Southeast Asian foreign ministers hold a closed-doors retreat in Malaysia on Sunday, as the country hosts its first meeting as chair of the regional bloc ASEAN amid an intensifying civil war in Myanmar and confrontations in the South China Sea.

Can Anwar Ibrahim's diplomatic finesse help Malaysia steer Asean through the storm of rising trade tensions and regional crises? Malaysia takes the helm of Asean at a time of see-sawing threats and opportunities,

LANGKAWI, Malaysia (Reuters) - The regional bloc ASEAN and China should make headway on a protracted code of conduct for the South China Sea by tackling thorny "milestone issues", including its scope and if it can be legally binding, the Philippines' top diplomat said on Saturday.

LANGKAWI: Beijing’s proposal to address online scams and gambling in the region together with Asean countries, will be discussed at the Asean Foreign Ministers Retreat (AMM) on Sunday (Jan 19), says Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hassan.

More than 10 years have passed, but the victims of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 continue to be in the hearts and prayers of Malaysians. However, singer

Sen. Tammy Duckworth grilled proposed defense secretary Pete Hegseth over the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, asking him if he could name a single member.

Hegseth responded at the heated Senate confirmation hearing that he couldn’t tell Duckworth the exact number of ASEAN nations, but that “I know we have allies in South Korea and Japan in AUKUS (a pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S.) with Australia.”

Beijing on Wednesday said it "firmly opposes" a US move to effectively bar Chinese technology from smart cars in the American market, saying alleged risks to national security were "without any factual basis".

At a Malaysia conference, ministers of ASEAN nations pledged to step up the fight against illegal online gambling and cyber-crime.

There will always be border disputes in Asia, and China should not be singled out because of tensions in the South China Sea, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Wednesday.

Southeast Asian nations told Myanmar's military government on Sunday its plan to hold an election amid an escalating civil war should not be its priority, urging the junta to start dialogue and end hostilities immediately.

Southeast Asian foreign ministers are gathering for their first meeting this year under the regional bloc’s new chair, Malaysia, seeking a breakthrough over Myanmar’s drawn-out civil war and territorial disputes in the South China Sea.