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Xinhua Asia-Pacific news summary at 1630 GMT, Sept. 22

Xinhua, September 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

The first joint military exercise between China and Malaysia, coded "Peace and Friendship 2015," wrapped up here on Tuesday, with both sides believing it will help the two countries and armies promote mutual trust and deepen pragmatic cooperation in various fields and all levels.

Yi Xiaoguang, deputy chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, said in an address at the closing ceremony that during the exercise, the two sides have increased mutual understanding through sincere exchanges, enhanced mutual trust through close collaboration and promoted friendship through joint tasks. (Malaysia-China-Military Exercise)

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JAKARTA -- The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) inked a 500-million-U.S. dollar loan deal on Tuesday with Indonesia's state-run Eximbank to help boost the country's foreign trade and infrastructure.

The five-year loan was jointly provided by ICBC Indonesia and ICBC Asia, subsidiaries of the ICBC Limited.

The deal is part of a 20-billion-U.S. dollar loan facility signed in Beijing earlier this year, which is aimed at helping spur the Indonesian economy. (Indonesia-China-Loan)

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BANGKOK -- Thailand will start to grant multiple-entry visas to tourists from Nov. 13, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

The move is aimed at facilitating the forthcoming ASEAN Community and boosting the country's tourism industry, the ministry said in a statement.

The multiple-entry tourist visa will allow multiple entries for travelers during a 6-month period, for up to 60 days per entry, it added. (Thailand-Tourist-Visa)

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COLOMBO -- Sri Lanka's former president Mahinda Rajapakse on Tuesday defended his government's decision to reject an investigation into alleged war crimes during the country's civil war which ended in May 2009.

Rajapakse said in a statement that his government did not cooperate with the foreign investigation for many reasons, especially because it was instituted outside the established procedure of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC). (Sri Lanka-UN- War Crime) Endi