Morning brief: Blinken says China to send ‘lethal support’ to Russia, NKorea fires ballistic missiles, & more

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that China is on the brink of providing “lethal support” to Russia amid the ongoing Ukraine war. Blinken added that any supplies of arms and ammunition by Beijing would “cause a serious problem”. Adding to a string of missile launches, North Korea further fired two more ballistic missiles off its east coast on Monday morning. 

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United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken alleged on Sunday (February 19) that China is on the brink of sending “lethal support” to Russia for the ongoing Ukraine war. Blinken further warned Beijing that any supplies of arms and ammunition would “cause a serious problem”. 

North Korea added to a string of missile launches with two more ballistic missiles being fired off its east coast on Monday morning. Japan’s Defence Ministry said that data suggests the missiles were fired at around 7 am Monday. A statement by the Japanese ministry said that the missiles fell into the Sea of Japan “to the east of the Korean Peninsula, outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone”. 

Turkey has stopped its search and rescue operations in all but two of its provinces, two weeks after it was struck by one of the most devastating earthquakes it has ever seen. However, the rescue efforts will continue in Antakya and Kahmaranmaraş cities—the hardest hit regions which saw the maximum destruction.

The search for Nicola Bulley, who was reported missing three weeks ago, ended on Sunday after the police in Lancashire found her dead body in River Wyre. Bulley, who was the mother of two children, had disappeared after she went for a walk along with the dog on the riverside in St Michael’s on Wyre in Lancashire almost three weeks ago, after which a major search operation was started by the police.

Thailand gears up for general elections, Pheu Thai party hopes for comeback