* Law enforcement authorities from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand on Tuesday launched their 159th joint patrol of the Mekong River to combat cross-border crime.
* U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he has directed his special envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in hope of finalizing a peace deal on the Ukraine crisis.
* Russian and Ukrainian representatives held a meeting on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi, a Russian presidential aide said. Yuri Ushakov said on Wednesday that U.S. representatives also met with Russian representatives.
* The Kremlin confirmed on Wednesday that a U.S. delegation, including U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and other key officials, will visit Moscow next week to discuss a possible peace plan for Ukraine.
* Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that it is premature to assume the Ukraine conflict is nearing an end.
* Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that the peace plan negotiated by Ukraine and the United States in Geneva could be developed into "deeper agreements," as U.S. President Donald Trump is sending his special envoy to Moscow next week.
* Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Wednesday proposed hosting peace talks on Ukraine in Minsk during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the state-run BELTA news agency reported.
* French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday that France and Britain will launch a workshop to coordinate security guarantees for Ukraine with the involvement of the United States.
* Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy for investment and economic cooperation Kirill Dmitriev on Wednesday called Bloomberg's decryption of secret talks with a U.S. envoy "fake."
* Russia's new migration policy for 2026-2030 no longer treats foreign migration as a tool for addressing demographic challenges but instead places national security at the forefront, a senior Russian Security Council official said Tuesday.
* China is willing to continue to strengthen economic and trade cooperation with the European Union (EU), and hopes that the EU will firmly honor its commitment to openness, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Wednesday.
* Sri Lanka has advanced its application to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) following Cabinet approval to complete and submit the initial questionnaire issued for prospective members, Cabinet Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa said on Tuesday.
* Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Masato Kanda and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to deepen cooperation on the peaceful, safe and sustainable use of nuclear energy in Asia and the Pacific.
* Statehood for the Palestinians is a right, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday, while reiterating the call for an end to the unlawful occupation of the Palestinian territory.
* The Afghan government has pardoned and released 3,204 prisoners across the country under a nationwide amnesty, the country's Supreme Court announced late Tuesday.
* The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has recorded 106 Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon since the cessation of hostilities was announced on Nov. 27 last year, a UN spokesperson said Tuesday.
* African and European leaders on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation in peace and security, development, climate action and migration at the 7th African Union-European Union Summit held in Luanda.
* Senior officials from Egypt, Qatar, and Türkiye met in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss ways to consolidate the Gaza ceasefire and resolve obstacles to its implementation, Egypt's Al Qahera News Channel reported.
* Germany will provide 149.65 million euros (173.19 million USD) to support Lebanon's reforms and long-term development in areas such as education, water, and social protection, officials said at the first Lebanon-Germany government development cooperation talks held here on Tuesday.
* Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), Serbia's only oil refinery, could be forced to halt operations within days unless the U.S. Treasury renews sanctions exemptions for its Russian-owned operator, President Aleksandar Vucic warned on Tuesday.
* Lebanon and Cyprus on Wednesday signed a historic maritime boundary demarcation agreement, ending nearly two decades of deadlock that had hindered oil and gas exploration in the eastern Mediterranean.
* The Israeli military said Wednesday it killed six more militants emerging from a tunnel shaft in Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza.
* A total of 115 Burundian refugees, many of whom fled to Rwanda in 2015 due to political instability, have been voluntarily repatriated to their home country, according to an official from the Rwandan Ministry in charge of Emergency Management.
* The Lao central bank said that it will further cut its 7-day basic interest rate as part of monetary measures to maintain liquidity and support economic growth. The Lao central bank will cut its 7-day base interest rate from 9 percent to 8.5 percent, according to a report from the Bank of the Lao PDR (BOL).
* Cambodia's economic growth is projected to decelerate to 4.8 percent in 2025 and 4 percent in 2026, reflecting export volatility, declining remittances, a slowdown in tourism, and weak domestic demand, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday.
* The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday said it has approved a 398.8-million-U.S.-dollar loan to support the state of Assam in India in transforming its health care and medical education systems.
* New Zealand's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 2.25 percent on Wednesday, taking the Official Cash Rate (OCR) to a three-year low to support economic recovery.
* A total of 365,951 Sri Lankans are currently unemployed, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya told Parliament on Wednesday.
* Brunei's total trade in September reached nearly 1.7 billion Brunei dollars (1.31 billion USD), according to the latest statistics from Brunei's Ministry of Finance and Economy.
* Argentina's economic activity reported a 5 percent yearly growth in September and a 0.5 percent monthly growth in the seasonally adjusted comparison, the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INDEC) said Tuesday.
* The number of evacuees rose to over 21,000 in Malaysia on Wednesday, with 10 states affected across the country due to the current northeast monsoon season, according to authorities. Kelantan remains the hardest hit, with 9,642 flood evacuees housed in 52 flood relief centers as of 9 a.m. local time.
* Several domestic and international flights were adversely affected in India on Tuesday due to ash plumes over Delhi skies after Ethiopia's Hayli Gubbi volcano erupted, media reports said.
