Regional news from Southeast Asia in English — ASEAN politics, economy and diplomacy, covered by Thai PBS World.
ASEAN leaders have agreed to reduce disparity in development in the member countries during an informal gathering held on the sidelines of the IMF-WB annual meetings in Bali, Indonesia. Ananta News reported that President Joko Widodo said in a press statement after the ASEAN Leaders` Gathering on Thursday said ASEAN leaders agreed on the importance
BEIJING/PARIS (REUTERS) – China said on Sunday it was investigating Meng Hongwei for suspected wrongdoing after the head of the global law enforcement organisation Interpol and Chinese vice minister for security was reported missing in France. The statement by a Chinese anti-graft body was the first official word from China about Meng since his disappearance
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has a piece of advice for senior citizens: They should not be sleeping, but they should keep reading, writing and even quarrelling to keep active physically and mentally. The 93-year-old Mahathir said that when he quarreled with former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, his brains were kept active,
Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha this morning made a donation of 5 million baht to help victims of Indonesia’s earthquake and tsunami as international efforts to assist the Indonesian government to deal with the devastating natural disasters gathered pace amidst concerns over hundreds of thousands with little food and water. Gen Prayut handed over the
Rosmah Mansor, the wife of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly receiving and transferring funds related to money-laundering activities. The 66-year-old former first lady of Malaysia was detained this afternoon at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters in Putrajaya, after more than four hours of questioning. Malaysiakini reported that
STOCKHOLM (REUTERS) – Some of the actions Aung San Suu Kyi has taken as Myanmar’s civilian leader are “regrettable” but her Nobel Peace Prize will not be withdrawn, the head of the Nobel Foundation told Reuters in an interview in Stockholm. Lars Heikensten, speaking days before the awarding of this year’s peace prize, said
Malaysia will no longer support the leadership of Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi over her handling of the Rohingya crisis in her country, says Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, The Start of Malaysia reported. In an interview with Turkish international news channel TRT World, Mahathir said Suu Kyi seemed to be a “changed
PALU, Indonesia (Reuters) – Indonesia scrambled on Monday to get help into quake-hit Sulawesi island as survivors streamed away from their ruined homes and accounts of devastation filtered out of remote areas, including the death of 34 children at a Christian camp. The confirmed death toll of 844 was certain to rise as rescuers reached
YANGON (The Irrawaddy) — Pakistan has recently halted agreements reached under China’s Belt and Road Initiative, including the Pakistan-China Economic Corridor seeking to connect Asia and Europe along the same route as the ancient Silk Road, because it was found to unfairly benefit Chinese companies. Malaysia has also announced the cancellation of two major infrastructure projects,
JAKARTA – The death toll from an earthquake and tsunami on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi rose to 832 on Sunday, the national disaster mitigation agency said, adding it assessed the affected area to be bigger than initially thought. Many people were reported trapped in the rubble of buildings brought down in the 7.5 magnitude
WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Tesla and Elon Musk have agreed to pay $20 million each to financial regulators and the billionaire will step down as the company’s chairman but remain as chief executive, under a settlement that caps a tumultuous two months for the car-maker. The securities fraud agreement, announced by the Securities and
Large crowds of people are expected at the Dusit Zoo today as the final curtain is brought down on the country’s oldest zoo and one of Bangkok’s most prominent landmarks. The 80-year-old zoo will be closed down for good starting tomorrow with all animals transferred to other locations. The zoo also received huge crowds yesterday
