US-China rivalry and divisions over regional leadership threatened to overshadow a landmark summit of island leaders that got under way Tuesday in the Fijian capital, Suva.. Albanese, who will arrive in Suva on Wednesday, sought to knit the issues of climate and security together Tuesday ahead of his departure for the summit.
Sri Lanka's embattled president was stuck in his own country Tuesday in a humiliating standoff with airport immigration staff blocking his exit to safety abroad, official sources said Tuesday.. Rajapaksa's youngest brother Basil, who resigned in April as finance minister, missed his own Emirates flight to Dubai early Tuesday after a similar standoff with airport staff.
Family and friends of assassinated former prime minister Shinzo Abe gathered at a Tokyo temple Tuesday for a private funeral, as mourners outside condemned the leader's "despicable" murder.. Although the funeral rites were for family members and close associates only, long lines of people, some dressed in black, came to the Zojoji temple to pay respects to Japan's longest-serving prime minister.
Ahead of Joe Biden's first visit to Jerusalem as US president, Washington's ambassador said his team will "pound tables" to press Israeli officials into making concessions to the Palestinians.. Asked about the expectations from Biden's visit, Hamas official Basem Naim said: "Nothing."
From Indian K-pop idols to Swedish songwriters, South Korea's music industry is now a hotbed of global talent -- a smart strategy as it aims for world domination, experts say.. - 'Strive for perfection' - K-pop recruiters are fanning out across the world, with BTS's agency Hybe hosting auditions in cities including London, Bangkok, Sydney and Tokyo, but at the same time global talent is flocking to South Korea.
Tashi Choden will not only be the first contestant to represent Bhutan at the Miss Universe competition -- she is also the Himalayan country's only openly gay public figure. . And now, with Choden representing Bhutan on the Miss Universe stage -- watched by millions worldwide -- many are hopeful about the future of the country's queer youth.
Olympic great Mo Farah was illegally trafficked to Britain at the age of nine from Djibouti and forced to work as a child servant, he has revealed, saying his real name is Hussein Abdi Kahin.. The distance runner was flown to the UK from the east African country aged eight or nine by a woman he had never met, given the name Mohammed Farah, and then made to look after another family's children, he tells a BBC TV documentary "The Real Mo Farah" to be aired Wednesday.
When South Korean rapper Psy released "Gangnam Style" a decade ago, few anticipated the scale and speed of its success, and how it would help usher in the streaming revolution.. South Korea is a global entertainment powerhouse today, but in 2012, "Gangnam Style" was the first encounter with Korean pop culture for many audiences.
As the morning twilight approaches in an Indonesian city famed for its street food scene, a queue of sleepy customers snakes its way along the road in anticipation of a local culinary legend.. Now 76 years old, Mbah Satinem was the Indonesian cultural hub's best-kept secret for decades but is today a cooking sensation after shooting to fame in the 2019 Netflix series "Street Food: Asia".
Northern Ireland's unionists will parade in their thousands on Tuesday to celebrate the culmination of the pro-UK community's "arching season", as the restive province wrestles with political crisis.. Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party has refused to return to the province's power-sharing government until the protocol is dismantled.
