Oman has reportedly devised a plan, endorsed by other Persian Gulf states, to “manage” traffic through the Strait of Hormuz in partnership with Iran — and for both nations to collect “voluntary fees” from ships that use the vital waterway.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) published a report on Tuesday that found transnational gangs looted at least $88 billion from Southeast Asia in 2025, using a wide variety of telephone and cyber scams, often employing slave labor at notorious “scam centers” that resemble prison camps.
Malaysia began enforcing its social media ban for children on Monday, requiring all social media platforms with 8 million or more users to implement age-verification systems that will prevent people under 16 from creating accounts.
Clients of China’s vast Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) are asking Beijing for help with spiking energy costs due to the Iran conflict, but so far China has reportedly offered little assistance, instead shutting down fuel exports to conserve its own energy stockpiles and protect its own economy.
The United States is in danger of becoming dependent on China for essential nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) gloves, prompting Blue Star NBR CEO Scott Maier to call on President Donald Trump to help give the critical industry a fighting chance to continue American production.
Indonesian Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid said in a video statement on Friday that her government will “delay access” to social media for children under 16, following in the footsteps of Australia’s unprecedented ban on accounts for young people. On the same day, India’s southern tech-heavy state of Karnataka announced a similar ban.
President Donald Trump announced on Friday that Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to “cease all shooting,” following a tense week of escalating clashes that threatened to destroy the ceasefire agreement he negotiated between the two countries in July.
Australia’s ban on social media for children under 16 went into effect on Wednesday amid heavy resistance from the nation’s teenagers, ominous threats from regulators, and apprehension around the world.
The Chaoyang District People’s Court in Beijing, China, ruled on Monday that Malaysia Airlines must pay about 2.9 million yuan, or about $410,000, to eight families of passengers of Malaysia Airlines 370 (MH370), a commercial airliner that went missing in March 2014 and has yet to be found.
The government of Malaysia announced on Wednesday that it would resume the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which famously went missing over a decade ago, as the Southern Hemisphere approaches the summer months.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Tuesday signed an “upgraded” free trade agreement with China.
Chinese state media ran a few victory laps on Sunday and Monday over news that U.S. and Chinese negotiators reached a provisional trade agreement after two days of talks in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
President Donald Trump told leaders at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Malaysia on Sunday that he is “on a mission of friendship and goodwill and to deepen our ties of commerce” during his trip to Asia this week.
President Donald Trump signed an historic peace agreement between Cambodia and Thailand, as well as trade agreements with Cambodia, Thailand, and Malaysia upon arrival in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.
President Donald Trump met with Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani aboard Air Force One Saturday at Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar during refueling on Trump’s voyage to Asia.
President Donald Trump will be conducting high-stakes diplomacy during his trip to Asia next week. Trump will attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Malaysia on Sunday, followed by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting in South Korea, and possibly a bilateral meeting with Chinese dictator Xi Jinping on Thursday.
President Donald Trump is set to depart for an action-packed trip to Asia, bookended by meetings with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar bin Ibrahim on Sunday and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday.
The governments of Thailand and Cambodia, alongside Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, announced on Monday that they had agreed to an immediate ceasefire in an escalating border dispute that displaced over 100,000 people in less than a week.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Friday, their first meeting in person since Rubio took office.
President Donald Trump on Monday announced new tariff rates for South Africa, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Kazakhstan, posting letters to the leaders of each country on his Truth Social account.
A flourishing industry of “origin washing” services has appeared on Chinese social media, offering to help export companies evade U.S. tariffs by pretending their products were shipped from other Asian countries like Vietnam and Thailand.
Singapore police arrested three people on Thursday for allegedly smuggling chips from American tech giant Nvidia to China, throwing a spotlight on China’s efforts to obtain advanced components in defiance of export restrictions – and showing just how diligently American companies are working to enforce those restrictions.
The government of Malaysia announced on Friday that it had tentatively agreed to a deal with an American research organization to launch a new search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370), which vanished in March 2014 and has not been found.
Police in Malaysia raided twenty Islamic charity homes on Wednesday, making 171 arrests and rescuing 402 children from alleged neglect, molestation, and sexual abuse.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Thursday rebuffed efforts by China to bully Malaysia away from oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea. Anwar’s government is investigating a leaked Chinese diplomatic note that accused Malaysia of violating Chinese sovereignty by working near the oil-rich Luconia Shoals.
The Indian state of Kerala issued a health alert on Monday after a 14-year-old boy died of the Nipah virus. Over a hundred other residents in the area have been identified as high-risk potential patients.
A Scandinavian Airlines medical evacuation plane arrived on Friday in Malaysia’s northern resort island of Langkawi.
The Malaysian government has banned all Israeli-owned and -flagged ships from docking to show support for Hamas in the Gaza war.
A 45-year-old man was charged Tuesday with threatening to blow up a plane during a flight from Australia to Malaysia that returned to Sydney.
The Miss Universe Organization (MUO) announced Saturday it has cut all ties with PT Capella Swastika Karya, the beauty products company that runs the Indonesian Miss Universe Pageant, due to allegations of sexual harassment against contestants.
A vegan influencer who lived entirely on a diet of exotic fruit, juices, and sunflower seeds while living in Malaysia has reportedly “died of starvation and exhaustion.”
Malaysia’s government Saturday cut short a music festival after the lead singer of British band The 1975 slammed the country’s anti-gay laws and kissed a male bandmate during their performance.
Malaysia said on Tuesday authorities were questioning the crew of a Chinese vessel detained on suspicion of looting World War II shipwrecks.
Malaysia’s maritime agency said Monday it found a cannon shell believed to be from World War II on a Chinese-registered vessel.
Swatch, the Swiss company famous for its colorful variety of designer watches, announced on Tuesday that Malaysian authorities raided its stores in 11 shopping malls across the country and confiscated 164 rainbow flag watches from its “Pride Collection” because they “bore LGBT connections.”
A founding member of the 1990s hip-hop group the Fugees was enmeshed in political conspiracies involving millions of dollars in foreign money under two different U.S. presidents, federal prosecutors said as his trial got underway with opening statements.
The Malaysian television network TV3 is facing days of ongoing condemnation at home after censoring the bodies of Hollywood actresses Jessica Chastain and Halle Berry during a news report on Everything Everywhere All at Once star Michelle Yeoh becoming the first Malaysian to win an Oscar.
The occupied region of Tibet is less free than communist North Korea, and the Asia-Pacific region generally is among the most repressed in the world, where only five percent of people live in free countries, the international organization Freedom House revealed on Thursday.
Malaysia’s Islamic religious police on Saturday night raided a large Halloween party in Kuala Lumpur attended by LGBT activists, arresting 18 of the thousand or so participants for offenses against Muslim sharia law including cross-dressing and indecent behavior.
French authorities have arrested a beekeeper allegedly using profits from honey sales to finance terror groups in Syria.
