Politics

Bloomberg China said the mystery object launched into space earlier this year was a reusable space vehicle, describing a more innocuous incident than a report over the weekend that Beijing sent a hypersonic missile into orbit. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at a regular news briefing on Monday that the test had “great significance for reducing the cost” ...

Bloomberg Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing blasted other Southeast Asian countries for demanding that his military end worsening violence at home, after he was excluded from a big ticket regional summit later this month over civil strife. Allies of ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi were driving the repeated calls, the coup leader said on state-broadcaster MRTV on ...

Bloomberg A conservative mayor will lead Hungary’s united opposition against Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the most fiercely contested election in more than a decade. Peter Marki-Zay dominated the six-party alliance’s primary runoff, defeating Klara Dobrev, a European Parliament vice president and the candidate of DK, the biggest opposition party. The victory gives him a chance to take on the ...

Bloomberg Malaysia will hold its first state-wide snap election under Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s leadership on November 20, according to the Election Commission. Nomination day for the Malacca state polls is set for November 8, while early voting will be held on November 16, the commission said on Monday. The polls set the stage for Ismail’s first popularity test ...

Bloomberg Southeast Asian countries have agreed to exclude the Myanmar’s junta leader from a big ticket summit later this month, a rare and decisive move to hold the regime accountable for worsening civil strife in the country and refusing to engage with its political opponents. Myanmar, controlled by a military junta led by Min Aung Hlaing since a February coup, ...

Bloomberg Venezuela’s government pulled out of a round of negotiations with the political opposition set to begin on Sunday in Mexico to protest the extradition of a close ally of President Nicolas Maduro to the US. “The government is suspending its participation in the negotiation and dialogue roundtable,” said Jorge Rodriguez, president of the government-controlled National Assembly and chief of ...

Bloomberg The murder of a UK lawmaker has focused attention on “Prevent,” a program designed to identify people at risk of becoming radicalised, as well as on how to combat “corrosive” online discourse. UK Home Secretary Priti Patel said on Sunday the counter-terrorism program is undergoing an independent review. The suspect in the deadly stabbing of Conservative MP David Amess ...

Bloomberg Former UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s appointment to a United Nations special envoy role has been scrapped. “Mr Hancock’s appointment by the UN Economic Commission for Africa is not being taken forward,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told PassBlue, a news website that specialises in UN coverage, adding “ECA has advised him of the matter.” In an appointment letter to ...

Bloomberg The US continues to observe activity at North Korean nuclear sites that is “inconsistent with full denuclearisation,” the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) said in a report issued. The conclusion, based on observations at the Yongbyon nuclear site and elsewhere, echoes assessments delivered to former President Donald Trump by US intelligence agencies, despite Trump’s efforts to engage in direct summit ...

Bloomberg Russia said one of its warships intercepted a US destroyer in the Sea of Japan that was encroaching on its territorial waters, claiming the vessels came within 60 metres (200 feet) of each other during the confrontation. The US Pacific Fleet rejected Russia’s characterisation of the incident hours later. The Russian Defense Ministry posted a video of the Admiral ...