Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

BEIJING, July 21 (APP): China on Tuesday announced that all the travelers arriving in the mainland should hold a negative nucleic acid test certificate no older than five days before boarding. “Chinese embassies will earnestly evaluate the nucleic acid testing capacities of the countries they are located in, with specific measures to be announced at a later time based on sufficient communications with those countries,” Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press briefing held here.

BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- The United States should discard its Cold War mentality, zero-sum game mindset, and ideological prejudice, and correctly view China and China-U.S. relations, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a press conference here Monday.

Seoul, Jul 21 (AP/PTI) South Korea's new virus cases have bounced back to above 40, a day after it reported its smallest daily jump in local COVID-19 transmissions in two months.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday it has reported 45 additional coronavirus cases over a 24-hour period.

Beijing, Jul 21 (AP/PTI) Engorged with more heavy rains, China's mighty Yangtze River is cresting again, bringing fears of further destruction as seasonal floods that already have left more than 140 people dead or missing have grown in force since last month.

The rains are putting renewed pressure on the massive Three Gorges Dam that straddles the river upstream of the city of Wuhan in Hubei province.

HONG KONG (AP) — It was one of the first protests in Hong Kong after a feared national security law came into effect.

Among a dozen or so lunchtime demonstrators at a luxury mall in the Central business district, a man raised a poster that — when viewed from afar — read in Chinese, “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times.”

The government had just banned the slogan, saying it had separatist connotations and so ran afoul of the new security law’s prohibition of secessionist acts.

MANILA, July 20 (NNN-ABN) – Philippines and the World Bank signed a 370-million U.S. dollar loan agreement, for a project to support Filipino farmers, the country’s Department of Finance (DOF) said today.

The project aims to speed-up the process of splitting about 1.4 million hectares of land, covered by the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Programme (CARP) and then providing individual titles to these parcelised lots to some 750,000 farmer-beneficiaries.

BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- The signing of the so-called "Hong Kong Autonomy Act" into law by the United States blatantly interferes in China's internal affairs, and seriously violates international law and basic norms governing international relations, experts have said.

The move attempts to sow chaos in Hong Kong, reflecting the U.S. Cold War mentality and zero-sum game ideology, and is a play of double standards worldwide, Humphrey Moshi, a professor of economics at Tanzania's leading state-run University of Dar es Salaam, said.

HONG KONG (AP) — Pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong filed candidacy papers Monday for upcoming legislative elections in Hong Kong, where the new national security law could prevent opposition candidates from taking seats.

Wong was one of the top candidates emerging from unofficial primaries held by the pro-democracy camp as it aims to win a majority of seats in the 70-seat legislature in the September elections.

“We hope to let the world to know how we choose not to surrender, how we choose not to kowtow to China,” Wong told reporters.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mixed in directionless trading Monday as investors cautiously eyed the summit of European leaders discussing the pandemic crisis, as coronavirus cases soared in the U.S.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 recouped earlier losses to finish less than 0.1% higher at 22,717.48. South Korea’s Kospi was little changed, dipping less than 0.1% to 2,199.89. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5% to 6,001.60. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged 0.1% higher to 25,108.02, while the Shanghai Composite gained 3% to 3,311.52.

TOKYO (AP) — A United Arab Emirates spacecraft rocketed into blue skies from a Japanese launch center Monday at the start of a seven-month journey to Mars on the Arab world’s first interplanetary mission.

The liftoff of the Mars orbiter named Amal, or Hope, starts a rush to fly to Earth’s neighbor that is scheduled to be followed in the next few days by China and the United States.

At the space center in Dubai, people watching were transfixed by the liftoff, then cheered and clapped, with one woman with offering a celebratory cry common for weddings.