Brahma Chellaney is a geostrategist and author of nine books, including "Asian Juggernaut: The Rise of China, India and Japan."

The incredible story of Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Netherlands-trained Pakistani metallurgist who -- with impunity -- ran an illicit global nuclear-smuggling network for a quarter-century would make for a captivating thriller.

A key plotline would surely be the mystery of why Khan, who died on Oct. 10 from complications caused by COVID-19, was never indicted by the

TAIPEI -- A fire that raged through the abandoned lower floors of the 13-story Chengzhongcheng building in Taiwan's southern port city of Kaohsiung left the condominium's last hundred or so residents trapped at the top as smoke and heat poured in.

Firefighters had difficulty reaching residents, many of whom are elderly or disabled, due to large stacks of debris and other refuse on unoccupied levels, according to local media. Once they reached the residential levels, they still had to discern which of the hundreds of apartments

TAIPEI -- Foxconn on Monday unveiled three electric vehicle prototypes as the iPhone assembler attempts to turn its nascent auto segment into a 1 trillion New Taiwan dollar ($35.78 billion) business in just five years.

The Taiwanese company introduced two passenger EV models and an electric bus prototype at its annual Foxconn Technology Day event in Taipei.

"We have done almost one collaboration project each month in the past year to ensure our supply chain capability and potential markets [for EVs]," Foxconn Chairman Young Liu

TAIPEI -- The world's biggest chipmaker is gearing up to build its first-ever chip plant in Japan, a major win for a country that is attempting to rebuild its semiconductor industry after years of decline.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. announced the plan on Thursday, and the Japanese government has voiced its full support for the project, with sources indicating it will subsidize up to half of the estimated $8 billion cost.

But what exactly will the plant produce, and who will win from the investment?

Why

JAKARTA/YANGON -- The decision not to invite Myanmar Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing to this month's ASEAN summit, an unusual move for a bloc that prides itself on consensus, comes amid a diplomatic impasse that has frustrated others in the international community.

In an emergency meeting of foreign ministers Friday, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations "accepted the decision to invite a nonpolitical representative from Myanmar to the upcoming summits," chair Brunei said in a statement the day after. Sources said this is most likely to

SYDNEY -- An Australian corruption commission on Monday launched an inquiry into Gladys Berejiklian, the popular former premier of New South Wales who resigned on Oct. 1, regarding a case that is electrifying public debate over murky government dealings at the state and federal level.

Experts say corruption in Australia is largely political rather than criminal -- designed to advance political interests versus steal funds. Although this phenomenon is hardly unique to Australia, there is real concern about slipping standards, a worry supported by the country's recent fall in

SHANGHAI -- China's economic growth continued to decelerate in the third quarter, as gross domestic product came in at 4.9%, softened by the country's zero-tolerance COVID measures and energy shortages.

The year-on-year GDP growth rate, published by the National Bureau of Statistics for the three-month period through September, was below the median 5% expansion forecast by 29 economists in a Nikkei poll released earlier this month.

The figure slid from 7.9% for the

SHANGHAI -- Chinese banks' massive lending to the real estate sector looks increasingly likely to backfire on many as default fears mount -- and may ultimately make it harder for authorities to bail them out.

Aggregate lending by Chinese banks to developers came to 14.2 trillion yuan ($2.2 trillion) at the end of June, according to Moody's Investors Service. This accounts for 7.4% of total bank loans, Moody's says, and is equivalent to more than half of

TOKYO -- Dinner will be served robot-style at 2,000 eateries run by Skylark Holdings, Japan's largest operator of family restaurants, by the end of next year.

The robot waiters can ferry food for up to four people to a designated table, then bring dishes back once customers are done eating. In a trial that started in August in Tokyo, the robots cut the number of steps staff members took by half during busy periods.

With authorities easing restrictions on dining out and other activities