TOKYO: Japan's lower house formally reappointed Sanae Takaichi as prime minister on Wednesday (Feb 18), 10 days after her historic landslide election victory. Takaichi suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily if Beijing sought to take Taiwan by force. Beijing's top diplomat Wang Yi told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that forces in Japan were seeking to "revive militarism". In a policy speech expected for Friday, Takaichi will pledge to update Japan's "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" strategic framework, local media reported. "Removing the consumption tax (on food) would weaken the tax revenue base, since the consumption tax is an important way to raise revenues without creating distortions in the economy," Anand said.

KLUANG: The cracks within Bersatu continue to deepen, with 11 of the party’s divisions in Johor announcing their dissolution here. Isa said this at a press conference in Simpang Renggam, attended by some 100 party members, including division chiefs. He also did not rule out the possibility of more divisions following suit. He said that the party constitution does not grant power to any party member, including division chiefs, to dissolve a division. Last Friday (Feb 13), Bersatu sacked 17 members, including several supreme council members, comprising MPs and state assemblymen, among them Opposition Leader Hamzah.

So, we asked the experts: Is grass-fed beef better for the climate? Grass-fed cows, by contrast, can take up to three years to reach market weight. “There’s a whole bunch of reasons you might prefer grass-fed beef,” Smith said. “The bottom line answer is that they mostly don’t.”Their study found that even the most efficient grass-fed beef operations create at least 10% more emissions than US industrial beef per kilogram of protein. Grass-fed beef also uses more land than industrial beef.

BACHOK: The body of one of the two men reported missing at Pantai Kandis here on Wednesday (Feb 17) was found washed ashore by members of the public about three kilometres from the incident location on Wednesday (Feb 18) afternoon. Bachok police chief Supt Mohamad Ismail Jamaluddin said the body of Ahmad Badrul Naim Ab Wahab, 32, who is also a firefighter in Penang, was found at about 12.15pm. "His 21-year-old brother, Ahmad Nuruddin Ab Wahab, is still missing and the search and rescue operation is still ongoing, with the search radius extended up to 10km along the coastline," he said. "The operation, which began yesterday, involved various agencies, including the police, fire department, the Civil Defence Force and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency," he told reporters at Pantai Kandis here on Wednesday. In the 5.30pm incident on Tuesday, the two brothers were believed to have gone to the beach for a picnic with 20 other family members from Pasir Puteh.

Denmark and its European allies have rejected Trump's insistence that the Nordic country must hand Greenland to the ​United States, launching talks last month between Copenhagen, ⁠Nuuk and Washington to resolve ⁠the diplomatic standoff. "An update of the Helsinki Treaty will be a historic step and a future-proofing ⁠of Nordic co-operation," Denmark's minister for Nordic ​cooperation, Morten Dahlin, said in a statement. Greenland will actively participate in creating a commission to update the agreement, the island's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt said in the ⁠statement. "The process surrounding the Helsinki Treaty will be decisive in determining whether Greenland can be recognised as an equal partner in Nordic cooperation," Motzfeldt said. Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen earlier ‌this month said that if Greenlanders were ​forced to choose between the U.S. and Denmark, they would choose Denmark.

BAGAN SERAI: A proposal to install dashboard cameras (dashcams) in every police vehicle will soon be submitted to the Inspector-General of Police. Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department director Datuk Seri Muhammed Hasbullah Ali said the initiative is aimed at enhancing monitoring and enabling the police to record and assess every incident in greater detail. "This proposal is a positive step that will make it easier for us to identify the causes of accidents or other incidents involving road users,” he told a press conference on Ops Selamat 25 in conjunction with Chinese New Year 2026 at the Gunung Semanggol Rest and Service area here on Tuesday (Feb 17). On the operation, Muhammed Hasbullah said 3,609 personnel and 6,132 personnel from the Crime Prevention and Community Safety Department have been deployed from Feb 15 until 20. He said the department will also conduct focused monitoring at 25 hotspots and 46 blackspots along major highways, in addition to 407 hotspots and 76 blackspots on federal, state and municipal roads nationwide.

BANGKOK: A moderate cold air mass from China is causing unstable weather, bringing both thunderstorms and colder temperatures to various parts of Thailand. Both rain and cold weather will be experienced in various parts of the country. Temperatures in the north and northeast will dip to around 17°C, accompanied by fog due to moderate cold air masses from China. The department's 24-hour weather forecast predicts thunderstorms in the upper parts of Thailand due to the influence of moderate cold air from China covering the northeastern region and the South China Sea. Regarding air quality, moderate to high levels of dust or haze have been reported in the upper regions of Thailand.

PETALING JAYA: Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) is offering a 30% discount for all Electric Train Service (ETS) routes in conjunction with Ramadan. In a statement, KTMB said the discount will be available starting Wednesday (Feb 18). Passengers could enjoy the discount by using the promo codes NURRAMADAN or RAMADANTIBA, depending on the train number and travel date. Tickets can be purchased via the KITS mobile app, the official KTMB website, or KTMB kiosk machines at selected stations. On Sunday (Feb 15), KTMB had announced a 20% discount for selected ETS trips from Sunday (Feb 15) to Feb 22 in conjunction with the Chinese New Year celebrations and the start of Ramadan.

Dubbed by some as the "next Shila Amzah” for her involvement in Mandarin-language songs, singer Layla Sania Khairuzikri is determined to carve out her own identity and artistic path. "But I want to be Layla Sania. Although better known for her Mandarin-language songs, Layla is open to exploring other genres, including ‘rock kapak’, and expanding further into acting. Harbouring hopes of specialising in special education, Layla aims to open her own education centre offering instruction in Malay, English and Mandarin. – BernamaTAGS: Layla Sania, Shila Amzah, Chinese New Year, Mandarin language, education, entertainment

The royal family visited the residence of Dato Jack Ting and the residences of Chieng Ing Nang, Gilbert Tiong and Dato’ Sri Lau Kung Ching. Meanwhile, Princess Masna, Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pengiran Lela Cheteria Sahibun Najabah Abu Bakar graced the open house of Pehin Kapitan Lela Diraja Dato Paduka Goh King Chin and his family. Cabinet ministers, senior government officers and officers as well as members of the diplomatic corps to Brunei, private sectors and business community were among those present. The Chinese New Year of the Horse is one of the most eagerly anticipated celebrations in the lunar calendar, symbolising energy, strength and forward movement. Observed by Chinese communities around the world, the festival marks the beginning of a new year based on the traditional lunar calendar and is steeped in centuries-old customs and cultural meaning.

The experts said crimes outlined in documents released by the U.S. Justice Department were committed ​against a backdrop of supremacist beliefs, racism, corruption and ⁠extreme misogyny. The crimes, they said, ⁠showed a commodification and dehumanization of women and girls. "So grave is the scale, nature, ⁠systematic ‌character, and transnational reach of these atrocities against women and girls, that a number of them may reasonably meet the legal threshold of crimes against ⁠humanity," the experts said in a statement. The experts said the ​allegations contained in the ‌files require an independent, thorough and impartial investigation, and said inquiries should ⁠also be launched ​into how it was possible for such crimes to be committed for so long. A law, approved by Congress ⁠with broad bipartisan support in November, requires all Epstein-related ​files to be made public.

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Nvidia ⁠on Tuesday said it has signed a multiyear deal to sell Meta ⁠Platforms millions of its current and future artificial intelligence chips, including ‌central processing units that compete with products from Intel and Advanced Micro Devices. Nvidia did not disclose a value for the deal, but said it includes its current Blackwell chips as well as its ​forthcoming Rubin AI chips. It also includes standalone ⁠installations of its Grace and Vera ⁠central processors. Nvidia introduced those central processors, based on technology from Arm Holdings, as companions ⁠to ‌its AI chips starting 2023. Moorhead said Nvidia likely ‌highlighted the deal to show that it ​has retained a large business with Meta and is gaining traction with its central processor chips.

JOHOR BAHRU: His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, has warned that efforts to combat corruption must be carried out without compromise across all departments and agencies under the Johor state government. His Majesty, who is also the Sultan of Johor, stressed that integrity and administrative transparency are fundamental to safeguarding the state’s well-being and sustained prosperity. According to a post on Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar’s Facebook page, the message was conveyed to Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi and State Secretary Datuk Mohammed Ridha Abd Kadir, who were granted an audience by His Majesty at Istana Pasir Pelangi today. Also in attendance were Pasir Gudang City Council Mayor Datin Paduka Hazlina Jalil and Johor Land and Mines director Mohammed Shakib Ali. During the nearly two-hour meeting, His Majesty also received a briefing from Onn Hafiz on current developments and the rapid progress achieved in Johor.

HELSINKI, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Foreign tourist arrivals and overnight stays in Finland surged in 2025 and set new records, the Business Finland said in a press release on Tuesday. "The total number of foreign tourists rose to 5.1 million, an increase of five percent from the previous year," said Katarina Wakonen, an expert at Visit Finland, a unit of Business Finland, in the press release. Meanwhile, overnight stays of international visitors in Finnish accommodation establishments climbed to an all-time high of 7.2 million last year, representing an increase of 12 percent year on year, according to the organization. Foreign tourists spent an estimated 3.7 billion euros (4.4 billion U.S. dollars) in Finland last year, the organization said. Business Finland attributed part of the rise to shifting travel preferences toward northern destinations.

MULTIPLE reports of damaged automated teller machines have emerged from the Sentul area in Kuala Lumpur, with CCTV footage allegedly showing a suspect systematically targeting banking facilities. But has someone really been going around smashing ATMs across the city? Verdict:TRUEAround RM64,000 in damages have been reported following a series of ATM vandalism incidents in the Sentul area in Kuala Lumpur. CCTV footage of the suspect vandalising the ATM machines has since gone viral on social media. On Feb 17, four additional reports of vandalism were received at two more banks in Jinjang Selatan and two in Jinjang Utara.