Irish Prime Minister Resigns Suddenly, Russia Plans to Create Two New Armies, Bolivia Seizes Huge Amount of Drugs

The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some notable world news this morning, March 21.

Asia

XINHUA. China has launched a new relay satellite to provide Earth-Moon communication services, a key step toward serving Beijing's future lunar exploration missions.

The Long March-8 rocket carrying the Thuoc Kieu 2 satellite lifted off from the launch pad in Wenchang City, Hainan Province, China on March 20. (Source: Xinhua)

ANTARA. Former Indonesian Special Forces Commander Prabowo Subianto was confirmed as the winner of last month's presidential election.

TEMPO. Jakarta police have deployed more than 3,000 police officers in the Indonesian capital, as the National Election Commission (KPU) is expected to announce the official results of the 2024 general election.

BERNAMA. Malaysia's Immigration Department Director-General Ruslin Jusoh said a total of 11,943 illegal immigrants have been repatriated through the Immigration Department's Migrant Repatriation Programme.

THE NATION. Hungary and Thailand are preparing to open a direct flight connecting the two capitals, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said during a visit to Bangkok.

MINT. Indian refiners are on track to consume the most US crude in nearly a year after tighter enforcement of US sanctions hampered trade with Russia.

DAWN. 12 miners were killed and 8 were rescued in a coal mine explosion in Balochistan province, Pakistan on the night of March 19.

WORLD ECHO. Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) of Pakistan conducted several operations against drug criminals in various areas across the country, seizing a total of more than 50 kg of drugs .

TIMES OF ISRAEL. Half of the workers at the port of Eilat in Israel are at risk of unemployment amid severe economic damage caused by the crisis on shipping routes on the Red Sea.

ARAB NEWS. Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati met with Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira in Beirut to discuss bilateral relations and the latest developments in the Middle East.

NEW ARAB. Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi arrived in the Syrian capital to restart talks on Syria's stance on nuclear energy.

Europe

CNN. "I will resign as President and Leader of Fine Gael today and will step down as Prime Minister as soon as a successor is able to assume the role."

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, 45, speaks at a press conference outside Government House in Dublin on March 20. (Source: AP)

REUTERS. EU countries have postponed a vote on a key bill to restore nature , after too few member governments signaled they would approve the document.

EURASIANET. The Armenian Parliament has approved an agreement between the country and the EU on the status of the EU Civilian Monitoring Mission in the Armenia-Azerbaijan border area.

GUARDIAN. The EU has reached a provisional agreement allowing Ukrainian food producers to export duty-free to the EU market until June 2025, although with new limits on grain imports.

BBC. The British government plans to introduce a bill to ban the sale of tobacco products to young people, in a bid to fulfil its commitment to gradually eliminate the use of these harmful products by young people.

FRANCE 24. French President Emmanuel Macron launched an “unprecedented” major operation against drug trafficking gangs in French cities.

AFP. The French regulator has announced a fine of 250 million euros ($272 million) for Google for violating its commitment to pay French news agencies fairly.

NEW YORK TIMES. The 2024 Abel Prize in Mathematics was awarded to French mathematician Michel Talagrand , an expert in probability theory and functional analysis.

BTA. Bulgaria's two largest political parties have failed to reach an agreement on a new power-sharing cabinet, which could force the country into early elections.

MOSCOW TIMES. Russia says its troops are pushing back Ukrainian forces and Moscow will bolster its military by adding two new armies and 30 new units by the end of the year.

SPUTNIK. Russia will continue to demand a transparent investigation into the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosion in September 2022, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.

TASS. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has protested against the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision to ban Russian athletes from participating in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics in July.

America

CNN. Democratic US President Joe Biden and Republican former President Donald Trump continued to win the primary elections in Kansas and Illinois in the form of secret ballots.

BLOOMBERG. The administration of US President Joe Biden announced that it will provide chipmaker Intel with nearly $20 billion in grants and loans to help the company increase domestic semiconductor chip production.

AP. The United States and China are pushing for cooperation to cut methane emissions , said Deputy Special Envoy for Climate Change Rick Duke.

FOX NEWS. The Mexican Foreign Ministry has spoken out against the US Supreme Court's recent approval of a Texas bill that would allow authorities to detain illegal immigrants at the border between the two countries.

CBS NEWS. Bolivian police have busted their second-largest drug bust, seizing more than 7.2 tons of cocaine bound for Belgium, with an estimated street value of $450 million.

Điểm tin thế giới sáng 21/3: Thủ tướng Ireland thông báo từ chức

The operation took place in the Pisiga plateau, bordering Chile, where police discovered the drugs hidden in two trucks carrying scrap metal. (Source: Reuters)

REUTERS. After 15 years of drought, Chile's reservoirs are running dry, posing a risk of water shortages in the South American country.

POLITICO. Canada and Japan could join the second pillar of the AUKUS defense partnership in late 2024 or early 2025,

Africa

AHRAM. Egypt plans to modernize its fleet of Chinook multi-role heavy-lift helicopters , at a total cost of up to $426 million.

ENA. Ethiopian Foreign Minister Taye Atske-Selassie said Switzerland's decision to open a new embassy in the capital Addis Ababa shows Bern's determination to strengthen relations with the African country.

UNICEF. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is appealing for $189.1 million to scale up its support for displaced children and vulnerable families in Somalia in 2024.

AFP. The African Union (AU) plans to deploy its next mission to Somalia after withdrawing its current mission in the country in December, AU Special Representative to Somalia Mohamed El-Amine Souef said.

AFRICA NEWS. The EU provides €166 million in funding to contribute to the development of Benin through the conclusion of several financing agreements.

Oceania

ABC. Speaking at talks with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the relationship between the two economies is highly complementary and has great potential.

Mr. Wang Yi emphasized that since China-Australia relations are "on the right track", the two sides "should not hesitate, deviate or return to the starting line, and the development of bilateral relations is not aimed at any third party, nor will it be influenced or interfered with by any third party." (Source: Reuters)

NZ HERALD. The New Zealand government has introduced new regulations to tighten the sale of e-cigarette products, banning all disposable e-cigarettes.

KYODO. Japan will cooperate with island nations in the Pacific region to jointly build a future of peace, stability and prosperity, Defense Minister Minoru Kihara pledged.

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