World News Roundup: Armenian PM says depending solely on Russia for security was 'strategic mistake'; India PM urges UN to rethink priorities for the 21st century and more

That led the Biden administration to multiply efforts to persuade the southeast Asian nation, including through multiple visits of high-ranking members of the U.S. government in recent months. Russia signs 280,000 for contract military service this year -Medvedev Some 280,000 people have signed up so far this year for professional service with Russia's military, the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council, former President Dmitry Medvedev, said on Sunday.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Armenian PM says depending solely on Russia for security was 'strategic mistake'

Armenia's prime minister has said his country's policy of solely relying on Russia to guarantee its security was a strategic mistake because Moscow has been unable to deliver and is in the process of winding down its role in the wider region. In an interview with Italian newspaper La Repubblica published on Sunday, Nikol Pashinyan accused Russia of failing to ensure Armenia's security in the face of what he said was aggression from neighbouring Azerbaijan over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region.

India PM urges UN to rethink priorities for the 21st century

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on the United Nations to reform in line with 21st century realities to ensure the representation of voices that matter, according to an interview published on Sunday. A "mid-20th century approach cannot serve the world in the 21st century", Modi, who will host a summit of the Group of 20 big economies from next weekend, told the Press Trust of India news agency.

Pope Francis and Mongolia's Catholics under one roof at papal Mass

In an unprecedented event, Pope Francis and just about the entire Catholic population of a country were in the same room when he presided at a Mass in Mongolia's capital on Sunday.

The Mass in Ulaanbaatar's Steppe Arena was the religious highlight of the pope's trip to visit the Catholic community of just 1,450. Most of Mongolia's population of about 3.3 million are Buddhists.

US expects to upgrade Vietnam ties, risks China anger

The United States expects to elevate its diplomatic relations with former foe Vietnam to the top level as President Joe Biden travels to Hanoi in a week, in a move that may irk China and with unclear business implications. Fearful of the potential reaction from its much larger neighbour, Vietnam had initially expressed caution about the upgrade. That led the Biden administration to multiply efforts to persuade the southeast Asian nation, including through multiple visits of high-ranking members of the U.S. government in recent months.

Russia signs 280,000 for contract military service this year -Medvedev

Some 280,000 people have signed up so far this year for professional service with Russia's military, the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council, former President Dmitry Medvedev, said on Sunday. Visiting Russia's Far East, Medvedev said he was meeting local officials to work on efforts to beef up the armed forces.

Netanyahu rues his foreign minister's disclosure of meeting with Libyan counterpart

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday appeared to shift blame to his top diplomat for the disclosure of a secret meeting with the Libyan foreign minister that has caused a backlash in Tripoli. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen's office on Aug. 26 went public with his having met Najla Mangoush, his Libyan counterpart, in Italy earlier in the month. The statement came on the heels of an Israeli media report about the meeting.

As Typhoon Haikui barrels into Taiwan, thousands are evacuated

Domestic flights were cancelled and almost 4,000 people were evacuated as Typhoon Haikui barrelled into southeastern Taiwan on Sunday bringing torrential rain and strong winds. Haikui made landfall in the mountainous and sparsely populated far southeast of Taiwan mid-Sunday afternoon, the first typhoon to directly hit Taiwan in four years. Counties and cities in the region cancelled classes and declared a day off for workers.

North Korea stages tactical nuclear attack drill

North Korea conducted a simulated tactical nuclear attack drill that included two long-range cruise missiles in an exercise to "warn enemies" the country would be prepared in case of nuclear war, the KCNA state news agency said on Sunday. KCNA said the drill was successfully carried out on Saturday and two cruise missiles carrying mock nuclear warheads were fired towards the West Sea of the Korean peninsula and flew 1,500 km (930 miles) at a preset altitude of 150 meters.

Eighty years on, Italian victims of Nazi crimes finally to get compensation

In October 1943, after the Nazis began a brutal occupation of their former ally, German troops hanged six Italian civilians on a hillside in southern Italy as collective punishment for the killing of a soldier, who had been foraging for food. Eighty years later, some of the relatives of the men put to death in Fornelli are finally set to receive a share of 12 million euros ($13 million) awarded by an Italian court as compensation for their families' trauma.

Erdogan's Russia visit vital for grain deal, Turkish leader's chief aide says

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will focus on the Black Sea grain deal during their meeting on Monday as Turkey seeks to bring Moscow back to the deal, Erdogan's chief foreign policy advisor said. "We play a leading role here. We see strong support from all around the world for the realisation of the grain corridor," Erdogan's chief foreign policy and security advisor Akif Cagatay Kilic told an interview on A Haber television channel.