Connect with us

Entertainment

East Timor joins ASEAN after 14-year wait, becoming bloc’s 11th member

Published

on

East Timor joins ASEAN after 14-year wait, becoming bloc’s 11th member


Timor-Leste’s Foreign Minister Bendito Freitas, Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan and Thailand’s Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow attend a ceremony for the accession of Timor-Leste to the ASEAN charter in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia October 25, 2025. — Reuters

East Timor joined the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) bloc as its 11th member state on Sunday, after 14 years of campaigning.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose country currently chairs ASEAN, said East Timor’s accession “completes the ASEAN family — reaffirming our shared destiny and deep sense of regional kinship”.

“Within this community, Timor-Leste’s development and its strategic autonomy will find firm and lasting support,” Anwar told an ASEAN summit in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.

East Timor, also known by its Portuguese name Timor-Leste, is the youngest country in the region, having gained independence from Indonesia in 2002 after 24 years of occupation.

President Jose Ramos-Horta has long campaigned for ASEAN membership, and an application was first submitted in 2011 during his first term.

The signing of a declaration on East Timor’s admission on Sunday is also seen as one of the crowning achievements of Malaysia’s ASEAN chairmanship.

East Timor was granted observer status to the regional body in 2022 but its full membership was delayed by various challenges.

The country continues to grapple with high levels of inequality, malnutrition and unemployment.

It remains heavily reliant on oil, with little diversification into other sectors, and some concerns remain over its ability to participate meaningfully in ASEAN’s development agenda.

It also faces challenges in infrastructure development and human resource capacity, seen as critical for effective participation in ASEAN’s economic community.

In September, thousands of student-led protesters demonstrated against a multi-million dollar plan to purchase Toyota Prado SUVs for each of the country’s 65 members of parliament and lifetime pensions for former MPs.

Demonstrators and police clashed for two days, before the parliament cancelled the vehicles’ procurement.

The parliament has also bowed to public pressure over MPs’ pensions.

ASEAN began as a five-member bloc in 1967 and has gradually expanded, with Cambodia the most recent addition in 1999.





Source link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Entertainment

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle release surprise video alongside holiday cards

Published

on

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle release surprise video alongside holiday cards


Harry and Meghan release their holiday card 2025 amid some major changes

The Sussexes’ holiday card is officially here as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle implement some major changes.

On Friday, December 19, the Duke and Duchess of Sussexes revealed their Christmas cards; as always, they released one for the public and another meant for close family and friends. But this time, they surprised fans with an additional festive video published on their newly re-named Archewell Philanthropies (previously Archewell Foundation).

“On behalf of the Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and Archewell, we wish you a very happy holiday season and a joyful new year,” the accompanying read.

The video featured clips from various Archewell initiatives, but one moment stood out as Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet appeared during a Thanksgiving-related community outing in Los Angeles.

The siblings joined their parents as Archewell partnered with Our Big Kitchen Los Angeles to prepare meals for those in need. In the footage, 6-year-old-Archie and 4-year-old Lilibet could be seen helping with food preparation and pushing a trolley alongside Meghan and Harry. Meghan previously shared glimpses of the same outing to her Instagram last month.

Apart from spreading holiday cheer, the video also serves to increase the Sussex children’s involvement in Archewell’s initiatives, which is a major reason for its recent name change. 

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle release surprise video alongside holiday cards

As Harry and Meghan explained, “This charitable entity allows the couple and their children to expand upon their global philanthropic endeavors as a family.”

Shortly after releasing the video, the couple also shared a separate holiday card featuring a photo of the two of them at the Invictus Games in Vancouver and Whistler. Unlike last year, Archie and Lilibet were not pictured.

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle release surprise video alongside holiday cards

The children last appeared on their parents’ holiday card in December 2024, when a candid photo showed them running toward Meghan and Harry. 





Source link

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Albert Brooks remembers his “oldest friend” Rob Reiner: “I’m still in that not believing it stage”

Published

on

Albert Brooks remembers his “oldest friend” Rob Reiner: “I’m still in that not believing it stage”


Comedian and actor Albert Brooks said he’s still in shock over the death of one of his oldest and best friends, Rob Reiner.

“Rob was my oldest friend. It’s that simple. He’s the person that I’ve known the longest. I met him when I was 14 years old. So I’m still in that not believing it stage,” he told CBS News in the upcoming special “CBS News: Rob Reiner – Scenes from a Life,” airing Sunday. Brooks and Reiner met at Beverly Hills High School in a drama class 60 years ago.

Reiner and his wife, Michele, were found fatally stabbed in their Los Angeles home on Dec. 14, authorities said. Their son, Nick, has been charged with first-degree murder in their deaths.

Brooks said there are still moments he forgets his friend is gone.

“I know it happened, but, you know, I’m driving around and all of a sudden – I actually two days ago, I called his number,” he recalled.

Brooks and Reiner returned to their high school, reminiscing about their time together while surveying the school’s Wall of Fame, during an interview for “CBS Sunday Morning” in December 2023. 

“This is the first time both of us have been back since we graduated,” said Reiner. Brooks joked: “Over a certain age, it’s against the law. Well, life works best when you remember.” 

As they pointed out a bench they used to sit on, Reiner joked, “It brings back no memories,” as Brooks agreed, “Nothing. Nothing.”

Reiner directed the HBO documentary, “Albert Brooks: Defending My Life,” released in 2023. Before that, the pair was only in one movie together, “The Muse” in 1999. “He hired me. He was nice enough to hire me,” Reiner said. “I was,” Brooks replied.

You can hear more from Brooks and others who knew Reiner in the one-hour special “CBS News: Rob Reiner – Scenes from a Life.” It will be broadcast Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on CBS, and will stream on Paramount+.  



Source link

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Simon Cowell responds to ‘staged’ December 10 show accusation

Published

on

Simon Cowell responds to ‘staged’ December 10 show accusation


Simon Cowell answered critics who claimed the new Netflix talent series The Next Act show which introduced boyband December 10 felt scripted.

December 10 which is made up of Cruz, Danny, Hendrick, John, Josh, Nicolas, and Sean released their first music video this week.

It sparked renewed debate about how the group was formed on Cowell’s show.

On The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, host Richard Osman questioned the show’s ‘authenticity’.

“What I thought I was going to watch was something with a bit more authenticity if that makes sense,” said the American Idol judge.

“You’re so brilliant at controlling narrative and understanding what people want and understanding how to give it to them.

“I wondered if you execing that show meant that we missed out on some genuine authenticity, as I felt a number of times where you were saying ‘oh this is a big problem, oh I don’t know what’s gonna happen here’ and I thought ‘I think you do know what’s going to happen here’.”

The 66-year-old pushed back firmly stating, “No, Richard… pinky promise I didn’t. Absolutely didn’t… I promise you it was all genuine, what you see is what happened. And there weren’t any second takes.”

Co‑host Marina Hyde also raised eyebrows over the inclusion of “bad auditions,” likening them to the “theatre of cruelty” seen on The X Factor.

Cowell insisted that showing both strong and weak performers was part of the reality of auditions.

“But that is the reality with auditions, I’ve always gone with about half a percent of the people you see are gonna be good,” share Cowell.

“So there were some not so good people. So I guess it was a decision to show the people that turned up and some of them weren’t very good.”





Source link

Continue Reading

Trending