Shangri-La Dialogue 2025 opens in Singapore amid geopolitical tensions

The 22nd edition of the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier defense and security summit, opened in Singapore on Friday amid geopolitical tensions.

This year's dialogue drew representatives from more than 40 countries, including 40 ministerial-level delegates, 20 chief of defense forces-level delegates, over 20 senior defense officials, and prominent academics, according to the Singapore Ministry of Defense.

A Chinese delegation from the National Defense University of the Chinese People's Liberation Army is attending the event.

French President Emmanuel Macron is set to deliver a keynote speech late Friday, where he's expected to position France -- and Europe -- as champions of international cooperation and rules-based trade.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is set to speak on Saturday about America's "new ambitions for Indo-Pacific security". Observers say he faces a tough task in convincing Asian allies, many of whom remain uneasy about President Donald Trump's disruptive policies, not least those related to trade.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim will also give a speech on Saturday and make clear how, amid global geopolitical uncertainties and sharpened geo-economic fault lines, Malaysia as ASEAN's current chair, provides strategic leadership for the region and beyond, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the organizer.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas is also scheduled to speak on Saturday.

Analysts say key topics will likely include regional cooperation, the U.S. security policies and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. The implications of sweeping U.S. tariffs are also likely to attract attention, as officials will use the platform to reassure partners and navigate an increasingly multipolar security landscape.

The Dialogue runs from Friday through Sunday.

Shangri-La Dialogue 2025 opens in Singapore amid geopolitical tensions

Protests against federal immigration enforcement are spreading across the United States, with the latest demonstration unfolding directly in front of the White House.

Early Saturday, more than a hundred demonstrators gathered there, demanding changes to the Trump administration's immigration policies and accountability for recent shootings involving federal agents.

Immigrant rights and civil rights groups said this weekend's rallies mark a coordinated national response. Demonstrations are planned or already underway in major cities including Philadelphia, as well as across states such as North Carolina, Florida, Texas, and Washington, D.C., where organizers are calling for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be removed from local communities.

The nationwide protests follow a deadly week in which three people were shot by federal agents in two days.

In Minneapolis, Minnesota, a 37-year-old woman, Renee Good, was killed during an enforcement operation by the ICE. A day later in Portland, Oregon, a man and a woman were wounded during a separate federal operation.

In the aftermath, Minnesota state officials accused the Trump administration of blocking their investigation by denying access to key evidence and prematurely drawing conclusions before a full review could be completed.

On Friday, Donald Trump defended the Department of Homeland Security's actions, sharply criticizing Minnesota leaders and calling them corrupt.

Local leaders have pushed back. During a Saturday news conference, the mayor of Minneapolis described ICE agents' actions as reckless.

Officials in both Minneapolis and Portland continue urging demonstrators to remain peaceful as protests intensify nationwide.

According to a 50501 Movement statement issued Friday, at least 32 people died in ICE custody in 2025.

Nationwide protests erupt in US after ICE shootings