Ambassador Koji Tomita told an event hosted by Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies that Japan and the United States had been working on the details of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), which, he said, needed to strike a balance between inclusivity and high standards.

Marcos Jr, known by his nickname "Bongbong", won Monday's election in a landslide, following relentless whitewashing of the family's past and leveraging of powerful alliances with rival families that control large swathes of the country. 

At 92-years-old, her aura is a little less bright these days -- her beehive hairdo less voluminous, her slip-on flats less ostentatious and her pantsuit more comfy-but-modish great grandmother than beauty queen.

Nearly 40 years after the patriarch was deposed by a popular revolt and the family chased into exile, Ferdinand Marcos Jr looks set to complete their remarkable comeback from pariahs to the peak of political power.

Sri Lankans have suffered months of blackouts and dire shortages of food, fuel and medicines in the island's worst economic crisis since independence, sparking weeks of overwhelmingly peaceful anti-government protests.

Lee, 64, is expected to be anointed Hong Kong's next chief executive by a small committee on Sunday, the culmination of a choreographed, Beijing-blessed race with no other candidates.

The 38-year-old believes the red-shirted man smiling in the sticker, Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, is the best bet to lead her nation, despite his late father and namesake having presided over what critics say was the darkest chapter in the country's recent history.

Thai law prescribes punishments of up to 15 years in jail for each offence if found guilty of defaming, insulting or threatening King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his closest family.

A decree from the group's supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhundzada, said that if a woman did not cover her face outside home, her father or closest male relative would be visited and face potential prison or firing from state jobs.

The plan comes as Japan has begun to ease the border controls it introduced in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The government may accept a limited number of group tours on a trial basis by the end of May, the source added.

Marcos is unlikely to rule like his authoritarian father, although strongman-style leadership could be expected. This approach proved popular under incumbent Rodrigo Duterte, who cultivated an image as a ruthless, no-nonsense leader who got things done.

No individual meetings were currently planned between the region's leaders and Biden when the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meets with him as a bloc for talks on May 12 and 13, said Kao Kim Hourn, a minister and close adviser to Cambodia's long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen.

Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory, has complained of repeated such missions by Chinese aircraft, which have become a common occurrence over the past two years or so.

The commitment to providing so-called extended deterrence to the two Asian allies will be reaffirmed in light of "North Korea's continued destabilizing actions in the region, including the test-launch of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles," Press Secretary Jen Psaki told a press briefing.

Opinion polls in the days ahead of the vote showed Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr comfortably ahead of his rivals, giving him a real chance at turning the tables on Vice President Leni Robredo, who is running second in the polls.

The five-year-old, 348-foot (106 meter) "Amadea" was berthed in Lautoka, Fiji in the South Pacific when local authorities took control of it based on a US warrant and a Justice Department request.

Rescuers have pulled 10 survivors from the rubble of the eight-storey "self-built" house in Hunan province that collapsed on April 29, according to CCTV.

The World Health Organization's long-awaited estimate of the total number of deaths caused by the pandemic -- including lives lost to its knock-on effects -- finally puts a number on the broader impact of the crisis.

Indonesia has invited both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian leader Vladimir Putin to attend the G20 summit in Bali, a move that analysts said could provide a “golden opportunity” for the host of the economic forum to play its role as a middle power.

Beijing remains wedded to its strategy of stamping out coronavirus clusters with lockdowns and mass testing, even as the fast-spreading Omicron variant makes this increasingly difficult.

In a fiery speech to parliament on Tuesday, Solomons Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare said "we are threatened with invasion" but he did not name any countries or give evidence for his claim.

The entry ban, announced by Russia's Foreign Ministry, targets 63 Japanese citizens, including Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi and Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno.

US officials told Reuters in recent days they remain wary about China's long-standing support for Russia in general, but that the military and economic support that they worried about has not come to pass, at least for now. The relief comes at a pivotal time.

Hun Sen, chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), in a video call on Monday told Min Aung Hlaing it was crucial the envoy meets all stakeholders in Myanmar, including Suu Kyi, who in recent months has been convicted of corruption and incitement.

Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen has urged Myanmar's top general to allow a special Southeast Asian envoy access to ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in his strongest call so far for the junta chief to demonstrate commitment to a regional peace process.

China remains committed to playing a constructive role in resolving the North Korea nuclear issue, Beijing's Korean affairs envoy said on Tuesday, a week after the North vowed to develop its nuclear forces "at the fastest possible speed".

Some of Shanghai's 25 million people came out for brief walks and grocery shopping on Tuesday after enduring more than a month under a COVID-19 lockdown, while China's capital Beijing embarked on another round of mass testing to control a nascent outbreak.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha also agreed during their summit to work closely in extending humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and its neighbors as Russia's invasion since February has sent over 5.5 million people fleeing the war-torn country.

Nearly 40 years after the Philippines began hunting for the billions of dollars plundered during former dictator Ferdinand Marcos's regime, much of the loot is still missing and no one in the family has been jailed.

Many people are not taking them off yet due to pervasive Omicron infections.