Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

KUALA LUMPUR, May 27 (NNN-Bernama) — Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres, on Thursday held in-depth discussions on the issues of Myanmar and Palestine.

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in a statement said the discussion was held after Antonio contacted Muhyiddin by telephone, which shows the UN’s recognition of the important roles played by Malaysia in the issues of Myanmar and Palestine at the international level.

(Reuters) --- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will "leave it to God" whether or not he will run for vice president in next year's elections, his spokesman said on Thursday, responding to speculation that he might try to stay in power longer.

Duterte cannot seek re-election in 2022 under a constitution that limits presidents to a single six-year term, but he can hold another elected post, including that of vice president.

It is not uncommon in the Philippines for former presidents to run for lower office.

(Reuters) --- Germany's BioNTech asked Taiwan to remove the word "country" from theirplanned joint announcement on a COVID-19 vaccine sale to the island, its health minister said, as he outlined the collapse of the deal which Taipei blames on China.

Taiwan and China are engaged in an escalating war of words after Beijing separately offered shots to the Chinese-claimed island via Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co Ltd (600196.SS), which has a contract to sell them in Greater China.

(Reuters) --- Hong Kong’s security chief sent letters to media tycoon Jimmy Lai and branches of HSBC and Citibank this month threatening up to seven years’ jail for any dealings with the billionaire’s accounts in the city, according to documents seen by Reuters.

The letters, signed by Secretary for Security John Lee, were sent to Lai after the Hong Kong authorities announced the freezing of his majority stake in publisher Next Digital (0282.HK) and local accounts of three companies owned by him under a sweeping new national security law.

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chief of the Chinese side of the China-U.S. comprehensive economic dialogue, held a phone conversation with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on Thursday morning.

The two sides held candid, practical and constructive exchanges in the spirit of equality and mutual respect.

BEIJING (AP) — China on Thursday put a Chinese Australian writer on trial for alleged espionage and denied the Australian ambassador in Beijing access to the hearing.

Yang Hengjun has been held since arriving in China in January 2019 and has had no access to family and only limited contact with his lawyer, the Australian government has said.

Ambassador Graham Fletcher walked to the court complex gate in Beijing and returned after he was denied entry, telling journalists it was “regrettable” that diplomats were prevented from observing the trial.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia has procured more vaccines and aims to accelerate inoculations starting next month, a Cabinet minister said Thursday, as the government struggles to contain a worsening coronavirus crisis.

Science Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the government has bought an additional 12.8 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine, bringing the total to 44.8 million doses, enough to cover 70% of Malaysia’s population.

TOKYO (AP) — A physician representing a Japanese medical body warned Thursday that holding the postponed Tokyo Olympics in two months could lead to the spread of variants of the coronavirus.

Dr. Naoto Ueyama, chairman of the Japan Doctors Union, said the International Olympic Committee and the Japanese government had underestimated the risks of bringing 15,000 Olympic and Paralympic athletes into the country, joined by tens of thousands of officials, judges, media and broadcasters from more than 200 countries and territories.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Facing Taiwan’s largest outbreak of the pandemic and looking for rapid virus test kits, the mayor of the island’s capital did what anyone might do: He Googled it.

“If you don’t know, and you try to know something, please check Google,” Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je quipped.

BEIJING, May 26 (APP): Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has inducted the JF-17 Thunder combat aircraft into its fleet as part of an ongoing modernization.

Nigeria ordered three of the Sino-Pakistani fighters in 2018 to strengthen its air combat capability.

The Nigerian Air Force officially inducted three JF-17 fighter jets at the country’s Makurdi Air Base, while celebrating the 57th anniversary of the Nigerian Air Force’s founding, Chinese state media said Wednesday.