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Asia

This Week in Asia

A Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail aircraft in formation with US and Australian fighter jets. Photo: Australian Defence Force via AFP

Australasia

Australia to send missiles to UAE, deploy reconnaissance plane, but no troops

Prime minister emphasises ‘purely defensive’ role for Australia as Iranian strikes escalate across the Gulf.

4 hours ago

Thai police thought she was drunk. She was already dying

1 hour ago

‘Ghost projects’ push Philippines to record US$26.5 billion budget deficit

2 hours agovideocam

Economics

India’s 30-day Russian oil waiver comes with a steep US price tag

Washington has granted New Delhi a brief waiver for stranded Russian crude – but expects it to ramp up American oil purchases in return.

9 Mar 2026 - 6:00PM

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) meets Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in New Delhi, India, on December 5, 2025. Photo: Sputnik/Reuters

Economics

South Korea pulls rare move in bid to shield residents from Iran oil shock

As a nation that imports nearly every drop of oil it consumes, South Korea is hitting the panic button to shield citizens from rising prices.

3 hours agovideocam

Lifestyle & Culture

North Korea cancels Pyongyang marathon weeks before race, with no reason given

The race had been set for April 5 and would have marked the second year since Pyongyang resumed the event after the pandemic.

9 Mar 2026 - 7:18PMvideocam

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Australasia

Australia grants asylum to 5 Iranian women footballers after anthem controversy

Some players did not sing their country’s national anthem before a match, sparking fears they might face trouble back home.

2 hours ago

Iranian players warm up before the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 football match between Iran and the Philippines on the Gold Coast on Sunday. Photo: AFP

Politics

Malaysia’s Anwar risks reformist image as Daim family sues over ‘Zionist’ claims

The prime minister said that a group of Malaysians were working with foreign media and a ‘prominent Zionist group’ to topple the government.

9 Mar 2026 - 5:29PMvideocam

Politics

Asia’s longest communist revolt is dying, Manila says. The rebels disagree

The Philippine military claims the 56-year insurgency is near the finish line. But veteran rebels say the roots of rebellion remain.

9 Mar 2026 - 2:00PMvideocam

Lifestyle & Culture

Fire safety upgrades stall at Japan’s castles, shrines and temples

Work has yet to begin at about 30 per cent of priority heritage sites nearly 7 years after the blaze that destroyed Okinawa’s Shuri Castle.

9 Mar 2026 - 3:53PMvideocam

Flames engulf Shuri Castle in Naha, Okinawa prefecture, in October 2019. The fire destroyed several major structures at the Unesco World Heritage site. Photo: EPA-EFE

Southeast Asia

A heatwave is coming to Southeast Asia. So is an energy shock

Indonesia and Malaysia are set to feel the worst of an early summer first, compounding an LNG supply crisis triggered by the Iran war.

9 Mar 2026 - 4:22PM

A women uses an electric fan to cool off in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Photo: AFP

Lifestyle & Culture

A forgotten theatre lane in Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown gets a new lease on life

The restored lane, once home to an early theatre scene, is part of Kuala Lumpur’s broader effort to revive its historic Chinatown.

9 Mar 2026 - 12:00PMvideocam

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.

9 Mar 2026 - 1:29PMvideocam

Health & Environment

Malaysia slashes gym licence fees by 80% to fight urban obesity

Faced with some of Southeast Asia’s highest obesity rates, officials are dangling a regulatory ‘carrot’ to gym operators – but will it work?

9 Mar 2026 - 3:37PM

A man runs on a treadmill with a view of Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock

Economics

Singapore real estate giants feel the heat amid China’s property woes

Analysts say Singaporean companies are still likely to bet on China’s massive market, but could now adopt a more selective investment approach.

7 Mar 2026 - 5:31PMvideocam

Buildings under construction in Nanjing, in China’s Jiangsu province, in February. Photo: AFP

Economics

1 holy month, 1 year’s income: Malaysia’s Ramadan bazaar boom

Rents have doubled, ingredient costs keep climbing, yet for the stallholders at Malaysia’s bazaars, no other month comes close.

8 Mar 2026 - 4:00PM

Lifestyle & Culture

Iran war oil shock accelerates Southeast Asia’s EV revolution

Southeast Asia was already going electric. Then war broke out in the Middle East and it started going faster.

8 Mar 2026 - 10:00AMvideocam

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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.

9 Mar 2026 - 1:29PMvideocam

Illustration: Huy Truong

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.

1 Mar 2026 - 8:00AM

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.

14 Feb 2026 - 4:03PMvideocam

Economics

India’s trade blitz seeks to keep afloat a sinking global order

‘Jolted out of its slumber’ by US tariffs, New Delhi is aggressively diversifying trade alliances to act as a bridge in a polarised world.

10 Feb 2026 - 8:54PM

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (centre) with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (right) and European Council President Antonio Costa at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on January 27. Photo: European Council/dpa

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Highlights from

THIS WEEK IN ASIA

Health & Environment

Thai police thought she was drunk. She was already dying

1 hour ago

A Thai officer interacts with a woman who was brought to a police station instead of a hospital following a motorcycle crash in Bangkok. Photo: Facebook / anuwatf.ch7

Economics

‘Ghost projects’ push Philippines to record US$26.5 billion budget deficit

2 hours agovideocam

A shopkeeper looks at his smartphone while waiting customers in Manila. The Philippines’ budget deficit hit a record high last year. Photo: EPA

Economics

South Korea pulls rare move in bid to shield residents from Iran oil shock

3 hours agovideocam

A board shows prices as cars queue at a petrol station in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday. Photo: Reuters

Economics

India’s 30-day Russian oil waiver comes with a steep US price tag

9 Mar 2026 - 6:00PM

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) meets Russia’s President Vladimir Putin in New Delhi, India, on December 5, 2025. Photo: Sputnik/Reuters

Lifestyle & Culture

North Korea cancels Pyongyang marathon weeks before race, with no reason given

9 Mar 2026 - 7:18PMvideocam

Foreign runners take part in the Pyongyang marathon on April 6, 2025. Photo: Kyodo

MORE IN This Week in Asia

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Opinion | Superpower contest puts Iran, Panama, Venezuela and Greenland on one map

9 Mar 2026 - 8:30PM

Opinion | Under Kim Jong-un, North Korea is burying the dream of reunification

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Opinion | Australia needs to make its stance on the Iran attacks known

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7 Mar 2026 - 12:00PM

Being Chinese | In China, some of us are keeping elderly care in the family – for now

Ren Yan

7 Mar 2026 - 9:30AM

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Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

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TRENDING TOPICS

The Philippines

South China Sea

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