Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry said that it had expressed serious concern to the Honduran government and urged it to consider its decision carefully and not “fall into China’s trap”. A source familiar with the situation in Taiwan said that the island needed to exhaust “every possible means” to maintain diplomatic tiesContinue Reading
WASHINGTON: China will once again start issuing a range of visas to foreigners as of Wednesday (Mar 15), the country’s embassy in Washington said, a major easing of travel restrictions in force since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The move marks the latest step towards reopening China to theContinue Reading
KABUL: Afghanistan has launched its annual polio inoculation campaign aimed at reaching 9 million children, the health ministry said on Monday (Mar 13), the second year in a row the vaccination drive has taken place under Taliban rule. Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan are the last countries with endemic polio, anContinue Reading
The majority of activities will take place at Fort Magsaysay, the Philippines’ largest military camp, and one of the five existing sites the US has access to under its Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with Manila. Under the agreement, the US can use the bases for joint training, pre-positioning ofContinue Reading
SEOUL: South Korea and the United States were set to kick off their largest joint exercises in five years on Monday (Mar 13), after nuclear-armed Pyongyang warned such drills could be seen as a “declaration of war”. Washington and Seoul have ramped up defence cooperation in the face of growingContinue Reading
RUSSIAN PURCHASES As director, he was named in sanctions imposed by the US State Department in September 2018 over the purchase of 10 Su-35 combat aircraft in 2017 and equipment related to the S-400 surface-to-air missile system from Russia’s main arms exporter, Rosoboronexport. Some security scholars note the sanctions –Continue Reading
The cost of expanding US Medicare prescription drug coverage to pay for expensive, new obesity medications could be catastrophic, health economists warned in a report published on Saturday (Mar 11). Big-selling diabetes drugs have been repurposed as obesity treatments after demonstrating weight loss of more than 20 per cent inContinue Reading
But with her Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord a Pulitzer drama finalist, and Everything Everywhere racking up awards and box office receipts, “I think we’re ready” for new stories, she said. “We’ve been seeing the same tired old stories about … this white guy action hero, going ‘I’m going to fixContinue Reading
KABUL: Afghan broadcaster Tolo News on Wednesday (Mar 8) aired an all-female panel in its studio with an audience of women to mark International Women’s Day, a rare broadcast since the Taliban took over and many female journalists left the profession or started working off-air. A survey by Reporters WithoutContinue Reading
SEOUL: North Korea warned Tuesday (Mar 7) that it would be a “clear declaration of war” if its missiles were shot down during their test launches over the Pacific Ocean. The United States and South Korea have ramped up defence cooperation, including joint drills, in the face of growing threatsContinue Reading