Asia (except ME & Indian SC)

US, Japan agree to keep troops on base to curb COVID spread

TOKYO (AP) — The U.S. and Japan on Sunday agreed to keep American troops within their bases as worries grew about a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the country.

The restrictions starting Monday will last 14 days, confining U.S. military personnel to base facilities except for “essential activities,” a statement from the U.S. Forces in Japan said. The Japanese Foreign Ministry released the same statement.

Japan PM: Deal reached on US military curbs to halt COVID

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Sunday that Japan and the U.S. have reached “a basic agreement” on banning the U.S. military from leaving its base grounds, amid growing worries about a sharp rise in coronavirus cases.

Kishida said American soldiers will stay on base “except when absolutely necessary,” which presumably means for emergencies or other security reasons. Details of the deal are still being worked out, he said on Fuji TV. The overall U.S.-Japan security alliance remains unchanged.

China’s Tianjin testing all residents after omicron found

BEIJING (AP) — The numbers are small, but the major port of Tianjin may be facing China’s first outbreak of omicron of any size, less than four weeks before the Winter Olympics open in nearby Beijing.

The city began mass testing of its 14 million residents on Sunday after a cluster of 20 children and adults tested positive for COVID-19, including at least two with the omicron variant. Officials said the virus has been circulating so the number of cases could grow.

Foreign Ministers four Middle East countries to visit China Jan. 10-14

BEIJING, Jan 8 (APP): The foreign ministers of four Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and chief of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will visit China from January 10 to 14, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Saturday.

The visiting foreign ministers include Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud from Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah from Kuwait, Sayyid Badr Hamad al-Busaidi from Oman, and Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani from Bahrain, as well as Nayef bin Falah Al-Hajraf, secretary-general of the GCC.

China’s training to be helpful in improving skill-set of Pakistani professionals; Moin ul Haque

BEIJING, Jan 8 (APP): Pakistan Ambassador to China, Moin ul Haque expressed hope that the training imparted by the Chinese side would be helpful in improving the knowledge and skill-set of Pakistani professionals and harnessing their potential to undertake high-quality development of infrastructure and other projects in Pakistan as envisaged by our leadership.


He made these remarks while speaking at the opening ceremony of a seminar on infrastructure planning and development in Pakistan organized by National Development and Reform Commission of China held here yesterday,

Kazakhstan: Nazarbayev stays in Nur-Sultan

NUR-SULTAN, January 8. /TASS/: The first president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, stays in the capital of the republic and maintains direct contact with the current president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, according to press secretary of Nazarbayev Aidos Ukibay.

"Elbasy (the leader of the nation Nursultan Nazarbayev - TASS) is located in the capital of Kazakhstan, the city of Nur-Sultan. We ask you not to spread false and speculative information," Ukibay wrote on Twitter.

Tokayev announces national mourning in Kazakhstan on January 10

NUR-SULTAN, January 8. /TASS/: President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev declared January 10 a day of national mourning in the country, press secretary Berik Uali announced on Saturday.

"In connection with the numerous human casualties as a result of tragic events in a number of regions of the country, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev decided to declare January 10, 2022, a day of national mourning," he wrote on Facebook.

Kazakhstan detains former national security chief on suspicion of treason

ALMATY, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Authorities in Kazakhstan have detained Karim Massimov, the former head of the national security committee, on suspicion of treason, the security committee said on Saturday.

Massimov, who was fired this week as protests raged across the Central Asian country, was detained along with several other officials, the National Security Committee said in a statement. It did not name them or provide further details.

Reuters was unable immediately to contact Massimov.

Counter-terror operation continues in Kazakhstan as constitutional order largely restored

NUR-SULTAN, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- After days of stormy unrest, the constitutional order has been largely restored in Kazakhstan, according to a statement by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Friday.

"Local authorities are monitoring the situation, but terrorists are still using weapons, causing damage to civilian property," Tokayev said during a meeting with the leadership of the Presidential Administration, the Security Council, and law enforcement agencies.

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