Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

URUMQI, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has firmly opposed and strongly condemned the unilateral, unjustifiable sanctions imposed by the United States, Britain and Canada on some individuals and entities in Xinjiang.

In a statement issued Thursday, the regional government said the sanctions gravely violated international law and basic norms governing international relations, seriously interfered in China's internal affairs, and fully exposed sinister intentions of these countries to disrupt the stability and development of Xinjiang.

BEIJING, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Politicizing the COVID-19 origin-tracing undermines global cooperation, affects the global fight against the pandemic, and will lead to more life losses, which is extremely immoral, a Chinese Foreign Ministry official said on Friday.

Yang Tao, head of the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Department of International Organizations and Conferences, made the remarks at a press briefing to foreign diplomats on the WHO-China joint study.

BEIJING (AP) — China announced sanctions on British individuals and entities Friday following the U.K. joining the EU and others in sanctioning Chinese officials accused of human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region. The move was the opening salvo in its latest full-bore response to criticism and sanctions from the West.

SEOUL, March 25 (NNN-Xinhua) — Seven more US soldiers in South Korea tested positive for COVID-19, the US Forces Korea (USFK) said Thursday.

The USFK said in a statement that seven USFK service members were confirmed with the COVID-19 after arriving in South Korea between March 8 and 22.

Three service members arrived at Osan Air Base on US government-chartered flights from the United States on March 8 and 22. The Osan Air Base is located in Pyeongtaek, 70 km south of Seoul.

HONG KONG, March 25 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The Hong Kong government has told some foreign consulates to stop accepting a British travel document that many of its young people use to apply for working holiday visas in Europe, North America and parts of Asia, diplomats say.

In a move seen by some envoys as a diplomatic affront, the government informed about a dozen foreign consulates in a letter that it no longer considered the British National Overseas (BNO) passport a valid travel document as of Jan 31.

The letter demanded that its Hong Kong passport should be used instead.

(Reuters) -Myanmar security forces fired at pro-democracy activists taking part in street demonstrations on Thursday, killing at least four people, news reports said, a day after a nationwide silent strike in protest against last month’s military coup.

Four people were killed in the town of Taunggyi in central Myanmar in the shooting, the Myanmar Now news portal said.

Thousands of people held street protests in the commercial capital Yangon, the central city of Monywa and several other towns, according to witnesses and social media posts.

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s sudden suspension of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech is another blow to a vaccination program already struggling against a wall of public distrust.

Hong Kong on Wednesday suspended use of the Pfizer vaccine, distributed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Fosun Pharma, after defective packaging such as loose vial lids and cracks on bottles were found in one of two batches of the vaccine.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea on Thursday test-fired its first ballistic missiles since President Joe Biden took office, as it expands its military capabilities and increases pressure on Washington while nuclear negotiations remain stalled.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the launches threaten “peace and safety in Japan and the region,” and that Tokyo will closely coordinate with Washington and Seoul on the North’s testing activities.

BEIJING, March 24 (APP): Although Pakistan’s trade deficit with China has declined in recent years, it may still be an important factor affecting the sustained and healthy development of bilateral trade.

Since the first phase of the China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement came into effect, bilateral trade volume has increased from USD 2.2 billion in 2005 to USD 15.6 billion in 2019.

However, 75% of Pakistan’s exports to China are concentrated in a few products such as cotton and rice, leading to a large export deficit with China.

PYONGYANG, March 24 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has condemned the European Union (EU) for including the DPRK in the targets of "human rights sanctions" under the pretext of "countering global human rights violations."

A report by the Korean Central News Agency released on Tuesday night quoted a foreign ministry spokesperson as saying that the EU performed "a farce of announcing the targets of sanctions" by pointing its finger at what it calls "human rights violations" in several countries.