Delegation of businessmen from Tajikistan visited the new campus of NSU

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: Novosibirsk State University –

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A delegation of businessmen from the Republic of Tajikistan, representing the financial and insurance sectors, visited the new campus of NSU, which is being built within the framework of the national project "Youth and Children". During the visit, a meeting was held with the management Faculty of Economics to discuss the development of cooperation with the Central Asian republic.

The businessmen appreciated the high level of infrastructure being created on the university campus. The delegation attended lectures in large auditoriums and were impressed by the scale and high level of organization of the educational process.

— This is not just a modern building — it is a real world-class scientific center. I was particularly impressed by the high quality of the infrastructure, comfortable classrooms and an atmosphere conducive to learning and scientific activity. Such campuses create not just an educational environment, but a space for the formation of future leaders of science and technology, — emphasized Ayubjon Nasirov, founder and current head of the insurance organization Eskhata Sugurta.

During the meeting with the leadership of the Faculty of Economics, cooperation between universities of Tajikistan and NSU was discussed in several key areas:

· Training and retraining of personnel in technical and economic specialties.

· Joint scientific research, in particular in the field of information technology, digital transformation of business and medicine.

· Internships and student exchanges, which are especially important for practical training and international experience.

— We would like to pay special attention to the development of the Olympiad movement and work with gifted children. We are very interested in the Physics and Mathematics School (SUNC NSU), which has been successfully working with talented schoolchildren for many years. Many of our schoolchildren — winners of republican Olympiads — studied and successfully graduated from your university. It is important not only to preserve this tradition, but also to develop it, expanding the access of talented youth of Tajikistan to your educational programs, — explained Ayubjon Nasirov.

Thus, the deputy dean of the economics department of NSU Naimdzhon Ibragimov at one time got to the university through the PhMS. In 1981, he won the republican Olympiad in mathematics in Tajikistan, after which he was offered to enroll in the summer school at the PhMS. In 1983, he graduated from the physics and mathematics school and entered the EF NSU.

As noted by businessmen, NSU is distinguished by a high level of academic and scientific training, powerful infrastructure, as well as deep integration of science, education and innovation. Also, the trend of recent years is the strengthening of cooperation between the university and companies and enterprises from various industries.

— In Tajikistan, we are also actively developing the higher education system, but here, at NSU, we saw an example of how a university can become a center for technological and economic development in a region. We were especially impressed by the close connection between the university and business, which allows us to quickly adapt educational programs to the needs of the labor market and ensure that graduates are in demand, — added Ayubjon Nasirov.

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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UK inflation rises 3.6 percent in June

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

LONDON, July 17 (Xinhua) — Britain's annual consumer price inflation rose 3.6 percent in June, the highest since January 2024, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on Wednesday.

The ONS said the rate stood at 3.4 per cent in May. It attributed the rise mainly to higher prices for motor fuel, air and rail travel, and food.

Food and non-alcoholic beverage prices rose 4.5 percent year-on-year, the highest since February 2024.

Core inflation excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco rose by 3.7 percent in June, up from 3.5 percent in May. Services inflation, a key indicator of domestic price pressure, was unchanged in June at 4.7 percent.

Previous data from the ONS showed that UK real GDP contracted by 0.1% in May 2025, the second month in a row, following a 0.3% decline in April.

In mid-June, the Bank of England decided to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 4.25%, citing persistent inflationary pressures and heightened global uncertainty.

June inflation remains well above the 2 percent target, and the base rate is expected to be cut in August.

Market analysts believe that in 2025 the regulator will lower the rate at least twice more, which could reach 3.75 percent by the end of the year. –0–

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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Pakistan: 124 killed in three weeks of monsoons

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

ISLAMABAD, July 17 (Xinhua) — Heavy monsoon rains and related incidents have killed at least 124 people in Pakistan in the past three weeks and injured 264 others, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Wednesday.

According to him, the deaths were recorded from June 26 to July 16. Over the past 24 hours, eight new deaths and 11 injuries were registered.

The eastern province of Punjab was the worst hit, with 49 people killed and 158 injured, followed by the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where 38 people died and 57 were injured. The southern province of Sindh reported 20 deaths and 40 injuries. The southwestern province of Balochistan reported 16 deaths and four injuries.

There was one death and five injuries in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. There were no casualties in Gilgit-Baltistan or the Islamabad Capital Territory. –0–

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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Drone strikes US-controlled Iraqi oil field for second time in one day

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Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

BAGHDAD, July 17 (Xinhua) — A bomb-laden drone carried out the second strike of the day on a U.S.-run oil field in northern Iraq's Kurdish Autonomous Region on Wednesday evening, the Kurdistan Regional Government's Ministry of Natural Resources said.

The attack took place at 19:10 local time. The drone hit an oil field operated by a US firm in the Baadre area southeast of the city of Dohuk, the statement said.

The shelling caused material damage, but there were no casualties. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

The regional government strongly condemned the attacks, saying they threatened energy infrastructure and civilian lives. Local authorities called on Iraq's federal government to take action to stop the attacks. –0–

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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Chinese cartoon “Nezha 2” premiered in UAE

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

DUBAI, July 17 (Xinhua) — Chinese animated film "Nezha 2" premiered in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday evening. About a hundred spectators, including local cultural figures, bloggers and movie buffs, gathered at the Cinemacity cinema in Dubai Mall.

The 2.5-hour cartoon, shown in Chinese with Arabic and English subtitles, captivated viewers with its rich animation and dynamic plot.

“The film really touched me,” said Dubai student Mohammad. “It’s not just animation – it’s a film about family, responsibility and growing up. Nezha may be a mythological figure, but his internal struggles and choices felt very real to me,” he added.

Nezha 2 hits major UAE cinemas from Thursday. –0–

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Xinjiang Opens 28th Civil Airport

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

URUMQI, July 17 (Xinhua) — The 28th civil airport has opened in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, cementing Xinjiang's status as the provincial-level region with the most airports in the country.

The opening of the Barkul Dahe Airport, the second high-altitude airport in Xinjiang, took place on July 15. The airport, located in Barkul Kazakh Autonomous County (Hami City), cost 692.84 million yuan (about 97 million US dollars) to build and has a design capacity of 300,000 passengers and 700 tons of cargo per year.

Currently, Barkul Dahe Airport serves two flights, one from Chengdu to Barkul with a stop in Zhengzhou and another from Chongqing to Barkul. There are also plans to launch a flight to Beijing.

According to Xinjiang Airport Group, the new airport will promote the development of the local economy and industries with local characteristics, play a role in implementing the strategy of “Rising Xinjiang through Tourism” and achieving rural development in Barkul and surrounding areas. -0-

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A 7.2 magnitude earthquake has struck off the coast of the US state of Alaska

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

NEW YORK, July 17 (Xinhua) — A 7.2-magnitude earthquake jolted 87 km south of Sand Point in the U.S. state of Alaska at 20:37 GMT on Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

According to preliminary data, the epicenter of the tremors was located at a point with coordinates 54.55 degrees north latitude and 160.34 degrees west longitude. The hypocenter was located at a depth of 36 km. –0–

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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China Strengthens Global IP Ties with Over 80 Partners

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, July 17 (Xinhua) — China has established partnerships with more than 80 countries and regions in the field of intellectual property (IP), Shen Changyu, director of the State Intellectual Property Administration (SIPA), said Thursday.

The head of the State Administration of Intellectual Property made this statement at a press conference dedicated to China's achievements in the field of IP during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025). -0-

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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The President of Ukraine nominated D. Shmyhal for the post of Minister of Defense

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –

An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News

KYIV, July 17 (Xinhua) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday proposed to parliament to appoint former Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal as the new defense minister.

“Today I have already signed documents to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine regarding Denis Shmyhal as the new Minister of Defense,” V. Zelensky said on the Telegram channel.

If approved by parliament, D. Shmyhal will replace Rustem Umerov in this post.

V. Zelensky also announced that former Minister for Strategic Industries German Smetanin will head the state defense concern Ukroboronprom.

Earlier on Wednesday, parliament accepted the resignation of D. Shmyhal, which, in accordance with Ukrainian law, entailed the resignation of the entire government.

The outgoing cabinet will continue to serve until a new government is formed. –0–

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NSU student creates app for recognition, digitization and analysis of classical Tibetan texts using machine learning

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: Novosibirsk State University –

An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

A system for automatic recognition and transliteration of texts in classical Tibetan, focused on old printed documents made using Tibetan syllabic writing, which goes back to the ancient Indian Brahmi script, was created by a student of the Fundamental and Applied Linguistics program working at the Institute of Mathematics and Mathematical Geophysics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Humanitarian Institute of Novosibirsk State University Anna Murashkina. In her research, she used images of pages of classical Tibetan texts from the 18th-20th centuries from the archive of the Center for Oriental Manuscripts and Xylographs of the Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

— The relevance of my work is due to the need to preserve and make digitally accessible the Tibetan cultural heritage, presented in the form of many historical manuscripts. Old printed documents, manuscripts and xylographs contain unique information about philosophy, religion, medicine, history and art, playing a key role in the study of the cultural traditions of the region. This knowledge is passed down from generation to generation in Tibet. However, over time, under the influence of natural and anthropogenic factors, paper media are subject to physical destruction, which leads to the loss of priceless information and limits access to these unique materials. Currently, the Tibetan Fund of the Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences contains up to 70 thousand units of chronicles that are at risk of being lost. One of the most reliable ways to preserve and systematize historical documents is to digitize them, — said Anna Murashkina.

The young researcher set herself the task of using machine learning to build a model that would recognize Tibetan alphabet symbols from images, translate them into machine-readable form, and at the same time show greater accuracy than existing open solutions, including Tesseract.

— To do this, I manually performed linguistic markup of Tibetan text lines from the IMBT SB RAS collection. Then, taking into account the specifics of Tibetan graphics, I developed a system for assessing the quality of optical character recognition (OCR). Then I compared existing architectures and chose a convolutional neural network model, which required additional training, — explained Anna Murashkina.

She implemented additional training of the model on a marked corpus of documents, and as a result, a complete modular OCR algorithm was created, including the stages of pre-processing, segmentation, recognition and post-processing.

— For me, the value of the project is that I helped digitize an archive that stores history — documents created by people of the past who wanted to pass on their knowledge to future generations. I am glad that I am helping to transfer this knowledge through time, preserve it and make it available to a wider audience. My development will be used by employees of the Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The possibility of cooperation with the Buddhist Center for Digital Technologies, which digitizes the archives of temples and monasteries, is also being discussed. In cooperation with this organization, we will expand the possibilities of digitizing Tibetan manuscripts using open resources developed jointly with researchers from organizations in different countries, so that later everyone can touch this priceless heritage and get acquainted with the documents that are in temples and archive repositories, — said Anna Murashkina.

Material prepared by: Elena Panfilo, NSU press service

Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

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