Asia

A senior US administration official says Washington will ship 2.5 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to Taiwan, more than tripling America’s previous allocation of shots for the island, amid increasing tensions with China. Washington is competing with Beijing to deepen geopolitical clout through so-called “vaccine diplomacy”, according to Reuters. The vaccines …

President Ashraf Ghani announced new defence and interior ministers as violence surges with the Taliban claiming more territory. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has replaced two top ministers charged with managing the country’s faltering security, as the Taliban presses on with their campaign to capture new territory in fierce battles with …

Supporters of Myanmar’s detained leader Aung San Suu Kyi wore flowers in their hair and paraded with them at street demonstrations on Saturday as she marked her 76th birthday locked up by the generals who overthrew her. Protests have been held almost daily in Myanmar since Suu Kyi was ousted …

Pakistan’s biggest province Balochistan has huge reserves of natural gas and the world’s largest stock of copper and gold. Despite its rich mineral wealth, the area’s population ranks among the nation’s poorest, also ranking low in literacy and other socio-economic measurements. Several were injured as opposition politicians and their supporters …

Afghanistan’s local media report that at least 100 members of the Taliban militant group and about 80 Afghan soldiers have been killed during clashes in a time span of 24 hours across the country. The TOLO News reported on Tuesday that fighting erupted in 70 districts across several provinces, including …

The European Union’s envoy for Afghanistan said on Wednesday time was running out for Afghan peace negotiations and more needed to be done to boost the discussions as international forces withdraw from the war-torn nation. The Afghan government and Taliban negotiators have met in Qatar’s capital Doha over the past …

At least 200,000 refugees are among the worst affected by India’s COVID-19 outbreak as they have no access to welfare schemes or free healthcare, a report by an international consortium of rights groups said on Wednesday. “The stateless in India have not received economic relief packages provided by the government…they …

Workers scaled a giant statue of a Buddhist goddess in Japan on Tuesday to place a custom-made mask on her face, an act meant to be a prayer for the end of the coronavirus pandemic. It took four workers three hours to carry the massive mask on ropes up the …

Indonesia’s geophysics agency warned on Wednesday of possible aftershocks and tsunami potential after a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit near the Moluccas islands, also known as the Maluku islands. The quake struck at a depth of 10 km (6.21 miles). There were no immediate reports of casualties. “Please move away from …

Macau’s government said on Wednesday it would suspend operations at its representative office in Taiwan, following in the footsteps of Hong Kong, which made a similar move last month in response to Taipei’s support for pro-democracy activists there. The gambling hub’s government said that The Macao Economic and Cultural Office …

China does not tolerate foreign forces intervening in Taiwan issues and has to make strong responses to such acts of “collusion”, the government said on Wednesday after the island reported the largest incursion to date of Chinese aircraft. Twenty-eight Chinese air force aircraft, including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers, entered Taiwan’s …

China said on Wednesday that there was no radiation leak at the Taishan nuclear power station and it had not raised acceptable limits for radiation levels around the plant, responding to a CNN report earlier this week. CNN reported on Monday that Framatome, the French company which designed the plant, …

A 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit near Indonesia’s Mollucas islands on Wednesday, Indonesia’s geophysics agency BMKG said. The quake, which struck at a depth of 10 km (6.21 miles), had no potential to trigger a tsunami, the agency said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has said the country’s economy improved this year but called for measures to tackle the “tense” food situation caused by the coronavirus pandemic and last year’s typhoons, state media said on Wednesday. Kim chaired a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party’s central committee …

Twenty-eight Chinese air force aircraft, including fighters and nuclear-capable bombers, entered Taiwan’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ) on Tuesday, the island’s government said, the largest reported incursion to date. While there was no immediate comment from Beijing, the news comes after the Group of Seven leaders issued a joint statement …

China said on Tuesday that radiation levels around the Taishan nuclear project in the southeastern province of Guangdong remained normal, following media reports of a leak at one of its reactors. French utility EDF, one of the project’s owners, said on Monday that it was investigating media reports that abnormal …

A huge red banner welcomed nearly 9,000 students in Wuhan for a massive graduation ceremony over a year after the city was battered by the first global outbreak of COVID-19. Students in navy gowns and mortarboards sat in crowded rows, without social distancing or face masks, beneath the sign that …

Japan will send 1 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to Vietnam, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said on Tuesday, as Vietnam seeks to accelerate its vaccine procurement drive to tackle a more stubborn wave of infections. The shipment of AstraZeneca PLC vaccines produced in Japan is due to arrive in Vietnam on …

Human Rights Watch (HRW) demands an investigation into the United Nations’ data collection on Rohingya Muslim refugees in Bangladesh, saying the UN refugee agency has “improperly” shared the information with authorities in Myanmar. The UN Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, has registered hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees in Bangladeshi camps …

Four polio vaccination workers were killed and three injured in separate attacks in Afghanistan’s eastern city of Jalalabad, a provincial health department official said on Tuesday, the latest in a series of attacks against health workers. A wave of assassinations has hit urban centres since peace talks began between the …