World Briefs

CHINA-RUSSIA  The Bank of China will give Gazprom a 2 billion euro (USD2.2 billion), five-year loan, the Russian state-run energy company’s largest loan agreement from a single credit institution. In a press release, Gazprom said this is the company’s first loan deal with the Bank of China.

CAMBODIA’s long-ruling Prime Minister Hun Sen and exiled opposition leader Sam Rainsy have gotten an early start on campaigning for elections in 2018, vying for “likes” on Facebook as the political role of social media grows among the country’s youthful electorate.

INDONESIA Officials say all 22 tsunami warning buoys installed near vulnerable islands failed to work when a powerful earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra this week.

JAPAN Plans for the new stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics may have to be reviewed over concerns that the installation of the cauldron may violate fire laws. Tokyo organizers decided yesterday to set up a panel to review where to place the cauldron for the Olympic flame. The review team will be headed by Olympic minister Toshiaki Endo and will come up with a solution as early as April.

NEW ZEALANDERS  began voting yesterday on whether to change their flag from a design which features the British Union Jack to one which features a native silver fern. The postal ballot will extend over the next three weeks, with preliminary results to be announced March 24.

AUSTRALIA A senior Vatican official told an Australia sex abuse inquiry yesterday that he did not immediately act when a boy raised abuse allegations against a cleric in the 1970s and should have done more.

MIDDLE EAST The United States gave Jordan eight refurbished helicopters yesterday for the battle against Islamic State extremists along the kingdom’s borders. Pro-Western Jordan is part of a U.S.-led military coalition against IS, which controls large parts of neighboring Syria and Iraq.

POLAND’s government said a new law that gives the justice minister power over prosecutors is intended to restore people’s trust in the justice system, but critics say it has political motives. The new conservative Law and Justice party headed by Jaroslaw Kaczynski (pictured) introduced the law that takes effect today.

HONDURAS Authorities say they are investigating the killing of Honduran Indigenous leader Berta Caceres, who won the 2015 Goldman Environmental Prize for her role in fighting a dam project. A member of her Indian council group says assailants broke into her home and shot Caceres to death yesterday.