* Chinese Vice Premier Liu Guozhong stressed autumn agricultural production to ensure a stable and secure supply of grains and important agricultural produce to guarantee sustained improvement in economic operations.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin extended condolences on Thursday to the families of those who died in a plane crash near Moscow on Wednesday. The Russian Federal Agency for Air Transport confirmed that Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner military group, was among the passengers on board the flight.
* Thailand's new Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin visited the resort island of Phuket on Friday, a first official trip to underline plans to shore-up economic recovery by bolstering tourism, a key driver of growth.
* Myanmar is planning to temporarily restrict rice exports to control rising domestic prices, an official of its rice industry body said on Friday, joining India, the world's biggest shipper of the staple amid tightening world supplies.
* The BRICS countries said in Johannesburg on Thursday that they welcome and support the inclusion of the African Union as a member of the Group of Twenty (G20) at this year's G20 Summit to be held in New Delhi.
* Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit on Thursday congratulated Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for being invited to join the BRICS group.
* The BRICS countries stressed in Johannesburg on Thursday the importance of encouraging the use of local currencies in international trade and financial transactions between the BRICS countries and their trading partners.
* Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Thursday hailed BRICS for playing an independent and effective role with a great willingness globally, which makes it a favorable target for Iran in pursuit of promoting multilateralism.
* Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Ethiopia's membership in the BRICS mechanism will further strengthen the growing South-South cooperation framework.
* Norway will donate IRIS-T anti-aircraft missiles and demining equipment to Ukraine, the government said on Thursday. The decision was announced by Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store during his visit to Kiev on Thursday, it said in a press release.
* The fifth round of bilateral political consultations between Sri Lanka and Thailand will be held on Aug. 28 in the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo, Sri Lanka's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Friday.
* Niger has authorised Mali and Burkina Faso's armed forces to intervene on its territory in case of an attack, the countries said in a joint statement on Thursday, a possible sign the junta in Niger plans to keep resisting regional pressure to stand down.
* The situation in Niger has made the withdrawal of UN peacekeepers from neighboring Mali more complicated, said a UN spokesperson on Thursday.
* The United Nations has reopened its European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland after earlier on Friday shutting it due to an intrusion.
* Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday underscored the importance of strengthening the Palestinian narrative for international support.
* More than 2 million children were forced from their homes in the four months of the Sudan conflict, said the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Thursday.
* Turkey's central bank on Thursday announced a bigger-than-expected interest rate hike of 750 basis points to control inflation, ratifying a return to a more orthodox monetary policy, experts said.
* The scorching heatwave and drought that have gripped much of Italy this summer are set to give way to rain, hail and flood warnings over the weekend.
