TOKYO (REUTERS) – Candidates to become Japan’s prime minister officially launch their campaigns on Friday (Sept 17), with popular vaccine minister Taro Kono expected to be the top contender to replace Yoshihide Suga. The leadership race for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) took an unexpected turn two weeks ago when Mr Suga said he […]
Dear ST reader, We hope you’ve been keeping well. In our Asian Insider newsletter this week, we look at regional security as the US forms a new partnership with Australia and Britain to beef up defence capabilities and North Korea test-fires more missiles. We also examine if the deal between Malaysia’s government and opposition can […]
SINGAPORE – The rate of suspected adverse events linked to the Covid-19 vaccines under the national vaccination programme is 0.13 per cent, said the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) on Thursday (Sept 16). The rate of serious adverse events, such as anaphylaxis, is much lower, at 0.006 per cent. For the national programme, 8,716,085 doses of […]
LONDON (Reuters) – Erratic and volatile, with positioning swinging from one extreme to another: a new norm is taking hold in the world’s biggest debt markets which for years saw activity crushed by the hefty presence of central banks.FILE PHOTO: British Pound Sterling and U.S. Dollar notes are seen in this June 22, 2017 illustration […]
JAKARTA (REUTERS) – Indonesia is in talks with the World Health Organisation (WHO) as well as six drug companies to become a global hub for manufacturing vaccines, its health minister told Reuters. Detailing the ambitious strategy for the first time, Mr Budi Gunadi Sadikin said in an interview that Indonesia would kick-start the initiative by […]
JAKARTA (REUTERS) – Indonesia is in talks with the World Health Organisation (WHO) as well as six drug companies to become a global hub for manufacturing vaccines, its health minister told Reuters. Detailing the ambitious strategy for the first time, Mr Budi Gunadi Sadikin said in an interview that Indonesia would kick-start the initiative by […]
WELLINGTON (AFP) – New Zealand will not lift a decades-long ban on nuclear-powered vessels entering its waters in the wake of key ally Australia’s decision to develop a nuclear submarine fleet, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday (Sept 16). Ms Ardern said her Australian counterpart Scott Morrison had briefed her on Canberra’s plan to […]
MUMBAI (REUTERS) – The Taliban’s abrupt return to power has left hundreds of Afghan diplomats overseas in limbo: running out of money to keep missions operating, fearful for families back home and desperate to secure refuge abroad. The Islamist militant movement, which swiftly ousted Afghanistan’s Western-backed government on Aug 15, said on Tuesday (Sept 14) […]
SYDNEY (REUTERS) – Australia’s Victoria state reported on Thursday (Sept 16) the year’s biggest one-day rise in Covid-19 cases as authorities plan to pause public transport and deploy thousands of police in Melbourne ahead of an anti-lockdown protest over the weekend. Public transport into the city will be shut from 8am to 2pm on Saturday, […]
BEIJING (REUTERS) – China reported on Thursday (Sept 16) 80 new confirmed coronavirus cases in the mainland for Sept 15, compared with 73 a day earlier, according to the National Health Commission. Of the new infections, 49 were locally transmitted, nearly all of which were in the southeastern province of Fujian, the health authority said. […]