Four defence leaders meet in the Philippines and agree to advance consultations and joint exercises. The participants, stated outcome and regional context explained.

ASEAN defence ministers and eight partners meet in Cebu on October 28–29. Hegseth attends, China is unconfirmed. Who is coming, the agenda, India’s role and what to watch.

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court have asked judges to admit the earlier statements of three witnesses and an expert report in Rodrigo Duterte’s case, five weeks before the trial opens on November 30.

Judges at the International Criminal Court have ruled that former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, 81, is fit to stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity over his “war on drugs”. The ruling, the charges, the case so far and what happens next.

The main stories from across Asia on Tuesday, 6 October 2026: Pakistan and Türkiye agree to send forces to Saudi Arabia, Philippine inflation jumps to 7.2%, the PTI march reaches Kohat, a film about a 1974 assassination divides South Korea, and Malaysia approves the return of 3,524 more Myanmar nationals.

Consumer prices in the Philippines rose 7.2% in September from a year earlier, up from 6.1% in August and above every forecast in a poll of economists. Rice was 20.3% dearer and transport 14.6%. The central bank next meets on 22 October.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has granted an absolute pardon to Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipina migrant worker arrested with heroin in Indonesia in 2010 whose 2015 execution was halted at the last minute.

Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro warned of a possible Chinese opening but said US commitments and military activity with Manila remain unchanged.