South Korea and Japan scrambled their fighter jets on Wednesday as six Russian and two Chinese warplanes entered their air defense zones without prior notice. The joint patrol by China and Russia, the sixth of its kind since 2019, was seen as a show of increasingly close military ties between the two countries amid rising tensions in the region. According …

The Philippines has deported 180 Chinese nationals who were arrested for engaging in online scams targeting their compatriots in mainland China and Taiwan. The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said on Friday that the deportees boarded a chartered flight at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila on Thursday night. They were escorted by immigration agents and Chinese police officers. The …

Indonesia’s president has ordered the military to assist farmers in planting rice, as the country faces a severe drought and a surge in rice prices due to the El Niño weather phenomenon. President Joko Widodo, who visited a rice field in central Java on Wednesday, said he wanted to speed up the planting process, which had been delayed by months …

K-pop is a global phenomenon that has captivated millions of fans around the world. But in China, one of the largest and most influential markets for music, K-pop has a special status. Not only do Chinese fans consume K-pop songs and albums through various platforms, but they also show their support by purchasing digital albums on Chinese music sites. Digital …

Pendatang, which means “outsider” or “foreigner” in Malay, is a dystopian thriller that plays on Malaysia’s ethnic tensions. It is the country’s first entirely crowdfunded film that aims to share one of many perspectives on the possible impact and danger of racial politics on the lives of ordinary people. The film is set in a future Malaysia where the different …

China’s ambassador to the United States, Qin Gang, has described the recent virtual meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden as a “milestone” for bilateral relations, and stressed the need to revive the spirit of “ping-pong diplomacy” that helped break the ice between the two countries 50 years ago. Speaking at a webinar hosted by the …

A Chinese social media influencer has sparked a backlash after posting a video of herself throwing money at Thai locals during a trip to Bangkok. The video, which was uploaded to TikTok on December 12, shows the influencer, who goes by the name of Xiao Qian, walking around a busy street market and tossing banknotes at vendors and pedestrians. She …

Singapore and Indonesia are facing a surge in Covid-19 cases, prompting some experts and officials to call for the return of masks, airport scanners and other preventive measures. Singapore reported 1,650 new infections on Wednesday, the highest daily tally since the pandemic began. The city state has been easing restrictions since October, when it shifted to a strategy of living …

Central Asia, a region rich in natural resources and strategic location, has long faced challenges in fostering a collective regional identity among its diverse and independent nations. However, recent initiatives and developments have shown a renewed commitment and interest in enhancing the level of cooperation and integration within the region. One of the main drivers of this process is Uzbekistan, …

In a small warehouse in the outskirts of Jakarta, Muhammad Helmi is busy feeding his hungry guests: thousands of maggots devouring a mountain of food waste. Helmi, 25, is the founder of Magalarva, a start-up that uses black soldier fly larvae to convert organic waste into animal feed, fertilizer and biofuel. He says his innovative solution can help tackle Indonesia’s …