Top Asian News 3:56 a.m. GMT

Farmers in India are weary of politicians’ lackluster response to their climate-driven water crisis

BEED, India (AP) — On a stifling hot day this May, farm worker Shobha Londhe is reminded of the desperate conditions that led her husband to take his own life. It’s the hottest and driest summer in years, she said, and for farm workers that often means little to no income, rising debts and intolerable heat. Londhe, a resident of Talegaon village in western India, knows well the toll these climate change-induced droughts can take on farmers. Three years ago, she said the family’s financial situation was untenable as crops failed from too much heat and not enough water. Her husband Tatya went out to the fields one October day, and never returned.

Taiwan tracks dozens of Chinese warplanes and navy vessels off its coast on 2nd day of drills

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan tracked dozens of Chinese warplanes and navy vessels off its coast Friday on the second day of a large exercise China’s People’s Liberation Army held in response to the island’s new leadership. The defense ministry said it tracked 49 warplanes and 19 navy vessels, as well as Chinese coast guard vessels, and that 35 of the planes flew across the median of the Taiwan Strait, the de facto boundary between the sides, over a 24-hour period from Thursday to Friday. “Facing external challenges and threats, we will continue to maintain the values of freedom and democracy,” Taiwan’s new President Lai Ching-te told sailors and top security officials Thursday as he visited a marine base in Taoyuan, just south of the capital, Taipei.

Leaders of South Korea, China and Japan will meet Monday for their first trilateral talks since 2019

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Leaders of South Korea, China and Japan will meet next week in Seoul for their first trilateral talks in more than four years to discuss how to revive their cooperation, South Korea’s presidential office said Thursday. After their inaugural stand-alone trilateral summit in 2008, the three countries’ leaders were supposed to hold such a meeting every year. But the summit has been suspended since the last one in December 2019, in China, because of the COVID-19 pandemic and often complicated ties among the Asian neighbors. The trilateral meeting between South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will take place in Seoul on Monday, Kim Tae-hyo, Seoul’s deputy national security director, told a news conference.

AP Week in Pictures: Asia

May 17-23, 2024 Taiwan’s new President Lai Ching-te and former President Tsai Ing-wen wave during Lai’s inauguration ceremonies in Taipei. A Shiite Muslim weeps as they hold photos of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and others leaders during a vigil in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir. People release lanterns during the celebration of Vesak, which marks the day of Buddha’s birth, death and enlightenment, at the 9th-century Borobudur Temple in Indonesia. This photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images in the Asia-Pacific region made or published by the Associated Press in the past week. This selection was curated by AP photo editor Masayo Yoshida in Tokyo.

French President Macron says he won’t rush through voting reforms that triggered New Caledonia riots

French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday on a visit to riot-hit New Caledonia that he won’t force through the contested voting reform that sparked the French Pacific territory’s deadly unrest, saying he wants local leaders to come up with an alternate agreement for the archipelago’s future. Speaking after a day of meetings with leaders on both sides of New Caledonia’s bitter divide between Indigenous Kanaks who want independence and pro-Paris leaders who do not, Macron laid out a roadmap that he said could lead to another referendum for the territory. Three earlier referendums between 2018 and 2021 produced “no” votes against independence.

From South Korea to India, devotees mark the birthday of Buddha with lanterns and prayers

A devotee knelt and gently touched his head on the dome of the Boudhanath Stupa, an iconic Buddhist monument in Kathmandu, as a mark of reverence on Thursday, which marks the birth of Buddha. The birthday of Buddha is a holy occasion for all Buddhists, but is celebrated on different dates depending on the school of Buddhism or country. In many parts of Asia, the sacred day marks not just the birth, but also the enlightenment and passing of Buddha. In most Asian cultures and the diaspora, Buddhists go to temples and participate in chanting, meditation and festivities all day. Families decorate their homes with lanterns and gather for feasts.

A fire in an apartment building in Hanoi, Vietnam, kills 14 people and injures 6, state media say

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — An overnight fire in a small apartment building in Hanoi, Vietnam, killed at least 14 people and injured at least six others, state media said Friday. The official Vietnam News Agency said the fire started around 12:30 a.m. and was accompanied by several explosions. The injured are stable and being treated at Hanoi Transport Hospital. It took an hour to extinguish the fire, and state media reported 24 residents were in the building, seven in the owner’s family and 17 tenants. The building was in a narrow alley in central Hanoi with several rooms available for rent.

Malaysia PM says his country keeps good ties with US but not China phobia, wants to engage both

TOKYO (AP) — Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Thursday his country does not have a “China-phobia” policy and wants to engage both Beijing and Washington, expressing hopes for both powers to resolve their differences. Anwar, who is attending a Nikkei annual conference in Tokyo, said China is an important neighbor as it grows economically and militarily. “While I maintain excellent relations with the United States, Japan and (South) Korea, I think for Malaysia and for the region, it is better to continue to engage with China,” he said. “We will continue to engage and consider the United States as an important ally and at the same time enhance our collaboration with China.” He stressed that Beijing is “too close, too important and too strategic to ignore.” Anwar said Malaysia hopes China and the United States will “resolve their differences.” He also urged the U.S.

The Constitutional Court of Thailand agrees to hear a case that could imperil the prime minister

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s Constitutional Court accepted a petition Thursday from members of the country’s outgoing Senate to begin an ethics probe against the prime minister over his appointment of a Cabinet member. If eventually found guilty, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin could be ousted from his position. The court ruled that Srettha’s appointment of Pichit Chuenban as minister of the Prime Minister’s Office was in violation of Section 160 of the constitution, which requires those in ministerial positions to “be of evident integrity” and bars those who fail to comply with ethical standards. Pichit was jailed for six months in 2008 on contempt of court charges after he tried to bribe a judge presiding over former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s land purchase case with 2 million baht ($55,000) in a grocery bag.

Several injured passengers on turbulence-hit Singapore flight need spinal surgery, hospital says

BANGKOK (AP) — Several of the more seriously injured people who were on the Singapore Airlines flight that hit severe turbulence earlier this week will need spinal surgery, a Bangkok hospital said Thursday. Twenty people remained in intensive care and a 73-year-old British man died after the Boeing 777, which was flying from London’s Heathrow airport to Singapore on Tuesday, ran into bad turbulence over the Andaman Sea, hurling items and passengers and crew members around the cabin. A public relations officer for Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital, where most of the 104 people hurt in the incident were treated, told The Associated Press that other local hospitals have been asked to lend their best specialists to assist in the treatments.