* Despite globalization's retreat, Singapore remains committed to staying open, Singapore's Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Monday during his speech at the opening of Singapore Maritime Week.
* Indian lawmakers' monthly salary has been increased by 24 percent to 1,24,000 Indian Rupees (nearly 1,449 USD) from 1,00,000 Indian Rupees (nearly 1,168.50 dollars), the federal government announced on Monday. The new salary will be paid with retrospective effect from April 1, 2023.
* Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced on Tuesday that Indonesia has decided to join the New Development Bank (NDB) following a meeting with NDB President Dilma Vana Rousseff at the Presidential Palace.
* Leaders of New Zealand and Papua New Guinea reaffirmed strong partnership on Tuesday ahead of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations in September.
* In response to a recent tripartite naval drill by the United States, Japan and the Republic of Korea, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a commentary Tuesday that the naval drill "further aggravated the serious political and military situation in the region."
* Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that Moscow is analyzing the outcomes of the concluded Russia-U.S. talks in Riyadh. The talks were "technical," and their content would not be made public, Peskov said, adding that contacts between Russia and the United States would continue.
* Moscow and Washington have a mutual desire to move forward with efforts to resolve the Ukraine crisis, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.
* Moscow supports resuming the Black Sea deal in a form that is "more acceptable to everyone," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.
* British Prime Minister Keir Starmer held discussions with U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday night regarding an "economic prosperity deal" between the two nations, local media reported.
* Hungary will not support Ukraine's rapid accession to the European Union (EU) ahead of Western Balkan countries, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said on Monday.
* Bulgarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Georg Georgiev and his visiting Slovak counterpart Juraj Blanar in Sofia on Monday said Europe had to strengthen capabilities to defend itself.
* NATO on Monday started a large-scale multinational training exercise off the southwest coast of Spain, called the Dynamic Mariner/Flotex-25 exercise.
* U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday said that he may "give a lot of countries breaks" on tariffs, as his April 2 deadline to impose "reciprocal tariffs" on U.S. trading partners draws closer.
* Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Monday criticized the proposed U.S. tariffs, calling them "unacceptable to all."
* U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday announced that he'll impose 25-percent tariff on any nation that purchases oil and/or gas from Venezuela, accusing the Latin American country of sending "tens of thousands of" criminals to the United States.
* Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Monday that his country will continue on the path of productive economic recovery despite the U.S. unilateral coercive measures.
* President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held a phone call on Monday, during which Putin thanked the UAE for its mediation efforts in facilitating prisoner exchanges with Ukraine, UAE's official Emirates News Agency reported.
* Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Tuesday he has approved operational plans for "continuing" the offensive in the Gaza Strip.
* Kaja Kallas, the European Union's (EU) high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, said in Ramallah on Monday that the EU supports the Gaza reconstruction plan approved by an emergency Arab summit earlier this month.
* Israel's air defense systems intercepted two rockets fired from Gaza toward southern Israeli communities on Monday evening, the Israeli military said in a statement.
* Turkish security forces arrested 1,133 suspects over the past five days since the start of protests against the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the country's Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Monday.
* A senior military commander of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah was killed in an Israeli drone strike in Nabatieh, southern Lebanon, according to a Lebanese security source on Tuesday.
* Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein held a phone conversation on Monday evening with his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi to discuss regional tensions and bilateral relations.
* Iran on Monday rejected media reports that the Iranian oil tankers seized by the U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf used forged Iraqi documents.
* African leaders from eastern and southern Africa appointed five former presidents to an expanded panel of facilitators to advance the peace process in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at a virtual summit on Monday evening.
* The weighted real GDP growth rate of Asia is projected to reach 4.5 percent in 2025, an increase from 4.4 percent in 2024, according to a report released by the Boao Forum for Asia Tuesday.
* Chinese companies and researchers filed a new record of 20,081 patent applications in 2024 at the European Patent Office (EPO), the office's Patent Index 2024 revealed Tuesday. This figure accounts for 10.1 percent of all applications received by the office, securing China's position as the fourth-largest filer globally.
* Laos recorded a trade deficit of 56 million USD in January, according to the latest figures from the Lao Trade Portal website. The total value of trade in January reached over 1.3 billion dollars, with exports accounting for 650 million dollars and imports totaling 706 million dollars, said a report issued on Tuesday from the website.
* The Malaysian economy is projected to grow between 4.5 percent and 5.5 percent in 2025, underpinned by domestic demand, the country's central bank said Monday.
* Hungary has enacted an emergency decree requiring banks to keep all ATMs operational and continue providing cash withdrawal services at branch locations.
* The Philippines is now value-added tax (VAT)-free for foreign tourists, with the signing of the implementing rules and regulations for the VAT Refund for Non-Resident Tourists, the Philippines' Department of Finance (DOF) said Monday.
* The Maldives reported a budget surplus this year, with state revenue surpassing spending, as the administration's economic reform plan takes effect, PSM News, the Maldives' state media, reported on Tuesday.
* A powerful 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck the waters off southern New Zealand on Tuesday, though no tsunami warning was issued for the region.
* Nepal has allowed 58 climbers to scale five peaks in the country during the spring climbing season by Tuesday. Forty-two permits were issued for Mount Annapurna I, the world's tenth highest at 8,091 meters, followed by nine for Thorong Peak (6,144 meters), according to the Department of Tourism.
* The temperature in east China's Shanghai Municipality hit a high of over 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday -- the earliest annual occurrence of the temperature point since 1933, according to the Shanghai Meteorological Service.
* 2024 has become Singapore's warmest year on record, tied with 2019 and 2016, with the annual average temperature reaching 28.4 degrees Celsius, according to the Meteorological Service Singapore's 2024 Annual Climate Assessment Report released on Sunday.
