Politics

  Bloomberg Hong Kong’s John Lee drew the lowest approval rating in a decade for a new chief executive, underscoring the challenges he’ll face winning over a city that’s facing some of the world’s strictest Covid restrictions. The percentage of people expressing confidence in Lee, who took over as Hong Kong’s fifth chief executive last month, was 45%, according to ...

Bloomberg Moscow is leaning towards rejecting a prisoner swap unless it gets two Russians in return for the two Americans the US wants released, according to people familiar with the Kremlin’s thinking. The US has called on Russia to free WNBA player Brittney Griner and former US Marine Paul Whelan, offering to free convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout. Discussions have ...

Bloomberg US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to visit Taiwan on Tuesday, defying Chinese authorities who have warned of consequences if the trip takes place, the Liberty Times reported, citing people familiar with her plans. It would be a landmark move by a US official and raise the risk of a military confrontation given China views Taiwan as its ...

Bloomberg New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern urged China to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying Beijing has benefited from international rules and has a duty to uphold them. “As history shows us repeatedly, when large countries disregard sovereignty and territorial integrity with a sense of impunity, it does not bode well particularly for small countries like New Zealand,” Ardern ...

Bloomberg Kosovo agreed to postpone a plan to make government-issued identification cards and car plates mandatory for all residents after members of its restive Serb minority blockaded roads in protest. Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, delayed the planned rule until September 1 rather than imposing it on Monday as originally planned. Nato’s peace-keeping mission in the former ...

  Bloomberg Myanmar will prioritize restoring stability before holding elections, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing said a day after the military government extended the country’s state of emergency for another six months until February 1, 2023. The regime will prioritize improving the country’s public security system and restoring law and order to hold free and fair elections, Min Aung Hlaing ...

Bloomberg China held live-fire military drills in the Taiwan Strait on Saturday as US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi prepared to arrive in Asia. The exercises took place off the coast of Fujian province opposite Taiwan. A warning issued by the local maritime safety agency said the drills would be conducted near Pingtan, a county about 130 kilometers (81 miles) from ...

Bloomberg The first ship to export Ukrainian grain since an agreement was reached for the safe transit of vessels may depart as soon as Monday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said. “There are a few hitches, a few issues being discussed with the Russians,” Kalin said in an interview with Kanal 7 TV channel on Sunday, adding that ...

Bloomberg Whatever else is on Americans’ minds — and that’s a long list right now — the state of the economy looms large in any US election. That spells big trouble for Democrats in November’s midterm vote. A new study by Bloomberg Economics takes one gauge with a knack of predicting ballot outcomes and projects it forward through election day. ...

  Bloomberg The acting leader of South Korea’s ruling party offered to resign over in-fighting in the People Power Party, adding to the growing woes for new President, Yoon Suk Yeol, whose approval ratings have plunged to historic lows. “Our party is currently facing a grave crisis,” Kweon Seong-dong, the acting leader of the People Power Party, said in his ...