Unresolved differences about engagement with Myanmar’s military rulers are causing discord among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), diplomats and government officials said, as a ministers’ meeting set for this week was pushed back.

China’s birth rate plummeted to a record low last year, official data showed yesterday, as analysts warn that faster-than-expected ageing could deepen economic growth concerns.

North Korea fired two suspected short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM) yesterday from an airport in its capital city of Pyongyang, South Korea’s military reported, the fourth test this month to demonstrate its expanding missile arsenal.  

Chinese President Xi Jinping yesterday warned that confrontation between major powers could have “catastrophic consequences” in a speech to world leaders at an all-virtual Davos forum. 

A couple from Tamil Nadu has announced to host their wedding reception virtually in Metaverse.

The birth rate in China plummeted to a record low last year, official data showed Monday, as analysts warn that faster-than-expected ageing could deepen economic growth concerns.

Eminent stage actress Shaoli Mitra, daughter of legendary theatre personalities Sambhu Mitra and Tripti Mitra, died at her residence in South Kolkata today of heart ailments at the age of 74.

The Taliban have dismissed about 3,000 members accused of abusive practices from its hardline Islamist movement in a widespread “vetting process” launched since coming to power, an official said Saturday.

Deposed Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi is “indispensable” in restoring democracy to the military-ruled country and must be included in any peace talks, regardless of her conviction, the Philippines’ foreign minister said yesterday.

The Editors Guild of India today condemned the manner in which the office and the management of Kashmir Press Club (KPC) were “forcibly taken over” by a group of journalists with the help of armed policemen.

Thailand has reported its first death from the highly contagious Omicron coronavirus variant, a health official said.

Representatives of Myanmar’s junta are expected to challenge the jurisdiction of the World Court to hear allegations the country committed genocide against its Rohingya minority in a fresh round of hearings from Feb 21, the attorney general of Gambia, which brought the case, told Reuters on Friday.

An Omicron case has been detected in Beijing, officials in the Chinese capital said yesterday, as the country battles multiple outbreaks of the highly transmissible coronavirus variant ahead of the Winter Olympics.

Singapore’s leader said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) should continue excluding Myanmar’s junta from its meeting until it cooperates on an agreed peace plans.

A Myanmar junta court has hit ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi with five new corruption charges related to the alleged hiring and purchase of a helicopter, sources close to the case told AFP.

China reaffirmed its opposition to unilateral sanctions by the United States against Iran as the Chinese and Iranian foreign ministers announced the launch of a 25-year cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening economic and political ties.

Representatives of Myanmar's junta are expected to challenge the jurisdiction of the World Court to hear allegations the country committed genocide against its Rohingya minority in a fresh round of hearings from February 21, the attorney general of Gambia, which brought the case, told Reuters on Friday.

Myanmar junta has ordered all military personnel not to answer letters related to arrest warrants or summons from the International Criminal Court (ICC) or the Argentinian judiciary on the human rights violations of the Rohingya and other communities.

Indian bomb disposal experts cordoned off a busy flower market in the capital New Delhi yesterday after finding an improvised explosive device left in an abandoned bag, police said.

North Korea fired at least two ballistic missiles yesterday, its third test in less than two weeks, just hours after criticising a US push for new sanctions over the previous launches as a “provocation” and warning of a strong reaction.