Nikkei Asia – Kishida Kicks Off ‘Funeral Diplomacy’ With Call for Stable Indo-Pacific

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has kicked off three days of meetings with nearly 40 global leaders in Tokyo to attend Tuesday’s state funeral for Shinzo Abe, using the opportunity to renew the ex-leader’s push for a “free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Reuters – Swathes of Land Swamped in Philippines After Typhoon

The Diplomat – The End of Senior Politics in China

Xi Jinping is the first leader since 1978 not to be constrained by powerful elders in the CCP.

Reuters – Home to 28,000 U.S. Troops, South Korea Unlikely to Avoid a Taiwan Conflict

Tensions over Taiwan have raised the thorny issue of whether U.S. troops based in South Korea would be involved in any conflict, with American and South Korean officials acknowledging that the peninsula could easily be dragged into a crisis.

Nikkei Asia – Solomons ‘Unfairly Targeted’ Since Recognizing China: Prime Minister

The prime minister of the Solomon Islands complained on Friday that his country had been subjected to “a barrage of unwarranted and misplaced criticisms, misinformation and intimidation” since formalizing diplomatic relations with China in 2019.

The Straits Times – Antony Blinken and Wang Yi Meet to Contain High Tensions On Taiwan

Senior diplomats from the United States and China met on Friday with tensions high after an explicit pledge by US President Joe Biden to defend Taiwan.