Iran and Pakistan seek to reduce confrontation, Indonesia sends hospital ship to Gaza, Russian oil depot catches fire after being attacked by UAV, Denmark spends a "mountain" of money to monitor the Arctic... are some notable international news in the past 24 hours.
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| Russia claims to have shot down many Ukrainian UAVs and missiles. (Source: rferl.org) |
World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some of the day's international news highlights.
Russia – Ukraine
*Russian oil storage facility catches fire after Ukrainian drone attack: Russia's Bryansk region governor Alexander Bogomaz said on January 19 that oil tanks at a storage facility in the town of Klintsy in the Bryansk region caught fire after the military shot down a Ukrainian drone that tried to attack targets in the town. According to initial information, no one was injured in the incident, Bogomaz said on his Telegram account. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire. (Sputniknews)
*Russia shot down 91 UAVs and missiles of various types from Ukraine: The Russian Defense Ministry said that within the past 24 hours, the country's air defense system successfully shot down 2 Tochka-U missiles, 1 JDAM guided bomb made in the US, 18 rockets from the US HIMARS multiple launch rocket system and the Czech Republic's Vampire, as well as 91 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from Ukraine.
According to the press office of the Russian Defense Ministry, the successful use of air defense systems helped to prevent attacks on important targets on the territory of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic (LPR), as well as the Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Kharkov regions.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, since the start of the special military operation, a total of 567 Ukrainian military aircraft, 265 helicopters and 10,870 UAVs have been destroyed. (TASS)
*Ukraine develops first hybrid air defense system: Ukrainian Air Force Command spokesman Yury Ignat confirmed that Kiev's first hybrid air defense system capable of launching American missiles from Soviet-made launchers was developed and field tested in the US with the participation of US and Ukrainian military experts.
The representative of the Ukrainian Air Force emphasized that “the systems in question do not have a long range, they can hit targets at a distance of 15 km”.
Earlier, on January 17, Ukrainian Minister of Strategic Industries Alexander Kamyshin announced that the country's military had for the first time used a hybrid air defense system made from parts produced by the Soviet Union and the West. (TASS)
Asia-Pacific
*Iran, Pakistan seek to ease tensions: Islamabad and Tehran are seeking to ease bilateral tensions after Pakistan carried out retaliatory strikes on Iranian territory on January 18, raising the risk of a full-blown conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
After launching the missile attack, Pakistan sent a conciliatory message to Iran and assured its neighbor that Islamabad did not want to escalate tensions further, according to diplomatic sources and officials from both countries. “We hope the worst is over,” a Pakistani official said.
Iran's Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the evening of January 18 pledging to "adhere to the policy of good neighborly relations with Pakistan." (The Express Tribune)
*North Korea tests underwater nuclear weapons: North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on January 19 that North Korea has tested an underwater nuclear weapons system, in a move to protest this week's joint military exercises by South Korea, the United States and Japan.
On January 17, South Korea, the United States and Japan conducted a joint naval exercise in the waters south of the Korean Peninsula, aiming to enhance the three countries' response capabilities to threats to maritime security. (Reuters)
*Malaysia launches crackdown on illegal residence: Director General of the Malaysian Immigration Department (IMI) Ruslin Jusoh said on January 19 that the agency has identified 220 illegal settlement hotspots nationwide, including spontaneous settlements as well as rented houses or buildings.
Mr. Ruslin stated that IMI will continuously deploy large-scale operations nationwide to address the detected hot spots and will not compromise on this issue.
According to statistics, since the campaign began on the first day of the new year 2024 until January 16, a total of 3,262 immigrants have been arrested for various charges such as not having a passport, overstaying and building illegal settlements. He stressed that this is a record number. Most local employers are believed to be abusing passports and providing illegal settlements to immigrants so that they can continue to work in this country. (Straits Times)
Europe
*Denmark to spend $400 million on Arctic surveillance: Denmark has earmarked 2.74 billion crowns ($400 million) to boost surveillance and intelligence in the Arctic and North Atlantic using long-range unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), as part of a broader framework agreement to boost the Nordic country's defense capabilities and meet NATO goals.
The shrinking sea ice in the Arctic has fueled a race among global powers to gain control of resources and waterways. Copenhagen is responsible for the security and defense of Greenland in the Arctic and the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic – two territories under the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Denmark.
“The Kingdom of the future will have to take greater responsibility for security in the entire region. Therefore, we need to use more power in the Arctic and the North Atlantic,” Denmark’s defense minister said on the evening of January 18 (local time). In 2023, Denmark pledged to invest 143 billion crowns in defense over the next 10 years. (Reuters)
| RELATED NEWS | |
 | Russia claims to have intercepted multiple UAVs in the Black Sea, Ukraine releases images of 'shot down' Kinzhal hypersonic ballistic missile |
*Belarus considers nuclear weapons development as a strategic deterrent: On January 19, the Belarusian Defense Ministry said that Minsk's new military doctrine considers the development of domestic nuclear weapons as a mandatory strategic deterrent.
The new military doctrine also describes what actions the Belarusian military would take in the event of any armed aggression against Minsk's allies in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which includes several former Soviet republics or the Union State of Belarus and Russia.
At the same time, Minsk expressed its willingness to resume dialogue with NATO member states “on condition that they stop their aggressive rhetoric against Belarus.” Belarus, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, shares borders with NATO members Poland and Lithuania, as well as Russia and Ukraine. ( TASS)
*Russia says it is difficult to restore the Black Sea grain deal: The Kremlin said on January 19 that there was no prospect of restoring the Black Sea grain deal and that alternative routes for transporting Ukrainian grain posed huge risks.
The original agreement, which facilitated safe grain exports from Ukraine across the Black Sea, ended last year after Moscow refused to renew it, saying its interests were being ignored. (TASS)
Middle East-Africa
*Nearly 25,000 people have died since Israel attacked Gaza: The health agency of the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip said on January 19 that the war between the Islamic movement and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has killed 24,762 people in the blockaded Palestinian territory.
In the past 24 hours, Israeli attacks have killed 142 Palestinians. Since the outbreak of hostilities on October 7, 2023, 62,108 Palestinians have been injured.
On the Israeli side, the number of soldiers killed since the IDF launched its ground offensive in the Gaza Strip has now reached 194. (Arab News)
*China urges end to “harassment” of ships in Red Sea: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning on January 19 called for an end to “harassment” of civilian vessels in the Red Sea following attacks by Houthi rebels on ships in a show of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
In an interview the same day, senior Houthi official Mohammed al-Bukhaiti pledged to allow Russian and Chinese ships to safely pass through the Red Sea. He stressed that the waters around Yemen were safe, as long as the ships were not linked to certain countries, especially Israel. (AFP)
*Indonesia sends hospital ship to Gaza for humanitarian assistance: Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto said on January 19 that he and the Chief of Naval Staff - Admiral Muhammad Ali - sent the Indonesian Navy Hospital Ship KRI dr Radjiman Wedyoningrat-992 to the Gaza Strip to carry out a humanitarian assistance mission.
According to Mr. Probowo, the humanitarian aid distributed includes food, blankets, clothes, baby items, women's clothing, milk, tents, hygiene kits, mineral water, and religious items.
“The hospital ship will sail along the route Jakarta-Belawan-El-Arish-Jeddah-Batam before returning to Jakarta. The journey will take a total of about 50 days at sea,” the Indonesian Navy said. (Arab News)
America
*Venezuela denounces US blockade of 69 ships: Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has just held a meeting with the Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Arsenio Domínguez, in which she denounced the blockade of 69 ships related to the Caribbean country due to economic sanctions as "illegal".
According to Ms. Rodríguez, Venezuela has the fourth largest number of blockaded vessels in the world. Not only are 39 vessels belonging to Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA blocked, but 30 other international commercial vessels have also been sanctioned under “this terrible policy of attack.”
Venezuela's vice president stressed that the sanctions represent "economic genocide" against the people of the Caribbean nation. Ms. Rodríguez asked the IMO to join other organizations calling for the measures to be lifted. (Xinhua)
*The US does not allow Cuban businesses to access the banking system: Responding to a US congressional committee about the information that President Joe Biden's administration is considering allowing Cuban businessmen to open accounts at US banks, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the US Office of Latin American Affairs Eric Jacobstein said on January 18 that the country currently has no plans to allow Cuban small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to access the US banking system.
However, the official affirmed the commitment of the administration of US President Joe Biden to “support the Cuban people” and facilitate “private sector development” in the neighboring island nation.
Meanwhile, Democratic congressman Joaquín Castro said the “isolationism” imposed on Cuba was “impoverishing” its people and supported lifting the embargo to allow the economy and private sector to develop. (AFP)
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