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Will Pakistan’s new defence pact with Saudi Arabia give Chinese arms risk-free exposure?

Islamabad’s elevated stature in Middle East security could make it ‘the operational face of Chinese defence systems’ via regional deployment For most military powers, proving the success of one’s technology in real combat almost always requires undertaking the grave risks of war and human casualties. Analysts said Islamabad’s higher profile in the Iran conflict could also boost Chinese weapons systems, giving them “exposure without risks” following Pakistan’s recent deployment of fighter jets in Saudi Arabia. On April 11, Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry announced the arrival of Pakistan’s military at King Abdulaziz Air Base in the kingdom’s eastern province, as part of the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) signed between the “two brotherly countries”.

May 6, 2026

Business

Panama minister blasts China’s ship crackdown, tells deputies to demand answers in Beijing

Foreign minister says court ruling must not be used as leverage against Panama’s merchant fleet as ship detentions mount Javier Martinez-Acha Vasquez said on Monday that the lawmakers should relay a clear message to their Chinese counterparts on Panama’s behalf. “I can only suggest that you convey that Panama respects China, but Panama first respects the Constitution of our country, and that therefore a court ruling must be obeyed and must not be used as a basis for any kind of economic coercion against our merchant fleet,” Martinez-Acha said. The remarks came as seven members of Panama’s National Assembly travelled to China as part of a parliamentary friendship group. The delegation, which includes lawmakers Patsy Lee, Jairo Salazar, Arquesio Arias, Flor Brenes, Gertrudis Rodriguez, Didiano Pinilla and Roberto Archibold, is scheduled to return on May 10. Why the US is worried about China’s growing influence in South America Lee said the group’s agenda included a visit to Huawei Technologies’ headquarters and meetings with Chinese government officials and international cooperation bodies. The lawmakers also attended the Canton Fair, one of the world’s largest trade exhibitions.

May 6, 2026

Business

North Korea’s new own-brand phone is sleek, colourful – and possibly watching you

Reports suggest North Korean-produced phones periodically capture screenshots that are stored in hidden folders accessible to authorities Diplomatically isolated and under biting sanctions over its nuclear and weapons programmes, North Korea has an ageing manufacturing base which analysts doubt has the ability to make high-quality consumer technology. Still, Pyongyang has touted Jindallae – “azalea” in Korean – as a convenient way for citizens to stay connected, albeit through a strictly controlled domestic network. The devices, which come in a range of colours and feature a large circular camera module with multiple lenses, have been on display at the Pyongyang Spring International Trade Fair, the country’s largest. Photos showed visitors browsing stalls at the event on Monday, with state media saying “more than 290 enterprises and companies” from North Korea, Russia, China, Mongolia, Switzerland and Thailand were represented. There was no information on how many people attended or where they had come from.

May 6, 2026

Business

US Army fires Typhon for first time in Philippines during Balikatan drills

Beijing has opposed the deployment of the Typhon, which is able to strike targets in Chinese territory from the Philippines The army has practised moving it around the rough, hot terrain but stopped short of firing it in previous exercises. Typhon was “highly requested by a number of our partners and allies and it’s at their request that we deploy”, General Ronald Clark, the US Army Pacific commander, said in an interview on Monday. “It’s a pretty strategic deterrent capability.” The American and Filipino militaries have continued to build on a long-enduring relationship with the annual exercise known as Balikatan, which has continued to develop in size, scale and complexity in recent years.

May 6, 2026

Business

An Asian alternative to Nato? How Cica is rethinking Middle East security

Chief of lesser-known security forum says it provides ‘architecture for de-escalation’ and allows members to project soft power While the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (Cica) lacks a mandate for direct intervention, its 28-member platform for security dialogue unites key Middle Eastern nations and major powers across Asia. Members include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Palestine, Egypt, Kazakhstan, India, Russia and China. Kairat Sarybay, Cica’s secretary general, said that while member states held divergent views on particular issues, “they are still able to agree on some ideas where they can cooperate”.

May 6, 2026

Business

Joyous reunion of Iranian boy with China classmates after family visit to Iran moves many

Business trip to conflict-ridden homeland lasts longer than expected as boy and parents lose contact with worried school friends An eight-year-old Iranian boy who left his primary school in China for his mother country in January and later lost contact with his teachers for 42 days has returned to the campus, thrilling his classmates. On April 27, when the boy named Radin, dressed in the school’s uniform, appeared in a classroom at Shaoxing Boya International School, his excited classmates all came to hug him closely, the Yueniu News reported. “I asked my teacher not to tell them the news so this could be a surprise,” Radin told the media. “When I was in Iran, I hoped to return to China every day. I love all of you. I missed everyone here,” added the boy. Radin’s parents have been running a trading business in Shaoxing, eastern Zhejiang province, for three years.

May 6, 2026

Business

Why Japanese politician’s goal to reset ties with Russia is ‘a long shot’

A proposed meeting of foreign ministers from Tokyo and Moscow is unlikely for now due to objections from the Japanese public and allies Suzuki, who represents a constituency in Hokkaido and returned to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in 2025 after 23 years as an independent member of the Diet, met senior Russian government officials in Moscow on Monday. “Takaichi said that she is very well aware of the importance of Japan-Russia ties,” he added. “I have consistently taken a negative view of the fact that Japan, at the request of Biden, has adopted cold ties with Russia.”

May 6, 2026

Business

Will Hong Kong’s lending clampdown wean helpers off debt – and save their dreams?

NGOs say regulations should not be so strict that they deny domestic helpers access to loans since they may have legitimate needs such as family emergencies Anna, a domestic helper from the Philippines, had managed her finances well until she took out two loans over the past few months for a friend she described as being “like a mother to me”. The 37-year-old, who asked to be identified only by her first name, now has to pay creditors about HK$9,000 (US$1,149) a month – almost twice her salary – leaving her extremely stressed about her debt. “My friend said she needed the money and asked if I could borrow from banks under my name, saying she would pay back the loans, but I was wrong to believe her,” she said. “I am really hurt about this … I told her, you really put me in trouble, you put my job at risk. But she just says ‘I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean it’.” Anna said the debt had taken a toll on her mental health, but she was prioritising her children’s needs over repayments, even as banks continued to chase her. “The school told me my son has borderline depression because they kept asking him for payments, which I failed to give. That really breaks me,” she said. “My situation really gives me depression.

May 6, 2026 · 2 dk okuma

Business

The domestic dynamics driving Japan’s remilitarisation

Sanctions, diplomatic warnings and aggressive rhetoric create a perilous loop, reinforcing the very domestic tendencies China seeks to deter On the surface, a contradiction exists. Pacifist and liberal opposition remains. Article 9 of the constitution retains deep emotional resonance. Protest voices persist. Yet Takaichi’s approval ratings are strong. This is the result of a long, deliberate project. This contrasts sharply with the Japan I knew decades ago. I remember elderly men, former soldiers, bowing to apologise for their actions in China. Their passing marks not just a demographic shift, but the closing of a chapter where the war was a lived experience, not a historical debate.

May 6, 2026

Business

A year since Singapore election, how has Lawrence Wong’s team fared?

Wong and his team have to prove they are ‘more than equal’ to the task of helping Singapore navigate coming headwinds, analysts say Under the scorching midday sun at a lunchtime speech in the heart of the city, Singapore’s leader last April urged voters to re-elect his tested People’s Action Party (PAP), arguing that voting for the opposition would weaken his team’s ability to navigate coming headwinds. On top of surging oil and gas prices wrought by the ongoing Iran war, fears of an artificial intelligence revolution replacing jobs continue to weigh heavily on citizens and policymakers. “Wong has his work cut out for him given that he has to unequivocally demonstrate that he and his team are more than equal to the task of navigating Singapore through treacherous geopolitical waters,” said Eugene Tan, a political observer and associate professor of law at Singapore Management University. “For sure, the current polycrisis is a double-edged sword for the PAP government.” Singapore imports 95 per cent of its energy, with its status as a transport and business hub dependent on ensuring reliable and resilient energy supply.

May 6, 2026

Business

Aung San Suu Kyi’s son asks France to help him locate mother in Myanmar

The son of Myanmar’s deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi demanded France’s help in seeking independently verified proof of his mother’s life after she was transferred to house arrest, her lawyers said. The country’s junta chief-turned-president Min Aung Hlaing on Thursday ordered the 80-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner to be moved, five years after putting her into detention in a coup. But her son, Kim Aris, says he has still not heard from his mother, who remains massively popular inside...

May 6, 2026

Business

Boy, 13, shoots 2 dead at Brazil school

Students tried to escape over a wall, but it was too tall and many were trapped on the school roof A teenage boy shot dead two staff members and injured two other people, including a student, at a school in northeast Brazil on Tuesday, prompting panicked students to try to escape over a wall, authorities and a witness said. A 13-year-old boy was arrested over the attack at Sao Jose Institute in Rio Branco, the capital of Acre state, the local government said in a statement. Eduardo Rodrigues Cavalcante, who works as a receptionist at a hotel next to the school, said that when the shooting began, some students tried to jump over a wall separating the school from the hotel. “The wall is six meters high, and only one person managed to jump over and take refuge here in the hotel. The other people were left on the school roof trying to escape,” the 19-year-old receptionist said, adding that he heard “gunshots and a lot of screaming”. Images released by a local media outlet showed a woman being evacuated on a stretcher and people crying and hugging each other outside the school. It was not yet clear whether the attacker was a current or former pupil at the school.

May 6, 2026 · 2 dk okuma