By Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD/KABUL (Reuters) -Afghan and Pakistani troops briefly exchanged fire along their shared border on Thursday, both nations said, on the same day talks to find a lasting peace restarted in Istanbul. Each nation blamed the other for starting the exchange of gunfire near Spin Boldak, an Afghan border town towards the …
Afghanistan and Pakistan exchange fire as peace talks begin Read More »
By Ananda Teresia JAKARTA (Reuters) -About 100 activists gathered on Thursday in Indonesia’s capital Jakarta to demand that the government cancel a plan to grant late authoritarian leader Suharto the status of national hero, reflecting wider concerns about historical revisionism. The country’s social ministry and culture ministry have proposed Suharto along with 48 other candidates …
Indonesian activists rally against plan to name Suharto as national hero Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) -China and the UK should properly handle “occasional noises and disturbances” and enhance strategic communication to safeguard bilateral ties, Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his British counterpart on Thursday. It is normal for the two countries to have differences, Wang said, adding that China stands ready to work with Britain to address global …
China, UK should properly handle ‘occasional noises’, Chinese foreign minister says Read More »
TAIPEI/SYDNEY (Reuters) -Taiwan said it welcomed a senior Fijian diplomat this week who met with Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim – a highly unusual trip, given the Pacific island state only has formal relations with Beijing, and one that drew an angry response from China’s government. Taiwan’s presidential office said late on Wednesday that Filipo Tarakinikini, …
Taiwan says senior Fijian UN diplomat visited, despite Fiji’s formal ties with China Read More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Taiwan must be allowed full and equal participation when China hosts APEC next year, the U.S. State Department said on Wednesday, after Taipei complained that Beijing had “added a lot of conditions” to its attendance. The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation is one of the only international bodies Chinese-claimed Taiwan is a member of, …
Taiwan must be allowed equal participation when China hosts APEC, US says Read More »
BEIJING (Reuters) -Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn will pay a visit to China from November 13 to 17, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Thursday, the first by a Thai monarch since diplomatic relations were established In 1975. The visit, at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, coincides with the 50th anniversary of the establishment …
King of Thailand to pay historic visit to China in mid-November Read More »
VIENNA (Reuters) -The total area of land in Afghanistan on which opium poppy is grown shrank 20% this year, according to a U.N. estimate issued on Thursday, a further drop since farming of the raw material for heroin collapsed in 2023 after the Taliban banned it. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) …
Opium farming in Afghanistan shrank by a fifth in 2025, UN survey finds Read More »
By Jun Yuan Yong SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Momentum on global climate action is waning as geopolitical issues pile uncertainties on businesses and governments, Singapore’s environment minister Grace Fu said on Thursday ahead of the COP30 climate summit, which will convene from November 10-21. Aside from geopolitical tensions, higher energy and food prices have created “political headwinds” …
Momentum on climate action is waning, Singapore minister says as COP30 looms Read More »
By Simon Lewis WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday he planned to visit the five Central Asian countries in the coming year, as he met their foreign ministers as part of a Trump administration charm offensive aimed at the resource-rich region. The presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan …
Rubio plans to visit five Central Asian states in 2026 Read More »
SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korea slammed the U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration for imposing sanctions that “antagonise” it, and vowed to respond correspondingly, state media KCNA said on Thursday. The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday sanctioned eight individuals and two entities that it said were involved in a variety of North Korean cyber-related money-laundering schemes, in …
North Korea says antagonised by US sanctions, will respond Read More »
