Business

BANGKOK (AP) — A temporary closure of air space over Pakistan snarled air traffic Thursday, especially between Asia and Europe, though some airlines adjusted by rerouting their flights.

In Bangkok, an important and busy hub for transcontinental flights, thousands of travelers were stranded.

Bangkok airport officials said over 4,000 travelers were affected. Those needing help were getting access to accommodations and alternative travel arrangements, they said, though some of those stranded complained they were getting no help at all.

28 Feb 2019; AP: Security experts say the U.S. government is likely exaggerating the threat it says the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei poses to the world’s next-generation wireless networks.

Washington has mounted an intense diplomatic offensive that paints Huawei as an untrustworthy servant of Beijing’s intelligence agencies.

28 Feb 2019; DW: There are 25 million visitors to the city of Venice in northern Italy each year. Of these about 14 million stay just for a day, and often bring their own picnics.

With no visible benefit for local restaurants and bars, and costs of cleaning up after the visitors growing every year, councilors have decided to put a price on entry.

28 Feb 2019; DW: The White House announced that no agreement on denuclearization was reached between Kim and Trump.

When asked if sanctions were the reason the agreement fell through, Trump said: "It was about the sanctions, basically they wanted the sanctions lifted in their entirety and we couldn’t do that. They [North Korea] were willing to denuclearize a large portion of the areas that we wanted … but we had to walk away from that."

"I'm never afraid to walk away from a deal," Trump added.

MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. A unique transparent with a visible yellow shade, gem-quality rough diamond weighing 98.8 carats was mined at Zapolyarnaya kimberlite pipe, which is the part of the Verkhne-Munskoye diamond deposit on February 17, 2019, Russia’s diamond producer Alrosa said in a statement on Wednesday.

MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. The Kalashnikov Group, the maker of the renowned AK-47 assault rifle, has completed the acquisition of ship-building assets, gaining a full set of competences for this activity, Kalashnikov CEO Vladimir Dmitriyev told TASS on Wednesday.

HANOI, February 28. /TASS/. The United States and North Korea have coordinated at least three points in the joint document that US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will sign at the end of Hanoi summit, a diplomatic source told TASS on Thursday.

The document will be called the "Hanoi declaration," the source said adding that it will define the term "denuclearization," determine future steps by both sides, and elaborate on tasks and issues that the US and North Korea will continue discussing the the future.

HANOI, February 28. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un have ended expanded negotiations in Hanoi on Thursday, a TASS correspondent reported from the scene.

The main negotiation part of the summit lasted more than two hours. Now the two state leaders will have a working dinner. It is being held at Le Club Bar restaurant.

Apart from the two state leaders, five people from each side are also taking part in the working dinner.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- The White House said on Wednesday that Jared Kushner, a son-in-law and senior advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump, has met with the Saudi king and the crown prince on Tuesday as part of his visit to Middle East countries.

TOKYO, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Japan's factory output dropped in January from a month earlier, the government said in a report on Thursday.

According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, industrial output here declined 3.7 percent in January, following a 0.1 percent drop in December.

The ministry also said in its preliminary report that the seasonally adjusted index of output at factories and mines stood at 100.8 against the 2015 base of 100.