Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

BEIJING, June 20 (Xinhua) -- An inactivated COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by the Institute of Medical Biology under the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences has entered phase-2 clinical trials in China, the Science and Technology Daily reported Saturday.

The phase-2 trials, which further evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of the vaccine in humans, are conducted in the southwestern province of Yunnan.

BEIJING (AP) — China plans to establish a special bureau in Hong Kong to investigate and prosecute crimes considered threatening to national security, according to details of a controversial new national security law Beijing is imposing on the semi-autonomous territory.

In addition, bodies in all Hong Kong government departments, from finance to immigration, will be directly answerable to the central government in Beijing, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday.

BEIJING, June 20 (APP): The Chinese border troops were compelled to take necessary measures to respond to Indian troops who deliberately made provocations in an attempt to unilaterally change the status quo of control and management, Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said.

The Galwan Valley was located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in the west section of the China-India boundary.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Offering protection to “rioters” from Hong Kong will only harm Taiwan’s people and is an interference in the Chinese-ruled city’s affairs, China’s government said, denouncing plans by Taiwan to help Hong Kongers who decide to flee to the island.

Taiwan said on Thursday it will set up a dedicated office to help those thinking of leaving Hong Kong as Beijing tightens its grip on the former British colony, including planned new national security legislation.

BEIJING, June 19 (APP): At present, there is only one way to solve the military recent border confrontation between China and India peacefully, which is, the Indian troops go back to where they have come from, renowned Chinese scholar said on Friday.

“I hope the Indian authorities understand the serious consequences of creating border troubles, Cheng Xizhong, Special Commentator of China Economic Net, Chinese Defense Attach in South Asia and former UN Senior Military Observer said in his article.

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Prominent Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong said on Friday he planned to run for a seat in the Chinese-ruled city’s legislature, setting up a new battle with authorities after being barred from running in previous polls.

Wong, who was 17 when he became the face of the 2014 student-led Umbrella Movement, has not been a leading figure of the often-violent protests that have shaken the semi-autonomous financial hub for the past 12 months.

KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 (NNN-BERNAMA) — Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) has extended its enhanced Economy Class flexible fare options across its entire network except for Malaysia to Japan and Japan to Malaysia, Jeddah and Madinah, beginning June 22, 2020.

The unique fare options — Lite, Basic, Flex was previously limited to domestic, ASEAN and South Asian destinations, offering unparalleled safety, security, flexibility and a completely hassle-free, premium experience based on the needs of each customer. 

KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 (NNN-BERNAMA) — Homegrown 24-hour mini-supermarket chain KK Super Mart is hoping to open more branches in India, as well as develop an e-commerce platform for consumers to purchase essential products online in view of the COVID-19.

KK Super Mart’s founder and KK Group of Companies’ executive chairman, Datuk Seri Dr KK Chai, said KK Super Mart will continue with its expansion plans in India by opening more branches in the republic in the future in addition to the three branches in Kolkata city, the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal.

SEOUL, June 19 (NNN-AGENCIES) — South Korea’s Unification Minister, its point man for relations with the North, resigned on Friday over heightened tensions on the peninsula, days after Pyongyang blew up its liaison office with the South.

President Moon Jae-in “accepted Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul’s offer to resign”, the presidential Blue House said in a statement, without giving further details.

BEIJING, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese health authority said Friday that it received reports of 32 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the Chinese mainland Thursday, of which 28 were domestically transmitted and four were imported.

Of the domestically transmitted cases, 25 cases were reported in Beijing, two in Hebei Province, and one in Liaoning Province, the National Health Commission said in its daily report.

No deaths related to the disease were reported Thursday, according to the commission.