Advertisement
Advertisement
TOPIC

US-Israel war on Iran

US-Israel war on Iran
Latest news and updates on the US and Israel's strikes on Iran, in which Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed, and Iran's responses.
The main reason the US launched the blockade was to prevent Iran from weaponising the Strait of Hormuz and normalising any kind of toll, one analyst argued. Photo: Reuters
Shanghai

Is the US trying to pressure China with Hormuz blockade?

Speculation has been circulating that Washington’s aim is to force Beijing to put pressure on Tehran to strike a peace deal.

videocam
Diplomacy

Opinion | How Pakistan outmanoeuvred India in Iran war diplomacy with China’s help

videocam
Lebanon

Israel, Lebanon agree to launch direct talks after rare US-facilitated meeting

videocam
Donald Trump

Trump turns on Italy’s Meloni, says he is ‘shocked’ by her

Meloni had been a supporter of Trump, but has criticised his decision to go to war with Iran and denounced his weekend ‌criticism of Pope Leo.

US President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in October 2025. Photo: Reuters
China-Middle East relations

Xi’s meeting with Abu Dhabi crown prince highlights Gulf turn towards China

Analysts said the trip was a sign that the UAE was seeking ‘more reliable partners’ in the wake of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

videocam
13
Pakistan

Will the next round of US-Iran talks bring peace or more confrontation?

Lack of mutual trust means a strategic miscalculation could trigger renewed conflict at any moment, analysts say.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
China GDP

IMF cuts China’s GDP growth forecast to 4.4% as Iran war hits global economy

The latest projection is 0.1 percentage lower than January’s estimate but higher than October’s.

4
The IMF headquarters during the first day of the 2026 Spring Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank Group in Washington on April 13. Photo: Kent Nishimura
Malaysia

Malaysians urged to tighten their belts as Iran war fallout starts to bite

Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir warns the effects of the crisis can last until next year, with oil prices expected to remain high.

Iran

Opinion | You’re not asking the right question about the Iran war

The standard critique of the war does not ask who requires Iran to remain an enemy rather than a problem to be managed.

videocam
Energy

Asia’s energy supply at breaking point as US blockades Hormuz

Nearly 90 per cent of the region’s crude oil is now at risk as stalled peace talks and a naval stand-off raise the spectre of stagflation.

11
A liquefied natural gas tanker is seen at a port in Yokohama, Japan’s Kanagawa prefecture, on April 8. Photo: AFP
China trade

China’s exports slow as Iran war impact begins to bite

Disruptions from conflict in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz contributed to a worse-than-expected slowdown in Chinese exports and a jump in imports.

Cars awaiting export at Tianjin Port in northern China. Photo: Xinhua
Poverty

UN warns 8 million in Asia-Pacific risk poverty if Iran war drags on

A new UNDP report has forecast job losses, crippling inflation and food insecurity, with the poorest nations brutally exposed to the oil shock.

Nepal

Nepal’s trekking trade looks east as Iran war disrupts Western tourist flow

Flight disruptions through Gulf hubs have cut Western arrivals, prompting tourism operators to chase travellers from Asia-Pacific markets.

videocam
Japan

Israel envoy protests Japanese TV pundit’s remarks on Kushner’s Jewish identity

Critics said his comments suggested that Trump’s son-in-law should not be involved in negotiations with Iran because he is Jewish.

videocam
US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner (L) and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff (R) look on as Vice President JD Vance speaks at a news conference after meeting with representatives from Pakistan and Iran in Islamabad on Sunday. Photo: AFP
China energy security

China turns to central Asia as US blockade in Hormuz chokes global energy flows

Chinese vice-premier to visit major gas field in Turkmenistan as Beijing aims to shore up energy security and diversify away from volatile maritime routes.

5
In this 2013 image, President Xi Jinping stands alongside a model of the purification plant in Turkmenistan’s Galkynysh gas field during an opening ceremony. Photo: Getty Images
Malaysia

Power play: Malaysia races to go green as Iran war squeezes oil supply

To avoid future supply shocks, the government aims to raise renewable generation to 70 per cent of the energy mix by 2050.

Indonesia

Why Indonesia’s Prabowo is in Russia – and what he needs from Putin

The visit aims to secure discounted crude as global prices soar, even as Jakarta holds high-level defence talks with Washington.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
South Korea

What is really behind South Korea’s diplomatic row with Israel?

Lee Jae Myung’s clash was about more than human rights, analysts say – it was about energy security and sending a message to Donald Trump.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung attends a National Economic Advisory Council meeting in Seoul on Thursday. Photo: Yonhap/EPA
United States

Vance had 2 jobs last week. Neither happened for the US vice-president

J.D. Vance returns to Washington empty-handed after a diplomatic tour that saw the fall of a key European ally and a stalemate in Islamabad.

China trade

China’s imports surge in March as exports soften amid Hormuz blockade

Export figures fall short of predictions, rising by 2.5 per cent, while imports grow by 27.8 per cent as conflict in Middle East causes global disruption.

Asia travel

Lack of fuel reserves forces Southeast Asian flight cuts amid Hormuz crisis

Airlines are cutting flights, as dependence on Middle Eastern fuel hits operators from Pakistan to New Zealand.

videocam
A Vietjet Airline airplane in front of a Vietnam Airlines airplane, at Noi Bai International Airport, in Hanoi, Vietnam, on May 28, 2025. Photo: Reuters
Pakistan

Minister says Pakistan ‘committed’ to repay US$3 billion loan from UAE

Finance Minister Aurangzeb said the government was exploring a ‘combination of many sources’ to pay back the amount.

videocam
Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. Photo: Reuters
Semiconductors

How prolonged Iran war could disrupt Asia tech from chipmaking to data centres

LNG and helium shortages risk crippling Asia’s semiconductor supply chain and delaying AI infrastructure expansion, experts say.

Middle East

Dozens detained in New York City protest over US arms sales to Israel

Whistle-blower Chelsea Manning was among those held in a protest led by the anti-war group Jewish Voice for Peace.

Pakistan

Opinion | Pakistan has the world’s attention. Now it must focus inwards

For Islamabad, sustaining its diplomatic success will also depend on how effectively it addresses internal challenges.

videocam
Workers remove a billboard after the peace talks between the US and Iran ended without a deal, in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 12. Photo: EPA
Middle East

Hezbollah leader asks Lebanon to cancel meeting in US with Israel

Amid a surge in Israeli ground operations, Naim Qassem calls for a ‘heroic stance’ to scrap Tuesday’s planned summit.

6
A man who said he survived an Israeli strike sits among piled damaged cars in Beirut. Photo: Reuter
Iran

US begins blockade of Iranian ports amid fragile ceasefire

Trump says Beijing ‘would like to see this ended’ as the US moves to stop vessels transiting to and from Iranian ports.

videocam
54
2026 Trump-Xi summit

Could Trump’s Hormuz blockade derail China summit with Xi Jinping?

US president’s move forces China into political dilemma and could create a flashpoint ahead of his meeting with Chinese leader, analysts say.

videocam
14
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement