Worldwide news. The world is the totality of entities, the whole of reality, or everything that exists. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the world as unique while others talk of a “plurality of worlds”
Kosovo’s parliament has voted to convert and expand its lightly armed security force into a standing army, a move backed by the United States but opposed by neighboring Serbia. Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic responded by saying Belgrade would request an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting over the vote. He called it the “most …
A prominent Kremlin critic says Russia has been rapidly losing its standing on the world stage due to President Vladimir Putin’s “aggressive” policies. …
At least six paramilitary troops were killed in southwestern Pakistan on December 14 when their convoy came under attack in a mountainous area near the border with Iran in the southwestern province of Balochistan, officials said. …
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) says it will send a team next week to retrieve data from a Moscow anti-doping laboratory, a key requirement for the full reinstatement of the Russian anti-doping agency. …
The Trump administration has unveiled a new strategy for Africa that’s focused on countering Chinese and Russian influence on the resource-rich continent. And the administration is demanding more accountability for American aid. Patsy Widakuswara has more from the White House. …
A first-round of intra-Yemeni peace talks ended in Sweden Thursday with agreement on a cease-fire for the critical port city of Hodeida and plans for a prisoner exchange. VOA U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer reports on Yemen’s dire situation and how the United Nations is working to end the massive humanitarian disaster created by years of …
China’s November retail sales grew at their weakest pace since 2003 and industrial output rose the least in nearly three years as domestic demand softened further, underlining rising risks to the economy as China works to defuse a trade dispute with the United States. The world’s second-largest economy has been loosing momentum in recent quarters …
A U.S. Army Green Beret major has been charged with murder in the death of an Afghan man during his 2010 deployment to the war-torn country, the U.S. military says. …
The United States denounced the “predatory” practices of Russia and China in Africa as it unveiled a refocus of its strategy that will include an end to “indiscriminate assistance across the entire continent.” …
The United States has condemned the “unconscionable” death of a hunger-striking Iranian political activist who had been jailed for messages he wrote on social media. …
Two international charities have launched a program in southern Malawi to help girls in rural areas remain healthy and stay in school. The charities are running girls’ clubs in the Mulanje district, a hotspot of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Some 360 girls are taking part in the Mawa Girls clubs, which were launched …
Read more “International Charities Work to Brighten Malawi Girls’ Future”
The European Parliament has overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling for the Iranian government to “immediately and unconditionally” release jailed human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh. …
An early morning warehouse fire in Kinshasa has destroyed thousands of voting machines and other election materials that were to be used in Congo’s upcoming presidential election. Barnabe Kikaya, an advisor to outgoing President Joseph Kabila, says about 7,000 voting machines were lost in the Thursday morning fire, which he says was the work of …
Read more “Thousands of Voting Machines Destroyed in Congo Warehouse Fire”
A Russian woman accused of working as an agent for the Russian government to build ties to the powerful National Rifle Association lobby group in the United States and infiltrate Republican Party circles is expected to plead guilty Thursday in federal court. Maria Butina was charged in July with acting illegally as an unregistered Russian …
Read more “Accused Russian Agent Set to Plead Guilty in US Court”
The Yellow Vest protesters in France played an ode to Russia on a blocked roadway over the weekend. Or at least that’s what Russian state TV claimed. …
More than 20 journalists and human rights activists have called for the immediate release of Ukrainian blogger and RFE/RL contributor Stanislav Aseyev, who has been held for more than 18 months by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine. …
The December 23 elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo are the country’s most important in more than a decade. After delaying a new poll for two years, longtime President Joseph Kabila is stepping aside. Two main candidates are vying to replace him, one is his handpicked successor, the other an opposition leader. After two …
Read more “Congo Faces Pivotal Poll After 2 Years of Delays”
Christmas came early, in the form of a brand new potable water kiosk, to two villages – Jerusalem and Canaan – in Gonaives, a town with a population of about 300,000 people in Haiti’s north. On a sunny morning, a group of people, most of them women, gathered with bright yellow, blue, and white plastic …
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday that Iran’s ballistic missile activity has been growing instead of stopping, since the 2015 nuclear deal was agreed upon. “Iran has exploited the goodwill of nations and defied multiple Security Council resolutions in its quest for a robust ballistic missile force,” Pompeo …
Read more “Pompeo: Iran Increasing Ballistic Missile Activity”
The court said the publication of the so-called “black ledger” documents “led to interference in the electoral processes of the United States in 2016 and harmed the interests of Ukraine as a state.” …
A group of Russian lawmakers has introduced a package of bills in the State Duma envisaging fines of up to 1 million rubles ($15,000) for spreading false “socially significant” information through the media and on the Internet. …
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has told the UN Security Council that Washington would seek to work with the 15-member body to reimpose ballistic missile restrictions on Iran. …
The U.S. Treasury and U.S. Trade Representative’s office said on Tuesday they intended to sign a new bilateral insurance agreement with Britain that will provide insurance market regulatory certainty and continuity after Britain leaves the European Union. The Treasury and USTR said the U.S.-U.K. Covered Agreement would be consistent with a similar agreement signed with …
Read more “US Treasury, USTR Reach Post-Brexit Insurance Accord with Britain”
Nigeria’s main opposition candidate did not attend an event on Tuesday to sign an election agreement stating a commitment to hold a peaceful election early next year, and his party attributed his absence to a “communication lapse.” The opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) confirmed in an emailed statement that its candidate, Atiku Abubakar, had not participated …
Read more “Nigerian Candidate Absent From Election Accord Ceremony “