Ukrainian President Admits He's "Running Out of Money" for the Military, Historic Forest Fire Disaster in South Korea, Major Political Upheaval in Niger

The World and Vietnam Newspaper highlights some notable international events in the past 24 hours.

The South Korean forest fire is the worst forest fire disaster in the country's history.

Europe

* Ukraine will no longer have enough money to fund its army if there is a ceasefire or “some kind of pause”, President Volodymyr Zelensky has admitted. He made it clear that the army needs rest, rotation, reserves, salaries and that when the army triples in size, “the budget will not be enough”.

According to President Zelensky, special programs are needed to allocate funds for the Ukrainian army and "Europe needs to finance this program. Ideally, both Europe and the United States. But in the current situation, I will rely more on Europe." (TASS)

* Ukraine and the US agreed to let a “third party” monitor the maritime ceasefire agreement, possibly a European country or Turkey and possibly a Middle Eastern country in the energy sector," according to President Zelensky.

The Ukrainian leader also said that the ceasefire agreement related to the Black Sea region and energy infrastructure will take effect immediately from March 25 and if Russia violates it, Kiev will request more weapons aid and countries need to increase sanctions against Russia.

* Russia and the US agreed on a list of energy facilities prohibited from attack, including: oil refineries, oil and gas pipelines and storage facilities, including pumping stations, electricity generation and transmission infrastructure, including power plants, substations, transformers and distribution systems, nuclear power plants, and hydroelectric dams.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on March 26 that Russian President Vladimir Putin's order to temporarily halt attacks on energy infrastructure in Ukraine remains in effect and is being followed by the Russian military. (TASS)

* New Russian Ambassador to the US Alexander Darchiev officially departed to take up his duties, in the context of the two countries' efforts to restore bilateral relations, which were severed after Moscow's special military campaign in Ukraine.

Mr. Darchiev, born in 1960, was appointed Ambassador in February after Russia and the US held talks to resolve diplomatic issues, a sign that tensions were easing after President Donald Trump returned to power in January. (TASS)

* The Armenian parliament passed a bill to launch the process of joining the European Union (EU) in its second reading, even though the EU has not yet made a formal request for Yerevan's admission. In this final reading, 64 lawmakers supported the bill and 7 voted against it.

Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Paruyr Hovhannisyan noted that the bill is not an official application for EU membership, but only expresses the desire to strengthen ties with the union. Yerevan is expected to approve a new agenda for cooperation between Armenia and the EU in accordance with the adopted law. (TASS)

* Germany elected new Speaker of the Bundestag , Julia Kloeckner of the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU), in the first session of the new legislature.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also dismissed Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his cabinet on the afternoon of March 25. However, Mr. Scholz will remain interim Chancellor until a new coalition government is formed. (DW)

* Poland has established a defense and security fund with the aim of strengthening security and promoting the development of the defense industry, according to an announcement by Polish Minister of Development and Regional Policy Katarzyna Pelczynska-Nalecz on March 26.

According to Katarzyna Pelczynska-Nalecz, Poland is the first country in Europe to establish this fund within the framework of the National Recovery Plan and will invest "billions of zlotys in bunkers, dual-use infrastructure and the development of arms companies. (RIA)

Asia-Pacific

* South Korea mobilized all forces to respond to the serious forest fire disaster raging in the southeastern region of the country, killing at least 18 people and forcing tens of thousands to evacuate.

Acting President Han Duck-soo said the government has raised the forest fire alert level to the highest level. The nationwide response allows relevant agencies to mobilize maximum resources to control the situation.

According to Mr. Han Duck-soo, the forest fire disaster is developing at an unprecedented level of severity and causing historic damage, beyond all previous predictions and assessment models. (Yonhap)

* China and Thailand began a joint naval exercise called “Blue Strike-2025” at a military port in Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, southern China, which will last until April 2. This is the sixth time the two countries have conducted a joint exercise, with the scale expanded from the marine corps level to the naval fleet level.

The joint exercise is an important practical activity to implement the agreement between the two countries' naval forces. The goal of this event is to strengthen substantive cooperation, improve combat coordination capabilities, as well as actively contribute to ensuring regional maritime security. (THX)

* Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra survived a no-confidence vote with 319 votes out of 488 lawmakers. This is the first no-confidence vote against Ms. Paetongtarn since becoming the youngest female Prime Minister in Thailand's history in August 2024. (Reuters)

* The Philippines' strategic Subic naval port welcomed the first visit of the modern Mogami-class frigate Noshiro of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Salvador Bunagan, commander of the Subic Naval Base north of Manila, stressed that the visit of the frigate Noshiro marks “an important step in enhancing defense cooperation and strengthening maritime relations” between the two countries’ forces. (Kyodo)

Middle East-Africa

* Niger's military government leader Abdourahamane Tchiani was sworn in as President of the country on March 26, with a five-year transitional term under a new charter replacing the West African country's constitution.

Chief of Staff Mahamane Roufai confirmed that the five-year “flexible” transition period began on March 26. Mr. Tchiani was also promoted to the rank of general, the highest rank in the Nigerien military. (AP)

* The leaders of the United States and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) discussed a number of Middle East issues by phone on March 25. During the call, UAE President Sheikh Mohammed reiterated to his US counterpart Donald Trump his commitment to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, considering it as the foundation for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the region.

Sheikh Mohammed also mentioned ongoing efforts to secure a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and maintain stability in the region, stressing the need for vital humanitarian aid to reach the people of the Palestinian territories. (WAM)

* United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen has highlighted the need for “rapid and broad sanctions relief” that is targeted and covers relevant sectors including energy, investment, finance, health and education in Syria.

Pedersen said that while some steps have been taken, more needs to be done to give the Syrian people a chance to recover. It is essential that countries sanctioning Syria consider the important constraints that remain and work towards lifting sanctions. (Reuters)

America

* The US has issued a new decree on proof of citizenship when voting, according to which voters must prove their citizenship when registering to vote, and at the same time eliminate ballots sent by post after Election Day. The decree also comes with measures to cut federal budgets for states that do not comply with the regulations.

US President Donald Trump signed the executive order on March 25. (Reuters)

* The US president has tried to defuse a leak on the Signal app after The Atlantic 's editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a conversation between top security officials about upcoming airstrikes in Yemen.

Mr Trump denied sharing classified information and defended National Security Adviser Mike Waltz in the incident, after the official accepted responsibility for the incident despite claiming he did not know or have contact with Mr Goldberg.

Mr Trump said he would "look into" using the Signal app. (The Guardian)

* Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called on the South American Common Market (Mercosur) and Japan to sign a trade agreement to counter the increasingly aggressive protectionism of the United States, in a speech on March 26 in Tokyo, at an economic forum attended by Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru.

“Our two countries benefit more from integration than from protectionist measures... We cannot return to protectionism. We do not want a second Cold War... We want free trade that can ensure democracy, economic growth and the distribution of wealth established in our two countries,” President Lula da Silva said.

For his part, Prime Minister Ishiba declared that he and President Lula would “strongly promote more open bilateral trade and investment.” (AFP)

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tin-the-gioi-263-tong-thong-ukraine-thua-than-het-tien-cho-quan-doi-tham-hoa-chay-rung-lich-su-o-han-quoc-bien-dong-lon-o-chinh-truong-niger-308929.html