SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Shanghai halted transportation links, recalled ships and shut tourism spots including Shanghai Disney Resort on Sunday as it braced for Typhoon Bebinca, in what could be the strongest tropical cyclone to hit the Chinese financial hub since 1949. The Category 1 typhoon, packing maximum sustained wind speeds near its centre of around 144 kilometres per hour (89 miles per hour), was about 500 kilometres southeast of Shanghai as of 1:00 p.m. (0500 […]
Asia
North Korea’s Kim Jong Un vows to exponentially boost nuclear arsenal
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the country is now implementing a nuclear force construction policy to increase the number of nuclear weapons “exponentially”, state media KCNA reported on Tuesday. In a speech on North Korea’s founding anniversary on Monday, Kim said the country must more thoroughly prepare its “nuclear capability and its readiness to use it properly at any given time in ensuring the security rights of the state”, said […]
Plan for summit on UN sidelines to seek ways ‘to talk sense’ into China, Philippines envoy says
David Brunnstrom WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A summit of at least 20 nations is planned on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly this month to seek ways “to talk some sense” into China over its confrontation with the Philippines in the South China Sea, Manila’s Washington envoy said on Tuesday. “The more countries band together and give a message to China that what they’re doing is definitely not on the right side of history, then we […]
Vietnam death toll from Typhoon Yagi at 141 as Hanoi faces flood risk
HANOI (Reuters) -The death toll in Vietnam from Typhoon Yagi has risen to 141, the government said on Wednesday as it warned that flood waters were causing the Red River to rise rapidly and threaten to inundate downtown districts of the capital Hanoi. Heavy rains brought by Typhoon Yagi have triggered deadly landslides and floods throughout northern Vietnam, killing 141 people with 59 others missing, the disaster management agency said. There has also been severe […]
Typhoon Yagi weakens after hitting Vietnam’s capital Hanoi
HANOI (Reuters) – Typhoon Yagi weakened on Sunday after killing at least three people in Vietnam’s capital Hanoi, flooding many neighbourhoods, downing thousands of trees and damaging houses, the government said. Authorities warned of continued heavy rains, flash floods and landslides in northern Vietnam, where the storm, downgraded from a super typhoon, has killed at least seven and injured dozens since making landfall on Saturday afternoon, according to initial estimates. Asia’s most powerful storm this […]
‘I’ve got your backs,’ Taiwan president tells sailors on combat-ready warship
By Ben Blanchard PENGHU, Taiwan (Reuters) – Taiwan President Lai Ching-te told sailors aboard a combat-ready warship at a major base in the Taiwan Strait on Friday that he had their backs, thanking them for safeguarding Taiwanese security at a time of heightened tensions with Beijing. China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory over the strong objections of the government in Taipei, detests Lai as a “separatist” and staged war games around […]
Factbox-Who is Philippine ex-mayor Alice Guo and what is known about her arrest?
By Neil Jerome Morales and Mikhail Flores MANILA (Reuters) – Former Philippines mayor Alice Guo, accused of ties to Chinese criminal syndicates and money laundering, arrived in Manila on Friday on a chartered flight after being deported from Indonesia. Guo, also known as Chinese national Guo Hua Ping, was arrested in the Indonesian city of Tangerang near the capital of Jakarta on Tuesday. Her case has gripped the Philippines at a time of growing suspicion […]
German warships aim to secure sea lanes in Indo-Pacific, admiral says
By Josh Smith INCHEON, South Korea (Reuters) – A rare cruise by two German warships in the Indo-Pacific region will demonstrate a commitment to open navigation, the admiral in charge of the naval task force said on Friday, but he declined to confirm if they would transit the contesed Taiwan Strait. “Safe and secure sea lanes, especially from Southeast Asia as well as to Europe and America, are a prerequisite for a prosperous economy […]
Deadly super typhoon Yagi makes landfall in China’s Hainan
By Farah Master HONG KONG (Reuters) -Asia’s strongest storm this year, Super Typhoon Yagi, made landfall along the coast of China’s Hainan province on Friday, bringing gales and heavy rain which shut schools for a second day and cancelled flights in the South China Sea region. Packing maximum sustained winds of 234 km per hour (145 mph) near its centre, Yagi registers as the world’s second-most powerful tropical cyclone in 2024 so far, after the […]
Thailand’s king swears in new government after turmoil
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn swore in Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and 35 cabinet ministers in Bangkok on Friday, ushering in a new government in Southeast Asia’s second largest economy after a period of political turmoil. Paetongtarn, 38, leader of the ruling Pheu Thai party, was elected by parliament last month to become Thailand’s youngest prime minister after her predecessor Srettha Thavisin was dismissed by a court order over an ethics violation. The […]
Philippines death toll from tropical storm Enteng (International name: Yagi) rises to 13
MANILA (Reuters) – At least 13 people have died in the Philippines due to tropical storm Yagi, while schools and government offices were closed in Manila and nearby provinces on Tuesday because of expected bad weather. Yagi, locally known as Enteng, made landfall on Monday in the eastern town of Casiguran in Aurora province, knocking out power in the municipality, disaster officer Elson Egargue said by phone. As of 8 a.m. (0000 GMT), the […]
If China wants Taiwan it should also take back land from Russia, president says
TAIPEI (Reuters) – If China’s claims on Taiwan are about territorial integrity then it should also take back land from Russia signed over by the last Chinese dynasty in the 19th century, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said in an interview with Taiwanese media. China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan’s government rejects those claims, saying only the […]