Six railcars carrying dozens of South Korean officials and engineers will inspect 1,200km (745 miles) of track over 18 days, according to the South’s unification ministry. The survey required special permission from the United Nations to take prohibited goods into the North, which remains under heavy economic sanctions over its nuclear weapons programme. South Korean officials will use the study to draw up plans for modernising the North’s ageing rail lines, most of which date from the early 20th century. South China Morning Post
German city-state Berlin has triggered nationwide controversy with a new law that puts the burden on authorities to disprove allegations of discrimination, with opponents decrying “general suspicion” of police. Source The Local
The crime had endangered Sweden’s peaceful relations with China. Swedish prosecutor accuses Anna Lindstedt of brokering unauthorised meeting for Chinese-Swedish dissident’s release. Sweden’s former ambassador to Beijing goes on trial in Stockholm on Friday accused of overstepping her mandate by trying to negotiate the release of a Chinese-Swedish dissident held in China. Source Al Jazeera
Greek Alternate Minister for Migration and Asylum, Giorgos Koumoutsakos in a letter to the Vice-President of the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas, and the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, has called for an emergency and flexibility clause to be integrated into the new European Pact on Immigration and Asylum. The letter is co-signed by Cyprus and Bulgaria. Source Cyprus-mail
