By Kirsty Needham and Humeyra Pamuk SYDNEY (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken travels to Fiji on Saturday to reassure Pacific island leaders that Washington and its allies are committed to providing security and COVID vaccines, as China steps up its aid and influence in the region. Blinken’s Fiji visit, the first by …
Blinken to meet Pacific islands leaders balancing China and west Read More »
By Hyonhee Shin SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea’s parliament explored ways on Wednesday to allow people who have caught the novel coronavirus to cast their ballot in next month’s presidential election, as the number of new cases spiralled to nearly 50,000 for the first time. South Korea will elect its next president on March 9, but …
S.Korea weighs voting options for people with COVID ahead of election Read More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia is not looking at renaming Taiwan’s de facto embassy in the country and remains committed to its one-China policy, foreign minister Marise Payne said on Wednesday, amid strain in diplomatic ties with Beijing. Payne said she had not held any talks with Taiwan, a self-ruled island that China claims as its …
Australia says it is not looking to rename Taiwan’s de facto embassy Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Organizing Committee said on Wednesday that a total of five new COVID-19 cases were detected among games-related personnel on Feb. 8. Three of the cases were found among new airport arrivals, according to a notice on the Beijing 2022 official website. Two others were among those already …
Beijing Olympics organiser says 5 new COVID cases detected among personnel on Feb 8 Read More »
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong is due to report at least 1,160 daily COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, a new record for the global financial hub that has been struggling to contain an outbreak of the Omicron variant, broadcaster TVB reported, citing an unidentified source. (Reporting by Marius Zaharia; Editing by Kim Coghill)
By Martin Petty (Reuters) – Campaigning began on Tuesday for the Philippines’ election on May 9 that will decide thousands of positions across the archipelago nation, including who will take over from Rodrigo Duterte and become its president for the next six years. Below is a rundown of what to expect. WHAT’S BEING DECIDED? Roughly …
Explainer-A guide to the Philippines 2022 election Read More »
By Twinnie Siu and Farah Master HONG KONG (Reuters) -Hong Kong announced stringent new coronavirus restrictions and record new infections on Tuesday, while a shortage of vegetables added to the misery as truck drivers who tested positive for COVID-19 were unable to bring them from mainland China. The Asian financial hub reported a record 625 …
Hong Kong’s COVID misery deepens with new social restrictions, vegetable shortage Read More »
By Neil Jerome Morales and Karen Lema MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine presidential candidates began on Tuesday their three-month long campaign to woo voters, making lofty promises to rebuild the shattered economy, wipe out corruption and uplift the lives of a pandemic-weary public. Frontrunner Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the son and namesake of the late dictator who …
Philippines election campaigns kick off with vows of unity, graft-busting Read More »
GENEVA (Reuters) – The U.N. human rights office called on Tuesday for the release of four women activists and their relatives in Afghanistan who were detained or abducted last month after protests over women’s rights since the Taliban seized control. The OHCHR said there was no news about the whereabouts of the four women, who …
U.N. rights office demands release of Afghan women activists Read More »
By Jiraporn Kuhakan BANGKOK (Reuters) – Hundreds of freight trucks deliberately clogged a major thoroughfare of Thailand’s notoriously congested capital on Tuesday, seeking to pressure the government into lowering diesel prices. Police tried unsuccessfully to shift the protesting trucks and taxi drivers as they crawled along the main northbound highway out of Bangkok, some carrying …
Thai truckers’ protest at diesel prices clogs capital Read More »
