Asia - South China Morning Post

Japan is reportedly planning to deploy advanced anti-ship missiles on Minamitorishima, the country’s easternmost island, as it moves to enhance its defence posture against what it perceives as rising Chinese military activity in the region.

The defence ministry is also seeking to deploy a launcher, spotting drones and radar systems on the island as early as June, according to a report by national broadcaster NHK on Tuesday. These would be used to identify and target vessels, complementing the...

North Korea and Belarus’ strongmen leaders signed a “friendship and cooperation” treaty on Thursday after Kim Jong-un gave a lavish welcome to President Alexander Lukashenko on his maiden visit.

Besides supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine – around 2,000 North Korean soldiers are thought to have died – both nations are under Western sanctions and are accused of gross human rights violations. The two men met last year in China.

“In the modern realities of global transformation – at a time when...

The Philippines is working with Washington to secure waivers and exemptions that will allow it to obtain oil from US-sanctioned countries and guarantee supplies, its ambassador to the United States said.

The Philippines, which relies heavily on imported fuel, declared a state of national energy emergency on Tuesday to deal with the fallout from the Middle East war, including ‌the disruptions to oil procurement.

“We are working with the State Department to get waivers or exemptions to purchase...

For much of the post-war era, the architecture of global governance rested on the simple assumption that the United States would support the systems it largely designed and uphold the rules it helped to create.

The first Trump administration was no isolated incident. Now, from the vantage point of 2026, amid the US-Israel attack on Iran and the subsequent closing of the Strait of Hormuz, it is quite clear that there is little sign of an appetite in Washington for the US to once again safeguard...

A Malaysian minister on Wednesday denied he was the unnamed politician at the centre of fresh allegations in the country’s so-called corporate mafia controversy, amid wide speculation over the individual’s identity.

Ramanan Ramakrishnan, human resource minister, and vice-president of the ruling People’s Justice Party (PKR), rejected claims he had taken 9.5 million ringgit (US$2.4 million) in exchange for “helping resolve” the alleged matter.

The controversy gained traction following news reports...

Two days before the United States and Israel launched their war on Iran, Washington asked Sri Lanka to let two armed warplanes use an airport on its southern coast.

Colombo said no, Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake recently revealed – a decision analysts said reflected the Indian Ocean island nation’s desire to avoid being drawn into a foreign conflict from which it had “nothing to gain”.

The request, made on February 26, reportedly sought to relocate two aircraft from a US base in...

A Chinese national accused of raping and strangling a woman during a violent home invasion appeared in a New Zealand court on Wednesday to face charges, seven months after he was extradited from Singapore.

Zhang Xuesong reportedly fled to China following the alleged March 2024 Auckland break-in, complicating efforts to arrest him as no extradition treaty exists between the two countries.

The 41-year-old subsequently visited Singapore, where he was returned to New Zealand last September.

Zhang,...

Singapore’s state coroner on Wednesday upheld the Police Coast Guard’s (PCG) finding that there was no foul play in the death of Indian singer Zubeen Garg and ruled the death an accidental drowning.

Directly addressing a concern raised by Garg’s widow about the finding by the PCG that there was no foul play, State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said the PCG had carried out a comprehensive and thorough investigation in this case.

Instead, he found that Garg’s death was “simply due to an unfortunate and...

Across peninsular Malaysia, the heat is getting unbearable and posing health risks for many, and nowhere is this felt more sharply than in Kedah and Perlis, two northern states at the centre of Malaysia’s food-growing belt.

Over the start of the Eid period last weekend, the scorching sun dampened the holiday mood during the festival marking the end of the holiest month in the Islamic calendar.

Families are timing visits to avoid the fierce afternoon sun, farmers are watching paddy fields – known...

A Philippine prison was supposed to contain Park Wang-yeol.

Instead, according to South Korean investigators, it became his office from which an alleged drug trafficking empire was run, complete with a “VIP” lifestyle, a Telegram alias and a girlfriend summoned to his cell on demand.

On Wednesday, after nine years of failed extradition attempts, that arrangement finally came to an end.

Bearded, silent and dressed in casual clothing, the 48-year-old arrived at Incheon International Airport near...