Daily Asia briefing

A Chinese military magazine has suggested that if Taiwan sends a swarm of uncrewed combat boats across the strait – a strategy inspired by Ukraine – Beijing could counter with its GJ-21 stealth attack drones. According t...

Hong Kong should take a more proactive approach to removing barriers hindering the cross-border flow of people, capital, goods and data with neighbouring Shenzhen, analysts have said, as the new leadership of the mainlan...

Hong Kong police have used drones for the first time to combat illegal street gambling operations, arresting eight suspects over the past two weeks. The eight suspects – seven men and a woman, aged between 53 and 76 – we...

Saudi Arabia's nationwide crackdown resulted in the arrest of 14,487 illegal residents between April 9 and April 15. Violations included residency, border security, and labor laws, with thousands now undergoing legal pro...

Kamala Harris launched a strong critique of Donald Trump, alleging he was drawn into the Iran conflict by Benjamin Netanyahu to divert from domestic issues like the 'Epstein files'. She labelled the current US leadership...

Iran has sharply criticized the EU's stance on Strait of Hormuz transit rules, accusing Brussels of hypocrisy and double standards. Tehran asserts its right to regulate passage, citing self-defense against potential aggr...

A staged Oval Office McDonald's delivery to celebrate a tax policy has drawn criticism, with President Trump himself calling the event "tacky." The DoorDash driver, Sharon Simmons, who previously advocated for the policy...

Bulgaria on Sunday held its eighth legislative election in five years, with ex-president Rumen Radev’s grouping tipped to win on a pledge to fight corruption, after an anti-corruption movement triggered a long political...

The Hong Kong government should use its proposed accountability system prudently to investigate department heads and avoid undermining morale among civil servants, a top adviser to the city’s leader has said. But Regina...

Pope Leo sought ⁠to downplay his feud ⁠with US President Donald Trump on Saturday, ⁠saying reporting about comments he has made so far during his Africa tour “has not been accurate in all its aspects”. Speaking to report...

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney marked Sikh Heritage Month by participating in community service at Gurdwara Sahib Ottawa. He highlighted Canada's significant Sikh population, the world's second-largest, and their co...

Former US president Barack Obama met New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani for the first time on Saturday at a child care centre where they read to preschoolers and led a singalong. The meeting comes as Mamdani, a democratic soc...

Two enormous sandlike dunes at an old chemical processing plant in South Africa are at the centre of an exploratory US-backed project to extract highly sought-after rare earth elements from industrial mining waste. The P...

The Hong Kong Sevens reached a high-octane finale on Sunday with costume-clad rugby fans filling the stands at Kai Tak Stadium, but some nearby restaurants said they struggled to match last year’s takings, blaming an inf...

Times of India World is tracking Economy & Trade developments tied to London synagogue targeted in another attempted arson attack; Sadiq Khan vows strict action.

Times of India World is tracking Economy & Trade developments tied to Indian heritage spirits Mahua and Goan Feni debut in UK market.

The economic toll of war is pushing Iran to find a resolution to the hostilities beyond its fragile two-week truce with the US, according to a Middle East-focused think tank leader and businessman who is familiar with th...

Chinese biomedical companies deploying cutting-edge technologies are emerging as serious competitors to Western dominance in the race to treat Parkinson’s disease, in a market that could reach US$16 billion over the next...

A vehicle that can zap energy into a fleet of drones, allowing them to fly indefinitely, is getting closer to becoming a battlefield reality. Scientists in China have demonstrated a wireless power transmission system tha...

A dedicated five-year-old Chinese girl is making a big impression online with her skilful and powerful martial arts performances. Huang Zijun from Maoming, in southern China’s Guangdong province, has marvelled countless...

Construction of a US$1 billion Chinese-invested hydropower station has begun in Cambodia to facilitate the Southeast Asian country’s use of renewable energy as the fallout from the Iran war constricts developing countrie...

Thousands ⁠of people have been displaced after a fire destroyed around 1,000 homes in a coastal village in Malaysia’s Sabah state on Borneo island ‌on Sunday, the fire department said. Authorities were notified of the fi...

“State-of-the-art” (Sota) artificial intelligence models excel at solving complex Olympiad maths but still struggle with everyday enterprise tasks, according to an executive from a top AI unicorn in the US. David Meyer,...

Qiu has been scouring Shanghai’s labour agencies for a job for her 58-year-old father – a former mechanic from neighbouring Jiangsu province caught in a frustrating limbo. While he is still years away from the official r...

Lea Albritton’s mornings belong to the repair shop. Her afternoons belong to the camera. The 40-year-old from Leyte in the central Philippines has lived in the US state of Georgia since 2019 with her 62-year-old American...

Surgeons in southern China have removed an 8cm-long worm from a woman’s brain after she suffered from multiple mystery health problems. The 61-year-old had brain surgery at a hospital in Guangdong province in early April...

A United Airlines flight from Chicago to New York made an emergency landing in Pittsburgh due to a 'beeping noise' onboard, initially feared to be a bomb threat. Passengers were evacuated via emergency slides. Following...

A traditional Tibetan Bathing Festival sees men and women of all ages bathing together in natural waters in a joyous tradition during which young people can meet potential romantic partners. Every year in early July of t...

Malaysian comedian Rizal van Geyzel keeps his three children – aged six, 14 and 15 – off social media. He calls it a “gateway drug” to fake news, pornography, stalkers and doom-scrolling. “Do I risk them resenting me? Su...

The news of Shin Daewe’s release from detention comes as a welcome relief.