22 May 2023; MEMO: Axiom Space company yesterday launched its second private mission to the International Space Station carrying two Saudi astronauts including the first Saudi woman.

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, carrying Ali Alqarni and Rayyanah Barnawi launched at 17:37 (21:37 GMT) from the Kennedy Space Centre in the US state of Florida.

PARIS, May 23 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted a decision concerning the establishment of a Category I Institute on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education in Shanghai, China on Monday, during the 216th session of its executive board here.

KYIV, May 23 (Reuters) - Ukraine's foreign minister began a tour of African countries this week, stepping up wartime Kyiv's diplomatic push to challenge Russian influence in the "Global South" and cement the vision laid out by Ukraine as the only path to peace.

Top diplomat Dmytro Kuleba said his main priority was to get African countries to endorse President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's peace plan as he travelled to Morocco on his second tour of Africa since Russia invaded in February last year.

22 May 2023; MEMO: Syrian government officials should be investigated for crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch has said against the backdrop of the UAE's invitation to Bashar Al-Assad to attend the UN climate conference COP28.

It would be the Syrian President's first appearance at a global conference since the Syrian uprising and subsequent war began in 2011.

JAKARTA, May 23 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's current account surplus shrank in the first quarter of this year, posting a figure of 3 billion U.S. dollars, down from 4.2 billion dollars in the fourth quarter of last year, the country's central bank, Bank Indonesia, said on Tuesday.

KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 (NNN-Bernama) — Azerbaijan, which plans to sign Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with a Malaysian think tank and a private sector economic organisation, is keen to boost trade ties and economic cooperation to fully realise the existing potential between the two countries.

ATLANTA (AP) — Residents of about 1,000 apartments in Atlanta’s Midtown neighborhood remained unable to return to their homes Tuesday after a crane partially collapsed at a nearby construction site a day earlier.

One of the crane’s counterweights became dislodged and fell, causing damage to the crane Monday afternoon, Atlanta fire chief Rod Smith said during a news conference Tuesday. Crews from his department are at the site to help secure and disassemble the crane.

BEIJING, May 23 (APP): In a milestone move to bolster trade ties between China and Pakistan, two new air cargo routes have been inaugurated recently between the two countries, according to a statement released by Nanning Customs District of China.

It is learned that the new air routes will operate between Nanning, capital of China’s southwest autonomous region of Guangxi, and the Pakistani cities of Karachi and Lahore, China Economic Net (CEN) reported on Tuesday.

COLOMBO, May 23 (Xinhua) -- The macroeconomic situation in Sri Lanka is showing tentative signs of improvement, with inflation moderating, the exchange rate stabilizing, and the central bank rebuilding reserves buffers, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission said on Tuesday.

In a press release, the IMF mission said that despite the above positive factors, the overall macroeconomic and policy environment remains challenging in the South Asian country.

BUDAPEST, May 23. /TASS/: Ukraine will not be able to prevail in the conflict with Russia, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Tuesday, noting an unwillingness by NATO to deploy alliance troops to Ukraine and urging that a peaceful settlement be reached as soon as possible.

22 May 2023; MEMO: Israel is becoming a Third World economy, over 200 leading Israeli economists warned yesterday in response to the national budget announced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right coalition.

WASHINGTON, May 23 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The White House on Tuesday welcomed Bahrain’s decision to restore diplomatic ties with Lebanon after Manama severed relations with Beirut over comments by the country’s then-information minister.

Over the weekend, Bahrain said it would restore full diplomatic relations with Lebanon after cutting off ties due to the minister’s remarks.