WASHINGTON, 02 December 2021, (TON): Hypersonic weapons travel in the upper atmosphere at speeds of more than five times the speed of sound.

The US Air Force secretary said “the United States and China are engaged in an arms race to develop the most lethal hypersonic weapons, as Beijing and Washington build and test more and more of the high-speed next-generation arms.”

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told media during an interview in his Pentagon offices "there is an arms race, not necessarily for increased numbers, but for increased quality.”

"It's an arms race that has been going on for quite some time. The Chinese have been at it very aggressively."

The top US military officer, General Mark Milley, confirmed a Chinese hypersonic weapons test that military experts say appears to show Beijing's pursuit of an Earth-orbiting system designed to evade American missile defences.

This year the Pentagon has held several hypersonic weapons tests with mixed success. In October, the Navy successfully tested a booster rocket motor that would be used to power a launch vehicle carrying a hypersonic weapon aloft.

Hypersonic weapons travel in the upper atmosphere at speeds of more than five times the speed of sound, or about 6,200km per hour.

RIYADH, 02 December 2021, (TON): The Southern African country Angola has recently opened its embassy in Riyadh with the aim of enhancing bilateral cooperation with Saudi Arabia.

Speaking to media, Angolan Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Frederico Manuel dos Santos e Silva Cardoso said: “For us, it is a very important moment because being here will allow us to better know the Kingdom and its people, administration and businesspersons. This will help in strengthening our bilateral relations.

“Familiarity with the situation here will help boost trade relations between the two sides.”

The ambassador added “Both Saudi Arabia and Angola are OPEC member states. Our principal relation is that of consultation within the OPEC forum, taking the most important decisions about oil commerce.”

The envoy said that the opening of the diplomatic missions in Riyadh will boost the OPEC partnership between the two countries.

He added “there are a lot of areas in which both countries could work together. We have a very high potential in agriculture, and we could work together in this area in order to have a mix of investments in both countries.”

JEDDAH, 02 December 2021, (TON): Hissein Brahim Taha, the secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, met a number of foreign ambassadors to Saudi Arabia at the organization's General Secretariat in Jeddah this week.

Norwegian Ambassador Thomas Lid Ball discussed with the OIC chief ways in which cooperation between his country and the organization can be enhanced, and they reviewed international issues of common interest.

Taha expressed his appreciation for Norway’s role in promoting international peace and security and its support for development efforts in OIC member states. Lid Ball praised the OIC for its stature and positive role in the international arena.

Taha welcomed Ambassador Zakaria Fadoul Kitir of Chad. They discussed bilateral relations how they might be developed, in addition to ways of strengthening Islamic solidarity and joint Islamic action.

Taha held talks with Sudanese Ambassador Adel Bashir and Nigerian Ambassador Yahaya Lawal. They congratulated the new OIC chief on taking office last month and discussed their countries’ relations with the OIC.

WASHINGTON, 02 December 2021, (TON): The White House’s Indo Pacific coordinator, Kurt Campbell, said “China is conducting “dramatic economic warfare” against Australia and has tried to “break” the US ally, contributing to increased anxiety about Beijing in the region.”

Campbell told the Lowy Institute foreign policy institute “US President Joe Biden raised the treatment of Australia, which has been subject to trade reprisals by Beijing, in his meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping as an example of behavior that was backfiring because Xi’s advisers were not providing effective feedback.”

Campbell said “China’s preference would have been to break Australia. To drive Australia to its knees.”

Campbell underlined the United States’ commitment to new security and economic alliances in the Indo Pacific, including the defense technology pact with Australia and Britain, known as AUKUS, and the Quad of India, Japan, US and Australia.

He said “these groups would also focus on technology, education, climate and pandemic cooperation, to show the US was bringing value to Asia.”

He said “the United States is not leaving the Indo-Pacific, and we’re not in decline.”

KYIV, 02 December 2021, (TON): Ukraine urged NATO to boost military cooperation with Kyiv and prepare a package of measures, including sanctions, to deter Russia from attacking the country.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told reporters “we will call on the allies to join Ukraine in putting together a deterrence package.”

He said “as part of this package, NATO should prepare economic sanctions to be imposed on Russia if it decides to chose the worst-case scenario.”

BEIJING, 02 December 2021, (TON): China urged its citizens to leave three provinces in eastern Congo as violence intensifies in the mineral-rich region.

A posting from the Chinese Embassy in Kinshasa on the WeChat online messaging said “a number of Chinese citizens had been attacked and kidnapped over the past month in the provinces of South Kivu, North Kivu and Ituri, where several anti-government rebel groups have a presence.”

It said “Chinese residing in the three provinces should provide their personal details by Dec. 10 and make plans to leave for safer parts of Congo.

Those in the districts of Bunia, Djugu, Beni, Rutshuru, Fizi, Uvira and Mwenga should leave immediately, it said, adding that any who do not do so “will have to bear the consequences themselves.”

The embassy said “we ask that all Chinese citizens and Chinese-invested businesses in Congo please pay close attention to local conditions, increase their safety awareness and emergency preparedness, and avoid unnecessary outside travel.”

No details of the incidents were given, although the embassy last month reported five Chinese citizens were abducted from a mining operation in South Kivu, which borders Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania.

JAKARTA, 02 December 2021, (TON): The first joint naval drill between Russia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations began in Indonesian waters, marking a new development in a region facing territorial disputes with China and US attempts to counter Beijing’s influence.

The three-day ARNEX exercise is held partly virtually at the Belawan base of the Indonesian Navy, and partly at sea off North Sumatra province.

Officials said “it aims to increase both the interoperability of ASEAN and Russian forces and the security of maritime economic activities and civil navigation in the region.”

Indonesian Navy First Fleet Command Chief Rear Adm. Arsyad Abdullah said in a statement “this exercise fosters a friendly relationship between Indonesian navy, ASEAN member state navies and the Russian navy and will increase the navies’ personnel professionalism.”

Abdullah was accompanied by Russia’s ambassador to ASEAN, Alexander Ivanov, and the Russian ambassador to Indonesia, Lyudmila Vorobyeva.

Lvanov said “this exercise is about peace, stability and prosperity in the region.”

The drill features warships from seven of the 10 ASEAN member states, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam and Brunei and the Russian destroyer Admiral Panteleyev.

The Philippines, Cambodia, and Laos the only landlocked nation in Southeast Asia  are taking part in the drill online as observers.

WASHINGTON, 02 December 2021, (TON): Police said “a 15-year-old student allegedly opened fire at a high school in rural Michigan, killing three other students before being taken into custody.”

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office said in a statement “six others, including one teacher, were wounded in the attack, which took place shortly after noon at Oxford High School.”

A second-year student was taken into custody and a handgun was seized, but there was no immediate explanation for what prompted the attack in Oxford, a small town about 40 miles (65 kilometers) north of Detroit.

The sheriff's office said "there was no resistance during the arrest and the suspect has asked for a lawyer and has not made any statements as to a motive.”

Undersheriff Michael McCabe told reporters "it's a very tragic situation.”

He said "we have three deceased victims right now, who are all believed to be students.”

WASHINGTON, 02 December 2021, (TON): Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, and UK Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss, representatives of the Transatlantic Quad, in Riga, Latvia.

Secretary Blinken and the Quad foreign ministers discussed the threats to Europe, including Russia’s concerning moves towards Ukraine.

The Secretary and foreign ministers also discussed their concerns over Iran’s nuclear program and the effort to achieve a mutual return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) as talks continue in Vienna.

ABUJA, 02 December 2021, (TON): A rescue agency spokesman said “an overloaded boat carrying dozens of passengers, mostly children aged eight to 15, capsized late in northwest Nigeria’s Kano state.”

Saminu Abdullahi, spokesman for Kano state’s fire service, told media “we have recovered 29 bodies and rescued seven passengers. The search for the remaining 13 bodies is ongoing.”

Abdullahi said “the boat was meant to ferry 12 adults but the skipper packed such a number of children onboard.”

Boat accidents are tragically common on Nigerian waterways mostly due to overcrowding, bad weather and lack of maintenance.