Photos: From Basketball Diplomacy to a Super Typhoon, Asia's Year in Pictures

December 30th, 2013

Life of Pi director Ang Lee comes away with another Oscar for Best Director at the 85th Annual Academy Awards in Hollywood, California on February 24, 2013. (Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images)

The devastating crash of Asiana Airlines Flight 214 at San Francisco International Airport on July 11, 2013 made global headlines as the National Transportation Safety Board and the South Korean government investigated the circumstances leading up to the plane's landing. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

A mourner holds pictures of a relative lost in the collapse of Rana Plaza in Bangladesh on April 24, 2013, considered the deadliest accidental structural failure in human history. (Munir Uz Zaman/AFP/Getty Images)

Chinese astronaut Wang Yiping becomes China's first space teacher as she broadcasts a live lesson to 300 students in a Beijing school from more than 300 kilometers above Earth's surface on June 20, 2013. (STR/AFP/Getty Images)

Japanese film director, screenwriter, animator, and illustrator Hayao Miyazaki stunned fans around the world when he formally announced his retirement on September 1, 2013. His last feature-length film, The Wind Rises, was released in July. (Toshifumi Kitamura/AFP/Getty Images)

Pakistan's 18th Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, was re-elected on May 20, 2013. Sharif returned to the position after 14 years for a third time. On October 23, Sharif met with U.S. President Obama to discuss drone strikes, extremist threats, and Pakistan and Afghanistan's relations with India. (Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani took office on August 3, 2013 and sat down with Asia Society President Josette Sheeran for a Q&A in New York City on September 26. (Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images)

After playing cricket for 24 years, Sachin Tendulkar announces his retirement on November 16, 2013. He has broken numerous records, been named one of the world's richest athletes, and brought home the World Cup for India in 2011. (Indranil Mukherjee/AFP/Getty Images)

Japanese Prime Minister and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Shinzo Abe claims a decisive victory on July 21, 2013. His economic policies, dubbed "Abenomics," made headlines as Japan's unemployment lowered in 2013. (Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty Images)

Thai protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban (C) gestures to supporters as anti-government protesters flood the streets of Bangkok as part of their ongoing rally on December 22, 2013. (Christophe Archambault/AFP/Getty Images)

President Barack Obama and China's President Xi Jinping convened at Sunnylands in Rancho Mirage, California on June 8, 2013. Headlines were filled with speculations in the months leading up to the summit. (Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images)

Typhoon Haiyan, better known as Yolanda in the Philippines, touched down on November 11, 2013, the deadliest Philippine typhoon on record. According to UN officials, the Category 5 "super typhoon" affected 11 million people, leaving many of them homeless. (Noel Celis/AFP/Getty Images)

NBA Hall-of-Famer Dennis Rodman shows the press photos from his five-day trip to North Korea, including meetings with Kim Jong Un, as he arrives at Beijing International Airport from Pyongyang on September 7, 2013. (Wang Zhao/AFP/Getty Images)

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As the world bids 2013 farewell, we look back at some of the year's most memorable people and events from Asia.

2013 was a big year for global politics. We saw the results of the Iranian, Pakistani, and Japanese elections and memorable cross-cultural encounters. U.S. President Barack Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in sunny California and Asia Society President Josette Sheeran moderated a discussion with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in New York City. Former NBA star Dennis Rodman became good friends, or so he claimed, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

It was also a year of tragedy and turmoil as we watched Typhoon Yolanda tear through parts of Southeast Asia and a deadly garment-factory collapse in Bangladesh sparked employee-rights movements across that country.

We also saw some of our beloved celebrities exit the public stage. Regarded as one of India's greatest cricketers, Sachin Tendulkar announced his retirement from the game. A pioneer in Japanese animation, Hayao Miyazaki, also formally announced his retirement, but not before releasing a final gift to international audiences, The Wind Rises.

Above is a look at all those moments and more from Asia in 2013.