Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, will meet with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Zurich, Switzerland, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced on Wednesday.

Yang, also director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, will meet with Sullivan "according to the consensus reached by Chinese and U.S. heads-of-state on Sept. 10 in their phone call and as agreed upon by China and the United States," said Hua Chunying.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — With record numbers of military flights near Taiwan over the last week, China has been showing a new intensity and military sophistication as it steps up its harassment of the island it claims as its own and asserts its territorial ambitions in the region.

06 Oct 2021; MEMO: Azerbaijan has closed a mosque associated with Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and the office of his representative in the country, the Iranian Tasnim news agency reported yesterday. The mosque and office were closed and sealed by order of the authorities in Azerbaijan.

According to AFP, Seyyed Ali Akbar Ojaghnejad's office is located inside the mosque in question. He has held the position of Khamenei's representative since 1996.

06 Oct 2021; MEMO: Following Iranian claims, the Caucasus country of Azerbaijan denied that the occupation state of Israel has a military presence on its soil, news agencies have reported.

Tehran's claims came on Thursday, following the launch of Iranian military drills at Azerbaijan's border, raising tensions with Baku.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told Azerbaijan's ambassador that his country would not tolerate Israel's presence or activity "next to our borders" and vowed to take any necessary action.

VIENTIANE, Oct 5 (NNN-KPL) – Laos exported its first 50 tonnes of rice to the European Union, local daily Vientiane Times reported today.

The first shipment of the Thadokkham-8 (TDK8) rice variety, is being sold to Belgium by Champahom Trading Import-Export Sole Co., Ltd., and the sale is part of a project to promote rice production for commercial purposes, under the Lao Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, supported by a loan from the World Bank, said the report.

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Oct 5 (NNN-ANN) – Minister of Health, Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar said, with the measures taken to control movement, the Sultanate will hopefully see a drop in the number of COVID-19 cases in the coming days.

The enhanced COVID-19 restrictions, Operasi Pulih, commenced at 8:00 pm yesterday and ended at 4:00 am today.

TAIPEI, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Taiwan needs to be on alert for China's "over the top" military activities, the premier said on Tuesday, after a record 56 Chinese aircraft flew into Taiwan's air defence zone, while the president said the island would do what it took to defend itself.

Taiwan has reported 148 Chinese air force planes in the southern and southwestern part of its air defence zone over a four day period beginning on Friday, the same day China marked a key patriotic holiday, National Day.

BEIJING, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- The United States should stop supporting "Taiwan independence" separatist forces and take concrete actions to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Monday.

Spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks in response to a query about a relevant statement issued by U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price.

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi this month will give courtroom testimony for the first time in one of the several cases against her since the military took power in February, her lawyers said Tuesday.

She and two co-defendants charged with incitement will testify in their own defense but will not call any other witnesses, said lawyer Khin Maung Zaw. Suu Kyi’s testimony is scheduled to begin Oct. 26.

BEIJING (AP) — A mid-size Chinese real estate developer failed to make a $205.7 million payment due to bondholders Tuesday, adding to the industry’s financial strain as one of China’s biggest developers tries to avoid defaulting on billions of dollars of debt.

Fantasia Holdings Group announced it missed the payment in a statement issued through the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It gave no explanation but said it had asked for trading of Fantasia shares to be suspended.