Paul Alan Fickey Jr., MD, a General Surgeon in Southern Virginia

I went to Galaxy Robot Park in Seoul to see how we might one day live with robots. It was part cutting-edge technology, part theatrics.

The Trump administration says all Iranian airlines are being “shut down.” So why is this jumbo jet still flying from Tehran to Southeast Asia?

India has sold its Akash air-defence missile system to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, giving it a foothold in Central Asia as it seeks to become a major global arms exporter. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh confirmed the latest sales on Thursday last week, hinting at interest from elsewhere as he called the Akash “one of our success stories”. Developed by India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation, the Akash is a home-grown, short-range surface-to-air missile system that can hit...

South Korea ⁠said on Monday that a ⁠recent border blast that seriously wounded two ⁠of its soldiers was caused by mines planted by North Korea. North Korea, which has been fortifying its border with South Korea since April 2024, deployed up to 7,000 workers to install mines and fences this year, with some 50 incidents of ‌crossing the border, according to a briefing on Monday by the South’s military. The two Koreas are still technically at war after their 1950-53 war ended in an armistice rather...

Manufacturers say they are close to perfecting a new, more efficient solar panel that could help the United States reclaim ground it lost.

Southeast Asian governments are learning some hard truths about the data centre boom they spent years working to attract, analysts say – it promises jobs, digital infrastructure and a foothold in the AI economy, but the rapid buildout is also straining power grids, land and regulatory systems. “There is this enthusiasm to attract investments, but now it raises the question: at what cost and at what speed?” said policy researcher Mark Manantan, a research fellow for the Centre for Global Security...

Hong Kong lawmakers have backed the government’s proposed tax incentives for large innovative companies, but many said on Monday that the planned five-year concession period is too short to attract major firms to establish headquarters or expand operations in the city. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu in his policy address last month said the government planned to submit a bill introducing preferential profits tax rates of either 5 per cent or 8.25 per cent, which was half of the city’s standard...

Malaysia was aflush with Formula One fever this weekend, rekindling talk of permanently bringing the race back to the Southeast Asian nation after a long hiatus – despite days of traffic chaos that left thousands of fans stranded for hours. More than 260,000 people flocked to Sepang International Circuit in Selangor state for the Bahrain Grand Prix, which was originally meant to be held in April but had to be postponed and relocated away from the Persian Gulf island nation due to security...

US chip giant Qualcomm has agreed to pay to licence and acquire patents from China’s Huawei Technologies for the first time as part of a “multi-year, broad patent licence agreement” covering 5G, computing and artificial intelligence. The deal involved cross-licensing between both firms’ patent portfolios, the Shenzhen-based firm said in a statement on Monday, adding that it included Qualcomm’s purchase of specific Huawei US patents across compute, AI, networking and other technologies. The...

A former South Korean lawmaker has called for the abolition of the military exemption system granted to outstanding national athletes, arguing that military service should not be used as an incentive for achievements in sports or the arts. Yoo Seong-min’s remarks came amid controversy over comments made by members of South Korea’s men’s football team, who recently won its fourth consecutive Asian Games title, regarding the military benefits they received. South Korea defeated host Japan 1-0 on...

India is taking a more direct role in efforts to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, engaging both sides on issues including shipping and reducing hostilities, Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar has said. Speaking at a security conference over the weekend, Jaishankar said India in recent months has become “a little bit more involved beyond advocacy”. The comments point to a more active role for New Delhi after years of taking a cautious approach to the war, in part because of...

Samoa’s prime minister apologised on Monday after video surfaced showing him saying “Heil Hitler” and making a Nazi gesture. Prime Minister La’auli Leuatea Schmidt said the footage was from a family gathering almost 20 years old and was never meant to see the light of day. “The footage shows me using the words ‘Heil Hitler’ and participating in a gesture associated with Nazi Germany in a private family gathering – not intended for the public,” he said in a statement. “Whatever the context or...