Asia - South China Morning Post

Pakistan said on Wednesday it agreed to a 48-hour ceasefire with Afghanistan following days of violence that have killed dozens of people on both sides of the border.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the ceasefire was at Afghanistan’s request.

Moments later, the Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said the truce was at “the insistence” of the Pakistani side. His social media post did not mention a 48-hour time frame. All Afghan forces have been instructed to observe the...

US President Donald Trump has returned to a trademark policy in announcing a new round of trade confrontation that clearly echoes the conflict he launched in his first term. Officially, the trade war began on January 22, 2018, when he imposed a 30 per cent import tariff on solar panels.

While such measures are usually justified by noble intentions – protecting domestic industries and reviving local manufacturing – in reality, trade wars are often driven by the desire to seize foreign markets and...

New Zealand’s defence minister warned in an interview that small countries in the South Pacific face growing pressure from great power competition for their rare minerals and fisheries wealth, and that more action was needed from regional neighbours to help in preserving island nations’ sovereignty.

Judith Collins, who also oversees New Zealand’s intelligence and space portfolios, spoke on Wednesday before departing for Washington, where she will meet Trump administration officials including...

Indonesia’s plan to join the Brics-led New Development Bank (NDB) and fulfil a payment requirement for membership has spurred a debate on whether the move is feasible given the country’s strained finances to fund President Prabowo Subianto’s priority projects.

Earlier this year, Prabowo announced that Indonesia was planning to join the NDB “to boost the national development transformation” after he met the bank’s chairwoman, Dilma Rousseff, in Jakarta.

“The Indonesian government has decided to...

Record-high gold and silver prices fuelled by US-China friction have dented demand for the precious metal in key consumer market India, in the lead-up to the peak buying period for the Diwali festival.

Gold was trading at US$4,197.5 per troy ounce on Wednesday afternoon, as a spike in US-China trade tensions fuelled investors’ demand for the asset, long seen as a safe-haven investment.

The silver market has been gripped by a lack of liquidity, sparking a worldwide hunt for the metal. Prices hit...

Once a bright spot in the economy, Thailand’s tourism sector appears to be losing its shine.

Even with an expected bump in foreign arrivals during the peak travel season at the end of the year, the country’s main tourism body still expects just 33.4 million visitors for 2025, an almost 6 per cent drop from 35.5 million last year.

That’s the first decline in a decade outside the pandemic, and underscores the country’s challenge in trying to revive tourist arrivals, which remain below pre-Covid...

Former South Korean first couple Yoon Suk-yeol and Kim Keon-hee requested special treatment for their pets from South Korea’s embassy in Paris during their visits to France in 2023, an opposition lawmaker has revealed.

The couple “planned to bring their dogs on two visits to France in 2023 and asked the embassy to prepare protocol arrangements for them”, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Lee Jae-jung said during a parliamentary audit on Monday, The Korea Times newspaper reported.

“There were...

Starbucks South Korea has begun enforcing a nationwide ban on the consumption of outside food at all of its stores, aiming to curb disturbances caused by customers bringing in and eating food from elsewhere.

The company, operated by Shinsegae Group, began posting notices on Monday at its 2,050 stores across South Korea saying that all outside food and beverages are prohibited from being consumed inside. Baby food is exempt from the rule.

The move marks the first time the major cafe and dessert...

South Korea has banned travel to certain parts of Cambodia after the death of a college student, reportedly kidnapped and tortured by a crime ring, shocked the nation and led to calls for stronger government intervention.

On Wednesday, Seoul designated the Bokor Mountain area, Poipet and Bavet as travel ban zones.

“South Korean nationals visiting or staying in those areas may be subject to penalties under the Passport Act and other relevant regulations. Citizens planning to travel to such areas...

As the Philippines reels from a deepening corruption scandal rattling its political elite, one of its brightest social media stars has found herself at the centre of a national reckoning over wealth, privilege and accountability.

Filipino style icon and influencer Heart Evangelista has spent years dazzling international audiences. Her Instagram is a parade of haute couture and jewellery, and she is a regular at Paris Fashion Week.

But her conspicuous absence from this autumn’s event in France...