India on Thursday pledged US$500 million to build bridges and causeways in the Maldives, as New Delhi seeks to counter growing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean.The Maldives borrowed billions of dollars from Beijing and hired Chinese firms for infrastructure projects under previous President Abdulla Yameen.India and the US over China: Maldives picks a side in Indian OceanThis stoked concerns in India and the West that China was saddling countries in Asia and beyond with unsustainable debts…
Lee family feud: Lee Suet Fern’s legal misconduct case goes to appellate court
A special panel of senior Singapore judges on Thursday heard arguments in the legal misconduct case against the daughter-in-law of the country’s late independence leader Lee Kuan Yew, in a matter that is seen as a key issue in the bitter public quarrel among the late patriarch’s heirs.The Court of Three Judges, led by Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, was convened to hear an appeal lodged by Lee Suet Fern, the wife of Lee Kuan Yew’s youngest child Lee Hsien Yang, following a disciplinary tribunal…
As India celebrates Joe Biden’s running mate Kamala Harris, a question over China and regrets over Namaste Trump
A wave of excitement and a ripple of anxiety went through India when the US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden announced Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate. The excitement is because Harris, who is of Indian-Jamaican origin, is the first Asian-American to appear on a major party’s presidential ticket; the anxiety is about the fate of India-US ties under a Biden presidency. Harris’ family history has made her popular with the Indian public, with celebrities, industrialists and…
China’s exports to show ‘remarkable’ rise despite coronavirus and US decoupling threat, customs chief says
China will eventually gain a bigger share of total global exports regardless of the impact of the coronavirus on foreign demand and threats of decoupling from the United States, according to the head of the country’s customs administration.Having seen its global exports rise by 0.1 percentage points in the first four months of 2020, according to General Administration of Customs Minister Ni Yuefeng, China’s share of global merchandise exports is expected to rise further even though global trade…
China-India border talks stall, sparking calls for Modi to get tough on Beijing
As the border stand-off between Indian and Chinese troops in the Himalayan region of Ladakh enters its 15th week, with little indication of a breakthrough in talks, criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration is brewing in New Delhi.Unhappy at what they see as India’s overly cautious approach, a group of military veterans and analysts are increasingly calling for the Modi administration to get tough on Beijing.The prolonged stand-off could end up “constricting” India’s military…
Singapore begins destroying US$13 million of ivory ahead of World Elephant Day
Singapore started crushing nine tonnes worth of elephant ivory on Tuesday, in what authorities said was the biggest such event globally in recent years and signalled the island nation’s fight against illegal trade in wildlife.The city state, a nautical way point in shipments of banned animal products between Africa and Asia, is destroying tusks worth an estimated S$18 million (US$13 million), including a record 8.8-tonne seizure last year which authorities said came from nearly 300 African…
South China Sea: Philippine navy chief warns of Chinese ‘provocation’
The Philippine navy chief has called for a diplomatic protest to be filed against the presence of two Chinese research ships in a disputed area of the South China Sea.Vice-Admiral Giovanni Bacordo told the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines on Monday the Chinese vessels had been near the Reed Bank for “about a week already” and that due to their speed of “about three knots” the navy had concluded they were “conducting surveys”.Explained: South China Sea dispute“We have…
Coronavirus a ‘test of competence’ for Philippine government, says Duterte critic Maria Ressa
The Philippine government’s priorities “have not focused enough” on containing the coronavirus pandemic, prominent journalist Maria Ressa has said, as the number of infections crossed 140,000.President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration has launched attacks on politicians and journalists, leading to a divided society, Ressa told Kyodo News in an interview.“It sees the problem by dividing society, by demonising people,” Ressa said. “Journalists are demonised. Opposition politicians are demonised…
Indian millennials escape big cities for more low-key small town lifestyles
Pradyumna Damani wakes up to the sight of coconut trees outside his windows and the sound of mooing cows on his dairy farm in the small village of Munnur on the South Indian coast. The 27-year-old’s day begins early, supervising the milking of cows, pasteurisation, packing and delivery.He runs his two-year-old company Fat Cow Dairy with his younger brother and they have more than 150 cows on 55 acres.The brothers are meticulous about sustainable farming, ensuring fresh grass for indigenous cows…
Plastic pollution plagues Southeast Asia amid Covid-19 lockdowns
Adam Reza is among those for whom environmental awareness took a back seat to health concerns during Malaysia’s national lockdown earlier this year to curb the spread of Covid-19. Despite making a conscious effort to be mindful, he estimates his use of plastics increased by up to 80 per cent as people were confined indoors for more than 90 days as the pandemic raged.“I’m not exactly a green conscious guy, but before the lockdown I did make a conscious effort to be mindful,” said management…