UKRAINE - PAKISTAN
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba paid a visit to Pakistan, where he met his counterpart Bilaval Bhutto-Zardari and Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, the first meeting at this level since 1993. The aim of the visit was to divert Islamabad from cooperation with Moscow, from which it buys discounted oil, and to start a closer relationship with Kiev, on the basis of neutrality with regard to the ongoing conflict.
NAGORNO - KARABAKH
The inhabitants of Stepanakert, together with the Armenian politicians of Nagorno Karabakh, continue their 'unlimited' protest action with street sit-ins for the region's independence, after the recent meeting between Presidents Aliev and Pašinyan did not produce any results, nor did the discussion in Brussels between EU ministers on the issue, as Baku continues to refuse to consider the Armenians of Artsakh a qualified interlocutor.
INDONESIA
Shortly after midnight, off the island of Sulawesi, a ferry sank with 40 passengers on board. The causes of the accident are not yet known. So far, rescue services have recovered the bodies of 15 victims and found 19 missing. Despite poor safety standards, Indonesians rely on small boats to travel between the archipelago's thousands of islands.
THAILAND - SOUTH KOREA
The Thai government is introducing additional facilities for foreign actors and producers after an episode of a Korean series - 'King The Land' - popularised the kingdom and its tourist attractions. Under the new rules, filmmakers can receive 20% discounts for every 100 million baht spent on filming in Thailand. They can receive an extra 10% discount if they hire Thai staff, promote Thai culture and film outside major tourist destinations.
CLIMATE CHANGE - SOUTH ASIA
At least 30 people have died in Afghanistan due to the monsoons and 13 others have been killed by landslides in Pakistan in recent days. In India, some 20 bodies have been recovered, but according to rescue services there are still at least 50 missing. Over the past three days, flash floods have occurred throughout the region, also killing hundreds of livestock.
INDIA
After the release of the video in which some women, mother and daughter, from the Kuki ethnic group are harassed and forced to parade around naked, more details emerged on the sexual violence perpetrated in the north-eastern state of Manipur, where intense sectarian clashes have been taking place since the beginning of May. Meitei women have also been victims of violence, but find it more difficult to file a complaint due to issues of honour. However, spokespersons from both communities have stated that they do not trust the Indian government to resolve the conflict.
CHINA
At least eleven people, most of them underage girls, died when a roof collapsed on a school gymnasium in northeast China's industrial province of Heilongjiang. A girls' volleyball team was training inside. A preliminary investigation found that perlite, a form of volcanic glass, had been illegally piled on the roof absorbing rainwater, causing the accident.
SYRIA - JORDAN
The army chiefs of Syria and Jordan met yesterday in an attempt to curb the growing drug trade on the border between the two countries, mostly run by pro-Iranian militias in southern Syria. Amman attacked a drug production centre in May and asked Damascus to cooperate promising in return an end to the isolationism of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
