VOA Asia Weekly: Readying Refugees for Resettlement

China and Russia, US and Philippines conduct South China Sea exercises. Taiwan says it will commit to bolstering own defenses. Thailand authorities investigate hotel poisoning deaths. Rare whale washes ashore in New Zealand.

What is the top news of the week from Asia, the U.S., and around the world? VOA Asia Weekly rounds up the week’s major headlines, along with expert analysis, all in five minutes, produced from Washington, DC.

How Indonesia is helping refugees from Asia and Africa prepare for the future. 

Welcome to VOA Asia Weekly. I'm Chris Casquejo in Washington. That story is just ahead, but first, making headlines:   

China and Russia conducted a joint naval exercise in the South China Sea this week. Each country deployed at least three vessels for the three-day exercises. Russian state media says both countries engaged in live artillery firing, joint air defense and anti-submarine drills. The U.S. Navy also announced that on Wednesday, American and Philippine coast guard cutters conducted joint training in the same sea.    

Taiwan's Premier Cho Jung-tai said on Wednesday, the self-ruled island is committed to bolstering its own defenses.   

“We are willing to take on more responsibility; we are defending ourselves.”  

His response comes after former US President Donald Trump told Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan should pay the United States for its defense.   

Thai police found traces of cyanide in the blood of six people found dead on Tuesday at a luxury hotel in Bangkok. Thai authorities said on Wednesday that one of them is believed to have poisoned the others over a bad investment. All six were of Vietnamese descent. Two of them were U.S. citizens.  

Bangladesh deployed border guard troops Tuesday after more than five university students were killed in protests. The demonstrations began after the government reinstated quotas on government jobs and shut down most schools and colleges indefinitely.   

Khadga Prasad Oli, the leader of Nepal’s largest communist party, took the oath of office on Monday as Nepal’s newly appointed prime minister. The event took place in a ceremony in Kathmandu following the collapse of a previous coalition government.  

Indonesia has become a temporary home for thousands of refugees from Asia and Africa. VOA’s Dave Grunebaum reports from Cisarua, Indonesia, on a program that is helping some of them prepare for the lives that lie ahead of them. 

I’m Chris Casquejo.    

Finally, scientists say one of the rarest whales in the ocean has washed on shore in New Zealand.  

The 16-foot carcass appears to be that of a Spade-toothed whale.  So far, no live sightings have ever been recorded. The specimen has been frozen, allowing scientists to dissect it for the first time. With that data, they expect to learn what they eat, and perhaps find out where they live.  

Thanks for watching VOA Asia Weekly.   

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