Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

Beijing, Jul 30 (AFP/PTI) Chinese officials on Tuesday said "most" individuals held in re-education camps in its northwest Xinjiang region have left the centres and found jobs - though they did not provide any figures.

In Xinjiang, experts and human rights groups say more than one million Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities are held in a network of camps where they endure political indoctrination.

Bangkok, Jul 30 (AP) Top diplomats from the Asia-Pacific region started gathering Tuesday in the Thai capital to discuss issues of concern to the area, including security on the Korean peninsula and China's territorial claims in the South China Sea.

The meetings in Bangkok are hosted by the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, chaired this year by Thailand.

KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 (NNN-Bernama) — Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, in his maiden address as the newly-installed Yang di-Pertuan Agong, called on the people to refrain from inciting misunderstanding by raising matters than can undermine and destroy harmony in the country.

His Majesty stressed that unity and harmony are the pillars and strength of the nation.

“Playing with fire will burn not only oneself but also the whole village,” Sultan Abdullah said at his installation as the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong at Istana Negara here today.

TOKYO, July 29. /TASS/: Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) plans to launch regular flights between the Japanese capital of Tokyo and Russia’s Far Eastern city of Vladivostok in March 2020, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday.

According to the paper, ANA "is expected to offer several flights a week between the Tokyo area's Narita Airport and the Pacific port city using small aircraft with about 200 seats."

29 July 2019; AFP: Cambodia has purchased "tens of thousands" of weapons from China, premier Hun Sen said Monday, providing rare details of arms deals with Beijing just days after denying a secret agreement to allow Chinese warships to use a local naval base.

The Wall Street Journal last week reported on a draft deal letting China access Ream base near Sihanoukville to dock warships and store weapons, apparently confirming months of rumours.

29 July 2019; DW: Beijing has urged protesters to renounce violence, saying it's having a "disheartening" effect on the economy. The mainland government said it "strongly supports" the Hong Kong government and its police force.

Chinese authorities on Monday said Beijing fully supports police in establishing the rule of law in Hong Kong after violent unrest over the weekend.

BEIJING (AP) — Two months after U.S.-Chinese talks aimed at ending a tariff war broke down, both sides are trying to temper hopes for a breakthrough when negotiations resume Tuesday on an array of disputes that has grown to include tension over Chinese tech giant Huawei.

Rhetoric on both sides has hardened despite the agreement by Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in June to revive efforts to end the costly fight over China’s technology ambitions and trade surplus.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea said Monday it’s returning three North Koreans who crossed the Koreas’ sea border aboard a wooden fishing boat over the weekend.

Seoul’s Unification Ministry said in a statement it decided to let the North Koreans return home in line with their wishes.

It said the North Koreans were to sail across the sea border back to North Korea aboard the same boat later Monday.

TOKYO (AP) — Antagonisms between South Korea and Japan are already at the boiling point. They’re bound to deepen with Tokyo’s plan to expand controls over exports of sensitive materials by dropping its neighbor from a list of 27 countries granted preferential trade status.

The decision, expected soon, will ripple across the high-tech sector, further shaking up supply chains already rattled by trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly lower Monday as investors watched for developments in the trade conflict between the U.S. and China, with talks set to continue this week.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 edged down 0.3% in early trading to 21,584.96. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.2% to 6,806.40. South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.4% to 2,037.47. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.8% to 28,161.35, while the Shanghai Composite inched down less than 0.1% to 28,161.35.