In a three-day meeting that ended in Washington yesterday, South Korea and the US agreed to step up cooperation on cyber security. Seoul also called for efforts to expand information sharing and exchange of personnel.
Zambia and its biggest creditors, including China, have reached a deal to restructure $6.3 billion in loans on Thursday. The agreement also covers loans from France, the UK, South Africa, Israel, and India.
The Sri Lankan Navy arrested 22 Indian fishermen in a special operation conducted on Thursday. Four Indian trawlers were seized from the northwest waters off Delft Island, Jaffna. The navy said the action was taken to curb illicit fishing activities, which threaten the indigenous fishing community’s local marine environment and livelihoods.
India has decided to join the Artemis Accords, the US-led non-binding international agreement on civil space exploration and use. Launched in 2020 and comprising 25 signatories, it is an effort to return humans to the moon by 2025, with the ultimate goal of expanding space exploration to Mars and beyond. Additionally, the US space agency, NASA, and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have agreed to carry out a joint mission to the International Space Station next year.
US Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger announced on Thursday that a deep-sea submersible carrying five people on a mission to the century-old Titanic wreckage was discovered in parts after a “catastrophic implosion” that killed everyone aboard. A robotic diving vehicle deployed from a Canadian ship detected a debris field from the submersible Titan on the seabed in a remote region of the North Atlantic, Mauger told the reporters. There was no indication of whether human remains were sighted.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at the ‘The Arctic. The Ice Has Broken’ forum, affirmed that Russia prioritises the development of the Arctic area and preserving its natural resources. According to the Russian President, nearly 5,000 tonnes of waste was collected and removed from 110 hectares of Arctic land. Putin indicated that this large-scale important effort would continue.
Israel’s natural gas reserves have expanded by almost 40% over the last year due to increasing drilling and exploration activities, according to an Israeli energy industry report. Gas reserves grew from 780 billion cubic metres (bcm) in 2012 to 1,087 bcm in 2022. This growth has been noticed following the discovery of several huge offshore natural gas fields in Israel, including the Tamar and Leviathan fields.