Asia & Pacific

SEOUL—North Korea will suspend nuclear and missile tests effective immediately and abolish a nuclear test site in the northern part of the country in a bid to pursue economic growth and peace on the Korean peninsula, state media said on Saturday. North Korea leader Kim Jong Un said in a statement his country no longer […]

For eight years, China and Japan had been in a standoff over territorial rights to the Senkaku Islands, a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea controlled by Japan. High-level bilateral talks were put on hold—until this week. On April 16, China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, met with his counterpart, Japan’s minister of […]

A State Department career diplomat who tentatively heads the nation’s top diplomatic office for East Asia has a record of pandering to pressure from the People’s Republic of China, in marked contrast to the Trump administration’s broader strategy to push back against Beijing’s aggression. The Epoch Times has also learned that the senior diplomat, whose […]

In an affirmation of the sweeping success of President Donald Trump’s foreign policy, lawmakers from South and North Korea are reportedly negotiating details for an official end to a decades-old war. South Korean daily newspaper Munhwa Ilbo cited an unnamed South Korean official in reporting that talks about a peace treaty are taking place ahead […]

Last June, a new internet regulation took effect in China that sent foreign firms into a panic: all domestic and foreign firms would be required to store their data on servers within China, and be subject to security checks by Chinese authorities. Companies grew concerned that this would allow the Chinese regime access to sensitive […]

The Chinese regime’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy said in a high profile announcement that it will hold a live-fire military drill on the China side of the Taiwan Strait on April 18. In response, Taiwan told its citizens that the drill is  just a routine exercise and they have nothing to fear. The April […]

The Chinese regime has ratcheted up its aggressive rhetoric toward Taiwan in recent weeks, culminating in an announcement on April 12 that the Chinese military will hold live-fire military drills in the Taiwan Straits on April 18. Taiwan has a separate political and economic system from mainland China and is, for the most part, a […]

YANGON—Seven Burmese soldiers have been sentenced to “10 years in prison with hard labor in a remote area” for participating in a massacre of 10 Rohingya Muslim men in a village in northwestern Rakhine state last September, the army said on Tuesday. The military said in a statement published on Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing’s office […]

The U.S. State Department has approved a long-standing request from Taiwan to solicit help from American companies in building the island nation’s own indigenous submarines. While the go-ahead is only the first step in a long process, observers say the decision reflects the Trump administration’s commitment to strengthening Taiwan’s defense and deterring the Chinese regime’s […]

A 112-year-old man in Japan’s Hokkaido Province was recognized as the oldest man alive by  Guinness World Records on Tuesday, April 10, in a ceremony attended by family and local officials. Masazo Nonaka was born on July 25, 1905, 42 days before the Russo-Japanese War ended with the Treaty of Portsmouth, mediated by Theodore Roosevelt. […]

A new report published by a U.S. think tank says that it is just “a matter of time” before the People’s Republic of China launches a limited yet decisive military invasion against the Senkaku Islands, the disputed islands in the East China Sea currently controlled by Japan. Published by the Project 2049 Institute, the report’s […]

Defense experts and lawmakers in the United States are calling for selling offensive weapons and advanced military equipment to Taiwan, amidst the rapid buildup of the Chinese regime’s military and the threat it poses to the island nation and the surrounding Asia-Pacific region. “China’s military buildup threatens not just Taiwan but also other Asian democracies, […]

TOKYO—A series of shallow earthquakes shook parts of western Japan on Monday and authorities warned that further strong shaking is possible over the coming days. A quake at 1632 GMT measured at magnitude 5.8 by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), at a depth of 10 kms (7.5 miles), causing strong shaking in parts of Shimane […]

BORACAY, Philippines–Along the shores of Philippines’ top holiday island, Boracay, businesses like massage parlors, souvenir stalls, tattoo shops and boat rentals are still thriving while tourists bask in the sun on the powdery white sand, but not for long. Workers in Boracay, the Philippines’ most popular tourist spot, appealed for aid on Sunday before the […]

SYDNEY—A powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the highlands of Papua New Guinea on Saturday April 7, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said, as the region struggles to recover from a massive 7.5 quake only two months ago. There were no immediate reports of damage or injury. The quake was 82 kms (51 miles) southwest of […]

SEOUL—A South Korean court jailed former President Park Geun-hye for 24 years on Friday, April 6, over a scandal that exposed webs of corruption between political leaders and the country’s conglomerates. Park became South Korea’s first democratically elected leader to be forced from office last year when the Constitutional Court ordered her out over a […]

Senior Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi visited South Korea this past weekend, where he made moves to assert China’s inclusion in talks between the United States and North Korea. Yang backtracked on previous measures punishing South Korea for hosting the United States’ missile defense system, getting in South Korea’s good graces in order to gain its […]

MANILA—Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte announced in an abrupt presidential order on Wednesday, April 4, that the government had decided to close the holiday hotspot of Boracay, which Duterte has called a “cesspool.” According to the order, Boracay will be closed to tourism for six months from April 26. The move is aimed at rescuing the […]

Quetta, Pakistan—Terrorist group ISIS on Tuesday claimed responsibility for killing four members of a Christian family in southwestern Pakistan. A statement issued by the group claimed that militants belonging to ISIS fired on the group of Christians as they were traveling in the city of Quetta, killing four on Monday. ISIS has affiliates in both […]

JAKARTA—Ride-hailing companies Go-Jek and Grab must register in Indonesia as transport companies within two months to ensure they meet safety requirements as a public transport provider, Indonesia’s transport minister said on Monday. “We in the Transport Ministry have finalised this and within one or two days we will meet stakeholders to discuss,” Minister Budi Karya […]