Other news of the day: China plans to train 5,000 security personnel from several countries, India and Germany are negotiating over six submarines, the bird flu appears in Cambodia, wealth gap in South Korea gets worse, ultranationalists in Siberia target a rabbi.
TURKEY
Turkish authorities have arrested freelance journalist Mir Ali Koçer for twitting stories about survivors and rescuers of the earthquake that struck the country on 6 February. He is accused of spreading “fake news”. The Erdogan government has been criticised for the slow pace of relief and rescue operations and the poor quality of buildings that collapsed during the earthquake.
CHINA
China plans to train 5,000 security personnel from several developing countries and develop international platforms for counterterrorism, cybersecurity, biological security, and emerging technologies. According to several observers, the initiative is part of China's efforts to expand its geopolitical sphere of influence.
INDIA – GERMANY
In his visit today and tomorrow to New Delhi, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will discuss a possible US$ 5.2 billion project to jointly build six submarines in India. India has long sought to upgrade its submarine fleet in the face of China’s growing presence in the Indian Ocean.
CAMBODIA
The World Health Organisation (WHO) expressed concern over the bird flu situation in the Southeast Asian country. Local authorities recently reported two human cases of the H5N1 bird flu in the same family. An 11-year-old girl died while her father tested positive.
SOUTH KOREA
The per capita income of South Korea’s richest 0.1 per cent is 70 times that earned by median income earners, this according to the latest data. The wealthiest earn on average .4 million a year compared to ,155 for the average South Korean.
RUSSIA
The ultranationalist Kuzbass Citizens' Council, in Siberia, asked local Governor Sergey Tsivilyov to verify if Rabbi Menahem Rabinovich of Novokuznetsk is a "foreign agent". Author of books related to the Hasidic movement, he is accused of spreading "propaganda about the superiority of the Jewish people".
ARMENIA – AZERBAIJAN
The International Court of Justice in The Hague (Netherlands) partially accepted Armenia’s demand for punitive action against Azerbaijan for blocking the Lachin corridor. The UN body rejected a petition by Azerbaijan, requiring the latter to ensure full access to and from the area for all Karabakh residents.