East Asia

Analyst Syroežkin - freed from prison after being convicted in 2019 of ‘treason’ - analysed the state of Kazakhstan's relations with China in a television interview: ‘The president is one of the few Kazakhs who can understand Chinese policy: he tries to pursue an effective balance with Moscow. But his promises about a new and just country still remain limp’.

Despite a 14.8 per cent rise over the previous 12 months, last year’s figures remain far from the record six billion domestic travellers reached before the pandemic. With upgraded transport infrastructure, more Chinese can discover new sites. The boom in Xinjiang is politically designed to promote sinicisation.

The opposition Kuomintang and Taiwan People's Party slashed and froze by 7 per cent the 2025 budget proposed by President Lai Ching-te’s administration. The president who was elected last year does not have a majority in parliament. Military spending and subsidies to the country’s state-owned power company were the main targets. For Prime Minister Cho Jung-tai, the cuts are only meant to obstruct the government.

The Russians have been the most decisive in responding to Trump's advances on Greenland, proving that the Arctic is a strategic interest. As of 2019, Moscow has expanded its coastal zones in the direction of the North Pole and is targeting the northern maritime corridor for trade with China. And it may seek a division of the pie with the tycoon's America.

Rev Anthony Ji Weizhong, 51, took office today as head of a diocese with a new name and canonical boundaries, replacing lieu Fenyang, which had been established by Pius XII. Pope Francis approved the appointment on 28 October. Fujian is also in the news this week.

Lawyers for the impeached president continue to argue that the investigation is illegal. Another hearing is set to take place in Yoon’s impeachment trial tomorrow at the Constitutional Court, but it is unclear whether he will be present. In the meantime, the rift in South Korean society is widening.

Clashes with Russia over northern territories is a constant in the history of the past centuries. But today there is no rush of Heilongjiang province residents to seek a home in Siberia at all. Rather, Beijing's advance is happening through the yuan, which is replacing the ruble in trade transactions. Natural resources the real issue at stake

Manufacturers in ASEAN countries are concerned about what might happen if a trade war with China breaks out once the US president takes office in a few days. The fear that Chinese products that no longer take the road to the West could be dumped in their markets, already grappling with tough competition from the “Made in China”.

The president did not resist this time, but he exercised his right to remain silent when questioned. In a video message, he said that he would appear before the Constitutional Court in the coming days. South Korean society is now split in two, with the ruling conservatives and opposition democrats almost evenly split.

The Uyghurs were detained after arriving in Thailand ten years ago on their way to Turkey. They were reportedly forced to sign voluntary deportation papers, ahead of repatriation to China where their co-ethnics suffer harsh repression in Xinjiang. Thailand is not a party to the UN Convention on Refugees.

The case of Wang Xing, a Chinese actor kidnapped in Thailand and moved to a centre in Myanmar, has put the spotlight back on the human trafficking of Chinese nationals in Southeast Asia. According to the team of experts who met with Thai representatives, 12 Hongkongers are to be released, but the timing remains unknown.

Rising costs for ingredients and labour are pushing ramen eateries over the edge. According to Teikoku Databank, 34 per cent reported losses in the last fiscal year. Price rises are now inevitable, even if many Japanese seem unwilling to spend more for Japan’s food par excellence.