China’s lawyers association signs MOU with Belt, Road nations

The All China Lawyers Association (ACLA) on Saturday signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with five nations along the Belt and Road to strengthen legal cooperation.

The five countries are India, Laos, Mongolia, Poland and Thailand.

According to the agreement, lawyers associations of these countries will expand legal cooperation with China in fields such as infrastructure building, enterprise investment and financing, manufacturing and information technologies, so as to guarantee the smooth development of major cooperation projects.

Law firms of the five countries and China will establish affiliated agencies at each other’s side, and offer convenience to facilitate high-level exchanges and the implementation of major plans.

Statement on the attacks in Pakistan

Yesterday, on the last Friday of Ramadan, terror attacks once again hit Pakistan, claiming more than 50 lives and leaving 120 people injured in Quetta and in two consecutive blasts in Parachinar calculated to maximise the number of victims.

We extend our condolences to the families and friends of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to those injured. Our hearts are with the people of Pakistan as we mourn with them this devastating loss.

The European Union strongly condemns terrorism in all its forms and will continue to work with Pakistan in the fight against this global threat.

Xi stresses enhancing rocket launch, test capability

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for comprehensively improving the country’s rocket launch and test capabilities.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), made the remarks during inspection of a space force unit based in Shanxi Province in north China on Thursday.

At about 9 a.m., Xi arrived at the unit’s history museum. The military base, first set up in 1960s, was an indigenously designed and built national defense testing ground.

Xi highly recognized the efforts of officers and staff of the base in the past 50 years, and said the Party and the people should show gratitude to their outstanding contributions in promoting the national defense power.

He also urged to care more about the life of the officers and soldiers at the base and help them solve problems.

The president then paid a visit to the base’s cultural and sports center where he met with the base’s officers, and asked them to make concerted efforts to develop new combat forces which can be integrated into the PLA’s joint operation system.

Xi also stressed deepening the military and civilian integration, and encouraged the aerospace forces to play an exemplary role in this area for all the armed forces.

Jeremy Corbyn statement on the evacuation of tower blocks in Camden

Jeremy Corbyn MP, Leader of the
Labour Party,
commenting on the evacuation of tower blocks in Camden, said:

“My thoughts are with all
those residents affected by the evacuation of tower blocks in Camden. This is a
disruptive and worrying time for them. The council has taken a difficult
decision on the advice of fire safety experts, but the safety of residents must
always come first.

"Tower blocks across the
country have now failed fire safety tests in the wake of the Grenfell tower
disaster. This is now a nationwide threat – and the Prime Minister needs to get
a grip and lead a national response, including convening the Cobra committee to
coordinate government and public action.

"I urge the government to
make sure all necessary support – including, crucially, financial support – is
urgently made available to councils across the country so they can deal swiftly
and effectively with the scale of the fire safety challenge.”

News story: A record Armed Forces Day celebrated across the country

A record 300 plus events including parades, military displays and community fetes are taking place right across the country to say thank you to the Armed Forces community for the outstanding work they do; Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen and women, both Regulars and Reservists are being recognised alongside the wider defence family such as Cadets and veterans past and present.

Today the National Event was held in Liverpool attended by His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex representing The Queen and the Royal Family.

Prime Minister Theresa May, who attended the event, said:

Our world-leading Armed Forces work day and night to defend our country and our way of life, both at home and abroad.

In the aftermath of the Manchester attack, military personnel played a vital role on UK streets, providing visible reassurance to our communities. And further afield they continue to take the fight to Daesh in Iraq and Syria, helping to drive the terrorists back and give ordinary people in those countries the chance to rebuild their lives.

I am proud to have attended the Armed Forces Day celebrations in the great city of Liverpool this year, joining thousands of people in expressing our gratitude to the men and women who do so much to preserve our freedom.

Other guests in Liverpool included Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon, Vice Chief of the Defence Staff General Sir Gordon Messenger, Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, hundreds of Service personnel, Cadets, veterans and thousands of members of the general public.

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said:

Today is a valuable opportunity to give something back to the Armed Forces community, which works so hard to keep us safe each and every day.

We have much to thank them for. In the last few years alone, our Armed Forces have fought Daesh terrorism, rescued thousands of migrants in the Mediterranean and helped protect us here at home.

I commend Liverpool for a spectacular event and thank organisers across the country for their efforts to mark Armed Forces Day.

The National Event began at 11am, with gun salutes heralding the start of the parade from St George’s Hall, accompanied by a flypast from an RAF Typhoon and ending with a flypast from the Red Arrows. The military villages then opened and visitors enjoyed an afternoon of exciting displays along the Pier Head including planes, helicopters, diving tanks, inflatable boats, tanks, a field hospital, simulators and marching bands. The Royal Navy’s type-23 frigate HMS Iron Duke has been docked in the city for the celebrations.

Later in Liverpool there were due to be flypasts by a Royal Navy Wildcat helicopter and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Gun runs, Dragon boat racing and spectacular closing performance of Beat Retreat.

Liverpool’s Assistant Mayor and Cabinet Member for Culture, Tourism and Events, Councillor Wendy Simon, said:

What an incredible event! It truly is a day of celebration, and from the start it has been a sea of colour and sound – a fantastic spectacle for everyone. It was wonderful to see serving personnel, side by side with cadets and veterans marching through Liverpool, cheered on by the crowds lining the streets.

This city has risen the occasion and I’m delighted to say we are giving the armed forced the ‘thank you’ they deserve.

As well as the national event in Liverpool, significant events have been organised across the country including in Caerphilly, Plymouth, Bangor (Northern Ireland) and Edinburgh. A number of smaller events from fetes to film screenings will take place, some of which will be held as far afield as the Falkland Islands and Cyprus.

UK Armed Forces are currently involved in over 20 operations in more than 25 countries, from South Sudan to Iraq. But many of those back at home will be in attendance at events across the country.

Also present will be many veterans that make-up the estimated 2.56 million Armed Forces veteran community living in the UK. Young Cadets will be present too; together the Sea, Army, and Air cadets have almost 100,000 members, many of which will be at events up and down the country.

UK businesses have showed their support too. The Royal Mail is postmarking Saturday’s mail with “Armed Forces Day 24 June 2017”, supermarket chain Morrisons is offering free drinks to Service Personnel and Toby Carvery are offering a free meal.