Blinken briefs Chinese counterpart on North Korea policy
NEW YORK -- Eighty-five days after they publicly sparred in Alaska, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and top Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi picked up the phone Friday, this time to speak about North Korea.
"Secretary Blinken and Director Yang discussed the United States' comprehensive DPRK policy review, focusing on the need for the United States and the PRC to work together for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement, referring to North Korea and China by
China's new data law casts wider net, from Teslas to robots
BEIJING -- China has passed a new law that strengthens oversight of data collection within its borders, broadening authorities' reach to include electric vehicles and factories in a move with repercussions for global enterprises.
The Data Security Law is China's first comprehensive legislation governing the handling of digital data. The National People's Congress standing committee approved the act on Thursday, with the law to take effect Sept. 1.
"It presents a problem if we cannot utilize the data collected inside China worldwide," an executive at
US investor adviser urges AGM to vote against Toshiba nominees
TOKYO -- U.S. proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis is urging shareholders to vote against Toshiba's board chairman and four other board nominees at the company's annual general meeting this month, after a probe into the conglomerate that has highlighted its governance issues.
Glass Lewis believes that the five candidates, including Osamu Nagayama, the board chairman, and audit committee chairperson Junji Ota, have failed to address Toshiba's alleged misconduct over last year's shareholders meeting.
An independent report published on Thursday, found
Indonesia bolsters navy as China steps up incursions around ASEAN
JAKARTA -- Indonesia's Defense Ministry has ordered eight frigates from Ficantieri, Italy's largest shipbuilder.
The deal, announced on Thursday by the Italian company, comes amid heightened tensions in the region with China stepping up incursions into Southeast Asian airspace and waters, and less than a week before defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations hold their annual meeting.
The vessels are six FREMM multipurpose frigates, and two Maestrale-class frigates. The deal is "of the utmost importance to strengthen the collaboration between two
Pakistan's draconian proposed press law stirs controversy
ANKARA -- Pakistan is trying to push through a new law intended to centralize government oversight of the media, fueling concerns about further deterioration of press freedom in the South Asian country.
According to the World Press Freedom Index compiled annually by Reporters Without Borders in France, Pakistan's ranking has dropped since Prime Minister Imran Khan came into office from 139 in 2018 to 145 in 2021.
Pakistan's media already face major financial pressures, including salary cuts, late payments
The world must stand by Southeast Asia in its fight against COVID
Richard Maude is a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute and Kevin Rudd is president of the Asia Society and a former prime minister of Australia.
The situation in India is a stark warning of what happens when new COVID variants rip through vulnerable communities.
Today, a surge in infections in Southeast Asia that is costing lives and threatening to derail recovery from last year's painful recession also demands global attention.
As the highly contagious Indian and U.K. variants of COVID take root, the developed world needs to
Malaysian king confers with Mahathir and peers on COVID emergency
KUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysia's king, in an unusual development, summoned all political party leaders this week to private audiences, giving them an opportunity to have their say on the COVID-19 crisis and the controversial state of emergency that expires in seven weeks.
Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim were among those invited to see King Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin, amid rampant speculation that current Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin may be eyeing an emergency extension beyond Aug. 1.
The audiences, which will
Court pushes South Korea to find diplomatic fix to Japan issues
SEOUL -- As he handed down a ruling denying compensation to South Koreans forced to work for Japanese companies during World War II, Judge Kim Yang-ho said that South Korea's international reputation was also at stake in the case.
Kim, a senior judge with the Seoul Central District Court, on Monday dismissed lawsuits against 16 Japanese companies filed by 85 South Koreans or their family members. The plaintiffs were seeking redress for unpaid labor performed for companies including Nissan Chemical and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
In ruling against
The world must stand by Southeast Asia
Richard Maude is a senior fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute and Kevin Rudd is president of the Asia Society and a former prime minister of Australia.
The situation in India is a stark warning of what happens when new COVID variants rip through vulnerable communities.
Today, a surge in infections in Southeast Asia that is costing lives and threatening to derail recovery from last year's painful recession also demands global attention.
As the highly contagious Indian and U.K. variants of COVID take root, the developed world needs to
Microsoft prepares cloud gaming service for Japan launch
TOKYO -- Microsoft is accelerating its push into cloud-based games with plans to bring next-generation gaming to Japan later this year, a sign that competition is heating up among long-established game makers and tech giants.
The U.S. company announced on Thursday that it will roll out cloud gaming in four countries, including Japan and Australia, through its Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, a subscription service that allows gamers to download more than 100 games to their Xboxes or PCs, or play cloud-