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☆ What are the cluster munitions the US is expected to supply Ukraine?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Brad Lendon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The United States is expected to announce a new military aid package for Ukraine on Friday that will include cluster munitions for the first time, defense officials have told CNN. Cluster munitions, also called cluster bombs, are canisters that carry tens to hundreds of smaller bomblets, also known as submunitions. The US has a stockpile of cluster munitions known as DPICMs, or dual-purpose improved conventional munitions, that it no longer uses after phasing them out in 2016. Yes, both the Ukrainians and the Russians have used cluster bombs since Moscow’s forces invaded in February 2022. “Any use of cluster munitions, anywhere, by anyone, must be condemned,” Carbonnier said.

Persons: Joe Biden’s, Andre Luis Alves, maim, ” Gilles Carbonnier, ” Carbonnier Organizations: CNN, Anadolu Agency, International Committee, Coalition, Rights Watch, Cluster Munitions, Human Rights Watch, US Central Command Locations: United States, Ukraine, Avdiivka, Washington, Kyiv, Laos, Vietnam, Russia, Switzerland, Iraq

☆ China's top-ranking diplomat told Japan and South Korea their people can dye their hair blonde and make their noses sharper but that they'll 'never become Westerners,' urging them to work with Beijing
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

China's top diplomat Wang Yi reminded Japanese and South Koreans of their ethnicity. "It doesn't matter how much you dye your hair blonde, how sharp you make your nose, you'll never become Europeans or Americans. You'll never become Westerners," Wang Yi told South Korean and Japanese guests at a conference in Qingdao on Monday. "We have to know where our roots are," the diplomat said, according to a recording of the conversation shared by Chinese media. Most Europeans and Americans aren't able to tell Chinese, Japanese, or Korean people apart, Wang added.

Persons: Wang Yi, Wang, —, you'll, You'll, aren't, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Antony Blinken Organizations: Service, South, Trilateral Cooperation, White, Washington Locations: South, Japan, South Korea, Beijing, Qingdao, China, Taiwan, Washington, Asia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar

☆ Two teenagers set off on a cycle trip around the world. It didn’t go according to plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Tamara Hardingham-Gill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Editor’s Note: Monthly Ticket is a CNN Travel series that spotlights some of the most fascinating topics in the travel world. CNN —He set off on a two-year cycling trip around the world with a friend shortly after graduating from high school in 2021. But just a few months into the journey, Adam Swanson from Minnesota, who was 17 at the time, found himself traveling solo. Long-held dreamSwanson has spent the past two years riding around 20 countries around the world, including Nepal. It’s been really easy.”Swanson spent around three months riding through Thailand waiting for the borders to open so that he could explore more of Southeast Asia.

Persons: we’re, Adam Swanson, Swanson, “, I’ll, ”, Adam Swanson “, we’ve, Henry, he’d, He’d, ” Swanson, I’m, It’s, Swanson’s, exhaustedly, ’ Swanson, Adam Swanson Swanson, ” He’s, he’s, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, University of Minnesota, CNN Travel, UPS, Annapurna Circuit, ” Locations: Minnesota, Nepal, Eastern Europe, Minneapolis, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Europe, India, Thailand, Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Pokhara, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Asia, Uzbekistan, Tashkent, Pakistan, Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Switzerland, South America, Chile, Argentina, Los Angeles, East Asia, Marrakesh, California

☆ The Vietnamese American Artists Searching for Identity
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Joshua Glass | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

An-My Lê can barely recall the Hawaiian shirt that the blond American wore when he put her into a black cargo van. When dawn broke, she took one last glance at the landscape through the windows of the American C-130 aircraft as it disappeared into the clouds. Complicated emotions of uncertainty and anger, guilt and abandonment all intersect for artists from Lê’s generation; those who are not fully Vietnamese in Vietnam nor American in America. Shrouded in war, these Vietnam-born American artists use their memories not so much as a political protest as an emotional inquiry, through the generational traumas that have plagued their families since the day they left home. And only now are Western institutions finally giving these displaced artists room to engage with these traumas.

Persons: Nam, Lê Organizations: Communist, Western Bloc, Air Base Locations: Saigon, South Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Việt Nam, United States, Republic of Vietnam, Vietnam, America

☆ These endangered leopards could be about to disappear in Cambodia
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Hong Kong CNN —The Indochinese leopard is dangerously close to becoming extinct in Cambodia, according to wild cat conservationists, who spent more than a decade looking for the creatures and found just 35. During that period, they only spotted 35 adult Indochinese leopards, and when they returned in 2021, not a single leopard could be seen. Historically, the Indochinese leopard was found throughout Indochina – spanning Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and parts of southwestern China – but almost all the territory they once roamed has disappeared due to human encroachment. Only 35 adult Indochinese leopards were seen between 2009 to 2021 in Cambodia, conservationist group Panthera found. While leopards are vanishing from Cambodia, their numbers in the wild along the Thailand-Myanmar border are likely less than 900, Rostro-García added.

Persons: Oxford University’s WildCRU, Hun Sen, ”, Susana Rostro, Gareth Mann Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Oxford, Biological Conservation, WWF, FA Cambodia, Global Forest Watch, IUCN Locations: Hong Kong, Cambodia, Indochina, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, China, WWF Cambodia, Malaysia

☆ From ice cream to cattle feed: Here are the winners and losers as the summer heat bears down
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

With temperatures hitting all-time highs, consumers are turning to ice cream and chilled drinks to beat the heat — and analysts say some sectors could benefit. Several Southeast Asian cities hit record high temperatures in May as global climate change exacerbates heat waves and air pollution in the region. A street vendor selling bottles of chilled water amid high temperatures in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Tuesday, June 6, 2023. "Use of air-conditioning will skyrocket, benefiting the HVAC industry but leading to extremely high levels of energy usage," said Allison Malmsten, public research director at Daxue Consulting. Cattle feeding at a cattle farm on December 13, 2020 in Pingliang, Gansu Province of China.

Persons: Bain, Zara Lightowler, Kuo, David Kuo, Allison Malmsten, Daxue, Rice Organizations: Getty, Company's, Vitasoy, Cola, PepsiCo, Bloomberg, Unilever, Smart Investor ., Daxue Consulting, Visual China, Co's, Sustainability Locations: Srinagar, Indian, Kashmir, Asia, El, Southeast Asia, Dhaka, Bangladesh, Pingliang, Gansu Province, China, Laos, Malaysia

Senior Southeast Asian officials said the so-called ASEAN Guide on AI Governance and Ethics was taking shape and would try to balance the economic benefits of the technology with its many risks. The other ASEAN countries are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The sources declined to comment further on what the AI guide would look like, given the early stage of the discussions and confidentiality of the ASEAN process. The sources, who included officials in three Southeast Asian countries, declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak to the media. The island city-state has been at the forefront of AI strategy in the region and is leading the talks to draw up the AI guide, according to three sources.

Persons: Fanny Potkin, Panu, Stephen Coates, William Mallard Organizations: Reuters, Regulators, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, Senior Southeast, ASEAN Digital Ministers, Singapore’s Ministry for Communications, Information, European Union, Media Development Authority, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, BANGKOK, ASEAN, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, United States, Europe, U.S

☆ Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked 'Pentagon Papers,' dies at 92
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Bill Trott | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

In his later years Ellsberg would become an advocate for whistleblowers and leakers and his "Pentagon Papers" leak was portrayed in the 2017 movie "The Post." Courtesy Daniel Ellsberg Papers, Robert S. Cox Special Collections and University Archives Research Center, UMass Amherst Libraries. Ellsberg secretly went to the media in 1971 in hopes of expediting the end of the Vietnam War. Courtesy Daniel Ellsberg Papers, Robert S. Cox Special Collections and University Archives Research Center, UMass Amherst Libraries. He said he was inspired to copy the "Pentagon Papers" after hearing an anti-war protester say he was looking forward to going to prison for resisting the draft.

Persons: Daniel Ellsberg, Ellsberg, Long, Edward Snowden, Robert S, Henry Kissinger, Robert McNamara, Richard Nixon, Lyndon Baines Johnson, CourtesyDaniel Ellsberg, John F, Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Gordon Liddy, Howard Hunt, Snowden, Chelsea Manning, Carol Cummings, Patricia Marx, Bill Trott, Kanishka Singh, Dan Grebler, Diane Craft Organizations: U.S, Wikileaks, University Archives Research Center, UMass Amherst Libraries, Nixon, State Department, Harvard, Marine Corps, Pentagon, RAND Corporation, Ellsberg's, Chiefs, Staff, RAND, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York Times, The Times, Washington Post, Times, FBI, UMass, Libraries, National Security Agency, WikiLeaks, Thomson Locations: Vietnam, Kensington , California, America, Saigon, United States, Boston, U.S, North Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, American, Chicago , Illinois

SINGAPORE/BANGKOK, June 16 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian countries are drawing up governance and ethics guidelines for artificial intelligence (AI) that will impose "guardrails" on the booming technology, five officials with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Senior Southeast Asian officials said the so-called ASEAN Guide on AI Governance and Ethics was taking shape and would try to balance the economic benefits of the technology with its many risks. The other ASEAN countries are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The sources, who included officials in three Southeast Asian countries, declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak to the media. The island city-state has been at the forefront of AI strategy in the region and is leading the talks to draw up the AI guide, according to three sources.

☆ Without climate change, these extreme weather events would not have happened
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Rachel Ramirez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

People often want to know if an extreme weather event happened because of climate change, said Friederike Otto, climate scientist and co-lead of the World Weather Attribution initiative. And, more often than not, they are finding the clear fingerprints of climate change on extreme weather events. “We’re always going to have extreme weather, but if we keep driving in this direction, we’re gonna have a lot of extreme weather,” said Ted Scambos, a glaciologist at the University of Colorado-Boulder. Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty ImagesSiberian heat wave, 2020In 2020, a prolonged, unprecedented heat wave seared one of the coldest places on Earth, triggering widespread wildfires. A study from the journal Nature Climate Change found the period from 2000 to 2021 was the driest the West has ever been in 1,200 years, noting human-caused climate change made the megadrought 72% worse.

Persons: Friederike Otto, Otto, We’re, we’re, ”, Ted Scambos, Alexander Nemenov, Andrew Ciavarella, Kathryn Elsesser, San Salvador de la, Aitor De Iturria, ” Otto, Mamunur Rahman Malik, “, Fadel Senna, Debarchan Chatterjee, Saeed Khan, koalas, David Paul Morris, Lake Powell, Hurricane Ian, Ricardo Arduengo, Ian, Lawrence, Abdul Majeed, António Guterres Organizations: CNN, University of Colorado -, Getty, UK’s Met, Oregon Convention, Northern, World Health Organization, South Asia, Bloomberg, Western, Stony Brook University, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory ., UN Locations: University of Colorado - Boulder, Siberia, AFP, Oregon, Portland, Pacific, . Oregon, Washington, Canada, British Columbia, Canadian, Lytton, San Salvador de, Cercs, Catalonia, Spain, North America, Europe, China, Dahably, Wajir County, Kenya, Africa, Horn of Africa, Somalia, Ethiopia, Masseoud, Morocco, Portugal, Algeria, Kolkata, India, South Asia, South, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Bangladesh, Thailand, New South Wales, Australia, Oroville, Oroville , California, States, California, Lake Oroville, Lake Mead, Lake, Nevada, Arizona, Mexico, Hurricane, Matlacha , Florida, Caribbean, Florida, Swat, Bahrain, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, Sindh, Balochistan

☆ Early humans left Africa earlier than previously thought, fossil discovery reveals
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

DNA analysis of present-day human populations has supported the hypothesis that early modern humans left Africa around 50,000 to 60,000 years ago, and archaeologists have thought our early ancestors likely followed coastlines and islands through southeast Asia toward Australia. However, a growing number of older human remains discovered in China and the Levant show that this chapter in the human story is more complicated than first thought. The cave was occupied by early humans for about 50,000 years, archaeologists believe. At a nearby site, known as Cobra Cave, a tooth believed to belong to a Denisovan, an elusive early human, has been found. The team expects to unearth more human fossils from the region.

Persons: sapiens, ”, Kira Westaway, ” Westaway, Westaway, Tam Pa Ling, Tam Pà Ling Organizations: CNN, Macquarie University, UNESCO, Heritage, Nature Communications Locations: Africa, Laos, Australia, Asia, China, Tam Pa, Sumatra, Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia

☆ Flight training for Chinese military pilots targeted in latest US export crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Karen Freifeld | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 12 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Monday added 43 entities to an export control list, including Frontier Services Group Ltd, a security and aviation company previously run by Erik Prince, for training Chinese military pilots and other activities that threaten U.S. national security. The Test Flying Academy of South Africa, a flight school under scrutiny by authorities in Britain for recruiting British ex-military pilots to train Chinese military fliers, was also added to the U.S. Commerce Department's Entity List. The aviation-related companies were listed for providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources, according to a rule posted for the Federal Register. Thirty-one Chinese entities in total were added to the list, some for acquiring U.S.-origin items in support of China's military modernization, such as hypersonic weapons development. Nine Chinese and Pakistani companies were added based on their contributions to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program and other weapons contributions.

Persons: Biden, Erik Prince, Prince, Karen Freifeld, Chris Sanders, Alistair Bell Organizations: Frontier Services Group Ltd, Flying Academy of South, U.S . Commerce, Frontier Services Group, United, United Arab Emirates, Federal Register, U.S, Shanghai Supercomputing Technology, Solutions, Thomson Locations: U.S, Flying Academy of South Africa, Britain, China, Kenya, Laos, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, United Kingdom, Xinjiang, China's, Latvia

☆ China can't rely on Southeast Asian exports to offset a U.S. slowdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Exports to the Association of Southeast Asia Nations have been growing. The 10-member bloc surpassed the European Union during the pandemic to become China's largest trading partner on a regional basis. Data showed that exports to Southeast Asia fell by 16% in May compared to a year ago, dragging down China's overall exports. Exports to the U.S. — China's largest trading partner on a single-country basis — fell by 18% from a year ago in U.S. dollar terms in May. At $42.48 billion, the U.S. exports in May were more than the $41.49 billion China exported to Southeast Asia that month, according to customs data.

Persons: That's, Bruce Pang, Pang Organizations: Association of Southeast Asia Nations, Union, Exports, —, ASEAN Locations: China's, Indonesia, BEIJING, China, Southeast Asia, U.S, Asia, JLL, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, The U.S

The average May temperature in Hanoi is 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit). “Which is why a humid heat wave is more dangerous than a dry heat wave,” she told CNN. This is above a threshold considered dangerous, especially for people with health problems or those not used to extreme heat. In Thailand, 20 days in April and at least 10 days in May reached feels-like temperatures above 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit). Throughout April and May, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Malaysia all had several days with potential to cause extreme heat stress.

Persons: ”, ” Phong, Dinh Van Hung, ” Dinh, Nhac Nguyen, Maximiliano Herrera, Herrera, Mariam Zachariah, Cyclone Mocha, ” Zachariah, Chaya Vaddhanaphuti, ” Emmanuel Raju, ” Raju, Madaree Tohlala, “ Nui, “, ” Nui, Andre Malerba, Chaya, –, Chintanaphone, Boua Seng, Lobia Yaw, Thongsouk, hasn’t Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, CNN, Getty, ” Workers, Imperial College London, WWA, Chiang Mai University, Copenhagen Center for Disaster Research, Labour Organization, Farmers, Weather, Lao Farmer Network Locations: Hong Kong, Hanoi, Vietnam, Dong Da district, “, Hanoi , Vietnam, AFP, Dinh, Southeast Asia, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Asia, Thai, Narathiwat, Bangkok, ”

☆ Jimmy Carter's legacy: How he welcomed refugees
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Catherine E. Shoichet | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

These steps Carter took during his presidency are still shaping the United States, decades after he left office. Because of Carter’s actions, hundreds of thousands of people fleeing persecution had a chance to come to the United States when he was commander-in-chief. A crisis that began before Carter took office was becoming increasingly dire by the day. That respect, Nguyen says, was earned by actions that Carter took that changed the course of her parents’ lives. “They were only able to do so because of the political courage exercised by President Carter,” she says.

Persons: Jimmy Carter’s, hasn’t, Carter, ”, Kai Bird, Jimmy Carter, Bird, Carter didn’t, Fred Ihrt, ” Carter, Bee Nguyen, it’s, Nguyen, ’, “, ” Nguyen, President Carter, AAPIHeritageMonth, –, ♥️, ince, ives, K unis,, inger, egina, sia, ould, ong, ake, ariel, haring, J, ross Organizations: CNN, CBS, The New York Times, White, ust, ashington Locations: United States, Southeast Asia, Vietnam, Saigon, Georgia, Thailand, Iowa, America, ife

☆ Caged and cut open for bile: The fight to free Asia’s farmed bears
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

But international experts say it remains a lucrative industry in China, where domestic sales of bear bile remain legal. “They’ve got massive hair loss, they’ve often got broken teeth from (biting the bars of their cages) in frustration and pain.”But eliminating bile farming has proved difficult. But China is “the biggest market for bear bile products by far,” with roughly 15,000 bile bears in captivity and plenty of demand, he said. Ursodeoxycholic acid, one of the main components in bear bile, has been medically proven to help dissolve gallstones and treat liver disease. And there’s no internationally recognized scientific evidence showing bear bile can cure other ailments promoted in TCM.

Persons: Eve Sevim, Jill Robinson, “ They’ve, they’ve, Robinson, David Garshelis, aren’t, Garshelis, ” Robinson, ”, ” Garshelis, Tan, Qing, it’s Organizations: CNN, Animals Asia, International Union for Conservation, Nature’s, Bear Specialist Group, TCM, Animals, Forestry Administration, Farmers, China’s National Forestry and Grassland Administration, State Forestry Administration, Bears, Getty, IUCN Locations: Haiphong, China, Vietnam, South Korea, Laos, Myanmar, Asia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hui'an, Animals Asia, Hanoi, “, Tam Dao, Hanoi –, Ma

☆ Asia's drug trade is thriving post-pandemic, UN report warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

There are other signs of the drug trade bouncing back. West African trafficking networks in East and Southeast Asia, which “all but disappeared” during the pandemic, have now resumed their activities, the report said. From Myanmar, meth and other synthetic drugs then travel out to the world, with shipments previously found as far away as Japan, New Zealand and Australia. It also pointed to the high number of drug-related arrests and admissions at drug treatment facilities as further evidence of robust trade. That figure is 167% higher than the previous year, according to the UNODC report.

Persons: ”, Jeremy Douglas, “, ” Douglas, Douglas, Inshik Sim Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, United Nations Office, Drugs, “, UNODC Regional Representative, Southeast, Central America Locations: Hong Kong, Asia, East, Southeast Asia, Yunnan, Myanmar, China, Thailand, Central, Laos, From Myanmar, Japan , New Zealand, Australia, South Asia, Bangladesh, India, Japan, Cambodia, France, Poland, Indonesia, South Korea

☆ What makes us human? Primate genome study offers some clues
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

While some genetic variations previously thought to be exclusive to people were found in other primate species, the researchers pinpointed others that were uniquely human involving brain function and development. They also used the primate genomes to train an artificial intelligence algorithm to predict disease-causing genetic mutations in humans. Human-related threats such as habitat destruction, climate change and hunting have left about 60% of primate species threatened with extinction and about 75% with declining populations. "The vast majority of primate species have significantly more genetic variation per individual than do humans," said genomicist and study co-author Jeffrey Rogers of the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas. The genome data can help identify the primate species in the most dire need of conservation efforts.

Persons: Thomas Mukoya, genomicist Lukas Kuderna, gibbons, Kuderna, Jeffrey Rogers, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, Barcelona Biomedical Research Park's Institute, Evolutionary, Illumina Inc, Baylor College of Medicine, Thomson Locations: Kinigi, Rwanda, Barcelona, Spain, Americas, Africa, Madagascar, Asia, Texas, China, Laos, Vietnam

☆ Southeast Asia's digital economy may be set to hit $1 trillion, but roadblocks remain
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A woman (R) adjusts the Philippines flag before the 51st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)- Republic of Korea Ministerial Meeting in Singapore on August 3, 2018. Southeast Asia's digital economy has plenty of growth potential, backed by strong fundamentals including over 460 million digital consumers, young and tech-savvy populations, as well as rising internet penetration. The digital economy across six countries within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc — known as ASEAN-6 and comprising Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam — is projected to grow 6% annually. From the urban-rural divide to low digital literacy, the region continues to grapple with challenges that could hold back that growth. "ASEAN's digital economy is expanding, but there is the digital divide," said Anthony Toh, research analyst at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, a think-tank within Nanyang Technological University.

Persons: Anthony Toh, Toh Organizations: 51st Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Google, Temasek, Bain & Company, Rajaratnam, of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, & $ Locations: Philippines, Republic, Korea, Singapore, ASEAN, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Nanyang, Brunei, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia

☆ This former Vietnam War POW spent 10 months in a 'tiger cage'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Brad Lendon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Instead he scrambled out of a porthole and found himself face-to-face with the North Vietnamese. A day that Wallingford recalled as clearly as if it were yesterday, as he recounted it to CNN at a recent reunion for surviving Vietnam War POWs in California. As a longtime veteran of combat in Vietnam, Smith also had battlefield wisdom to impart to his brothers in arms. But what can’t be disputed is that soon after those bombings took place, early in 1973, North Vietnam did finally agree to a peace deal. “He had the stones to go to Hanoi and bomb them for (12) days, which ended the war,” Wallingford said.

CNN —The Chinese city of Shanghai recorded its highest May temperature in more than 100 years on Monday, hitting a record 36.1 degrees Celsius (nearly 97 degrees Fahrenheit). It is unknown when the city began keeping temperature records. Monday’s record-breaking heat wave for May was recorded in the city’s Xuhui district, state media CCTV reported, citing the Shanghai Meteorological Department. Earlier Monday, the Shanghai Meteorological Department issued its first high temperature alert of the year as temperatures in the city surpassed 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) for three consecutive days. Across the entirety of 2022, Shanghai recorded 50 days of temperatures over 35 degrees Celsius.

☆ An empty station, a burning countryside, soot raining from the sky: This is what it's like to ride Laos' gleaming new $6 billion railway in April
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Laos is one of the few remaining communist countries in the world. But a shiny new railway funded by China now cuts through the countryside. It's a massive 1,000-kilometer, or 621-mile train network that aims to connect Laos with Thailand and Kunming in southern China. Despite being one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia, Laos took on a $1.8 billion loan from China to build the railway. I flew to Laos from Singapore in early April to experience first-hand how the historic railway is developing.

☆ Asia is in the middle of a record heatwave, and Russia is reaping the financial rewards of it
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Asian countries like India and China have been buying cheap Russian oil despite the sanctions. Now, they are also snapping up huge amounts of Russian coal and natural gas. That's on the back of a record heatwave in the region, which is driving the demand for air-conditioning. The country had imported a record 3.8 million tons of fuel from Russia in July, according to Kpler. Imports of Russian coal into China are high now partly due to the heatwave it's currently facing.

☆ Southeast Asia’s worst-performing stock market is UBS’s ‘top pick’
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Audrey Wan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Pita Limjaroenrat, leader of Move Forward Party, attends a press conference of the Thai pro-democracy parties in Bangkok. While the benchmark SET index initially rose when the results came through, but eventually gave up those early gains. In fact, Thai stocks are the worst performers in Southeast Asia this year, but Tay says Thailand is his "top pick" in the region. Thailand's SET index is down 9.22% this year, the biggest laggard in the broader Asia Pacific region. The Move Forward party has called for reforms to the monarchy, including changing its defamation law.

☆ World Bee Day 2023: 6 surprising things about bees
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Unfortunately, many bee species are under threat as a result of changes in land use, pesticides, intensive agriculture and climate change — but there are steps you can take to help them thrive. In honor of World Bee Day on May 20, here are six surprising things you might not know about nature’s hardest-working pollinators. “It marks the first report of honey bees of any species foraging for materials that are not derived from plants or water-based fluids. It is also the first clear-cut example of honey bees using a tool in nature.”Honeybees also signal an imminent attack by making a chilling warning noise. Bees are seen on a honeycomb cell at the Urban Bee Hive rooftop site in Woolloomooloo, a suburb of Sydney.

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