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ATHENS — Greek firefighters and aircraft battled a blaze in the town of Koropi 30 kilometers (18.64 miles) south of Athens on Wednesday as strong winds fanned the flames and forced residents to flee their homes and businesses.   Traffic was suspended along a main highway connecting Koropi to Athens suburbs. One storage facility was on fire and flames crept into a boat dry dock and across fields of dry grass and olive trees, images on local TV showed.   There were no reports of deaths or injuries, a fire service official told Reuters. Civil protection and authorities evacuated two nearby villages.   "It’s a very difficult day today. We have a new fire breaking out every 10 minutes," Fire Service spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said in a televised message.   Wildfires are common in the Mediterranean nation but they have become more devastating as summers have become hotter and drier, which scientists relate to climate change.   On Tuesday more than 40 fires broke out across the country, the fire service said.  It was not immediately clear what caused Wednesday's blaze. Four firefighting planes, six helicopters, dozens of fire engines and more than 50 firefighters were dispatched to the scene, the fire service official said.   Much of the Athens area has had no rain for weeks, leaving large areas bone dry. Volunteers and professional firefighters dragged hoses over blackened fields in 35 degree Celsius (95°F) heat. Smoke filled the sky and was driven sideways by strong wind gusts.   "I saved my home at the last moment. It all happened so fast," a resident whose face was blackened by smoke told local Skai TV channel.   After forest fires last year forced 19,000 people to flee the island of Rhodes and killed 20 in the northern mainland, Greece has scaled up its preparations this year by hiring more staff and increasing training. 

BRASILIA — The murder of British reporter Dom Phillips in the Amazon rainforest two years ago was not an isolated crime in a region where violence against journalists has soared in recent years, a report published on Wednesday said.   As the world's interest in the Amazon as a barrier against climate change has grown, so has the work of journalists reporting on environmental and other crimes in the vast and often lawless region but it has come at a price.   Cases of violence against journalists more than doubled from 20 to 45 between 2021 and 2022, years when former hard-right President Jair Bolsonaro was in office, according to the Vladimir Herzog Institute, a nonprofit rights organization.   Bolsonaro eased environmental controls and gutted enforcement agencies to foster development in the Amazon, which spawned a boom in illegal gold mining and logging.   President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who took office last year, has said he will confront organized crime contributing to destruction of the world's largest tropical rainforest. Deforestation has slowed but progress has been hard on other fronts.   Violence against journalists retreated in 2023, the report from the Herzog Institute showed, but remained slightly above the historical average.   Dom Philips was shot in 2022 by illegal fishermen when traveling with Bruno Pereira, an expert on isolated indigenous people who was tracking the activity of poachers on protected reservation land.   The Herzog Institute report, which documents 230 cases of violence against journalists in the Amazon since 2013, said reporters have left the rainforest fearing for their lives after receiving threats from miners, loggers and ranchers who have occupied indigenous lands. In 2020, Roman dos Anjos, who reported on illegal gold mining in the Yanomami reservation, was kidnapped, beaten and left in the forest with broken limbs. He survived the ordeal and is still waiting for his kidnappers to be brought to justice.   In 2020, a journalist who investigated the sale of mercury, which is used by wildcat miners to separate the gold from ore, was chased and threatened by miners in Rondonia state capital Porto Velho. On a reporting trip a year later, gunmen fired in the air to scare him away, the Herzog Institute said.   In 2022, in the same city, criminals machine-gunned the office of the local newspaper Rondonia ao Vivo, which had criticized the interests of farmers pushing the agricultural frontier into Indigenous lands, the report said.   "The Brazilian State urgently needs to ensure the safety of journalists and their sources," TV reporter Sonia Bridi, a veteran of Amazon coverage, wrote in the report. "The Amazon is a territory increasingly controlled by criminal organizations."

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

New Delhi — A group of U.S. lawmakers met the Dalai Lama in India’s northern town of Dharamshala Wednesday, amid cheers from Tibetans in exile and an angry reaction from China, which calls the Tibetan spiritual leader a separatist and a splittist. The visit follows the passage last week of a bill by the U.S. Congress that seeks to encourage dialogue between Beijing and Tibetan leaders in exile, who have been seeking more autonomy for Tibet. Talks with the Dalai Lama’s representatives and China stalled in 2010. "This bill is a message to the Chinese government that we have clarity in our thinking and our understanding of this issue of the freedom of Tibet,” Nancy Pelosi, former House Speaker, said to cheers from hundreds of Tibetans whom the lawmakers addressed at a public ceremony after meeting the Dalai Lama at his residence. U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to soon sign the legislation called "Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act," also referred to as the Resolve Tibet Act. In Dharamshala, where the Tibetan government in exile is based, the visit of the U.S. lawmakers brought hope. “It is a jubilant moment for all Tibetans. We are all overjoyed. The visit is very significant because it comes soon after the passage of the bill which we hope will soon be passed into law,” Tenzin Lekshay, spokesperson for the Central Tibetan Administration, told VOA. Congressman Michael McCaul, who led the seven-member visiting delegation, said the bill reaffirms American support for what he referred to as the Tibetan right to self- determination. He said that their delegation had received a letter from the Chinese Communist Party, warning them not to visit. Beijing said the U.S. should not sign into law the bill passed by Congress. “China will take resolute measures to firmly defend its sovereignty, security and development interests,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Lin Jian said on Tuesday, as the lawmakers arrived in the Indian town. The Chinese embassy in New Delhi reiterated Beijing’s concerns. “We urge the U.S. side to fully recognize the anti-China separatist nature of the Dalai group, honor the commitments the U.S. has made to China on issues related to Xizang, stop sending the wrong signal to the world,” it said in a statement Tuesday night. Xizang is China’s name for Tibet. In his remarks to Tibetans, McCaul said it is important that China not influence the choice of the Dalai Lama’s successor. “Beijing has even attempted to insert itself into choosing the successor of the Dalai Lama," he said. “We will not let that happen.” The issue is contentious. China says it has the right to approve the spiritual leader’s successor while according to Tibetan tradition, the Dalai Lama is reincarnated after his death. The Dalai Lama has said his successor is likely to be found in India but Tibetans in exile fear China will try to designate a person to be the successor, in an effort to bolster control over Tibet. Meanwhile, Tibetan spokesman Lekshay said China needs to come forward to reinstate a dialogue with exiled Tibetan leaders. “It is a time for introspection for China to see what is going wrong, particularly with the Tibet issue which has been a longstanding conflict. China needs to be more positive.” Beijing does not recognize the exiled administration. A formal dialogue process between the Dalai Lama's representatives and the Chinese government ended in 2010 after it failed to produce a concrete outcome. Pointing out that they are asking for autonomy within China and not independence, Lekshay said the Tibetan administration in exile did not represent a separatist movement. Tibetans in exile say they fear that their culture, language and identity is under threat due to Chinese assimilation of the region. The Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959, has been instrumental in putting the Tibetan cause in the global spotlight but in recent years some Tibetan activists have expressed concerns that the Tibet cause is not getting appropriate attention in Western capitals. The Himalayan town of Dharamshala has been the Dalai Lama’s home since he fled Tibet over six decades ago following a failed uprising against Chinese rule.

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Yangon — Myanmar authorities arrested 22 people for marking the birthday of imprisoned democracy figurehead Aung San Suu Kyi, local media reported on Wednesday.   Police in Mandalay, Myanmar's second-largest city, arrested 22 people who had posted pictures of themselves wearing flowers in their hair -- long a signature Suu Kyi look -- Eleven Media reported, citing an anonymous official.   Other local media said around a dozen had been arrested in the central Myanmar city for wearing flowers or praying with them in public.    A prominent pro-junta Telegram account posted several photos claiming to show those arrested, including one showing five people with their legs placed in stocks.    Suu Kyi, who turned 79 on Wednesday, has been detained by the military since it toppled her government and seized power in 2021.   The coup and subsequent crackdown on dissent have sparked a widespread armed uprising that the military is struggling to crush.   The junta has rebuffed numerous requests by foreign leaders and diplomats to meet Nobel laureate Suu Kyi, who has reportedly suffered health problems during more than three years in detention.   Suu Kyi's only known encounter with a foreign envoy since the coup came in July last year, when then-Thai foreign minister Don Pramudwinai said he had met her for more than an hour.    Suu Kyi is serving a 27-year sentence imposed by a junta court after a trial condemned by rights groups as a sham to shut her out of politics.   Her son told AFP in February she was in "strong spirits" after receiving a letter from her -- their first communication since she was detained in the coup. 

YAOUNDE, CAMEROON — Officials in Chad say they have opened investigations and are calling for calm after an explosion and fire at a military ammunition depot in the capital N'Djamena late Tuesday killed an undisclosed number and wounded others, causing panic in the central African state. Efforts are ongoing to put out the blaze igniting weapons and ammunition. Chad state TV reports that President Mahamat Idriss Deby has ordered the mobilization of firefighters and military to assure the safety of civilians after deepening sounds of explosions from a military ammunition depot late Tuesday scared residents in the Goudji neighborhood of N’Djamena.  Chad media reports that Deby posted on his social media platforms such as Facebook that the fire caused human and material damage but the leader did not say how many people were killed and wounded. Deby expressed condolences to bereaved families, wished the injured a quick recovery and called for calm among civilians in the capital city, according to Chad state TV. Deby ordered investigations into the causes of the blast, local media reported. Oumar Mokar sells spare parts for motors at the Central Market in N’Djamena.   Oumar says many panic-stricken civilians ran to nearby homes and schools for safety and also remained at home Wednesday morning when they found a large number of government troops on the streets.    Oumar spoke to VOA Wednesday via a messaging app from N'djamena. He said business was resuming gradually with many merchants returning to their shops. He said government troops and firefighters rushed several wounded persons to hospitals in Chad's capital. VOA could not independently verify the claims. The government said there were ‘disruptions’ in transportation but did not provide details.  Tuesday's explosion occurred after Deby presided over a meeting of top military and security officials in N’Djamena this week. Deby said Chad's security is threatened by disgruntled armed gangs and people who want to see Chad in chaos. Mahamat Charfadine Marguin, Chad's Public Security minister spoke on Tuesday after the meeting. He says the security situation in Chad had remained tense ever since Deby was inaugurated as President on May 23 to end three years of military transition and a return to constitutional order. Margui says Chad is planning to deploy its military to hot spots to preserve peace, national unity and territorial integrity as Deby promised during his inauguration.   The central African states Constitutional Council declared Deby the winner of Chad's May 6 presidential election with 61% of the vote. Opposition parties contested the results and accused Deby of vote-rigging, a claim Deby described as unfounded. 

Paris — Nearly 2,000 children die every day from health problems linked to air pollution, which is now the second biggest risk factor for early death worldwide, a report said Wednesday.   Exposure to air pollution contributed to the deaths of 8.1 million people -- around 12 percent of all fatalities -- in 2021, according to the report from the U.S.-based Health Effects Institute.   This means air pollution has overtaken tobacco use and poor diet to become the second leading risk factor for early death, behind only high blood pressure, it said.   Little kids are particularly vulnerable to air pollution, and the institute partnered with the U.N. Children's Fund UNICEF for its annual State of Global Air report.   Air pollution contributed to the deaths of more than 700,000 children under the age of five, the report found.   More than 500,000 of those deaths were attributed to cooking indoors using dirty fuels such as coal, wood or dung, mostly in Africa and Asia.   "These are problems we know that we can solve," Pallavi Pant, the Health Effects Institute's head of global health, told AFP.   'Profound effects on next generation'   Nearly every person in the world breathes unhealthy levels of air pollution every day, the report found. Over 90 percent of the deaths were linked to tiny airborne pollutants called PM2.5, which measure 2.5 micrometers or less, it said. Inhaling PM2.5 has been found to increase the risk of lung cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and a range of other health problems.   The report aimed to link the rates of such diseases with air pollution levels. But despite the "pretty stark" figures, the report could still be underestimating air pollution's impact, Pant said.   It did not take into account how air pollution could affect brain health, neurodegenerative diseases or what impact using solid fuels for heating could have, she explained. The report also found that ozone pollution -- which is expected to get worse as the world warms due to human-driven climate change -- was linked to nearly 500,000 deaths in 2021.   "Increasingly, many parts of the world are seeing very short, intense episodes of air pollution," during events such as wildfires, dust storms or extreme heat, which can drive up ozone levels, Pant said.   There are "very similar solutions" for both climate change and air pollution -- particularly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, she added.   More can also be done about using dirty solid fuels for cooking indoors, Pant said, pointing to how China had made significant improvements in this area.   More than two billion people cook on basic stoves or over open fires indoors, inhaling the harmful smoke.   Partly due to access to cleaner cookstoves, the rate of small children dying from problems linked to air pollution has fallen by more than 50 percent since 2000, the report said.   In May, the International Energy Agency announced that $2.2 billion had been pledged by governments and companies to improve access to less deadly cooking methods.   The report released Wednesday used data covering more than 200 countries and territories from the Global Burden of Disease study conducted by the U.S.-based Institute For Health Metrics and Evaluation.   "Every day almost 2,000 children under five years die because of health impacts linked to air pollution," UNICEF's Kitty van der Heijden said in a statement. "Our inaction is having profound effects on the next generation." 

PRETORIA — South Africa put on a display of pomp and ceremony on Wednesday for Cyril Ramaphosa's inauguration as president for a second term that will see his African National Congress share power with other parties after it lost its majority in parliament.   African heads of state and dignitaries gathered outside the Union Buildings in Pretoria, seat of the South African government, to watch Ramaphosa's motorcade arrive with a guard of honor on horseback.   Ramaphosa will head what he calls a government of national unity with five other parties, including the ANC's largest rival and virulent critic, the pro-business Democratic Alliance. While investors have welcomed the inclusion of the DA, which wants to boost growth through structural reforms and prudent fiscal policies, analysts say sharp ideological divisions between the parties could make the government unstable.   Just before the election, Ramaphosa signed into law a National Health Insurance bill that the DA says could collapse a creaking health system. It was unclear what would happen to that law under the new government.   The DA advocates scrapping the ANC's flagship Black economic empowerment program, saying it hasn't worked -- a highly contentious topic in a nation grappling with huge inequalities, some inherited from apartheid.   Ramaphosa has yet to announce the make-up of his new government, which he will have to negotiate with members of the new alliance.   "The president does not want the country to go through a prolonged period of uncertainty," his spokesman Vincent Magwenya told state broadcaster SABC. "This time around, there is a small layer of complexity in that he has to consult with the various parties that form part of the government of national unity. Those consultations have been underway. They will continue, even tonight," he said.  A former liberation movement, the ANC came to power under Nelson Mandela's leadership in the 1994 elections that marked the end of apartheid. Once unbeatable, it has lost its shine after presiding over years of decline.   It remains the largest party after the May 29 election, with 159 seats out of 400 in the National Assembly, but lost millions of votes compared with the previous election in 2019. The DA's vote share remained stable and it has 87 seats.   Voters punished the ANC for high levels of poverty, inequality and unemployment, rampant crime, rolling power cuts and corruption in party ranks. 

Seoul, South Korea — North Korea and Russia have signed a treaty containing a mutual defense clause, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced Wednesday, during a rare Putin visit to Pyongyang. Following a day of highly publicized events, Putin and Kim signed a “comprehensive strategic partnership agreement,” formally upgrading relations that have expanded since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The text of the agreement has not been released. But following the signing, Putin said the deal contains a clause that “provides for the provision of mutual assistance in the event of aggression against one of the parties,” according to Russia’s Interfax news agency. Following the signing ceremony, Kim called Russia the “most honest friend and comrade,” insisting the treaty is peaceful and defensive in nature, according to Russian state media. The development is sure to rattle Western leaders, who have condemned Russia-North Korea cooperation as a violation of international law. U.S. officials accuse North Korea of supplying Russia with thousands of containers of munitions, including ballistic missiles, for use on the Ukraine battlefield. “Kim Jong Un has been able to extract more concessions than we thought he would be able to from his support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” said a Korea specialist and professor of international relations at King's College London.

Paris — French far-right leader Jordan Bardella said on Wednesday that he backed Ukraine's right to defend itself against Russia, but if elected prime minister he would not provide Kyiv with missiles that would allow it to strike Russia's territory.   He also said he would standby France's commitments to the NATO military alliance if he became prime minister.   Bardella's National Rally (RN) party leads opinion polls ahead of June 30 and July 7 snap parliamentary elections, which has led to questions over the foreign policy implications if they win enough seats to form a government.   "I wish for Ukraine to have at disposal the ammunition and equipment it needs to hold the front, but my red line will not change, which is sending equipment that could have consequences of escalation in eastern Europe," Bardella told reporters at the Eurosatory arms fair near Paris.   "And so I don't plan to send, especially, long-range missiles or other weapons that will allow Ukraine to strike the Russian territory. My position has not changed and will not change – it's about support for Ukraine and avoiding all risks of escalation in the region. And I think the risk of escalation is of course real."   Even if the RN was to run France's government, Emmanuel Macron would remain as president, and the head of France's army.   But the constitution also gives the prime minister a role in terms of defense, with the division of power not clear cut. Macron would lose control over the domestic agenda, including economic policy, security, immigration and finances, which would in turn impact other policies, such as aid to Ukraine, as he would need parliament's backing to finance any support as part of France's annual budget.  Bardella also said he would keep France's commitments towards its partners, including on increasing defense spending. "I don't plan to put into question the commitments made by France on the international level, because there's a stake regarding credibility towards our European partners as well as towards our NATO allies," he said. "And so I plan to pursue the efforts of rearmament of the country, both in terms of its defense capabilities, increasing the military budget through budgetary efforts put in place in past years, which we have supported," he added. 

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ROSWELL, N.M. — Cooler weather — and the chance of rain — could bring some relief this week to firefighters battling blazes in southern New Mexico that killed one person, damaged hundreds of structures and forced thousands to evacuate. Strong wind pushed the larger of two wildfires into the mountain village of Ruidoso, forcing residents to flee immediately with little notice. Weather patterns are expected to shift by Wednesday morning with moisture from a tropical wave in the Gulf of Mexico, said Joshua Schroeder of the National Weather Service in Albuquerque. “Today was really our last dry day,” he said late Tuesday. “Rains will then peak into Thursday and diminish by the weekend.” On the downside, he said, some shifts in wind were possible later Wednesday, and rain could lead to flash flooding in newly burned areas.  Ruidoso and much of the Southwest has been exceedingly dry and hot this spring. Those conditions, along with strong wind, whipped flames out of control Monday and Tuesday, rapidly advancing the South Fork Fire into the village. Along with homes and businesses, a regional medical center and the Ruidoso Downs horse track were evacuated. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's office confirmed one fatality as a result of the fire but said it had no further details. More than 500 structures have been destroyed or damaged, but it’s unclear how many were homes. A flyover to provide more accurate mapping and a better assessment of damage was planned overnight Tuesday, Lujan Grisham said. Ardis Holder left Ruidoso with her two young daughters, her gas tank nearly on empty and praying that they'd make it out safe. She was sure the house she rented in the village she grew up in is gone, based on the maps she's seen so far. “We were already seeing where all the fire hit, it's everywhere,” she said late Tuesday from a shelter in nearby Roswell. “If there's something standing, that's awesome. But, if not, we were prepared for the worst.” Lujan Grisham declared a county-wide state of emergency that extended to the neighboring Mescalero Apache Reservation where both fires started and deployed National Guard troops. The declaration unlocks additional funding and resources to manage the crisis. Nationwide, wildfires have scorched more than 3,280 square miles (8,495 square kilometers) this year — a figure higher than the 10-year averages, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. About 20 wildfires currently burning are considered large and uncontained, including blazes in California and Washington state. Lujan Grisham said the two southern New Mexico wildfires together have consumed more than 31 square miles (80 square kilometers). The exact causes of the blazes hasn't been determined, but the Southwest Coordination Center listed them as human-caused. “We are deploying every available resource to control these fires.” she said. While many older residents call Ruidoso home year-round, the population of around 7,000 people expands to about 25,000 during the warmer months, when New Mexicans and Texans from hotter climates seek the cool of the leafy aspen trees, hiking trails and a chance to go fishing.  Nestled within the Lincoln National Forest, Ruidoso boasts nearby amenities including a casino, golf course and ski resort operated by the Mescalero Apache Tribe. Horse races at the Ruidoso Downs also draw crowds as home to one of the sport’s richest quarter-horse competitions. Ruidoso residents fled Monday through traffic-clogged downtown streets some described as apocalyptic, with smoke darkening the evening sky, embers raining down and 100-foot (30-meter) flames in the distance climbing over a ridgeline. The evacuation order came so quickly that she Christy Hood and her husband Richard only had time to grab their two children and two dogs. Heavy traffic on the way out turned what should have been a 15-minute drive into a harrowing two-hour ordeal. “As we were leaving, there were flames in front of me and to the side of me,” said Hood, a real estate agent in Ruidoso. “And all the animals were just running — charging — trying to get out.” On social media posts, Ruidoso officials didn’t mince words: “GO NOW: Do not attempt to gather belongings or protect your home. Evacuate immediately.” As Jacquie and Ernie Escajeda left church Monday in Ruidoso, they saw smoke rise above a mountain behind their house. They kept a close eye on their cellphones and turned on the radio for updates. There was no “get ready,” nor “get set” — it was just “go,” Ernie Escajeda said. They grabbed legal documents and other belongings and left. On Tuesday, the couple got a call from friends who are on vacation in Utah but have a home in Ruidoso that they’ve been told was destroyed, Jacquie Escajeda said. “They lost their home,” she said. “There’s only one home standing in their whole little division that they live in, so there are a lot of structures lost. We have no idea if we’re going to have a home to go to.” Public Service Company of New Mexico shut off power to part of the village due to the fire. Lujan Grisham said cellphone service had been affected in some communities near the fire, and mobile cell towers were being set up to restore communications. Amid highway closures, many evacuees had little choice but to flee eastward and to the city of Roswell, 75 miles (121 kilometers) away, where hotels and shelters quickly filled. A rural gas station along the evacuation route was overrun with people and cars. 

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Seoul, South Korea — Russian President Vladimir Putin received a grandiose reception in Pyongyang on Wednesday, meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and pledging closer cooperation as both countries confront the West.  Putin and Kim, who also signed a document upgrading ties, participated in a welcoming ceremony in the central Kim Il Sung Square, where buildings were draped in massive Russian and North Korean flags and portraits of the two leaders.  North Korean residents dressed in red, white, and blue shirts waved bright bouquets of flowers in unison as a brass band played patriotic songs. Putin and Kim also observed a North Korean honor guard before departing for negotiations, which included two hours of one-on-one talks, according to Russian media. At the outset of the negotiations, Putin thanked North Korea for its “consistent and unwavering support” for Russian policy, including in Ukraine, reported Russia’s Interfax news agency. Kim expressed his “full support and solidarity” for what he called Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine, according to Interfax. The North Korean leader also vowed to “unconditionally support” Russia’s policies, the agency added. Putin, who is making his first visit to North Korea in 24 years, invited Kim to Moscow, Russian state media reported. Russia and North Korea have long been close partners, but their cooperation has intensified following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. North Korea has supplied Russia with thousands of containers of munitions, including ballistic missiles, according to U.S. officials – an allegation denied by Pyongyang and Moscow. Close, but how close? According to Interfax, Putin and Kim signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty, formally upgrading ties. The treaty text has not been released. Though it is expected to fall short of a formal alliance agreement, Russian officials have said it will likely cover defense cooperation in some sense. Analysts debate how far North Korea-Russia military cooperation will go. Some say Kim and Putin may find more reasons to continue working together as each country’s relationship with the West deteriorates. But the two men will not restore Soviet-era ties, said Kim Gunn, a South Korean lawmaker who earlier this year stepped down as South Korea’s top nuclear envoy. “Russia is not the former Soviet Union,” he said. “And Russia is at war in Ukraine – they are pouring all their energy into this war. There’s not so much room for Russia to do anything with North Korea.” For now, Putin and Kim are presenting a united front, with Putin describing their collaboration on Wednesday as a fight against U.S. hegemony. An editorial Tuesday in the Rodong Sinmun, North Korea’s main newspaper, said the “people and military of both countries have the sacred duty, together, to safeguard their country’s sovereignty and dignity and guarantee the peace and security of the region.” Rachel Minyoung Lee, a North Korea watcher and senior fellow at the Washington-based Stimson Center, said that formulation was unusual for North Korean state media, an aberration that she said sends a “less than comforting message” about future military cooperation. “The agreement (or a treaty) North Korea and Russia sign during Putin’s visit, if made public, will hopefully bring clarity to this phrase,” she wrote in a blog post on 38 North, a North Korea-focused website. Sanctions evasion Tuesday, Putin vowed to work with North Korea to counter sanctions. In a letter published in North Korean state media, Putin said the two countries would develop trade mechanisms “not controlled by the West” and would “jointly oppose illegitimate unilateral restrictions.” Both countries are subject to a growing number of sanctions imposed by individual countries – Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine and North Korea because of its nuclear weapons program and other illicit activities, such as cybertheft. North Korea is also subject to a series of United Nations Security Council resolutions, which prohibit a wide range of economic activity with Pyongyang. Russia – a permanent, veto-wielding member of the U.N. Security Council – voted for the North Korea sanctions as recently as 2017. But it now opposes the sanctions and has taken steps to complicate their enforcement.   Many Russian analysts say Putin is reluctant to completely abandon U.N. sanctions on North Korea. Instead, he may search for what he sees as loopholes that facilitate cooperation even in areas that are subject to U.N. sanctions, such as North Korean laborers earning income abroad. For instance, North Korean IT specialists could work remotely from their home country without technically receiving income abroad, said Georgy Toloraya, a former member of the U.N. Panel of Experts, which was meant to monitor enforcement of the North Korea sanctions. Weapons cooperation Analysts are also watching Putin’s visit for any signs of additional defense cooperation. A key question among Western analysts is what Putin might offer North Korea in exchange for weapons allegedly used in the Ukraine war. U.S. officials have expressed concern that Russia may provide North Korea with advanced weapons or other assistance related to its nuclear program. Such cooperation represents “the greatest threat to U.S. national security since the Korean War,” said Victor Cha, the Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. In a blog post, Cha said it is “highly unlikely that Kim would have feted Putin so lavishly only for the promise of food and fuel,” noting that Pyongyang seeks advanced weapons, including nuclear submarine and intercontinental ballistic missile technology. “This aspect of the relationship not only destabilizes security on the peninsula and in Asia; it also heightens the direct threat posed by North Korea to the [U.S.] homeland,” he said.

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Fresh Malaysian durians will soon make their way to China as the two countries signed a slew of trade and economic deals Wednesday during a visit by Premier Li Qiang to celebrate a half-century of diplomatic relations. Li held private talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in the government administrative capital of Putrajaya before they met with their delegations. The two leaders witnessed the signing of various pacts, including a new five-year deal for economic and trade cooperation that officials said would bolster links between industries in priority sectors like high-level manufacturing and the digital economy. The sides also inked a protocol on measures that will allow Malaysia to export to China fresh durian, a spiky tropical fruit with a strong odor and known for its creamy pulp, Anwar’s office said. Exporting fresh durians to China will open a new market for Malaysia, which began selling durian pulp and paste to China in 2011 and frozen durian whole fruits in 2018. Malaysia’s frozen durian export value to China has surged from 170 million ringgit ($36 million) in 2018 to nearly 1.2 billion ringgit ($255 million) last year, it said. Li, the first Chinese premier to visit Malaysia since 2015, flew in for a three-day visit late Tuesday from Australia. Li, who was given a red-carpet welcome, said upon his arrival that the two nations' 50-year anniversary was a new starting point to deepen links and increase exchanges. "China is advancing Chinese modernization on all fronts through high-quality development. Malaysia, on its part, is promoting national development under the vision of Malaysia MADANI. China is ready to work with Malaysia," Li said in a statement published by the national Bernama news agency. Li, China’s No. 2 leader after President Xi Jinping, last week also became the first Chinese premier to visit New Zealand and then Australia in seven years. Other agreements signed aim to promote investment in the digital economy and green development, combat transnational crime, and boost housing and urban development, higher education, people-to-people exchanges in science and technology, tourism and cultural cooperation, Anwar's office said. Trade with China — Malaysia’s No. 1 trading partner since 2009 — made up 17% of Malaysia’s global trade, valued at $98.8 billion last year, Trade Minister Zafrul Aziz was quoted as saying by Bernama last week. While trade dominated the talks, Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Mohamad Hassan has said the prickly issue of territorial claims in the South China Sea was also likely to be raised. Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan all dispute Beijing’s claims to almost the entire South China Sea. But unlike the publicized clashes between the Philippines and China, Malaysia’s government prefers the diplomatic channel and rarely criticizes Beijing even though Chinese coast guard ships have sailed near Malaysia’s waters. This is partly to protect economic ties between the trade partners. “That is why we need to further build on this good cooperation we have established since 1974. The good ties we have enjoyed since will allow us to manage and resolve any issue amicably,” Mohamad Hassan was quoted as saying by The Star newspaper ahead of Li’s visit.  Anwar, who visited China twice last year, has sought to move closer to Beijing even while engaging the U.S. as a key ally. While speaking at a forum in Tokyo in May, Anwar stressed that Beijing is too close, too important and too strategic to ignore. Ahead of Li's visit, Anwar told Chinese media that Malaysia planned to join the BRICS bloc of developing economies but didn't give details. The plan was confirmed by Zafrul and Mohamad Hassan on Monday. The bloc's core members are Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, who seek a fairer world order currently dominated by Western nations. The bloc expanded with Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates invited to become members this year. Some 40 countries have also expressed interest. “Joining BRICS doesn't mean Malaysia will lose its strategic ambiguity between Beijing and Washington. It merely means an additional platform to give it a bigger voice as a middle power," said James Chin, professor of Asian studies at Australia’s University of Tasmania. Li is also scheduled to have an audience with King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar. Malaysia's Foreign Ministry said Li and Anwar will also attend a groundbreaking ceremony at a construction site for the East Coast Rail Link, which connects Malaysia’s west coast to eastern rural states and is a key part of China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative. The project was suspended in 2018 after Malaysia’s long-ruling coalition was toppled in a historic general election over a massive corruption scandal. It was subsequently revived after the Chinese contractor agreed to cut the construction cost by one-third, and is now due to be completed by the end of 2026. The two leaders will also attend a dinner to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Both leaders will also meet the business community at a luncheon before Li heads home Thursday.