UN gives green light for humanitarian aid from Seoul to Pyongyang to resume dialogue

Today's headlines: direct meeting between Iranian Foreign Minister and US envoy Witkoff in Oman today; Jimmy Lai's sentence to be announced on 9 February in Hong Kong; In the Indian state of Meghalaya, the death of 18 workers in an explosion brings illegal mining back into the spotlight; China orders review of psychiatric institutions after reports of confinement; Duma elections set for 20 September in Russia.

SOUTH KOREA – NORTH KOREA

The United Nations Security Council's North Korea Sanctions Committee has approved an exemption to sanctions against North Korea to allow 17 humanitarian aid projects led by South Korea, the United States and international organisations. The unanimous decision is seen as a gesture of good faith and a possible first step towards resuming dialogue with Pyongyang. The decision came after a senior South Korean government official hinted at a “new development” on North Korea-related issues “in the coming days”, following talks in Washington between Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

IRAN-UNITED STATES

Amidst a climate of high regional tension, direct talks between Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff began this morning in Muscat, Oman. Despite differences over format and content, the meeting went ahead thanks to diplomatic pressure from Arab and Gulf states. Washington would like to broaden the talks to other issues, while Tehran insists on limiting them to the nuclear dossier, reiterating its demand for mutual respect and the fulfilment of commitments made.

HONG KONG

The sentence for Jimmy Lai, the pro-democracy media mogul already found guilty of collusion and sedition in one of the main trials under the National Security Law, will be handed down on 9 February at 10 a.m. in Hong Kong. Lai, who is 78 years old and has already spent more than five years in prison, faces life imprisonment.

INDIA

At least 18 workers have died and several others are feared trapped following an explosion yesterday in a suspected illegal coal mine in Meghalaya. Rescue teams are currently conducting search operations at the site, located in the East Jaintia Hills district. The tragedy brings the issue of illegal mining in India back to the forefront: as early as 2014, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) imposed a ban on coal mining through so-called rat-hole mining and other unregulated mining practices in Meghalaya, citing environmental damage and safety risks as reasons. The ban was subsequently upheld by the Supreme Court.

CHINA

China's top health regulator has ordered a nationwide review of the country's psychiatric institutions after media reports that several hospitals in central China had locked up patients — including individuals who did not suffer from mental illness — as part of an insurance scam. The National Health Security Administration said its provincial offices must hold meetings with the directors of all psychiatric institutions in their respective areas by Sunday.

RUSSIA

Russia's Electoral Commission has officially announced that elections for the 9th State Duma will be held on 20 September 2026, the third Sunday of the month, when the constitutional term expires. A total of 450 deputies will be elected, 225 from party lists and the other 225 from single-member constituencies. For the first time, residents of the annexed Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson will also take part.

UZBEKISTAN

In 2025, 106,500 new flats were made available to citizens in Uzbekistan, the highest number ever in the country, yet the construction sector is unable to meet the needs of the changing demographics.

Statistics show that there are over 200,000 new families per year, and therefore thousands of flats are still needed to meet the population's demand, according to the chairman of the National Committee for Sustainable Urbanisation, Sherzod Kudbiev.

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