In his first term as U.S. president, Donald Trump tightened economic sanctions against North Korea to try to force Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons program. VOA’s Young Gyo Kim looks at what Trump should expect from North Korea during his second term. Scott Stearns narrates. …
India-China frozen ties witness thaw in 2024
New Delhi — After a four-and-a-half-year military standoff along their disputed Himalayan border, ties between India and China witnessed a thaw in 2024 with both sides withdrawing troops from two flashpoints. But analysts say mistrust remains a key hurdle to restoration of friendly ties between the Asian giants. Indian foreign minister, Subrahmanyan Jaishankar, told parliament this month that the pullback has set New Delhi-Beijing ties “in …
Germany looking into possible security lapses after Christmas market attack
Berlin — Germany searched for answers on Monday on possible security lapses after a man drove his car into a Christmas market, killing at least five people and casting a renewed spotlight on security and immigration ahead of a snap election. The possible motive of the arrested suspect, a 50-year-old psychiatrist from Saudi Arabia with a history of anti-Islamic rhetoric and a sympathy for the far-right …
Lebanese prime minister visits south amid Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire
Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Monday visited Lebanese troops positions and U.N. peacekeeper posts in southern Lebanon, touring the region from which Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants are supposed to withdraw under a nearly month-old ceasefire agreement. Mikati praised the role of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) after meeting with UNIFIL commanders, and began his tour with a visit to a …
China says it provided information, documents in Baltic Sea cables inquiry
BEIJING — China has provided information and documents to a joint investigation into two severed Baltic Sea undersea cables, and has invited Germany, Sweden, Finland and Denmark to participate in and complete the inquiry, the foreign ministry said on Monday. Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning made the remarks at a news briefing when asked about a Financial Times report that Sweden had criticized China for refusing …
South Korean opposition threatens to impeach Han over martial law counsel
SEOUL — South Korea’s main opposition party threatened on Monday to impeach acting president Han Duck-soo if he failed to approve legislation to launch a special counsel investigation into President Yoon Suk Yeol’s failed bid to impose martial law. Prime Minister Han has taken over from the suspended Yoon, who was impeached on Dec. 14 and faces a Constitutional Court review on whether to oust him. …
South Korea says North Korea preparing to send more troops, weapons to Russia
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday there are indications that North Korea is preparing to send more troops and weapons to support Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. The additional weapons being readied include suicide drones, and North Korea has already sent 240mm rocket launchers and 170mm self-propelled artillery to Russia, the JCS said in a statement. North Korea has also sent about 12,000 …
Romanian parliament expected to approve new government
BUCHAREST — Romania’s outgoing president Klaus Iohannis is expected Monday to designate leftist Social Democrat Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu to form a new government after three pro-European parties agreed to the details of a parliamentary majority. The Social Democrat Party (PSD) will hold eight cabinet posts including justice, transport, labor and defense, and most of its current ministers will stay on in their posts. The centrist …
Malaysia’s 1MDB files legal claim against Amicorp Group seeking over $1 billion for alleged fraud
KUALA LUMPUR — Scandal-hit Malaysian state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad said on Monday it has filed a legal claim of more than $1 billion against corporate services provider Amicorp Group and its CEO, alleging the firm knowingly facilitated over $7 billion in fraudulent transactions. The claim, among one of the biggest filed by 1MDB related to the multibillion dollar graft scandal, was filed in the British …
Makers of Taiwan’s ‘Zero Day’ TV series set around invasion fear backlash from China
TAIPEI — A Chinese war plane goes missing near Taiwan. China sends swarms of military boats and planes for a blockade as Taiwan goes on a war footing. Panic ensues on the streets of Taipei. The premise of “Zero Day,” a new Taiwan TV drama envisioning a Chinese invasion, is a topic that has for years been considered too sensitive for many Taiwan filmmakers and television …
‘El Gordo’ lottery in Spain spreads Christmas riches worth $2.8 billion
Madrid — For weeks, Spaniards had anticipated the arrival of “El Gordo” or “The Fat One.” But unlike Santa Claus, El Gordo arrived three days before Christmas, before noon on Sunday. El Gordo is the first prize of Spain’s hugely popular national Christmas lottery, which is said to be the world’s largest based on the total prize money involved, even though other lotteries have larger single …
Russia captures two villages in Ukraine as Moscow’s forces advance on two cities
Russian forces captured two villages in Ukraine, one in Kharkiv region in the northeast and one in eastern Donetsk region, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday. Donetsk region is where Moscow is concentrating most of its efforts to seize two cities. Russian forces, making steady progress across Donetsk region, are moving on the towns of Pokrovsk, a logistics center and site of an important …
Pope Francis calls for ceasefire on all fronts in his prayer ahead of Christmas
Vatican City — Pope Francis called for a ceasefire on all war fronts in his Sunday Angelus prayer ahead of Christmas, condemning the “cruelty” of bombing schools and hospitals in Ukraine and Gaza. “Let the weapons fall silent and let the Christmas carols ring out!” Francis said, delivering his Sunday blessing from indoors due to a cold and as a precaution ahead of a busy Christmas …
Syria’s new leader says all weapons to come under ‘state control’
Damascus, Syria — Two weeks after seizing power in a sweeping offensive, Syria’s new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa on Sunday said weapons in the country, including those held by Kurdish-led forces, would come under state control. Sharaa spoke alongside Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after earlier meeting with Lebanese Druze leaders and vowing to end “negative interference” in the neighboring country. Ankara-backed rebels played a key role …
China says US is ‘playing with fire’ after latest military aid for Taiwan
Beijing — The Chinese government protested Sunday the latest American announcements of military sales and assistance to Taiwan, warning the United States that it is “playing with fire.” U.S. President Joe Biden authorized Saturday the provision of up to $571 million in Defense Department material and services and in military education and training for self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory and says must come …
Saudi Arabia announces resumption of embassy operations in Kabul
Riyadh , Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia announced on Sunday the resumption of operations of its diplomatic mission in the Afghan capital, Kabul, more than three years after withdrawing its diplomats from the country amid the chaos that accompanied the Taliban’s rise to power. “Based on the keenness of the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to provide all services to the brotherly Afghan people, …
Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmuk shows extent of violence during 13-year civil war in Syria
The former Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmuk, on the outskirts of Damascus, offers a glimpse into how brutal the Syrian civil war was for the civilian population. Home to more than 150,000 people, Yarmuk was completely destroyed during the early years of the war. Now, many are returning to try to rebuild their devastated homes. (Images taken on Dec. 20, 2024) …
Putin meets Slovak PM Fico at Kremlin
Moscow — Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks at the Kremlin on Sunday with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, one of the few European leaders he has stayed friendly with since the eruption of hostilities with Ukraine, according to Russian television. “Putin is currently holding talks in the Kremlin with Slovak Prime Minister Fico,” Russian TV journalist Pavel Zarubin, a Kremlin insider, posted on his Telegram …
Thousands protest in Serbian capital over fatal train station accident
Belgrade — Thousands protested Sunday in Serbia’s capital Belgrade to demand that leaders take responsibility for the collapse of a train station roof that killed 15 people last month. For over seven weeks, the Serbian government has been under pressure from nation-wide demonstrations following the deaths in the northern city of Novi Sad, with many protesters accusing authorities of corruption and inadequate oversight. Sunday’s protest organized …
2 US Navy pilots shot down over Red Sea in apparent ‘friendly fire’ incident, US military says
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES — Two U.S. Navy pilots were shot down Sunday over the Red Sea in an apparent “friendly fire” incident, the U.S military said, marking the most serious incident to threaten troops in over a year of America targeting Yemen’s Houthi rebels. Both pilots were recovered alive after ejecting from their stricken aircraft, with one suffering minor injuries. But the shootdown underlines just …
Italy’s Meloni says security threat posed by Russia is far-reaching
SAARISELKA, Finland — Russia poses a bigger threat to European Union security than just defense as Moscow can use illegal immigration and other issues to undermine the bloc, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Sunday. Finland hosted the leaders of Italy, Sweden and Greece, as well as the EU foreign affairs chief, in its northern Lapland region at the weekend to discuss security in the …
German authorities received a warning last year about the suspect in Christmas market attack
MAGDEBURG, GERMANY — German authorities received a warning last year about the suspected perpetrator in a car attack at a Christmas market, a government office said Sunday as more details emerged about the five people killed in the attack. “This was taken seriously, like every other of the numerous tips,” the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees said Sunday on X about the tip it said …
Israeli strikes across Gaza kill at least 20
DEIR AL-BALAH, GAZA STRIP — Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight and into Sunday killed at least 20 people, including five children, Palestinian medical officials said. Israeli authorities meanwhile allowed Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the leader of the Catholic Church in the Holy Land, to enter Gaza and celebrate a pre-Christmas Mass with members of the territory’s small Christian community. A strike on a school housing …
What Assad’s fall has revealed about Syria’s trade in stimulant drug Captagon
BEIRUT — Since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, industrial-scale manufacturing facilities of the amphetamine-like stimulant Captagon have been uncovered around the country, which experts say fed a $10 billion annual global trade in the highly addictive drug. Among the locations used for manufacturing the drug were the Mazzeh air base in Damascus, a car-trading company in Latakia and a factory that once made …