All Asia Pacific
- If 'all women can shine' in Japan, can they do so on the imperial throne?If Japan's emperor is allowed to abdicate, its politicians may have to answer an uncomfortable question: why can't women inherit the Chrysanthemum Throne?
- US destroyer visit latest twist in China-US military tiesThe visit is聽the latest in a long-term effort to build trust between the countries' militaries amid a rivalry for dominance in Asia.
- Japan warns China of worsening ties over East China Sea disputeTensions between Asia's two largest economies have risen since Japan saw an increasing number of Chinese coastguard sailing near the disputed islets.
- First LookWhy did China fly 'combat patrols' over the Spratly Islands?In the wake of an international court's ruling rejecting China's claims to disputed territory in the South China Sea, China said the combat exercises were an effort to protect its 'maritime interests.'
- China's rights lawyers say sentence sends a chilling 鈥 and blunt 鈥撀爉essageProminent lawyer Zhou Shifeng got seven years in prison for subversion Thursday, underscoring China's deepening intolerance for dissent. Many rights lawyers have been stripped of their status.
- Thai election in 2017 regardless of referendum vote, says junta chief
- First LookAre the Olympics cool enough for surfing? IOC says yes, adding 5 sportsThe International Olympic Committee approved baseball/softball,聽karate, skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.聽
- First LookJapan protests North Korean missile launch as 'grave threat'South Korean officials said the missile鈥檚 trajectory was one of the longest of North Korean tests.聽
- First LookAs Duterte takes reins in Philippines, drug trafficker deaths soarMore than 400 people believed to be linked to illegal drugs have been killed since President Duterte took office in June. Human rights groups and international drug authorities are calling for the killings to stop.
- China court warns against illegal fishing in riposte to Sth China Sea rulingThe Chinese Supreme Court said on Tuesday that people caught illegally fishing in Chinese waters could be jailed for up to a year.
- First LookTaiwan president issues historic apology to nation's aboriginesPresident聽Tsai Ing-wen offered a formal apology to Taiwan's aboriginal people on Monday for 400 years of 'pain and mistreatment.'
- Wang Yu 'confession' 鈥 China's bid to counter critics of its crackdown?On the eve a major trial of Chinese human rights lawyers and activists, a video emerges of a prominent associate blaming 'foreign groups' for defaming Beijing. 聽聽
- First LookTokyo elects first female governor: How thick is Japan's glass ceiling?Yuriko Koike was elected governor of Tokyo on Sunday, marking an important moment for a country whose politics are still largely male-dominated.聽
- First LookNorth Korea: The United States has made a 'declaration of war'As US-South Korea war games approach and after America placed Kim Jong Un on list of sanctioned individuals, North Korea ramps up its rhetoric.
- Why some South Koreans don't want shield from North's missilesLocals worry the THAAD missile defense system would be a target, while analysts point out the risks of angering China with a joint US project.聽
- Japan stabbing rampage foretold in letter to ParliamentA young Japanese man killed 19 people and injured 25 in a stabbing rampage Tuesday at a facility for the mentally disabled. Such mass killings are rare in Japan.聽
- First LookChina says South Korea THAAD anti-missile system undermines trustChina says that South Korea's decision to deploy the US antimissile defense system to counter threats from North Korea harms the foundation of trust between China and South Korea.
- First LookChina scores key diplomatic win in South China Sea disputeThe Association of Southeast Asian Nations watered down their criticism of China's territorial claims in the South China Sea, after Cambodia opposed the communiqu茅's聽wording.
- Philippine President Duterte declares a cease-fire with communist guerrillasIn his first State of the Nation address before Congress, President Duterte calls for 'permanent and lasting peace.'聽
- First LookUmbrella Movement student leaders convicted but not conquered, they sayJoshua Wong, a student leader in Hong Kong's Umbrella Movement, was convicted for a protest that helped inspire the largest anti-Beijing demonstration in years.