BRUSSELS: The European Union summoned Russia’s representative to the EU and called for an independent international investigation into the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, the EU’s diplomatic service said on Tuesday (Feb 20). It said Michael Siebert, a senior official in the European External Action Service, also urged RussiaContinue Reading
BEIJING: China offered to support long-time strategic partner Hungary on public security issues, going beyond trade and investment relations, during a rare meeting with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, just as NATO struggles to expand its network in Europe. China hopes to deepen law enforcement and security ties with Hungary asContinue Reading
“We need to put maximum pressure on Russia,” Joly said. “Our sanctions are strong, but China cannot be the loophole in our sanction system.” Last year Russia surpassed Saudi Arabia to become China’s top crude oil supplier as the world’s biggest crude importer defied Western sanctions to purchase vast quantitiesContinue Reading
TAIPEI: Taiwan and India signed an agreement on Friday (Feb 16) to bring in Indian migrant workers to the island as labour-strained Taipei seeks to expand its foreign workforce beyond its traditional source countries of Southeast Asia. Taiwan, a major semiconductor producer but with an ageing society, is host toContinue Reading
BEIJING: China’s top diplomat Wang Yi will visit Germany for the Munich Security Conference then travel to Spain and France in the coming days, Beijing’s foreign ministry said on Thursday (Feb 15). “From Feb 16 to 21 … Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi will attend the 60th Munich SecurityContinue Reading
The government has appealed to farmers to come forward to discuss their demands, with Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda saying that efforts will continue to speak to them “in a constructive and positive manner”. However, an influential farmers’ union linked with Modi’s party on Wednesday rejected demands raised by the protesting farmers. The leader ofContinue Reading
SEOUL: North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles on Wednesday (Feb 14), Seoul’s military said, part of a string of weapons tests this year that have accompanied increasingly aggressive rhetoric from leader Kim Jong Un. So far this year, Kim has declared South Korea his country’s “principal enemy”, jettisoned agencies dedicatedContinue Reading
JERUSALEM: In refugee camps in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Palestinians relying on the UN agency UNRWA for schooling and healthcare fear key services will stop as donors have paused funding over accusations staff members took part in Hamas’ Oct 7 attack. Most of the focus on the fate of theContinue Reading
KATHMANDU: About 68,000 children and their families who survived Nepal’s deadliest quake in eight years need further humanitarian aid to rebuild their lives, UNICEF said on Sunday (Feb 11), 100 days after the tremors that devastated parts of west Nepal. A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck two districts of Jajarkot andContinue Reading
BANGKOK: An official said on Tuesday ( Feb 6), only weeks before his potential release on parole, that Thailand’s attorney general is considering prosecuting past Thai elite Thaksin Shinawatra over an alleged attack of the strong king. After the military overthrew a state led by Thaksin’s girl, the junta inContinue Reading