The United States (US) on Monday accused China of intimidation in the South China Sea as it put forward its strongest language yet rejecting Beijing’s claims in the strategic, dispute-rife waters.The Pacific powers traded tit-for-tat barbs over the South China Sea at a regional summit in Bangkok, with Beijing accusing the US of ratcheting up tensions in the waters, a key global shipping route.Beijing lays claim to huge swathes of the sea, where it is accused of building military inst

A Muslim man left in a coma after being interrogated at a notorious Thai detention centre died Sunday, as pressure mounts on the army to release further findings of a probe into the case.Abdulloh Esormusor, a suspected rebel from the country's restive south died early Sunday morning, more than a month after he was taken to the Inkayuth military camp, his cousin Mohammatrahmat Mamu told reporters. The army could not immediately be reached for comment but previously said Abdulloh&

While ASEAN is increasingly coordinating its efforts to reinforce regional cybersecurity, more needs to be done to address the constantly evolving threats.Data fraud/theft and cyberattacks were the fourth and fifth biggest threats facing the world according to the nearly 1,000 decision-makers surveyed by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in this year’s Global Risks Report, and it is clear that stakeholders in the public and private sector as well as academia and civil society should intensify ef

The United States (US)-China trade war and the stalled negotiations for trade pacts and maritime guidelines were among the main issues at last week’s 34th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok, highlighting the region’s concerns over growing geopolitical and trade tensions.Global trade is facing uncertainties after the US and China embarked on a see-saw of tariffs last year, with Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte calling for the two economic superpowers to “resolve their differences before the situation s

With Southeast Asia awash in rubbish, from plastic-choked whales to trash-clogged canals, its leaders are planning to push through a deal to fight maritime debris at a regional meeting this weekend. Just five Asian countries – China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand – dump more than half of the eight million tonnes of plastic waste that end up in oceans every year, according to a 2017 Ocean Conservancy report.The region has come under fire for not doing enough to tack

Malaysia's prime minister on Friday vowed to help Rohingya Muslims seeking refuge in Malaysia, reiterating the call for Southeast Asian leaders to "stop the oppression" of the stateless minority group expelled from Myanmar. Last year Mahathir Mohamad castigated Myanmar civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' (ASEAN) meet in Singapore for defending the military's crackdown on the Rohingya. His direct condemn