Chinese Premier Li Keqiang attends the third Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) leaders' meeting via video, the four-day Republican National Convention kicks off and U.S and South Korea continue scaled-down drills amid COVID-19. 

Li Keqiang attends LMC leaders' meeting via video 

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will attend the third LMC leaders' meeting via video conference on Monday, China's Foreign Ministry announced on Friday. 

Li will co-chair the meeting with Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Myanmar's President U Win Myint will also be in attendance. 

The Chinese premier and other leaders attending the meeting will make a blueprint for the countries' cooperation in areas such as water resources, connectivity and public health, said spokesperson Zhao Lijian. 

What to expect from the Republican National Convention? 

The Republican National Convention will be held from Monday to Thursday in Charlotte, North Carolina, with only a limited number of people attending the convention in person. 

The theme of the nominating convention will be "Honoring the Great American Story," and will culminate in a live acceptance speech from President Donald Trump on Thursday night on the South Lawn of the White House. 

Read more: Five takeaways from the 2020 Democratic National Convention

The White House grounds will also be used on Tuesday night, when First Lady Melania Trump and Trump's adult children will speak from the Rose Garden. 

Trump will be the central focus and will make appearances on most days, according to campaign sources, including one event when he will honor doctors, nurses and other workers on the front line of the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Pence will be the main speaker on Wednesday, delivering his remarks from Baltimore's Fort McHenry. 

U.S, South Korea continue scaled-down drills amid COVID-19 

The combined forces of South Korea and the United States on Tuesday began their joint annual military exercises amid rising concerns about the recent resurgence of the COVID-19 infections, according to Yonhap news agency. 

The computer-simulated Combined Command Post Training, which kicked off Tuesday morning, is scheduled to last until August 28. The first part, which focuses on defense, will continue until Saturday, while the second part for counterattack, will run until August 28. 

Out of the virus concerns, the exercises will be scaled back while the nighttime training programs are to be skipped. 

The springtime annual South Korea-U.S. military drills were also called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Day by day: 

Monday: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang attends the third LMC leaders' meeting via video conference; Donald Trump and Mike Pence are officially nominated at the Republican National Convention; U.S.-South Korea scaled-down drills continue (to August 28); The World Health Organization officials hold a news conference the day before Africa is expected to be declared free of wild polio; Poland marks the 31st anniversary of the creation of the first post-Communist government in 1989. Ukraine marks the 29th anniversary of independence. 

Tuesday: First Lady Melania Trump and Trump's adult children speak from the White House Rose Garden; Uruguay's Independence Day; the 76th anniversary of the liberation of Paris from Nazi occupation in the Second World War; Austrian Finance Minister Gernot Bluemel hosts a meeting with his counterparts from other German-speaking countries – Germany's Olaf Scholz, Switzerland's Ueli Maurer, Luxembourg's Pierre Gramegna and Adrian Hasler of Liechtenstein. 

Wednesday: U.S. Vice President Mike Pence delivers a speech from Baltimore's Fort McHenry; The informal meeting of EU defense ministers kicks off in Berlin; Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov pays an official visit to Russia; EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier addresses a French business conference. 

Thursday: Donald Trump accepts the nomination in a speech from the White House; the informal meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers starts in Berlin (to August 28). 

Friday: The World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement Body holds monthly meeting. 

Saturday: Japan Defense Minister Taro Kono and United States Secretary of Defense Mark Esper meet in Guam. 

Sunday: Montenegrin assembly election begins. 

(With input from agencies)