Top Asian News 4:58 a.m. GMT

Top Hong Kong court overturns convictions of 3 former organizers of Tiananmen vigils

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s top court on Thursday overturned the convictions of three former organizers of an annual vigil in remembrance of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown over their refusal to provide information to police, marking a rare victory for the city’s pro-democracy activists. Chow Hang-tung, Tang Ngok-kwan and Tsui Hon-kwong — core members of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China — were convicted in 2023 during Beijing’s crackdown on the city’s pro-democracy movement. They received a sentence of 4 1/2 months and have already served their terms. The alliance was long known for organizing candlelight vigils in the city on the anniversary of the Chinese military’s crushing of the 1989 pro-democracy protests in Beijing.

Sustaining economic growth and other takeaways from the start of China’s legislative session

BEIJING (AP) — China on Wednesday kicked off its annual parliamentary session, the National People’s Congress, which outlines the government’s priorities for the year. Stabilizing the sluggish economy and pushing for broader applications of artificial intelligence were among the focus areas in a work report read by Premier Li Qiang. Beijing also vowed to address a property market slump and ballooning government debt that are dragging on economic growth as well as find ways to boost employment and offer better public education, health care and social security support. Here are the main takeaways from the annual government work report of the world’s second-largest economy: China set an economic growth target of “around 5%” for 2025, in line with the past two years.

China’s premier and the American president: Two leaders, two speeches, two differing world visions

BEIJING (AP) — Their words came just an hour apart this week — two major speeches by two of the world’s most powerful leaders, delivered on opposite sides of the planet. Together, they illustrate the very different approaches the world’s 21st-century powers are taking to achieve their respective national ambitions. For China, it was a call for unity to overcome obstacles through innovation and “opening up” — a time-honored phrase in Chinese politics — to eventually accomplish national rejuvenation. It came from Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing as he delivered an annual work report to the National People’s Congress, nearly 3,000 representatives from a nation of 1.4 billion people.

South Korea and the US will begin annual military drills next week

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean and U.S. troops will begin their large annual joint military drills next week to enhance their readiness against North Korean threats, the South Korean military said Thursday, days after North Korea threatened high-profile provocations against what it called escalating U.S.-led aggression. The South Korean and U.S. forces will take part in the Freedom Shield exercise, a computer-simulated command post training, and related field exercises from Monday to March 20, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff in a statement. The statement said the Freedom Shield exercise will involve responses to evolving challenges like North Korea’s growing military partnership with Russia.

Schools are closed and public transport has stopped as rare cyclone approaches Australian coast

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Early wind and rain from a rare tropical cyclone began lashing part of eastern Australia on Thursday as schools were closed, public transport was stopped and desperate residents got around shortages of sandbags by buying potting mix. Tropical Cyclone Alfred is forecast to cross the Queensland state coast somewhere between the Sunshine Coast region and the city of Gold Coast to the south early Saturday, Bureau of Meteorology manager Matt Collopy said. Between the two tourist strips is the state capital Brisbane, Australia’s third-most populous city which will host the 2032 Olympic Games. “The wind impacts, we’re already seeing those start to develop on the exposed locations along our coast with gusts reaching 80-to-90 kph (50-to-56 mph).

An Okinawan bone digger searches for remains from one of the fiercest battles of World War II

ITOMAN, Japan (AP) — Takamatsu Gushiken turns on a headtorch and enters a cave buried in Okinawa’s jungle. He gently runs his fingers through the gravel until two pieces of bone emerge. These are from the skulls, he says, of an infant and possibly an adult. He carefully places them in a ceramic rice bowl and takes a moment to imagine people dying 80 years ago as they hid in this cave during one of the fiercest battles of World War II. His hope is that the dead can be reunited with their families. The remains of some 1,400 people found on Okinawa sit in storage for possible identification with DNA testing.

New Zealand’s most senior diplomat in London loses his job over remarks about President Trump

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand’s most senior envoy to the United Kingdom has lost his job over remarks he made about U.S. President Donald Trump at an event in London this week, New Zealand ‘s foreign minister said Thursday. Phil Goff, who is New Zealand’s High Commissioner to the U.K., made the comments at an event held by the international affairs think tank Chatham House in London on Tuesday. Goff asked a question from the audience of the guest speaker, Finland’s Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen, in which he said he had been re-reading a famous speech by former British wartime leader Winston Churchill from 1938, when Churchill was a lawmaker in the government of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.

South Korean fighter jet accidentally drops bombs, reportedly injuring 7 people

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean fighter jet accidentally dropped eight bombs on a civilian area during training Thursday, reportedly injuring seven people. The MK-82 bombs “abnormally” released by the KF-16 fighter jet fell outside a firing range, causing unspecified civilian damages, the air force said in a statement. The air force said it will establish a committee to investigate why the accident happened and examine the scale of civilian damages. It said the fighter jet was taking part in the air force’s joint live-firing drills with the army. The air force apologized for causing civilian damages and expressed hopes for a speedy recovery of the injured people.

Panama president calls Trump’s talk of ‘reclaiming’ the Panama Canal a lie

PANAMA CITY (AP) — Panama President José Raúl Mulino on Wednesday accused U.S. President Donald Trump of lying when he said in his address to Congress that his administration was “reclaiming” the Panama Canal. Trump was referencing a deal announced Tuesday for a consortium led by the U.S. investment management company BlackRock Inc. to buy a controlling stake in the company held by a Chinese group that operates ports at both ends of the Panama Canal. Panama maintains that it has full control over the canal and that the Hong Kong-based group’s operation of the ports did not amount to Chinese control over the waterway, and that therefore the sale to a U.S.-based company would not represent any U.S.

Philippine defense chief warns allies will fight if China restricts flights over South China Sea

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippines and its security allies would take measures to counter any attempt by China to impose an air defense zone or restrict freedom of flights over the South China Sea, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said Wednesday, following confrontations between Chinese aircraft and those of his country, Australia and the United States. Teodoro told The Associated Press in an interview that China’s increasing aggression in the disputed waters was now considered the greatest threat to the national security of the Philippines and should also be regarded as a global threat because it could choke a key trade route crucial for global supply chains.