VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Former foreign minister Mochtar Kusumaatmadja (ANTARA/HO) - 

Former Indonesian foreign minister Mochtar Kusumaatmadja passed away at the age of 92 on Sunday morning at 9 a.m.

"It is true. We are making preparations for his funeral," his younger brother, Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, said in a short text message on Sunday afternoon.

Sarwono said Mochtar was laid in state at his residence at Balitung Street 3 No. 2, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.

Born on February 17, 1929, Mochtar was appointed foreign minister in March 1978, replacing Adam Malik. He served as the Indonesian foreign minister for two terms until 1988.

He was earlier justice minister from 1973 to 1978.

Mochtar who began his career as diplomat when he was 29 years old. was also known as a law professor of Padjadjaran University in Bandung, West Java//ANT

Posters of presidential candidate Ebrahim Raisi are seen at a campaign center in Tehran, Iran June 4, 2021. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS - 

Candidates in Iran's presidential election this month traded strong barbs in a debate on Saturday (Jun 5), accusing each other of treason or of lacking the education to run an economy devastated by three years of US sanctions.

While the five hardline candidates attacked the eight-year performance of outgoing pragmatist President Hassan Rouhani, the leading moderate candidate, former central bank chief Abdolnaser Hemmati, blamed hardliners for heightened tensions with the West that he said had worsened Iran’s economic woes.

"If I become president, I will ban Hemmati and a number of other officials of the Rouhani government from leaving the country, and I will prove in court which treacherous roles they played," Rezaee said in the televised three-hour debate.

After Rezaee's remarks, Hemmati half-jokingly asked leading hardline candidate and judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi: "Mr Raisi, can you give me assurances that no legal action will be taken against me after this event?"

With the hardline-led election watchdog, the Guardian Council, barring leading moderate and conservative candidates, the turnout is likely to be record low in a seven-man race between hardline and somewhat less hardline candidates, and two low-profile moderates.

"I watched the debate and now I am even more certain not to vote. This election is a joke," said retired teacher Fariba Semsari by phone from the northern city of Rasht.

But a Tehran-based journalist, who asked not to be named, said: "Hemmati has drawn support among some who would have otherwise not voted. Among other things, his move to have himself represented in an interview with state TV by his outspoken wife has impressed some women."

Hemmati accused hardliners of isolating Iran internationally and ruining its economy, large sectors of which are dominated by hardline-run conglomerates.

"You have closed off our economy and our foreign contacts...I ask you and your friends, companies and institutions to please pull out of our economy, and then Iran's economy will surely improve," said Hemmati, an economics professor.

"You have only six years of classic education, and while respecting your seminary studies, I must say that one cannot manage the economy and draw up plans for the country with this much education," said Mehralizadeh, who holds a doctorate in financial management.

Raisi blasted Rouhani's government over galloping inflation and the rapid fall in the value of Iran's currency, and rejected comments by Hemmati and other moderates who blame US sanctions for Iran's economic troubles and say without proper management the country would have been worse off.

"This is like a goalkeeper who lets in 17 goals... and then says without me it would have been 30 goals!" Raisi said.

The election is likely to reinforce the authority of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is close to hardliners, at a time when Tehran and six world powers are trying to revive their 2015 nuclear deal. Washington exited the accord three years ago and reimposed sanctions//CNA

 person receives a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, at vaccination centre for young people and students at the Hunter Street Health Centre, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in London, Britain, Jun 5, 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Henry Nicholls) - 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday (Jun 6) called for leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) rich nations to make a commitment to vaccinate the entire world against COVID-19 by the end of 2022 when they meet in Britain next week.

Johnson will host the first in-person summit in almost two years of G7 leaders - which follows a meeting of the group's finance ministers which wrapped up earlier in the day - and said he would seek a pledge to hit the global vaccination goal.

"I’m calling on my fellow G7 leaders to join us to end this terrible pandemic and pledge we will never allow the devastation wreaked by coronavirus to happen again."

The leaders of Germany, France, the United States, Italy, Japan, the European Union and Canada will join Johnson for the three-day summit in Cornwall, southwest England, which begins on Friday. It will be the first overseas trip for US President Joe Biden since he took office in January.

While the richest nations have been vaccinating large numbers of their populations, many poorer countries have not had the same access to vaccines. And health experts have warned that unless more COVID shots were donated, the virus will continue to spread and mutate.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, in London for the finance ministers meeting, said it was urgent for the richest nations to promote vaccinations in poorer countries that could not afford to buy them.

She also repeated the US position that patent rights should be removed for the vaccines, and said they were doing everything they could to address supply chain problems that were preventing a build-up of shots in other parts of the world.

Taiwan's Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, fourth from right, waves with US senators to his right: Democratic Sen. Christopher Coons of Delaware, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska, members of the Armed Services Committee on their arrival at the Songshan Airport in Taipei, Taiwan on Jun 6, 2021. (Pool Photo via AP) - 

The United States will donate 750,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses to Taiwan as part of the country's plan to share shots globally, US Senator Tammy Duckworth said on Sunday (Jun 6), offering a much-needed boost to the island's fight against the pandemic.

Taiwan is dealing with a spike in domestic cases but has been affected like many places by global vaccine shortages. Only around 3 per cent of its 23.5 million people have been vaccinated, with most getting only the first shot of two needed.

"It was critical to the United States that Taiwan be included in the first group to receive vaccines because we recognise your urgent need and we value this partnership," she said at a news conference after the group arrived from South Korea.

She did not give details of which vaccines Taiwan would get or when. Taiwan Health Minister Chen Shih-chung told reporters he was hoping to find out soon which firm's shots they would get.

Taiwan has complained about China, which claims the democratically ruled island as its own, trying to block the island from accessing vaccines internationally, which Beijing has denied.

Standing by Duckworth's side, Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu thanked the United States for the donation.

"While we are doing our best to import vaccines, we must overcome obstacles to ensure that these life-saving medicines are delivered free from trouble from Beijing," he said.

China has offered Taiwan Chinese-made vaccines, but the government in Taipei has repeatedly expressed concern about their safety, and in any case cannot import them without changing Taiwanese law, which bans their import.

The senators also met with President Tsai Ing-wen at the airport, who said the vaccines, along with those Japan donated last week, would be a great help in their fight against the virus.

"The vaccines are timely rain for Taiwan, and your assistance will be etched on our hearts," Tsai told the senators, in footage released by her office.

US senators and congressmen visit Taiwan routinely in normal times, but coming in the middle of an upswing in infections on the island when its borders remain largely closed to visitors is a strong show of support.

Unusually, they also arrived on a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III freighter, rather than a private jet as is generally the case for senior US visitors.

Taiwan's vaccine arrivals have been gathering pace.

Japan delivered to Taiwan 1.24 million doses of AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine on Friday for free, in a gesture that more than doubled the amount of shots the island has received to date//CNA