A ship, identified by the Royal United Services Institute as the North Korean registered cargo ship Angara, is seen docked alongside a larger vessel at the Zhoushan Xinya Shipbuilding Co. wharf in Zhoushan, China, in February.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 25, 2024
Images show China harboring ship tied to Russian arms transfers
Satellite images show China is docking a ship that has moved containers believed to be full of North Korean munitions around Russia.
Chinese President Xi Jinping. Ever-growing tensions in the South China Sea all point to an uncomfortable truth for Southeast Asian nations, as well as the U.S.: In this standoff, China is winning.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 24, 2024
Xi’s armada is winning the battle for energy in South China Sea
China’s increasingly assertive stance has sparked a flurry of diplomatic and military efforts aimed at countering Beijing’s footprint.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a news conference at the end of a Group of Seven foreign ministers meeting on Capri Island, Italy, on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Apr 23, 2024
Top U.S. diplomat returns to China, but breakthroughs unlikely
From Ukraine and Taiwan to the South China Sea and the Middle East, the list of bilateral and global issues on the agenda will be long.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's use of divisive language himself raised alarm that it could inflame right-wing vigilantes who target Muslims, and brought up questions about what had prompted his shift in communication style.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 23, 2024
Modi calls Muslims ‘infiltrators’ who would take India’s wealth
The language was unusually direct for a leader who normally lets others do the dirtiest work of polarizing Hindus against Muslims.
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare speaks during a visit to Beijing last July.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 22, 2024
Pro-China Solomon Islands PM fails to secure outright majority
Manasseh Sogavare's Our Party has won 12 seats with six contests still in play — well short of a majority in the 50-seat parliament.
U.S. President Joe Biden Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the Group of 20 Summit in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, in November 2022.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Apr 22, 2024
China braces for worst as it becomes punching bag in U.S. election
Chinese policymakers already battling a protracted property crisis and weak demand at home have scant incentive to escalate tensions.
Taiwanese flags are seen at the island's Defense Ministry in Taipei in December 2022.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 21, 2024
Taiwan says it will discuss with U.S. how to use new funding
The funds were part of a $95 billion legislative package mostly providing security aid to Ukraine and Israel passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores