Globalsecurity.org

A Chinese defense spokesperson on Monday voiced firm opposition to a joint military exercise by Japan, the United States and Australia, warning that moves promoting Japan's military ambitions will drive the region into a perilous vortex.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that he expected war with Iran to end this year, possibly after midterm elections due in the United States in November.

In September, on an airfield runway, a J-10 fighter roared to life, accelerated, and lifted off, its thunderous engine noise sweeping across the entire flight line.

"The 48th Chinese PLA Navy Escort Task Group recently completed its missions and set off on its return voyage from the Gulf of Aden. En route back to China, the task group will visit Bangladesh, Myanmar and Malaysia," said Senior Colonel Jiang Bin, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense (MND), at a press briefing on Monday.

Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun held talks with visiting Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Khamlieng Outhakaysone in Beijing on Monday.

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UN aid agencies on Monday said they may be forced to scale back humanitarian aid in Sudan - home of the world's worst hunger and displacement crisis - due to funding shortfalls.

As hundreds of thousands of displaced people across Sudan continue to face severe shelter shortages and heightened risks from ongoing fighting and heavy rains, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is warning of an imminent end to Sudan's emergency relief supply via the IOM Common Humanitarian Pipeline.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei says a planned meeting of the foreign ministers of regional countries in Oman was canceled at Saudi Arabia's request, adding that Iran and Oman have finalized an understanding on maritime routes and will decide with Muscat how to announce it.

The Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) has warned companies and organizations dealing with non-compliant vessels.

Iran expanded the list of vessels subject to potential restrictive measures in the Strait of Hormuz to 77 on Monday, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) said.

Commodity vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which roughly one-fifth of the world's seaborne oil trade usually passes, fell to single-digit levels per day over the weekend, according to preliminary ship-tracking data as of September 14.

The IRGC Navy Command announced that the supertanker "Algaya" exploded south of the Strait of Hormuz after striking naval mines.

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has confirmed the downing of an advanced MQ-1 drone in the airspace over the Strait of Hormuz.

The United States sanctioned VTB Bank, one of Russia's largest financial institutions, for helping Iran evade sanctions and sustain its support for terrorism. VTB Bank opened offices in Iran, built banking ties with sanctioned Iranian financial institutions, and worked to move billions of dollars in Iranian assets.

US President Donald Trump has said Washington is open to making a deal with Iran to end the six-month-long war.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said he prepared Trump for the consequences of military action against Iran. Americans deserve to see the plan.

Iran's permanent representative to the United Nations Office in Geneva has warned that any assessment of the economic and developmental consequences of the Strait of Hormuz crisis would be incomplete without addressing its root causes, which he attributed directly to US and Israeli military aggression.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei says the United States must stop its illegal and interventionist actions against Iran.