Thuong, 53, became the second president to resign in just over a year in Vietnam, where leadership changes have recently been all linked to the wide-ranging "blazing furnace" anti-bribery campaign.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Australia for the first time since 2017, marking a diplomatic thaw between two trading partners who have sparred over everything from the origins of Covid-19 to military deployments.

Experts say officials must quickly issue technical regulations on AI to limit the risk that it could be misused to harm democratic institutions and processes.

The UN weather agency said in its annual State of the Global Climate report that average temperatures hit the highest level in 174 years of record-keeping by a clear margin, reaching 1.45 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. 

Blinken's visit to Manila -- his second since Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos took office in 2022 -- is part of a brief Asia tour to reinforce US support for regional allies against China.

"I will firmly join hands with you as we meet the demands of the times to provide a new turning point for the Russian-DPRK (North Korea) friendship that has long historical roots and traditions, and push forward to build a strong nation," KCNA reported Kim as congratulatory remarks sent to Putin. 

"China expresses its congratulations on this," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said when asked about the vote at a regular press conference.

The embassy "solemnly reminded" the majority of Chinese citizens in Singapore to enhance their legal awareness and stay away from gambling, saying in a statement that gambling is strictly prohibited by law in China. 

The meeting between Wang Yi and Winston Peters is their first in person since New Zealand elected a conservative government in October 2023. They have previously spoken by phone.

South Korea's military said several short-range missiles flew about 300 km (186 miles) after being fired between 7:44 a.m. and 8:22 a.m (2244 to 2322 GMT Monday) from Pyongyang, the North's capital, landing off the east coast. 

The two engineers are accused of breaching South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Act and leaking technology related to the KF-21, South Korea's homegrown fighter jet that is partially backed by Indonesia.

Biden sent the congratulatory message through US Ambassador to ASEAN Yohannes Abraham, who personally delivered a handwritten letter to Prabowo during a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday.

The plane, which was heading from Sydney to Auckland on Monday, dropped abruptly before stabilizing, causing those on board to be thrown about the cabin.

Their meeting comes on the heels of heightened tensions between the Philippines and China over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. 

In its annual response plan to the crisis, the United Nations appealed for $852.4 million to provide desperately-needed assistance this year to the mostly Muslim Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and their host communities.  

The MFP upended the kingdom's political order in May's poll, scoring the most votes after a campaign promising reform of the military, business monopolies and to amend the lese-majeste laws.

This marked a sharp reversal during a decades-long rise in global life expectancy, according to hundreds of researchers sifting through data for the US-based Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME).

The New Zealand accident investigator said Chilean authorities had confirmed they had opened a probe into the flight, and it was assisting with their enquiries.

Passengers aboard the LATAM flight said the Boeing 787 Dreamliner plunged earthward while flying from Sydney to Auckland on Monday evening, slinging unrestrained travellers out of their seats and smashing them into the roof of the cabin.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA), the agency tasked with monitoring the reef's health, confirmed that "a widespread, often called mass, coral bleaching event is unfolding" across the reef.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has heralded a fresh agreement on electric vehicle (EV) collaboration with Indonesia’s southern neighbor Australia, while attempting to entice Canberra in his other legacy project, building the new capital city Nusantara.

Although the past nine consecutive months have clocked temperatures previously unseen by humanity, it fell in line with climatologists' predictions of human-caused climate change which "could have taken more into account", said Carlo Buontempo of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).

Spokesman for the US National Security Council John Kirby said in a press briefing on Tuesday that the White House is closely monitoring the ongoing vote count, which so far put Defense Minister Prabowo in the lead, and once he is declared winner, the Joe Biden Administration would start continue working on maintaining an already strong ties between the two countries.

Rajapaksa was forced into temporary exile after protesters stormed his official residence in 2022, following months of street protests over the island nation's worst-ever economic crisis.

In an speech at the Australian National University in Canberra, he said countries needed to put themselves in China's shoes and recognise how its leaders saw its military buildup and growing diplomatic influence as a natural result of its economic and technological prowess.

February's average sea surface temperature surpassed the previous record of 20.98 C (69.77 F) set in August 2023, in a dataset that goes back to 1979.

Southeast Asia must remain a peaceful region where sovereignty is respected and restraint is exercised by all, leaders of ASEAN nations and Australia said following a three-day summit overshadowed by pressing geopolitical tensions.

"We urge for an immediate and durable humanitarian ceasefire," said the leaders of 11 nations -- including Muslim-majority Indonesia and Malaysia -- after days of diplomatic wrangling over the text.

An official from Japan's embassy in Australia told AFP that the government supported AUKUS' efforts in the Indo-Pacific region and was looking at how to deepen cooperation.

During a meeting with his Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Monday discussed possible bilateral efforts to increase trade and investment, as well as rice imports, as ways to strengthen the bilateral relationship between Jakarta and Phnom Penh.