AUSTRALIA
UK vows submarine support
The UK on Friday promised wide-ranging support in developing and maintaining a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines. British Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan said AUKUS, a defense pact between Australia, the UK and the US, is a “deep strategic partnership” that reflected mutual trust and long-time cooperation. The partnership includes a pledge to provide next-generation submarines powered by US nuclear technology to Canberra. “I am personally committed to ensuring that the whole ecosystem, which we have in the UK to build, upskill and maintain our own UK submarine enterprise, will be right alongside you and our Australian friends and allies as you start on this complex and technically demanding defense commitment,” Trevelyan told an event in Adelaide.
MYANMAR
Junta touts Russia trip
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing is to travel to Russia next week for economic talks, state media reported yesterday. The junta leader’s visit comes as both governments face diplomatic isolation — Moscow for its February invasion of Ukraine and Naypyidaw for a military coup last year. Min Aung Hlaing is to attend the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, the Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper said. Representatives from China, India, Japan and Kazakhstan are also to attend. The general is to hold talks with Russian officials to “further cement the cooperation” and friendly ties between the two countries, the report said.
AFGHANISTAN
Over 1,500 die in disasters
At least 1,570 people have been killed and almost 6,000 injured in floods and earthquakes in the past two months, a Taliban spokesperson said yesterday. Suhail Shaheen said flash floods have occurred in more than 20 provinces, washing away more than 250,000 hectares of agricultural land and completely or partly destroying more than 35,000 homes, he said. Minister of Foreign Affairs Amir Khan Muttaqi on Thursday pleaded for international assistance at a fundraising event in Kabul. The calamities exacerbate an already dire situation, with the UN reporting that almost 23 million people, or half of the population, are facing acute hunger.
UNITED KINGDOM
Activists block speaker seat
Environmental advocate group Extinction Rebellion on Friday said members had superglued themselves to one another in parliament, forming a chain around the chair of the House of Commons speaker. A picture posted on Twitter showed three people hand in hand in front of the seat while two others held up signs. One sign read: “Let the people decide” and the other said: “Citizens’ assembly now.” The protest came as the Conservative Party wraps up a seven-week vote to choose a new leader.
UNITED STATES
Eight drown at border
At least eight migrants were found dead in the Rio Grande after dozens attempted a hazardous crossing near Eagle Pass, Texas, officials said on Friday. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Mexican officials made the discovery on Thursday while responding to a large group of people crossing the river following days of heavy rains that had resulted in particularly swift currents. US officials recovered six bodies, while Mexican teams recovered two others, CBP said in a statement. The agency said US crews rescued 37 others from the river and detained 16 more, while Mexico took 39 migrants into custody.
‘GROSS NEGLIGENCE?’ Despite a spleen typically being significantly smaller than a liver, the surgeon said he believed Bryan’s spleen was ‘double the size of what is normal’ A Florida surgeon who is facing criminal charges after allegedly removing a patient’s liver instead of his spleen has said he is “forever traumatized” by that person’s death. In a deposition from November last year that was recently obtained by NBC, 44-year-old Thomas Shaknovsky described the death of 70-year-old William Bryan as an “incredibly unfortunate event that I regret deeply.” Bryan died after the botched surgery; and last month, a grand jury in Tallahassee indicted Shaknovsky on a charge of manslaughter. “I’m forever traumatized by it and hurt by it,” Shaknovsky added, also saying that wrong-site surgeries can happen “during
Former Chinese ministers of national defense Wei Fenghe(魏鳳和) and Li Shangfu (李尚福) were both sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve over graft charges, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday, underscoring the severity of the purge in the military. The armed forces have been one of the main targets of a broad corruption crackdown ordered by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) after coming to power in 2012. The purges reached the elite Rocket Force, which oversees nuclear weapons as well as conventional missiles, in 2023. Earlier this year they escalated further, resulting in the removal of the top general in
New Zealand is open to expanding its frigate fleet beyond its current two vessels, with New Zealand Minister of Defence Chris Penk saying “no options are off the table” as the government weighs buying new warships from Japan or the UK. The government yesterday said it is looking to replace its two aging Anzac-class frigates, which were both commissioned almost 30 years ago. The UK’s Type 31 and Japan’s Mogami-class warships are the options under consideration. Speaking in an interview, Penk said there is potential to increase the number of frigates the nation purchases. “We need a certain amount of capability as a
The Philippine Coast Guard yesterday said it deployed aircraft to issue radio warnings to a Chinese research ship in a disputed area of the South China Sea “swarming” with vessels from Beijing’s so-called maritime militia. The research vessel Xiang Yang Hong 33 (向陽紅33), which is capable of supporting submersible craft, was operating near a reef in the contested Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島), which Taiwan also claims, the Philippine Coast Guard said. The Chinese ship was deploying a service boat toward the Spratly’s Iroquois Reef on Wednesday when it was spotted by a coast guard plane, “confirming ongoing unauthorized [marine scientific research]
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