Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un  began their first-ever talks in the Pacific port city of Vladivostok today. Mr. Putin said he supports ongoing efforts to ease tensions on the Korean peninsula and wants to boost bilateral economic ties. He said the North Korean leader's visit  to Russia  will help the two countries  to better understand how  to resolve the situation on the Korean peninsula. 
  
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reached the Russian Far East yesterday to  seek Moscow's support after failing to reach an agreement with US President Trump on Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme at Hanoi earlier this year.
   
Russia has previously been involved in talks to end North Korea's nuclear programme.

India bagged four medals, including a Gold, on the final day of the Asian Athletics Championships at Doha in Qatar yesterday. PU Chitra successfully defended her Women's 1,500 metres Gold she had won in 2017, while Ajay Kumar Saroj in Men's 1,500 metres and the Women's 4x400 metres relay team clinched a silver each. Sprinter Dutee Chand added a bronze in Women's 200 metres race.

In the Men's 4x400 metres relay, India was initially declared to have won a Silver, but the jury later disqualified the team for impeding an athlete after protest by China. India filed an appeal against the jury's decision but it was rejected.

India ended at the fourth spot in the medals tally with 3 Gold, 7 Silver and 7 Bronze. Bahrain topped the table with 11 Gold, 7 Silver and 4 Bronze. China was second with 10 Gold, 13 Silver and 7 Bronze, while Japan was third with 5 Gold, 4 Silver and 9 Bronze.

Indonesia has released a special commemorative stamp on the theme of Ramayana to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of its diplomatic ties with India. 

In a statement, the Embassy of India in Jakarta yesterday said the stamp, designed by renowned Indonesian sculptor Padmashri Bapak Nyoman Nuarta, featured a scene from Ramayana in which Jatayu valiantly fought to save Sita. 

A specially signed version of the stamp will be on display at the Philately Museum in Jakarta, it said. 

India's Ambassador Pradeep Kumar Rawat and Indonesia's Vice Foreign Minister Abdurrahman Mohammad Fachir attended the event. 

Indonesia has released a special commemorative stamp on the theme of Ramayana to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of its diplomatic ties with India. 

In a statement, the Embassy of India in Jakarta yesterday said the stamp, designed by renowned Indonesian sculptor Padmashri Bapak Nyoman Nuarta, featured a scene from Ramayana in which Jatayu valiantly fought to save Sita. 

A specially signed version of the stamp will be on display at the Philately Museum in Jakarta, it said. 

India's Ambassador Pradeep Kumar Rawat and Indonesia's Vice Foreign Minister Abdurrahman Mohammad Fachir attended the event. 

India clinched one gold, one silver and bronze at the Asian Wrestling Championship in China's Xian on Tuesday. 

World number one Bajrang Punia logged 10 points in a row in the gold medal bout to reclaim his Asian Championship crown. He defeated  Kazakhstan's Sayatbek Okassov 12-7 in a nail-biting 65kg men's freestyle final. 

It is Bajrang's second gold at this championship, having won one in 2017. 

Another Indian Parveen Rana, lost to Bahman Mohammad Teymouri of Iran in the final 0-3 in 79kg category securing a silver medal. In 97 Kg category Satywart Kadian, picked a  bronze medal defeating Haobin Gao of China by 8-2. 

A direct flight between  Delhi and Dhaka will start from the 13th of next month. The state-owned airline of Bangladesh ‘Biman Bangladesh’ will restart its Dhaka-Delhi-Dhaka route after a gap of more than six years. Currently, there are no direct flights between the two cities.

A spokesperson for Biman Bangladesh Shakil Meraj said the national flag carrier will use a 162 seated Boeing 737-800 aircraft on this route which will operate three days a week. The flight will depart at 3 pm from Dhaka and will arrive at Indira Gandhi International Airport around 5:50 pm. 

The return flight from Delhi will take off at 6.20 p.m. in the evening and reach Dhaka at 9.20 p.m.

Biman had been operating flights to Delhi since the 1980s but suspended the service in 2013.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu called upon universities and institutions to constantly reform the system and ensure that higher education institutions deliver high-quality education. Addressing graduates at an event in Chennai yesterday, the Vice President emphasised that higher education is essential for the development of scientific temper. He urged teachers to equip themselves with the latest developments. 

Stating that technology was a great democratic leveller, Mr Naidu asked students and the youth to take care of the technological needs of the villages, agriculture and allied industry. He called for leveraging technology's potential for rural development and bridging the rural-urban divide.

The US says Chabahar port project won't be impacted by sanctions on Iran. A State Department official said that the Chabahar port project, being developed by India in Iran, will not be impacted by US President Donald Trump's decision not to renew exemptions that let eight countries including India to buy Iranian oil without facing American sanctions. 

The exception for reconstruction assistance and economic development for Afghanistan, which includes the development and operation of Chabahar Port, is a separate exception, a State Department Spokesperson said.

The UAE Space Agency and Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) have announced that 85% of the Hope Probe project has been completed. Hope Probe is an ambitious dream project of UAE to send a mission to Mars.

In a joint statement, the two organisations confirmed that most of the main parts of the project have been completed and are currently undergoing intensive testing to ensure every aspect of the Probe is ready for activation a few months before the launch date.

Hope Probe is scheduled to be launched in July 2020. With a successful launch, UAE hopes to become the first Arabic and Islamic country to make the Mars Mission dream a reality. A statement released by the Dubai Media Office said that the Probe has already entered an intensive testing phase to ensure its readiness before the launch date, with less than 500 days are remaining for the launch. It is planned to reach Mars by 2021 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the founding of the UAE.

A 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit the southern Philippines today, just a day after a deadly tremor rocked the country's north. The US Geological Survey (USGS) said, the quake hit near Tutubigan, which is hundreds of kilometres south of the quake that hit near Manila yesterday killing at least 11 people. 

The USGS downgraded the magnitude of the fresh quake after initially recording it at 6.6.