'Unofficial' talks on plastic pollution treaty to begin in Japan
CNA
Countries expected to be present in Tokyo include big oil producers like Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States as well as islands states Antigua and Barbuda and Palau, plus China, India and the European Union.
TOKYO: Delegates from around 20 countries will hold three days of "informal" talks in Japan from Sunday (Mar 1) aimed at salvaging efforts towards a landmark global treaty on plastic pollution.
Supposedly final talks in South Korea in 2024 towards an agreement failed, and a renewed effort in Geneva last August likewise collapsed in overtime.
A Japanese environment ministry official said that the "informal" closed-door meeting among "working-level officials" through Tuesday was not expected to result in any official announcement.
"Japan is in a position of pushing for progress on the issue, and so is hosting the meeting," the official told AFP without wishing to be named.
South Korea’s military said that it detected about 10 ballistic missiles fired from North Korea’s capital region toward the eastern sea.
Trump said the US strikes had "totally demolished" most of Kharg Island and warned that more could follow, adding: "We may hit it a few more times just for fun."
In this first part of a series on electric vehicles in Asia, CNA examines how one of Southeast Asia’s largest untapped copper deposits in Mindanao could boost the Philippines’ role in the global EV supply chain.
BAGHDAD: Israel said the war against Iran was entering its "decisive phase" on Saturday (Mar 14), as explosions rocked cities across the Middle East, with strikes on the US embassy in Baghdad and a major Emirati energy facility.Black smoke rose above Washington's embassy in Iraq, AFP journalists saw, the seco
TOKYO: The United States can provide "reliable" energy supplies to Asia-Pacific, US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said on Saturday (Mar 14), as the Middle East war cripples the region's oil and gas flow.
The oil will be released in the form of loans that companies will return with extra barrels as a premium, the US Energy Department said.
SHANGHAI: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Afghan counterpart Amir Khan Muttaqi in a phone call that disputes between Afghanistan and Pakistan should be resolved through dialogue and consultation, not
SEOUL/TOKYO: North Korea fired a projectile towards the sea on Saturday (Mar 14), South Korea and Japan said, with Tokyo saying it may have been a ballistic missile, while the US and South Korea conducted military drills.The projectile was fired toward the sea off North Korea's east coast, the South Korean mi
JAKARTA: Indonesia's senior economic minister said on Friday (Mar 13) that the country may impose additional taxes on certain commodities, such as palm oil, if the government needs to reduce the impact on the budget from risin
The United States has deployed its USS Tripoli amphibious assault ship to the Middle East, reports say, as the war with Iran enters its third week.
JAKARTA: Two men on a motorbike threw acid in the face of an Indonesian rights activist, leaving him badly hurt and prompting calls on Friday (Mar 13) for a thorough investigation amid concerns of democratic backsliding in the country.Andrie Yunus, deputy coordinator of the KontraS rights group, sustained se
The Malaysian government is in a strong position to absorb the higher costs due to the various fiscal reforms and consolidation measures implemented over the past three years, said Finance Minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan.
A second arms package, worth around US$14 billion, could be approved for Taiwan after US President Donald Trump visits Beijing later this month.