Indian Prime Minister holds talks with Ukrainian President, US allows Kiev to use weapons to attack Russia, Iran urges negotiations with EU

The US expands its sanctions list related to Russia, China, Iran, Hamas criticizes Israel for “refusing” the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, the Philippines raids a Chinese-run center in Manila… are some of the outstanding international events in the past 24 hours.

Indian Prime Minister and Ukrainian President in Kiev, August 23. (Source: Reuters)

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

Asia-Pacific

*US National Security Advisor to Visit China: On August 23, Axios reported that White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will visit China to meet with host country Foreign Minister Wang Yi on August 27-29.

Sullivan and Wang are expected to discuss laying the groundwork for a potential summit between President Joe Biden and President Xi Jinping later this year.

Sullivan's visit to China comes as the United States enters a crucial phase of its presidential campaign, with both Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her opponent Donald Trump taking a tough stance on China, especially on tariffs. (Reuters)

*US F-22 aircraft arrive in Singapore for joint exercises in the South China Sea: US and Singaporean officials said US Air Force F-22 stealth fighters arrived in Singapore on August 21 to participate in combat exercises and aerial refueling.

On the same day, the US Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) said: "F-22 aircraft are training with the Singapore Air Force, enhancing interoperability and strengthening relationships."

Interoperability for militaries means the ability of one country's military to use equipment and training methods from another. According to the Singapore Air Force, the training will take place in the southern part of the South China Sea in international airspace. (Stars&Stripes)

*Indian Prime Minister holds talks with Ukrainian President: President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 23 as part of the Indian leader's first visit to Ukraine. The main purpose of the visit is said to be to promote "dialogue and diplomacy" between Ukraine and Russia.

Earlier, NDTV reported that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had arrived in Ukraine on his first official visit since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1992. However, details of Modi's agenda in Kiev were not disclosed.

According to Indian TV channels, the visit will only last a few hours. (Reuter/AFP)

*Philippines raids Chinese-run center in Manila: Philippine police raided a Chinese-run center in the capital Manila early on August 22, arresting dozens of Filipino and foreign workers accused of defrauding investors into a "manipulated" trading platform.

The owner and manager of the facility - both Chinese citizens - were among those arrested.

Police said the center operated under the guise of a licensed online gaming company, which President Ferdinand Marcos banned last month. Among the 67 foreigners arrested in the raid were 58 Chinese nationals. (Reuters)

Europe

*The US allows Ukraine to use weapons to attack Russia, including Kursk: On August 22 (US time), Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said that the US Department of Defense allowed Ukraine to carry out "counterattacks to defend itself" against Russia in border areas.

"US policy allows Ukraine to conduct counterattacks to defend itself against Russian attacks across the border, including Kursk and Sumy, and they are defending themselves there," the official said.

With this declaration, Kiev will be allowed to use all types of weapons supplied by Washington, including ATACMS and GLSDB missiles, to attack targets on Russian territory in the border area, thereby expanding the scope of Ukrainian forces' operations in the ongoing conflict. (TASS)

*Russia claims control of 50 settlements in Kharkiv province: On August 23, the head of the Russian-appointed military-civilian administration of Kharkiv province, Vitaly Ganchev, said that about 50 settlements in this Ukrainian province are now under the control of the Russian army. The areas controlled by Russia have a population of about 2,000.

Currently, the city of Volchansk remains the Ukrainian stronghold in Kharkov, but the Russian army is making advances.

On the same day, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said that President Vladimir Putin had decided how to respond to the attack on Russia's Kursk province on August 6. Mr. Antonov affirmed: "Everyone will be punished for what happened in Kursk" and rejected the possibility that Ukraine could establish a buffer zone there. (TASS)

*Germany establishes military barracks in Lithuania: The Financial Times (FT) reported on August 23 that Germany has begun building a military barracks in Lithuania, near the Belarus border, which will become the country's first permanent military base abroad since World War II.

The project was meant to highlight Berlin's leadership role in European security but has been overshadowed by controversy over its reduced military support for Ukraine.

Last week, media reports said Germany had to cut military aid to Ukraine due to a lack of funding. Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced in a decree that no new aid requests would be approved beyond those already confirmed. However, he pledged that Germany would remain Ukraine’s largest donor in Europe. (FT/Sputniknews)

*Riot in prison in Russia, prisoners take many hostages: A group of prisoners on August 23 took many hostages in a prison in the city of Volgograd, southwestern Russia in a riot that left at least one prison guard dead.

A video circulating on Russian social media reportedly shows at least two attackers, one of whom claims to be Islamic State (IS) militants, taking control of a prison in the town of Surovikino.

The facility, which is considered a “harsh regime” prison, has a capacity of 1,241 male inmates, according to the prison authority’s website. (Reuters)

*Ukraine confirms sinking of Russian ferry: On August 23, the Ukrainian Navy confirmed that it had destroyed a ferry in the Russian port of Kavkaz on August 22, which was used to transport fuel and weapons to the Crimean peninsula.

"This ferry is one of the most important Russian military logistics chains for supplying the occupying forces. First of all, fuel, but also transports weapons," Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk told Radio Libery.

On the same day, TASS reported that a Ukrainian drone attempted to attack Russia's Kursk nuclear power plant last night. According to the source, the drone was shot down near a spent nuclear fuel storage facility. Kursk is one of Russia's leading nuclear power plants. (Reuters)

Middle East-Africa

*Iran calls on EU for dialogue: After a phone call with the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union (EU) Josep Borrell, Iran's new Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called on the EU for dialogue to resolve bilateral issues.

On the evening of August 22, Mr. Araghchi expressed: "The Islamic Republic of Iran welcomes the development of relations with the EU based on mutual respect." According to him, the development of relations "needs dialogue to resolve issues between the two sides and correct the wrong policies of European countries."

For his part, Mr. Borrell said he had discussed "new prospects for cooperation in all areas of mutual interest" with the Iranian Foreign Minister. He said such "important dialogue" was "necessary to ease tensions in the region." (AFP)

*US-Israeli defense ministers discuss regional security: On August 23, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he spoke by phone with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant about a range of regional issues, including ongoing gun battles on the Israel-Lebanon border and the need to complete a ceasefire agreement.

In a post on X, Austin said he also discussed the risk of escalation from Iran and its proxies in a phone call with Gallant on Aug. 22. He also made clear to Gallant that the United States was prepared to conduct military missions throughout the region. (Reuters)

*Hamas criticizes Israel for "rejecting" ceasefire agreement in Gaza: According to AFP on August 23, the Islamic movement Hamas accused the Israeli Prime Minister of rejecting the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, in which the presence of the Israeli army on the Egyptian border remains the main deadlock.

Earlier, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's spokesman, Omer Dostri, said that an Israeli negotiating delegation was in the Egyptian capital Cairo "to push for a hostage release agreement". However, Hamas representatives did not participate in this negotiation.

Egypt, along with Qatari and US mediators, have been trying for months to push for a deal to end more than 10 months of war between Israel and the Hamas movement in Gaza. (Al Jazeera)

America - Latin America

*US Election: Candidate R. Kennedy withdraws from presidential race: The New York Times reported that independent US presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. filed to withdraw from the presidential race in November.

The NYT quoted a representative of Arizona Governor Aaron Tucker's office as saying that Mr. Kennedy Jr. will speak to the nation on August 23 and is expected to withdraw from the election to support Mr. Donald Trump.

According to the newspaper, Mr. Kennedy received more than 118,000 signatures to run for office in Arizona, exceeding the required number.

The US presidential election will take place on November 5, with incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump from the Democratic and Republican parties participating. (Sputniknews)

*US expands sanctions list related to Russia, China, Iran: In an announcement in the Federal Register on August 3, the US Department of Commerce said it had imposed new export restrictions on 123 entities, including 63 entities in Russia, 42 entities in China and 11 entities in Iran.

Entity lists by destination include Canada (1), China (42), Crimea Region of Ukraine (1), Cyprus (1), Iran (11), Kazakhstan (1), Kyrgyzstan (1), Russia (63), Turkey (8), Ukraine (1) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (1)".

According to the announcement, these companies were added to the sanctions list for exporting electronics, sensitive technology and other items of US origin to Russia and Iran or exporting goods that serve the interests of Russia's defense industry or intelligence agencies. (Sputniknews/Reuters)

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