Ardern's government has taken flak over its meek criticisms of China's rights record, leading to accusations New Zealand is a weak link in the US-led Five Eyes intelligence network.

In warm conditions on the first day of a five-day May Day national holiday revelers in the central Chinese city danced, bounced and screamed with delight as some of their favorite acts took the stage.

Over the past month India held its biggest democratic exercise in two years, with 175 million people eligible to vote in five regional elections.

"What we've witnessed over the last several years is China acting more repressively at home and more aggressively abroad. That is a fact," the top American diplomat said in an interview with CBS's "60 Minutes."

A worker at a managed isolation facility in the city and two people he shares accommodation with have tested positive, authorities said.

The newest figure was slightly higher than the 1,027 cases reported Thursday, as Japanese authorities struggle to curb the resurgence of infections in Tokyo, with less than three months to go before the Olympics begin in the capital.

The infected man in his 60s from Tokyo and a female family member, who tested negative, disembarked from the Asuka II along with all other passengers and headed for Tokyo.

From Monday, any traveller into Australia who has been in India in the past 14 days could face fines and jail time, adding to a temporary ban announced earlier this week, which will remain in place until at least May 15.

India, the world's biggest producer of COVID-19 vaccines, has a limited number of shots available domestically, worsening a grim second wave of infections that has left hospitals and morgues overflowing while families scramble for increasingly scarce medicines and oxygen.

"On the advice of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the administration will restrict travel from India," Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement.

Calling the rules-based international order the foundation for the region to thrive and prosper, Aquilino said during a change of command ceremony in Hawaii to replace Adm. Philip Davidson that the environment the United States and its allies have created for decades is "being challenged."

The quake occurred around 10:27 a.m., about 51 kilometers below the sea surface off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.

It was 4 A.M. in eastern Australia, and finally, bleary-eyed, the veteran cardiologist had found a hospital bed for his niece's husband.

A Super Galaxy military transporter carrying more than 400 oxygen cylinders and other hospital equipment and nearly one million rapid coronavirus tests landed at New Delhi's international airport.

The disaster occurred in Meron at the site of the reputed tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, a second-century Talmudic sage, where mainly ultra-Orthodox Jews flock to mark the Lag BaOmer holiday. 

The remarks came after Biden's first address to Congress, in which the US leader placed a renewed focus on diplomacy and said the country was in competition with China and others to win the 21st century.

Power, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, was confirmed in a bipartisan vote of 68-26.

The Jakarta Post’s Dian Septiari spoke with EU Ambassador to Indonesia Vincent Piket about the bloc's recently announced Indo-Pacific strategy, as well as other bilateral and regional issues.

The country has now seen 204,832 deaths in total from the coronavirus pandemic, although many experts suspect that the true toll is higher.

Biden nonetheless pledged to be firm against both powers and pointed to China's growing strength to promote massive investments at home.

Lauding the success of mass vaccination against Covid-19, Biden told Congress and the nation on primetime television that "in America, we always get up."

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has been in the position before during presidential speeches.

A population drop will add pressure on Beijing to roll out measures to encourage couples to have more children and avert an irreversible decline.

Lee Kun-hee, the late Samsung Electronics chairman, was the country's richest man when he died last October at age 78 after being hospitalised for years, leaving an estimated 22 trillion won ($19.6 billion) in assets.

As record infections spark severe shortages of the gas in hospitals, desperate patients are flocking to a tent outside a gurdwara -- a Sikh place of worship -- in Ghaziabad city, arriving in cars, rickshaws and even ambulances.

The United States Geological Survey said the quake hit at a depth of 34 km (21 miles) with its epicentre near Dhekiajuli town, 140 km (86 miles) north of Assam's main city, Guwahati.

The two countries, locked in a fierce struggle for regional dominance, cut ties in 2016 after Iranian protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions following the kingdom's execution of a revered Shiite cleric.

An airstrip in the Northern Territory will be lengthened to support larger aircraft, firing ranges overhauled and new training facilities set up for defence personnel and US marines, The Australian newspaper reported.

Indonesia now has a total supply of 4.9 million doses with Monday's arrival of a second vaccine shipment through the COVAX Facility.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the suspension would remain in place until at least May 15 due to "clearly present" risks of travel from India, leaving thousands of Australians -- including high-profile cricketers -- stranded.