ASEAN news headlines at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, February 16

Malaysia:

Sarawak asks to be included in the VTL agreement with Singapore

Covid-19: record 27,831 cases reported Wednesday February 16, according to DG Santé

Covid-19 Watch: 1,747 cases of serious post-vax adverse events reported as of Feb. 11, NPRA says

Malaysia Airlines bans self-heating and ready-to-eat meals

Kitingan to head Sabah special panel on undocumented foreign workers

Penang Hill rail service will be closed for 12 days in May for scheduled maintenance

IRB reminds taxpayers to submit return form for 2021 from March 1

Bill passed in Sarawak for new council to develop and regulate sago and nipah industries

Extend VTL from Singapore or Medan to Penang to boost economic recovery, says Tan Teik Cheng

Singapore:

So far low adoption rate among Singapore Johorians to be postal voters

Singapore. Safe reopening of borders is needed to drive economic recovery in the Asia-Pacific region

SIA confirms order for 7 freighter aircraft and 22 passenger jet engines as industry recovers

Singapore to launch LTVs for Hong Kong, Philippines, all of Thailand, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Israel

Around 21,800 people in Singapore lost their Covid-19 vaccination status for not taking a booster in time

OCBC customers can freeze bank accounts instantly with a new “kill switch” in case of emergency

Singapore-Malaysia land VTL travel quota to be reinstated from Feb 22

AirAsia and Singapore Tourism Board Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Promote Travel to Singapore

Singaporean actress Rebecca Lim posts a photo showing a clearer appearance of the fiancé

Thailand:

Mourning Thai boy plays live music on FB to raise money for dad’s funeral

Thai government and U.S. private sector set to sign letter of intent on clean energy

Bangkok can also be called ‘Krung Thep Maha Nakhon’

Thailand records 16,462 Covid-19 cases and 27 deaths

Thailand aims to improve status on US human trafficking watch list

Indonesia:

Vaccinated children allowed to enter malls in Jakarta

Retail sales off to a good start in Indonesia

Public Bank enables QR cross-border payment with Indonesia and Thailand

Cloud computing could add $10 billion to Indonesia’s GDP: PwC

Philippines:

Marcos of the Philippines wants a military presence to defend its waters in the South China Sea

Remittances to the Philippines reach a new high of $31.4 billion in 2021

Philippines shouldn’t abandon face mask mandate as it looks to ‘new normal’

Philippines registers 2,671 new cases of Covid-19

Vietnam:

Vietnam to lift restrictions on tourists from March 15: report

Vietnam named among top destinations for digital nomads

Vietnam expects official durian export to China

Vietnam eyes full reopening to tourists from next month

Burma:

Foreign companies in Myanmar face tough choices after coup

Telenor investors review Myanmar sale

Burmese military plane crashes after ‘technical failure’

Cambodia:

Pandemic-tightened Cambodian border heralds an end to cross-border logging

ASEAN seeks to accelerate the entry of Timor Leste

Cambodian government defends decision to establish national internet gateway

Laos:

Lao security forces must provide security along the railway line

Rising inflation in Laos sparks public concern

Laos to vaccinate children aged 6 to 11 against Covid-19

Brunei:

Brunei works to boost primary resource industries

Brunei registers 667 new cases of Covid-19

Aseanmore:

Chinese consumer inflation up 0.9% in January

Southeast Asia poll shows China overtakes US as top economic power

Three-year-old child dies as Hong Kong’s worst virus outbreak grows

China-New Zealand FTA upgrade to come into effect

‘All of Us Are Dead’ provides lessons we should heed: Korean Herald contributor

South Korea reports record 90,443 Covid cases, daily number doubles in a week

China’s Xi orders Hong Kong to fight Covid surge by all means