A move by Pyongyang to sever ties with Malaysia, following the extradition of a North Korean national to the United States on money-laundering charges, could be aimed at testing the administration of US President Joe Biden, according to analysts.Pyongyang announced on Friday that it was cutting diplomatic ties after a Malaysian Federal Court panel earlier this month threw out an appeal by the North Korean, Mun Chol-myong, to stop the extradition.Mun faces four charges of money laundering in the…
‘They are shooting at our kids’ heads’: in Myanmar, a dead 17-year-old’s family mourns the loss of hope
Through the haze of grief and pain, there is one moment of clarity to which the family of Khant Nyar Hein keep returning: they have lost everything since they lost him.The 17-year-old, a first-year medical student, was killed by Myanmar security forces on Sunday, one of the more than 224 residents of Southeast Asia’s poorest nation who have died while opposing the February 1 military coup that unseated the democratic government of Aung San Suu Kyi.After his funeral on Tuesday, Khant’s family,…
‘Work still to be done’ to prepare for UK pensions dashboard introduction
Royal Assent of the UK’s Pension Schemes Act 2021 marks another step closer to a pensions industry supported by dashboard infrastructure. By 2023 pensions businesses will need to be ready to participate in dashboards as either suppliers of information or dashboard operators or both.
Russian foreign minister to visit China hard on heels of Alaska talks
The United States is expected to be high on the agenda when top diplomats from China and Russia meet next week, just days after much-anticipated talks between Beijing and Washington.The Chinese foreign ministry said on Thursday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov would be in China on a two-day visit from Monday at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.Wang and Communist Party Politburo member Yang Jiechi are in Alaska for talks on Thursday and Friday with US Secretary of…
Coronavirus: Tokyo’s state of emergency to end; Palau eyes travel bubble with Taiwan
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the state of emergency in the Tokyo region would end on Sunday, after targets for relieving strain on the health care system were reached, even as coronavirus cases in the capital rose slightly.Suga on Thursday said the government would monitor the situation to prevent a fresh surge in infections, as he set an end to the measure that had been in place for more than two months in a region home to about 36 million people.“The number of new cases is flat…
Singapore and Australia discussing travel bubble
Singapore and Australia are considering creating an air travel bubble to allow residents of the two countries to travel without the need for quarantine.
In South Korea, Austin and Blinken continue US message of countering China’s ‘coercion and aggression’
The United States has continued with its message of countering Beijing’s “coercion and aggression” as Secretary of State Antony Blinken and defence secretary Lloyd Austin held one-on-one meetings with their counterparts in Seoul, a day after similar sessions in Japan.But South Korea, which counts China as its biggest economic partner, kept the focus strictly on the importance of its alliance with the US in deterring nuclear-armed North Korea and seeking a revival of talks with Pyongyang that…
Suspend Myanmar from Asean if military won’t back down: lawmakers
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations must suspend Myanmar if its military rulers refuse to restore democracy and release civilian leaders from custody following February’s coup, six prominent past and present regional lawmakers said on Wednesday.The joint statement – initiated by Cambodia’s exiled opposition leader Sam Rainsy – said regional governments in the 10-nation bloc needed to abandon “the old doctrine of non-interference” in the affairs of other Asean members, and instead explore…
Malaysia shortlists 823MW of large-scale solar bidders
Malaysia’s Energy Commission has announced the shortlisted bidders after it made a request for proposals for 1 gigawatt (GW) of solar projects in the fourth round of its large-scale solar (LSS) programme.
Malaysia’s Anwar denies ‘compromise’ in talks with Najib’s Umno
Malaysia’s opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday sought to defuse dissent among supporters over a purported plan to join forces in upcoming polls with rivals such as the ex-leader Najib Razak, saying talks remained at a preliminary stage.Anwar’s supporters have reacted with consternation after the 73-year-old said in a weekend interview that his Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) and Najib’s United Malays National Organisation (Umno) shared fundamental goals.Those comments stood in sharp contrast…