Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 272

North Korea’s Covid caseload passes 2 million amid global concern about regime’s pandemic plan

Experts have questioned North Korea’s claim that it is achieving “good results” in its battle against a Covid-19 outbreak, as the number of people with symptoms of the virus surpassed 2 million. The regime reported 263,370 new fever cases on Friday and two deaths, taking the total caseload to 2.24 million, including 65 deaths, according to state news agency KCNA.It did not report how many of

Shanghai declares zero-Covid milestone but residents cast doubt on reopening

Shanghai officials on Tuesday said they had achieved "zero-Covid at the community level" in what appeared to be a turning point in a heavy-handed and costly campaign to tame an Omicron outbreak -- but many residents remain skeptical the city will reopen anytime soon. "Zero-Covid at the community level" means infections are no longer found outside centralized quarantine facilities or neighborhoods

Biden arrives in South Korea with worries growing over possible North Korean missile test

President Joe Biden arrived here Friday on a mission to reaffirm a key alliance at an uncertain moment in East Asia. Even as the war in Ukraine has preoccupied Washington -- and took up the first half of Biden's day before he departed for Asia -- provocations from North Korea have intensified and China continues flexing its economic and military might. Biden wants to show his top partners here he

5 Asian military hotspots and how they play into Biden's visit

United States President Joe Biden arrives in Asia this week, visiting South Korea and Japan, with the region facing its most volatile security environment in decades. Hot spots including Taiwan, North Korea, the South China Sea, the India-China border and the Kuril Islands have all seen a Ukraine effect, as Russia's war accelerates regional security concerns -- while providing lessons that major

Sri Lanka defaults on debt for first time in its history

Sri Lanka has defaulted on its debt for the first time in its history as the country struggles with its worst financial crisis in more than 70 years. It comes after a 30-day grace period to come up with $78m (£63m) of unpaid debt interest payments expired on Wednesday. The governor of the South Asian nation's central bank said the country was now in a "pre-emptive default". Later on Thursday, two

White House braced for North Korean nuclear test during Biden’s Asia trip

The White House is braced for a North Korean missile or nuclear test while Joe Biden is on a trip to South Korea and Japan, which begins on Thursday. The national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters on Wednesday: “Our intelligence does reflect the genuine possibility that there will be either a further missile test, including long-range missile test, or a nuclear test, or frankly both

South Korea and Japan just don't get along. That's a problem for Biden

In uniting Western democracies against Russia's invasion of Ukraine, United States President Joe Biden managed something his critics thought was impossible. Before Moscow's unprovoked war, European nations were split over issues ranging from Russian energy pipelines to Brexit and -- with lingering resentments dating back to Trump-era trade disputes and the Iraq war -- some even appeared to be

North Korea sends cargo planes to China as country fights pandemic

Three North Korean cargo planes flew to China and back on Monday, as the country battles an fast-spreading outbreak of Covid-19, according to a South Korean government official with knowledge of the matter. The planes traveled to Taoxian International Airport in Shenyang, in China's northeast Liaoning province, the official said. It's unknown what the planes were carrying, but the rare trip came

Cave discovery in Laos could unlock more about human evolution's biggest mystery

A tooth unearthed from a remote cave in Laos is helping to sketch an unknown chapter in the human story. Researchers believe the tooth belonged to a young female who lived at least 130,000 years ago and was likely a Denisovan -- an enigmatic group of early humans first identified in 2010. The lower molar is the first fossil evidence placing Denisovans in Southeast Asia and may help untangle a

Indian court frees killer of ex-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi

India's top court on Wednesday granted the release of a man convicted of killing former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, 31 years after his imprisonment. The Supreme Court invoked extraordinary powers to release A. G. Perarivalan, his attorney told CNN. Perarivalan was arrested a few weeks after Gandhi was assassinated in a suicide bomb attack on May 21, 1991, in the southern state of Tamil