Chinese Foreign Minister visits Australia, says relations are on the right track, Canberra wants to be 'wise'. (Source: Reuters)

The World & Vietnam Newspaper highlights some of the day's international news highlights.

Russia - Ukraine

*Russia launches missile attack on Ukraine's capital: Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced on March 21 that Ukraine's capital Kiev was attacked by Russian forces with missiles.

Mr Klitschko said air defence units had repelled the attack and missile debris fell in different parts of the city.

Meanwhile, media reported several explosions in the early morning of March 21 in the center of the capital Kiev, following an air warning issued by Russia for missiles and drones. Dozens of loud explosions and anti-aircraft fire were heard from 5 a.m. (Kiev time). (Reuters)

*Ukraine calls on the West to step up the transfer of air defense systems: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on March 21 called on the West to transfer air defense systems to Kiev after Russia launched an overnight missile attack that injured 17 people in the capital Kiev and surrounding areas.

A day earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country had a "plan" to deal with the increase in attacks by Ukraine on Russia's border. The Russian leader pledged to restore security in the area. (AFP)

*Russia, Ukraine announced shooting down enemy missiles: The Russian Defense Ministry said the country's air defense system destroyed 10 Vampire multiple launch rockets (MLRS) aimed at the border province of Belgorod.

According to the statement: “At about 8:00 a.m. on March 21, an attempt by the Kiev authorities to carry out a terrorist attack on targets on Russian territory using the RM-70 Vampire multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) was prevented. Ten missiles were destroyed in the air over the Belgorod region.”

Meanwhile, Ukrainian Air Force Commander Mykola Oleschuk announced on the same day that the country's air defense system had shot down a total of 31 Russian missiles aimed at the capital Kiev. He added that among the destroyed missiles were 2 ballistic missiles and 29 cruise missiles. (Sputniknews)

*Russia's Northern Fleet has a new leader: On March 21, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that Vice Admiral Konstantin Kabantsov had been appointed acting Commander of the Northern Fleet.

Vice Admiral Kabantsov, 55, replaces Admiral Alexander Moiseev, who was formally introduced to the new post of Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy at a lavish ceremony on March 19. (TASS)

Asia-Pacific

*China, Russia reach security agreement with Houthi in Red Sea: Bloomberg news agency reported on March 21 that Houthi forces in Yemen have assured China and Russia that their ships can pass through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden without being attacked.

The agreement was announced amid a security threat in the Red Sea as Houthi rebels have repeatedly attacked international commercial vessels in the area since mid-November last year, claiming they were acting in solidarity with Palestinians against Israel's military operations in Gaza.

The attacks have disrupted global shipping, forcing companies to make longer and more expensive trips around southern Africa. The US and UK have launched retaliatory strikes against Houthi targets. (Al Jazeera)

*Indian Prime Minister postpones visit to Bhutan: The Indian Ministry of External Affairs announced on March 20 that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-day state visit to Bhutan has been postponed and a new date is being set by both sides through diplomatic channels.

Prime Minister Modi was scheduled to visit the Himalayan nation on March 21 and 22. However, the MEA said that due to “inclement weather” at the Paro airport, the visit has been postponed until further notice. (The Times of India)

*China demands the US stop interfering in its internal affairs: The Chinese Embassy in the US issued a statement stating that Beijing is extremely dissatisfied with and firmly opposes the US "smearing" of the new Hong Kong security law passed earlier this week.

Responding to the US State Department's comments, Beijing urged the US to respect China's sovereignty and immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China's internal affairs. (AFP)

*Indonesia warns of risk of conflict in the East Sea: Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, Hadi Tjahjanto, affirmed that the country will continue to be vigilant in responding to potential security issues and open conflicts in the East Sea.

Speaking at a recent discussion organized by the Indonesian Institute for Defense and Strategic Studies (ISDS), Mr. Tjahjanto said the risk of conflict in the East Sea stems from overlapping maritime border claims by some countries, especially China.

Indonesian officials point out that competition between major powers – the United States and China – also complicates the South China Sea dispute. (Reuters)

*Japan, US, Philippines pledge to strengthen ties: Japan's Foreign Ministry confirmed that on March 21, senior diplomats from Japan, the US and the Philippines pledged to further promote trilateral cooperation, paving the way for the first trilateral summit next month. According to the ministry, senior officials from the three countries also acknowledged that any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo by force is intolerable.

During a meeting in Tokyo, Japanese Deputy Foreign Minister Masataka Okano, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Philippine counterpart Maria Theresa Lazaro also agreed to cooperate closely to maintain and strengthen the “free and open international order based on rules” and to promote economic growth in the region. (Kyodo)

*Australia-China launch maritime talks: On March 21, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said that China is considering launching talks on maritime issues with Australia. At the same time, the two sides will also seek to promote cooperation including diplomacy, trade, technology, education and law enforcement.

Maritime issues have become a hot topic between China and Australia amid growing confrontations in the economically important waterway that Beijing claims almost in its entirety, despite claims from several Southeast Asian nations. (Reuters)

*Cambodian Prime Minister will officially visit Laos: The Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that at the invitation of Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and a high-ranking delegation will pay an official visit to the Lao PDR from March 25-26.

According to the announcement, the visit aims to continue to tighten and enhance the friendship, solidarity and long-standing traditional relationship, comprehensive strategic partnership, and long-term sustainability between Laos and Cambodia. (VNA)

*Suicide bombing in Afghanistan: On March 21, in the city of Kandahar, southern Afghanistan, a suicide bombing occurred, killing 3 people and injuring 12 others.

Inamullah Samangani, Director of Information and Culture of Kandahar province, confirmed the information, saying the explosion targeted a group of people waiting outside the New Kabul Bank branch in Kandahar.

According to him, people often gathered at the scene to receive their salaries, so the victims were all civilians. The number of bombings and suicide attacks in Afghanistan has decreased significantly since the Taliban ended their insurgency after overthrowing the US-backed government and taking power in August 2021. (The News)

*Foreign organization has been running New Zealand's intelligence operations for years: On March 21, New Zealand's RNZ newspaper quoted New Zealand Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) Brendan Horsley as revealing that a foreign organization had been conducting espionage activities against the New Zealand Government Information Security Bureau (GBSB) for many years without the knowledge of ministers.

Brendan Horsley said the GCSB uses a signals intelligence system operated by a foreign agency and that it is part of its own wider intelligence programme. Details of the country and its intelligence-gathering capabilities have not been disclosed.

The system operated from 2013 to 2020, when it was shut down due to a technical fault, but government ministers were not informed. IGIS then asked GBSB to create a register of New Zealand collection or analysis capabilities operated and controlled by overseas partners of Wellington's systems. (AFP)

Europe

*Israeli embassy in the Netherlands attacked: Dutch police said they have arrested a suspect who threw a burning object at the Israeli embassy in The Hague on the morning of March 21.

In a post on social media X, Dutch police said no one was injured and the incident was under investigation. The Netherlands has increased security at the Israeli embassy in The Hague after threats.

In January, an object believed to be an explosive device was found outside the Israeli embassy in Sweden. The incident is being investigated as a suspected terrorist act. (AFP)

*Impact of France sending 2,000 troops to Ukraine: Retired Colonel Sergei Suvorov - a Russian military expert, commented that the possibility of France deploying 2,000 troops to Ukraine will not significantly affect the progress of the special military campaign conducted by Russia in the neighboring country.

“They don’t remember and don’t read history. In general, history doesn’t teach them anything. They will come, these 2,000 people, but this will not make any difference. It will only prolong the conflict. And there will be more losses,” Mr. Suvorov stressed.

Earlier, on March 19, Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Sergei Naryshkin said that France was ready to deploy a military contingent to Ukraine, initially consisting of about 2,000 soldiers. According to Mr. Naryshkin, French soldiers have been unofficially present in Ukraine for some time and some have been killed or wounded. (TASS)

*Portugal has a new Prime Minister: According to a press release on the evening of March 20, Mr. Luis Montenegro was appointed Prime Minister of Portugal, after his right-wing Democratic Union party won the parliamentary election on March 10.

Mr Montenegro, a 51-year-old lawyer and experienced lawmaker, succeeds Socialist Antonio Costa, who has been in power since 2015 but failed to win a parliamentary majority. (AFP)

*Belgium welcomes transfer of profits from Russian assets to Ukraine, Hungary opposes: Speaking at the EU Summit on March 21, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo welcomed the European Union's (EU) proposal to use billions of euros in profits from frozen Russian financial assets to buy weapons for Ukraine. Meanwhile, Hungary opposed, saying that the money should be used "for anything but weapons".

The European Commission (EC) proposed this week to use profits, estimated at 2.5-3 billion euros ($2.7-3.3 billion) a year, from Russian assets frozen in Europe. According to the EC proposal, 90% of the profits would be transferred through the European Peace Facility (EPFF) fund to buy weapons for Ukraine. The rest would be used for the recovery and reconstruction of the country. (Deutsche Welle)

*Terrorist threat to Denmark increases: Denmark's security and intelligence agency PET said on March 21 that the threat from terrorism to the Nordic country and to its interests abroad has increased.

According to PET, the conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas militants and a series of Koran burnings in Denmark last year were the main reasons for the deteriorating security situation.

PET maintained its overall threat level assessment at 4, the second highest on a scale of 1-5, but warned the risk was increasing. (AFP)

*Australia exports armoured vehicles to Germany: A press release from the Australian Prime Minister's Office said the Government of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has signed the largest defence export deal in Australia's history to supply locally produced armoured vehicles to Germany.

Prime Minister Albanese said this was a significant milestone for Australia's defence industry, adding more than AUD 1 billion ($662 million) to the Australian economy. In addition, it demonstrated that Australia's defence industry is at the forefront of providing world-class defence capabilities to a trusted security partner, Germany.

Meanwhile, Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles expressed his delight at Australia and Germany signing the largest defense export agreement in the history of this Oceanian nation. (Reuters)

Middle East – Africa

*Russia conducts air defense drills in the Arabian Sea: Russia's Pacific Fleet announced on March 21 that its warships, including the missile cruiser Varyag and the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, conducted air defense drills in the Arabian Sea.

According to the exercise scenario, the air defense forces of the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov detected an unidentified air target, which was an enemy aircraft. Tracking of the 'enemy' aircraft showed that the 'enemy' was using a navigation system to carry out an air strike. The air defense forces immediately responded when the air target approached the self-defense zone and destroyed the aircraft with the air defense system.

Currently, Russian warships continue their long-term sea journey as planned. (TASS)

America - Latin America

*US denies reports of Green Beret deployment on Taiwan's Kinmen Island: Commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, Admiral John C. Aquilino, on March 20 denied claims that the US was deploying Green Berets (US Army Special Forces) to Taiwan's frontline Kinmen Island, but admitted that there are plans to support the development of the island's "defense" units.

According to recent information, US Army Green Berets have been stationed at bases in Kinmen and Penghu, conducting joint exercises with Taiwanese special forces units. (Taiwan News)

*US assures of 'unwavering commitment' to Ukraine: National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement that White House Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and assured him of Washington's support during his visit to Kiev.

According to the statement, Mr. Sullivan assured the Ukrainian leadership of the United States' "unwavering commitment" to Ukraine. He also discussed the results of a recent meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany with Mr. Zelensky, his chief of staff Andrey Yermak and other Ukrainian officials.

In addition, Mr. Sullivan also emphasized the urgency of the US House of Representatives to pass a supplementary national security bill to provide aid to Kiev and discussed ongoing efforts with allies and partners to support Ukraine. (TASS)

*CIA Director visits Argentina: On March 21, Argentine press reported that Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) William J Burns is visiting Argentina, after visiting Brazil.

Mr. Burns had meetings with Chief of the Argentine Cabinet Nicolás Posse, Security Minister Patricia Bullrich, and Director of the Argentine National Intelligence Service (AFI) Silvestre Sívori.

In January, during a visit to the United States, Mr. Posse and Mr. Sívori also met with CIA Director Burns to discuss a roadmap for increased cooperation to deal with “security threats” between the two countries. (Reuters)