East Timor targets closer Asean-Greater Bay Area ties to spur economic growth

This Week in Asia Economics

Asean’s newest member says cooperation between the two regions should be based on a commitment to inclusive growth and trust

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East Timor’s Deputy Prime Minister Francisco Kalbuadi Lay speaks at SCMP’s GBA-Asean Summit 2026 on Tuesday. Photo: Handout

East Timor is seeking to turn closer ties between Asean and China’s Greater Bay Area into investment and technology opportunities, even as the bloc’s newest member faces a major challenge of building capacity to benefit from regional integration.
While collaboration between the two regions could

Ex-prosecutor loses judicial challenge against sacking for emails flouting neutrality

Court rules civil service had grounds to dismiss him over remarks questioning police integrity and inviting coworkers to 2020 Tiananmen Square vigil

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Former prosecutor William Wong has lost a judicial challenge against his dismissal for remarks he made in emails that accused police of lying and invited colleagues to attend the Tiananmen Square vigil in 2020. Photo: Brian Wong
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Malaysia enlists military veterans to boot bullies out of schools: ‘you touch, you go’

Malaysian soldiers march in formation during National Day celebrations in Kuala Lumpur in 2022. Photo: AP

Malaysia will deploy military veterans as full-time hostel wardens at a group of elite boarding schools from Wednesday, in a new push to curb bullying after a series of abuse cases stirred widespread public anger over student safety.
The first 16 former Malaysian Armed Forces personnel will report for duty at eight Mara Junior Science Colleges, in a move reminiscent of Netflix’s
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Indian officials said to be in talks to allow reporters from China to return

Last Chinese journalist left India after being denied visa extension in 2023 and sources say both sides are working to restore reciprocity

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Beijing is said to be pressing New Delhi to allow its reporters back as a confidence-building measure. Photo: Xinhua

India has stepped up engagement with Chinese media as Beijing presses New Delhi to issue visas to its journalists ahead of a possible visit by President Xi Jinping later this year, though any breakthrough on the issue
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In 2011, Shanghai–Beijing high-speed rail link officially began operations – SCMP archive

The landmark Shanghai–to–Beijing rail link marks a new era for Chinese transit

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A train driver sits in a new high-speed train before it departs from the Beijing-South railway station for Shanghai as part of an official trip for members of the media June 27, 2011. Photo: Reuters

This article was first published on July 1, 2011

Plane beats train, but winning isn’t everything

by Will Clem, Shi Jiangtao

Two South China Morning Post reporters yesterday pitted the new high-speed Shanghai–to–Beijing train against an airliner and discovered that although taking to the skies had the edge

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China-EU joint statement on trade

China and the European Union released a joint statement on Monday following talks between China’s Minister of Commerce, Wang Wentao, and the EU’s trade chief, Maros Sefcovic, in Brussels. During the meeting, the two sides agreed to establish a joint platform to monitor trade flows and to set up working groups to ease bilateral economic tensions.EU-China Joint Statement by scmp

No need to share numbers as WhatsApp set to introduce new feature for texting

WhatsApp, one of Hong Kong’s most popular messaging apps, will soon no longer require users to share their phone numbers before they start texting.

Starting this week, users can reserve a unique username, which allows them to text without swapping numbers, for use later this year when the Meta-owned service launches the feature.

Users will need to know a person’s exact username before they can text them for the first time.

United States tech giant Meta said on Monday that the new move was a step

Content creators or small businesses will have the option to claim their existing Instagram or Facebook username on WhatsApp if they prefer to maintain a consistent online presence. Photo: Eugene Lee

Why did they pancake? Building failures, soft soil amplify Venezuela quake destruction

When late Venezuelan ⁠leader Hugo Chavez built this coastal housing development bearing his name as part of his socialist revolution, residents found ⁠a fresh start after deadly floods had decimated the area more than a decade earlier.

But after two back-to-back earthquakes flattened parts of the 1,100-unit complex last Wednesday, engineers have urged the Venezuelan government to swiftly audit similar public housing that is still standing.

“I lost my whole apartment,” said Yelsa Rojas, who since 2015


Philippines courts Greater Bay Area investors as gateway to Southeast Asia

Philippine Trade Secretary Cristina Alderguer-Roque speaks at SCMP’s GBA-Asean Summit 2026 on Tuesday. Photo: Handout

The Philippines is uniquely positioned to serve as a gateway for Greater Bay Area businesses into Southeast Asia, the country’s trade secretary said on Tuesday, as she outlined Manila’s push to promote a pro-investment environment.
Speaking at the South China Morning Post’s GBA-Asean Summit 2026 , Cristina Aldeguer-Roque urged investors to view the Philippines as a springboard into the region and to tap into the country’

Carved in history: how dragon motifs tell the tale of the rise and fall of Chinese empires

The dragon’s serpentine forms have adorned Chinese pottery for millennia, and this mythical creature has come to symbolise power, strength, and good fortune.

Dragon motifs on pottery date back nearly as far as Chinese written history itself, with the earliest example discovered on a vessel from the Yangshao culture (5000 BC–3000 BC). The association between dragons and ceramics persisted for centuries, with the mystical creature now closely linked to Chinese porcelain.

Early depictions of dragons across various types of artwork

Dragon motifs symbolised the supreme power, divine right, and absolute authority of the Emperor in ancient China. Photo: Wikipedia
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