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In today's bulletin: Aung San Suu Kyi charged with breaching import-export laws; Biden administration in no hurry to engage China; Hong Kongers move to Taiwan in record numbers; South Korea, Singapore lead world in innovation; Rihanna, Thunberg tweet support for Indian farmers; and more.

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Myanmar coup: Aung San Suu Kyi charged with breaching import-export laws

Myanmar's military government has filed charges against National League for Democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi for violating import-export laws after officials found illegally imported hand-held radios at her home, that were used without permission.

Ms Suu Kyi has been remanded in detention until Feb 15, writes ST's Indochina bureau chief Tan Hui Yee. Myanmar's ousted President Win Myint has been accused of breaching the Natural Disaster Management Law.

Meanwhile, condemnations continued to pour in over the military coup in Myanmar, with the Group of Seven largest developed economies being the latest to issue a statement. Protests against the detention of Ms Suu Kyi also took place in Tokyo, with thousands of Myanmar demonstrators gathering in front of Japan's foreign affairs ministry today to demand that she be released.

Also read:

Days before coup, IMF sent Myanmar $465m in emergency aid it cannot get back

Biden administration indicates in no hurry to engage China

The Biden administration has indicated that it is waiting to be in "lockstep" with allies and partners before it engages China.

President Joe Biden has spoken to many world leaders since he was sworn in on Jan 20 but it wasn't immediately clear when a call with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping would take place, two officials said at a briefing.

State Department spokesman Ned Price said speaking to allies and partners came first but there were issues, including climate change, in which it would be in America's interest "to cooperate on a limited basis with China".

Hong Kongers move to Taiwan in record numbers

Hong Kongers are moving to Taiwan in record numbers following China's crackdown on the city's protest movement and the implementation of a new security law, on June 30.

Data released by Taiwan's Immigration Agency showed 10,800 Hong Kongers had sought and received residency permits last year. This is double the number of those who did so in 2019. It is also the highest in decades according to the agency, which has been tracking data since 1991.

Taiwan, and other countries, have been looking at ways to attract talent from Hong Kong, given the turmoil in the city. The United Kingdom recently launched a new visa programme and path to citizenship for British National (Overseas) passport holders in Hong Kong.

South Korea, Singapore lead world in innovation; US drops out of top 10

South Korea returned to the top spot in the latest Bloomberg Innovation Index, regaining its position from Germany which dropped to the fourth spot. Singapore and Switzerland took up the second and third positions, while the United States dropped out of the list of top 10 countries.

The index analyses dozens of criteria using seven equally weighted metrics that include research and development (R&D) spending, manufacturing capability and concentration of high-tech public companies.

South Korea's success is mainly due to an increase in patent activity and a strong performance in R&D and manufacturing, the report said. Singapore scored high on manufacturing while its globally competitive universities ensured it was on top in the tertiary education gauge.

Also read:

Amid global warming, Singapore's an innovation hot spot: McKinsey chair

Rihanna, Greta Thunberg lend support to plight of Indian farmers

Protesting Indian farmers won unusual support for their cause, with pop star Rihanna and environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg drawing global attention to their plight over Twitter.

"Why aren't we talking about this?! #FarmersProtest," the popstar tweeted to her more than 100 million followers. By earlier today, more than 391,000 people had liked her tweet and it was shared nearly 200,000 times.

Ms Thunberg, in her tweet, said: "We stand in solidarity with the #FarmersProtest in India."

In other news

China to provide 10 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to WHO: China plans to provide 10 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to global vaccine sharing scheme Covax and three Chinese companies have applied to join the initiative for approval, the foreign ministry said. The Covax scheme, backed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Gavi vaccine alliance, is due to start rolling out vaccines to low- and middle-income nations this month.

Iran releases crew of seized South Korean oil tanker: Iran said it has allowed all crew members of the seized South Korean oil tanker to leave the country on "humanitarian grounds". The ship was seized on Jan 4 for polluting waters. It had 20 sailors on board. Teheran has held back the captain of the ship to look after the vessel and South Korea said it wasn't clear when it might be allowed to leave.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin's family office in Singapore: Bayshore Global Management, the California-based firm that services Google co-founder Sergey Brin, established an office in Singapore late last year, according to documents filed with the corporate regulator here. Mr Brin is the world's ninth richest person.

Thanks for reading today's newsletter. We will be back tomorrow.

Shefali