Top Asian News 3:02 a.m. GMT

The EU is imposing duties on electric vehicles from China after trade talks fail

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is imposing duties on imports of electric vehicles from China starting Wednesday after talks between Brussels and Beijing failed to find an amicable solution to their trade dispute. Electric vehicles have become a major flashpoint in a broader trade dispute over the influence of Chinese government subsidies on European markets and Beijing’s burgeoning exports of green technology to the bloc. “By adopting these proportionate and targeted measures after a rigorous investigation, we’re standing up for fair market practices and for the European industrial base,” European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said on Tuesday. “In parallel, we remain open to a possible alternative solution that would be effective in addressing the problems identified and (World Trade Organization)-compatible,” he added.

Shohei Ohtani’s rural hometown honors its superstar son -- from city hall to the hair salons

OSHU CITY, Japan (AP) — Shohei Ohtani’s hometown in northern Japan is a rural place, famous for its high-quality Maesawa beef, its history of making traditional ironware and the intense green hills and mountains that surround it. Japanese call such places “inaka” — roughly translated as the “countryside.” No glitz, quiet streets and up north — cold winters. It’s only 300 miles (500 kilometers) from Tokyo, but it seems farther away. These days, Oshu City is most famous for Ohtani himself, and the intense pride local people show for one of the game’s greatest ever players. He started in the local Little League with the Mizusawa Pirates, played for Hanamaki Higashi High School — a route that led him to the World Series.

China launches new crew to its space station as it seeks to expand exploration

JIUQUAN, China (AP) — China declared a “complete success” after it launched a new three-person crew to its orbiting space station early Wednesday as the country seeks to expand its exploration of outer space with missions to the moon and beyond. The Shenzhou-19 spaceship carrying the trio blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 4:27 a.m. local time atop a Long March-2F rocket, the backbone of China’s crewed space missions. “The crew condition is good and the launch has been successful,” the state broadcaster China Central Television announced. China built its own space station after being excluded from the International Space Station, mainly because of U.S.

Canada alleges Indian Home Minister Amit Shah ordered campaign targeting Sikh separatists

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — A Canadian official alleged Tuesday that Indian Home Minister Amit Shah ordered a campaign of violence, intimidation and intelligence-gathering targeting Sikh separatists inside Canada. Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison told Parliament members of the national security committee that he had confirmed Shah’s name to The Washington Post, which first reported the allegations. “The journalist called me and asked if it was that person. I confirmed it was that person,” Morrison told the committee. Morrison did not say how Canada knew of Shah’s alleged involvement. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a year ago that Canada had credible evidence agents of the Indian government were involved in the murder of Canadian Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia in June 2023.

Duterte’s jarring testimony into drug killings in Philippines relives a nightmare for many

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The cockiness, expletives and threats unleashed by former President Rodrigo Duterte in a Senate inquiry brought back the nightmare of the bloody “war on drugs” for many families of the thousands of victims who were gunned down under his rule. Speaking under oath in Monday’s televised hearing into the killings, a defiantly combative Duterte returned to the national spotlight for the first time since leaving office in 2022 with little show of remorse. He got away with it again, critics say. “If I’m given another chance, I’ll wipe all of you,” Duterte, 79, who is seeking a new term as mayor of his southern home city of Davao next year, said of drug dealers and criminals.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy says war with Russia is being pushed ‘beyond borders’ as North Korea joins in

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday that the thousands of North Korean soldiers expected to reinforce Russian troops on the front line in Ukraine are pushing the almost three-year war beyond the borders of the warring parties. Western leaders say North Korea has sent some 10,000 soldiers to help Russia’s military campaign and warn that its involvement in a European war could also unsettle relations in the Indo-Pacific region, including Japan and Australia. Zelenskyy said he spoke to South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and told him that 3,000 North Korean soldiers are already at military bases close to the Ukrainian front line and that he expects that deployment to increase to 12,000.

Finland’s president calls North Korea’s dispatch of troops to Russia an escalation

BEIJING (AP) — Finland’s president said North Korea’s dispatch of troops to Russia represents an escalation of the Russia-Ukraine war that goes against China’s own stated position on the conflict, following talks Tuesday with the Chinese president. Finnish President Alexander Stubb made his comments after meeting for more than three hours with China’s President Xi Jinping in Beijing in a visit to discuss the war as well as trade and other issues. Chinese officials did not comment on specifics, but Chinese state media said the two sides had an in-depth exchange. “North Korean activity right now, both in terms of arms exports and especially in terms of sending troops to Russia is escalation, expansion and provocation,” Stubb said.

North Korea sends foreign minister to Russia as its troops train to fight against Ukraine

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said Tuesday its top diplomat is visiting Russia, in another sign of their deepening relations as rival South Korea and Western nations say the North has sent thousands of troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine. North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said a delegation led by Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui departed for Russia on Monday, but didn’t specify the purpose of the visit. In a closed-door hearing at South Korea’s parliament, the South’s spy agency said Choe may be involved in high-level discussions on sending additional troops to Russia and negotiating what the North would get in return, according to Lee Seong-kweun, a lawmaker who attended the meeting.

Man found guilty of killing 2 from Vietnam in a Las Vegas hotel room in 2018

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A jury has found a man guilty of breaking into a room at a Las Vegas Strip hotel-casino and robbing and killing two Vietnamese tour leaders in June 2018. Julius Damiano Deangilo Trotter stood with his lawyers, shaking his head and glancing several times at jurors while the unanimous verdicts were read Tuesday in Clark County District Court, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. Trotter, 37, faces a possible death sentence or life in prison following his convictions on charges of murder, burglary and robbery with a weapon. He was convicted in the stabbing deaths of Sang Boi Nghia and Khoung Ba Le Nguyen at the Circus Circus hotel.

AP PHOTOS: River and air pollution in India’s capital pose a severe health threat to residents

NEW DELHI (AP) — One of India’s most sacred rivers, the Yamuna in New Delhi, is covered with white toxic foam, with vast sections frothing as a result of pollutants discharged from industries around the city. The pollution poses a severe health threat to residents since the river provides more than half of the Indian capital’s water. New Delhi also has some of the world’s most polluted air every year, and the current festival season is exacerbating the situation. On Tuesday, the air-quality index deteriorated to “a very poor” reading of 273, 18 times higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended levels.