Updated April 10, 2025, 04:30 a.m. EDT BANGKOK – The U.S. and Vietnam have agreed to start talks on a trade deal, the Vietnamese government said Thursday, a possible sign of breathing space for some developing Asian countries as President Donald Trump escalates a trade war with China. Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met in Washington late Wednesday, the day that 46% U.S. tariffs on Vietnamese exports came into force along with higher tariffs on many other countries. Hours later, President Donald…
Day: April 9, 2025
Tibetan exile govt seeks probe into death of Tibetan Buddhist abbot in Vietnam
The Tibetan government-in-exile called Tuesday for an independent investigation into the death of an influential Tibetan Buddhist leader said to have died in Vietnam, where he was reportedly in hiding from the Chinese government. On April 3, Lung Ngon Monastery in Gade county (Gande in Chinese), Golog prefecture, Qinghai province, issued a statement confirming that its abbot, Tulku Hungkar Dorje, 56, had died in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City on March 29 due to poor health. The monastery’s statement gave no further details. His followers say he had been missing…
Hong Kong social worker gets 3 year 9 month sentence over role in 2019 protest
A social worker and rights activist was sentenced Wednesday to three years and nine months in prison for participating in a riot during Hong Kong’s 2019 pro-democracy protests. Jackie Chen was one of several social workers who tried to mediate between police and demonstrators. She carried a loudspeaker and urged police to use restraint and to refrain from firing non-lethal bullets during a protest that took place on Aug. 31, 2019. At Wednesday’s hearing in the Hong Kong district court, three co-defendants were sentenced to two years and five months…
Volunteer groups pause quake aid in Myanmar citing junta restrictions
Read RFA coverage of this topic in Burmese. Junta restrictions on aid activities following central Myanmar’s devastating 7.7 earthquake have driven some to postpone aid efforts, despite many communities being in critical need of support, volunteers told Radio Free Asia. Junta authorities have been accused of blocking search and rescue teams and aid groups from entering affected areas in Sagaing and Mandalay regions, as well as Shan state, by using security checkpoints and strict registration requirements. “They [aid groups] can’t do anything. We’re very upset that those who could help…
China poses ongoing threat to Panama Canal: Pentagon chief
TAIPEI, Taiwan – China’s control of Panama Canal ports is an unacceptable threat to U.S. security, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during a visit to the central American nation, underlining U.S. efforts to bolster its influence in the Western hemisphere. The Panama Canal has become a focal point of geopolitical tension, as China’s involvement in its ports raises U.S. concerns over control and influence in a key global trade route. U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly said that the United States is being overcharged to use the Panama Canal and that…