* Russia on Monday declared two Italian diplomats persona non grata in response to Italy's earlier decision to expel Russian military diplomats, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
* The Russian foreign ministry summoned Moldovan Ambassador to Russia Lilian Darii on Tuesday over what Moscow calls "a violation by Moldova of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations" involving staff and vehicles of the Russian Embassy in Moldova, the TASS news agency reported, citing the ministry.
* Two staff members of the French Embassy in Iran were detained and questioned for several hours by Iranian security services on Sunday evening, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Monday.
* Portugal and Morocco agreed on Monday to build an electricity interconnection following talks between their energy ministers in Lisbon on renewable energy and mining cooperation.
* Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and visiting Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday pledged to strengthen cooperation in energy and trade between the Mediterranean neighbors.
* Russian forces shot down 917 fixed-wing Ukrainian drones, eight guided aerial bombs and four HIMARS multiple launch rocket system projectiles in the past day, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday.
* Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said on Monday that his government had received a note from the U.S. Embassy requesting permission to deploy up to eight tanker aircraft at Bezmer Air Base to support U.S. operations in the Middle East.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday extending visa-free entry for Chinese citizens through Dec. 31, 2027. China announced in May that it would extend visa-free entry for Russian citizens through Dec. 31, 2027, as part of efforts to facilitate people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
* Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said Tuesday that his government has subsidized 50 to 60 million USD monthly to cushion the impact of war-driven fuel price hikes in the Middle East.
* Britain's new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced a tax cut on electricity bills to help households get through this winter, the government said on Tuesday.
* Indonesia's House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a law to establish the Indonesia International Financial Center, aiming to attract long-term foreign capital and bolster national economic growth.
* Thailand opened its first international content trade event on Monday, aiming to generate at least 2 billion baht (about 59.45 million USD) in economic value and push the country's creative industries into global markets.
* Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Monday that the U.S. administration's announced intention to impose a new 50 percent tariff on a broad range of Canadian goods is "the latest in a series of unilateral U.S. trade actions in direct violation of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA)."
* U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that he had a phone conversation with new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, discussing issues including North Sea oil, trade, the military alliance and demining of the Strait of Hormuz.
* U.S. forces on Monday launched a new wave of strikes against Iran, marking the 10th consecutive day of U.S. attacks, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said.
* Iran's armed forces said Tuesday they carried out fresh retaliatory missile and drone strikes against U.S. bases, assets and infrastructure in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan following another round of U.S. attacks on Iran.
* The United Nations on Monday voiced concern over possible escalation following renewed Houthi threats against Saudi Arabia and urged all parties to resolve their differences through dialogue and diplomacy.
* International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Tuesday that while the global oil market is benefiting from several buffering factors, recent developments in the Middle East have heightened concerns over energy supply security and added uncertainty to the market outlook.
* Ten people were killed and 79 injured by Ukrainian drone attacks in the Belgorod Region, Russia, within 24 hours, said regional acting Governor Alexander Shuvaev on Tuesday.
* Two staff members of the French Embassy in Iran were detained and questioned for several hours by Iranian security services on Sunday evening, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Monday.
* Kuwait and Jordan came under renewed Iranian missile and drone attacks on Monday night and Tuesday, as Tehran continues its retaliatory strikes against U.S. bases and assets in regional countries.
* The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) confirmed late Monday that a tanker had been attacked near the Strait of Hormuz, with the vessel reporting via VHF Channel 16 that it had been struck by an unidentified projectile.
* The new 50-km submarine cable linking Singapore and Indonesia's Batam island has landed in Batam, a move expected to strengthen digital connectivity and support the growth of Southeast Asia's digital economy, Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry said on Monday.
* More than 1.6 million Afghan refugees have returned to their homeland from neighboring Pakistan since April 2025, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
* The Australian government on Tuesday announced new funding to support the recovery in Gaza and strengthen the foundations of the Palestinian state.
* Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Tuesday called on U.S. President Donald Trump to help Lebanon achieve lasting peace during their talks at the White House, stressing the necessity to end hostilities between Lebanon and Israel permanently.
* The Israeli military and Shin Bet domestic security agency on Tuesday said in a joint statement that they had killed a senior Hamas commander in Gaza City in a strike on Saturday.
* Yemen's Houthi group has warned international shipping companies that vessels trading with Saudi ports could face military action, in what appears to be an escalation following the group's maritime ban announcement against Saudi Arabia.
* Russian aerospace company Bureau 1440 has launched a second batch of low-Earth orbit satellites as part of its efforts to build a communications constellation, local media reported Monday.
* Tajikistan's real GDP grew 8.2 percent year on year in the first half of 2026, Khovar news agency reported Monday, citing Tajik Minister of Economic Development and Trade Abdurahmon Abdurahmonzoda.
* Myanmar welcomed 530,973 foreign visitor arrivals during the first six months of 2026, according to the Ministry of Hotels, Tourism and Culture on Tuesday. The figure is higher than the 500,125 recorded during the same period last year, an official from the ministry told Xinhua.
* Chile's Health Ministry on Monday issued a public health advisory for northern regions following a deadly winter storm, citing heightened respiratory virus risks amid the Southern Hemisphere's winter season.
* South Africa has introduced mandatory health screening measures for travelers arriving in the country from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda following the ongoing Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak.
* At least 20 people were killed, around 80 others injured and more than 100 remain missing after flash floods triggered by heavy rainfall struck Nuristan province in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, a government official said.
* At least nine people were killed and three others injured in rain-related incidents across Pakistan over the last 24 hours, raising the nationwide monsoon death toll to 47 since June 26, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Monday.
* Greece is bracing for its first heatwave of the summer, with temperatures expected to soar to as high as 42 degrees Celsius, according to the latest forecast from Greek national broadcaster ERT on Monday.
* The surface of the Moon can heat up to 127 degrees Celsius during the day and cool down to minus 173 degrees at night, said Yevgeny Burmistrov, an astronomy expert at the Perm National Research Polytechnic University on Monday, the International Moon Day.
