https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/rss/325435/feed en https://assets-v2.i-scmp.com/production/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump said on Monday that a threat linked to Iran ⁠had prompted the removal of American B-1 bombers from a British airbase. The planes had been stationed at RAF Fairford, the preferred European base for US bombers, and had recently been used in US strikes on Iran. Last week, five British men were arrested near the base – which Iran’s Revolutionary Guards previously said was a legitimate target – on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts. “We had an idea that there might be a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369843/us-bombers-moved-uk-airbase-due-iran-linked-threats-trump-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369843/us-bombers-moved-uk-airbase-due-iran-linked-threats-trump-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2026 21:40:14 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier Mainland Chinese prefer coercion over military force to settle the “reunification question” with Taiwan, and their opinion of the US remains low, although they favour engaging with Washington on trade and security. These are the results from the latest survey of mainland citizens, conducted between April 16 and June 26. This straddled the first summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing but came before the second one in Washington last month. “The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3369842/mainland-chinese-favour-diplomacy-achieve-taiwan-reunification-caveats-survey?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3369842/mainland-chinese-favour-diplomacy-achieve-taiwan-reunification-caveats-survey?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2026 21:14:15 +0000 Reuters Reuters The US Energy Department will announce US$150 million in new funding for power lines in Alaska on Monday as Vice-President J.D. Vance visits the state, where Republicans are ‌fighting to hold a critical Senate seat in the November midterm elections. Vance is set to rally voters for Republican Senator Dan Sullivan, who is locked in a tight re-election battle with Democrat Mary Peltola. Flipping the seat is key to the Democratic Party’s strategy to take control of the US Senate and recent polls... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369834/us-announce-us150-million-alaska-power-lines-vance-visits-battleground-state?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369834/us-announce-us150-million-alaska-power-lines-vance-visits-battleground-state?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2026 16:41:39 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday vowed there would be no Hamas rule in Gaza as he attended a memorial event marking three years since the militant group’s October 7, 2023 attack. Monday is a national day of remembrance for the deadliest day in Israel’s history, with flags lowered to half mast on public buildings from 6.29am, the time the attack began. Speaking during a state ceremony at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said “we have achieved enormous... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369831/there-will-be-no-hamas-rule-gaza-netanyahu-vows-october-7-memorial?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369831/there-will-be-no-hamas-rule-gaza-netanyahu-vows-october-7-memorial?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2026 15:05:32 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced early general elections on Monday after his government suffered a bruising legislative defeat last week on emergency measures related to the country’s housing crisis. The vote will be held on November 29. In recent weeks, Spaniards have demanded solutions from the government over housing affordability, holding protests in cities across the country after public outrage grew over the televised eviction of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid last... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369786/spains-prime-minister-calls-early-election-housing-becomes-national-flashpoint?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369786/spains-prime-minister-calls-early-election-housing-becomes-national-flashpoint?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Oct 2026 08:04:51 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The US Air Force has removed its bombers stationed at a US-run military airbase in England used to strike Iran following an investigation into a planned terror attack at the RAF Fairford base. The bombers were redeployed back to their home bases in the United States, according to a Pentagon official who was not authorised to discuss sensitive military movements and spoke on Sunday on condition of anonymity. Aviation watchers such as the Military Air Tracking Alliance have observed dozens of B-52... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369734/us-air-force-removes-all-bombers-uk-airbase-targeted-suspected-terror-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369734/us-air-force-removes-all-bombers-uk-airbase-targeted-suspected-terror-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Oct 2026 21:31:53 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iran’s top diplomat insisted on Sunday that there would be no military solution to the United States’ war against the Islamic republic, with talks on ending the conflict apparently at an impasse. A campaign of heavy bombardment failed to bring a decisive close to the war launched by the US and Israel in late February, and Washington in recent weeks has dialled back military operations in favour of economic pressure. The main point of contention remains Iran’s attempt to blockade the Strait of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369731/iran-tells-us-there-no-military-solution-middle-east-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369731/iran-tells-us-there-no-military-solution-middle-east-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Oct 2026 19:44:29 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Huge billboards on the walls of Tehran mocking US President Donald Trump and depicting American drones under the boot of an Iranian soldier are providing a chronicle of Iran’s war with the United States and Israel. Khaneh-ye Tarrahan, or Designers’ House, produces the billboards with anti-US messaging for prominent locations in Tehran where they are seen daily by large crowds of passers-by, including the city’s famed Valiasr Square. The team created a towering portrayal of Trump’s lips sewn and... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369685/trump-burger-hormuz-meet-iranian-team-behind-billboard-war-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369685/trump-burger-hormuz-meet-iranian-team-behind-billboard-war-us?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Oct 2026 05:35:04 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Pakistani troops are expected to take over various defensive functions for Saudi Arabia to enable the Middle East country to fight an all-out war aimed at defeating Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels. According to defence analysts, Pakistani troops are not expected to participate directly in ground offensives against the Houthis being planned by Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s squabbling government factions. Instead, their primary objective would be to free up Saudi forces to focus on what is likely to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3369645/saudi-arabia-steps-war-against-yemens-houthis-pakistan-set-play-support-role?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3369645/saudi-arabia-steps-war-against-yemens-houthis-pakistan-set-play-support-role?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Oct 2026 08:00:14 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Flydubai co-pilot who officials said nearly crashed a Tel Aviv-bound flight with 182 people aboard was barred from flying by his native Oman over concerns he had adopted extremist views, a person familiar with the matter said on Saturday. The co-pilot has been identified as Hamam al-Hammami, according to three people with knowledge of the situation, including a Gulf and Western diplomat. All spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media. The United... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369644/flydubai-plane-attack-co-pilot-previously-barred-flying-oman-over-extremist-views?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369644/flydubai-plane-attack-co-pilot-previously-barred-flying-oman-over-extremist-views?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Oct 2026 04:53:37 +0000 Reuters Reuters Group ⁠of Seven countries agreed on Friday to release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil from emergency reserves and pledged to refrain from energy export restrictions after pressure from US President Donald Trump. The US led a pressure campaign on the European Union to draw down emergency diesel inventories, with the Trump administration warning that failure to act could lead to a US ban on diesel exports. Such a ban could sharply reduce supplies to Europe, which has become... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369626/trump-says-europe-agrees-release-diesel-stocks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369626/trump-says-europe-agrees-release-diesel-stocks?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Oct 2026 14:51:04 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering global relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Trump condemns ‘sick conspiracy’ against AI, says he is only guardrail needed US President Donald Trump downplayed growing concerns about artificial intelligence, claiming America already has guardrails to regulate the industry and warning that casting doubt on development only benefits... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3369257/america-back-ai-conspiracy-chinas-laos-deal-7-global-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3369257/america-back-ai-conspiracy-chinas-laos-deal-7-global-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Oct 2026 14:00:15 +0000 Reuters Reuters US job growth slowed more than expected in September, but that likely does not signal a material shift in the labour market, with the weakness likely related to a calendar quirk. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 29,000 jobs last month after ‌a downwardly revised 133,000 rise in August, the Labor Department’s closely watched employment report showed on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls advancing 90,000 after a previously reported 162,000 surge in August. Estimates ranged... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369622/us-job-growth-slows-sharply-september-unemployment-rises?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369622/us-job-growth-slows-sharply-september-unemployment-rises?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Oct 2026 13:14:45 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Reggie Manlapig, 46, has been driving jeepneys for nearly 25 years and has weathered rising fuel prices – but with costs spiking amid the global energy crunch, he is now wrestling bigger demons. “The impact has been huge. Before, in a 16-hour shift of driving, I could take home 400 to 500 pesos [US$6.30 to US$8] – now there’s a big cut to that income,” said Manlapig, who plies a two-hour daily round route from Malolos in Bulacan, north of Manila, to San Fernando, Pampanga. “Doing the full route... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/economics/article/3369479/philippines-jeepney-drivers-stuck-between-rock-and-hard-place-despite-fare-increase?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/economics/article/3369479/philippines-jeepney-drivers-stuck-between-rock-and-hard-place-despite-fare-increase?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Oct 2026 00:00:28 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse EU nations will meet Friday, aiming to develop a unified response to soaring diesel prices, a day after the US called on its European allies to release strategic reserves “immediately” to stem the crisis. The emergency meeting between EU member states and the European Commission is scheduled for early in the day, a Commission spokesperson said late Thursday. Washington is piling on pressure to get European help with fuel costs, with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday floating the possibility... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369488/us-tells-european-allies-act-immediately-lower-diesel-prices?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3369488/us-tells-european-allies-act-immediately-lower-diesel-prices?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Oct 2026 22:12:46 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Tehran was likely to be involved in an attack by a pilot on a Flydubai flight to Israel and that Iran would be “hit very hard” if it was. The co-pilot allegedly assaulted the captain before passengers managed to save the plane from crashing. Israel’s prime minister said the man had undergone “Islamist radical indoctrination”. “I would say the answer, based on what I’m hearing, is yes but we’re working on it right now,” Trump said when asked by... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369486/trump-vows-hit-iran-very-hard-if-linked-flydubai-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369486/trump-vows-hit-iran-very-hard-if-linked-flydubai-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Oct 2026 20:36:02 +0000 Reuters Reuters British counterterrorism police investigating ⁠a suspected plot involving ⁠an airbase used by the US ⁠to target Iran said on Thursday they had arrested a dual UK-Iranian national on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts. In an incident which triggered a huge police response, raised alarm among Western allies, and remains largely unexplained, five British men in their 20s ‌were arrested on Sunday on suspected terrorism and explosive offences near RAF Fairford in western England. The men were... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369483/uk-iranian-man-arrested-over-suspected-fairford-airbase-plot?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369483/uk-iranian-man-arrested-over-suspected-fairford-airbase-plot?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Oct 2026 17:52:48 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen A potential conflict in the Taiwan Strait could see crossfire exchanged between two mobile rocket systems: the US-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (Himars), and its mainland Chinese counterpart, the PHL-16, also known as the PCL-191. Taiwan is set to receive all 29 Himars systems from its initial orders by the end of this year, with another 82 systems approved for purchase in a follow-on deal, bringing the planned total to 111. This does not include the US military’s Himars systems... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/military/article/3369442/why-us-himars-missile-shortfalls-raise-stakes-potential-taiwan-strait-conflict?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/military/article/3369442/why-us-himars-missile-shortfalls-raise-stakes-potential-taiwan-strait-conflict?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Oct 2026 14:00:31 +0000 Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan As Beijing and Washington take tentative steps to keep a military crisis from erupting, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is reshaping the top ranks of the American military while facing questions about his own future at the Pentagon. Hegseth told junior officers and sergeants on Wednesday that the military had already cut its generals and admirals by 10 per cent and planned to cut another 10 per cent. He called the 20 per cent reduction the bare minimum, dismissing critics who called the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3369478/no-beardos-no-weirdos-hegseth-deepens-pentagon-purge-china-channels-reopen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3369478/no-beardos-no-weirdos-hegseth-deepens-pentagon-purge-china-channels-reopen?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Oct 2026 13:52:15 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Wednesday said there were “strong indications” Iran was involved in suspicious activity at a UK airbase that triggered a major security incident this weekend. “There are strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend at RAF Fairford,” Burnham told the BBC, referring to Sunday’s bomb scare near the airbase in southwest England, which is used by the US military in its war against Iran. “Of course it remains an ongoing, complex,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369387/uk-pm-says-strong-indications-iran-involved-bomb-scare-us-run-airbase?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369387/uk-pm-says-strong-indications-iran-involved-bomb-scare-us-run-airbase?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2026 16:51:39 +0000 Alice Li Alice Li For years, Chinese manufacturers have viewed Southeast Asia as a way to reduce exposure to higher US duties on goods made in China. But a new round of tariff cuts proposed by Washington and Beijing could weaken that incentive for some products, potentially changing the economics of the strategy. Under the new US-China Board of Trade, more than 90 per cent of Chinese products on a list of goods worth US$30 billion – mostly everyday consumer items, such as toys and household goods – would return... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/global-economy/article/3369373/has-us-china-tariff-deal-eroded-southeast-asias-tariff-edge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/economy/global-economy/article/3369373/has-us-china-tariff-deal-eroded-southeast-asias-tariff-edge?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2026 14:11:54 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A US-led coalition deployed in Iraq more than a decade ago to fight jihadists concluded its mission on Wednesday, a move celebrated by the country’s leaders, but which some fear will embolden pro-Iran armed factions. Coalition troops deployed to Iraq and Syria in 2014 to fight Islamic State, which had seized large swathes of territory, committing massacres and forcing thousands of women and children into slavery. The group was defeated in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria in 2019, but coalition forces... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369343/us-ends-troop-mission-iraq-baghdad-celebrate-sovereignty-day-october-1?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369343/us-ends-troop-mission-iraq-baghdad-celebrate-sovereignty-day-october-1?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2026 09:46:24 +0000 Jean Iau Jean Iau A hunger crisis could creep up on Southeast Asia if the region does not guard against export restrictions amid a fertiliser shortfall, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Secretary General John Denton has warned. On the sidelines of the Future of Trade Forum in Singapore on Wednesday, Denton urged the city state, as the next Asean chair, to prioritise the “sleeper issue” for the region. He argued that the real story centred on food, despite the Strait of Hormuz gridlock being widely seen as... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/economics/article/3369338/southeast-asia-faces-sleeper-food-crisis-hormuz-fertiliser-bottleneck?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/economics/article/3369338/southeast-asia-faces-sleeper-food-crisis-hormuz-fertiliser-bottleneck?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2026 09:17:16 +0000 Letters Letters Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words. Recently, Iran announced seven conditions for restarting negotiations with the United States. As it did in the failed memorandum of understanding signed earlier, Iran has made ending the conflict in Lebanon the first condition. Iran is no longer treating Lebanon only as a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/letters/article/3369157/why-lebanon-crucial-irans-negotiations-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/letters/article/3369157/why-lebanon-crucial-irans-negotiations-us?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2026 03:30:07 +0000 Reuters Reuters Somali ⁠pirates killed five crew members of ⁠the hijacked MT Honour 25 petroleum products tanker before it was rescued by security forces, Somalia’s semi-autonomous state of Puntland said on Tuesday. Puntland’s authorities said they also rescued a second vessel on Tuesday that had been hijacked in May. The deaths ‌aboard the Palau-flagged ship appear to be the first at the hands of Somali pirates in over a decade. The ship with 17 crew members was seized by pirates in April during a resurgence... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/africa/article/3369269/somali-pirates-kill-5-crew-hijacked-tanker-rescue-security-forces?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/africa/article/3369269/somali-pirates-kill-5-crew-hijacked-tanker-rescue-security-forces?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Sep 2026 02:43:04 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A UK probe into a suspected bomb plot at an airbase used by the United States was mired in confusion Tuesday, as police said no explosives but a “quantity of petrol” was found in vehicles seized nearby. Police were called to the Royal Air Force Fairford base in southwest England on Sunday after a resident saw several vans “acting suspiciously”, triggering an evacuation of the nearby village and the declaration of a “major incident”. “Those vehicles have been subject to extensive examination …... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369251/mystery-over-uk-airbase-scare-police-find-petrol-not-explosives?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3369251/mystery-over-uk-airbase-scare-police-find-petrol-not-explosives?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Sep 2026 18:21:50 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Americans’ confidence in the economy sank to the lowest level in more than a decade this month as prices remain elevated and wages stagnate amid the ongoing Iran war. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index tumbled 6.7 points to 81.9 in September, down from 88.6 in August. That is the lowest reading in the board’s survey since April 2014 and below the lowest level reached during the pandemic. Respondents’ views of their present situation fell by 7.9 points to 109.3.... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/economy-trade-business/article/3369245/us-consumer-confidence-sinks-12-year-low-over-inflation-stagnant-wages?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/economy-trade-business/article/3369245/us-consumer-confidence-sinks-12-year-low-over-inflation-stagnant-wages?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Sep 2026 15:48:09 +0000 Junaid Kathju Junaid Kathju US President Donald Trump’s recent endorsement of a trade corridor connecting India to Europe via the Middle East has renewed focus on the three-year-old project, but analysts warn it must expand to withstand ongoing geopolitical conflicts. The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) was first unveiled at the G20 summit in 2023 as an alternative to existing routes and China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Backed by India, the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3369219/india-europe-trade-corridor-gets-trumps-backing-can-imec-survive-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3369219/india-europe-trade-corridor-gets-trumps-backing-can-imec-survive-war?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Sep 2026 11:01:25 +0000 Reuters Reuters US forces are set ⁠to pull out from their last bases in Iraq by Wednesday, a departure celebrated as a victory by Iran and its allies who now have deep influence in the country where 4,500 Americans died during more than two decades of war. Iraqi security experts say the withdrawal – agreed in 2024 under President Joe Biden and carried out by Donald Trump’s administration even as it wages war against Iran – could give Tehran and its powerful allies free rein, while also allowing other US enemies... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369168/us-forces-set-complete-withdrawal-iraq-after-2-decades?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369168/us-forces-set-complete-withdrawal-iraq-after-2-decades?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Sep 2026 07:03:10 +0000 Nayan Seth Nayan Seth US soybean farmers have described the exclusion of US soybeans from China’s import list under the newly announced Board of Trade mechanism as a “missed opportunity”, even as Beijing ramped up purchases of the crop ahead of last week’s summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump. The trade forum, unveiled by both sides on Sunday, covered a range of US agricultural products for export to China, including meat, dairy, corn, wheat, sorghum and vegetable oils, but... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/diplomacy/article/3369119/missed-opportunity-us-soybean-farmers-question-exclusion-china-tariff-cuts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/us/diplomacy/article/3369119/missed-opportunity-us-soybean-farmers-question-exclusion-china-tariff-cuts?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Sep 2026 22:48:25 +0000 Reuters Reuters US President Donald Trump’s administration was set to grant a limited waiver to its Iran sanctions programme on Monday to allow for flights carrying Shiite Muslim religious pilgrims between Iran and Iraq, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said. The source, who is involved ‌in the deliberations, said the US Treasury Department waiver would allow Iraqi Airways to fly back and forth between Iran and the Shiite holy city of Najaf in Iraq for one month, with a more permanent waiver... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369111/us-grant-sanctions-waiver-flights-between-iran-and-iraqs-najaf-source-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3369111/us-grant-sanctions-waiver-flights-between-iran-and-iraqs-najaf-source-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:28:29 +0000 Dewey Sim Dewey Sim Scott Kennedy is a senior adviser and trustee chair in Chinese business and economics at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. His areas of focus include China’s hi-tech drive, US-China relations and global economic governance. Open Questions first appeared in SCMP Plus. For other interviews in the Open Questions series, click here. How would you characterise the outcomes of the China-US summit compared to expectations going in? Is it largely a continuation of that track or do you... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368936/scott-kennedy-chinas-slow-tech-dragon-and-2-more-xi-trump-meetings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368936/scott-kennedy-chinas-slow-tech-dragon-and-2-more-xi-trump-meetings?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 22:00:14 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang For all the solemnity of the B-2 flyover with four F‑22 Raptors and a silent South Lawn drill, the real business of US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week was narrower than the choreography. The Chinese readout reiterated the concept that should frame the relationship’s next phase: constructive strategic stability – cooperation as the primary track, competition kept within bounds, differences managed, conflict avoided. Stripped of banquet rhetoric, the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3368840/us-china-relationship-has-stabilised-beijings-terms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3368840/us-china-relationship-has-stabilised-beijings-terms?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Reuters Reuters Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ⁠visited Abu Dhabi and met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan on Sunday, a senior Israeli official told Reuters. There was no immediate comment from Netanyahu’s office and the UAE’s foreign ministry. Israeli TV channels 12 and KAN, as well as newspapers Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post, also reported that Netanyahu undertook a one-day visit to the UAE to meet Mohamed. The visit comes ‌after Haaretz this month reported that Mohamed had... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368981/israel-revokes-diplomatic-status-dutch-diplomats-ramallah?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368981/israel-revokes-diplomatic-status-dutch-diplomats-ramallah?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 20:23:45 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he expects talks with Iran to resume in the coming week, despite his rejection of a truce proposal put forward by Tehran. Iranian officials brought with them to the UN General Assembly in New York a plan for a seven-day truce followed by the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz shipping channel. Trump dismissed the plan and has mused on resuming full-scale air strikes on Iranian targets, but he told the news platform Axios that he expects negotiations... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3368980/trump-expects-new-iran-talks-despite-rejecting-deal-offer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3368980/trump-expects-new-iran-talks-despite-rejecting-deal-offer?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 19:16:36 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press UK police said that five men arrested in the early hours of Sunday near an airbase used by the United States during its war against Iran are being held on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act that appeared to involve three vehicles. London’s Metropolitan Police, which takes the lead on potential terrorist activities, said police received a call at 12.45am related to the three suspicious vehicles that appeared to be travelling towards RAF Fairford, a UK-owned base that is operated by the US... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3368968/uk-arrests-5-after-incident-near-airbase-used-us-bombers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/europe/article/3368968/uk-arrests-5-after-incident-near-airbase-used-us-bombers?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 14:00:18 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo Last week, the president of the United States stood at the podium of the United Nations General Assembly and asked aloud whether he should “annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly”. Donald Trump then turned to Venezuela’s oil and declared: “To the victor belong the spoils, you’ve all heard that …” He spoke as the Iran war neared its eighth month, a week after the UN Human Rights Council found “reasonable grounds to believe” that the US had committed war crimes. In the same speech,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3368749/how-beijing-neutralising-washingtons-sanctions-machine?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/opinion/china-opinion/article/3368749/how-beijing-neutralising-washingtons-sanctions-machine?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 12:30:07 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The leader of Hamas brushed aside the possibility of change from Israel’s coming election in an interview, saying he expected Israelis to campaign off Gaza’s “blood”. “Whether this or that person comes to power, or this party or another – our people have suffered at the hands of all Israeli parties,” Khalil al-Hayya told the Qatari station Al-Araby on Saturday. “We absolutely refuse to allow the blood, suffering and cause of the Palestinian people to serve as fuel for Israeli elections. What... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368926/hamas-leader-says-israel-use-blood-palestinians-fuel-election?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368926/hamas-leader-says-israel-use-blood-palestinians-fuel-election?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Sep 2026 01:31:33 +0000 Reuters Reuters Iran on Sunday insisted that only diplomacy can solve its conflict with the United States and Israel after US President Donald Trump said he rejected an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end fighting. “Our conditions are clear and any move towards reopening the Strait of Hormuz is contingent on these conditions being met,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on social media. “Only a negotiated solution can get them out of ‌this deadlock.” Iran announced a peace... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368917/trump-rejects-iran-proposal-deal-reopen-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368917/trump-rejects-iran-proposal-deal-reopen-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 17:02:16 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen When Donald Trump arrives in Shenzhen for the November Apec summit, he will face a Chinese leader even more confident than the one who left Washington this week after a state visit heavy on pageantry but light on concrete deliverables. Experts attributed this confidence to three key factors – a newly upgraded bilateral framework seeking a “constructive relationship of strategic stability based on respect, fairness and reciprocity”, the warmer tone during Xi’s three-day visit, and – crucially –... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368914/3-top-reasons-trump-will-face-stronger-xi-jinping-november-apec-forum-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368914/3-top-reasons-trump-will-face-stronger-xi-jinping-november-apec-forum-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 15:00:08 +0000 Igor Patrick Igor Patrick The Brics-founded New Development Bank could help launch a fund by the end of the year to guarantee cheap loans for poor families in Africa and Latin America, Brazil’s social development minister said. The scheme would be the Shanghai-based lender’s first financial commitment to Brazil’s global anti-hunger alliance, an initiative sidelined by Washington’s presidency of the G20 this year. Wellington Dias told the South China Morning Post on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368865/china-based-brics-bank-set-lead-role-hunger-alliance-year-brazil-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368865/china-based-brics-bank-set-lead-role-hunger-alliance-year-brazil-says?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 14:00:06 +0000 Cao Jiaxuan Cao Jiaxuan Just a month after Saudi Arabia signed a regional mutual defence deal with Pakistan and Turkey, attacks by Yemen’s Houthis against the kingdom’s energy infrastructure and military sites are testing the pact’s limits. At a hastily convened meeting of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in Riyadh on Friday, military chiefs of the three parties reaffirmed their commitment to collective defence, according to the Saudi Press Agency. The agency said the talks focused on “intelligence cooperation,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368857/houthi-attacks-saudi-arabia-test-limits-mecca-regional-security-pact?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368857/houthi-attacks-saudi-arabia-test-limits-mecca-regional-security-pact?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 10:00:06 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain For over two decades, Pakistan has waged countless counterterrorism campaigns against Taliban and Baloch insurgents in its western regions bordering Afghanistan and Iran, yet remains mired in a cycle of violence it cannot break. Scores of soldiers, policemen and civilians are killed every month in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and southwestern Balochistan provinces, where near-daily attacks on security personnel, government officials and other prominent figures are carried out by... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3368825/why-pakistans-endless-war-militants-fails-break-cycle?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/politics/article/3368825/why-pakistans-endless-war-militants-fails-break-cycle?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 05:00:17 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier During their three-day summit that ended on Friday, US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping worked overtime to underscore their increasingly close relationship even as the meeting produced few concrete deliverables. But the fact that the two economic and military giants are talking – and pledging to talk some more – suggests some period of relative stability ahead, certainly relative to last year’s all-out trade war, chest-thumping and market turmoil, said analysts, companies... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368875/xi-trump-atmospherics-welcomed-mask-structural-rifts-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/diplomacy/article/3368875/xi-trump-atmospherics-welcomed-mask-structural-rifts-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 00:02:27 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones At a zoo a short drive south of Bangkok, Charoon Youngprapakorn has spent a lifetime taking the pulse of Thailand’s tourism industry from an unlikely vantage point: the open jaws of crocodiles. Handlers at his Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm & Zoo have long thrilled onlookers by coaxing tips from the audience and carefully placing the money into the mouths of animals capable of taking off an entire hand. The crocodiles at this open-air, fan-cooled throwback to 1980s showmanship still take their tips... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/economics/article/3368828/thailand-has-had-enough-foreign-tourists-behaving-badly?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/week-asia/economics/article/3368828/thailand-has-had-enough-foreign-tourists-behaving-badly?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Sep 2026 00:00:18 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that Tehran had offered Washington a plan that would see the Strait of Hormuz reopened to maritime navigation within seven days once agreed. Araghchi met with US President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff for talks on Tuesday, and previously set out conditions for ending the war and reopening the vital energy shipping channel. “Iran has conveyed to the United States, through Qatar, a concrete seven-day plan. If the necessary conditions are... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368872/iran-offers-us-plan-reopen-hormuz-within-7-days?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368872/iran-offers-us-plan-reopen-hormuz-within-7-days?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Sep 2026 21:03:29 +0000 Reuters Reuters US television networks resumed coverage of President Donald Trump’s White House events on Friday, providing the first live pool access for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit, as a legal battle continues over restrictions on CNN, MS Now and Politico. Trump last week banned the three outlets from the White House, before a judge ordered the administration to restore their access. The White House television press pool aired video of Xi’s arrival at the White House for tea on the final day of the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3368868/us-tv-networks-back-white-house-trump-praises-fair-coverage-xi-visit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3368868/us-tv-networks-back-white-house-trump-praises-fair-coverage-xi-visit?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Sep 2026 17:07:41 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying HK Electric customers are set to pay less for electricity in October after the Hong Kong supplier cut its fuel charge for the first time in four months, but it warned that international energy prices remained volatile. CLP Power, the city’s other electricity supplier, will raise its energy prices next month. HK Electric, which mainly supplies Hong Kong Island and Lamma Island, said on Friday that its fuel clause charge would fall by 1.4 HK cents to 59.3 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3368847/hk-electric-cut-fuel-charge-first-time-4-months-clp-raises-rate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3368847/hk-electric-cut-fuel-charge-first-time-4-months-clp-raises-rate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Sep 2026 12:45:47 +0000 Liu Zhen Liu Zhen Chinese viewers watching Donald Trump welcome Xi Jinping to the White House on Thursday may have been puzzled by the US president’s reference to the “Chinese phrase” gung-ho. Turning to Baidu – or increasingly, Doubao, the country’s most popular AI chatbot – they may well have asked: what Chinese expression is he referring to? It sounds Chinese, but gung-ho is neither part of everyday usage nor an idiom drawn from classical texts – making this moment almost as baffling as when US Secretary of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/military/article/3368832/chinese-roots-gung-ho-trump-and-xi-look-shared-history?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/china/military/article/3368832/chinese-roots-gung-ho-trump-and-xi-look-shared-history?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:38:11 +0000 Agencies Agencies President Emmanuel Macron said France would send troops to defend an oil plant in Saudi Arabia as the Iran-backed Houthi militia took responsibility for new attacks on the kingdom. Macron said in a television interview Thursday with TF1 and France 2 that he would send soldiers and military support to help protect the Saudi port of Yanbu. Saudi Arabia came under attack from the Houthi militia on Thursday, with the kingdom saying it intercepted missiles fired towards the Red Sea port of Yanbu and... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368772/france-protect-key-saudi-oil-terminal-houthis-step-missile-attacks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/world/middle-east/article/3368772/france-protect-key-saudi-oil-terminal-houthis-step-missile-attacks?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Sep 2026 06:03:48 +0000