NATO members sign accession protocols for Sweden, Finland

NATO's 30 members have signed accession protocols for Sweden and Finland, starting the process to admit the two countries into the alliance.

The next step is for the parliaments of all 30 members to ratify the accession.

The last accession was ratified within a year. But NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says it could be faster for Finland and Sweden since their accession process has sped up.

Turkey holds Russian ship to investigate Ukraine claims of "stolen grain"

Turkey is holding a Russian-flagged cargo ship off the Black Sea coast to investigate a Ukrainian claim that the ship is carrying stolen grain.

Ankara says it is working with Russia, the United Nations, and third parties to find out the truth.

Stuart Smith reports.

German gas reserves only enough for one to two months without Russian supply

Germany says its existing gas reserves will last one to two months if it loses supplies from Russia and does not face unusually low temperatures this winter.

Its natural gas reserves stand at around 60 percent of the country's full capacity.

The German Federal Network Agency says the current supply is stable, although it cannot rule out the risk of further deterioration.

The European Union introduced a regulation last month that requires its member states to fulfill at least 80 percent of their gas storage capacity by winter, and to share resources among member states.

LMC foreign ministers meet, adopt 6 new cooperative directions

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called for joint efforts in building a stronger Lancang-Mekong economic development belt.

He made the remarks while attending a foreign ministers' meeting of the regional platform known as Lancang-Mekong Cooperation.

The diplomat announced six measures that will benefit the countries along the river.

They cover areas such as agriculture, water resources, and public health.

Martin Lowe has more.

Palestine rejects results of U.S. investigation on killing of Al Jazeera journalist

Palestine rejected the results of a U.S. investigation into the killing of a veteran Palestinian-American journalist in the West Bank in May.

A U.S. security coordinator received the bullet that killed Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and examined it in an Israeli forensic laboratory.

The Israeli army announced that the investigation could not determine the party responsible for the journalist's death.

A Palestinian presidential spokesman says Palestine "holds Israel fully responsible for the killing of Abu Akleh" and called on the United States "to maintain its credibility."

The spokesman says they will pursue the case in international courts.

China sees hottest June in over 60 years

China's top meteorological agency says the country recorded the hottest June in over 60 years.

Authorities say the average monthly temperature across China reached 21.3 degrees Celsius last month.

Many regions including Henan and Shandong registered the highest June temperatures in history.

A county in Hebei saw the temperature hit 44.2 degrees Celsius on June 25.

Australia floods worsen as thousands more flee Sydney homes

Thousands more residents in Sydney have left their homes after rivers swiftly rose past danger levels under torrential rains along Australia's east coast.

Authorities said they have warned about 50,000 residents in New South Wales to evacuate.

The federal government has declared the floods a natural disaster, helping flood-hit residents receive emergency funding support.

The latest wild storm cell brought a year's worth of rain in just three days.

The Bureau of Meteorology expects it to ease in Sydney from Tuesday but warned the risk of flooding could remain throughout the week.

PSG, Pochettino part ways

Paris St Germain announced it has parted ways with manager Mauricio Pochettino.

He is leaving after 18 months at the French club although he still has a year left on his contract.

Pochettino led PSG to a league title and a French Cup victory but failed to deliver in the Champions League.

Christophe Galtier is set to take over.