The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some notable world news this morning, December 18.
Asia
KYODO. Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and ASEAN partners issued a "Joint Vision Statement" and a plan to implement future cooperation areas.
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Delegates pose for a group photo at the ASEAN-Japan Summit to celebrate 50 years of relations in Tokyo on December 17. (Photo: Duong Giang) |
| "Based on strong mutual trust, Japan and ASEAN will tackle new challenges." (Prime Minister of Japan Kishida Fumio) |
THE STAR. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio officially announced the Joint Statement on upgrading Malaysia-Japan relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership.
XINHUA. North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong Ho held talks with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong in Beijing to discuss bilateral relations.
YONHAP. South Korea's military said North Korea has fired an unidentified ballistic missile into the sea off its east coast.
BERNAMA. Heavy rains and floods have forced more than 6,500 people, mainly in the two states of Kelantan and Terenggan on Malaysia's east coast, to evacuate to safety.
MINT. The test flight of a high-speed stealth UAV developed by India was successfully conducted at the aviation test site in Chitradurga, Karnataka state, thereby bringing India into the club of countries that have mastered UAV manufacturing technology.
PTI. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tarik in New Delhi to promote future cooperation between the two countries.
ARAB NEWS. Saudi Arabia has announced plans to build the country's first opera house in the city center of Diriyah, northwest of the capital Riyadh.
AL ARABIYA. Crown Prince Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah , 83, will become the 17th King of Kuwait, after King Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah passed away at the age of 86 on December 16.
REUTERS. The Kerem Shalom border crossing between Israel and Gaza has opened for the first time since the outbreak of the Hamas-Israel conflict, allowing trucks carrying aid to pass through.
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| The Kerem Shalom crossing was closed shortly after Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7 and since then, aid has only been delivered through the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza, which can only handle about 100 trucks a day. (Source: Reuters) |
Europe
BELTA. Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko arrived in Moscow (Russia) to attend events on the sidelines of the meeting of the Council of Government Leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).
TASS. Russia may further cut oil exports in December, by about 50,000 barrels per day or more, as the world's top oil exporters try to support prices for the commodity.
SPUTNIK. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin discussed with Secretary-General of the UN Conference on Trade and Development Rebecca Greenspan and UN Deputy Secretary-General Martin Griffiths the free supply of Russian grain and fertilizers to the most needy countries of the world.
TASS. Russia's second Arktika-M meteorological satellite , launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome by a Soyuz-2.1b rocket, was successfully placed into the designated orbit using the Fregat booster system.
REUTERS. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said Budapest would veto EU talks on Ukraine's accession if it was deemed detrimental to Hungary's interests.
GUARDIAN. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba praised German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's move at the EU summit, which will help Kiev negotiate accession to the "common house".
UKRINFORM. Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey plan to sign a trilateral agreement to combat mines in the Black Sea in January next year.
AFP. Italy is ready to invest in Africa to both provide the energy needed for economic growth and to solve the migration problem, according to the CEO of state-owned energy group Eni, Mr. Claudio Descalzi.
BBC. Speaking in Rome (Italy), British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he would push for reform of the global asylum system , warning that the increase in illegal migrants could overload some areas in Europe.
FRANCE 24. The French capital Paris once again tops the list of the world's 10 most attractive cities in 2023, according to the 2023 Top 100 Destination Cities Index.
TIMES OF ISRAEL. "Too many civilians are dying," French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told her Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen in Tel Aviv on December 17.
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| French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna (left) called for an "immediate and lasting" ceasefire to move towards a peace deal. (Source: Times of Israel) |
America
CNN. The number of homeless people in the US increased by 12% compared to a year earlier, equivalent to an increase of about 70,650 people, according to the recently released annual report of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
BARRON'S. Colombia has been officially confirmed as the host of the United Nations Conference on Biological Diversity (COP16) in late 2024, after Turkey withdrew.
AP. Every year, Mexico records more than 20,000 cases of breast cancer in women, of which about 50% are detected at a late stage, causing the mortality rate to increase day by day.
PRENSA LATINA. Cuba welcomes the direct dialogue between Venezuela and Guyana at the highest level amid the recent escalation of tensions in the Essequibo region between the two countries.
Africa
EGYPT NEWS. Egypt has declared three days of mourning in memory of Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, who has died at the age of 86.
AL QAHERA. Egyptian air defenses detected and shot down a suspicious drone in the Red Sea off the coast, near the resort town of Dahab.
UNODC. West and Central Africa have long been a transit point for drugs produced in Latin America to Europe and are now also the world's drug "hotspot" with high levels of illicit drug consumption, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
XINHUA. Algeria officially joined the “Guided Trade Initiative” launched within the framework of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
AFRICA NEWS. At least 61 migrants are missing and feared dead after a boat capsized off the coast of Libya, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) office in Libya said.
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| The migrants, including children and women, were mainly citizens of Nigeria, Gambia and several other African countries, the statement added. (Source: AP) |
AP. The African Union (AU) expressed concern about the continued rise of violent conflicts in Africa that undermine the fundamental rights and well-being of children.
Oceania
SKY NEWS. The Australian government believes sanctions on its wine exports imposed by China in 2021 will be lifted by early 2024.
| “This will be very important for Australian wine producers as we enter the processing season.” (Trade Minister Don Farrell) |
ABC. Australian authorities have advised thousands of people in Queensland to evacuate to higher ground to guard against the risk of flooding caused by heavy rain.
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