China's foreign minister meets acting Afghan counterpart
FILE PHOTO: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a press conference for a ministerial meeting of the China-CELAC Forum, at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, in Beijing, China May 13, 2025. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo
BEIJING - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Afghanistan's acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Beijing on Wednesday, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Separately, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson told reporters at regular press briefing that Wang, Muttaqi and Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar had an informal meeting in Beijing.
Last month, the Taliban's Muttaqi expressed concern over the deportation of tens of thousands of Afghans from Pakistan in a rare meeting with Dar that marked a possible thaw in relations between their countries.
Pakistan has expelled more than 80,000 Afghan nationals since the end of March as part of a renewed surge in a repatriation drive that began in 2023. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Straits Times
39 minutes ago
- Straits Times
China says it is working with France on trade differences, no sign yet of a cognac deal
FILE PHOTO: Bottles of Remy Martin VSOP cognac, Remy Martin XO cognac and St-Remy XO Brandy are displayed at the Remy Cointreau SA headquarters in Paris, France, January 21, 2019. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo China says it is working with France on trade differences, no sign yet of a cognac deal BEIJING/PARIS - China and France have agreed to resolve their trade disputes through dialogue, China's foreign ministry said on Friday, though there was no indication that agreement had been reached in talks on lifting Chinese levies on European brandy. Talks to resolve the cognac dispute accelerated this week with China's commerce minister Wang Wentao meeting his French counterpart in Paris on the sidelines of an OECD conference, and technical talks on the matter taking place in Beijing. The latest round of negotiations have raised hopes of a settlement, two industry sources with knowledge of the discussions said. "The two sides have reached consensus on resolving economic and trade issues through dialogue and consultation", the Chinese foreign ministry said after a call between the Chinese and French foreign ministers. Chinese anti-dumping measures that applied duties of up to 39% on imports of European brandy - with French cognac bearing the brunt - have strained relations between Paris and Beijing. The brandy duties were enforced days after the European Union took action against Chinese-made electric vehicle imports to shield its local industry, prompting France's President Emmanuel Macron to accuse Beijing of "pure retaliation". The Chinese duties have dented sales of brands including LVMH's Hennessy, Pernod Ricard's Martell and Remy Cointreau. Beijing was initially meant to make a final decision on the duties by January, but extended the deadline to April and then again to July 5. China is seeking to strengthen trade ties with the 27-member bloc as relations with the United States have soured in the escalating trade war. "France will not compromise on ... the protection of its industries, such as cognac," French trade minister Laurent Saint-Martin said after talks with Wang on Wednesday. Chinese officials, meanwhile, signalled to industry officials during three rounds of technical meetings in Beijing this week they wanted to settle the matter, one of the sources said, but added some sticking points remained. With annual imports of around $1.7 billion last year, China is the French brandy industry's most important measured by value and the second-largest by volume after the United States. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
French rabbi tells of two attacks in one week as hate crimes rise
French rabbi Elie Lemmel talks with people after being attacked at a cafe terrace in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, June 6, 2025. REUTERS/Antony Paone French rabbi Elie Lemmel talks with people after being attacked at a cafe terrace in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, June 6, 2025. REUTERS/Antony Paone French rabbi tells of two attacks in one week as hate crimes rise PARIS - A French rabbi was attacked on Friday for the second time in a week, he told Reuters, reflecting a broad rise in hate crimes across France that has included high-profile anti-Semitic assaults. Elie Lemmel said he was sitting at a cafe in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine on Friday when he was hit in the head by a chair. "I found myself on the ground, I immediately felt blood flowing," he said. He was stunned and unsure what exactly had happened, he said, initially thinking something must have fallen from a window or roof, before it occurred to him he had been attacked. "Unfortunately, given my beard and my kippah, I suspected that was probably why, and it's such a shame," he said. Friday's incident follows another in the town of Deauville in Normandy last week, when Lemmel said he was punched in the stomach by an unknown assailant. Lemmel said he was used to "not-so-friendly looks, some unpleasant words, people passing by, spitting on the ground," but had never been physically assaulted before the two attacks. The prosecutor's office in Nanterre said it had opened an investigation into the Neuilly attack for aggravated violence and that a person was being held for questioning. It said it could not provide further details. "This act sickens us," former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal wrote on X regarding Friday's incident involving Lemmel. "Antisemitism, like all forms of hatred, is a deadly poison for our society." Last week, five Jewish institutions were sprayed with green paint in Paris. "I condemn in the strongest possible terms the anti-Semitic attack that targeted a rabbi in Neuilly today. Attacking a person because of their faith is a shame. The increase in anti-religious acts requires the mobilization of everyone," Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said in a post on X. France has seen a rise in hate crimes. Last year, police recorded an 11% rise in racist, xenophobic or antireligious crimes, according to official data published in March. The figures did not include a breakdown by attacks on different religions. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Red Cross halts operations in Niger after government directive
NIAMEY - The International Committee of the Red Cross says it has suspended its operations in Niger after the West African nation's government ordered the closure of its offices, citing alleged collusion with armed groups. Niger junta leader Abdourahamane Tchiani said in an interview with state television in late May that the organisation had been expelled in February, accusing it of meeting and collaborating with Islamist insurgent leaders. The ICRC denied the allegations. "To fulfil its humanitarian mandate to protect and assist victims of armed conflict, the ICRC engages in a spoken or written dialogue with all parties to a conflict," it said in a statement on Thursday. The organisation said it "never provides those parties with financial, logistical or other support." The ICRC, which has worked in Niger for 35 years, said it regretted the government's decision. It said it had immediately removed all foreign personnel from Niger earlier this year after authorities ordered it to do so, while remaining available for dialogue to understand what drove the decision and provide clarification. It added that attempts to discuss the situation were unsuccessful. "Our priority in Niger has been to help the most vulnerable people affected by ongoing armed conflicts and to do so with transparency, independence, neutrality and impartiality," ICRC Regional Director Patrick Youssef said in the statement. Around 4.5 million people, or 17% of Niger's population, required aid in 2024 due to a humanitarian crisis driven by insecurity, epidemics, and natural disasters, according to the United Nations. Niger's junta staged a coup in 2023 that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum. Following the coup, Niger's authorities, like military rulers in Mali and Burkina Faso, expelled French and other Western forces and sought support from Russia as they battle militant groups. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.