China is not afraid of competition, Xi tells Blinken as two spar over Beijing’s backing to Russia’s Ukraine war (www.deccanherald.com)
Spain: PM Sanchez suspends public duties as wife probed (www.dw.com)
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Wednesday he will suspend public duties until next week to decide whether he wants to continue leading the government after a court launched a probe of his wife....
‘Privileged access’: pro-plastic lobbyists at UN pollution talks increase by a third (www.theguardian.com)
Fossil fuel and petrochemical campaigners at Ottawa summit outnumber scientists, EU and Indigenous delegates...
US preparing to announce $6B in weapons contracts for Ukraine (www.politico.com)
With Hope of Kickstarting Floundering Ceasefire Negotiations, Egypt Sends Delagation to Israel- Republic World (www.republicworld.com)
UK man with alleged Wagner ties charged with spying for Russia (kyivindependent.com)
AP Week in Pictures: Latin America and Caribbean (apnews.com)
‘Are we joking?’: Venice residents protest as city starts charging visitors to enter (www.theguardian.com)
Day-trippers will have to pay €5 to visit Italian city under scheme designed to protect it from excess tourism...
Quebec separation re-enters political debate thanks to TikTok-friendly leader (www.theguardian.com)
Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon speaking loudly and often after party win over Coalition Avenir Québec...
Ukraine pressures military age men abroad by suspending their consular services | CNN (edition.cnn.com)
Oligarch sanction setbacks are no big deal, Brussels says (www.euronews.com)
A string of EU court judgements overruling asset freezes on Russian businessmen doesn’t upend the overall strategy....
Pessimistic young Germans turning to far right, says study (www.dw.com)
German teenagers and young adults find themselves increasingly unsatisfied and likely to vote for the far right, according to a survey. Fears about prosperity are highlighted as a possible cause....
As Biden, Sunak pledge more cruise missiles for Ukraine, Germany’s Scholz adamant on Taurus refusal (www.politico.eu)
The German chancellor and his defense minister have doubled down on their decision not to send long-range missiles to Ukraine....
‘Every day I cry’: 50 women talk about life as a domestic worker under the Gulf’s kafala system (www.theguardian.com)
Condemned as dangerous and abusive, the kafala labour system not only disregards migrant workers’ rights but depends on exploitation. But 10 years after Qatar was advised by the UN to abolish kafala (“sponsorship”) entirely and replace it with a regulated labour network, the system is thriving across Lebanon, Jordan and...
Russia would lose a war with NATO, Poland warns (www.politico.eu)
“It is not we, the West, who should fear a clash with Putin, but the other way around,” Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said....
Russia's army is now 15% bigger than when it invaded Ukraine, says US general (www.businessinsider.com)
Russia’s army has grown bigger despite sustaining losses when it invaded Ukraine, says a US general....
Russia vetoes a UN resolution calling for prevention of a dangerous nuclear arms race in space (apnews.com)
Moscow pressured Nicaragua to file genocide case against Germany, intel sources say (www.politico.eu)
The Kremlin may have been trying to undermine the ICJ’s authority by making it a venue for specious legal arguments, say authorities....
India dismisses US human rights report as 'deeply biased' (www.reuters.com)
Israeli missile has struck Iran, US officials say - BBC News (www.bbc.com)
An Israeli missile has hit Iran, two US officials have told the BBC’s US partner CBS News....
Germany's China envoy summoned by Beijing over spying claims (www.dw.com)
Germany’s ambassador to China says she was summoned by Chinese authorities after four Germans were arrested on suspicion of spying for Beijing....
Fentanyl: A senior Mexican official recognizes that the country ‘is the champion’ in the drug production (english.elpais.com)
The statement by the head of the Criminal Investigation Agency contradicts the position maintained by President López Obrador...
Afghan Asylum Seekers Are Being Denied Their Religious Rights in ICE Prisons (truthout.org)
Israel thought to be preparing to send troops into Rafah (www.theguardian.com)
Israel appears to be readying to send troops into Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, the only corner of the strip that has not seen fierce ground fighting and where more than half of the Palestinian territory’s population of 2.3 million has sought shelter....
Congo questions Apple over knowledge of conflict minerals in its supply chain (abcnews.go.com)
