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Students attend a lesson at a school in Singapore. The city state regularly dominates global education assessments. Photo: Shutterstock

Lifestyle & Culture

More than grades? The Harvard speech reshaping Singapore’s education debate

Observers say the challenge for Singapore’s educators is to ensure that upward mobility for students maturing later is not impossible.

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Fifa invites South Korean YouTuber targeted by racist gesture to World Cup match

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Indonesia’s rupiah rebounds but rate rises threaten the middle class

Politics

Aid and diplomacy: US Navy’s renewed bid for Southeast Asian influence

Pacific Partnership 2026 aims to counter China’s rising influence in the region, amid growing doubts about US leadership, analysts say.

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Captain Robert Reyes, mission commander of Pacific Partnership 2026, speaks to sailors assigned to the mission on Naval Air Station North Island, on May 26. Photo: Handout
Captain Robert Reyes, mission commander of Pacific Partnership 2026, speaks to sailors assigned to the mission on Naval Air Station North Island, on May 26. Photo: Handout

Politics

3 killed, no apology: the strike straining India-US relations

Instead of showing remorse, Washington ordered New Delhi to obey its blockade, stoking public outrage.

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Economics

Costly Malaysia-Thailand seafood stand-off nears an end

Talks are advancing on resolving the dispute, but every day of delay is costing thousands of Thai shrimp farmers.

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People

How 75 days trapped under fire in Hormuz broke these Indian sailors

As the Strait of Hormuz edges towards reopening, sailors who survived 75 days under fire count the psychological cost of someone else’s war.

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Captain Raman Kapoor, who was stranded in the Persian Gulf for 75 days, seen in a still from a video he made while trapped. Photo: Handout
Captain Raman Kapoor, who was stranded in the Persian Gulf for 75 days, seen in a still from a video he made while trapped. Photo: Handout

People

Malaysian tourists in China scorned for calling locals ‘smelly’

The visitors also hurled insults at the locals, damaging the country’s national image amid booming Malaysia-China travel ties.

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Lifestyle & Culture

Is the ‘Singapore brand’ losing its shine in China’s food scene?

Analysts say Singapore’s F&B firms can no longer rely on earlier strengths that made them stand out, given the growing competition.

Politics

Why Hormuz reopening hands South Korea a diplomatic problem at G7 summit

The G7 summit could revive pressure on Seoul to join international efforts to safeguard freedom of navigation through the strait.

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Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters

Politics

‘Not a single inch’: Philippines vows to block structures at Scarborough Shoal

Observers say Beijing could be using its ‘old playbook’ of deploying scientific activities to boost military presence in the South China Sea.

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A ship identified by the Philippine Coast Guard as Chinese maritime militia is seen near Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea on Monday. Photo: AFP
A ship identified by the Philippine Coast Guard as Chinese maritime militia is seen near Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea on Monday. Photo: AFP

Economics

Free meals, political cost: why Indonesia is restructuring, not axing, scheme

As it was Prabowo’s signature campaign promise, dropping the programme could prove ‘embarrassing’ to the president, experts say.

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Health & Environment

‘We’re still not ready’: why buildings fell in a survivable Philippine quake

As politicians stall on updating a 50-year-old building code, experts warn the devastation in Mindanao is just a preview of a worse disaster.

Lifestyle & Culture

‘Everything in it relates’: school bullying K-drama hits home in Malaysia

The Netflix hit is resonating in a country still reckoning with the death of 13-year-old schoolgirl Zara Qairina Mahathir.

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A scene from “Teach You a Lesson”. The show’s hero handles bullies by giving them a taste of their own medicine, literally slapping and punching them into line. Photo: Netflix

Politics

No victory, no defeat: Iran war pauses with a fragile freeze

Thousands dead, hundreds of billions lost and an agreement many analysts expect to collapse. The Iran ceasefire, explained.

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Smoke rises behind the Azadi Tower in Tehran following a US-Israeli military strike on Iran in early March. Photo: ISNA/AP
Smoke rises behind the Azadi Tower in Tehran following a US-Israeli military strike on Iran in early March. Photo: ISNA/AP

Politics

Takaichi’s G7 mission: bridge Trump-bloc divides, polish ‘Iron Lady’ image

The Japanese leader also proposed a strategic mineral stockpiling plan during the summit to counter China and boost Tokyo’s global role.

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Lifestyle & Culture

Lost in translation? Singapore wants Dear You film mostly in Mandarin, not Teochew

Linguists and the local Teochew community say watching the hit Chinese film in its original form can help sustain cultural diversity.

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Politics

Asean at 60: peace, prosperity and polite paralysis

Non-interference bought decades of stability, but now breeds inaction. Is Asean due an overhaul?

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Illustration: Huy Truong
Illustration: Huy Truong

Health & Environment

How Malaysia’s island paradise became a haven for smugglers

Traffickers exploit Langkawi’s scattered geography and proximity to Thailand to smuggle drugs, fuel and migrants.

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Politics

Tariffs, war and broken trust: Southeast Asia’s Trump problem

Disillusioned by US unpredictability, the region is learning to diversify – while Trump treats allies as bargaining chips.

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Lifestyle & Culture

Southeast Asia is chasing the AI boom, but at what cost?

A regional dash for digital dominance risks running headlong into an energy crunch and an existential threat to jobs.

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Illustration: Huy Truong
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LATEST Asia NEWS

Lifestyle & Culture

More than grades? The Harvard speech reshaping Singapore’s education debate

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Students attend a lesson at a school in Singapore. The city state regularly dominates global education assessments. Photo: Shutterstock

Southeast Asia

Philippine Senate leadership shift leaves Sara Duterte exposed ahead of trial

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Newly elected Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian presides over a special plenary session on Wednesday. Photo: EPA

Politics

3 killed, no apology: the strike straining India-US relations

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at a meeting with India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar during his visit to New Delhi on May 26. Photo: AP

Economics

Indonesia’s rupiah rebounds but rate rises threaten the middle class

An Indonesian rupiah banknote pictured next to a US dollar banknote at a currency exchange office in Jakarta. Photo: AFP

Politics

Aid and diplomacy: US Navy’s renewed bid for Southeast Asian influence

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Captain Robert Reyes, mission commander of Pacific Partnership 2026, speaks to sailors assigned to the mission on Naval Air Station North Island, on May 26. Photo: Handout
MORE Asia NEWS
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OPINION
Zenobia Chan

Asian Angle | China builds Southeast Asia expertise as the US lets it wither

Zenobia Chan
Siwage Dharma Negara,Leo Suryadinata

Asian Angle | Indonesia’s nickel rule changes are spooking Chinese investors

Siwage Dharma Negara
Leo Suryadinata
Max Lane

Opinion | Indonesia’s labour movement is deeply divided over political patronage

Max Lane
Francis E. Hutchinson

Opinion | Can Malaysia’s unity government survive a state poll fight?

Francis E. Hutchinson
Irna Nurlina

Asian Angle | Where Southeast Asians really want to live, work and travel

Irna Nurlina
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MULTIMEDIA
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Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters

Filipino fishermen worry about Chinese nature reserve in disputed waters
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Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji

Centenarian becomes oldest person to climb Mount Fuji
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Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport

Cambodia unveils new Chinese-built airport
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Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail

Ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra to serve 1 year in jail
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