LONDON — Britain is to debate whether to legalise assisted dying for the terminally ill, potentially paving the way for the law to change. Below is a list of countries which allow people to choose to end their lives or are considering doing so.  Switzerland Switzerland legalised assisted dying in 1942 on the condition the motive is not selfish, making it the first country in the world to permit the practice. Doctors can prescribe drugs and administer them or had them over for self-administration. A number of Swiss organisations such as Dignitas offer their services to foreign nationals.   United States Medical aid in dying, also known as physician assisted dying is legal in 10 states: California, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont and Washington, plus the District of Columbia. Oregon was the first state to legalise it under a law which came into effect in 1997. It allows mentally competent patients who are terminally ill and with less than six months to live to ask for life-ending medication. People from outside Oregon may travel to the state to take advantage of the law. 

BAKU — Global carbon dioxide emissions, including those from burning fossil fuels, are set to hit a record high this year, pulling the world further off course from averting more destructive climate extremes, scientists said on Wednesday (Nov 13). The Global Carbon Budget report, published during the UN's COP29 climate summit in Azerbaijan, said global CO2 emissions are set to total 41.6 billion metric tons in 2024, up from 40.6 billion tons last year. The bulk of these emissions are from burning coal, oil and gas. Those emissions would total 37.4 billion tons in 2024, up by 0.8 per cent in 2023, the report said. The rest are from land use, a category that includes deforestation and forest fires. The report by more than 80 institutions was led by the University of Exeter in UK. "We don't see a sign of fossil fuel emissions peaking in 2024," said lead author Pierre Friedlingstein, a climate scientist at the University of Exeter. Without immediate and steep emissions cuts worldwide, "we will just go straight into the 1.5C target, we'll just pass it and continue," he said.

TORONTO — A teenager is in critical condition in a British Columbia children's hospital, sick with Canada's first presumptive human case of avian influenza. "This was a healthy teenager prior to this, so no underlying conditions," said provincial health officer Bonnie Henry in a news conference on Tuesday (Nov 12). "It just reminds us that in young people this is a virus that can progress and cause quite severe illness and the deterioration that I mentioned was quite rapid." British Columbia health officials said on Saturday the province had detected Canada's first human case of H5 bird flu in a teenager.

Donald Trump has begun the process of choosing a cabinet and selecting other high-ranking administration officials following his presidential election victory. Here are the early picks and top contenders for some of the key posts overseeing defence, intelligence, diplomacy, trade, immigration and economic policymaking. Some are in contention for a range of posts. Susie Wiles, chief of staff Susie Wiles reacts as Republican presidential nominee and former US President Donald Trump speaks, following early results from the 2024 US presidential election in Palm Beach County Convention Center, in West Palm Beach, Florida, US on Nov 6, 2024. PHOTO: Reuters Trump announced last week that Wiles, one of his two campaign managers, will be his White House chief of staff.

LONDON - Kate, UK's Princess of Wales, will make her most prominent return to royal engagements since having treatment for cancer next month when she hosts an annual Christmas carol service at London's Westminster Abbey. Kate, the wife of heir to the throne Prince William, has only made a handful of public appearances after having major abdominal surgery in January, and then undergoing a course of preventative chemotherapy when subsequent tests revealed the presence of cancer. Last weekend, she attended two high-profile Remembrance events to commemorate those who lost their lives in conflict as part of her gradual return to official duties, but the carol service — ​​​​​the fourth she has organised, will be the first major royal event she has hosted herself. "This year's service provides a moment to reflect upon the importance of love and empathy, and how much we need each other, especially in the most difficult times of our lives," her office, Kensington Palace, said in a statement.

SEOUL - South Korea's military said it will hold a three-day joint exercise with the United States and Japan starting on Wednesday (Nov 13), featuring fighter jets and marine patrol aircraft as well as the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington. The Freedom Edge exercise is a response to what the South Korean military said were threats from North Korea, which recently conducted an intercontinental ballistic missile test, drawing condemnation from Seoul, Tokyo and Washington. It also comes as the US State Department said North Korean troops have started engaging in combat operations in Russia's war with Ukraine. The exercise will include South Korean and Japanese fighter jets and maritime patrol aircraft, as well as the USS George Washington, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement. The trilateral exercise follows a first round held earlier this year after the leaders of the three countries agreed at a summit in 2023 to hold annual training drills. Pyongyang has long condemned joint drills between South Korea and the United States, calling them a rehearsal for invasion.

SINGAPORE — On more than 460 occasions, a man forged Grab receipts and sent them to his company, causing the firm to disburse over $16,400 to him. He also made false medical certificates and an electronic letter purportedly from the Singapore Armed Forces, causing the Ministry of Health (MOH), where he worked as a temporary staff, to excuse him from reporting for work. On Nov 12, Muhammad Fariz Shaik Sha Marican, 33, pleaded guilty to two forgery charges. Two other similar charges will be taken into consideration during sentencing. Deputy Public Prosecutor Kelly Ng said that Fariz was employed by recruitment firm Persolkelly (PSK), which worked with MOH to provide manpower. Fariz was deployed by PSK in November 2021 to work as a temporary staff for MOH to support the ministry's Covid-19 operations. In April 2023, MOH checked on Fariz's annual leave balance as the ministry wanted to convert him into a staff member.

The Community Disputes Resolution Tribunals (CDRT) will be able to mandate mental health treatment for those who cause unreasonable interferences in the community if a bill to amend the Community Disputes Resolution Act (CDRA) goes through.  The bill was proposed in Parliament by Minister for Community, Culture and Youth Edwin Tong on Tuesday (Nov 12). The CDRT currently hears disputes under CDRA between neighbours involving acts of unreasonable interference with the enjoyment or use of places of residence. Under the bill, the tribunal will be able to issue Mandatory Treatment Orders (MTO) should there be a belief that the acts of disturbance stem from an underlying psychiatric condition. "In those cases, the issue therefore is not just a disamenity one," Minister Tong said. "Hence, the MTO is intended to address the root cause of certain acts that a resident may engage in." Tong added that their priority remains in persuading the resident to go for treatment voluntarily, and that the CDRT-issued MTO is a measure of last resort. There are also criteria that must be met for the MTO to be issued.

SINGAPORE – The police are investigating deepfake nude photos of Singapore Sports School (SSP) students that were created and spread by other students. In response to queries from The Straits Times, school principal Ong Kim Soon said SSP is “aware of the incident involving the creation and sharing of deepfake photos by our student-athletes”. “The school does not condone such harmful behaviour,” he said, adding that it has launched an investigation and lodged a police report. The police, in response to queries from ST, confirmed that a report was lodged and investigations are ongoing. A reader who identified himself as a parent of a victim had alerted ST in an e-mail on Nov 12 about the deepfake nude images that were being circulated. “Many parents of affected female students in Singapore Sports School are making police reports about deepfake nude photos of their daughters generated by male students from the school,” the parent said. When contacted, the parent said that female teachers were also targeted, and that the school has offered affected students counselling.

SINGAPORE - When an online retailer began selling his products on e-commerce platform Qoo10 in August 2023, he did not bat an eyelid when it took 30 to 45 days for the platform to disburse his first payout, compared with about three to seven days for other e-commerce sites he was using. But nearly a year later in July, payments owed to his business by Qoo10 had ballooned to about $1.6 million, as the platform’s payment delays exceeded two months and disbursements began trickling in, in smaller amounts. The Singaporean, who wanted to be known only as Mr T and did not wish to divulge what he sold, pulled the plug on his Qoo10 shop this year in the middle of July, and filed a civil claim with the courts. He obtained a default judgment in October for Qoo10 to pay him what he is owed, after the e-commerce site failed to serve a notice of intention to contest or not contest the claim. Mr T, who added that he had borrowed nearly $1 million from banks, friends and relatives to pay his suppliers, said: “I am not holding out hope that I will get much, or any, of my money back from Qoo10... By this point, I just want closure because it’s been so stressful.”

SINGAPORE — Pupils who sat the PSLE will receive their results from 11am on Nov 20. The Education Ministry and Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board, in a joint statement on Nov 13, said arrangements have been made for pupils to collect their results. Pupils will get details on collection arrangements from their schools, it added. Those who are unable to collect their results from school in person can appoint someone to do so on their behalf on Nov 22. Eligible pupils will receive the Secondary 1 (S1) Option Form to select secondary schools with their PSLE results. Pupils are required to use their unique S1 personal identification number found on the top-right hand corner of the form to log in to the S1 Internet System to submit their school choices from 11.30am on Nov 20 to 3pm on Nov 26. Parents who need help with the online submission can contact the primary school before 3pm on Nov 26. Posting results will be released between Dec 18 and Dec 20 through SMS, the statement said. This information can also be accessed through the S1 Internet System or at the pupil's primary school.

JAKARTA — Indonesia said on Monday (Nov 11) it does not recognise China's claims over the South China Sea despite signing a joint maritime development deal with Beijing, as some analysts warned the agreement risked compromising the country's sovereign rights. Beijing has long clashed with its Southeast Asian neighbours over territory in the South China Sea, which it claims sovereignty over in almost its entirety via a "nine-dash line" on its maps that cuts into the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of several countries. Joint agreements with China in the strategic waterway have for years been sensitive, with some claimant states wary of entering into deals they fear could be interpreted as legitimising Beijing's vast claims. An arbitral tribunal in 2016 said the Chinese claim, based on its old maps, has no basis under international law, a decision China refuses to recognise. A joint statement issued at the weekend during Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto's visit to Beijing mentioned the two countries had "reached important common understanding on joint development in areas of overlapping claims".

In July 2024, internet personality Bobby Saputra posted a video of himself living it up at what appeared to be the star-studded, ultra-lavish wedding of Radhika Merchant and Anant Ambani, the youngest child of Indian billionaire and Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani. The video featured clips of Saputra dancing, feasting and soaking up the "completely crazy" celebrations. He gushes in the voiceover: "It was like watching a Bollywood production." The video quickly went viral, racking up 6.6 million views on Instagram, 5.1 million on TikTok, and another 2.2 million on YouTube. Thousands left comments, including some celebrities who claimed they spotted him there. Except… he never set foot in the party. As it turns out, he had pieced together clips from a wedding he attended a few months prior — complete with him in full Indian attire, dancing with friends — and spliced in shots from the Ambani wedding that he found online. The result? Social media magic.

LAHORE — Pakistan's Punjab province banned most outdoor activities and ordered shops, markets and malls in some areas to close early from Monday (Nov 11) to curb illnesses caused by intense air pollution. The province has closed educational institutions and public spaces like parks and zoos until Nov. 17 in places including Lahore, the world's most polluted city in terms of air quality, according to Swiss group IQAir's live ratings. The districts of Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Gujranwala have seen an unprecedented rise in patients with respiratory diseases, eye and throat irritation, and pink eye disease, the Punjab government said in an order issued late on Sunday. The new restrictions will also remain in force until Nov. 17. "The spread of conjunctivitis/ pink eye disease due to bacterial or viral infection, smoke, dust or chemical exposure is posing a serious and imminent threat to public health," the Punjab government said.

SEOUL — South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol recently began practising golf, for the first time in eight years, in preparation for future meetings with US President-elect Donald Trump, Yoon's office confirmed on Tuesday (Nov 12). South Korean media said Yoon visited a golf course on Saturday for a sport his office said he had last played in 2016. "A lot of people close to President Trump... (told me) President Yoon and Trump will have good chemistry," Yoon told a press conference on Thursday, after congratulating Trump by telephone on his win. Former Trump administration officials and influential Republicans had offered to help build ties with the incoming president, he added. Analysts said Yoon may seek to find a way to capitalise on a personal friendship with Trump to advance Seoul's interests as Trump's "America First" foreign policy plans and his unpredictable style play out in his second term. South Korean companies rely heavily on trade with the United States, and during Trump's first term, the countries clashed over cost-sharing for the roughly 28,500 US troops stationed in South Korea as a legacy of the 1950-1953 Korean War.

CANBERRA — China is putting ever-greater pressure on the Philippines to cede its sovereign rights in the South China Sea, Secretary of National Defence Gilberto Teodoro said on Nov 12 after a meeting with his Australian counterpart in Canberra. "What we see is an increasing demand by Beijing for us to concede our sovereign rights in the area," he said, adding that the Philippines was a "victim of Chinese aggression". China and the Philippines have sparred repeatedly this year over disputed areas of the South China Sea, including the Scarborough Shoal, one of Asia's most contested features. Teodoro's meeting with his Australian counterpart Richard Marles, their fifth since August 2023, reflects growing security ties between the countries, both of whom have expressed concern about Chinese activity in areas of the South China Sea claimed by the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations. The two nations signed a strategic partnership in September 2023 and held their first joint sea and air patrols in the South China Sea several months later. The Philippines also joined war games in Australia this year for the first time.

May 11, 2022

When the U.S. military trains other states’ forces, it tries to impart liberal norms such as respect for human rights. But when liberal norms clash, these soldiers prioritize loyalty to their unit, the military, and shared goals.

Nov 2, 2022

U.S. power extends beyond the military and economic spheres to include policing. The United States has used its global policing power to capture terrorists, warlords, and drug kingpins. But extradition is not simply a bureaucratic tool. States’ geopolitical interests shape their willingness to cooperate with others in extraditing fugitives. 

Feb 28, 2023

Policymakers need to act now and place child welfare professionals, not law enforcement actors, at the border to effectively screen and interview migrant children. Information sharing practices need to be improved, with a movement away from paper documents that can easily get lost to an approach that is digital, secure, and accessible by the child, their guardian, their lawyer, and their doctor. Further, the enforcement processing facilities need to undergo an immediate infrastructural transformation with the addition of new design features that are necessary and sensitive to the majority demographic that are held within facilities—children and families.

These actions are doable and require no legislative action. Migrant children deserve decisive action to ensure that their health, safety, and well-being is not jeopardized as they seek refuge in the United States.

Sep 5, 2023

Stephen Walt critiques Vivek Ramaswamy's claim of being a foreign policy realist.

Mar 12, 2024

After a century of rebellion, South America experienced a rapid decline in revolts in the early 1900s. Historical narratives and an analysis of a comprehensive new dataset show that the decrease stemmed in large part from the expansion and professionalization of the region’s militaries, which were driven by an export boom and the threat of interstate conflict. 

My first editor, Rukun Advani, once described himself as ‘a composite hybrid of the Indian and the Anglo-European’, who sought to reconcile ‘within himself those varying cultural influences which chauvinistic nationalists could only see as contradictions.’ This self-characterization I might avow as my own. One mark of the Anglo-European in me is that, unlike members [...]

In recent years, a stream of books and articles have appeared seeking to analyse the theory and practice of Hindutva. They have sought to alternatively explain, critique, or justify the rising influence of the BJP and the RSS. Some have focused on organizational questions, on the building of social networks on the ground and how [...]

‘If Mumbai attack suspects arrested in Pakistan are freed, India is at fault'

U.S. feared another LeT attack in India in mid-2009, and sought Pakistan's help to ‘disrupt and prevent' it

This cable contains information which we hope will be useful to you in engaging host governments, media, and the public after the President's address.

In a June 11 meeting, Prime Minister Singh assured Under Secretary Burns of his strong personal commitment to strengthening further India's ties to the United States.

During a March 28 meeting with Assistant Secretary or South and Central Asian Affairs Boucher, Foreign Minister-designate Shah Mehmood Qureshi confirmed that the new government wanted to work with the U.S. to combat extremism, increase trade and extend cooperation with India and Afghanistan.

In a wide-ranging meeting with CODEL McCaskill February 17, National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon touched on several regional security and trade-related issues.

Zardari made repeated pleas for drones to be "put in Pakistan's hands" so that Pakistan would own the issue and drone attacks (including collateral damage) would not provoke anti-americanism.

President Musharraf also asked the U.S. to put more pressure on India to negotiate over Kashmir, concluding that the time is ripe for resolution of the issue.

In Ambassador Mulford's January 7 farewell call on External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the Minister said he understood the seriousness of the error in releasing sensitive intelligence from the Mumbai terrorism investigations and pledged that the Ministry would not further disseminate that information.

Even with support from the government, serious threats against Bhutto will persist.

During recent trips to southern Punjab, Principal Officer was repeatedly told that a sophisticated jihadi recruitment network had been developed in the Multan, Bahawalpur, and Dera Ghazi Khan Divisions.

Admitting that they are "facing a tough time in the courts," Asif related that the LHC has asked for the evidence that the Home Department used to extend the detention. "There has never been a case against them," he noted, "and we have no criminal record of these gentlemen."

Though the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) continue to grab headlines for terrorist violence, poor and underdeveloped regions in the rest of "settled" Pakistan are increasingly the recruiting and training ground for extremism and militancy.

Spoke of DMK leader's attempted ‘blackmail' on Sri Lanka, warned that the Congress ‘will carry this grudge and retaliate at the right time'

The resignation drama has helped distract attention from the DMK party's woes in advance of next years Parliamentary elections.

Pakistan is one of a handful of countries (including India, Brazil, and South Africa) that routinely oppose the United States in multilateral debates despite strong bilateral ties to the U.S.

Cable reveals the conditions brokered by a Pakistan court between him and the government for his freedom

S.M. Zafar, Khan's prominent and highly respected lawyer, had pledged to the government that the meeting with the press would be Khan's "first and last" such encounter.

Benazir Bhutto's public comments that she would grant the IAEA access to Khan were highly controversial in Pakistan. Zardari's options for delivering on Benazir's promise is limited.

For the Pakistani military, the F-16 sale is tangible proof of the post-9/11 bilateral relationship, and we seriously doubt they will allow it to fail.