Asia - South China Morning Post

As the world reels from the fallout of the Iran war, India is seeking to manage its risks and interests in the Middle East and beyond while maintaining its neutrality in the widening conflict.

This can be seen in New Delhi engaging with combatants US and Iran, as well as other nations caught in the crossfire of the war, according to political analysts.

In the past two weeks, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has spoken four times with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, while Prime...

At least three Filipinos with ties to the country’s military have been arrested on suspicion of spying for Beijing, allegedly leaking information that sparked maritime confrontations in the disputed South China Sea.

The case, which came to light last year during an ongoing multi-agency counter-intelligence effort, marks a new strategy of recruiting Filipinos for espionage instead of planting individuals with fake local identities in the country, according to Philippine Navy Rear Admiral Roy...

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on Sunday hinted at the possibility of sending the country’s Self-Defence Forces for minesweeping operations in the Strait of Hormuz, provided that a ceasefire is realised in the conflict between Iran and the United States and Israel.

“Japan’s minesweeping technology is at the top level in the world,” Motegi said during a television programme. “Let’s say [the parties have entered into a] ceasefire, and in the event that mines pose an obstacle, we may...

The clack of mahjong tiles, the soft rattle of exercise bikes and the slow thrum of sewing machines are the soundtrack to Monday afternoons at the Yong-en Active Hub: a senior centre with the vibe of a social club, where new skills and friendships are the antidote to old age.

At the Bukit Merah estate in central Singapore, Agnes Chen, 74, strolls through the swinging doors, declines entreaties to join a game of Rummikub – a tile-based hybrid of mahjong and rummy – and fixes herself a...

If everything goes according to plan, Indonesia will be in possession of an aircraft carrier come Armed Forces Day on October 5.

When that happens, it will become only the second country in Southeast Asia, after Thailand, to operate such a vessel. But this does not mean Indonesia’s maritime power will increase significantly. The issue here is prestige, not combat power.

The warship in question is the Italian navy’s Giuseppe Garibaldi. The 14,000-tonne flat-top was commissioned in 1985 and...

Julia had a plan: spring break, Kuala Lumpur’s skyline, then a long-overdue reunion in the jungles of Sarawak. What she got instead was a travel booking screen showing €3,000 (US$3,440) flights and a cascade of cancellation alerts.

“I just can’t afford that,” the 22-year-old Romanian told This Week in Asia.

Her original Emirates itinerary had her transiting through Dubai or Abu Dhabi, but the US-Israel war on Iran upended her plans after the carrier warned of disruptions and two-week...

Fourteen people died and 25 were seriously injured in a fire at a car parts factory in the South Korean city of Daejeon, fire authorities said ⁠on Saturday.

The fire broke out around lunchtime on Friday and was contained ‌by 11.48pm, the safety ministry said.

Another 35 people suffered minor injuries, the fire authorities added.

As of Saturday morning, 28 people were sent to hospital, and four of them had surgery for broken bones and other injuries.

Fire officials said the factory was owned by...

Before his first term as US president began in 2017, Donald Trump was probably best known for his book, The Art of the Deal. But by launching, together with Israel, a widely unpopular war on Iran, Trump has arguably dealt himself a very weak hand. There is little “art” in it.

The headline splashed across the front page of the Financial Times on March 17 – “Allies reject Trump’s call for warships” (to force open the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has partially closed after US and Israeli attacks) –...

Accelerating glacial retreat in the Himalayas over the past decades is threatening over 2 billion people in the region who depend on meltwater from the “water tower of Asia” for their daily needs, according to climate scientists.

Glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region have been losing ice at twice the rate since 2000, with smaller glaciers under 0.5 sq km shrinking more rapidly than larger ones, according to two landmark reports published on Saturday to coincide with the World Day for...

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said Tehran is ready to facilitate the passage of Japanese vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for global energy shipments, and that negotiations with Japan on the issue are ongoing.

“We have not closed the strait. It is open,” Araghchi said in a telephone interview with Kyodo News on Friday. He also stressed that Iran, which was attacked by the United States and Israel in late February, was seeking “not a ceasefire, but a complete,...