Author: Publisher
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (Reuters/File photo) Ferdinand Marcos will make the first state visit to Japan by a Philippine president in over a decade next month, the presidential palace said Friday, at a time of deepening security cooperation between the two countries.Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako will receive Marcos and his wife Louise during the May 26-29 trip, with the Filipino leader also set to meet Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the palace statement said.Marcos and Takaichi “are expected to discuss the future trajectory of the Philippines-Japan Strengthened Strategic Partnership” as well as international developments, “especially with regard to energy and food security, and maritime security”, it said.The World War II foes have been strengthening military ties in recent years, with Tokyo supplying coast guard ships and radar systems and signing a reciprocal access deal that allowed Japanese troops to take part for the first time in annual US-Philippines military exercises.About 1,400 Japanese personnel are currently in the Philippines for the sprawling, 19-day exercise known as Balikatan, or “Shoulder to Shoulder”.Tokyo has also been a key financer of Manila’s efforts to modernise patrol craft and maritime surveillance systems used in the disputed South China Sea.China claims nearly the entirety of the strategic waterway despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.In February, US, Japanese and Philippine aircraft patrolled over the Bashi Channel that separates the Philippines from Taiwan, which China considers part of its territory, to test what Manila called their “ability to operate seamlessly together in complex maritime environments”.Little more than 100 kilometres (60 miles) separates the Philippines and self-ruled Taiwan, which China has not ruled out taking by force.Manila said Marcos will also meet with Japanese business groups and members of the Filipino community.His state visit would be the first by an incumbent Filipino leader since Benigno Aquino’s trip to Tokyo in 2015. Related Story Source link
Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan will face compatriots Mohamed Ehab and Moussa al-Khair today After impressive group-stage performances, the country’s two men’s teams will meet in an all-Qatari round of 16 clash in the beach volleyball competition at the Asian Beach Games – Sanya 2026 today.The first team of Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan booked their place at the top of Group B after a hard-fought 2-1 (21-11, 21-23, 15-13) victory over Iran yesterday, underlining their strong title credentials. Meanwhile, the second team of Mohamed Ehab and Moussa al-Khair finished runners-up in their group following a 0-2 defeat to hosts China, setting up a direct encounter with their compatriots. The fixture guarantees Qatar a place in the quarter-finals and reflects the teams’ impressive group-stage performances. Younousse and Tijan had earlier secured wins over the Maldives and Uzbekistan, while Ehab and al-Khair recorded victories against Saudi Arabia and Macau before their loss to China. In the women’s competition, Haya Abu Issa and Laila Mohammed exited after a 0-2 defeat to China.Qatar is represented by four teams—two men’s and two women’s—reflecting growing participation and the sport’s expanding continental presence. Meanwhile, Qatar’s beach handball team faces Thailand today, aiming to secure a place in the semi-finals and continue its title defence. The team enters the match in strong form, having recorded five consecutive wins against Pakistan, Oman, Bangladesh, Mongolia and Jordan to top the group with 10 points. Drawn in a competitive group that also includes the Maldives and Thailand, Qatar has maintained a high level from the outset. Today’s match is key to confirming top spot and shaping the knockout path, ahead of the final group fixture against the Maldives tomorrow. The semi-finals are set for Tuesday, with the final on Thursday, as Qatar looks to extend its winning run and move closer to another title. Bright start for Qatar’s men’s 3×3 basketball team Qatar’s men’s 3×3 basketball team opened their Asian Beach Games – Sanya 2026 campaign with two wins, defeating Bahrain 21-11 and Kazakhstan 22-15 to boost their qualification chances.The team delivered strong performances in both matches, imposing a fast pace and making the most of scoring opportunities through effective teamwork to secure a perfect start. In contrast, the women’s team lost their opener 5-21 to China. The men conclude the group stage against India tomorrow, a key match for their progression, while the women face Kazakhstan next. The knockout rounds begin on Tuesday, with the competition concluding on Wednesday with the semi-finals and final. The men’s squad includes Mohammed Bashir, Dejan Janic, Nadim Muslic and Osman Deng, while the women’s team features Sama Jasser, Tania Al-Tawil, Mona Al-Sayed and Alaa Suleiman, reflecting continued efforts to support and expand the sport. Elsewhere, Qatar’s sailing team continue its participation, with Tamim Shams set to compete in the sixth and seventh races of the Optimist class for boys, while Thani Shams will race in the sixth and seventh rounds of the ILCA 4 class. The competition follows a cumulative format in which all sailors take part in every race, with final standings determined by the total results across ten races running through Tuesday. This system requires consistent performance, while also allowing competitors to improve their positions with each race amid close competition, as the Qatari sailors aim to achieve strong results and enhance their overall standings. China extended its lead in the medal standings after yesterday’s events, with 19 medals (9 gold, 8 silver, 2 bronze). Thailand moved into second with eight medals (3 gold), followed by the Philippines in third with six (3 gold). The United Arab Emirates ranked fourth with six medals (2 gold), while Vietnam placed fifth with five medals (2 gold), as competition remains tight heading into the final stages. Source link
More than 1,000 firefighters in northern Japan battled to contain two wildfires for a fourth straight day on Saturday, as the blazes pushed closer to residential areas and forced more than 3,000 residents to evacuate.The combined area affected amounts to the third largest recorded in Japan, where forest fires have intensified in recent years.The first fire broke out on Wednesday in a mountainous area and then a second nearby threatened residential districts in the town of Otsuchi in Iwate Prefecture.Hilly terrain, dry weather and winds are hampering containment efforts, a fire department official told reporters.By Saturday, the fires had scorched about 730 hectares (1,800 acres), prompting evacuation orders covering 1,541 households and 3,233 people – about a third of Otsuchi's population.The town is scarred by the memory of one of Japan's worst disasters, the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami when it lost nearly a tenth of its population.’Even during the 2011 disaster, this area didn't burn. There was a tsunami but we had no fire here,’ said Taeko Kajiki, 76, a former nurse, who was among those who have been evacuated since Friday.She said she had stayed up all night watching the red glow of the flames and had packed her bankbook and medical cards as well as the turtle she has kept as a pet since 2010.The firefighters on the ground were supported by helicopters from several prefectures and Japan’s Self Defense Forces, which carried out aerial water drops to try to halt the advance of the fires.’With the land so dry, fires keep igniting. We put one out, then race to extinguish another, over and over again,’ said Masashi Kikuchi, a 37-year-old volunteer firefighter, who moved to a house on higher ground after losing his home to the 2011 tsunami.Eight buildings, including one residential home, have been damaged or destroyed so far, though no injuries or fatalities have been reported, authorities said.’I can't let people lose their homes again after losing them once to the tsunami,’ Otsuchi Mayor Kozo Hirano told reporters. He said the town would seek help from other authorities and provide services, such as hot baths, to help ease stress among residents.While Japan has experienced relatively few wildfires compared with other parts of the globe, climate change has increased their frequency, especially as the early spring months before the humid rainy season have been hot, dry and with winds that can whip up flames.The Japan Meteorological Agency said no rain was forecast for the region over the coming week.According to official figures, the amount of land on fire around Otsuchi is second only to the major forest fire in Ofunato in 2025, which consumed about 3,370 hectares, and the Kushiro fire in 1992, which burned 1,030 hectares. Source link
France’s Cyrine Cherif delivered a composed performance to win the Diamond Round 150cm class during the eleventh round of the Longines Hathab – Qatar Equestrian Tour held at the main arena of the Qatar Equestrian Federation yesterday. Cherif guided Triple T Calamando Blue to a faultless finish in 31.48 seconds. Saudi Arabia’s Khaled al-Eid secured second place aboard Rakker Dmc in 32.11 seconds, while Qatar’s Mohammed Saeed Haidan finished third riding Wathnan Stand By Me in 32.36s seconds. Speaking after her victory, Cherif said: “My horse was a bit slow today so I was cautious and stayed steady and it worked. I’m glad to have won but I would have been happy with any podium finish. My horse had too much to do through the season and the Doha Equestrian Tours. But yes, having won a Grand Prix at DET, even 1.50m now appears smaller when I go into the arena.” In the Bronze Tour 120cm, Qatar’s Hussain Saeed Haidan claimed first place riding D Saucedo in 28.77 seconds. Saudi Arabia’s Khaled al-Hadi finished second aboard Carlton de Sauvageonn in 29.33 seconds, while Kuwait’s Annaz al-Annaz took third place with Be Bop de Lyons in 29.41 seconds. In the Bronze Tour Teams event, Marwan Al Shaqab secured first place with a clear round in 61.93 seconds, followed by Ajwad in second place with 72.89 seconds, while Gazal Al Shaqab finished third after incurring four faults in 63.70 seconds. In the Future Riders 90cm class, Qatar’s Salha Khalid al-Obaidli claimed first place riding Violet Van Het Koetshuis in 21.57 seconds. Alqaqaa Tamim al-Thani finished second aboard Bon Suela in 22.34 seconds, while Fahad Talal al-Naimi secured third place with Kroaat Van Orchid’s in 23.05 seconds. Meanwhile, in the first dressage competitions, Sharifa Ahmed al-Ansari was crowned Amateur (Introductory Level) champion in Group 7 with a score of 70.119 points. Georgina Roy Khan won the Introductory Level 2 title in Group 7 with 72.625 points, while Hamad Nasser al-Marri recorded 71.5 points to top the Junior category for the Introductory Level 2 test. Michelle Grimes also claimed first place in the Dressage Level 1 class in Group 7 with 70.425 points. Source link
Participants pour coconut milk into bamboo tubes as they prepare to cook lemang, a traditional glutinous rice dish stuffed into bamboo tubes and filled with coconut…
His Excellency President of the Olympic Council of Asia Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani, awarded the medals to the top three finalists of the Women’s 4x60m Relay during the 6th Asian Beach Games Sanya 2026, currently being held in Sanya, People’s Republic of China.The Thai team won the gold medal after a remarkable performance, while the Philippines team took silver, and China finished third, earning the bronze.HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani congratulated the winners on their achievement, praising the high level of skill displayed by the competitors and the spirit of fair play that embodied the Olympic values uniting Asian athletes. He also commended the efforts of the organizing committee in ensuring the success of this major continental event. Source link
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attend a press briefing following their meeting in Qabala, Azerbaijan, yesterday. (Reuters) Ukraine and Azerbaijan signed six co-operation agreements yesterday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, as he pushes to share Kyiv’s drone expertise amid the Middle East war.Zelensky has clinched several defence deals with Gulf countries that suffered Iranian drone attacks with Kyiv offering its experience and expertise after more than four years of relentless Russian strikes.“We have signed six documents today,” said Zelensky in the Azerbaijan capital Baku, without specifying which fields. “Today, the number one area is security. This concerns the defence-industrial complex,” he said. “We have shared our experience in countering the aggressor today”.Speaking alongside Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, Zelensky said Ukrainian drone experts were already working in Azerbaijan, a former Soviet republic on the Caspian Sea that borders southern Russia. In early March, drones launched from Iran hit an Azerbaijani airport and exploded near a school, wounding four people and raising fears of a spillover of the conflict into the Caucasus.Since then, already tepid relations between Baku and Tehran have declined further. The Ukrainian president also said he was ready to hold trilateral talks on ending the war with Russia in Azerbaijan, if Moscow showed a willingness to do so.“We shared with the president of Azerbaijan that we are ready for trilateral talks,” said Zelensky. Azerbaijan repeatedly expressed support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sent humanitarian aid after the Russian invasion in 2022.Ties between Moscow and Baku have cooled over the past year, after an Azerbaijani passenger plane was mistakenly hit by a Russian anti-aircraft missile in 2024, causing a crash that killed 38. Source link
Tonnes of packaged rare earth minerals sat ready for shipping from a Malaysian plant to loosen China’s grip on supplies of the critical elements. (AFP) Workers load tonnes of rare earth minerals into bags ready for shipping at a refinery in eastern Malaysia, fuelling the global pushback against China’s grip on the critical sector. Rare earths are a key ingredient in products ranging from smartphones to fighter jets, electric cars and wind turbines — and increasingly for hardware powering the artificial intelligence (AI) boom.Global jitters about Beijing’s dominance as a rare earths producer have kicked Australian mining giant Lynas into action, expanding its portfolio of rare earths refined in Malaysia as it hopes to boost its approximately 10% share of the market. China makes up the other 90% of the world’s market, stoking fears about Beijing’s ability to choke global supplies. “China has built its success on executing a clear industrial plan — it takes us to be serious about it,” Lynas company’s chief executive Amanda Lacaze told AFP. Pushing against Chinese dominance will “take discipline, focus and clear planning”, she said during a rare press visit to the company’s sprawling chemical plant in Malaysia’s Gebeng industrial hub, near the coastal city of Kuantan. The Lynas facility in Gebeng is now the world’s largest single rare earths processing plant. Since 2012, the facility has been refining pure metals from raw materials mined in Western Australia, in an intensive and complicated separation procedure.It currently handles 11 of the 17 rare earths — a number that is increasing — with plans to expand even further to include “heavies” such as yttrium and lutetium, used for lasers, medical imaging and cancer therapy. From the plant, the bags are transported to Port Klang on the other side of Malaysia, and leave on a ship for Japan, where the metal powders are turned into high-performance magnets used in advanced industries such as electronics and aerospace. Most bags contain NdPr, short for neodymium-praseodymium, a rare-earth mixture and key magnet material, which sells for around $100,000 per bag.Smaller quantities of other separated heavy rare earth oxides like dysprosium, terbium and samarium are sold in 25kg tins.Rare earths are so vital for the global economy that they have become a flashpoint in the blistering trade war between the US and China. Beijing leveraged its grip on the precious minerals in spectacular fashion last October, reaching a deal with Washington to pause the trade war after its curbs on exports rattled markets and snarled supply chains.Supply of rare earths is expected to be a key discussion point at an upcoming summit between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing set for mid-May. But the challenge for Lynas is not its production capacity, chief operating officer Pol Le Roux said.Instead, incentives are needed to boost downstream capacity — the ability to turn raw minerals into a finished product — which is “growing too slowly”, he told AFP. Lacaze said the company was already partnering with magnet makers to close the gap between rare-earth processing and manufacturing.However, she stressed: “We won’t just say that we are going to wake up tomorrow and be a magnet maker.”Producing rare earths requires heavy chemicals and can produce toxic waste, with cases including illegal operations polluting Mekong tributaries in Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia with arsenic and cadmium. Lynas got the green light last month from the Malaysian government to process rare earths there for another 10 years. The licence was issued as environmental watchdogs such as Greenpeace raised concerns over the management of radioactive by-products. Under the latest agreement, the government said the company must now halt all activities that produce radioactive waste within five years of its renewed operating licence. Lynas however, says its by-product from rare earth refining produces a non-toxic, non-radioactive magnesium-rich gypsum and an iron phosphate with a very low level of naturally occurring radioactive material.Existing by-product is already stored in a permanent disposal facility “constructed and managed to ensure the material does not impact on the surrounding environment,” the company said.Lynas also has ambitions to diversify further into producing rare earths as catalysts over the next decade.Rare earths are particularly important as a low-cost catalyst in the hydrogen supply chain, for instance, in the recovery process when the gas is transported long-haul as ammonia.“In 10 years from now, I expect this to be a substantial part of the business,” Le Roux said. …
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that Turkiye could consider taking part in demining operations in the Strait of Hormuz following a possible peace agreement between Iran and the United States. Fidan said any demining work would be carried out by a technical team from various countries, formed after a possible Iran-US peace agreement Turkiye would have “no problem” with participating in mine-clearing operations under those conditions Fidan cautioned that Turkiye would reassess its position if any future technical coalition of countries became a party to renewed conflict Fidan also said he believed issues related to Iran’s nuclear programme could be resolved at the next round of talks in Pakistan. Source link
With US gas prices up, President Donald Trump’s approval ratings down and the Iran war dragging on, Republicans are recalibrating their blueprint ahead of November’s midterm elections. The strategy? Seek to tap Trump’s turnout power without making the races a referendum on an increasingly unpopular president. In a closed-door meeting this week with top conservative campaign officials, Trump’s political advisers, including White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, political chief James Blair and longtime pollster Tony Fabrizio, outlined a plan for candidates to promote Republicans’ tax cuts and inflation-fighting policies, according to four people familiar with the gathering. But Republicans want to avoid making Trump himself the focus of the campaign, as strategists worry that his sagging political fortunes could hurt candidates in competitive congressional races. Trump’s party faces an uphill battle to keep its House of Representatives majority, and a growing risk of losing control of the Senate. Among some Republican operatives, concern is increasing that Trump’s presidency — and political clout — are running out of gas, according to three of the people, plus another seasoned Republican campaign source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private meetings and offer candid assessments. Trump appears mired in a deadlock with Iran, with both military and diplomatic efforts falling far short of denuclearising the Islamic Republic and reopening the Strait of Hormuz after two months of war. Rising gas prices — the national average is near $4 per gallon – threaten to neutralise new tax policies from Republicans’ “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” the signature legislative achievement of Trump’s second term. Only 36% of Americans approve of Trump’s job performance, the lowest of his current term, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. And many Americans, including some Republicans, have some concerns about the 79-year-old president’s temperament and mental sharpness following a series of explosive outbursts. “Are going to try to nationalise the election and say we’re a rubber stamp for Trump,” a Trumpworld political strategist told Reuters. “We have to break out of that and show race by race why we’re the better choice.”Inside the president’s political operation, enthusiasm remains strong that Trump is an effective messenger. Kiersten Pels, national press secretary for the Republican National Committee, said that Trump would remain “the most powerful driver” of conservative voter turnout in the midterms, and that Republican candidates are eagerly seeking his endorsement. White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said Trump was the “unequivocal leader of the Republican party and he is committed to maintaining Republicans’ majority in Congress.” Over coffee and pastries in the meeting on Monday held at what was once Trump’s luxury Washington hotel, now the Waldorf Astoria, Trump’s team asked guests to sign non-disclosure agreements, then predicted Republicans would win a redistricting election the next day in Virginia. The mood was optimistic, the people familiar with the gathering said. Details of the meeting leaked immediately. A day later, Virginia voters approved the new congressional map Democrats drew to favor their party in November. “If the people framing this approach are confident about Virginia and they get beat in Virginia, you have to question, are they overconfident about the whole package?” one of the people familiar with the meeting said. Some Republican insiders are quick to point out that the midterm elections are months away, and that much can change before voters go to the polls. If armed hostilities with Iran slow, gas prices could fall and inflation could cool more broadly. “The panic is people looking at things right now, but I think the key is to project where it could be over the summer, and it’s still very fluid,” said David McIntosh, president of the Trump-aligned Club for Growth.Headed into the election cycle, Republicans planned to promote Trump as the party’s standard-bearer, and as the figure who, in his oft-repeated phrase, turned the US into “the hottest country anywhere in the world.”Wiles in December said Republicans would upend the traditional midterm playbook by putting Trump “on the ballot,” rather than keeping the sitting president at a distance. Now, the people said, that plan is less attractive. Republicans will look to emphasise local issues rather than allegiance to the president, they added. “The politics have changed,” said another of the people familiar with the meeting. “In January, nationalising the race around him made some sense. “Voters don’t feel the president is doing enough to make their lives cheaper, but they still believe Republicans want to do that,” the person said. The Trumpworld strategist added that the Democratic Party’s low popularity gives Republicans an effective foil with which to contrast policy ideas. Trump’s faltering support could give Democrats fertile ground to attach Republican candidates to the president’s shortcomings, making some conservative campaign operatives skeptical of the White House’s political approach. After campaigning in 2024 as a critic of “stupid wars” and styling himself as a “peace president,” Trump is now overseeing the largest US military operation since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.Critics say Trump’s administration showed little consideration of how Iran would respond to the joint US-Israeli attack or the vast economic fallout, including an unprecedented global energy supply shock and the threat of a worldwide financial downturn. Trump’s decision on Tuesday to indefinitely extend what was originally a two-week ceasefire was widely viewed as a retreat, with Tehran maintaining its grip on the Strait of Hormuz and commitment to a nuclear program.Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East negotiator for both Democratic and Republican administrations, said Iran believes it holds leverage with Hormuz and can also endure economic pain. Source link