East Asia

The trial was supposed to start today and be over by Friday, but the presiding judge contracted COVID-19. The cardinal and five other pro-democracy advocates are accused of running an unregistered charity and could at worse be fined. Experts believe that the original charge of undermining national security was dropped for fear of international reactions.

Today's headlines: aftershocks from yesterday's earthquake in southern Taiwan at least one victim and 150 injured; more clashes between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, a hundred people dead; a mega-church in Zhejiang held prayer services with sacred music linked to traditional Chinese culture; Turkish president and Pakistani premier agree on Russian gas supply.

Today's headlines: Metropolitan Antonij reports Pope Francis has requested a new meeting with Patriarch Kirill; ceasefire holds between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan; protests in Iran over the death of a young woman detained for violating headscarf regulations; pork prices in China mount, about 70% year-over-year; Phnom Penh set to issue final verdict on Khieu Samphan.

Chinese delegation barred from visiting the deceased sovereign's funeral chamber. British politicians also sanctioned by China for criticising the rights situation in the former colony. Thousands of Hong Kong citizens paid their respects to Elizabeth in defiance of warnings from the pro-Beijing establishment.

On the flight back from Kazakhstan the pontiff answered a question about the trial of Card. Zen that will begin on 19 September: "It is a complex country: it is better to dialogue than to qualify". Meanwhile, Reuters, citing a Vatican source, reports that the Holy See had asked for a meeting with Xi Jinping in Kazakhstan, which the Chinese leader declined. The bishop emeritus of Hong Kong: 'I have lost all the battles, but I am happy'. Pope's trip to Bahrain in November.

The two leaders meet on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit. The Russian leader fully backs China's Taiwan policy, and appreciates Beijing’s “balanced" position on Ukraine. For his part, the Chinese president spreads his wings in Central Asia, the Kremlin’s traditional turf.

The United Nations concludes that the charges against China for crimes against humanity with respect to Turkic-speaking minorities in Xinjiang are “credible”. The proposed EU’s policy would be hard to enforce. Taiwan urges the EU to impose sanctions on China. Beijing prevents a visit by the EU’s intelligence chief.

Starting in 2000, family reunions had become a way to promote inter-Korean dialogue. But in the last decade, this became increasingly rare with the last reunion held in 2018. Currently, in South Korea about 43,700 people are registered with the government's reunification programme, 85 per cent of them are over 70.

A new railway line to bring Mongolian coal to Chinese territory opens. Construction work on a new Russian gas pipeline to supply China through Mongolia is due to start in 2024. The United States is also playing its geopolitical game in the region amid rising friction between Beijing and Ulaanbaatar.

​The Chinese embassy in Ukraine wanted to prevent the creation of a friendship group with Taiwan in the Kiev parliament. Its promoter denounces the 'Soviet' methods of Beijing, which refused to help Ukrainian civilians when the conflict broke out. Broad support among Taiwanese for the Ukrainian cause.

In spite of the turmoil of recent months around Taiwan, with Okinawa prefecture in the front line, discontent over the concentration of US bases in the area of Japan continues to dominate among its inhabitants. Conservative candidate defeated.

The Vatican delegation and Chinese authorities met in a city with no official bishop since 2005. Archbishop Celli was able to meet 92-year-old underground Bishop Melchior Shi Hongzhen. Meanwhile, a report to the National Assembly of Chinese Catholic Representatives puts the number of Catholic churches in the country at 4,202 with 110,000 new baptisms in the last six years.