ISTANBUL (AP) — Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky was in Istanbul on Friday for talks with the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoganwhose NATO member state has sought to balance its close ties with both Kiev and Moscow and has repeatedly offered to act as a peace mediator between them. During the talks in Istanbul, Erdogan was … Read more
PARIS (AP) — France on Friday included the guaranteed right to abortion in its constitution, a strong message of support for women’s rights to international Women’s Day. Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti used a 19th-century printing press to seal the amendment to the French Constitution in a special public ceremony. Applause filled the cobbled Place Vendome … Read more
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s ancient capital Kyoto, long a popular destination for tourists, is closing a number of privately owned alleys in its famed geisha district after complaints about misbehaving visitors. Tourists crowd the narrow, scenic streets of the area called Gion, often followed by guides who show people around and give hours of lectures, … Read more
After being gently awakened in her sleeper cabin, Sarah Marks spent the morning of her 29th birthday watching the Alps zoom past the windows of her night train to Zurich. “The train comes in right next to the lake, with the mountains behind it,” Marks said wistfully. “Very romantic, I must say.” By the time … Read more
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s president vowed Wednesday not to tolerate the situation prolonged strikes by thousands of doctors in trainingThey call them “an illegal collective action” that threatens public health and undermines the country’s governance systems. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s government was engaged in this process suspending the licenses of approximately 9,000 … Read more
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A U.S. destroyer shot down drones and launched a missile by The Houthi rebels in Yemen toward the ship in the Red Sea, officials said early Wednesday, as the Indian Navy released images of it battling a fire aboard a container ship previously targeted by the Houthis. The attack … Read more
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Premier Li Qiang promoted an image of trust, as he announced modest economic growth targets for the world’s second-largest economy, at one of the country’s most important political gatherings. Li was addressing several thousand delegates from the country’s parliamentary legislature, the National People’s Congress, meeting in Beijing. It is a time … Read more
BEIJING (AP) — China announced on Tuesday a 7.2% increase in the defense budget, which at 1.6 trillion yuan ($222 billion) is already the second highest in the world after the United States, roughly mirroring last year’s increase. The tensions with the US, Taiwan, Japan and neighbors with competing claims to the crucial South China … Read more
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Real estate magnate Truong My Lan faces the death penalty in a trial that began Tuesday over alleged fraud worth $12.5 billion — nearly 3% of the country’s GDP in 2022 and the largest financial fraud case ever in Vietnam. The 66-year-old chairman of real estate company Van Thinh Phat is … Read more
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Three cables under the Red Sea that provide global internet and telecommunications have been cut as the waterway remains a target The Houthi rebels in Yemen, officials said Monday. Meanwhile, a Houthi missile attack set a ship on fire in the Gulf of Aden but caused no injuries. What … Read more