China disease expert says COVID-19 origins probe should shift to US
SHANGHAI — A senior Chinese epidemiologist said the United States should be the priority in the next phase of investigations into the origin of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) after a study showed the disease could have been circulating there as early as Dec. 2019, state media said on Thursday.
China launches crewed spacecraft Shenzhou-12 in historic mission
By Carlos Garcia and Shubing Wang
JIUQUAN - China launched a spacecraft on Thursday carrying three astronauts to part of a space station still under construction for the longest stay...
Far apart at first summit, Biden and Putin agree to steps on cybersecurity, arms...
By Steve Holland and Vladimir Soldatkin
GENEVA - U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on Wednesday to begin cybersecurity and arms control talks at a summit...
Sizzling heat wave blankets U.S. Southwest for third day
By Dan Whitcomb and Scott DiSavino
LOS ANGELES - Much of the western United States baked for a third day on Wednesday under a punishing heat wave that has set...
Travel curbs may be eased for fully vaccinated Britons – The Telegraph
Fully vaccinated Britons could be allowed to travel to countries on the government's 'amber list' without quarantining when they return home, The Daily Telegraph...
Fed signals higher rates in 2023, bond-buying taper talks as virus fades
WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday began closing the door on its pandemic-driven monetary policy as officials projected an accelerated timetable for interest...
After 28 planes fly near Taiwan, China says must respond to ‘collusion’
BEIJING/TAIPEI — China does not tolerate foreign forces intervening in Taiwan issues and has to make strong responses to such acts of “collusion,” the government said on Wednesday after the island reported the largest incursion to date of Chinese aircraft.
Tourist hotspot Phuket reopening offers model for Asia as travel bubbles burst
THAILAND’s plan to reopen the tourist haven of Phuket could become a model for other vacation hotspots in Asia to prise open their borders and bring in visitors as strategies such as travel bubbles falter, according to the founder of Banyan Tree Holdings Ltd.
Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott donates $2.7B in latest round of charitable giving
Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced on Tuesday that she has donated $2.7 billion to nearly 300 organizations focused on what she described as "categories and communities that have been historically underfunded and overlooked."
China says no leak at nuclear plant, no change to detection standards
BEIJING - China said on Wednesday that there was no radiation leak at the Taishan nuclear power station and it had not raised acceptable...
Singapore records slowest decade of population growth since independence
SINGAPORE - Singapore's population rose by about 1.1% each year over the past decade, the slowest rate since independence in 1965, the latest census...
India’s famed Taj Mahal re-opens for tourists as COVID-19 curbs ease
By Uday Sampath Kumar
BENGALURU - India's iconic Taj Mahal re-opened to the public on Wednesday as the country, still reeling from a disastrous second wave of the...