"The first direct flight departed from the Chinggis Khaan International Airport in the Mongolian capital of Ulan Bator to Guangzhou at 10:40 p.m. (local time)," Davaakhuu Battur, president and CEO of MIAT, said at the launching ceremony.

"I am confident that this new air route will greatly contribute to the trade, economic and tourism cooperation between Mongolia and China," he noted.

The flight runs every Thursday and Sunday, according to the company.

So far, MIAT has three direct-route destinations in China, still including Beijing and Hong Kong. Enditem

According to a source, the North Korean citizens planned to go to the Mongolian capital, and then to travel to third country after obtaining the necessary documents.

The North Koreans are now facing imprisonment of up to six years for illegally tried to cross the border.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core has made arrangements for social stability, border development, ecological protection and ethnic unity in Tibet and opened a new chapter of improving governance, stability and people's wellbeing there.

The following is a timeline of some key moments of Xi's engagement in promoting the development of Tibet as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

-- On March 9, 2013, when joining the delegation from Tibet in a panel discussion at the first session of the 12th National People's Congress, Xi said, "To govern the country well we must first govern the frontiers well, and to govern the frontiers well we must first ensure stability in Tibet."

-- In August 2014, Xi called for improvements to transport infrastructure in Tibet to boost the region's development, when marking the 60th anniversary of the opening of the Sichuan-Tibet and Qinghai-Tibet highways.

-- On April 25, 2015, a devastating earthquake in neighboring Nepal caused serious damage in several parts of Tibet. Xi called for all-out efforts to rescue the wounded, accommodate the quake-affected people and carry out the reconstruction by restoring the damaged infrastructure in a timely manner.

-- On July 30, 2015, Xi presided over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, which discussed economic and social development in Tibet and how to ensure the autonomous region achieve prolonged stability.

-- Xi delivered a key speech at the Sixth National Symposium on Work in Tibet held on Aug. 24 and 25, 2015, defining guiding principles, objectives, and tasks in Tibet in the new era.

-- In September 2015, when the country celebrated the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Tibet Autonomous Region, a delegation from the central government presented Tibetan authorities with a plaque inscribed with Xi's words: "Enhancing ethnic unity, building a beautiful Tibet."

-- On Oct. 28, 2017, in a reply to a letter from a herding family in Lhunze County, near the Himalayas in Tibet, Xi encouraged them to set down roots in the border area, safeguard the Chinese territory and develop their hometown.

-- On Oct. 15, 2018, Xi congratulated Xizang Minzu University on the 60th anniversary of its founding in a letter and urged the university to fully implement the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and the spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress, promote core socialist values, and improve education quality.

“We have some of the world’s richest stocks of critical minerals and while the market for some of our minerals such as lithium is relatively mature, other minerals markets such as cobalt remain largely underdeveloped in Australia,” said the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Simon Birmingham, from Kemerton, the area where Albemarle’s lithium processing plant is being built.

In Birmingham’s view, Australia needs to work a bit harder on attracting and locking-in domestic and overseas investment to get projects off the ground. “That’s why a key part of this strategy is about how industry and government agencies such as Austrade can work together to promote our potential to the world to attract more international investment, particularly in downstream projects and greenfield opportunities,” he said.

The Strategy reinforces the work of the A$100.5 million Exploring for the Future initiative, which is aimed at helping explorers target new mineralization by using high technology to observe the deepest roots of mineral systems all the way through to the surface.

The plan also supports the work of the MinEx Cooperative Research Centre, a 10-year research program with the goal to develop and deploy the next generation of drilling technology and which will receive A$20 million funding in the coming years.

The 2019 action plan contemplates that the Cooperative Research Centre for Optimising Resource Extraction consumes all of its A$34.45 million in funding by 2021 as it works on developing energy-saving and resource-expanding technology that will allow lower-grade ores to be economically and eco-efficiently mined.

The Critical Minerals Strategy also backs the Major Projects Facilitation Agency, which provides a single entry point for major project proponents seeking tailored information and facilitation of their regulatory approval requirements.

For Tania Constable, CEO of the Minerals Council of Australia, government funding for innovation, skills and investment promotion is valuable, but she believes more needs be done.

“Investment in the next wave of base metal and critical commodity mines and processing plants is not guaranteed, as Australia faces growing competition to attract international capital. The resources industry needs to convert this potential into lasting economic benefits,” Constable said in a media statement.