October 4: This is the first edition of Asia Briefing, our daily round-up of the stories that matter across the continent. Today: Pakistan’s opposition begins a march on the capital after talks collapse, Taiwan receives its first new F-16V jets, Vietnam reports its fastest growth in four years, Indonesia gets a new foreign minister, and Kazakhstan pitches a global treaty on artificial intelligence.
Key highlights
- Pakistan: Imran Khan’s party goes ahead with a five-day march to Islamabad after 11 hours of talks end in deadlock.
- Taiwan: The first two of 66 F-16V Block 70 jets ordered in 2019 have landed at Chihhang Air Base.
- Vietnam: The economy grew 9.95% in the third quarter, the national statistics office said.
- Indonesia: President Prabowo names a career diplomat as foreign minister and replaces the police chief.
- Kazakhstan: President Tokayev backs the White House AI accord and suggests a UN treaty.
- South Korea: Monthly exports crossed $120 billion for the first time in September.
South Asia
Pakistan: march goes ahead. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is due to set off from Lakki Marwat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 1pm today, heading for Islamabad over five days. Talks with the government at Parliament House ended at about 3am without a deal, Dawn reported. The government says the march will not be allowed into the capital. Full story: PTI goes ahead with march on Islamabad after talks end in deadlock.
India and Pakistan summon diplomats. India summoned Pakistan’s chargé d’affaires on Saturday over what it called the facilitation of cross-border infiltration, after the Border Security Force shot two men on the Punjab border on October 2. Pakistan, which had summoned India’s envoy first, says the men were unarmed civilians. Full story: India summons Pakistan’s top diplomat after BSF shooting in Punjab.
East Asia
Taiwan: first F-16Vs arrive. Two F-16V Block 70 fighters landed in Taitung on Friday after waiting about six weeks in Hawaii. Defence Minister Wellington Koo said more will come this year. Full story: Taiwan receives its first two F-16V Block 70 jets.
South Korea: record exports. Exports rose 83.5% from a year earlier to $120.9 billion in September, the first time they have passed $120 billion in a month, Al Jazeera reported. Chip shipments were $60.3 billion, almost half the total. Trade Minister Kim Jeong-kwan called it “a valuable achievement” but said global protectionism and tensions in the Middle East “remain major variables”.
North Korea: missile test. Pyongyang fired a ballistic missile from the Wonsan area, a day after Kim Yo Jong rejected Seoul’s demand for an apology. Full story: North Korea fires ballistic missile from Wonsan.
Mongolia: fuel shortage protests. Motorists left their vehicles and marched through central Ulaanbaatar near parliament on October 1 after waiting hours at filling stations, The Star reported, citing Bloomberg. Mongolia depends heavily on Russian fuel, and supply has been hit by strikes on Russian oil facilities. The government has asked Russia and China for more supplies and signed agreements with Kazakhstan.
Southeast Asia
Vietnam: growth of 9.95%. Gross domestic product grew 9.95% year on year in the third quarter and 9.01% in the first nine months, the National Statistics Office announced on October 3, VietnamPlus reported. Industry and construction grew 12.5%. Registered foreign direct investment for the nine months reached $50.36 billion, up 76.4%. The Manila Times described it as the fastest quarterly growth in four years.
Indonesia: new foreign minister. President Prabowo Subianto reshuffled his cabinet on October 1, naming career diplomat Arrmanatha Christiawan Nasir as foreign minister and appointing a new police chief. On October 2 he swore in a 26-member Presidential Advisory Council. Full story: Prabowo names Arrmanatha Nasir foreign minister and revives advisory council.
Thailand: more rain for Bangkok. Thirteen districts of Bangkok face a risk of flooding on October 3 and 4, The Nation reported, as carried by Bernama. The Bank of Thailand has also tightened deposit rules and checks aimed at mule accounts, according to the Bangkok Post. Background: Bangkok declares flood disaster zone.
Singapore: AI safeguards “insufficient”. Digital Development Minister Josephine Teo said companies’ own safeguards are “important but insufficient” to manage the risks from advancing AI systems, CNA reported, as carried by Bernama.
Central Asia
Kazakhstan: a “Washington Model” for AI. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev endorsed the voluntary AI accord signed at the White House and said it could become the core of a treaty under the United Nations. Kazakhstan will bring proposals to the G20 summit in Miami in December. Full story: Tokayev backs Trump’s AI accord as a “Washington Model”.
West Asia
Oil: G7 opens its reserves. G7 countries agreed on October 2 to release 100 million barrels of crude and diesel over four months. Brent slipped to $100.80 a barrel. Separately, five Indian crew members were rescued after the Kuwait-flagged tanker MT Kazimah III was hit by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz. Full story: G7 to release 100 million barrels of oil and diesel.
Iran: US build-up continues. Background: the US sends a third aircraft carrier and 9,000 more troops.
Sport
Asian Games end today. The Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, close on Sunday. After Saturday’s events China led the table with 169 golds, followed by Japan with 83 and South Korea with 38, according to myKhel. India and Uzbekistan had 21 each. India beat Pakistan by 19 runs in the men’s cricket final and Malaysia 5-1 in the men’s hockey final on Saturday.
What to watch this week
- October 4 to 8: The PTI march through Khyber Pakhtunkhwa towards Islamabad.
- October 7: The Reserve Bank of India’s interest rate decision.
- Through the week: How quickly G7 diesel reaches the market, and whether shipping through Hormuz keeps recovering.
Asia Briefing will appear here every day.
Sources
- Dawn: Second round of govt-opposition talks ends in a “deadlock”
- Focus Taiwan (CNA): Taiwan receives first 2 F-16V Block 70s
- Al Jazeera: South Korea’s exports hit record high on AI boom
- The Star (Bloomberg): Mongolia’s fuel shortage sparks protest as drivers wait in lines
- VietnamPlus: Vietnam posts GDP growth of 9.95% in Q3
- The Manila Times: Vietnam’s quarterly GDP grew fastest in 4 years
- Bernama: Top news headlines in Indonesia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, October 3, 2026
- Akorda: President Tokayev chairs third meeting of the Artificial Intelligence Development Council
- myKhel: Asian Games 2026 medal tally
The International Desk covers world and Asian affairs, diplomacy and conflict, with a focus on what they mean for India. Stories are checked against at least two credible sources before publication.
