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  • The year in review: Influential people who have died in 2026

    The year in review: Influential people who have died in 2026

    Across the first four months of 2025, the world lost a remarkable cohort of trailblazers, creators, leaders, and icons whose legacies have shaped fields from entertainment and sports to science, politics, and human rights. These individuals left indelible marks on global culture, policy, and progress, and their passing has been marked by mourning from communities, leaders, and fans across the globe.

    The roll call of influential figures begins in January, where the world said goodbye to icons across every sector. Diane Crump, 77, broke barriers as the first woman to compete as a professional jockey in a sanctioned horse race in 1969, and a year later made history again as the first female rider to enter the Kentucky Derby; she passed away on January 1. South Korean cinema legend Ahn Sung-ki, 74, who earned the beloved nickname “The Nation’s Actor” for his 60-year prolific career and warm public image, died January 5. The same day brought the death of Aldrich Ames, 84, the CIA turncoat whose decades-long betrayal of Western intelligence assets to the Soviet Union and Russia stands as one of the most damaging security breaches in U.S. history, who died in prison.

    January also saw the passing of award-winning Hungarian filmmaker Béla Tarr, 70, celebrated for his iconic works *Sátántangó* and *The Turin Horse*; NHL Hall of Fame goaltender Glenn Hall, 94, whose 502-consecutive-start ironman streak remains an unbroken league record; Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir, 78, who shaped the 1960s San Francisco counterculture sound; Grammy-nominated Fugees collaborator John Forté, 50; “Dilbert” creator Scott Adams, 68, whose iconic office satire entertained millions for decades before syndication dropped him in 2023 over controversial racist remarks; civil rights pioneer Claudette Colvin, 86, who was arrested at 15 for refusing to surrender her segregated bus seat nine months before Rosa Parks’ famous protest, laying critical groundwork for the Montgomery bus boycott; iconic Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani, 93, famous for his glamorous gowns and signature “Valentino red”; former Czechoslovakian Olympic weightlifting gold medalist Ota Zaremba, 68; William Foege, 89, the public health leader who spearheaded the global campaign that eradicated smallpox, one of humanity’s greatest public health victories; beloved Canadian comedic actor Catherine O’Hara, 71, famous for *Home Alone* and her Emmy-winning role as Moira Rose in *Schitt’s Creek*; and “Sanford and Son” star Demond Wilson, 79, who later became an ordained minister.

    February brought more losses of influential figures. Award-winning poet, educator and textbook author X.J. Kennedy, 96, who taught millions of American students through works like *The Bedford Reader*, died February 1. Three Dog Night founding member Chuck Negron, 83, who sang lead on the band’s iconic hits including “Joy to the World” and “One,” died February 2. Legendary Detroit Tigers pitcher Mickey Lolich, 85, who notched three complete-game victories during the 1968 World Series, a feat no MLB pitcher has repeated since, died February 4. *Dawson’s Creek* star James Van Der Beek, 48, who became a 2000s heartthrob and later embraced self-parody, died February 11 after a battle with colorectal cancer. Iconic Oscar-winning actor Robert Duvall, 95, famous for his roles in *The Godfather* and *Tender Mercies*, died February 15.

    Other February losses include groundbreaking documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman, 96, whose unflinching works chronicled American social institutions; civil rights leader and two-time U.S. presidential candidate Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, 84, who carried forward the work of Martin Luther King Jr. after his assassination; *Grey’s Anatomy* and *Euphoria* actor Eric Dane, 53, who died from ALS less than a year after announcing his diagnosis and became a leading advocate for the disease; Hall of Fame Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Bill Mazeroski, 89, famous for his historic walk-off home run that won the 1960 World Series; influential salsa music architect and activist Willie Colón, 75; *Revenge of the Nerds* star Robert Carradine, 71; Broadway pioneer Sondra Lee, 97, who originated the role of Tiger Lily in the original *Peter Pan* and starred in the first production of *Hello, Dolly!*; legendary rock ‘n’ roll singer-songwriter Neil Sedaka, 86, who enjoyed two separate eras of chart-topping success across the 1950s and 1970s; and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, Iran’s long-serving supreme leader who consolidated theocratic power and led Iran through decades of regional and global conflict, who was killed in joint U.S.-Israeli military strikes on February 28.

    March began with the passing of Kermit Gosnell, 85, the abortion provider convicted of murder for killing three infants born alive at his Philadelphia clinic, on March 1. Legendary college football coach Lou Holtz, 89, who led Notre Dame to the 1988 national championship and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, died March 4. Civil rights leader Bernard LaFayette, 85, who laid critical on-the-ground groundwork for the 1965 Selma voting rights campaign that led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act, died March 5. 1960s anti-war rock icon “Country” Joe McDonald, 84, whose *I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-To-Die Rag* became a defining Vietnam War protest anthem and a Woodstock highlight, died March 8. Alexander Butterfield, 99, the White House aide whose accidental revelation of Richard Nixon’s Oval Office taping system accelerated the president’s resignation during the Watergate scandal, died March 9.

    March also saw the death of Nicholas Haysom, 73, the white South African anti-apartheid activist tapped by Nelson Mandela to help draft post-apartheid South Africa’s constitution that enshrined equal rights for all races; Indonesian billionaire Michael Bambang Hartono, 86, who built the Djarum tobacco conglomerate into one of the nation’s largest business empires; iconic martial artist and action star Chuck Norris, 86, famous for *Walker, Texas Ranger* and his decades-long status as a global pop culture icon; Italian populist politics pioneer Umberto Bossi, 84, founder of the Northern League and one of the nation’s most polarizing modern political figures; former FBI Director and special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, 81, who restructured the FBI to counter terrorism after the 9/11 attacks and led the investigation into 2016 Russian election interference; *Buffy the Vampire Slayer* actor Nicholas Brendon, 54, who died of natural causes in his sleep; former French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin, 88, who introduced France’s 35-hour work week during his tenure; soft-rock legend Darrell “Dash” Crofts, 87, half of the Seals and Crofts duo behind hits including “Summer Breeze”; character actor James Tolkan, 94, famous for his roles in *Top Gun* and *Back to the Future*; and Tony-nominated actor Mary Beth Hurt, 79.

    April closed out the first four months of the year with the passing of a new group of icons. Jim Whittaker, 97, who became the first American to summit Mount Everest in 1963, died April 7. Sid Krofft, 96, the Canadian-born entertainment pioneer who co-created cult classic children’s shows like *H.R. Pufnstuf* with his brother Marty, died April 10. Lionel Rosenblatt, 82, the U.S. Foreign Service officer who orchestrated an unauthorized evacuation of hundreds of Vietnamese civilians before the 1975 fall of Saigon, saving countless lives, died April 11.

    Two icons died on April 12: legendary 92-year-old Bollywood singer Asha Bhosle, whose voice defined Indian cinema for nearly 80 years across an unprecedented 12,000 recorded tracks, earning national mourning and praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for her irreplaceable contribution to Indian culture; and wheelchair racing pioneer Bob Hall, 74, a polio survivor who won the Boston Marathon twice and pioneered modern racing wheelchair design, earning the title “father of wheelchair racing.”

    April’s other losses include iconic country music songwriter Don Schlitz, 73, who wrote hits including “The Gambler” and “Forever and Ever, Amen”; Brazilian Basketball Hall of Famer Oscar Schmidt, 68, known to fans as “Holy Hand” for his unrivaled shooting; beloved French actor Nathalie Baye, 77; George R. Ariyoshi, 100, former Hawaii governor and the first Asian American to serve as a U.S. state governor; Traffic co-founder and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Dave Mason, 79, who wrote the classic hit “Feelin’ Alright”; Alan Osmond, 76, eldest member of the hit family group The Osmonds; Nedra Talley Ross, 80, last surviving member of the 1960s pop group the Ronettes behind enduring hits like “Be My Baby”; iconic outlaw country singer-songwriter David Allan Coe, 86, who wrote the working-class anthem “Take This Job and Shove It”; and pioneering geneticist J. Craig Venter, 79, who led the team that produced the first draft sequence of the human genome and later became the first person to publish his own fully sequenced genome, opening new frontiers in understanding genetic inheritance and disease vulnerability.

  • ‘We need people to come back’: Dubai’s tourism industry reels as foreigners flee

    ‘We need people to come back’: Dubai’s tourism industry reels as foreigners flee

    For more than a decade, Dubai has reigned as one of the world’s most iconic global tourism and business hubs, drawing millions of international visitors, transiting passengers and foreign investors drawn to its reputation as a stable, conflict-free oasis in the Middle East. But today, that standing is facing an unprecedented threat, sparked by escalating regional conflict between the U.S., Israel and Iran that has sent tourism numbers plummeting, triggered widespread hotel shutdowns and mass job losses across the emirate’s critical hospitality sector.

    New data released by Dubai Airports this week underscores the severity of the downturn. First-quarter 2026 passenger traffic fell by a minimum of 2.5 million compared to the same period in 2025, with March alone seeing a staggering 66% drop in arrivals as international travelers deliberately avoid the Gulf amid rising security fears. The sharp decline comes in the wake of Iran’s retaliatory drone and missile strikes against Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states that host or cooperate closely with U.S. military forces, a escalation that followed months of rising tensions across the region.

    In a urgent bid to reverse the collapse in visitor numbers, UAE authorities announced Saturday that all air travel restrictions imposed after Iran’s strikes have been fully lifted. The country’s Civil Aviation Authority confirmed the decision in an official post on its X account, noting the move followed a full review of operational and security conditions conducted in coordination with local security agencies. The policy shift is widely interpreted as a deliberate signal to reassure jittery international travelers, particularly after multiple major European carriers announced temporary suspensions of all flights to the Middle East over safety and insurance concerns.

    Despite the government’s confidence-building move, hospitality workers, business owners and long-term residents who spoke to Middle East Eye – all speaking on condition of anonymity due to GCC-wide restrictions on public discussion of the impact of Iran’s actions – caution it will take time to rebuild trust among both travelers and foreign investors.

    Charity, a Kenyan employee at a mid-range Dubai hotel operated by a U.S.-based chain, described the immediate fallout of the escalation, which coincided with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when tensions were at their highest. During the peak of the strikes, the hotel was filled not with leisure tourists, but with stranded airline passengers waiting to rebook with Emirates, who gathered in the lobby to meet with airline representatives. As a security precaution, the property closed its popular pool and relocated all guests from the 20-story building’s upper floors to lower levels by the end of the month. In the weeks that followed, she said, business slowed to a near standstill.

    Charity says she holds out hope that the lifting of travel restrictions will reassure visitors to return, but is waiting to see tangible recovery in the coming weeks. “We’ll see over the next week if people really start to come back,” she said during a recent shift assisting a long-time American guest. “We need your people [foreign tourists] to come back.”

    The dramatic slump in traffic is immediately visible even to frequent travelers at Dubai International, which has held the title of the world’s busiest airport for international passenger traffic for 12 straight years. Samina, a South Asian NGO worker who regularly travels between South Asia, the Gulf and North America, said the emptiness of the airport’s terminals is striking compared to just two months ago.

    “Coming in, it’s empty,” she said of Terminal 3, Emirates’ main hub. “Terminal 1 and 2 are ghost towns,” she added, referring to the terminals that house other international carriers and UAE-based budget airline FlyDubai. As of the latest update from Dubai Airports, only 51 of the 90 airlines that normally operate out of the airport have resumed regular services. European and U.S. carriers have faced particular barriers to returning, as many struggle to secure affordable insurance coverage for operations in the region amid official government travel advisories warning against non-essential travel.

    To shore up morale among residents and project an image of stability, Dubai’s local government has launched a public outreach campaign across the emirate. UAE flags are displayed prominently outside homes, commercial buildings, and on digital billboards along major highways. At the popular City Walk shopping mall, large electronic screens display messages thanking UAE residents in both Arabic and English. Portraits of UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan line major arterial roads, paired with the message: “May our nation remain in God’s protection,” while other displays feature Emirati families saluting the national flag with the same wording.

    Even with these public efforts, the economic impact of the regional tensions has been felt almost immediately across nearly all sectors, business owners say. Tatiana, a Russian entrepreneur who runs a logistics and consulting firm helping foreign businesses set up operations in the Gulf, said she was shocked by how rapidly investor and resident confidence collapsed. “Within the first two weeks people [said] it’s no longer worth [living here]. They weren’t scared per se, they just felt like it’s no longer worth it,” she explained. Many businesses moved quickly to liquidate their assets, and Tatiana said her own family is now exploring relocation options in Europe to shift their operations gradually.

    The ripple effects of the downturn have even reached industries not immediately associated with tourism and international travel. Antoine, an editor who trains new writers, shared that one of his clients, an employee at a local advertising agency, was tasked with laying off 1,000 workers in the UAE following widespread business liquidations. “You’d think advertising would be a war-proof industry,” he noted, expressing surprise at how quickly the sector was impacted.

    For Tatiana, the damage strikes at the core of what makes Dubai’s business ecosystem work: “Our whole business is predicated on assuring people that the UAE is a safe, convenient place to do business,” she said. That sentiment is echoed by Arjun, one of the 3.5 to 4.3 million Indian expatriates who call the UAE home, who spoke after attending a late-night screening of the Michael Jackson biopic in Dubai. Arjun noted he was encouraged to see the theater nearly full, holding out hope it could signal a gradual return to normalcy – but acknowledged the damage to Dubai’s core brand has already been done. “The entire ethos of Dubai as this place free from conflict was shaken,” he said.

  • The internet has a Strait of Hormuz problem

    The internet has a Strait of Hormuz problem

    Most conventional discussions of threats to the global economy center on kinetic military strikes or large-scale cyberattacks on onshore data infrastructure. But a far stealthier, more destabilizing risk is now building in one of the world’s most strategically critical waterways: a coordinated sabotage campaign targeting the fiber-optic cables that crisscross the Persian Gulf seabed — infrastructure that underpins nearly all of the world’s digital and financial activity.

    Recent escalations in the Middle East carry global ramifications that extend far beyond energy security, requiring urgent attention from policymakers worldwide. Iran has already disrupted oil and gas shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s busiest and most important energy chokepoint, via maritime mining operations. Now, analysts warn that a quieter, far more consequential threat is unfolding.

    On April 22, 2026, Iranian media outlets linked to the Iranian government published detailed public maps of undersea cable routes, coastal landing stations, and key regional data hubs spanning the Persian Gulf. Analysts from *The Jerusalem Post* have assessed that these public disclosures are not accidental: they represent deliberate target preparation for future sabotage.

    To grasp the scale of this risk, it is necessary to confront a little-known fact that shapes the entire global digital ecosystem: over 97% of all cross-border internet traffic travels not through orbital satellites, but through thin fiber-optic cables laid across ocean floors. These strands, no thicker than a standard garden hose, facilitate an estimated $10 trillion in global financial transactions every single day. They are the foundational infrastructure for bank transfers, stock market operations, cloud computing services, and the AI systems that are increasingly integrated into every sector of the modern global economy. Even with advances in satellite technology, satellites lack the bandwidth to replace even a fraction of this capacity if major cable networks are disabled.

    Geographic chokepoints amplify this vulnerability dramatically. At least 17 major undersea cable systems pass through the Red Sea, with several additional core routes traversing the Persian Gulf. These are not backup redundant lines — they are the primary digital arteries connecting Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Both regions are already plagued by ongoing conflict, and their narrow channels mean a single well-executed cable cut can send shockwaves across every inhabited continent.

    This threat is not hypothetical: there is a clear, documented precedent for this exact pattern of aggression. In February 2024, Yemen’s Houthi movement published a public plan on the messaging platform Telegram outlining its intent to target undersea cables connecting Europe and Asia via the Red Sea. That same day, *Foreign Policy* magazine noted that even if the Houthis lacked the independent technical capacity to carry out such an attack, Iran could easily supply the required equipment and expertise. The warning was explicit and credible, but the global community largely ignored it.

    Less than three weeks later, the warnings became reality. On February 26, 2024, four undersea cables linking Saudi Arabia and Djibouti were severed in a deliberate act of sabotage, matching the pre-attack public signaling the Houthis had already provided. The pattern was unambiguous: public threat disclosure and target mapping, followed by immediate offensive action. Today, that same pattern is repeating — this time targeting infrastructure that connects the entire global digital system, not just a regional network.

    Over the past decade, the Middle East has evolved from a primarily energy-focused global hub to a critical digital infrastructure hub as well. The region now hosts more than 300 data centers across 18 countries, with tech giants including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google investing billions of dollars in cloud facilities based in the Persian Gulf. A widespread cable cut would not just disrupt email and casual web browsing: it would strand hundreds of billions of dollars in digital infrastructure overnight, and could effectively shut down large swations of the global economy, since nearly all modern daily commerce, banking, and investment activity depends on continuous, high-volume internet connectivity.

    What makes this threat uniquely difficult to deter is also what makes it so attractive to Iran: near-perfect plausible deniability. A missile strike is an unambiguous act of aggression that would trigger immediate diplomatic and military retaliation. But a cargo vessel dragging an anchor across a cable off the coast of the Strait of Hormuz is far more ambiguous. Was it an accidental navigational error? A fishing boat that drifted off its planned course? A proxy force operating with discreet backing from Tehran?

    By the time investigators can untangle these questions — a process made even slower by the fact that cable repair vessels cannot safely operate in active conflict zones — the damage is already done. Entire global regions can remain cut off from core digital services for weeks or even months, with cascading economic consequences.

    Compounding this vulnerability is the astonishingly weak international legal framework meant to deter this type of sabotage. Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), if an undersea cable is damaged in international waters, legal jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrator falls to the perpetrator’s home country, not the state or company that owns the cable. The outcome of this framework is predictable: no state has ever been prosecuted for a deliberate cable cut, and no case of sabotage has ever been adjudicated in an international court. When states operate through proxy groups, as Iran regularly does, confirming attribution becomes even more difficult, and the threshold for meaningful retaliation is almost never met.

    In 2024, the United States and more than two dozen allied nations signed the New York Joint Statement on undersea cable security, officially acknowledging the widespread vulnerability of this infrastructure. But a public acknowledgment of risk is not a deterrent, and no substantive enforcement measures have followed the statement.

    To address this growing threat, policy experts argue that the international community needs a new, enforceable legal framework with real consequences. This framework would empower states that own cable infrastructure to pursue direct action against perpetrators regardless of their nationality, and would explicitly hold state sponsors accountable for attacks carried out through proxy groups. In the short term, since the U.S. already maintains a significant military presence in the Persian Gulf region, it can take immediate action to patrol and protect critical cable routes to reduce the risk of successful sabotage.

    In 2024, the Houthis publicly signaled their intent to attack undersea cables, and the attacks followed shortly after. Today, Iran is engaging in the same pattern of public signaling, but for a potentially far more devastating attack that could cripple the global economy. The only open question is whether the United States and its global partners will act to prevent the attack — before the silent fall of the global digital network.

  • Snooker’s Olympic push gets a jolt from China’s back-to-back world champions

    Snooker’s Olympic push gets a jolt from China’s back-to-back world champions

    Snooker’s decades-long push to secure a spot in the Olympic Games has received a transformative boost from a historic milestone: two consecutive world titles claimed by Chinese players, according to the sport’s global governing body chief.

    In a tense, last-frame decider at Sheffield’s iconic Crucible Theatre on Monday, 22-year-old Wu Yize edged out England’s Shaun Murphy by a razor-thin 18-17 score to lift the world championship trophy. His victory comes exactly one year after compatriot Zhao Xintong made history as the first Asian player to claim snooker’s most prestigious title, marking the first time the sport’s world crown has stayed in Chinese hands for back-to-back tournaments.

    For decades, the United Kingdom dominated professional snooker as its unchallenged traditional heartland. But over the past two decades, China has emerged as the sport’s fastest-growing powerhouse, boasting an estimated 300,000 registered snooker clubs nationwide. This year’s world championship main draw featured 11 Chinese players out of 32 total competitors, with five holding spots in the sport’s top 16 global rankings — a clear marker of the nation’s rising competitive depth.

    Snooker’s Olympic journey has been marked by setbacks so far: bids for inclusion in the 2020 Tokyo and 2024 Paris Games were both unsuccessful. But the sport’s leadership is now gearing up for a new bid for the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games, and the recent run of Chinese success has positioned the campaign far more strongly than ever before.

    Jason Ferguson, chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), told the Associated Press in an interview that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has already been closely monitoring the sport’s growth, and the consecutive Chinese world titles can only strengthen the bid. “It’s vitally important,” Ferguson said. “China is a very important country to the IOC — it has hosted the Games on multiple occasions and invests heavily in global sport development, which carries significant weight for the IOC. So the fact that China is a key market for snooker is a really important part of any Olympic bid.”

    Ferguson also highlighted that snooker’s global expansion extends far beyond East Asia. This year’s world championship welcomed its first ever Polish competitor, Antoni Kowalski, marking growth across eastern Europe. Today, nearly 100 countries have established national snooker governing bodies and grassroots infrastructure — a dramatic shift from the early days of the Olympic bid, when only a small handful of nations had organized competitive programs. “When we started this idea of going to the Olympics, we only had a handful of countries playing,” Ferguson noted. “But we are ready (to be in the Olympics). And that’s an exciting proposition.”

    Beyond the Olympic bid, the WPBSA is also finalizing a separate application to reinstate snooker to the Paralympic Games program, where the sport was featured from 1960 to 1988. A final decision on which sports will join the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic programs is expected by next spring, timed to coincide with the next running of the snooker world championship. Local support from Brisbane organizing officials is widely viewed as a critical factor for any new sport seeking inclusion.

    Wu’s historic win caps a remarkable underdog story. Six years ago, he left his hometown of Lanzhou in northwest China and relocated to the United Kingdom with his father to chase a professional snooker career, leaving his mother behind in China. The pair lived in a cramped, windowless small apartment; Wu later recalled that poor air quality in the space even left him prone to acne. But he embraced the hardship for his love of the sport. “If you really love snooker, it is the path you have to go through and fight through,” he said.

    Entering this year’s world championship, Wu had never won a single match at the Crucible, making his run to the title a major upset. Now ranked world No. 4 following his victory, Wu joins Zhao in hoping his journey will inspire the next generation of Chinese snooker players. “I hope younger players can stay true to their passion, be a bit braver, and go after their dreams,” he said.

  • Thailand scraps 2001 maritime territory deal with Cambodia after years of deadlock

    Thailand scraps 2001 maritime territory deal with Cambodia after years of deadlock

    BANGKOK – In a significant shift to decades-long bilateral dispute resolution mechanisms, Thailand’s cabinet announced Tuesday it is terminating a 2001 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with neighboring Cambodia that established a bilateral framework for negotiating overlapping maritime territorial claims. The development comes 22 years after the agreement was signed, following a years-long deadlock in talks and a sharp deterioration in cross-border relations that erupted into deadly armed clashes last year.

    The original 2001 MoU was designed to create a collaborative foundation for the two Southeast Asian nations to peacefully delimit their shared maritime boundaries and jointly manage overlapping claimed marine resources in line with international law. However, despite five rounds of negotiations held over more than two decades, the two sides failed to make any tangible progress toward a settlement.

    The termination will not enter into legal force until Thailand formally delivers an official notification letter to Phnom Penh. Its end dashes long-held hopes in both countries that resolving the competing claims would unlock development of untapped offshore oil and gas reserves located in the disputed waters – resources that could deliver major economic gains to both nations.

    Thailand’s decision to scrap the bilateral agreement follows a dramatic escalation of border tensions that spilled into open armed conflict last year. Clashes over competing land border claims broke out in both July and December 2023, leaving dozens of civilian and military casualties on both sides and forcing hundreds of thousands of residents to evacuate their homes near the border. A fragile ceasefire was reached in late December, but low-level sporadic incidents continue to be reported, and both sides have maintained large-scale military deployments along the contested border.

    The 2023 fighting reignited domestic political pressure in Thailand over border sovereignty, pushing nationalist sentiment to the forefront of national politics ahead of 2024 general elections. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s ruling Bhumjaithai Party included terminating the 2001 MoU as a key campaign pledge to address public concerns over territorial integrity.

    Speaking after Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, Anutin sought to downplay concerns over the impact of the decision on the current fragile border calm. He emphasized the termination is unrelated to ongoing land border tensions and will not alter the existing ceasefire arrangements. He added that negotiations over the maritime dispute will continue under alternative frameworks, specifically citing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as a preferred platform moving forward.

    Thai government spokesperson Rachada Dhnadirek echoed the prime minister’s framing, stressing that the move is a strategic adjustment to the dispute resolution framework, not a break in bilateral relations or an end to negotiations. “Thailand will continue discussions with Cambodia, but we propose shifting to mechanisms under UNCLOS, which is clearer, more comprehensive and more systematic to allow maritime disputes to be resolved effectively,” she explained.

    In Phnom Penh, Cambodian officials reacted with measured regret to the Thai decision. Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn called the move “a departure from the spirit and political will that enabled our two countries to establish a framework for peacefully resolving these issues in accordance with international law.”

    Despite the disappointment, Cambodia reaffirmed its commitment to peaceful resolution of the dispute under international law. Prak Sokhonn announced Cambodia will proceed with compulsory conciliation under UNCLOS mechanisms, a step that reaffirms Phnom Penh’s commitment to a peaceful, rules-based settlement.

    Cambodia’s newly installed Prime Minister Hun Manet emphasized his country’s commitment to peaceful coexistence in a social media statement. “Cambodia’s approach reflects our sincere hope that both countries can reach a just and lasting solution in line with international law, allowing our peoples to live together in peace, stability, and harmony,” he wrote.

    Sopheng Cheang, reporting from Phnom Penh, contributed to this report.

  • China’s top envoy meets with Iran’s in Beijing as Trump pauses US effort in the Strait

    China’s top envoy meets with Iran’s in Beijing as Trump pauses US effort in the Strait

    In a sudden Tuesday evening announcement from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, former U.S. President Donald Trump said he is halting the U.S. military mission to escort stranded commercial vessels through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, pausing operations to give diplomatic negotiations time to finalize a deal to end the ongoing Iran war. The U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports, however, will stay firmly in place.

    The pause comes just one day after U.S. forces launched the operation to open a secure shipping corridor through the strategic waterway, which has been choked off by Iran since the conflict began. In his social media statement, Trump cited three key factors driving the decision: requests from Pakistan and other regional nations, the military gains the U.S. has made during the campaign against Iran, and what he called “Great Progress” toward a full, final agreement with Iranian negotiators. The White House has declined to offer additional context or confirm the details of the negotiation progress Trump referenced.

    The current conflict kicked off on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched joint military strikes against Iranian targets. A ceasefire has been in place for nearly a month, but the truce has remained deeply fragile as tensions over control of the strait continue to escalate.

    In a parallel diplomatic development, official Chinese state news agency Xinhua confirmed Wednesday that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing. This trip marks Araghchi’s first visit to China since the war began, a meeting that carries significant weight given China’s deep economic and political ties to Tehran that grant Beijing unique leverage over the Iranian government. Ahead of the meeting, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly urged China to pressure Iran to lift its control of the strait, a critical global energy chokepoint.

    Before Trump’s announcement, Rubio told reporters at a White House press briefing that any lasting peace agreement would require Iran to meet two core U.S. demands: rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear program, and reopening the Strait of Hormuz to unimpeded global commercial traffic. “We would prefer the path of peace,” Rubio said, framing the U.S. push to open the strait as a strictly defensive mission focused on rescuing thousands of stranded civilian mariners. Rubio described the trapped sailors as “sitting ducks, they’re isolated, they’re starving, they’re vulnerable,” noting that at least 10 sailors have already died since the strait was closed.

    During the first day of the U.S. operation Monday, American military forces said they sank six small Iranian boats that threatened commercial shipping. To date, only two commercial vessels have successfully traversed the new U.S.-guarded corridor, while hundreds of ships remain bottled up in the Persian Gulf. Iranian officials have disputed the U.S. account of the clash, with Iranian state media reporting that two small civilian cargo vessels were hit in the strikes, killing five civilian crew members. Iran has also decried the U.S. corridor effort as a direct violation of the existing ceasefire.

    Top U.S. military leaders have downplayed the escalation, however. Speaking at a Pentagon press briefing Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said Iran’s retaliatory attacks had not crossed the threshold into “major combat operations.” Caine called Tuesday “a quieter day” in the strait, adding that more than 100 U.S. military aircraft are now patrolling the airspace above the waterway to secure the corridor. The U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, implemented April 13, has already cut off most of Tehran’s oil export revenue, severely straining Iran’s already ailing economy. Caine also emphasized that U.S. forces would not open fire unless fired upon first. “There’s no shooting unless we’re shot at first, OK? We’re not attacking them,” Rubio echoed to reporters at the White House.

    Iran’s top parliamentary speaker and chief nuclear negotiator Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf offered a muted response to the U.S. mission, signaling that Tehran has not yet committed to a full response. In a post on X, Qalibaf said, “We know full well that the continuation of the status quo is intolerable for America; while we have not even begun yet.” He did not directly reference the backchannel negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, which are currently being mediated through Pakistan.

    The closure of the strait has already sent shockwaves through the global economy: before the war, the waterway carried the vast majority of global oil and natural gas exports, as well as fertilizers and other key petroleum products, and its closure has caused global fuel prices to surge dramatically. Breaking Iran’s control of the strait would also eliminate Tehran’s most powerful geopolitical leverage, a key goal for the Trump administration as it pushes for deep cuts to Iran’s nuclear program.

    Major global shipping companies remain deeply wary of the new U.S. corridor, even after the pause. Danish shipping giant Maersk confirmed one of its operated vehicle carriers successfully exited the strait Monday with U.S. military assistance, but leading container line Hapag-Lloyd AG said its risk assessment “remains unchanged” and that transits through the strait “are for the moment not possible for our ships.” Former military officers with experience in the region have also warned that opening the 34-kilometer wide strait is an extremely dangerous and challenging operation, even with military escorts— a security measure the U.S. is not currently providing for most commercial vessels. Currently, Iran requires all transiting vessels to use a northern corridor along the Iranian coastline, where ships must undergo vetting by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and in many cases pay fees to the Iranian government. The U.S.-backed corridor runs through Omani territorial waters to the south, outside of Iran’s control.

    Iran’s retaliatory strikes have fallen heaviest on the United Arab Emirates, a key U.S. Gulf ally. The UAE Defense Ministry confirmed it faced a second consecutive day of Iranian drone and missile attacks Tuesday, though no damage or casualties were reported. On Monday, Emirati air defense systems intercepted 15 missiles and four Iranian drones, with one wayward projectile sparking a fire at a major UAE oil facility that wounded three Indian nationals. The British military also reported two cargo ships were set ablaze off the UAE coast Monday, and a second cargo vessel was hit by an “unknown projectile” in the strait Tuesday. Iran has officially denied launching any attacks on the UAE “in recent days,” per a statement read by joint military command spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari on Iranian state TV.

    The Trump administration has also drawn scrutiny for its handling of congressional war oversight, citing the April 8 ceasefire to argue the president is not required to submit a formal update to Congress under the War Powers Resolution. The 1973 law requires presidents to secure formal congressional approval for military action within 60 days of launching operations.

  • Shaanxi businesses eye expanded US trade ties

    Shaanxi businesses eye expanded US trade ties

    On Monday, a China (Shaanxi)-U.S. Economic and Trade Matchmaking Conference convened at the New York branch of the Bank of China USA, bringing a delegation of Shaanxi-based enterprises together with U.S. industry professionals, business representatives and trade organizations to unlock new cross-Pacific collaborative opportunities.

    The gathering was specifically designed to support Shaanxi’s manufacturers of natural plant-based goods — a sector that includes functional foods, premium beverages, and food additives — in building stronger, more durable commercial connections in the United States. While a number of these Shaanxi enterprises already maintain small-scale export operations to North American markets, the event aimed to help them scale up their presence and establish long-term partnerships with U.S. importers, distributors and industry partners.

    Leading the Shaanxi delegation was Fan Weibin, vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the Shaanxi Provincial People’s Congress, who opened the conference by expressing enthusiasm for the cross-regional trade mission. Fan emphasized that the fundamental core of healthy China-U.S. economic and trade relations is rooted in mutual benefit and shared success. He noted that the two countries’ economies are deeply interconnected, with overlapping interests that create strong incentives for continued collaboration, adding that business communities from both nations have long served as active participants, firsthand witnesses, and core contributors to the growth of bilateral economic ties.

    The New York matchmaking event was the second stop of Shaanxi’s 2026 U.S. trade promotion tour. It followed a promotional open house event held Saturday at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., which carried the theme “Discover Shaanxi: Where the Silk Road Starts, Wonders Await.” That introductory event was designed to showcase Shaanxi’s rich industrial heritage, unique agricultural resources and trade advantages to U.S. stakeholders, setting the stage for the one-on-one business matching held in New York.

  • Japan defense chief visits Philippines to deepen security ties and witness combat exercise

    Japan defense chief visits Philippines to deepen security ties and witness combat exercise

    In a move that underscores growing regional security realignments across the Indo-Pacific, Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi arrived in the Philippines on Tuesday for a diplomatic and military engagement aimed at expanding bilateral defense cooperation between the two nations, government officials confirmed. During his stay in the Philippine capital Manila, Koizumi held scheduled talks with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., where a potential transfer of secondhand Japanese destroyers to Manila was on the agenda for discussion.

    Both the Philippines and Japan are treaty allies of the United States, and the pair cemented a landmark defense pact earlier in 2024: the Reciprocal Access Agreement, which cleared legal and logistical barriers for large-scale joint combat exercises between their armed forces. Under this new framework, up to 1,400 Japanese military personnel will now participate regularly in the annual Balikatan exercise, a long-running multinational military drills hosted by the Philippines whose name translates to “shoulder-to-shoulder” in Tagalog. For decades, Balikatan has brought together U.S. and Filipino forces, alongside other allied partners, to prepare for regional security contingencies and counter growing Chinese territorial assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.

    Koizumi is set to join more than 100 international delegates from 16 countries—including major Indo-Pacific players India and Australia—on Wednesday, when the group travels to the northwestern Philippine coastal town of Paoay to observe a high-stakes live-fire drill. During the exercise, combined artillery and missile units from the Philippines, United States, Japan, and Canada will conduct a simulated anti-ship attack on a target approximately 25 miles off the Philippine coast. According to Philippine Marine Corps Col. Dennis Hernandez, Japanese forces will fire two volleys of Type 88 surface-to-ship missiles to sink the decommissioned World War II-era Philippine navy corvette that serves as the exercise target. President Marcos will observe the live-fire maneuvers remotely via live video feed from his official residence in Manila, Hernandez added.

    The Philippine stop comes just one day after Koizumi completed a similar diplomatic visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, where he signed a new bilateral defense cooperation agreement with Indonesian Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin. Speaking to reporters ahead of his regional tour from Tokyo, Koizumi framed the push for expanded defense partnerships as a critical response to Japan’s current security landscape. “As Japan faces the most severe and complex security environment in the postwar era, it is important to establish a multilayered network of allies and like-minded countries, while expanding it and strengthening our deterrence,” he said.

    Koizumi’s regional tour comes against a backdrop of sweeping changes to Japan’s longstanding post-WWII security policy. In recent years, Tokyo has moved away from its decades-long principle of limiting military activity to self-defense, approving the development of long-range offensive missiles capable of striking enemy targets at distance. Most recently, on April 21, Japan lifted a decades-long ban on lethal weapons exports—a pivotal shift in its postwar pacifist framework that was designed to strengthen Japan’s domestic arms industry and counter growing Chinese aggression across the region. The policy shift aligns with the Philippines’ own security priorities, as Manila has seen a sharp escalation in territorial disputes with Beijing over contested claims in the South China Sea in recent years.

    The lifted export ban opens the door for Japan to transfer up to six retired Abukuma-class destroyers to the Philippine Navy, Hernandez confirmed. These destroyers are equipped to conduct coastal patrols and detect aerial, surface, and undersea threats, making them a valuable addition to Manila’s relatively modest naval fleet. While the transfer remains under discussion during Koizumi’s visit, specific terms and timelines for the potential deal have not been made public. The shift in Japan’s security policy has been broadly welcomed by its Western and Indo-Pacific allies, including the United States and Australia, but has drawn sharp pushback from Beijing. Last month, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the international community would “resolutely resist Japan’s reckless moves toward a new type of militarism.”

    This report includes contributing reporting from Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo.

  • A ‘fun’ superstar stuns rivals and reshapes politics in an Indian state

    A ‘fun’ superstar stuns rivals and reshapes politics in an Indian state

    For decades, electoral politics in India’s Tamil Nadu state has revolved around a stable two-way contest between the long-dominant regional Dravidian parties, the Dravida Munnetra Kazahagam (DMK) and its historic rival All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). That long-standing status quo is now on the brink of collapse, following a historic breakthrough by C Joseph Vijay, the beloved Tamil film superstar turned first-time political candidate, whose new party Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) defied all pre-election polling and pundit predictions to nearly seize an outright majority in the 2026 state assembly election.

    Vijay’s rapid ascent to the cusp of power has already drawn inevitable comparisons to one of Tamil Nadu’s most iconic political ancestors: MG Ramachandran, another legendary matinee idol who split from the DMK to launch his own party and rose to become the state’s chief minister in 1977. But while parallels exist in the path from silver screen to statehouse, Vijay’s political emergence comes at a uniquely opportune moment for a political newcomer.

    When final vote counts were tallied on Monday, TVK secured 108 of the 234 available assembly seats, falling just 10 seats short of the 118-seat threshold required to form a majority government. The result is a landmark upset that ousted the incumbent DMK from power, ending the party’s latest tenure leading the state. For Vijay, the next critical step is transitioning from a charismatic crowd-pleasing campaigner to a skilled coalition builder: over the coming days, he will negotiate with smaller regional parties and independent elected legislators to secure the additional support needed to claim the chief minister’s post.

    Political analysts and observers across India frame the result as a clear reflection of growing voter fatigue with the decades-long DMK-AIADMK duopoly, particularly among the state’s fast-growing young electorate. “Vijay carries a different kind of verve,” explains social scientist Shiv Visvanathan. “He offers a sense of fun, confidence and an aura of competence rooted in individuality, and that gives him a different kind of power.”

    Unlike many celebrity politicians who jump from the screen to the campaign trail without long-term groundwork, Vijay’s path to electoral politics has been more than 15 years in the making. As early as 2009, he began restructuring his vast network of fan clubs into the Vijay Makkal Iyakkam, a grassroots welfare organization that delivered local aid, educational support and disaster relief to communities across the state. By 2011, the network tested its political influence by aligning with an AIADMK-led coalition, proving that stardom could translate into organized voter support. Over the following decade, Vijay increasingly wove political messaging into his public appearances, speaking to young audiences about widespread youth unemployment, student exam stress, and government corruption, while also taking high-profile positions on national issues such as criticizing the 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act. He formally launched TVK only in 2024, but his slow, deliberate conversion of popular stardom into organized political capital set him apart from other celebrity aspirants who have failed to gain traction in Tamil Nadu politics, from Rajinikanth to Kamal Haasan.

    In the lead-up to voting, Vijay has deliberately crafted a new public persona distinct from his film identity, making high-profile visits to prominent Hindu temples and Christian churches across the state. Images of these visits have circulated widely on social media and broadcast news, a notable shift in a state whose modern politics was shaped by the rationalist Self-Respect Movement, which fought for equal rights for marginalized castes. Analysts frame this visible turn to faith as a deliberate strategic choice to broaden his electoral appeal.

    Polling data confirms that Vijay’s surge is driven most strongly by two key demographic groups: young voters and women. According to Pradeep Gupta, chief pollster at Axis My India, voters between the ages of 18 and 39 — who make up 42% of Tamil Nadu’s total electorate — have turned out for TVK in overwhelming numbers, particularly first-time voters. Significant support also crosses caste lines, including large backing from Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes communities across the state. “He’s the new hope for Tamil Nadu,” says prominent political strategist Prashant Kishor, summing up the sentiment driving his rise.

    For most supporters, the appeal of TVK is rooted less in detailed policy platforms and more in a widespread desire for change after decades of rule by the two legacy parties. Even though the incumbent DMK delivered solid governance, including 11.2% economic growth in 2024-25 and strong social indicators that rank among India’s best, voters have expressed growing restlessness with the same entrenched political leadership. “This is not a verdict against Dravidian politics,” notes prominent Indian vocalist and social activist TM Krishna. “It is something else. Vijay offers a new imagination.”

    Vijay’s ideological positioning has also resonated with Tamil Nadu’s long-standing tradition of regional autonomy: he has positioned the national Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as his core ideological adversary, and the incumbent DMK as his immediate political rival, aligning with the state’s historic resistance to the BJP’s national expansion rooted in Tamil language and identity politics.

    Not all observers are convinced of TVK’s long-term potential, however. Analyst and author Nilakantan RS argues that the party lacks substantive policy positions on key state issues, framing Vijay’s public gestures and temple visits as carefully calibrated marketing moves rather than reflections of a clear governing vision. “There is an absence of any original position on real issues,” he says. “Virality has become the currency of his actions.” Critics warn that this focus on image over policy could leave a Vijay-led government without the administrative depth needed to address the state’s pressing challenges.

    Vijay’s path to power has also not been without setbacks. Last year, a deadly crowd crush at one of his party rallies killed dozens of attendees, drawing widespread criticism of his initial response to the tragedy. Yet voters ultimately forgave the incident, and it failed to dampen enthusiasm for his campaign. His final planned film, *Jana Nayagan* (People’s Leader), which was set for a January release ahead of the election, also ran into protracted delays after a dispute with India’s national film classification board, and it remains unreleased to date.

    As post-election coalition negotiations get underway, the moment remains a historic one for Tamil Nadu politics. A state that has long blurred the lines between cinema charisma and political power is once again turning to a beloved film icon to deliver the change a majority of voters are demanding. “This election is to herald change,” Vijay declared on the campaign trail. His supporters echo that sentiment: “People are tired of both major parties. They want change. They see TVK as that change,” says TVK spokesperson Felix Gerald. Whether that promise of change will translate into a stable new government and durable political authority remains to be seen, but the 2026 election has already irrevocably broken the decades-old political order in one of India’s most important states.

  • Moment Indonesian river overflows from heavy rain

    Moment Indonesian river overflows from heavy rain

    On May 4, severe heavy rain triggered a destructive river overflow in Bogor, a regency located in Indonesia’s West Java province, leaving a popular outdoor glamping facility completely ruined by fast-moving floodwaters.

    Local reports confirm that the swelling river, pushed far beyond its banks by hours of intense downpour, unleashed a raging torrent that swept through the glamping site. The rushing water damaged infrastructure, destroyed luxury camping units, and forced any visitors or staff present to evacuate quickly. As of initial reports, no official casualties have been confirmed, but the facility has suffered extensive, irreversible damage that will take months to repair.

    Bogor, which sits in a low-lying region near Indonesia’s capital Jakarta, is no stranger to seasonal flooding. The country’s tropical monsoon climate regularly brings intense rainfall between November and May, increasing the risk of river overflows and flash floods across low-lying and rural areas. This latest flood event comes as climate scientists have warned that rising global temperatures are intensifying extreme weather events across Southeast Asia, leading to more frequent and severe bouts of heavy rainfall and flooding that threaten communities, tourism infrastructure, and local livelihoods.

    The glamping facility, which catered to nature-focused tourists looking for a luxury outdoor experience near Bogor’s popular forest and mountain attractions, was a popular weekend getaway for both domestic and international visitors. Local tourism officials have noted that the destruction of the site will have a short-term negative impact on the area’s small tourism-dependent businesses, which have only recently recovered from pandemic-related travel restrictions.