* China will promote new and greater development of a strategic partnership with Syria, Zhao Leji, chairman of the standing committee of China's National People's Congress said on Monday when meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
* Azerbaijani authorities and representatives of the ethnic Armenians of Karabakh are holding a meeting in Karabakh, the Sputnik Azerbaijan media outlet reported on Monday.
* Poland's ruling nationalists are in the lead ahead of Oct. 15 parliamentary elections, according to a poll published on Monday.
* Ukraine and the United States have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) under which Kyiv will receive up to $522 for strengthening the resilience of the Ukrainian energy system, the U.S. embassy in Ukraine said.
* French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday evening that France would withdraw its troops deployed in Niger by the end of 2023.
* Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Libya Abdoulaye Bathily on Sunday stressed the need for coordinated national action to overcome the current crisis in Libya, following the deadly floods that hit its eastern part earlier this month.
* The Kremlin said on Monday it was closely monitoring what it called the tense and "potentially dangerous" situation in Kosovo, where ethnic Serb gunmen stormed a village at the weekend, battling police and barricading themselves into a monastery.
* A just solution to the Palestinian issue is essential for regional stability, stated Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud during his address at the 78th session of the UN General Assembly's general debate on Saturday.
* The Australian Government has recommenced the visa process for Chinese group travelers, according to an official statement.
* Gunmen in Nigeria killed eight people on Sunday and abducted at least 60 others in two communities of northwest Zamfara state, residents and a local traditional leader said, two days after armed men kidnapped dozens from a university in the state.
* Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi voiced their countries' willingness to improve bilateral relations, according to a statement released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Sunday.
* The Iranian intelligence has foiled a terrorist plot targetting multiple crowded places here in the Iranian capital and arrested 28 suspects, the Intelligence Ministry said on Sunday.
* Russia's Gazprom GAZP.MM said it would send 41.8 million cubic metres (mcm) of gas to Europe via Ukraine on Monday, the same volume as the previous day.
* An International Monetary Fund monitoring mission started work on Monday on the second review of a $15.6 billion multi-year loan program for Ukraine.
* Malaysia's latest leading index showed the country's economic performance will remain moderate in the near term over uncertain global prospects, The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said on Monday.
* Egypt's petroleum ministry launched an international bidding round on Monday for exploration in 23 open blocks, with the offer deadline set for Feb. 25.
* At least 64 Palestinians were killed, with 10 others still missing, in the deadly floods that hit eastern Libya, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.
* More than 900 people have died of dengue fever, out of 187,725 cases reported across Bangladesh so far this year, health department figures showed Sunday.
