Politics

BLOOMBERG India lodged a formal protest with the British High Commission in New Delhi after a Sikh separatist sympathizer pulled down the national flag outside its embassy in London. Local media in India tweeted video footage that showed the man pulling down the Indian tricolour. He then briefly waved the orange flag of the so-called Khalistan movement, which fought for ...

BLOOMBERG Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida prodded his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to speak against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at their meeting on Monday, adding pressure on New Delhi to choose between major world democracies and a key supplier of energy and weapons. “I want to stop Russia’s invasion as fast as possible, Kishida told reporters after the meeting. “To ...

BLOOMBERG Thailand’s parliament was dissolved on Monday ahead of elections slated for May as Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha seeks to extend nearly a decade of his military-backed rule. The order dissolving the House of Representatives was endorsed by King Maha Vajiralongkorn and published in the Royal Gazette, just three days before the lower house was due to complete its four-year ...

BLOOMBERG Australia’s government is confident that plans to acquire a fleet of nuclear submarines under the Aukus agreement won’t derail progress in restoring its relations with China. Trade Minister Don Farrell said talks on reviving frozen ties were progressing well at an official level, and that an invitation for him to visit Beijing still stood. That’s despite the overarching aim ...

BLOOMBERG President Vladimir Putin made a surprise trip to occupied Mariupol, the Ukrainian city largely destroyed by a months-long Russian siege, according to a Kremlin statement and video released on state television. The highly classified visit was Putin’s first to one of the four Ukrainian regions that Russia claimed in September to have annexed as part of its invasion launched ...

BLOOMBERG North Korea test-fired a suspected short-range ballistic missile, adding to its barrage of launches in the past month that included two rockets designed to deliver a nuclear warhead to the US mainland. The missile was fired towards waters to the east of the Korean peninsula, Yonhap News reported, citing South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. It flew for about ...

BLOOMBERG Paetongtarn Shinawatra, daughter of former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra, and her Pheu Thai party widened leads as the voters’ top choice in the latest opinion poll ahead of a general election tentatively scheduled for May. Paetongtarn, who represents the Southeast Asian nation’s largest opposition party, garnered 38.2% of support in a poll of 2,000. It’s the latest edition of ...

BLOOMBERG China announced that Xi Jinping will travel to Russia on a three-day state visit starting on Monday, his first trip there since Kremlin forces invaded Ukraine and a strong show of support for President Vladimir Putin. Xi will be in Russia from Monday to Wednesday next week, according to a statement from China’s Foreign Ministry. Xi, who secured a ...

BLOOMBERG Former Pakistan Premier Imran Khan vowed to turn up in court on Saturday after skipping hearings, potentially setting the scene for further political unrest in a country that’s at risk of a default. Supporters battled with security forces outside the former cricket star’s private residence in Lahore this week as police attempted to arrest Khan. He faces charges of ...

BLOOMBERG North Korea launched the most powerful ballistic missile in its arsenal just before a summit between Japan and South Korea, with leader Kim Jong Un saying he wanted to “strike fear into the enemies,” its state media said. Kim was on hand with his preteen daughter to watch the launch of the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile. The test was ...