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This Week in Asia
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul reacts at parliament in Bangkok on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Politics

Anutin takes charge in Thailand as Mideast chaos pressures economy

Facing economic challenges and border tensions with Cambodia, the prime minister has pledged swift responses to public needs.

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Japan gets tough against teachers’ sexual misconduct, voyeurism after arrests

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‘I’ll burn down my school’: Philippine police foil shooting plot by teens

People

Ashes for ransom: the bizarre rise of urn thefts in Malaysia

In the past month, 30 urns in Negeri Sembilan and 22 urns in Johor were reported stolen at two memorial parks.

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The Xiao En memorial park in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Photo: YouTube/Xiao En Group
The Xiao En memorial park in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Photo: YouTube/Xiao En Group

Politics

Nuclear or nothing: why North Korea’s Kim expects the US to come ‘cap in hand’

With Washington tied up in Iran, Kim Jong-un’s message is clear: if the US wants a summit, it must pay his nuclear price.

Politics

Russian hypersonic jets buzz Japan’s coast in ‘thinly veiled threat’

The exercises send a message that Tokyo should avoid antagonising Moscow or risk ‘repercussions’, observers say.

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East Asia

‘Cold-hearted’ South Korean cafe’s US$1 ‘toilet-only’ menu flush with criticism

Business owners cite restroom hygiene concerns and misuse by customers, while critics call the fee excessive.

A South Korean cafe is facing backlash over restroom fees and access rules amid hygiene concerns. Photo: Shutterstock
A South Korean cafe is facing backlash over restroom fees and access rules amid hygiene concerns. Photo: Shutterstock

Southeast Asia

Cambodia boosts Singapore and Malaysia fuel imports to survive energy crisis

Energy Minister Keo Rottanak says ‘an Asean power grid is the way to go’ as Vietnam and China restrict exports to Phnom Penh.

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Health & Environment

Too hot to handle? Southeast Asia’s AI data centre gold rush strains power grids

Data centres crave cold. Southeast Asia is anything but. Now, the AI boom is pushing tropical engineering to the limit.

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Economics

New US trade offensive threatens to test Asean ties

The trade probes may compel Southeast Asia to continue diversifying away from the US, with analysts predicting recent deals could unravel.

Southeast Asia’s trade chiefs pose for a group photo during the Asean Economic Ministers’ Retreat in Manila, the Philippines, last week. Photo: EPA

South Asia

Pakistan announces 5-day pause on Afghan strikes for Eid

The temporary ceasefire comes after Monday’s hospital strike, the deadliest in an escalating conflict between the two neighbours.

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An Afghan man walks next to the site where a drug rehabilitation centre was destroyed in an air strike in Kabul on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters
An Afghan man walks next to the site where a drug rehabilitation centre was destroyed in an air strike in Kabul on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

People

Australian police officer’s ‘perverts’ remark against Indian man sparks outrage

An official from the community says no police department in Australia has implemented a set of anti-racism recommendations.

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Health & Environment

Malaysia’s ‘shielded’ medical tourism sector to benefit from Iran war’s impact

With the war affecting the outlook of Dubai’s medical hub, Malaysia could draw more patients from the Middle East.

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Lifestyle & Culture

‘Even sultan would think twice’: the US$460 cake testing Malaysia’s sweet tooth

Sarawak bakery’s luxury treat sparks debate over its high price as Malaysians stock up on Eid sweets amid rising diabetes concerns.

The “Kek Lapis Sultan” cake is being sold for US$460 for a 5kg tray at a bakery in Sarawak, Malaysia. Photo: Instagram/abgkju

People

Japanese atomic bomb survivor who hugged Obama in Hiroshima dies at 88

Earlier this month, Shigeaki Mori warned that the world was at risk of another nuclear attack over the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.

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Then US president Barack Obama hugs Shigeaki Mori, a survivor of the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima, during a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in 2016. Photo: AFP
Then US president Barack Obama hugs Shigeaki Mori, a survivor of the 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima, during a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in 2016. Photo: AFP

Politics

Nepal voted for change. Can its rapper-engineer PM deliver?

Balendra Shah has promised to transform Nepal, but success hinges on him becoming the first elected leader to finish a full five-year term.

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Health & Environment

Asean bets on new framework to remedy ‘uneven’ disaster response

The new ‘ASPECT’ initiative could help boost quicker collective regional responses during large-scale or evolving disasters, analysts say.

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Politics

Graft and gridlock: in Anwar’s Malaysia, reformist cracks widen

Malaysia’s prime minister can’t pass his own reform bills. His coalition appears to be cracking – and time is running out.

Illustration: Huy Truong
Illustration: Huy Truong

People

‘It’s inevitable’: Singapore’s workers brace for AI disruption

The city state wants 100,000 workers to become ‘AI bilingual’. But with entry-level roles already vanishing, time may not be on its side.

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Politics

Build fast, grow rich: To Lam’s blueprint for a rising Vietnam

Vietnam’s Communist Party chief is staking his legacy on 10 per cent growth, domestic megaprojects and an overseas charm offensive.

Economics

Philippines’ AI reckoning puts millions of jobs on the line

The US$30 billion outsourcing sector is fighting to adapt, leaving millions of workers with a stark choice: upskill or be left behind.

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Image: Kevin Wong
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Highlights from
THIS WEEK IN ASIA

Politics

Anutin takes charge in Thailand as Mideast chaos pressures economy

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Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul reacts at parliament in Bangkok on Thursday. Photo: AFP

Lifestyle & Culture

Japan gets tough against teachers’ sexual misconduct, voyeurism after arrests

videocam
A man taking an upskirt photo. The wide use of mobile technology has encouraged misbehaviour among some Japanese teachers, analysts say. Photo: Shutterstock

People

‘I’ll burn down my school’: Philippine police foil shooting plot by teens

Philippine police thwarted a school shooting plot by radicalised teens and seized offensive materials from the suspects. Photo: Handout

People

Ashes for ransom: the bizarre rise of urn thefts in Malaysia

videocam
The Xiao En memorial park in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Photo: YouTube/Xiao En Group

Politics

Nuclear or nothing: why North Korea’s Kim expects the US to come ‘cap in hand’

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspects a shooting competition to mark the army’s “Snipers’ Day” at a training base on March 3. Photo: KCNA/KNS/AFP/Getty Images/TNS
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MULTIMEDIA
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