Seoul, July 30 (IANS) South Korea and Australia on Tuesday agreed to launch an “economic security dialogue” aimed at enhancing communication and cooperation in the economic security field between the two countries, Seoul’s foreign ministry said.

The agreement was reached during bilateral talks in Seoul between Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yu and his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, the ministry said in a release.

The chief secretary for economic security from the presidential office and the deputy secretary from Australia’s Foreign Ministry will serve as chief representatives for the new dialogue, it said.

The inaugural meeting is scheduled to be held in Seoul, Yonhap news agency reported.

The two sides also agreed to pursue a “climate dialogue” led by the climate change ambassadors of their respective foreign ministries and to explore joint projects in the infrastructure sector of the Indo-Pacific region.

The ministerial meeting comes two months after the foreign and defence ministers of the two countries held a “two plus two” meeting in Melbourne in May.

Before the meeting, Wong paid a visit to the Demilitarised Zone separating the two Koreas, condemning North Korea’s military pact with Russia as “destabilising and risky for the world.”

She made the remarks while speaking to reporters about the deepening military and other cooperation between North Korea and Russia.

“I also want to address the security pact between North Korea and Russia. Once again, this is destabilising and risky for the world,” Wong said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a new treaty on partnership during their summit in Pyongyang in June. The mutual defence pact calls for them to provide military and other assistance “without delay” if either country is invaded or enters a state of war.

“Once again, we see Russia acting in ways that are not conducive to peace, but rather escalatory,” Wong said, adding that North Korea’s weapons supplies to Russia for Moscow’s war in Ukraine are a flagrant violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Pyongyang and Moscow have denied conducting any arms transactions.

Wong also called for further cooperation with South Korea in various sectors, ranging from economics to defence.

“We see South Korea as being very important in enabling the strategic balance in the region,” she said.

Regarding South Korea’s potential participation in the AUKUS security partnership, Wong said such interest “is a reminder that we need a strategic balance in the region.”

The AUKUS partnership, launched in September 2021, has drawn attention in South Korea after a US official in March mentioned South Korea and Japan as potential partners under consideration by AUKUS members to cooperate in high-tech areas, known as Pillar 2, which covers quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and hypersonics.

Wong arrived in Seoul after attending a ministers’ gathering in Laos of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc and joining a meeting of Quad foreign ministers in Tokyo with counterparts from the United States, Japan and India.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 30 (IANS) Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will arrive in New Delhi late Tuesday evening on a three-day State Visit which is expected to further strengthen the age-old historical and civilisational ties between the two countries.

The Vietnamese PM will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including several ministers, deputy ministers and business leaders.

He is scheduled to participate in various programmes and business events on Wednesday and will receive a ceremonial welcome at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan on August 1.

On the same day, Pham Minh Chinh will visit Raj Ghat to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and then hold bilateral discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi who will also host a luncheon in the honour of the visiting delegation.

Chinh is also scheduled to call on the President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.

“India considers Vietnam as a key pillar of its Act East Policy and an important partner in its Indo-Pacific vision,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday.

Last week, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval attended the state funeral of Nguyen Phu Trong, the General Secretary of Communist Party of Vietnam who passed away on July 19, in Hanoi on Thursday.

NSA Doval conveyed India’s condolences personally to the Vietnamese President To Lam, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and the bereaved family.

During his meeting with NSA Doval on Wednesday, Pham Minh Chinh expressed his “sincere thanks” to the government and people of India for their kind gesture towards late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong by sending high-ranking officials to attend the state funeral and also the Indian Parliament for taking time to commemorate the General Secretary on July 22.

“This demonstrates the affection of close friends, as well as the precious tradition between the two peoples of Vietnam and India,” Vietnam’s PMO said in a statement after the meeting with NSA Doval.

“Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh suggested that the two countries continue to coordinate to further develop the Vietnam-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and emphasised that cooperation in the fields of science and technology, information and telecommunications, and digital technology are very potential areas that need further attention and promotion,” it added.

Recognising late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s “important contributions” to strengthening the Vietnam-India relationship, NSA Doval emphasised that he was an erudite leader and widely respected by people of India.

He also affirmed that the Indian government attaches importance to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and India, and wishes to further deepen the bilateral relationship, especially in traditional areas such as defence and security, trade and investment, as well as expand cooperation in new areas as proposed by Hanoi.

India-Vietnam relations have been on the upswing since the establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Hanoi in 2016.

PM Modi has maintained Vietnam’s importance as an important pillar of India’s ‘Act East’ policy and the Indo-Pacific vision, while seeking to enhance the scope of the bilateral relationship – including defence partnership – besides working for expeditious progress on existing initiatives.

–IANS

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Ankara, July 30 (IANS) Turkey “neutralised” 13 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in an operation carried out in northern Iraq, said the Turkish Defence Ministry on Tuesday.

The operation took place in the Gara and Haftanin regions of Iraq, said the statement, without specifying the timing.

Turkish authorities often use the term “neutralise” in their statements to imply the alleged “terrorists” have either surrendered, been killed, or been captured, Xinhua news agency reported.

“We continue and will continue our struggle with great determination to save our noble nation from the scourge of terrorism,” the ministry said.

The PKK, listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union, has rebelled against the Turkish government for more than three decades.

Since 2019, Turkey has initiated a series of cross-border military operations in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq, targeting the PKK’s hideouts.

–IANS

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Sacramento, July 30 (IANS) As firefighters in Northern California continued battling the country’s largest active fire, a new blaze raged Northern Colorado, prompting evacuations and causing unhealthy air quality alerts.

The Park Fire in Northern California has become the largest wildfire in the state so far this year and the sixth-largest in the state’s history. It has consumed 373,357 acres (1,511 square km) across four counties, Xinhua news agency reported.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) reported that the blaze was 12 per cent contained on Monday afternoon. The fire’s rapid spread has been fueled by abundant vegetation and one of the area’s hottest, driest summers on record.

The Park Fire’s destructive path also left 109 structures destroyed and five others damaged, with over 4,200 more under threat.

Authorities believed the fire was deliberately set in a park near Chico last Wednesday afternoon. A 42-year-old Chico resident has been arrested and charged with felony arson in connection with the incident.

California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for the Park Fire and Gold Complex fires last week. The latter, which started a week ago, has burned 3,007 acres and was 98 per cent contained by Monday, according to Cal Fire.

The Park Fire is currently the largest fire burning in the nation, surpassing the Durkee Fire in eastern Oregon, which has burned through 293,390 acres. The massive firefighting effort involved more than 4,876 personnel, 33 helicopters and 434 fire engines.

Meanwhile, in Northern Colorado, the Alexander Mountain Fire erupted Monday morning near Roosevelt National Park and has quickly grown to 864 acres by the afternoon. The rapid expansion of this blaze forced the evacuation of more than 2,600 people, with at least 1,500 receiving voluntary evacuation notices, according to the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office.

California is grappling with yet another significant wildfire — the Borel Fire in Kern County. This blaze, which began on July 24 after a car caught on fire in an accident, has already scorched 53,010 acres and had zero containment as of Monday.

The fire’s swift advance through dry vegetation, exacerbated by hot, humid and windy conditions, has impacted several communities.

The widespread wildfires threatened lives and property and severely impacted air quality across the Western United States. Smoke from the fires in Northern California and Oregon spread across several states, including Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming and Montana.

On Monday, the US Environmental Protection Agency’s AirNow air quality data indicated the air was unhealthy for people with health issues in most wildfire-affected areas.

The National Weather Service’s Sacramento branch warned that the pollution would likely persist and potentially worsen as smoke settles into valleys where fires are burning.

–IANS

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Tehran, July 30 (IANS) Iran and the Gambia resumed their diplomatic relations, almost 14 years after cutting ties.

According to a joint statement released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the decision was made in a meeting between Iran’s Acting Foreign Minister, Ali Bagheri Kani and Gambian Foreign Minister Mamadou Tangara, in the Iranian capital, Tehran, in line with the interests of both countries, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Gambian Foreign Minister has travelled to Tehran to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, which is scheduled for Tuesday.

According to the statement, the two governments agreed to expand bilateral cooperation covering the political, economic, investment, trade and cultural spheres.

The statement added that the two countries’ embassies in Senegal’s capital, Dakar, agreed to serve as diplomatic contact points to help resume official diplomacy.

The Gambia cut diplomatic and economic relations with Iran in November 2010 and ordered all Iranian representatives to leave within 48 hours.

The Gambia cited no reason for cutting ties with Iran. Tehran, however, attributed the action to pressure from the United States.

–IANS

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