Top Asian News 4:10 a.m. GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Chinese warship seized a U.S. Navy unmanned underwater glider that was collecting unclassified scientific data in the South China Sea, and the U.S. is demanding its return, the Pentagon said Friday. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said that the U.S. has issued a formal diplomatic complaint over Thursday's incident, but he was not aware of any response yet. He said this may be the first time in recent history that China has taken a U.S. naval vessel. There have been periodic incidents over the years between U.S. and Chinese military ships and aircraft. The Chinese Embassy said it had no immediate comment.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — President Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday threatened to terminate a pact that allows U.S. troops to visit the Philippines, saying "bye-bye America" as he reacted with rage to what he thought was a U.S. decision to scrap a major aid package over human rights concerns. A U.S. government aid agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, said this week that its board deferred a vote on a renewal of the development assistance package for the Philippines "subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties." The U.S. agency has clearly not voted to scrap or approve the aid package, but Duterte unleashed a barrage of expletives-laden tirade upon his arrival in his southern hometown in Davao after back-to-back visits to Cambodia and Singapore.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine president said Saturday he would "set aside" a ruling by an international arbitration tribunal that invalidated Beijing's claims to most of the busy South China Sea, because he doesn't want to impose on China. President Rodrigo Duterte made the remarks when asked in a news conference if a U.S. think tank report that China apparently installed anti-aircraft and anti-missile weapons on its new artificial islands in the disputed waters would affect his perception of Beijing. The Philippines claims the reefs that were turned by China into man-made islands. Duterte, who took office in June, has taken steps to mend relations with China that grew hostile during the time of his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, over the long-unresolved territorial disputes.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Large crowds were expected to gather in South Korea's capital again on Saturday to call for impeached President Park Geun-hye to immediately quit and press the Constitutional Court to formally remove her from office. The massive protests against Park in recent weeks have been peaceful, but there was concern on Saturday about the demonstrators clashing with thousands of Park's supporters who planned their own protest near the court. South Korea's opposition-controlled parliament last week voted to impeach Park over an explosive corruption scandal that saw millions protest over consecutive weekends. Prosecutors accuse Park of colluding with a longtime confidante to extort money and favors from companies and allowing her friend to manipulate state affairs.

WESTMINSTER, Calif. (AP) — Vietnamese comedian Minh Beo has been sentenced to 18 months in state prison for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy in California. Orange County prosecutors said Friday the 38-year-old must also register as a sex offender. The comedian, whose real name is Minh Quang Hong, pleaded guilty in August to oral copulation of a minor and attempting to commit a lewd act on a child under the age of 14. The second charge stemmed from a meeting he arranged with a police officer posing as a 13-year-old boy. He is known in Vietnam as Minh Beo, meaning "Fat Minh." He has been popular in stage, TV and movie comic roles and has his own theater in Ho Chi Minh City.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addressed mounting speculation that he will run for president of South Korea on Friday, saying he will decide how to best help his country when he returns home in early January after 10 years as U.N. chief. Ban told his final U.N. press conference that after taking some rest he plans to meet "as many people as possible," including political leaders, members of civil society and his friends. "I will really consider seriously how best and what I should and I could do for my country," he said. Ban said South Korea is "in turmoil" following the explosive corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye, whose powers were suspended last week after lawmakers voted to impeach her.

YAMBA, Australia (AP) — The life was long drained from Lynette Daley by the time the cops rolled up to the lonely beach where her naked body lay. Her skin was cold, her lips were blue, and her blood was everywhere. It was between her legs and in a large clot by her feet. It was inside the four-wheel drive parked nearby and on the remains of the recently burned mattress partly hidden in the sand. And it was on the jeans worn by one of the two men who were with Lynette when she died. It had been, the pair said, a wild night.

TOKYO (AP) — Russia and Japan agreed Friday to hold talks on joint economic development of four islands at the center of a decades-old territorial dispute between the countries. It was a small step forward that fell far short of breaking the stalemate in a dispute that has prevented Russia and Japan from signing a peace treaty formally ending their World War II hostilities. Joint development "would help foster trust toward a peace treaty," Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after two days of meetings in Japan. Asked about developments in Syria, Putin said he and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are working to launch a new round of peace talks in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan.

Japan and the former Soviet Union restored diplomatic relations a decade after World War II, but a dispute over a cluster of islands kept them from signing a peace treaty. Russian President Vladimir Putin is in Japan this week for talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the issue. A timeline of the rocky relations between Japan and Russia, dating to the 19th century: — 1855: Japan and Russia sign the Treaty of Shimoda, starting diplomatic relations. — 1905: Japan defeats Russia in the Russo-Japanese War. U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt mediates a negotiated end to the fighting. — 1941: Japan and the Soviet Union sign a neutrality pact pledging to respect the sovereignty of Japan's puppet state in Manchuria.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — As Taiwan becomes a contentious issue between China and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, Taiwanese are hoping it will lead to closer ties with Washington but are wary of becoming a bargaining chip between the world's two largest economies. Trump's Dec. 2 phone call with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen raised expectations that he will upgrade relations with the self-governing island with which Washington has only had unofficial ties since recognizing the Communist government on the Chinese mainland in 1979. Trump followed up the call with tweets and comments criticizing Chinese trade and foreign policy, stoking speculation about a major change in American policy toward the nearly 70-year-old regional rivalry.