Top Asian News 3:36 a.m. GMT

South Korea holds a snap presidential election Tuesday. Here’s what to know

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — After months of political turmoil, South Korea will elect a new president this week to succeed conservative Yoon Suk Yeol, who was ousted over his brief but shocking imposition of martial law. Surveys suggested liberal Lee Jae-myung is heavily favored to win Tuesday’s snap election, riding on a wave of public disappointment of Yoon’s martial law debacle in December. The main conservative candidate, Kim Moon Soo, wants a come-from-behind victory, but observers say his refusal to directly criticize Yoon made it difficult for him to narrow the gap with Lee. The winner will be sworn in as president on Wednesday without the typical two-month transition period.

Meet the candidates who hope to become South Korea’s president

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Months of a political drama in South Korea is drawing to a close with the country poised to elect a new president this week to succeed Yoon Suk Yeol, a conservative leader who was toppled over his ill-fated imposition of martial law. Surveys show liberal Lee Jae-myung maintaining a solid lead over his main conservative rival Kim Moon Soo, who wants an upset victory. Whoever wins, the new president will forgo the usual two-month transition and serve one full, five-year term at a time when South Korea faces crucial challenges including a severe left-right political divide, the Trump administration’s tariff policy and North Korea’s expanding military partnership with Russia.

China says Hegseth is touting a Cold War mentality in calling the country a threat

BEIJING (AP) — China on Sunday denounced U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for calling the Asian country a threat, accusing him of touting a Cold War mentality as tensions between Washington and Beijing further escalate. The foreign ministry said Hegseth vilified Beijing with defamatory allegations the previous day at the Shangri-La Dialogue, a global security conference. The statement also accused the United States of inciting conflict and confrontation in the region. “Hegseth deliberately ignored the call for peace and development by countries in the region, and instead touted the Cold War mentality for bloc confrontation,” it said, referring to the post-World War II rivalry between the U.S.

Top defense officials say Ukraine war has blurred lines, exposing global threats

SINGAPORE (AP) — China and North Korea’s support for Russia in its war against Ukraine has exposed how lines between regions have blurred, and the need for a global approach toward defense, top security officials said Sunday. North Korea has sent troops to fight on the front lines in Ukraine, while China has supported Russia economically and technologically while opposing international sanctions. Lithuanian Defense Minister Dovilė Šakalienė told delegates at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s premiere defense forum, that if Ukraine were to fall, it would have a ripple effect in Asia and suggested it could embolden China in its territorial claims on Taiwan and virtually the entire South China Sea.

Bangladesh opens trial of deposed ex-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A special tribunal set up to try Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina began proceedings Sunday by accepting charges of crimes against humanity filed against her in connection with a mass uprising in which hundreds of students were killed last year. The Dhaka-based International Crimes Tribunal directed investigators to produce Hasina, a former home minister and a former police chief before the court on June 16. Hasina has been in exile in India since Aug. 5, 2024, while former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan is missing and possibly also in India. Former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun has been arrested.

India’s self-proclaimed ‘history hunter’ is on a drive to salvage the past for future generations

NEW DELHI (AP) — Cameras from a bygone era. Rusty typewriters. Vintage radios. Matchboxes once used to light contraband cigarettes. In an age of new technology and artificial intelligence, a visit to the New Delhi home of Aditya Vij is like stepping into a time machine. Every corner of his museum feels like a carefully constructed history chapter. The anthropologist is an avid collector of artifacts and has dedicated his life to antiquities. Over decades, he has doggedly collected thousands of items that span several centuries and documented their relevance and the impact they have had on society. Each collectable he has salvaged feels like a victory against time, Vij says, underscoring his belief that maybe one individual’s attempts can quietly resist their erasure from people’s memory.

AP PHOTOS: Thailand kicks off Pride Month with a parade in Bangkok

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand started its annual celebration Sunday for the LGBTQ+ community’s Pride Month, with its Pride Parade, the first to be held after Thailand legalized same-sex marriage earlier this year. Participants marched with rainbow flags for hours in Bangkok. Pride Month celebrations have been endorsed by politicians including Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who was attending the parade this year. The enactment of the Marriage Equality Act makes Thailand the first country in Southeast Asia and the third place in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage. ___ This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

Flooding in western China destroys dozens of homes and roads

BEIJING (AP) — Flooding in southwestern China has destroyed dozens of roads and homes. Yunnan province’s mountainous Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture had 27 houses damaged and 16 bridges damaged or destroyed as of Sunday. No dead, injured or missing have been reported so far, despite the area being a tourist destination and Monday being a national holiday. Landslides and floods also closed roads in the Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, with rescue efforts hampered by deep fog. Flooding forced the evacuation of 300 tourists from the prefecture’s Meri Snow Mountain scenic zone, where several hundred residents were moved to safety. More rain is expected over coming days.

India, a major user of coal power, is making large gains in clean energy adoption. Here is how

BENGALURU, India (AP) — One of the most carbon-polluting countries, India is also making huge efforts to harness the power of the sun, wind and other clean energy sources. Most of the electricity in India, the world’s most populous nation, still comes from coal, one of the dirtiest forms of energy. But coal’s dominance is dropping, going from 60% of installed power capacity 11 years ago to less than 50% today, according to India’s power ministry. At the same time, India had its largest ever addition of clean power in the fiscal year between April 2024 and April of this year, adding 30 gigawatts — enough to power nearly 18 million Indian homes.

Brunei’s sultan released from Malaysian hospital

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, one of the world’s wealthiest men and its longest-reigning sitting monarch, was discharged from a Malaysian hospital five days after he was admitted for fatigue. Brunei’s government said on social media late Saturday that the 78-year-old monarch has moved to a Kuala Lumpur hotel, where he will spend a few days resting before returning home. Brunei’s information department posted pictures on Facebook of the sultan walking into the hotel lobby with his wife, and in a room with family members including his wife and two of his sons. Sultan Hassanal was attending an annual summit o f the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Kuala Lumpur when he was hospitalized Tuesday at the National Heart Institute.