These women are trying to change Chinese smoking culture Despite public smoking bans in a number of Chinese cities, smoking is still a big thing — mainly among men. Johannes Eisele/AFP/via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Johannes Eisele/AFP/via Getty Images Hilda Wang scolds smokers and posts videos of the encounters.
For decades, the steady flow of Tibetans escaping across the Himalayas into India and Nepal served as a barometer of conditions inside Tibet. From the late 1990s through the mid‑2000s, several thousand Tibetans sought exile every year, bringing firsthand accounts of political restrictions, cultural pressures and daily life under Chinese rule.
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South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi held a fourth meeting in about six months on Tuesday, with both leaders pledging to continue deepening bilateral ties.
Ostensibly, Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to China this week to meet with his counterpart, Xi Jinping, is taking place to mark the 25th anniversary of the 2001 Sino‑Russian Treaty of Good‑Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation.
North Korea's amended constitution has removed any reference to reunification with South Korea and to a shared Korean national identity, formally framing Seoul as a "hostile state."
A women's football team from the isolated communist country of North Korea arrived in South Korea on Sunday, a rare visit that has generated strong public interest. The visit by the club Naegohyang Women's FC is the first by athletes from the North to the South in eight years.
Skip next section One Indian killed, three injured in Moscow drone attack May 17, 2026 One Indian killed, three injured in Moscow drone attack An Indian worker was killed, and three others were injured in the Moscow region in Russia on Sunday, as Ukraine unleashed one of its largest drone attacks on the rival nation.
A collision between a freight train and a bus on Saturday killed at least eight people and injured 32 others in the Thai capital, Bangkok, officials said.
Taiwan's government on Saturday pressed the US to approve the latest arms package to the self-governing island. President Donald Trump told Fox News on Friday after he concluded a high-stakes summit with China's Xi Jinping that he had not decided on future sales when asked about it. "I may do it. I may not do it," Trump said.
Skip next section We are pausing our coverage May 16, 2026 We are pausing our coverage Thank you for following our India blog today! We are pausing this weekend edition of the blog and will resume again tomorrow with more of what's making headlines in India. Be sure to come back!
A bull male elephant is seen meticulously dismantling an electric fence inside Yala National Park in Sri Lanka.