02/04/2026

THURSDAY | APR 2, 2026

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Cambodia hands over tycoon to China

from other cyber scams. China sent experts to Cambodia to help with the investigation, which led to the arrest, Cambodian government spokesperson Touch Sokhak told Reuters. “This shows Cambodia’s commitment to clear out online scams and that Cambodia is not a safe haven for scam criminals, he said. Both Chen and Li had been granted Cambodian citizenship, which was later revoked by Phnom Penh. Chen had served as an adviser to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and his father, former leader Hun Sen. Across Southeast Asia, organised criminal gangs have used casinos, hotels and fortified compounds as bases to carry out sophisticated online scams. – Reuters/AFP

o Li Xiong linked to online scam centres

BEIJING: An alleged member of Chinese-Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi’s online scam and money laundering operation, Li Xiong, was extradited from Cambodia to China, Chinese broadcaster CCTV reported yesterday, citing security officials. “Li Xiong has been placed under coercive measures according to the law, and the relevant case is under further investigation,” CCTV said. Chen founded the Prince Group, a Cambodian conglomerate with fingers in everything from real estate to banking and airlines – and according to US prosecutors, cryptocurrency investment fraud schemes that stole billions of dollars from victims worldwide. In a statement, the Cambodian

government confirmed that he was extradited to China. Li is the former chair of the Huione Group, CCTV report said. Huione Group allegedly laundered at least US$4 billion (RM16 billion) worth of illicit proceeds between August 2021 and January 2025, according to the US Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Agency (FinCEN). Of the US$4 billion total, FinCEN found that Huione Group laundered at least US$37 million worth of virtual currency that came from North Korean cyber heists, at least US$36 million from virtual currency investment scams, and US$300 million worth of virtual currencies

Seoul, Jakarta tie up on energy security Prabowo and Lee meeting at the presidential office in Seoul. – AFPPIC

SEOUL: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung held talks yesterday with Indonesian leader Prabowo Subianto, discussing energy security and agreeing to expand cooperation in areas such as critical minerals and technology, Lee’s office said. The summit talks followed a welcome ceremony at the presidential Blue House in Seoul. Lee said energy security had become a growing concern amid the uncertainty triggered by the conflict in the Middle East. “We view Indonesia’s stable role in supplying key energy resources such as LNG and coal as very reassuring,” Lee said in a statement, calling for closer cooperation on energy supply and resource security. Lee and Prabowo also oversaw the signing of preliminary agreements, including support for projects in renewable energy and data centres as the countries elevate their relationship into a strategic partnership. Prabowo also said that strong defence capabilities were essential, saying peace and stability required Philippines of breaking international law and threatened “measures” to protect its sovereignty after Manila said it would rename island features in the South China Sea. Beijing claims the South China Sea in nearly its entirety, despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis. Under an executive order by President Ferdinand Marcos on Tuesday, Manila will rename more than 100 reefs, islands, atolls and other features belonging to the Spratly archipelago. China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said the move “infringes upon China’s territorial sovereignty and violates the UN charter and relevant international laws”. “China opposes the Philippines undermining China’s sovereignty and rights and interests, and will take

“robust security and defence”. No deals were announced on defence cooperation, however, including on the two countries’ joint project to develop South Korea’s homegrown KF-21 fighter jet. Korea Aerospace Industries last month said it was in talks with Indonesia on a potential sale of KF 21 fighter jets, but said no decisions had been made. Media reports said that Jakarta was considering buying an initial batch of 16 aircraft. South Korea expects Indonesia to complete a payment related to the joint development programme by the end of this year, an official told Reuters. The countries were expected to advance defence ties, as well as strengthen cooperation in new growth areas such as artificial intelligence, infrastructure, shipbuilding, nuclear power, energy conversion, and cultural industries, the Blue House said earlier. Lee is also set to award Prabowo South Korea’s highest civilian honour, the Grand Order of Mugunghwa. – Reuters necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea,” she said. The Philippines and China, along with Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam, have competing claims to areas of the South China Sea, most importantly the Spratlys, which are believed to sit on vast oil and gas resources. Manila most prominently used the renaming mechanism in 2012 under the Benigno Aquino administration, when it dubbed areas of the crucial waterway nearest its coast the West Philippine Sea. “More than 100 Kalayaan Island Group features will have Philippine names ... which strengthens administration and governance, as well as sovereignty, in Palawan and the West Philippine Sea,” the presidential palace said in a statement. – AFP

China against renaming islands BEIJING: China accused the

A drone view of Chiang Mai on Tuesday. – REUTERSPIC

Haze cloaks northern Thailand BANGKOK: Swathes of northern Thailand choked under a blanket of haze caused by crop burning and forest fires, putting the country’s second city atop air pollution rankings on Tuesday. recommends 24-hour

Thailand’s Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, a government body, said it had recorded a “new high” of 4,750 fire hotspots across the country on Monday. It said more than 5,000 hotspots were detected across the border in Myanmar, with thousands more combined across Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia. The spike in air pollution comes as clean air activists warn a Bill to enshrine the right to breathable air and to tax emitters is in danger of dying in parliament. The Bill was put on hold when parliament was dissolved last year, and if it is not picked back up within a limited window, the process will go “back to the drawing board”, the Thailand Clean Air Network has said. – AFP

average exposures should not be more than 15 micrograms for most days of the year. Even worse hit was Pai, a usually verdant destination for backpackers and nature lovers in Mae Hong Son province, where PM2.5 levels topped 600, according to some monitors. Dao, a cafe workere, has lived through years of seasonal air pollution in Pai but said this year was especially bad. Another Pai resident, organic farmer George Wolstencroft, also declared the haze “probably the worst I’ve ever seen it”. “In any direction, the smoke is visible less than 50m away,” he said. The Chiang Mai governor’s office said illegal burning and forest fires in national parks were causing the hazardous haze.

Seasonal air pollution has become a headache for tourist dependent Thailand, and prompted lawsuits and a legislative push by clean air activists. Despite the efforts, northern Thailand’s Chiang Mai tourist destination topped the rankings for world’s most polluted major city for part of Tuesday, according to the IQAir monitor. The level of PM2.5 pollutants – cancer-causing microparticles small enough to enter the bloodstream through the lungs – hit 110 micrograms per cubic metre. The World Health Organisation