An End to Secondhand Smoke: Can Southeast Asia Finally Breathe a Sigh of Relief?

It was news that Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and other countries in Southeast Asia were eager to hear. “There should be no more haze going to the neighbors,” Nazir Foead, the head of Indonesia’s Peatland Restoration Agency (PRA), told reporters in May at a press conference in Jakarta. “Fire will still happen, smoke will come out, […]

Duterte says Philippines will stop taking second-hand US military equipment, will look to Russia and China for new gear

Thomson Reuters MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte promised on Friday to buy brand-new military equipment to fight twin Maoist and Muslim rebellions, and no longer accept second-hand weapons from the United States. Over the last two weeks, some 3,000 security personnel have been battling about 400 pro-Islamic State militants who had taken over […]