China has instructed its foreign embassies to refrain from displaying “propaganda,” in an apparent response to the embassies’ show of support for Ukraine. In a note to all its diplomatic missions, Beijing said that they should “respect Chinese laws and regulations” and not “use the external walls of embassies to carry out politicised propaganda” to “avoid causing disputes between countries.”
The Philippines’ military chief Andres Centino visited a remote island in Palawan province near the disputed Spratly archipelago in the South China Sea on Wednesday. In his address to a small contingent of navy officers, Centino reminded them that their mission was to “ensure there is peace.” “We make sure that we are deployed where we are needed. In Palawan, we are needed here because this is a strategic location, so we have to be prepared,” he said.
Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court has lifted the travel ban on former PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, allowing him to go overseas. The ban was imposed after security forces attacked peaceful anti-government protestors in Colombo on 9 May 2022.
On Wednesday, American electric car manufacturer Tesla informed Indian government officials of its plan to set up a factory in India to produce electric cars for domestic sale and export. Last year, New Delhi refused to reduce import taxes on Tesla cars, demanding that the company make the vehicles locally.
INS Batti Malv visited Sri Lanka’s Trincomalee Port on 16-17 May and participated in a Maritime Partnership Exercise with SLNS Ranadheera. The visit significantly strengthened the cooperation between India and Sri Lanka in addressing shared maritime security challenges. Both sides participated in social initiatives like a beach cleaning drive, interaction with school children, and a yoga session. They also held training engagements on Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS), sports, and ship capability. INS Batti Malv is the third ship of the Bangaram class. It is built to intercept fast-moving surface vessels and conduct rescue operations in coastal and exclusive economic zone waters.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested freelance defence journalist Vivek Raghuvanshi and former Navy commander Ashish Pathak in an alleged espionage case. The accused journalist is said to have collected minute-sensitive information on projects of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and shared it with foreign intelligence agencies. He also collected and leaked the details of future procurement by Indian armed forces and classified communications and shared them with foreign entities. The CBI seized 48 electronic devices belonging to Raghuvanshi and his associates from different locations in Delhi and Rajasthan. The journalist and the former Navy commander were in possession of classified secret documents related to Indian defence establishments.
The Black Sea grain deal was renewed on Wednesday for two additional months. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan first announced the extension in a television speech, and Russia, Ukraine, and the UN later confirmed it. The extension was hailed by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who stated, “The continuation is good news for the world.” The UN and Turkey brokered the deal, which was first agreed upon last July, and has been renewed several times.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the foreign ministers of Russia and Belarus reaffirmed their commitment to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and rejected efforts to politicise it. Additionally, the ministers stated that Moscow and Minsk “are working to prevent an arms race in space, seeking the start of negotiations to develop an appropriate international instrument for this, and supporting the globalisation of the initiative on not being the first to use weapons in space.”
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that three Russian academics involved in developing hypersonic missile technology are facing “serious accusations,” causing concern within the country’s scientific community. Anatoly Maslov, Alexander Shiplyuk, and Valery Zvegintsev have been subjected to a treason investigation. In a letter published on Monday, their colleagues defended their innocence and raised concerns about the potential harm to Russian science resulting from the ongoing prosecutions. Responding to a question about the letter, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated, “We have indeed seen this appeal, but Russian special services are working on this. They are doing their job. These are very serious accusations.”