Asia Pacific

People stand with face masks on the verandah of a yellow hospital building.

A raging TB epidemic in Papua New Guinea threatens to destabilize the entire Asia Pacific

The government faces a herculean task: battling an epidemic that affects at least 100 people per day, with TB strains that are increasingly drug-resistant.

A raging TB epidemic in Papua New Guinea threatens to destabilize the entire Asia Pacific
philippine army

In fighting ISIS, the Philippines gets tangled in US-China tensions

In fighting ISIS, the Philippines gets tangled in US-China tensions
Tourists enjoy the beach in Tumon, Guam

Guam residents are more afraid of typhoons than they are of Kim Jong-un

Guam residents are more afraid of typhoons than they are of Kim Jong-un
This cartoon by Eaten Fish is playing off the name of the Australian-funded offshore detention camp in Papua New Guinea where the Iranian cartoonist is being held. It's called the Manus Regional Processing Centre but many hundreds of the aslylum seekers t

The Trump Administration says it will honor the Obama-era deal with Australia to resettle its offshore detainees. That's good news for cartoonist Eaten Fish.

The Trump Administration says it will honor the Obama-era deal with Australia to resettle its offshore detainees. That's good news for cartoonist Eaten Fish.
A boy collects plastic from a garbage-covered river in Manila, 2010.

Plastic trash is a big problem. How much do you throw away? (QUIZ)

Plastic trash is a big problem. How much do you throw away? (QUIZ)
A woman in Plaza Miranda, outside Quiapo Church in Manila, sells off her dwindling stock of Pope Francis t-shirts in advance of the Pope's visit to the Philippines.

Filipino Catholics welcome Pope Francis with fervency, hope and souvenir T-shirts

When Pope Francis holds a Catholic Mass in Manila this weekend, he's expected to draw up to six million people. But there are conflicting hopes and expectations for what he'll say to Asia's most populous Catholic country.

Filipino Catholics welcome Pope Francis with fervency, hope and souvenir T-shirts

Shrinking of Military Unprecedented, says Acting Deputy Secretary of Defense Christine Fox

In the face of sequester budget cuts, the American military is shrinking significantly. Normally associated with peacetime adjustments, downsizing during wartime is unheard of. For some officials, such as Acting Deputy Secretary Christine Fox, this is cause for concern.

Shrinking of Military Unprecedented, says Acting Deputy Secretary of Defense Christine Fox
China's President Xi Jinping hosted his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovich at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, back in December 2013.

Russia's moves in Ukraine are giving China a headache

There is plenty at stake in Ukraine for many governments around the world, especially China. Beijing has developed strong ties with Ukraine in recent years, but Chinese leaders don't want to risk alienating their much more powerful friends in Moscow.

Russia's moves in Ukraine are giving China a headache
Guzailai Nu'er, the wife of Ilham Tohti, looks out the window of her house in Beijing as she does an interview over the phone with Reuters on January 17, 2014. Nu'er has been prevented from leaving by Chinese police.

Recent arrests show China taking a harder line on all forms of dissent

China has detained a prominent advocate for the Uighur ethnic minority in far western Xinjiang. The State Department has expressed its concern over the arrest of Ilham Tohti. The Chinese government is also cracking down on a group of anti-corruption activists called the "New Citizens Movement."

Recent arrests show China taking a harder line on all forms of dissent
Hu Jie is also a painter, standing here in his Nanjing apartment next to a portrait of one of the subjects of his films, Lin Zhao, a political prisoner who was executed in the late 1960s.

A Chinese filmmaker points his camera at the darkest moments in Communist Party history

Chinese documentary filmmaker Hu Jie uses personal stories to highlight some of the most difficult and horrific episodes in recent Communist Party history. Hu lives in Nanjing, China, where he continues to do his work, telling the stories that people don't want to talk about.

A Chinese filmmaker points his camera at the darkest moments in Communist Party history
Children pose with their paper-cut works of the Chinese character for "horse", ahead of the Year of the Horse in Chinese zodiac, at a primary school in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, December 31, 2013.

Despite the US 'pivot to Asia,' China will assert itself in 2014

What will happen with the Obama administration's ballyhooed "Asia Pivot"? And what will come of the recent brinksmanship over disputed islands in the East China Sea? Kaiser Kuo and Jeremy Goldkorn of the Sinica podcast share their predictions of how US and China relations will play out in the coming year.

Despite the US 'pivot to Asia,' China will assert itself in 2014
Garment workers holding Molotov cocktails after clashes broke out during a protest in Phnom Penh on January 3, 2014.

Cambodian police shoot and kill protesters during national strike by garment workers

Cambodian police have killed at least three people during protests by garment workers in the nation's capital, Phnom Penh. Garment workers have launched a national strike to demand higher wages. Kate O'Keeffe of the Wall Street Journal says there is a political dimension to what's going on as well.

Cambodian police shoot and kill protesters during national strike by garment workers

Some Chinese couples are telling their parents, 'Hands off our wedding!'

Just like in the US, weddings in China can cost a lot. But another headache for some Chinese couples planning to get married is pushy parents. So, some young people are deciding to go it alone on their wedding day — and that includes footing the bill themselves.

Some Chinese couples are telling their parents, 'Hands off our wedding!'
A shrine in Xuanwu Lake park in Nanjing is a popular spot where people submit personal wishes - written on red ribbons - to a higher power.

In atheistic China, people use ribbons in a park to appeal to 'higher powers'

China's atheistic communist rulers now say that certain religious beliefs are worth promoting for the sake of national development. Only a generation ago, nearly all forms of religious worship were essentially banned in China. The World's Matthew Bell toured a park in the Chinese city of Nanjing, where people seek help from "higher powers."

In atheistic China, people use ribbons in a park to appeal to 'higher powers'
Some of the disputed islands - known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China - in the East China Sea.

The US sends China a message with a couple of B-52 bombers

The Pentagon moved quickly to challenge a newly-declared Chinese security zone in the East China Sea. On Tuesday, two US B-52 bombers flew near a chain of Pacific islands claimed by both China and Japan.

The US sends China a message with a couple of B-52 bombers