Politics

Bloomberg The Philippines is taking a page out of China’s book by building up its own fleet that includes fishing boats in the South China Sea, the Southeast Asian nation’s top diplomat said. “We are swarming the areas because that’s the Chinese strategy — to swarm the areas also with the fishing boats,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin said in ...

Bloomberg Malaysia’s king called on all lawmakers to support the government’s 2021 budget, in a move that could lend some stability to embattled PM Muhyiddin Yassin’s leadership ahead of a key parliament vote. The monarch expressed “full confidence” in the prime minister’s ability to lead the country through the crisis, and urged all politicians to cease their bickering, Indera Ahmad ...

Bloomberg Tanzanians started voting in general elections, with President John Magufuli’s party likely to extend its decades-long rule on the country that’s one of Africa’s top four gold producers. Magufuli, 61, whose Chama Cha Mapinduzi has governed for more than half a century, is seeking a second five-year term to continue major infrastructure works, including an expansion of Tanzania’s road ...

Bloomberg Chancellor Angela Merkel is pushing for a partial lockdown in Germany that would include closing restaurants and leisure facilities through the end of November, as coronavirus infections continue to surge across Europe. Merkel is also urging citizens to keep private contacts to an absolute minimum, and to avoid all non-essential private travel, according to a draft federal government briefing ...

Bloomberg President Donald Trump’s push for a second poll-defying victory is relying on a hallmark of his first — raucous campaign rallies that Trump sees as a crucial sign of voter enthusiasm but that pollsters say may only be cementing his defeat. Trump held three rallies, all in Pennsylvania, with three more scheduled on Tuesday and as many as five ...

Bloomberg US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark Esper pushed for closer ties with India at a high-level ministerial meeting with their Indian counterparts, at a time when New Delhi is facing a prolonged border conflict with China. “The United States will stand with the people of India as they confront threats to their sovereignty and to ...

Bloomberg While China has long opposed US arms exports to Taiwan, the Trump administration’s latest sales are worrying to Beijing for another reason: They show a greater alignment among the two democracies on the so-called “hedgehog” strategy to resist an invasion. The US weapons mark a notable shift in approach from the flashier warplanes and tanks traditionally favoured in Taipei ...

Bloomberg Thai lawmakers are weighing a proposal to set up a committee to explore ways to end the monthslong anti-government protests sweeping the Southeast Asian nation. A working group is looking at a panel proposed by Deputy Premier Jurin Laksanawisit, House Speaker Chuan Leekpai said on Tuesday. Parliament is set to wrap up a special two-day session convened to discuss ...

Bloomberg More than 50 of Boris Johnson’s own Conservative members of Parliament have demanded a clear route out of lockdown for parts of northern Britain that helped give his party a majority in last year’s election. In a letter to the prime minister, the MPs warned that his pandemic strategy of targeting local areas with restrictions is disproportionately damaging the ...

Bloomberg The US and India are set to sign a defense agreement and boost trade ties in high-level talks that come as the South Asian nation sees its worst border conflict with China in four decades. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo arrived in New Delhi on Monday and along with Defense secretary Mark Esper will attend a 2+2 ministerial dialog ...