DHAKA: After 17 years in exile, Tarique Rahman has taken office as prime minister of Bangladesh, inheriting his parents’ political legacy and facing immediate economic and political challenges. Rahman led his Bangladesh Nationalist Party to a landslide victory in the Feb. 12 general election, winning an absolute majority with 209 of 300 parliamentary seats and […]
Read MoreAn independent United Nations body on Tuesday condemned what it described as vicious attacks based on disinformation by several European ministers against the organisation’s special rapporteur for Palestine, Francesca Albanese. In the past week several European countries, including Germany, France and Italy, called for Albanese’s resignation over her alleged criticism of Israel. Albanese, an Italian […]
Read MorePhilippine Vice President Sara Duterte announced Wednesday she will run for president of the archipelago nation of 116 million in 2028. Duterte, who is embroiled in a bitter feud with President Ferdinand Marcos, was impeached last year only to see the country’s Supreme Court throw the case out over procedural issues. “I offer my life, […]
Read MoreIn less than two months, two “personal” letters from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Tarique Rahman, who took oath as PM, may well have done the spadework for New Delhi’s policy direction in dealing with the new government in Dhaka. The first letter was handed over by Indian External Affairs […]
Read MoreThe US and Iran hold indirect talks in Geneva on 11 February aimed at resolving their long-running nuclear dispute, with little clear indication of compromise as Washington masses a battle force in the region. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will take part in the negotiations, which are being mediated by Oman, a source […]
Read MoreUzbekistan and the United Kingdom have agreed to adopt a joint roadmap aimed at expanding comprehensive bilateral cooperation, signaling a new phase in their strategic partnership. The agreement was reached during a meeting between President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and the UK’s Trade Envoy to Central Asia and Azerbaijan, John Alderdice. The talks focused on strengthening mutually […]
Read MoreBy Sam Beltran The International Criminal Court’s (ICC) decision to publicly name two sitting Philippine senators as alleged “co-perpetrators” in Rodrigo Duterte’s crimes against humanity case has shifted the spotlight to Manila, sharpening both the former president’s legal exposure and the country’s already fraught political fault lines. A more detailed version of prosecution filings posted […]
Read MoreBy Park Chan-kyong North Korea appears to be recasting the human cost of its involvement in Russia’s war in Ukraine as a carefully staged display of loyalty and leadership, with analysts pointing in particular to the unveiling of a new housing district in Pyongyang for families of fallen soldiers as a central part of that […]
Read MoreBy Fan Chen If there is one big threat to maritime security in Southeast Asia, it is the growing wariness between the big players in the region. That was the assessment from Kao Kim Hourn, secretary general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), at the just-concluded Munich Security Conference. “Overall the main threat […]
Read MoreLONDON: The UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer met King Abdullah II of Jordan to discuss ways to support regional stability in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Downing Street said on Tuesday. The meeting was also attended by Crown Prince Hussein and focused on the continuing need to advocate for increased access for humanitarian […]
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