News Story: South Korea shows off massive weapons to celebrate Armed Forces Day

M-SAM part of the KAMD system (File Photo)

SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's military on Thursday showed off massive strategic weapons at an event to celebrate the 69th anniversary of Armed Forces Day amid rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Key strategic weapons, including homegrown ballistic missiles, were displayed at the celebration function that was broadcast live and held at the headquarters of the Navy's Second Fleet in Pyeongtaek, 70 km south of Seoul.

President Moon Jae-in and Defense Minister Song Young-moo inspected core military assets of the so-called "three-axis" defense platform, including the Kill Chain, the Korean Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) and the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR).

The country's indigenous Hyunmoo ballistic missiles were on display. Among them, the Hyunmoo-2C missiles were made public for the first time at the ceremony.

A Hyunmoo ballistic missile launcher vehicle (File Photo)

Hyunmoo ballistic missiles involve Hyunmoo-2A and Hyunmoo-2B which have a range of 300 km and 500 km each as well as Hyunmoo-2C that can fly as far as 800 km and hit the entire territory of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Also on display was Hyunmoo-3 cruise missiles that can travel as far as 1,000 km and has a high striking precision, though it has less destructive power than Hyunmoo-2 ballistic missiles.

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News Story: China's J-20 fighter jet put into service - spokesman

BEIJING, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's latest J-20 stealth fighter has been officially commissioned into military service, according to Wu Qian, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense on Thursday.

The flight tests are being conducted as scheduled, Wu said at a press conference.

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News Story: ASEAN-Plus defense ministers to discuss terrorism, drug trafficking in Philippines

MANILA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- The defense ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and eight dialogue partners will convene in the Philippines next month to discuss fighting terrorism, drug trafficking and maritime conflicts, the Philippine defense chief said on Thursday.

Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said that ministers will also discuss ways to mitigate climate change and cushion its impact on the region.

"We are going to have some statements with ASEAN countries but we are also having dialogues with our eight other dialogue partners," Lorenzana told reporters.

He described the forthcoming high-level security meeting, dubbed the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus), as "a huge conference" that is hoped to address issues that threaten peace and security of the region.

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News Story: Philippines tells U.S. it does not allow extrajudicial killings in anti-drug war

MANILA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson have met in Washington to discuss Manila's anti-drug war, a statement issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said here Thursday.

During the meeting at the State Department in Washington D.C. on Wednesday, the statement said the Philippines does not allow extrajudicial killings.

"Contrary to media reports, Cayetano also clarified to Tillerson that the Philippines does not have a state policy allowing extrajudicial killings, especially of illegal drug suspects," the statement read.

It said Cayetano informed Tillerson that Manila would welcome further cooperation with Washington, especially on initiatives that would address the illegal drugs problem in the country.

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News Story: Philippine defense chief says pro-IS militants offer to surrender

MANILA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said on Thursday that an undermined number of the Maute extremists that laid siege to the southern Philippine city of Marawi have offered to surrender.

Lorenzana said a local official, Lanao del Sur Rep. Mauyag Papandayan, relayed to him the pro-Islamic State militants' plan to surrender and give up the fight.

The pro-IS extremists have been fighting the government since May 23, putting up a bitter fight to gain control of the city.

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News Story: Indonesia launches guidance to tackle IS-linked group funding

JAKARTA, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia launched on Wednesday a guidance to detect and cut down transfer of funds to finance terror activities of Islamic State (IS)-linked groups, contributing to regional and global fights against terrorism.

Head of Indonesia's government antiterrorism desk (BNPT) Suhardi Alius said the guidance, which is formed in a book, would lead Indonesian institutions and agencies tasked to combat terrorism in composing and implementing policies to trace and cut the fund transfers for terrorism activities.

The book showed the map of terror group funding network as well as the IS Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTF) figures in Indonesia.

"The book contains documents aimed at improving awareness of institutions and agencies over the illicit fund transfers and how to trace and cut them. It also indicates the risk of the fund transfers to regional and global security," Suhardi said in the book launching event held here.

He added that Indonesia sees increasing fund transfers activities for IS-linked groups in the country since 2014, indicating that threat of terror attacks carried out by the groups remained credible.

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News Story: China sends relief materials for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh

DHAKA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- A second Chinese cargo plane carrying relief supplies for Rohingya refugees arrived in Bangladesh's southeastern Chittagong region on Thursday, after the first one arrived on Wednesday.

The relief materials included about 2,000 tents and 3,000 blankets.

An official from the Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh handed over the relief materials to the Bangladeshi side Thursday.

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PacificSentinel: That's right China/Xinhua, just ignore the complete overreaction by Myanmar's army in the situation.

News Story: China calls for patience with situation in Myanmar's Rakhine

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy to the United Nations on Thursday called for patience with the situation in Myanmar's Rakhine State.

"The question of Rakhine State is rooted in a nexus of complex historical, ethnic and religious factors. Many of the differences and antagonisms have been building up over a long time. There is no quick fix," Wu Haitao, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told the Security Council.

China condemns the recent violent attacks in Rakhine State and supports Myanmar's effort to keep its domestic situation stable, he said. "We sincerely hope that order will prevail again as soon as possible so that no more harm will come to the innocent civilians, and so that social stability, unity among ethnic groups and economic development in Myanmar will be sustained."

He asked the international community to view the difficulties and challenges confronting the Myanmar government "through objective optics," exercise patience, and provide support and help.

"A viable solution will be one that goes in tandem with the reconciliation process in Myanmar," said Wu.

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News Story: 14 dead, unknown number missing after Rohingya boat capsizes off Bangladesh

DHAKA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least 14 bodies were recovered after a boat with dozens of Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar capsized in the Bay of Bengal close to Bangladesh's southeastern Cox's Bazar district bordering Myanmar, a senior police official said Thursday.

The accident also left an unknown number of people missing, the police official said.

Afrozul Hoque Tutul, additional police superintendent of Cox's Bazar district, told Xinhua at about 6:30 p.m. local time that "14 bodies have so far been recovered."

He could not tell immediately when the boat capsized but assumed that it may have capsized sometime Thursday evening.

Law enforcers rushed to recover the bodies which were floating in the Bay of Bengal near Inani sea beach area of Cox's Bazar district, some 292 km southeast of capital Dhaka, he said.

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News Story: Six terrorists killed in Pakistan's Karachi

ISLAMABAD, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- Six suspected terrorists were killed in an encounter during a raid at the suspects' hideout, police in the Pakistani port city of Karachi said Thursday.

Senior Superintendent of Police Rao Anwar said police along with intelligence officials conducted the raid on a tip-off about the presence of the terrorists in Sachal area of Karachi, the capital of the country's southern Sindh province.

"All six of the terrorists were killed in retaliatory firing after they opened fire on the raiding team," Anwar said.

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