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Taiwan has revived its “anti-communist patriotic education” programme for military academy graduates, reflecting growing concern over Beijing’s efforts to infiltrate the island’s armed forces after a string of espionage cases involving service members. The compulsory five-day course, held from July 1 for graduates of Taiwan’s eight military academies, restores the programme’s original name after a...
Hong Kong’s top International Baccalaureate (IB) scorers this year credited AI and a balanced study routine for their academic success after receiving their results on Monday. Amid the intense pressure of the final assessments, top achievers from Diocesan Boys’ School (DBS), Victoria Shanghai Academy (VSA), and Po Leung Kuk Choi Kai Yau School shared insights on using technology responsibly while ...
Kim Jong-un stood on a cliff top and watched his navy come of age. As the North Korean leader looked on, 10 cruise missiles tore off the deck of the Kang Kon in rapid succession in a display of naval power Pyongyang could once only dream of staging. Analysts say the weapons test on Friday was no accident of timing – coming just days before Russia and China would begin their Joint Sea 2026 maritime...
Lebanese state media said an Israeli strike on a car in the country’s south on Monday killed four people, including three women, despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. Lebanon’s official National News Agency (NNA) said a school principal, her mother, a foreign female domestic worker and a male Syrian worker were killed when an Israeli drone targeted their car as they returned from inspe...
Lebanese state media said an Israeli strike on a car in the country’s south on Monday killed four people, including three women, despite a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. Lebanon’s official National News Agency (NNA) said a school principal, her mother, a foreign female domestic worker and a male Syrian worker were killed when an Israeli drone targeted their car as they returned from inspe...
Norway wants China to use its ties to the Russian leadership to help bring about a negotiated settlement to the war in Ukraine, also for the sake of better relations with Europe, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said on Monday. “China is probably the country with the best and most direct access to the Russian leadership. We expect, hope and strongly urge China to use that channel,” h...
As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of its founding, it confronts a new world order dominated by its relationship with China. In this wide-ranging series, we examine the pressure points and possibilities in those ties, from hard tech to soft power. In this article, Sylvia Ma examines the numerous financial links between the two economies that make a true decoupling a difficult affair....
In a closely watched outcome, Canada on Monday chose a major German defence contractor over its South Korean competitor to build a US multibillion-dollar fleet of submarines, as mid-tier nations increasingly work together in the face of a less reliable United States. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that Ottawa chose Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS)’s package over Hanwha Ocean Company’s....
In a closely watched outcome, Canada on Monday chose a major German defence contractor over its South Korean competitor to build a US multibillion-dollar fleet of submarines, as mid-tier nations increasingly work together in the face of a less reliable United States. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that Ottawa chose Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS)’s package over Hanwha Ocean Company’s....
Hong Kong’s Northern Metropolis is positioned as the city’s next engine of growth – a long-term solution to land supply, economic transformation and cross-boundary integration. Just as importantly, the government has stressed that this massive undertaking will embed nature conservation and urban-rural integration at its core. Yet, a growing contradiction lies at the heart of this vision. The very ...
US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that leading American artificial intelligence companies would make a public “contribution” to the country, offering few details but fuelling speculation about a greater government role in the booming industry. Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday morning, Trump said tech companies “making tremendous amounts of money” will be making “a contribution to ...
US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that leading American artificial intelligence companies would make a public “contribution” to the country, offering few details but fuelling speculation about a greater government role in the booming industry. Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday morning, Trump said tech companies “making tremendous amounts of money” will be making “a contribution to ...
US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that leading American artificial intelligence companies would make a public “contribution” to the country, offering few details but fuelling speculation about a greater government role in the booming industry. Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday morning, Trump said tech companies “making tremendous amounts of money” will be making “a contribution to ...
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is building a granite helipad on the White House lawn, insisting that the landing area is needed to accommodate new, more powerful presidential choppers. Confirmation of the project came as construction crews had already begun working on the helipad on the South Lawn, where the president had UFC build a temporary arena for a cage fight celebrating h...
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is building a granite helipad on the White House lawn, insisting that the landing area is needed to accommodate new, more powerful presidential choppers. Confirmation of the project came as construction crews had already begun working on the helipad on the South Lawn, where the president had UFC build a temporary arena for a cage fight celebrating h...
US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is building a granite helipad on the White House lawn, insisting that the landing area is needed to accommodate new, more powerful presidential choppers. Confirmation of the project came as construction crews had already begun working on the helipad on the South Lawn, where the president had UFC build a temporary arena for a cage fight celebrating h...
French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Damascus on Monday for the first visit by a Western European head of state since Syria’s new authorities took power. President Ahmed al-Sharaa has been rebooting Syria’s international credentials and seeking to revive his struggling country after toppling long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. “I have come to reaffirm France’s commitment to th...
French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Damascus on Monday for the first visit by a Western European head of state since Syria’s new authorities took power. President Ahmed al-Sharaa has been rebooting Syria’s international credentials and seeking to revive his struggling country after toppling long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. “I have come to reaffirm France’s commitment to th...
With the integrity of Fifa and the World Cup under attack from European football leaders, Fifa President Gianni Infantino acknowledged taking a call from US President Donald Trump before US forward Folarin Balogun was cleared to play against Belgium later on Monday. Balogun was issued a red card in the US match against Bosnia-Herzegovina last week, resulting in a suspension for the Belgium contest...
Nato cannot be “naive” about China’s military development, as the Indo-Pacific and European theatres are becoming “more intertwined”, evident in Beijing’s support for Moscow’s war in Ukraine, Nato’s Secretary General said. During a pre-summit press conference on Monday, a day before the Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, this week, Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte responded to questions about a Chine...
Prince Harry arrived in Britain on Monday for a five-day visit expected to go ahead mostly without his wife and children after they were reportedly refused police protection. Harry’s visit has been hit by several snags as plans for his family to accompany him fell through, his accommodation at Buckingham Palace was in disarray and a judgment in his latest legal battle against British tabloids loom...
Prince Harry has been told he cannot stay at Buckingham Palace this week after he failed to accept an invitation in time, a royal source said on Monday, underlining the still fraught relationship between King Charles and his second son. Harry had been planning to take his two children for their first visit to Britain in four years but on Saturday his spokesperson said Archie, seven, and Lilibet, ...
Comcast’s Sky has agreed to buy the broadcast channels and streaming service of Britain’s ITV for £1.6 billion (US$2.13 billion), creating a British champion to compete with global players YouTube, Netflix, Amazon and Disney. Sky CEO Dana Strong said the deal, announced on Monday and confirming a Reuters story, was a “defining moment” in British broadcasting. The combination of Britain’s biggest f...
In a public park a stone’s throw from the European Commission buildings in Brussels late last month, beer flowed, meat grilled and country music blared as revellers marked the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. The fallout from the event, however, provided signs – if they were needed – that all is not well in America’s relations with its erstwhile European allies. Just three o...
Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio did not attend the opening of her impeachment trial on Monday, leaving her lawyers to fight charges that, if upheld, could remove her from office, permanently bar her from politics and reshape the 2028 presidential race. Legal experts told This Week in Asia they expected Duterte-Carpio to be difficult, though not impossible, to convict despite the grav...
A 20-year-old Indonesian woman was stabbed to death in her flat in Hamamatsu, central Japan, police said on Monday as they investigate whether a man who was fatally hit by a train nearby was involved in the case. The woman, identified as Keiko Altaira Hanafi, was found stabbed and in a critical condition by a police officer at around 11.40am in the flat where she lived with her parents. She was la...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. New users who download our updated app get a seven-day free trial. The Hong Kong Observatory issued a red rainstorm warning for an hour on Monday night, while a suspected waterspout was spotted off Cheung Chau. The red signal – the middle level in a three-tier ...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. New users who download our updated app get a seven-day free trial. The Hong Kong Observatory issued a red rainstorm warning for an hour on Monday night, while a suspected waterspout was spotted off Cheung Chau. The red signal – the middle level in a three-tier ...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. New users who download our updated app get a seven-day free trial. The Hong Kong Observatory issued a red rainstorm warning on Monday night, following warnings about heavy rain and serious flooding in areas of Wan Chai. The red signal was issued at 9.45pm, afte...
Although the US is in decline, underestimating the country could still prove a “fatal mistake”, according to a prominent Chinese commentator. “The United States is still a hegemony in decline. Even with its relative decline, it remains a hegemony because no nation or force is currently capable of truly taking its place,” Zheng Yongnian, dean of the school of public policy at the Chinese University...
