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News Reports

Current Operations

• U.S. Conducts Airstrikes in Syria in Response to Deadly UAV Attack DoD 23 Mar 2023 -- Earlier today, a U.S. contractor was killed and five U.S. service members and one additional U.S. contractor were wounded after a one-way unmanned aerial vehicle struck a maintenance facility on a Coalition base near Hasakah in northeast Syria at approximately 1:38 p.m. local time.
• Fourth Anniversary of the Global Coalition's Territorial Defeat of Daesh/ISIS in Syria and Iraq US Dept. of State 23 Mar 2023 -- Four years ago, the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh/ISIS and its local partners liberated the final stretch of territory controlled by Daesh/ISIS in Baghuz, Syria, a major milestone in the ongoing effort to ensure the terrorist group's lasting defeat.

Defense Policy / Programs

• Washington Guard Trains with Royal Thai Army Counterparts Army News 23 Mar 2023 -- Soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, 161st Infantry Regiment, Bear and Cobra companies, recently learned how to survive in a jungle as part of exercise Cobra Gold 2023.
• DOD Aims to Boost Small Business Involvement in Nation's Defense DoD News 23 Mar 2023 -- The Defense Department's Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) has several efforts underway to make it easier for the nation's small business community to become more involved in providing goods, services, technology and research in support of the nation's defense.
• Milley Tells House Panel Joint Force Is at 'Inflection Point' DoD News 23 Mar 2023 -- The United States joint force is at an inflection point, Army Gen. Mark A. Milley told the House Appropriations defense subcommittee today.
• Austin Asks Congress to Support Defense Budget Request DoD News 23 Mar 2023 -- The fiscal 2024 defense budget request of $842 billion is needed to deter and counter the threats of today and the threats that may arise in the future, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III told the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee today.
• Generals Discuss Hemispheric Challenges, Solutions DoD News 23 Mar 2023 -- The two combatant commanders of the Western Hemisphere testified on national and regional security at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today.
• US deploys troops to face 'threat' of Russia and China: Report Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- The Pentagon has started rearranging US troops and military equipment across the globe as a counter-force against Russian and Chinese forces.
• Bi-Annual Exercise Resolute Hunter Provides Real-World Partner-Nation and U.S. Joint Force Interoperability US Navy 23 Mar 2023 -- Exercise Resolute Hunter, a joint/combined exercise involving four participating nations and four joint services, concluded its execution phase on Nov. 17, 2022, aboard Naval Air Station (NAS) Fallon, Nevada. Hosted by the Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center (NAWDC), the three-week event is the DOD's only dedicated Battle Management, Command and Control, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (BMC2ISR) exercise.
• NATO Secretary General welcomes multinational fleet of tanker transport NATO 23 Mar 2023 -- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg today (23 March 2023) welcomed the launch of a Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft fleet that is "now ready for a full range of missions" at Eindhoven Air Base in the Netherlands.
• NATO Allies reaffirm support to Georgia and stress importance of continuing reforms NATO 23 Mar 2023 -- The NATO-Georgia Commission met on Thursday (23 March 2023), with the participation by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia Ilia Darchiashvili.
• President of the Republic decides on Finland's accession to Nato Finnish Government 23 Mar 2023 -- On 23 March 2023, President of the Republic Sauli Niinistö decided that Finland would commit itself to the North Atlantic Treaty and the Ottawa Agreement, which were accepted by Parliament on 1 March 2023. The presenting minister was Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto. The President of the Republic also confirmed the acts bringing into force the Treaty and the Agreement.
• President of Finland Signs Law on Country's Accession to NATO Sputnik 23 Mar 2023 -- Finnish President Sauli Niinisto signed a low on the country's accession to NATO during a meeting of the government on Thursday, as broadcast by national media.
• Sweden's Parliament endorses country joining NATO People's Daily 23 Mar 2023 -- Sweden's lawmakers overwhelmingly voted on Wednesday in favor of the country joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
• Russian T-90M Tanks Best in World, Outperform Leopard, Challenger, Abrams Tanks, Medvedev Says Sputnik 23 Mar 2023 -- Russian T-90M tanks are currently the best in the world and they outperform Leopard, Challenger and Abrams tanks in terms of tactical and technical data, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview with leading Russian media, including Sputnik.
• Ukrainian Patriot Air Defense Crew Finishes Training Ahead of Schedule VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Since January, 65 Ukrainian soldiers have been training at Fort Sill, a U.S. Army base in Oklahoma, to operate a Patriot air defense system. The troops expect to graduate in March and return to Ukraine to begin deploying the mobile air defense system.
• Finland donates defence materiel assistance to Ukraine including more of mine-clearing Leopard 2 tanks Finnish MoD 23 Mar 2023 -- Finland will deliver more defence materiel to Ukraine. The President of the Republic decided on the matter on 23 March 2023 on the proposal of the Government.
• Finland to Transfer 3 More Leopard 2 Mine-Clearing Vehicles to Ukraine Sputnik 23 Mar 2023 -- Finland will provide Ukraine with more military assistance, including three Leopard 2 armored mine-clearing vehicles, bringing the total number to six, the Finnish Defense Ministry said on Thursday.
• Bulgaria's Pro-Kremlin Leader Refuses To Send Soviet-Era Fighter Jets And Tanks To Ukraine RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- With its stockpile of Soviet-era weapons, Bulgaria, home to a thriving arms industry, could be a key ally of Ukraine, which is trained on and equipped with such arms, in its war against invading Russian forces.
• NATO Secretary General to Party of European Socialists: crucial to sustain support to Ukraine NATO 23 Mar 2023 -- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg participated in a meeting of the Party of European Socialists (PES) on Thursday (23 March 2023), where he emphasised the importance of continuing to support Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression, both now and for the long term.
• Pentagon chief says Putin-Xi meeting sends 'very troubling message' Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has described Chinese leader Xi Jinping's recent meeting with his Russian counterpart as a "very troubling message" to the United States.
• China, Cambodia kick off Golden Dragon 2023 joint drills Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- Military exercises between Cambodia and China got underway in central Cambodia on Thursday after the two nations staged their first-ever joint naval drills last Sunday, local media said.
• PLA Army hones air defense against stealth fighter jets using Air Force's J-20 as practice partner Global Times 23 Mar 2023 -- The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Army practiced air defense in a recent joint confrontational exercise with the Air Force, with the Air Force sending a J-20 stealth fighter jet as a mock enemy, in a move experts said on Thursday could simulate attacks by a US F-35, a type of stealth aircraft widely deployed on China's doorsteps that poses threats to China's national defense.
• China opposes AUKUS nuclear submarine program and coercion of IAEA Secretariat into endorsing it: FM Global Times 23 Mar 2023 -- China has expressed its grave concern and firm opposition after the US, the UK and Australia pushed forward nuclear-powered submarine cooperation and coerced IAEA Secretariat to endorse the cooperation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Thursday at a routine press conference.
• AUKUS subs deal draws mixed reactions in region baffled by 'Indo-Pacific' label Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- Samoa's leader knows the nation of some 200,000 people looms small on the world map, yet it disconcerted her that they'd been lumped into a region conjured up by American and Japanese officials - the "Indo-Pacific," which stretches from the Indian Ocean to the U.S. West Coast.
• Heavyweight deal in the making for Boxers Australia DOD 23 Mar 2023 -- Australia is a step closer to finalising a major deal to provide Boxer heavy weapon carrier vehicles to the German Army.
• Aatmanirbhar Bharat: MoD inks Rs 3,700 crore contracts with BEL for Medium Power Radars 'Arudhra' & 129 DR-118 Radar Warning Receivers India PIB 23 Mar 2023 -- Ministry of Defence, on March 23, 2023, signed two separate contracts with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), at a total cost of over Rs 3,700 crore, to enhance the operational capabilities of the Indian Air Force.
• ANNUAL BILATERAL MARITIME EXERCISE KONKAN 2023 India PIB 23 Mar 2023 -- Konkan 2023, the annual bilateral maritime exercise between the Indian Navy and the Royal Navy, was held from 20 to 22 Mar 23 off the Konkan coast in the Arabian Sea.
• Iran Could Make Fuel for Nuclear Bomb in Less Than 2 Weeks, Milley Says VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Iran could make enough fissile material for a nuclear bomb in "less than two weeks" and could produce a nuclear weapon in "several more months," according to the top U.S. military officer.
• Joint Statement on the U.S.-Moldova Strategic Dialogue US Dept. of State 23 Mar 2023 -- The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and Moldova.

Defense Industry

• Contracts For March 23, 2023

Other Conflicts

Ukraine Conflict News


• 23 March 2023 - Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General United Nations 23 Mar 2023
• US Denies Chinese Military Drove Away US Destroyer in South China Sea VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- The United States denied a Chinese claim Thursday that Chinese forces drove away a U.S. guided-missile destroyer that had entered Chinese territorial waters.
• Chinese Military Accuses US Destroyer of Illegal Intrusion Into Waters of Paracel Islands Sputnik 23 Mar 2023 -- American guided missile destroyer USS Milius entered the waters of the disputed Paracel Islands, also known as the Xisha Islands, in the South China Sea without notifying China, Tian Junli, a spokesperson of People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command, said on Thursday.
• Chinese military says warned US warship to leave South China Sea Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- China's military says it monitored and drove away a US warship that had illegally entered waters around the South China Sea.
• PLA expels US destroyer trespassing Chinese territorial waters off Xisha Islands Global Times 23 Mar 2023 -- The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) expelled a US destroyer when the latter trespassed into Chinese territorial waters off the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea on Thursday amid continued US attempts to destabilize the region.
• Yemeni armed forces hold drills on eighth anniversary of Saudi-led war Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- The Yemeni Armed Forces have staged drills marking nine years of a Saudi-US war on the country, with Yemen's defense ministry warning the coalition of severe repercussions if the aggression continues.
• We must work to address the fundamental political issues behind the Syrian conflict: UK Statement at the Security Council UK FCDO 23 Mar 2023 -- Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki at the UN Security Council briefing on Syria
• Protests Continue in Syrian Town Days After Killing of 4 Kurdish Civilians VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Kurdish residents of a northwestern Syrian town have been protesting for three consecutive days following the killings of four civilians by members of a Turkish-backed armed group that controls the areas.
• Statement by Foreign Minister Huitfeldt on the volatile situation in Israel and Palestine Government of Norway 23 Mar 2023
• Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova's comment on the actions of Jewish extremists in the Old City of Jerusalem Russia Ministry of Foreign Affairs 23 Mar 2023
• Search in India for Separatist Demanding Sikh Independence VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Sikh separatist leader Amritpal Singh was little known inside India until a month ago. Now police have launched a massive manhunt for him in India's northern Punjab state after his calls for an independent Sikh homeland stoked fears of violence in a region that was gripped by a bloody insurgency four decades ago.
• Ethiopian PM Appoints Tigrayan Forces Spokesperson as Regional Head VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Ethiopia's prime minister has appointed the spokesperson of the Tigray People's Liberation Front as head of an interim administration in the Tigray region.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina: Statement by the Spokesperson on the defamation law in Republika Srpska European External Action Service (EEAS) 23 Mar 2023 -- The European Union regrets that the Republika Srpska National Assembly today voted in favour of amendments to the Republika Srpska criminal code reintroducing criminal penalties for defamation. These legislative changes would impose unnecessary and disproportionate restrictions on independent media and civil society.
• 3 Persian Gulf islands inseparable part of Iran: Spox IRNA 23 Mar 2023 -- Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani in reaction to statement of the 155th Conference of Persian Gulf Cooperation Council Foreign Ministers, said on Thursday that three Iranian islands of Abu Musa, the Greater and Lesser Tunbs are forever inseparable parts of Islamic Republic of Iran's soil.
• Government Of Republika Srpska Approves Measure On Foreign Agents Mirroring Controversial Russian Law RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- The government of Republika Srpska has adopted a draft law that would require nonprofit organizations funded from abroad and active in Republika Srpska to register and report on their work.

News Reports

• China, Russia Target Audiences Online With Deep Fakes, Replica Front Pages VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Looking directly into the camera, the news anchor speaks of the importance of U.S-Chinese cooperation in supporting the global economy.
• US, Albania on 'Hunt' for Iranian Cyber Actors VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- The decision to launch a series of cyberattacks that crippled Albanian government websites and temporarily shut down government services may be backfiring on the alleged perpetrator.
• WHO chief warns against misinformation over global pandemic accord UN News 23 Mar 2023 -- The head of the UN World Health Organization on Thursday spoke out forcefully against "misinformation on social media and in the mainstream media" which has falsely alleged that a new global pandemic accord being negotiated, would allow the WHO to override national sovereignty relating to a future outbreak.
• Briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, Moscow, March 23, 2023 Russia Ministry of Foreign Affairs 23 Mar 2023
• Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's remarks and answers to media questions at a joint news conference following talks with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation of the Republic of Burundi Albert Shingiro, Sochi, March 23, 2023 Russia Ministry of Foreign Affairs 23 Mar 2023
• Russia: Statement by the Spokesperson on the repressive police intimidation of representatives of Memorial European External Action Service (EEAS) 23 Mar 2023 -- The EU expresses solidarity with the historical, educational, charitable and human rights society Memorial following the police raids and criminal cases unjustly made against its representatives earlier this week.
• Russia: Statement by the High Representative on threats against the International Criminal Court European External Action Service (EEAS) 23 Mar 2023 -- The European Union condemns the illegal threat by a high-ranking Russian representative to use force against the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its host country, the Netherlands. It also deplores the measures announced by Russia against the ICC Prosecutor and Judges involved in the issuance of arrest warrants against Russian representatives.
• Greetings on the opening of the Congress of the People of the Chechen Republic to mark the 20th anniversary of the Chechen Republic's Constitution President of Russia 23 Mar 2023 -- Vladimir Putin sent greetings to the participants in the Congress of the People of the Chechen Republic to mark the 20th anniversary of the Constitution of the Chechen Republic.
• Any attempt to arrest Putin would be declaration of war on Russia: Medvedev Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- Russia says it would take it as a declaration of war if any country attempts to arrest President Vladimir Putin on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
• 'How Did He Turn Into What He Is Now?' Former Putin Speechwriter Reflects RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- Political consultant Abbas Gallyamov used to be one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's speechwriters. In an interview with RFE/RL's Georgian Service, he talks about the back-and-forth with the Russian leader over drafting a text - and his perhaps surprising pick for Putin's successor.
• Russian Suspected Of Evading Sanctions Escapes From House Arrest In Italy While Awaiting Extradition To U.S. RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- Artyom Uss, the son of a Russian regional governor who was set to be extradited from Italy to the United States to face charges of violating an embargo against Venezuela and bank fraud, has escaped from house arrest near Milan, Italian media reported on March 23.
• Prosecution Witness At Trial Of Navalny Associate In Bashkortostan Says She Was Pressured RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- A prosecution witness at the high-profile trial of Lilia Chanysheva, the former leader of jailed opposition politician Aleksei Navalny's team in Ufa, the capital of Russia's Republic of Bashkortostan, has testified in court that she has been pressured by officers of the Interior Ministry's anti-extremist directorate.
• Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on March 23, 2023 PRC MofA 23 Mar 2023
• China's diplomacy to make 'more global contributions'; Vision on community with shared future implemented with real actions and notable results Global Times 23 Mar 2023 -- China's diplomacy has pressed the "accelerate button" and sounded the clarion call in the spring of 2023 with a series of major diplomatic activities that bring positive changes to a world in turbulence. Experts said that China has formally started its new journey after the two sessions and will take on the responsibility of a major country by making more contributions to addressing concerns of the international community.
• China, Philippines reaffirm need to properly manage differences, maintain strategic autonomy Global Times 23 Mar 2023 -- China and the Philippines have reaffirmed their commitment to properly managing differences through friendly consultations and keeping to the general direction of friendship in the first face-to-face talks between the two foreign ministries since the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Hong Kong orders takedown of protest artwork as police interrogate labor activists Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- The Hong Kong government has ordered the removal of a digital billboard installation containing the names of those who took part in the 2019 protest movement, while national security police have detained at least six former members of a now-disbanded pro-democracy labor union for questioning.
• As Ramadan begins, China's Muslims face fasting bans, monitoring and arrest Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- As Muslims around the world prepare to begin the holy month of Ramadan, China's Muslims are facing fasting bans and their cultural and religious traditions are increasingly under attack.
• TikTok CEO denies links to Chinese Communist Party Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew on Thursday denied the popular social media app has links to the Chinese Communist Party, dismissing even the notion that its Beijing-based parent ByteDance is a Chinese company and arguing that it has no oversight over the app.
• Xi returns to Beijing after state visit to Russia People's Daily 23 Mar 2023 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping returned to Beijing on Wednesday evening after wrapping up a state visit to Russia.
• Highlights of Xi and Putin's talks in Russia People's Daily 23 Mar 2023 -- During his three-day visit to Russia starting on Monday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin had sincere, friendly and fruitful talks on the bilateral ties and major regional and international issues of mutual interest, and reached new, important common understandings in many fields.
• China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era to keep advancing at high level People's Daily 23 Mar 2023 -- During his three-day visit to Russia starting on March 20, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin had sincere, friendly and fruitful talks on the bilateral ties and major regional and international issues of mutual interest, and reached new, important common understandings in many fields.
• Interview: 'South Korea must temporarily acquire nuclear weapons' Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- South Korean lawmaker Thae Yong-ho was once a high-ranking North Korean diplomat. In 2016, while he was Pyongyang's deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom, he defected with his family to the South.Less than four years after his family arrived in Seoul, Thae won a local election and became a member of the National Assembly representing the city's wealthy Gangnam district.
• Top Iran diplomat warns against 'miscalculations' after meeting E3 directors Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- A senior Iranian diplomat has warned against "certain miscalculation" after meeting E3 directors, saying Tehran is resolute on advancing its national interests, including through diplomacy.
• IAEA director general touches on progress towards agreement with Iran IRNA 23 Mar 2023 -- Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi has said that progress is achieved towards reaching agreement with Iran on protocol issue.
• Iran slams west's double-standards about unrests IRNA 23 Mar 2023 -- Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani in a Twitter message on Thursday blasted the west's double-standards about unrests in Iran and their own countries
• Iran Sentences Five To Death For Alleged Spy Operations With Israel RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- Five Iranians - four men and one woman - in the northwestern Iranian city of Urmia have been sentenced by a court to death for allegedly engaging in intelligence cooperation and espionage activities that benefited Israel.
• Iran hails GCC support for détente agreement with Saudi Arabia Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- The spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry has welcomed a statement issued by the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in support of an agreement on restoration of ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which were severed over the past seven years.
• Arab union: Iran-Saudi detente set to end regional conflicts Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- The Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has hailed a recent agreement signed between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore diplomatic relations after seven years of estrangement, saying the accord will mark a positive step in resolving differences and ending regional conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy.
• Iran, Saudi foreign ministers, in phone call, discuss détente Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- Iran and Saudi Arabian foreign ministers hold a telephone conversation, discussing the ongoing normalization of relations between the countries, which were kick-started under a Chinese-brokered deal earlier this month.
• OSCE's Moscow Mechanism invoked to examine alleged human rights violations and abuses in the Republic of Belarus OSCE 23 Mar 2023 -- Thirty-eight OSCE participating States invoked the OSCE's Moscow Mechanism on 23 March 2023 to examine "threats to the fulfilment of the provisions of the human dimension posed by human rights violations and abuses in the Republic of Belarus".
• Invocation of the OSCE Moscow Mechanism to Examine Reports of Human Rights Abuses Committed by Lukashenka Regime US Dept. of State 23 Mar 2023 -- The United States and 37 other countries have invoked the OSCE Moscow Mechanism requesting that the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's (OSCE) Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) establish an expert mission to examine the dire and continuous deterioration of the human rights situation in Belarus.
• Pakistani Authorities Under Fire for Delaying Crucial Provincial Election VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Pakistan's lingering political crisis is deteriorating further after election authorities delayed the polls for a key provincial legislature, a move legal experts and politicians are warning could plunge the nuclear-armed country into a constitutional crisis.
• India's Congress leader Gandhi sentenced to jail for remark on Modi Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- Clashes have erupted across India in the wake of a court ruling that sentenced opposition leader Rahul Gandhi to two years in prison in a criminal defamation case.
• US Religious Freedom Commission Seeks Repeal of India's Anti-Conversion Laws VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Leaders of Indian minority communities say controversial anti-conversion laws enacted in some states of India are aimed at persecuting and harassing Christian Muslim minorities, as the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has expressed concerns and called for the laws' revocation.
• New Israeli Law Protects Prime Minister from Ouster VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Amid rallies against the far-right government, Israel's parliament passed a law Thursday to protect the prime minister from being removed from office.
• Bosnian Serbs Approve Measure On 'Foreign Agents' Mirroring Controversial Russian Law RFE/RL 23 Mar 2023 -- The government of Republika Srpska has adopted a draft law that would require nonprofit organizations funded from abroad and active in the Bosnian Serb entity to register and report on their work.
• Saudi Arabia to reopen embassy in Syria after more than a decade of closure Press TV 23 Mar 2023 -- Saudi Arabia and Syria have agreed to reopen their embassies after cutting diplomatic ties more than a decade ago when the foreign-sponsored Syrian conflict started, a report says.
• Deadly Syria earthquake provides chance to move forward: UN envoy UN News 23 Mar 2023 -- Renewed diplomatic attention on Syria, and the suffering of its people following the recent deadly earthquake, create new obligations and opportunities to forge lasting peace, UN Special Envoy Geir Pedersen told the Security Council on Thursday.
• UK Parliament approves new Brexit deal for N. Ireland People's Daily 23 Mar 2023 -- The United Kingdom's (UK) Parliament passed a key part of the government's new post-Brexit trade deal on Northern Ireland on Wednesday despite opposition from the region's major unionist party.
• European Council: Press remarks by High Representative Josep Borrell upon arrival European External Action Service (EEAS) 23 Mar 2023
• Opening remarks at joint press encounter with the President of the European Council, Charles Michel UN Secretary-General 23 Mar 2023
• Thai police seeking anti-junta activists detain 108 Myanmar nationals in Mae Sot Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- Authorities in western Thailand's Tak province detained as many as 108 Myanmar nationals Wednesday in a series of raids on buildings believed to house members of anti-junta groups, confiscating what they claimed was military equipment.
• Bilateral Meeting between UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama Gov.UK 23 Mar 2023
• Philippines, China in talks over sea dispute, base access for US forces Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- China batted on Thursday for friendly negotiations to settle simmering differences, including over the South China Sea and greater access for U.S. troops to Philippine bases, as Manila and Beijing began two days of talks to assess their relationship.
• Thai, Chinese backers sign power purchase agreement for Mekong River dam in Laos Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- Thai and Chinese investors have signed a power purchase agreement that paves the way for the construction of a third dam on the Mekong River in Laos.
• U.N.: 2 billion people do not have safe drinking water Radio Free Asia 23 Mar 2023 -- More than a quarter of the world's population relies on unsafe drinking water, a United Nations agency said, as world leaders gathered in New York to discuss vital water resources facing a multifaceted global crisis.
• Designation of Paraguayan Officials Edgar Melgarejo, Jorge Bogarin, and Vicente Ferreira for Involvement in Significant Corruption US Dept. of State 23 Mar 2023 -- Today the United States is announcing the designations of the former Director of the Paraguayan Civil Aviation Authority Edgar Melgarejo, current member of the Paraguayan Panel for the Discipline of Judges and Prosecutors Jorge Bogarin, and current Court Clerk Vicente Ferreira for their involvement in significant corruption under Section 7031(c) of the annual Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act.
• Kenyan Economists Say Newly-Arrived Ukrainian Wheat Could Ease Hunger VOA 23 Mar 2023 -- Kenyan economists say newly-arrived wheat imports from Ukraine could help ease hunger in drought-stricken areas and bring down high food prices. Thirty thousand tons of wheat arrived in Kenya Monday under the U.N.-brokered Black Sea Grain Initiative, in which Russia agreed not to block Ukrainian grain shipments. But Russian President Vladimir Putin warned this week that Moscow could end the deal within 60 days.