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North Korea’s Foreign Minister Leaves for Russia, Embassy in Pyongyang Says

A flag hoisting ceremony is held during a celebration meeting and evening gala on the occasion of the 76th founding anniversary of North Korea at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang on September 8, 2024. (AFP)
A flag hoisting ceremony is held during a celebration meeting and evening gala on the occasion of the 76th founding anniversary of North Korea at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang on September 8, 2024. (AFP)
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North Korea’s Foreign Minister Leaves for Russia, Embassy in Pyongyang Says

A flag hoisting ceremony is held during a celebration meeting and evening gala on the occasion of the 76th founding anniversary of North Korea at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang on September 8, 2024. (AFP)
A flag hoisting ceremony is held during a celebration meeting and evening gala on the occasion of the 76th founding anniversary of North Korea at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang on September 8, 2024. (AFP)

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui has flown to Russia to attend the fourth Eurasian Women's Forum and the BRICS Women's Forum in Saint Petersburg, Russia's embassy in North Korea said on Monday.

"Russian Ambassador (Alexander Ivanovich) Matsegora saw off North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui at the Pyongyang International Airport," the embassy said in a post on its Vkontakte social network.

The embassy said that the minister's speeches and participation in discussions are planned at the forum, which will take place Sept. 18 to 20.

Valentina Matviyenko, speaker of the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, said in June that delegations from almost a hundred countries were expected at the forum.

"We will strive to ensure a record foreign representation in the entire history of the Forum," Matviyenko said in June, according to a transcript provided on the Council's website.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has attended previous meetings of the forum, but the Kremlin is yet to announce his participation in this year's forum.

Warming ties between the countries reached a new high this year when Putin signed a deal with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that included a mutual defense pledge during a visit to Pyongyang.

The United States and its allies have accused North Korea of helping Russia by supplying weapons for its war in Ukraine in return for economic and other military assistance. Moscow and Pyongyang have denied this.

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Floods Wreak Damage in Myanmar, Killing at Least 226, State Media Says 

Partially-submerged buildings are seen along a flooded road in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP)
Partially-submerged buildings are seen along a flooded road in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP)
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Floods Wreak Damage in Myanmar, Killing at Least 226, State Media Says 

Partially-submerged buildings are seen along a flooded road in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP)
Partially-submerged buildings are seen along a flooded road in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP)

Floods in Myanmar have killed at least 226 people in just over a week, state media reported on Tuesday, after heavy rains brought on by Typhoon Yagi battered the central provinces of the war-torn Southeast Asian country.

Around a third of Myanmar's 55 million people are already in need humanitarian aid, following incessant conflict triggered by a Feb. 2021 coup when the powerful military unseated the civilian government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

The areas hardest hit by the flooding include the second largest city of Mandalay, the capital Naypyitaw and parts of Shan state, a sprawling province that has seen heavy fighting in recent months.

Some 77 people are still missing, state media said.

"A total of 388 relief camps were opened in nine regions and states, and the well-wishers donated drinking water, food and clothes," reported the Global New Light of Myanmar, the newspaper of the military government.

In the Mandalay region alone, some 40,000 acres of agricultural land were submerged and some 26,700 houses damaged by the heavy rains and flooding, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) also said many flood-hit regions were difficult to reach as several roads were damaged and telecoms and electricity networks disrupted.

"Affected areas include camps for displaced people, including children, who were already struggling with limited services due to ongoing conflict," UNICEF said in a statement.

Typhoon Yagi, the strongest storm to hit Asia this year, has left a trail of devastation through parts of Southeast Asia, killing at least 292 people in Vietnam where it made landfall.

In Thailand, the storm caused heavy rains and flooding that inundated northern cities, including on the border with Myanmar.

At least 45 people have died across Thailand from flooding and flood-related events such as mudslides since last month, according to the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.

At least three people were killed and over 440 families evacuated in Laos, where flooding across eight provinces have also swamped some 7,825 acres of paddy fields, according to UNICEF.