FEATURED STORIES
India’s Congress party needs young leaders, not cheering sycophants
Turkey gears up for Saudi-Iran proximity talks
A new low? Chinese defense spending takes a hit
TOP NEWS
North Korea fires two short-range missiles into sea: South Korea
(From Reuters)
North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast city of Wonsan early on Thursday, flying approximately 500 km (300 miles), South Korea's military said.
North Korea has a large stockpile of short-range missiles and is developing long-range and intercontinental missiles.
Reports of the missiles being fired coincide with already heightened tension on the Korean peninsula ...
ASIA UNHEDGED
North Korea sanctions threaten Park’s Eurasia Initiative
The Eurasia Initiative, an inter-Korean railroad connecting to Russia's Trans-Siberian Railway, and on to Western Europe, is at risk of being scrapped after the South Korean government decided Tuesday to pull out of a joint logistics project involving the two ...
Japan’s GDP contracted 1.1% in Q4
Let's look at the bright side. The Japanese economy isn't as bad as had been expected. Oh, it's bad all right. It's just not jump out of a window bad.
The Japanese government reported on Tuesday that gross domestic product contracted ...
Reforms in India will be slow, tedious: Morgan Stanley
(From the Economic Times)
Big bang reforms will not be the operating template for India and the process will be a 'slow and tedious one', says a Morgan Stanley report.
The global financial services major said that the recently announced Budget for ...
Q&A: China’s finance minister on G-20 negotiations
Lou Jiwei sheds light on G-20 negotiations and the reasoning behind a successful outcome
(From Caixin Online)
By staff reporter Xing Yun
Acknowledge the elephant in the room, but don't exaggerate its weight. That's the simple way of expressing Minister of Finance Lou Jiwei's ...
ASIA TIMES NEWS & FEATURES
China’s Caixin magazine defiant on official censorship of article
(From BBC)
Prominent Chinese financial magazine Caixin has highlighted censorship of its content, in a rare defiant move against the government.
It claimed on Monday, in an ...
US serves up Korean rocket salad in war drill response to North’s nuclear threats
(From Reuters)
By James Pearson
CHEORWON, South Korea--There's more to do in South Korea's heavily forested Rocket Valley, just a few miles from the demilitarized zone separating ...
Ex-comfort woman slams Japan accord in New York
(From the Korea Times)
By Kim Se-jeong
Lee Yong-soo, 89, one of the Korean sexual slave victims during World War II, said in New York City, Tuesday, ...
Behind the shadowy B-21 stealth bomber’s veil of secrecy
(From the National Interest)
By Dave Majumdar
The U.S. Air Force has disclosed a trove of additional details about its secretive Northrop Grumman B-21 Long Range Strike ...
China to block North Korea ships from returning home: Sankei Shimbun
(From UPI)
By Elizabeth Shim
China could soon be blocking the return of North Korean ships in Chinese ports from returning to their country of origin.
After supporting ...
US says in talks to base long-range bombers in Australia
(From Reuters)
The United States is in talks to base long-range bombers in Australia, U.S. defense officials said, within striking distance of the disputed South China ...
Asia Times Top Writers
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Hypersonic arms race heats up as US builds high-speed missiles
on in
New hypersonic platforms to counter Chinese, Russian efforts (From Washington Free Beacon) Defense Secretary Ash Carter disclosed last week that the Pentagon’s new high-technology weapons to deal with threats from China and Russia will include ultra-high speed missiles. Carter revealed… Read More ›
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Q&A: China expert Susan Shirk updates her view of Sino-US relations
on in
Asia Times top writer George Koo recently interviewed Susan L. Shirk, the author of 2007’s acclaimed “China, Fragile Superpower.” Professor Shirk is an influential expert on Chinese politics who served as deputy assistant secretary of state during the Clinton administration. She was a guest… Read More ›
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Oscars postscript — All-white Hollywood is missing out: Koo
on in
Whether by design or coincidence, Hollywood’s response to rising criticism of white dominance and lack of diversity was to have Chris Rock, an African American, host the Academy Awards. Rock, a well-known actor and standup comic, is arguably nearly as… Read More ›
Fashion, Lifestyle, Sports, Travel
(From Tokyofashion.com)
We spotted Asachill – a techno pop singer (check her music video), fashion model, and monster at the Kawaii Monster Cafe – on the street in Harajuku after dark.
Asachill is wearing a white leather jacket from Joyrich over a ... Read More
(From Asahi Shimbun)
By Yoshinobu Matsunaga
GAMAGORI, Aichi Prefecture--With the dark waters of a tsunami rapidly menacing, the “driver” punches the gas pedal to get away, but the rising deluge causes the engine to conk out. The hapless driver is trapped and ... Read More
(From Reuters)
The Eden Gardens in Kolkata has replaced Dharamsala as the venue for the high-profile World Twenty20 game between India and Pakistan on March 19 because of security concerns, the International Cricket Council announced on Wednesday.
"The decision has been taken ... Read More
(From the Nation)
By Phoowadon Duangmee
Qingdao on China’s East Coast is best known for its German architecture and its brews. Traders, of course, know Qingdao for its seaport and naval base.
Located on the south coast of Shandong Peninsula on China's East ... Read More