Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia’s maritime agency said Monday it found a cannon shell believed to be from World War II on a Chinese-registered vessel and was investigating if the barge carrier was involved in the looting of two British warship wrecks in the South China Sea.

Malaysian media reported that illegal salvage operators were believed to have targeted the HMS Repulse and the HMS Prince of Wales, which were sunk in 1941 by Japanese torpedoes, days after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A man who opened an emergency exit door during a flight in South Korea was formally arrested Sunday and faces up to 10 years in prison on a charge of violating the aviation security law, officials said.

During a preliminary questioning, the 33-year-old told investigators that he felt suffocated and tried to get off the plane quickly, according to police.

BEIJING, May 27 (Reuters) - China and South Korea have agreed to strengthen dialogue and cooperation on semiconductor industry supply chains, amid broader global concerns over chip supplies, sanctions and national security, China's commerce minister said.

Wang Wentao met with South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in Detroit, which ended on Friday.

HONG KONG, May 27 (Reuters) - One of Hong Kong's biggest democratic parties said on Saturday it would disband after a vote by its party members, dealing another blow to the city's already beleaguered democratic opposition under pressure from China.

In recent years, Hong Kong's opposition has been hit by a China-imposed national security law and overhaul of the electoral system that has largely sidelined democrats from local politics.

SEOUL, May 27 (Reuters) - A passenger on an Asiana Airlines (020560.KS) flight told police he opened a door on the plane minutes before it landed in Daegu, South Korea, on Friday because he was "uncomfortable", Yonhap News Agency reported.

The man, in his thirties, was detained on landing. He told police that he opened the door because he "wanted to get off the plane quickly," Yonhap said on Saturday, citing the Daegu Dongbu Police Station.

He also told police he was stressed after losing his job recently.

BEIJING, May 26. /TASS/: The Chinese authorities are actively promoting the process of restoring peace in Ukraine and supporting the strategic independence of European countries, the Chinese government's special representative for Eurasian affairs Li Hui, has said.

SEOUL, May 26 (NNN-YONHAP) – Nine passengers suffered breathing difficulty, as a South Korean aircraft landed with its door being open, it was reported, today.

The entrance door of the plane, which left an airport in the country’s southern resort island of Jeju at around 11:49 a.m. local time (0249 GMT), opened just before landing at the airport in Daegu, about 240 km south-east of Seoul, at 12:45 p.m. (0345 GMT).

The airplane landed on the runway of the Daegu airport with the door being open.

SEOUL, May 26 (Reuters) - South Korean police on Friday detained a man who opened a door of an Asiana Airlines (020560.KS) plane minutes before it was due to land in the city of Daegu, causing panic among the passengers, officials said.

The Airbus A321-200 plane landed safely at around 12:40 p.m. (0340 GMT). It had set off from the holiday island of Jeju an hour earlier, the airport's flight schedule showed.

Nine passengers, all teenagers, were sent to hospital after suffering breathing issues, a Daegu fire department official said.

SEOUL, May 25 (Xinhua) -- South Korea launched its homegrown space rocket on Thursday to carry eight satellites into orbit, marking the country's second successful rocket launch.

The Korea Space Launch Vehicle (KSLV)-II, also dubbed Nuri, blasted off from the Naro Space Center in the southern coastal village of Goheung at about 6:24 p.m. local time (0924 GMT), live footage from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) showed.

ULAN BATOR, May 25 (NNN-XINHUA) – More than 290,000 heads of livestock have died, in the eastern Mongolian provinces of Sukhbaatar and Khentii, due to recent dust and snow storms, local media reported today, citing these provinces’ departments of food and agriculture.

The number of dead animals is not final and is expected to increase, since many livestock are still unaccounted for, relevant authorities said.

Heavy blizzards and intense dust storms swept through Sukhbaatar and Khentii provinces, late last week, causing severe damage.