Asia

China Poised To Fill Leadership Void On Climate Policy – With Economic Incentives

6:03pm April 02, 2017

by Michel Martin

Trump signed an executive order this week that will begin to roll back some of Obama's signature climate change policies. Georgetown University's Varum Sivaram explains what that could mean for China.

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Trump, Xi Jinping Probably Won't Be Golfing While Talking Trade At Mar-A-Lago Meeting

5:59pm April 02, 2017

by Scott Horsley

Contentious issues on trade and North Korea are likely to dominate this coming week when President Trump has his first in-person meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Xi Jinping Seeks Cooperation With U.S. Ahead Of China's Leadership Transition

5:58pm April 02, 2017

A look at what President Donald Trump's first face-to-face meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping looks like from Beijing.

Khanh-Hoa Nguyen cooks caramelized pork belly with ginger, a Cambodian dish served to women who have just given birth.

For Centuries, These Asian Recipes Have Helped New Moms Recover From Childbirth

7:00am April 02, 2017

by Grace Hwang Lynch

Postpartum soups and stews have traditionally been prepared for new moms by Asian grandmothers and aunts, the recipes passed down orally. A new cookbook seeks to preserve them before they're lost.

Komada holds a netsuke that is about two-thirds of the way finished. It takes up to two months to create one carving.

Arts

In The Art Of Netsuke, Tiny Toggles Tell Delightful Stories Of Japan

7:50am April 01, 2017

by Maureen Pao

Collectors covet the detailed and intricate charm-like pieces, used as anchors on kimono sashes. Master carver Komada Ryushi shares how he still gets nervous each time he starts a new netsuke.

A mourner walks through a cemetery in Jinjiang during the Tomb-Sweeping Festival in 2015.

World News

China Preps For Its Big Spring Clean, As The Tomb-Sweeping Festival Approaches

4:32pm March 31, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

People in China are preparing for Qingming, a national holiday to celebrate ancestors that dates back millennia — but was banned for decades and has only recently been reinstated.

The Nisshin Maru, mother ship in the Japanese whaling fleet, returns to port in southwestern Japan on Friday.

Japan's Annual Antarctic Expedition Returns With 333 Whale Carcasses

3:29pm March 31, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

The country's Fisheries Agency says the trip is conducted each year to further ecological research — which is an exception in a worldwide ban on commercial whaling. Others aren't buying the claim.

A van believed to be carrying the body of Kim Jong Nam, the half-brother of North Korea's leader, leaves the forensics wing of a hospital in Kuala Lumpur Thursday. Malaysia released the body along with men who had been questioned over Kim's death.

World News

Malaysia Sends Men Questioned In Murder Back To North Korea, Along With Kim's Body

1:36pm March 31, 2017

by Bill Chappell

Malaysian diplomats were also allowed to leave North Korea, in a swap that seemingly ends the standoff over the murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother.

As Mistefa Bedevi sings, 1-year-old Mirhat mimics performance poses, holding his hand over his ear.

In Turkey, Kurdish Singers Keep Traditional Music Alive

5:11am March 31, 2017

by Peter Kenyon

For centuries, dengbej songs served as news bulletin, history lesson and evening's entertainment all in one. Master singers continue to perform. But efforts to preserve Kurdish culture have suffered.

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Former South Korean President Park Geun-hye arrives for questioning at the Seoul Central District Court on Thursday.

Ousted South Korean Leader Park Geun-hye Arrested On Corruption Charges

4:22pm March 30, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

The court granted prosecutors' request to hold Park, who was removed from office earlier this month. A Seoul court issued the warrant early Friday local time, hours after she appeared for questioning.