Author: David Roberts

The United States will enhance its military alliance with the Philippines as it aims to “reestablish deterrence” to counter “China’s aggression” in the Indo-Pacific region, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday during a trip to Manila. The efforts reflect the strength of the US-Philippines’ “ironclad alliance, particularly in the face of Communist China’s aggression in the region,” Hegseth said during a joint press conference with his counterpart Gilbert Teodoro. The US will deploy additional advanced military capabilities for joint training, enhance interoperability for “high end operations” and prioritize defense industrial cooperation, Hegseth told reporters. Hegseth made the remarks as…

As North Korea slowly emerges from five years of self-imposed pandemic isolation, a glittering new high-rise neighborhood in the capital Pyongyang is taking center stage. Photos of the 10,000-apartment development, released by state news agency KCNA after the country’s leader Kim Jong Un inspected the site Saturday, show residential skyscrapers spilling out from a wide boulevard in the new district, Hwasong. The project is part of a major construction drive in the capital, and across much of the internationally isolated, authoritarian nation, intended to improve living standards. The homes are part of an ambitious five-year plan, announced in 2021, to build 50,000 additional…

India’s IT ministry has unlawfully expanded censorship powers to allow the easier removal of online content and empowered “countless” government officials to execute such orders, Elon Musk’s X has alleged in a new lawsuit against New Delhi. The lawsuit and the allegations mark an escalation in an ongoing legal dispute between X and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government over how New Delhi orders content to be taken down. It also comes as Musk is getting closer to launching his other key ventures Starlink and Tesla in India. In the new court filing dated March 5, X argues India’s IT Ministry is…

Six Russian tourists were killed on Thursday after a viewing submarine sank near the Egyptian resort city of Hurghada, according to the local governor. Maj. Gen. Amr Hanafy confirmed the deaths in an update on the Red Sea Governorate’s official Facebook page. He said there were 45 passengers – including tourists from Russia, India, Norway and Sweden – onboard when the accident occurred, in addition to five Egyptian crew members. Apart from the six Russians, all the other tourists had been rescued, he said. Hanafy added that four of the tourists were in critical condition and currently receiving treatment in…

Communities across the Australian state of Queensland are bracing for more rain after record-breaking floods cut off roads and inundated vast areas of the region’s outback. Several areas in western Queensland have recorded their worst flooding in 50 years after days of heavy rainfall engorged rivers and forced residents to evacuate. Rainfall of more than 600 millimeters, nearly double the yearly average, was seen in some areas in recent days, according to CNN affiliate Nine News, as officials warned the damage could cause destruction of farmland and loss of livestock. “This flooding situation is expected to continue not just for…

Israel’s Supreme Court has frozen the government’s dismissal of Ronen Bar, head of the country’s internal security service Shin Bet, sparking anger from senior officials including the prime minister. Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that Israel “is a state of law and according to the law, the Israeli government decides who will be the head of the Shin Bet.” Other ministers immediately condemned the decision. Minister of Communications Shlomo Kari said the court had “no legal authority to interfere in this. That is the government’s authority and its alone. Your order is void.” And far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich posted on X:…

Chinese leader Xi Jinping held court with dozens of the world’s top executives on Friday, as he sought to bolster foreign investment during an escalating trade war with the United States. The meeting, in which Xi reassured global investors about the country’s economic prospects to arrest a slide in foreign investment, comes just days before US President Donald Trump is due to announce a mega batch of tariffs targeting America’s many trading partners. Touting China as a “fertile ground for foreign enterprises to invest and thrive,” Xi made his pitch to over 40 executives including FedEx CEO Raj Subramaniam and Qualcomm chief Cristiano Amon…

Even before Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s car crash meeting at the White House last month, Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer had talked confidently of putting British boots on the ground in Ukraine – widely understood to mean land forces – in the event of a ceasefire with Russia. After the Washington mauling, Starmer – along with French President Emmanuel Macron and other European leaders – quickly doubled down on their pledges of support for Ukraine’s leader. “This is not a moment for more talk,” Starmer said following a major gathering of heads of state and government leaders in London the…

Gathering at the airport, relatives of those who died are turning themselves into aviation experts to explore what caused the country’s worst air disaster.

The relationship between the billionaire philanthropist and the Indian leader helps both men meet their missions. But it also papers over the erosion of rights under Mr. Modi.