5 h. ago China and Philippines raise flags on tiny South China Sea sandbank as tensions mount

Tiny Sandy Cay is strategically vital due to proximity to largest island occupied by Philippines in Spratly archipelago

Events

6 h. ago Beijing seizes disputed reef with troops raising flag near military base... before Filipino troops unfurl their own banner on another island amid growing South China Sea tensions

Chinese coast guard officers 'implemented maritime control' over Tiexian Reef, part of the Sandy Cay reef, in mid-April. The Philippine Coast Guard responded with its own photograph Monday.

Events

15 h. ago China and Philippines display competing flags on disputed South China Sea sandbank

Beijing and Manila accuse eachother of illegal activities around Sandy Cay near the Spratly Isles, as joint US-Filipino military drills get underway in regionChina and the Philippines have displayed their national flags in competing photo opportunities on a disputed sandbank in the South China sea, ratcheting up longstanding regional tensions between the two countries.The dispute played out at Sandy Cay, which is part of the disputed Spratly Islands, and comes days after the US and the Philippines launched their annual joint military drills called “Balikatan”, or “shoulder to shoulder”, which this year will include an integrated air and missile defence simulation for the first time. Continue reading...

Politics

18 h. ago Gabby Allen kisses boyfriend Casey O'Gorman from the crowds as he runs the London Marathon

The former Love Island stars won the ITV show earlier this year and have grown from strength to strength as they have spent the last few months traveling the world and attended glitzy events.

Politics

28 h. ago China seizes control of disputed reef and plants national flag near Philippine military base

Chinese media says coastguard units entered remote sandbank, known in China as Tiexian Reef, ‘to exercise sovereignty’

Events

4 d. ago China calls reports of ongoing US tariff talks ‘baseless’ while Trump claims administration ‘actively’ seeking deal – live

Spokesperson for China’s ministry of commerce says any claims of progress in China-US negotiations are ‘without factual evidence’South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has said he talked about the war in Ukraine and the need to foster good bilateral relations with the US in his phone call with Donald Trump.“We both agreed that the war should be brought to an end as soon as possible to stop further unnecessary deaths... to meet soon to address various matters regarding US-South Africa relations,” Ramaphosa wrote in a post on X. Continue reading...

Economics

4 d. ago ‘I love humans – it gives me the courage to approach them’: the disarming work of Mao Ishikawa

For five decades the Japanese photographer has captured the internal lives of a host of unlikely subjects, from dockers to Black GIs. Now a new show celebrates an artist dedicated to documenting the underdogIn 1975, when Mao Ishikawa was in her early 20s, she took a job in a bar frequented by Black American GIs stationed at Camp Hansen, in Okinawa. She had grown up hating the Americans who controlled her home island and, to this day, maintain military bases there. Yet she found kindred spirits among the soldiers and her fellow barmaids, with whom she lived and loved and also photographed. These images became her first major documentary series, Red Flower: The Women of Okinawa, and capture a sense of their youthful freedom and outsider bonhomie, from the group of men and women hanging out in bed to the trio hitting the town for a night out, the women’s hair teased into afros, massive hoop earrings glinting.Like much of what you can discover in Ishikawa’s first UK surve...

Politics

5 d. ago Sam Thompson 'grows close to another Love Island star' as ex

The Made in Chelsea star, 32, and the TV presenter, 28, split four months ago after five years of dating, with Zara then falling for One Direction heartthrob Louis, 33.

Politics

6 d. ago Russia batters 2 Ukraine regions as Kremlin warns peace talks need time

Russia batters 2 Ukraine regions as Kremlin warns peace talks need time  South China Morning Post

Events

7 d. ago US and Philippines launch ‘Super Bowl’ of military exercises around South China Sea

Biggest edition of annual Balikatan drills sets off protests against presence of foreign troops and ‘militarisation’

Events

7 d. ago China and Indonesia agree to boost maritime security cooperation in South China Sea despite tensions

Indonesia and China say they have committed to maritime cooperation promoting safety and security in the South China Sea

Events

8 d. ago Warning over fears 'aggressive' and potentially fatal ants could invade UK

The red fire ants, which are highly invasive, have spread from their native South America into Mexico, the US, Australia, New Zealand, China and Taiwan in less than a century

Events

1 week ago Trump's 'great' trade deal with Britain could be sealed 'in a matter of weeks'

Britain's rapid deal with the US would come after President Donald Trump pens agreements with Japan , India , and South Korea in an attempt to isolate China .

Politics

2 w. ago Tropical island loved by Princess Diana is set to become a top tourist destination

A tropical island loved by Princess Diana is preparing itself for a massive influx of Royal fans, as it's getting a substantial airport expansion.

Politics

2 w. ago Chaos in China as cold vortex from Mongolia brings strongest April winds in decades

Flights cancelled, train services suspended and tourist attractions closed as weather service says wind speeds could surpass records set in 1951Strong winds caused havoc in Beijing and parts of northern China on Saturday, forcing hundreds of flights to be cancelled, attractions to close and rail lines to be suspended, state media said.The powerful winds stemmed mainly from a cold vortex system formed over Mongolia that was moving east and south, sweeping across northern China from Friday and through the weekend, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said. Continue reading...

Events

2 w. ago The V&A museum launches Cartier’s first London show in nearly 30 years

The V&A museum launches Cartier’s first London show in nearly 30 years  South China Morning Post

Culture

2 w. ago What Asian countries hit hard by Trump’s tariffs are doing to save their economies

China refuses to bow to US pressure while other Asian nations urge negotiations to soften the blow

Politics

3 w. ago Living Nostradamus says China's 'war tool' is everything he predicted two years ago

EXCLUSIVE: The 'Living Nostradamus' warned his vision of a large-scale cyber attack in the South China Sea could come true after Beijing unveiled a new tool capable of cutting submarine cables

Events

3 w. ago Brazil's Lula to meet Putin and Xi amid global trade war fears

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will meet with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Moscow and China’s Xi Jinping in Beijing, two important partners for the South American giant, in May

Politics

last month Susanna Reid reveals she went clubbing in Ibiza to party with her three sons

The TV presenter and journalist, 54, revealed that she headed to the party island with her grown-up sons Sam, 22, Finn, 21, and 19-year-old Jack, last summer.

Society