Top Asian News 4:58 a.m. GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A magnitude 8 earthquake has hit the Solomon Islands and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center says it could generate tsunami waves on nearby islands. The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake hit near Arawa in Papua New Guinea at a depth of 167 kilometers (103 miles). There are no immediate reports of casualties or damage. The Solomon Islands are located in the Pacific's geologically active "Ring of Fire."

NEW DELHI (AP) — At least 23 people were killed and 50 others injured after a passenger train derailed in southern India, railway officials said Sunday. Seven coaches of the Hirakand Express were thrown off the tracks around midnight Saturday, some landing on a goods train that was on a parallel track, said Divisional Railway manager Chandralekha Mukherji. Rescue workers were trying to cut open the mangled coaches Sunday morning near the Kuneru railway station in the Vizianagram district of Andhra Pradesh state. The train was traveling between Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh state to Bhuvaneshawar in Orissa. An investigation is underway. In November, 146 people were killed when a packed passenger train derailed near the town of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh in the deadliest rail accident in the country in at least five years.

How can you get under the skin of an Asian country? Diplomatic body searches, bomber flights, shrine statues and even doormats have set governments on edge. Here's a nation-by-nation look at Asia's figurative, and in one case literal, sacred cows: ___ SOUTH KOREA South Korea takes offense first, and most regularly, with Japan, largely over disputes stemming from Tokyo's 35-year colonization of the Korean Peninsula in the early 20th century. But President Donald Trump has proven surprisingly good at pushing buttons in Seoul in recent months. During his campaign, Trump suggested that the United States would let South Korea defend itself from North Korean aggression if Seoul didn't pay more for the stationing of 28,500 American troops in the country.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Relatives of passengers and crew aboard the missing Malaysian airliner plan to present the Malaysian transport minister in Australia with letters urging that the search resume. Sheryl Keen, a supporter of the international victims' advocacy group Voice370, said Sunday she plans to personally hand to Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai dozens of letters from relatives when Liow meets this week in the west coast city of Perth with his Australian counterpart Darren Chester. Last week, Malaysia, Australia and China announced that the deep sea search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 had been suspended, perhaps forever, after a sonar scan of 120,000 square kilometers (46,000 square miles) of the Indian Ocean west of Australia failed to find any trace of the Boeing 777 that vanished on March 8, 2014, with 239 people on board after flying far off course during a trip from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A diver who was mauled by a 4-meter (13-foot) bull shark near the Great Barrier Reef was flown in stable condition to an Australian hospital for microsurgery to an arm, a paramedic said Sunday. The 55-year-old man had been free diving with friends in the Torres Strait from a boat chartered from the Queensland state city of Cairns when the shark attacked on Saturday afternoon, paramedic David Cameron said. Free diving uses no breath apparatus. The man was 15 meters (50 feet) under water with other divers when the shark attacked, Cameron said. "The bull shark has come up from behind and has unfortunately bitten the patient on the arm several times and bitten him on the stomach," Cameron said, adding the most severe injuries were to his left arm.

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese authorities say they are investigating the former Communist Party chief and mayor of the port city of Tianjin for bribery. State media reported Sunday that Huang Xingguo is suspected of accepting bribes during his time leading Tianjin, a sprawling city of 15 million near Beijing. Huang was mayor when a massive explosion at a chemical storage warehouse in the city exploded, killing 173 people. The state-run Xinhua News Agency on Sunday did not immediately link his arrest to the explosion, though other high-ranking officials in Tianjin have also faced investigations in the wake of the accident. Huang was expelled from the Communist Party earlier this month.

BEIJING (AP) — Authorities in China say 12 people are likely dead inside a hotel overrun by a landslide. State media reported that rescuers have not detected signs of life from 10 people who were trapped underneath rocks and debris after the Friday night landslide in Hunan province. The official Xinhua News Agency said 3,000 cubic meters (105,000 cubic feet) of debris tumbled down a slope behind the three-story hotel in Nanzhang county. The cause of the collapse remains under investigation. A statement from the Nanzhang government said the rescue work had been hampered by a 150-ton rock that had fallen on the site.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A fifth person died in hospital a day after a man with a history of mental health and drug issues drove a car through a lunch-time crowd in a pedestrian-only street in Australia's second largest city, police said on Sunday. A 3-month-old boy died in hospital late Saturday and four people remained hospitalized in a critical condition after a stolen sedan caused havoc in downtown Melbourne on Friday, a police statement said. The driver, Dimitrious Gargasoulas, 26, remained in hospital after being shot in the arm by police who captured him at the scene. His wound was not life-threatening.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan has handed over to Indian authorities an Indian soldier who crossed into Pakistan in the disputed Kashmir region in September. A foreign ministry statement Saturday said Chandu Babulal Chohan deserted his post and crossed the Line of Control to the Pakistani side because of severe grievances with superiors. The statement said Pakistan convinced him to return to India and Chohan was handed over at the Wahga border point. Pakistan and India fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, with each claiming the region in its entirety.

President Donald Trump's inaugural speech promised "America first" policy led by a forceful executive, in contrast to the coalition building and international conferences which have featured strongly in past administrations. The billionaire businessman and reality television star — the first president who had never held political office or high military rank — promised to stir a "new national pride" and protect America from the "ravages" of countries he says have stolen U.S. jobs. "This American carnage stops right here," Trump declared. In a warning to the world, he said, "From this day forward, a new vision will govern our land. From this moment on, it's going to be America first." A look at some reactions from around the world: ___ AFGHANS DISAPPOINTED BUT HOPEFUL Like many in the Afghan capital of Kabul, restaurant owner Mohammad Nahim watched the presidential inauguration ceremonies but was disappointed to not hear any mention of Afghanistan.