Dec 27 Taiwan extends compulsory military service from 4 months to 1 year By Huizhong Wu, Associated Press It's one of the major steps the self-governed island is taking to address military, diplomatic and trade pressure from China. Continue reading
Dec 27 Japan to require COVID testing for all visitors from China By Mari Yamaguchi, Associated Press Japan will require COVID-19 tests for all visitors from China as a temporary emergency measure against the surging infections there after Beijing largely abandoned its "zero-COVID" policy. Continue reading
Dec 27 Foreign firms welcome China ending COVID-19 quarantine for travelers By Joe McDonald, Associated Press The ruling Communist Party’s abrupt decision to lift some of the world’s strictest anti-virus controls comes as it tries reverse an economic downturn. Quarantines for travelers from abroad will end Jan. 8. Continue reading
Dec 26 Watch 3:25 News Wrap: Japan grapples with massive snowstorm In our news wrap Monday, Japan is grappling with a massive snowstorm that blanketed the country's northern coastal regions, South Korea's military fired warning shots after North Korean drones violated its airspace for the first time in five years and… Continue watching
Dec 26 China to drop COVID quarantine requirement for incoming passengers By Associated Press People coming to China will still need a negative virus test 48 hours before departure and passengers will be required to wear protective masks on board. Continue reading
Dec 26 China sends 71 warplanes, 7 ships toward Taiwan By Associated Press Taiwan says China's military sent 71 planes and seven ships toward Taiwan in a 24-hour display of force directed at the self-ruled island. Continue reading
Dec 26 As COVID infections soar, China races to vaccinate elderly By Joe McDonald, Associated Press Chinese authorities are going door to door and paying people who are older than 60 to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Continue reading
Dec 24 COVID-19 wave rolls through China, overwhelming hospitals outside Beijing By Dake Kang, Associated Press As China grapples with its first-ever national COVID-19 wave, emergency wards in small cities and towns southwest of Beijing are overwhelmed. Continue reading
Dec 23 Watch 3:32 News Wrap: House passes $1.7 trillion spending bill avoiding government shutdown In our news wrap Friday, the House of Representatives passed the $1.7 trillion spending bill avoiding a government shutdown, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is back home in Kyiv after a trip to Washington that helped secure a new $1.8 billion… Continue watching
Dec 23 After abrupt reopening, China faces COVID-19 spiral By Aniruddha Ghosal, Huizhong Wu, Dake Kang, Associated Press Nearly three years after the coronavirus was first identified in China and an unyielding "zero-COVID" approach, it is now spreading through the country after an abrupt reopening on Dec. 7 caught the nation under-vaccinated and short on hospital capacity. Experts… Continue reading