The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some notable world news this morning, January 3.
Asia
JAPAN TIMES. Five people on board a Japan Coast Guard plane were killed after it collided on the runway with a Japan Airlines commercial plane at Haneda airport.
KYODO. The death toll from the earthquake disaster in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan has risen to 57 after a series of powerful earthquakes continued to shake the central region and surrounding areas.
KOREA TIMES. South Korea's foreign ministry has lodged a strong protest with Tokyo after Japan's weather agency included the country's easternmost Dokdo Islands in a tsunami advisory issued following the earthquake in Japan.
YONHAP. In 2023, South Korea's trade balance with China was in deficit of 18 billion USD , the first time in 31 years that South Korea recorded a trade deficit with China.
BANGKOK POST. Thailand and China will launch a permanent visa-free program for citizens of both countries, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said after the first cabinet meeting of 2024.
MANILA TIMES. Last year, the Philippines welcomed more than 5.4 million foreign visitors, generating international tourist receipts of 482.54 billion pesos ( US$8.67 billion ).
ANTARA. Indonesia welcomed 10.4 million foreign tourists in the first 11 months of 2023, marking a 110.8% increase compared to the same period in 2022.
THE STAR. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced the establishment of the National Database Unit (PADU) as a system to store personal and household records of citizens and permanent residents in the country.
STRAITS TIMES. Singapore's economy is expected to grow by 1.2% in 2023, avoiding a recession amid a global economic slowdown due to high interest rates.
REUTERS. Saudi Arabia officially became a member of the BRICS group of leading emerging economies (including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).
TIMES OF ISRAEL. The Israeli government is finalizing steps to approve a proposal to increase the number of foreign workers in the construction sector to 70,000 to address the labor shortage caused by the conflict.
HAARETZ. The Israeli parliament has approved the appointment of Energy Minister Israel Katz as the country's new Foreign Minister, replacing Eli Cohen, in a Cabinet reshuffle.
| "My first directive to the State Department staff was to put the issue of Israeli hostages in Gaza at the top of their priority list." (Mr. Katz's inaugural address) |
AHRAM. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh said hostages kidnapped from Israel will only be released from Gaza under conditions set by the militant group.
Europe
ANADOLU. Turkish authorities have arrested 33 people suspected of spying for Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, and police are searching for 13 others.
TRT. Turkish intelligence "neutralized" Abdulmutalip Dogruci, a senior member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), in charge of drug trafficking in the Sulaymaniyah region of northern Iraq.
RFE. In a historic decision that will take effect on January 1, 2024, the Norwegian government will allow direct sales of weapons and defense products from the country's defense industry to Ukraine.
GUARDIAN. Tourists from Kosovo are free to travel to EU member states from 1 January after visa-free short-term stays in the EU came into effect on the same day.
EXPATS. Czech President Petr Pavel supports the adoption of the euro as the currency of the Central European country he leads, saying the time is ripe for concrete steps.
REUTERS. The Czech Republic's average temperature in 2023 is expected to equal the record of 2018 (12.8 degrees Celsius in the capital Prague), making it the hottest year since weather records began nearly 250 years ago.
America
AP. The US Navy announced that the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford will return to its home port in Virginia, ending its deployment to the eastern Mediterranean to support Israel after the Hamas-Israel conflict broke out on October 7.
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| Immediately after the conflict broke out, the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group was ordered to the Eastern Mediterranean to contribute to the US defense and deterrence posture in the region. (Source: Reuters) |
NBC. US President Joe Biden said the US is ready to provide any necessary assistance to Japan after the Northeast Asian country was hit by a devastating earthquake earlier in the day.
MERCO PRESS. A number of financial consulting firms in Argentina estimate that the consumer price index (CPI) will increase by 210%-220% in 2023 - the highest inflation rate in the country in the past 33 years.
CNN. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has protested an Argentine judge's decision to seize a Boeing 747 Dreamliner cargo plane owned by Emtrasur, a subsidiary of Venezuela's national airline Conviasa.
Africa
AFP. Ethiopia has reached a "historic" deal to secure a stake in the main port of Berbera in Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland as the landlocked nation seeks greater access to the sea.
REUTERS. Somalia has recalled its ambassador to Ethiopia, saying a controversial port deal signed by Ethiopia with the breakaway region of Somaliland violated Somalia's sovereignty.
AP. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan signed a statement with the Taqadum civilian coalition saying they were ready for an immediate, unconditional ceasefire through negotiations with the Sudanese army.
FRANCE24. The French embassy in Niger has officially closed amid deteriorating bilateral relations following a military coup in the West African country.
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| According to the spokesman of the French Foreign Ministry, over the past five months, the French Embassy in Niger has been seriously obstructed and is therefore unable to carry out the functions and tasks of this diplomatic representative agency. (Source: AFP) |
AFP. Moroccan troops detained more than 1,100 migrants trying to reach the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla on the night of December 31, 2023, and the early morning of January 1, 2024.
EGYPT NEWS. Egypt began production at the first oil well of the North Safa field offshore the country in the Gulf of Suez on January 1.
Oceania
SBS. Leading Australian car dealer Eagers Automotive released the results of its investigation into the cyber attack last week, which revealed that hackers had illegally accessed part of a third-party IT system responsible for evaluating data from its servers.
ABC. Organisers of the Australian Open tennis tournament have announced a 13% increase in the total prize money for players participating in the tournament in January to a record high of 86.5 million AUD ($59 million).
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