MOSCOW - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that an order by President Vladimir Putin to transform Russia's army into the second largest in the world was needed to address growing threats on Russia's western borders and instability to the east.
JAKARTA - Mr Kaesang Pangarep, the younger son of President Joko Widodo, has pushed back against an allegation of wrongdoing over the use of a private jet on a recent overseas trip.
HANOI - Vietnam is preparing for more flooding with a tropical depression forecast to strengthen into a storm as it heads to its central coast, days after typhoon Yagi set off floods and landslides that killed more than 290 people in the north.
JAKARTA - Indonesia's key parliamentary budget committee on Tuesday approved increased spending for the incoming government of president-elect Prabowo Subianto while maintaining the fiscal deficit at 2.53% of GDP, its chair said.
KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian authorities have frozen almost 100 bank accounts linked to an Islamic business group being investigated for suspected child abuse, a senior police official said on Sept 17.
SRINAGAR - When former Kashmiri independence advocate Hafiz Mohammad Sikander Malik filed nomination papers for the Jammu and Kashmir's election starting Wednesday, the first poll since India revoked the region's semi-autonomy, he wore a GPS ankle tracker.
GEORGE TOWN - Storm-lashed Penang was left with scenes of destruction amid hundreds of fallen trees in over 130 locations, leading the authorities to call for caution and to wait out the torrential weather.
SINGAPORE - Despite record heatwaves, floods and storms across much of South-east Asia in 2024, more people in the region are concerned about bread-and-butter issues such as food security than about climate change, according to a new survey.
BANGKOK – Thailand’s Cabinet approved a cash handout plan totalling 145.6 billion baht (S$5.66 billion) that will benefit millions of poor and help stimulate South-east Asia’s second-largest economy.
NEW DELHI – Schools reopened in India’s north-eastern state of Manipur on Sept 17, more than a week after they shuttered due to deadly ethnic violence and clashes between protesters and police, the local government said.