Top Asian News 11:45 a.m. GMT

Aftershocks and lack of resources hinder recovery work 3 weeks after Myanmar’s deadly earthquake

BANGKOK (AP) — Basic services have yet to be restored to the areas of Myanmar worst hit by a huge earthquake three weeks ago, and emergency workers recovering bodies and clearing debris are contending with regular aftershocks and lack of resources, humanitarian services say. A situation report issued late Friday by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA, said frequent strong aftershocks continue to shake central Myanmar almost daily, increasing fear and uncertainty among affected residents, disrupting response effort s and exacerbating the pressure on already limited resources and services. “Three weeks after catastrophic twin earthquakes hit Myanmar on 28 March, the worst-affected communities are still without safe shelter, clean water and sanitation, stable electricity, health care and essential services,” the report said.

New US ambassador to Japan says he’s optimistic a tariffs deal can be reached

TOKYO (AP) — The new U.S. ambassador to Japan arrived in Tokyo on Friday and said he is optimistic that his country and its key Asian ally will reach a deal in their ongoing tariff negotiations. George Glass, a prominent businessperson known for his background in finance, investment banking and technology, arrives as Washington and Tokyo are negotiating President Donald Trump’s tariff measures, which have triggered worldwide concern about their impact on the economy and global trade. “I’m extremely optimistic ... that a deal will be get done,” Glass told reporters after landing at Tokyo’s Haneda international airport. His arrival comes a day after the two countries held their first round of tariff talks between their top negotiators in Washington where both sides agreed to try to reach an agreement as quickly as possible and hold a second round of meetings later this month.

Cambodia welcomes Japanese navy ships to naval base that US suspects is for China’s special use

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Two Japanese naval ships docked Saturday at Cambodia’s Ream Naval Base, whose recently completed Chinese-funded upgrade has heightened U.S. concerns that it will be used as a strategic outpost for China’s navy in the Gulf of Thailand. The visit by the two minesweepers, the 141-meter (463-foot) -long Bungo and the 67-meter (219-foot) -long Etajima, part of the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force, marks the first foreign navy visit since the base’s expansion project was completed earlier this month. Tokyo has developed increasingly close ties with Cambodia in recent years, seeking to offset China’s influence in the region, and Cambodia invited it to make the renovated port’s first port call, widely seen as an attempt to allay Washington’s concerns.

China and Cambodia agree on financing for a 94-mile canal linking the Mekong to the Gulf of Thailand

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia and China have signed a $1.2 billion deal to finance an ambitious canal project that aims to boost trade efficiency by linking a branch of the Mekong River near Phnom Penh to a port on the Gulf of Thailand, the Cambodian government agency heading the project announced Friday. The deal to fund the Funan Techo Canal was signed Thursday during the state visit to Cambodia of Chinese President Xi Jinping, the agency said in a news release. Xi returned home Friday after a three-nation Southeast Asian tour that also included Vietnam and Malaysia. Construction of the 151.6-kilometer (94-mile) canal began last year but was halted shortly after the Aug.

China’s leader ends Southeast Asia tour touting Beijing’s reliability vs. US tariff threats

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping capped a three-nation Southeast Asia tour in Cambodia on Friday, promoting Beijing’s reliability as the region faces economic uncertainty due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff proposals. China has been strongly increasing its influence in the region over the past decade, largely by exercising its substantial economic leverage. Beijing is now presenting itself as a source of stability and certainty as Trump’s tariffs threaten the region’s export-oriented economies whose largest market is generally the United States. Cambodia faces among the highest reciprocal tariff rates proposed by Washington. In addition to Trump’s universal 10% tariff, it faces the threat of a 49% tariff on exports to the U.S.

US lawmakers’ bipartisan Taiwan visit signals support despite harsh words and tariffs from Trump

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Republican and Democratic lawmakers made their first trip to Taiwan under the new Trump administration a bipartisan one, aiming to show both Taiwan and China that U.S. support for Taiwan’s defense remains broad, despite the harsh words and heightened tariffs President Donald Trump has imposed for the Taiwanese. Taiwan’s leaders, in turn, have assured the Republican U.S. administration that they have taken in Trump’s complaints and are acting on them. Many Asia-Pacific nations are eschewing the retaliatory criticism and tariffs of some of the U.S.’s European allies after Trump earlier this month slapped broad tariffs on many countries around the world, including a 32% one for Taiwan.

AP PHOTOS: Chinese factories seek to expand their business outside the US following Trump Tariffs

DONGGUAN, China (AP) — Massive aluminum sheets hang in Danny Lau’s factory as workers bustled about painting them with oil coating in China’s southern industrial city of Dongguan. The Hong Kong businessman set up this factory in mainland China in the 1990s, taking advantage of lower manufacturing costs. While the factory has soldiered through past economic turmoil, Lau said the escalating trade war has proved to be “most difficult.” “We didn’t expect that our orders would suffer so heavily,” Lau said. During U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term, the factory was hit with a 25% tariff. After Trump returned to the White House this year, tariffs escalated further, with the U.S.

Ahmadi community in Pakistan says one of their members is beaten to death by Islamists

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — A mob of Islamists allegedly beat to death a member of Pakistan’s minority Ahmadi community Friday while demonstrating near an Ahmadi place of worship in Karachi, a member of the community said. Police said they were investigating the killing. The victim, identified as Laeeq Cheema, died before he could receive medical treatment at a hospital in the southern port city, said Amir Mahmood, a spokesman for the Ahmadi community. Government Civil Hospital spokesperson Summaiya Tariq confirmed the death of Cheema, saying he had multiple injuries. Mahmood blamed the attack on a mob of people from the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, or TLP, a radical Islamist party, and said they had rallied outside the Ahmadi place of worship and tried to damage it.

Italian court upholds life sentence for parents of Pakistani woman killed by her family

ROME (AP) — An Italian appeals court Friday upheld life sentences for a Pakistani couple convicted of murdering their 18-year-old daughter in a so-called honor killing after she refused an arranged marriage. The case shocked many Ital ians and became a symbol of the brutal mistreatment of immigrant women who rebel against inflexible family rules. The appeals court in the northern city of Bologna said that Saman Abbas, whose body was found at a farmhouse in 2022, 18 months after she disappeared, was killed with the participation of the whole family. The court upheld a life sentence for both the teenager’s father, Shabbir Abbas, and her mother, Nazia Shaheen.

Turkmenistan adopts law to allow electronic visas and make it easier for foreigners to enter

ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AP) — Turkmenistan, long one of the world’s most closed countries, on Friday adopted a law that will bring in electronic visas and make it easier for foreigners to enter. Since it became independent after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, the gas-rich Central Asian nation has placed strict entry requirements on would-be visitors. All foreign nationals have needed to obtain a visa in advance, and supply a formal “letter of invitation.” Even so, many have been turned down for unclear reasons. Under the new law, foreign nationals will be able to fill in a simplified online form. Visa support letters will no longer be needed, allowing for smoother business visits and potentially boosting foreign tourism.