This Week in Asia

Health & Environment

Lifestyle & Culture

Satellite imagery shows Super Typhoon Fung-wong as it approaches the Philippines on November 9. Photo: NOAA/EPA

Health & Environment

6 cyclones, 5 weeks: Philippines can’t escape its endless cycle of disaster

Corruption, complacency and climate chaos conspire to turn the Philippines’ natural hazards into man-made tragedies.

6 hours agovideocam

‘We all knew’: is your job safe from the AI you are helping train?

1 hour ago

One-Punch Man and the human cost of Japan and South Korea’s soft power

3 hours ago

Lifestyle & Culture

Singapore organisers in limbo over work visa ban on foreign performers

A scheme allowing foreign performers to work up to six months at public entertainment outlets in Singapore will end, following ‘widespread abuse’.

5 Dec 2025 - 9:36PMvideocam

Performers at the HaveFun Live Show in Singapore. Photo: HaveFun

Politics

Can India still rely on Russia as a ‘time-tested’ defence partner?

India has to balance meeting its defence needs from Russia and managing its trade ties with the US as tariffs continue to loom.

5 Dec 2025 - 8:31PMvideocam

People

Malaysia under pressure to explain police shooting of trio as outcry mounts

Audio recording and forensic claims released by the men’s families appear to contradict police accounts of the confrontation.

5 Dec 2025 - 6:40PM

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Politics

Is the Philippines vulnerable to another military-triggered political crisis?

Analysts said an alleged plot by retired generals to oust President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr appears inspired by 2001’s EDSA Dos uprising.

5 Dec 2025 - 6:00PMvideocam

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr walks with armed forces chief General Romeo Brawner Jnr at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City in July 2024. Brawner has since confirmed that the military is investigating alleged destabilisation efforts involving retired officers. Photo: AP

Lifestyle & Culture

‘Better late than never’: Singapore parents laud curbs on phone use in schools

The city state is among countries that have stepped up measures to curb screen time and tighten social media restrictions for adolescents.

5 Dec 2025 - 5:47PM

People

Hong Kong fire: dead Indonesian helper found huddled with ward hailed as selfless

Her grieving husband says his wife would have survived had she fled first, as the flat where she worked was on the fourth floor.

5 Dec 2025 - 10:29PM

Lifestyle & Culture

Anger boils in Philippines over official’s US$8.50 Christmas feast budget

Critics call the Philippine trade chief’s 500-peso Noche Buena price guide for a family of four a ‘fantasy’ that insults the poor.

5 Dec 2025 - 6:24PMvideocam

Philippine Trade Secretary Cristina Aldeguer-Roque’s 500-peso budget tip for a family of four to spend on the coming Christmas Eve dinner has irked Filipinos as unrealistic. Photo: Facebook/DTISecretaryCrisRoque

Politics

Myanmar’s criticism of Takaichi signals ‘loyalty’ to China ahead of election

A junta spokesman slammed the Japanese prime minister’s comments on Taiwan, saying Tokyo had not shown remorse for its ‘crimes’ in Asia.

5 Dec 2025 - 6:44PMvideocam

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets Myanmar leader Min Aung Hlaing on the sidelines of celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in Moscow on May 9. Photo: Xinhua

Lifestyle & Culture

Are Singaporean Chinese the ‘least attractive’? Viral image stirs debate

Social media users said Singapore had no Vivian Chow or Edison Chen, but experts warned against warped beauty standards shaped by media.

5 Dec 2025 - 6:42PM

Lifestyle & Culture

Japan weighs plan to punish sex buyers, but will it be enough?

Experts warn the sex industry will find ways to circumvent new rules and the problem needs to be tackled from various angles simultaneously.

5 Dec 2025 - 7:08PMvideocam

Economics

‘No longer contentious’: Malaysia to weigh Singapore’s water project plan

The two countries have disagreed over water supply for decades, such as the perceived low prices charged by Malaysia’s Johor.

5 Dec 2025 - 1:58PM

The border crossing connecting Singapore to the Malaysian southern city of Johor Bahru. The state of Johor supplies untreated water to Singapore daily. Photo: AFP

Economics

Cyber scams threaten confidence in India’s outsourcing industry

Fraudsters leveraging India’s cost advantages and skilled workforce create a systemic risk for legitimate businesses, analysts warn.

4 Dec 2025 - 7:37PMvideocam

Sophisticated cyber scam networks are threatening to inflict “reputational damage” on India’s thriving US$150 billion outsourcing industry, observers warn. Photo: Shutterstock

Lifestyle & Culture

‘Relive the magic’? K-drama dating service probed for sex crimes in Brazil

The KDramaDate platform offers curated outings with Korean men, including one of an ‘intimate experience’ at a motel or client’s home.

4 Dec 2025 - 5:05PM

Health & Environment

In wake of Hong Kong blaze, Southeast Asia’s fire hazards come under scrutiny

Serious structural defects and inefficient bureaucracy tainted by corruption are common in the region, fire safety experts say.

4 Dec 2025 - 6:42PM

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Health & Environment

6 cyclones, 5 weeks: Philippines can’t escape its endless cycle of disaster

Corruption, complacency and climate chaos conspire to turn the Philippines’ natural hazards into man-made tragedies.

6 hours agovideocam

Satellite imagery shows Super Typhoon Fung-wong as it approaches the Philippines on November 9. Photo: NOAA/EPA

Politics

‘It’s time for us to rise’: India races to rebuild its lost maritime muscle

India is eyeing a future as a leading shipping and shipbuilding nation, backed by big investments – and expertise from South Korea and Japan.

30 Nov 2025 - 5:12PM

Politics

Malaysia’s poorest state prepares a poll shock for the prime minister

Decades of neglect and withheld resource revenue have left short-changed Sabah seething and primed for a political fight.

24 Nov 2025 - 5:02PM

Health & Environment

Climate collapse: Southeast Asia’s new normal?

With a 30th year of Cop climate talks under way in Brazil, for many of Asia’s most vulnerable populations, the crisis is already here.

21 Nov 2025 - 6:58AM

Illustration: Huy Truong

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LATEST Asia NEWS

Health & Environment

6 cyclones, 5 weeks: Philippines can’t escape its endless cycle of disaster

6 hours agovideocam

Satellite imagery shows Super Typhoon Fung-wong as it approaches the Philippines on November 9. Photo: NOAA/EPA

Economics

‘We all knew’: is your job safe from the AI you are helping train?

1 hour ago

A Thai engineer services AI-powered healthcare robots in Bangkok, Thailand, in 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE

Lifestyle & Culture

One-Punch Man and the human cost of Japan and South Korea’s soft power

3 hours ago

A still from Japanese superhero saga One-Punch Man. The latest episode garnered complaints about its uneven pacing and “rushed” storytelling. Photo: Netflix

South Asia

India and Russia agree to boost trade to US$100 billion by 2030

1 hour ago

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi embrace at the Palam Air Base in New Delhi on Thursday. Photo: Sputnik/Kremlin/AP

People

Malaysia under pressure to explain police shooting of trio as outcry mounts

5 Dec 2025 - 6:40PM

A village in Durian Tunggal, in Malaysia’s Melaka state. Three men were killed during a police operation in Durian Tunggal on November 24. Photo: Shutterstock

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Surachanee Sriyai

Asian Angle | The Thai influencer bringing viral warfare to Cambodia’s border

Surachanee Sriyai

4 hours ago

Jared Bissinger

Opinion | Why China is succeeding in Myanmar while the West has been sidelined

30 Nov 2025 - 1:30PM

Nguyen Khac Giang

Asian Angle | The hidden domestic agenda behind Vietnam’s baffling foreign policy

Nguyen Khac Giang

29 Nov 2025 - 1:30PM

Opinion | Self-interest is now the main driver of Britain’s Asia policy

Bill Hayton

24 Nov 2025 - 9:21AM

Opinion | Reinventing Kaohsiung: Taiwan’s port city transcends its industrial past

Donald Low

22 Nov 2025 - 1:30PM

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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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