Former Boston police head says 'Patriots Day' gets it right

Plants closed, cars stopped as China faces smog 'red alert'

Russia and Japan agreed last week 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. For Russian President Vladimir Putin, the summit meeting was his first official visit to a G-7 country since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. In other images from the Asia-Pacific region last week, supporters of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-hye clashed with anti-Park protesters, as large crowds of demonstrators again gathered in Seoul to demand the scandal-ridden leader's immediate ouster. The historically large weekend protests over an explosive corruption scandal pushed South Korea's opposition-controlled parliament to vote this month to impeach Park. Another supermoon landed in the skies over China, with the moon shining brightly in Beijing, as the smog that often blankets China's capital and most of the industrial north in winter subsided for the evening. The supermoon phenomenon occurs when the moon, which follows an elliptical orbit around the Earth, reaches a point closer than usual. Another supermoon occurred just last month, putting on a show for sky gazers worldwide. Filipinos prepared for Christmas, with holiday decorations adorning streets and homes. The Philippines has Asia's largest Roman Catholic population. ___ This gallery was curated by Associated Press photo editor Wally Santana in Bangkok.

AP PHOTOS: Editor selections from the past week in Asia