Pope Francis said Sunday it was time for "predators" to stop plundering the Earth for financial gain, holding up the "scarred face of the Amazon" as a warning. The poor are "threatened by predatory models of development," the pope said at a Mass at the ...
Indonesia launched an international aid agency on Friday to strengthen its regional diplomatic relations, some of which have been strained by Jakarta's approach to the restive Papua region. Several Pacific nations have backed calls for investigations into allegations of violence by security forces in Indonesia's ...
Land-scarce Hong Kong sees solution in 'underground urbanism'
When authorities drew up a plan to make Hong Kong a hub for Asia's wine trade, they faced a big challenge: where to store the bottles in a city that was fast running out of space. So they went underground. Officials presented World War II-era ...
To decrease its dependence on India, Nepal eagerly awaits China rail plan
At the international border point of Rasuwagadhi (Rasuwa Fort), where Nepal fought two wars in the late 18th century with Tibetan forces and Chinese reinforcements, people now impatiently await the Qinghai-Tibet railway, which many believe will conquer the constraints posed by the Himalayas on ...
Sino-U.S. trade war brings chances and challenges for Vietnam's skilled laborers
A new front has opened in the U.S.-China trade war as companies shifting manufacturing to Vietnam engage in a fierce battle for skilled labor, aggravating an existing shortage and prompting calls for education reforms to address the problem. Vietnam has emerged as one of the ...
Indonesian student protests threaten Jokowi's reform pledges
Indonesia's biggest student demonstrations in decades are testing President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's pledge to go all out in his second term to boost growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy, a former finance minister and a government adviser say. Tens of thousands of students have hit ...
Japan and EU ink infrastructure cooperation pact in counter to China's Belt and Road
The EU and Japan on Friday signed an infrastructure agreement to link Europe and Asia as a counter to China's ambitious Belt and Road strategy. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker inked the accord to coordinate infrastructure, transport and digital projects. The ...
Hong Kongers fret about end to Lantau lifestyle with plan to build artificial islets
Not long after Tom Yam returned to his native Hong Kong after 40 years abroad, he picked Lantau Island to settle in, drawn to its laid-back villages, wooded trails and scenic beaches that seemed a world away from the bustle of the city. That may ...
Bridging the gap between Yangon's haves and have-nots
On her scruffy, downtrodden bank of the river, tea shop owner Khin Than Myint works just a few hundred meters across the muddy water from Yangon and dreams of the riches promised by a new bridge linking to Myanmar's commercial heart. "The quicker, the better," ...
Giant construction project takes shape in remote North Korea
Like a scene from an epic film, thousands of workers swarm over the building sites of Samjiyon, a monumental construction project in the far reaches of North Korea ordered by leader Kim Jong Un. They clamber over wooden scaffolding and dangle from window frames. Whether ...
Space-starved Singapore has expanded outward by building into the sea and upward by constructing high-rises, but planners are now looking underground as they seek new areas for growth. The nation has carefully managed its rapid growth in recent decades to avoid the problems faced by ...
Sleepy to sleepless? Hopes and fears abound in Indonesia's future capital in the forest
By day, the unforgiving sun glares off the road beside Ipah's wooden home as passing motorbikes stir swirls of dust. By night, the beams of occasional trucks carrying coal or palm fruits pierce the darkness. This remote corner of Indonesia is set to be ...
