Jimmy Lai trial: Beijing to allow Hong Kong chief executive to ban foreign lawyers

The other news of the day: 2022 was a record year for North Korea's missile tests, India imposes anti-Covid restrictions on travellers from China, Laos changes prime ministers amid economic crisis, the UN General Assembly seeks the opinion of the International Court of Justice on the legality of Israel's occupation of Palestine, Lithuania’s Orthodox Church slams Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Armenia does not want more Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh.

HONG KONG – CHINA

Hong Kong’s city's chief executive will be able to ban foreign lawyers in trials for crimes against national security. The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (China’s parliament) took the step to further restricts the territory’s autonomy at the request of the local government after a court allowed pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai to hire a British lawyer for his defence.

NORTH KOREA

Kim Jong-un's regime closes 2022 with the launch of three short-range ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan. For Pyongyang, this ends a record year for missile testing. North Korea remains under international sanctions over its military programme, especially its nuclear component.

INDIA

India is among several countries to impose restrictions on travellers from China, hit by a new COVID-19 wave following the end of its zero-Covid policy. Like other countries, India has justified the decision by China’s failure to provide data on the number of deaths and cases. The World Health Organisation (WHO) also said that China must share information.

LAOS

Laotian Prime Minister Phankham Viphavanh resigned yesterday, officially for health reasons. In reality, his decision comes as the country faces a serious economic crisis; heavily indebted to China, marked by the pandemic, Laos’s inflation rate is running at 40 per cent with 21 per cent of the labour force jobless. Sonexay Siphandone is the new prime minister.

ISRAEL – PALESTINE

The UN General Assembly has asked the International Court of Justice for an opinion on the legality of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories (East Jerusalem and the West Bank). The resolution passed with 87 votes in favour and 24 against. The United States voted against.

LITHUANIA – RUSSIA

Chaired by Metropolitan Innokenty of Vilnius, the bishops, clergy and laity of the Orthodox Church of Lithuania-Moscow Patriarchate, met in assembly, officially expressing the Church’s opposition to Russia’s war in Ukraine and calling for fast-tracking the process of gaining administrative autonomy from Moscow.

ARMENIA – AZERBAIJAN

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is calling for an international peacekeeping force to replace Russian troops, saying that "for objective and subjective reasons" Russia is unable to guarantee stability in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh, a region claimed by both Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Armenian leader wants the United Nations Security Council to get the maximum number of countries involved.

• asia
• hong kong
• china
• north korea
• india
• laos
• israel
• palestine
• lithuania
• russia
• armenia
• azerbaijan