Ukraine asks France, Germany to resolve conflict in the East; Philippines takes tough stance on China

Ukraine wants to resolve the conflict in the East with the support of France, Germany

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Photo: AFP/TTXVN

New Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit two European Union (EU) member countries, Germany and France, next week. According to the announcement of the French President's Office on June 13, in his first visit to France as the head of Ukraine, Mr. Zelensky will hold talks with his counterpart Emmanuel Macron on the afternoon of June 17.

The statement stressed that the upcoming discussions between the two leaders will provide an opportunity to address the issue of French support for the reform program sought by the new Ukrainian president. In addition, the two sides are expected to discuss “opportunities for resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine” with the support of France and Germany.

Polish President's visit to the US falls short of expectations

Speaking at a press conference during a meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda at the White House on June 12, US President Donald Trump only pledged to send 1,000 more troops to Poland, less than half the number he and his Polish counterpart discussed at the meeting. This number is also lower than the number agreed by Polish and US officials in talks between the two sides held a day earlier. The 1,000 troops will be transferred from Germany to Poland in the coming time, along with drones and other military hardware.

However, the White House owner did not make any commitment to establish a permanent US military base in Poland, although the Polish President left open the possibility that Poland was willing to spend $2 billion to build this base and name the base "Fort Trump" after Mr. Trump.

Iran rescues 44 sailors in "accident" in Gulf of Oman

Smoke billows from an oil tanker after what is believed to be an "external attack" off the coast of Oman on June 13, 2019. Photo: AFP/TTXVN

Iran's official IRNA news agency said the country's navy rescued 44 sailors from two oil tankers that caught fire after an "incident" in the Sea of ​​Oman on the morning of June 13 local time. According to IRNA, the sailors were rescued by the Iranian Navy unit in Hormozgan province and transferred to the port of Bandar-e-Jask. Iran's IRNA also said on June 13 that one of the two Front Altair oil tankers had sunk. However, a spokesman for the Norwegian company Frontline, which owns the Front Altair, denied the information, affirming that the Front Altair was still drifting in the Gulf of Oman and that the sailors had left the ship safely.

Earlier, two oil tankers, the Marshal Islands-flagged Front Altair and the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous, encountered problems and had to evacuate their crews. Fires broke out on both vessels. According to some sources, this could be an "external attack".

British government approves extradition of WikiLeaks boss to US

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange when arrested by British police. Photo: Reuters

On June 13, the British Home Secretary announced that he had signed a decision approving the request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States. This move paves the way for Mr. Assange to be tried in the United States on charges of disseminating thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents of this country.

In his statement, Minister Sajid Javid confirmed that on June 12, he personally signed the decision to approve the request for Mr. Assange to be extradited to the US for trial at Washington's request a day earlier. However, the final decision on whether to extradite Mr. Assange to the US or not will depend on the British court. The next court hearing that Mr. Assange will face is scheduled for June 14.

Philippines threatens to cut diplomatic ties with China

Photo courtesy of FB Gimvir 1, a Philippine fishing boat that sank on the night of June 9 in the East Sea. Photo:ABS-CBN

Manila has threatened to sever diplomatic ties with Beijing after a Chinese fishing boat sank and abandoned 22 Filipino fishermen in the South China Sea. In a statement, Salvador Panelo, spokesman for the President of the Philippines, said that President Rodrigo Duterte could consider cutting or downgrading diplomatic relations with China if the recent sinking of a Philippine fishing boat in Reed Bank is determined to be a deliberate act by a Chinese vessel.

"We can sever diplomatic relations, that's the first thing to do when we detect aggression. First, issue a protest note if you are not satisfied with their explanation and when you find out that it was intentional, that's a completely different matter," Panelo stressed.

Huu Quan