China and Seychelles have forged profound friendship since the diplomatic ties were established 48 years ago and the two countries have always trusted each other and firmly supported each other's core interests and major concerns. The statement was made on Thursday by the Chinese Ambassador to Seychelles, Lin Nan, at a National Day reception for the 75th Anniversary of the founding of China at the Eden Bleu Hotel. The ambassador said, «We appreciate the one-China policy adhered to by the Seychelles' government and people, and we are happy to see that projects aided by China such as the National Assembly building, Palace of Justice, hospital, social housing, have contributed a lot to Seychelles economic and social development. The new SBC House will be in operation soon, and new social housing project has been planned.» She spoke about the meeting of President Xi Jinping with President Wavel Ramkalawan during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit in Beijing recently. «They jointly announced the elevation of the China-Seychelles relationship to a strategic partnership. This is an important milestone of our bilateral relations, spearheading a new era of bilateral cooperation and friendship,» said Nan. She said that the two countries will continue to support each other on the international stage and that China will tap the potential of economic and trade interactions, and are ready to import more quality Seychelles products. «We will further enhance cooperation in fishery, Blue Economy, health, culture, education, people-to-people exchanges and maritime security,» added the ambassador. She emphasised that the «Deepened friendship between our two countries and peoples calls for more active participation of all stakeholders. The Embassy is ready to work with Seychellois friends from all walks of life to implement concrete projects. We encourage and support the Association for the Promotion of Friendship between Seychelles and China, the Chinese community and contractors, business people, Confucious Institute, and China Medical Team to play their important role in this common undertaking.» Nan added that she has full confidence that with concerted efforts the two countries  will build a «new era» of China-Seychelles relations and a community with a shared future. On his part, the Designated Minister, Jean-François Ferrari, stated that China «has been reliable in our pursuit of development and prosperity, this year in particular, has seen significant progress in our relations.» He explained that in the health sector alone, this year the Chinese Navy hospital ship, Peace Ark returned to Seychelles after 14 years while Chinese medical experts have been posted in the country demonstrating China's ongoing support for the well-being of the Seychellois people.« In education, six Seychellois students have gone for further studies in Chinese universities, adding to the 31 Seychellois already studying in the Asian country. Ferrari said China has also been a partner to Seychelles in maritime security by »offering essential training to members of the Seychelles Defence Forces and preparing to donate a new patrol vessel to strengthen our efforts in protecting our waters.« He concluded by saying, »The strength of a partnership is not defined by size or distance, but by shared goals and the government of Seychelles is deeply committed to further enhancing our long-standing relationship with China."

Artists from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnodar, Arkhangelsk and Crimea have come to the archipelago

Leaders of the leading countries of the Global South and East have been invited to an expanded meeting in the BRICS Plus format

Top stories from the Russian press on Friday, September 20th

«The North Korean people express their support for the Russian people in their just struggle,» Choe Son Hui stressed

Earlier, the Mexican embassy in Moscow stated that the Russian president had received an invitation to Sheinbaum's inauguration ceremony

NATO is increasingly trying to extend its influence to the Arctic region, Sergey Lavrov has said Read Full Article at RT.com

The Nigerian government has reported that recent flooding disasters have killed over 280 people Read Full Article at RT.com

Asalifew Kabeto has highlighted the importance of BRICS as a platform for collaboration and women’s development Read Full Article at RT.com

Ukraine has lost more than two-thirds of its power production capacity amid the conflict with Russia, the IEA has reported Read Full Article at RT.com

According to Florian Filippot, France should urgently withdraw from the EU and advocate for a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian conflict

«The UN General Assembly always encompasses a very broad agenda,» Sergey Ryabkov stressed

SINGAPORE — The four per cent floor rate for interest earned on all Special, MediSave and Retirement account (SMRA) monies has been extended for another year until Dec 31, 2025. In a joint statement on Sept 20, the Housing Board and Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board said the extension from Jan 1, 2025, will «continue to provide CPF members with certainty on the returns of their CPF savings amidst the volatile interest rate environment». Since 2008, savings in SMRAs have been invested in Special Singapore Government Securities, which earn an interest rate pegged to the 12-month average yield of 10-year Singapore Government Securities plus one per cent. All interest rates are quoted on a per annum basis.  From Oct 1 to Dec 31, the SMRA interest rate will be set at 4.14 per cent, up from the 4.08 per cent in the third quarter, due to the pegged rate exceeding the floor rate of 4 per cent. The Ordinary Account (OA) interest rate will remain unchanged at 2.5 per cent from Oct 1 to Dec 31, as the OA pegged rate remains below the floor rate of 2.5 per cent.

Three 19-year-olds have been arrested following an operation by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) on Wednesday (Sept 18) which resulted in the seizure of a large quantity of drugs, said the agency in a statement on Friday (Sept 20). Two of the three teens - a man and a woman - were arrested in a residential unit in the vicinity of Rivervale Walk in Sengkang. Officers found drug paraphernalia in the bedroom of the 19-year-old man, including a digital weighing scale. Officers then brought the man to his rented unit along Hougang Ave 7 where they found about 486g of Ice (crystal methamphetamine) and 695g of cannabis in the premises. Officers then raided a unit along Serangoon North Ave 3, arresting another 19-year-old male who was found in the bedroom. Some 24g of Ice was found in the bedroom, as well as various drug paraphernalia and $11,400 in cash. The total worth of all the drugs seized by CNB is estimated to be around $78,000 and is enough to feed 390 drug abusers for a week, CNB said.

A mother-and-son duo is facing charges for giving false and misleading information to the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) during its audit of cases of the so-called «99-to-1» arrangement for private properties. This is the first prosecution of taxpayers providing false and misleading information to Iras during its investigation into the two-step «99-to-1» property transactions for possible tax avoidance, said the agency in a statement on Friday (Sep 20). The mother, 56-year-old Ng Chiew Yen, and her son, 26-year-old Keith Tan Kai Wen, face five charges each. They are both Singaporeans. Investigations revealed that Tan bought a condominium unit at the 99-year leasehold The Watergardens at Canberra in Sembawang in his sole name on Sep 24, 2021, said Iras. He subsequently sold a 1 per cent share of the property to his mother. Data from URA Realis showed that the fourth-floor unit, 753 sq ft in size, was transacted on Aug 28, 2021, for S$1.1 million, or S$1,477 a square foot.

Yvette Fielding works as a paranormal investigator and those who think their home may have an unwelcome guest are in for the chance to bring her in this Halloween after spotting floating orbs.

Laura Farmer died at University College Hospital in London in April this year. Senior coroner for Inner North London (Coroner's Court pictured) criticised the UK Health Security Agency for their 'inaction'.

Maria Zakharova drew attention to the speculations about Romania's plans for redirecting to Moldova the mobile maintenance stations for F-16 fighter jets received by Bucharest for their subsequent deployment at the Marculesti airbase

Citing media information from Syrian sources, the Maria Zakharova said that 250 Ukrainian instructors arrived in Idlib the other day to train militants

Sales of foreign currency on the domestic market with settlements on September 18 amounted to 0.5 bln rubles ($5.39 mln)

«By now, over 30 countries of the Global South and East have displayed interest in developing interaction with BRICS in various ways,» Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said

Meanwhile, according to ZNPP communications director Yevgeniya Yashina, no Ukrainian drone attacks have been recorded on the territory of the plant

NATO is increasingly trying to extend its influence to the Arctic region, Sergey Lavrov has said Read Full Article at RT.com

According to the outgoing NATO Secretary-General, Ukraine's use of long-range missiles will not lead to the alliance being drawn into a conflict with Russia

Maria Zakharova asserted Russia’s solidarity with the people of Lebanon

Russia remains the fourth largest LNG supplier to China after Australia, Qatar and Malaysia

Maria Zakharova pointed out that the US and the UK were behind all of Kiev's crimes

Russia is currently the second largest supplier of pipeline gas to China after Turkmenistan

They may have enjoyed tucking into their kingly meal, but seeing their bill may have caused them to get a little crabby. One Facebook user surnamed Ong has accused a Boat Quay restaurant of «unethical business» after they charged her daughter and her friends $356 for a serving of Alaskan King Crab, she wrote in a now-deleted post to Facebook group Complaint Singapore on Wednesday (Sept 18). Her 16-year-old daughter had gone out for dinner with friends and had chosen to order crab from Seafood by the River in Boat Quay. Unexpectedly, the restaurant cooked up an Alaskan King Crab, «slapping them with a $356 bill», she said. «Ridiculous,» she added. «For a restaurant to think teenagers want to eat Alaskan King Crab? They don't even know and wasn't told of the cost.» In a photograph of the receipt uploaded in Ong's post, the crab is indeed listed as costing $356.40. Notably, however, the receipt also includes Prosecco and House Red - different types of wine - and «Tiger», which is presumably Tiger beer. Along with other food items, the total bill was $536.47. «Please avoid this restaurant at all costs,» Ong stated.

Three 19-year-olds have been arrested following an operation by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) on Wednesday (Sept 18) which resulted in the seizure of a large quantity of drugs, said the agency in a statement on Friday (Sept 20). Two of the three teens - a man and a woman - were arrested in a residential unit in the vicinity of Rivervale Walk in Sengkang. Officers found drug paraphernalia in the bedroom of the 19-year-old man, including a digital weighing scale. Officers then brought the man to his rented unit along Hougang Ave 7 where they found about 486g of 'Ice' (crystal methamphetamine) and 695g of cannabis in the premises. Officers then raided a unit along Serangoon North Ave 3, arresting another 19-year-old male who was found in the bedroom. Some 24g of 'Ice' was found in the bedroom, as well as various drug paraphernalia and $11,400 in cash. The total worth of all the drugs seized by CNB is estimated to be around $78,000 and is enough to feed 390 drug abusers for a week, CNB said.

James P. Hoffa, who led the Teamsters for 23 years, said it was a mistake for the union not to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris, the “correct choice for labor.”

Winfrey introduced celebrities and shepherded an audience that was both live and on Zoom between energetic applause and somber reflection.

A Jewish man has been arrested for an alleged plot to kill Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Read Full Article at RT.com

The attack with explosives-rigged devices in Lebanon came after at least 15 years of preparation by Israel, an ABC News source has claimed Read Full Article at RT.com