KUWAIT -- His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah receives visiting Vice Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China Zhang Gaoli.
WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump says that a hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan "would create a vacuum for terrorists," including the so-called Islamic State (IS) and al-Qaeda "would instantly fill just as happened" before the September 11, 2001 attacks.
BAGHDAD -- US Secretary of Defense James Mattis arrives in Iraq in an unannounced visit to meet with senior Iraqi officials.
TOKYO -- North Korea slams US-South Korean military drills, vowing to stage "merciless retaliation" for the allies' exercises, according to state media. (end) mt