Asia Laos New rules for intellectual property protection wereintroduced, allowing businesses to protect industrial designs internationally through a single application under the Hague System; It simplifies registration and administrative procedures, reducing costs
Oceania Solomon Islands Prime Minister James Marape returned from Tokyo, Japan, where he attended the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting and bilateral meetings with the Japanese PM
Europe Lithuania Amid social media reports of a possible accident at Russia's Rostov nuclear power plant, the Radiation Protection Centre stated on Friday that there is no direct radiological threat to Lithuanian territory
Oceania Micronesia Over $232 million have been allocated for the Federated States of Micronesia Trust Fund under the new agreement with the US Department of the Interior
Europe Portugal Owners who transform their property into Local Accommodation during the six years following their acquisition will be paying a higher Municipal Tax on Onerous Property Transfers (IMT)
Asia Thailand The Cannabis Future Network of Thailand concluded a hunger strike and peaceful demonstration to protest against the reclassification of cannabis as an illegal narcotic
Europe Vatican City Pope Francis expressed the hope that the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games would provide an opportunity for nations at war to respect an ancient Greek tradition and establish a truce for the duration of the Games
Asia Taiwan Taiwan-based e-scooter brand and battery developer Gogoro Inc. plans to start commercial availability of three e-scooter models and battery replacement services in Singapore in the fourth quarter of this year
Europe Slovenia Slovenian cyclist Tadej Pogačar won the 111th edition of the Tour de France, the first to have won both the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France in the same year since 1998
Africa Togo Hydrogeological studies in Greater Lomé were undertaken as part of the Togo Urban Water Security Project, to assess groundwater conservation, the risk of contamination and sealing requirements
Europe Serbia Serbia's national broadcaster, RTS, has officially opened nominations for songs to represent the country at the next Eurovision 2025; submission window will remain open until 1 November 2024
Africa Sao Tome and Principe The Portuguese School of São Tomé and Príncipe is being rehabilitated and expanded to meet the demand for students in the archipelago, which has doubled to 700 since its creation in 2016
Asia Saudi Arabia Nahj, a non-profit organisation, launched its summer training programme to empower young people until 15 August in Riyadh and Jeddah through partnerships with companies in fields including healthcare, law, business development, engineering and technology
Oceania Tonga Starlink has been granted a 'temporary provisional permit' to operate in the country; a condition of the permit is that it is required to facilitate local payment methods for Tongan businesses and provide details of the terminals used