Canada deports Chinese citizen, Iranian adviser killed in Syria, EU pledges to continue military support for Ukraine

The US and NATO are concerned about North Korea transferring weapons to Russia, Israel foiling a large-scale attack plot from the West Bank, the US re-imposing sanctions on Venezuela, Russia deploying new weapons to the Kuril Islands... are some of the notable international events in the past 24 hours.

Tin thế giới 30/1: Canada trục xuất công dân Trung Quốc, Cố vấn Iran thiệt mạng tại Syria, EU cam kết tiếp tục hỗ trợ quân sự cho Ukraine

Belarusian Defense Minister Víktor Jrenin and Cuban Defense Minister General Álvaro López Miera. (Source: SB News)

The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some of the day's international news highlights.

Russia-Ukraine

*Ukraine accuses Russia of attacking infrastructure with missiles and UAVs: The Ukrainian Air Force said on January 30 that Russia had launched a total of 35 attack drones (UAVs) and 2 guided missiles targeting energy and military infrastructure near the frontline and other areas of Ukraine.

On its Telegram page, the force claimed that Ukrainian air defense systems had shot down 15 of the 35 drones. It was not immediately clear what happened to the remaining drones or the two missiles that Russia fired from its long-range S-300 surface-to-air missile system. (Reuters)

*Russia shoots down dozens of Ukrainian UAVs in Crimea: Russian news agencies on January 30 quoted information from the country's Defense Ministry saying that Russian air defense systems shot down or intercepted 21 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the Crimean Peninsula and several other areas of Russian territory.

Russian air defense systems shot down 11 drones over Crimea, the state-run RIA news agency reported. Ukrainian-made drones were also shot down in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga and Tula regions.

Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 in a move condemned by Kiev's Western allies as an illegal seizure of territory. (Reuters)

Middle East – Africa

*Israel foils large-scale attack plot from West Bank: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on January 30 that it had killed three Palestinian gunmen at Ibn Sina Hospital in the West Bank, including one suspected of planning another attack similar to the October 7, 2023 raid by the Hamas Islamist movement.

During the overnight operation targeting Ibn Sina Hospital in Jenin, the IDF clashed with one Islamic Jihad member and two Islamic Jihad members, along with a group of local gunmen.

Palestinian authorities have not commented on the incident, while Palestinian Radio reported that three Palestinians were killed in the hospital. (AFP)

*Two senior Iranian advisers killed in Syria: Iranian and Syrian state media reported on January 30 that two Iranian advisers were killed in an Israeli attack on the outskirts of the capital Damascus on January 29.

According to Tasnim, Israel attacked “an Iranian military advisory center” in Syria. However, Iranian Ambassador to Syria Hossein Akbari denied that the target was a Tehran military post and affirmed that the casualties were not Iranian citizens.

Earlier, Syrian state media quoted a military source as saying that Israel had carried out airstrikes on several locations south of the capital Damascus, causing casualties. Meanwhile, Arab media said the target was near the location of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Reuters also quoted a pro-Iranian source as saying the attack targeted the IRGC's headquarters. (Reuters)

*Israel is about to defeat Hamas in Khan Yunis: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on January 30 that it had almost defeated three-quarters of the total number of combat battalions of the Hamas Islamic movement in the city of Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip.

The IDF began its assault on Khan Yunis in early December 2023, but made only slow progress. The Israeli military then changed its tactics from using robots and a few engineers to search the tunnels, to using large numbers of soldiers to raid the tunnels.

The IDF also launched a heavy ground offensive to disperse Hamas resistance. The new tactics have allowed Israel to capture several tunnels, including battalion-level command posts and a retreat for senior Hamas commanders. However, the IDF is still uncertain whether it has captured senior Hamas commanders believed to be hiding in the tunnels in Khan Yunis. (Times of Israel)

Asia-Pacific

*US and NATO concerned about North Korea transferring weapons to Russia: According to a source from the White House, during a meeting on January 29 in Washington, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg expressed concern about North Korea exporting military equipment to Russia for use in the war in Ukraine.

Mr. Stoltenberg was in Washington to discuss ways to maintain support for Ukraine and prepare for the NATO Summit scheduled to take place in Washington in July, among other issues.

According to the White House, Pyongyang has provided Moscow with several dozen ballistic missiles for use in Ukraine in addition to previous shipments of military equipment and ammunition.

South Korea, the United States and other governments have criticized the arms deals between the president and Russia as violating multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions banning arms trade with Pyongyang. (Yonhap)

*Philippines deports 8 Japanese nationals: The Philippines on January 30 deported 8 Japanese nationals accused of involvement in a telecommunications scam targeting people in Japan.

The men, aged 25 to 35, were arrested in February 2020 in Laguna province, south of Manila, and are suspected of engaging in telephone scams and extortion of money from elderly people in Japan over a period of at least three years, the Bureau of Immigration said.

A spokesman for the Philippine Bureau of Immigration confirmed that a Japan Airlines plane carrying eight suspects is scheduled to land at Narita Airport near Tokyo on the afternoon of January 30. (Kyodo)

*South Korea, India upgrade economic cooperation: South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MTIE) said that the country and India on January 30 launched a new round of negotiations to upgrade the bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

According to MTIE, the 10th round of negotiations to upgrade the CEPA will take place in New Delhi on January 30 and 31. The two sides are expected to discuss solutions to improve the agreement related to tariffs on goods and services, investment and rules of origin, among other issues.

The bilateral CEPA took effect in January 2010 and the two sides began negotiations to revise it in 2015 to better reflect changes in the global trade landscape. The latest round of talks took place in November 2022 after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues. (Yonhap)

Europe

*EU pledges to continue military support for Ukraine: European Union (EU) leaders will reaffirm the alliance's determination to continue providing "timely, predictable and sustainable military support" to Ukraine at a summit on February 1.

The draft conclusion of the meeting stated that "the European Council also reiterated the urgent need to accelerate the supply of ammunition and missiles" to Kiev. (Reuters)

*Ukrainian military implements 88% of NATO standards: The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on January 29 that the Defense Ministry, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (VSU) and other components of the security and defense sector have implemented 18 different standards of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the period from December 2023 to January 2024.

According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, the VSU and other security components of Ukraine have adopted 315 NATO standards. There are a total of 1,135 standards in NATO.

On January 10, Ukrainian news agencies reported that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced that the alliance's allies will continue to provide significant military, economic and humanitarian support to Kiev. (AFP)

*Russia deploys new weapons to Kuril Islands : TASS news agency reported on January 30 that senior Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev said that the country will deploy new weapons on the Kuril Islands, the center of a territorial dispute with Japan.

Russia and Japan have never formally signed a peace treaty ending their conflict that dates back to World War II. The Kuril Islands – which Japan calls the Northern Territories – remain a major stumbling block in relations between the two sides.

TASS quoted Mr. Medvedev as affirming that Russia does not oppose signing a peace treaty with Japan, but only if Tokyo no longer disputes sovereignty over the islands. (TASS)

America - Latin America

*Hundreds of journalists in Mexico have their personal information leaked: The personal information of nearly 300 professional journalists in Mexico has been leaked on the Internet after an unidentified suspect hacked into the server system of a government agency in the country to steal data. This is considered a serious incident because Mexico has been at the top of the list of countries with the most journalist murders for many years.

Information from a press conference on the evening of January 29 (local time) said that the suspect used the account of a retired Mexican Presidential Palace employee to access the server system of the National Digital Strategy Coordination Agency, stealing detailed personal information of 263 journalists registered to work regularly at the Presidential Palace, including many international reporters based in Mexico. (AFP)

*Cuba and Belarus strengthen defense ties: Belarusian Defense Minister Víktor Jrenin began an official visit to Cuba on January 29 to strengthen bilateral relations. Speaking after the official welcoming ceremony hosted by Cuban Defense Minister General Álvaro López Miera, Jrenin affirmed that Minsk and Havana are “united by the will to defend independence, social justice, and equal cooperation with other countries.”

The Belarusian defense minister stressed that the two countries are ready to strengthen relations and are not afraid of any difficulties. Earlier, in July 2023, a Cuban military delegation led by Defense Minister López Mieras visited Minsk to discuss bilateral cooperation and outstanding international issues. (Reuters)

*US reimposes sanctions on Venezuela: The US government on January 29 officially restored some sanctions on Venezuela after the South American country refused to cancel the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) verdict, which banned an opposition presidential candidate from running in the election that will take place later this year. Washington at that time also demanded that President Nicolas Maduro's government release some American prisoners with links to the opposition and lift political bans on some opposition figures. (AP)

*Canada deports Chinese woman for espionage: On January 29, Global News reported that the Canadian government has issued an order to deport a Chinese woman, named Jing Zhang, for participating in Beijing's foreign interference program.

According to the newspaper, the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada ruled that Jing Zhang worked for the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office (OCAO), which they said was conducting espionage activities in Canada.

Zhang’s deportation order was issued on August 28, 2023, but was only recently made public. When asked whether Zhang had been deported when the order was issued six months ago, the Canada Border Services Agency said it does not comment on specific cases. (TTXVN)

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