A LOOSE STRATEGIC COALITION IS GROWING AGAINST CHINA

From Australia to Japan, United States to Asean and countries in Europe, a

loose strategic coalition is taking on China even as New Delhi tries to

break the deadlock with Beijing amid the standoff along the LAC.

US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo Pompeo, who was briefing reporters in

Washington DC, said, "We welcome India's ban on certain mobile apps that can

serve as appendages of CCP's surveillance state. India's clean app approach

will boost India's sovereignty, will also boost India's integrity and

national security, as the Indian government itself has stated."

Australia PM Scott Morrison Wednesday announced Australia's 2020 Defence

Strategic Update, a 270-billion Australian dollar 10-year defence plan which

includes, for the first time, land, sea and air-based long-range and

hypersonic strike missiles.

Significantly, the India-China standoff figures in its assessment. "Tensions

over territorial claims are rising across the Indo-Pacific region, as we

have seen recently on the disputed border between India and China, and the

South China Sea, and the East China Sea. The risk of miscalculation and even

conflict is heightening.Previous assumptions of enduring advantage and

technological edge are no longer constants and cannot be relied upon.

Coercive activities are rife," Morrison said at the Update's announcement.

On Tuesday, Japan delivered its toughest words to China on the issue of Hong

Kong after Beijing reportedly passed a sweeping national security law for

the city that Tokyo said would shake international faith in the

"one-country, two-systems" principle.

Europe, too, is waking up to the China challenge, with many leaders

condemning Beijing's move to press ahead with its new security laws in Hong

Kong warning that it will speed up the reassessment of China as a

trustworthy economic partner. European Union Council president Charles

Michel said "we deplore the decision" and the head of the European

Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said the bloc was discussing, with

international partners, any possible measures in response.

RUSSIAN VOTERS AGREE TO REFORM THAT COULD EXTEND PUTIN'S RULE TO 2036

A majority of voters approved changes to Russia's constitution that would

allow President Vladimir Putin to hold power until 2036, but the weeklong

plebiscite that ended Wednesday was tarnished by widespread reports of

pressure on voters and other irregularities.

With most of the nation's polls closed and 20% of precincts counted, 72%

voted for the constitutional amendments, according to election officials.

For the first time in Russia, polls were kept open for a week to bolster

turnout without increasing crowds casting ballots amid the coronavirus

pandemic - a provision that Kremlin critics denounced as an extra tool to

manipulate the outcome.

A massive propaganda campaign and the opposition's failure to mount a

coordinated challenge helped Putin get the result he wanted, but the

plebiscite could end up eroding his position because of the unconventional

methods used to boost participation and the dubious legal basis for the

balloting.

By the time polls closed in Moscow and most other parts of Western Russia,

the overall turnout was at 65%, according to election officials. In some

regions, almost 90% of eligible voters cast ballots.

On Russia's easternmost Chukchi Peninsula, nine hours ahead of Moscow,

officials quickly announced full preliminary results showing 80% of voters

supported the amendments, and in other parts of the Far East, they said over

70% of voters backed the changes.

Kremlin critics and independent election observers questioned official

figures.

US SECURES NEARLY ENTIRE WORLD STOCK OF DRUG REMDESIVIR

The Donald Trump administration has secured nearly the entire world stock of

antiviral drug remdesivir from US-based Gilead Sciences for the next three

months, leaving hardly any stock of the key Covid-19 drug for the rest of

the world. As a result of an agreement with the drug maker announced earlier

this week, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has secured

more than 500,000 treatment courses of the drug for American hospitals

through September.

This represents 100 per cent of Gilead's projected production for July

(94,200 treatment courses), 90 per cent of production in August (174,900

treatment courses), and 90 per cent of production in September (232,800

treatment courses), in addition to an allocation for clinical trials.

A treatment course of remdesivir is, on average, 6.25 vials, the US Health

and Human Services said. The agreement allows hospitals in the US to

purchase the drug in amounts allocated by HHS and state health departments.

Hospitals in the US will receive the product shipped by AmerisourceBergen

and will pay no more than Gilead's Wholesale Acquisition Price (WAC), which

amounts to approximately $3,200 per treatment course.

"President Trump has struck an amazing deal to ensure Americans have access

to the first authorised therapeutic for Covid-19," US Health and Human

Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement.

FRANCE FREEZES ROLE IN NATO NAVAL FORCE AMID TURKEY TENSIONS

France announced Wednesday that it is suspending its involvement in a NATO

naval operation in the Mediterranean Sea after a stand-off with a Turkish

warship, amid growing tensions within the military alliance over the

conflict in Libya.

France's Defense Ministry said that the government sent a letter on Tuesday

to NATO saying it is suspending its participation in Sea Guardian

"temporarily."

It came after NATO investigators submitted their report into the June 10

incident.

A ministry official said France wants NATO allies to "solemnly reaffirm

their attachment" to the arms embargo on Libya, which is being policed in

part by a European Union naval operation.

France has accused Turkey of repeated violations of the UN arms embargo on

Libya and branded the Turkish government as an obstacle to securing a

ceasefire in the North African nation, which Turkey firmly denies.

France is also calling for a crisis mechanism to prevent a repeat of an

incident earlier this month between Turkish warships and a French naval

vessel in the Mediterranean.

NATO is investigating what happened.

CHINA DEMANDS INFORMATION FROM 4 MEDIA COMPANIES IN RESPONSE TO US

China has demanded staff and business information from four U.S. media

companies including The Associated Press in what it called a necessary

response to similar demands by Washington on Chinese state-controlled news

outlets.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian announced Wednesday that the AP,

United Press International, CBS and National Public Radio had seven days to

file declarations regarding their staff, financial operations, real estate

ownership and other matters.

"It should be pointed out that the above-mentioned measures by China are

completely necessary countermeasures and are completely legitimate defenses

compelled by unreasonable suppression of the U.S. side on Chinese media

agencies in the United States," Zhao said at a daily briefing.

The Trump administration last month added four Chinese media outlets to a

list of organizations that should be considered "foreign missions" because

of their ties to the government and the ruling Communist Party. That move

could force them to cut staff in the U.S. and adds to a long list of

frictions in economic and political relations between the two countries.

Zhao said recent U.S. policies damage the reputation and image of Chinese

media, impact their operations and "seriously interfere with the normal

people-to-people exchanges between China and the U.S."

POMPEO INSISTS U.S. FIRM ON RUSSIA BUT LEAVES OPEN DOOR TO PUTIN

President Donald Trump's administration insisted Wednesday it has been firm

with Russia over Afghanistan but kept open the door to inviting President

Vladimir Putin for a summit.

Washington has been in uproar since newspapers reported that U.S.

intelligence believed a Russian unit paid bounties for Taliban-linked

militants to kill U.S. troops.

Mr. Trump again denied reports that he had been briefed, saying the

intelligence was not strong enough to warrant telling the president.

"I think it's a hoax by the newspapers and the Democrats," he said.

"I think, frankly, that many of the intelligence people didn't think it was

something that even happened," he said.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said it was "nothing new" that Russia has

been acting against U.S. interests in Afghanistan -- but defended how the

administration had responded.

"We took this seriously; we handle it appropriately," Mr. Pompeo, a former

CIA chief and stalwart Trump ally, said without commenting on the

intelligence.

"The Russians have been selling small arms that have put Americans at risk

there for 10 years. We have objected to it," he told a news conference.

"When we see credible information that suggests that the Russians are

putting American lives at risk, we're responding in a way that is serious."

But Mr. Pompeo did not rule out welcoming Mr. Putin to the United States.

Mr. Pompeo said that the United States meets with Russia to "convince them

to change some of the activities" that go against U.S. interests.

CORONAVIRUS: 'I'M ALL FOR MASKS,' SAYS TRUMP IN CHANGE OF TONE

President Donald Trump, who has often pushed back against mask guidance from

health officials, says he would wear one "in a tight situation with people".

Mr Trump - who has avoided appearing in public with a mask - also maintained

face coverings do not need to become mandatory to curb Covid-19's spread.

His remarks to Fox News come a day after a top Republican called on Mr Trump

to wear a mask as an example.

He spoke as the US hit a new high of 52,000 new virus cases in one day.

The US now has nearly 2.7 million confirmed Covid-19 infections and more

than 128,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University, which is

tracking the pandemic.

Speaking to Fox Business Network on Wednesday, Mr Trump said: "I'm all for

masks."

HAGIA SOPHIA: TURKEY TO RULE ON TURNING SITE INTO MOSQUE

Turkey's Council of State is due to decide if the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul

can be converted into a mosque.

Built in the Sixth Century on the orders of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I,

it was the world's largest cathedral for nearly 1,000 years.

The Unesco World Heritage site was turned into a mosque when the Ottoman

Empire captured the city in 1453, but became a museum in the 1930s.

It may become a mosque again if the court approves the move on Thursday.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for the change during an

election rally last year.

Islamists in Turkey have long called for it to be converted, but secular

opposition members have opposed the move. The proposal has prompted

international criticism, from religious and political leaders worldwide.

The head of the Eastern Orthodox Church has opposed the move, as has Greece

- home to many millions of Orthodox followers.

Culture Minister Lina Mendoni has accused Turkey of reviving "fanatical

nationalist and religious sentiment", insisting no change to a Unesco World

Heritage site can take place without being approved by the body's own

intergovernmental committee.