By Finbarr Bermingham in Brussels Late last year, as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen began her second term in office, a giant purple banner was draped over the side of the EU executive arm’s headquarters, declaring: “United for our Future, 2024-2029.” While unity among the EU’s 27 member states has always been elusive, […]
Read MoreAssociated Press South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Thursday formally removed the country’s impeached police chief for deploying hundreds of officers to support ousted former president Yoon Suk-yeol’s brief imposition of martial law in December 2024. The court said Cho Ji-ho “actively disrupted” legislative activities by deploying hundreds of police officers to the National Assembly and […]
Read MoreBy Mark Magnier in New York It has been a turbulent year for the fraught US-China relationship. In the fourth part of a series looking back at the events of 2025, we examine the impacts of Trump’s foreign policy on global geopolitics. As the administration of US President Donald Trump ends its first year, expect […]
Read MoreBy Maria Siow Japan will host the leaders of five Central Asian countries in Tokyo this week, a meeting analysts say is meant to show that “Japan is back” as an active player in a region where global powers are competing for influence, minerals and transport routes. The summit with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and […]
Read MoreChina on Thursday split off a Belgium-sized island with an economy comparable to a mid-ranked country from the mainland for customs processing, part of a bid to join a major trans-Pacific trade deal and establish a new Hong Kong-style commercial hub. Officials hope that turning the southern province of Hainan into a duty-free zone will […]
Read MoreBy Jevans Nyabiage Just days after Chinese ambassador Yang Renhuo met Guinea-Bissau’s President Umaro Sissoco Embalo to donate airport security inspection equipment, the West African nation was hit by a military coup that ousted Embalo. The November 26 coup marked yet another military takeover along Africa’s “coup belt”, adding Guinea-Bissau to nations like Mali, Burkina […]
Read MoreBy Julian Ryall The Japanese government’s plans to tighten espionage and secrecy legislation have been welcomed as a necessary bulwark at a time of deepening national security concerns, although analysts fear that any revisions will be too broad and could be used to stifle free speech and media freedom. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, a long-time […]
Read MoreBy Lawrence Chung in Taipei A proposal to invite Taiwan to next year’s US-led Rim of the Pacific (Rimpac) military exercises has been removed from defence policy legislation progressing through Congress, raising concerns in Taipei that Washington’s political calculus may be shifting. Some analysts have warned that the removal of language approved by the US […]
Read MoreBEIJING: China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his United Arab Emirates counterpart on Friday, pledging deeper cooperation in investment, oil and gas, and infrastructure with the Gulf country, China’s foreign ministry said on Saturday. Wang, on a three-nation tour of the Middle East that began on Friday, held talks with UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah […]
Read MoreBy Liu Zhen Underwater drones being tested by China could be used to blockade the Panama Canal or even the US west coast, an American defence publication has claimed. The drones, referred to as XXLUUVs (Extra-Extra-Large Unmanned Underwater Vehicles), are highly classified and little is known for certain about them. However, some clues have been […]
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