Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

NUR-SULTAN, April 29. /TASS/: Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has proposed holding a referendum on amending the country’s constitution.

"I believe that constitutional changes through a popular vote will make the people’s will perfectly clear," he pointed out at a meeting of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan on Friday.

According to Tokayev, "a referendum will allow all citizens to directly participate in deciding the country’s future and will also strengthen a policy aimed at fully democratizing the country and building a new Kazakhstan."

KUALA LUMPUR, April 29 (NNN-Bernama) — Malaysia urges the exercise of the veto power by permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to be regulated and will continue to work towards a comprehensive reform of the Council.

Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah said Malaysia supported and joined the consensus on the latest resolution A/RES/76/262, adopted on Tuesday (April 26), in line with its position to strengthen the relationship and coordination between the General Assembly and the Security Council on peace and security.

BEIJING, April 29 (Xinhua) -- In the face of outbreaks caused by the more infectious Omicron variant of COVID-19, a relaxation of epidemic control and prevention is not an option for China, said top Chinese epidemiologist Liang Wannian on Friday.

Liang noted at a press conference that the country is yet to get its elderly and underage population fully vaccinated. In the meantime, different parts of the country face discrepancies in medical resources.

BEIJING (AP) — Classes suspended. Buildings and communities sealed off. Mass testing of residents. A rush to stock up on food, just in case.

Beijing, China’s sprawling capital, is starting to resemble other Chinese cities grappling with the latest wave of the omicron variant of the coronavirus.

BEIJING, Apr 28 (APP): Deputy Secretary General of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Muratbek Azymbakiyev attended the opening ceremony of the spring-time session of the International Financial Forum New Landscapes: Global Economic Development Prospects and Challenges.

In his welcoming speech, Azymbakiyev noted that the SCO prioritized the cost-effective implementation of long-term trade and economic programmes, according to SCO Secretariat here on Thursday.

BEIJING, Apr 28 (APP): With the approaching of the 7th Space Day of China, the 5th Anniversary Conference of the International Forum on Aerospace Education and Belt and Road Aerospace Innovation Alliance (BRAIA) successfully concluded online recently in China.

TOKYO, Apr 28 (NNN-NHK) – Japan’s industrial production in the fiscal year 2021, grew at a record 5.8 percent, after being hit by the downside effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government said in a report today.

According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), from Apr, 2021, to Mar, 2022, the index of production at factories and mines stood at 95.5 against the 2015 base of 100.

The rate of increase was the highest since comparable data became available in fiscal 2014, and came on the heels of a 9.6-percent drop the previous year, the ministry said.

SINGAPORE, April 28 (Reuters) - Singapore authorities late on Wednesday defended a decision to execute a Malaysian drug trafficker, in response to international criticism over their use of the death penalty.

Nagaenthran Dharmalingam, 34, had been convicted of smuggling at least 42 grams (1.48 oz) of heroin into Singapore, which has among the world's harshest narcotics laws. He was hanged on Wednesday morning, after multiple legal challenges and appeals for clemency on the grounds that he had an intellectual disability, failed.

TASHKENT, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Vladimir Norov was appointed to be the first deputy foreign minister of Uzbekistan and he was entrusted with the duties of the minister as well, the Uzbek president's office said on Wednesday.

Norov had previously worked as a deputy foreign minister and served as the secretary-general of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) from January 2019 to December 2021.

Former Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov was appointed as a deputy secretary of the Security Council under the president of Uzbekistan, the statement said.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean activist said Thursday he launched a million propaganda leaflets by balloon into North Korea this week, in his first such campaign while standing trial for past leafleting under a contentious new law that criminalizes such actions.

The law that took effect in March 2021 and punishes anti-Pyongyang leafleters with up to three years in prison has been hotly debated in South Korea, with critics saying Seoul’s liberal government was sacrificing freedom of speech to improve ties with rival North Korea.