Singapore pays its political leaders high salaries to attract talent and deter graft, but the issue is thorny in the city-state, where the median wage worker made S$5,775 a month in 2025.

Malaysia had declared the emergency on Friday after thick haze caused by fires in Kalimantan pushed air pollution up to hazardous levels. Sarawak has been heavily affected by fires in Indonesia's Kalimantan, with the haze forcing school closures in some parts of the state.

Launched under the banner of “Bringing Asia Closer,” the digital publication, titled ‘Inside Asia’s Hidden Heritage Treasures,’ aims to offer global and regional readers an authentic glimpse into the continent’s shared identity. (You can download the e-book here.)

President Donald Trump threatened Monday to block US sales of Canadian plane maker Bombardier unless it builds aircrafts in the country, complaining of "unjust and unfair" bilateral trade provisions as he escalates a tariff war.

The number of vessels allowed through the waterway connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans will be progressively lowered from 36 per day to 32 by mid-September.

Voters and election officials still do not know what rules may govern millions of mail ballots, as Trump asks the Supreme Court to revive curbs blocked by a federal judge and as states scramble to prepare for changes that could come after voting has begun.

The United States' move to welcome Russia back to a meeting of G20 countries on Monday while denying some journalists access to the gathering dismayed some finance leaders present, deflecting from its bid to focus talks on global economic growth.

The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany scored its biggest win yet Sunday with 44 percent of the vote in the Saxony-Anhalt, against about 18 percent for the center-right CDU, according to broadcasters' projections.

"The American representatives prepared thoroughly for this trip," Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters, including AFP.

Iran threatened the United States with "economic warfare" on Tuesday and said it had fired an advanced missile at US warships, underscoring the risks of further escalation in the war only days after both sides traded blows again.

US and Iranian forces fired at vessels in waters around Iran on Saturday, including three Iranian oil carriers struck by the Americans and three tankers that Iran said it targeted while on unauthorized routes in the Strait of Hormuz.

The new map, known as the Equal Earth cartographic projection, improves "the accuracy of the cartographic representation of the world," the resolution said.

At the start of Operation Iron Wall, Israeli military, police and other forces entered the camps and killed civilians, destroyed hundreds of homes and damaged infrastructure, according to the UN rights office.