The latest news on what's happening in the region on Friday, December 2, 2022

ANN news highlights
Bringing Asia Closer

Myanmar Crisis
Myanmar democracy leader says 2,000 dead fighting junta, urges military aid - Reuters for The Star

At least 2,000 pro-democracy fighters have been killed in Myanmar battling a military junta that seized power last year, the head of a parallel civilian government said in an interview aired on Thursday (Dec 10), urging allies to provide military aid.

Covid-19 China I
Experts call for attention on COVID anxiety, treatment - China Daily

Putting down the mobile phone, talking about negative feelings with friends or seeking professional counseling are some of the methods helpful in tackling depression and anxiety during a COVID-19 outbreak, experts said.

Covid-19 China II
Many services resume in Guangzhou as restrictions ease - China Daily

Dine-in services at restaurants in low-risk areas in the Haizhu, Liwan and Tianhe districts in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, were allowed to resume on Thursday.

Crime Malaysia
‘Golf resort’ syndicate busted - The Star

An international syndicate duping victims with fake investment and job opportunities abroad is believed to have rented a golf resort in a remote area, hoping its “call centre” in the middle of an oil palm plantation will go unnoticed.

City Singapore
Singapore, New York top ‘world’s costliest city’ survey - AFP for Straits Times

Singapore and New York are jointly the world’s most expensive cities after inflation soared in 2022, an annual survey showed on Thursday.

Politics Malaysia I
Cabinet may be named today | The Star

The guessing game about who will be in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s Cabinet in the unity government is expected to be answered today, a week after he took office.

Diplomacy China-EU
Xi: China and EU should support each other | China Daily

Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with visiting President of the European Council Charles Michel in Beijing on Thursday.

Military Japan
Development of 10 long-range missiles being mulled - The Japan News

The development of at least 10 types of long-range missiles is being mulled under a Defense Ministry plan, as the nation moves toward the possession of counterattack capabilities, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

N Korea
Kim Jong-un’s daughter, 10, leads fashion wave in North Korea - Korea Herald

Since weeks ago when Kim Jong-un revealed his 10-year-old daughter Kim Ju-ae to the world openly for the first time, her fashion style has proven to be an instant hit in North Korea, and her styling seems to be sending young North Koreans abuzz.

Economy China
Editorial: Awaiting China’s full recovery - Jakarta Post

Southeast Asian countries have high expectations that China will soon win its fight against COVID-19. A fully recovered China matters to nations in the region, if not the whole world because it is the main driver of global economic growth.
 

Pakistan
Opinion: Free or dependent? - Pakistan’s establishment needs to do some serious soul-searching about the country’s place in the world - Dawn

Pakistan does have an independent foreign policy. It is not a protectorate or a colony much less a slave; it is a sovereign country free to have its own foreign policy. Pakistan did have a choice, and exercised it freely, sometimes well, sometimes badly.

War in Ukraine
Editorial: Putin's plight - The Statesman

When Oleksiy Arestovich, an adviser to the Ukrainian President, said earlier this week that “Vladimir Putin is living in fear for his life as his army retreats… there is no forgiveness for tsars who lose wars”, he could well have been playing mind games. But there is no denying the fact that the pressure is mounting on the Russian President after weeks of gruelling military setbacks and domestic demands to end mobilisation.

Port Timor
Timor Leste opens new port in largest ever foreign investment - AFP for Jakarta Post

Timor Leste inaugurated a new deepwater port Wednesday operated by a French conglomerate, in the largest ever single foreign investment on an infrastructure project in Southeast Asia's youngest country.

EV Malaysia
China's EVE Energy to build US$422.3mil cylindrical battery plant in Malaysia - The Star

China-based EVE Energy Co Ltd, via its subsidiary EVE Energy Malaysia Sdn Bhd, will be investing US$422.3mil (RM1.86bil) to set up a cylindrical battery production base in Malaysia.

Remittances Philippines
New Fil-Am fintech firm offering easier US-PH money transactions - Inquirer

A Filipino American fintech company is now offering “easy, convenient, and low-cost cross-border financial services from the United States to the Philippines” including no-fee remittances.

Food Cambodia
Rice export boom seen following EU court victory | Phnom Penh Post

A marked uptick in Indica rice exports to European markets is expected after Cambodia won a challenge against the European Commission’s (EC) 2019 decision to remove tariff preferences on imports of the rice from the Kingdom for three years, on grounds that the shipments were causing perceived economic damage to EU producers.

Trafficking Philippines
Aside from Myanmar, Philippines’ DMW also looks into human trafficking in Cambodia, Laos | Inquirer

Besides Myanmar, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is also looking into human trafficking in Cambodia and Laos.