Asia

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Iran’s Rial Hits All-Time Low

Iran’s currency the rial has fallen 20% in value over the last two weeks in trade against the US dollar.   The devaluation indicates the Islamic Republic of Iran is increasingly struggling against international sanctions that have limited its ability to obtain foreign currency.   The sanctions placed on Iran are intended to reduce its […]

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Portraits of Marx and Lenin Removed from Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang

The once dominant portraits of Marx and Lenin that were featured alongside a portrait of Eternal President Kim Il-Sung in Kim Il-sung Square (김일성광장) were removed in October 2012 and have not been replaced.   The pictures feature prominently in North Korean military parades and were visible ties to its Soviet-satellite past.   North Korea […]

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Israel Threatens to Strike Syria If Rebels Gain Access to Chemical Weapons

Silvan Shalom, Israel’s vice premier, said that if it appeared that the Syrian government was losing control of its chemical weapons stockpile in its struggle against rebels fighting against the government of Bashar al-Assad that Israel would launch military strikes on those bases.   Silvan Shalom was commenting on a report that leaked to the […]

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Iran’s Nuclear Ambitions Huge Issue in Upcoming Presidential Elections

The election to succeed outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is less than six months away but already speculation is heating up about who will succeed the controversial leader who has staked his legacy on Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear program.   Many of the potential contenders have one thing overwhelmingly in common – they are all […]

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People’s Republic of China Debuts New Y-20 Jumbo Airfreighter

The People’s Republic of China debuted its new jumbo ‘multifunction airfreighter’ the Y-20, in a test flight on Saturday, January 26.   The new jumbo aircraft is intended for domestic, international, and cargo flights. The development of the aircraft is part of a general programme to modernize and bolster China’s national defense capabilities.   [Global […]

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North Korea News Today

Beijing and Washington Announce ‘Strong Consensus’ About North Korea

Pyongyang may have alienated its strongest regional ally with its announcement of further nuclear tests, specifically directed at its avowed enemy the United States. An announcement by Glyn Davies, Washington’s special envoy for policy on North Korea, declared that a ‘strong consensus’ was reached with his PRC counterparts.   In a meeting Friday, January 25 […]

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Saudi Arabia’s Hayaa are Mocked on Twitter After the Mysterious Closure of a Dinosaur Exhibit in Dammam

Saudi Arabia’s powerful and omniprevalent Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice recently closed an educational exhibit featuring dinosaurs at a shopping mall in the oil capital of Dammam, prompting a backlash on Twitter that both mocked the ‘Hayaa’ as well as Saudi clerics.   Some have pointed to the ‘dinosaurs […]

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State Media in the People’s Republic of China Warns DPRK Over Planned Nuclear Test

In a change of tone, official state media outlets in the PRC are criticizing North Korea’s latest round of bellicose posturing, threatening aid cuts if the DPRK proceeds with yet another nuclear test.   The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s main ally, China, has criticized the regime through official media outlets after North Korea threatened the United […]

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Taiwanese Protestors Fight to Secure Freedom of the Press in Ma Ying-jeou’s Pro-PRC Taiwan

Nearly one hundred thousand protesters gathered in front of Taiwan’s Presidential Building in the Zhongzheng district of Taipei to rally against what they see as an attempt by the People’s Republic of China to control the media of Taiwan with aid from President Ma Ying–jeou.   The rally was organized and led by the pro–independent […]

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