SINGAPORE -- Defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Tuesday called for the early conclusion of a code of conduct for the South China Sea, as tensions rise in the region.

The ministers gathered online for a meeting hosted by Brunei, this year's ASEAN chair. The 10-member bloc will also hold an expanded discussion on Wednesday with counterparts from eight key countries, including China, the U.S., Japan and India.

Amid frosty ties between Beijing and Washington, the event marks

BANGKOK -- A Thai court formally approved Thai Airways International's rehabilitation plan on Tuesday, clearing all legal hurdles to set the plan in motion.

"The Central Bankruptcy Court granted an order to approve Thai Airways International's business rehabilitation plan," the airline said in a statement. "The plan administrators and all employees are committed to performing their duties for a successful implementation of the plan and for the utmost benefit of all creditors."

In an online news conference held after the verdict was read, acting CEO

TOKYO -- Olympic organizers on Tuesday laid out the consequences for athletes who violate COVID-19 rules at the upcoming Tokyo Games, from disqualification to financial sanctions.

"We expect you to play by the rules, but if you don't, there will be sanctions that could be coming your way," Pierre Ducrey, Olympic Games operations director at the International Olympic Committee, warned at a partly virtual news conference.

Organizers the same day published the latest version of their "playbooks" for keeping the Tokyo Games

BEIJING -- A bald eagle seated at the center of a table turns toilet paper into dollar bills while an Akita dog without a seat serves radioactive water from Fukushima to fellow animal guests.

These were among the details in a satirical cartoon based on Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" mocking the Group of Seven and Washington's efforts to build a coalition against China.

Titled "The Last G-7," the piece went viral in China this weekend after it was published on Sina Weibo as the

BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON -- The U.S. and the European Union agreed to end a 17-year dispute over aircraft subsidies amid broader efforts to repair cracks left in the trans-Atlantic alliance by the Trump administration to counter an increasingly assertive China.

The truce, involving the suspension of tariffs, was announced at a meeting Tuesday between U.S. President Joe Biden met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel in Brussels.

"Today, with the agreement on Boeing-

YANGON/BANGKOK -- Myanmar's military on Feb. 1 detained State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint in the country's first coup since 1988, bringing an end to a decade of civilian rule.

The Suu Kyi-led National League for Democracy had won a landslide in a general election in November . But the military has claimed the election was marred by fraud.

For all our coverage, visit our Myanmar Coup page.

Read our in-depth coverage:

-- Myanmar

GUANGZHOU -- The first thing that stood out when arriving at the sprawling factory formerly owned by Ofilm Group, a Chinese supplier of Apple smartphone components accused of using Uyghurs as slave labor, was a new sign that bore the name, "Wingtech."

The Guangzhou plant located in the heart of China's Greater Bay Area was buzzing with 4,000 employees not that long ago. Now, a skeleton crew dots the massive grounds.

"The production line has stopped," said a source at the

NEW YORK -- When Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga sat down on Sunday for breakfast with his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison, whom he calls "ScoMo," the usually stiff Japanese leader let out a smile that by all accounts looked genuine.

Morrison was the first foreign leader Suga met in person last November after he succeeded former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Against the backdrop of waves softly lapping the Cornwall shore, the two leaders spent an hour talking about all things Indo-Pacific, including a 20-minute one-on

TOKYO -- Japanese lawmakers early Wednesday passed legislation restricting purchases of land near defense force bases or other areas with national security implications.

The law, which seeks to prevent foreign owners from misusing such land, passed in an upper house vote.

It aims to fill what proponents say is a reporting vacuum on land transactions that leaves strategically located properties at risk of falling into the wrong hands.

Set to take effect in fiscal 2022, the law will classify areas within 1 km of Self-Defense Forces and Japan