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This Week in Asia

Asia
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Economics
People
Opinion
Health & Environment
Lifestyle & Culture
A man refuels the tank of a motorcycle at a petrol station in Manila, the Philippines, on April 7. The Strait of Hormuz blockade has resulted in energy shortages in Asia. Photo: AFP

Economics

Will Asean’s scramble for Russian oil fuel shift in regional alliances?

Southeast Asia’s pivot may be for economic reasons, but some analysts warn Moscow could seek to build lasting influence in the region.

‘I feel anger’: Japan’s women rise up against constitutional reform push

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Philippine court order over Marcos’ health raises constitutional question

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Politics

Malaysia’s Najib ends house-arrest appeal over 1MDB-linked prison sentence

The withdrawal ends the former prime minister’s attempt to serve out his SRC sentence at home after his jail term was halved in 2024.

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Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, is escorted by prison officers on his arrival at the Kuala Lumpur High Court Complex, in Kuala Lumpur on December 22, 2025. Photo: AP
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, is escorted by prison officers on his arrival at the Kuala Lumpur High Court Complex, in Kuala Lumpur on December 22, 2025. Photo: AP

Lifestyle & Culture

In hot water: Japan’s bathhouses struggle to stay afloat as oil prices spike

“Sentos” have cut operating hours and welcomed fewer customers, with some deciding to fold amid the energy crisis.

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Politics

North Korea, Russia boost anti-West ‘powerful bulwark’ as Ukraine war drags on

At a memorial for fallen North Korean soldiers who fought in Ukraine, Moscow offers to renew a military pact with Pyongyang.

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Politics

Malaysian state in political crisis after Umno pulls support for chief minister

The Negeri Sembilan spat has shone the spotlight on increasingly fragile ties within Prime Minister Anwar’s coalition government.

Negeri Sembilan ruler Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir. Photo: YouTube
Negeri Sembilan ruler Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir. Photo: YouTube

People

Air-sea-land: migrant smugglers target Malaysia entry via Singapore, Thailand

A raid reveals a shift in tactics by syndicates that have long used Malaysia’s porous borders to move undocumented migrants.

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Economics

Japan aims to build world’s largest wind farm. Can it power on by 2035?

The plan calls for wind turbines to supply power to the Izu Islands and Tokyo, with an eventual capacity of 1 gigawatt.

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Economics

At Malaysia’s arms bazaar, drone dealers chase Southeast Asian market share

‘Drone warfare is the future,’ say arms dealers in Kuala Lumpur – and the region’s militaries are buying in.

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Malaysian army officers visit the booth of Special Technology Control, a Russian developer of unmanned systems, at the Defence Services Asia exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Tuesday. Photo: EPA

Lifestyle & Culture

Singapore’s answer to school bullying? The cane … and counselling

With student safety under the microscope, Singapore unveils a new framework in a bid to knock bullying on the head.

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Illustration: Huy Truong
Illustration: Huy Truong

Lifestyle & Culture

Iconic South Korean district on the brink in divisive urban renewal fight

Conservationists worry that reshaping Seoul’s Sewoon District risks erasing both heritage and livelihoods.

Politics

Will South Korea or Japan develop a nuclear deterrent of their own?

Seven in 10 South Koreans tell pollsters they want the bomb. Japan’s PM refuses to rule it out. Is ‘friendly proliferation’ next?

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Politics

India-Germany defence road map ‘good template’ for wider EU cooperation

Deeper defence ties are expected to boost India’s maritime modernisation efforts and Europe’s security role in the Indo-Pacific, experts say.

Submarine U-34 is docked in a shipyard of warship maker TKMS in Kiel, Germany, on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

Politics

Malaysia gets new anti-corruption chief as protests mount against outgoing head

Former High Court judge Abdul Halim Aman takes the reins of MACC from Azam Baki amid scandals.

Protesters against Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) boss Azam Baki march through central Kuala Lumpur on Saturday. SCMP/Iman Muttaqin Yusof
Protesters against Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) boss Azam Baki march through central Kuala Lumpur on Saturday. SCMP/Iman Muttaqin Yusof

Politics

Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt: the Middle East’s new power brokers?

‘Fear of US abandonment’ is helping forge a new Middle East – but don’t expect an Islamic Nato just yet.

Politics

3 killed in Japanese Type 10 tank blast that has military baffled

A round detonating inside a tank turret is virtually unheard of. The last time it happened in Japan was in 1979.

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Economics

Mixed bag: Indonesia’s 8% growth dream hits a plastic ceiling

Soaring packaging costs amid the Iran war hint at a deeper malaise as the middle class contracts and growth hits a plateau.

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A woman shops for vegetables in Depok, Indonesia, earlier this month near a sign asking customers to bring their own shopping bags. Photo: Reuters
A woman shops for vegetables in Depok, Indonesia, earlier this month near a sign asking customers to bring their own shopping bags. Photo: Reuters

Health & Environment

Shock therapy: war forces oil-addicted Asia to finally go green

Burned by soaring energy prices, Southeast Asian nations are racing to future-proof themselves against the volatility of war.

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Politics

Japan’s Middle East oil habit gets an Iran war reality check

Almost all of Japan’s oil comes from the Middle East. A closed strait turned that dependence into a trap.

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Lifestyle & Culture

Cultural capitals: Southeast Asia seeks soft power to outlast the buzz

The region’s creators are going global, but the structures to sustain them are still catching up.

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Illustration: Mario Rivera
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LATEST Asia NEWS

Economics

Will Asean’s scramble for Russian oil fuel shift in regional alliances?

A man refuels the tank of a motorcycle at a petrol station in Manila, the Philippines, on April 7. The Strait of Hormuz blockade has resulted in energy shortages in Asia. Photo: AFP

Southeast Asia

7 killed and dozens injured in train crash near Jakarta

Indonesian soldiers examine the damage after a train crash at a station in Bekasi, Indonesia, on Tuesday. Photo: AP

People

‘I feel anger’: Japan’s women rise up against constitutional reform push

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People protest against a constitutional amendment allowing Japan to sell weapons overseas, in Tokyo on April 21. Photo: EPA

Southeast Asia

French teen in Singapore faces jail for licking vending machine straw

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Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, who is studying in Singapore, allegedly filmed himself “licking a straw and placing it back at the vending machine”, and uploaded the video on social media. Photo: Reuters

Australasia

India, New Zealand sign ‘once-in-a-generation’ free-trade deal

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New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay (right) and Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal after they signed documents on a free-trade agreement in New Delhi on Monday. Photo: AP
MORE Asia NEWS
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OPINION
Wesley Morgan,Ben Newell

Opinion | Trump’s oil crisis is accelerating the end of the fossil fuel era

Wesley Morgan
Ben Newell
Michael Vatikiotis

Opinion | Blinding the world with lies makes peacemaking an impossible task

Chandran Nair

Asian Angle | The Thucydides Trap is a lie created to justify a US-China war

Chandran Nair
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Nilufer Oral

Opinion | Passage through the Strait of Hormuz is a right in war and peace

Nilufer Oral
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Nguyen Khac Giang

Asian Angle | Who is Vietnam’s new Prime Minister Le Minh Hung?

Nguyen Khac Giang
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MULTIMEDIA
Video

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters
03:09
Video

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji
02:34
Video

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport
02:02
Video

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail
04:27
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