Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

JAKARTA, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia signed on Wednesday ASEAN's Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), making it the 51st country partner for the regional bloc.

The TAC was signed by Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting and Post Ministerial Conference (AMM-PMC) in Jakarta.

Indonesia hosts the regional-level event as the ASEAN Chair this year.

BEIJING, July 12 (Xinhua) -- An expert in the technical working group of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said he is disappointed with the agency's recent report on Japan's plan for dumping its nuclear-contaminated water.

BEIJING (AP) — U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will travel to Beijing next week to discuss strategies for limiting global warming, amid a push by the world’s two largest economies to reengage on multiple issues following a sharp decline in contacts.

Kerry’s office said he will arrive Sunday and depart July 19. He is due to meet with his counterpart Xie Zhenhua, with whom he has established a strong working relationship.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea test-fired its first intercontinental ballistic missile in three months on Wednesday, days after it threatened “shocking” consequences to protest what it called provocative United States reconnaissance activity near its territory.

Some experts say North Korea likely launched its developmental, road-mobile Hwasong-18 ICBM, a type of solid-fuel weapon that is harder to detect and intercept than its liquid-fuel ICBMs. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un previously called the Hwasong-18 the most powerful weapon of his nuclear forces.

SEOUL, Jul 11 (NNN-YONHAP) – One of the subway lines in South Korea’s capital, Seoul, was temporarily suspended owing to heavy rain.

Some sections of Subway Line 1 halted operation at about 3:56 p.m. local time, but resumed running around 15 minutes later.

Some of the roads in Seoul were flooded and blocked, as torrential rain hit the country, entering the rainy season.

The weather agency issued a heavy rain warning for the Seoul metropolitan area, and the south-eastern port city of Busan, and a heavy rain advisory for other regions.

JAKARTA, July 11 (Reuters) - Indonesia's coast guard said on Tuesday it seized an Iranian-flagged supertanker suspected of involvement in the illegal transshipment of crude oil, and vowed to toughen maritime patrols.

The MT Arman 114 was carrying 272,569 metric tons of light crude oil, valued at 4.6 trillion rupiah ($304 million), when it was seized last week, the Indonesian authorities said.

The Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) was suspected of transferring oil to another vessel without a permit on Friday, the Southeast Asian nation's maritime security agency said.

TOKYO, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed mixed on Tuesday with the benchmark Nikkei index up marginally after five straight sessions of losses, as the market was lifted by investors scooping up chip-related stocks.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average rose 13.84 points, or 0.04 percent, from Monday to finish at 32,203.57.

The broader Topix index, meanwhile, closed 6.93 points, or 0.31 percent, lower at 2,236.40.

KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia is seeking concept proposals from local and international firms and consortiums to reactivate its Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (KL-SG HSR) project.

JAKARTA, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Foreign ministers from 10 ASEAN countries and Timor-Leste, and ASEAN partner countries discussed challenges faced by the bloc and its cooperation with other countries at the 56th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting and Post Ministerial Conference (AMM-PMC) which kicked off here Tuesday.

TOKYO, July 11 (Xinhua) -- Fisheries associations in Fukushima Prefecture said Tuesday they remain opposed to releasing radioactive water from the crippled nuclear power plant into the sea despite the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s safety assurance on the plan, local media reported.