Ukraine talks about explosion in Kiev, Korea-ASEAN discuss new steps

German Minister denies Ukraine's early entry into NATO, China talks about US Secretary of State's visit, ... are some notable international news in the past 24 hours.

ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn and South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin in Seoul on June 16. (Source: ASEAN.org)

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

Russia-Ukraine

* Russia is ready to discuss a solution to the Ukraine conflict : On June 16, RIA (Russia) quoted the Kremlin as affirming that President Vladimir Putin is ready to receive any contact to discuss a solution to the Ukraine conflict.

Meanwhile, TASS (Russia) quoted spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying that Russia has taken “unprecedented” security measures at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, where Mr. Putin will give a speech on June 16. According to Mr. Peskov, these measures are necessary because “opponents act blatantly.”

Russian officials have previously accused Ukraine of carrying out drone, artillery and bomb attacks on Russian territory in recent months. (Reuters)

* Russia: Black Sea grain deal extension not possible : Speaking on the sidelines of the St Petersburg economic forum on June 16, Russian Senate Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said that it is currently “impossible” to extend the Black Sea grain deal. She reiterated statements made by Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials that “the limits of our patience… have run out.”

However, according to the Chairman of the Russian Senate, it is important to avoid aggravating the food crisis in poor countries. (Interfax)

* Big explosion in central Kiev , Ukraine speaks out : On June 16, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said there were several explosions in the central district of Podil. According to him, the Ukrainian capital is becoming the focus of missile attacks.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has blamed Russia for the attack that caused the explosions. “Russian missiles send a message to Africa: They want more conflict instead of peace ,” he said.

Notably, the incident took place in the context of a delegation of several African leaders and senior officials visiting the town of Bucha, where Russian forces were accused of causing a massacre in March 2022. Previously, the South African Presidency's Twitter account stated: "South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and other African heads of state are participating in the African Leaders' Peace Mission at St. Andrew's Cathedral in Bucha." (AFP/Reuters)

* Ukraine plans to train F-16 pilots : On June 16, on Ukrainian national television, Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said: "Everything is being done to start as soon as possible. It's not training, it's retraining." At the same time, he said that the pilots selected to train to fly F-16 fighter jets are all experienced.

NATO members, notably the Netherlands and Denmark, are leading an international coalition effort to train pilots and support staff, maintain the aircraft and eventually deliver F-16s to Ukraine. Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said last week that training of Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s could begin as early as this summer. (Reuters)

* NATO may ease requirements for Ukraine's membership : On June 16, responding to comments about the US possibly allowing Ukraine to skip the necessary formal candidacy process, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said: "There are more and more signs that everyone can agree on that proposal. I am ready to consider this."

However, he also ruled out the possibility of Ukraine joining NATO while the conflict was still ongoing. According to Minister Pistorius, admitting a country in conflict was “impossible” because NATO would immediately become a belligerent party. He said that was not what the military alliance wanted and the Ukrainian president also understood this reality. The German defense minister assessed that at the present time, all sides should focus on the fact that Ukraine can win, but this requires a lot of military support. (Reuters)

* Israel explains why it did not send weapons to Ukraine : On June 15, Walla (Israel) quoted a number of Israeli parliamentarians as saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained his refusal to supply weapons to Ukraine. Accordingly, Mr. Netanyahu said that many requests from Kiev to provide air and missile defense systems, such as Israel's Iron Dome, were rejected due to concerns that secret technologies could fall into the hands of Russia and then be transferred to Iran.

The politician also surprised many lawmakers by praising his predecessor's policy on Ukraine and emphasizing that he would continue that policy, providing only humanitarian and political assistance to Kiev and not providing weapons. (Sputnik)

US-China

* China: The door to dialogue with the US is “ always open ”: On June 16, in response to a question about low expectations from US officials about Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s upcoming visit to Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the door to dialogue is always open and bilateral communication has never stopped. He affirmed that the two sides must develop relations on the basis of mutual respect and equality.

Regarding Huawei, Mr. Uong said that China firmly opposes the ban of this Group by some European countries. According to him, the European Commission has no legal basis or factual evidence for the above decision. (Reuters)

Southeast Asia

* South Korea proposes comprehensive strategic partnership with ASEAN : On June 16, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin held talks with Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Kao Kim Hourn in Seoul.

During the meeting, Mr. Park Jin proposed establishing a comprehensive strategic partnership between Korea and ASEAN, creating a new turning point for the development of relations in 2024, the 35th anniversary of the establishment of dialogue partnership between the two sides. In response, the ASEAN Secretary-General expected the cooperation between the two sides to continue to develop, and called for close coordination in establishing a strategic partnership.

Mr. Kao Kim Hourn is currently on a four-day visit to South Korea, starting from June 15. This is the first visit to South Korea by the ASEAN Secretary-General since he took office in January this year. (Yonhap)

South Pacific

* Australia appoints diplomatic representatives in 5 countries: On June 16, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the appointment of diplomatic representatives in Indonesia, Greece, India, Bengaluru and Polynesia. Mr. Todd Dias will be Consul General in Makassar, Indonesia. Ms. Alison Duncan is Ambassador to Greece concurrently serving in Bulgaria and Romania. Mr. Philip Green OAM becomes High Commissioner to India, while Ms. Hilary McGeachy is appointed as the first Australian Consul General in Bengaluru, India. Ms. Alison Shea will be Consul General in Papeete, French Polynesia.

In the above announcement, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong expects diplomatic representatives abroad to continue to promote Canberra's national interests. At the same time, through diplomatic engagement, they will help maintain the norms and rules that have underpinned peace and prosperity for decades. (VNA)

Northeast Asia

* Japan's lower house rejects no-confidence motion : The lower house on June 16 rejected a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet submitted by the main opposition party, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. In the motion, the party criticized Kishida for failing to adequately explain funding for key policies, including measures to strengthen national defense capabilities and improve Japan's rapidly declining birthrate. Earlier on June 15, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida himself also rejected the possibility of dissolving parliament early if the main opposition party submitted a no-confidence motion. (Kyodo)

* Japan, US, Philippines discuss Taiwan Strait : Japan's National Security Council Secretary-General Akiba Takeo and his US and Philippine counterparts Jake Sullivan and Eduardo Ano met in Tokyo on June 16. The three countries agreed on the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and pledged to deepen cooperation between Tokyo, Manila and Washington to "maintain and strengthen a free and open international order." This was the first trilateral meeting between security advisers from Japan, the US and the Philippines. (Kyodo)

Europe

* Russian President will “ soon ” visit Turkey : On June 16, Interfax (Russia) quoted Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov as saying that President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed that the Russian leader would “soon” visit Ankara. This could be Mr. Putin’s first visit to a NATO country since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out.

The last time the two leaders met was in October 2022 in Astana, Kazakhstan. The last time Vladimir Putin visited Turkey was in early 2020 to attend the opening ceremony of the TurkStream gas pipeline. (Reuters)

* UK urges Kosovo and Serbia to reduce tensions : On June 16, the British Foreign Office stated: "We call for the immediate release of the three Kosovo police officers. We call on Kosovo and Serbia to exercise maximum restraint, avoid unilateral measures and take immediate action to reduce tensions." Previously, on June 15, the US State Department also urged both Kosovo and Serbia to immediately take steps to reduce tensions, including unconditionally releasing the three Kosovo police officers.

Serbia's arrest of Kosovo police on the evening of June 14 is the latest in a series of events that have increased tensions between Kosovo and Serbia, raising global concerns about violence between the two sides. (Reuters)

Middle East-Africa

* Israeli and US defense ministers discuss Iran: On June 15, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin met on the sidelines of the NATO Defense Ministers Meeting in Brussels, Belgium. During the discussion, the two sides mentioned “Iran’s nuclear program, destabilizing activities in the region, and the proliferation of unmanned aerial systems and other lethal support” to the Middle East and Russia.

The meeting took place amid reports that Washington is close to reaching an interim nuclear deal with Tehran to reduce the risk of military confrontation in the Middle East. Israel is said to have accepted these efforts. (VNA)

* Russia opens consulate office in West Jerusalem : On June 16, the Russian diplomatic mission in Tel Aviv announced that Russia and Israel have completed and signed documents clarifying the boundaries and area of ​​the Russian plot of land in West Jerusalem, which will be used to construct buildings and open a consular office of the Russian Embassy in Israel. In addition, the Russian government and the city of Jerusalem also signed a settlement agreement and a protocol on delimiting the boundaries and area of ​​the plot of land on May 18 with the support of the Russian Embassy and the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

The Russian Embassy statement also confirmed: “In particular, the land property in question will be used to build a complex of buildings and structures that will be used for the needs of the Russian Embassy’s consular office in Israel. We are sure that this step is aimed at further strengthening the multifaceted friendly relations between Russia and Israel, and is consistent with our country’s consistent policy towards a just settlement in the Middle East.” (Sputnik)

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tin-the-gioi-166-ukraine-noi-ve-vu-no-o-kiev-han-quoc-asean-thao-luan-buoc-tien-moi-231237.html