to account for a new ruling that has asserted the Unified Patents Court’s jurisdiction outside Europe, an expert has revealed.
Philippines warns China not to cross ‘red line’ over grounded warship
The Philippines has warned China that any attempt to board or tow away its grounded warship at the Second Thomas Shoal would be crossing a “red line” after Manila detected a sharp rise in Chinese maritime activity around the disputed feature in the South China Sea.
Philippine Navy Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, spokesman for West Philippine Sea operations, told reporters on Tuesday that the military was closely monitoring a surge in Chinese maritime activity near the shoal, including the…
Foreigners in Bali told to carry passports at all times amid visa crackdown
Foreign visitors to Bali are being reminded to carry their passports whenever they go out, with videos posted by local immigration authorities showing officers telling tourists to keep travel documents on them during intensified spot checks across the Indonesian resort island.
The reminders come amid a broader crackdown on visa violations after authorities reported a rise in offences earlier this year, with Indonesia introducing new measures to monitor foreigners more closely and ensure…
Indonesian minister’s arrest tests Prabowo’s anti-corruption pledge
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s pledge to stamp out corruption is facing its first major test after a deputy minister was arrested, as speculation mounts over a possible reshuffle of his 110-member “jumbo” cabinet.
Immanuel Ebenezer was swiftly fired by Prabowo following his arrest by the Corruption Eradication Commission on suspicion of receiving kickbacks and extortion. He is the first member of Prabowo’s cabinet to be named a suspect in a corruption investigation.
The arrest…
Philippine police chief sacked after just 84 days in record-short tenure
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr has dismissed national police chief Nicolas Torre III after just 84 days in the role, following a dispute over authority within the force stemming from his defiance of the National Police Commission.
The move ends the brief, high-profile tenure of a police chief who had led headline-grabbing arrests and become a public figure in his own right.
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin announced Torre’s removal in a brief two-paragraph order on Monday evening…
‘Good news’ for pharma companies as UPC provides clarity on imminent infringement
An appeal ruling overturning a decision to allow rival medical treatments to be sold early will be welcomed by pharmaceutical firms for providing clarity as to activities that may constitute imminent infringement of a patent, experts have said.