EU’s Southeast Asia push hits funding crunch as China widens lead

A former Miss Thailand and well-known social activist was arrested on Friday alongside her husband, accused of siphoning off money from her charity to buy luxury homes as police examine an estimated 1 billion baht (US$30 million) in donations. Panadda “Boom” Wongphudee, 50, was detained at her Bangkok home early on Friday morning after the Criminal Court issued arrest warrants accusing the couple of public fraud and money laundering. Her husband, fitness influencer and businessman Atip...

The Democratic Party’s sweep of both houses of the US Congress could stabilise Washington’s commitment to the Philippines, bringing relief to allies rattled by President Donald Trump’s Iran war and his shifting foreign policy. Analysts expect bipartisan support for Manila to endure, with Democratic oversight set to rein in Trump’s unpredictability. But they warn that Washington could still turn inward to deal with domestic challenges, diverting attention from the Indo-Pacific. The rebuke of...

China’s top legislature passed on Friday a landmark law targeting cross-border corruption, equipping Beijing with expansive new tools to pursue illicit offshore assets while countering foreign attempts to investigate wrongdoing in China. The Anti-Cross-Border Corruption Law was approved at the close of the 25th session of the 14th National People’s Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) and took effect immediately, according to the state news agency Xinhua. The statute establishes formal mechanisms

China launches Yaogan satellites for scientific experiments Yeni Şafak English