Asian Politics Headlines at 2:13 a.m. GMT
India's former prime minister Manmohan Singh, architect of economic reforms, dies at 92
India's former prime minister Manmohan Singh, architect of economic reforms, dies at 92
Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a dire warning to his allies today.
Officials said breakthrough came when Trump applied pressure on Israeli government, something Biden was unwilling to do
Aides to President-elect Donald Trump have asked three senior career diplomats who oversee the U.S. State Department's workforce and internal coordination to step down from their roles, two U.S. officials familiar with the matter said, in a possible signal of deeper changes ahead for the diplomatic corps. The team overseeing the State Department's transition to the new administration, the Agency Review Team, has requested that Dereck Hogan, Marcia Bernicat and Alaina Teplitz leave their posts, the sources said. While political appointees typically submit their resignations when a new president takes office, most career foreign service officers continue from one administration to the next.
Michelle Obama is done with President-elect Trump, if her decision to skip next week’s inauguration means anything. The former first lady, who once called on Democrats to go high when Trump’s Republican Party goes low, will not be going to the Capitol to watch Trump take the presidential oath for a second time, leaving her…
Kamala Harris has told friends that she is deeply sad about President Joe Biden’s claim that he could have won the 2024 election. Biden said in an interview at the start of January that he thought he could have defeated Donald Trump. “It’s presumptuous to say that, but I think yes... based on the polling,” he said, speaking to USA Today, later clarifying that he meant both he and Harris “could have... would have” beaten Trump.
President-elect Donald Trump has threatened tariffs of 60% against all Chinese goods, igniting fears of retaliatory tariffs from China.
For years, the U.S. government has urged China to show "restraint" in pushing its claim on Taiwan and to drop military threats to bring the democratically governed island under its control. Now - some Chinese commentators say - the power of that long-held U.S. message has been undermined by the threats by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to take control of Greenland and the Panama Canal, by force if necessary. Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
Putin’s air force pounded critical infrastructure facilities close to the Polish border
President-elect Donald Trump is due to take office on Monday.
Israel supplied Iran with centrifuge platforms containing explosives for its nuclear enrichment program, a top Iranian official has acknowledged for the first time, underscoring the sophistication of sabotage programs targeting the Islamic Republic. The comments by Mohammad Javad Zarif, a former foreign minister who serves as vice president for strategic affairs for reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian, appear aimed at explaining to the country’s disaffected public the challenges Iran's government faces under crushing Western sanctions over the program. The comments also acknowledged details previously reported in Israel about a 2021 attack on Iran's underground Natanz nuclear enrichment facility.
The city of Jenin in the northern West Bank has been a flashpoint in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for decades.
Yoon Suk Yeol ‘simply refused to speak’
The impeached president has been arrested for declaring martial law after months of political scandal
The economist also slammed one of the president-elect’s policies as “terrible.”
Taiwan carried out its first execution in five years late on Thursday, upsetting both rights groups and the European Union which called on the government to maintain its de facto moratorium on the death penalty. Despite Taiwan's reputation as Asia's most liberal democracy, the death penalty remains broadly popular according to opinion polls, though in recent years it has only rarely been carried out and violent crime is relatively low. In September, Taiwan's constitutional court ruled that the death penalty is constitutional but only for the most serious crimes with the most rigorous legal scrutiny, after considering a petition brought by 37 people who were then on death row.
Canada could impose countermeasures on up to C$150 billion ($105 billion) worth of U.S. imports if President-elect Donald Trump puts tariffs on Canadian goods and services, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. Canada has drawn up a list of targets but would hold public consultations before acting, said the source, adding the extent of any potential reaction would depend on what Trump does. The Toronto Star was the first to report the proposed countermeasures.
Mel Gibson is just as surprised as you are. The controversial Hollywood star apparently found out about his new diplomatic posting at the same time as the rest of the world when President-elect Donald Trump announced he would be appointing actors Sylvester Stallone, Jon Voight and Gibson as his “special ambassadors” to Hollywood. In true Trump fashion, he said the new roles were part of his effort to the American film industry “bigger, better, and stronger than ever before.”
Two new aircraft carriers are being named after Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, continuing the Navy convention of naming them after US presidents.
Foxx couldn’t hide his shock over Diaz’s jab at the president-elect’s friendship with tech billionaire
With high property values, catastrophic damage, and lost economic activity, the Los Angeles wildfires could cost up to $275 billion. Here's who pays.