China's unwavering policy is to develop ties with the North and both will strengthen exchanges in all areas, Xi said in the Rodong Sinmun newspaper ahead of a visit seen as significant because it is his first international trip this year.

Authorities in the Philippines and Indonesia urged residents in affected coastal regions to move to higher ground immediately, after the offshore quake hit about 24 kilometres west of Mindanao island's Sarangani province, the United States Geological Survey said.

Seven villagers became trapped in the cave in central Xaysomboun province on May 20 when flash floods blocked their exit as they hunted bats for food and searched for gold in old mining areas.

President Lee Jae Myung's ruling Democratic Party swept most races but failed to flip the crucial Seoul mayoral seat.

Concerns have mounted over Indonesia’s diplomatic mechanisms and its bureaucratic shortcomings, following a widely circulated claim that over a dozen proposed foreign ambassadors have been stymied for months in their efforts to present their letters of credence to President Prabowo Subianto.

The neighboring countries emphasized the importance of cooperation between Southeast Asian economies to mitigate the impact of global conflicts and tensions, said the top Indonesian and Malaysian diplomats after their bilateral talk.

New Zealand voiced concern over the barring of the four MPs, who visited as part of a cross-party delegation, noting its lawmakers have paid visits to Taiwan for decades.

Thaksin, who was released on parole last month after serving eight months in prison, had just over three months remaining on his one-year sentence, which was due to expire in September.

South Koreans vote on Wednesday in local elections expected to boost President Lee Jae Myung's ruling Democratic Party, in the first nationwide ballot since his snap presidential election victory last year.

The move follows a Thai government decision last month to unilaterally terminate a 2001 agreement with Cambodia that provided a framework for negotiations over the disputed area in the Gulf of Thailand where the two countries' maritime claims overlap.

The UN will honor 68 fallen peacekeepers on June 5, 2026, including two Indonesians who died while serving in missions in Africa last year.

Primary support for One Nation rose four percentage points to 31 percent from a month earlier, according to a closely watched poll by Redbridge Group and Accent Research.

Japan and the Philippines said last week they would begin formal talks on delimiting the maritime boundary of the exclusive economic zone and the continental shelf between the two countries "in accordance with international law".

The regulations also require "stronger content governance" on social media. Failure to comply could result in financial penalties for the companies of up to 10 million Malaysian ringgit ($2.5 million).

"Such patrols serve as an effective countermeasure to cope with all sorts of rights violation and provocative acts," the military's Southern Theatre Command said in a statement on the WeChat platform.

Japan's defense minister took a veiled swipe at China on Sunday, pledging to keep strengthening the military despite Beijing's criticism of Tokyo's increasingly muscular security stance.

The two nations met at Singapore's Shangri-La Dialogue, which brings together top defence officials and experts from about 45 countries.

Washington does not seek "needless confrontation" but rather "a genuinely stable equilibrium that works for Americans as well as our allies", said Pete Hegseth. 

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday urged Asian allies to ramp up military spending to counter China's growing power and prevent its dominance in the region, warning of "rightful alarm" over its rapid military buildup.

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth is the headline speaker at Asia's premier defense summit, which began on Friday with top Chinese officials notably absent despite weighty questions over Taiwan and the war in Iran.

The foreign ministers of Australia, India, Japan and the US have agreed to jointly build a port in Fiji and signed pacts covering critical minerals and energy security, as they sought to inject fresh energy into their grouping known as the Quad.

Defense firms from both countries explored ways to collaborate among themselves amid an increasingly complex security landscape in the Indo-Pacific region.  

The death toll rose to four Monday in the collapse of a building under construction near the Philippine capital, with more than a dozen people still believed missing, authorities said.

AKCMM is a regional initiative dedicated to advancing methane reduction across ASEAN member states.

Nineteen people are feared trapped after a building under construction near Manila collapsed early on Sunday, a local government official said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called for authorities to "spare no effort" in treating the injured and conducting search and rescue operations, while ordering a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident and strict accountability in accordance with the law.

The fast-warming tropical Pacific is pointing to a major event but a crucial weakening of trade winds -- capable of turbocharging or throttling the phenomenon -- has yet to materialise.

The Philippine government on Thursday ordered police to arrest a senator wanted by the International Criminal Court over his role in ex-president Rodrigo Duterte's deadly drug crackdown.

A programme and menu reported by TASS showed guests would be offered an array of cold "zakuski" hors d'oeuvres, prawn soup, beef in bean sauce, Fuzhou noodles, pumpkin pastries, fruits. 

President Xi Jinping hailed China and Russia's "unyielding" ties in talks with Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, as the pair met to underscore their alliance days after Donald Trump's visit to the Asian superpower economy.