Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

CHANGSHA (Hunan, China), July 1 (NNN-Dailynews) — Zanzibar Pres Dr Hussein Ali Mwinyi, who is attending the third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo that opened on Thursday in Changsha, capital of central China’s Hunan Province, was impressed with data indicating strong trade growth between China and African countries.

“Africa still has enough land, labour force and opportunities for business. We invite Chinese companies to invest in the African continent,” said Dr Mwinyi, adding that the investment environment has also been improved in many African countries.

BEIJING, July 1 (Reuters) - China has urged the Netherlands to not hinder bilateral cooperation in the semiconductor industry and to not abuse export controls, China's Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.

The statement was made in response to questions from the media, it said. It also said the two countries have communicated frequently and at various levels on the topic.

The Dutch government on Friday announced new restrictions on exports of some semiconductor equipment, boosting a U.S.-led drive to curb supplies of high-tech components to China.

TOKYO, July 1 (Reuters) - Japan's defence ministry said late on Friday it had spotted two Russian Navy ships in the waters near Taiwan and Japan's Okinawa islands in the previous four days, following a similar announcement this week from Taiwan.

Taiwan's defence ministry said on Tuesday it had spotted two Russian frigates off its eastern coast and send aircraft and ships to keep watch.

SEOUL, July 1 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party (DP) held a rally in central Seoul on Saturday to oppose Japan's nuclear-contaminated water discharge plan and urge the government to make clear its opposition to Japan's plan.

According to the DP, nearly 100,000 people took part in the rally.

Lee Jae-myung, chairman of the DP, said that if Japan wants to pollute the sea, (the South Korean government) should openly oppose it.

PHNOM PENH, July 1 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia decided to expel the representative of Facebook from the Southeast Asian country, Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said late on Friday.

"I have no intention to block Facebook access in Cambodia, but will not allow Facebook to have its representative in Cambodia anymore," he said in a voice message released publicly.

Hun Sen accused Facebook of bias and turning a blind eye to "insulting" remarks made by exiled political opponents against Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, Hun Sen himself and his family members.

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s Supreme Court scheduled hearings for this month to consider appeals from ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi against her conviction in cases that saw her receive a total of 33 years in prison, legal officials said Saturday.

The cases against her are mostly brought by the military that seized power from her elected government in February 2021.

SINGAPORE, June 30 (Reuters) - The target of keeping long-term global warming within 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) is moving out of reach, climate experts say, with nations failing to set more ambitious goals despite months of record-breaking heat on land and sea.

As envoys gathered in Bonn in early June to prepare for this year's annual climate talks in November, average global surface air temperatures were more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels for several days, the EU-funded Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said.

TOKYO, June 30 (Xinhua) -- Japan's nuclear regulator on Friday finished inspecting a newly completed system to release radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the sea, local media reported.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) checked for leaks and other abnormalities by passing water through the system and inspected the emergency shut-off valves to make sure they function properly, public broadcaster NHK reported.

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia’s long-serving, tough-talking leader, Hun Sen, on Friday said he is considering banning Facebook in his country, largely because he is fed up with the abuse he receives on it from his political enemies abroad.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The United States flew nuclear-capable bombers to the Korean Peninsula on Friday in its latest show of force against North Korea, days after the North staged massive anti-U.S. rallies in its capital.

The long-range B-52 bombers took part in joint aerial drills with other U.S. and South Korean fighter jets over the peninsula, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said in a statement. The bombers’ flyover is the latest in a series of temporary U.S. deployments of strategic assets in South Korea in response to North Korea’s push to expand its nuclear arsenal.