1. Japanese Premier Shigeru Ishiba vowed to remain in his post after his ruling coalition suffered a bruising defeat in upper house elections.

2. South Korea-led investigation into Jeju Air's fatal plane crash in December has "clear evidence" that pilots shut off the less-damaged engine after a bird strike.

3. China announced construction had begun on what will be the world's largest hydropower dam, on the eastern rim of the Tibetan Plateau, at an estimated cost of at least $170 billion.

4. Kremlin said that Moscow was in favor of a new round of peace talksbetween Russia and Ukraine.

5. Trump administration's decision to slash nearly all US foreign aid has left dozens of water and sanitation projects half-finished across the globe.

6. Microsoft has issued an alert about "active attacks" on server software used by government agencies and businesses to share documents within organizations.