JAKARTA, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Southeast Asian leaders will on Tuesday converge on the Indonesian capital for an annual summit amid rifts within the 10-member regional bloc over stalled peace efforts in Myanmar and a sharpening U.S.-China rivalry in the region.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is seeking to clarify its relevance as cracks emerge in its response to the conflict in Myanmar, where the military seized power in a bloody coup in 2021.

04 September 2023; MEMO: The United Arab Emirates has set up a federal entity to regulate gambling and hired veterans of the US gambling industry to lead it, the WAM state news agency has reported.

SYDNEY, Sept 5 (NNN-AAP) – Sato Kilman was elected as Vanuatu’s new prime minister yesterday, after winning 27 votes to 23, in a parliamentary ballot, local media reported.

According to Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation, it will be the fifth time for Kilman, 65, also leader of the People’s Progressive Party, to serve as Vanuatu’s PM. Kilman most recently took office from Jun, 2015 to Feb, 2016.

WASHINGTON , Sep 04 (APP): Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Masood Khan, Monday discussed the issue of water resource management with US Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury in Albuquerque, the largest city in the U.S. state of New Mexico.

Ms. Stansbury considers water as ground zero for climate change and has extensive experience in the field of water resources.

MOSCOW, September 4. /TASS/: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will participate in the events of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko announced at the Valdai international discussion club.

"Sergey Viktorovich is expected to participate in events on the margins of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok," the senior diplomat said.

04 September 2023; MEMO: Syrian President, Bashar Al-Assad, announced yesterday that military field courts in the country have been disbanded, apparently ending the notorious process in which thousands are said to have been executed without due process.

ULAANBAATAR, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Monday wrapped up a historic trip to Mongolia which took on international connotations because of his overtures to its neighbour China over freedom of religion.

At the end of a Mass on Sunday, the pope sent greetings to China, calling its citizens a "noble" people and asking Catholics in China to be "good Christians and good citizens".

On Monday, China's foreign ministry said it has taken a positive attitude on improving relations with the Vatican.

UNITED NATIONS, Sep 04 (APP): The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, and 64 humanitarian and national civil society organizations Monday appealed for $1 billion to provide essential aid and protection to more than 1.8 million people fleeing the ongoing conflict in Sudan, who are expected to arrive in five neighbouring countries by the end of 2023.

Since the crisis began when rival military groups clashed in mid-April, projections of growing numbers of people trying to escape fighting have sharply spiked upwards.

MOSCOW, September 4. /TASS/: Ukrainian authorities do not plan to change their position on the grain deal, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said.

Speaking on TV, he also said that Ukraine expects to receive details of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin from the Turkish side. He underscored that Kiev will defend "all principal positions, including in regards to the sanctions pressure on Russia."

The former CEO and the chairman of a Swedish oil firm go on trial in Sweden today, accused of complicity in war crimes in Sudan between 1999 and 2003, Reuters has reported.

Prosecutors say then-Lundin Oil – which since then changed name several times and in 2022 sold most of its business – asked Khartoum to secure a potential oilfield in what is now South Sudan, knowing this would mean seizing the area by force.

05 September 2023; MEMO: An Israeli sports delegation arrived in Saudi Arabia yesterday to participate in the world weightlifting competition, Israeli media reported.

“For the first time, an Israeli delegation of weightlifters will be in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for the World Weightlifting Championships (WWC) which began on Sunday,” Israel24 said.

04 September 2023; MEMO: Saudi Arabia and Italy have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost economic relations and strategically important investments, in the latest development between the two countries.

Speaking to reporters at the Investment Forum between Italy and Saudi Arabia in Milan today, Italian Industry Minister, Adolfo Urso, was quoted by Reuters as stating that “Dialogue can help companies develop a technological and industrial partnership”.