By Sarah Mills LONDON (Reuters) – As Queen Elizabeth celebrates her 70th year on the throne, there are questions about whether the Commonwealth of Nations, which she was instrumental in creating and remains one of her proudest achievements, has a future when her reign is over. The Commonwealth evolved out of the British empire, and …
Does the Commonwealth have a future after Queen Elizabeth? Read More »
By Martin Quin Pollard and Engen Tham BEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Beijing authorities extended work-from-home guidance for many of its 22 million residents to stem a persistent COVID-19 outbreak, while Shanghai deployed more testing and curbs to hold on to its hard-won ‘zero COVID’ status after two months of lockdown. On Monday, the Chinese capital reported …
Beijing urges millions to keep working from home amid COVID outbreak menace Read More »
By Sam Nussey TOKYO (Reuters) -Space is a key area of cooperation for Japan with the United States, its closest ally, amid heightened tensions with an increasingly assertive China, which itself aims to become a space power. Tokyo has said it hopes to put one of its astronauts on the lunar surface – the first …
With U.S. help, Japan wants to go from player to power in space Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – The city of Beijing must fully implement a work-from-home policy in key areas in order to reduce flow of people and allow society to “quieten down”, city government spokesperson Xu Hejian said on Monday. The Chinese capital reported 63 new domestically-transmitted COVID-19 infections during the 24 hours to 3 p.m. local time …
Beijing city must fully implement work from home policy in key areas-spokesperson Read More »
By Neil Jerome Morales MANILA (Reuters) – Philippines president-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Monday he discussed the extension of a joint military agreement with an envoy of defence ally the United States, after meetings with senior diplomats of four countries. Ambassadors of Japan, India and South Korea and the U.S. U.S. Chargé d’Affaires made …
Philippines’ Marcos says he discussed defence deal with U.S. envoy Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China said on Monday that the U.N. rights chief’s visit will be conducted in a “closed-loop”, referring to the Chinese model of isolating people within a “bubble” to contain any COVID-19 virus from spreading. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet will not have media representatives travelling with her, …
TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan’s foreign ministry thanked U.S. support on Monday after U.S. President Joe Biden said Washington would defend Taiwan militarily if Beijing invaded the democratic island. The ministry said it welcomed and thanked Biden and the U.S. government for reaffirming their commitment to Taiwan, adding that the government will continue to boost its …
Taiwan foreign ministry thanks Biden for reaffirming safety commitment Read More »
By Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s new president, Yoon Suk-yeol, used a largely successful summit with U.S. President Joe Biden over the weekend to lay the foundation for his goal of enabling South Korea to play a more active role around the world. Inaugurated on May 10, Yoon has said his main foreign …
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesia summoned Britain’s ambassador on Monday to explain the raising of a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) flag at its embassy, and urged foreign missions to respect local “sensitivities” following a backlash among conservatives. Barring the sharia-ruled province of Aceh, homosexuality is not illegal in Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, …
Indonesia summons Britain’s envoy after furore over rainbow flag Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s nationwide COVID-19 epidemic situation shows a steady declining trend overall, a health official said on Monday. The Shanghai outbreak situation continues to improve in general, with new infection numbers dropping, but the city still faces pressure to prevent a rebound, Lei Zhenglong, an official at the National Health Commission told a …
