Other news today: The Iranian embassy in Riyadh has reopened. The new secretary of the Chinese Communist Youth League is 52 years old. Indian clergymen stand in solidarity with female wrestling athletes protesting sexual abuse. E-cigarettes have been banned in Turkmenistan.
VIETNAM-UNITED STATES
World veterinary officials reported that they are close to being approved. two vaccines against African swine fever co-developed with US scientists and tested in Vietnam, in what would be a major breakthrough in the fight against a deadly animal disease ravaging pig farms around the world. For years, African swine fever has severely affected the $250 billion global pork market. After decades of unsuccessful attempts due to the complexity of the virus, the vaccines tested in large pilot projects by Vietnamese companies are showing “very promising” results, said Gregorio Torres, head of the scientific department of the World Organization for Animal Health (WHO).
CHINA
The Communist Youth League – once the cradle of Chinese leaders but recently restructured by Xi Jinping – has a new 52 year old president, To Dong, a former vice governor of Jilin province in the northeast of the country, who replaces He Junke, 54. At the end of last year the Communist Youth League had 73.5 million members between the ages of 14 and 28.
THAILAND-MYANMAR
At the request of the Myanmar generals, the Thai Provincial Electricity Authority stopped the electricity supply to across the Moei River to two border towns in Karen state – Shwe Kokko and Ban Le Le Ko – where groups of Chinese businessmen had made “illegal investments”. There is talk of investments for a casino, entertainment complexes and residential complexes worth 1.5 million dollars.
INDIA
The Conference of Religious of India expressed its solidarity with wrestling athletes who for weeks have been protesting in New Delhi against sexual abuse. “We, women and men of the Conference of Religious of India [CRI]we salute them for daring to challenge patriarchy and affirm their rights as women and human dignity”, they affirm in a letter published by the president of the Conference, Sister Mary Nirmalini, of Apostolic Carmel.
IRAN-SAUDI ARABIA
Iran reopened its embassy in Saudi Arabia, seven years after the break of diplomatic relations. Representatives of the foreign ministries of Iran and Saudi Arabia attended the ceremony in Riyadh. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Alireza Bigdeli said it was a sign that the cooperation was “entering a new stage”.
RUSSIA
It increased to 25 the number of victims of the new Russian alcoholic drink “Mister Sidr”, which came on the market in recent months due to a shortage of Western imports. Another 50 are hospitalized with serious poisoning problems, some of them in intensive care. Most of those affected are in the Volga area, where the high-alcohol preparation is produced.
TURKMENISTAN
The sale of electronic cigarettes has been banned in Turkmenistan. As reported by turkmen.news, in recent times they had been widely spread in the country’s fashionable places – where the usual tobacco products are almost completely prohibited – although no regulatory measure has been officially issued in this regard.
