* Under China's rotating presidency, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is placing a strong focus on defending multilateralism and promoting a fair, WTO-centered global trade system, SCO Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev said in a recent exclusive interview with Xinhua in Islamabad.
* Russia and Ukraine on Saturday exchanged 492 prisoners, said the Russian Defense Ministry. It said that 246 Russian servicemen were "returned from Kiev-controlled territory," while 246 Ukrainian prisoners were freed as well.
* Thousands of protesters on Saturday took to the streets in various cities across the United States in what demonstrators described as part of a "National Day of Action" against President Donald Trump's policies and perceived threats to democracy.
* The seventh batch of emergency humanitarian aid supplies dispatched by the Chinese government on Sunday arrived at Yangon International Airport, Myanmar, which was hit by a devastating 7.9-magnitude earthquake on March 28.
* Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Saturday said the negotiations with U.S. delegations in Rome were held in a "constructive" atmosphere and are making progress, according to Iran's IRIB news agency.
* Oman's Foreign Ministry confirmed Saturday that Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi and U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff have agreed to move into the next phase of negotiations aimed at reaching a fair, lasting, and binding agreement on Tehran's nuclear issues.
* The second round of indirect talks between Iran and the United States concluded on Saturday in Rome, capital of Italy, with Oman's mediation, according to Italian media.
* Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday evening that Hamas had rejected a proposal for the return of half of the living hostages in Gaza by demanding the end of the war and an Israeli military retreat from Gaza.
* Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin met with a Hamas delegation on Saturday to discuss ways to deliver humanitarian aid to war-ravaged Gaza, semi-official Anadolu Agency reported.
* The U.S. army launched 29 airstrikes on Houthi targets in northern Yemen early Saturday, while Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, head of the Houthi Revolutionary Committee, vowed to retaliate.
* Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on Saturday reiterated Egypt's full solidarity and unshakable support to Jordan "in confronting all forms of terrorism and extremist groups" that seek to undermine its security and stability.
* Afghan interim government's Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi held talks with Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar in Kabul on Saturday, the ministry said in a statement. During the meeting, the two sides addressed a variety of bilateral concerns, including the situation of Afghan refugees, political relations, economic cooperation and major projects.
* The Mongolian banking sector's net external assets decreased by 46 percent year-on-year to reach 5.3 trillion Mongolian tugriks (1.48 billion USD), local media reported on Sunday, citing data from the National Statistics Office (NSO).
* The Maldives is moving to expand its economic footprint by entering the medical tourism sector, which is poised for strategic growth, the Maldives' state media PSM News reported on Saturday.
* The crew of the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft safely returned to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) Sunday morning, the Russian state space corporation Roscosmos said on its website.
