* Russia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) have agreed on mutual support in case of external aggression, Russian media reported Wednesday, citing Russian President Vladimir Putin.
* The first vice-ministerial level diplomatic and security "2+2" talks between China and the Republic of Korea (ROK) were held in Seoul on Tuesday.
* Thailand hopes to become a member of the BRICS group of emerging economies at the organisation's next summit in Russia in October, a foreign ministry official said Thursday.
* Three opinion polls on Wednesday predicted a record defeat for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservatives at a July 4 election, forecasting the Labour Party would comfortably win a large majority after 14 years in opposition.
* Iran's Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi announced on Wednesday that over 170,000 forces will be deployed to ensure security for the upcoming presidential election, state news agency IRNA reported.
* UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday emphasized the crucial role of healthcare in addressing conflict-related sexual violence, advocating for the protection of hospitals and healthcare facilities to support survivors.
* Over 3,000 nurses at six hospitals in the U.S. state of Oregon continued their strike on Wednesday to demand fair wages and better staffing levels.
* Canada on Wednesday declared Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, as a "terrorist entity."
* Israeli tanks backed by warplanes and drones advanced deeper into the western part of the Gaza Strip city of Rafah on Wednesday, killing eight people, according to residents and Palestinian medics.
* Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesman Daniel Hagari said on Wednesday that Hamas "cannot be eliminated" and suggested that only a swap deal could secure the release of all hostages still held in Gaza.
* The head of Lebanon's Hezbollah said on Wednesday that nowhere in Israel would be safe if a full-fledged war breaks out between the two foes, and also threatened EU member Cyprus for the first time and other parts of the Mediterranean.
* Lebanese authorities will implement a new plan to solve the Syrian refugee crisis within their borders if the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) continues to delay the delivery of data on Syrian refugees in the country, said Elias al-Baysari, director-general of Lebanon's General Security, on Wednesday.
* The Moroccan navy rescued 91 sub-Saharan migrants off the Atlantic coast on Wednesday, the official MAP news agency reported, citing a statement from the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces.
* Kenya Airways (KQ) on Wednesday resumed direct flights between Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, and Mozambique's Maputo to help strengthen intra-Africa connectivity.
* Morocco's airports recorded a commercial traffic volume of 12,353,496 passengers in the first five months of 2024, witnessing a 19-percent increase year-on-year, the Moroccan Airports Authority (ONDA) said on Wednesday.
* Global fossil fuel consumption and energy emissions hit all-time highs in 2023, even as fossil fuels' share of the global energy mix decreased slightly on the year, the industry's Statistical Review of World Energy report said on Thursday.
* China's non-financial outbound direct investment rose 16.3% from a year earlier to $60.2 billion in the first five months of 2024, commerce ministry data showed on Thursday.
* Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Wednesday proposed the government's budget bill for the fiscal year 2025, worth 3.75 trillion baht (102 billion USD), to parliament for its first reading.
* Mexico will spend responsibly and control the fiscal deficit next year without raising taxes, President-Elect Claudia Sheinbaum said on Wednesday, while defending a judicial overhaul that has spooked markets since her party secured a landslide victory in general elections.
* Indonesia posted a widening trade balance surplus to 2.93 billion USD in May, compared to the previous month's 2.72 billion dollars, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced on Wednesday.
* New Zealand's gross domestic product (GDP) rose 0.2 percent in the March 2024 quarter, following two quarters of contraction, the statistics department Stats NZ said on Thursday.
* The Philippines' overall balance of payments (BOP) posted a surplus of 2 billion USD in May 2024, a reversal from the 439 million BOP deficit recorded in May 2023, the country's central bank has said.
* The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) of the United Kingdom rose by 2 percent in the 12 months to May 2024, down from 2.3 percent in the 12 months to April, data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Wednesday.
* Norway's central bank kept its key policy interest rate on hold at a 16-year high of 4.50% on Thursday, as unanimously expected by analysts, and said a cut was now expected in 2025, later than previously scheduled.
* Mongolia exported 31.7 million tons of coal in the first five months of this year, marking a 37.3 percent increase compared to the same period last year, data by the country's National Statistics Office showed Thursday.
* Nearly 2 million Muslims will reach the end of the haj pilgrimage this week, but extreme heat has proved fatal for hundreds who began the journey last Friday to the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
* Engineers of Singapore Air Force will periodically test gyroscope assemblies on F-16 jet fighters to prevent malfunction of such components and ensure flight safety, the Defense Ministry said Wednesday.
* A new research found higher-than-average risk of death during extreme heat event days in the majority of Canada's largest cities over two decades, Statistics Canada said Wednesday.
* At least five persons died due to heatstroke in India's capital city and nearly 14 others died in the neighboring city of Noida over the past 72 hours, forcing the federal government to issue an advisory to government hospitals to prioritize heatstroke patients' treatment.
