42 m. ago Venezuela’s Maduro calls for talks after Trump’s threat over military jets

Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro has called for dialogue with Washington, hours after President Donald Trump threatened to shoot down Venezuelan military jets if they pose a danger to US forces. Tensions between the two countries soared in recent days after the Pentagon accused Venezuela of buzzing its ships in the Caribbean following a deadly US strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat. “None of the differences we have and have had can lead to a military conflict,” Maduro said on Friday in a...

Events

9 h. ago NASA’s acting chief “angry” about talk that China will beat US back to the Moon

NASA’s acting chief “angry” about talk that China will beat US back to the Moon  Ars Technica

Technology

10 h. ago Google hit with US$3.45 billion EU antitrust fine over adtech practices

Alphabet’s Google was hit with a €2.95 billion (US$3.45 billion) EU antitrust fine on Friday for anticompetitive practices in its lucrative adtech business, marking its fourth penalty in its decade-long fight with EU competition regulators. The move by the European Commission was triggered by a complaint from the European Publishers Council and comes amid a threat by US President Donald Trump to retaliate against the European Union for any push against Big Tech. The EU competition enforcer had...

Economics

12 h. ago Seoul expresses ‘concern’ over US immigration raid at Hyundai’s Georgia plant

South Korea on Friday expressed “concern and regret” over a major US immigration raid at a sprawling Georgia site where South Korean auto company Hyundai manufactures electric vehicles. South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lee Jaewoong described the number of detained South Koreans as “large”, though he did not provide an exact figure. His ministry would not confirm or deny South Korean media reports saying that about 300 South Koreans were detained in Georgia on Thursday. The Atlanta...

Politics

14 h. ago Taiwan holds back on penalties for Victory Day parade supporters

Taipei authorities have taken a softer line on Taiwanese individuals attending Beijing’s Victory Day military parade this week, despite repeated warnings in the weeks leading up to the event. Former Kuomintang (KMT) chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu defied the warnings and appeared on the rostrum overlooking Tiananmen Square on Wednesday, watching the parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. The next day, Liang Wen-chieh, deputy minister of Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, said...

Politics

16 h. ago ‘Better than being killed’: Japan’s women turn to pepper spray – at legal risk

As dusk falls across Japan’s cities, a sense of unease falls upon many women on their journeys home. Reports of brutal femicides have struck a deep chord, fuelling a surge in the purchase of self-defence items – even as legal experts warn that arming oneself may come at a cost. The recent killing of Megumi Katayama, 24, who was stabbed multiple times by a stranger in a Kobe residential lift last month, has stoked public concern. Social media platforms buzzed with messages urging women to take...

Events

16 h. ago Asia week ahead: Key data on China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan

Asia week ahead: Key data on China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan  ING THINK economic and financial analysis | ING Think

Politics

18 h. ago ‘Legitimate targets’: Putin warns West about deploying troops in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Friday that any Western forces deployed to Ukraine would be a “legitimate” target for Moscow’s army, a day after Kyiv’s allies said they had committed to a troop presence in the event of a peace deal. Two dozen countries, led by France and Britain, pledged Thursday to join a “reassurance” force on land, at sea and in the air to patrol any agreement to end the conflict, unleashed by Russia in February 2022. Tens of thousands have been killed in...

Events

20 h. ago Europe’s summer from hell bleeds into autumn as Trump and Xi turn the screws

If Brussels bureaucrats returning from their long summer breaks this week were wondering what they missed, the local press had them covered. Unbecoming scenes at June’s Nato summit, the “hopelessly one-sided” trade deal with the United States in July, as well as President Xi Jinping’s refusal to travel to Belgium for that month’s summit with EU leaders, were all cited by the Brussels media outlet Euractiv. “Now talk of a European moment has given way to fears of a European ‘century of...

Politics

22 h. ago Europe power guru Wang Xiongfei brings grid stability expertise home to China

One of the European Union’s top power systems experts, Wang Xiongfei, has come full circle after returning to China to take a leading academic role at Tsinghua University. As the newly appointed Xinghua chair professor and doctoral supervisor, Wang brings years of knowledge and experience in European power electronics and grid stability. He has led more than 40 research projects funded by the EU, Denmark, Sweden and various corporations. He has collaborated with grid companies in Germany, the...

Politics

28 h. ago China’s stablecoin bind: why US dollar tokens matter – and how Beijing may respond

Once a niche corner of the cryptocurrency world, stablecoins have surged into the global spotlight this year, prompting analysts and industry insiders to declare that the digital asset’s time has come. In July, US President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law, establishing the first federal regulatory regime for stablecoins – a move many believe could pave the way for mass-market adoption. Shortly after, Hong Kong introduced its own ordinance, which took effect on August 1, requiring...

Politics

28 h. ago ‘Summer of stablecoins’: how will China respond to US dollar’s crypto surge?

Once a niche corner of the cryptocurrency world, stablecoins have surged into the global spotlight this year, prompting analysts and industry insiders to declare that the digital asset’s time has come. In July, US President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law, establishing the first federal regulatory regime for stablecoins – a move many believe could pave the way for mass-market adoption. Shortly after, Hong Kong introduced its own ordinance, which took effect on August 1, requiring...

Politics

44 h. ago Taiwan’s attack on the military parade in Beijing exposes its own weaknesses

Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te must be having a brain melt. His ideological attacks on Beijing have become more incoherent by the day. His ruling Democratic Progressive Party is now a premature lame duck after its abject failure to unseat a single one of the 31 Kuomintang lawmakers targeted in Taiwan’s recent recall votes. Maybe that’s why it is lashing out in all directions. Its latest attack? Shen Yu-chung, a deputy minister with the island’s Mainland Affairs Council, has accused...

Events

44 h. ago Taiwan’s criticism of military parade in Beijing exposes its own weaknesses

Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te must be having a brain melt. His ideological attacks on Beijing have become more incoherent by the day. His ruling Democratic Progressive Party is now a premature lame duck after its abject failure to unseat a single one of the 31 Kuomintang lawmakers targeted in Taiwan’s recent recall votes. Maybe that’s why it is lashing out in all directions. Its latest attack? Shen Yu-chung, a deputy minister with the island’s Mainland Affairs Council, has accused...

Events

44 h. ago My Take | Taiwan’s attack on the military parade in Beijing exposes its own weaknesses

My Take | Taiwan’s attack on the military parade in Beijing exposes its own weaknesses  South China Morning Post

Events

45 h. ago How 2 colours are fuelling Indonesia’s revolt against widening inequality

“RESET SYSTEM” reads graffiti above an intersection in the Javanese city of Yogyakarta, painted hastily in vibrant green and pink after deadly protests swept Indonesia last week. Pink and green have quickly come to symbolise a solidarity movement after violent protests, sparked by discontent over economic inequality and lavish perks for lawmakers, rocked Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. In the capital Jakarta, office worker Dila paused at her desk to apply a bright green and pink filter to her...

Politics

48 h. ago Beijing touts alternative order at WWII parade: U.S. scholars

Beijing touts alternative order at WWII parade: U.S. scholars  Focus Taiwan

Events

50 h. ago Epstein victims compiling their own list of sex abusers: ‘We know the names’

Victims of notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein said on Wednesday they were compiling a confidential list of his associates who abused underage girls. US President Donald Trump, a one-time close friend of the deceased financier, sought meanwhile to dampen the enduring political furore over the Epstein case. “This is a Democrat hoax that never ends,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They’re trying to get people to talk about something that’s totally irrelevant to the success that we’ve...

Events

50 h. ago Epstein victims compiling own list of sex abusers: ‘We know the names’

Victims of notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein said on Wednesday they were compiling a confidential list of his associates who abused underage girls. US President Donald Trump, a one-time close friend of the deceased financier, sought meanwhile to dampen the enduring political furore over the Epstein case. “This is a Democrat hoax that never ends,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “They’re trying to get people to talk about something that’s totally irrelevant to the success that we’ve...

Events

53 h. ago US sanctions China’s Guangzhou Tengyue Chemical for alleged fentanyl trafficking

The United States on Wednesday sanctioned a Chinese chemical company that it alleges is manufacturing and coordinating shipments of illicit opioids, such as fentanyl, and chemical agents into the country. The move comes amid recent stepped-up moves in Washington to target China on the fentanyl issue despite stabilising bilateral ties. A Treasury Department statement said sanctions have been placed on Guangzhou Tengyue Chemical, based in China’s southern Guangdong province, and two of the...

Politics