Asia

‘Day of reckoning’: Turkish economy’s post-election peril

By Dmitry ZAKS ISTANBUL (AFP) – Turkey’s economy is in a double bind: analysts see its current policies leading to imminent peril and the prescriptions incurring massive pain. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan campaigned round the clock to win the toughest election of his two decades in power in a historic runoff last weekend. He also poured billions of dollars into campaign pledges — and tens of billions more into keeping the lira from suffering politically […]

Malaysia searches Chinese ship suspected of looting WWII wrecks

KUALA LUMPUR, May 30, 2023 (AFP) — Malaysia’s coastguard said Tuesday that authorities were questioning the crew of a Chinese vessel detained on suspicion of looting two British World War II shipwrecks. Officers discovered unexploded cannon shells upon boarding the Chinese-registered vessel, which was detained for illegal anchorage over the weekend, said Nurul Hizam Zakaria, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency chief in Johor state. “Our investigation is now directed to where these cannon shells originated from. […]

China’s Shenzhou-16 mission takes off bound for space station

By Ludovic EHRET Agence France-Presse JIUQUAN, China, May 30, 2023 (AFP) — China sent three astronauts to its Tiangong space station on Tuesday, putting a civilian scientist into space for the first time as Beijing pursues plans to send a manned mission to the Moon by the end of the decade. The world’s second-largest economy has invested billions of dollars in its military-run space program in a push to catch up with the United States […]

China declines meeting with US defense chief: Pentagon

WASHINGTON, May 29, 2023 (AFP) – Beijing has declined a US invitation for a meeting in Singapore between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu, the Pentagon said Monday. “Overnight, the PRC informed the US that they have declined our early May invitation for Secretary Austin to meet with PRC Minister of National Defense Li Shangfu in Singapore this week,” Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder said in a statement, refering to […]

Shanghai swelters through hottest May day in 100 years

SHANGHAI, May 29, 2023 (AFP) – Shanghai recorded its hottest May day in more than 100 years on Monday, the city’s meteorological service announced, shattering the previous high by a full degree. Scientists say global warming is exacerbating adverse weather, with many countries experiencing deadly heatwaves and temperatures hitting records across Southeast and South Asia in recent weeks. “At 13:09, the temperature at Xujiahui station hit 36.1 degrees Celsius (97 degrees Fahrenheit), breaking a 100-year-old […]

Thailand charges Canadian over Indian gangster murder in Phuket

BANGKOK, May 29, 2023 (AFP) – Thai police said on Monday they have charged a Canadian man they described as a mercenary with the murder of an Indian gangster in the resort island of Phuket. Officers launched an investigation after Jimi “Slice” Sandhu — whose nickname came from a distinctive scar on his face — was shot and killed in February 2022. Interpol issued a red notice last year for Canadian citizen Matthew Leandre Ovide […]

Undefeated Erdogan extends two-decade rule in Turkey runoff

  By Remi BANET with Fulya OZERKAN and Burcin GERCEK in Ankara Agence France-Presse ISTANBUL, Türkiye, May 29, 2023 (AFP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appealed for national unity Monday after winning a historic runoff election that extended two decades of his transformative but divisive rule until 2028. The 69-year-old overcame Turkey’s worst economic crisis in a generation and the most powerful opposition alliance to ever face his Islamic-rooted party on his way to […]

North Korea announces ‘satellite’ launch: Japan

TOKYO, Japan, May 29, 2023 (AFP) — Japan said Monday it is preparing for North Korea to launch in the coming weeks what Pyongyang has described as a satellite, but Tokyo believes may be a ballistic missile. Pyongyang has informed Japan’s coastguard that a rocket will be launched between May 31 and June 11 and will fall in waters near the Yellow Sea, East China Sea and east of Luzon Island in the Philippines, a […]

Asiana Airlines bans some emergency seats after door-opening accident

SEOUL, May 28, 2023 (AFP) – South Korea’s Asiana Airlines has stopped selling some emergency seats following an accident in which a passenger opened an emergency exit mid-air, the carrier said Sunday. The incident took place onboard a A321-200 plane, which was carrying nearly 200 passengers as it approached the runway at Daegu International Airport, about 240 kilometres (149 miles) southeast of Seoul. The plane landed safely but several people were hospitalised. There were no […]

Passenger opens plane door mid-air on Asiana flight

SEOUL, South Korea, May 26, 2023 (AFP) — A passenger opened an emergency exit on an Asiana Airlines flight as it was preparing to land Friday, the carrier told AFP, adding that the plane landed safely but several people were hospitalized. The Airbus A321-200 was carrying nearly 200 passengers as it approached the runway at Daegu International Airport, about 240 kilometers (149 miles) southeast of Seoul, on a domestic flight. When the plane was still […]

Vietnam battles plastic blight in idyllic Ha Long Bay

  By Alice PHILIPSON Agence France-Presse HA LONG, Vietnam, May 26, 2023 (AFP) — Squinting in the bright light of a hot summer morning, Vu Thi Thinh perches on the edge of her small wooden boat and plucks a polystyrene block from the calm waters of Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay. It’s not yet 9 am, but a mound of styrofoam buoys, plastic bottles and beer cans sit behind her. They are the most visible sign […]

Suspect held after four killed in Japan gun and knife attack

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japanese police on Friday detained a suspect who had been holed up in a building after allegedly killing four people including two police officers in a gun and knife attack, an official told AFP. The man was taken into custody outside the farm property near the city of Nakano in Nagano region, with police confirming a fourth fatality overnight — an elderly woman who was found injured at the scene and […]