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China’s rebuilding of Micronesian airport runway...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

The rebuilding of a World War II-era airfield in Micronesia with the help of Chinese companies has raised alarm in the United States, with US defence analysts warning about Beijing’s growing footprint in the strategic western Pacific.Cleo Paskal, a non-resident senior fellow at the Washington-based Foundation for Defence of Democracies, posted a video on social media last week showing an airport runway being rebuilt on Woleai, a remote 4.5 sq km atoll in Micronesia’s Yap state. “Chinese

Robbery suspect flees Hong Kong hospital barefoot,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

A robbery suspect escaped police custody barefoot while being escorted for an X-ray scan at a hospital in Hong Kong, but he was rearrested hours later after stealing from a cabby while taxi hopping, the Post has learned. The 35-year-old suspect, surnamed Lam, was receiving stomach cancer treatment at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Jordan at around 11am on Friday when he escaped. He was escorted to get an X-ray scan by two police officers, both with around 20 years of experience in the force,

UN declares Gaza famine over, but ‘situation remains...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

A famine declared in Gaza in August is now over thanks to improved access for humanitarian aid, the United Nations said on Friday, but warned the food situation in the Palestinian territory remained dire. More than 70 per cent of the population were living in makeshift shelters, it said, with hunger exacerbated by winter floods and an increasing risk of hypothermia as temperatures plummet. Although a ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hamas that took effect in October has partially...

Malaysian cook’s toddler abuse at Singapore preschool...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Three former members of a Singapore preschool’s senior management admitted on Friday to covering up the offences of a cook who molested toddlers at the preschool where they all worked. The cook, 61-year-old Teo Guan Huat, had molested three toddlers during naptime over seven months in 2023. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to more than nine years’ jail last month. The three members of senior management were the 59-year-old executive director, 61-year-old principal and 49-year-old...

China’s Sugon unveils new AI infrastructure to rival...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Chinese supercomputer maker Sugon has launched an advanced artificial intelligence infrastructure for data centres that is expected to rival similar high-performance platforms from Nvidia and Huawei Technologies. Beijing-based Sugon, listed in Shanghai as Dawning Information Industry, on Thursday unveiled its scaleX platform at an event in Kunshan, a city in eastern Jiangsu province. The company claimed that it was China’s first 10,000-card AI supercluster, designed to deliver in excess of 5...

TikTok seals US deal but core algorithm could still...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

TikTok may have dodged a US ban but unresolved questions about its algorithm could remain a source of tension in the broader US-China relationship, according to analysts. ByteDance, the parent company of the social media site, signed a binding agreement this week to divest its US entity into a joint venture controlled by a consortium of American investors, ending years of legal and political uncertainties. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said in an internal memo on Thursday that the deal effectively...

TikTok reaches new US deal; China’s answer to...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. TikTok reaches deal on new US venture with American investor group In a landmark move that ends years of legal and political uncertainty, TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi informed employees that the company has signed a binding agreement to divest its US entity into a joint venture controlled by a consortium of American investors. 2. Chinese team builds optical

US defence policy act overstates ‘China threat’,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Beijing on Friday accused Washington of using its new US defence policy act to hype up the so-called China threat and interfere in its internal affairs. It also urged Washington to view their relationship “rationally” and refrain from enforcing negative China-related provisions. The latest National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA), signed into law by President Donald Trump on Thursday, restricts US outbound investment in Chinese technology and curbs federal contracts with Chinese

Anwar’s coalition revives Malaysian Chinese school...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

As Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration swings from one setback to another, his ruling coalition has turned to familiar talking points to regain the support of the country’s ethnic minorities. In the wake of a devastating defeat in the Sabah state election last month, members of Anwar’s ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition have renewed a push for government recognition of school leaving certificates issued by private Chinese high schools. The call, however, has driven a

Foreign ship gets penalty for illegally using...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

China has issued a penalty to a foreign vessel for illegally using Starlink – SpaceX’s satellite-based internet service – within Chinese waters in the first case of its kind, according to local media. The vessel, which was not identified, was found with a “micro rectangular antenna” installed on its top deck during a routine inspection by maritime law enforcement officers at Ningbo port in Zhejiang province, state-run Ningbo Daily reported on Wednesday. The Ningbo Maritime Safety

India’s parliament approves divisive rural jobs...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

India’s parliament pushed through an overhaul of a rural employment scheme on Friday despite an opposition walkout and a session that stretched well past midnight. The Developed India Employment Guarantee and Sustenance Mission bill will supersede a decades-old rural jobs scheme for millions of the country’s poorest. It replaces the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, a defining legacy of the previous left-leaning Congress government, which was in power from 2004 to

Secure Arctic shipping route essential for China,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

The Arctic shipping route is essential to safeguard China’s development over the next decade, a senior Chinese official said in Beijing, calling for greater efforts to expand its practical use. With proposals for the next five-year plan incorporating security and development, China must ensure its international transport channels remain unimpeded, Ma Jiantang, deputy director of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference’s economic committee, said. China’s traditional trade lanes...

Singapore cracks down on scammers with mandatory...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Singapore’s government said on Friday that scammers will face mandatory caning of up to 24 strokes from December 30, under changes to criminal law to deter surging fraud cases. The changes, passed by parliament last month, strengthen penalties that already include imprisonment and fines. The Home Affairs Ministry said the enhanced punishment “ensure that our criminal laws remain effective, fair, and responsive to emerging challenges”. Under the changes, scammers, including recruiters and

China eyes mastery of EUV lithography, bolstering AI...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

China’s reported development of its own extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machine to make advanced semiconductors for artificial intelligence and high-performance computer systems could provide a “massive” boost to the country in its tech rivalry with the United States, according to analysts. Scientists at a high-security Shenzhen laboratory earlier this year built “what Washington has spent years trying to prevent”: a prototype EUV lithography machine, according to a Reuters report on...

Landmark in-air refuelling test extends China’s drone...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Northwestern Polytechnical University has conducted what could be China’s first openly reported autonomous aerial refuelling flight test, according to scientists involved in the project. Two unidentified unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) were used in the refuelling tests. One served as the tanker with a refuelling pod and the other as the receiver. In high-speed formation flights, the receiver autonomously located, tracked and docked with the tanker under extreme conditions using a highly robust...

Taiwan’s opposition lawmakers vow to impeach leader...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Taiwan’s main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) announced on Friday they would try to impeach the island’s leader, William Lai Ching-te, according to reports from Taiwanese media. Fu Kun-chi, the convenor of the KMT caucus in Taiwan’s parliament, accused Lai of undermining constitutional norms and behaving in an authoritarian manner. “Lai must step down and Taiwan must not allow the emergence of figures like Yuan Shikai or Cao Kun,” Fu said, according

China discovers Asia’s largest undersea gold deposit...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

China has discovered its first undersea gold deposit – the largest in Asia – marking a breakthrough as Beijing steps up nationwide exploration for the precious metal. The discovery, off the coast of Laizhou, in Yantai, Shandong province, lifted Laizhou’s total proven gold reserves to more than 3,900 tonnes (137.57 million ounces) – about 26 per cent of the national total – ranking it top in both gold reserves and output in China, Yantai’s city government disclosed this week at a conference on...

Putin warns West as Russia eyes more Ukrainian...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Friday said the ball was in the court of the West and Kyiv in talks to end the war in Ukraine, while hailing Moscow’s recent battlefield gains and threatening more. Putin spoke during his annual end-of-year press conference – a staple of his 25-year rule – in which he told Russians Moscow was intent on pressing on in Ukraine, striking a confident tone. The 73-year-old has repeatedly said in recent weeks that Moscow will seize the rest of Ukrainian land he has...

BeOne Medicines names R&D chief Wang Lai as...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

BeOne Medicines, a global drug company that originated as a research and development (R&D) firm in Beijing, promoted Wang Lai to the newly created role of co-president, marking a leadership expansion as the company advances its late-stage pipeline and globalisation efforts. The 48-year-old has served as the company’s global head of R&D since April 2021. Effective January, Wang would take the helm of an expanded portfolio, retaining his R&D responsibilities while also overseeing business...

Trump leaves war with Venezuela on the table,...

News - South China Morning Post ·

2025/12/19

US President Donald Trump said he was leaving the possibility of war with Venezuela on the table, according to an interview with NBC News published on Friday. “I don’t ⁠rule it out, no,” he told NBC News in a phone interview. Trump also said there would be additional seizures of oil tankers near Venezuelan waters, according to the interview. The US seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela last week. “If ‍they’re foolish enough to be sailing along, they’ll be sailing along

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