Diplomacy

New Zealand signs Cook Islands agreement to counter China deal

FILE PHOTO: Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Team South Korea and Team Cook Islands wave their flags from a boat during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics. Lee Jin-man/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

China says will boost cooperation with Pakistan on Iran issue

Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who is also deputy prime minister, is visiting Beijing where he will meet with top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi for talks on international and bilateral issues.

US formally reopens Caracas embassy as ties with Venezuela warm

The US embassy in Caracas, Venezuela resumed operations on March 30 after it was shuttered in 2019.

Indonesia says it is in ‘positive’ talks with Iran to let tankers pass Strait of Hormuz

Motorcyclists queueing to refuel at a petrol station operated by Pertamina in Yogyakarta on March 28. Tankers Pertamina Pride and Gamsunoro remain in the Gulf, a spokesperson said.

US and Iraq to ‘intensify cooperation’ to prevent terrorist attacks

A fire on the grounds of the US embassy headquarters in Baghdad on March 17, after a reported drone and rocket attack. Iraq has been increasingly drawn into the US-Israeli war with Iran it had sought to avoid at all costs.

Important for Singapore to engage China, Japan in shaping regional affairs

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong speaking to the media during a media wrap-up at Island Shangri-la Hotel, Hong Kong, on March 28, 2026.

Field Notes from Taipei

‘Korea (South)’ on arrival cards? Taipei hits back at Seoul, Copenhagen over ‘China’ labels

epa12845360 People walk across the street under the Taipei 101 skyscraper building in Taipei, Taiwan, 24 March 2026. On 19 March, Taiwan's central bank raised its 2026 GDP forecast to 7.28 percent and eased selective home-market credit controls. The bank cited strong exports and rising private investment from the AI boom, up from its December estimate of 3.67 percent. EPA/RITCHIE B. TONGO

China demands more than just ‘regret’ from Japan after embassy break-in

A Japanese police officer stands guard in front of the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo, Japan, March 25, 2026. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

News analysis

Stand-off with Iran raises fresh doubts about Trump’s freestyle diplomacy

(Clockwise from bottom right) US President Donald Trump, V-P J.D. Vance, Jared Kushner, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff at the "Board of Peace".

Singapore supports Hainan’s development as free trade port: PM Wong

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong with Hainan Communist Party secretary Feng Fei on March 26. Both agreed that Singapore and Hainan have much to gain from cooperation.

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MDDI (P) 046/10/2025. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No.202120748H. Copyright © 2026 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.