UN ALARM AS UKRAINE NUCLEAR POWER PLANT SHELLED AGAIN

The United Nations chief has called for an immediate end to all military activity around Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine, as Moscow and Kyiv blamed each other for renewed shelling.

Ukraine’s Energoatom agency said the Zaporizhzhia complex was struck five times on Thursday, including near where radioactive materials are stored.

Russian-appointed officials, meanwhile, said Ukraine shelled the plant twice, disrupting a shift changeover, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

In a statement ahead of a UN Security Council meeting called by Russia, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that any damage could lead to “catastrophic consequences” in the region and beyond.

“The facility must not be used as part of any military operation. Instead, urgent agreement is needed at a technical level on a safe perimeter of demilitarisation to ensure the safety of the area,” Guterres said in a statement.

UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that the military activity around Zaporizhzhia was “very alarming” and called on Ukraine and Russia to immediately allow nuclear experts to assess damage as well as evaluate safety and security at the complex because the situation had “been deteriorating very rapidly”.

Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), pointed to shelling and several explosions at Zaporizhzhia last Friday that forced the shutdown of the electrical power transformer and two backup transformers, leading to one of the nuclear reactors being shut down.

CHINA, NEPAL AGREE TO BUILD TRANS-HIMALAYAN NETWORK

Beijing : China and Nepal have agreed to build the so-called Trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity Network, the Chinese foreign 6ministry said, following a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries.

It has also pledged $118 million in grant assistance to Nepal to invest in various projects this yearafter visiting foreign minister Narayan Khadka held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi to further cement the bilateral ties.

As part of the agreement, Wang said China would finance the feasibility study of a China-Nepal cross-border railway and send experts to Nepal to conduct surveys this year, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson at the foreign ministry, told a media briefing in Beijing on Thursday. The network, under China’s Belt and Road Initiative, will involve the building of railways and communication networks.

Khadka, who is on an official visit to China, met Wang in theChinese city of Qingdao on Wednesday, where he also reiterated Nepal’s unwavering commitment to the one-China Policy and assured that the Nepali territory would not be allowed to be used for any anti-China activity, according to the statement.

CHINA TRASHES BRI CRITICISM BY B’DESH

China on Thursday defended its Belt and Road Initiativesaying that its projects delivered “tangible benefits” and loans carried lower interest rates compared to western financial institutions.

To China’s surprise, the latest criticism of BRI came from Bangladeshi finance minister Mustafa Kamal who said Beijing cannot disagree with the criticism of the projects. “Whatever the situation (that) is going on worldwide, everybody will be thinking twice to agree to this project (BRI),” Kamal said in an interview with Financial Times. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina and many top officials had thanked China for offering loans and welcomed the Chinese side to continue these “mutually beneficial” projects.

CHINA RENEWS THREATS TO ATTACK TAIWAN, ISLAND LAUNCHES ITS OWN DRILLS

Beijing : Chinaon Thursday renewed its threat to attack Taiwan following almost a week of war games near the island. Taiwan has called Beijing’s claims to the self-governing democracy “wishful thinking” and launched its own military exercises.

Taiwan’s “collusion with external forces to seek independence and provocation will only accelerate their own demise and push Taiwan into the abyss of disaster,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a daily briefing. “Theirpursuit of Taiwan independence will never succeed, and any attempt to sell the national interest will be met with a complete failure,” he told reporters.

Taiwan says Beijing is using US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit as a pretext to raise the stakes in its feud with Taipei, firing missiles into the Taiwan Strait and over the island into the Pacific Ocean. China also sent planes and ships across the midline in the strait that has long been abuffer between the sides.

Taiwan placed its military under high alert during the Chinese drills but took no direct countermeasures. It held artillery drills off its southwestern coast facing China that ran through Thursday, illustrating the challenges the People's Liberation Army would face were it to launch an invasion across the strait.

TRUSS, IF ELECTED PM, VOWS TO BOOST INDIA-UK TIES

London : Conservative party leadership contender Liz Truss pitched herself as probusiness to the Indian community at the Conservative Friends of India first hustings on Wednesday night when she pledged to deepen ties with India on the defence, trade and people-to-people fronts and said if made UK PM she would want to visit India frequently.

Truss, who is competing with Indian-origin Rishi Sunak to become Boris Johnson’s successor, told members she was “very, very committed” to the UK-India relationship. “I want to get this trade deal done, preferably by Diwali, but definitely by the end of the year, and I want to make sure that the trade deal is as deep as possible covering everything from life sciences to technology to agriculture,” she said. “There is no doubt in my mind that many of the best and brightest in the world are in India. I will continue to look at our visa system to make sure it attracts those people,” she added.

She said the UK had a real opportunity to strengthen its defence and security relationship with India. “India is currently 60% dependent on Russian weapons but obviously they are now concerned about Russia’s strategic relationship with China and also the efficacy of some of those weapons, so there is a real opportunity for closer partnership,” she said. Truss also said she wanted the UK and India to work together to give finance to developing countries to prevent them becoming saddled with debts to China. “All of the free world, including India andthe UK, need to step up to make sure that countries do not end up in debt to authoritarian regimes like China,” she said, pledging to increase UK’s defence spending

‘RUSSIA IS A STATE SPONSOR OF TERRORISM’

Latvian parliamentarians on Thursday declared Russia a “state sponsor of terrorism” whose actions in Ukraine constitute “targeted genocide against the Ukrainian people”.

Voting by 67 in favour and none against in Latvia’s legislature, MPs said they considered “Russia’s violence against civilians in pursuit of political aims as terrorism”.

Ukraine hailed the resolution as a “timely move”.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman condemned the vote as “primal xenophobia”.

TALIBAN CLERIC DIES IN KABUL SUICIDE BLAST CLAIMED BY IS

Kabul : A senior Taliban cleric known for his fiery speeches against the Islamic State was killed on Thursday at his madrassa in the Afghan capital in asuicide attack claimed by the jihadi group. Rahimullah Haqqani, who had recently spoken publicly in favour of girls being allowed to attend school, had survived at least two previous assassination attempts — including one in Pakistan in October 2020. “The madrassa of Sheikh Rahimullah was targeted today and as a result he and one of his brothers were martyred,” police spokesman Khalid Zadran said, adding that three others were wounded.

A government spokesman confirmed his death “in an attack carried out by a cowardly enemy”, but did not offer more details. Hours later, IS claimed the attack, saying the bomber had detonated his explosive vest inside the office of the cleric.

Taliban sources said that although he held no official position, Haqqani was an influential figure who had taught many of the group’s members.

GOTABAYA RAJAPAKSA ARRIVES IN THAILAND

Bangkok : Former Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who last month fled anti-government protests in his country, arrived in Thailand on Thursday night on a flight from Singapore, where he had been staying since mid-July. Thai TV stations showed Rajapaksa and awoman believed to be his wife outside the VIP hall at Bangkok airport being led to a limousine, which then drove off to an undisclosed destination.

Thai oficials on Wednesday said they had been asked by the Sri Lankan government to allow him entry, and that he would be permitted to stay temporarily. Thai PM Prayuth Chanocha said he was aware of Rajapaksa’s intended visit and that it was allowed for humanitarian reasons because the former president was seeking asylum in a third country. He did not elaborate but said Rajapaksa would not engage in political activity while in Thailand.

NORTH KOREA CLAIMS VICTORY OVER COVID-19

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has declared victory over COVID-19 and ordered preventive measures eased, claiming the country’s widely disputed success would be recognised as a global health miracle. The move came just three months after the country acknowledged an Omicron outbreak.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency also reported on Thursday that Mr. Kim’s sister said her brother had suffered a fever and blamed the North Korean outbreak on leaflets flown from South Korea, while warning of deadly retaliation. North Korea reported 4.8 million “fever cases” and 74 deaths but only identified a fraction as COVID-19.