Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

TOKYO (AP) — The residents of Japan’s southwestern island region of Okinawa rejected a relocation plan for a U.S. military base ina referendum, increasing pressure on the national government to change its stance that the facility will be built no matter what.

The results of Sunday’s vote showed 72 percent opposed the plan for the Marines air base being built on a landfill in coastal Henoko. Support for the relocation plan totaled 19 percent.

The referendum is not legally binding but underlines Okinawans’ sentiment on the relocation plan.

25 Feb 2019; AFP: A Kim Jong Un impersonator was hauled from his hotel Monday ahead of his planned deportation from Vietnam before the real North Korean leader meets US President Donald Trump in Hanoi later this week.

Howard X arrived in town with Trump impersonator Russell White last week, staging a fake summit on the steps of Hanoi's Opera House amid a swarm of press and hired security guards.

BEIJING, Feb. 24 (Xinhua) -- Beijing Daxing International Airport completed flight checks when a plane landed safely at the airport at 10:20 a.m. Sunday.

The flight checks lasted 34 days and ended 19 days ahead of schedule.

Seven instrument landing systems and one navigation system, among others, went through thorough checks.

The completion of the tests means the airport is ready for operation, authorities said.

Set to open in late 2019, the new airport sits at the junction of Beijing's southern Daxing District and Langfang, a city in Hebei Province.

PYONGYANG, February 23. /TASS/. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has started his train journey from Pyongyang to Hanoi (Vietnam), where he is set to meet with US President Donald Trump next week, a North Korean diplomatic source informed TASS.

The source informed that around 17:00 local time (11:00 Moscow time), the North Korean leader left for Hanoi in an armored train. He is expected to travel all the way to Vietnam by train, passing China.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met China's President Xi Jinping on Friday and bagged a $10-billion oil deal, pressing on with his diplomatic charm offensive in Asia following a global outcry over the Khashoggi killing.

Mohammed arrived in Beijing on Thursday following visits to Pakistan and India, showing the world that his country still has allies after the grisly murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom's Istanbul consulate.

"China is a good friend and partner to Saudi Arabia," Xi told Mohammed in a meeting in the Great Hall of the People.

22 Feb 2019; DW: Employees at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) rejoiced on Friday as the Hayabusa2 explorer signaled that it landed on a distant asteroid.

The unmanned spacecraft touched down briefly on the asteroid and then indicated that it was blasting back to its orbiting position.

Seoul, Feb 22 (PTI) India and South Korea signed seven agreements on Friday to enhance cooperation in key areas, including infrastructure development, media, start-ups and combating trans-border and international crime, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the country.

Modi, who is on a two-day visit to South Korea to strengthen India's strategic ties with the country, was accorded an official reception at the Blue House, the executive office and official residence of the South Korean President Moon Jae-in here. He also met First lady Kim Jung-sook.

SYDNEY, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- You might think it would be too big to miss - but it took scientists 38 years to rediscover the world's biggest bee, hiding out in the remote forests of Indonesia.

With a wingspan of six centimetres, Wallace's giant bee is the largest in the world, but since it was last spotted in 1981 scientists had believed it may have gone extinct.

BEIJING, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- China and Saudi Arabia agreed Thursday to further boost financial cooperation.

The two countries will enhance communication and coordination of macro policies, develop the synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and the Saudi Vision 2030 reform plan through the financial sector and promote inclusive growth and sustainable development of both countries, according to the meeting of a financial sub-committee under a high-level committee to coordinate bilateral cooperation.

BEIJING, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- China said Thursday it will grasp the development opportunities brought by a new round of scientific and technological advances and strengthen technological exchanges and cooperation with all parties, including in 5G.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang made the comments at a news briefing when asked about some countries' remarks that Chinese enterprises should be excluded from the construction of their 5G networks due to the "security risks" of Chinese products and devices.