On 30 October, Trump and Xi will meet in South Korea

Today's headlines: Delhi police dismantle ISIS cell. On 29 March, general elections will be held in Thailand, with a referendum on the constitution and agreements on the border with Cambodia; Pakistan has banned the Islamist party Tehreek-e-Labbaik for the second time; WHO to Israel: reopen the Rafah crossing; In Russia, hypermarkets are closing while discount stores are on the rise.

CHINA - UNITED STATES

US President Trump will meet Xi Jinping in South Korea on 30 October, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) meeting, as confirmed by the White House. The meeting between Xi and Trump had been planned for weeks, with an indication for early 2026, but had been called into question due to growing tensions. It will be the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders since Trump's return to the presidency. Among the issues on the table are tariffs and the export of rare earths.

CHINA

The Chinese Communist Party has appointed Zhang Shengmin, a 67-year-old veteran who oversaw anti-corruption efforts in the military, as the country's second-highest-ranking general. The appointment as vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission was announced at the end of the fourth plenum of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. This follows the recent “political purge” of nine generals: one of the largest public crackdowns on the army in decades.

INDIA

Delhi police said they had broken up an ISIS cell and arrested two suspected terrorists who were allegedly undergoing training for suicide attacks. The two suspects, both named Adnan and originally from Bhopal, were arrested on the basis of specific intelligence information. ‘They were planning a major terrorist attack in Delhi. Electronic devices and incriminating material in their possession were seized,’ an officer said.

THAILAND

The likely date for general elections in Thailand is 29 March, Reuters has learned. Anutin Charnvirakul had previously stated that he wanted to dissolve parliament by the end of January, with elections in March or April. A referendum on the new constitution and another to decide whether to revoke two agreements relating to the demarcation of borders with Cambodia will also be held. Already conditions for the September election, with the support of the People's Party.

PAKISTAN

Pakistan has banned the Islamist Tehreek-e-Labbaik party for the second time in four years, a week after five people died in clashes between its members and the police. Parliament unanimously approved the ban: “TLP is involved in terrorist and violent activities”. The group said it rejected the ban, calling it “unconstitutional, vindictive, illegal and dictatorial”. It was the fourth largest party, with more than two million votes in the 2018 elections.

ISRAEL - GAZA

The World Health Organisation has stated that aid to Gaza is still only ‘a fraction of what is needed’ as the health agency seeks to rebuild the region's healthcare system. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that despite increased aid, rebuilding Gaza's medical infrastructure could cost at least billion. There have been calls for the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

RUSSIA

The retail food market in Russia is undergoing a profound transformation against the backdrop of an economic slowdown and rising inflation, with supermarkets and hypermarkets closing and being replaced by discount stores and much smaller “shops for the poor”. In the first nine months of 2025, 67 large stores with an area of more than 185,000 square metres were closed, while smaller stores increased by more than 60%.

GEORGIA - EU

Georgia's refusal to send its own representative to the meeting of European foreign ministers in Luxembourg has provoked many reactions, including that of former president Mikhail Saakashvili, the opposition leader currently in prison, who exchanged messages with the German embassy in Tbilisi to state that “Georgia had its own foreign policy since the post-Soviet era of Gamsakhurdia and Shevardnadze, but now it is completely dead”.

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