China

Koror, Palau — When Palau passed a law to close off 80% of its oceans to fishing in 2015, the tiny pacific nation became a global leader in conservation. Palau’s national marine sanctuary is one of the largest in the world. But now, that legacy is being tested with a government proposed plan to expand fishing in the waters from 20% to 50%, effectively shrinking the …

BEIJING — China and the Vatican have agreed to extend an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in the communist country for a period of four years, the two parties said on Tuesday.   The Vatican struck a landmark deal with the Beijing government in 2018. The agreement, which was previously renewed every two years, gives Chinese officials some input into who Pope Francis appoints as …

Lee Hsien Yang, the youngest son of the founder of modern Singapore Lee Kuan Yew, said on Tuesday he is now a political refugee from Singapore under the U.N. Refugee Convention. In a Facebook post, Lee, the estranged brother of former premier Lee Hsien Loong, said Britain has determined he faces “a well-founded risk of persecution, and cannot safely return to Singapore.” “I sought asylum …

HONG KONG — China’s National Health Commission (NHC) published its first set of guidelines to standardize the diagnosis and treatment of obesity, with more than half of China’s adults already overweight and obese, and the rate expected to keep rising. The guidelines, made public on October 17, come as China experiences an upward morbidity trend of its overweight and obese population. The rate of overweight or …

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet with Israeli leaders Tuesday as he makes a push to revive stalled Gaza cease-fire talks, enable greater humanitarian access to Gaza and deescalate the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Making his 11th visit to the region since the conflict in Gaza erupted in October 2023, Blinken’s schedule Tuesday includes talks with Israeli Prime …

New Delhi — After four years of heightened tensions and disrupted economic ties, India and China have agreed on a return to 2020 border patrol arrangements along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Himalayas, India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar announced Monday.   The agreement marks a significant step toward resolving a simmering border conflict that in 2020 saw clashes between their militaries in the …

Manama, Bahrain — Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa received Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in the Gulf state’s capital Manama on Monday, state media reported, amid fears of conflict potentially spreading across the Middle East. The pair “discussed bilateral cooperation and the latest regional developments, focusing on efforts to de-escalate tensions and reach peaceful solutions,” according to the official Bahrain News Agency. Araghchi has …

washington — The General Assembly of the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) is set to begin Thursday, following months of ongoing harassment from the Chinese government that the top Uyghur organization has described as “unprecedented.” In the months leading up to the group’s eighth general assembly, which takes place this year in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Uyghur organization has endured numerous efforts to derail or even …

Manila, Philippines — A Philippine court has convicted and sentenced to life 17 Islamic militants for kidnapping for ransom 21 people, including European tourists and Asian workers, from a dive resort in Malaysia more than two decades ago, officials said Monday. The Filipino militants belonged to the small but violent Abu Sayyaf group. Among those convicted by the Regional Trial Court in Taguig city, a suburb …

MANILA, Philippines — The U.S. Army’s recent deployment of a midrange missile system to the northern Philippines was “incredibly important” and allowed American and Filipino forces to jointly train for the potential usage of such heavy weaponry in Asian archipelago conditions, a U.S. general said Monday.  The Biden administration has moved to strengthen an arc of military alliances in the Indo-Pacific to better counter China, including …

Jerusalem — Israel’s security services have broken up a spy ring that was gathering information on behalf of Iranian intelligence in the latest attempt by Tehran to recruit Israelis for espionage, the Shin Bet and police said on Monday. Seven Israelis from Israel’s north, including the port city of Haifa, were arrested after an investigation found they had gathered intelligence on Israeli military bases and energy …

U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein was in Beirut Monday for talks aimed at trying to bring a resolution to the conflict along the Israel-Lebanon border, part of a diplomatic push that is also bringing Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the region in search of a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.  Hochstein told reporters he had a “constructive” meeting with Nabih Berri, the speaker of Lebanon’s …

HANOI — Vietnam’s parliament elected on Monday army general Luong Cuong as the new state president in a widely anticipated move that is expected to bring some stability to Vietnamese politics after a turbulent phase of departures and reshuffles. Cuong, 67, takes over the role from To Lam, who was appointed president of the Communist-run, one-party country in May and then also took on the more …

SINGAPORE — Political risks due to potential loss of public support over rising power tariffs are a major impediment to transitioning to cleaner electricity sources, ministers from New Zealand and Cambodia told an energy industry event on Monday. “It’s incredibly important to take the public with you, given that end of the day, they have to believe that what you’re doing is enhancing their lives,” Shane …

JAKARTA, INDONESIA — Indonesia’s new President Prabowo Subianto will take his cabinet members on a three-day retreat at a military academy nestled in a Javanese mountain range, where they will sleep in tents, an unusual start for a government in the Southeast Asian country. Former special force commander Prabowo was sworn in as Indonesia’s eighth president on Sunday, taking over from Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to lead …

Beirut — Lebanese state media reported Israeli strikes Sunday on branches of a Hezbollah-linked financial association, including near the country’s only airport, after the Israeli military warned it would attack Al-Qard Al-Hassan’s branches. The strikes mark an expansion of the Israeli campaign against Iran-backed group Hezbollah after a year of cross-border exchanges that escalated in late September into a full-blown war. Lebanon’s official National News Agency …

JAKARTA — Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced his Cabinet late Sunday, hours after he was inaugurated.  The lineup of 109 ministers, vice ministers and head of national agencies was the largest in the country’s history, and he named it the “Red and White Cabinet,” referring to the colors of Indonesia’s national flag.  Prabowo became the eighth president of Southeast Asia’s largest economy on Sunday.  The Cabinet …

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Sunday he had ordered his ministry to start legal proceedings against French President Emmanuel Macron after Paris banned Israeli firms from participating in an upcoming military naval trade show. The decision to bar Israeli firms is the latest incident in a row fueled by the Macron government’s unease over Israel’s conduct in the wars in Gaza and Lebanon. …

Jerusalem — Fighting raged on two fronts Sunday as Israel targeted what it said was a Hezbollah “command center” in the Lebanese capital, while in Gaza rescuers reported 73 people killed in a single airstrike. The strikes on Hezbollah’s south Beirut stronghold came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the Iran-backed group of attempting to assassinate him by targeting his residence. It also came as …

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand lawmakers unanimously voted Wednesday to exempt victims of domestic violence from a mandatory two-year separation period before divorce can be sought. The required cooling-off period before a couple in New Zealand can file for divorce — during which they must also live apart — is the longest among no-fault divorce laws in comparable countries, including Australia, Britain, Canada and most …

Arbil, Iraq — Voters in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region headed to the polls Sunday to elect a new parliament for the oil-rich region, where voters have expressed disenchantment with the political elite. Iraqi Kurdistan presents itself as a relative oasis of stability in the turbulent Middle East, attracting foreign investors due to its close ties with the United States and Europe. However, activists and opposition figures …

tokyo — Japan’s beloved former Empress Michiko received greetings from her relatives and palace officials to celebrate her 90th birthday Sunday as she steadily recovers from a broken leg, officials said. Michiko is the first commoner to become empress in modern Japanese history. Catholic-educated Michiko Shoda and then-Crown Prince Akihito married on April 10, 1959, after what is known as their tennis court romance. The couple …

WASHINGTON — The U.S. is investigating an unauthorized release of classified documents that assess Israel’s plans to attack Iran, three U.S. officials told The Associated Press. A fourth U.S. official said the documents appear to be legitimate. The documents are attributed to the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency and note that Israel continues to move military assets in place to conduct a military …

JAKARTA, indonesia — Indonesia’s Prabowo Subianto on Sunday will take over as president of the world’s third-largest democracy after sweeping the country’s election with policies like free meals for school children and with the outgoing leader’s son as his running mate. The 73-year-old former special forces commander won the February 14 contest with nearly 60% of the vote and has spent the past nine months building …