North Korea says its leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a joint striking drill of ballistic missile and long range artillery systems on Thursday. Friday's edition of the ruling Workers' Party newspaper Rodong Sinmun reported that the drill involved a 600-millimeter multi-layer rocket system and the Hwasong-11-Ka tactical ballistic missile. The report said that ahead of the firing, training was conducted to make soldiers master the procedures and processes for rapidly switching over to the nuclear counterattack posture. Kim reportedly stressed the need to steadily enhance the pivotal role of the nuclear force in all aspects of the strategy to deter war and the strategy to fight war. The report also said that Kim underscored the importance of steadily perfecting the normal combat readiness of the nuclear force. South Korea's military said on Thursday that North Korea had fired short-range ballistic missiles of multiple types toward the Sea of Japan. South Korean officials said the launches may have been a performance test linked to the North's arms exports to Russia. 

Source: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20250509_07/

Russia says Ukraine has launched an overnight drone attack targeting Moscow for the second night in a row.

All four of the capital's major airports were closed for several hours to ensure safety but later reopened, Russia's aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said on Telegram.

Moscow's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said on social media at least 19 Ukrainian drones had been destroyed before they reached the city "from different directions". He said some of the debris had landed on one of the key highways into the city, but there were no casualties.

Ukraine has not yet commented. But the mayor of Kharkiv said Russia had also carried out drone strikes in the city overnight, as well as in the Kyiv area.

The governor of Ukraine's Odesa region, Oleh Kiper, said one person was killed in a drone strike.

It is the second night in a row that Russia has reported a drone attack by Ukraine - on Monday, Russia's defence ministry said it had destroyed 26 Ukrainian drones overnight.

Unconfirmed reports by Russian military bloggers suggested windows of an apartment in the south of Moscow were smashed.

As well as in Moscow, the governors of other Russian cities, including Penza and Voronezh, also said they had been targeted by drones overnight into Tuesday.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than three years ago, Kyiv has launched several drone attacks on Moscow. Its biggest attack in March killed three people.

Source: BBC

A group monitoring the human rights situation in Syria says a series of clashes in the country has left more than 100 people dead. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights made the announcement on Thursday.

Interim leaders are currently governing Syria after the collapse of President Bashar al-Assad's regime last December.

Fierce fighting broke out earlier this week in an area near the capital, Damascus, mainly inhabited by members of the minority Druze community. The clashes later spread elsewhere.

The fighting involved armed groups from the Druze community and the majority Sunni Muslims, as well as forces of the interim government.

The UN chief's Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen issued a statement on Wednesday.

The statement says Pedersen is "alarmed" at "the potential for further escalation of an extremely fragile situation." It adds he is "also alarmed at reports of Israeli attacks," and that such strikes "must stop."

Ref : NHK World

The Indian leader is the first foreign dignitary to visit the island nation since the leftist Dissanayake swept elections last year. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in Sri Lanka to strengthen historical defence and energy ties as Colombo balances ties with its powerful neighbour and biggest lender, China. Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake rolled out the red carpet for Modi and welcomed him with a 19-gun salute in the capital’s Independence Square on Saturday. The Indian leader is the first foreign dignitary to visit the island since the leftist Dissanayake swept elections last year. Modi was also conferred with Mithra Vibhushan, Sri Lanka’s highest civilian honour, by Dissanayake. The Indian leader thanked the Sri Lankan president and said the honour was “not just mine but it belongs to the 140 crore [1.4 billion] people of India.” “We believe that our security interests are aligned,” Modi said during a televised ceremony from Dissanayake’s office in Colombo. “Our security is interdependent and interconnected.” The two nations signed a five-year defence cooperation agreement for the training of Sri Lankan military personnel in India as well as information and technology sharing. Dissanayake applauded what he called “India’s rise as a world power, not just a regional power”. “I have reiterated our position to Prime Minister Modi that Sri Lankan territory will not be allowed to be used by anyone to undermine India’s security,” he added. India has previously objected to Chinese submarines and research vessels which have called at the main seaport in Colombo. Sri Lanka has not allowed Chinese submarines to dock since 2014, after India raised concerns over two such visits. Last year, Colombo imposed a ban on foreign research vessels following New Delhi’s accusations that Chinese ships were being used to spy on India. But the visit’s highlight was the launch of a 120-megawatt solar power plant in Sampur in the island’s northeastern Trincomalee district. The plant had been stalled for years but was reinvigorated with New Delhi’s backing as a joint project. Reporting from Colombo, Al Jazeera’s Minelle Fernandez said Dissanayake was also expected to discuss the issue of fishermen from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu allegedly encroaching into Sri Lankan territorial waters. “Hundreds of Indian trawlers are carrying away fish using a mechanised system called bottom trawling, which is also destroying the environment,” she said. Balancing act. Modi’s visit came as Colombo grapples with the competing interests of New Delhi and Beijing. India has been concerned about China’s growing sway in Sri Lanka, which it considers to be within its sphere of geopolitical influence. Dissanayake’s first foreign visit as president was to New Delhi in December, but he followed that with a visit to Beijing in January, underscoring Sri Lanka’s delicate balancing act. China has emerged as Sri Lanka’s largest single bilateral creditor, accounting for more than half of its $14bn bilateral debt at the time the island defaulted on its sovereign debt in 2022. Beijing was the first to restructure its loans to Sri Lanka, a move that cleared the way for the island to emerge from that year’s worst-ever economic meltdown. Colombo also signed an agreement in January with a Chinese state-owned company that will invest $3.7bn in an oil refinery in the island’s south. It would be Sri Lanka’s largest single foreign investment and is seen as crucial for the island’s economy. Modi arrived in Sri Lanka late on Friday from a summit in Thailand and a string of meetings with leaders of regional nations as he sought to shore up India’s relations with neighbours. On the sidelines of the Bangkok BIMSTEC meeting – the grouping of the seven nations on the Bay of Bengal – Modi held a rare face-to-face meeting with Myanmar’s military government chief Min Aung Hlaing. Modi also held talks with Muhammad Yunus, the interim leader of neighbouring Bangladesh – the first such meeting since a revolution in Dhaka removed New Delhi’s long-term ally Sheikh Hasina. India was the biggest benefactor of Hasina’s government and her overthrow sent cross-border relations into a tailspin, culminating in Yunus choosing to make his first state visit last month to China. Modi also met on Friday in Bangkok with his Nepali counterpart KP Sharma Oli, the first since Kathmandu’s leader returned to power last year, as well as Tshering Tobgay of Bhutan. 

ကိုးကား- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/4/5/indias modi-visits-sri-lanka-to-shore-up-defence-and-energy-ties

Colombo: The Sri Lankan navy has seized over 700 kilograms of heroin and crystal methamphetamine, marking the largest narcotics bust in the history of the country's security forces, said the navy on Saturday. Navy Media Director Buddhika Sampath told media that the estimated street value of the seized drugs exceeds 10 billion Sri Lankan rupees (approximately 34 million U.S. dollars). The drugs were confiscated during a joint operation carried out by the navy and the Police Narcotics Bureau, Sampath said, adding that a multi-day fishing vessel used to transport the drugs was also seized along with seven suspects, he said. According to Sampath, the drugs were packed in 51 bags, containing 500 packets of crystal meth and 178 packets of heroin. The seizure took place in the waters off Sri Lanka's western coast. Following an inspection of the confiscated drugs, Navy Commander Kanchana Banagoda issued a warning to fishing vessel owners, urging them to cease any involvement in drug trafficking. ကိုးကား- https://thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/05/04/2025/sri lankan-navy-seizes-record-700-kg-of-heroin-meth

The European Commission on Wednesday introduced a comprehensive plan to enhance the European Union’s (EU) defense capabilities, aiming to bolster military readiness and reduce reliance on non-EU allies amid uncertainty over future U.S. support for NATO.
“The security architecture that we relied on can no longer be taken for granted. Europe is ready to step up. We must invest in defense, strengthen our capabilities, and take a proactive approach to security,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement.
At the core of the plan is the White Paper for European Defence – Readiness 2030, and a defense package providing financial levers to EU member states for boosting investment in defense capabilities. These are part of the ReArm Europe Plan/Readiness 2030, the Commission said.
The white paper outlines key priorities, including addressing critical defense gaps identified by EU member states and strengthening Europe’s defense industry through increased joint procurement efforts.

It also emphasizes the need to increase military support for Ukraine and expand the EU-wide defense market by streamlining regulations to improve efficiency and cooperation. Currently, EU nations operate a wide array of different weapons systems, limiting interoperability and efficiency.
The new blueprint was unveiled ahead of a summit of EU government leaders, where European defense remains a top agenda topic.

Source: Xinhua

Washington

President Trump on Friday announced that the U.S. Air Force is moving ahead with a sixth-generation fighter jet known as the F-47, with Boeing being awarded the contract to manufacture the new aircraft.

"At my direction, the United States Air Force is moving forward with the world's first sixth-generation fighter jet," the president said alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in an Oval Office announcement. "Nothing in the world comes even close to it. And it will be known as the F-47."

Boeing and Lockheed Martin had been in competition to build the Next Generation Air Dominance fighter, as the U.S. looks to stay ahead of China when it comes to air defense technology.

The president said the F-47 is "the most advanced, most capable, most lethal aircraft ever built," calling it "virtually unseeable" with "unprecedented power" and excellent maneuverability. Mr. Trump said a "an experimental version of the plane has secretly been flying for almost five years, and we're confident that it massively overpowers the capabilities of any other nation."

"America's enemies will never see it coming, hopefully we won't have to use it for that purpose, but you have to have it," Mr. Trump said. "And if it ever happens, they won't know what the hell hit them." 

The president said a new F-47 fleet will be built while he's in office. He told reporters he can't say how much the jets cost "because it would give away to some of the technology." 

Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-f-47-boeing-contract/

MOSCOW, March 21 

Russia's foreign ministry said Thursday that Ukraine had breached a proposed 30-day ceasefire on energy infrastructure by striking a Russian oil depot, according to media reports.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told Russia's Channel One that the United States, which had proposed the ceasefire, was responsible for holding Ukraine accountable for its actions.

Her comments came after a Ukrainian drone attack ignited a fire at an oil depot near the village of Kavkazskaya in Russia's southern Krasnodar region.

A statement released by local authorities on Thursday evening noted that efforts to contain the fire were ongoing.

U.S. President Donald Trump held separate phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier this week. According to White House statements, Trump and Putin agreed that "the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire," while Trump and Zelensky "agreed on a partial ceasefire against energy."

The Ukrainian side also accused Russia of violating its pledges. Hours after Putin's phone call with Trump, Zelensky said there had been "hits, specifically on civilian infrastructure," including a hospital in Sumy.

Late on Thursday, Russian forces launched a mass drone attack on Ukraine's Odesa, injuring three people and damaging an apartment building and a shopping center, according to the regional governor. 

Source: https://english.news.cn/20250321/d54ccb0f87494df4935ceb269aca6106/c.html

Britain's defense ministry says up to 250,000 Russian troops have died since Russian forces invaded Ukraine in 2022.

The ministry posted on social media on Thursday that Russian forces have likely sustained about 900,000 casualties, and 200,000 to 250,000 of these have been killed. It says the deaths are Russia's largest losses since the World War Two.

The ministry says Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian military leadership are almost certainly prepared to tolerate high casualty rates so long as this does not negatively affect public or elite support for the war, and those losses can be replaced.

It also says Putin and the leadership highly likely place significantly less value on the lives of ethnic minority Russian citizens from impoverished regions, where military recruitment efforts have been focused.

It adds that Slavic Russians from urban centers such as Moscow have contributed disproportionately fewer service personnel than poorer, ethnic minorities.

Source: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20250321_10/

North Korea says it has conducted a test-firing of its latest anti-aircraft missile system with the country's leader Kim Jong Un overseeing the launch.

State-run Korean Central Television reported on Friday that the Missile Administration conducted the test the previous day. It said the missile system has entered full-scale production. It said Kim gave a positive assessment of the test results. Kim reportedly said the country's military will be equipped with another major defense weapon system. A South Korean expert pointed out that North Korea may have received air defense technological and equipment assistance from Russia in return for dispatching troops. Sources related to the South Korean military said on Friday that North Korea launched several missiles from near Onchon in western North Korea toward the Yellow Sea west of the Korean Peninsula at about 9 a.m. on Thursday.

The South Korean military, in coordination with the United States, is reportedly analyzing the missile types and monitoring North Korea's movements.

Source: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20250321_15/