Top Asian News 10:49 p.m. GMT

Senators urge Biden to end duty-free treatment for packages valued at less than $800

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two U.S. senators looking to crack down on the number of packages from China that enter the country duty-free are calling on President Joe Biden to take executive action, saying U.S. manufacturers can’t compete with low-cost competitors they say rely on forced labor and state subsidies in key sectors. U.S. trade law allows packages bound for American consumers and valued below a certain threshold to enter tariff-free. That threshold, under a category known as “de minimis,” stands at $800 per person, per day. The majority of the imports are retail products purchased online. Alarmed by the large increase in such shipments from China, lawmakers in both chambers have filed legislation to alter how the U.S.

The opposition alliance that aimed to oust Modi appears to be cracking just before India’s elections

NEW DELHI (AP) — Last year more than two dozen opposition parties in India came together to take on Narendra Modi, one of the country’s most popular prime ministers in generations. But the broad alliance, beset with ideological differences and personality clashes, is cracking at a crucial time, just months before the country votes in a national election. Riven by rivalries, political defections and ideological clashes, the INDIA alliance, formed to unseat Modi and defeat his Bharatiya Janata Party’s electoral juggernaut, is in shambles, analysts say. Meanwhile, support for Modi is on the rise after he opened a Hindu temple in northern Ayodhya city last month, fulfilling his party’s long-held Hindu nationalist pledge.

US and South Korea fly warplanes in interception drills after North Korea’s missile tests

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea and the United States flew advanced stealth fighters in a joint missile-interception drill Friday over the Korean Peninsula, South Korea’s air force said, an apparent response to a spate of weapons tests this year by rival North Korea. North Korea has conducted six rounds of missile tests so far this year, most of them reportedly involving cruise missiles that typically fly at a low altitude to overcome opponents’ missile defenses. Analysts say that in the event of a conflict, North Korea aims to use cruise missiles to strike U.S. aircraft carriers as well as U.S.

Indonesia and Australia hold defense talks as both nations move toward signing a security agreement

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia and Australia held high-level talks in Jakarta on Friday as the neighboring countries seek to strengthen security ties by signing a defense cooperation agreement in the coming months. Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, who is set to become Indonesia’s next leader, said that he and Australian counterpart Richard Marles discussed ways of maintaining and enhancing the good relationship between the two nations. Subianto said that Indonesia and Australia hope to sign a “very significant” defense cooperation agreement within two or three months. No details about the agreement have been provided. Marles described the pact as “the single deepest and most significant defense cooperation agreement” in the history of the two countries.

Taliban hold public execution for 2 men, who are killed by gunfire in a stadium as thousands watch

GHAZNI, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban carried out a double public execution Thursday at a stadium in the country’s southeast, where relatives of the victims of stabbing deaths fired guns at two convicted men while thousands of people watched. The Taliban’s Supreme Court ruled that the two men were responsible for the stabbing deaths of two victims in separate attacks, according to a court statement. It identified the two as Syed Jamal from central Wardak province and Gul Khan from Ghazni — though it was unclear who carried out the stabbings, the two convicted men or others. The statement also said that three lower courts and the Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, had ordered the executions in retribution for their purported crimes.

A watch that melted during the atomic blast over Hiroshima, Japan, sells for more than $31,000

BOSTON (AP) — A watch melted during the Aug. 6, 1945, bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, has sold for more than $31,000 at auction. The watch is frozen in time at the moment of the detonation of an atomic bomb over the Japanese city — 8:15 a.m. — during the closing days of World War ll, according to Boston-based RR Auction. The winning bid in the auction that ended Thursday was $31,113. The artifact was recovered from the ruins of Hiroshima and offers a glimpse into the immense destruction of the first atomic bomb detonated over a city. The small brass-tone watch, a rare survivor from the blast zone, was auctioned alongside other historically significant items, according to the auction house.

US Congress members praise Taiwan’s democracy in a visit that’s certain to draw China’s scrutiny

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A group of United States Congress members met with Taiwan’s president Thursday in a show of bipartisan support that is certain to draw scrutiny from China, which opposes such visits and sees them as a challenge to its claim of sovereignty over the self-governing island. Two years ago, a visit by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan resulted in China dispatching warships and military aircraft to all sides of the democratic island, and firing ballistic missiles into the waters nearby. In a meeting Thursday with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, Rep. Mike Gallagher, the Republican chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, highlighted the bipartisan support for the U.S.-Taiwan partnership, which he described as “stronger and more rock-solid than ever now.” The U.S., like most countries, doesn’t formally recognize Taiwan as a country but maintains robust informal relations with the island and is bound by its own laws to provide it with the weapons it needs to defend itself.

Pakistani ex-Prime Minister Khan wants the IMF to link talks to an independent audit of the election

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan is writing a letter to the International Monetary Fund urging it to link any talks with Islamabad to an audit of the country’s recent election, which his party alleges was rigged, an official from his party said Friday. Senator Ali Zafar, a top leader from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, made his televised remarks after meeting with Khan at the Adiala prison, where he’s serving multiple prison sentences. The latest development came days before the IMF releases a key installment of a bailout loan to Pakistan. It also comes a day after IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack said the global lender was ready to work with Pakistan’s new government “on policies to ensure macroeconomic stability and prosperity for all of Pakistan’s citizens.” The Washington-based IMF hasn’t commented on Khan’s much-publicized move to write the financial agency a letter.

Pakistan blocks X for the sixth day as activists criticize the social media platform’s shutdown

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s media regulators have blocked the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, with users across the country on Thursday enduring the sixth day of sweeping disruptions, partial and complete shutdowns. There was no comment on the outage by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority and government officials have not responded to repeated queries from The Associated Press for comment. Human rights activists have demanded a full restoration of internet services and access to social media. Washington has also urged Pakistan to lift restrictions on X. The outage was first observed over the weekend when the political party of Pakistan’s imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan announced protests against what it says were rigged Feb.

AP Week in Pictures: Asia

Feb. 16-22, 2024 Farmers in India continue to protest over crop prices, Singapore hosts an international airshow, Tokyo’s stock market surged to an all-time high, and Cambodian rice farmers get busy cooking sticky rice in bamboo for a post-harvest celebration while others are still picking their cassava. 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. The selection was curated by AP photo editor Shuji Kajiyama in Tokyo. ___ Follow AP visual journalism: AP Images blog: http://apimagesblog.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apnews AP Images on X: http://twitter.com/AP_Images