BUSAN (AFP) -- Organisers of Asia's top film festival, which opens in Busan this week, warn that a surge of global interest in the critically acclaimed South Korean movie "Parasite" masks a damaging underinvestment in local independent cinema.Bong Joon-ho's darkly comic tale of class war in the Seoul suburbs won the Palme D'or for best film at Cannes and is firming as an Oscar favourite next year, in what would be the first ever win for a Korean film.It has been sold to 192 internation

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Donald Trump on Tuesday denounced the impeachment inquiry threatening his presidency as a "coup," as his administration pushed back hard against the investigation.Trump's comments came after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pressed to prevent or delay five former or current State Department staffers from testifying in the investigation probing accusations that Trump abused his office by seeking dirt from Ukraine on a 2020 election rival."As I learn more and more

HONG KONG, Oct  1, 2019 (AFP) - Hong Kong's pro-democracy protests erupted into violence in June, plunging the former British colony into its most severe crisis since it reverted to Chinese rule in 1997.After more intense protests on Tuesday, the 70th anniversary of communist China's founding, here is a recap.- First clashes -In the semi-autonomous territory's biggest demonstration since 1997, more than a million people, according to organisers, march on June 9 to protest a draft government

TOKYO (AFP) -- One of the projectiles fired by North Korea early Wednesday appears to have fallen into Japan's exclusive economic zone, the top government spokesman said."At around 7:10 am (1010 GMT), two projectiles were launched from the eastern coast of North Korea," Yoshihide Suga told reporters. "One of them appears to have fallen into waters... inside Japan's exclusive economic zone," the chief cabinet secretary said.The comments came after South Korea's military said t

NEW YORK (AFP) -- Netflix announced Monday a fourth season of retro sci-fi show "Stranger Things," the site's most successful original production, as it bids to fend off intense competition from other streaming platforms.The video subscription service added that it had entered into a multi-year deal with the hit series' creators, Matt and Ross Duffer, to work on unspecified film and series projects."Stranger Things," a nostalgic 1980s drama about a gang of suburban adolescent

BEIJING (AFP) -- China celebrates 70 years of Communist Party supremacy Tuesday with a parade of tanks, missiles and troops, a muscular display of its rising superpower status even as it faces an unprecedented challenge to its authority in seething Hong Kong.Authorities in Beijing have closed roads, banned the flying of kites, and shut some bars as they tightened security for an event celebrating China's journey from a country broken by war and poverty to being the world's second-largest economy

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that US President Donald Trump asked him to help gather information for an inquiry into Robert Mueller's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election.The New York Times, citing two unidentified US officials, earlier reported the request to assist in the investigation -- which aims to discredit the Russia probe -- was made during a recent telephone call between Trump and Morrison.An Australian government spokesma

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- John Bolton warned Monday that North Korea had not truly chosen to give up nuclear weapons in the hawk's first public appearance since he left as President Donald Trump's national security advisor.At a think-tank conference on North Korea, Bolton said he could now "speak in unvarnished terms" about the "grave threat" posed by the regime of Kim Jong-un, who has courted Trump."It seems to be clear that the DPRK has not made a strategic decision to give

BEIJING (AFP) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping paid his respects to Chairman Mao Zedong's embalmed body Monday in a rare gesture ahead of China's celebration of 70 years of Communist rule.Xi and other top Chinese officials visited Mao's mausoleum -- located in the heart of Beijing in Tiananmen Square -- and bowed three times to the late leader's statue, reported official news agency Xinhua.He also paid respects to the remains of Mao, whose embalmed body is kept in a glass display at the memorial

TAIPEI (AFP) -- Communist China's creation seven decades ago irrevocably changed Taiwan, but Beijing's huge celebrations this week will be met with a collective shrug on an island where people increasingly see themselves as distinct from the mainland.After the People's Republic of China was declared on 1 October 1949, its rival, the Republic of China, set up in Taiwan -- the island Chiang Kai-shek's defeated nationalists fled to and imposed their will upon.Taiwan remains a sore point to this day

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) -- Seventy years after the founding of communist China, once rosy predictions of coexistence with the United States have dissipated with expectations rising instead of a long-term, globe-spanning rivalry.The United Nations General Assembly showcased the harsh new tone between the world's two largest economies, with US President Donald Trump declaring from the rostrum that the age of tolerance for China's "abuses" was over.Representing China at the annual summit of

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -- Spider-Man will spin his web on the big screen once again.A breakdown in talks between Sony Pictures and Marvel had imperiled the web-slinger's celluloid future, but the two companies announced a deal Friday for Marvel Studios to produce the third Spidey film starring British actor Tom Holland.The film -- which follows up on "Spider-Man: Homecoming" and "Spider-Man: Far from Home" -- is set for release on July 16, 2021, the studios said.Marvel Studios pre

TOKYO (AFP) -- Fed up with finding yourself next to a screaming child on a long-haul flight? On some Japanese airlines a seat map will warn you where potentially bawling babies are sitting.The facility, offered as part of Japan Airlines' "Smile Support" travel service for those with infants, is not new, but lit up the internet after a Twitter user praised it."Thank you, @JAL_Official_jp for warnings me about where babies plan to scream and yell during a 13 hour trip. This really o

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) -- Iran's president on Wednesday closed the door on meeting Donald Trump despite last-minute European efforts to ease tensions as the United States again ramped up punishing sanctions.French President Emmanuel Macron had shuttled between his US and Iranian counterparts over two days at the United Nations, trying to arrange a historic encounter that he hoped could reduce the risk of all-out war in the Middle East.But Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, addressing the UN General

NEW YORK (AFP) -- A downbeat Donald Trump on Wednesday dismissed as a "joke" the grounds laid out for the impeachment inquiry into him, as Democrats stood firm in accusing the US president of a "mafia-style shakedown" of his Ukrainian counterpart.Trump denied claims he abused his office by repeatedly urging President Volodymyr Zelensky to probe his rival Joe Biden -- as confirmed in a call transcript released by the White House.The next explosive episode in the rapidly unfold