Reuters Asia Top

By Phuong Nguyen and Francesco Guarascio HANOI (Reuters) – Vietnam’s President To Lam has taken over the duties of Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong who is focusing on an unspecified treatment for his health, the party said on Thursday. The extraordinary move comes after months of speculation that Trong’s health was weakening. The party …

Vietnam President Lam takes on duties of party chief as Trong focuses on health Read More »

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan is committed to boosting its defences and working with the United States, the foreign ministry said on Thursday, days after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was quoted as saying Taiwan should pay to be defended. The United States is Chinese-claimed Taiwan’s most important international backer and arms supplier, despite the lack …

Taiwan says committed to strengthening defence after Trump comments Read More »

By Jonathan Landay WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Two State Department bureaus could not prove compliance with internal policies for vetting aid groups in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan that received $293 million in funds, raising a risk that extremists may have profited, a U.S. watchdog said on Wednesday. “It is critical that State knows who is actually benefitting from …

US aid vetting failures may have benefited militants in Afghanistan, watchdog finds Read More »

By Kanishka Singh and Simon Lewis WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States has called on Bangladesh to uphold the right to peaceful protest amid demonstrations against the government’s job quota system in which police have fired tear gas and rubber bullets amid violent clashes that have left at least six dead and scores injured. WHY …

US urges Bangladesh to uphold right to peaceful protest amid anti-quota protests Read More »

By James Pomfret and Jessie Pang HONG KONG (Reuters) – The head of the Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) said she was fired by the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday after she refused demands from senior editors at the paper to sever ties with the organisation and to not advocate for media freedoms.     Selina Cheng, …

Hong Kong journalist group head says she was fired by WSJ amid press freedom row Read More »

(Reuters) – At least six people were killed in a southwest China shopping centre fire, Chinese state media reported on Wednesday. (Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -China has halted nascent nuclear-arms-control talks with the United States, its foreign ministry said on Wednesday, in a protest of Washington’s arms sales to the democratically governed island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory. The Chinese decision deals a potentially serious setback to global arms-control efforts, with Beijing joining Moscow in …

China says it has halted arms-control talks with US over Taiwan Read More »

By Bart H. Meijer and Charlotte Van Campenhout AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -The Netherlands commemorated on Wednesday the 298 victims of flight MH17 that was shot down over Ukraine 10 years ago with a ceremony attended by the bereaved and representatives from Malaysia, Australia, Britain, Belgium and Ukraine. Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur …

Netherlands commemorates 10th anniversary of downing of MH17 airline Read More »