All Asia Pacific
First LookUS citizen sentenced to hard labor in North Korea for 'confessed' espionageA Korean-American businessman, Kim Dong Chul, has been sentenced to 10 years of hard labor in North Korea. He is one of six foreigners being held by North Korea.
China battles foreign influence with new NGO lawThe government's tighter controls could discourage a wide array of international groups from continuing their work in China.
After Canadian beheaded, Philippines military pressured to save 20 hostagesThe Filipino military is under pressure to rescue more than 20 foreign hostages after their Muslim extremist captors beheaded a Canadian man.聽
China's new Arctic shipping route, thanks to global warmingChina issued a guide book that encourages ships to take the Northwest Passage via the聽Arctic聽Ocean. Are those international waters or Canadian waters?
One man's fight to save Cambodia's 'killing forests' from the chainsawsOuch Leng, a Cambodian environmentalist, has been awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize in recognition of his work that exposes illegal activity by timber barons.聽
First LookPresidential front-runner in Philippines won't apologize for rape commentPhilippine mayor Rodrigo Duterte refuses to apologize for saying that聽he "should have been the first" to聽rape聽an Australian missionary who was assaulted and killed in a prisoner hostage situation in 1989.
Two major earthquakes rock Japan; rescue efforts underwayA pair of strong earthquakes in southwestern聽Japan has killed at least 41 people, injured about 1,500, and left about 200,000 homes without electricity or water.
China sends sharp warnings to Taiwan's new president as she preps for officeBeijing had 45 Taiwanese citizens deported from Kenya to China on fraud charges, a move Taiwan calls 'kidnapping.' It's just one of the ways that Beijing is sending a message to President-elect Tsai Ing-wen to not try to distance Taiwan from mainland China.
First LookWhy North Korea may celebrate its founder's birthday with missilesNorth Korea appears to be readying one or two intermediate-range missiles for a test on Friday, following a pattern of weapons tests this year that accompany its usual threats against the United States and South Korea.
A N. Korean's defection, complicated by her love-hate bonds with ChinaHyeonseo Lee's perilous road to freedom passed through China, which often sends defectors back to face harsh punishment in the North. She recently shared her experience at a book talk in Beijing, an appearance that caused a stir.
First LookHow unusual is defection of North Korean colonel?South Korean officials revealed that a colonel who had worked for North Korea's central spy agency defected to the South last year.
FocusWill China save its last undammed river?Opponents of plans to build five dams on the Nu say they scent victory after more than a decade battling the project. 聽
North Korea claims new advance in building long-range missilePyongyang says it successfully tested a new long-range rocket engine and聽would seem to be moving toward its goal of nuclear-armed long-range missiles.
How Taiwan's president-elect is prepping for powerElected in January in a landslide win for her opposition party, Tsai Ing-wen is focused on reviving Taiwan's economic fortunes and revisiting ties with China.聽
To silence its critics abroad, China goes after their families at homeBeijing is trying to smoke out the authors and publishers of a widely disseminated anonymous letter calling for the resignation of President Xi Jinping.聽
Missing Hong Kong bookseller mysteriously resurfaces 鈥� brieflyHis disappearance, along with others linked to books that Chinese officials disliked, has raised serious concerns about the strength of freedom of speech and the press in Hong Kong.
An isolated 'Shangri-la' in China now faces worldly influxThe town of Dali in Yunnan Province has been a mecca for foreign backpackers and independent-thinking Chinese with money. But there's trouble in paradise with a deluge of tourists and rising rents.
Aung San Suu Kyi to be part of Myanmar's new governmentIt has been widely rumored that Aung San Suu Kyi will become foreign minister. But that's far from certain because if she were to take that post, she would have to give up her parliamentary seat and end party activities.
How defiant churches are challenging Australia's strict asylum policyAustralia plans to return 267 asylum seekers to offshore detention centers. But a group of churches is willing to break the law to help them stay.
China journalist linked to petition on president disappearsA Beijing-based journalist has聽been missing since he disappeared from the Beijing airport on his way to Hong Kong several days ago. His disappearance may be linked to聽an online petition calling for the Chinese president's resignation.