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by Didier Lauras with Jalees Andrabi in New Delhi AMBALA, India (AFP) — India’s defence minister hailed the formal commissioning Thursday of the country’s first new French Rafale jets as a “strong message” to its adversaries, amid an escalating border row with China. The first five of a $9.4-billion order for 36 Rafale aircraft formally entered service following a ceremony in Ambala in northern India. “The induction of Rafale is a strong message for the […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China accused Washington of “political persecution and racial discrimination” on Thursday, after the US confirmed it had revoked the visas of more than 1,000 Chinese students under an order by President Donald Trump that accused some of espionage. Trump declared in May that some Chinese nationals officially in the United States for study have stolen intellectual property and helped modernize China’s military, as tensions between the two countries soar on multiple […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — A huge fire raged in Beirut port on Thursday, AFP correspondents said, sparking alarm among Lebanese still reeling from a devastating dockside explosion that disfigured the capital last month. Thick black columns of smoke rose into the sky, as the army said the blaze had engulfed a warehouse storing oil and tyres. It was not immediately clear what caused the blaze. “Operations have begun to extinguish the fire and army helicopters […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s two major opposition parties merged Thursday and elected a new leader as they try to strengthen their standing ahead of a possible snap national election. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party will pick a successor to outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe next week, and several top political figures have suggested the next leader may call a quick election. The opposition parties and several independent lawmakers formally cemented an alliance in response, […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China accused the US of becoming “the biggest driver of militarization” in the contested South China Sea, as tensions between Washington and Beijing look set to swamp a regional Asian summit. US-China rivalry is expected to dominate discussion at this year’s ASEAN conference, which comes just days after Beijing launched ballistic missiles in the flashpoint waters as part of live-fire exercises. Beijing claims the majority of the resource-rich South China Sea, […]
by Emal HAIDARY KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — Afghanistan’s vice president Amrullah Saleh sustained minor injuries Wednesday when an explosion targeted his convoy and killed at least 10 people, as government-backed negotiators and the Taliban prepared to meet in Doha for long-delayed peace talks. The attack in the capital Kabul was quickly condemned as an attempt to frustrate the peace process, with top Afghan and foreign officials calling for an end to the violence so negotiations […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — The active search for dozens of sailors from a cargo ship that sank in a typhoon last week was called off Wednesday, Japanese authorities said, with two crewmen the only known survivors. The Gulf Livestock 1, which was carrying 6,000 cows, issued a distress call last week as Typhoon Maysak passed through the area, launching a desperate search for the 43 crew on board. The Japan Coast Guard had been […]
by Helen Roxburgh with AFP bureaus Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — China’s leaders staged a triumphant ceremony to celebrate beating the coronavirus on Tuesday as billions of people around the world still suffer the fallout from the pandemic and the global death toll nears 900,000. The upbeat mood in Beijing comes as concerns grow about a resurgence of the virus across Europe, with France tightening restrictions, cases in Britain spiking and schools […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China said Tuesday that it had detained a high-profile Australian journalist working for its state media on “national security grounds”. Cheng Lei’s detention was a new blow to deteriorating relations between the two countries that have seen China warn its citizens of traveling to Australia and vice versa. In the first comments on CGTN anchor Cheng Lei, held since August 14, foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said authorities took “compulsory measures” […]
by Kyoko HASEGAWA / Sara HUSSEIN TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Yoshihide Suga, the man expected to become Japan’s next prime minister, is a farmer’s son with a reputation for inscrutability, who has become a key government adviser, spokesman and policy enforcer. The 71-year-old is widely expected to win the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership race, which kicked off Tuesday, and be endorsed by parliament to replace outgoing premier Shinzo Abe. If he succeeds, the election […]
by Anuj Chopra RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — A Saudi court on Monday overturned five death sentences over journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, in a final ruling that was condemned by his fiancee and slammed by a UN expert as a “parody of justice”. Eight unnamed defendants were handed jail terms of between seven and 20 years in a verdict that comes after Khashoggi’s sons “pardoned” the killers in May, paving the way for less severe […]
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Saudi King Salman and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed Monday the possible joint production of a Russian coronavirus vaccine, the Kremlin said. In early August, Russia said it had developed the world’s first vaccine against the virus and claimed that more than a billion doses had been pre-ordered by 20 countries, including Saudi Arabia. Russia’s sovereign wealth fund has provided much of the financing, and it has identified Saudi Arabia as […]
