Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Wednesday that he held a "productive discussion" on Ukraine's reconstruction and economic recovery with the U.S. side.

The Pentagon has activated the U.S. Army Western Hemisphere Command (West-Hemcom) after the White House issued a document outlining the National Security Strategy, according to a U.S. Defense Department news release on Wednesday.

The U.S. military has intercepted and taken control of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday.

The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday decided to lower the target range for the federal funds interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.5 to 3.75 percent, marking its third rate cut this year.

The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) of the United Arab Emirates affirmed the importance of the decision adopted by the Supreme Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to establish the GCC Civil Aviation Authority and designate the UAE as its headquarters.

Over 100,000 Cambodian villagers have fled their homes for safe zones as border conflict with Thailand has entered a fourth day, a Cambodian defense spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Cameroonian authorities on Tuesday laid the foundation stone for the construction of the headquarters of Cameroon's General Directorate of Customs.

Thousands recently gathered along the banks of the Wouri River in Cameroon's commercial hub, Douala, to witness the Ngondo Festival, as the Sawa community's iconic river ritual marked its first anniversary as a globally renowned intangible cultural heritage.

One person died and another was injured Tuesday in a shooting on Kentucky State University (KSU)'s campus, and a suspect is in custody, according to local authorities.

The Trump administration is pushing hard for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to accept the new edition of a U.S.-brokered peace deal, which may lead to major territorial losses for Ukraine, according to U.S. online media outlet Axios.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Tuesday that parts of the newly published U.S. national security strategy are "unacceptable" from a European perspective, stressing that Germany and Europe must be more independent from the United States in terms of security policy.

The Group of Friends of Global Governance was officially established at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday.

Japanese singer Ayumi Hamasaki announced on her social media account on Tuesday that after her concert in Shanghai was canceled, her scheduled concert in the Macao Special Administrative Region in January will also be canceled. She apologized to fans who were looking forward to seeing her at the concert.

Two workers were injured on Tuesday in South Korea's thermal power plant fire accident, according to Yonhap news agency.

A fire broke out following an explosion at a thermal power plant in southwestern South Korea on Tuesday, Yonhap news agency reported, citing fire authorities.

Armed clashes between Cambodia and Thailand continued on Tuesday with both sides issuing early-morning updates on exchange of fire and casualties, drawing widespread concern.

Chinese Embassy in Japan reminded Chinese nationals in Japan early Tuesday morning to take precautions against earthquake disasters after a 7.5-magnitude earthquake hit northern and northeastern Japan on Monday night.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that national security advisors of Ukraine and European countries will jointly work on amendments to the latest version of a peace plan to end the Ukraine crisis, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz here on Monday to discuss Ukraine peace.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.7 jolted 127 km south of Honcho, Japan at 2152 GMT on Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is concerned by reports of renewed armed clashes between Cambodia and Thailand, particularly the reported airstrikes and mobilization of heavy equipment in the border area, his spokesperson said Monday.

The U.S. government on Monday unveiled an aid package of 12 billion U.S. dollars to farmers hit hard by its tariff policies.

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.5 struck northern and northeastern Japan on Monday, the country's weather agency said.

The Cambodian government said on Monday that a total of 377 schools in border provinces have been shut down due to the ongoing border conflict with Thailand.

Police said they have taken into custody a suspected shooter after reports that shots were fired inside a shopping center in central Oslo on Monday morning.

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Monday that Thailand will exercise its "legitimate right to self-defense" to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity in response to ongoing border clashes with Cambodia.

The Thai army on Monday afternoon expanded its attack area to Banteay Meanchey province after it attacked military positions and civilian zones in Preah Vihear and Oddar Meanchey provinces, said a Cambodian defense spokesperson.

Malaysia has expressed deep concern over reported armed clashes between Cambodian and Thai forces along their border, conveying condolences to the families of those killed or injured on Monday.

Thai army says 35,000 civilians evacuated from border with Cambodia

The Thai Army said on Monday it deployed fighter jets in response to Cambodian attacks that left two soldiers killed and four wounded. Meanwhile, a Cambodian defense spokesperson said Thai soldiers on Monday opened fire on Cambodian armed forces for the second straight day, adding that Cambodia did not fire back.

Weeks after a jewel heist raised concerns about security at the Paris museum, the Louvre was once again in the spotlight as the museum said on Sunday that a water leak in late November damaged several hundred works in its Egyptian department, AFP reported.

Thai soldiers on Monday opened fire on Cambodian armed forces for the second straight day, but Cambodia has not fired back, said a Cambodian defense spokesperson.

The Thai side has now begun using fighter jets to strike military targets in several areas in response to Cambodian attacks, Thai Army spokesperson Winthai Suvaree said on Monday.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 jolted the U.S. state of Alaska at 2041 GMT on Saturday, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday expressed deep sorrow on social media over the nightclub fire that has killed at least 25 people in Arpora, in the Indian resort state of Goa on December 6 local time.

The White House released US President Donald Trump's National Security Strategy (NSS) report for his second term Thursday evening local time, described by US media Politico as "a rare formal explanation" of Trump administration's foreign policy worldview. The 33-page document focuses on the Western Hemisphere, citing the Monroe Doctrine while using “some brutal words for Europe, suggesting it is in civilizational decline, and pays relatively little attention to the Middle East and Africa,” Politico said in a report published on Friday.

Japan is moving ahead with a series of policy measures to bolster its defense capabilities, including plans to raise the country's income tax in January 2027 to help cover a substantial increase in defense spending and to establish a national intelligence bureau as early as July 2026, according to Japanese media reports.

The International Symposium on Human Rights Protection in the Digital Era was held here on Friday, bringing together scholars, social organizations and media from both China and Malaysia.

US Department of State said on Friday that U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators met over two days and agreed on the framework of security arrangements.

The European Commission on Friday imposed fines totaling 120 million euros (139.8 million U.S. dollars) on social media platform X for breaching transparency obligations in its first non-compliance decision under the Digital Services Act (DSA).

The New York Times on Thursday sued US Defense Department over restrictive rules on media, arguing that the department's policy violates the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The US military on Thursday carried out a strike on a boat allegedly transporting narcotics in international waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing all four people on board, the US Southern Command said.

The 3rd Youth Innovation Forum on Digital Earth, also known as the Joint ISPRS-ISDE Conference on Geo-Digitalization for Sustainable Development Goals, was held in Nairobi, Kenya, marking a historic milestone as the forum convened on the African continent for the first time.

Japan's warmongering statements around the Taiwan question are escalatory and go against Japan's constitution, said Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, TASS reported on Thursday.

Russia's 2025 grain harvest is shaping up to be one of the largest in the country's modern history, Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Patrushev said during a meeting on the progress of this year's seasonal field work.

Researchers from the Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry, working with international collaborators, have identified a rare phosphorus-bearing carbonate mineral - bradleyite - preserved as an inclusion inside a diamond formed deep in the Earth's mantle.

A five-hour meeting between Russia and US that ended after midnight on Wednesday failed to produce a compromise plan for settling the Ukraine crisis, the Xinhua News Agency reported. The stark differences in the US and Russian expressions cast fresh shadow of uncertainty over the resolution of the crisis, some Chinese analysts reached by the Global Times on Thursday noted.

A five-hour meeting between Russia and US that ended after midnight on Wednesday failed to produce a compromise plan for settling the Ukraine crisis, the Xinhua News Agency reported. The stark differences in the US and Russian expressions cast fresh shadow of uncertainty over the resolution of the crisis, some Chinese analysts reached by the Global Times on Thursday noted.

Türkiye's annual inflation was recorded at 31.65 percent in November, down from 32.87 percent in October, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed on Wednesday, marking a further easing in underlying price pressures.

Japan's former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has been criticizing current Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous remarks on Taiwan question and emphasizing the importance of building a stable Japan-China relationship, but had thus been attacked by some in Japan for "shooting from behind." In response to such attacks, Ishiba said in a Nippon Broadcasting System program on Tuesday, "When everyone remained silent, what kind of history did Japan follow?"

"Taking sides would only escalate the conflict. This applies to both personal relationships and international relations. Rather than taking sides, it's better to seek ways to coexist," Lee said. "Where possible, it is desirable to minimize the conflict and play a role in mediating and coordination," he noted.

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has halted applications for green cards and U.S. citizenship for immigrants from 19 countries listed in a travel ban earlier this year, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

The search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 will resume on Dec. 30, the Transport Ministry said on Wednesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will announce his selection for the next chairperson of the Federal Reserve in early 2026.

U.S. President Donald Trump said at a White House cabinet meeting on Tuesday that his administration will start strikes on land targeting drug traffickers in the Caribbean "very soon."

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday the U.S. military has "had a bit of a pause because it's hard to find boats to strike right now" in the Caribbean Sea.

The meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff at the Kremlin was "productive," Kirill Dmitriev, Russia's top economic envoy, said Wednesday on social media.

There is no compromise plan for the Ukraine crisis settlement yet after a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. presidential special envoy Steve Witkoff, TASS reported Wednesday, citing Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov.

US President Donald Trump reportedly gave Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro an ultimatum to relinquish power immediately during their recent call, but Venezuela's leader declined, demanding a “global amnesty” for himself and allies, according to The Guardian.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday dismissed calls for South Korea's own nuclear armament, saying it would be "impossible" to gain the international community's approval, Yonhap News Agency reported on Tuesday.

Leaders from several Japanese opposition parties have sharply criticized Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for her recent erroneous remarks on Taiwan, urging her to withdraw the remarks to prevent further damage to Japan-China relations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was briefed on Sunday evening that the Russian forces had taken control of Krasnoarmeysk in the Donetsk region and Volchansk in the Kharkov region, the Kremlin said in a statement on Monday.

U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks on the closure of Venezuelan airspace have sparked condemnation wide for endangering global air travel security, regional stability and peace.

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other European leaders on Monday rejected any Ukraine peace deal negotiated "without Ukrainians and Europeans."

Russian President Vladimir Putin was briefed on Sunday evening that Russian forces had taken control of Krasnoarmeysk (also known as Pokrovsk) in the Donetsk region, a key strategic city in eastern Ukraine, TASS news agency reported on Monday.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said roughly four-hour talks with a Ukrainian delegation in Florida on Sunday made "additional" progress on a revised peace plan to end the Ukraine crisis, but "there is more work to be done." Meanwhile, top US envoys will head to Moscow on Monday for further discussions, media reported.

US media Stars and Stripes recently revealed the composition of a US military task force in the Philippines, with a core element of approximately 60 personnel serving as primary staff. Experts told the Global Times that the US task force stationed in the Philippines may appear to give the Philippine military reassurance and play a placating role, but Manila's attempt to rely on external powers to provoke China's sovereignty is doomed to fail.

As massive anti-corruption protests erupted in the Philippine capital of Manila on Sunday, with thousands calling for prosecution of top legislators and officials implicated in a flood-control project corruption scandal, the Chinese embassy and consulates in the Philippines urged Chinese nationals in the country to strengthen security precautions.

Venezuela denounced and condemned the US' "colonialist threat" that seeks to affect the sovereignty of its airspace after US President's assertion that the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela be considered closed on his social media account, according to a statement issued by the Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday.

At least four people were killed and ten others injured in a shooting on Saturday night during a family gathering in Stockton, a city in northern California, authorities said.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela should be considered closed "in its entirety."

South Korean President Lee Jae-myun and Foreign Minister Cho Hyun on Friday voiced profound sorrow and solidarity in Korean, Chinese and English in response to the fatal high-rise apartment fire that struck Hong Kong's Tai Po district this week, causing heavy casualties.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier acknowledged Germany's guilt for a Nazi's air raid on Guernica in 1937 during a visit to Spain on Friday, becoming the first German leader to visit the Spanish town where hundreds of civilians were killed, according to several media reports.

Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's recent remarks concerning the Taiwan question have triggered strong protests from Beijing and sparked a broad debate within Japan over the country's foreign policy direction amid rising tensions with China. In a recent television program, former prime minister Shigeru Ishiba once again referred to Japan's decision to go to war with the US during WWII, invoking the lessons of history, warning that emotional decision-making by political leaders can carry the risk of steering the nation down a misguided path.

Passengers across Australian airports were thrown into chaos on Saturday after plane maker Airbus issued an urgent software update affecting one of the world's most popular aircraft.

The United States has paused Afghan visas, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday, two days after a man from Afghanistan shot and killed one National Guard soldier and critically injured another near the White House.

The International Criminal Court rejected an appeal on Friday to release the former Philippines' President Rodrigo Duterte on grounds of age and declining health.

Researchers at Southern Federal University (SFedU) have grown the first barley sprouts from soil that replicates the Martian regolith.

After Wall Street Journal reported that US President Trump had advised Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a Tuesday call not to provoke Beijing over Taiwan's sovereignty, Japan flip-flopped its response in a single day, first offering "no comment" and then saying a denial. On the same day, Reuters published a story, saying that Trump asked Takaichi to “avoid escalating disputes with China,” citing sources.

US President Donald Trump announced on Thursday his intention to permanently pause immigration from what he described as "Third World countries."

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that one of the two U.S. National Guard soldiers who were shot near the White House one day earlier has died.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (R) shakes hands with visiting German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at La Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, Nov. 27, 2025.

The Chinese Embassy in Tajikistan strongly condemned an armed attack on Wednesday evening in the border district of Shamsiddin-Shohin in Khatlon region near Afghanistan, leaving three Chinese nationals dead and one injured, the embassy said on Friday.

Multiple Japanese media outlets reported that when asked whether she had discussed the Taiwan question with US President Donald Trump during their recent call, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dodged the question. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that after a China–US phone call initiated by Washington on Monday evening, Trump soon phoned Takaichi and, days after she “outraged China,” advised her not to provoke Beijing over Taiwan's sovereignty.

Former Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra was sentenced on Wednesday to 14 years in prison for taking bribes, according to local authorities.

Ukraine will not amend its Constitution as part of any potential peace deal, Interfax-Ukraine reported Wednesday, citing a member of the Ukrainian delegation involved in talks with the United States, other partners and Russia.

The Security Council and the General Assembly on Wednesday adopted twin resolutions on the 2025 review of the UN peacebuilding architecture.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that the peace plan negotiated by Ukraine and the United States in Geneva could be developed into "deeper agreements," as U.S. President Donald Trump is sending his special envoy to Moscow next week.

Two U.S. National Guard members were shot near the White House on Wednesday and a suspect is in custody, according to local authorities.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, leader of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, was reported by media to have questioned Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a parliamentary debate on Wednesday: “Regarding the deterioration of Japan–China ties, what responsibility do you think you yourself should bear?” — as Takaichi's erroneous remarks on the Taiwan Straits in the Diet triggered widespread and strong criticism.

The first Spain-China Forum on Green Energy was held Monday in the Spanish capital Madrid, bringing together around 300 representatives from government departments, industry associations, and leading energy companies from both countries to discuss deepening cooperation on the green transition.

The United Nations formally started the selection and appointment process for the next UN secretary-general on Tuesday.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he has directed his special envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow in hope of finalizing a peace deal on the Ukraine crisis.

Thailand's Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul declared a state of emergency in Songkhla province on Tuesday as severe flooding ravaged the southern region.

Ukraine has agreed to a peace deal with only "minor details" yet to resolved, CNN reported on Tuesday, citing a US official.

Ukraine has agreed to a peace deal with only "minor details" yet to resolved, CNN reported on Tuesday, citing a US official.

The US-proposed 28-point peace plan aimed at ending the Ukraine crisis has been trimmed to a 19-point framework drafted by the US and Ukraine over the weekend in Geneva. However the most politically sensitive elements remain for the two presidents to negotiate, multiple media outlets reported Monday.

Germany's first major winter storm of the season left at least four people dead and many others injured on Monday, as snow and icy roads caused widespread accidents and travel disruptions.

The U.S.-proposed 28-point peace plan aiming to end the Ukraine crisis has been trimmed to a 19-point framework drafted by the United States and Ukraine over the weekend in Geneva, multiple media outlets reported Monday.

Two people went into cardiac arrest in South Korea's car accident on Monday afternoon, according to Yonhap news agency.