Asia

The Indian government is arming village militias to combat pro-independence fighters in the disputed Himalayan Muslim-majority region, according to a report. Brandishing a bolt-action rifle, civil servant Sanjeet Kumar is one of 5,000 Kashmir villagers who have joined all-Hindu militia units armed and trained by Indian forces to fight off …

The decision to ban Afghan women from working for the United Nations was an “internal social matter”, the country’s Taliban authorities said Friday, a day after the UN Security Council demanded they overturn the ruling. The Security Council resolution passed unanimously by all 15 Council members on Thursday said a …

Earlier this week, Washington and Seoul agreed on the deployment of nuclear-armed US submarines to the region to deter North Korea. US plans to send submarines to South Korea armed with nuclear weapons will likely aggravate tensions in the region, China’s foreign ministry has said. Earlier this week, US President …

The incident occurred in the tribal-dominated Dantewada district, a hotbed of insurgency activities in Chhattisgarh. Radical left-wing rebels are suspected of being behind an improvised explosive device (IED) blast that killed ten security personnel and a driver in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh on Wednesday, police have said. The …

A nuclear attack by Pyongyang would “result in the end” of Kim Jong-un’s regime, the US president has warned. US President Joe Biden declared on Wednesday that a North Korean nuclear attack on his country or South Korea would spell doom for Pyongyang. Under a new agreement between Washington and …

Tunisia’s President Kais Saied on Thursday appointed a new ambassador to Syria, the Tunisian presidency said in a statement, the latest Arab move to end Syria’s regional isolation. Tunisia cut off diplomatic relations with Syria nearly a decade ago to protest Assad’s crackdown on 2011 demonstrations that developed into civil …

In a new agreement with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, US President Joe Biden has pledged to deploy nuclear-armed submarines to South Korea for the first time in four decades to defend its ally from what they claim to be growing nuclear threats from North Korea. The agreement was …

The global trend of substituting the US dollar with local currencies in trade transactions is speeding up as more countries are ditching the greenback. on Wednesday, Argentina said it will pay for Chinese imports in yuan instead of dollars to preserve its international reserves. In a meeting in Buenos Aires …

The US military is set to deploy nuclear-armed submarines to South Korea in a purported move to show its resolve to protect Seoul against the North Korea. The US will send an Ohio-class US Navy nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) to South Korea as part of a so-called Washington Declaration …

China has warned the US and South Korea against “stirring up tensions” and “provoking confrontation” with the North following Washington’s decision to deploy nuclear submarines to Seoul to purportedly protect it against Pyongyang. Beijing on Thursday strongly reacted to the US decision to send nuclear armed submarines to South Korea …

The UN Security Council is set to vote on Thursday to condemn a ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations in Afghanistan and call upon the Taliban administration to “swiftly reverse” its crackdown on the rights of women and girls. The resolution to be voted on – drafted …

Chinese authorities is on high alert and prepared for any action posing a threat to China’s sovereignty and territory, Beijing has declared after the EU’s top diplomat called for European navy patrols in the Taiwan Strait. “I believe that our relevant departments are well-prepared,”‌ China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Spokesperson Zhu …

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke Wednesday with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Moscow’s most important diplomatic partner, in the first phone call between the two leaders since the start of Russia’s invasion. “I had a long and meaningful phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping. I believe that this call, as …

Former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday urged Myanmar’s ruling military to take the initiative in finding a way out of the country’s violent political crisis, including releasing political detainees, after a surprise meeting with the army leader who seized power two years ago. Ban met Monday in the Myanmar …

Japanese start-up ispace’s Hakuto-R lunar lander began descending Wednesday toward the surface of the Moon, company officials said. The lander was on the backside of the Moon at about 1600 GMT Tuesday and was expected to land and begin sending signals back to Earth within 30 minutes, the company said …

Two explosions rocked a counter-terrorism office in northwest Pakistan on Monday, killing at least eight people, police said. Provincial police chief Akhtar Hayat said it was not clear yet what caused the explosions in northwestern Swat Valley. He said there was an old ammunition store in the office, and the …

India will be the world’s most populous country by the end of this month, eclipsing an aging China, the United Nations said Monday. The milestone raises questions about whether India can repeat the economic success that has made China central to the world’s economy and a leading global power. The …

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has reacted strongly to South Korea’s suggestion that it may start arming Ukraine’s government, slamming the idea as “an openly hostile anti-Russian move.” “Russia is conducting defensive military operations against the collective West, which has chosen the puppet regime in Kyiv as an instrument …

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the launch of the secretive regime’s “completed” spy satellite, state media said Wednesday, claiming it was a response to the “escalating military threat and challenge of the U.S. and South Korea.” Kim said that the satellite “will be launched at the planned date” …

India is on its way to becoming the world’s most populous nation, overtaking China with almost 3 million more people in the middle of this year, data released on Wednesday by the United Nations showed. India’s population is estimated at 1,428.6 million, or 1.4286 billion, against 1.4257 billion for China …