By David D. Lee When North Korean leader Kim Jong-un rose from his chair after a two-hour meeting with Vladimir Putin in Beijing last week, aides swooped in almost instantly, polishing the table and scrubbing the seat he had just occupied. The bizarre spectacle was not just political theatre or a quirk of the supreme […]
Read MoreBy Kandy Wong The long-delayed Power of Siberia 2 pipeline between Russia and China would create a “structural shock” if it begins operations, analysts said, and cause “strategic and market challenges” for the United States, the world’s current largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter. While President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin stood […]
Read MoreBy Julian Ryall Less than 24 hours after Shigeru Ishiba announced his resignation as prime minister, Japan’s ruling party faces a leadership contest that few seem eager to win and even fewer to survive, as it lays bare internal rivalries. Few within Japanese politics were truly taken aback when Ishiba confirmed his decision to step […]
Read MoreBy Shi Jiangtao From a rare multilateral debut at Tiananmen Square to a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, followed by an exclusive banquet, Beijing’s privileged treatment of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was a calculated display of solidarity between the two communist neighbours, analysts said. In a subtle yet seismic shift, Beijing notably […]
Read MoreBy Frank Chenin Nebraska There is a major divide in the American heartland. US farm states are facing a drop in exports of key commodities as Beijing turns to alternative suppliers, primarily in Brazil, as a result of Donald Trump’s trade war. Some farmers, however, want to give the US president the benefit of the […]
Read MoreTAIPEI: Taiwan President Lai Ching-te criticized strongmen personality cults and secret police networks on Wednesday, as Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted the leaders of Russia and North Korea at a military parade marking the end of World War Two. Democratically-governed Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own territory, has repeatedly lambasted China for what Taipei […]
Read MoreNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un is in China for a high-profile visit, a rare step beyond his country’s borders for prospective meetings with President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. The trip could be Kim’s bid to “formalise” ties with Pyongyang’s two main allies — and potentially play a more prominent role […]
Read MoreChinese President Xi Jinping on Monday pressed his vision for a new global security and economic order that prioritises the “Global South”, in a direct challenge to the United States, during a summit that included the leaders of Russia and India. “We must continue to take a clear stand against hegemonism and power politics, and […]
Read MoreSEOUL: South Korea’s former first lady Kim Keon Hee and former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo were indicted Friday in special investigations that followed the ousting of the former president for imposing martial law. The wife of jailed ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol was charged with violating financial market and political funding laws and receiving bribes, about […]
Read MoreAgence France-Presse India and Japan will “shape the Asian Century”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday, on a visit expected to secure billions of dollars in Japanese investment and an upgrade to security ties. “India and Japan’s partnership is strategic and smart. Powered by economic logic, we have turned shared interests into shared prosperity,” […]
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