Germany delivers advanced weapons to Ukraine for the first time, Venezuela accuses the US of supporting a coup plot, Poland closes its consulate in Russia after 50 years

China warns of the risk of an air confrontation with the Philippines in the East Sea, Russia foils a plot to bomb the Trans-Siberian Railway, Singapore discovers an underground network plotting to fight in the Middle East, the US announces a huge amount of money for Ukraine... are some of the notable international events in the past 24 hours.

Germany delivers first Lynx IFV armored combat vehicles to Ukraine. (Source: Wolpat/Wikipedia)

The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some of the day's international news highlights.

Asia- Pacific

*China warns of risk of air confrontation with Philippines in East Sea: On January 9, the head of China's South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI), Mr. Hu Bo, warned that Beijing faces a greater risk of air confrontations, rather than sea confrontations, with the Philippines in the East Sea.

Hu Bo’s warning comes as Beijing steps up efforts to assert its claims to the disputed waterway, which has seen several confrontations with the Philippines in the past year. China’s top maritime expert also warned of the possibility of conflict with the US military, which he said was “tired of over-deployment” in the region. (SCMP)

*Indonesian President visits Malaysia: The Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement saying that Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto is making his first visit to Malaysia on January 9 since taking office in October 2024. The visit reflects the special relationship between Malaysia and Indonesia based on strong cooperation in many areas including economy, socio-culture, defense and security.

With Malaysia assuming the role of ASEAN Chair 2025, Mr Prabowo and his Malaysian counterpart exchanged views on enhancing “ASEAN Community Building”, regional cooperation and addressing common global challenges.

Indonesia is Malaysia's 7th largest global and 3rd largest ASEAN trading partner in 2023 with a total turnover of 24.39 billion USD. (The Straits Times)

*Singapore uncovers underground network plotting to fight in the Middle East: On January 9, Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs said it had arrested three men since October last year for intending to go to the Middle East to fight against Israel, one of whom expressed his readiness to carry out any instructions from Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, including attacks in Singapore if instructed.

The three arrested men, a 41-year-old digital marketing company director, a 21-year-old lift repairman and a 44-year-old security guard, were detained under Singapore's Internal Security Act, which allows suspects to be detained for long periods without trial.

Investigations showed that one of the three had been to a shooting range in Thailand to learn how to use a gun, while the other two had plans to go to shooting ranges in Indonesia. (Reuters)

*Taliban sees India as 'important regional partner': The Taliban's foreign office said the movement sees India as an "important economic and regional partner" after meeting with the country's top foreign ministry official, marking the highest-level dialogue with Delhi since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan in 2021. Indian Deputy Foreign Minister Vikram Misri met with Taliban Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Dubai on January 8.

No foreign government, including India, has formally recognized the Taliban government. However, India is one of several countries that maintains a small mission in Kabul to provide trade, aid and medical support, and has sent humanitarian aid to Afghanistan under the Taliban. (Reuters)

Europe

*Germany delivers first-ever advanced weapons to Ukraine: German industrial corporation Rheinmetall in late December 2024 delivered to the Ukrainian Armed Forces the first Lynx armored fighting vehicle, which is currently being tested in Ukraine.

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung quoted Rheinmetall General Director Armin Papperger as saying: "Currently, this armored vehicle is being tested in the armed forces here so that it can soon be put into mass production."

Germany is currently the second largest aid donor to Ukraine, behind only the United States. (Sputnik)

*Poland closes consulate in Saint Petersburg after more than 50 years: Polish news agency RMF24 reported on January 8 that the country's consulate in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg has closed, staff have taken down the Polish and European Union (EU) flags and cleaned the building.

Poland has closed the consulate after 53 years of operation. The decision follows Warsaw's order to close the Russian consulate in the Polish city of Poznan by 2024 after accusing Moscow of sabotage.

Poland has been a strong supporter of Ukraine, providing weapons and taking in up to 1 million refugees since Russia's special operation began in 2022. (RMF24)

*Ukrainian President Zelensky will run for re-election: The Telegraf newspaper quoted a source close to Mr. Zelensky as saying that incumbent Ukrainian President Volodimyr Zelensky has decided to run for a second term, although he has not yet publicly confirmed it.

Telegraf analyzes that Mr. Zelensky's current approval rating is 52%, so he has a chance to win the election. The newspaper also points out that his main competitor is the former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Ambassador of Ukraine to the United Kingdom Valery Zaluzhny.

According to Ukrainian journalists, Mr. Zaluzhny has not yet made a final decision on his political future. Meanwhile, some veteran Ukrainian politicians, such as former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and former President Petro Poroshenko, have tried to recruit Zaluzhny as an election ally. (Telegraf)

*Serbia terminates arms contracts with Russia: In an interview with RIA news agency, Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Army, General Milan Mojsilovic announced that Serbia is suspending a number of arms supply contracts with Russia until the international situation stabilizes.

Commenting on Serbia's decision, First Deputy Chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the Federation Council (Upper House) of Russia Vladimir Dzhabarov noted that the Serbian leadership, especially President Aleksandar Vucic, is under constant pressure from NATO member states and is "resisting attempts to drag Serbia into the policy of sanctions against Russia." According to Senator Dzhabarov, Russia will maintain the most friendly relations with Serbia and will continue to develop them. (AFP)

*Russian security foils plot to bomb Trans-Siberian railway: The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on January 9 that a resident of the Priamurye Territory (in Russia's Far East) had been detained on suspicion of organizing an attack on Russia's Trans-Siberian railway on behalf of a Ukrainian terrorist organization.

According to the investigation, the 39-year-old suspect was a supporter of an organization banned in Russia. He contacted a representative of a Ukrainian terrorist organization through an informant to learn how to make a bomb. He also collected the necessary components to make a bomb. In October 2024, the man proposed carrying out a bombing at the Belogorsk-Ukraine railway crossing in Russia's Amur region. (Sputniknews)

*EU responds to Trump's statements on Greenland and Panama: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany's European partners have expressed confusion over recent statements by US President-elect Donald Trump on Greenland and the Panama Canal.

President-elect Donald Trump first made the announcement about Greenland in 2019, his first term in office. In 2024, shortly after winning the US presidential election, he reiterated this interest, calling it “an absolute necessity” for the US to own Greenland.

On January 7, during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump said that he was not considering using military force to take Canada but could not guarantee the same for Greenland or the Panama Canal. (Sputniknews)

Middle East – Africa

*Israel continues to withdraw from towns in southern Lebanon: Xinhua news agency on January 8 quoted a Lebanese security source as saying that Israeli forces have withdrawn from a number of border towns in the south of the country.

The US-France-brokered ceasefire, which comes into effect on 27 November 2024, aims to end nearly 14 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Under the ceasefire agreement, Israel must withdraw from Lebanese territory within 60 days, with the Lebanese army deployed along the Lebanon-Israel border and in the south to ensure security. Despite this, Israel has continued sporadic airstrikes in Lebanon. (Al Jazeera)

*Ghana suspends diplomatic relations with Sahrawi: On January 8, Moroccan media reported that the Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the country had decided to suspend diplomatic relations with the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, a country not recognized by most of the international community and which is disputing sovereignty over Western Sahara with Morocco.

The suspension of diplomatic relations with the Sahrawi Republic was announced just a day before the inauguration of President John Dramani Mahama, and was therefore technically a decision by the administration of former President Nana Akufo-Addo. (Al Jazeera)

*Iran and Russia promote domestic card payments: The Islamic Republic of Iran's Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali said on January 8 that the second stage of integrating the payment systems of Russia and Iran, in which Russia's Mir payment card will be able to be used on Iranian territory to purchase goods and services, is expected to be completed by June 30, 2025.

“According to the plan, we will move to stage 2 (integration of the national payment system), according to which Russian citizens will be able to make purchases with their bank cards in Iran, in the first half of 2025,” Kazem Jalali said.

Earlier, on July 6, 2024, the President of the Central Bank of Iran, Mohammad Reza Farzin, announced that Moscow and Tehran would integrate their national payment systems. Currently, Iranians can withdraw rubles from Russian ATMs. (Tehran Times)

*Israel announces number of soldiers killed in fighting in Northern Gaza: On January 8, the Israeli army announced that 3 soldiers were killed in fighting in the Northern Gaza Strip.

They were all soldiers from the 46th Battalion, 401st Armored Brigade. According to the initial investigation by the Israeli army, during the operation in Beit Hanoun, the tank ran over an explosive device. The incident also injured three other soldiers, including an officer who is in critical condition. (Al Jazeera)

*UAE adds 19 individuals, entities to terrorist list: State news agency WAM reported on January 8 that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has added 19 individuals and entities to its terrorist list, due to their links to the Muslim Brotherhood organization banned from operating in the country.

The individuals listed on the terror list include single and dual nationals from countries including Sweden, Türkiye, Yemen and Liberia, along with UAE nationals. The entities identified on the list are primarily based in the UK, and are accused of playing a role in financing or supporting terrorist activities. (Al Jazeera)

*Fighting at Chad's presidential palace leaves 19 dead: The government of the Republic of Chad said gunmen attacked the country's presidential complex in the capital N'Djamena on January 8, leading to a clash that left 18 attackers and a security guard dead, with several others injured.

"Among the attackers, 18 were killed and six were wounded. We also have one dead and three others injured, one of them seriously," said government spokesman and Foreign Minister Abderaman Koulamallah. Chad is a landlocked country in the northern half of Africa, under military rule, which has been regularly attacked by the Boko Haram jihadist group in the Lake Chad region. (AFP)

America - Latin America

*US President Joe Biden cancels visit to Italy: On January 8, the White House said US President Joe Biden has canceled his scheduled visit to Italy due to the wildfire situation in California, adding that he wants to focus on directing the entire federal response to the fires.

Earlier in December 2024, the White House announced that Mr. Biden would visit Italy from January 9-12, 2025 to meet with Pope Francis, Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The visit to Italy is expected to be Mr. Biden's last foreign trip as US President. (Reuters)

*Venezuela accuses the US of backing a coup plot: On January 8, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accused the administration of US President Joe Biden of sponsoring a coup plot, after Venezuelan authorities arrested a group of mercenaries of various nationalities, including Ukraine, the US and Colombia.

Earlier, on January 7, Venezuelan security agencies arrested seven mercenaries from Ukraine, the United States and Colombia. These people entered Venezuela with the alleged purpose of carrying out acts of destabilization. The subjects admitted to having plans to oppose the government of President Nicolas Maduro.

Venezuela has mobilized the military and police across the country to ensure security ahead of Nicolas Maduro's inauguration on January 10. (AFP)

*US announces amount of money provided to Ukraine: A senior representative of the US Department of Defense said at a press conference on January 8 that since the start of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine, Western countries have pledged to provide Kiev with $126 billion in military assistance.

For the US, that includes two Patriot batteries and other air defense systems, as well as hundreds of interceptor missiles, dozens of HIMARS systems and thousands of attack munitions, including GMLRS rockets and long-range ATACMS missiles, hundreds of artillery systems and millions of artillery rounds, thousands of armored vehicles, more than 100,000 anti-tank guns and hundreds of millions of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well as a significant number of unmanned aerial vehicles.

The Russian government has repeatedly stated that pumping weapons into Ukraine will not weaken Moscow's resolve and will not change the course of the Special Military Operation. (Reuters)

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