Asia Azerbaijan The consortium led by Saudi Arabian ACWA Power has won the tender to build a seawater desalination plant in Baku, considered a major step forward for water security and infrastructure development
Asia Lebanon Lebanon's new president called for Israel to withdraw from the south of the country by the January 26 deadline agreed to in last year's cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah, citing continued violations by land and air
Asia Kazakhstan The country is among the most likely candidates to host the qualifying tournament for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, said the president of the International Weightlifting Federation
Asia China For months, over 500 self-driving taxis have been roaming the streets of the city of Wuhan, in what is the world's largest experiment with self-driving cars
Asia Maldives The Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation announced a major promotional campaign in Germany ahead of the ITB Berlin 2025 tourism fair to be held 4-6 March
Asia Turkey Additional measures to prevent the sale and consumption of counterfeit alcohol have been announced by the Istanbul governor's office, after dozens of deaths linked to smuggled drinks have been recently reported
Asia Uzbekistan ChatGPT was the fourth most visited website in Uzbekistan last December, according to SEMrush; platform traffic from Uzbekistan reached 42,73 million visits
Asia East Timor The country is set to host the 12th edition of the Sports Games of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries, to be held in Dili between 17 and 25 July
Asia Uzbekistan The draft state programme for 2025, published for public input, includes an item proposing to assess the degree of corruption propensity of at least 500 senior civil servants and those in reserve for these positions
Asia Yemen The United Nations has warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis in Yemen where 19,5 million people will need humanitarian assistance this year, expressing concern especially for children facing malnutrition
Asia United Arab Emirates The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security urged citizens and residents to take advantage of the benefits offered by the Friend or Relative Visa service, which allows lengths of stay of up to 90 days
Asia Turkmenistan The National Action Plan for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings in Turkmenistan was approved for the period 2025-2029; the bodies responsible for the activities of this plan have been instructed to regularly monitor its implementation
Asia Tajikistan Ten children from Tajikistan were sent to China for surgery to treat congenital heart defects and five of them have already been operated on, has an official source from the Chinese Embassy in Dushanbe