Top Asia Pacific Breaking News: Latest Updates

BEIJING (AP) - Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed their strategic ties and growing energy trade as they met in Beijing Wednesday only days after a visit by U.S. President Donald Trump to China. Putin and Xi oversaw the signing of more than 40 cooperation agreements in areas such as trade, technology and media exchanges. They stressed their growing trade, particularly in oil and natural gas, and declared themselves aligned on international relations. The countries' ties have reached "the highest level in history," Xi said after the signing ceremony, speaking to members of the delegations and journalists.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said Wednesday that if given the chance he would tell U.S. President Donald Trump of his hope to continue U.S. arms purchases, which Lai called essential for peace. Lai is marking two years in office, the halfway point of his term, under growing pressure from China, which sees Taiwan as a breakaway province to be retaken by force if necessary. Trump's recent narrative on Taiwan also raised concerns about the United States' longstanding support for the island democracy. Lai said if he could talk to Trump, he would emphasize that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait was crucial for global security, alleging China was the "destroyer" of the strait's peace.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Samsung Electronics' labor union said Wednesday it'll hold off on launching a planned strike and put a tentative wage deal with management to a vote, alleviating immediate concerns about the operation of the world's largest memory chip maker. The announcement was made after a last-minute government-mediated negotiation with management over how much bonus payouts must be provided to employees to reflect soaring profits fueled by the global boom in artificial intelligence. Union leader Choi Seung-ho told a televised briefing that the union agreed not to go ahead with an 18-day strike that he earlier said would start from Thursday.

BEIJING (AP) - Torrential rain and floods hit parts of China this week, killing at least 12 people and forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate, state media reported. State broadcaster CCTV reported on Wednesday five deaths and 11 people missing in Shimen County of Hunan province in central China after rain battered the region. A rescue operation is underway. By Tuesday evening, more than 19,000 had been relocated, Chinese official news agency Xinhua reported. Xinhua said the county recorded a cumulative rainfall of 339 millimeters (about 13 inches) within a 24-hour period ending at 7 a.m. on Monday. One of its towns once received a rainfall of 240 millimeters (about 9 inches) within just a few hours, breaking historical records, it said.

MALE, Maldives (AP) - Divers on Wednesday recovered the last two bodies of four Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in the Maldives last week. The Italian divers had been exploring the cave in Vaavu Atoll on Thursday when they disappeared. The body of their Italian diving instructor was recovered outside the cave and the Finnish recovery divers brought the bodies of two of the divers to the surface Tuesday. Presidential spokesperson Mohameed Hussain Shareef said the last two bodies were recovered by three Finnish divers supported by the Maldives coastguard and police. The bodies were taken to a morgue and identified as Muriel Oddenino and Giorgia Sommacal.

NEW DELHI (AP) - In New Delhi's chaotic traffic, where the backs of auto-rickshaws sometimes double as mobile billboards, some commuters are now being greeted by an unlikely face: U.S. President Donald Trump. Splashed beneath his portrait is the slogan, "Happy Birthday America!" About 100 auto-rickshaws carrying large images of Trump and the Statue of Liberty have appeared across the Indian capital in recent weeks. In a city where the backs of thousands of three-wheelers are routinely covered with ads for little-known fertility clinics, English-speaking courses and herbal remedies, the American branding stands out. The unusual advertising campaign was unveiled last month by Sergio Gor, the U.S.

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesia is tightening state control over its globally important natural resources, with new regulations requiring that state-owned enterprises handle exports of key commodities like palm oil, coal and iron alloys. President Prabowo Subianto told parliament on Wednesday that Indonesia had lost as much as $908 billion because its commodities were undervalued when they were exported. Increasing control will bring more money into government coffers, he said, describing the underreporting of exports to reduce taxes as "fraud or deception." "The primary objective of this policy is to strengthen oversight and monitoring - and to combat under-invoicing, transfer pricing and the diversion of export proceeds," Prabowo said.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi held their fourth meeting in about six months on Tuesday, underscoring the need for greater cooperation between the historical Asian rivals amid global challenges, including the Iran war. Lee hosted Takaichi in his hometown of Andong, a southeastern South Korean city famous for its centuries-old traditional folk village, a UNESCO World Heritage site. In January, the two met in Takaichi's hometown of Nara, an ancient Japanese capital. The meetings marked the first time sitting leaders of the two countries have visited each other's hometowns.

GOTEMBA, Japan (AP) - U.S. Marines test fired a dozen rockets from a mobile launcher on Wednesday at a range in the foothills of Japan's iconic Mount Fuji, in an exercise to keep sharp on weapon that is a growingly important component of the American military's arsenal. The High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) is a launcher mounted on the back of a military truck that can be rapidly brought out from concealment, fire its rockets, then move quickly to a new location to avoid counter-battery fire. The so-called "shoot and scoot" tactics are becoming increasingly important with the proliferation of drones over the battlefield, which make static positions more vulnerable.

HONG KONG (AP) - A Hong Kong court on Tuesday concluded final arguments in a national security trial for two former organizers of the city's vigils remembering the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. Judge Alex Lee, one of the three government-vetted judges, said that they hoped to deliver a verdict in July for Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan, two former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. For decades, the now-defunct alliance organized the only large-scale public commemoration in China that attracted tens of thousands annually until the event was banned in 2020 during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic.