
Azerbaijan seeks global aid for landmine-free future at Malaysia seminar
Ambassador Irfan Davudov highlighted the need for international cooperation, including from Malaysia, to advance this initiative under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
'We expect the Malaysian government to make a decision on this issue. I believe that financial or technical assistance from Malaysia would be highly appreciated,' Davudov said after the International Seminar Towards a Landmine-Free World.
The Mine Action Agency of Azerbaijan (ANAMA) leads demining efforts, which could take two decades and require an estimated US$25 billion. Despite the lengthy timeline, Davudov expressed confidence in success with global collaboration.
Shaharuddin Onn, Chair of the ASEAN Regional Mine Action Centre (ARMAC), reaffirmed ARMAC's commitment to partnering with Azerbaijan. 'This cooperation reflects the shared commitment between ARMAC and ANAMA. The partnership is tailored, collaborative, and based on cyber-focused solutions,' he said.
ARMAC hosted ANAMA in 2024 to share ASEAN's model for victim assistance and landmine rehabilitation. Shaharuddin emphasized joint efforts towards SDG 16, which focuses on peace, justice, and fundamental freedoms. - Bernama
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Star
15 minutes ago
- The Star
Zuckerberg shares AI superintelligence vision as Meta posts results
SAN JOSE: Meta is stepping up its push to become a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI), with chief executive Mark Zuckerberg unveiling ambitions to build "personal superintelligence for everyone in the world." Zuckerberg made the remarks as the company reported stronger-than-expected second-quarter results on Wednesday, driven by a booming advertising business on Facebook and Instagram. He said Meta has begun to see early signs of AI systems capable of self-improvement - an important step toward what the company defines as superintelligence, or AI that exceeds human capabilities across the board. "The improvement is slow for now, but undeniable. Developing superintelligence is now in sight," he said. Meta, which has long used AI to personalise user feeds on Facebook and Instagram, said improved recommendation algorithms drove a 5% increase in user time on Facebook and 6% on Instagram last quarter. The Facebook parent announced it expects to make investments of at least US$66bil (RM280.6bil) this year, primarily in AI data centres, maintaining an upper limit of US$72bil (RM306.1bil). Three months ago, the company's projected minimum investment was US$64bil (RM272.1bil). Zuckerberg has been aggressively courting top AI talent and is seeking to surpass rivals including ChatGPT developer OpenAI, Google, and Elon Musk's xAI. Robust financial results are expected to power Meta's AI ambitions. In the second quarter, Meta's revenue rose 22% year-on-year to US$47.5bil (RM207.9bil), while net income jumped 36% to about US$18.3bil (RM77.8bil), beating market expectations. For the current quarter, Meta forecasts revenue between US$47.5bil (RM207.9bil) and US$50.5bil (RM214.7bil), above market expectations of around US$46bil (RRM195.5bil). Meta shares rose almost 12% in after-hours trading. – dpa


The Star
15 minutes ago
- The Star
Trump's call broke deadlock in Thailand-Cambodia border crisis
BANGKOK: First came a push from the Malaysian premier, then China reached out, but it was only after US President Donald Trump called Thailand's leader last week that Bangkok agreed to talks with Cambodia to end an escalating military conflict. A flurry of diplomatic efforts over a 20-hour window sealed Thailand's participation in ceasefire negotiations with Cambodia, hosted in Malaysia, halting the heaviest fighting between two South-East Asian countries in over a decade. ALSO READ: Hun Manet urges troop release as ceasefire holds Reuters interviewed four people on both sides of the border to piece together the most detailed account of how the truce was achieved, including previously unreported Thai conditions for joining the talks and the extent of Chinese involvement in the process. When Trump called Thai Acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai on Saturday (July 26), two days after fighting erupted along a 200-km-long stretch of the border, Bangkok had not responded to mediation offers from Malaysia and China, said a Thai government source with direct knowledge. "We told him that we want bilateral talks first before declaring a ceasefire," the source said, asking not to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. Thailand had already made it clear that it favoured bilateral negotiation and initially did not want third-party mediation to resolve the conflict. On Sunday, a day after his initial call, Trump said that Thailand and Cambodia had agreed to meet to work out a ceasefire, and that Washington wouldn't move ahead with tariff negotiations with both until the conflict had ended. The source said as the Thai and Cambodian foreign ministries started talking, following Trump's call, Bangkok set out its terms: the meeting must be between the two prime ministers and at a neutral location. "We proposed Malaysia because we want this to be a regional matter," the source said. "The US really pushed for the meeting," a second Thai source said, "We want a peaceful solution to the conflict so we had to show good faith and accept." A Thai government spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions from Reuters. Cambodia had accepted the initial Malaysian offer for talks but it was Thailand that did not move ahead until Trump's intervention, said Lim Menghour, a Cambodian government official working on foreign policy. Prime Minister Hun Manet's government also kept a channel open with China, which had shown interest in joining any peace talks between the neighbours, he said, reflecting Phnom Penh's close ties to Beijing. "We exchanged regular communication," Lim Menghour said. On Monday, Phumtham and Hun Manet went to the Malaysian administrative capital of Putrajaya, where they were hosted by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, also the current chair of Asean. At the end of their talks, the two leaders stood on either side of Anwar, who read out a joint statement that said Thailand and Cambodia would enter into a ceasefire from midnight and continue dialogue. The rapid parleys echoed efforts to diffuse severe border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia in 2011, which took several months including mediation efforts by Indonesia, then chair of Asean. But those talks had not directly involved the US and China. The fragile ceasefire was holding as of Thursday, despite distrust on both sides, and neither military has scaled down troop deployment along the frontier. Thailand and Cambodia have, for decades, quarrelled over undemarcated parts of their 817 km land border, which was first mapped by France in 1907 when the latter was its colony. In recent months, tensions began building between the neighbours after the death of a Cambodian soldiers in a skirmish in May and escalated into both militaries bolstering border deployments, alongside a full-blown diplomatic crisis. After a second Thai soldier lost a limb last week to a landmine that Thailand alleged Cambodian troops had planted, Bangkok recalled its ambassador to Phnom Penh and expelled Cambodia's envoy. Cambodia has denied the charge. The fighting began soon after. Since the ceasefire deal, Hun Manet and Phumtham have been effusive in their praise for Trump, who had threatened 36 per cent tariffs on goods from both countries coming to the US, their biggest export market. The Thai sources did not say whether tariff talks had been impacted by the border clashes. Lim Menghour said after the "positive talks, President Donald Trump also showed positive developments" regarding tariffs, without elaborating. Trump said tariff negotiations with both countries resumed after the ceasefire agreement. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Wednesday that Washington has made trade deals with Cambodia and Thailand, but they are yet to be announced. - Reuters


Malaysian Reserve
39 minutes ago
- Malaysian Reserve
Bursa Malaysia opens higher on US tariff cut boost
KUALA LUMPUR — Bursa Malaysia rebounded from two days of losses to open higher on Friday, supported by improved sentiment following the United States' (US) move to reduce tariffs on Malaysian imports. Washington earlier announced a 19 per cent tariff on Malaysian goods, effective Aug 1, 2025. At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 8.83 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 1,522.08 from Thursday's close of 1,513.25. The benchmark index had opened 6.62 points higher at 1,519.87. Market breadth was positive, with 200 gainers outpacing 138 decliners. A total of 292 counters were unchanged, 1,860 untraded, and 11 suspended. Turnover stood at 244.74 million shares worth RM111.66 million. — BERNAMA