The Thai Ministry of Social Development and Human Security has said it will address the ongoing problem of beggars currently roaming streets throughout the kingdom.

ASEAN ambassadors in South Africa have spoken highly of Vietnam’s enthusiasm and efforts in implementing the role as Chair of the ASEAN Pretoria Committee (APC) in South Africa over the past six months. APC meeting discusses the committee’s activities in 2014 in South Africa. The APC on June 27 organised a regular meeting to assess its operation over the first six months of 2014 and discuss action plans for the near future. Chairing the meeting, Vietnamese Ambassador to South Africa, Le Huy Hoang, who is also the APC chairman, reviewed the outstanding activities of the committee so far this year. The committee promoted strategic collaborative research activities on South Africa and the region’s situation, held meetings with South African leaders to discuss measures to boost ASEAN-South Africa relations, and utilised cultural and tourism events to promote ASEAN products in the country. ASEAN ambassadors expressed their pleasure with the performance of the committee during the period, emphasising the positive effect of APC activities in promoting unity and strengthening ASEAN's image in the host country, as well as facilitating relations between ASEAN and each ASEAN member state with South Africa. In an interview with the Vietnam News Agency correspondents in South Africa, Singaporean High Commissioner Bernard William Baker, who is also the chairman of the Asian ambassadors’ board in Pretoria, praised efforts by Vietnamese Ambassador to South Africa, Le Huy Hoang and the Embassy of Vietnam in South Africa in organising this year's APC activities. He suggested the APC adhere to its goals, ensuring that ASEAN continues to attract attention and support from the Department of International Relations and Co-operation and other related agencies of South Africa. He called for efforts by all APC members to implement such activities to uphold the important role of APC in the country.                                                                                                                                                        Nhan Dan Online

The funds would help Syrians defend against forces aligned with President Bashar al-Assad, the White House said.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said that although Indonesia is not directly involved in any territorial disputes in the East Sea, the country should bear the responsibility for helping to maintain peace in the region. Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa

The number of millionaires in Singapore grew by 4.5 percent from last year to about 105,000, lagging the global growth rate of 15 percent amid a tapering in the city-state’s home prices.

Traditional cuisine available for visitors to sample

The Ambassador of Portugal to Indonesia, Joaquim Alberto de Soura Moreira de Lemos, presented his letter of credential on June 19 to Secretary-General of ASEAN Le Luong Minh, thus assuming his post as the Ambassador of Portugal to ASEAN.

Iraqi PM Nouri Maliki has fired senior officers for failing to halt a sweeping advance by Sunni Islamist rebels. Four army commanders were dismissed because they did not perform "their national duty", a government statement said on Tuesday. Iraqi forces have been engaged in heavy clashes with the rebels who have seized several key cities in the past week. The US is deploying up to 275 military personnel to protect staff at its huge embassy in the capital, Baghdad. Mr Maliki and other senior figures of his Shia government were joined by Sunni leaders in a call for "national unity", after talks in Baghdad on Tuesday evening. They urged Iraqis to avoid sectarian grievances and said individuals with no official state function were banned from carrying weapons. The militants, led by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), took control of the northern cities of Mosul and Tikrit in a rapid advance last week, and Tal Afar on Monday. They also briefly captured parts of the city of Baquba - just 60km (35 miles) from Baghdad - in an overnight assault, before government troops and allied Shia militia pushed them back on Tuesday. Qasem Suleimani, the commander of an elite unit of Iran's revolutionary guards, is reported to be in Baghdad, helping military and Shia leaders co-ordinate their campaign against the rebels. 'Defeat this enemy' The ISIS advance has also raised international concern over regional stability. The United Nations has warned of "a real risk of further sectarian violence on a massive scale in Iraq and beyond its borders". ISIS fighters have been accused of carrying out hundreds of summary executions since their offensive began last week, and Sunni militants have posted photos online appearing to show fighters carrying out massacres of captured Iraqi soldiers. US Vice-President Joe Biden said on Tuesday "urgent assistance [was] clearly required", but stressed that Iraqis had to "pull together to defeat this enemy". Although Washington has already ruled out sending in ground troops to fight alongside Iraqi troops, drone strikes remain a possibility. The aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush has been deployed to the Gulf, along with two other US warships. Earlier, US officials also held brief discussions about Iraq with their Iranian counterparts at a meeting in Vienna about Tehran's nuclear programme. However, the US authorities were quick to dismiss reports of military collaboration with a major foe.                                                                                                                                                                               BBC

The Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, began an official visit to Vietnam on June 16 to further strengthen diplomatic and economic relations between the two countries. Talks and meetings will be focused on the Netherlands’ strength, including climate change and water management, agriculture, marine-based economy, oil and gas, energy, and logistics. An agriculture and food security partnership agreement is expected to be signed during the visit. Both sides will also look to realise a strategic partnership agreement on climate change adaptation and water management. Dutch companies will also meet with their Vietnamese counterparts to discuss cooperation and sign business deals. Vietnam and the Netherlands established diplomatic ties on April 9, 1973. The two countries have since maintained fine political relations through high-level exchange visits, supporting bilateral cooperation, especially in economics, trade, education and training. The Netherlands has worked closely together with Vietnam in successfully organising the 5th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Hanoi in 2004, and drafting documents on development issues, climate change, and green growth at the G20 meeting. Economic-trade ties between Vietnam and the Netherlands have grown and flourished over the years. Although the Netherlands has a smaller population size compared to other EU member states, two-way trade between the two countries has increased annually, hitting over US$3.6 billion last year. The Netherlands is now Vietnam’s third largest importer in Europe after Germany and the UK. As of 2013, it ranked 11th among foreign investors in Vietnam, with 192 projects capitalised at US$6.29 billion.                                                                                                                                                                       VOV